Dispute won’t affect our political aspirations: TNASATURDAY, 27 OCTOBER 2012.jpg){kind=small}  Tamil National Alliance (TNA) leader R. Sampanthan said the ongoing discussion on the internal rift that had arisen in the party would not impede the headway being made in achieving the objectives of Sri Lanka’s Tamil speaking people.“There was a lengthy discussion and a frank exchange of views among the constituent parties on Thursday. We are carrying out a serious dialogue and hope to resolve this matter soon” he said. Mr. Sampanthan said the rift had arisen mainly over the administration of the party. The TNA is made up of the TULF, EPRLF, TELO and PLOTE as constituent parties. “This rift is not in any way related to the political goals and aspirations of the Tamil people or the parties in the alliance. Our political aspirations, efforts and commitments towards the Tamil people of this country remain steadfast as always,” he said. TNA spokesman Suresh Premachandran told Daily Mirror the calls to register the TNA as a separate political party was a focal point of the issue. “There have been calls to register the TNA as a separate political party, but some of the constituent parties have their reservations about it,” he said. Mr. Premachandran said the political objectives of the TNA would remain strong “This is not going to impede our objectives. We will in one voice continue with our objectives to provide the Tamil people with a justiciable solution,” he said. (HF)
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Peace for the World
First democratic leader of Justice the Godfather of the Sri Lankan Tamil Struggle: Honourable Samuel James Veluppillai Chelvanayakam
A Brief Colonial History Of Ceylon(SriLanka)
Saturday, October 27, 2012
Protest Of The Opposition Vs Fonseka’s Chauvinist Movement
Rally held at Hyde Park to support of General Sarath Fonseka by the United Bhikshu Front, the dissident Buddhist monks’ wing of the UNP, was a turning point. As we expected the campaign for the removal of 13th amendment surged forward with this event. True, the general did not put forward that slogan. Addressing the gathering, former Army Commander said that mere changes of governments would not bring any solution to the problems which are currently faced by the public and called upon people to rally around him and the Bhikshu front to change the prevailing political culture in the country. Outlining that the rule of law no more prevails in the country, he reiterated the necessity of abolishing the executive presidency. Thus he limited the campaign to the latter issue. He also criticized the present leadership of the country and claimed the prevalence of child abuse, murders, frauds and several other crimes are due to the dictatorial Mahinda regime. These ills and harms should be rooted out. His entire speech was devoted to this and no word about peace, rehabilitation and reconstruction. Nor did he explain his views on the LLRCrecommendations. But this mobilization gave new energy to Sinhala chauvinist camp. Champika, Weerawansa, Somawansa and others denounced 13th amendment and put up posters demanding repeal of13th amendment. On the other hand Petition against Divi neguma became a mobilization against these forces. Though the chauvinist within the government claimed that the bill was for poverty alleviation, the Minister of Economic Development Basil Rajapaksa stated Tamil National Alliance has no rights to comment on Divi neguma bill. Chauvinists want to force this bill through the parliament as it arrest part of the devolution given in the 13th amendment.
By Vickramabahu Karunaratne -October 27, 2012
Dr. Vickramabahu Karunaratne
Rally held at Hyde Park to support of General Sarath Fonseka by the United Bhikshu Front, the dissident Buddhist monks’ wing of the UNP, was a turning point. As we expected the campaign for the removal of 13th amendment surged forward with this event. True, the general did not put forward that slogan. Addressing the gathering, former Army Commander said that mere changes of governments would not bring any solution to the problems which are currently faced by the public and called upon people to rally around him and the Bhikshu front to change the prevailing political culture in the country. Outlining that the rule of law no more prevails in the country, he reiterated the necessity of abolishing the executive presidency. Thus he limited the campaign to the latter issue. He also criticized the present leadership of the country and claimed the prevalence of child abuse, murders, frauds and several other crimes are due to the dictatorial Mahinda regime. These ills and harms should be rooted out. His entire speech was devoted to this and no word about peace, rehabilitation and reconstruction. Nor did he explain his views on the LLRCrecommendations. But this mobilization gave new energy to Sinhala chauvinist camp. Champika, Weerawansa, Somawansa and others denounced 13th amendment and put up posters demanding repeal of13th amendment. On the other hand Petition against Divi neguma became a mobilization against these forces. Though the chauvinist within the government claimed that the bill was for poverty alleviation, the Minister of Economic Development Basil Rajapaksa stated Tamil National Alliance has no rights to comment on Divi neguma bill. Chauvinists want to force this bill through the parliament as it arrest part of the devolution given in the 13th amendment.
Meanwhile, the UNP announced that they had called a meeting of opposition political parties, trade unions and civil organizations aimed at mobilizing people against the cost of living. Accordingly, they are to meet on October 30 to decide the actions to be taken unless relief is granted in the budget that is to be tabled on November 08. In the VV, protest of the opposition, press conference on Sunday 21 all parties there committed to defend the 13th amendment and press for implementation of the LLRC recommendation. While Sumanthiran and Kumar Gurubaran condemned the attitude of the government towards the Tamil national problem, UNP deputy general secretary Jayalath said “We started devolution in Lanka and we shall defend this against all obstacles.” This in contrast to what Gotabhaya said recently; who called for the abolition of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution without further delay. Stating that the 13th Amendment was nothing but an impediment to the post-war development process, Gotabhaya asserted that the SLFP-led UPFA should either do away with the 13th Amendment or amend it taking into considering ground realities. He was supported by Wimal Weerawansa, The Minister of Construction, Engineering Services, Housing and Common Amenities. He has requested from the President Mahinda Rajapaksa to hold a referendum to repeal the Provincial Council system. In a letter to the President, the leader of the government coalition party National Freedom Front has suggested replacing the Provincial Council system with a devolution unit based on the district.
