Systematic Sinhalisation In The North?

By Nirmala Kannangara and Raisa Wickrematunge- Saturday, April 27, 2013

Muslim families are also being resettled in the North – TNA MP Sivashakthi Anandan , Sinhalese families are being settled in the North, with state support in some instances – Premachandran and Systematically changing the demographics of the North is going against Government policy – DPF Leader Mano Ganesan

A systematic attempt to ‘Sinhalise’ areas in the North, especially in Vavuniya is underway, opposition parties charge.

Members of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and even the Democratic People’s Front (DPF) said that in some instances Sinhalese families were being settled in predominantly Tamil areas with state support.

Meanwhile, the government claims that it is internally displaced Sinhalese who are being resettled in the Northern Province.

Sinhalese families being settled – TNA

TNA MP Suresh Premachandran said he had discovered evidence of Sinhalisation based on information collected from officials and residents during his visits to the Northern Province.

For instance, an area in Vavuniya known as Kokachankulam was a predominantly Tamil village, which also had a few Sinhalese families. The people in this area were mostly farmers, Premachandran said. During the war, the Sinhalese farmers were chased away by the LTTE and the Tamil farmers were chased away by the Army, he added.

However following the war, Sinhalese from the South had been settled in this village by the Army about a month ago, Premachandran said. Around 1,000 families had been settled in this manner, he added. Where once Kokachankulam was a Tamil division, it is now a Sinhalese one, he added, and has been renamed Kolobaswewa.

TNA MP Sivashakthi Anandan said the families being resettled in Kokachankulam were from Hambantota. He added that there were plans to settle another 1,000 Sinhalese families in the area as well.

In Weli Oya, Mullaitivu, 3,000 land projects have been given to Sinhalese farmers. Tamils once owned the land in this area. Some of them had permits and deeds as well to prove ownership, but were unable to return to their homes as they were now occupied by Sinhalese families. “Now these Tamils have no place to go and farm,” Premachandran said. He added that the President was aware of these farmers and yet had given Sinhalese families permission to farm there.

Meanwhile, the entire Munnikulam village in Mannar had been taken over by the Navy and their families, he added, while the people who originally had called this village home had no place to stay. Both Premachandran and Anandan stated that the result was that 2,200 families were living in temporary settlements in the jungle.

120 Sinhalese families had been registered with the Army in Navatturai, Jaffna. Premachandran said when he visited around 10 buildings were being constructed, while the rest of them were living in temporary shelters made out of roofing sheets. A woman at the site had told Premachandran that they were receiving support from Buddhist monks based in the South, who were giving them assistance to build houses.
There were more settlements along the Mannar-Medawachchiya road, with around 100 families being settled along the Madhu road area and approximately 50 families being resettled in Murunkan along the same road.
A number of Sinhalese families had also been resettled in Thaneermrippukulam in Mullaitivu, Premachandran said.

TNA MP Anandan further said that 2,500 acres of land had been given to the Sinhalese in Mullaitivu, with President Rajapaksa giving out deeds in the area. He added that land was being cleared with the apparent intention of settling Muslims in the Mullaitivu area, with land being cleared for this purpose. Land was also being cleared in the Manthai West area in Mannar, possibly for the resettlement of Muslims, he added. The army was clearing a 6 kilometre stretch by the side of the road, and he suspected it was to resettle more people in the area, he said.

10,000 acres of land were also being cleared in Karankalani in Vavuniya for resettlement.
Ganesan: Resettlement against policy

Democratic People’s Front Leader Mano Ganesan added that the demography of the North should not be systematically changed as it was contrary to the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) report, which had a section devoted to the issue.
Yet people are ignoring the recommendations in the report, he said.

“People should understand the difference between colonization and immigration,” Ganesan said.

He added that land was generally divided with state assistance, in one of two ways. “Either forest land is cleared and offered to people, or border areas are artificially changed, so that more Sinhalese areas are annexed to the Northern province, thus making it more Sinhalese,” he said. The border areas in Trincomalee and Mullaitivu districts, for instance, were being artificially changed, so that more Sinhalese settlements were being merged into the districts. 3,000 families had been settled in a village called Kokillai. The TNA charged that the land deeds issued belonged to Tamils who had moved out of the country. However the land had been forcibly taken away from them and given to the Sinhalese instead, Ganesan said.

