Sri Lanka's Election Commissioner seeks legal advise on former Army Commander's voting rights

The Election Commissioner of Sri Lanka said that he had sought the legal advise of the Attorney General to decide if the vote cast by the former Army Commander at the past Provincial Council election legal.

Former Army Commander Sarath Fonseka whose civic rights are questionable following the court sentences against him cast his vote at the Western Provincial Council election held recently.

The Election Commissioner Mahinda Deshapriya said that the former Army Commander had not registered his vote at the residence he mentioned in the documents submitted to the Election Commissioner's Department.

He further said that Fonseka had registered his vote from a relative's house in Piliyandala.

The Election Commissioner said that he had received a complaint in regard of Fonseka's voting and his name would be removed from the electoral registry if the Attorney General instructed to do so.

Ranil to face Fonseka in Colombo polls

(February 22, Colombo - Lanka Polity)  Sri Lanka's major opposition United National Party (UNP) that has already admitted the defeat at the upcoming general election scheduled on April 8 is facing another trouble as the defeated opposition presidential candidate Sarath Fonseka is likely to contest in an alliance with the Marxist People's Liberation Front (JVP). 

Fonseka is slated to contest under National Democratic Alliance's trophy symbol in Colombo district where UNP leader Ranil Wickramasinghe expects to obtain a massive number of preferential votes. 

UNP abandoned Fonseka following the election and it is understood that there was a government-UNP understanding behind the arrest of the ex-General. JVP took the brunt of agitations for his release and opened up a new path for a fighting opposition under his leadership. 

Sri Lanka definitely needs a new leadership to fight the rising constitutional and democratically elected dictatorship. The opposition led by Ranil Wickramasinghe is too submissive and lethargic for the task. Perhaps, the polity will try for new options. 

Are Sri Lankan Marixsts eying for the opposition leadership?

(February 20, Colombo - Lanka Polity)  The opposition coalition in Sri Lanka has shattered. The parties that backed the opposition presidential candidate Sarath Fonseka are now divided. Major opposition United National Party (UNP) is no more actively supporting the campaigns for his release.

Only the Marxist People's Liberation Front (JVP) has not abandoned him. JVP has decided to contest the general election under the 'trophy' symbol offering the leadership to Sarath Fonseka.

At a press conference held yesterday, National Organizer of Jathika Hela Urumaya Nishantha Sri Warnasinghe said that arrest of Gen (Rtd) Sarath Fonseka might prove to be detrimental to the ruling United People's Freedom Alliance's interests, particularly in view of the forthcoming general election.

Based on the same argument, one can say that the JVP is in an advantaged position. It can vie for sympathy votes, gratefulness votes and hatred votes etc. generated for Sarath Fonseka.

This will be detrimental not only to the ruling party but also the major opposition UNP as well. UNP is insisting the elephant symbol in a coalition to fight Rajapaksas at the upcoming general election. This is definitely a move not to ally with JVP. The Marxists cannot accept the elephant symbol due to understandable reasons.

JVP also actually wants to sun allying with the UNP although there is pressure from party grassroots to unite to fight Rajapaksa menace. JVP is a fighting force unlike the lethargic submissive UNP that has already admitted defeat. If JVP can create a wave of protest based on the arrest and court martial of Fonseka, the Fonseka-led coalition will be able to become the major opposition of the country.

The Sri Lankan polity that backs a regime change are in need of a pushy leadership to fight Rajapaksas. The general election scheduled for April 08 will decide if Fonseka and the JVP will be able to cater the need.

Arrest of opposition presidential candidate of Sri Lanka and its repercussions

(February 10, Colombo - Lanka Polity) Sri Lankans took to streets in Colombo and many other parts of the island and clashed with the government-deployed disruptive elements and police in a display of people's power in support of arrested common opposition presidential candidate Sarath Fonseka. 

The government has arrested Sarath Fonseka and vow to court martial and to be prosecuted in civil courts for breach of discipline and for plotting to topple the government etc. Government spokesmen speak about minor offenses such as engaging with politicians now instead of bringing the much hyped conspiracy allegations. Sri Lanka is lawless mostly and the President's son Yoshitha Rajapaksa, a junior officer of the Navy and the President's brother Defense Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa also openly engaged in Mahinda Rajapaksa's presidential campaign enjoying impunity although they too have committed the same offense since they too are bound to be politically neutral as public officials with no rights for politics. 

