David Cameron Presses Rajapaksa Over War Crimes, British PM Denied Sri Lankan Media Reports

June 7, 2012 

By Jonathan Miller -

A spokesman for the British Prime Minister has denied media reports from Sri Lanka on Thursday that David Cameron had had a “cordial” meeting with Sri Lankan President Mahinida Rajapakese during diamond jubilee celebrations in London.

Amid confusion as to the exact direction of British foreign policy towards Sri Lanka, Channel 4 News has learned that the British Prime Minister in fact demanded accountability for alleged war crimes when the two leaders met .

Sri Lankan government does need this to be investigated… and we need to make sure we get to the bottom of what happened

In May 2009, following the brutal end of a long civil war, President Rajapakse had promised the United Nations Secretary General that allegations of war crimes committed by Sri Lankan forces would be properly investigated.

The United Nations Human Rights Council said this year that a proper, independent investigation had yet to take place.

Mr Cameron and Mr Rajapakse were photographed standing next to each other at a jubilee lunch hosted by the Commonwealth Secretary General for the Queen on Wednesday.

Hundreds of Tamil protestors had gathered outside Marborough House and burned and hanged effigies of the Sri Lankan President as he and other heads of government arrived for the lunch. The President was driven past the protestors in an unmarked police Range Rover.

The Sri Lankan Daily Mirror quoted the President’s spokesman, Bandula Jayasekera as saying that Mr Cameron and Mr Rajapakse had held a “cordial” meeting and that the President had briefed the Prime Minister “on the development in the country” [sic].

Mr Jayasekera told the Colombo Gazette that “Mr Cameron and Mr Rajapakse had held “one-to-one talks”.  The paper said that “the details of that discussion [were] not immediately made available by the President’s office.”

Now it is clear why those details were not made available.  Their “one-to-one” was not what most people would consider a “friendly” chat.

“The Prime Minister raised the issue of making sure that allegations of war crimes in Sri Lanka were properly investigated,” said Craig Oliver, the Prime Minister’s spokesman.  At the request of Channel 4 News, he had checked directly with Mr Cameron during a prime ministerial visit to Norway on Thursday.

We have been unable to contact Mr Jayasekera for a response to this.  Last night, the Sri Lankan president left London for Rome, where he is understood to have arranged an audience with the Pope at the Vatican.  Recent efforts to secure an interview with the president by Channel 4 News were brusquely rebuffed by Mr Jayasekera.

The Sri Lankan government used an earlier presidential visit to London for apparently propaganda purposes at home, presenting Mr Rajapakse as being warmly welcomed – when that is not in fact what happened.

In December 2010 the president’s planned address at the Oxford Union debating society had to be cancelled because of security fears over planned demonstrations. The president was later photographed with the then Defence Secretary, Liam Fox, during a private meeting at the Dorchester Hotel, where Mr Rajapakse was staying.

The pictures appeared on the president’s website and in Sri Lankan newspapers and were presented as official British government endorsement of the president.

Following the screening of the award-winning Channel 4 documentary Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields last year, the Prime Minister said the “extremely powerful programme” had referred to what he called “some very worrying events”.  The events in question were the reported killing of an estimated 40,000 Tamil civilians by government forces at the end of the Sri Lankan civil war in 2009.

Speaking at Prime Minister’s Questions in the House of Commons, Mr Cameron said  that “the Sri Lankan government does need this to be investigated… and we need to make sure we get to the bottom of what happened… ”

In March this year, Foreign Office Minister Alistair Burt said that a follow-up Channel 4 documentary War Crimes Unpunished  “reinforced the need for that investigation.”

The following week, the United Nations Human Rights Council passed a resolution calling on Sri Lanka to initiate “credible and independent actions” to ensure justice and accountability.

Channel 4 news 

Colombo Commander ordered to hunt down “web” reporters
Friday, 08 June 2012 

The President has assigned Commander for Colombo, Major General Shantha Dissanayake to make persons in Sri Lanka who provide information to web sites being operated from overseas that have put the government in a difficult spot, disappear. The order had directly been made by the President.

