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Sri Lankan president dismisses 3 ministers
Associated Press,
Fri February 9, 2007 12:59 EST .
RUWAN WEERAKOON - Associated Press Writer - COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - (AP) Sri Lanka - 's President Mahinda Rajapakse said Friday he has dismissed three key ministers from their portfolios, but did not immediately give a reason for his move. The three ministers sacked on Friday were stalwarts of Rajapakse's Sri Lanka - Freedom Party, which is the main component of the coalition government. They had been opposed to allowing members of the main United National Party to join the government and criticized the expansion of the Cabinet. Rajapakse's move came a day after Bandaranaike, who is the brother of former president Chandrika Kumaratunga, complained to Parliament that he has been receiving anonymous, threatening calls from people linked to Rajapakse. News reports quoted Rajapakse's office as saying it was investigating the allegations. Samaraweera, who had held the foreign affairs and ports and aviation portfolios before the reshuffle, was removed as foreign minister in the reshuffle. Bandaranaike, who had been tourism minister, was demoted to the national heritage ministry in the reshuffle. Their original portfolios were given to defectors from the main opposition United National Party. Port Development minister Sooriyaarachi was not a member of the Cabinet, and had not been affected by the reshuffle. A total of 19 members of the UNP crossed over to the government's side, while six members from the Sri Lanka - Muslim Congress also joined the administration. Days later, the National Heritage Party, a hardline Buddhist monks' party, also joined Rajapakse's government. The party has eight seats in Parliament. The UNP has said Rajapakse's move to lure its members to defect has effectively ended a previous agreement between them to cooperate in solving the island's two-decade-long separatist war. A negotiated power-sharing settlement with ethnic minority Tamils, who are mostly Hindus, could be further hampered by the inclusion of the monks' party in government, as they have stridently opposed any talks with Tamil separatist rebels. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam rebels have been fighting since 1983 to create a separate homeland for the country's 3.1 million minority Tamils, saying that after decades of discrimination, Tamils can prosper only away from the domination of the majority Sinhalese. About 68,000 people have been killed in the fighting, including some 3,600 fighters and civilians who died last year when the conflict escalated despite a 2002 Norway-brokered cease-fire.
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Published: Fri Feb 9 14:25:40 EST 2007
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