CHOGM dilemma

BRP Bhaskar
Gulf Today

To go or not to go, that is the question before Prime Minister Manmohan Singh as the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Colombo approaches. 

India has been an active participant in the Commonwealth of Nations, a grouping of Britain and its former colonies, since its formation in 1949. In fact, it was India’s readiness to be associated with the former colonial power which made the grouping possible.

Since 1971, CHOGM has become institutionalised as a summit held once in two years in the different member countries by turns. Beginning 1977 the host country has set a theme for each meeting.  The theme selected by Sri Lanka for this year’s meeting is “Growth with Equity; Inclusive Development,” a subject of great relevance to India.

Manmohan Singh’s dilemma arises from the vociferous opposition of the government and major political parties of Tamil Nadu to his visiting Sri Lanka when the island’s Sinhalese-dominated government pursues a discriminative policy towards the Tamil minority.

Last month the Tamil Nadu state assembly passed a resolution, moved by Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, demanding that India boycott CHOGM and seek Sri Lanka’s suspension from the group until it grants equal status to the Tamils.  All parties, including the Congress, which heads the government at the Centre, voted for the resolution.

With parliamentary elections due early next year, the state’s parties are engaged in a competition to emerge as the greatest champions of Tamil interests. Jayalalithaa has been pursuing the issue with the Centre since March when she wrote to Manmohan Singh asking that he work for shifting the CHOGM venue.

State legislatures have no role in matters of foreign policy. Yet the Tamil Nadu Assembly has passed resolutions on the Sri Lankan Tamil issue on three occasions. Although the problem has not generated much interest outside the state successive central governments have taken note of Tamil sentiments and intervened on behalf of the island’s ethnic minority.

Video recordings which surfaced recently have yielded conclusive evidence of gross human rights violations by the Sri Lankan army during its successful campaign against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, which had posed a violent challenge for three decades. Apart from LTTE chief Velupillai Prabhakaran, his teenage son and several mediapersons, at least one of them, a woman, were murdered in cold blood after being caught alive.

In a report to the UN Human Rights Council five weeks ago, High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay noted that the Sri Lankan government was evading an international inquiry into the rights violations and stressed the need for an independent investigation of the alleged war crimes.

Several human rights groups and Sri Lankan Tamil refugees in foreign lands have called upon Commonwealth members to boycott the Colombo CHOGM. So far only Canada has responded favourably. Its prime minister, Stephen Harper, has decided to stay away and send a representative instead.

Jayalalithaa has said it is unfortunate that India with 80 million Tamils has not acted with the same determination as Canada which has only a small Tamil population. She deliberately glosses over the fact that, unlike Canada, India has much at stake in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka received tactical support from India and weapons from China in the last stages of the war against LTTE. Coinciding with the cooling in the relations with India, which had been pressuring it since the end of the war to take political measures to meet Tamil aspirations, President Mahinda Rajapaksa has expanded ties with China. 

So far China has committed about $4 billion for infrastructure development in Sri Lanka. Its contributions include a $500 million container terminal which was commissioned in August and a $292 million airport highway which was opened last week. Work on a $272 million railway project has just begun. 

After India voted against Sri Lanka on a US-sponsored resolution in the Human Rights Council, the Rajapaksa administration announced it would renegotiate the 2003 agreement with India with regard to the use of oil storage tanks.

Yielding to Indian pressure, Sri Lanka held elections in the Tamil regions, and a provincial government headed by CV Vigneswaran, a former judge, has taken office. He finds himself in the unenviable position of being disliked by both the Sinhalese majority and the Tamil minority. Manmohan Singh still has more than a week to make up his mind as the actual meeting of heads of government will begin only on November 15. Such influence as New Delhi has over Colombo will be in jeopardy if he stays away from CHOGM. -- Gulf Today, November 5, 2013.

 

Neighbourhood challenges

BRP Bhaskar
Gulf Today

China-watchers are speculating on the implications of Beijing’s involvement in infrastructure projects in Sri Lanka and the Maldives, two small countries where India has vital strategic interests. Foreign media accounts speak of a “string of pearls” from Pakistan to Myanmar, comprising Chinese-funded port development projects.

The largest of these is the Hambantota port in southern Sri Lanka, the first stage of which, built at a cost of $360 million, was opened to ships in 2010. When its second stage, for which China has provided $810 million, is completed, it will become the largest port in the region.

Conceived as a refuelling and service point for cargo vessels, Hambantota is expected to handle about 45,000 metric tonnes (MT) of ship fuel this year. In the next two years its handling capacity will go up to 125,000MT. China has also offered $500 million for the expansion of the Colombo port.

Since 2007 China has committed $6.4 billion for various projects in Sri Lanka. Out of this $3.6 billion has been disbursed. An international airport for which China lent $209 million is due to open next week. Chinese companies have secured at least 14 major infrastructure projects in the island without going through the tender process.

Already Sri Lanka’s biggest partner in trade and development, China is all set to assume an even bigger role in its economy. The country expects China to provide more than half of an estimated $21 billion needed for various projects in the next three years.

In the last decade China’s trade with the Maldives has grown from $3 million to $60 million. When the country terminated its airport agreement with the Indian company GMR there were insinuations that it was acting at China’s behest. Later, Maldivian Defence Minister Mohammed Nazim visited China, leading to speculation that President Mohammed Waheed, who seized power ousting elected president Mohamed Nasheed, plans to take relations with China beyond diplomatic and economic levels.

When the Maldives sought a soft loan from China for information technology and communications projects, India was concerned it may have implications for its own security.

The US Congressional Research Office, in a report two years ago, had said China was “building or wanting to build” naval bases along the sea lane linking it with Gulf oil sources. China, it added, was following a “places, not bases” strategy: it was building commercial ports, not military bases.

Around the same time the International Institute for Strategic Studies, London, quoted a retired Chinese naval officer as saying China might set up its first overseas base somewhere in the Middle East. However, the Defence Ministry denied any overseas base was planned.

The emergence of divergent voices from China may be indicative of differences of opinion within its powerful political establishment. Contrary to the conventional view of foreign experts, different views are known to be in contention within it.

Justifying China’s increased presence in the Indian Ocean, Sri Lankan Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who is a brother of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, points out that it has a vital interest in the region as it imports 200MT of oil a year to sustain its industry-intensive economy. The Chinese-aided projects in the island are purely commercial, he says.

Sri Lanka receives investments from India, the US and Japan also but they cannot match cash-rich China’s soft loan terms. China provides assistance in the form of cash grants, interest-free loans and long-term concessionary loans on which the interest rate may be as low as two or three per cent.

Some domestic analysts disapprove of Sri Lanka’s excessive dependence on China. A former diplomat, Dayan Jayatilleka, reminds the administration that, unlike Pakistan, Sri Lanka has no land link with China, and it is highly improbable that China will bruise its relations with India over anything other than its own core interests. 

While the interests of India and China do not always coincide the two are sensitive to each other’s vital concerns. Attempts by China to understand India’s position in Afghanistan, which is at variance with that of its long-time ally Pakistan, is a case in point.

The most worrisome aspect of India’s relations with its small neighbours is not China’s growing economic links with them but its own diplomatic and political failures. It has not been able to persuade Sri Lanka to give its Tamil minority a fair deal or the Maldives to respect the rules of democracy. -- Gulf Today, Sharjah, March 12, 2013.

Saudi king responds to plea on behalf of jailed Sri Lankan woman

Saudi Arabia’s monarch has responded to the plea to save the life of Rizana Nafeek (picture on left), a Sri Lankan woman, convicted and sentenced to death for the murder of a child under her care, according to a message from the Asian Human Rights Commission.

Human rights organizations had appealed to the Saudi authorities on Rizana’s behalf.

The AHRC message reads as follows:

The Asian Human Rights Commission is happy to learn that His Royal Highness King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud of Saudi Arabia has taken the initial steps towards a reprieve for Rizana Nafeek, the Sri Lankan girl who is currently on the death row in Saudi Arabia convicted for strangling a baby in her care. Rizana, who was 17 years old at the time of the incident, claims it was an accident in which the baby choked while being bottle-fed. The Supreme Court in Riyadh confirmed her death sentence in late October 2010.

The Sri Lankan External Affairs Ministry’s Consular Chief Somadasa Wijeysundera reported this Sunday, November 14, 2010, that King Abdullah has directed officials to meet with the parents of the deceased infant for whom Rizana worked. He stated that the King's actions come as a response to the plea from the Sri Lankan President Rajapakse to grant the girl clemency, emphasizing that discreet diplomatic efforts were underway to secure her release.

Wijeysundera further stated that several other diplomatic efforts have been stepped up both in Riyadh and internationally to gather support for Rizana's release. "Our envoys in several countries both in the West and elsewhere are working closely with those respective countries towards this end. The response is encouraging but the process is slow because it needs a lot of diplomatic patience and understanding," he said.