In addition the Kinniya hot springs, which are said to have been created by King Ravana in the Hindu epic the Ramayana, was now being occupied by a Buddhist monk. “The Tamil identity is being wiped away. It is totally against legislation,” Ganesan said.

Government refutes allegations

Chairman of the Resettlement Authority Buddhi Passaperuma said that there was no plan to Sinhalise the north, claiming that it was only the Sinhalese who had left the North and East during the war who were now being resettled.

“The re-settlement of the displaced should not be segregated by ethnicity. The areas that have been resettled should have people of all ethnic groups,” Passaperuma said.

“The government does not want to make resettlement of displaced Sinhalese an issue. When we have done so much for the Tamils after liberating them from the clutches of a ruthless terrorist organization it is a pity to note that the same Tamils are accusing the government of attempting to Sinhalise the North,” he said.

According to Passaperuma, the displaced Sinhalese were the last to be resettled while the Tamils were the first followed by the Muslims.

“We first resettled the IDPs that took refuge in welfare centres and then those who left the war torn areas during the height of the war. It is unfair by the government if the Tamil political parties are levelling baseless allegations as it is their sole responsibility to come up with encouraging ideas if they have any issues over the resettlement drive,” he said.

He queried as to why it was wrong to settle displaced Sinhalese in their native places when there were no restrictions for the Tamils to settle in any part of the country.

“Although Tamil politicians do not want the Sinhalese to settle in the North, they want their people to settle in other parts of the country. It is good that we have Tamils and Muslims in the South as we have been living amicably in the South over the past several decades. Why is this considered intimidation? We are one nation and live in one country. The freedom we got after crushing LTTE terrorism cannot be allow to be diminished,” claimed Passaperuma.

According to Passaperuma attempts to resettle all the displaced in the North was not successful since the Sinhalese still have a fear psychosis as they had to undergo severe hardships at the hands of the LTTE.

“After resettling the Tamils and the Muslims we requested all displaced Sinhalese to furnish their details and places where they were living before the war broke out. But still we have failed to get information from all these displaced Sinhalese. It is baseless for them to say that we have made Sinhalese colonies in the Northern Province when we really have failed to collect the real numbers,” said Passaperuma.
According to him at the request of many Tamils in the North, Sinhalese Government Agents are to be posted to the Northern Province.
“When I visit these areas most of the Tamils who are not known to me personally have requested that Sinhalese Government Agents are posted to Tamil areas. They say it is very easy to work with Sinhalese higher officials. Even one of our senior Administrative Officers – Lionel Fernando has been a Tamil friendly Government Agent in Jaffna. Also the Tamils have a high regard for the security forces as they know that they are well protected by these security personnel,” added Passaperuma.

When asked as to why the displaced Sinhalese are being resettled on forest and Mahaweli lands instead of where they were originally living, Passaperuma said that Forest Department and Mahaweli Authority have taken over the villages which have been overgrown for the past 30 years.

Forest land being cleared to resettle Sinhalese

However, reliable sources from the Mahaweli Authority and Forest Department on condition of anonymity told The Sunday Leader that none of the forests that are being cleared to settle the displaced Sinhalese were originally villages but were virgin tracts of forest land.

“The Government Agent of Vavuniya has requested several thousands of acres of land from the Forest Department and more than 2,000 acres of forest land from the Padaviya Forest Reserve. None of these forests were villages 30 years ago as claimed by the Re-settlement Ministry. Although we have not released lands from the Karunkalikulam Forest Reserve, the Resettlement Ministry has already settled more than 1,200 Sinhalese families from down South,” added the sources.

However Government Agent (District Secretary) Vavuniya Sumangala Harischandra said that he could not remember whether he had requested any forest land in the Karunkalikulam Forest Reserve in the Vavuniya District for a resettlement drive.

“Off-hand I cannot say whether I made a request from the Forest Department to release forest lands in the Karunkalikulam Forest Reserve but we are resettling Sinhalese in Bogaswewa in the Vavuniya South Divisional Secretariat area,” he said.

