Friday, January 9, 2015

Sri Lanka election: Day of reckoning for a once untouchable president who could suffer an unexpected and humiliating defeat


Mahinda Rajapaksa called the poll two years early, confident of an easy win. But he faces losing power to his former ally, Maithripala Sirisena, who has tapped into discontent over cronyism and costly vanity projects

Mahinda Rajapaksa and his former minister, Maithripala Sirisena, who has generated huge support (AFP/Getty Images; Reuters)People formed long lines to vote in Colombo, where security was high, and turnout was good in Tamil-dominated areas where voting had been poor in previous elections







The Independent




Thursday 08 January 2015

Sri Lanka is braced for a major political upset, after a turnout of 75 per cent in the presidential election lent force to speculation that the strongman who ended the civil war, and whose family has towered over the nation in recent years, could suffer a humiliating defeat.