The shock defeat of incumbent Mahinda Rajapaksa in Sri Lanka’s presidential elections has given rise, both internationally and in the island, to cautious optimism of a new era of governance that would break from the violent authoritarianism and cronyism of the past decade. Building his campaign around a pledge to end corruption, uphold the rule of law, ensure press freedom and abolish the executive presidency, the unlikely victor, Maithiripala Sirisena, successfully drew the support of a disparate array of opposition parties, including the United National Party (UNP), General Sarath Fonseka's party, the JVP and the JHU, as well as the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and the Sri Lankan Muslim Congress (SLMC). Ongoing cross-overs from the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) have now given him the necessary parliamentary majority to make good on his pledges.
The newly elected president, Maithripala Sirisena, formally assumed his duties on Monday at the Presidential Secretariat.
Updated 1520 GMT The new president Maithripala Sirisena appointed his cabinet ministers on Monday, who took oath at the Presidential Secretariat. The full list of cabinet minisiters, state ministers and deputy ministers have been published below. The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and JVP had already stated that they would not be accepting ministerial positions within the cabinet.
Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott called on the newly elected Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena for his continued cooperation in tackling asylum seekers fleeing the island, in a congratulatory phone call on Saturday. Abbott's office said that he had emphasised Australia and Sri Lanka’s “continuing cooperation” on people smuggling, as well as praising outgoing president Mahinda Rajapaksa's “positive role in supporting a peaceful transition of power.” In the run up to the election, Phil Lynch from the International Service for Human Rights had earlier criticised Australia's "misguided approach to 'stopping the boats', which actually involved close cooperation with alleged war criminals".
US Secretary of State John Kerry said that there are “still real challenges” in Sri Lanka and called on the newly led government to begin addressing issues such as human rights immediately. Speaking at a press conference at the Vibrant Gujarat summit in India yesterday, Kerry told reporters, “We offered very immediately to engage in a dialogue to begin to work at guaranteeing that the problems with respect to human rights, the problems with inclusivity, challenges with respect to governance, are going to be addressed.” “We will engage in that conversation from this moment forward, and hope that we can now forge a different outcome in Sri Lanka." Kerry said that he had talked to the newly elected Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena, adding "we are very hopeful that, in the days ahead, we can make some progress on all fronts.”
Former army general Sarath Fonseka claimed responsibility for conducting Sri Lanka's military campaign during the armed conflict, stating he had “planned the entire operation” and rejected cooperating with an United Nations inquiry into mass atrocities. In an interview to the Times of India, Fonseka criticised former Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa for claiming he would engage in peace talks in 2005, saying, “Every President wanted to finish the war. But in the 2005 election manifesto, Rajapaksa said he will have peace talks with Prabhakaran.” Fonseka went on to claim responsibility for the culmination of the armed conflict, which ended with the systematic shelling of civilian hospitals and execution of those who surrendered, saying, “When the army was chasing the LTTE, he didn't even know what was happening on the ground in 2007. He did not even allocate money for ammunitions. I was recruiting additional 85,000 army men. When I became commander I recruited 4,000 men in a month. Earlier only 3,000 people joined the army for a year.” “I planned the entire operation and I was communicating with all levels of army persons.”
The UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon discussed Sri Lanka's "post-war agenda" with the new president Maithripala Sirisena in a telephone conversation on Monday, just a few days after President Sirisena took office. Congratulating him on the campaign, Ban Ki Moon also raised the issue of Sirisena's 100 day plan for reform. In a statement on Friday, the Ban Ki Moon's spokesperson said the UN would "continue to support development, reconciliation, political dialogue and accountability in Sri Lanka."
Pledges made by Sri Lanka's new president introduces some economic uncertainties said a leading international banking group, Standard Chartered Bank, stating that President Sirisena's manifesto was "perceived as investor unfriendly". "While the election removes near-term political uncertainty, we believe it also introduces some economic uncertainty," it said in a global report, entitled, 'Sri Lanka - A Change of Guard'. "Sri Lanka's fiscal deficit is high compared with its 'B-' rated peers and faces a heavy external debt amortization burden of 3.5 billion US dollars in 2015," it added, reported Economy Next .
The Tamil National Alliance, called on Maithripala Sirisena to address land issues faced by the people in the North-East and release detained Tamil youth, in their first official meeting with the new president of Sri Lanka on Monday, reports BBC Tamil . The meeting between Maithripala Sirisena and senior TNA personnel happened in Sirisena’s residence at Midday, reports the Colombo Gazette .
Former Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa attributed Maithripala Sirisena's victory to the votes from "Eelam", referring to the Tamil votes. While addressing his supporters in Medamuluna, Rajapaksa told crowds said that he was only defeated in the North, East and Estate districts. Asked by a member of the crowd "Sir, why didn't you kill and take it? Why didn't you kill and win?", Rajapaksa replies, "we can't do that.. there should be democracy in the country. Remember, they got the majority of the votes.. from Eelam or wherever."