Days after nearly being killed by a suicide bomber, Sri Lanka's president has been re-elected for another term in office.
President Chandrika Kumaratunga, still recuperating from an eye injury, secured 51.12 per cent of the votes polled on Tuesday. She is expected to fly to London today for medical treatment.
In a hard-hitting victory speech, Mrs Kumaratunga vowed vengeance on those who last weekend exploded two bombs in the capital, Colombo, killing 33 and wounding 150. Tamil Tiger separatists are suspected of having launched the attacks.
"Look at me, look at my wounds", said a clearly emotional Mrs Kumaratunga. "These are the wounds of sheer, naked, and unadulterated hatred of man for man . . . Those who inflict such wounds can no longer be allowed to go unchecked and unpunished . . . far from being weakened by fear of attack, our resolve has been incalculably strengthened by your cowardice."
Mrs Kumaratunga's nearest rival in the election, Mr Ranil Wickremesinghe of the opposition United National Party, obtained 42.71 per cent of the votes. A former prime minister, he has been linked to atrocities committed by the security forces during the late 1980s.
His campaign was supported by a team of advisers from Britain's Conservative Party. The group flew out of Sri Lanka yesterday as Mr Wickremesinghe's defeat became apparent.
Most of Mrs Kumaratunga's votes came from Sri Lanka's rural south and north-central districts. She won with a much smaller margin than her record 62 per cent win in 1994. Mr Wickremesinghe's support came from urban voters in and around the capital and minority Tamils in the north and east.
About three-quarters of Sri Lanka's 11.7 million voters took part in the poll. The country's Election Commission said the election had been "generally fair" , despite incidents of violence and allegations of misconduct. At least eight people were killed and scores injured in election-related violence.
Election monitors say they are still investigating allegations of vote-rigging and intimidation by party activists, especially in the central areas of the island. They said there were 500 fraud complaints from across the country.
Mrs Kumaratunga has promised to boost the economy and to end the war with the Tamil Tigers. In pursuance of a strategy dubbed "war for peace", however, she has also waged an uncompromising military campaign against them. From what the president said yesterday, this now looks set to intensify.
Tamil Tiger separatists have been fighting for a separate homeland for minority Tamils in Sri Lanka's north and east since 1983. They have been blamed for several political assassinations in the past.
Mrs Kumaratunga also wants to introduce a new constitution which will pave the way for devolution of power to the regions, including those occupied by the Tamil minority. These proposals fall short of recognising the Tamils as a distinct community with rights of self-governance.
Mrs Kumaratunga yesterday reappointed her cabinet and invited the defeated Mr Wickremesinghe to join her government.
With more than 60,000 dead in 16 years of conflict, there is a widespread desire for peace in Sri Lanka. But bombings like those in Colombo are likely to harden opinion, particularly amongst the Sinhalese majority.
AFP reports from New Delhi:
The Indian Prime Minister, Mr Atal Behari Vajpayee, congratulated Mrs Kumaratunga and said both countries should work together to eradicate "terrorism".
"Your bold decision to go ahead with the polls despite an attempt on your life is a confirmation of your courage and determination to confront and overcome impediments in working towards your objectives," Mr Vajpayee said. Without naming the LTTE, he added, "Terrorism is a scourge, which needs to be rooted out through joint bilateral, regional and international efforts."
New Delhi fears the LTTE-led war in the island's north-east could spill over into India's southern coastal regions.