Sri Lanka - News and Discussion

[Javee]

if one wants something, one must be willing to pay a price. vaiko spits in the BJPs face buts wants NaMo to pressure the Govt of SL. What happens tomorrow if for instance, a newly rejuvenated ltte does in TN and India what the pakis are doing in cashmere and India.?? The GOI has once again banned the ltte, did they do it to a non existing or non functional organization or do you know better than the GOI??

Who said vaiko is the sole Indian voice for SL Tamils? Just because he barks louder does not mean he is the only one. A lot of us want India to play an active role in make SL liveable for all of its citizenry. Whether I vote to BJP or not, I will expect my government and my PM to act on Indian interests. LTTE cannot make any impact in TN, not today not 10 years back. You seem to portray that TN population is ready to secede from the union at the drop of a hat and LTTE will have popular support so much that there will be hit and run campaigns in TN. Do you even live here?? This fear mongering will not work anymore, LTTE is finished for once and for all, and even during their prime, it is because of our policies that LTTE had a ball in the mainland; the support was from the highest elected political office in India.

[Philip]

Rajiv G's naivety in foreign affairs led to the hijacking of Mrs.G's conservative policies by adventurist mandarins in the MEA. The trusted minds like G.Parthasarathy who studied the Lankan ethnic imbroglio and devised political solutions for the same,were discarded in favour of the likes of Romesh Bhandari,bum-chum of one A.Kashoggi.With Bhandari doing a "U-turn" on India's Lankan policy, conniving with the wily "old fox",Jayawardene ,who using Bhandari seduced Rajiv into sending the IPKF into the island as "peacekeepers".Thus we ended up fighting the LTTE with a couple of thousand troops killed and a quisling V.P.Singh disgracefully brought back the IPKF without getting the Lankans to fulfill their part of the bargain. The irony is that in Colombo there is a memorial to the soldiers of the IPKF put up by the GOSL but nothing in India! This is how we treat our armed forces.

The GOI should extend as much support to the new dispensation in Colombo who have braved much flak from the departed despot.The war is but half won with the upcoming parliamentary elections in 3-4 months time.The coalition must win a handsome victory at these hustings as the Rajapakse familia is down and in deep disgrace but not yet out.

[Comer]

Not sure if this was posted earlier.
http://www.dailymirror.lk/61621/ay-visit-sl-in-march

With a new government taking office in Sri Lanka, Prime Minister Narendra Modi may travel to Colombo in March. If he does go, it will be the first state visit by an Indian PM since Rajiv Gandhi's trip in 1987.


Speaking to journalists after his first visit in his new capacity, Sri Lanka's new foreign minister Mangala Samaraweera said, "The new government wanted to demonstrate importance of restoring friendly ties with our neighbour." Samaraweera said external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj would travel to Sri Lanka for the joint commission meeting in February. This would be followed by the first visit to India by new Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena.

[Tuvaluan]

chetak wrote:

The proof of the pudding is ONLY in the eating and not merely something emblazoned on the glossy packaging in which the pudding came.

You can weave long tales around cliches but you were wrong in the whole "get real" thing about SL tamil rights in SL, and that it is a bigger problem than just the packaging -- THERE IS NO PUDDING (OR SPOON). So there is nothing for anyone to package. You seem to steadfastly ignore the point that SL has to start treating SL tamils as first class citizens on paper before it starts to rip up its undies and do glossy packaging. Get it this time? I would doubt it. I know you see EJ ghost behind every cupboard and under every bed, but coming to conclusions on the problem in SL based on that is pretty silly and bound to be wrong. There are many problems, and the bigger problems need to be dealt with to normalize things in the "the real world" where we all "Get real".

Why does the government control only Hindu temples and not the religious places of others?? Is this not active discrimination?? against only the Hindus??

For starters, you should try and separate Indian problems from SL problems if you want say anything useful on this topic. sheesh. I am not disagreeing that the TN govt. egregiously targets hindu religous places but not others, but that is not relevant to India's relations with SL or SL's problems -- SL in fact has nicer temples and places of worship in the Tamil areas. So "don't jealous".

[chetak]

Rajiv G's naivety in foreign affairs led to the hijacking of Mrs.G's conservative policies by adventurist mandarins in the MEA. The trusted minds like G.Parthasarathy who studied the Lankan ethnic imbroglio and devised political solutions for the same,were discarded in favour of the likes of Romesh Bhandari,bum-chum of one A.Kashoggi.With Bhandari doing a "U-turn" on India's Lankan policy, conniving with the wily "old fox",Jayawardene ,who using Bhandari seduced Rajiv into sending the IPKF into the island as "peacekeepers".Thus we ended up fighting the LTTE with a couple of thousand troops killed and a quisling V.P.Singh disgracefully brought back the IPKF without getting the Lankans to fulfill their part of the bargain. The irony is that in Colombo there is a memorial to the soldiers of the IPKF put up by the GOSL but nothing in India! This is how we treat our armed forces.

The GOI should extend as much support to the new dispensation in Colombo who have braved much flak from the departed despot.The war is but half won with the upcoming parliamentary elections in 3-4 months time.The coalition must win a handsome victory at these hustings as the Rajapakse familia is down and in deep disgrace but not yet out.

undercarriage/flaps -- up/down, was what gandee did for a living before he was catapulted into the PM's hot seat. Thereafter his single digit IQ did the the damage with sycophants aplenty to queer the pitch and cheer lead him on from disaster to disaster, until mercifully for us the end came before he actually went and nuked someone.

he ran a corrupt government but everything was excused because he was handsome and spoke good english. jeethange ya loosange was this idiot's command over hindi. How did such a fate ever befall our nation??

It was PVNR who finally restored some semblance of sanity.

Lets hope that the new dispensation delivers for the SL tamils but I fear that the 13th amendment will prove a little too much for the sinhala to stomach.

[chetak]

chetak wrote:

The proof of the pudding is ONLY in the eating and not merely something emblazoned on the glossy packaging in which the pudding came.

You can weave long tales around cliches but you were wrong in the whole "get real" thing about SL tamil rights in SL, and that it is a bigger problem than just the packaging -- THERE IS NO PUDDING (OR SPOON). So there is nothing for anyone to package. You seem to steadfastly ignore the point that SL has to start treating SL tamils as first class citizens on paper before it starts to rip up its undies and do glossy packaging. Get it this time? I would doubt it. I know you see EJ ghost behind every cupboard and under every bed, but coming to conclusions on the problem in SL based on that is pretty silly and bound to be wrong. There are many problems, and the bigger problems need to be dealt with to normalize things in the "the real world" where we all "Get real".

Why does the government control only Hindu temples and not the religious places of others?? Is this not active discrimination?? against only the Hindus??

For starters, you should try and separate Indian problems from SL problems if you want say anything useful on this topic. sheesh. I am not disagreeing that the TN govt. egregiously targets hindu religous places but not others, but that is not relevant to India's relations with SL or SL's problems -- SL in fact has nicer temples and places of worship in the Tamil areas. So "don't jealous".

you are quoting me out of context.

only the srilankans can have anything to say or do about their constitution.
The lankan constitution is the personal property of the lankans. They wrote it as they willed and wished and they are happy with it.

your/my opinions are not of any relevance to them.

They have very clearly exercised other options than India. The chinese are truly secular(!), they will not interfere in the lankan internal affairs. If really pushed to the wall, the lankans will tell India to bugger off. You are solely dependent on lankan goodwill to come good on their tamils. You have no hold on lanka, only some marginal influence and very little clout. One would be advised to tread cautiously before the whole thing blows up in one's face.

If there is any talk of historical ties with the SL tamils, one would also be constrained to point out the historical ties of the sinhalese with India.

nothing to stop some super jingoistic bengali to claim loudly that the Indian tamils are harassing their sinhala brethren and should lay off.

per wiki

the Sinhalese are descended from the exiled Prince Vijaya and his party of seven hundred followers who arrived on the island in 543 BCE. Vijaya and his followers were said to have arrived in Sri Lanka after being exiled from the city of Sinhapura in West Bengal, East India.

[Tuvaluan]

They have very clearly exercised other options than India. The chinese are truly secular(!), they will not interfere in the lankan internal affairs. If really pushed to the wall, the lankans will tell India to bugger off. You are solely dependent on lankan goodwill to come good on their tamils.

SL refugees are in TN in huge numbers, and it is as much India's problem as it is SL's problem, so no, India is not solely dependent on lankan goodwill, just as EJs are not about to come and occupy India's coastline.

Diplomacy is all about not pushing people to the wall to get things done. This is all going around in useless circles. I am done here.

[chetak]

if one wants something, one must be willing to pay a price. vaiko spits in the BJPs face buts wants NaMo to pressure the Govt of SL. What happens tomorrow if for instance, a newly rejuvenated ltte does in TN and India what the pakis are doing in cashmere and India.?? The GOI has once again banned the ltte, did they do it to a non existing or non functional organization or do you know better than the GOI??

Who said vaiko is the sole Indian voice for SL Tamils? Just because he barks louder does not mean he is the only one. A lot of us want India to play an active role in make SL liveable for all of its citizenry. Whether I vote to BJP or not, I will expect my government and my PM to act on Indian interests. LTTE cannot make any impact in TN, not today not 10 years back. You seem to portray that TN population is ready to secede from the union at the drop of a hat and LTTE will have popular support so much that there will be hit and run campaigns in TN. Do you even live here?? This fear mongering will not work anymore, LTTE is finished for once and for all, and even during their prime, it is because of our policies that LTTE had a ball in the mainland; the support was from the highest elected political office in India.

less loud rhetoric and more practicality.

What hold do you have over the lankans??

Anything??

The chinese will give them ten times over what ever India may give them.