Saudi Arabia's law is based on Sharia, the Islamic Law, which holds certain restrictions. As the Supreme Court of Saudi Arabia recently confirmed her death sentence, the options of judicial remedies have been exhausted. The decision can only be challenged if new evidence comes to light, if King Abdullah, who also serves as Prime Minister, grants her a pardon or the parents of the deceased infant withdraw their claim of murder or settle for blood money. The King's initiative to let officials meet with the family is therefore acknowledged as an important step in granting a reprieve to Rizana.

The Asian Human Rights Commission, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch among other human rights groups and civil society organizations have followed the case closely and worked intensively to put continuous pressure on the Saudi King and The Minister of Interior in Saudi Arabia to grant Rizana clemency as well as requesting
President Rajapakse to appeal to King Abdullah and request a diplomatic dialogue on the case.

While the eyes of the world currently are on King Abdullah and President Rajapakse, this should also be used to address the underlying causes to this disastrous situation and how the young girl from a rural, poor family ended up there in the first place. In Sri Lanka there is an urgent need to address the growing problem of illegal operations by the recruitment agencies to send workers overseas. As Sri Lanka's biggest source to foreign currency is remittance from workers overseas, the Sri Lankan government has been slow and reluctant to put pressure on the Saudi King before the international and national attention forced it to intervene. Addressing the problems of the workers overseas have therefore not been a priority before and something President Rajapakse would rather prefer to keep disguised.

In the case of Rizana it was after all the recruitment agency in Sri Lanka, who illegally altered her birthday to be able to employ her in Saudi Arabia. This resulted in Rizana holding a job as a baby caretaker; a job, which she was neither mature nor experienced enough to hold and thus led to the tragic death of a child. The current situation should be used genuinely for a call on the Sri Lankan government to take strong measures against the exploitation of underage labour and the implementation of protection for the country's migrant workers.

While the response by the Saudi King to intervene in Rizana's case is encouraging, it is crucial to maintain international as well as national pressure on the situation so that Rizana will be released.

Disappearance of a Sri Lankan political analyst

BASIL FERNANDO

The disappearance of Pregeeth Ekanaliyagoda, a political analyst, journalist and visual designer, attached to LankaENews; the arrest of Chandana Sirimalwatta, the editor of the Lanka newspaper and the assassination of Chandaradasa Naiwadu, the JVP Urban Council member at Ambalangoda are among the acts of violence reported during the election for the executive presidency in Sri Lanka. They were all persons who supported the joint opposition campaign on behalf of the retired army commander, Sarath Fonseka. The issue of violence in the election was raised at a press conference organised by the Commissioner for Elections this week. His explanation was that since the adoption of the 1978 Constitution the type of politics seen during the election is quite normal and that even in future elections a similar pattern of violence will continue. There has not been any attempt by the government to investigate any of the incidents mentioned above or any other acts of violence.

All three persons mentioned above are, or were, intellectuals who represent different points of view and are persons who dared to express their opinions even in the midst of a very intense culture of political violence. What is most saddening in the suppression of such voices which are trying to rise up against a general climate of violence and demoralisation and trying to develop a discourse on politics by expressing their own points of view for the consideration of the electorate. The case of the journalist and political analyst, Pregeeth Ekanaliyagoda clearly demonstrates the kind of violence that is used against the voices of reason.

"Sarath? Mahinda? Or us?"

Pregeeth Ekanaliyagoda wrote several articles in LankaEnews in the months prior to the election on the 26th January. He tried to engage his readers in a discussion on issues which were part of the public debate on the forthcoming election. In November 2009 he wrote an article entitled, “Sarath? Mahinda? Or us?” In this article he tried to enter into the debate that was taking place at the time about the entrance of the retired general, Sarath Fonseka as a candidate for the election. By using the debate that was taking place at the time he tried to demonstrate that the issue was not really about the two prominent candidates which were the incumbent president, Mahinda Rajapakse and Sarath Fonseka. He tried to highlight that the election was about ‘us’, meaning the people. He tried to reason out that what is at stake for us, the people in the election and the best ways of serving the interests of the people through the election. He tried to raise the discussion on the presidential election beyond personalities and into the issues that should concern the people.

He tried to engage in a discussion on dictatorships which was one of the issues of the election. One of the speculations against the retired general, Sarath Fonseka entering into politics was that, he being a military general, could turn out to be a dictator if he came into power. Ekanaliyagoda did not dismiss the argument lightly. He tried to bring in discussions about political experience from around the world to discuss the issue of dictatorships. He spoke of two types of dictatorships; one where the military establishes a direct dictatorship and another where the government elected through democratic means adopt the practices of a dictatorship. The issue for the people was to avoid the actual practice of dictatorship and for that they should look into the indicators of a dictatorship.

By examining dictatorships in Burma, Iran, Indonesia, Libya, the Sudan and Somalia he tried to bring to notice some of the practices of the dictatorial regimes. He identified the following: the lack of respect for public opinion and the law was one of the factors he identified in a dictatorship. He also indentified a lack of respect for the parliament and the judiciary. He further identified the lack of space for people to express and organise themselves as trade unions and other organisations furthering the interests of the people and the freedom of the civil society to actively participate in the life of society.

Having identified these factors as common experiences in countries that are ruled by a dictatorship, whether they are dictatorships which were brought about by the military or by governments initially elected democratically, he pointed out that all the features of a repressive society are present in Sri Lanka now. He pointed out that there is no respect for public opinion or the law within the country. He further pointed out the absence of the space for parliamentary democracy within the Sri Lankan context. He went on to enumerate how there is repression against people who engage in normal activities of furthering the interests of the people such as trade unions, opposition political parties, civil society organisations, those who engage in human rights work and the like.

Thus, he returned to the original question of what was at stake for the people of this election. He argues that what is at stake is to defeat these practices and to bring back the freedom which gives people the space to participate in political life which guarantees media freedoms and opens space for civil society to engage in resolving societal problems.

In this manner he tried to take the arguments between military dictatorships or democracy, not purely by those who claim to be democrats but on the basis of the policies that they advocate and the policies that are needed for society at this time. As an analyst and an intellectual he was trying to engage society on an intelligent discourse on the issues they should try to resolve in the coming elections.

He concluded his article by stating that Sri Lanka does not need a wretched dictatorship like Burma and dozens of other countries which have those kinds of regimes. Sri Lanka also did not need the Mahinda Chintanaya or any other kind of dictatorship.

"Sensitive Leader"

In an article written in December Ekanaliyagoda tried to discuss an advertisement that was commonly used on television at the time which stated that people should vote for the sensitive leader, meaning Mahinda Rajapakse, the incumbent president. In this article Ekanaliyagoda tried to analyse what was meant by a ‘sensitive leader’.

First he tried to elaborate on the concept of sensitivity and insensitivity in political life in terms of the sufferings of the people. He began with the issue of the tsunami which affected Sri Lanka badly and pointed out that during that time one of the most saddening aspects was that there were people who were willing to steal from the victims. He said that the exhibition of this tendency during this great tragedy point out a tremendous insensitivity to the suffering that had become part of the Sri Lankan psyche. The capacity, even to rob from people in a natural calamity he saw as an exhibition of tremendous breakdown of morale within Sri Lankan society. Then he went on to discuss the very serious illnesses such as dengue fever, swine flu and other epidemics that affect the young. Accompanied with such tragedies is also the revelation of fraud and attempts to earn commission from the purchase of medicines and other basic needs of the people.

That again was a manifestation of an enormous morale breakdown within society and this is reflected in the behaviour of the ministers and others who engage in such practices on behalf of the government. Dealing with such questions of insensitivity was something very much needed within the country.

Then he discussed the common news items which appeared often of suspects who are killed in custody under the pretext that while they were being taken by the police to show where they had hidden their loot they attacked the police who had to defend themselves. Such a blatant use of violence within the policing system itself and the tolerance shown to such stories by society was a clear manifestation of the insensitivity that has developed within Sri Lanka. He discussed the insensitivity in the enforcement of the law and the disregard of the courts which has become quite an entrenched part of the behaviour pattern within the country. He showed that on matters that involved huge sums of money there does not seem to be any kind of sensitivity or patriotism exhibited by the political leaders of the country.

He then went on to examine the killings of media personnel on orders from those in power and the fake condemnations of such killings without taking any steps to ensure that justice is ever done in these cases. Mentioning such killings such as the assassination of the well known journalist, Lasantha Wickrematunge he mentioned that the behaviour towards the media and the critics is almost like that of Caligula in the Roman Empire. Journalists are killed or assaulted in broad daylight or otherwise intimidated and this was not a climate of sensitivity. He also discussed the foreign debt and other issues of serious financial frauds that had taken place in the country as an indication of the absence of a political sensitivity. Thus, Ekanaliyagoda tried to develop a discourse on political sensitivity speaking of what should, in fact, be the behaviour of a sensitive political leader towards the suffering of the people within his country and what is actually found in the country.

