The leader of the Tamil National Alliance has officially been appointed as Leader of the Opposition in Sri Lanka’s parliament.
TNA leader Rajavarothiam Sampanthan is the first Tamil to hold the post since 1983, when Tamil leaders resigned en masse after the passing of the 6th amendment, which made it illegal to “support, espouse, promote, finance, encourage or advocate the establishment of a separate State within the territory of Sri Lanka”.
Taking up the post Mr Sampanthan said, "Our primary duty is to ensure that there is an acceptable resolution to the Tamil question".
Following the TNA's overwhelming victory in the North-East during last month's general elections, Mr Sampanthan said once parliament had been formed, "We have resolved to address matters to be fulfilled regarding a political solution and the people's immediate needs without any delay".
Last week the party called for the post, amid opposition from Sinhala political parties, after the formation of a "national government" between the UPFA and UNP, the two major Sinhala parties on the island. 57 UPFA MPs reportedly wrote to President Maithripala Sirisena, requesting that Kalutara District UPFA MP Kumara Welgama be appointed the Oppositon Leader.
However, the parliament's speaker Karu Jayasuriya said no-one else had come forward for the post.
The TNA, which holds 16 seats in Sri Lanka's 225-member parliament, is the third largest party on the island.
Also see our earlier posts:
More resistance to TNA moves for opposition leader post (02 Sep 2015)
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TNA decides to appoint Sampanthan as opposition leader amid SLFP claims to post (01 September 2015) SLFP rejects TNA's call for opposition leader post (30 August 2015) TNA demands opposition leader post (29 August 2015)
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