Changes at the Government Printers’ ahead of ballot paper printing

Discussion over a mysterious printing press in a Navy camp

Saturday, 06 December 2014

Several key changes have reportedly taken place in the Government Printers’ Department ahead of the printing of ballot papers for the forthcoming Presidential election.

Head of the confidential printing unit at the Government Printers’, K.A.K.P. Jayawardana has reportedly been transferred to a different section in the department. The transfer is effective from December 2, 2014.

The convener of the government printers’ trade union affiliated to the government, M.D.R. Athula has been appointed as the new head of the confidential printing unit.

The printing of ballot papers takes place in this confidential printing unit.

Lanka Herald learns that the printing of the ballot papers was scheduled to commence next week.

The Campaign for a Free and Fair Election (CaFFE) has in writing informed the Elections Commissioner of the changes that have taken place at the Government Printers’ Department stating there were doubts over the sudden transfers.

Meanwhile, it has also been reported that group of over 10 persons have been recently recruited to the confidential printing unit of the Government Printers’ Department.

The group has been deployed to the section on the recommendation of politicians reveals a senior official of the Government Press.

It is normal practise to assign employees who have over two years experience at the department to the confidential printing unit.

UNHCR warns more refugees risking Indian Ocean despite dire conditions

05 December 2014
The UN Refugee Agency warned in a report released on Friday that the number of asylum seekers risking their lives in smugglers' boats in the Indian Ocean has risen despite the risks and attempts by governments at deterrence.

Listing countries from where people were fleeing, including Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh, the UNHCR said that it "estimates that 54,000 people have undertaken irregular maritime journeys in the region so far this year, based on reports by local sources, media and survivors. This includes some 53,000 people leaving from the Bay of Bengal towards Thailand and Malaysia, and hundreds of others moving further south in the Indian Ocean."

"Conditions on the smugglers' boats were dire. Survivors consistently described overcrowded conditions and daily rations of one sparse meal and one to two cups of water. People who asked for more or tried to use the toilet out of turn were beaten or kicked down ladders by the armed crew on the deck above. An estimated 540 people have reportedly died this year at sea from such beatings, starvation or dehydration, and their bodies thrown overboard," the Refugee Agency added in a statement.

Highlighting the risks taken by those fleeing Sri Lanka, the UNHCR said: 

"This year to date, there were 10 known interceptions of boats carrying 441 people hoping to reach Australia. Seven boats with 205 people were returned to Indonesia. All but one of 79 passengers on two boats were returned to Sri Lanka. Separately 157 people on a boat from India were transferred from the Australian mainland to an offshore processing centre in Nauru, where they remain detained.

Of the more than 6,500 people of concern to UNHCR who travelled by sea and were put in detention in the region, more than 4,600 were held in Australia or the offshore processing centres in Nauru and Papua New Guinea."

See statement here and report here.

Book review: Sri Lanka's Secrets, by Trevor Grant is chronicle of genocide

Cruel days: Internally displaced ethnic Sri Lankan Tamil civilians travel on a tractor after being sent home from refugee camps IN 2009. Photo: Eranga Jayawardena

Moving: Trevor Grant's tightly-written history details the final days of Sri Lanka's thirty-year civil war.

Horror: Sri Lanka's Secrets: How the Rajapaksa Regime gets away with murder, by Trevor Grant.

SRI LANKA'S SECRETS: How the Rajapaksa Regime gets away with murderBy Trevor Grant-December 5, 2014
Monash University Publishing, $29.95

Sri Lanka's Secrets is a must-read, particularly for Australian politicians and officials involved in the formulation of foreign and immigration policy toward Sri Lanka.

The author, Trevor Grant, details the final cruel days of the thirty-year civil war in Sri Lanka during which the Sinhalese armed forces murdered tens of thousands of innocent Tamil men, women and children. The tightly written and moving text is supported by graphic photographs conveying their own reality of the horror.

This was a war progressively forced on the minority Tamils. Initial discrimination in work and educational environments, following independence from the British in 1948, eventually led to state-sanctioned persecution culminating in violent attacks against Tamils in Colombo in 1983.

