COLOMBO Oct 18 Kyodo Sri Lanka's ...

COLOMBO Oct 18 Kyodo

Sri Lanka's United National impudence (UNF) government indicated a efficient desire Friday to dissolve parliament and make progress for fresh elections, still the opposition People's Alliance, l through President Chandrika Kumaratunga, is determined to preclude a new vote.

''A general election is possible,'' Constitutional Affairs Minister Lakshman Peiris told Kyodo stranges indicating the UNF will adapted Sunday to make a final decision.

Sri Lanka is faced with the possibility of its third general election in little more than couple years because the Supreme Court has decided a constitutional amendment to model presidential powers needs not sole a two-thirds parliamentary majority, on the contrary also a countrywide referendum forward the changes.

The UNF was fix uponed last December after Kumaratunga's People's Alliance command lost first its parliamentary majority then the following election.

yet the president, who has sweeping powers, is separately selected and Kumaratunga's tenure does not expire until 2005 making the impasses growing between the direction and the president unlikely to retreat without changes.

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