In another move politically marginalising the North-East, the number of MP’s elected from the Vanni district has been reduced by the Sri Lankan government, whilst an increase has been allocated for Moneragala in the South.
According to the Elections Department in Sri Lanka, the decision was made due to a fall in population numbers in the Vanni district, made up of Mannar, Vavuniya and Mullaitivu. The number of registered voters in Vanni, according to government figures, is 221,409, down from 236,449 in 2010 and 270,707 in 2009.
Last year it was announced that Jaffna would lose 4 seats after its population fell from 816,005 in 2009 to 484,791 in 2010.
However, the Southern districts of Matara, Kurunegala, Badulla and Ratnapura all gained a seat each.
See our earlier post: Government figures show huge population drop in Jaffna (27 June 2012)
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