Shantha Dissanayake, who is a trusted officer of Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, is also a member of the Gajaba Regiment.

Dissanayake followed a course on war strategies in China some time back and it was the President who made the Commander for Colombo upon his return to the country and appointed him as the head of a white van unit.

The President has asked the head of the State Intelligence Service, DIG Chandra Vakishta to gather details and prepare the report on the “web” reporters.

A large number of information on persons with connections to websites has been gathered. A senior intelligence official said that it has already been found that information to websites had been provided by members of the private staff of several key government ministers, several opposition parliamentarians and their staff members.

The official said that all details have been forwarded to the President.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa reentry told in Thailand that there are eight websites that tarnished the country’s image and that all of them are operated by one institution.

‘It Is Unfortunate That The British Government Decided To Entertain A War Criminal’ Says British Tamil Forum

June 7, 2012 

By Colombo Telegraph -

“Visiting Sri Lankan President having experienced a series of demonstrations and protests of thousands of Tamils, Human Rights activist throughout Wednesday at London’s key locations, the Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksha has left the UK with a sense of disgrace, disgust, disappointment and failure.” says British Tamil Forum.

Issuing a press statement BTF says “It is unfortunate that the British government decided to entertain a war criminal during Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations. It is worth noting that the Canadian Prime Minister has said in no uncertain terms that he would boycott CHOGM (Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting) to be held in Sri Lanka in 2013 if there is no improvement in the human rights situation in Sri Lanka.”

Below we produce BTF statement in full;

Rajapaksa leaves Britain with disgrace, disgust and failure

Visiting Sri Lankan President having experienced a series of demonstrations and protests of thousands of Tamils, Human Rights activist throughout Wednesday at London’s key locations, the Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksha has left the UK with a sense of disgrace, disgust, disappointment and failure.

Couches full of Tamils from Europe and all parts of the UK gathered outside the Mansion House at 8AM in the morning in the city of London where the Sri Lankan President Rajapaksha was scheduled to give a speech on Wednesday morning, 6 June 2012 at the London Mansion House in the Diamond Jubilee Commonwealth Economic Forum. However on Tuesday, 5 June 2012 the Commonwealth Business Council has given the following message in their website

“After careful consideration the morning sessions of the Forum on Wednesday 6th of June have been cancelled and will not take place. The event will therefore commence with lunch at 1300hrs followed by the originally planned afternoon sessions beginning at 1400hrs”.

This was due to the expected protesters gathering in the hart of the square mile in London after a Jubilee long weekend holidays.

Protesters started marching from Mansion House at 9.45 AM through London’s streets and reached Marlborough House at 11.45 AM where Mahinda Rajapaksha had lunch with the Queen with other leaders of Commonwealth countries. When passing through the streets to the Marlborough House, the Queen saw the protesters chanting slogans and carrying placards and banners with various inscriptions condemning the presence of Mahinda Rajapaksha in the UK.

While wishing the Queen on her 60th anniversary of accession to throne, protesters oppressed the invitation to the Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa. The protesters were carrying Banners and placards read the following “War criminals are not welcome in the UK”, “Expel Sri Lanka From Commonwealth” , “Sri Lankan President a wanted War Criminal!“

The demonstrators later gathered in front of Park Lane Hilton Hotel where Rajapaksa was staying, while leaving the Hotel around 5.30PM to the airport, Rajapaksa’s car had to face a rain of eggs, water bottles and slippers coming from some angry protestors.

Ravi Kumar a senior member and executive committee member of British Tamils Forum said “In December 2010, the Oxford Union unilaterally cancelled a scheduled speech by disgraced Sri Lankan President war criminal Mahinda Rajapaksa.” He further stated that ” Both the Oxford Union speech and the Mansion House speech were cancelled because of notification of massive protests organised by the British Tamils Forum (BTF). We pleased that common sense prevailed in both instances.”

