Jaffna Bishop urges Tamils to cast their votes without fail

[TamilNet, Saturday, 06 March 2004, 13:47 GMT]
The Jaffna Bishop Rt.Rev. Thomas Soundaranayagam Saturday appealed to Tamil people to exercise their franchise without fail to clearly express their desire for permanent peace. "Several Tamil political parties are contesting the forthcoming general election under one wing and it will signify a landmark event to the future of Tamils," said Rt Rev.Thomas Soundaranayagam in a statement issued Saturday.

All voters have freedom to exercise their franchise in the general election. Particularly voters in the areas, which are not controlled by the government, should be allowed to cast their vote in the forthcoming general election without any hindrance. Tamils should participate in the election and cast their votes taking into consideration our national interest , said Jaffna Bishop in his statement.

Rt.Rev Thomas Soundaranayagam further said that Tamils should tell the international community by casting their votes that they prefer peace and not war.

Government departments have been functioning and the Department of Examinations has been conducting examination in the LTTE controlled areas. Therefore it will not be difficult for the authorities concerned to conduct the general election in the LTTE controlled areas. The government should take steps to hold polling in the LTTE controlled areas in the northeast province, Jaffna Bishop said in a letter sent he had already sent to the President, Jaffna sources said.