News

News

Monitors gear up for poll
By Shelani Perera
With just three days for the Presidential poll, arrangements were under way by the two local monitoring bodies PAFFREL and CMEV. They were planning to deploy more than 25,000 observers on election day in all districts including the North and the East.

The monitors were being briefed over the weekend on the modalities to be followed. PAFFREL which will deploy around 20,000 monitors is to dispatch two observers to each polling booth.

PAFFREL Executive Director Kingsley Rodrigo said currently a list of polling booths was being prepared. “There will be 14 cluster polling booths and we will deploy two observers each to these booths as well. There will be 40 foreign observers monitoring the North and the East. We have also opened 160 District Offices to help the public lodge any complaints regarding election violence,” said Mr. Rodrigo.

A mobile patrol would also be deployed in all the districts, he said.
“We will have 2,000 observers and around 350 jeeps. We have also identified violence-prone areas for observers to be extra cautious,” the Executive Director said.

PAFFREL also plans to set up an early warning system to monitor post-election violence. Meanwhile the CMEV will deploy 5,000 observers in all polling divisions. CMEV Co Convener Dr. P. Saravanamuttu said that observers would be posted at all polling booths.

‘We will also deploy 17 international monitors to the North and the East. Mobile units will also be in all districts and around 2,000 field monitors will be deployed,’ he said.

Top

Back to News