Despite of the minor incidents due to high emotions, the whole protest was peaceful. The organisers with the full cooperation of the Metropolitan police managed minimum disruption to London Commuters.

British Tamils Forum takes this opportunity to thank all police officers on duty yesterday for their cooperation considerate nature towards the feeling of the protesters.

It is unfortunate that the British government decided to entertain a war criminal during Her Majesty’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations. It is worth noting that the Canadian Prime Minister has said in no uncertain terms that he would boycott CHOGM (Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting) to be held in Sri Lanka in 2013 if there is no improvement in the human rights situation in Sri Lanka.

Abductions and torture are commonplace in Sri Lanka and journalists who attempt to report the truth are threatened with violence and some have even disappeared. Recently the US government was successful in bringing about a resolution in the UN Human Rights Council against Sri Lanka. This resolution was co-sponsored by 40 other countries.

The European Union continues to impose sanction in the form of not providing GSP+ concessions to exports from Sri Lanka.

The British Prime Minister admitted in the Commons that there should be an independent investigation in Sri Lanka into what happened there during the war in 2009. The expert panel appointed by the Secretary General of the UN said that both sides committed war crimes and crimes against humanity but most of the civilians died because of artillery shelling by the Sri Lankan armed forces. It is estimated that more than 40,000 civilians perished in the no-fire zone set up by the government of Sri Lanka. President Mahinda Rajapaksa is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces.

BTF continues to call for an international independent investigation into war crimes and crimes against humanity committed in Sri Lanka and also call for suspension of Sri Lanka from the Commonwealth.

US-Sri lanka

US AMBASSADOR TO IRAQ CONFIRMATION HEARING 
MICHELE SISON-US Ambassador to Sri Lanka&Maldives Nominee

Ocampo Says Speech Can Be Crime, Steps Back from Sri Lanka Mapping

Matthew Russell Lee Special to Salem-News.com

Sri Lanka's General Shavendra Silva, depicted in Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's own report engaged in war crimes.

Major General Shavendra Silva photo:globaltamilnews.net

(UNITED NATIONS) - As International Criminal Court prosecutor Luis Moreno Ocampo delivered his swan song Tuesday in a Security Council briefing on Darfur, Sudan's Permanent Representative Daffa-Alla Elhag Ali Osman sounded a discordant note outside at the stakeout. In the end each man declared victory.

Inside the Council, Ocampo said that Sudan's Ambassador should perhaps be prosecuted for defending his government's crimes. Inner City Press later asked Ocampo: wouldn't this theory chill even a defense lawyer?

Ocampo replied that there is a difference between being an Ambassador and being part of a crime. But, it has become increasingly clear to Inner City Press as it has covered the UN, that difference or line is by no means clear.

Take for example Sri Lanka: its Permanent Representative used to be a UN Office of Legal Affairs official, while its Deputy PR is General Shavendra Silva, depicted in Secretary General Ban Ki-moon's own report engaged in war crimes.

But Ban accepts Silva as a Senior Adviser on Peacekeeping Operations, saying it is entirely up to member states. So where is the line? And who is blurring it?

Also inside the Council, Sudan's PR cites among other US envoy Dane Smith for the proposition that genocide and ethnic cleansing is not going on in Darfur. One waited for a response from the US; one is sure to come.

Ocampo said the same of Sudan's former Ambassador, who still works for the government without being indicted.

When Inner City Press asked Ocampo about his proposal to criminalize speech, he justified it by saying the victims are not at the UN. But in the case of Darfur, there are many countries indicting Sudan. Should a country under fire have no defense at all?

Inner City Press asked Ocampo about a map he brought in a folder to a UN event in September 2009 and which Inner City Press exclusively photographed and wrote about. It depicted Countries Where Crimes Have Occurred, including Myanmar, Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka.