Meanwhile, former Tamil Tiger rebels who have joined the government are also enjoying impunity for crimes like bombing the sacred Temple of Tooth of the Buddhists, killing Buddhist monks, assassinating surrendered police officers and genocide of Sinhala and Muslim people etc. 

Sarath Fonseka was one time war hero who as the Army Commander led the battles to defeat the Tamil Tiger rebels outrightly that reigned the northern and eastern Tamil dominated parts of the island for decades. He defected from his former commander-in-chief President Mahinda Rajapaksa and challenged his re-election in the presidential held on January 26. However the incumbent swept to power with and unbelievable margin of majority votes. The opposition allege the ruling party rigged polls. Fonseka will fail to take legal action against the presidential timely since he is now in military custody. 

 

Fonseka rose as a brilliant leader in the drowsy opposition during his brief presidential campaign and many doubt the arrest is to suppress his progress as a political leader. Unconfirmed reports say that the government move has the blessing of the present Opposition Leader Ranil Wickramasinghe whose lethargic leadership is despised by the radical elements of the opposition. 

Loosely structured stories of conspiracy in Sri Lanka

(January 31, Colombo - Lanka Polity) The opinion builders linked to Sri Lanka government is lacking common sense as seen in many of the stories propagated by them. 

This was seen in the story of arms deals of the former Army Commander Sarath Fonseka and in the bribery drama of government coalition MP Muzammil. 

However, the story of Fonseka exposing Defense Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa on war crime charges was better written by Fredrica Janz, an experienced journalist.

Latest example is the story of opposition candidate Sarath Fonseka hatching a conspiracy to overthrow the government. 

We are not experts in these subjects but any person with common sense can raise doubts. Following are the patches of this loosely structured story. 

• Why didn't Fonseka do this when he could do it more easily as the victorious commander-in-chief of the Army?
• What is the relation between booking rooms in a star hotel and the conspiracy? 
• What happened to the 400 army deserters that were in the hotel rooms?
• What happened to their weapons said stacked in a hotel room?
• How did they escape with weapons while an Army contingent had surrounded the hotel? 
• The President said that there was a conspiracy to kill him and his family. Why the hell is the said perpetrator is still free?

Many more questions can be raised. This script is still being built up unfortunately by unsound writers. 

Apparently, the government is applying severe pressure on the war veteran in democratic politics to make him decide to flee the country. 

Victor finishes the defeated in savagery. In democracy, the loser also must have a chance to compromise or to continue the fight. 

Conservative Sri Lankan polity vote to be grateful instead of change

(January 27, Colombo - Lanka Polity) Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa is in the path of a massive victory in the presidential for his re-election. Pre-election malpractices like misuse of public property and the election day violence and blockade of Tamil votes also seem not affecting the end result.


Minority communities have voted against Mahinda Rajapaksa. But the majority Sinhala community voted him overwhelmingly.


Common opposition candidate Sarath Fonseka could not attract voters despite his pledges to alleviate corruption, to introduce good governance, rule of law and democracy. People eventually voted for the appeal of the President Mahinda Rajapaksa to be grateful for defeating the Tamil's violent liberation war.


People completely disregarded the allegations against the Rajapaksa regime over mass scale corruption, nepotism, waste, high cost of living, taxes etc.


It is not clear what will happen to the expectations of the minority communities for a political solution for the long standing ethnic issue.


The hotel the opposition common candidate Sarath Fonseka and his supporters stay is surrounded by pro-Rajapaksa troops. Rajapaksa regime has vowed to sue against him on various charges including treachery.

Sri Lanka Presidential; opposition candidate likely to be arrested

(January 27, Colombo - Lanka Polity) Soon after the first result of the presidential of Sri Lanka was out, the following news was posted in a local website.

A large group of Army personnel encircled Trans Asia Hotel a short while ago and are carrying out checking on the foreign and local guests in the hotel, say reports.

According to reports the raid is being carried out assuming apolitical Common Candidate Gen. Sarath Fonseka is residing here.

