April 23, 2012
WikiLeaks: Gota Is The Abductor – Minister Lakshman Seneviratne
By Colombo Telegraph -
Lakshman Seneviratne
“Opposition United National Party legislator Lakshman Seneviratne, speaking in Parliament, accused Defense Secretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa, Colombo Deputy-Inspector General of Police Rohan Abeywardena and former Air Force Squadron Leader Nishantha Gajanayake of orchestrating abductions. Ambassador raised U.S. concerns about the new trend of Muslim abductions with Foreign Minister Bogollogama on June 13 .” the US Embassy Colombo informed Washington.
The Colombo Telegraph found the related leaked cable fromWikiLeaks database, which details the emergency regulation debate which took place on June 6, 2007. The cable is classified as “SECRET” and written by the Ambassador Robert O. Blake on June 19, 2007.
Quoting then opposition MP and present Minister of Productivity Promotion Lakshman Seneviratne Robert Blake wrote “On June 6, during an emergency session of Parliament, United National Party (UNP) parliamentarian Lakshman Seneviratne accused Defense Secretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa, Colombo Deputy-Inspector General of Police Rohan Abeywardena and former Air Force Squadron Leader Nishantha Gajanayake of orchestrating abductions. Seneviratne stated that Gajanayake, a retired Air Force officer whose last assignment was as Executive Assistant to former Sri Lanka Armed Forces Commander Donald Perera, was Gothabaya’s personal link to the Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal (TMVP, or “Karuna faction”) in Colombo. He added that Gajanayake arranged abductions using the TMVP on orders from Gothabaya and with the assistance of police officers acting under Abeywardena. Although Seneviratne did not differentiate between Muslim abductions and Tamil abductions during his condemnation of the Defense Secretary, he did lodge specific accusations concerning the abduction of a prominent Muslim businessman against Defense Spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella’s security detail, leading to angry exchanges in Parliament. Seneviratne stated that a Muslim businessman’s brother told him that Rambukwella’s bodyguards lured the businessman to a hotel in Kandy and then held him for ransom, demanding a ‘colossal’ sum of money.”
Below we give the relevant part of the confidential cable;Read More