Many Tamils fled to the north of the country joining friends and relatives in what was already a Tamil majority enclave. The notion of a separate state was born as the only means of surviving Sinhalese chauvinism. A military force was established to protect these aims.

Geoffrey Robertson endorses Trevor Grant's scathing criticism of successive Australian governments for formulating foreign policy toward Sri Lanka on turning back boats rather than on the human rights of Tamils.Grant says it as it was and as it remains. This is a determined and forceful portrayal of the nature of Sri Lankan society and the corrupt regime running the country. The authority of this book is recognised in the foreword by Geoffrey Robertson QC.

Grant also details the experiences of six Tamils tortured and harassed at the hands of the Sri Lankan military forces and the police. The accounts are gut-wrenching and difficult to read. The facts as detailed would make them eligible for immediate refugee status or would have had not the Minister for Immigration, Scott Morrison, not directed his department to ignore the rule of law and had not other agencies fallen into line.

He also provides an insight into life in the north of the island state for Tamils now forced to live under the heel of the boots of the military and police. A life of rape, enforced land confiscation and soldier settlement of a hand-to-mouth existence as authorities deny jobs to Tamils to prevent their economic prosperity. Why, you might ask? In order to prevent the accumulation of resources that might allow another attempt to secure a homeland.

It is not surprising that Australian politicians and diplomats on visits to the north have failed to notice the plight of the Tamils, whereas the British and other nations have, as have churches and NGOs.

At the end of the book Grant quotes the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, "Rwanda's lessons were not implemented in Sri Lanka".

The Tamils of Sri Lanka continue to undergo a process of genocide, a fact frequently noted by Grant. At a full session of the Rome based Permanent Peoples Tribunal held in Bremen, 7/10 December 2013, to consider evidence gained over three years found, "... that the State of Sri Lanka is guilty of the crime of genocide against Eelam Tamils."

There is no doubt that Trevor Grant's book has hit the mark. The Sri Lankan High Commissioner, Admiral Thisara Samarasinghe, met twice with the vice-chancellor of Monash University, Professor Margaret Gardner and apparently questioned the selection and approval process for publication of the book and all but sought withdrawal of the book from publication and distribution. He sought an apology for publication of the book.

It is alleged that Samarasinghe was associated with war crimes, but to date he has not been prepared to waive diplomatic immunity and fight the allegations through Australian courts.

It was pointed out to him that Monash University Publishing is an autonomous organisation, entirely independent of the University.

Earlier this month at Gleebooks in Sydney three men sought to disrupt a launch of the book. Shouting and screaming obscenities they were ejected by staff. They were believed to be Sinhalese security personnel attached to the Sri Lankan Consulate.

* Bruce Haigh is a political commentator, retired diplomat, who served in Sri Lanka and former member of the refugee review tribunal.  

All-Party-Government And The Size Of It

By Hema Senanayake - December 6, 2014

Hema Senanayake

In brief, nothing happens without the presence of the necessary conditions. A French mathematician and philosopher namely Pierre-Simon Laplace documented this phenomenon in 1814 as the causal and scientific determinism. What does this mean? Let me explain it through a simple example. If you want to make a plane fly, then you need to set the aerodynamically necessary conditions in order to make it fly. This is exactly what aeronautical engineers do; they set the necessary conditions. In science Laplace’s above hypothesis is an important one. Subsequently this idea transformed to be known as “cause and effect” principle.

Venerable Maduluwawe Sobitha knows the idea of determinism in a different perspective. Being a Buddhist monk he knows well that the Buddha had told that, “There is a cause for everything that comes into existence and it ceases to exist when the cause ceases to be.”

