ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the nature of demands in Sri Lanka and the motivation that legislators have to respond to them. It discusses the nature of political demands in Sri Lanka. Demands may be either generalized or particularized. Particularized demands are those whose primary consequences will affect an individual, a small group of people or a single organization. Generalized demands are those which may affect the country's population in general. Generalized demands may be divided into two sub-categories: national demands which affect the nation as a whole or a significant region of it; and local demands which are confined to the petitioner's district, municipality or electorate. Demands may be made by individuals or groups. Groups may be local, based in a legislator's constituency, or they may be national with interests which are not limited to one constituency.
