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EPDP wins election in LTTE-held area

V.S. Sambandan

Tigers are not contesting March 30 poll

COLOMBO: The Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP), which is opposed to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), has won a symbolically key local body, Puthukudiyiruppu, where the headquarters of LTTE leader V. Prabakaran is believed located.

According to officials, the EPDP's nomination paper for the council in the rebel-held north was the "only valid nomination paper," for the election scheduled for March 30.

Ironic situation

The Puthukudiyiruppu Pradeshiya Sabha, in the Mullaittivu district, is one of the 76 local bodies in the north-east. The returning officer has asked the EPDP to decide the Chairman, Vice-Chairman and the members of the council. Technically, local authorities have the power to "regulate, control and administer subjects of public health, thoroughfares, utility, welfare and environmental and sanitation" in their areas.

"The irony is that basic amenities for the LTTE would be the responsibility of the local body headed by us," an EPDP official said. According to 2003 figures, Puthukudiyiruppu has a population of 51,180, comprising both permanent and displaced residents. It is one of the five divisions in the Mullaittivu district, which has a population of 1.4 lakh. Tamils comprise 99.9 per cent of the district's population.

EPDP secretary-general Douglas Devananda last week filed nominations for the local bodies at the administrative headquarters in Jaffna and Vavuniya.

The other non-LTTE parties that have filed nominations in the northern and eastern districts are the People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE) and a faction of the Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF).

The LTTE is not contesting the election, though it has a registered political party — the People's Front of Liberation Tigers (PFLT). The LTTE-backed Tamil National Alliance has fielded candidates for local bodies in the Government controlled areas in the north and the east under the banner of the Ilankai Tamil Arasu Katchi (ITAK). According to political sources, LTTE-candidates are contesting as independent groups.

The build-up to the local body polls are ahead of a scheduled meeting between the Government and the LTTE in Geneva on February 22 and 23 to discuss implementation issues related to the ceasefire agreement.

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EPDP wins election in LTTE-held area

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