In view of both scientific and Buddhist philosophical perspectives the sudden change that has been occurring in the political landscape must be the outcome of being set the necessary conditions. Venerable Maduluwawe Sobitha and a host of civil society activists including many professional organizations and trade unions have set the necessary conditions for this transformation. The society collectively demands “good governance.” Accountability is the basis of good governance. Everybody, including president himself must be accountable; the media should play the pivotal role of holding everyone accountable. The truth must be told about the president or anyone else.                                         Read More

Sri Lanka: Release or Charge Human Rights Activist Balendran Jeyakumary

TAKE ACTION

Ms. Balendran Jeyakumary, a prominent Sri Lankan human rights activist, has been detained since March 13, 2014 under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), which allows detention without charge or trial for years. Ms. Jeyakumary came under scrutiny for demanding the truth about her son's disappearance. 

Hundreds of people in Sri Lanka, like Ms. Jeyakumary, are languishing in prison without charge or trial under the repressive PTA. Call on the Sri Lankan government to immediately release these detainees or charge them with recognizable crimes. Under international law, everyone has the right to a fair trial. Read More >>

Sri Lanka Release or Charge Human Rights Activist Balendran Jeyakumary by Thavam Ratna

Reflections on the political crossroads

By Izeth Husain-December 5, 2014

First of all let me add my own tribute to all the others on the stunning political skill shown in the choice of Maithripala Sirisena as the common candidate. The tribute for this, according to public perceptions, should go primarily to Ranil Wickremesinghe and Chandrika Bandaranaike. It is worth a song and dance because political skill of a high order has been for the most part been conspicuously absent from our politics. MS is a true son of the rural soil, to a far greater extent than President Rajapaksa, as Premadasa was a true son of the urban gutter. He has a blameless political record, and can be expected to split the Sinhalese Buddhist vote to a substantial extent.

But he is a rather colourless figure, which raises the question of why it has been so difficult to find a credible common candidate. We have come to a crossroads in our politics at which it is desperately important to choose a new road as the present one can be expected to lead to another doom-laden 1989, as I argued in my last article. The need of the hour is therefore a charismatic leader, but none can be spotted on the horizon. I believe that this is not accidental but tells us something important about our politics. It is that there are no ideals in our politics, only interests. When India won independence in 1947 there was a desperate need to forge the unity of a multi-religious, multi-ethnic, multicultural nation, which was seen as a noble ideal. Nehru provided stable charismatic leadership over a long period, the unity of the nation has been firmly established, and there is no longer a need for charismatic leadership: a bureaucratic type of leader would do to suit the regime of the quotidian. In 1948 the Sinhalese saw no need to forge national unity as this is the land of the Sinhalese, while the minorities are visitors. The minorities furthermore were seen as privileged; in fact they are still seen as privileged, and therefore the essential thrust of Sinhalese politics from 1948 to 2014 has been to ensure that the lion gets the lion’s share. It is essentially a politics of interest with no ideals worth speaking about, and therefore our political culture is so low-grade that it cannot produce a charismatic leader.

The way the Opposition parties and groups are conceptualizing the present critical juncture in our politics seems to be highly significant. The focus is mainly on the dichotomy between democracy and dictatorship; it is not on the economy and the ethnic problems. This is understandable in the case of the economy because there is probably a broad national consensus about it. Economic growth requires a market-oriented economy, but Adam Smith’s "invisible hand" ensuring a beneficent outcome for all does not seem to be much in evidence. It does not seem possible to combine economic growth with equity under a capitalist system. We can expect corruption and inequality to keep on growing along with the growth of the economy. Probably a Government dominated by the UNP will be even more ruthless in suppressing the economically dissatisfied than the present one. On the ethnic front, the Opposition has had nothing to say up to now about the problem of implementing 13A more fully and working out a political solution for the Tamil ethnic problem, nor about the Muslim ethnic problem which has now to be regarded as a major one. The reason for this is of course obvious: if the Opposition raises a clamor about the ethnic problems it will lose a sizeable chunk of the Sinhala Buddhist vote. There is also the fact that the Opposition is seeing the problem of dictatorship in a simplistic way, ignoring the specificity of the present drive to dictatorship which to my mind is clearly neo-Fascist with racism built into it.

