COUNTRY
Sri Lanka
AT THE CENTER
EVENTS (95)
PUBLICATIONS (92)
INTERVIEWS (314)
A Discussion with Abdirashid Abdullahi, Member of the Committee of Experts on Constitutional Review, Nairobi, Kenya
June 28, 2010
June 28, 2010
A Discussion with Edwin Barasa, Director of Programs for Africa Peace Forum in Nairobi, Kenya
July 12, 2010
July 12, 2010
A Discussion with Lucy Hannan, Journalist, Writer and Film Director for InformAction and Voxcom Ltd. in Nairobi, Kenya
July 12, 2010
July 12, 2010
LETTERS (216)
POSTS (60)
RELATED RESOURCES: CONFLICT
Mahinda Rajapaksa
Mahinda Rajapaksa is the sixth and current President of Sri Lanka and Commander in Chief of the Sri Lankan Armed Forces, sworn in for a six-year term in 2005 and re-elected in 2010. Rajapaksa was first elected to the Parliament of Sri Lanka in 1970, losing his seat in 1977. He returned parliament in 1989 and was appointed Minister of Labor in 1994 under the People's Alliance, led by Chandrika Kumaratunga. He was appointed as the Leader of the Opposition in 2002 after the Alliance lost power to the United National Party in 2001. He served as prime minister from April 6, 2004 until he won the 2005 Presidential election, representing the Sri Lanka Freedom Party. Rajapaksa's government oversaw the 2009 defeat of the Tamil Tigers following a renewed government military offensive; he has been accused of media censorship and war crimes related to the conflict.