As a result of the raid the guests in the hotel have been subjected to great inconvenience say sources.

Another pro-Fonseka website reported that the raid is carried out by a group led by a Major of the Army Special Forces. The troops have arrived the scene in two trucks and three motorcycles.

Our sources say that Sarath Fonseka and his supporters are staying in this hotel. 

In the postal votes results released so far Rajapaksa is ahead. Postal votes are cast by public servants and security forces members who are on election duty.

The most important speech delivered by Sri Lanka opposition presidential candidate

(January 14, Colombo - Lanka Polity) The most politically important speech made by Sri Lanka's opposition presidential candidate Sarath Fonseka in his campaign is the speech he delivered to the business community. As a candidate vying for a better capitalist governance, he expllains his positions clearly to the capitalist class of Sri Lanka. The full text of the speech is as follows:

Dear Friends, I come before you today, not as a politician with years of experience, but as someone with a lifelong commitment to safeguarding the country. It was this commitment that saw me leading the security forces to a decisive military victory over the LTTE, which many said was not possible.

Of course the victory would not have been possible without the commitment of the three forces, the police and the civil defence force, many of who made the ultimate sacrifice with their lives.

The victory we secured for all Sri Lankans was not an end in itself. It was the decisive beginning towards restoring peace that would enable us to re-build the country and put it firmly on the path to economic recovery and development. We owed this to the general public who gave us the moral support and patiently endured many economic hardships. We owed this to the soldiers who sacrificed their lives and those who suffered permanent disabilities. We even owed the international community that supported the war against terrorism.

Sadly, this hasn’t happened.

Corruption and Mismanagement
Nearly eight months after victory was declared, the incumbent regime is continuing to glorify the military triumph as a personal achievement at the expense of the follow-up needs - that of reconciliation, peace building, infrastructure development and economic resuscitation. It has effectively managed to place the nation in a time warp of victory euphoria, disguising the rampant corruption and one family rule, while sidelining the urgent need for progress on numerous fronts, the least of which is good governance that ensures transparency and accountability.

The nation’s wealth is being squandered on self- perpetuating projects that are both wasteful and meaningless. Billions have been lost due to corruption, nepotism, mismanagement and waste. Public funds are being used to sustain and nurture a single family. The goodwill of the international community has been destroyed, so much so the US and the European Union have become our harshest critics. The economy is in ruins and we are on the verge of losing the GSP+ trade concessions that are of immense benefit to our export sector and the hundreds of thousands employed in the apparel, ceramics and many other sectors.

Under the guise of security, our citizens are increasingly being denied their democratic freedoms. Dissent has been suppressed, sometimes violently, with the independent media and its journalists coming under frequent threats and attack. A significant segment of the Tamil population from the north continues to languish in IDP shelter and in transit camps with uncertain futures. The rule of law has morphed into the rule of political might, depriving the common man the right to equal justice. Even powerful groups such as the formal business sector, professional bodies, academics, the judiciary and those maintaining law and order have not been spared
The nation is gradually drifting towards a dictatorship, with fear replacing freedom and discontent replacing hope.

My Vision
Was this the post war developments we envisaged? Certainly not. This is why I consented to contest the Presidential Election as the common candidate of the opposition. Sri Lanka at this juncture needs a leader, who is disciplined, committed, honest, forthright and not afraid to make tough decisions. Just as my decisions of the past, my decision of the future will always be in the interest of the nation. I have delivered on my promise to rid the country of terrorism. Now I promise to restore democracy and good governance, eliminating corruption, waste and all other evils that have blighted the promising prospects secured with our hard fought victory over terrorism.

I have a vision of a free Sri Lankan, where decent and functional democracy prevails and the rights of all citizens are upheld. A Sri Lanka free of discrimination and with equal opportunity for all. A Sri Lanka not weighed down by the tyranny of an Executive Presidency, but where the best men and women run for Parliament and those elected have the highest standards of ethics. A Sri Lanka where every family enjoys three square meals a day and every Sri Lankan is ensured access to a safe health service, quality education and gainful employment.

Believable Change
To do this, Sri Lanka needs change, believable change.

