25/7/2007

"Although many Presidents ruled the country in the past, the only President who governs the country without a mandate from people is the current President Percy Mahendra Rajapakse," said the Opposition and United National Party (UNP) leader Ranil Wickramasinghe addressing the People's Wave protest rally held in the Hyde Park today (26).

The protest campaign in the theme of 'Country Devastated; Come Forward' was jointly organized by the UNP and the SLFP ? People's Wing.

A multitude of calculations was produced by some media and nevertheless all agreed that over 100,000 people participated in the 'People's Wave' campaign.

The Opposition Leader said the present government was not a SLFP government but a regime of a brothers' company. He said that the rally was organized to end the corruption and terror, to wipe out the President who came into power through a secret pact with the Tamil Tigers and to restore democracy.

Mr. Wickramasinghe accused that the current rule had weakened the parliament, increased the prices of essential goods to an unbearable level and isolated the country in international politics. He pledged to end the rule of the brothers? regime immediately and to make the country a democracy soon. He further said that the 'People's Wave' was the beginning of it.

UNP National Organizer S.B. Disanayaka said that the current President was not in power unless he did not have the support of Mangala Samaraweera. He said that the costumes Mangala draped to Rajapakse were removed by him and the loin cloth that remained was stripped off by Sripathi Suriyaarachchi. Disanayaka analyzed the local and international politics amidst cheers of the participants.

Addressing the rally, SLFP - People's Wing Co-leader Mangala Samaraweera said that the government took all steps to disrupt this rally and Gotabhaya Rajapakse, a director of the Rajapakse company called the Inspector General of Police and instructed to remove the posters. When it failed, Basil Rajapakse advised the SLFP MPs to organize electorate level protests against the opposition and Samaraweera said that t only 12 people participated in one such campaign held in Mathara today. He thanked the peoples that flocked to Colombo amidst all the obstacles and extended thanks to the SLFP MPs who secretly boarded the people into busses and sent them.

UNP Colombo district leader Ravi Karunanayaka, Western People's Front leader Mano Ganeshan, UNP Katana organizer and film actor Ranjan Ramanayaka, UNP Central Colombo organizer Mohammed Maharuf and SLFP People's Wing Coordinator Sripathi Suriyaarachchi also addresed the rally.

Photos and report: Dilan Mayadunne