Peace for the World

Peace for the World
First democratic leader of Justice the Godfather of the Sri Lankan Tamil Struggle: Honourable Samuel James Veluppillai Chelvanayakam

Monday, July 27, 2015

Democracy in Sri Lanka Will Soon Confront Its Second Moment of Truth

In happier times: Maithripala Sirisena (R) and Mahinda Rajapaksa, pictured here at a 2013 event in ColomboJoined at the hip: President Maithripala Sirisena, seen here with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe. Former president Chandrika Kumaratunga is in the middle.
In happier times: Maithripala Sirisena (R) and Mahinda Rajapaksa, pictured here at a 2013 event in Colombo
With fresh parliamentary elections scheduled for August 17, Sri Lanka’s politics has once again entered a phase of some uncertainty. The fate of the ‘silent revolution’ of January 8, 2015, which saw the autocratic regime of Mahinda Rajapaksa being replaced, is in the balance. If Rajapaksa returns to power as Prime Minister with a parliamentary majority, Sri Lanka’s democratic reform process will certainly be rolled back. However, Sri Lanka’s public mood and electoral arithmetic do not seem to favour a Rajapaksa return. Not as yet.
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