Only thing left is goodwill, lankan goodwill. They don't need you as much as you need them for TN politics. If and when the empty headed TN politicians shut up and stop offending the lankans at the drop of a hat, then may be some sane discussions may take place.

no hold, no clout and nothing much to offer sums up the Indian position succinctly. Only lankan goodwill can help. nothing else.

The ltte has active but covert support in SL tamil areas and an active support base for propaganda and covert logistics for drug running in TN. Many TN politicos are rumored to have an active hand in the drug running for stuff coming from afghanistan via punjab and transiting thru srilanka via TN, onwards to europe.

That's exactly why so many TN fishermen lucratively cross the SL maritime border to facilitate the drug running.

[Tuvaluan]

less loud rhetoric and more practicality.

What hold do you have over the lankans??

Anything??

Let us cut the bullsh!t shall we. What do you think India has the armed forces for? How much time and money does it take for the Chinese to drop by and defend sri lanka? How long does it take for India? How difficult is it for India to provide support for a new version of the LTTE if it wants to? If India is all so effed and weak as you seem to be pretending, why even fu***ing bother, India should just roll over and die because of SL's geopolitical power and save a lot of wastage of time and space on this topic. Oh but I forget, the Indian govt. and politicians are incompetent, and only people like you on BRF remain to defend it, right?

As for your ridiculous horsesh!t about EJs and fishermen -- they are not crucial to India-SL relations by a long shot. Rajapakse arrested the fishermen because he just wanted to jerk India around, and the UPA govt. was less than worthless when it came to handling them. If the current administration in the BJP is all cut out for the job as you are claiming, they can surely use the force of the Indian state where necessary to get SL to see the light, or SL will start burning again, make no mistake.

[chetak]

They have very clearly exercised other options than India. The chinese are truly secular(!), they will not interfere in the lankan internal affairs. If really pushed to the wall, the lankans will tell India to bugger off. You are solely dependent on lankan goodwill to come good on their tamils.

SL refugees are in TN in huge numbers, and it is as much India's problem as it is SL's problem, so no, India is not solely dependent on lankan goodwill, just as EJs are not about to come and occupy India's coastline.

Diplomacy is all about not pushing people to the wall to get things done. This is all going around in useless circles. I am done here.

the refugees have been there for many years and will continue in TN camps for many more years to come. They do not want to go back.

How are the lankans pressured by SL tamils in Indian refugee camps.?? If you ask the lankans they are ready to take them all back today but the people in the camps don't want to go back. If you try to force them to go back, a huge and nasty international incident awaits you.Ergo, it's only your problem.

The cunning sinhala politicians have kept you dangling regarding the 13th amendment for so many years and you still don't get it??

Do some traveling along the TN coastline, the ejs have already taken over completely right up to and beyond kanyakumari.

[chetak]

less loud rhetoric and more practicality.

What hold do you have over the lankans??

Anything??

Let us cut the bullsh!t shall we. What do you think India has the armed forces for? How much time and money does it take for the Chinese to drop by and defend sri lanka? How long does it take for India? How difficult is it for India to provide support for a new version of the LTTE if it wants to? If India is all so effed and weak as you seem to be pretending, why even fu***ing bother, India should just roll over and die because of SL's geopolitical power and save a lot of wastage of time and space on this topic. Oh but I forget, the Indian govt. and politicians are incompetent, and only people like you on BRF remain to defend it, right?

As for your ridiculous horsesh!t about EJs and fishermen -- they are not crucial to India-SL relations by a long shot. Rajapakse arrested the fishermen because he just wanted to jerk India around, and the UPA govt. was less than worthless when it came to handling them. If the current administration in the BJP is all cut out for the job as you are claiming, they can surely use the force of the Indian state where necessary to get SL to see the light, or SL will start burning again, make no mistake.

so for a few SL tamils India is going to attack srilanka??

Great logic and great solution.

even vaiko could not have come up with a better solution.

You are right . Cut the bullshit. We just have no hold to bend the lankans to our will and we need to generate lankan goodwill if we need them to do anything, period

[arshyam]

Fixed that for you:

no hold, no clout and nothing much to offer sums up the Indian UPA govt position succinctly. Only lankan goodwill can help. nothing else.

Be that as it may, can you tell how TN politicos will use the SL issue? I mean, according to you they all speak the same reg SL Tamils, eelam, etc., then what's their differentiating factor? And why do some win seats, and other shriller supporters win close to nothing?

I asked you earlier to look at poll share number of the shrill SL Tamil supporters, like Vaiko or Ramdoss, as opposed to the mainstream parties. Can you conclusively draw anything from their voteshare/seat share to decide 'all of TN is like this onlee'? Here are the results from 2011 Assembly polls and 2014 LS polls. Please do take a look, especially the contested:won ratio.

If TN fishermen cross so lucratively and you seem to know this for a fact, what's preventing the ICG from arresting a few (with video evidence)? Certainly, there are bad apples in every group, and I do believe *some* fishermen do cross the border to create a ruckus, but in typical cut the nose to spite the face approach, many people in India seem to advocate complete turning off of fishing in this area without understanding the ground, er sea realities.

Lastly, the Chinese. Sure, they can give money, nay shower the Sinhalese with money. But when the balloon goes up (like a tsunami), who will they turn to? We are next door, practically 100km away. And our humanity will compel us to help the Sinhalese, since they are next door neighbours. So much for our hands-off policies. Also, if you had read Javee sir's posts earlier on this thread itself, you might understand how omni-present India is in SL, through goods and products. All we have to do is to pull out of SL and impose an economic embargo, SL's economy will jump off the cliff, Chinese help notwithstanding.

SL cannot exist without Indian support.

[Tuvaluan]

so for a few SL tamils India is going to attack srilanka??

Great logic and great solution.

No, genius. That is my response to your query as to what hold India has on Sri Lanka -- India has options is the point. As for all the laughable cr@p that you have referred to as logic, let me reiterate what I have been saying and what you have been pointedly missing:

1) It is in the SL govt.'s best interest to play nice with India in the long term
2) If the Indian govt. wants to it can make things uncomfortable for SL
3) The SL Tamils in TN must be repatriated to Sri Lanka, as India cannot just allow Sri Lanka to just drive out all of its Tamil population to India whenever it wants. That is not acceptable.
4) There are limits to how much "swinging" SL can do between India and China. Neither India nor China will go to war over SL, but they can sure as hell take the war to SL if SL starts to punch above their weight.

EJs and Tamil fishermen are not even in the larger picture right now, except in the horizon of an overactive paranoid imagination.

[arshyam]

4) There are limits to how much "swinging" SL can do between India and China. Neither India nor China will go to war over SL, but they can sure as hell take the war to SL if SL starts to punch above their weight.

This point is the crux of the argument. Ultimately, by playing one against the other, SL will pay the price. Simple case of a rabbit caught between 2 angry elephants.

[Comer]

Tuvaluan, the four points need to be pinned somewhere.

[svenkat]

http://www.thehindu.com/features/lit-for-life/the-hindu-lit-for-life-2015-on-day-1-provocative-and-engaging/article6794547.ece

There was more politics when writers Samanth Subramanian, Salil Tripathi and Nirupama Subramanian discussed India’s problematic relationship with neighbours, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Among the issues debated, the most important was why India acted differently in the case of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. “There was no political incentive for India to intervene in Sri Lanka as opposed to Bangladesh. In the case of Sri Lanka, the Indian state was divided. Some in the Indian establishment wanted Sri Lanka to remain as a single state while others, influenced by Tamil politicians, pushed for a separate Tamil homeland. They played it both ways,” said Samanth Subramanian.

[A_Gupta]

http://www.smh.com.au/world/indian-spy- ... 2t3jw.html
Indian spy expelled, accused of helping oust Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa

[Tuvaluan]

A sketchy report in Sri Lanka's Sunday Times newspaper on December 28 said "links with the common opposition" had cost India's Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) station chief his job in Colombo.

Seems to be rumor mongering during the run up to the SL elections by a pro-Rajapakse newspaper.

[Javee]

Senseless DDM is picking up this news and parading it around. The worst thing that can happen is for the poor Singhalese in the central and south provinces to think the election of Sirisena is a conspiracy to oust MR, the self claimed "Dutugamunu". By falling in to this trap we are causing irreparable damage to Srilankan democracy.

[chetak]

Senseless DDM is picking up this news and parading it around. The worst thing that can happen is for the poor Singhalese in the central and south provinces to think the election of Sirisena is a conspiracy to oust MR, the self claimed "Dutugamunu". By falling in to this trap we are causing irreparable damage to Srilankan democracy.

It is not innocent "senseless" DDM. This is actively fueling the sinhalese paranoia.

There is a consistent pattern to the narrative that they wish to run.

is it so surprising that even fringes of international media are beginning to tie into the same narrative??

The more the sinhalese are ruffled, less the chances of the 13th amendment going through.

and resulting eventually in a major crisis being precipitated.

[chetak]

http://www.thehindu.com/features/lit-for-life/the-hindu-lit-for-life-2015-on-day-1-provocative-and-engaging/article6794547.ece

There was more politics when writers Samanth Subramanian, Salil Tripathi and Nirupama Subramanian discussed India’s problematic relationship with neighbours, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. Among the issues debated, the most important was why India acted differently in the case of Bangladesh and Sri Lanka. “There was no political incentive for India to intervene in Sri Lanka as opposed to Bangladesh. In the case of Sri Lanka, the Indian state was divided. Some in the Indian establishment wanted Sri Lanka to remain as a single state while others, influenced by Tamil politicians, pushed for a separate Tamil homeland. They played it both ways,” said Samanth Subramanian.

This is undoubtedly the chinese weighing in.

[chetak]

The chinese are not going to as easy to evict from srilanka as GMR was evicted from the maldives (by the very same chinese, BTW). There will certainly be other agreements with the chinese that may not be in the public domain yet.

We are certainly in for some interesting times.