Syria wasn't on his map in 2009, but in answer to another correspondent's question he said the situation was the same: no jurisdiction.

Ocampo, just before his swam song briefing, was made aware of another Sri Lanka related situation; one wonders what he might do on it.

A third correspondent asked Ocampo's spokeswoman, who will continue with his successor Fatou Bensouda, for a copy of the map.

Ocampo himself said he'd like to be involved in action on Somalia piracy, the Mexican and Colombian drug wars, as well as writing case studies and teaching. He was asked, "A book?" When he said maybe, the crowd said yes. We'll see.

Kellner: Rights improvement by Colombo imperative to prevent 2013 CHOGM disaster

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 June 2012, 22:58 GMT]
"Sri Lanka's President Mahinda Rajapakse should not have been allowed to attend the jubilee celebrations. The mistake of inviting him was not made by the Queen or the Buckingham Palace; the mistake was made by the Commonwealth in the last summit at Perth where they took no action against mounting evidence of human rights violations exposed by Channel-4 among others," the Chairman of the Royal Commonwealth Society, Peter Kellner, said, adding the "next Commonwealth summit expected to be held in Sri Lanka next year will be a disaster if there is no marked improvement in human rights situation in Sri Lanka. Sustained protests carried out by large numbers of Tamil expatriates marked Rajapakse's presence in UK, and fearing disruption to businesses in London his speech to the Commonwealth Business Council was cancelled Wednesday. 

Interview with Channel-4

The European Union, the United Nations and many Rights organizations have said that there are on-going human rights violations and torture in Sri Lanka, said Kellner and added that the Commonwealth should use the leverage it has over Sri Lanka in holding the next summit [CHOGM - Commonwealth Heads of Goverment Meeting] to apply real pressure to force Colombo to put its house in order.

"Sri Lanka might fear losing the opportunity to hold the next summit, and be vulnerable to such pressure," Kellner said.

While admitting that other Commonwealth Nations may also be Rights violators, and that's why there is reluctance by the Commonwealth to impose sanctions on Sri Lanka, Kellner pointed out the glory days of the 70's and 80's when Commonwealth led the battle against apartheid South Africa as demonstration of Commonwealth's potential for leadership.

Peter Kellner

"Commonwealth should revive itself and stand up against human rights violators, and this is the perfect time with Sri Lanka holding the next summit to once again show that Commonwealth can regain its strength on human rights issues," Kellner said.

Meanwhile, Mr Cosgrove, Channel 4's head of diversity, was expelled from Sri Lanka shortly after he arrived, and his wife Shirani Sabaratnam was refused a visa and turned back from the Colombo airport.

Asked why the couple had been blacklisted, the immigration official said: "Because they are from Channel 4, which without reason has harmed Sri Lanka's reputation," BBC reported.

Warning Disturbing Images: New Footages Of Alleged War Crimes

June 7, 2012

By Colombo Telegraph -

The Colombo Telegraph received two disturbing video footages form one of our sources. First video shows surrendered LTTE female cadres. The second footage shows hundreds of dead bodies and some of them are naked. Talking to Colombo Telegraph a Human Rights activist, who has seen the footages raised the question that’ how they ended up naked’ .We assume those footages were  released by the Media Unit of the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam.  Below we produce the two video clips.

As its President dines with the Queen, Sri Lanka's torture of its Tamils is revealed

JEROME TAYLOR  THURSDAY 07 JUNE 2012

Footage shows soldiers gloating over naked female corpses in final stages of civil war

Further evidence has emerged of the brutal treatment of Tamils by Sri Lankan soldiers during the closing stages of the country's civil war. Video footage obtained by The Independent shows soldiers gloating over a pile of more than 100 Tamil corpses, including dozens of women who have been deliberately stripped of their clothes to expose their breasts and genitals.

The videos are part of a growing body of evidence which has emerged over the past two years – much of which was recorded by Sri Lankan soldiers – revealing how many Tamils were tortured, summarily executed and often humiliated after their deaths for the entertainment of their victors.

