A couple of days ahead of this, notices in the state-run newspaper, Daily News, had asked residents who wanted to interact with the President to assemble in the hall of the school. The ``meeting'' began exactly at 7.30 pm. Kumaratunga appeared suddenly, adjusting her string of pearls. It was not a flesh-and-blood appearance but her ``live'' image on a huge white screen in the school hall. Simultaneously, the school-end camera beamed the almost-full hall to Kumaratunga at her high-security official home, Temple Trees.

Chandrika, who is a virtualprisoner of security, has found in modern telecommunications the 100 per cent risk-free method to conduct her campaign for the forthcoming presidential election: she communicates with voters via satellite. Possibly inaugurating a new trend for South Asian political leaders who lead risky lives, Kumaratunga has been making 45-minute ``visits'' to two or three new constituencies each week.

Each minute costs $ 26 in satellite time. No one could confirm whether it was Kumaratunga's Sri Lanka Freedom Party or the Government which was footing the bill, but officials said it was cheaper than the cost of arranging a real meeting which could involve hundreds of security men, at least one chopper, scores of vehicles and road closures.

The equipment for the satellite link-up has been provided by the part state-owned, part-Japanese Sri Lanka Telecom. The state-owned radio and television are providing technical expertise.

At Bamblipitiya, the President began with a smile and a brief apology: ``The threats to my lifefrom the LTTE are supposed to be such that the security organisations do not allow me to move freely among the people. I am very sorry that I cannot be with you personally but I hope to do that when peace returns to Sri Lanka.'' For the next 45 minutes, Kumaratunga fielded questions from the audience. There was time enough only for six or seven, mainly personal, grievances but these provided Kumaratunga eough opportunity to say her piece: make me President again and all your problems will be solved.

There have been 19 such ``meetings'' since October, transporting Kumaratunga to the remotest parts of the country. At each venue, the audience is mobilised by her party organisers, but in Bambilipitya many came on their own.

This is far removed from the heat and dust of a real political rally and not half as entertaining as the real thing. And it ends abruptly when the time the satellite has been booked for runs out, leaving the audience disappointed or even angry, as it did on Saturday.

But Eric Fernando,head of Sri Lanka Broadcasting Corporation, predicts: ``This is the future of political campaigning, especially in our region where leaders cannot walk around freely.'' He said the whole exercise was planned to enable Kumaratunga to adhere to security advice and keep public appearances to a minimum without losing touch with the people.