Next move, things will soon flare up on the Indo chinese border.

Sri Lanka: A Surprising Blow for Democracy

Who provided the billions of dollars of loans for these projects, as well as for an ongoing colossal landfill “port city” at Sri Lanka’s capital, Colombo? China’s government – through its export-import banking arm, with all construction mandated to Chinese state-controlled companies, with no competitive bidding, and with no public accounting of the economics involved.

The southern coast of Sri Lanka is ten nautical miles from the main sea lane linking East Asia to the Middle East, Africa and Europe. That includes the corridor for China’s oil and gas shipments from the Persian Gulf. Beijing’s interest in Sri Lanka’s strategic location is by no means strictly commercial; twice in 2014, Chinese submarines for the first time ever docked in Sri Lanka, at the newly Chinese-built and -operated south port of Colombo harbor. At the other new port, Hambantota, which is also controlled and operated by a Chinese state-owned company, four of seven large berths are exclusively reserved for Chinese vessels for 35 years, according to Phoenix News in Hong Kong. There are no disclosed restrictions on Chinese naval use of the berths.

There has been rampant speculation in Sri Lanka that the non-transparent construction projects funded by China have enriched the Rajapaksa family at the expense of other citizens. The new president’s prime minister declared in December that he would scrap entirely the $1.5 billion port city project at Colombo, now being built by China Communications Construction Company. The new president, Sirisena, formerly a minister in the Rajapaksa government, called during the campaign for his fellow citizens to join him “to free the country from corrupt practices and family rule,” and his campaign manifesto contained a thinly veiled reference to China: “The land that the White Man took over by means of military strength is now being obtained by foreigners by paying ransom to a handful of persons. This robbery is taking place before everybody in broad daylight.”

China was the main supplier of arms, including vital fighter jets, radar and munitions, to Rajapaksa’s regime in the ramp-up of its destruction of the Tamil resistance and alleged massacre of tens of thousands of civilians in 2008-9. China, in its position on the UN Security Council, has repeatedly protected Rajapaksa from possible UN war crime investigations (sometimes with help from Russia and Venezuela). While in office, Rajapaksa intimidated the press, used the powers of the state and its media for personal propaganda, blocked Internet news sources he found objectionable, repressed minority groups, and, as candidate Sirisena observed in November, was moving toward a dictatorship. In other words, Rajapaksa was the Chinese Communist Party’s kind of man.

And yet, despite all the levers of incumbent power, the state-funded bribery of the electorate, the manipulation of government-owned media, and cronies who shot organizers at opposition rallies, Rajapaksa lost.

..............................................

At a political rally for the opposition in the southern city of Galle, on the last day of campaigning (January 5), a crowd of thousands stood for more than four hours in an often scorching sun to hear out several opposition speakers, including Sirisena, who took his oath of presidential office on January 10. The jam-packed crowd at the campaign rally was orderly and polite, paying attention to every word from the podium. Intermittently they broke into cheers and waved flags, but always returned to listening intently. There were no refreshments being served, no one smoked or drank; many people stood on plastic chairs or climbed into trees to get a better view and wave their flags. Watchful police officers were present in abundance as well as a few army troops, but despite being under the official control of the Rajapaksa family, they appeared even-handed and reserved.

The majority of Sri Lankans at this rally and elsewhere in the country were fed up with a corrupt regime that allegedly profited from white-elephant projects, and, perhaps more persuasively, the voters had become alarmed as the cost of basic foods like rice, dhal, and flour had risen to unbearable levels while incomes stagnated.

Widespread fears that Rajapaksa would stage a military coup if he failed to win the election appeared to be unfounded, as he conceded defeat the following day. However, yesterday (January 11) a senior aide to Sirisena told reporters, “People think it was a peaceful transition. It was anything but.”

The aide, Mangala Samaraweera, said that when the ballot appeared to be going against him, Rajapaksa ordered a meeting with the nation’s attorney general and heads of the army and police to implement a state of emergency and abort the election. Army Chief Lt. Gen. Daya Ratnayake reportedly refused, and Rajapaksa’s plot fizzled. India’s newspaper The Hindu reported that when it contacted Army Chief Ratnayake he declined to comment on whether there had been a coup attempt. In any case it appears democracy was not thwarted by a dictator this time.

There is of course a risk that the new leaders of this country of 21 million will become venal and self-serving, or that the newly governing coalition of disparate parties will crumble into disarray. The future of Sri Lanka is uncertain. But for now it is in the hands of the voters, who were brave, on all sides – something that is antithetical to the former president’s patron, Beijing.

[chetak]

Czar of Colombo cost ‘Raja’ his Sri Lanka

Wednesday, 21 January 2015 | Ashok K Mehta |

Czar of Colombo cost ‘Raja’ his Sri Lanka

The credit for Mahinda Rajapaksa's political demise goes to his brother, Gotabaya, whose writ ran across the country and who abused power in the name of the President

The plot to unseat former Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa was hatched 18 months ago in secret meetings in London, New Delhi and Colombo between an odd group of Left and Right wing politicians, intellectuals, a constitutional expert and a Buddhist monk. What motivated this group was its antipathy to Mr Rajapaksa and a cry for change. The two other triggers were the impeachment of then Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake and the results of the Uwa Provincial Council election last year, that showed a significant decline in vote share for Mr Rajapaksa.

The momentum for Operation Topple came through defections from the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (which was then in power), the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress and the Jathika Hela Urumaya as well as from the unconditional support to the 49-party conglomerate by the Tamil National Alliance and other Tamil parties. The verdict was more of an anti-Rajapaksa vote with Mr Maithripala Sirisena making an impressive dent into the Sinhalese votebank. Mr Rajapaksa attributed his defeat to Muslims, once his staunchest allies.

But before the Rajapaksa chapter is closed, credit for his political demise must go to two other persons: His astrologer Sumanadasa Abeygunawardena who led him up the garden path of early elections and his younger brother, the most powerful and feared Defence Secretary, Lieutenant Colonel Gotabaya Rajapaksa. The latter’s writ ran across the country with control of the Armed Forces, police, intelligence agencies and urban and housing Ministries. He was the virtual czar of Colombo.

The abuse of power in the name of the President did no good to Mr Gotabaya Rajapaksa. He was responsible for the beautification of Colombo, preparing it for the Commonwealth Summit 2014. He was to stand for elections to Parliament and then run for President after his brother’s third term. It was a toss up between Mr Rajapaksa’s son, Namal Rajapaksa or his uncle, Gotabaya Rajapaksa. This would have entrenched the dynastic rule with 75 per cent of the Government funds being controlled by the Rajapaksa clan.

It was this authoritarian style and single-mindedness of purpose, useful in battle, that enabled the Rajapaksas to defeat the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam root and branch. Indeed, it was the most comprehensive military victory against insurgency and terrorism in recent history but with questionable use of military force that led, according to UN estimates to around 40,000 civilians dead in the closing stages of the war.

Mr Mahinda Rajapaksa, Mr Gotabaya Rajapaksa and then Army chief General Sarath Fonseka, were the three architects of the victory. But Gen Fonseka fell foul of the President and was deleted from star billing. With the Right to Information Bill likely to be passed shortly and the independent and transparent commission of enquiry promised on accountability, it is possible that more light may be shed over the ‘White Flag Incident’ — relating to the alleged killing of LTTE members who wanted to surrender — still in court.

The end of the war triggered off the economy which rose to eight per cent growth and has since tapered to around 6.5 per cent with the north recording an astounding 25 per cent rate of growth. ‘Mahinda Chintana’ (vision) led to rapid growth of infrastructure: Expressways, airports, sea ports, hotels and power projects. The idea was to create five strategic hubs — Of knowledge, naval power, aviation, power and energy, and commercial. A third term for Mr Mahinda Rajapaksa was vital for the family as so much was at stake. His reign surpassed the rule of ancient kings like Dutugemunu whom he was frequently compared with.

Besides, he now also retains the historical legacy of war crimes charges against him, that are likely to make him (and the family) vulnerable to indictment given the loss of presidential immunity. Cases of corruption and nepotism and the most recent allegation of attempting military intervention to deflect the electoral defeat are to be investigated.

President Sirisena had said before the election that he would protect the Rajapakasa family against any international probe. But he had also said that would make Mr Rajapaksa ineligible for contesting parliamentary elections.

President Sirisena has embarked on a 100-day reform and transition programme piloted by Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe that envisages returning the country to a parliamentary system, by anulling the notorious 18th Amendment, reviving the 17th Amendment and restoring the institutions of governance and trust in the establishment. We are being promised a new Sri Lanka but only time will tell whether many of the schemes planned will be promulgated.

One thing is clear: Relations with India are being reset. The foreign policy of the previous regime which was described as ‘paranoid’ by Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera during his visit to New Delhi this week is destined to look West again. India has sought closure on the Tamil national question centered around devolution and accountability.

Several times, Mr Rajapaksa had promised to not only implement the 13th Amendment but make it 13A plus. His favourite lullaby on 13A for the Indian media was famously called 4Ds: Demobilisation; Demilitarisation; Democracy and Devolution. Then one day, the last D was replaced with Development and out went Devolution. Mr Rajapaksa used China to deflect pressure on devolution. Some members of the BJP who claimed access to the Indian Prime Minister encouraged Mr Rajapaksa to believe he could go slow on devolution. The emotive fishermen issue somehow took priority over 13A. In short, New Delhi itself became responsible for tying knots around 13A.

India’s strategic self-marginalisation in Sri Lanka followed the defeat of the LTTE in which New Delhi played a generous role but without any quid pro quo. That honour went to China for its military assistance that New Delhi refused. As happens often in these hedging games, Colombo overplayed its cards by allowing a Chinese conventional submarine to dock in Colombo Port twice in September and October last year. A few months earlier, it tried awarding a contract for the construction of an ammunition dump in Trincomalee Harbour which had to be rescinded later.