The latest footage – which was smuggled out of Sri Lanka by a man who used to work at an internet café frequented by soldiers, and passed to The Independent – emerged as thousands of angry Tamil demonstrators massed outside the Commonwealth’s headquarters in London yesterday in protest at a lunch hosted by the Queen, which was attended by Sri Lanka’s controversial President, Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Angry chants could be heard as the Queen entered Malborough House off Pall Mall and organisers were forced to cancel a planned speech by Mr Rajapaksa following security concerns.

Tens of thousands of civilians, soldiers and Tamil insurgents were killed in the final stages of Sri Lanka’s 30-year civil war, which ended in 2009 with the destruction of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam separatist group.

Human rights groups and the UN have produced evidence that both sides committed war crimes during the final stages of the conflict. But there has been particular criticism aimed at Mr Rajapaksa’s government, which has refused to hold any independent inquiry into Sri Lankan army atrocities despite compelling evidence.

The latest videos obtained by The Independent reveal how – even after death – Tamils were often treated with contempt by Sinhalese soldiers. The black-and-white mobile phone footage shows more than 100 corpses laid out on tarpaulins. Some of the male victims are clad in the striped camouflage worn by the Tamil Tigers but the majority are dressed in civilian clothes.

It is impossible to say whether the victims were combatants, civilians or both. Tamil Tigers were known to use civilians as human shields, while Sri Lanka’s army has been accused of deliberately shelling civilian areas as it pushed ahead with its final onslaught against the LTTE.

What is clear, however, is the special treatment reserved for bodies of female Tamils. While the majority of men are fully clothed or topless, almost all the women featured in the video have been deliberately stripped naked or had their breasts and genitals exposed. Within Sri Lankan culture it is considered deeply shameful for a woman to expose any skin that would normally be covered by a sari or clothing.

Previous footage has emerged of Tamil women stripped naked either before or after their death whilst human rights groups have continue to document reports of rape and sexual violence by soldiers. In one particularly well known example uncovered by Channel 4 last year, Sri Lankan soldiers took victory photos of the corpse of prominent Tamil news reporter Isaippiriya. In many of the shots she was naked and had her hands tied behind her back prompting concerns that she might have been raped before being executed.

Charu Lata Hogg, an expert on Sri Lanka at Chatham House, says the footage fits into a wider pattern of abuse meted out to Tamils. “There is credible evidence in the public domain which suggests Sri Lankan troops used degrading and humiliating behaviour towards both male and female Tamils, civilians and combatants alike, during the final stages of the conflict,” she said. “The UN goes as far as to say that the 'screening process' directly resulted in executions, disappearances and rape of some LTTE suspects.”

Despite the emergence of scores of videos shot by civilians and soldiers during the war, the Sri Lankan government has routinely denied that its forces were responsible for atrocities and claims that such footage is faked.

When informed of the new videos yesterday, President Mahinda’s spokesperson Bandula Jayasekara told The Independent: “This is a continuation of a famous fairy tale. These videos are an attempt to discredit the government of Sri Lanka and Sri Lanka’s forces. These guys are masters of propaganda; they have been doing this for 30 years.”

But Vasuki Maruhathas, a London based solicitor who obtained the video footage from a client and handed it to The Independent, said she believed the footage was genuine. She said the video was smuggled out of the country because her client – who wishes to remain nameless – worked at an internet café which was often frequented by soldiers. He was regularly asked to back up their phones or download videos and photos so they could email them.

The Independent has viewed 32 videos and 26 photos that appear to have been taken by the same phone. Most show pictures show a pile of corpses at an unknown location whilst seven photos show what appear to be captured Tamil Tiger fighters handcuffed inside a bus. Some of them are children.

The footage appears to have been taken by female Sri Lankan soldier. Her voice and that of her colleagues, all of whom speak in Sinahalese, can be heard in numerous videos and seen two others riding in a military vehicle. The last video appears to show the solider back at home with her family.