As a man who keeps his promises, I have pledged that my first act upon assuming office will be to reactivate the 17th Amendment to the Constitution by appointing the Constitutional Council for the re-establishment of the Independent Commissions. I will then dismantle the jumbo cabinet and invite all parties representing Parliament to nominate members to a caretaker cabinet. I will then dissolve Parliament. Within a month cabinet papers will be presented for the approval of a Constitution Amendment Bill to abolish the Executive Presidency and take necessary step to ensure that the most free and fair elections in Sri Lanka is held.

Within three weeks my multi-party Caretaker Cabinet will bring new regulations to combat fraud and corruption in conformity with the UN Convention against Corruption. A powerful agency to combat fraud and corruption will be established along with an independent commission to audit all public finances. I will also ask the new Parliament to pass Parliamentary Code on Ethics, similar to that of developed democracies and appoint an independent Parliamentary Ethics Commission to uphold Parliamentary ethics on finances.

Fiscal Responsibility
These mechanisms will ensure that government acts in a fiscally responsible manner and cuts waste and losses due to corruption. Prof Indraratne; the President of the Sri Lanka Economic Association has estimated that corruption in government causes a loss of 9 % of GDP. This is a staggering Rs 400 billion a year at present. In addition the wasteful government expenditure including expenditure incurred by 108 ministers is phenomenal. Elimination of corruption and waste will help the immediate reduction of heavy and unwarranted taxes and help bring the budget deficit to a manageable level, leading to freeing up of resources for the private sector, lower interest rates and sustained lower inflation.

Economic Growth
The time has come for Sri Lanka to unleash its true potential and boost economic growth. We need to have an economy where the private sector and the public sector work in partnership to serve the people in a corruption-free environment.

We must ensure there is the right amount of regulations and the rights and obligations of workers as well as employers are protected.

We also need to learn from the economic policies of our previous governments, so future mistakes are avoided. We must undertake necessary reforms and adopt pragmatic approaches.

We need to create wealth in Sri Lanka by encouraging not only big business but equally importantly village level entrepreneurship. We need to ensure the distribution of this new wealth equitably to all people, not just for a selected few.

The Ease of Doing Business ranking for Sri Lanka has dropped from 97 to 105 from 2009 to 2010. Under my watch, I will ensure Sri Lanka is brought to the top 50 by streamlining and simplifying the process of starting a business, making tax payment, obtaining construction permits, registering property, obtain credit and carrying out cross border trading. I assure you that the current kappam regime will be demolished. We will also look into impediments to accessing finance, especially leasing, for the Small and Medium Enterprise sector, which has become very expensive because of wrong tax policies.

The streamlining process will also see the reintroduction of the one-stop-shop concept that was practiced by the BOI in the old days, to help improve investor facilitation. Today, the BOI only gives licences and the investor has to deal with various government departments to get other approvals. The National Enterprise Development Authority (NEDA) which was set up mainly to assist Small and Medium Enterprise has proved to be ineffective. Both the BOI and NEDA have to be refocused on business facilitation throughout the country, with special provisions for the development of North and East.

Another area we will focus on is the construction industry, which at present has no work as most government projects are carried out by foreign contractors including labour at very high cost. Foreign contractors must be made to subcontract a part of their work to local contractors.

I will also urgently address the problems faced by the tourist industry to make sure the infrastructure is ready to receive the expected large inflow of tourists.

Better Salaries
I have pledged to increase the salaries of the public sector employees. As I have explained, this can be done by eliminating waste, mismanagement and ridding the country of corruption that continues to gobble up billions of rupees in state revenue. By negotiating with the private sector stakeholders and by assisting in eliminating unwarranted taxes and payments that increase the cost of doing business as well as by having a realistic exchange rate, low interest rates and low inflation I hope the salaries of private sector employees can be increased. By adjusting the income tax threshold I hope to help these employees take home more of their hard earned salaries.

I will also take steps to correct the tax anomalies that see the private sector retirement benefits being taxed 3 times; employees contribute to the EPF from their after tax salaries (only Rs 25,000 per year is allowed as qualifying payment); the fund itself pays tax; the benefits are again taxed when the employee receives it. This creates hardship to the retirees and needs to be set right.