It is interesting to note, that the JVP also clearly indicated their support to the chauvinist wing of the government. They will support abolition of 13th amendment. At the same time they are eager to join the campaign of the general. According to one media report Tilvin has asserted “If it was really to speak over the abolition of the Executive Presidency, they should have invited the JVP too. But, what happened here were a few UNP frontrunners and UNP’s Bhikku front, which have issues with the party leadership, showing their agitation.” All these developments show that as the crisis intensifies the political parties take strong stands on the basis of Tamil national problem. Protest of the opposition, VV, has attracted all anti government forces irrespective of race, religion or creed, while Fonseka movement will attract all chauvinists who are eager to build a patriotic front committed to anti corruption and Sinhala tradition.
SRI LANKA: The ugliest attack in Sri Lanka’s history on the Supreme Court and the Chief Justice
October 27, 2012
Sri Lanka's judges and lawyers demonstrate next to a coffin which they said symbolized the death of independent judiciary as they protest outside a court complex in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Monday, Oct. 8, 2012. (AHRC File Photo)
Mahinda Rajapaksha Regime has resorted to the ugliest attack in Sri Lankan on the Supreme Court and the Chief Justice this week by using the state media as a slander machine and being mean to introduce manufactured slanders letters to the parliament solely with the purpose of abusing the parliamentary privilege for based purpose. The government has within its position the schemers of lowest quality who could manufacture any lie, and there are others who will introduce such lies in the highest of the country Sri Lanka’s parliament, and people in the state’s media who will defy every rule in journalistic ethics to do whatever that the government demand. However the responsibility lies entirely within president Rajapaksha himself for allowing such a scheme to be carried out.
Manufacturing a slander sheet is an easy affair. Whoever to allow such a slander sheet in the country’s most august form requires unscrupulousness and carelessness regarding every form of decorum and public etiquette require in the use of materials in county’s parliament. This is one of the worst act of irresponsibility that defamed the parliament itself and the very tradition of parliamentary debate anywhere in the world. It is not just fools but criminals that could allow the abuse of parliamentary process in this manner.
Issue involve was an attempted abduction and an attack by four unidentified persons on the secretary of the Judicial Service Commission on 7th of October 2012. So far the police have file reports in the courts that they are unable to identify the culprits of this attack. And then the government introduces scrupulous letter stating that it was the chief justice’s husband who has organized the attack because he has suspected an illicit relationship between the chief justice and the secretary of judicial service commission. Countries criminal justice investigators have declared to the court that they do not know who the attackers are. And then the government introduces this despicable letter manufactured by some mean person to the countries august body. The question is what the place of criminal investigation in Sri Lanka is. Has is being taken over or by past by persons who write scrupulous leaflets.
The Supreme Court of Sri Lanka was established on 1802. Up to this date there had never been this kind of mean attacks on the Supreme Court or the Chief Justice. It marked perhaps the lowest point of political culture when a government in power could abuse the parliamentary privilege in this fashion. And it is worse when a slander machine is utilized to attack the Supreme Court and the Chief Justice.
Strategy behind the government action is this. Secretary of the Judicial Service Commission in a press statement complained that the public media is carrying on a campaigned against the Judicial Service Commission and the independence of judiciary. Then the government retaliates with a thousand times worst used abuse of publicity and the public media in attacking the Supreme Court and the Chief Justice herself.
In doing this government resorts to the lowest forms of abuse by taking advantage of the vulnerability of Chief Justice being a woman. This is one of the worst sexist attack and the women movement in Sri Lanka and every woman in Sri Lanka and anywhere else in the world much revolt against this ugly abuse on a woman holding a public office. Does this mean that every time the government is unhappy with a woman holding public office it will resort to this kind of mean tactic in order to humiliate and defame such a person? This is shameful Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksha. Very shameful.
In functional democracy people would have demanded that the president himself and every one held who has participated in this shameful abuse of power, the abuse of parliamentary privilege and abuse of women should resign because they simply do not deserve to hold public office.
This episode only demonstrates the lowest depth that Sri Lanka has reached. No nation can avoid dire consequences to its societal moral when the government at highest level resorts to such lowest level of meanness.
If the people of Sri Lanka tolerate this level of immorality on the part of the government then they should blame themselves for all the societal ills that will rise from situation like this.
The greatest societal ill that will rise from this kind of abyss is very high level of criminality in every aspect of social life. There will be loss of respect for anything calls moral or ethical in a society like this. The children of such a nation will inherit culture that is ugly and stinking.
The greatest societal ill that will rise from this kind of abyss is very high level of criminality in every aspect of social life. There will be loss of respect for anything calls moral or ethical in a society like this. The children of such a nation will inherit culture that is ugly and stinking.
