"No cross-over from UNP to UPFA" - Ranil

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 21 April 2004, 15:39 GMT]
Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe, former Prime Minister and the leader of the United National Party (UNP) Wednesday dismissed media reports that few parliamentarians of the main opposition United National Front (UNF) are to cross over to the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) as baseless and untrue.
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Battle lines drawn for election of Sri Lanka's Speaker

[TamilNet, Sunday, 11 April 2004, 15:10 GMT]
Battle lines are drawn by the two major political parties, the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) and the United National Party (UNP), which have failed to obtain absolute majority in the general election on April 2, to show their strength when the thirteenth parliament is scheduled to meet on April 22 to elect the Speaker, political sources said.
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UNP nominates national list parliamentarians

[TamilNet, Saturday, 10 April 2004, 10:24 GMT]
The main opposition in the thirteenth parliament United National Party Saturday submitted its national list of parliamentarians to the Commissioner of Elections. The list included three Tamils and four Muslims. The three former ministers of the then UNF government Mr.Tilak Marapone (Defense), Mr.Tyronne Fernando (Foreign Affairs) and Mr.A.H.M.Azwer (Parliamentary Affairs) have been excluded in the national list though their names were included in it at the time of submitting nominations for the general elections held last week, party sources said.
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Sri Lanka's President meets outgoing PM

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 07 April 2004, 16:15 GMT]
Sri Lanka's President, Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunge, and former Prime Minister, Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe, held talks Wednesday that lasted for about two hours at the President's House. The talks centred on various subjects including the resumption of peace talks with the Liberation Tigers (LTTE), informed sources said.


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Wickremesinghe says minority government danger to peace process

[TamilNet, Monday, 05 April 2004, 10:57 GMT]
The outgoing Sri Lanka's Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe yesterday told a news conference in Colombo that the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) appears to be trying to form a minority government and such a minority government will be a danger to the continuity of the peace process with the LTTE.


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"TNA solidly stands behind ISGA"-Sampanthan tells UNF

[TamilNet, Sunday, 04 April 2004, 11:19 GMT]
"We have been closely watching the current political situation," Tamil National Alliance leader and the re-elected Trincomalee district parliamentarian Mr.R.Sampanthan told Mr.Bradman Weerakoon, Special Advisor to the Prime Minister Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe in a telephonic conversation initiated by the latter Sunday morning, political sources said.
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Major political parties to hold final election rallies Tuesday

[TamilNet, Monday, 29 March 2004, 21:28 GMT]
The final election rallies of major political parties are to be held Tuesday evening in various parts of the country bringing the one and a half months old bitter election campaign to an end two days before the April 2nd poll, political sources said.
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Final week takes political leaders to many electorates

[TamilNet, Sunday, 28 March 2004, 03:56 GMT]
With five days to go for the Sri Lanka’s thirteen parliamentary election leaders of major political parties are conducting whirlwind tour of electorates to beat the deadline for ending their election campaign on midnight March 30th. Meanwhile the Election Commissioner has instructed heads of electronic media to stop all election advertisements and political interviews and other election related programmes from midnight of March 29, seventy two hours prior to the polling day.
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Sangaree denies he is financed by Southern forces

[TamilNet, Friday, 26 March 2004, 15:26 GMT]
Mr. V.Anandasangaree, the President of the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) and the lead candidate of an Independent Group contesting the Jaffna electoral district in the forthcoming general election, addressing a press conference in Jaffna Friday, denied the charges made some Tamil National Alliance members and the public that he was being financed by forces in the South.
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Permit Tamil people to exercise their franchise - Australian MP

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 24 March 2004, 12:14 GMT]
"Unfortunately, due to a conflict between the President, who holds executive power, and the Prime Minister, the President dismissed parliament in February of this year and Sri Lanka will face general elections on 2 April 2004. It is vital that these elections are free and fair. It is particularly important that the Tamil people of the north-east, who have been deprived of their franchise during the last two decades, are permitted to cast their votes at the forthcoming elections," said John Murphy, Australian MP in a speech in the Australian Parliament Tuesday.
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Top US official to visit Sri Lanka next week

[TamilNet, Saturday, 20 March 2004, 11:15 GMT]
Mr. Torkel L. Patterson, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for South Asian Affairs in the United States Government will visit Sri Lanka as a part of his familiarization tour of the region, said US embassy sources.