"Should Mahinda’s government have an extension?"

His third article was in early January where he discussed the issue as to whether Mahinda Rajapakse’s government should have an extension. He discusses the work of the present government, particularly on the issue of the main allegation against the government which is corruption. Giving details of the ever increasing corruption within the government and that all aspects of national life being involved in these affairs he argued that the country would not benefit from a further extension of the government as it would only mean a continuance of the pattern of corruption that is entrenched within the country.

He argued that no plan of action has been put forward by the government with the promise to end corruption. No legal measure has been proposed in order to deal with the problem. Instead the entire machinery of the state has been made ineffective against any act of corruption and this was contributing to a climate of corruption within the country. Unless this trend is stopped it will damage the economy and the future of the nation, was his main argument against allowing the existing regime to continue in power.

Creating political discourse

The three articles that this political analyst has written within the last three months before his abduction indicates an attempt to involve the public in a political discourse on issues that he considered to be important.

A political discussion within a country cannot take place unless there is space for thinkers, writers and analysts to put forward their views and for the readers to have various views to consider. Having such serious minded analysts enhances the capacity of others to have different views and thereby to deepen the political discourse within the country.

The silencing of analysts and thinkers would only strengthen the argument made by such people that a climate for proper development does not exist presently. That development requires the serious participation of the thinking elements within society, in order to give their points of view on all aspects of life, so that an enlightened approach could prevail to support the betterment of the conditions of the people.

Ekanaliyagoda’s family constantly told the investigating authorities and the public through the media that they do not suspect any other reason for his disappearance except for political revenge. Under these circumstances there is even greater obligation for the government to investigate this disappearance and other acts of violence that is taking place in the country. The election commissioner has warned that other elections in the country are likely to repeat the same pattern of violence.

It is now the government’s turn to demonstrate its capacity to change the course of the violence and it is the duty of the international community to raise the issues of the disappearance and violence and request serious investigations and redress for victims of such violence.

Basil Fernando is Executive Director of Asian Human Rights Commission, Hong Kong.

Sri Lanka's capacity to hold free and fair elections in doubt

BASIL FERNANDO

On the 26th January the election for the position of Executive President was held in Sri Lanka and the election commissioner declared the incumbent president, Mahinda Rajapakse, as the winner. The common candidate for the opposition, retired general Sarath Fonseka, rejected the results stating that the announced results were false due to the prevalence of violence, electoral fraud and tampering of the counting process itself. The commissioner while announcing the results to the nation in a televised message stated in strong terms that he was subjected to severe pressure and humiliation to an extent that he was unable to bear it any longer. All commentaries on the election commissioner’s speech interpreted it to indicate that he was not satisfied with the conditions under which he had to carry out his duties in conducting the election in a free and fair manner.

Very clearly, the question as to whether Sri Lanka is any longer capable of conducting a free and fair election has been raised in this election. It is not only the electoral process that is under challenge but the very process of receiving, preserving and counting of the ballot at the commissioner’s office itself which is the issue that has been prominently raised. Besides this, the enormous abuse of state resources by the government for its electoral purposes and particularly the blatant abuse of the state media for direct propaganda to request people not to vote for the opposition candidate, in defiance of the commissioner’s direct interventions, have all contributed to the creation of the overwhelming impression that the conditions for a free and fair election were not observed during this election.

The problem of the difficulties in ensuring a free and fair election was recognised previously. In 2001 the amendment to the Sri Lankan Constitution of 1978 was passed in the parliament with rare unanimity which, among other things, created a Constitutional Council in order to ensure proper appointments to several important public institutions with the view to preserve professionalism in the government service. This was the result of a widely held realisation that political interference which had crept into the public service since the introduction of the executive presidential system in 1978 has contributed to the deterioration of standards in all public services and this deterioration was referred to as ‘politicisation’. This simply meant direct interference by the executive president and his agents into the running of the public service to an extent to make it impossible for it to function professionally.

Among the institutions that were recognised as being polluted by ‘politicisation’ was also the department of the commissioner of elections. Under Article 3 of the Constitution an amendment was introduced regarding the election commissioner. Under this article it was legislated that ‘there shall be an election commission consisting of five members appointed by the president on the recommendation of the Constitutional Council, from among persons who have distinguished themselves in any profession or in the field of administration or education. The President shall on the recommendation of the Constitutional Council, appoint one member as its chair.’

The governments since 2001 have refused to comply with this constitutional provision. The present commissioner of elections who was appointed to the position before this amendment was passed reached his retirement age in 2002. However, as no election commission was appointed according to the new provision he had to continue in office due to the absence of a substitute. On several occasions he publically requested permission to retire and as there was no satisfactory response from the government he even went before the court and sought permission to retire. The court refused his request on the basis that until a substitute was appointed under the constitutional provisions he had to remain in his post. Even the courts did not intervene to ensure that the government complied with the constitutional provision to appoint an election commission.

The failure on the part of the government to appoint an election commission consisting of five members nominated by the Constitutional Council has been perceived by all observers as a ploy to prevent the conduct of free and fair elections without political interference into the working of the election commissioner’s office. It was this situation which has led to the final outburst of the commissioner in which he voiced his frustrations to the entire nation in announcing the election result on the 27th January. Several of his comments are reproduced here due to their importance on any future discussion on this issue. (Translated from Sinhala by Roshan Fernando, quoted from Lanka Guardian).

"Under the empowerment of the Elections Commissioner as indicated in the 17th Amendment to the Constitution, I issued specific guidelines to the state media that were duly ignored. I then installed a Competent Authority for the state media who was completely disregarded. I then met the heads of state media but to no avail. I realized that this was a hopeless cause and so I had the Competent Authority removed.”

" I was able to note that during the election, many state institutions operated in a manner not befitting state organisations.”

"Some blamed me saying that my task was to ensure that the ballot boxes were safe and to ensure that the counting was done right. But under the circumstances I faced today, I could not even ensure the safety of even one ballot box. I did my duties during this time under great duress and mental agony.”

" I hereby state that the situation has reached a dangerous level that is beyond me. I am also advanced in years and have served in this capacity for eight long years so I only ask that I be released from this thankless duty.”

"It is impossible for me to work in peace under the circumstances – I am constantly under stress and find that I may fall sick and have to face consequences of such an illness.”

"Regional leaders harassed my team and I in several areas such as Puttalam, Anuradhapura, Matala Districts, they even bothered the counting centres. This is not a good trend. In fact, it reached an uncontrollable level of verbal abuse directed at Presiding Officers and Asst Elections Commissioners. “

"I have been accused of favouring one party in the process of carrying out my duties. I regret that it is no longer possible for me to suffer such indignity and insult – I am not able to do so physically or psychologically.”

Quite clearly, until the electorate is assured that the process of elections is not abused by violence, by the use of state resources in favour of the party in power, by the abuse of state media and without the tampering of the ballot in the process of receiving, preserving and counting at the commissioner’s office it would not be possible to create public confidence in a free and fair election. However, this cannot be done until a commission of elections is appointed in compliance with the 17th Amendment to the Constitution.

Basil Fernando is Executive Director of Asian Human Rights Commission, Hong Kong.

Sri Lanka: Biriyani, arrack and kassipu for some journalists

BASIL FERNANDO

"Go to any police station in the evening. You will find several journalists there. They come on their way home, to have a drink of kassipu, from the stash that the police have collected from raids that day”, says Raju (a fictitious name adopted for security reasons), a life time civil society activist.

They get not only kassipu, but also their news from the police.

Let me give you an example. Two people are killed at a police station. The next day, the heading of a news item in big letters reads, Pathalayan Dennek Maruta, meaning two persons from the underworld have been killed. The heading makes police officers who had done an extra-judicial killing appear as heroes who have eliminated two underworld figures. The free gift of kassipu has not been in vain.

This kind of behavior is explained away by such excuses as the low salaries of local reporters. It is said that these reporters have to travel at their own expense and that they are paid a paltry sum for news items they manage to get published. Publication, it is said, will require the giving of gifts by way of drinks, cigarettes and even cash.

Other places to gather news is the hospitals. There is always some misfortune that ends up in a hospital. With a good contact, such as an attendant, nurse or even sweeper at the hospital, a journalist may find access to such a story. Such trade requires special skills in maintaining contacts and a willingness to give necessary santhosam. However, at police stations, the news, which means the police version of events, is given freely and even with a gift such as a drink of kassipu. Even when an innocent man is arrested, the report in the news paper will read: “Rapist Arrested”, “Kudukaraya arrested”, and the like. Even if the arrested person is released later, no correction of the story is ever made.