The Rajapaksas were testing India’s tolerence threshold which was crossed by the submarine episode. While it is true India cannot wish away China as it is deeply embedded in the South, Colombo is seriously indebted to Beijing and New Delhi unable to match its economic largesse, both India and Sri Lanka can slow down and ease out the commercial and strategic penetration of the island.

Colombo has to stay the course after the first 100 days to avert the anticipated political and economic volatility. It has the potential to develop into a Singapore. New Delhi must seize the moment but leave Colombo alone to settle the Tamil and accountability issues. Already some useful steps have been taken towards winning over the North. That is belated success for New Delhi.

[Philip]

Too much is being read into "the plot that was hatched 18 months ago".That is a load of BS believe you me. True,there were various entities who wished to get rid of the Rajapakse familia,but Mahinda decided upon an early pres. election at a late stage in 2014.The Chinese subs also did not dock at Colombo 18 months ago. I would surmise that Rajapakse hinted to his closest party "catchers" sometime mid-2014 that he was connsidering a quick fix election in early 2015.That news would've been passed on to CBK by SLFP loyalists fed up with the familia consuming the country's wealth and they would've worked out their strategy..An early was being discussed in Colombo 3 months before the announcement. That is when the Opposition would've started putting their plans into operation.Chandrika and Ranil been working together for quite some time and the "Fonze",Gen Fonseka was thirsting for revenge at his humiliation by the Rajapakse Bros..The key ingredient was to get a prominent defector from the SLFP old guard whose loyalties were to the party started by SWRD Bandaranaike and led for decades by Mrs.B who is still revered very highly by the vast majority of Sri Lankans. With Chandrika bringing together the various anti-regime entities,the plot succeeded spectacularly. A clear vision,focussed pressure and attention to detail and a brilliant victory was achieved against much stronger forces,who had the total use of govt. machinery,the media,money power,etc.

The biggest shock to Rajapakse was how much he had fallen from grace,from being the victor of the Eelam War to that of a corrupt despot,beginning to resemble the regime of Marcos,where his wife used air force helos to travel short distances of just a few kms,not wanting to rub shoulders with the hoi polloi! Sri Lanka is too small a place for such misdeeds to go unnoticed.Everyone knew the scale of the looting and scooting going on,the mortgaging of the nation to China and the utter lawlessness of his trusted cronies who wenbt around bashing up journos (even murdering them) and those opposed to the regime,mysterious "white vans" that allegedly picked up people never to be seen again.Threats to dump some into "the Kelani river" if they returned to the island kept many prominent Lankans abroad fearful of the consequences if they returned.The Lankan HC to the UK,a well known doctor, was even beaten up by one of Rajapakse's closest cronies in New York,he promptly resigned and has not returned to the island since! Financial misdeeds abound.The next 100 days will treat us to many of the scams and corrupt deals that the regime was steeped in. If the new regime clearly enlightens the Lankan voter with hard evidence before the next round of elections later this year,as the JVP have been screaming for,(they need to regain heir strength in the deep south where Rajapakse scored in recent times),then the current new dispensation will win another victory,giving them a majority in parliament and the mandate to cleanse the "Colombo stables" and turn the ship of state onto a less controversial course especially with regard to ties with India and its security concerns.The dragon in the Indian Ocean being China.

SF to be reinstated as General
2015-01-21

President Maithripala Sirisena had instructed the authorities to drop all the charges levelled against former Army Commander Sarath Fonseka and to reinstate him as a General, Captain Senaka Haripriya de Silva, the personal assistant to Fonseka said.
- See more at: http://www.dailymirror.lk/61817/nstated ... 3Sn38.dpuf

[chetak]

It's written by Ashok Metha, Phillip saar.

it is to be taken with the appropriate amount of salt.

I wonder whose axe this dude is now grinding??

But interestingly, he continues with the same narrative as the others, albeit with minor variations.

[Philip]

I enjoy reading reports in the media,where scribes say how "some months ago when they I the island",and comment at length upon breaking news. "A week is along time in politics".What has bemused everyone in the island is how the name of the common candidate of the Opposition was kept a secret,in a land where nothing is secret! CBK is credited for the same,and as she spent most of her time abroad kept mum until the last minute. It would've been impossible for an opposition plot hatched 18 months ago to have remained a secret that long.In Colombo,18 minutes is more than enough time for hot news to travel afar!

How bandicoots desert the sunk ship! Mervyn S was MR's bum-chum,hatchet man par excellence.he is now desperate to get out of trouble by double-crossing Rajapakse like a good mafia "canary"!

Former Minister and MP Mervyn Silva today complained to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) against Former Minister and MP Basil Rajapaksa and former Defense Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa over alleged frauds and crimes committed by them.

Mr. Silva told media soon after making a complaint to the CID that he did not want to take revenge from anyone but it was them who took revenge from him.

“I do not want to take revenge from anyone. They are the ones who took revenge from me. I was not given a proper ministry to work. I came to the CID to complain over all the murders such as Bharatha Laksman Premachandra, Lasantha Wikrametunge and the attacks on several private media institutions. It is Gotabhaya Rajapaksa who was behind the white van culture in the country,” he said.

Mr. Silva alleged that MP Basil Rajapaksa who did not have anything before coming to politics had amassed a massive wealth including several hotels and luxury houses.

He also alleged that Basil Rajapaksa withdrew millions of rupees from the Divi Neguma Bill and used the treasury at their will during the election campaign.

When asked about the allegations leveled against him, Mr. Silva said he was ready to prove his innocence and asked to make any complaint against him.(Sanath Desmond and Ajith Siriwardena)

- See more at: http://www.dailymirror.lk/61493/mervyn- ... 8Vh9Z.dpuf

[Javee]

Isnt this the guy who publicly mocked India and beat up journalists and TV crew?

[Philip]

"When thieves fall out...!"

[Javee]

Watching Srilankan politics just gives me goosebumps. For all the talks about how Sinhalese are different, they do the same thing like what has happened in TN politics (Amma vs Thatha). They have met all the requirements to be our 30th state.

[anjan]

They have very clearly exercised other options than India. The chinese are truly secular(!), they will not interfere in the lankan internal affairs. If really pushed to the wall, the lankans will tell India to bugger off. You are solely dependent on lankan goodwill to come good on their tamils. You have no hold on lanka, only some marginal influence and very little clout. One would be advised to tread cautiously before the whole thing blows up in one's face.

Sri Lankan tamils and their numbers on the island are one of our major sources of influence and clout. Sort of like ethnic Russians in Eastern Uk. 10% of the total population is no joke. We run all kind of convolutions in our middle-east policy on account of 14% of the population.

[chetak]

They have very clearly exercised other options than India. The chinese are truly secular(!), they will not interfere in the lankan internal affairs. If really pushed to the wall, the lankans will tell India to bugger off. You are solely dependent on lankan goodwill to come good on their tamils. You have no hold on lanka, only some marginal influence and very little clout. One would be advised to tread cautiously before the whole thing blows up in one's face.

Sri Lankan tamils and their numbers on the island are one of our major sources of influence and clout. Sort of like ethnic Russians in Eastern Uk. 10% of the total population is no joke. We run all kind of convolutions in our middle-east policy on account of 14% of the population.

anjan ji,

I don't mean to troll but some points.

The ethinic russian population in ukraine wanted to merge with russia. Does the SL tamil population want to do that or does the GOI want to do what the russians did?? One -- the GOI is not russia and secondly, the the game would change completely with SL becoming complete hostile to India not to mention some other world powers wanting to violently jump into the scene. So that parallel is not applicable, IMVHO.

If the TN tamils were 10% of the Indian population, the GOI would perhaps be singing a very different tune.

But as govts change, situations also change. This present dispensation (like ABV who also reduced abject acknowledgement of middle east influence in local politics) is not following the previous govts spurious political acknowledgement of the 13-15% Indian muslim's "sensibilities" on relations with pukiland as also with the "gelf". They have taken into view the supreme national interest instead of viewing the same through the prism of "secularism". They are not even following ABV's paki narrative, instead they are consciously choosing to strike out on a more realistic path as a befitting response to the blatant manipulated opposition, rent seeking and entitlement politics and stale, stilted diplomacy that has always been the approach of the pakis and one that has paid reasonably well for them so far. Our media with a great deal of relish gives the pakis a vastly disproportionate amount of prime time coverage for joker jedahis to air their poisonous anti India viewpoint.

Why should any Indian muslim sensibilities affect our relations with pakistan?? The very same Indian muslims made a conscious choice to stay back in India and have cast their lot with this country. They will also sink or swim with the rest of us. The paki narrative in India is being driven by some very vested interest panjabi pappi jhappi wkk types most of whom have business/track two/agenda driven from outside interests. Increasingly such types are being negated in India. There was very muted interest in India to that moron sathyarthi's nobel "price" and the resistance to being bracketed with the pakis no matter how hard some of our own agenda driven channels tried to do.

If one can help the SL tamils without compromising our supreme national interests, go right ahead. A realistic assessment is that since we do not have a big enough stick, the carrot would be the reasonable way to go but another entity with it's own anti India agenda has a very much bigger carrot (and indeed, the whole vegetable patch itself) to offer the lankans and the lankan state is not in a position to so easily get rid of that entity BECAUSE India just does not have the deep pockets to compete and replace that entity. For the lankans, it's money for jam because both competing parties want to shower it with treasure but only one is asking for it make some very unpopular changes to it's constitution.

In the meanwhile, some jehadi jokers in TN jumping about like monkeys are not helping the cause. The SL govt has to ultimately answer to it's own political base to ensure it's survival. It will not compromise that by yielding easily or even completely on the 13th amendment. This is their red line. Which ever party forms the SL govt, this red line will remain.

