Sri Lankan government minister says Fonseka is not a political prisoner

A Sri Lankan minister today said that former Army Commander and Democratic National Alliance (DNA) Leader Sarath Fonseka is not a political prisoner as claimed by the opposition political parties, as he is serving a jail term after being convicted by a court.

Leader of the House, Minister Nimal Siripala De Silva has told the parliament that Fonseka is a convict and not a political prisoner.
The Minister had made this comment after Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremasinghe had repeatedly referred to Fonseka as a political prisoner.

Wickremasinghe told the parliament today that Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari who visited the parliament yesterday (29) had proudly claimed of the fact that there are no political prisoners in Pakistan and Sri Lanka should also learn a lesson from Zardari's claim.

Wickremasinghe said that the Speaker of the Sri Lankan parliament could not say a word in response as a Sri Lankan legislator, namely Fonseka, is in jail as a political prisoner.