“It would very hard for all of these to be a forgery,” said Miss Maruhathas. “It clearly tells a story of this female soldier.”

Asked why Sri Lankan soldiers might have stripped the women naked she replied: “There are clearly two possibilities. Either they were raped and sexually assaulted before they died, or they were stripped after their deaths. Only animals would do something like this”.

Monsters ball: Other 'distinguished' guests

Island coups

The High Commission of the Maldives wasted little time in ensuring that the media were aware their newly inaugurated President was on the "illustrious roster of guests" invited to meet the Queen for her jubilee celebrations. In a press release sent out yesterday, they remarked that Dr Mohamed Waheed was even sitting on the same table as the Prime Minister, David Cameron.

The tiny Indian Ocean atoll is currently trying to repair its reputation following allegations that Dr Waheed's predecessor was forced out in a military coup. Mohamed Nasheed, who spent much of his adult career imprisoned for his opposition to the Maldivian strongman Maumoon Abdul Gayoom, swept to power in 2008 on a wave of popular opinion. He was dubbed the "Mandela of the Maldives" but his political career disintegrated earlier this year when protesters, backed by the military and police, forced him out.

He says he was forced to resign "at gunpoint" but Dr Waheed's new government – which is backed by the military – insists the surprise transfer of power was voluntary.

Tax havens

It wasn't just rights abusers on yesterday's guest list. Tax havens were handsomely represented at the lunch with Commonwealth leaders. The group's membership includes numerous Caribbean states that have provided sanctuary to many British tycoons hoping to reduce their tax bills.

Denzil Douglas, the Prime Minister of St Kitts and Nevis, was the only head of state of a tax haven to appear at the lunch but High Commissioners of the Seychelles, Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, St Lucia, Barbados and Grenada also made an appearance.

Blair skipped jubilee for trip to Maldives

Tony Blair missed the jubilee celebrations in the UK, choosing instead to holiday in the Maldives, risking accusations that he is giving the country's regime political credibility. The Blair family arrived in the country on Saturday.

President Mohammed Waheed Hassan and Vice-President Mohammed Waheed Deen were reported to have met the former British Prime Minister over lunch.

Andy McSmith

PNM wants action against TNA leader

June 6, 2012,

By Harischandra Gunaratna

President of the Patriotic National Movement Dr Gunadasa Amarasekera yesterday said that the statement made by TNA leader R. Sampanthan at the annual ITAK Convention in Urani was a violation of the constitution and warrants his expulsion from parliament.

The PNM leader said that the comments made by Sampanthan were very serious and President should not keep silent.

"They are demanding something beyond the 13th amendment," he said.

Addressing a news conference in Colombo Dr Amarasekera said that the international community which includes the US and EU were behind the move and were helping the Tamil diaspora to achieve their dream of Ealam with the blessings of India.

Sampanthan had openly said that they would not give up the demand for ealam and if they were not given full autonomy, they would not hesitate to obtain it.

"After hoisting the national flag with Ranil in Jaffna, he recognises the barbaric war fought by the LTTE as a freedom struggle," the PNM leader said.

He condemned the Tamil National Alliance as a casteism based party and said that TNA which consisted only of "Vellala" parliamentarians (so called high caste) were suppressing the poor masses of the North and the East and the TNA’s dream of a separate state was not to serve the down trodden masses but to serve the interests of a few.

Dr Amarasekera said that ruling party politicians in the calibre of Dr Rajitha Senaratne has said that "We can give a little of their demands and appease them", but the TNA would not agree to what Rajitha and the likes say and such loose rhetoric would only help the separatists.

Responding to a query whether the PNM advocated the appointment of a Parliamentary Select Committee to find a solution to the issue, Dr Amarasekera said that that his movement had no faith in such committees unless "you want to drag on with the matter."