It is those in the lower ranks of journalism who may go to police stations for favours. But, the luckier ones have better places to go. The house of a politician is always a place of entertainment for some selected journalists. Most politicians have their own thugs and journalists. The manner in which electorates are managed in Sri Lanka would present interesting material for sociological studies in social degeneration.

The benefits are, of course, higher for journalists who have managed to get closer to small ruling cliques. The ones that do well are those who undertake the task of mudslinging, particularly those who prepare the way for attacks on opponents. Before every political assassination or a serious attack, there is much ‘journalistic’ work to be done. Both before and after the assassination of Lasantha Wickrematunga and the attack on Poddala Jayantha, some journalists worked for a long time preparing the background for these attacks and then creating misimpressions after the attack, both in print and electronic media. Before and after every political event, there are many journalists who play their role and get their share.

The crazier the political situation becomes, the opportunities for the cynic acting as a journalist becomes much greater. When the situation degenerates over several years, the idea of the maintenance of standards in journalism begins to disappear in the same way that the people are made to disappear after abductions. The way journalists conduct their business becomes no different to the way a member of parliament like Minister Mervyn Silva often behaves in parliament. There are journalists who will say anything in any manner they chose without any facts to substantiate what they write. The more they ignore their professional ethics the more benefits they get from their patrons.

The very essence and goal of democracy is to tighten the hands of governments. Power corrupts. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Power, therefore, needs to be bound. The wires that tie the rulers are called laws. That no one is above the law explicitly refers to the fact that that rulers are not above the law. Charles I argued that no one had the right to judge him because he was the king. He relied on a rule that was well-established then. He failed to understand that the views of his the people of his country had changed. He lost his head. No British king or queen ever since has made the same argument.

Then power passed to elected rulers. But the problem still remained. Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely. New rulers also had to be bound. They also had to obey laws. They were not above the law. Then there were some difficult problems. How, for example, to deal with a war? Your enemy obeys no law. Should you obey law? That even in war there are laws to be obeyed is a rule that evolved over a long period. Finally the Geneva conventions laid down some basic laws of war.

From time to time there are challenges to this principle. George W. Bush, for example, wanted some such laws to be ignored. One law was the international law against torture. Some of his countrymen agreed, at least for sometime. Then, faced with the actual experiences, many were horrified. The voting of the people showed the change in favour of the old rule against torture. Thus, in countries where laws relating to war are accepted, there is a renewed interest in the debates which crated these laws. Charles the First still may have had some admirers. George W. Bush had some also during the Bush era, and many got rich by being “journalists”. By supporting rulers that abuse power, it is possible to get very rich. Today, a political stooge who calls himself a journalist can be assured that biriyani and arrack is served through the backdoor. Such journalist hacks say that the rulers can do whatever they like. The fundamental rule is that hands of rulers must be kept bound if citizens are to live safely. People no longer want monsters to rule over them.

Sri Lanka may be considered the second most dangerous place for journalists. That is for those journalists who take their job seriously. Which is something that the cynics in their profession think only fools should do. Some are assassinated, others have fled the country and one has been jailed for 20 years of rigorous imprisonment. However, to those cynics who want to earn their biriyani, arrack and kassipu, Sri Lanka is indeed a paradise.

Basil Fernando is Executive Director of the Asian Human Rights Commission, Hong Kong, a non-governmental organization monitoring and lobbying human rights issues in Asia.

SRI LANKA: Justice and the media in peril

BASIL FERNANDO
Executive Director
Asian Human Rights Commission

Sri Lanka's justice system, legal profession and media are all under peril says a report published this week by the International Bar Association's Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI). The report is entitled, Justice in Retreat: A report on the independence of the legal profession and the rule of law in Sri Lanka. This expression of concern by the International Bar Association, which is acknowledged as the global voice of the legal profession, is perhaps the first statement of recognition by an internationally reputed professional organisation of lawyers of the peril that is facing Sri Lanka's system of justice. In this column the author has constantly drawn attention to this peril and hopes that those concerned with Sri Lanka will pay more attention to this all important question.

The LTTE

The report comes at a time of great importance to Sri Lanka. The government has claimed complete victory over the LTTE. The circumstances surrounding the last days of the war between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan armed forces still remain a focus point in the global media and the United Nations Human Rights Council has called a special session to discuss this situation. In all discussions the government, as well as all the other interested parties, talk about bringing a political solution to the problem of minority Tamils in the country.

The 13th Amendment

The government's preferred solution is the implementation of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution (Devolving power to provincial councils). Even the communiqué by the government and the UN issued at the end of the visit of Ban Ki Moon, the Secretary General of the United Nations who paid a special visit last week makes mention of the government's commitment regarding the 13th Amendment.

The basic question that arises is as to whether this amendment could be fully implemented or implemented at all in a place where the justice system, the legal profession and the media is in peril. The 13th Amendment is no different to any other part of the Constitution and therefore the general problem that deserves consideration is as to whether a constitution can be implemented in a society where the justice system, legal profession and the media is in peril.

Over the long period of the conflict, which dates back at least 31 years, almost all references to the conflict were on the basis that it was an ethnic issue. Therefore, the attempt was, if there was any, to find a specific solution to this specific problem.

However, it appears clearly now that whatever they mean by an ethnic problem, this is only a part of a much larger problem within a country where the total system of justice, which means the system that applies equally to the majority as well as to the minorities, is in peril. The problem specifically affecting the minority cannot be in any meaningful sense separated from that of the problem affecting the entire population where the justice system, the legal profession and the media are in peril. Justice is the basis of all relationships within a particular society. It is justice that determines the limitations on state power. It is those limitations preserved by law that ensures protection of all rights to all persons. These may be the rights of women, rights that ensure protection against illegal arrest, detention and extrajudicial killings and denial of fair trial or matters relating to economic, social and cultural rights and the rights of the child and the like.

The rights of all

The minority rights are one more category of the overall umbrella of rights of the citizens. If the system of justice is in peril then all the rights are in peril. Simply to talk about minority rights only is fictional, just as talk about saving a few after allowing thousands to perish, can only be a fiction. Let us say you drop a nuclear bomb in a particular city and talk about saving only one group of persons among the many who are likely to be affected by the explosion. It is possible to talk about such a thing as pure fiction but in real life it does not happen that way.

What is said about the justice system as a whole can also be said of the legal profession and the media. The legal profession is an indispensible component of the protection of rights in any modern society. The task of the profession is to assist citizens who may have a lesser understanding about the total system of the law. If the lawyers cannot provide those services that are expected of them, their clients will suffer for it. Once again this is a problem that affects all. Without addressing a problem that affects all it is not possible to address the problem of the minorities only.

Again, the media is an essential component of the protection of all rights of the people. If the media is in peril the rights of all are in peril. Everyone will be denied of the right to information which is the sole basis on which well informed judgements can be made. If all the people are denied the information needed for making rational judgements all the decisions they make are destined to fail. The majority and minority relationships for the benefit of all can happen only if there is a rational discourse between the two.

IDPs

The peril of the system of justice, the legal profession and the media is amply illustrated by the manner in which the internally displaced persons, said to be around 300,000, are being treated at the moment. The country's system of the administration of justice is not involved in any way in dealing with this issue. Therefore the lawyers have no place in the protection of the rights of these persons. The media are virtually denied access to these persons. Thus, basic rights that any citizen should have under any circumstances are denied to them and there is nothing anyone can do about it.

What the situation of the IDPs illustrates is that it is not possible to separate the discussions on the total collapse of justice and the media in the country from any aspect of the problems of the minority. The situation that has developed is that all the citizens should voluntarily abandon any claims for legal status and legally enforceable rights for the sake of what is called national security. Thus security has come to mean a situation in which everyone's rights are an irrelevant factor. In this context the IBAHRI report has highlighted a fact which is not only relevant for lawyers but also for the society as a whole.

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About AHRC: The Asian Human Rights Commission is a regional non-governmental organisation monitoring and lobbying human rights issues in Asia. The Hong Kong-based group was founded in 1984.

Basil Fernando: I also mourn for Prabakaran

Reproduced below is an Open Letter to all Sri Lankans from Basil Fernando (photo at left), Executive Director, Asian Human Rights Commission, Hong Kong. Born in Sri Lanka, Basil Fernando graduated from the Faculty of Law of the University of Ceylon, Colombo, in 1972. He practiced and taught law before moving out of Sri Lanka to hold several United Nations-related posts, including appeals counsel under the UNHCR for Vietnamese refugees in Hong Kong, officer-in-charge of the Investigation Unit under the U.N. Transitional Authority in Cambodia and chief of legal assistance at the Cambodia Office of the U.N. Center for Human Rights.

Following the killings of the entire LTTE leadership there is a strongly expressed feeling among Sri Lankans, within the country or outside, that their deaths particularly that of the leader, Prabakaran, should not be a matter for mourning. I beg to differ!

