Ahead of a vote to decide Sri Lanka’s care-taker President, the Tamil National People’s Front (TNPF) have declared their intention to abstain from voting, stating on Twitter:
The TNPF has decided not to participate in the vote for President in Parliament on Wednesday (20th).https://t.co/usUVMgH88s
— Tamil National People's Front (@TnpfOrg) July 18, 2022
The statement added:
We have always been transparent in our political journey of self-determination and accountability for the Tamil nation. Press conference convened by @GGPonnambalam , @skajendren and @NadarajarK today explaining this decision will be uploaded shortly.https://t.co/fVdMcXIi8r
— Tamil National People's Front (@TnpfOrg) July 18, 2022
The decision follows massive unrest in Colombo, which has seen the Gotabaya Rajapaksa flee the country and Ranil Wickremesinghe assumed the position of both President and Prime Minister. In an earlier thread, the TNPF stated that they would not vote for Wickremesinghe and expressed their discomfort with other Presidential candidates.
. @GGPonnambalam : "We have made it clear to Presidential aspirants that the political aspirations of the Tamil people have to be met for us to even consider supporting them."
— Tamil National People's Front (@TnpfOrg) July 17, 2022
: https://t.co/yz6Ryfdopz
They note that during the last Presidential election, Sajith Premadasa rejected a 13-point memorandum put forward by a collection of Tamil political parties. Candidates from the JVP have similarly opposed any move towards the devolution of powers.