Monday, 12 January 2015 00:41
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The Commonwealth Observer Group which was monitoring Sri Lanka’s presidential election praised the Election Commissioner and his staff for their “professionalism and dedication under challenging circumstances” but said the “electoral contest did not comply with all the key benchmarks for democratic elections.”
Issuing an interim report on Thursday’s presidential election where the Opposition common candidate Maithripala Sirisena claimed victory over the incumbent President Mahinda Rajapaksa with a 51.28% vote, the group said the outcome of the 2015 election reflected the will of the people of Sri Lanka.
“It is however the view of the group that the inadequate electoral and legal framework coupled with an unequal pre-electoral environment means that this electoral contest did not comply with all the key benchmarks for democratic elections,” the nine-member observer group chaired by the Dr. Bharrat Jagdeo, former President of Ghana said.
The group commended the people of Sri Lanka for the “spirit in which they participated in this important election.”
“The high voter turnout of 81.52% reflects positively on the Sri Lankan people’s strong commitment to the democratic process.”
The Commonwealth Observer Group, present in Sri Lanka since 2 January, has observed the pre-election preparations, polling and counting processes.
The group was tasked with considering, among other things, whether conditions existed for credible elections, including a fair pre-election environment, the transparency of the entire process, whether voters were free to express their will and whether the counting and results process was transparent.
On Election Day, the Group observed a peaceful and well-managed process with a high voter turnout.
While commending the “deeply impressive” efforts, integrity and determination of the Elections Commissioner throughout the election period the group recognised that the Office of the Elections Commissioner lacks the necessary powers of enforcement with regard to election law violations and also lacks legislative independence from the Executive.
“Furthermore, in the absence of an independent Elections Commission, Sri Lanka’s electoral framework does not provide for the basic conditions for democratic elections,” the Commonwealth observers said.
The group also commended the domestic observer groups and civil society for the role they played in monitoring and reporting during the election period.
“Their robust and fearless work ensured that democratic processes were safeguarded,” the group said.