We badly need an analysis of why the family has been so important in our politics. I have argued earlier that dictatorship leads to division and hierarchy. A dictator places himself above the people, and his coterie is also placed above the people, so that it becomes arguable that division and hierarchy are at the very core of dictatorship. In addition to the authoritarian and dictatorial drive shown by several of our Governments – notably those of Presidents Jayewardene, Premadasa, and Rajapakse - our Governments have also been, to varying degrees and in different ways, racist. In other words our politics have been deeply divisive from 1948 up to the present day. Consequently, our minorities have a deep sense of alienation, and the Sinhalese themselves seem to be becoming more and more divisive. As I pointed out in an earlier article, the Sino-Indian War of the early ‘sixties resulted immediately in a tremendous affirmation of unity across the length and breadth of India, but the coming of the IPKF troops – which was seen by many Sri Lankans as posing a grave threat to our sovereignty and unity – was followed by the Sinhalese butchering each other on a massive scale.

It is in this context of divisiveness that we must try to understand the problem of the family in our politics. It is of course not a problem that is peculiar to Sri Lanka but something that has been pervasive in Afro-Asia. However, there are significant differences of degree in the extent to which dynastic politics are practiced. In India the Nehru dynasty held sway over decades though not continuously. But with the election debacle of the latest Nehru scion the dynasty seems to be coming to an end. A noteworthy fact is that in between spells of power by the Nehru dynasty – Nehru, Indira, and Rajiv – there have been several other Prime Ministers, but none tried to found a dynasty. The case has been very different in Sri Lanka where the dynastic principle seems to be more rampant than ever before, with – it is said – the Rajapakse family controlling 56% of the Budget. The dominance or otherwise of the family in politics seems to be related to the extent of the sense of unity in a country. Where relations of trust and reciprocity are badly in deficit, where there is no vibrant sense of unity in a society, it has to be expected that the Leader will feel that ultimately he can depend on none other than his kith and kin. India has been forging national unity since 1947; in Sri Lanka we have yet to realize the need for it.

I mean by forging national unity much more of course than preventing the division of the country by separatist forces. Authentic national unity has to be based on a notion of citizenship as conferring equal rights on all irrespective of ethnic and other affiliations. National unity in this sense is a requisite for achievement, as I pointed out in my last article, something that is not widely understood. But it is certainly very widely understood that the lack of national unity can lead to a loss of independence. This point hardly needs laboring with Sri Lankans because the history of this country shows that at several critical junctures one group invited foreigners to take its side against another group, the foreigners obliged and took over parts of the country, until the British – the most astute of them all who knew a good thing when they saw it – took over the country in its entirety.

Today colonialism and imperialism are anathematized, but we can still lose our independence in all but name while retaining a nominal sovereignty. Our politics have become so degraded that many Sri Lankans believe that a substantial proportion of our politicians can be bought and sold like potatoes. Will India or some other foreign power buy some politicians to gain control of a future Government? It is the kind of thing that can happen if we continue without any sense of national unity worth speaking about. I am wondering in fact whether some amount of erosion of sovereignty has already taken place. Has there been some foreign pressure behind the very surprising latitude that the Government has allowed for the anti-Muslim campaign? I am raising the question in order to emphasize that at the present political crossroads our first imperative should be the forging of national unity.

The Four Segments Of The Lankan Left Movement

By Shyamon Jayasinghe December 6, 2014 

Shyamon Jayasinghe

The scenario of what is left of the Left Movement in Sri Lanka can be broken down into four categories:

Those who have gone to bed with the Right, those who have gone to bed with the Right but who are pretending otherwise, the ambiguous Left and the start-over- again Left.

The start-over again Left is the new Frontline Socialist Party (FSP). These passionate young people and their not- so young mentors start off with the premise that Sri Lanka has not yet seen a “proper Left movement.” There is substantive truth when the FSP says that because what we have seen thus far are fake Left movements.

