President Mahinda Rajapaksa moves to second term

http://www.defence.lk/new.asp?fname=20101119_06


President Mahinda Rajapaksa moves to second term
Pic By: Sudath Silva ">The second term of office of President Mahinda Rajapaksa began this morning - Friday 19 November - following landslide election victories to Parliament and the Presidency held earlier this year.
He was sworn in before Chief Justice Asoka De Silva at the Presidential Secretariat. Following the swearing in the President addressed the nation.
Special representatives from Bhutan, China, Maldives and Pakistan are among a large number of official foreign representatives who have arrived in Colombo to participate in the inauguration ceremony.
Among them are Bhutanese Prime Minister Lyonchhen Jigmi Thinley together with a 18 member delegation, Special Envoy of the Chinese President, Sang Giuowei and Assistant Minister of Foreign Affairs Hu Zhengyue, a delegation led by Maldivian President Mohamed Nasheed with special envoy to the President Ibrahim Hussain Zaki, Maldives Democratic Party Chairperson Mariya Ahamed Didi (MP) and Minority Leader of the People's Majlis Moosa Maruku, and Chairman of the Pakistani Senate Farook Hamid Naek and State Minister Saleem Mandviwalla.
Congratulatory messages were also being sent by several world leaders on the occasion of the assumption of office by President Rajapaksa for a second term.
The fifth President of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, credited internationally for liberating the country from decades of brutal terrorism, has restored peace across the island nation and set the country on the path to rapid socio-economic development.
President Rajapaksa's vision for Sri Lanka is to deliver sustainable peace and prosperity for all, a major task and one designed to bring the country's diverse religious population together in harmony.
Under his leadership President Rajapaksa is heavily involved in driving forward the country's reconciliation programme having launched a thorough investigation the causes for the breakdown of the Ceasefire of 2002, and the progress of the humanitarian operation to free the Tamil people and Sri Lanka from the LTTE, and ensure restorative justice to those affected by the conflict. Speedy action has also been taken to resettle the internally displaced persons.
Remarkable economic progress has been made under President Rajapaksa. Sri Lanka recorded an economic growth rate of 8.5 percent in the second quarter of 2010.
And on the world stage Sri Lanka is making its mark as an exciting new nation in which to invest and one where tourism opportunities will grow. Huge developments are being designed and constructed, with particular emphasis on the war torn north and east of the island.
President Rajapaksa established a record in Sri Lankan political history when he led his party to a landslide victory in the Parliamentary Elections held two months after being elected for a second term of office as Executive President. His overwhelming majority was 1.8 million in a poll of six million votes.
His success in Presidential and Parliamentary Elections in January and April, 2010 came after a series of sweeping victories in elections to eight Provincial Councils by the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) led by him. The UPFA now has an over two thirds majority in Parliament.
Born on November 18, 1945, Mahinda Rajapaksa is a lawyer by profession. He was first elected to the Parliament in 1970 as the youngest member of Parliament at the age 24.
He is married to Shiranthi Wickramasinghe Rajapaksa and has three children