Asian Human Rights Commission is aware that there are many others such gimmicks being schemed. One such is to attacks the lawyers who appear for just causes and oppose the government abuse of powers in court by manufactured reports attacking them of all kinds of things for an example saying that they are being paid by drug loads. We are aware that there was an attempt to publish such a report in the government’s mouth piece Daily News last week against Mr. J C Weliamuna and another lawyer against whom the government somehow agrees with. It was because a particular news editor was a man who respects journalistic ethics that the report was not published. However possibly others who are willing to engage in any kind of abuse may be put is in the place and such reports against those whom the government select to slander may be publish in the future.
The Asian Human Right Commission is sadden by the attack on the Supreme Court and the Chief Justice not due to any personal attachment but due to respect for principals that when undermine harms the fabrics of society. Supreme Court deserves respect, Chief Justice whoever it is deserves respect and the Parliament deserves not to be abuse. History tells us that societies that do not respect these principals pay a high price for that disrespect.
Rajapaksa Family Stands To Receive In Commission Anywhere Between US$1.2 To US$ 1.8 Billion During 2005-15
China’s Forays in Sri Lanka
The Dragon’s shadow is lengthening over Sri Lanka with every passing day. China has committed since 2005 contracts and investments worth US$ 6.4 billion, as per treasury records. So far, $ 3.6 billion has been disbursed. Projects worth $ 2.8 billion are waiting to be signed. In another three years, the Chinese investment in Sri Lanka will nearly double and touch $ 12 billion.
Rajapaksa, who began his life by testing his luck in the tinsel world as an extra and clambered the political ladder with ruthless ease, is not a man of the masses as he presents himself with an earthy brown shawl to remind his interlocutors of his rural roots. His family rule puts to shame the Sukarnos, Bhuttos, Burnhams and Mugabes of the world.
Let the facts speak.
The Dragon’s shadow is lengthening over Sri Lanka with every passing day. China has committed since 2005, as per treasury records, contracts and investments worth US$ 6.4 billion. So far, $ 3.6 billion has been disbursed; projects worth $ 2.8 billion are waiting to be signed. In another three years, the Chinese investment in Sri Lanka will nearly double and touch $ 12 billion.
As the African experience with Bamboo capitalism shows, China’s investment is not benign but is aimed at cornering raw materials, markets and profits. It is also routed through middlemen to reduce risks.
The First Family
In Sri Lanka context, the gateway appears to be a close family friend of the Rajapaksas. And the friend has the word ‘gateway’ in the name of his very company.
Like in Africa, here also, commissions are paid to agents and front companies and these are really hefty probably because of the competition the Chinese are facing in grabbing local business.
Available data shows that the First Family (FF) stands to receive in commission anywhere between US$1.2 to US$ 1.8 billion during 2005-15. It works out to an annual ‘intake’ of $120 to US$ 180 million from the Chinese projects.
An intricate web of front companies is in place to receive and disburse the commissions, as is the practice with the Chinese.
The Chinese generally walk the extra mile to cover the tracks leading to the real beneficiary. But they have slipped up badly in their Colombo enterprise. So milestones along the way are clearly visible.
Names of two businessmen figure prominently in the shady business deals of the First Family. One of them, Bandula Weerawardena, Sri Lanka born British passport holder-businessman, is more or less history, as he gave way to the new star, Prabath Nanayakkara, the Chairman of Sri Lanka Gateway Industries.
A little known businessman, Prabath’s meteoric rise ran parallel to President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s ascent to power. The sobriquet of FF insider has helped him bag massive construction contracts and licenses for TV and other media network.
Prabath’s mainstay is said to be Dilshan Wickremasinghe (38). He is the son of the President’s brother-in-law, Nishantha Wickremasinghe, who is also the Chairman of Sri Lankan Airlines.
Dilshan is CEO of Asset Networks (Pvt) Ltd and Asset International, both subsidies of Prabath’s Asst Holdings Pvt Ltd.
Chinese Projects
Chinese funded projects are mostly handled by five companies, and the FF hand is behind all of them, according to local business circles, though they are economical on details.
The FF is said to be pumping in four billion US dollars into Trincomalee, where decks are cleared for setting up a deep water jetty, bulk commodities terminal, and power plant amongst other facilities as a composite venture on develop, operate and manage basis.
Like in all other FF involvements, in Trinco deal also, Prabath signed the agreement with Board of Investment (BOI) on June 13, 2012. His Asset Holdings Pvt. Ltd is a partner in the Mitchell Consortium of Australia which had won a contract for setting up a heavy Industry Zone in Sampur.
Spread over 1200 acres, the project will see an investment of US $ 2 bn. It will be completed in three phases and the first phase would come up at a cost of US $ 700 million. The Rajapaksa cabinet approved the project on 23 February 2011.
The Mitchell consortium comprises four companies – Mitchell Group of Australia, Salva Corporation (mining services), Asset Holdings Pvt. Ltd (of Prabath Nanayakkara) and an unnamed Brazilian partner. Inquiries show that Mitchell Group could be a paper company acting as front for Prabath.
If so, could it be a case of rerouting of ‘money’ earned by the FF in the Chinese projects with Prabath acting as the Front Man of an Illegal Empire? Could it be a case of creating a long lasting vote bank in the South?
All questions with no ready answers. Only a deep probe can ferret out the truth.