That there were the most extreme forms of violence practiced by both the rebels and the state forces is the issue of real concern. That the political and legal systems of Sri Lanka have not developed to an extent that it is possible to deal with any conflict, particularly a conflict between the communities living within the country, is a matter that cannot be separated from the way in which all actors in the present conflict have behaved. The test of civilisation in modern times is the nature of the political and legal institutions within which people live and not their so called traditional cultures. If the situation of Sri Lanka is such that no such civilised political and legal systems exists, the actors for the state and those citizens who have taken to violence must be judged within the framework of this total situation.

Moral and legal responsibilities

This does not remove the moral responsibilities of those who have acted with barbarism either on behalf of the rebel groups or on behalf of the state. Each must answer morally for their actions despite the colossal defects of the political and legal systems within which they have acted. For this each must answer separately. It is not exculpatory for anyone to claim innocence on the basis that such actions were done on behalf of the rebel group or the state if the acts themselves, are immoral or illegal even in the situation of a 'war'. However, those who have made moral decisions which are wrong and which may have brought them to the ultimate loss of life due to these very wrongs, do not forfeit their human status and therefore they still deserve to be mourned. Prabakaran was a citizen of Sri Lanka and a human being and there is no way of saying in an ultimate sense that he was not 'one of us.'

I am a Sinhalese by birth and as I reached my adulthood I told myself that this should in no way affect my judgement on anything. In the latter part of my life in particular, I have lived with many races and nationalities belonging to all continents. At no stage the fact of whatever race or nationality these people belonged to has been a matter affecting any judgement, though the ethnic and cultural differences of people have played an important role in the enjoyment and enrichment of each other. And I have asked myself, if this be the case, why should my judgement regarding the communities of my own country be any different to this?

Angulimala

In terms of the strongest cultural tradition of Sri Lanka which is Buddhism, perhaps the story of Angulimala is to the point. Angulimala, a bright student, was treated badly by his guru because of a misunderstanding created by jealous and rival students in the mind of the guru about him. The guru instructed Angulimala to bring him a chain of fingers. The finger hunt resulted in Angulimala having the reputation of being the worst murderer in the region because he killed everyone he met to take their fingers. One day however, the Buddha confronted him, facing the risk of assassination himself. In the process Angulimala was brought to his knees, made to understand his predicament and changed his ways. The moral of the story is two-fold. That Angulimala's behaviour was conditioned and that despite of his atrocious criminal acts he was still a human being to be dealt with.

In the Christian tradition there is the story of the stoning of an immoral woman where the Christ told the crowd, those who are without sin, throw the first stone.
This does not imply that the moral and legal wrongs done by the LTTE under their leader should be forgotten or forgiven. All the moral and legal issues of atrocious crimes need to remain the top priority of the national discourse until such time as the whole nation understands the implications of all these issues, so that measures will be developed in order to avoid their repetition in the future. In the case of the rebellions of the JVP in 1971 and 1986 to 1991 no such discussion took place and, in fact, attempts at all such discussions was deliberately suppressed. Therefore the repetition of similar and even worse behaviour happened again through the LTTE.

The problem of dealing with moral and legal issues is that no one can take a holier than thou attitude. It is not possible to discuss and resolve and the moral and legal issues of rebels without discussing the legal and political responsibilities of the state. If the state itself avoids criticism of its own behaviour and has no will at all to change that behaviour with the improvement of political and legal institutions, then the criticism of the rebels become a farce. Such a refusal to discuss state responsibility can only be a ploy to continue with the defective political and legal systems for the benefit of some persons.

The threat of more repression on everyone

Thus, out of the fight against rebels there is the real possibility of the emergence of a state with greater powers of repression which would be used against the entire population. It was the campaign against the communists in Germany which was utilised by Hitler to build one of the world's worst authoritarian systems. It was the fight against the bourgeoisie and the internal party groups of the left opposition lead by Trotsky that was utilised by Joseph Stalin to create an authoritarian system which was even worse than that of Hitler.

In the aftermath of Prabakaran's death the exhibition of his body and the jubilation that was shown reflect badly on the sort of 'headhunter mentality' of some tribes who kept the heads of their enemies, captured in battle as trophies of their strength and glory. When the political and legal institutions fails to live up to required standards a sub-stream of consciousness that remains from the past can surface, as Hannah Arendt in her extensive studies of various authoritarian regimes in the recent past has demonstrated. It was the surfacing of such tendencies which made even the concentration camps possible. Thus, it is not only in countries with less developed political and legal systems that this can happen but even stronger systems can degenerate under certain circumstances. The sub stream of consciousness from the past in south Asian societies, including Sri Lanka is conditioned by the unwritten laws of the repression of the caste system in which disproportionate and collective punishment is an integral part, as amply demonstrated by the recent popular novel, the White Tiger, by Aravind Adiga.

That there was such violent conflict in our own country is a matter for regret and sadness. That there are no attempts to improve the political and legal systems so as to be capable of dealing with the differences and the conflicts is a matter for even greater sadness. That the defeat of the LTTE is being manipulated so badly as to further destroy whatever remains of the political and legal system evokes even worse premonitions for society. How the workers, farmers, the middle class, those who represent dissent and opposition and those who are engaged in providing public information and creating public opinion through the media will be dealt with in the future in Sri Lanka is even more frightening to think about.

Celebrations of a failure

There is no real victory to celebrate, but instead tremendous failures to worry about. And if the artificial celebrations that are organised are meant to fool the people again then these celebrations will, in fact, be glorifications of failure. The last thing that human beings can rely on is their common humanity and the last thing that the citizens of a nation can rely on is citizenship. The fallen rebels as well as fallen soldiers are, in fact, bound by the bond of humanity and citizenship. They all need to be mourned. That is the least bit of decency that anyone can demonstrate. I mourn for all of them, including Prabakaran.

Yours sincerely,

Basil Fernando
Executive Director
Asian Human Rights Commission, Hong Kong

Concern over fate of three Tamil doctors in Sri Lanka

The following is a statement from Amnesty International forwarded by the Asian Human Rights Commission, Hong Kong:

Amnesty International is concerned for the safety of three government doctors who had been working in the conflict zone in North eastern Sri Lanka until 15 May.
Dr T. Sathiyamoorthy, Dr T. Varatharajah and Dr. Shanmugarajah were treating the sick and wounded until they reportedly travelled out of the ‘No Fire Zone’ with approximately 5,000 other civilians.

According to reports received by Amnesty International, Dr. Shanmugarajah and Dr. Sathiyamoorthy, the regional director of health services in Kilinochchi, may be currently held at the Terrorist Investigation Division (T.I.D) in Colombo. However, a detention order has not yet been issued so their relatives remain unsure of their whereabouts and they do not have access to a lawyer. Dr T. Varatharajah, the regional director of health services in Mullaitivu, was seriously injured and is reported to have been airlifted from the Omanthai crossing point to an unknown destination by the Sri Lankan Air Forces (SLAF).

According to reports, the three doctors were last seen on the morning of May 15 at a holding area at Omanthai checking point.

Amnesty International fears that they may be held in reprisal for providing information about civilians in the conflict zone. The doctors provided eyewitness reports to the media and the international community from hospitals and makeshift medical centres in the conflict zone. Their reports detailed the suffering of ordinary civilians, many of whom died from war-related injuries. Their reports also highlighted continuous shelling of areas with large concentrations of non-combatants.

AHRC asks Sri Lanka to end operation of anti-terrorism laws

The Asian Human Rights Commission, Hong Kong, says in a statement:

The Sri Lankan government has officially declared victory against the LTTE. The Secretary of Defence, in an interview to the BBC Sinhala Service on Sunday, said that "the LTTE does not exist anymore." (A reputed journalist reported the possibility of the LTTE leaders having committed mass suicide and the government has not revealed the manner in which the LTTE has ceased to exist).

With the end of the LTTE there is no longer any justification for the continuation of the emergency and anti-terrorism laws which are operating in all parts of Sri Lanka. The essence of these laws is to suspend the operation of the normal laws of the country and such suspensions cripple the rule of law, due process and democracy.

The best way to mark the end of the LTTE is to allow people to breathe freely by suspending emergency and anti-terrorism laws.

Extraordinary powers given under anti-terrorism laws allow for:
• prolonged detention,
• disempowerment of the judiciary in exercising the normal functions relating to arrest and detention,
• the detention of persons in special places which are not normally authorised as places of detention,
• preventive detention,
• draconian laws to restrict freedom of expression and the freedom of the press,
• severe restrictions on freedom of assembly, thus restricting legitimate forms of protest such as meetings, rallies, demonstrations and the like,
• severe restrictions on the formation of associations.

These restrictions virtually cripple the operation of the legal process under the normal supervision of the courts. In fact, the emergency and anti-terrorism laws place some government officials, such as the Secretary of Defence, in a higher position than the courts.