Employment opportunities for the Youth
Youth unemployment is an area that needs to be addressed urgently. Accordingly, within three months, I will take steps to initiate a ‘Youth Challenge Programme’ which will provide vocational training for young people between the ages of 17 and 25 and will establish a ‘Youth at Work Programme’ under which the government and the private sector will find jobs for youth who complete the youth challenge programme.

GSP +
I have stated time and again that this government is pilfering a golden opportunity to reap the economic benefits of defeating the LTTE. However it bears repeating, because today, when we have a unique opportunity to put our country on the right path, the prospect is being wasted because of the government’s arrogance and political expedience. This fact is nowhere better illustrated than by the foolhardy manner in which the GSP+ issue is being mishandled. The President, Ministers and even the Governor of the Central Bank have gone on record stating that the European Union need not bother granting the GSP+ trade concessions to Sri Lanka.

The government’s sole purpose is to portray the GSP+ issue as an international conspiracy, to stoke up anti-west fervour and hoodwink the people into believing the west is all out to undermine the country’s economic progress. Playing politics with the lives of the innocent people has now become a pastime for those who put us in this dismal situation in the first place.

The GSP+ concessions were not a gift granted to the Rajapaksa administration. It was the result of hard work done by previous administrations and our Foreign Service, which ensured Sri Lanka was among the 15 countries the EU saw fit for the trade concessions, based on adherence to certain accepted standards of democracy. The benefits of these concessions are now obvious. Today the EU has overtaken the United States as Sri Lanka’s main export market for garments.

These trade concessions are not applicable purely to the apparel sector. Thousands of other products also benefit from it. The fact that Sri Lanka is a GSP + recipient nation has attracted the attention of many investors, who see our country as a gateway to the European Market. Furthermore, the potential of utilising the concessions to promote other products remain enormous, while it also give the apparel industry the additional fillip - to explore new and better options for market penetration in Europe.

Yet all this is now at risk due to the actions of a few. The EU is now threatening to discontinue the GSP + citing our poor human rights record.

I am not willing to gamble with the lives of the people of my country, especially the poorer segments who should not be punished for the grave mistakes of power hungry politicians. Given the opportunity, I promise I will make a determined effort to safeguard the GSP+ concessions, because losing it would mean wide scale livelihood loss for hundreds of thousands of Sri Lanka and a marked step backward for the apparel industry as a whole.

I am confident that with the return of good governance, democracy and due process to Sri Lanka, we will be in a position to obtain these concessions for a longer period. The lives of 800,000 people directly depend on this.

Political Partnership
Many political parties, forces, organisations and individuals have gathered around me in the hope that we can usher a better tomorrow for our country. The political parties that invited me to run for President reflect the great diversity among us. This is our strength. You may wonder how the JVP which professes a socialist, welfare oriented economy can be in the same league as the UNP which is known for its open economic policies. This is a valid question. I would like to ask a question which I initially asked myself. Why are such politically, ideologically and communally diverse parties rallying behind one candidate at this point?

The answer is a testament of our current predicament. All those who are now rallying behind me believe that there should be a country left for us to have ideologies and differences in opinion. It is no longer a matter about open or closed economy. It is now a matter of preserving democracy, re-establishing law and order and delivering on a functional state. After the Presidential elections the JVP and the UNP will go before the people and present their respective cases on their own if they wish to do so. Yet at this moment we are united in the cause to save our mother land. For, that necessity far outweighs any other difference we may have. It is in this spirit that so many others have thronged around us.

Conclusion
It is this spirit that will pave the way for a realistic and believable change on January 26, when the country votes for a new era of unity, vibrant democracy and development that will provide an equal opportunity for every Sri Lankan to enjoy the benefits of an economically strong and free country.

Sri Lanka ruling coalition likely to resort to racism as the minority community leaders express support to opposition presidential candidate

(January 09, Colombo - Lanka Polity) “Sri Lanka ruling party is likely to resort to Sinhala racism or ethnic chauvinism in the days ahead up to January 26 presidential since major elements of the ethnic minorities of the island nation are bent to express support to the opposition candidate Sarath Fonseka.

Sivageetha Prabakaran, the lady Mayor of Eastern Province Batticaloa Municipal Council has expressed her support to Fonseka breaking away from the ruling alliance while Minister Segu Isadeen, a Muslim leader of the ruling coalition also did the same on the same day.