The Lanka Samasamaja Party and the Communist Party go down to history as two big cruel jokes.These two parties came to the limelight at the beginning largely because they had some men and women of high callibre and breed at the top. NM Perera, SA Wickremasinghe, Leslie Goonewardena, Peter Keuneman, Colvin R De Silva, Phillip Gunawardena, Edmund Samarakkody, Bala Tampoe, Vivienne Goonewardena and some others of lesser prominence. The ordinary masses just ignored their announced policies as the latter simply did not touch their consciousness. Nor did the masses take the leaders seriously when they addressed them as ‘Sahodarayas.’ Indeed it was an unresolvable puzzle to the masses when in a country highly characterized by non-egalitarian feudal values leaders wanted to pretend to be equals.It is legend that Colvin R De Silva had benches for the ‘lower sahodarayas,’ and cushioned seats upstairs for the ‘gentlemen types.’ At May Day meetings Colvin used to come in his luxury car, park it at Borella and then cycle to the Campbell Park venue amidst cheers from other Sahodrayas. Perhaps Colvin was simply brilliant and such weird behavior went unnoticed. The LSSP eventually went to bed with the right wing government headed by Sirimavo Bandaranaike. Personal sacrifice was too much to bear for so long.Read More

Three conspiracies to win elections– MaRa motto ‘I shall win by fair or foul means’-come what may

(Lanka-e-News- 06.Dec.2014, 8.30PM) As it is becoming increasingly clear day by day , the defeat of Mahinda Rajapakse is now certain at the upcoming Presidential election , and it is already written on the wall, like how a drowning man tries to hold on even to a straw , Mahinda in his utter desperation is resorting to all the treacheries and trickeries, to win the elections by hook or by crook .Lanka e news is in receipt of reports of three conspiracies that are to be relied on by the power drunk incumbent President to cling on to power :

First -via postal votes ..

The IGP had yesterday notified that all police officers should use only postal votes , and if they transgress this instruction they will have to face disciplinary proceedings. It is to be noted that such instructions that a voter should only use the postal vote are absolutely illegal . It is Mahinda Balasuriya , the secretary to the ministry of peace and order who had given this order and compelled the IGP to follow.

When the IGP had pointed out that this is a gross violation of the law , Balasuriya had retorted that these are orders from the President , and the IGP therefore should abide by it mandatorily. Accordingly , this illegal notification had been circulated among all police officers yesterday.

In much the same way , instructions have been circulated among teachers, hospitals, CTB , and all employees of the government through the chiefs of those Institutions that they should use only their postal votes , and not vote by other methods. It is the consensus ,these illegal instructions are obviously to commit a massive election fraud through the postal votes .

Second conspiracy …

The tremendous pressures exerted on the government printers responsible for confidentially printing the polling cards.

After removing the regular foreman who was there all along , he has been replaced with a government trade union leader .In addition, a substantial number of workers of President Rajapakse’s village have been recruited to that confidential printing department. This is another subterfuge aimed at facilitating the frauds .

CaFFE organization too has sent a letter to the elections commissioner today pointing this out ,and issuing a warning. This letter is appended herein.

The third conspiracy ….

In the elections department too , there are murky activities going on within. The elections commissioner Mahinda Deshapriya had been sidelined , and a bloke from the village of Mahinda Rajapakse has taken over his duties . This bloke is G. Amaradasa alias Beliatta Amare the deputy elections commissioner .

While there is another deputy elections commissioner R.M.P.B.Ratnayake already , Beliatta Amaradasa a notorious racist out and out , and a top notch henchman of Mahinda Rajapakse being designated duties pertaining to the upcoming Presidential elections had stirred up a hornet’s nest even within the elections department , reports say.

Suspicions regarding all these conspiratorial and murky doings were further aggravated by the speech made by the President when he addressed the All Island SLFP working committee at Temple Trees on the 3 rd of December. ‘I am the President this 3 rd of December and , and I shall be the President on January 10 th 2015. Do not entertain any doubts about it. I am not holding elections to face defeat .

I shall be winning this election by hook or by crook.’ These were the statements made by the President couched in words that were most suggestive of his despotic rage based on monumental fear of the laws and the legal Institutions typical of all brutal dictators who lived and died bestially.