According to Harischandra while the displaced Sinhalese were residing all over the country most were living in the Southern Province.

The ‘hidden hand’ in the ‘Killing Fields of Sri Lanka’ exposed: It’s India

By  M G Devasahayam    Chennai28 Apr 2013

Posted 15-Jul-2011 Vol 2 Issue 28 The air has been full with the "Killing Fields of Sri Lanka", the Channel 4 documentary. The visuals showed naked Tamil prisoners shot in the head, dead bodies of naked women who had been raped and dumped on a truck and other atrocities committed by the Sri Lankan armed forces in the final moments of the brutal civil war. World has never seen such barbarian brutality. Anyone who saw the documentary was numb with disbelief. The authenticity of the footage has been confirmed by a forensic pathologist, forensic video analyst, firearms evidence expert and a forensic video expert of international repute and the images are horrific. Meaningful silence: While worldwide protests have condemned Sri Lanka’s atrocities against Tamil minorities, India has maintained silence giving the impression it has endorsed Rajapaksa’s massacre of Tamils. (Photo above shows a demonstrator from May 17 Movement in Chennai holding a placard calling for boycott of Sri Lanka)   While the world seethes in anger, India has been silent. Not surprising, given the fact that fresh from his ‘victory’ over Tamils in Sri Lanka in May 2009, President Mahinda Rajapaksa said he had fought 'India's war'. He was ecstatic of the fact that his victory coincided with Sonia's electoral victory. The ecstasy appeared to be mutual. Given the venal Indian mindset, Tamils in post-war Sri Lanka have been progressively reduced to serfs of the Sinhalese. This is endorsed by David Miliband and Bernard Kouchner, former foreign ministers of Britain and France respectively, when they wrote after a recent visit to Sri Lanka: “Tamil life is treated as fourth or fifth class citizens. If foreign policy is about anything, it should be about stopping this kind of inhumanity.” There is an untold story about how New Delhi became instrumental in the brutality and the present inhuman sufferings of Sri Lankan Tamils. In the 2005 presidential election, Rajapaksa of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), a known hawk, won by the narrowest of margins. As President he wanted to outlive his image of a hawk and establish rapport with the Indian government and leadership, but was repeatedly rebuffed and in fact snubbed. This made Rajapaksa realise the importance of involving civil society in Tamil Nadu to resolve the intractable ethnic problem in his country and act as a bridge between the two countries. After much persuasion by Colombo, a small core group of retired civil servants, senior journalists and military veterans was formed with myself as the convener. The group held its preliminary meeting in Chennai on 10 May, 2007, with a senior adviser to President Rajapaksa, participating. It was unanimously agreed that a mutually acceptable political package was the only lasting solution to the ethnic crisis. The group met President Rajapaksa and his high-level team in Colombo on 17 July, 2007. Throughout the long discussions, Rajapaksa was very much involved and positive. He fully endorsed the group’s opinion expressed by me that the solution to the crisis should emerge from within Sri Lanka and refined through international opinion, particularly from India. After these parleys Rajapaksa made a public statement hinting at a merged, autonomous North-East, a solution just short of Tamil Eelam. Following this, the core group had a series of meetings with Rajapaksa’s team of ministers and officials and agreed upon many steps to resolve the conflict. A crucial conference was held with President Rajapaksa in Colombo on 25 March, 2008, followed by meetings with Sri Lankan Minister for Constitutional Affairs and National Integration, Chairman of Official Language Commission, and others. An action agenda was set. The Indian High Commission in Colombo got wind of the group’s activities and the Deputy High Commissioner, A Manickam, sought an appointment with me and it was fixed at 5 p.m. at the hotel I was staying in. Manickam never kept his appointment but the Indian High Commission later reprimanded the Sri Lankan presidential team for holding peace talks with ‘unauthorised’ persons. To fortify these initiatives I wrote to TKA Nair, my former colleague and presently principal secretary to Prime Minister on 01 April, 2008. The letter outlined the progress made by the group and the action agenda that has been set for political resolution and Confidence Building Measures. It requested the government to support the initiative taken by the group to end the long-festering political and humanitarian crisis in the island. But there was no response. Had New Delhi taken cognizance of this initiative and acted in concert by putting some pressure on President Rajapaksa, the issue would have been resolved and Tamils would now be living in the island with honour and dignity. But instead, pursuing somebody’s personal agenda of ‘Sicilian Revenge’, New Delhi minions with a well-synchronised Network in Colombo, New York and Geneva, actively assisted the brutal Sri Lankan genocide. No wonder, Delhi is deafeningly silent today on Sri Lanka’s excesses. Time is not far when Rajapaksa & Co is hauled up before the International Court of Justice for war crimes and genocide. In the event, New Delhi minions cannot escape responsibility for this inhuman horror. The bell is tolling! M G Devasahayam is a retired IAS Officer Also Read: The Sri Lankan army is essentially Sinhalese and it has an inherent hatred for Tamils