Ms. Prabakaran was elected the Mayor via Tamil People's Liberation Tigers (TMVP) ticket in the local government elections held immediately after the state forces wiped out the Tamil Tiger rebels from the Eastern Province.

Rumours are spreading that her former colleague, Eastern Provincial Council Chief Minister Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias Pillaiyan, an ex-rebel, is also likely to express support to Fonseka's candidature. No wonder if former Deputy of the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Ealam (LTTE) Vinayagamurthi Muralitharan alias Karuna Amman, a Minister of National Integration will also cross over to the opposition in this context..

Two political leaders of the Upcountry Tamils recently expressed support to Fonseka and rumors are spreading that Ceylon Workers' Congress (CWC) leader and powerful Minister Arumugam Thondaman will also express support to Fonseka before January 26.

The major Muslim party Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) is supporting the opposition candidate from the beginning.Ruling Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) Muslim leader Minister A.H.M. Fowzie is also slated to express support to the opposition candidate Sarath Fonseka.

There is a long list of names of the Ministers that are to express support to Fonseka and it appears that the opposition campaign managers are using these 'resources' thriftily.

In this backdrop, the campaign managers of President Mahinda Rajapaksa have already turned to brand Fonseka as a traitor who is backed by the remnants of the LTTE despite the claims that Rajapaksa led the forces to wipe out the rebels outright. The major evidence cited is the backing of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Fonseka is receiving. TNA was considered a proxy of the LTTE when the latter was powerful. In any case, the TNA is still strong among Tamil people and Rajapaksa also discussed with them to win their support before it discovered the TNA was the same LTTE, as a Minister stated on Friday.

Analysts point out that Rajapaksa regime will resort to racism and ethnic chauvinism as they have decided to lay all their eggs in the basket of Sinhala vote base. Sinhala polity is also divided since opposition presidential candidate Sarath Fonseka is also an arch-Sinhala nationalist who in September 2008 said to Canadian National Post "I strongly believe that this country belongs to the Sinhalese but there are minority communities and we treat them like our people...We being the majority of the country, 75%, we will never give in and we have the right to protect this country...We are also a strong nation ... They can live in this country with us. But they must not try to, under the pretext of being a minority, demand undue thing."

Fonseka, the ex-Army Chief led the state forces to an outright win over the Tamil Tigers and he claims for equal credits with Rajapaksa for the war victory.

Sri Lankan Tamils Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea

(January 05, Colombo - Lanka Polity) The decision of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) to support opposition candidate Sarath Fonseka at the January 26 presidential is a crucial victory for the opposition and the TNA move has potentials to make impact on the voters of the other minority communities as well.

In 2005, United National Party (UNP) candidate Ranil Wickramasinghe lost the presidential to the current President Mahinda Rajapaksa since he was deprived of the Tamil votes by the election boycott of the then powerful Tamil Tiger rebels.

Sinhala polity is divided with the candidature of the ex-Army chief Sarath Fonseka and Rajapaksa can claim for the arch-chauvinist Sinhala votes and his campaign will be more Sinhala-centered in the days following the TNA decision.

Already the Upcountry Tamil party Ceylon Workers' Congress is divided and the government is receiving half-heated support from major political parties of the Upcountry Tamils. UNP bagged 128,289 votes at the Central Provincial Council election last year while the ruling coalition was able to achieve only 146,418 despite all its war successes and the state-sponsored propaganda. UNP also won the Nuwaraeliya-Maskeliya electorate that is the heart of the plantations. The decision of the TNA can have a great impact on the Upcountry Tamil polity. The same happened in the 2005 presidential and the turnout in the plantations was also low.

Although the leaders of several Muslim splinter groups are with the government, the major Muslim party Sri Lanka Muslim Congress supports opposition candidate Sarath Fonseka.

A number of paramilitary based political groups of Tamil origin support Mahinda Rajapaksa. The Eastern Provincial Council election was held in 2008 just after the province was cleared of Tamil Tiger rebels. The TNA had no opportunity to contest due to the prevalent conditions. Tamil People's Liberation Tigers (TMVP) leader ex-paramilitary cadre Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan swore in as the Chief Minister after the government coalition won the election. Due to the clashes with ex-TMVPer Vinayagamurthi Muralitharan alias Karuna Amman and due to the displeasure caused by the sidelining of the Chief Minister from the development work in the province handled by the President's all powerful brother Basil Rajapaksa, the TMVP is also not offering fullest corporation for Rajapaksa's presidential campaign at the moment.