Local and international law provides for the derogation of certain rights when there is a situation such as, 'In time of public emergency which threatens the life of the nation and the existence of which is officially proclaimed.' Such a situation no longer exists by the very admission of the Sri Lankan government itself. The public proclamation now is that the LTTE has been completely defeated which amounts to a policy statement that the public emergency threatening the life of the nation no longer exists.

The relevant article in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights states as follows:

4.1. In time of public emergency which threatens the life of the nation and the existence of which is officially proclaimed, the States Parties to the present Covenant may take measures derogating from their obligations under the present Covenant to the extent strictly required by the exigencies of the situation, provided that such measures are not inconsistent with their other obligations under international law and do not involve discrimination solely on the ground of race, colour, sex, language, religion or social origin.

The operation of emergency and/or anti-terrorism laws has continued in Sri Lanka with brief intervals since 1971. In 1971 and between 1987 and 1991 such suspensions of the normal laws was done as the JVP was considered by the government to have created a situation where there was a: '......public emergency which threatens the life of the nation and the existence of which is officially proclaimed.' From the late 70s up to now similar provisions suspending normal laws have been justified by the government against the JVP and LTTE.

Emergency and anti-terrorism laws are a tremendous burden on the operation of the normal legal process. When extraordinary laws that allow the special suspensions of the general law of the country operate it permeates the normal rule of law system and virtually paralyses it. When such laws exist for any length of time they can destroy the rule of law system altogether. The collapse of the rule of law system in Sri Lanka has been noted by everyone and one of the contributory factors has been the continuing use of such extraordinary laws.

Emergency and anti-terrorism laws create a situation of terror and fear psychosis. One of the major challenges that the country will face in the immediate future is how to exorcise such terror and fear and the first step towards that is the abolition of these laws.

It is hoped that the government will not look for another 'demon', whether real or imagined, in order to justify the continuation of emergency and anti terrorism laws. The government's propaganda machinery, which has for a long time depended heavily on the existence of the LTTE for the purpose of justifying all forms of terror exercised by the state, is very likely to look for another demon or even a phantom in order to continue with its vicious propaganda for the purpose of controlling the entire population.

It is time for the nation to be free and once again to be able to engage in its own diverse discourses in order to find solutions to the millions of problems that society is now faced with. The country's normal legal framework provides for such normal living. Among the problems that require freedom for the purpose of finding solutions is the immediate problem of the large numbers of IDPs. Large numbers of their relatives in Sri Lanka and abroad are anxious about their wellbeing and, in fact, the entire nation and the international community want to participate in making their situation less miserable. Also finding solutions to the minority problem is possible only within the framework of the operation of normal laws and the possibilities of the free exchange of ideas.

In view of the developments of the past few days it will not be possible for the government to justify the continuation of the emergency and anti-terrorism laws, either to the local population or the international community. Such a move will only give credence to the accusation that there are ulterior motives for maintaining the operation of such laws.

All political parties in Sri Lanka, the media and civil society should now do everything possible to ensure that these emergency and anti-terrorism laws are withdrawn without delay. The United Nations Secretary General, Ban Ki Moon was requested by the Security Council to take all appropriate measures to deal with the present situation and the Sri Lankan government was requested to cooperate with the Secretary General. We urge the Secretary General to request the lifting of the emergency and anti-terrorism laws in order to facilitate proper measures to deal with the humanitarian crisis. We also urge the United Nations Human Rights Commissioner, the leaders of the governments that have in recent time shown interest in the situation in Sri Lanka and the Diaspora (Sinhalese and Tamil), in particular who will want the problems of the IDPs and the minorities to be dealt with in an accountable and transparent manner, to make it a priority to see that these laws are withdrawn immediately.

About AHRC: The Asian Human Rights Commission is a regional non-governmental organisation monitoring and lobbying human rights issues in Asia. The Hong Kong-based group was founded in 1984.

End of civil war in Sri Lanka

“We willingly stand up with courage and silence our guns. We have no other option other than to continue our plea to the international community to save our people”. With these words, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam conceded on Sunday the Sri Lankan government’s claim that the long drawn out civil war is over.

The end of the conflict was announced by Selvarasa Pathmanathan, head of LTTE’s International Diplomatic Relations, in an urgent statement, according to the TamilNet website.

Pathmanathan said, “This battle has reached its bitter end. Against all odds, we have held back the advancing Sinhalese forces without help or support, except for the unending support of our people. It is our people who are dying now from bombs, shells, illness and hunger. We cannot permit any more harm to befall them.”

He said the LTTE had fought the Sri Lankan military for almost three decades and defended its right to carry arms as a means of protecting the Tamil people living in the island.

The website made no mention of the whereabouts of the LTTE chief, Velupillai Prabakaran.

The Sri Lankan army’s current campaign against the LTTE began two years ago. With its successful completion, the civil war is over. But the island’s Tamil community’s legitimate demand for an honourable place remains to be addressed. This is a political task that brooks no delay.

The recent furore in India over the Sri Lankan developments betrays a total lack of understanding of the issue in our media as well as in political circles.

The animosity between the Sinhala and Tamil communities goes back a long way. When the country gained independence in 1948 the Tamils had a favoured position in the government, having been close to the British during the colonial period. The country witnessed a series of agitations under the leadership of Buddhist monks seeking justice for the majority Sinhala people, who are Buddhists. These led to the adoption of Buddhism as the state religion and Sinhala as the official language. It was now the turn of the Tamils to agitate against injustice.

An honourable solution to the island’s ethnic problems lies in the evolution of a constitutional scheme which recognises the rights of the Tamils as a religious and linguistic minority.

Details of S. Pathmanathan’s statement at TamilNet website.

LTTE thanks Obama

"We thank and welcome the categorical calls by President Barack Obama for the Sri Lankan Government to take toward alleviating the humanitarian crisis," said B. Nadesan, the political head of the LTTE in a statement issued from Vanni on Thursday.

"The United Nations Organization and the Security Council has held back in their traditional humanitarian leadership role to take prudent measures and bring about a truce and safeguard Eelam Tamils. Now, the Eelam Tamils earnestly look forward to President Barack Obama to lead the humanitarian intervention," Mr. Nadesan said in his response to US President's statement on Wednesday.

Text of Natesan’s statement at TamilNet site

UN Security Council statement on Sri Lanka

The following United Nations Security Council press statement on Sri Lanka was read out on Wednesday by Council President Vitaly Churkin (Russian Federation):
The members of the Security Council express grave concern over the worsening humanitarian crisis in north-east Sri Lanka, in particular the reports of hundreds of civilian casualties in recent days, and call for urgent action by all parties to ensure the safety of civilians.

The members of the Security Council strongly condemn the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) for its acts of terrorism over many years, and for its continued use of civilians as human shields, and acknowledge the legitimate right of the Government of Sri Lanka to combat terrorism.

The members of the Security Council demand that the LTTE lay down its arms and allow the tens of thousands of civilians still in the conflict zone to leave.
The members of the Security Council express deep concern at the reports of continued use of heavy calibre weapons in areas with high concentrations of civilians, and expect the Government of Sri Lanka to fulfil its commitment in this regard.
The members of the Security Council demand that all parties respect their obligations under international humanitarian law.

The members of the Security Council call on the Government of Sri Lanka to take the further necessary steps to facilitate the evacuation of the trapped civilians and the urgent delivery of humanitarian assistance to them.

The members of the Security Council take note of the steps taken by the Government of Sri Lanka to address the humanitarian situation of displaced persons and call on the Government of Sri Lanka to ensure the security of those displaced by the conflict and to cooperate with the United Nations, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), and other international humanitarian organizations in providing humanitarian relief and access to them as soon as they leave the conflict zone.

The members of the Security Council reiterate support for the personal involvement of the UN Secretary General and urge the Government of Sri Lanka to extend full cooperation to the United Nations in order to resolve the humanitarian crisis.

The members of the Security Council, mindful of the necessity to find a long-term solution without the threat of violence, underline that the needs of all communities in Sri Lanka have to be addressed.

Sri Lanka: hope for the best and prepare for the worst

Tamil Nadu goes to the polls tomorrow (May 13) in the fifth and final phase of polling in the Lok Sabha elections. After that, in all likelihood, the Sri Lankan government will feel emboldened to launch the final assault on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, who are now trapped in a small stretch of land. One shudders to think of the plight of an estimated 50,000 to 100,000 Tamil civilians caught between two ruthless forces.

There is reason to suspect that the Sri Lankan government has been going slow in the last few days since the fate of the civilians in the battlefield became a major election issue in Tamil Nadu. Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi and his chief political rival, former All India Anna DMK Chief Minister J. Jayalalithaa, were engaged in an unseemly competition to pose as the saviour of the Tamils of Sri Lanka.

Jayalalithaa, who had condemned the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in the past as a terrorist organization, recently endorsed its goal of a separate Eelam state. Two regional outfits which have openly backed the LTTE, which was banned in India after its role in former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination came to light, had broken away from the DMK-led alliance on the eve of the elections and joined the AIADMK-led front.

