The Dialog Of Citizens For Politicians Who Care

By Thrishantha Nanayakkara -September 22, 2013 |

Dr. Thrishantha Nanayakkara

Dear Aravinthan Anna,

Many thanks for your Skype call this morning. Thanks to live streaming of Sri Lankan TV channels, I could follow the election results and related commentaries from here as and when it happened. As you correctly said, people in the North have clearly expressed their will to have a representation that knows their aspirations, and that they don’t need just any model of development. The electoral outcome of Kaytes Island is a good example that there is a limit to which money can buy votes. Now Anna, as a Southerner, while wholeheartedly well wishing the new Provincial Council so strongly led by ITAC, I challenge it to show by example that it truly stands by the aspirations of the people of Jaffna. Keep pressure on them to build up a good respect for rule of law, human rights, and equality among all its residents. When I mentioned about rule of law, you asked me if the Navy Commander would hold an inquiry into why Yoshitha Rajapaksa openly participated in political campaigns during the last couple of months while he is in uniform. Well I know that the Army held a swift inquiry into why former Army Commander Sarath Fonseka was allegedly involved in politics while in uniform based on evidence given by a politicna who crossed over to the Government side. You saw how fast those inquiries moved and how they rushed to give the verdict on a day the defense lawyers were not present. So, your argument that we in the South do not have strong rule of law sort of breaks down. Anyway, lets see how the Navy commander keeps up to that exemplary record held by the Army. If the Navy Commander so wishes, there were many photo evidence given in so many media, and this note is an open challenge to him.                         Read More