Bandula Weerawardena
Prabath’s association with the FF pre-dates Dilshan’s involvement with Asset Networks (Pvt) Ltd and Asset International, in a manner of speaking. It began in 2005 when Bandula Weerawardena, who was then the sole liaison man for Chinese investors, switched his allegiance from President Chandrika Kumaratunga to Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Bandula’s dealings as local agent for the Chinese companies were carried through his Bahama based Celweera Trading Limited. The scene changed by end 2006. Mahinda Rajapaksa became the President and his family set up several front companies to deal with the Chinese investors.
The FF ventures soon took over Bandula’s Chinese liaison work and sole agency work to his dismay though he had funded liberally Rajapaksa’s bid for presidency. He has either been replaced or his role is drastically reduced in the process; he is still around though; he shuttles between Communist China and Colombo, and spends time mostly in China.
When and how Prabath entered the scene is shrouded in mystery. He appears to have started his association with the FF in partnership with Bandula himself. And the decline of Bandula heralded the growth of Prabath Empire. `
Till five-six years back, Prabath Nanayakkara, mainly owned and ran the hereditary ‘Mount Jean Tea Plantation’, which employees about 200 workers. Today, it is difficult to estimate the exact worth of his business empire.
Prabath and Dilshan’s hand has become omnipresent with several projects that span the entire spectrum from highways to expressways and from roads and bridges to buildings.
Metallurgical Construction Co. (MCC), China Harbour Engg Co. (CHEC), Sinohydro Corp, China National Machinery & Equipment (CMEC), and China Huanqiu Contracting & Engineering Corporation (HQCEC) are the main Chinese players in Sri Lanka. These companies are doing virtually all the Chinese funded projects in the countries. Prabath’s Asset Holdings is representing them though it is said that the tie-up with CMEC isn’t exclusive.
The Commission
As local agent, its commission depends on the value of the project negotiated. Generally, it is said to be range between 10 and 15 percent of the contract value. Sometimes, it can be a little more depending upon the circumstances of the deal like, for instance, competition.
· CHEC and Sinohydro has implemented the first phase of US$ 360 million Hambantota port; both are in talks to take up the second stage worth US$ 1.0 billion plus.
· CHEC is also implementing Hambantota International airport; it executed a part of Southern Expressway at a cost of US$ 200 million.
· Sinohydro is mostly into road projects. It recently bagged US$ 252 million Moragahakanda Reservoir project.
· CMEC is setting up coal fired Norochcholai project to generate 900 MW. The project cost: US$1.5 billion.
· HQCEC executed Hambantota Bunkering& Tank Farm project (US$ 76.5 million) and is negotiating modernization and expansion of Sapugaskanda refinery (US$2.0 billion).
The Lankan Tilt for China
It will be patently unfair to say that the tilt towards Beijing is a Rajapaksa innovation to win the Wanni War. The credit for taking Sri Lanka into China’s fold goes to Chandrika’s mother, Sirimao Bandaranayke, while her predecessor, JR Jayewardene, opened the windows to Pakistan.
Under Rajapaksas the ties with Beijing and Islamabad have become deepened and widened. Yes, he has personally ensured the successful sailing of several Chinese projects, while letting the Pakistani leaders put their money in the Lankan bourses.
Informed observers say that the commissions to the FF would be much more than US $ 120 to 180 million per year projected at the outset in this article. The projection factors in only pure vanilla commission through Chinese projects alone, according to them.
So what would be the real ‘intake’? It would be anywhere between US $ 400 and $ 500 million per year, say the knowledgeable.
——
*The writer is a New Delhi-based journalist-author and strategic analyst who can be reached atbhootnath004@yahoo.com. Courtesy southasiaanalysis.org, the original title of this article is; China’s Forays in Sri Lanka.
Related posts;
Sri Lanka eyes Indian and Chinese markets to boost export earnings
Fri, Oct 26, 2012,
Oct 26, Colombo: Sri Lanka says it will not remain passive in the face of global downturn and is actively taking measures to safeguard its exports and looking to expand into the Asian markets to boost its declining export earnings to support the economic growth.
As Sri Lanka's exports to European and US markets continue to decline with the slowdown of their economies, the Sri Lankan government is taking efforts to further open both Indian and Chinese markets for its products, Sri Lanka's Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiyutheen said recently.
"We are not going to remain passive at a time when our export markets around the world turn more challenging due to the decline in leading segments and the downward revision of GDP projections for India and China. We are under no illusions that our exports will continue to be easy as the markets become increasingly difficult. In fact, we are taking active steps to safeguard our exports," the Minister said recently at an even to promote Sri Lanka's cinnamon exports.
Explaining the immediate steps taken to safeguard Sri Lanka's exports The Minister said that he had been personally meeting and consulting many top Chamber members in the country with regard to Sri Lanka's future exports strategies.
Fri, Oct 26, 2012,
Oct 26, Colombo: Sri Lanka says it will not remain passive in the face of global downturn and is actively taking measures to safeguard its exports and looking to expand into the Asian markets to boost its declining export earnings to support the economic growth.As Sri Lanka's exports to European and US markets continue to decline with the slowdown of their economies, the Sri Lankan government is taking efforts to further open both Indian and Chinese markets for its products, Sri Lanka's Minister of Industry and Commerce Rishad Bathiyutheen said recently.
