Achieving true electoral reform

Saturday, 17 July 2021 00:00 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

It was noted this week that some 100 proposals had been handed in to the Parliamentary Select Committee assigned to identify electoral reform. At the very least such enthusiasm for reform is heartening, and signifies a genuine desire to amend the problems entrenched in the current system. However, to achieve true electoral reform, in Sri Lanka especially, we might need to go beyond simply rejigging the system.

Electoral politics in a broad sense of term has taken a prominent place in post-colonial Sri Lanka, often being intimately tied to deeper undercurrents such as ethnicity, gender, caste and class. In a new post-war context, it has become increasingly urgent to address this issue yet again, but it cannot be seen as a salve to the broader issues mentioned earlier.

Sri Lanka led the way in the South Asian region by being one of the first nations to go from a first past the post system to a proportional representation system. However, since then we have lagged behind global trends with our neighbours advancing to mixed member systems. While debating and advocating for progress is commendable, it is important to distinguish between the key issues that could be addressed by reform and those that are merely tangential.

Issues raised most often are those relating to electoral violence and the problem of ‘suitable candidates’ not making it into Parliament. Experts have already noted that electoral reform will do little to curb these problems. Electoral violence is generally speaking a law-and-order issue and one that requires a strong, independent Police Force and a Judiciary willing to prosecute instigators of violence.

Other issues such as quality of candidates can be better regulated by limiting campaign spending and thereby levelling the playing field for political candidates of varying socioeconomic backgrounds. This in turn could have a positive effect for women’s and ethnic minority representation in Parliament.

In terms of ethnic representation, the Sri Lankan Parliament has close to a quarter of its members coming from minority communities, closely reflecting the real demographics on the island. In that respect political representation for the island’s minorities has been secured but whether this is a guarantee of political rights and equal socio-political status is another question altogether and better left answered in avenues other than the electoral system.

A more pressing issue in electoral representation is of course the representation of women in Parliament, with Sri Lanka lagging woefully behind regional counterparts despite having the world’s first female Prime Minister. Here is where electoral reform, using elements of reservation or affirmative action, can play a role in improving women’s representation – though again it would require a comprehensive social program to uplift women’s position in society.

Intellectuals have already spoken out about the simultaneous need for and limitations of electoral reform and politicians would do well to listen so as to not mislead the public with mismatched politics. In the meantime, the country’s intellectual elite also need to work harder to make this debate more accessible to the masses. After all, if the discussion at hand is one relating to democracy, then the forum itself should be as democratic as possible.