(A Review of Sinhala, Tamil, and English newspaper reports that focus on the discourses and opinions emerging on political stages in the north and south about the demands and rights of marginalised communities, including the people of the north, east, and the country’s plantation sector. This article is based on a sample of newspapers that were published between 23 and 30 September.)
Northern and southern newspaper pages in the post-election period
Tamil newspaper reports published in the week after the presidential election results were announced can be divided into two categories. One party congratulated the new President who had brought the previous regime to an end and expressed optimistic expectations about him. The other party expressed its frustration because the political ideology that it represented did not win as expected, while pointing out the need for a new political movement.
On 23 September, Thinakaran, a State-owned Tamil newspaper, had allocated a significant amount of space for an article which had ‘Anura Kumara Dissanayake was elected as the ninth President of the country’ as its headline and ‘A huge victory with the support of Tamils and Muslims’ as its subheading.

On 23 September, the Kaleimurasu, Thinakaran and Pudiyasuhanthiran newspapers had published reports about Tamil Progressive Alliance Leader Mano Ganesan posting a congratulatory message to the new President on his official X social media account, and they had been published on the fifth, third, and seventh pages, respectively. His post read “We hope Anura’s victory is a new Sri Lankan beginning encompassing the ideals of diversity and social justice.”



Reports published on 24 September on the fifth page of the Kaleikathir newspaper and on the twelfth page of the Eelanaadu newspaper quoted former Eastern Provincial Council Member Murugesu Rajeswaran as saying that the new President will lead a non-racist administration and that he hopes that the unresolved issues of Ampara would be resolved.


On the same day, statements made by two Tamil politicians had been published on the seventh page of the Eelanaadu newspaper.
Member of Parliament (MP) M.A. Sumanthiran, PC, had stated that Dissanayake’s victory is a huge progressive step and that he will extend his full support to all the activities that Dissanayake can do after being elected as the President.
Meanwhile, MP Dharmalingam Siddharthan had pointed out that Dissanayake’s presidential election victory will bring about a huge change and that he is of the opinion that Dissanayake can transform Sri Lanka into a clean country free from corruption and fraud. He had reiterated that special attention should be paid to the issues surrounding the political solution sought by the Tamil people.

A remark made by MP Govindan Karunakaram had been published on the sixth page of the Thamilan newspaper published on 25 September. He had said that the new President fought for the country’s people’s freedom and that they should also fight for the people’s freedom. He had further said that as a person who understood people’s liberation well, the President should present a political solution that allows the Tamil people to live freely.

In addition to reports about such hopeful greetings, there were also some reports that indicated a certain tense situation in Tamil politics.
On 23 September, the Kaleimurasu and Kaleikathir newspapers had published a front-page report quoting Sumanthiran as saying that the fielding of a common candidate has failed miserably. He had further said that effective efforts should be made to fulfil the Tamil people’s political aspirations without resorting to such actions in the future.


While expressing concerns about the election results, a report about the need for a new direction in Tamil politics had been published on the fourth page of the Eelanaadu newspaper on 25 September. It had mainly questioned that in a context where the Sinhalese people in the south had voted for a certain change, whether the Tamil people are ready for such a change.
According to the report, traditional Tamil leadership has shown its incompetence. However, the Tamil people continue to support them. The report had emphasized that if the Tamil people no longer think of a change, they will not achieve political liberation.
Sinhala and English newspapers in the south in the post-election period
With the conclusion of the presidential election, the media’s excitement that was seen during the election period suddenly subsided, as if even mainstream newspapers had forgotten about the people of the north, east and the plantation sector. In the first week of the post-election period, there were hardly any reports about those communities in Sinhala and English mainstream newspapers published in the south. Among the Sinhala newspapers, only the Mawbima newspaper had published one or two brief articles about the Tamil people. However, compared to Sinhala newspapers, English newspapers had given more space to report on the political trends of the north and east-based people.
On 23 September, The Daily Morning newspaper had, on its first and second pages, published a report in which former MP C.V. Wigneswaran, PC, talks about the Tamil common candidacy and its political course. He had requested the new government to first recognize that there is a community called Tamils and to enforce the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. He had recalled that the Tamil people of the north and east voted for former President Ranil Wickremesinghe and Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa over Dissanayake because the National People’s Power (NPP) led by the Janata Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) worked against the aspirations of the Tamil people. The report quoted him as saying that although the number of votes garnered by the Tamil common candidate was low, the candidate is a symbol of the unity of the Tamil people. The report further mentioned that, just as the Sinhala people used their votes for a certain change in the country, the Tamil people should also be prepared for such a change.

On the third page of the Ceylon Today newspaper published on 24 September, an article had been published with the headline ‘Muslim and Tamil parties congratulate the new President.’ The report contained opinions expressed by Muslim and Tamil political party leaders from various political camps including Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) General Secretary and former minister Douglas Devananda, Sri Lanka Muslim Congress Leader Rauf Hakeem, and All Ceylon Makkal Congress (ACMC) Chairperson and former minister Ameer Ali. Those leaders had congratulated the new President. They had expressed confidence that the new President will intervene to create harmony between ethnic groups and to ensure equal rights for all citizens, while improving the country’s economy and without losing the trust kept in him by the majority of the country’s people.

On the same day, the Mawbima newspaper had allocated space on its front page to publish an article about the views expressed by the Tamil People’s Council with regard to the Tamil common candidate. Its headline was ‘The common candidate united the north and east – Tamil People’s Council.’

The council had said that Pakkiyaselvam Ariyanethiran was the presidential candidate that united the hearts of the northern and eastern provinces in a context where the two provinces have been separated by law. The media report said that he came forward to show Tamil people’s aspirations to the world. While congratulating new President Dissanayake, the council had reminded that multiculturalism in the country can be protected only by accepting the existence of the Tamil people and their right to self-determination.
On 24 and 25 September, the Daily Mirror and Ceylon Today newspapers had published articles based on a statement made by Tamil National People’s Front (TNPF) Leader Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam. The main takeaway of both the articles was that the TNPF is ready to support the new President if he agrees to discuss a federal solution. The article further read that the Sinhala people had used their votes to bring about a certain change, and that in such a context, the party expects that the new administration will make a new start to meaningfully engage in politics with the Tamil people.


On 26 September, none of the Sinhala and English newspapers had published any news report about the Tamils, Muslims, or plantation sector communities. However, on 27 September, the Mawbima newspaper had published a front-page report that Tamil and Muslim parties are planning to contest together in the general election. However, the article did not mention the sources.

During the past week, less than ten news reports had been published in Sinhala and English newspapers about the people of the north, east and plantations sector or other similar communities. Compared to the election season, that is a staggering decline. Amidst new appointments, swearing-ins, southern aspirations for a change, and the aftermath of defeat, the media seems to have promptly forgotten about the limited dialogue about the aspirations of the people demanding their minimum rights, which had been brought to the fore during the election. At the same time, most of them remember those people again only when there is another election.
Subhashini Chathurika