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Opposition protesters march in S Lanka

A quarter of a million people and an elephant marched into Sri Lanka's capital yesterday to protest high prices and the government's failure to end ethnic tension with Tamil Tiger rebels.

The elephant served as the mascot of the main opposition United National Party and led the march while supporters along the route waved green hats and flags -- the party color -- and held up posters of UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe, saying "Let's make Ranil president."

At least 3,000 policemen, anti-riot officers and soldiers were deployed in the city to deter violence and patrols were boosted at the president's house, the prime minister's residence and other key sites, said Pujitha Jayasundere, senior superintendent of police.

Cars and other vehicles were diverted from the march route -- Colombo's major traffic artery, traffic chief Lucky Peiris said.

The 10-day march began on July 2 from Sri Lanka's southernmost point of Dondra, about 150km south of Colombo, gathering thousands along the coast.

Organizers said 1 million protesters were expected to take part in a massive demonstration to be held later yesterday in the city center where Wickremesinghe was to make a speech.

The UNP accuses the government of failing to bring down the cost of living and solving the ethnic tension that has battered the country for decades. They also want an end to President Chandrika Kumaratunga's term and are calling for new elections before the end of this year.

Kumaratunga's shaky coalition government was reduced to a minority in parliament last month after the Marxist party quit over a deal to share tsunami-aid with Tamil Tiger rebels. Two other constituent parties have also threatened to quit over the deal.

Critics argue the agreement raises the rebels' legitimacy, threatens national security and undermines the country's sovereignty.

During a similar march in 2001 by the UNP, two people were killed and 70 others were injured when police fired rubber bullets to block thousands of opposition-led demonstrators from marching into Colombo to protest the suspension of parliament by Kumaratunga after she lost majority support.

Meanwhile, the Tigers said yesterday they were losing patience with the government and may resume their bloody civil war following the killing of two senior members in an attack they blame on military intelligence agents.

The warning came after the rebels and two civilians were killed by unidentified assailants on Sunday in Trincomalee -- a town controlled by the government with pockets around it held by the Tamil Tigers.

"We cannot exercise patience while our cadres and civilians are being killed, maimed and threatened by the military intelligence wing in the military-controlled areas," S.P. Thamilselvan, the rebel's political head, said in a letter to the ceasefire monitoring chief.

The military has denied any responsibility for the killings.
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