Last week the two leaders went one step further. Addressing an election meeting, Jayalalithaa said, "If the AIADMK-led alliance wins all 40 seats (39 in Tamil Nadu, one in Puducherry), then the Indian Army will be sent to Sri Lanka to carve out a separate Eelam state, like what Indira Gandhi did to Pakistan by carving out Bangladesh. Karunanidhi responded by declaring, also at an election meeting, that he “assumes responsibility” for the creation of Eelam.

The Bharatiya Janata Party and the Communist Party of India (Marxist) raised the Eelam issue at the national level with a view to embarrassing the Congress, but as far as can be ascertained the issue did not cause a stir beyond the borders of Tamil Nadu.

When Jayalalithaa first announced her support for the formation of an Eelam state, in a sardonic comment, a Sri Lankan government spokesman said she should find some other place for it.

There was a flurry of diplomatic activity as the Central government realized that the mood in Tamil Nadu, where many people believe it is actively assisting the Sri Lankan authorities in the civil war, could damage the electoral prospects of the Congress and its partner, the DMK.

Following the visit of a high-level Indian official team, the Sri Lankan government said it would not use heavy arms. But it does not appear to have kept the promise.

The world's attention at the moment is fixed on about 192,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs), besides the civilians trapped in the no-fire zone. United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, in a press release issued after a telephone conversation with the Sri Lankan president, said this issue was among the highest of priorities internationally.

The Asian Human Rights Commission, in a statement, said the people caught in the conflict between the Sri Lankan government and the LTTE are ordinary folk who have lived in the north and the east from time immemorial and who have sustained themselves and helped others in the past. They deserve the full attention of the government as well as the international community in order to be able to escape this troubled situation and as soon as possible to be integrated back into their natural habitat.

It added, “Obviously, the LTTE will not cooperate in any way either for the release of those trapped in this small area of land or to contribute to their well-being. However, this cannot be used as an excuse by the government, which has the obligation to protect its citizens. The fact of the limited resources available to the country to ensure the well-being of these persons is no excuse as the international community, expressing itself through the highest officer of the United Nations, has assured complete cooperation to the government to deal with this issue. The richer countries of the world have also assured the government and the United Nations of their support to see this through.”

Let us hope for the best and prepare for the worst.

Media kept on tight leash in Sri Lanka

As the latest round of Asia’s longest-running guerrilla war winds down, scores of journalists in Sri Lanka are experiencing intimidation and harassment for being critical of the military campaign against the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), according to correspondents of the Inter Press Service (IPS).

The issues currently in focus are the rising number of civilian casualties, repeated calls for a ‘ceasefire’ by the U.N. and the international community, and a government plea for international humanitarian assistance to tackle a mounting crisis.

"Maybe journalists don’t want to talk about these things given the fear psychosis that has engulfed the media," noted a veteran journalist, who declined to be named for fear of reprisal. Some journalists have even opted to leave the country.

To read the rest of the story please go to the Countercurrents site

Media organizations expose role of Sri Lankan paramilitary groups

The following is a statement issued by the Asian Human Rights Commission, Hong Kong:

Five media organizations in Sri Lanka, issuing an investigative report entitled, 'The Resurgence of Terror and the paramilitary forces in Sri Lanka,' stated that covert operations are carried out by paramilitary groups that have the patronage of an ultra-powerful authority in carrying out terror operations. The report referred mainly to attacks on many journalists, including assassinations. The report reveals that this terror group is able to pass barricades and checkpoints because of an efficient network that facilitates the transport of these attackers.

The report refers to various attacks, these being: the 6th January attack on the Sirasa Media Network building which was set on fire, the assassination of the editor, Lasantha Wickrematunge on 8th January, the attack on the Max TV station on 23rd February, the attack on editor Upali Tennakoon on 24th February, the abduction of editor N. Vidyadaran on 26th February and the abduction of Prof. Dhammika Ganganath Dissanayaka on 12th March. All these attacks occurred this year. Further, earlier attacks took place last year on Guruparan, a journalist with Suryan FM, the attack on Keith Noyar, Deputy Editor of the Nation newspaper, the brutal attack and attempted abduction of journalist Namal Perera and the media secretary of the British High Commission, Mahendra Ratnaweera.

In one instance an armed group that entered Max TV and brutally attacked the security personnel and journalists of the station were proved to be police officers from the Mirihana Police Station. Nothing was done by way of prosecuting these officers. Instead a senior officer arrived and expressed regret stating that it had been a mistake.

This report was presented to leaders from the Congress of Religions on the 7th April. The religious leaders, who listened to the representation of the five media organisations undertook to bring the report to the notice of the president of Sri Lanka. Earlier the US State Department, in their annual report on human rights also mentioned that: 'paramilitaries and others believed to be "working with awareness of the government "carried out unlawful killings, torture and kidnappings of civilians with impunity".'

That the Ministry of Defence has become an ultra-powerful authority and that the death squads operate under the patronage of the existing regime, are facts commonly known throughout the country. That the policing system has failed to uphold the rule of law and is in a pathetic condition is also a routinely repeated, non-controversial statement. That the politicisation of the police and the armed forces prevents their conduct from being scrutinised or investigated by any legal authority is also uncontested except by the government spokesman whose sole task is to poo-poo all allegations of the government’s involvement in criminal activities. The spokesman for the police, for example, when questioned about this report by the BBC Sinhala Service retorted that making such allegations against the police and military was an insult to war heroes.

Under normal circumstances a report of this nature would be responded to by the government which would initiate a high level inquiry into the allegations. Such a report would also be responded to by the country's judiciary which would direct the relevant authorities to respond by way of investigations and actions to such allegations. However, the condition that has been reached within Sri Lanka is that the state apparatus no longer responds to allegations of crimes by state agencies by any form of serious action.

Therefore it is not surprising that the five leading media organisations had to go before the Congress of Religions to present their report. When the legal authority completely fails people turn to those who represent the moral authority of the country to gain their interest in taking up the lost cause of investigation of crimes. What the report reveals may not be anything new to these leaders of various religions who naturally would have links to their congregations. The challenge for the Congress of Religions is as to whether they will raise their moral voice against widespread lawlessness that encourages any and every form of crime. Above all will the voices of morality in the country prove capable of raising their voices against the ultra-powerful authority that stands above the law?

The leader of the opposition also raised the issue of the suppression of media freedoms and stated that if journalists are killed and the Inspector General of Police fails to conduct effective investigations he would remove the IGP and others responsible for such inaction if he was in power. If the Congress of Religions wants to raise its voice on the present situation in a credible manner it should question as to why the government does not take action by way of the conduct of investigations into the crimes, including those mentioned in this media report. Thus, those who represent the country's moral authority needs, today, to confront those who represent the country’s legal authority who fail to uphold the law. There is today a significant conflict between the very foundations of morality and the callous neglect of the legal obligations of the state. At this juncture should the Congress of Religions and others who claim to represent the moral authority of the country fail to confront those in power who have allowed the undermining of the rule of law, they will disappoint not only the journalists but also the whole country.

While the leaders of the religions face this challenge Mr. Santha Fernando, a well known committed Christian social activist has also been held under arrest for no justifiable reason. Even attempts to engage in acts of charity and compassion have now come under attack by the same ultra-powerful authority that uses powers of arrest and detention without any regard to the principles established by law. The religious leaders may themselves come under such threat if they do not use their moral authority now to cause a change of the situation for the better.

For the full media report kindly see: http://colombotoday.com/english/articles/1375.htm
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About AHRC: The Asian Human Rights Commission is a regional non-governmental organisation monitoring and lobbying human rights issues in Asia. The Hong Kong-based group was founded in 1984.

Sonali Wickrematunge's letter to Sri Lanka police chief

The Asian Human Rights Commission, Hong Kong, has forwarded copy of a letter written by Sonali Samarasinghe Wickrematunge, wife of Lasantha Wickrematunge, editor of the Sunday Leader newspaper, who was assassinated on January 8, 2009, to the Inspector-General of Police, Government of Sri Lanka. The letter is reproduced from Ground Views.

Sonali Samarasinghe Wickramatunge (picture on left) is herself a distinguished journalist. She was a lawyer by profession and practised law for several years before taking to journalism.

Sonali Samarasinghe Wickrematunge
Attorney-at Law & Journalist

15 March2009

Mr. Jayantha Wickremaratna
Inspector General of Police
Police Head Quarters
Colombo 1

Dear Mr. Wickremaratna,

RE: MURDER OF LASANTHA WICKREMATUNGE

As you are aware, my husband, Mr Lasantha Wickrematunge was murdered on 8 January, 2009. Up to now, no details of the progress of the police inquiry into this murder have been released to the public or been made known to me.