In the letter addressed to the elections commissioner by the CaFFE organization in connection with the suspicious activities besetting the printing of polling cards by the government printing department , it is stated thus :-

''It is learnt that K.A.P.K. Jayawardena who was working in the government printing confidential department was transferred to the book binding section with effect from 2 nd December 2014. In his place it is M.D.R. Athula , the present convener of the Government printing department joint trade union committee affiliated to the government who has been appointed as foreman .

It is a most perplexing and crucial issue , why a government trade unionist has been appointed as foreman to the confidential division of the printing department. Besides , Athula is a litho machine operator assistant . For the last ten years , he has been released to devote his time fully to trade union work. Hence he was not working as a foreman. In the circumstances , he being transferred as foreman to the confidential division just a few days before the printing of the polling cards has aroused grave suspicions.

On the contrary , Jayawardena had been performing his duties as a foreman duly during the past three provincial council elections and lived up to the faith reposed in him. The chief of the printing department now is an acting officer who is a political appointment . Media had already reported that it had been questioned whether the polling cards can be printed free from doubts and suspicions which are being raised under those circumstances .

It is no secret that this appointee had been devoting his entire time to political activities while he was working at the Lake house .Therefore we urge you to address this issue duly .

Moreover , in this present murky and corrupt situation , we request that more than ever before , to have the printing done completely under the monitoring of your officers .

We also earnestly request you to investigate the sudden need that prompted the removal of Jayawardena from his post as foreman .'' CAFFE Stated

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by     (2014-12-06 14:53:13)

ஜனாதிபதி தேர்தலில் யாருக்கு ஆதரவு: “ததேகூ ஆராய்ந்து முடிவெடுக்கும்”

• ஒரு மணி நேரத்துக்கு முன்னர்

இலங்கையில் சிங்கள தமிழ் முஸ்லிம் ஆகிய அனைத்து மக்களுக்கும் பொதுவாக உள்ள பிரச்சினைகள் நடைபெறவுள்ள ஜனாதிபதி தேர்தலின் மூலம் முடிவு காண வேண்டியிருக்கின்ற போதிலும், தமிழ் மக்களுக்கென தனித்துவமாக உள்ள, தீர்க்கப்படாத பிரச்சினைகள் குறித்து, முக்கிய வேட்பாளர்களின் நிலைப்பாடுகள் பற்றி தெளிவாக அறிந்த பின்பே தமிழ்த்தேசிய கூட்டமைப்பு தீர்க்கமான முடிவொன்றை எடுக்கும் என்று தமிழ்த்தேசிய கூட்டமைப்பின் பேச்சாளரும், ஈபிஆர்எல்எவ் கட்சியின் தலைவருமாகிய சுரேஷ் பிரேமச்சந்திரன் சனியன்று வவுனியாவில் தெரிவித்தார்.

சுரேஷ் பிரேமச்சந்திரன்அடுத்த மாதம் நடைபெறவுள்ள ஜனாதிபதி தேர்தலுக்கு முன்னோடியாக ஈபிஆர்எல்எவ் கட்சியின் மத்தியகுழு வவுனியாவில் கூடி நாட்டின் அரசியல் நிலைமைகள் குறித்து ஆராய்ந்ததன் பின்னர், செய்தியாளர்களிடம் பேசிய சுரேஷ் பிரேமச்சந்திரன், தமது கட்சியின் முடிவு குறித்து தமிழ்த்தேசிய கூட்டமைப்பின் கூட்டத்தில் கலந்தாலோசித்து இறுதி முடிவு எடுக்கப்படும் என கூறினார்.

இந்தக் கூட்டத்தில் எடுக்கப்பட்ட முடிவு என்ன என்பது இப்போது அவசியமற்றது எனக் குறிப்பிட்டு தமிழ்த்தேசிய கூட்டமைப்பில் எடுக்கப்படுகின்ற இறுதி முடிவு குறித்து தகவல் தெரிவிக்கப்படும் என செய்தியாளர்களின் கேள்விக்குப் பதிலளிக்கையில் தெரிவித்தார்.

