Sri Lanka's efforts to draft a plan to share power with minority Tamils are now in the final stage, the country's foreign minister said Tuesday. The Sri Lankan government has set up a panel to draft a new constitution in a bid to end a separatist conflict which has claimed over 60,000 lives since 1972.
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse had originally wanted to offer a political package to Tamils earlier this year, but it has been held up due to squabbling within his ruling coalition.
"I'm happy to announce that the process has now entered the final stage," Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama told a press conference during a visit to Tokyo, adding that an announcement was expected "shortly". Japan, Sri Lanka's largest aid donor, and other key backers have pressed for power-sharing as a means to end Asia's longest-running guerrilla war.
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