Rajapaksa says rivals trying to oust him with global support

PTI Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has blamed opposition parties of trying to engineer his downfall with international support. 

 

Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa has blamed opposition parties of trying to engineer his downfall with international support saying his government “is being punished for ending terrorism”.

Campaigning for his ruling coalition in the two Provincial Assembly elections to be held next Saturday, the Sri Lankan President accused the opposition on Saturday of becoming a pawn to anti-Sri Lanka forces.

“They know they can’t win people’s hearts and win so they expect international support to topple the government,” Mr. Rajapaksa said in the southwestern town of Kaluthara.

“Madam (Navi) Pillay (UNHRC chief), U.S., U.K., all are moved against us by the Tamil diaspora,” he said on the UNHRC resolution to be voted on later this week in Geneva.

“We are being punished for ending terrorism. We did not fight Tamils, we only fought terrorism,” Mr. Rajapaksa stressed.

He appealed to the voters to send a powerful message to the international community.

“We will not tolerate any foreign interference and that will be the message,” he said.

The Sri Lankan President has opted to hold two Provincial elections both in the Sinhala-majority areas — the Western and Southern provinces, as a test of his popularity.

The U.S.-moved resolution is being dubbed by the government as action to try Mr. Rajapaksa in the international criminal court for alleged war crimes during the final battle with the LTTE.

Sri Lanka is facing its third U.N. Human Rights Council resolution in as many years, censuring the country on its lack of progress on human rights accountability and reconciliation with its Tamil minority after the civil war ended with the defeat of the LTTE in May 2009.

India had backed the previous two resolutions.