Tigers to observe polls

2004-02-12 12:27

Johannesburg - Minister in the Presidency Essop Pahad on Wednesday clarified that the ruling African National Congress (ANC) was not inviting a group of Sri Lanka's Tamil rebels to lobby for Asian votes for general elections on April 14.

"We have still got to discuss the matter at both national and provincial level," he said in a statement.

However, he confirmed that the Tamil Tigers were invited to "come as observers", adding that he hoped this could help in solving the problems in Sri Lanka.

"There is no question of our calling on the Tamil Tigers to help us to campaign in the election. Groups from the parties of the (Sri Lankan) president, the prime minister and others would be similarly welcome," Pahad said.

He denied saying that the ANC did not enjoy substantial support from the Asian community, who make up 2.5% of South Africa's population, as reported by the Sunday Times newspaper last weekend.

The paper, quoted by AFP, had reported Pahad as saying the Sri Lankan rebel group would campaign on behalf of the ANC because Tamils were the largest linguistic group among South Africans of Asian origin.

No outside help needed

"The ANC is able to fight its own elections, and needs no outside help. We are quite capable of fighting and winning elections based on the support of our own people," Wednesday's statement said.

Pahad said it had become "established practice" since South Africa's first democratic elections in 1994 - the year apartheid formally ended - to bring in international observers during elections.

He said the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels would also "come as observers and assist in the sense that their presence would add credibility to the exercise in democracy.

"If this assists in finding a possible solution to the present situation in Sri Lanka it would be most helpful," he added.

Peace talks between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan government have been deadlocked since April 2003, but the rebels agreed to resume negotiations in November after unveiling their first peace plan to end an ethnic conflict that has claimed more than 60 000 lives.

- AFP