Sri Lankan Parliamentary Elections 2001 – I An Overview
22 Nov, 2001 · 642
N. Manoharan gives an overview of the 12th parliamentary elections to be held on December 5, 2001
| Objective
|
:
|
To elect 225 members (196 members elected to multi-seat constituencies and 29 by proportional representation) for the 12th Parliament for a term of six years
|
| Polling Date
|
:
|
|
| Contestants
|
:
|
4610 candidates belonging to 18 political parties and 42 independent groups
|
| Last Election
|
:
|
Held on
|
Important Parties
| People’s
|
–
|
Sri Lanka Freedom Party, Eelam People’s Democratic Party, Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (Ferial Ashraf group), Communist Party of Sri Lanka, Lanka Sama Samaja Party and others
|
| United National Front
|
–
|
United National Party, Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (Rauf Hakeem group), Ceylon Workers Congress and others
|
| Tamil National
|
–
|
Tamil United Liberation Front, Tamil Eelam Liberation Organisation, Eelam People’s Revolutionary Liberation Front (Suresh) & All Ceylon Tamil Congress
|
| Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna
|
|
|
Major Issues and Parties’ (Alliances’) Stand
1. Ethnic Question
| People’s
|
:
|
Committed to devolution of powers to the minorities; willingness to hold talks with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) only if demand for separate Eelam is given up; LTTE not the sole representative of Tamils
|
| United National Front
|
:
|
Temporary administrative machinery to conduct affairs in the North-East for a short period while negotiating with the LTTE
|
| Tamil National
|
:
|
Immediate cessation of hostilities and commencement of talks with the LTTE through an international third party
|
| Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna
|
:
|
Safeguarding the unitary status of the country; granting equal status to all the communities in the country; solving the ethnic issue without third party mediation
|
2. Economic Situation
| People’s
|
:
|
Economic empowerment of the people through economic liberalisation and globalisation; to safeguard the farming community against the ravages of globalisation; economic self-sufficiency through food production drive
|
| United National Front
|
:
|
Bring down inflation and unemployment rate; immediate attention to tourism, manufacturing, plantation and agriculture sectors
|
| Tamil National
|
:
|
Immediate lifting of economic embargo on the Tamil areas
|
| Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna
|
:
|
Economy of the country will be resurrected with increased local and foreign investments on the lines of
|
3. Administrative Reforms
| People’s
|
:
|
Framing of a new Constitution incorporating first past-the-post system, parliamentary form of government, devolution of powers to the provinces
|
| United National Front
|
:
|
Implementation of Independent Commissions set up under the 17th Amendment
|
| Tamil National
|
:
|
Reforms to realize the genuine interests of Tamils
|
| Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna
|
:
|
Abolition of the executive presidency and transfer of executive powers to parliament. Amending the Constitution, thereby making MPs responsible to their voters; taking steps to implement the 17th Amendment; and, stating clearly in the Constitution when the main elections should be held
|
4. Overall Development
| People’s
|
:
|
To implement second phase of development; special attention to the problems affecting the youth
|
| United National Front
|
:
|
Taking villages to the world
|
| Tamil National
|
:
|
Rehabilitation of the affected minorities
|
| Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna
|
:
|
Re-empower the people and take their requirements into consideration in governance
|
Thrust of Campaigning
| People’s
|
:
|
Stability
|
| United National Front
|
:
|
Change
|
| Tamil National
|
:
|
Tamil nationalism
|
| Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna
|
:
|
A third alternative
|
POPULAR COMMENTARIES