CPI urges TN government to initiate Eezham Tamil heritage centre at Chithamparam

[TamilNet, Friday, 26 April 2013, 15:33 GMT]
Speaking at the Tamil Nadu State Assembly on Friday on the budget allocations of the Ministry of Tourism and Culture, Communist Party of India’s Tha’li constituency member, Mr. T. Ramachandran urged the Tamil Nadu Government to initiate an Eezham Tamil Cultural Centre at Chithamparam by taking over and protecting the enclave of Eezham Tamil Mutts in Chithamparam. The Mutts date from the times of the Kingdom of Jaffna. King Pararaja Sekaran, who ruled in the 16th century, before the advent of the Portuguese, built the earliest known among them. Most of the Eezham Tamil Mutts at Chithamparam are located as an enclave around a large tank called Gnaanap-pirakaasam, excavated by the ascetic Gnaanap-pirakaasar who came from Jaffna in the 17th century. 

Another ascetic, founder of a Saiva Siddhanta Mutt at Vara’ni in Jaffna, Thillai Naatha Thampiraan, received endowments in the 17th century from a ruler of Thanjavur after curing his daughter's illness. Apart from managing the temple at Vedaranyam endowed to it, the Varani Mutt also built a Mutt at Chithamparam.

Later, many villages in Jaffna built their own mutts for pilgrims around the Gnaanap-pirakaasam tank.

The enclave at Chithamparam was the spiritual and intellectual centre for many of the Eezham Tamils, including Arumuga Navalar, who contributed to Tamil, Saivism, education and publication of Tamil classical texts in the 19th and early 20th centuries.

The free educational institution started by Arumuga Navalar at Chithamparam in the 1860s, with a curriculum to teach Maths, Agriculture, Commerce, Geography, Politics, Astronomy and Native Medicine, besides Tamil and Saivism, predates the Annamalai University by several decades.

* * *
In the last half a century, charities related to the Mutts became largely unattended, Mutts dilapidated and many of the properties were either given to individuals in Tamil Nadu through Power of Attorney or were appropriated. 

It became inevitable since crucial requisites of cultural contacts such as direct travel, monetary transaction and people to people contact across the Palk Bay were severed after the so-called independence, due to policies followed by Colombo-centric and New Delhi-centric Establishments. 

Ever since the so-called independence, the Sinhala State in Colombo was strictly following the policy of sealing off Eezham Tamils from having contacts with Tamil Nadu. New Delhi’s policies abetting Colombo in this regard and the targeted restrictions it makes on Eezham Tamils, especially since 1990s, are well known. 

In the latest example, a hereditary trustee in the village Maathakal in Jaffna, located at the nearest point to the coast of Tamil Nadu, had to give Power of Attorney of his village’s Mutt called Chevvaayk-kizhamai Mutt in Chithamparam to a priest of the Chithamparam temple, because of the ‘difficulties in coming and going.’ 
* * *
The Tamil Nadu government has to embark on a major move to give due status to the Eezham Tamil cultural enclave at Chithamparam on a par with the Sinhala-Buddhist Maha Bodhi Society functioning in India, is the request of circles connected to the charities living in the island and in the diaspora.