Another mistake the government made was the launching of the LLRC report and it contained all that the international community wanted to fix on the government, he said.

I am prepared to compromise!

THURSDAY, 07 JUNE 2012 
By Ayesha Zuhair
It has been described as disturbing, conufusing, and even provocative. Rajavarothiam Sampanthan’s speech at the 14th annual convention of the Ilankai Thamil Arasu Katchi (ITAK) has generated tremendous public interest, and raised many questions about the veteran Tamil politician’s commitment to evolving a political solution to the ethnic issue within the  framework of an undivided Sri Lanka.In an in-depth interview with the at his residence in Colombo,  Mr. Sampanthan rubbishes claims of having a hidden agenda to create a separate state for Tamils in the North and East.

Excerpts of the interview:

Q: Your speech at the 14th annual ITAK convention has raised many concerns, and has become a matter of intense public debate. In your speech you state: “We must prove to the international community that we will never be able to realise our rights within a united Sri Lanka.” Isn’t this proof that your real objective is to create a separate state for Tamils?
Not necessarily. We have tried to find an acceptable solution within a united Sri Lanka for quite some time. Let us leave aside the LTTE era. Even before the LTTE era, during the days of my leader Mr. Chelvanayagam, Mr. Amirthalingam, and subsequently after the end of the war in 2009, and in the course of our bilateral talks with the Sri Lankan government, we submitted proposals in writing which contemplated an acceptable political solution within the framework of a united, undivided Sri Lanka.

Read more.. 

The Credibility Gap

June 7, 2012

By Dharisha Bastians -

Dharisha Bastians

“I received information from a third party. Either myself or the government does not know anything about Eknaligoda – it is only God who knows.”    - Former Attorney General Mohan Peiris, in a statement before the Homagama Magistrate on 5 June

Former Attorney General and now legal advisor to the Sri Lankan President,  told the 47^th Session of the UN Committee Against Torture (CAT) in Geneva on 8 November 2011, that his government had information that journalist Prageeth Eknaligoda who has been missing since January 2010, was alive and secretly living outside Sri Lanka. In a prepared statement regarding Sri Lanka’s human rights record from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights Subcommittee on prevention of on Prevention of Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment, the former AG said “an investigation into the abduction of Prageeth Eknaligoda is being conducted by the Homagama police and by the Colombo Crimes Division. Investigation is being continued. So far no one has been arrested in this connection.” Following the official presentation however, during a question and answer session, Peiris made the claim about Eknaligoda taking refuge in a foreign country and claimed that the campaign to win his release was a farce.

Nearly seven months later – Peiris answering a summons before the Homagama Magistrate, where a habeas corpus petition filed by Eknaligoda’s family in the Court of Appeal has been redirected for inquiry, rejected the statement he made before CAT in Geneva and claimed he could not remember the officer who informed him Eknaligoda was overseas. Adding insult to injury, the former state prosecutor told the court, not without a degree of frivolity, that the government knew nothing about Prageeth’s whereabouts and ‘only God knows’ what had become of him.     Read More

Release All Political Prisoners Now! K. Govindan

Thursday, 07 June 2012 

Welikada prison in Colombo was the site of a rare picket campaign on 29 May, organized by the Movement for the Release of Political Prisoners (MRPP) which is an initiative of the Nava Sama Samaja Party (NSSP).

Leaders of the radical left, including from the Frontline Socialist Party, and from the opposition Tamil National Alliance and Democratic Peoples’ Front addressed the protest, that received wide media coverage (for example,Dailymirror and Video), demanding a general amnesty for all political prisoners.

Many of the speakers drew attention to the presidential pardon received by former army commander and presidential candidate, Sarath Fonseka on 21 May. His conviction on charges of corruption and improper conduct while in military service, and imprisonment for almost 2 ½ years, was widely perceived to be politically motivated and had been a source of disaffection even within the government and its Sinhala nationalist base.

