compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state and head of government:
President Dingiri Banda WIJETUNGA (since 7 May 1993); election last
held 19 December 1988 (next to be held NA December 1994); results -
Ranasinghe PREMADASA (UNP) 50%, Sirimavo BANDARANAIKE (SLFP) 45%,
other 5%; note - following the assassination of President PREMADASA on
1 May 1993, Prime Minister WIJETUNGA became acting president; on 7 May
1993, he was confirmed by a vote of Parliament to finish out the term
of the assassinated president
cabinet:
Cabinet; appointed by the president in consultation with the prime
minister
Legislative branch:
unicameral
Parliament:
elections last held 15 February 1989 (next to be held by NA February
1995); results - UNP 51%, SLFP 32%, SLMC 4%, TULF 3%, USA 3%, EROS 3%,
MEP 1%, other 3%; seats - (225 total) UNP 125, SLFP 67, other 33
Judicial branch:
Supreme Court
Political parties and leaders:
United National Party (UNP), Dingiri Banda WIJETUNGA; Sri Lanka
Freedom Party (SLFP), Sirimavo BANDARANAIKE; Sri Lanka Muslim Congress
(SLMC), M. H. M. ASHRAFF; All Ceylon Tamil Congress (ACTC), C. G.
Kumar PONNAMBALAM; People's United Front (MEP, or Mahajana Eksath
Peramuna), Dinesh GUNAWARDENE; Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF),
M. SIVASITHAMBARAM; New Socialist Party (NSSP, or Nava Sama Samaja
Party), Vasudeva NANAYAKKARA; Lanka Socialist Party/Trotskyite (LSSP,
or Lanka Sama Samaja Party), Colin R. DE SILVA; Sri Lanka People's
Party (SLMP, or Sri Lanka Mahajana Party), Ossie ABEYGUNASEKERA;
Communist Party, K. P. SILVA; Communist Party/Beijing (CP/B), N.
SHANMUGATHASAN; Democratic United National Front (DUNF), G. M.
PREMACHANDRA; Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP), Douglas
DEVANANDA; Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization (TELO), leader NA;
Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRL), Suresh
PREMACHANDRAN; Eelam Revolutionary Organization of Students (EROS),
Shankar RAJI; People's Liberation Organization of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE),
Dharmalingam SIDARTHAN; Liberal Party (LP), Chanaka AMARATUNGA; Ceylon
Workers Congress (CLDC), S. THONDAMAN; several ethnic Tamil and Muslim
parties, represented in either parliament or provincial councils
note:
the United Socialist Alliance (USA), which was formed in 1987 and
included the NSSP, LSSP, SLMP, CP/M, and CP/B, was defunct as of 1993,
foll