The major Tamil constituent in the parliament is TNA. It was branded as a proxy of the Tamil Tigers before the latter's defeat. TNA has lost gravity since then but it performed unexpectedly well in the local government elections of Jaffna Municipal Council and Vavuniya Urban Council. They won the Vavuniya Urban Council while they were placed second to the government coalition in Jaffna Municipal Council through a low profile campaign vis-a-vis state-sponsored propaganda of the opponent.  The ruling coalition collapsed to third position in Vavuniya Urban Council.

All these facts lead to the argument that President Mahinda Rajapaksa has poor support from the minority communities of the country. Quite extraordinarily the Tamils have opted to Sarath Fonseka who was equally Sinhala chauvinist and equally instrumental in the brutal repression of the Tamil struggle. Jaffna University Teachers for Human Rights identified the war victory in the terms "For both parties, the key to military dominance lay not in brilliant strategies, but in an utter disregard for the lives of civilians and combatants alike, driven by their leaders’ single-minded pursuit of personal power."

However, the Tamils appear to be tired of the Sinhala chauvinist rule of the Rajapaksa regime and they have expressed their displeasure through choosing Fonseka but with less hopes for a better future.

Senthan Nada, a Toronto spokesperson for the Coalition to Stop the War in Sri Lanka, told Digital Journal in an e-mail on Sunday that Tamils in Sri Lanka are like “Between the Devil and the Deep Blue Sea” because both candidates were partnered together during the military operations.

“I think The Tamils have to choose between the lesser of the evils. Tamils are considering Sarath Fonseka as a common opposition candidate and lesser evil of the two evils,” he says.

Is Sri Lanka opposition dare to debate?

(December 29, Colombo - Lanka Polity) The leader of Sri Lanka's National Freedom Front (JNP) has challenged opposition president candidate Sarath Fonseka for a debate on the arms deals Fonseka's son-in-law is allegedly involved. Weerawansa has asked to name other suitable persons, maximum two, to represent Fonseka, if he cannot debate, to the debate that Weerawansa proposes to be held before all media.

Weerawansa's suggestion is timely as reports and rumors point to mass scale corruption in the arms deals under Mahinda Rajapaksa regime. A debate will focus public attention to the issue. The politicians can give out the real information and they can clear their names from corruption charges.

Presidential candidate Sarath Fonseka and the opposition must grab this opportunity readily if they are genuine with their proposals to alleviate corruption under their future rule.

Although Weerawansa is a junior close to the ruling elite, he is one of the most influential orators of the ruling coalition. Therefore, he has opened up a path for a debate between the two macro-level presidential candidates in future.

Go on men! Take this chance! Pave way for President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Sarath Fonseka to perform their 'stripping-the-other' politics face-to-face. It will at least be entertaining in this polity where people are natualized with corruption.

JVP's 2000 meetings in support of Fonseka to turn the table among rural Sri Lankans

(December 14, Colombo - Lanka Polity) The pragmatic Marxist nationalist People's Liberation Front (JVP) that backs the presidential candidature of Sri Lanka's ex-Army chief Sarath Fonseka, has planned an enviable 2000 meetings ranging from mass rallies to in-house discussions, JVP parliamentary group leader Anura Kumara Disanayaka says.

The first national joint rally where all parties supporting general Sarath Fonseka will participate will be held on December 18 in Kandy, he said. Subsequent rallies will be held on 19th in Ambalangoda and on 21st in Anuradhapura. Sarath Fonseka is expected to participate in about 60 rallies and 30 of these will be JVP events.

Fonseka already entertains strong backing from urban areas. The series of JVP meetings will be vital to change the mindset of the rural masses from whom President Mahinda Rajapakse enjoys comfortable support.

JVP is highly effective in opinion building among rural masses.  In 2005, they ushered Mahinda Rajapakse to presidency from nowhere although the latter later undervalued the JVP's potentials.