Find what buttons work for the sinhalese and push those. In the meanwhile it may be best not to piss inside the tent. Honey traps more flies than vinegar.

Regarding the

"We run all kind of convolutions in our middle-east policy on account of 14% of the population".

If one takes someone and willingly places them on one's head, they will soon begin to piss on one because one gave them that exalted and undeserved position. They have not asked one for it but one went out of one's way to lopsidedly elevate them and acknowledge some imagined and spurious influence that they do not have. Some political parties have actively encouraged the some so inclined muslims to pursue and act upon such insidious influences and seek rent on that basis. Appeasement is what brought about that situation.

The NaMo govt has proved once and for all that such influence does not exist and hence they have right fully not even acknowledged it, which not surprisingly has pissed off many "influence mongers" like the muslim law board etc who have since been marginalized from foreign policy considerations.

The gelf needs Indian workers because they are hard working, reliable and trustworthy. Most importantly they are completely APOLITICAL, unlike the pakis and the bangladeshis, they can be relied upon to to keep their heads down. In these troubled and uncertain times in the gelf, this vital characteristic of the Indian worker in the gelf is what makes him a preferred, law-abiding and assured neutral resource. They need us more than we need them. In spite of this the congis and the communists have willy nilly dragged the middle east squarely into Indian politics when in actual fact they do not have the falsely endorsed bandwidth.

[schinnas]

Sri Lankan tamils and their numbers on the island are one of our major sources of influence and clout. Sort of like ethnic Russians in Eastern Uk. 10% of the total population is no joke. We run all kind of convolutions in our middle-east policy on account of 14% of the population.

Well said. Actually if one were to include Indian Tamils (called Estate tamils - who were brought by British as indentured laborers), and muslims who are majority Tamils, the Tamil population would be over 20%. Besides, there is the geography factor which no one could ignore. Even amongst Singhalese themselves, the trade, business and cultural and religious links are predominantly with India.

No other country has the natural and dominant influence on SL than India due to these factors. Another way of looking at this is look at gravity between planets. Each planet exerts its influence on another planet. The influence is directly proportional to its mass and inversely proportional to the distance (or square of it). Given that Srilanka is an island with no other nation in the vicinity other than India, it would be suicidal for any SL politician to take an anti-India stance.

The war criminal Rajapakse did that and caused immense harm to SL.

[Philip]

Tamil population in SL is around 17%.Split between Jaffna Tamils about 12%+ and Indian plantation Tamils 5%+.Including Muslims who also speak Tamil around 20-24%+. Sinhalese 70% and a small number of Christians,Burghers,Moors,etc.

A benevolent Indian policy towards the island ,equally reciprocated especially on matters of security will keep off any external powers like China,Pak,the major Western powers,US and UK in particular, from using the island to destabilize India. the Indo-Lanka agreement/understanding on security should be followed to the letter. perhaps another formal agreement which is more specific may be needed. India is SL's only neighbor and it evokes both emotions,positive and affection when we are looked at as the land which gave birth to the Buddha and Buddhism,plus fears of invasions which the island experienced from southern kingdoms at various times in its history.India's enemies and rivals play upon these fears with the Sinhalese from time to time.

[chetak]

The coming days will certainly show the direction of the wind and how the SL govt will address the SL tamil concerns. Let's hope that the optimism shown in this thread is understood and acted upon by the lankan govt. Surely we are in for some interesting times ahead.

[Philip]

Graphic details of the alleged coup planned by the Rajapakse regime to subvert the Lankan election result,which involved the SL Army,ex-servicemen,etc.A few brave Lankan bureaucrats and uniformed men thwarted the sinister plans of the Rajapakse regime,which appears to have been a v. close run.

[anjan]

If the TN tamils were 10% of the Indian population, the GOI would perhaps be singing a very different tune.

I think it's really sad if this is how you truly view India. By your measure only UP and Bihar count. And look.. they have even larger concentrations of muslims.

Unless this is BENIS, pakis are not araps and they are not in the middle east, so I'm not sure why you wrote that long thesis on Pakiland. Anyway Indian Islam's center of gravity - religious, intellectual and increasingly cultural lies in Arab lands. So Indian policy towards them does have a domestic impact. No government is going to ignore it. There is a difference to appeasement though.

By this same measure, though SL tamils consider themselves superior to Indian tamils, the cultural and intellectual center of Tamils lies firmly in the heartlands of the ancient tamil kingdoms, now properly a part of India. By that fact alone, we wield influence. It's like this. I met this guy recently who is second generation immigrant to the US. His folks were born in South Africa. But culturally he identifies with and will proudly state that he's from Rajasthan. This is powerful pull that is stupid to fritter away.

If one can help the SL tamils without compromising our supreme national interests, go right ahead.

Helping them gives us influence with them, which helps us influence their politics. This is how one builds influence. I don't know why this is such a complicated idea.

Also I think you mention elsewhere that China doesn't interfere locally. That position is so utterly divorced from reality that I'm not sure how to address it. Find offrs from UNMIS or one of those other UN missions and ask them how and in what manner the Chinese influence works.

[chetak]

If the TN tamils were 10% of the Indian population, the GOI would perhaps be singing a very different tune.

I think it's really sad if this is how you truly view India. By your measure only UP and Bihar count. And look.. they have even larger concentrations of muslims.

If the TN tamils were 10% of the Indian population, the GOI would perhaps be singing a very different tune.

Sorry, if I wasn't clear. This was a sarcastic remark.

[kmkraoind]

New Sri Lankan Foreign Minister: Our Tilt Towards China Needs A Course Correction

Exclusive interview with Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera in Swarajyamag

[Philip]

Refreshing to see Mangala S,the SL FM,an old hand at developing good relations with India,being so undiplomatic and candid! Yes,the new Lankan regime has made it abundantlky clear that "course correction" was needed in Lanka's foreign policy, especially seeing that India was not harmed by the indecent "tilt" towards China.In fact,under rajapakse,the "tilt" to China was almost horizontal,like a prostrating serf to his Middle Kingdom Emperor! The Chinese were given carte blanche access to Lanka for their navy ,a most dangerous development for India and other smaller nations of the IOR.

Election-night coup attempt was a fact -- Champika
2015-01-23

Power and Energy Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka said the attempt by the Rajapaksas to stage an 'election night coup', that sought to tamper with the election results and seize power using the military, failed due to the vehement objections of lower rank officers.

In an interview with Daily Mirror, the JHU general secretary alleged that the coup, that was hatched at Temple Trees on election night was 'very real' despite the allegations being denied by certain figures linked to the controversy.

"In fact, I can say with assurance that armed rings of military personnel were stationed at various strategic points in Colombo. One ring encircled an area extending from the Wellawatte Bridge to the Kelaniya Bridge. The second ring encircled us, the Opposition politicians, from Sirikotha to the Elections Commissioner’s office and the Royal College and DS Senanayake College counting centres," he said.

He went on to state that this plan was to be implemented by amalgamating ex-military personnel, the armed forces and a political mechanism.

"The Colombo District was divided into 17 sectors and high-level military personnel were appointed to coordinate with the political representatives," the minister said.

He said it was the severe protests of the lower rank officers and the people's movement against the Rajapaksas that was gaining ground, which resulted in the plan falling through.

- See more at: http://www.dailymirror.lk/61947/up-atte ... Swco1.dpuf

An earlier DM report.

Election night coup What really happend?
2015-01-23
Earlier this week, Indian media quoting new External Affairs Minister Mangala Samaraweera reported there was a fear of a real coup in Sri Lanka during the early hours of January 9, when it was becoming evident to former President Mahinda Rajapaksa that the poll results were not in his favour.

However, as the first light of the day hit the city of Colombo on January 9, former President Mahinda Rajapaksa accepted his defeat and left Temple Trees, assuring a smooth transfer of power to the incumbent President Maithripala Sirisena. This came as a surprise to many, and mostly to those who foretold the 2015 Presidential election would record the highest election violence in the history of polls in Sri Lanka. However, these claims of the alleged attempt to stage a coup on election night have cast doubts on whether his exit was as peaceful as it appeared to be . . .

It was on January 1, 2015, that the present Prime Minister, who was then the Opposition leader, disclosed details of an alleged attempt being formulated by the Rajapaksa regime to deploy ex-servicemen and utilize the military establishment to manipulate the elections process in their favour. He gave the media, a document titled ‘Western Province - Colombo District Campaign Segment (II)’ that contained a list of names/contact information of ex-servicemen who had been assigned to ‘handle’ a part of Colombo that had been divided into four areas - Kolonnawa, Kotte, Maharagama and Dehiwala.

Although the document does not specify the tasks that these officials had been assigned, it notes that each of the four areas had been given a group leader, an assistant group leader, a full-time group consisting of two ex-servicemen and two additional groups consisting of four ex-servicemen each. They were to take turns during November 10 -24, 2014, December 8 - 12, 2014 and January 5 - 10, 2015. The document also contained details of other groups of ex-servicemen who had been assigned to several other parts of the country including Badulla, Sabaragamuwa, Anuradhapura etc.

The former regime denies the allegations and claims it was a ‘purely political campaigning exercise’. Yet, the deployment of the military in Colombo in the days leading up to the elections and on the election day, has been in clear violation of election results.

The Elections Commissioner on several occasions in the days leading up to the elections reiterated that the security forces had no role in the polls and that the Police were capable of protecting the polling process and the voters. Despite the EC’s assurance of not involving the military in the elections process, a confidential letter titled ‘Operation Directive: Provision of assistance to the Police by the security forces during the Presidential election 2015’ issued on December 24, 2014, signed by the Chief of Defence Staff, General Jagath Jayasooriya states that military was to be deployed to assist the Police to maintain law and order during the run up to and the aftermath of the election.