"We are not going to remain passive at a time when our export markets around the world turn more challenging due to the decline in leading segments and the downward revision of GDP projections for India and China. We are under no illusions that our exports will continue to be easy as the markets become increasingly difficult. In fact, we are taking active steps to safeguard our exports," the Minister said recently at an even to promote Sri Lanka's cinnamon exports.
Explaining the immediate steps taken to safeguard Sri Lanka's exports The Minister said that he had been personally meeting and consulting many top Chamber members in the country with regard to Sri Lanka's future exports strategies.
As a result of the consultations during the last few months, Sri Lanka has taken a new initiative to set up a Consultative Committee on Market Diversification representing the interests of a wider cross section of the economy, Minister Bathiyutheen said.
"Also for the first time we held direct consultations with our leading exporters last September to find solutions to their issues and received very good responses. We also revived our exporters� forum and the third forum in the series was successfully concluded in July. But more importantly, as part of moving from simple exports to more complex products, we are looking at actively joining Regional Production Networks so that our exports become more market driven," the Minister further described the government's measures.
He said the government's efforts to further open both Indian and Chinese markets, which are seen as difficult segments, have become successful.
European Union and the United States are Sri Lanka's largest export partners accounting for 60 percent of Sri Lanka's exports. With the economic crisis in those regions, Sri Lanka's export earnings have declined 5.7 percent in the first eight months of this year compared to the same period last year, according to the Central Bank's most recent review.
For the month of August exports earnings declined by 13 percent and the income from food sector declined 45 percent.
The International Monetary Fund recently urged Sri Lanka to woo Asian markets to boost its declining export earnings to support the economic growth.
Koshy Mathai, the IMF resident representative for Sri Lanka and Maldives has advised Sri Lanka to focus on enhancing trade with India and China to take advantage of those growing Asian economies and to diversify against shocks coming from economic slowdowns in other parts of the world.
Despite having a successful free trade agreement with India since 1998 Sri Lanka's total exports in 2011 to India accounted for just 4.9 percent while exports to China accounted for only around 1 percent.
"Failing to take advantage of the opportunities provided by the economic growth by those areas (in China and India) today would be ashamed, would definitely be giving up an opportunity for Sri Lanka to go forward," the IMF official pointed out in August.
The IMF lowered the economic growth forecast for Sri Lanka to a 6.75 percent this year, slower than the 7.2 percent projected by the country's Central Bank.
Cold war comes to the open: A motion against the Judiciary
Sunday 28 October 2012
By Ranga Jayasuriya
Late last week the ruling party members of Parliament were queuing up to sign a motion that ostensibly called for measures to prevent the Judiciary from overstepping its purview. Over 100 odd signatures from government MPs had already been obtained for the motion by the end of the week. The motion requires 75 votes for it to be presented to Parliament for a special debate. Once presented, it can be taken up at an emergency debate.
The latest government manoeuvering appears to be aiming to keep the chief justice under check. Though the motion has not specifically referred to the chief justice, the government has openly been critical of the chief justice, last week. The signs of a cold war between the government and the judiciary being fought in the
public domain were seen last week.
Last Thursday, Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris alleged that Chief Justice Shirani Bandara- nayake had overlooked 29 more senior judges when naming Manjula Thilakaratne as secretary of the JSC.
“The Constitution has been clearly violated in making this appointment of the JSC secretary. The Supreme Court has no discretion to appoint any judge, it (the JSC secretary) must be the senior most judge from courts of first instance,” Peiris said in a statement to parliament on Thursday.
It is however interesting that the government did not raise objections to Thilakaratne’s appointment back in May, when he was appointed as the JSC secretary. The government’s concerns over Thilakaratne’s suitability were raised only after he issued a public statement, condemning the interference of the judiciary.
The impending parliament motion is the latest salvo by the government against the judiciary in an increasingly open battle, which came into the surface after Thilakaratna issued the public statement.
Two weeks back, the Cabinet of ministers appointed a committee to look into allegations levelled against the JSC. Many of those complaints were directed against Manjula Thilakaratne, including alleged harassment of a female magistrate. The trigger for the committee was the issuance of a public announcement by the JSC secretary, though the government said it had received complaints against the conduct of the JSC for a long period.
Multipronged strategy
The committees met only once in the presence of the president. Since then no meeting was held. The motion could well be a pressure tactic engineered by the government to rein in an increasingly assertive judiciary.
It also appears to be part of a multipronged strategy. The Bribery Commission, last Thursday, filed a report in the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court against the husband of the chief justice, Pradeep Kariyawasam, the former chairman of the National Savings Bank (NSB) over alleged instances of corruption in the purchase of shares of The Finance Company by the NSB. Kariyawasam stands accused of causing a monetary loss of Rs391 million to the government by unlawful purchases of shares of The Finance Company.
The Commission in its report on the complaint had stated that the former chairman had committed an act punishable under Section 70 of the Bribery Commission Act.
Colombo Chief Magistrate Rashmi Singappuli ordered Kariyawasam to appear in Court on February 28, 2013.
It would be the first time in Sri Lanka that a spouse of a chief justice in the country is charged by the country’s courts. However, it is not a unique phenomenon altogether. Crusading Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Chaudhry was suspended by former Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf, ostensibly for violating the norms of judicial propriety and corruption. That was after the chief justice shot down plans by President Musharraf to keep his military position as the army chief of staff, while running for the presidency. Chief Justice Chaudhry was later removed from the post and put under house arrest by Musharraf. However, the removal of the chief justice triggered a revolt by the legal fraternity that grew into a mass movement which finally ousted President Musharraf. These are food for thought for the current regime as it plans what appears to be a fresh assault against the judiciary.
