S.Lankan president blames gov't for ignoring problems in peace process

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, March 15, 2004

S.Lankan president blames gov't for ignoring problems in peace process

Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga on Sunday blamed the government of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe for their ignoring problems in the peace process with the Tamil Tiger rebels.

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Sri Lankan President Chandrika Kumaratunga on Sunday blamed the government of Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe for their ignoring problems in the peace process with the Tamil Tiger rebels.

"It helped the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) to increase its strength by three fold. The government turned a blind eye to recruitment of child soldiers and increasing of their armory," Kumaratunga said in a televised address to the nation on Sunday night.

She said that the Norwegian-brokered peace process had flopped due to Wickremesinghe's inefficiency.

"I am sorry that I have been compelled to hold three elections within four years," Kumaratunga said, referring to her decision to hold a snap election on April 2.

The decision to dissolve the parliament became inevitable as the government continued to ignore the country's problems, the president said.

"The high cost of living, corruption and lack of development need to be tackled," Kumaratunga said.

She made an appeal to voters in the country for a mandate to her party in the forthcoming elections.

Kumaratunga said that she would continue the dialogue with the LTTE for a political solution to the country's two decades of ethnic conflict.

She said that a future government headed by her would change the country's constitution enshrining the executive presidency adopted in 1978.

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