Election Violence Already?

Local election monitors said that at least one person was killed and two others injured in violent incidents which were reported across Sri Lanka within the past 36 hours due to the August parliamentary elections.

Executive Director of the Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CAFFE), Rajith Keerthi Tennakoon said that the incidents had occurred between supporters of the two main political parties, the United National Party (UNP) and the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA).
Tennakoon said that the police were probing the latest incident which was reported on Monday night in Ratnapura, in the Sabaragamuwa Province, when a supporter of the UNP was attacked and killed by an unidentified group on his way to organize an election campaign for a female UNP parliamentarian.
“The victim had been politically active and police are probing to ascertain whether this incident was politically motivated or not,” Tennakoon said.
The other incidents which took place in Mahiyanganaya, in the Uva Province, Anuradhapura in the North Central province and Kurunegala in the North Western Province were between supporters of the UPFA and UNP.
Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena dissolved his parliament last week announcing a parliamentary election will be held on August 17 to elect a new parliament.
Local election monitors have said that they hope to invite at least 50 foreign observers to monitor the polls on Election Day.