In a category titled ‘Special instructions’ in the letter, notes have been made on providing security to ‘vulnerable points’ with effect from 1800 hrs on January 5, 2015 and the tentative date for the troops to be relieved has been noted as January 11, 2015. Those calling for action against the alleged ‘election night coup’ and the masterminds behind it, claim these directives are a clear violation of the election laws, since the deployment of troops has been carried out without a request of the Elections Commissioner.

Although the credibility of these allegations or the specific details of this alleged plot - if true - are yet to be revealed, the politicians of the new interim government state that all measures were set to implement the plan under the directions of the former President Mahinda Rajapaksa and his brother, the former Defence Secretary Gotabhaya. They also state the alleged coup attempt was thwarted by the Attorney General Yuvanjan Wijeyathilake, the IGP and the Elections Commissioner, who stood against the plan and thereby saved the country from being pushed towards an unprecedented carnage by the wee hours of January 9 - a claim that has neither been acknowledged nor denied by any of these officials so far.
These accusations have however been denied by the former President Rajapaksa.

However, last week, new Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera lodged a complaint with the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) requesting an urgent probe on the alleged plot that would have ‘subverted the democratic processes of the country’. Meanwhile, last week the Attorney General Yuvanjan Wijeyathilake himself instructed the CID to probe the alleged ‘election night coup’ when his advice was sought to commence the investigations.
The details remain sketchy and the truth remains blurred. Was the transition of power as smooth as it seemed? Are these simply political claims? Or was it the outcome of a failure in a dangerous plan that could not be hatched?

The Dailymirror spoke to several officials whose names have been linked with the issue and to several politicians who have been voicing their concerns on the matter . .

Rajapaksas plan was to ask the Police to call for a military intervention
JHU General Secretary and Minister of Power and Energy - Patali Champika Ranawaka

“This was a part of the multifaceted plan formulated by the Rajapaksas to gain the upper hand at the elections if the results were not in their favour.

They appointed ex-servicemen to coordinate with the elections process. The Colombo district was divided into 17 sectors, and each sector was designated with high-level military officers to coordinate with the political representatives. It was a plan that amalgamated ex-military, existing military and the political mechanism.

However, this plan met with severe protest from the officials on the lower ranks. Moreover, the people’s movement was gaining ground and the Rajapaksas felt the heat. That is why their plans were scuttled.
Their attempt was to ask the Police to call for a military intervention, but our IGP refused to do that. Jagath Jayasooriya asked the Elections Commissioner to deploy the Army in the so-called ‘vulnerable’ areas but the Elections Commissioner refused to do that and that was how this carnage that was waiting to happen, was thwarted. It was definitely not Mahinda Rajapaksa’s humble, humane approach.

Unfortunately, MR was spurred on by the Defence Secretary and a few personnel in the Defence sector”.

In fact, I can say with assurance that they established armed cordons covering various key points in Colombo. One circle was to cover the area spanning from Wellawatte bridge to the Kelaniya Bridge; the second was to encircle us - the Opposition politicians from Sirikotha to the Elections Commissioners office - Royal College and DS Senanayake College counting centres. The Rajapaksas tried every possible move in order to remain in power, but all their schemes fell apart. Democracy is still prevailing in this country, thanks to the bravery of our Elections Commissioner, the IGP, the Attorney General and some of the military commanders.”
This was a part of the multifaceted plan formulated by the Rajapaksas to gain upper hand at the elections if the results were not in their favour.

These claims are too sensitive and politicized
Army Commander - Lt. Gen. Daya Ratnayake

The Army Chief declined to comment on the issue as well and stated: “These are only rumours. These claims are too sensitive and politicized. So I think the media should not get us involved in these issues and anyway why should we get involved?”

I am not aware of any ‘coup’
Former Director/Spokesman - Media Centre, Ministry of Defence Brig. -Ruwan Wanigasooriya

“The Sri Lanka Army; both before and after the elections did the utmost to protect the democratic freedom, which they are committed to preserve. Over 30,000 lives were sacrificed in the North and East in preserving democracy and freeing our country from the clutches of terrorism.
I am not aware of any ‘coup’ or any other such attempt, but, since there is an ongoing investigation on the matter, I would prefer to refrain from commenting on the topic. The SLA is proud of being an organization that has been instrumental in protecting the democracy of this country for the past 80 years.

Therefore, we neither confirm nor deny these claims, let the investigation reveal the truth. . .”



I am not aware of any ‘coup’ or any other such attempt, but, since there is an ongoing investigation on the matter, I would prefer to refrain from commenting the topic.



The military was strategically located in various key points in Colombo
Election Monitoring body - CaFFE

CaFFE Executive Director, Ranith Keerthi Tennakoon however states that they can confirm that between 1.00 am - 2.30 am on January 9, there was a definite attempt to involve the military in violating the election process.

“The military was strategically located in various key points in Colombo, including leading media institutions as well as telecommunications towers and operation centres. That indicates a plan that was underway to shut down the communication structures.

It has been confirmed that some top officials of the state including the top official of the judiciary and the Attorney General were among those summoned to Temple Trees that night. Through our observations, we can also note that certain Brigades of the military were ready to follow the instructions of the former regime to activate their scheme of which the master plan is yet to be revealed. But it is important to note that the Police was ready to take up any challenge that night and was ready to thwart any attempt to violate the elections process.

When I visited the Elections Department that night, I saw the Police and even the STF preparing themselves but they did not allow us to panic. It is also important to note that none of the state officials whose names have been linked with the events that expired that night, has denied the facts that were made public concerning the events that took place on election night.

It was obvious that ‘something’ was about to happen and now when you add up the bits and pieces together, it is evident that an act that would have been detrimental to the democratic process of Sri Lanka was about to take place. But fortunately, for the Police and the enthusiasm building among the masses to challenge the military set up did not allow for it to proceed.”

Additional 2000 troopers got down to Colombo to implement this plot
Leader Democratic Party/ Ex-Army commander - General Sarath Fonseka

“According to the information we have received, the Army Commander under instructions of the President, the Defence Secretary and Chief of Defence Staff planned something fishy, something irregular and to implement this plot, they got down an additional group of 2000 troopers to be deployed in Colombo. It did not materialize due to a request by the IGP or the Elections Commissioner. Hence, it was a definite violation of law and order in the country. It was an unwanted, secret deployment and specific officers were assigned to be in-charge of this deployment.

We learnt that when the election results were going against Mahinda Rajapaksa, they were to do something similar to the plan they implemented in 2010, where the EC would be detained and the results changed. This time, we heard that even at the last minute, they were discussing on how to stay in power for at least another two more years without announcing the results.

The army deployment was irregular and it was definitely not in the interest of the security of the state. On the election day, it is not lawful to deploy military in that nature and this indicates a definite coup attempt.

Finally, because the results were way against them anddue to the mounting international pressure to refrain from meddling with the results, they took a step back. The Army was there even for the next two days until former President Chandrika Kumaratunga informed the Defence Secretary to instruct the troops to be pulled out of Colombo”.

The Army Commander is responsible for the deployment of the troops and it was a clandestine arrangement. Neither the Army Chief nor the Chief of Defence Staff can wash their hands off the act now.”



When the election results were going against MR, they were to do something similar to the plan they implemented in 2010
I have no evidence to comment

Election monitor - PAFFREL
People’s Action for Free and Fair Elections, Executive Director Rohana Hettiarachchi says he will neither confirm nor deny the claims that are being made of the alleged ‘election night coup’. “I’m not in a position to say anything about what occurred at the Temple Trees that night, because I was not present there. So without any evidence, I cannot make any comments. However, we deployed our observers to 15 selected counting centres and I can assure you that those processes continued in a peaceful manner.

In fact, I personally visited some of the counting centres in Colombo and these claims of the military being stationed in close proximity to the counting centres are not true.

I’m not in a position to say anything about what occurred at the Temple Trees that night=
We know nothing of what happened outside

Elections Department official

When contacted by dailymirror , the Elections Commissioner was unavailable to comment on the alleged ‘coup’ attempt by the former regime. However another top official of the ED has the following to say: “Many have been asking me as well about these claims that are being made about an attempt to involve the military in annulling election results. But we know nothing of what happened outside. Within the Department of course, there was no such issue. . .”


It’s nothing more than a political witch-hunt

Former Defence Secretary, -Gotabhaya Rajapaksa


Gotabhaya Rajapaksa completely denies allegations made concerning the alleged attempt to stage an ‘election night coup’.

“It is a baseless allegation made to discredit the former President and other officials. It’s nothing more than a political witch-hunt; even before all the results were announced the President and all his staff left Temple Trees. Firstly, no such ‘clandestine’ discussion took place behind closed doors that night. Former President, with his supporters and staff members were gathered room observing the results. I was actually in a different room. He (MR) then contacted the then Opposition Leader/ current Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe between 3.00 – 4.00 am and asked to meet him in order to discuss certain matters, which included the security of the President and myself.

Yes, the Attorney General was called to Temple Trees, but that was to discuss maintenance of law and order, such as whether or not a curfew should be imposed since the Opposition at the time had made public claims of surrounding the Temple Trees. So that was a situation that needed to be addressed. To that end, the IGP and the service commanders were present at Temple Trees at that juncture. The AG is entitled to advise the government, and if there was an attempt to stage a coup, do you think the AG would have been consulted?

As for the claims being made concerning the use of ex-servicemen, they were involved in a purely political campaign, and as citizens of this country, they have every right to do so.

So these claims might be solely for political purposes. It must be stressed that the deployment of military was not carried out under my instructions. Those were military matters and I am sure they must have been issued orders for that. Those are usual standing operational procedures. . .”

It’s very clear that no such thing took place; even before all the results were announced the President and all his staff left Temple Trees.

