SRI LANKA: Security tight ahead of swearing in of new president after Friday's grenade attack on mosque

Record ID: 354900

  • Title: SRI LANKA: Security tight ahead of swearing in of new president after Friday's grenade attack on mosque
  • Date: 19th November 2005
  • Summary: NEWSPAPERS WITH MAHINDA RAJAPAKSE'S PICTURES (3 SHOTS)
  • Embargoed: 4th December 2005 12:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Sri Lanka
  • Country: Sri Lanka
  • Topics: Crime / Law Enforcement,Defence / Military
  • Reuters ID: LVA3ZBP6YL1HYJ8N3RMTNJ6HBJC2
  • Story Text: Sri Lanka increased security on Saturday (November 19) ahead of the swearing-in of the country's new president, Mahinda Rajapakse, with observers keen to see what stance the perceived hardliner would take with Tamil Tiger rebels.
    Rajapakse beat main opposition party leader Ranil Wickremesinghe by a slim margin, owing his victory in part to an apparent Tiger boycott that helped keep away over half a million voters in the north and east -- voters who had been expected to back the opposition United National Party.
    In his victory speech on Friday, Rajapakse -- previously prime minister under outgoing President Chandrika Kumaratunga -- promised to forge an "honourable peace" with the rebels, but peace mediator Norway said it feared violence would rise.
    The peace process is seen at its lowest ebb since a ceasefire was agreed in 2002, particularly after the August killing of Sri Lanka's foreign minister by suspected Tigers. Two decades of war left over 64,000 dead, devastating parts of the country.
    Analysts say country's economic progress hinged on the stability of the peace process with the LTTE.
    "I think the key issue is the stability of the ceasefire and the peace process. That is the most important factor determining the future economic performance of Sri Lanka. Now given that the LTTE has chosen to boycott the election and the fact that Mahinda is backed by extremist forces in the south, there are lot of questions about stability of the process that arise however if in one year's time the ceasefire continues, it will prove that the peace process is rock solid and by that it would give a big boost to investor confidence and the economy," said Amal Sanderatne, an economist and chief executive of Frontier Research firm.
    Grenade attacks and killings rose in the north and east ahead of the poll in what some observers said was intended to scare voters away, but the army said the region was now quiet after a grenade attack on a mosque before dawn on Friday that killed four.
    Sri Lanka's bourse fell nearly 7 percent on Friday after Rajapakse won the presidential election against market-favourite Ranil Wickremesinghe. The Colombo All-Share closed 6.85 percent lower at 2,328.92 points.
    Traders expected a sell-off in the case of a left-wing Rajapakse victory, partly because they fear his hardline Marxist allies could force his hand on economic policy and hamper efforts to reach a lasting peace deal with the rebels.
    However, economic experts did not fear a return to the days of state monopoly.
    "I think given the international environment, I don't think that there is any risk that we can go back on everything. There is no risk that you would have nationalisations or things like that. Of course, I believe our privatisations and reforms, as most likely, will be put on hold for a period of time. But then again, I believe donor pressure, investor requirements, and all eventually, would lead to some kind of progress on that but maybe to a lesser extent than you may have expected under Wickremesinghe regime," Sanderatne of Frontier Research added..
    On Saturday morning, Police and troops sealed off roads and stopped traffic around the prime minister's residence in downtown Colombo ahead of the ceremony that will officially see him take over the reins of power.
    Ranjith D'Silva, a retired tea planter, said Rajapakse must make an honest effort to serve those who voted him to power.
    "He has promised a lot of things to the nation so he cannot do it all at once but he must at least make an effort to fulfill some of those promises that are given to the poor people who have brought him to power," D'Silva said.
    Rajapakse -- who allied himself with hardline Marxist and Buddhist parties in the presidential race, alienating many Tamil and Muslim minority voters -- had said he wanted to redraw the ceasefire agreement. Nordic truce monitors said it would not be that easy.
    On Friday (November 18) two people were killed and 30 injured when two hand grenades were thrown into a mosque in eastern Sri Lanka during dawn prayers.
    Tamil Tiger rebels are being blamed for the attack in the town of Akkaraipattu.
    It came just a day after the island's presidential election, which saw sporadic violence in the east of the country and was boycotted by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels.
    They've been battling for a homeland for the island's minority Tamils since 1984 in a civil war which has cost 64,000 lives.
    A ceasefire was signed in 2002 but is increasingly being violated.
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