EPDP 0.3%, UPF 0.3%, PLOTE 0.1%, other
1.7%; seats by party--PA 105, UNP 94, EPDP 9, SLMC 7, TULF 5, PLOTE
3, SLPF 1, UPF 1

Judicial branch: Supreme Court, judges are appointed by the
Judicial Service Commission; Court of Appeals

Political parties and leaders: All Ceylon Tamil Congress or ACTC
Bandaranaike KUMARATUNGA]; People's Liberation Organization of Tamil
APPUHAMY]; several ethnic Tamil and Muslim parties, represented in
either parliament or provincial councils

Political pressure groups and leaders: Liberation Tigers of Tamil
Eelam or LTTE; other radical chauvinist Sinhalese groups; Buddhist
clergy; Sinhalese Buddhist lay groups; labor unions

International organization participation: AsDB, C, CCC, CP,
ESCAP, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA,
IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol,
IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM, OAS (observer), OPCW, PCA, SAARC, UN,
UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO,
WTrO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Warnasena RASAPUTRAM
chancery: 2148 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008
consulate(s): New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Shaun E. DONNELLY
embassy: 210 Galle Road, Colombo 3
mailing address: P. O. Box 106, Colombo

Flag description: yellow with two panels; the smaller hoist-side
panel has two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and orange;
the other panel is a large dark red rectangle with a yellow lion
holding a sword, and there is a yellow bo leaf in each corner; the
yellow field appears as a border that goes around the entire flag
and extends between the two panels

Economy

Economy--overview: In 1977, Colombo abandoned statist economic
policies and its import substitution trade policy for
market-oriented policies and export-oriented trade. Sri Lanka's most
dynamic industries now are food processing, textiles and apparel,
food and beverages, telecommunications, and insurance and banking.
By 1996 plantation crops made up only 20% of exports (compared with
93% in 1970), while textiles and garments accounted for 63%. GDP
grew at an annual average rate of 5.5% throughout the 1990s until a
drought and a deteriorating security situation lowered growth to
3.8% in 1996. The economy rebounded in 1997-98 with growth of 6.4%
and 4.7%. For the next rou