[Philip]

http://www.sundaytimes.lk/150125/column ... 31923.html

Shocking revelations of deep security state within the State

By Our Political Editor

Defence Ministry-sponsored private army links up with private maritime company supplying arms
Huge armouries of private firms kept in Galle Navy camp and at BMICH; potential threat to C’wealth leaders and Pope
President calls for explanation from new Defence Secretary for trying to defend predecessors actions

Revelations of corruption, abuse of power and a multitude of other illegal acts under the reign of the previous UPFA Government are unfolding day by day.
In this midst, the role of a private security company which ran a veritable army in a controversial tie-up with a Defence Ministry sponsored security agency, is now under investigation by the Police and has raised some alarming questions. Police sought the advice of the Attorney General as several aspects were uncovered.

They were told last week that the legal issues arising from the tie-up between Rakna Arakshaka Lanka Limited (RALL) and the privately owned Avant Garde Maritime Services Ltd. (AGMSL) needed very close and careful study. Hence, the Attorney General has said that a team of State Attorneys have been appointed to go into all aspects of the matter and advice on the follow-up action required. The team’s task will begin next week. Among matters to be examined is the legality of the operation and whether the Government of Sri Lanka had the legal right to transfer weapons in its possession to a private security company. That too without the approval of the Cabinet of Ministers and without any calls for international tenders thereafter.

The AGMSL website notes that the company’s role is “provision of Sri Lanka Government Owned Weapons and Associated equipment to PMSC’s (private maritime security companies)” which is returnable to ports in Muscat and Mauritius, both as is clear, outside Sri Lanka. Among the weapons are Chinese made T-56, Russian Kalashnikovs (AK 47s) assault rifles, 7.62 ammunition for these weapons, Light Machine Guns (LMGs), ballistic helmets, body armour, Night Vision Goggles, Radio Sets (for communications) and flashlights.

RALL questioned by COPE
The RALL was the brainchild of former Defence Secretary, Gotabaya Rajapaksa. The company is registered with the Registrar of Companies and is not answerable to Parliament. It is yet a Government undertaking. This is what last year’s report by the Parliamentary Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) had to say:

The Committee enquired about the category of personnel who were recruited to the Company – It was stated that the ex-security personnel, those who have retired or legally resigned from the Sri Lankan Armed Forces and Police Service were recruited and they were being paid a salary in addition to their pensions.
It was enquired whether the Company, as a unit of providing maritime security, has taken any action on the threat caused to Sri Lanka Fishermen by the Indian Fishermen in the Northern Sea: It was stated that this matter has not yet been considered by the Company.

It was questioned about the matter pointed out at the last Committee meeting that the Company has invested funds without obtaining Treasury approval – It was stated that being a private company, it was not required to obtain Treasury approval and the problem had been regularised by obtaining the approval of the Board of Directors.

It is not clear whether RALL declared dividends to the State. After all it has not only used state funds entirely but all other state assets including weapons belonging to the Government. Among those who were on the board of directors was Mohan Peiris, the Chief Justice, who is now at the centre of a heightening controversy. RALL has won contracts to provide security in different state institutions and state-backed institutions ousting other private operators. Many lost employment opportunities in the latter. RALL also operates catering services and restaurants competing with the private sector. RALL’s strength at present is 4,000.

The AGMSL is a subsidiary company of Avant Garde Security Services (Pvt.) Ltd. located in Kotte. The prime mover in this private venture is a former commando, retired Major Nissanka Senadipathy and the company’s website boasts of an employee strength of 6,500 which is almost a quarter of the strength of the Sri Lanka Air Force. It is also six and half times bigger than the Sri Lanka Coast Guard. On Friday, Senadipathy was banned from leaving Sri Lanka by Colombo’s Chief Magistrate Gihan Pilapitiya. Top armed forces and Police officials who are retired, including at least two former Navy Commanders, have been employed by this company for whopping wages. Senadipathy is a strong supporter of the UPFA and campaigned for former President Mahinda Rajapaksa at the January 8 presidential election. He is also considered a close confidant of former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa.


The RALL-AGMSL vessel MV Mahanuwara, the floating armoury at the Galle Harbour during the police inspection. Pic by Sajeeva Wijeweera

It was a top Sri Lanka Navy officer who once recommended that the tasks now being carried out by Avant Garde Maritime Services could not be handled by his institution. The move did surprise senior Navy officers then. Some alleged this was pre-arranged but this could not be confirmed. Their concerns were heightened by the fact that the Navy had been equipped; its strength multiplied and better organised professionally to cope with a terrorist threat when RALL was formed in October 2006. This not only paved the way for the RALL-AGMSL tie-up but also led to the officer concerned being recruited to a top slot after retirement. He is receiving a six figure monthly salary, a luxury SUV and other perks.

The probe itself began by chance after the discovery of weapons on board the fully air-conditioned MV Mahanuwara, a vessel owned by AGMSL, when it was at the Galle Harbour. It came on a tipoff to the Harbour Police. The new Defence Secretary, B.M.U.D Basnayake, told the media last week that “it was a legitimate project” with the military hardware found on this vessel described as a floating armoury. Police investigations were still under way when he made those remarks. In a separate statement, Basnayake also said that a bank account of the MoD, opened by his predecessor Gotabaya Rajapaksa “is not a personal account and has been operated by the Ministry within legal parameters.” In effect, Basnayake was publicly contradicting Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake who made the disclosure to the media. Karunanayake was wrong when he said it was a “personal account” but a question about legality remained.

Basnayake’s assertions became the subject of a lengthy discussion at the first meeting of the Cabinet of ministers of the National Unity Government last Wednesday evening. It was revealed by Finance Minister Karunanayake that the account in the Taprobane Branch of the Bank of Ceylon was registered as that of “Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Secretary, Ministry of Defence…” He said in terms of Financial Regulations, no Ministry Secretary was allowed to open accounts and deposit proceeds from the sale of state property. They have to be deposited in the Consolidated Fund in The Treasury, he said. The monies had accrued after the outright sale of land adjoining Army Headquarters including the sale of the Army’s former playground to Shangri La Hotels.

Instructions to secretaries
The ministers decided that Public Administration Minister Karu Jayasuriya should send out instructions that Secretaries to Ministries should “strictly follow the rules and regulations under the Establishment Code in issuing Press Releases by State Officials.” In other words, the new Government which assured greater transparency and media freedom (besides a Right to Information law) has now gagged State officials from speaking to the media. This is just after only eleven days in office. Ironically, it was not for the fault of the media. It is only because one of the state officials, obviously inexperienced, unaware and more importantly ignorant about the Government’s own policies made the wrong remarks while holding a highly responsible position. On top of that, President Maithripala Sirisena’s official Government spokesman, Minister Rajitha Senaratne, revealed at a media briefing on Thursday that he (the President) had called for Basnayake’s explanation. An official of the Department of Information was to interject to say that even the proceeds from the sale of its publication Desathiya (fortnightly) were being periodically deposited in the Consolidated Fund with the Treasury.

Finance Minister Karunanayake claimed at a news conference last week that Rs 7.5 billion was found in a bank account in the name of former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa. He said that the money had since been transferred to the Treasury. Gotabaya Rajapaksa, however, strongly rebutted claims that it was a personal account and charged that “the remarks were grossly misleading and an attempt to discredit him.” At Wednesday’s meeting, ministers pointed out that no prior approval had been obtained from the Cabinet of ministers to hold the funds in a separate account and that aspect should be probed further. “If every minister sells state property and deposits the proceeds in separate bank accounts, there is no need for a Treasury,” said a minister commenting on the move. It has to be probed in detail to ensure such ‘irregular practices’ do not occur in the future, he said speaking on grounds of anonymity. The Cabinet of ministers decided that the subject should be taken up at a two-day debate in Parliament. Party leaders, who meet the Speaker, Chamal Rajapaksa, are to fix the dates. The Minister added that similarly the role played by RALL and AGMSL should be fully probed.

The Sunday Times is able to reveal exclusively today that Avant Garde Maritime Services held three container loads of arms and ammunition in the Sri Lanka Navy Camp “SLNS Dakshina” in Kaluwella, Galle. Rear Admiral D.E.C. Jayakody, Commander, Southern Naval Area told K.D.A. Weerasinghe, Senior Superintendent of Police, Galle, that AGMSL, the owner of MV Mahanuwara though the armoury was inside the Navy camp, that neither those in the armed forces nor the Police had any control. They could not even check on the armoury. They were not provided details of what had been stored. The only proof there was a private armoury inside the Navy camp came in the form of a letter retired Army Major General Palitha Fernando signed on behalf of the former Defence Secretary.

He is Military Liaison Officer in the Ministry of Defence and is not legally authorised to issue letters to military camps to locate private armouries in their premises. Nor has he said under which provisions of the law he was acting when he issued those “orders.” Making the situation worse is the fact that he is also Chairman of the RALL. His letter only conferred powers on the Southern Naval Area Commander to “maintain the armoury” but did not say what it meant. Ironically, other than taking note that such an armoury existed, the area commander was not authorised to inspect or conduct regular checks. The keys were not in his possession. The purpose of the letter, a Navy source said, was only “to facilitate the setting up of the armoury.” The source claimed no payments were made to the Navy but this could not be verified. The AGMSL has been charging clients a fee for every weapon issued. However, the Navy was not able to determine how many such weapons were in the armoury in its base because the Navy was not allowed to check the armoury or given a list.

A similar situation existed even in a secret armoury held by RALL at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) for some years. Ironically, the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) was held there in November 2013 with the security staff accompanying leaders blissfully unaware they were close to a secret arsenal of weapons. An intelligence source said even advanced security teams that visited ahead of the summit were not told about the existence of the secret armoury. This was out of fear that they would have sought the removal of the weapons in view of the danger it may pose to those of whom they were protecting. Similarly, when Pope Francis visited Sri Lanka last week, his advance security team, a Police source said, was unaware. The Pope went to the BMICH to address an inter-religious event. When a Police raid was conducted, only 152 weapons were found. A total of 3,322 weapons had gone missing. Officials told the Police they had been issued to different parties. Police now want to ascertain who granted permission for a private party to have an armoury in the BMICH and whether any payment was made for the purpose.