The enclave and the properties have to be protected by legislation and they could be made into a heritage site, having a museum of Eezham Tamil culture, archives and library displaying the first editions and publications by Eezham Tamils scholars, research and publication facilities to bring out standard new editions of the academic contributions of Eezham Tamils, and heritage tourism facilities for visitors from the island and from the diaspora, the sources connected to the charities told TamilNet. 

The Tamil Nadu Government move has to incorporate Eezham Tamil institutions in the island connected to the charities and may have to explore ways of accommodating institutional representation from the diaspora, in making the charities meaningful to contemporary times, the sources said.

Temple consortiums, village associations and even alumni associations in the diaspora have to play a role in making a formal request to the Tamil Nadu Government in claiming the heritage site at Chithamparam, in coming out with ideas of making it meaningful, in contributing to its development and in participating in the management. It will culturally benefit to the posterity in the diaspora, the sources further said.

* * *

T. Ramakrishnan

CPI’s MLA Mr. Ramachandran has made a strong note on the issue in his speech on Friday, as a part of many other progressive proposals brought out by him on the Tourism and Culture Ministry budget debate. His proposal got into the records of the Assembly, news sources in Chennai said.

Even though the facts are not accurate, Ramachandran’s welcome proposal should create awareness in Tamil Nadu to first conduct a survey researching on facts and feasibility, and to evolve opinion through media efforts, in order to materialise the project for the mutual benefit of Tamil Nadu and Eezham Tamils, the sources connected to the charities commented. 






===============================================================

200 kidney patients awaiting surgery have died

About 200 kidney patients who had been registered for surgery have died due to not carrying out surgeries at National Kidney Transplant Unit at Maligawatta despite having all the facilities including specialist doctors, equipment and nursing staff say reports.

More than 600 patients had been registered for surgery at this unit and after the death of 200 of them without getting the surgeries they needed due to improper and inefficient management of the unit, 400 more patients are in stand-by list for surgery. The main obstacle for the surgeries at the unit is said to be setting apart for nurses 6 air-conditioned rooms intended for the use of doctor.

The rooms are necessary for doctors to stay after surgery so that they could reach, within a few seconds, patients who have been operated or in intensive care. The doctors say surgeries cannot be carried out without a place for them to rest and stay after surgery. There have been instances when doctors had to wait in the cars parked outside so that they could reach patients in time.

The issue has escalated as authorities have not taken any decision regarding rooms and not properly allocating rooms for doctors and nurses.

The number of kidney patients registered at the unit is 2000 and about 40 patients are treated at each clinic. It is said that about 20 surgeries a week could be carried out in the unit. There is a staff of 6 specialist doctors, 28 Medical Officers and 5 nurses in the hospital.

However, only clinical activities are carried out at the unit at present.

Rally For Unity – ‘Hate Has No Place in Sri Lanka’ – April 28th, Colombo

April 27, 2013 

A movement to show that moderates are strong & united against hate and are committed to promote understanding about the strengths of diversity & unity.

Given the recent spate of hate speech and the marginalization of minority communities in general, a voluntary movement of concerned Sri Lankans from various institutions, professions and industries are organizing a series of nonpartisan, non-violent awareness campaigns and rallies against racist actions and hate-speech in Sri Lanka.

One such event is the April 28th Rally for Unity – Hate Has No Place in Sri Lanka; which we hope will be a catalyst for similar events and initiatives. We believe this will empower the silent majority of moderate Sri Lankans to stand up for an inclusive Sri Lanka. We welcome your kind support and assistance. In order to remain non-partisan please refrain from organizational branding at this event. We look forward to your collaboration in respecting and embracing the diversity of Sri Lanka.

Venue: Green Path (in front of Nelum Pokuna Theatre), Colombo 7

Time: 10.45 am to 12.45pm

Commonwealth Sec Gen defends 'progress’ in SL amidst staunch questioning at CMAG press brief
26 April 2013

The Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) held its 39^th meeting today.

The meeting was Chaired Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister, Dr Dipu Moni, and reviewed developments of the only nation on the CMAG agedna, Fiji.

The official Concluding Statement welcomed the recent reaffirmation of the Commonwealth’s commitment to democracy, human rights, the rule of law, separation of powers, freedom of expression, good governance, tolerance, respect and understanding and the role of civil society, and outlined CMAG’s intention of helping Fiji’s reinstatement at the commonwealth.

