Mahinda Rajapaksa proposes beef ban in Sri Lanka within month of assuming power

Within a month of assuming power, Sri Lankan Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa has proposed a ban on cattle slaughter. Rajapaksa's party Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) has approved the proposal. Cabinet spokesperson and Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella was quoted saying that the Prime Minister will decide when to submit it to the government. He also added that there is no policy decision on the proposal yet and the PM was just seeking the party legislators’ views on a possible ban.

The beef ban, if implemented, will be a major step by the Rajapaksa government which has openly stated that it will not appease the minorities. The Buddhist majority of Sri Lanka do not eat beef and has in the past held massive campaigns to demanding a ban. While the Sinhala-Buddhist groups opposed halal certification in 2013 and a monk set himself ablaze, an outfit ‘Siva Senai’ and in 2018 staged a massive protest in Jaffna, calling for a beef ban. 

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2020 Prime Ministerial elections

The Rajapaksa's Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna party - leading the Sri Lanka People's Front, won 145 seats in the 225-member parliament in the election last Wednesday. Its main opponent, the SJB obtained 54 seats, while a minority Tamil party won 10 seats and 12 smaller parties won 16 seats amongst them. With almost two-thirds of the majority, the Rajapaksas have returned completely to power in the island nation, strengthening its dynastic ruling style.

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While Mahinda Rajapaksa was sworn in as Sri Lanka's Prime Minister for the fourth time last month, the powerful Rajapaksa clan now holds all the major posts in the government. 74-year-old Mahinda Rajapaksa was previously appointed as PM by Sri Lankan President and younger brother - Gotabaya Rajapaksa on 21 November 2019, two days after Gotabaya won the Presidential elections in the wake of the Easter bombings. Apart from Mahinda - who was also former President, his son Namal, his eldest brother Chamal (77), and his son Sashindra, and nephew Nipuna Ranawaka have been elected as MPs to the parliament. 

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