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Empower TNA to decide next government, Sampanthan tells voters

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 March 2004, 11:36 GMT]
"Tamils are in the verge of achieving their legitimate rights after several years of freedom struggle through the military might of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. Hence it is the duty of Tamils to strengthen the hands of LTTE by sending at least twenty-one Tamil National Alliance parliamentarians thus making the TNA as a force to decide the future government," said Mr.R.Sampanthan, TNA leader and the TNA lead candidate for Trincomalee district when addressing a series of election meetings in the LTTE held area villages in Muttur east and Eachilampathu division Sunday evening.


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Recommence peace talks, establish NorthEast IA - UNF manifesto

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 16 March 2004, 11:13 GMT]
"The future United National Front (UNF) government would recommence the stalled peace talks with minimum delay after the general election and would strive hard to establish an interim administration (IA) in the northeast province as a step towards find a lasting political solution to the ethnic conflict and implement it on the basis of community oriented development," said the United National Front in its election released Monday.


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UPFA silent on peace process, CFA - Wickremesinghe

[TamilNet, Sunday, 14 March 2004, 11:38 GMT]
"Eventhough there is a voice in the south that is calling for the abrogation of the Ceasefire Agreement and to start war, we are determined to pursue the path of peace," said Sri Lanka's Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe speaking at an election meeting held in Vavuniya Urban Council grounds Saturday.


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Election was thrust on people by Kumaratunge - Wickremesinghe

[TamilNet, Saturday, 13 March 2004, 02:39 GMT]
Sri Lanka's Prime Minister Mr.Ranil Wickremasinghe addressing a election rally in Kurunagala Friday evening said that Ms.Kumaratunge thrust the general election on the people to cement her political future and to destroy Sri Lanka's welfare, sources said.


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Colombo won't interfere in Karuna split - spokesman

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 10 March 2004, 17:50 GMT]
Colombo will not exploit the current situation in the east to gain political milage, the spokesman for Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's care taker government, Prof. G. L Pieris said Wednesday. He said that his government will not interfere in Karuna's matter because it is an internal affair of the LTTE.
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Monks' Sinhala Buddhist call will derail Kumaratunge - NSSP Leader

[TamilNet, Friday, 05 March 2004, 04:23 GMT]
Dr. Vickremabahu Karunarathne, the leader of the leftist Nava Sama Samaja Party (NSSP), when asked if United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) has any chance of getting absolute majority in the 2 April elections said that "with Buddhist Monks contesting separately, openly proposing 'Sinhala Buddhist' dictatorship, it is very unlikely that United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) could become first in any of the districts."


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Sri Lanka President bans beer ads

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 02 March 2004, 18:01 GMT]
Sri Lanka’s President Chandrika Kumaratunga Tuesday banned all beer ads in state media which are under her control, according to a press note from her office Tuesday evening. The ban was imposed after several representations had been made to her by religious organisations regarding the deleterious effects of the beer ads, particularly on TV during international cricket matches played in Sri Lanka.
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Southern political forces fear TNA's strength - Sampanthan

[TamilNet, Sunday, 29 February 2004, 20:30 GMT]
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leader and the lead candidate of the party in the Trincomalee electoral district, Mr.R.Sampanthan, said that southern political forces are jittery that the TNA would be returned with about twenty seats to the new parliament in the April polls as a kingmaker, addressing TNA activists Sunday morning at the Hindu Cultural Hall in the eastern port town.
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First incident of election violence in Batticaloa

[TamilNet, Sunday, 29 February 2004, 12:22 GMT]
Sri Lanka Police Sunday reported the first incident of election violence in the Batticaloa district. Assailants suspected to be supporters of a political party contesting the April polls to Sri Lanka's Parliament shot at a candidate of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's United National Front late Saturday night at his residence in Araiyampathy, a large, densely populated village 6 kilometres south of Batticaloa, Police in the eastern town said.
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