The upcoming elections for local council seats in Batticaloa mark a very important opportunity to give the Tamils the opportunity to have their first elected Governor,” says US Ambassador for Sri Lanka Robert O Blake.
Addressing a public function held in Batticaloa on Wednesday the US Ambassador said free & fair elections cannot be held in Batticaloa as one party is allowed to bear arms.
If one party was allowed arms and threaten and intimidate other parties and other contestants free and fair elections cannot be held said the US Ambassador. He said US was working with the government, the private sector, and non-governmental organizations to help establish and reconstruct whole of east particularly Batticaloa but allowing paramilitary groups to act freely in the East had discouraged prime investment that was badly needed to help the reconstruction process in the province.
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