Opposition activists and former ministers Tissa Vitharana, left, Dinesh Gunawardena, second left, Dullas Alahapperuma, second right, and Wimal Weerawansa look on during a press conference in Colombo to announce that their leader, former president Mahinda Rajapakse will contest August parliamentary elections from the main opposition Freedom Alliance. Rajapakse announced he wanted to run for parliament, six months after his defeat by his former ally and health minister Maithripala Sirisena at January presidential election.


IANS/Colombo



The main opposition United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) said Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena has agreed to allow former president Mahinda Rajapakse to contest the August 17 parliamentary election under the UPFA banner.
The announcement came a day after Sirisena, as the chairman of the party, refused to give the nomination to Rajapakse, paving the way for a major split in the opposition.
Intense discussions were held between Sirisena and members of the opposition on Friday morning after which UPFA general secretary Susil Premajayantha in a statement released to media said that the president has given his consent, Xinhua news agency reported.
He further said that the party’s nomination list would be completed within the next
few days.
The former Sri Lankan leader on Wednesday said that he would make a comeback to politics by contesting the August parliamentary election and look to form a new government in the island nation.
He however did not say under which political party he would look to contest the polls despite his supporters holding crucial meetings with Sirisena in the past month trying to negotiate a favourable settlement for him to contest on a UPFA ticket.
One of the main demands put forward by Rajapakse when he met the president recently was that he be nominated as the UPFA’s prime ministerial candidate. Sirisena, however, rejected the request.
Feted by many Sri Lankans for ending a 26 year civil war with a crushing victory over the Tamil Tiger rebels, Rajapakse was slammed by rights groups for the brutal methods used.
UN reports alleged human rights violations and sought to establish an independent mechanism to investigate war crimes during the final phase of a conflict that ended in May 2009.
Stung by Western criticism over conduct of the war, Rajapakse had welcomed stronger ties with China, but the new government has sought a more balanced foreign policy.
During Rajapakse’s time in office the media was heavily censored, and attacks on religious minorities and persecution of political rivals and journalists were commonplace.



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