Abandoning decades of volatile politics, Sri Lankans vote for change in parliamentary elections By Reuters
by Uditha Jayasinghe
HAMBANTOTA, Sri Lanka (Reuters) – Sri Lanka voted to elect a new Parliament this week in snap national elections called by its Marxist-leaning president who is seeking new powers in the legislature to continue economic reforms in the debt-ridden island nation.
Anura Kumara Dissanayake was elected president of the South Asian country in September but his National People’s Power (NPP) coalition had only three of the 225 seats in parliament, prompting him to dissolve the legislature and seek new authority there for his policies.
Dissanayake, who is outside the family cliques that have dominated Sri Lankan politics for decades, has stepped into a promising role as the country emerges from a financial crisis. Millions of voters are counting on his promise to fight graft and vows to strengthen the fragile economic recovery.
“In the last election, people did not trust us, but in September, people gave us victory and showed that we are a successful party and can form a government,” said Dissanayake while campaigning on Sunday.
“The next task is to bring together people from the four corners of the country to build a strong people’s movement.”
Sri Lankans have been hit hard by the economic crisis of 2022, which was caused by a severe shortage of foreign currency added to the problems caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Bolstered by a $2.9 billion bailout from the International Monetary Fund, the economy has posted the expected recovery, but the high cost of living remains a critical issue for many voters.
Dissanayake aims to change the income targets set under the IMF plan to reduce high income tax and free up funds to invest in the welfare of millions of Sri Lankans who have been hit hard by the financial crisis.
Investors are concerned that Dissanayake’s desire to revisit the terms of the country’s IMF bailout could delay future disbursements, and make it difficult for Sri Lanka to meet the key net 2.3% of GDP target by 2025 set under the plan.
Opposition leader Sajith Premadasa’s party, Samagi Jana Balawegaya, is expected to be a major rival to the NPP and the New Democratic Front – a breakaway party from the Rajapaksa family party and supported by former president Ranil Wickremesinghe.
PUTTING ON DISSANAYAKE
Voters who supported Dissanayake in September are expected to stick with him in the general election.
In Hambantota – a southern state of about 680,000 people mostly from farming and fishing communities – Sudath Kumara and his wife, Nilmini Kumari, voted for Disanayake in September’s presidential election. They plan to do the same on Thursday in support of his alliance the NPP.
The cost is currently five times the 3,000 rupees ($10) her husband earns a month doing odd jobs, Kumari said, standing in their one-room cement-brick house.
“We grow as much food as we can, but we still have to pay for fuel, water, transportation and education for three children,” said Kumari. “There is no electricity. The children try to finish their school work during the day, or they study with the lights on.”
Athula Welandagoda, 51, a candidate for the NPP, hopes to win seven of the seven seats that will be up for grabs in Hambantota with the support of voters like Kumara and his wife.
“There has been a deep shift in Sri Lanka where people have moved away from traditional parties and want to see real change,” Welandagoda said.
The Rajapaksa family, originally from Hambantota and a group of brothers who gave Sri Lanka two former presidents during their twelve years in power, saw their political fortunes dwindle after the financial crisis sparked a massive public uprising that overthrew former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa in 2022.
For the first time in 88 years, a member of the Rajapaksa family did not contest the election even though Namal Rajapaksa, the son of former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, is leading the campaign of their Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna party.
Namal received only 2.57% of the votes cast in the presidential election.
“We will do better in this election. I am sure we can rebuild this party with a new political generation… and the SLPP will transform into a major political force soon,” Namal said at a meeting last week.
