People's Alliance warned against chauvinistic approach
[TamilNet, Saturday, 16 February 2002, 18:24 GMT]
The Lanka Sama Samaja Party, a constituent in the People's Alliance (PA) led by President Chandrika Kumaratunge Saturday warned that it would withdraw its support to the PA if it indulged in inciting communal feeling during the forthcoming local government elections. The Leader of LSSP and the former Minister of Justice in the PA government Mr.Batty Weerakon said in a statement that "it would be a national crime if the main stream political parties deviated from the present supportive action to the peace initiatives mooted by the United National Front government
Mr.Weerakon further said, "all political parties should conduct their campaigning for the forthcoming local government elections in a way that would not sabotage the UNF government's efforts to resolve the ethnic conflict. They should also refrain from inciting communal feelings." "The LSSP would withdraw its support to the PA if it failed to do so," Mr.Weerakon said. Mr.Batty Weerakon added that "the ruling UNF government and the PA should join hands in finding permanent solutions to all burning problems of the country including the ethnic conflict. Only shortcomings of the UNF policies and programmes should be made issues in electioneering unlike in the past." "The progressive forces such the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and the LSSP condemned actions by certain groups of the People's Alliance for inciting communal feelings at the last general election. The Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna has now resorted to such tactics," Mr.Weerakon said. The LSSP is one of the oldest political parties in the island. It played a major role in People's Alliance government from 1994 to 2001.
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