The AGMSL website confirms that “Weapons are owned by Sri Lanka Government. Hence origins of weapons are indisputable. Each of these will be accompanied by an ‘End User Certificate’ issued by the Ministry of Defence. They will always be accompanied by a Sri Lankan Sea Marshal of Rakna Arakshaka Lanka (RALL) as Custodian during passage of the ship…” When the Government of Sri Lanka procures military hardware from a foreign supplier, it is required to declare who is the end user. It is to such a party that an End User Certificate is issued. In this instance it is the Government of Sri Lanka. Re-issuing of such a certificate by the Ministry of Defence to a private party, it is pointed out, violates the assurance given to the supplier. It is not clear whether payments have been made to the Ministry of Defence for the weapons by the AGMSL. It has also come to light that the diplomatic machinery of the Government has been used vigorously to obtain recognition for the AGMSL from international bodies. They were unaware that there were local irregularities. An official source said before arrangements between RALL and AGMS were worked out, the Attorney General’s Department had not been consulted to determine legal positions.

Major General’s letter
If the Navy did not have access to weaponry stored within its own premises by a private party, there was more. Even the rooms in the Seva Vanitha building in the Navy camp in Galle were given for storage of weapons and ammunition. Here again, the Navy had no access to these rooms. They have been allocated after the Chairman of RALL, retired Major General Palitha Fernando wrote to the Commander of the Southern Naval Area as far back as November 20, 2012. He has signed the letter as “Army Co-ordinating Officer.” What such a retired officer from the Army had to do with the Navy is not made clear. Even worse, how he issued orders to allow a private party to establish an armoury inside a security forces establishment is even more intriguing. This is what his letter said:
“1. Armed security officers belonging to the naval security division of Rakna Arakshaka Lanka Company, established under the Ministry of Defence and Urban Development, have been deployed with arms and live ammunition for the protection of cargo ships.

“2. The CEO of Rakna Arakshaka Lanka has informed us that the armoury in the Galle Fort that they have been provided with is insufficient as the company, due to the high quality of its services, is facing higher demands.

“3. I kindly require that the company be provided with an armoury in the Dakshina Navy Camp in order for them to continue providing international-quality services.”

Retired Major General Fernando’s assertion clearly confirms that “a naval security division” was functioning under RALL, a Government owned business undertaking. This raises an all important question – can there be another armed and equipped naval entity when the Sri Lanka Navy, set up by statute, continues to function? Ironically, the Navy has been denied this task that would have earned them large amounts in foreign exchange. Besides the Navy, which is tasked to protect the country’s territorial waters among other responsibilities, a Coast Guard was also set up. Instead, the Navy was allowed to carry on with a less lucrative whale watching safaris in the south and operate restaurants. Naval personnel were assigned as drivers, cooks and household help to VIPs. Female cadres were similarly assigned as escorts to female VIPs.

Besides posing the question of illegality, there are also constitutional issues. The President, as Commander-in-Chief, has been designated as the head of the armed forces and the Police. True, there are other ancillary units like the Coast Guard and the Civil Defence Force with a strength of 35,000 tasked with “maritime law enforcement,” sometimes duplicating the role played by the armed forces, but they are essentially with the state. They have come in as institutions where retired officers successfully found employment. Here is an instance where a private company has been delegated a role that should be played by the Navy and that too for commercial gain.

The fact that an armoury was located inside a Navy camp raises a number of issues over how national security could have been endangered. Though it has not happened, there was always the likelihood of someone with access to a cargo vessel seeking weapons from the RALL-AGMSL. There is nothing to prevent them from harming the Sea Marshal and carrying out a terrorist attack or holding ships to ransom. Higher ups at Police Headquarters have come up with a string of serious questions. Among them:

Who is empowered to authorise RALL-AGMSL to operate a maritime security service extending from Sri Lankan waters to the Red Sea and under which laws has anyone given authorisation to RALL-AGMSL to use weapons belonging to the State? Who authorised them to collect monies for them?

Have weapons belonging to the Army, Navy and Air Force been given to RALL-AGMSL after the Tiger guerrillas were militarily defeated? Who has the authority to do so?

Was any approval from the armed forces or the Police obtained before RALL-AGMSL was allowed to set up an armoury? In this instance, was permission from Navy Headquarters sought? Has the Commander of the Navy been consulted?

What happens if the property belonging to the Government of Sri Lanka (the weapons and ammunition) is used against a friendly force or party? Who takes the responsibility for such action? Who will pay compensation if demands are made?

Why could not the Sri Lanka Navy, relatively less busy after the defeat of Tiger guerrillas, have undertaken this task? Did this not deny the Navy the possibility of earning millions of dollars in foreign exchange? How much of funds have the private security company earned as a result of this?

Who has the authority to transfer weapons obtained declaring the Sri Lanka Government as End User to a third party? Are such licences issued to foreign vessels valid?

Who bears the responsibility of a floating armoury if it falls into the hands of unauthorised persons? Is there insurance cover for the personnel?

Is there any agreement between RALL and the Government of Sri Lanka over sharing of profits or other forms of revenue? Is there a similar agreement with AGMSL?

Four advisors to the Government
Besides delving on corrupt activity and other malpractices of the previous Government, the first meeting the Cabinet of ministers which lasted nearly two hours last Wednesday also decided to appoint four advisors to the Government. It came on a recommendation by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe. The four are N.K. Weragoda, Charitha Ratwatte, Malik Samarawickrema and Nirj Deva. The latter is a member of the European Parliament and was earlier a staunch supporter of the UPFA Government. He was then a strong critic of the UNP and made his feelings known through the state-run media. However, now switching his support to the National Unity Government, he was a VIP guest at the swearing-in of ministers. He sat just behind the ministers, deputies and state ministers at the ceremony at the Presidential Secretariat. Premier Wickremesinghe also presented a Cabinet paper for the appointment of Arjuna Mahendran as the Governor of the Central Bank. One minister pointed out that he was not even a citizen of Sri Lanka. However, the Prime Minister said there are instances where non-nationals of a country have been appointed heads of their respective Central Banks. Moreover, he said, Mahendran would seek dual nationality by becoming a citizen of Sri Lanka.

During any other business, Minister Karu Jayasuriya moved that Elections Commissioner Mahinda Deshapriya and his officials should be commended for the impartial manner in which they conducted the January 8 presidential election. He noted that ministers would not have been able to sit at the Secretariat that day if that good conduct was not there. Ministers are to decide shortly on how to pay tribute to them. The first measure to benefit all Sri Lankans came from Power and Energy Minister, Champika Ranawaka who moved for the reduction of fuel prices. The Government is to raise a standby loan of two million US dollars to offset shortfalls that may arise when it announces relief measures to the public in the mini-budget on January 29.

Galle Face project
The ministers decided to review one of the UPFA Government’s ambitious projects, an unsolicited proposal allowing China a generous 25-year corporate tax holiday to Colombo Port City, the Rs 172.4 billion (US$ 1.3 billion) project to reclaim more than 575 acres (233 hectares) of sea off Galle Face Green. The project company, CHEC Port City Colombo (Private) Ltd, is to be exempt from tax on dividends for 25 years as well, as a host of other levies for a lesser period of time. The concessions were Gazetted on January 24 last year under Section 3 (2) of the Strategic Development Projects Act. The project is more expensive than the Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (US$ 210 million), Phase 1 of the Hambantota Port (US$ 361 million) or the Colombo-Katunayake Expressway (US$ 350 Million) put together.

Among other concessions granted is an exemption from withholding tax payable on the interest on foreign loans taken for capital expenditure and on technical fees paid to consultants; on management fees and royalty payments, provided the total of such charges does not exceed 3% of gross operating revenue; on marketing fees, provided the total of such fees does not exceed 1.5% of gross operating revenue; and on incentive management fees, provided the total of such fees does not exceed 10% of gross operating profit. Up to 30 expatriate employees of the project company are exempt from ‘Pay as You Earn Tax’. This will be applicable for project implementation staff and project operational staff for a 10 years from the date commercial operations begin. The Company is required to gradually replace expatriates with local employees “on a best efforts basis.” The foundation stone for the project was laid by Chinese President Xi Jinping when he visited Sri Lanka in September last year.

As first revealed exclusively in the Sunday Times (Political Commentary) of January 19 last year, a significant feature of the project is the granting of a portion of the land area on a 99-year lease to the Chinese firm which made the unsolicited proposal. It is just close to the Chinese built International Container Terminal. The base price of the land is being estimated at US$ 24 million or more than three billion rupees. The project led to serious concerns in India.

Ministers decided that they should first determine whether an environmental assessment of the project has been carried out. This is before determining whether they should go ahead with the project. It was also decided that the Embassy of China in Colombo be kept informed of these decisions.

Whilst mega projects are being reviewed for their costs and viability among other reasons, the discovery by the Police of the floating private armoury has brought forth some disturbing questions. If such weapons given to a private party fell into the hands of a group bent on subverting democracy, there is no gainsaying that the damage would have been enormous. In the past, other than Tiger guerrillas whose weaponry were regularly upgraded by Kumaran Pathmanathan (KP) and his cohorts, in the south they were fought with crudely made Gal Kattas (improvised pistols) and shot guns. ‘KP’ has been allowed to roam freely in the north and there is no guerrilla army for him to re-supply now. Yet, he has not been called upon to answer his illegal and treacherous actions though the Rajapaksa Government had called those who differed from their views as “traitors.” Floating as well as secret land based armouries in the hands of private parties is a recipe for great disaster. That is why the National Unity Government should conduct a fuller probe and reveal the findings to the public. They have a right to know and the Establishment Code should not be made applicable to those who will reveal information.