Sunday 28 October 2012
By Ranga JayasuriyaLate last week the ruling party members of Parliament were queuing up to sign a motion that ostensibly called for measures to prevent the Judiciary from overstepping its purview. Over 100 odd signatures from government MPs had already been obtained for the motion by the end of the week. The motion requires 75 votes for it to be presented to Parliament for a special debate. Once presented, it can be taken up at an emergency debate. The latest government manoeuvering appears to be aiming to keep the chief justice under check. Though the motion has not specifically referred to the chief justice, the government has openly been critical of the chief justice, last week. The signs of a cold war between the government and the judiciary being fought in the
public domain were seen last week. Last Thursday, Foreign Minister G.L. Peiris alleged that Chief Justice Shirani Bandara- nayake had overlooked 29 more senior judges when naming Manjula Thilakaratne as secretary of the JSC.
“The Constitution has been clearly violated in making this appointment of the JSC secretary. The Supreme Court has no discretion to appoint any judge, it (the JSC secretary) must be the senior most judge from courts of first instance,” Peiris said in a statement to parliament on Thursday.
It is however interesting that the government did not raise objections to Thilakaratne’s appointment back in May, when he was appointed as the JSC secretary. The government’s concerns over Thilakaratne’s suitability were raised only after he issued a public statement, condemning the interference of the judiciary.
The impending parliament motion is the latest salvo by the government against the judiciary in an increasingly open battle, which came into the surface after Thilakaratna issued the public statement.
Two weeks back, the Cabinet of ministers appointed a committee to look into allegations levelled against the JSC. Many of those complaints were directed against Manjula Thilakaratne, including alleged harassment of a female magistrate. The trigger for the committee was the issuance of a public announcement by the JSC secretary, though the government said it had received complaints against the conduct of the JSC for a long period.
Multipronged strategy
The committees met only once in the presence of the president. Since then no meeting was held. The motion could well be a pressure tactic engineered by the government to rein in an increasingly assertive judiciary.
It also appears to be part of a multipronged strategy. The Bribery Commission, last Thursday, filed a report in the Colombo Chief Magistrate’s Court against the husband of the chief justice, Pradeep Kariyawasam, the former chairman of the National Savings Bank (NSB) over alleged instances of corruption in the purchase of shares of The Finance Company by the NSB. Kariyawasam stands accused of causing a monetary loss of Rs391 million to the government by unlawful purchases of shares of The Finance Company.
The Commission in its report on the complaint had stated that the former chairman had committed an act punishable under Section 70 of the Bribery Commission Act.
Colombo Chief Magistrate Rashmi Singappuli ordered Kariyawasam to appear in Court on February 28, 2013.
It would be the first time in Sri Lanka that a spouse of a chief justice in the country is charged by the country’s courts. However, it is not a unique phenomenon altogether. Crusading Chief Justice of Pakistan Iftikhar Chaudhry was suspended by former Pakistani president Pervez Musharraf, ostensibly for violating the norms of judicial propriety and corruption. That was after the chief justice shot down plans by President Musharraf to keep his military position as the army chief of staff, while running for the presidency. Chief Justice Chaudhry was later removed from the post and put under house arrest by Musharraf. However, the removal of the chief justice triggered a revolt by the legal fraternity that grew into a mass movement which finally ousted President Musharraf. These are food for thought for the current regime as it plans what appears to be a fresh assault against the judiciary.
Parenting On The Frontline: When The War Correspondent Became A Mother
Frances Harrison
For the first eight months, I hid my pregnancy from my bosses, terrified it would spell the end of my career as a foreign correspondent. I simply didn’t know any other women in the field with children. I flew to London for job interviews wearing loose-fitting clothes to hide my burgeoning bump. Being based in Malaysia for the BBC at the time made it a lot easier to keep secret from my employers, though I had to be careful about inhaling too much teargas in the weekly opposition street protests. Only when I was offered a role as a roving reporter in Europe did I come clean, since by then I was no longer legally allowed to fly.
The reaction from colleagues was a little disturbing. One male journalist admitted he’d always assumed I couldn’t have children because I’d left it so late (34 years). Female colleagues muttered in corridors, asking how I was going to manage such a demanding job and a child.
I had indeed delayed getting pregnant because it seemed impossible to combine with foreign reporting, but a rebellious streak in me felt missing out on having children was too high a price to pay for an exciting career, and not fair on my husband.
Two months after giving birth, I was posted as the BBC correspondent to Sri Lanka, which was in the midst of a vicious civil war. I’d seen my fair share of horror, poverty and bearded men with guns, but this time I found myself packing milk bottles and washable nappies as well as a flak jacket, helmet and first aid kit. It was the start of a double life as foreign correspondent and mother.
We arrived in Sri Lanka in 2000, just after the BBC’s local reporter in Jaffna had been killed in a grenade attack on his home in a government-controlled town. It is a murder that remains unsolved, like many others in Sri Lanka over the decades. One of my first tasks was to work out what to do about his widow, still numb with shock, and her three young children. My baby grew into a toddler while my colleague’s terrified family waited to escape abroad to start all over again on icy shores.