நிறைவேற்று அதிகாரம் கொண்ட ஜனாதிபதி ஆட்சி முறை, குடும்ப ஆட்சி முறை என்பவை இல்லாமல் செய்யப்பட வேண்டும், ஜனநாயகத்தை நிலைநிறுத்தி, ஊழலற்ற ஆட்சியையும், உருவாக்க வேண்டும் என்பது நாட்டில் உள்ள சிங்கள, தமிழ் மற்றும் முஸ்லிம் ஆகிய அனைத்து மக்களின் பொதுப் பிரச்சினைகளாகும்.

ஆயினும் தமிழ் மக்களுக்கென தனித்துவமான பல பிரச்சினைகள் இருக்கின்றன. இந்தப் பிரச்சினைகள் குறித்து ஜனாதிபதி தேர்தலில் களமிறங்கியுள்ள அரச சார்பு வேட்பாளரும் சரி எதிரணியின் பொது வேட்பாளரும்சரி, ஆக்கபூர்வமான கருத்துக்களை வெளியிடவில்லை.

தேசிய இனப்பிரச்சினைக்கு ஓர் அரசியல் தீர்வு காணப்பட வேண்டும், போரினால் பாதிக்கப்பட்டு இன்னும் மீள்குடியேற்றம் செய்யப்படாதுள்ள மக்களின் காணிகளை ஆக்கிரமித்துள்ள படையினர் அவற்றில் இருந்து வெளியேறி அந்த மக்கள் சொந்த இடங்களில் குடியேறுவதற்கு வழியேற்படுத்த வேண்டும்.

காணமல் போனவர்கள், சந்தேகத்தின் பேரில் கைது செய்யப்பட்டு சிறைச்சாலைகளில் விசாரணைகளின்றி பல வருடங்களாகத் தடுத்து வைக்கப்பட்டிருப்பவர்கள் போன்ற பல்வேறு பிரச்சினைகளுக்கும் இந்த முக்கிய வேட்பாளர்களின் கருத்து, அரசியல் நிலைப்பாடு என்பவற்றை அறிந்த பின்பே தமிழ்த்தேசிய கூட்டமைப்பு இறுதி முடிவு ஒன்றை எடுக்கும் என்றும் கூட்டமைப்பின் பேச்சாளரும், ஈபிஆர்எல்எவ் கட்சிய்ன தலைவருமாகிய சுரேஷ் பிரேமச்சந்திரன் தெரிவித்தார்.

வரும் திங்களன்று வேட்பு மனுக்கள் தாக்கல் செய்யப்பட்டதன் பின்னர் தமிழ்த்தேசிய கூட்டமைப்பு கூடி நிலைமைகளை ஆராய்ந்து பேச வேண்டியவர்களுடன் பேச வேண்டிய விடயங்கள் குறித்து பேச்சக்கள் நடத்தி, அவை தொடர்பாக அவர்கள் கொண்டுள்ள நிலைப்பாட்டிற்கமைவாகவே கூட்டமைப்பின் முடிவு அமையும் என சுரேஷ் பிரேமச்சந்திரன் கூறினார்.

Maithripala to retain executive powers on Provincial Councils

December 6, 2014

Common Opposition Candidate Maithripala Sirisena says that, if elected as the President of Sri Lanka, he will do away with all executive powers vested with the President except those regarding the Provincial Councils.

He stated that the executive powers on provincial councils vested with the President under the 13th Amendment to the Constitution will remain because if those powers are abolished they will be transferred to the provincial councils.

“That will create 9 governments in the country. Therefore such a situation will not arise,” he said, in an interview with BBC Sandeshaya.

The former SLFP General Secretary stated that after he is elected as the President and the Executive Presidency is abolished, extensive powers will be transferred to the Parliament while the President will continue as the Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces and will be responsible for good governance.

“What we are clearly stating is that a President without executive powers will continue form then onwards ,” Sirisena said.

