Early results favour ruling coalition in Sri Lanka

Early results of Parliamentary elections favoured Sri Lanka’s ruling coalition on Friday. The results released by the Elections Department showed President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s United People’s Freedom Alliance bagging 11 seats from a total of 225 while the main Opposition United National Front winning four seats. The initial release was less than 10 per cent of the results, and the full vote won’t be released before evening.

The coalition led by Mr. Rajapaksa’s main challenger in the January presidential poll is yet to win a seat. Former Army Chief Gen. Sarath Fonseka is under detention and facing a court-martial for allegedly planning his political career while still in uniform.

Election monitors have reported a low turnout, but the elections office has said it can’t confirm the voting percentage until the final result is released.

Opposition official Tissa Attanayake on Thursday accused the ruling party of illegally using government resources for propaganda and harassment of Opposition supporters during the campaign.

The Center for Monitoring Election Violence, an independent poll monitoring group, reported scattered irregularities. It said the home of a ruling party supporter in southern Sri Lanka was shot at but no one was wounded.

Buses carrying ethnic Tamils displaced during the civil war were blocked from travelling to polling stations in the north, and police prevented Tamils from voting in the eastern district of Trincomalee, the group said.