UN questions Govt. on impeachment motion: Effeminate Govt. Parliamentarians sign blank papers
(Lanka-e-News -27.Oct.2012, 11.00AM) The SL permanent representative to the UN had questioned the Govt. on the impending impeachment motion against the Chief justice (CJ), according to reports reaching Lanka e news.
Meanwhile the Govt. MPs and Ministers from whom signatures were collected supposedly for the proposed impeachment motion against the CJ, had signed on blank papers , as reported to Lanka e news by a Minister who signed it.
The draft containing the charges and the documents prepared by the regime chief MaRa’s Lawyer Kalinga Indratissa , Attorney General Mohan Silva and former CJ and present Presidential advisor Asoka De Silva is to be finally scrutinized and analyzed by Dr. G L Peiris before being presented to the Ministers and MPs , it is reported.
Parliament standing order 67 A states how an impeachment motion against a chief justice should be . Accordingly ,charges that are acceptable should be presented , and for examining those charges , a Parliament select Committee comprising 7 or more members of the political parties in Parliament shall be appointed.
The Select Committee shall like in a court summon witnesses , and the trial conducted by the Select Committee is confidential. Only if the chief justice is found guilty ,a motion can be brought in Parliament , and by a simple majority based on the voting the CJ can be dismissed.
However , an opposition M P speaking to Lanka e news said, though this is the procedure , MaRa’s laws being bizarre and brutal , what course of justice will be followed cannot be predicted.Previously , when an impeachment motion was brought against Neville Samarakoon CJ , it took one and half years for its consummation , he added.
Meanwhile , the present CJ had decided to face this impeachment motion unflinchingly and boldly without resigning , on the ground that she will battle against the dictatorial trends , injustice and unreasonableness in compliance with the wishes of the so many who had earnestly requested Dr. Shiranee Bandaranayake CJ to take that heroic and noble line of action, according to reports reaching Lanka e news.
It is also the majority view that if she opts to resign it will be tantamount to subjugating the independence of the judiciary and sovereign rights of the people while also playing into the hands of those interested parties aiming at dictatorial, unjust and unlawful goals overriding people’s wishes. Besides it would be like giving a walk over victory to unreasonableness , injustice and despotism which are surely taking control in this country.
It is unfortunate that these Govt. MPs and Ministers who placed their signatures in favor of this motion haven’t the perception to realize that they are not only signing their own death warrants , but they have also betrayed the people’s faith reposed in them that they would as people’s representatives safeguard democracy against despotism and injustice .
A great many are bitterly resentful of the lukewarm attitude taken by the SL Bar Association in connection with the attack on the JSC Secretary ; the diabolic conspiratorial actions hatched against the CJ; and the potential destruction faced by the judiciary and its independence.
Generally rigor mortis sets in only after death , but in the case of The Lawyers Association, it occurs that this affliction had already crippled them while being alive . Let them take note of the warning, ‘when the neighbor’s wall is ablaze your own is at stake’, before it is
(Lanka-e-News -27.Oct.2012, 11.00AM) The SL permanent representative to the UN had questioned the Govt. on the impending impeachment motion against the Chief justice (CJ), according to reports reaching Lanka e news. Meanwhile the Govt. MPs and Ministers from whom signatures were collected supposedly for the proposed impeachment motion against the CJ, had signed on blank papers , as reported to Lanka e news by a Minister who signed it.
The draft containing the charges and the documents prepared by the regime chief MaRa’s Lawyer Kalinga Indratissa , Attorney General Mohan Silva and former CJ and present Presidential advisor Asoka De Silva is to be finally scrutinized and analyzed by Dr. G L Peiris before being presented to the Ministers and MPs , it is reported.
Parliament standing order 67 A states how an impeachment motion against a chief justice should be . Accordingly ,charges that are acceptable should be presented , and for examining those charges , a Parliament select Committee comprising 7 or more members of the political parties in Parliament shall be appointed.
The Select Committee shall like in a court summon witnesses , and the trial conducted by the Select Committee is confidential. Only if the chief justice is found guilty ,a motion can be brought in Parliament , and by a simple majority based on the voting the CJ can be dismissed.
However , an opposition M P speaking to Lanka e news said, though this is the procedure , MaRa’s laws being bizarre and brutal , what course of justice will be followed cannot be predicted.Previously , when an impeachment motion was brought against Neville Samarakoon CJ , it took one and half years for its consummation , he added.
Meanwhile , the present CJ had decided to face this impeachment motion unflinchingly and boldly without resigning , on the ground that she will battle against the dictatorial trends , injustice and unreasonableness in compliance with the wishes of the so many who had earnestly requested Dr. Shiranee Bandaranayake CJ to take that heroic and noble line of action, according to reports reaching Lanka e news.
It is also the majority view that if she opts to resign it will be tantamount to subjugating the independence of the judiciary and sovereign rights of the people while also playing into the hands of those interested parties aiming at dictatorial, unjust and unlawful goals overriding people’s wishes. Besides it would be like giving a walk over victory to unreasonableness , injustice and despotism which are surely taking control in this country.
It is unfortunate that these Govt. MPs and Ministers who placed their signatures in favor of this motion haven’t the perception to realize that they are not only signing their own death warrants , but they have also betrayed the people’s faith reposed in them that they would as people’s representatives safeguard democracy against despotism and injustice .