A press brief by the Commonwealth Secretary General Mr Kamalesh Sharma, Foreign Minister of Bangladesh Dr Dipu Moni and Vice-Chair of CMAG Senator Bob Carr, followed the meeting.

Despite several reminders from the panel that the Fiji was the only nation on the CMAG agenda, the panel received a barrage of questions that probed the Commonwealth’s relationship with Sri Lanka.

Responding to the questioning of Sri lanka’s ability to uphold Commonwealth values, Commonwealth Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma, said,

“I am fully persuaded that they are sincere in subscribing and following those values.”

Despite numerous statements questioning the Commonwealths integrity due to its collaboration with Sri lanka,  Sharma went on to uphold Sri Lanka’s apparent progress in the field of accountability and reconciliation, stating

“I am satisfied with the progress which I am making is encouraging and will continue.”

Responding to queries of the alleged ‘progress’, Sharma purported,

“By progress, I mean the road map and a way forward which we have agreed upon. It is still a work-in-progress, and when it is achieved then it will be known very widely.”

The Chair of the CMAG meeting, Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister Dr Dipu Moni, at a separate press brief for the Institute of Commonwealth studies, faced staunch questioning regarding Bangladesh’s relationship with Sri Lanka.

Responding to Tamil Guardian’s questioning of Bangladesh’s ‘brotherly’ relationship with a state facing accusation of grave human rights abuses, Dr Dipu Moni said,

“there are other institutions working with Sri Lanka. When Sri Lanka decides to implement reconciliation and accountability process, we will assist.”

The Commonwealth’s lack of apprehension with Sri Lanka , was deemed appalling by Canadian foreign minister , John Baird.

Check our twitter account for lives tweets from today’s press conferences.

See here for a full transcript of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group Press Conference.

Canada attacks 'evil' of Sri Lanka hosting Commonwealth summit

Canadian foreign minister criticises Sri Lanka's 'appalling' record, authoritarianism and failure to tackle rights abuses

Sam Jones-guardian.co.uk, Friday 26 April 2013

John Baird, Canada's foreign minister, said he was stunned that Colombo was not facing censure for its behaviour. Photograph: Alex Wong/Getty Images

The Canadian government has launched a blistering attack on Sri Lanka's "appalling" record on democratic accountability as the controversy intensifies over the Commonwealth's decision to allow Colombo to host its biennial heads of government meeting later this year.

The Commonwealth's general secretary said on Friday that he saw no reason to strip Sri Lanka of the honour of staging the meeting in November despite mounting international concern over the country's failure to tackle human rights abuses and demonstrate a clear commitment to democracy and the rule of law.

John Baird, Canada's foreign minister, said he was stunned that Colombo was not facing censure for its behaviour.

"We're appalled that Sri Lanka seems poised to host CHOGM and to be chair-in-residence of the Commonwealth for two years," he told the Guardian.

"Canada didn't get involved in the Commonwealth to accommodate evil; we came to combat it. We are deeply disappointed that Sri Lanka appears poised to take on this leadership role."

Far from seeing "meaningful progress" since the last CHOGM in Perth in 2011, said Baird, the Sri Lankan government had only grown more authoritarian and less accountable and open to reconciliation.

He added: "It's not just Canada: the Commonwealth Journalists' Association; the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative; the Commonwealth Lawyers' Association; the Commonwealth Legal Education Association; the Commonwealth Magistrates' and Judges' Association; Human Rights Watch, the United Nations Human Rights Council – all of these people have come out and unanimously have said that not only has Sri Lanka not made progress, but in many instances, is getting worse."

Baird pointed to the impeachment and sacking three months ago of the country's chief justice and her replacement with a successor who is close to President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

"Both of those actions are appalling and they show that not only have we not seen an improvement, we've seen a deterioration in recent months and that is causing Canada great concern," he said.

The Canadian prime minister, Stephen Harper, has repeatedly raised concerns over Sri Lanka's hosting of CHOGM and threatened to boycott the meeting if Colombo does not show real evidence of progress.