Rajapaksa Is Not A Darling Of Minority Voters Anymore

By Muheed Jeeran -

Muheed Jeeran

Presidential election 2015 is getting heated now and an unexpected arrival of the General Secretary of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) as the common candidate has shaken the ruling of UFPA and the chance of winning the third term by the incumbent President. Even before the arrival of the popular grassroot man of SLFP’s Maithripala Sirisena’s arrival, analysts were predicting the outcome based on two groups of voters such as important of ethnic minorities and mustering the Sinhalese nationalist voters will be a crucial factor for any presidential candidate to touch the finish line of 50% plus one vote in the upcoming presidential election. 

The opposition is very much hopeful of getting a better share from the ethnic minority voters but the opposition had a challenge of finding a candidate who can muster the support of Sinhalese nationalist voters which is nearly 74% of the total population of Sri Lanka. The arrival of Mahithripala Sirisena as a common candidate, answers their long standing question of challenging the Incumbent President without any doubt as Mahithripala now known as the people’s man as the ability to capture grassroot voters.

Incumbent President Mahinda Rajapaksa had a great hope on winning his third term by getting Sinhalese Buddhist voters and he is aware that winning the hearts of the ethnic minority is not an easy task now as he failed to shut the mouths of some extremist Buddhist groups who have suddenly risen up against the Muslims and Catholic Community on certain issues. Muslims and Catholic people of Sri Lanka waited with great hope that the incumbent President will heal their wound, however, he failed on it by implementing his typical Presidential Commission which never gave any results in the past.  Well now the once hopeful communities have totally lost the faith of the President as a leader, the one with executive power has failed to deliver the goods to the minorities when they were fearful of these threats and verbal assaults by certain extremist Buddhist groups. After all these political shake ups during the last two weeks, I noted the Incumbent try to put a cushion towards the minorities but it looks like he understood that his strategy is not working at the moment and may be it won’t until January 8.Read More

The Real Opposition to the Rajapaksa Regime is FSP Led Social Left Front – Sumansiri Liyanage

[Inter-University Student Federation (IUSF) has been in the forefront of anti regime struggle]
06/12/2014

The co-coordinator of the Marx School Sumanasiri Liyanage says that the Front Line Socialist Party (FSP) led social left front poses the real opposition to the Mahinda Rajapaksa regime both in its program and in its practice.

The Real Opposition to the Rajapaksa Regime is FSP Led Social Left Front – Sumansiri Liyanage by Thavam Ratna

Retired generals summoned for president’s election campaign!

 Friday, 05 December 2014 

Defence secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has summoned, with immediate effect, several retired major generals to carry out the election campaign of president Mahinda Rajapaksa.

He has taken the step since almost all SLFP electoral organizers in Colombo district are in a dilemma following Maithripala Sirisena’s candidature as the common opposition candidate, and most of them have become inactive.

Under ‘operation segment – ii’ four retired major generals have been appointed to Colombo, dividing the district into four zones, similar in manner to a military operation.

Retired Maj. Gen. K.B. Egodawela will be in charge overall and the mobile phone number allotted to him is 0777314560. His chief coordinator is retired Maj. Gen.G. Jayasundara, whose mobile phone number is 0771088401.

Colombo district has been divided into Kolonnawa (Group - 1), Kotte (Group - 2), Maharagama (Group - 3) and Dehiwala (Group - 4).

Commanding officer for Kolonnawa is retired Maj. Gen. Wasantha Bandara (mobile no. 0785213968), while retired Maj. Gen. Seewali Wanigasekara (mobile no. 0777274014) will be in charge of Kotte, and retired Maj. Gen. Palitha Fernando (mobile no. 0773243032) oversees Maharagama, with Maj. D.L Attanayake (mobile no. 0771088405) who is still in service, will be assisting him.

In addition, four civilians have been appointed to coordinate civilian affairs. They are B.A. Sanath for Dehiwela, W.M.A.S. Subhash Weerasinghe for Kolonnawa, Nimal Somaratne for Kotte and Chinthaka Suranga for Maharagama.

In addition, the defence ministry has introduced a coded military network that covers the entire island.