A great many are bitterly resentful of the lukewarm attitude taken by the SL Bar Association in connection with the attack on the JSC Secretary ; the diabolic conspiratorial actions hatched against the CJ; and the potential destruction faced by the judiciary and its independence.
Generally rigor mortis sets in only after death , but in the case of The Lawyers Association, it occurs that this affliction had already crippled them while being alive . Let them take note of the warning, ‘when the neighbor’s wall is ablaze your own is at stake’, before it is
Still Counting the Dead: Survivors of Sri Lanka's Hidden War - Frances Harrison
Young Tamil Tiger rebels in Jaffna, 1991. Photograph: Roger Hutchings/Corbis
In the bloodbath that ended the 26-year civil war in Sri Lanka in 2009, tens of thousands of civilians lost their lives in a few terrible months. The world's politicians looked the other way. Some governments even praised Sri Lanka for its "victory over the terrorists", in reference to the defeat of the rebel Tamil Tigers. The UN Human Rights Council passed a remarkable resolution that praised the Sri Lankan government's "commitment to promotion and protection of human rights".
Many find it difficult to imagine that those few months in Sri Lanka may have cost more civilian lives than all those killed in Syria in the past 18 months. The satirist Kurt Tucholsky wrote: "One man's death: that is a catastrophe. A hundred thousand dead: that is a statistic." InStill Counting the Dead, Frances Harrison reclaims the human catastrophe from the statistics.
As BBC correspondent, Harrison lived in Sri Lanka from 2000 to 2004. Her book tells the stories of individuals – doctor, nun, teacher, shopkeeper, volunteer and more. From these stories emerges a tapestry of suffering.
Harrison does not shy away from the "callous brinksmanship" of the Tamil Tigers, but it was ordinary Tamils who suffered most from the government's final onslaught. They suffered when the Tigers treated them as human shields; they suffered when Sri Lankan commanders cynically declared a "zero civilian casualty policy", even as they targeted civilians inside the misleadingly named no-fire zone. The third and last of the official no-fire zones meant tens of thousands were crammed onto a sliver of sand in north -east Sri Lanka – "a tropical beach transformed into a place of random slaughter".
Hospitals whose GPS details were shared with the authorities were regularly shelled by government forces. "Eventually [doctors] learned their lesson," Harrison writes: unmarked and unannounced hospitals were not targeted. One doctor is still amazed at the conclusion he was forced to draw: "They wanted to kill as many as possible."
The interviews are mostly with those now in exile, in cafes, homes or hotel rooms in unnamed towns and countries – fear of the Sri Lankan authorities remains strong. Some have never told even those closest to them the full nightmare of what they experienced, including rape or being forced to witness it.
Occasional acts of generosity pepper the narrative. Above all, though, the story is one of horror. One woman describes watching a grandmother with a child in her arms, blasted into pieces. With bitter humour, the woman telling the story comments that if there is indeed a God he had better watch out: "Then He's like the United Nations and Red Cross people who abandoned us, I will punch Him in the eye."
Anybody who has worked on Sri Lanka knows this story has had too little impact. With luck, this book can help change that. It can perhaps increase pressure on Sri Lanka to allow accountability before a Commonwealth summit in Colombo next year. As a nun who travelled to the heart of the war zone to help people tells Harrison: "Justice has to be done. It's not enough to talk of peace. You cannot have injustice and speak of peace."
NO NUCLEAR PLANTS NEAR OUR COUNTRY PLEASE!
The Movement for People’s Struggle (MPS) organized a leaflet distribution campaign in Jaffna, Vavuniya and Mannar against the construction of the Kudankulam Nuclear Power Plant in southern India, and the Sri Lankan government’s silent response to the move. Members of the movement Dimuthu Atigala and S. K. Subasinghe are seen here distributing leaflets to police officers today (26) near the Jaffna bus stand.
*Sri Lanka and Iran: The 2030 Nuclear Power Plant and Iranian Support
*India pays special attention to Sri Lanka-Pakistan nuclear power plant
*Pakistan’s help to Sri Lanka for Nuclear plant alarms India
How Britain Tortured Nazi PoWs: The Horrifying Interrogation Methods That Belie Our Proud Boast That We Fought A Clean War
ii
How Britain Tortured Nazi PoWs: The Horrifying Interrogation Methods That Belie Our Proud Boast That We Fought A Clean War
Tainted: Bindfolded German soldiers may have been forced into untrue admissions, it has been revealed
Extracted from Cruel Britannia by Ian Cobain, published by Portobello Books at £18.99. © Ian Cobain 2012. To order a copy for £15.99 (p&p free), call 0843 382 0000.
By Ian Cobain -
Britain has a reputation as a nation that prides itself on its love of fair play and respect for the rule of law. We claim the moral high ground when it comes to human rights. We were among the first to sign the 1929 Geneva Convention on the humane treatment of prisoners of war.
Surely, you would think, the British avoid torture? But you would be wrong, as my research into what has gone on behind closed doors for decades shows.
It was in 2005 during my work as an investigative reporter that I came across a veiled mention of a World War II detention centre known as the London Cage. It took a number of Freedom Of Information requests to the Foreign Office before government files were reluctantly handed over.
Read more: In the Daily Mail UK
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