Asked whether Harper was planning to snub CHOGM, Baird said: "Certainly nothing I've learnt in recent months and days would lead me to give him any contrary advice on that issue."

Baird was speaking after a meeting in London of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group, which describes itself as "the custodian of Commonwealth values and principles".

Although Sri Lanka was not on the agenda, the country was discussed and Baird is understood to have restated his government's firm opposition to the decision to let Colombo host CHOGM.

At a press conference after the meeting, the secretary general of the Commonwealth, Kamalesh Sharma, appeared to contradict the Canadian position when he told reporters that "no member government had indicated remotely that it wished to change the venue".

He also defended the CHOGM decision, saying that he had found Sri Lanka to be "engaged and willing" to improve itself through measures such as institution-building.

Sharma denied suggestions that the Commonwealth risked compromising its credibility by refusing to take Colombo to task overaccusations of war crimes, torture and institutional corruption – or for its failure to bring to justice the alleged killers of Khuram Shaikh, a British man who was murdered on the island in 2011.

"I think the credibility of the Commonwealth is increasing right now because as far as the judicial sector is concerned, we are the ones who are working with them on what can be a solution to the pluralities and institutional confrontations that they've had in the past," he said. "I think the way in which we are acting and the way in which we are planning to make real progress on the ground is actually a sign of this institution's relevance in the difficulties which are faced by member states rather than the other way around."

A spokeswoman for the Foreign and Commonwealth Office said the British government had not yet decided whether it would attend CHOGM in Colombo, adding: "Ahead of the meeting, we will look to Sri Lanka, as any other CHOGM host, to demonstrate its commitment to upholding the Commonwealth values of good governance and respect for human rights."

Canada Fury At Sri Lanka Choice For Commonwealth Talks

April 28, 2013 

Canada is “appalled” that Sri Lanka has been chosen to host the Commonwealth heads of government meeting in November, its foreign minister says.

John Baird said Sri Lanka had failed in the fundamental Commonwealth values of “freedom, democracy, human rights, the rule of law and good governance”.

Sri Lanka dismissed Canada’s objections, saying Commonwealth members had agreed the summit could go ahead.

John Baird

Sri Lanka’s army defeated Tamil rebels after a brutal 26-year war in 2009.

The entire conflict left at least 100,000 people dead.

Both sides were accused of human rights abuses throughout the conflict, with much focus on what happened in its final stages, when thousands of civilians were trapped in a thin strip of land in the north of Sri Lanka as fighting raged around them.

Estimates of civilian deaths in the final months range widely from 9,000 to 75,000.

‘Disruptive elements’

Mr Baird told the BBC’s Newshour: “Canada finds it appalling that the government in Colombo would be given the honour and the privilege and responsibility of hosting Commonwealth leaders.

“The Commonwealth has fundamental values of freedom, democracy, human rights, the rule of law, good governance and the government in Colombo has failed in all of those respects.”

He said there had been “little, if any, accountability since the war ended”.

Mr Baird said: “We’ve seen no meaningful attempt at reconciliation with the Tamil population. If anything it’s getting worse.”

He also said there was “a growing authoritarian trend” in Sri Lanka’s governance, adding: “These are all fundamentally at odds with Commonwealth values and we don’t think Sri Lanka should be hosting the Commonwealth.”

Sri Lanka rejected Canada’s criticism.

Responding to the foreign minister’s comments, Sri Lankan cabinet spokesman and Mass Media and Information Minister Keheliya Rambukwella told the BBC: “We have dealt with this human rights issue and we feel they are very biased and very unfair.”

Foreign ministry spokesman Rodney Perera told Agence France-Presse news agency: “Canada can say anything, but the others agree with the [Commonwealth] secretary-general that the summit can go ahead in Sri Lanka. We are working on the arrangements.”

Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma said that Sri Lanka had been discussed at a meeting in London on Friday but added: “No member of government has indicated remotely that it wishes to change the venue.”

Sri Lanka’s state-run Daily News said “disruptive elements” had tried to remove Colombo as hosts with “trumped up charges of human rights abuses”, adding: “Obviously, this move did not succeed.”

