EU says TNA win to help take forward reconciliation
Saturday, 28 September 2013 00:00
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The Chair of the EU Parliament’s South Asia Delegation Jean Lambert on Thursday issued the following statement on the successful completion of the elections for three provinces in Sri Lanka last week:
On behalf of the Delegation of the European Parliament for relations with South Asia, I wish to congratulate the authorities which organised and the voters who participated in the 21 September elections to the North Western, Central and Northern Provincial Councils of Sri Lanka.
Being the first election held for decades in a part of the country which has suffered so much from the conflict, the elections to the Northern Provincial Council bear special significance.
These elections appear to genuinely reflect the will of the 68% of registered voters who took part to the poll, despite sporadic reports of violence and intimidation, which we hope will be duly investigated.
The success of the Tamil National Alliance creates an opportunity to build trust between the national Government and the leading provincial party in order to move the political reconciliation process forward.
On behalf of the South Asia delegation, I wish to congratulate Chief Ministerial candidate Wigneswaran and wish him well in assuming his important responsibilities for the betterment of the people of the Northern Province.
I hope and trust that within the framework of the Sri Lankan Constitution, national and provincial authorities will cooperate fully to that end.
