Facing Off Government Goon Squads
By Sujata Gamage -January 10, 2013
Dr. Sujata Gamage
You hear about goon squads but nothing like facing them for yourself. It is a surreal feeling. This is your country. You pay your taxes and you try to do the right thing, and then some guys waving sticks at you ask where you are going, while the police are watching. You tell them it is none of their business, which is the case. That prompts them to threaten you and shout filth at you, in your city.
This happened today on the way to Hultfsdorf. There was an open invitation to attend a meeting protesting the impeachment of the Chief Justice. I thought about hard it and decided it is important to show my support. Visakha joined me. We arrived there little past 10AM. Police were there but they did not stop us. If they did, we would have respected their decision. Instead there was this gang of abut 20 with some them carrying two by two sticks who blocked our way.
Goons: Yanava, yanava, thamuselata mehe vedak naa (Off, off, you have no business here)
Sujata and Visakha: ogollo kavuda apata ehema kiyanna. poleesiyen kivuvoth api yanava (Who are you to tell us; we will go only if the police tells us)
The conversation went back and forth a few times getting more aggressive each time. We decided to take another route but could not quite make it to the meeting. The situation was getting violent. Goons started running down the street forcing us to go inside a shop. One came broke a window of the shop with his foot.
I came away with two thoughts.
First, these goons are government goons. If they were not, the police would not have let them run amok with their sticks and threaten people. Yes, we were not any passerby. We were going to attend a protest. If it even crossed your mind that we should have stayed home, think again. “Labbata thiyapu atha puhulata thiyanva”. Next day it could be you.
Secondly, we are not all that powerless. It was interesting how the goons got exasperated with us at one point and said “Madam, why don’t you leave without creating trouble. I think, we got that response because we were engaging with them making eye contact with each one, and that made them uncomfortable. When one of them lifted the stick, my hand went automatically to my umbrella, but, he did not hit. One man even said, if you can’t go why don’t you bed with us. I looked straight in the eye and asked him and “what kind of talk is that” in my schoolmarm voice I suppose. I am not suggesting anybody tries to go one on one with goons, but, lot of us in white saris, for example, can have an effect, I feel.
See the pictures here;
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Dr. Sujata Gamage
You hear about goon squads but nothing like facing them for yourself. It is a surreal feeling. This is your country. You pay your taxes and you try to do the right thing, and then some guys waving sticks at you ask where you are going, while the police are watching. You tell them it is none of their business, which is the case. That prompts them to threaten you and shout filth at you, in your city.Sujata and Visakha: ogollo kavuda apata ehema kiyanna. poleesiyen kivuvoth api yanava (Who are you to tell us; we will go only if the police tells us)
Government Rapidly Loosing Legitimacy
Kamal Nissanka
The year 2013 started with lots of very bad news and with a gloomy picture. The floods, landslides and rain played havoc displacing thousands of civilians and as reports indicate over 40 people lost their lives. Then the” Bharatha Lakshman Premachandra “type of a murder took place in Kelaniya sendingHasitha Madawala to rest in peace. A four year old girl was raped and murdered in Jaffna. Google survey released a report saying that the Sri Lankans are the leading navigator of “sex websites”. The price hikes of essentials are surfacing, petrol, diesel and gas. Some university students are yet in remand prisons. Road accidents, murders and rapes are not uncommon in the eve of this year.
In the name of development lots of corruption and briberies are rampant. A new movement called “Bodu Bala Sena” is sowing religious vengeance through various means. No examination can be conducted without leaking question papers. No breakthrough in to the investigation of slain journalist Lasantha Wickrematunge after four years of the assassination. Sri Lankan diplomacy failed to rescue Rizana Nafeek from the gallows. In the midst of all these unpleasant happenings Sri Lanka lost all three test cricket matches played in Australia.
Above all the intolerance displayed by politicians has led the country towards uncertainty. The executive is not so much happy to abide by Supreme Court decisions. The legislators sign various papers without reason and logic just to satisfy the master through their own slave mentality, an attitude inherits from the Sinhalese social culture. The impeachment saga reflects the degree of thinking, knowledge and common sense level of our parliamentarians. They are now on the eve of becoming outlaws as they are knowingly or unknowingly violate the oath they took showing the allegiance to constitution and law.
According to the schedule 4 of the constitution which is referring also to articles 32, 53, 61, 107 1nd 165 the oath of allegiance is as follows.
I ………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………do
Solemnly declare (swear) and affirm that I will faithfully perform the duties and discharge the functions of the office of………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………in
accordance with the constitution of the Democratic socialist Republic of Sri Lanka and the law ,and that I will be faithful to the Republic of Sri Lanka and the law and that I will be faithful to the Republic of Sri Lanka and that I will to the best of my ability uphold and defend the constitution of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka”
Accordingly the President ,cabinet ministers, elected representatives , public servants , judges, security and police chiefs all have to take this oath saying that they will be faithful to Republic of Sri Lanka and law and it is the duty of them to uphold constitution that could be only interpreted by the Supreme Court. If the illegal impeachment saga is not abandoned there is no doubt that they are violating the obligations created by the oath of the constitution because Supreme Court decision on the 1st of January 2013 is law, a binding law.
It is to be noted that a person taking an oath admits that he in good faith assumes and discharges the obligations of oath of allegiance and that his /her attitude towards the constitution and laws of Sri Lanka, country renders him or her duty of fulfilling the obligations of such oath.
If the legislators become “outlaws’ the repercussions will be serious. The government loses legitimacy, as people are sovereign not rulers.
