Sri Lankan leader says he dissolved parliament to avoid fights
1,579 views · Published 16 November 2018 · 1:22 · Indexed 28 September 2026
Channel: AP Archive · 2018 · News & Politics
(11 Nov 2018) Sri Lanka's President Maithripala Sirisena said on Sunday that he decided to dissolve Parliament and call fresh elections to avoid possible violence in Parliament in the event a vote was taken to decide on who commands the majority support to become prime minister. Sirisena, in a televised address to the nation, said he heard stories from lawmakers on both sides of possible violence in Parliament that could even result in deaths and clashes spreading around the country. Several political parties have said they will petition the Supreme Court on Monday seeking to nullify Parliament's dissolution. The crisis began October 26 when Sirisena sacked Ranil Wickremesinghe as prime minister and appointed former strongman Mahinda Rajapaksa in his place. Wickremesinghe said his sacking was unconstitutional as he still enjoyed a majority in Parliament and still occupies the official residence. Sirisena also suspended Parliament originally until November 16, delaying the possibility of testing the majority. Amid mounting local and international pressure, he announced that he will reconvene parliament on November 14 Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: https://twitter.com/AP_Archive Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/APArchives Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/APNews/ You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/youtube/91d86c5ec7583e6580ed65a84325cff3