Vickramabahu Karunarathne of the NSSP asked, if leaders of the LTTE such as its former Eastern region military commanders V. Muralitharan (alias Karuna Amman) and S. Chandrakanthan (alias Pillayan) and political operatives ‘Daya Master’ and ‘George Master’ had been spared imprisonment and are at liberty, then why not extend the same treatment for those who were in its lower ranks or simply sympathisers, leave alone the innocents who had been wrongfully arrested?

The Welikada prison picket was organized in solidarity with the hunger strike conducted by 234 Tamils imprisoned in Colombo, Kalutara and Vavuniya beginning 17 May. It followed a protest in the northern town of Vavuniya (250 kilometres from Colombo) on 24 May in which 500 family members, mainly women, fasted for a day in solidarity with the prisoners, along with NSSP members and parliamentarians of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA).

“Detainees should be either charged or released”, said MRPP activist, P Bhoominathan, while appealing for a general amnesty as had been extended to Sinhala political prisoners following the youth insurrections of 1971 and 1987-89.

The mobilisation for both solidarity actions in the face of state repression, including a court order preventing a proposed demonstration and public protest on the same issue that was planned by the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (Peoples Liberation Front) in Vavuniya earlier in May, was in itself a success.

The ‘fast to death’ campaign of the Tamil prisoners began to highlight their forgotten situation and oppressive conditions of detention. Some have been in custody for 10 or even 15 years without having been convicted of any offence. Others have been indicted based on forced confessions or their signature on statements written in Sinhala (which they cannot read) but which are admissible under the provisions of the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA).

The plight of long-term detainees was also raised by the recent European Parliamentary delegation to Sri Lanka headed by Jean Lambert MEP, who called for them to be either charged or released.

803 persons are believed to be detained under the PTA. While the vast majority of the detainees are Tamil males originating from the Northern and Eastern regions; there are also several women, Hindu and Christian clergy, disabled persons, at least 30 Up-Country Tamils (mainly from Kandy), and Sinhala men (aka ‘Sinhala Tigers’) accused of supporting the banned Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

Since 2011, that is almost 2 years after the end of Sri Lanka’s 26-year long war, 241 fresh arrests have been made under the PTA. Some of these are likely to be from among the 11,600 LTTE ex-combatants and surrendees, who were held in so-called ‘rehabilitation’ centres since May 2009.

Of this number the military claim that only 698 now remain in their custody; as over 10,000 have since been released, and an unknown number transferred into various holding centres pending their prosecution. There is no public registry of the names and locations of Tamils in detention, which has been a demand of family members searching for their missing relatives.

The government took a hard-line position against the prisoners protest, denying that there were any political prisoners in its jails, and refusing to negotiate with the prisoners until they called off their hunger strike.

“We are not holding any political prisoners. Those who are currently in detention and in remand are those who were connected to LTTE’s acts of terrorism,” said Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva. He also stated that at least 309 prisoners on remand will be indicted under the Prevention of Terrorism Act, and that 359 have been charged to date.

As the health of the prisoners on fast deteriorated, Tamil National Alliance parliamentarians visited some of them to persuade them to end their protest while representations were made on their behalf.

Meanwhile the government announced that three new high courts would begin functioning from the beginning of June in Anuradhapura, Mannar and Vavuniya which would expedite the hearing of the cases against the prisoners.

On 25 May, the prisoners suspended their protest while vowing to resume it again in a month’s time if there is no progress in the review of their cases.

According to S. Mahendran of the Movement for the Release of Political Prisoners, the next step following the Welikada prison picket is a mass signature campaign beginning 5 June demanding a general amnesty for, and early release of, all political prisoners.

This will be a challenge in the Sinhala community where there is acceptance of the government’s view that those in remand are terrorists and undeserving of clemency, and there is active hostility towards anyone with a contrary view.

Another public protest is planned in June, in the north-central city of Anuradhapura, and which will be joined by families of the disappeared who are also clamouring for justice.