JAFFNA, Sri Lanka -- There was a sense of the new in Sri Lanka's parliament on Nov. 21 that went far beyond it being the day of the inaugural sitting after a general election the previous week. Of the 225 seats in the saffron and brown-colored chamber, a record 175 were occupied by first-time lawmakers.
The vast majority of the debutants hail from National People's Power (NPP), the anti-establishment, left-leaning party that stormed to a historic victory, bagging 159 seats compared with just three in the previous parliament. The newcomers represent all walks of life, from academics, doctors and lawyers to small businessmen and women, as well as sportspeople and artists, ranging in age from the mid-30s to the mid-60s.
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