Sri Lanka: Towards Reconciliation?

Mahinda Rajapaksa was reelected President of Sri Lanka following the country’s first presidential elections after the military victory over the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) last May. Despite some violent incidents during the election campaign, the elections were largely peaceful. Rajapaksa declared in his announcement from January 12 this year that he is prepared to execute the necessary constitutional changes to accommodate the political aspirations of Sri Lankan minorities, by creating a second parliament chamber which would allow greater Tamil political representation. In waking up from the post-victory euphoria of May last year the main issue on the agenda of the president has to be winning the peace.