Compromising national security: FUTA defends MS

Dewasiri

by Shamindra Ferdinando-January 4, 2015, 11:12 pm 

With the government and the Opposition trading allegations as regards national security and post-war deployment of armed forces in the Northern Province, the Federation of University Teachers’ Association (FUTA) yesterday came out strongly in support of Maithripala Sirisena’s candidature at January 8, 2015 presidential poll.

Addressing the media at Solis Hotel Pita Kotte, FUTA executive committee member and ex-FUTA Chief Dr. Nirmal Ranjith Dewasiri emphasized that there was absolutely no basis for a government claim that Maithripala Sirisena’s election would be detrimental to national security.

The Colombo University academician accused Sri Lanka’s former ambassador in Geneva Dr. Dayan Jayatilleke and presidential media spokesman Mohan Samaranayake of propagating falsehoods to cause panic among the electorate. Dr. Dewasiri insisted that Messrs Jayatilleke and Samaranayake had been trying to convince the electorate of an international conspiracy to compel Sri Lanka to follow a Western agenda and a separatist plot at the behest of Tamil political parties as well as overseas Tamils.

Declaring that the US hadn’t adopted a policy inimical to Sri Lanka, the FUTA chief alleged that those who were claiming of a Western conspiracy weren’t aware of the actual situation.According to him, the US had intervened in West Asia as well as in some parts of Asia, including Iraq, Syria, Afghanistan and Pakistan because the situation in those countries seriously affected US security interests. As Sri Lanka hadn’t been categorized along with those countries, there was no reason for us to be concerned, Dr. Dewasiri said.

Claiming that Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa had thanked the US once for taking a strong position against the LTTE, Dr. Dewasiri emphasised the US position on the national issue shouldn’t be construed as hostile approach towards the country. The FUTA leader said that the country hadn’t been faced with threat of separatism though the government accused various parties of trying to divide the country on ethnic lines. Although the LTTE could again pose a threat with the support of Tamil Nadu, such a project wouldn’t be realistic, Dr. Dewasiri said, warning of dire consequences in case President Rajapaksa won a third term. Terrorism could be revived because re-elected President Rajapaksa could suppress the democratic rights the of Tamil speaking people, he said.