2nd lead

SL President appoints deputy ministers for foreign affairs, defense

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 26 May 2004, 08:35 GMT]
Sri Lanka's President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge in a surprise move Wednesday appointed Professor Visva Warnapala Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs. Mr.Ratnasiri Wickremanayake was also given the additional post as the Deputy Minister of Defense as already speculated in the political circles, sources in Colombo said.

Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge made these appointments on her return from Kandy, capital of the central province after two-day discussions with the parliamentarians of the ruling United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) and leaders of her allied political parties, government sources said.

Mr.Ratnasiri Wickremanayake, and Mr.D.E.W Gunasekara, two national list parliamentarians of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) Wednesday took oaths as Ministers and another national list parliamentarian of the UPFA Professor Visva Warnapala as deputy minister, government sources said.

Mr.Ratnasiri Wickremanayake, a former Prime Minister in the then Peoples Alliance (PA) till its defeat in 2001 December general election was sworn in Wednesday as the Minister for Buddha Sasana, Public Security and Law and Order. Mr.Ratnasiri Wickremanayake also took oaths as the new Deputy Defense Minister, Presidential secretariat sources said.

Mr.D.E.W. Gunasekara, a leader of Sri Lanka Communist Party was sworn in as Minister of Constitutional Affairs.

Professor Visva Warnapala took oaths as the deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, sources said.

The swearing in ceremony of two ministers and one deputy minister was held in President's House in the presence of President Ms Chandrika Kumaratunge, sources said.