Minister Susil Premjayanth

He said the results of the local polls in the Batticaloa district have proved that the people have rejected terrorism, and the LTTE.

"They have been able to establish their democratic rights by public vote. They also had the opportunity to elect members for the local bodies from their choice to serve them and develop the area", Premjayanth said.

	"It is a victory for the people in the east", says Minister Susil Premjayanth

Rejecting allegations by the United National Party that the elections were manipulated by the government to replace one terrorist group to another, Minister Premjayanth said it was an insult to the sixty per cent of people who voted in the elections.

UNP, he said, was trying to jeopardise the elections from the beginning and they resorted to issue statements through various western connections to meet this end.