Dhiraj said,

January 27, 2010 @ 1:14 pm

What is Fonseka doing, hiding in the hotel with army deserters?

sinhala_voice said,

January 27, 2010 @ 4:29 pm

Sarath Fonseka should congratulate the President Elected Mahinda Rajapaksha and wish him all the very best.

If possible he should work together with Mahinda to improve Sri Lanka

People have voted and they have convincingly elected Mahinda that is ALL. YOu MUST accept the peoples’ choice…This is what it takes to be a politician

Dhiraj said,

January 27, 2010 @ 6:10 pm

India congratulates Mahinda for his victory:

http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=57349

I think both India and Sri Lanka are heaving sighs of relief now that the threat of a military dictatorship under Fonseka has abated.

SV said,

January 28, 2010 @ 1:28 am

I wonder why then almost everyone according to recent news, was hurt by the loads of abuses that MR regime has carried out. Today´s results show that people of many districts have voted for him. Is this because they dont want go against corruptions or all forms abuses or having no other better option than reelecting him. Being away from the motherland, it is not easy to get all these. I thought a large majority was waiting for a change. Can anybody explain me why the results are far from expectations of those who really sought a change:

Confused said,

January 28, 2010 @ 1:46 am

I am a student residing in the UK for the last 4 months. I am an eager follower of local politics in Sri Lanka… I am thoroughly confused at the conflitcing reports i have received from my friends back home.. can some objective and impartial person give me an update to the ground truths in Sri Lanka.. My friends who where supporting Gen. Fonseka to the hilt allege that the elections commissioner was under house arrest and that Basil Rajapaksa had manipulated the results. Furthermore, MTV, Sirasa TV, and Swarnavahini journalists where surrounded by the army. Vote counters where attacked, and their phones confiscated… Gen. Fonseka and Sarath N. Silva were also under house arrest… Can someone please explain to me what is going on? Then I read the Island newspaper as I feel in my opinion is quite an independent and impartial newspaper.. however, in the newspaper, there was no mention of any of the above. the editorial went on to congratulate President Rajapaksa and mentions that everything is hunky dory.. I love my country very much and I can’t watch my country turn into another Zimbabwe..
Can someone please provide specific and credible details about what is really happening..
thank you,
Amjed Hassen

Leanie Meanie said,

January 28, 2010 @ 11:37 am

Confused, I echo what Niranjan says:

Island reportage is a joke now, with perhaps a few exceptions.
Daily Mirror is better, but it too has been a bit namby pamby seemingly: for example the FT’s editorial today seems to believe the masses’ intention was correctly reflected in this election and that the charges of nepotism and so on are ill founded. Huh, what? Perhaps Daily Mirror is becoming afraid too; anyways it is better than Island.

Search for CMEV’s blog too, and CPA.

As for “supporters to the hilt” of Fonseka, they might want to think whether they honestly believe he’s a saint, or if he’s simply the lesser of atwo evils. Don’t get carried away while correctly supporting the smaller, weaker, less charismatic and less dangerous evil choice.

About what you said regarding the Election Commissioner… FYI, MTV news showed, when a foreign journalist asked govt. chappies about where some chappy called Basil is now, he got a tongue lashing and was told – in effect – that you foreigners have no right to come to our country and ask us what Basil is doing, how dare you ask such things, and so on; and he was told that Basil is sleeping! The govt chappy was very upset at the question and very taken aback and anxious and – to my eyes – looked like a guilty child trying to hide something : WHY, I ask? You decide what set of circumstances this would support such a reaction.

One more relevant piece of information: when the Election Commissioner came on TV, he was almost stammering, and he was clearly distraught unlike his usual self and seemed to have been under great stress and pressure – and in my eyes, seemingly fear- in the previous few hours. You decide what that suggests, together with the fact that he clearly said that his instructions were not carried out and that he couldn’t even protect the ballot boxes (something like that, I may be mistaken) and YET he seemed not to do anything about it. I wonder why not? What was he doing – or being done to him – in the previous several hours? Perhaps we’ll be told that he was also sleeping, perhaps he had had nightmares in which this Basil chappy figured?

Moreover, if indeed a tourist hotel with lots of foreigners was brazenly and confidently surrounded by military, such as to cause some people to feel deeply afraid and intimidated, and (as BBC reports) even caused a foreigner ambassador to say that there was a tense climate, then, if (hypothetically) some election officials and vote counters were indeed attacked (see also CMEV/Pakiasothy’s statement) as you heard, do you think that these facts would actually come to light. Do you think people (the aforesaid – purported – victims) would dare to mention such facts? I think not, but then we would never know if it happened or not, no? In that case, what is the only way to at least INFER the veracity of such facts: Answer: observe whether there’s any disparity or weirdness in election results which tallies with the truth of such facts. Perhaps a non-naive person who is well sighted to clearly see both the forest and the trees (and the Basil Leaves and Goats/Gotas and Hinds “dictating” in the paradisial forest) and if therefore one is indeed able to conclude that such facts do support such purported incidents, then I suggest that one should be afraid, very afraid, and shut one’s mouth and suck up big time to the charismatic and despotic regime that has been able to fool so many fairly intelligent people. And don’t write truthful comments here!

quote: “Can someone please explain to me what is going on?”
I think a small percentage of the population can explain. However they probably won’t; and if they do explain to you during the next 6 years, then, in the words of “‘Allo ‘Allo”:
“ALLO ALLO….Listen very carefully, [they] will say zis only once …”, because they probably won’t be in any condition to repeat it a second time…

james said,

January 28, 2010 @ 4:28 pm

Very good comment ‘Leanie Meanie’

Amjed Hassen said,

January 28, 2010 @ 11:19 pm

Thank you so very much niranjan and Leanie Meanie. I really appreciate your input. I did check up on the links and I do feel there are many questions left unanswered.. I am still confused to be honest with you as I smell something very fishy. I really feel sorry for the good General. But then again at least he tried and gave more than just a fight to the Rajapaksa’s, (he managed to muster 40% with all the obstacles) Got to give it up to him! If the General had such a torrid time I honestly don’t want to even imagine a contest between MR and Ranil. It would have been a walk over.. Ranil would have been massacred!

anyways, I am glad I have groudviews to turn to when in need of somewhat credible information.. Thanks groundviews and the readership!!! keep up the good work.. love the concept of citizen journalism..

May God bless our country…