Chandrika clears alliance with Marxist party

President Chandrika Kumaratunga's party has given the approval to forge an alliance with the Marxist JVP (People's Liberation Front), but a section of the party members is strongly opposed to such a move.

The Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) Central Committee which met on Monday decided to favour the proposal to go ahead and form an alliance with the JVP, after a section of the party pointed out that that was one of the ways of defeating the ruling United National Front (UNF) at a future election and gaining power.

SLFP's General Secretary Maithripala Sirisena told Gulf News‚ that the party had appointed two separate committees–one of them would be studying the party's policies and the other the party's constitution to ascertain as to whether they clash with the formation of the proposed alliance. The talks between the president and the JVP collapsed last Thursday after one of the senior members objected to offering the chairmanship of the proposed alliance to the JVP pointing out that a majority of the members were opposed to it. However the party in an attempt to strengthen its position against the UNF at the Monday's meeting had supported the idea of forming the alliance.

The SLFP members opposing the move are carrying out their own campaign within the party to prevent the alliance becoming reality. Among those opposed to the idea are Opposition leader Mahinda Rajapaksha.

Rajapaksha who is canvassing to be the next presidential candidate on behalf of the People's Alliance (PA) of which the SLFP is the main constituent party believes that any alliance with the JVP will affect their own party.

Chandrika's brother Anura Bandaranaike who is favouring the formation of an alliance with the JVP is also vying to be the party's next presidential candidate. The Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation said that the Central Committee of the SLFP had decided to form an alliance with the JVP.