Last month the UN’s Human Rights Council passed a resolution highly critical of Sri Lanka’s record.

The resolution encouraged Sri Lanka to conduct an independent and credible investigation into alleged war crimes.

The Sri Lankan government commissioned its own investigation into the war in 2011.

Its Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) cleared the military of allegations that it had deliberately attacked civilians. It said that there had been some violations by troops, although only at an individual level.

Courtesy BBC Asia

Commonwealth dodges Sri Lanka problem

POST 26 APRIL 2013

BY FRANCES HARRISON

Read the Transcript of the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group Press Conference

The Commonwealth has failed its first major test since it strengthened its Ministerial Action Group in 2011 to renew its commitment to human rights and democratic values. Meeting in London today, the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group (CMAG), which is charged with dealing with violations of Commonwealth values, failed to discuss Sri Lanka on its formal agenda. Sri Lanka is due to head the 54-nation body and host its major summit in Colombo in November, but it stands accused by two UN reports of war crimes and crimes against humanity. It is also the only Commonwealth country technically to have two Chief Justices after the top court in the land ruled the impeachment of the first unlawful.

Canada has been a lone voice raising the issue of Sri Lanka and it appears it had few supporters among other nations represented on the Action Group. There are reports one nation present said it wouldn’t be held hostage to human rights zealots. The deliberations on Sri Lanka fell into the “Other Matters of Interest to Ministers”, which are not made public.

At a news conference after the meeting the Commonwealth Ministerial Action Group said it was not up to them but up to the heads of Commonwealth governments to decide the venue for the summit in November and they’d already chosen Sri Lanka. Instead, the Secretary General Kamlesh Sharmam repeatedly stressed his commitment to positive engagement with the Sri Lankan government. He refused to put a time limit on that engagement because he said he was so optimistic about its success. Mr Sharma cited the Commonwealth’s involvement in assisting Sri Lanka with media policy, two Press Institutes, the Election Commission, human rights, the issue of the independence of judiciary and a workshop next week in London for the Sri Lankan government to meet reconciliation experts from other post-conflict countries. “We are working with them in a way which we expect will bring progress rather than disappointment,” he said.

Asked if he wasn’t worried about the credibility of the Commonwealth being at stake over its engagement with Sri Lanka, the Secretary General said on he contrary its credibility was increasing right now. He said some people just made statements while other were actually doing real work on the ground making a difference. Mr Sharma did concede there were what he called “many lacunae” in the appointment and dismissal of judges in Sri Lanka but added that the Commonwealth was working with Sri Lanka to share best practices from other member nations and recommend remedial measures.

Outside the venue of the meeting in London a small but colourful protest took place by Tamils, calling on the Commonwealth to suspend Sri Lanka and move November’s summit meeting. As he left, the Canadian Foreign Minister John Baird made a point of walking along the barricade and shaking hands with many of the protestors before getting into this car.

Canada’s Foreign Minister says he is appalled that Sri Lanka seems poised to have the honour and responsibility of hosting the Commonwealth summit meeting in November. Mr Baird said Canada had wanted to see meaningful progress on accountability and reconciliation in Sri Lanka but the situation had got worse, not better. He added that the impeachment of the Chief Justice in Sri Lanka was deeply disturbing.

Asked about what the Commonwealth Secretary General Kamlesh Sharma says is positive engagement with Sri Lanka, Mr Baird replied that he would rather accept the judgement and conclusions of the Commonwealth Journalists Association, the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative, The Commonwealth Lawyers Association, the Commonwealth Legal Education Association, the Commonwealth Magistrates and Judges, Human Rights Watch and the UN Human Rights Council. All of these have pointed to a deterioration of civil liberties and human rights in Sri Lanka after the end of the civil war.

Mr Baird said Canada cared passionately about the issue of Sri Lanka and it wasn’t just going to “go alone to get along”. He added it wasn’t about accommodating evil, but about combating it. 

© Asian Correspondent

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Frances Harrison is a former BBC Correspondent in Sri Lanka and the author of Still Counting the Dead: Survivors of Sri Lanka's Hidden War, published by Portobello Books (UK), House of Anansi (Canada) and Penguin ( India).