On 28 January 2009, the Hon Keheliya Rambukwella, Minister of Foreign Employment Promotion and Welfare stated at a media briefing that the government was aware of the identity of the murderers and that the president would make the facts known on 15 February 2009. Mr. Rambukwella’s exact wods, as quoted in the Daily Mirror newspaper of 29 January 2009 were as follows:

"Currently all we can say is that investigations are still ongoing. There is no update and we will not divulge anything now as this could hamper the inquiries. The President has made his decision to reveal to the media on February 15 some very important details behind both the attacks so we will have to wait till then."

This statement has not been contradicted by Mr. Rambukwella or anyone else.

The statements made by senior ministers of the government show unequivocally that he and the president of Sri Lanka are aware of the identity of the killers. However, despite over six weeks having passed since Mr Rambukwella’s statement, no announcement has been made; neither have suspects been named or apprehended.

At the inquest into my husband’s murder on January 15, I requested court to direct and facilitate an independent investigation into the killing with an international team of inquirers and forensic experts. I also requested that the present investigation be handed over to the Criminal Investigations Department.

It has been over two months since my husband was killed and there has still been no credible breakthrough in the investigation. No murder weapon, no suspect, no post mortem report has still been made public.

It is in this context that on the next day of hearing on February 18 my lawyers Mr. M.L.M Ameen PC appearing with Mr. Mizbah Attorney At Law, again requested the Court to hand over the case to the Criminal Investigations Department.

This request was however refused.

As both the present police investigation and any possible CID investigation will in any event come under your purview I request you therefore without delay to record the statement in this regard of the Hon. Keheliya Rambukwella, ascertain the identity of the murderers, 'very important details' of which are admittedly known to both Minister Rambukwella and President Mahinda Rajapakse and take immediate action to apprehend the murderers and bring them to justice.

Thanking you,

Yours faithfully,

Sonali Samarasinghe Wickramatunge
Formerly
Editor in Chief- The Morning Leader
Consultant Editor - The Sunday Leader
Masters in International Affairs (Australia)
LLB (Hons)(Lon)
Dip in Journalism (Aus) Dip in Journalism ($ri Lanka)
Attorney-at-Law, Commissioner for Oaths

CC: Mr M.L.M, Ameen, President’s Counsel
Mr. Lal Wickrematunge, Chairman Leader Publications Pvt Ltd

An earlier post on the murder of Lasantha Wickramathune

Civilian casualties mounting in Sri Lanka

K. RATNAYAKE
WSWS.org

The UN and international aid agencies have issued renewed warnings that the Sri Lankan army's offensive against the last pocket of territory held by the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the island's northern Wanni area is producing heavy civilian casualties and a humanitarian catastrophe.

Army shelling killed scores of civilians on Wednesday and Thursday and hunger is growing in the war zone because the government has virtually halted food supplies. The threat of disease epidemics is also growing, and medical facilities have been destroyed by artillery fire.

Thurairajah Varatharajah, a government medical doctor working at the makeshift hospital at Putumattalan, told the Associated Press that the area was being shelled "day and night," both outside and inside the "no fire zone" that the government had promised not to attack. He said the shelling killed 60 civilians on Wednesday and injured 159 others. On Thursday, five bodies were taken to hospital along with 94 injured.

Varatharajah said the civilian population had no clean water supply or sanitation facilities and is facing outbreaks of diarrhea, chicken pox and hepatitis. A shortage of food meant that some have begun eating inedible leaves from trees and that 13 people—most of them elderly—died from starvation in the past week, he said.

Civilians inside the war zone said they were forced to scrounge for food after the relentless shelling on Wednesday and Thursday. "It's been four days since my family has eaten," Mary Jacinta Balachandran, 46, told the Associated Press by telephone as she waited at a makeshift clinic. She said her brother-in-law needed an urgent operation on a stomach wound inflicted by shelling early Thursday. "But the doctors can't take him for surgery because they don't have the right drugs," she said.

Jacques de Maio, South Asian chief of operations for the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) told the UN's IRIN news service this week: "Concerning the civilian population trapped by the continuing fighting in the Wanni region, it is definitely one of the most disastrous situations I have come across. They are exposed to shelling and exchanges of gunfire. People are dying. There is no functioning hospital or other medical facility in the area."

A local ICRC staff member, Vadivel Vijayakumar, died in a makeshift hospital on Wednesday after being hit by artillery shrapnel. His nine-year-old son sustained injuries as well. Vijayakumar had been helping to evacuate sick and wounded civilians and their dependents by ICRC-escorted ships to Trincomalee Hospital in the country's east.

On Wednesday, the ICRC organised its eighth evacuation to Trincomalee. Many of the civilians were suffering from shrapnel wounds, confirming that they were victims of shell attacks. Since its first evacuation on February 6, the ICRC has rescued more than 2,700 sick and wounded people, ICRC spokeswoman Wijeratne told the media.

Gordon Wiess, the spokesman for the UN's operations in Sri Lanka, warned on Wednesday of "civilians trapped in a tiny enclave between a lagoon and the eastern sea front, desperate for food, shelter and drinking water." He said it was "unacceptable" that civilians were cut off from aid. Wiess noted: "We have not had any consistent food deliveries since December last year". Instead, "only sporadic deliveries of food supplies" had arrived.

Morven Murchison, an ICRC health coordinator, described the situation in the war zone in an IRIN interview on February 26. Because there was not enough drinking water in the military-demarcated "no fire zone" in the coastal Putumattalan area, displaced people were moving back inland in search of water where fighting was taking place.

Murchison said the risk of disease was very high because there were no latrines or pits or other forms of sanitation for the war refugees. "There are reports of an increase in the number of cases of communicable diseases, including diarrhoea and respiratory infections. We are very concerned about the possibility of a serious outbreak of disease."

Military spokesman Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara denied that the army was responsible for any artillery attacks in the "no fire zone", claiming: "We don't even use shells now. It's all house-to-house fighting, street-to-street. Hardly any artillery is being used."

But the military spokesman could not, as previously, blame the LTTE for the shelling casualties. The army claimed early this week that it had effectively silenced all the "conventional confrontational capability" of the LTTE. The defence ministry announced on Monday that army divisions had captured Puthukkudiyiruppu town and that the LTTE had been confined to a 47-square kilometre area.

There is no independent reporting on the ground, only defence ministry statements or occasional show trips for selected journalists. Military-linked death squads have silenced even mild critics of the war in the media through assassinations, abductions, death threats and attacks on media organisations.

In an attempt to deflect international criticism, the Sri Lankan government announced on Friday that it would open two "escape routes" for trapped civilians. The decision was reportedly taken at a national security council meeting chaired by President Mahinda Rajapakse. Foreign Secretary Palitha Kohona emphasised that opening the routes did not mean any ceasefire with the LTTE.

In a breathtaking display of hypocrisy, Human Rights Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe is currently in Geneva attending the UN Human Rights Council. He claimed that the government was not violating human rights, but trying to "liberate Tamils" from the clutches of the LTTE.

The government is claiming that only 70,000 civilians remain trapped in the shrinking area under LTTE control. However, the ICRC estimates the numbers at 150,000-200,000. About 37,000 civilians who have fled the area are being forcibly detained in huge camps set up by the military in Vavuniya.

For its part, the LTTE has refused to assist ICRC-led evacuations of civilians. An LTTE spokesman, identified as Thileepan, told Australia's Special Broadcasting Service radio that civilians wanted to stay, despite the appalling conditions. "These people belong to this land, so why would they need to leave these areas?" he said. "Mass evacuation is not required at all."

There is no doubt that the Rajapakse regime bears the primary responsibility for the humanitarian disaster. The Sri Lankan military is intent on driving all civilians out of the area, and into prison camps, in order to create a free-fire zone to annihilate the remaining LTTE forces. Tamil refugees legitimately fear reprisals, persecution and incarceration by government forces.

But according to on-the-spot reports, including from international aid agencies, the LTTE is trying to stop civilians fleeing the war zone. Its perspective is to use the trapped civilians as pawns as it appeals to the international powers to place pressure on the Sri Lankan government for a ceasefire. The LTTE still hopes to secure a settlement brokered by the Western powers that will allow for an LTTE-run autonomous zone, and is quite prepared to sacrifice civilian lives to achieve its objectives.

However, the LTTE's perspective of relying on the major powers, such as India, the US, EU and Japan, to intervene is also in tatters. All these governments have backed Rajapkse's war in the hope of ending a destabilising conflict that affects their interests across South Asia.

Last week, the Obama administration lined up openly behind the Sri Lankan regime, blaming the LTTE for the "increasing sufferings" of civilians in the war area. US Assistant Secretary of State Richard Boucher echoed the Sri Lankan military's propaganda, calling on the LTTE to allow civilians to flee, and to stop lobbying shells and shooting guns out of the safe zone declared by the government.

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