Sri Lankans, angered by the government's inability to prevent the Easter Su...
COLOMBO - Sri Lankans, angered by the government’s inability to prevent the Easter Sunday terror attacks that killed more than 250 people, want a strongman back in power who can guarantee their safety and bring back economic growth.
The Rajapaksa brothers, Gotabaya and Mahinda, were credited with bringing peace to Sri Lanka in 2009 by defeating the Tamil Tigers in a brutal end to the 26-year-long civil war between the Sinhalese Buddhist majority and minority Tamil groups. Gotabaya was the defense secretary at the time and Mahinda the nation’s president.
He has denied the allegations and said the lawsuits, brought by torture survivors and the daughter of the slain journalist, were timed to thwart his possible presidential run. A final date for the presidential elections has not been decided but must be held before Dec 9.Sri Lanka’s constitution is modeled on the French system of government where the president has executive powers while the prime minister heads the parliament.
Calls for a nationalist leader like Gotabaya, who has strong support from within Sri Lanka’s majority Sinhalese Buddhist community, echo similar choices made by voters in other Asian nations including India and Bangladesh. “A third world country like us needs a tough leader like Duterte - he is doing whatever is needed to rid his country of evils,” said the priest who did not wanted to be named because of the sensitivity of the subject.
Keheliya Rambukwella, a spokesman for SLPP, said Gotabaya was out of the country when the worst violence against Muslims took place.
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