Thousands of supporters of new Sri Lankan Prime Minister rally outside parliament

Record ID: 1363213

  • Title: Thousands of supporters of new Sri Lankan Prime Minister rally outside parliament
  • Date: 5th November 2018
  • Summary: COLOMBO, SRI LANKA (NOVEMBER 5, 2018) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF NEW PRIME MINISTER MAHINDA RAJAPAKSA'S SUPPORTERS MARCHING TO RALLY, CHEERING AND HOLDING BANNERS STAGE AT RALLY WITH SUPPORTERS GATHERED IN FRONT VARIOUS OF SRI LANKAN PRESIDENT MAITHRIPALA SIRISENA AND SRI LANKAN PRIME MINISTER MAHINDA RAJAPAKSA ARRIVING AT RALLY, WAVING AT SUPPORTERS VARIOUS OF SUPPORTERS OF SIRISENA AND RAJAPAKSA SITTING ON STAGE DURING RALLY (SOUNDBITE) (SINHALA) PRESIDENT OF SRI LANKA, MAITHRIPALA SIRISENA SAYING: "I changed a person who was not suitable for this nation, who did not recognize the needs of the people, who did not value local culture and worked for foreign agendas. It was that philosophy that I have changed." RAJAPAKSA ON STAGE SUPPORTER OF SIRISENA AND RAJAPAKSA ON STAGE DURING RALLY CROWD APPLAUDING AT RALLY
  • Embargoed: 19th November 2018 16:38
  • Keywords: Sri Lanka Mahinda Rajapaksa Rajapaksa supporters supporters rally for Mahinda Rajapaksa politics new Sri Lankan Prime Minister
  • Location: COLOMBO, SRI LANKA
  • City: COLOMBO, SRI LANKA
  • Country: Sri Lanka
  • Topics: Government/Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA0019589745
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: PLEASE NOTE: QUALITY AS INCOMING
    Thousands of Sri Lankans gathered at a rally on Monday (November 5) to show their backing for the new prime minister, Mahinda Rajapaksa.
    The rally comes as the speaker of Sri Lanka's suspended parliament said he would not accept former president Rajapaksa as the new prime minister unless Rajapaksa proves he has the backing of a majority of lawmakers.
    The comments by Parliament Speaker Karu Jayasuriya deepen a political standoff started when President Maithripala Sirisena fired Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe on October 26 and appointed Rajapaksa in his place.
    President Sirisena, speaking at the rally, ramped up his criticism of Wickremesinghe with an appeal to Sri Lankan nationalism.
    Wickremesinghe has denounced his dismissal as unconstitutional and vowed to remain prime minister until parliament votes him out. The president has suspended parliament, in a move Rajapaksa's opponents say is aimed at preventing lawmakers from voting to reject his return to power.
    Opponents of Sirisena call the change an illegal attempt to bring Rajapaksa back to power. They blame China, which has close ties to the former president, for using its influence to engineer the change. Chinese diplomats were among the few to congratulate Rajapaksa on returning to power last month, although they deny interfering in Sri Lanka's internal affairs.
    Since Rajapaksa left office in 2015 after a decade in power, the constitution has been changed to reduce the authority of the president and give more powers to the prime minister.
  • Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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