The President’s two-faced act before the Bodhu Bala Sena

Monday, 11 February 2013 

The President recently summoned Ven. Kirama Vimalajothi Thero, Ven. Galagodatte Gnanasara Thero and Ven. Vitharandeniye Nanda Thero for a discussion at Temple Trees. However, the President had lost his temper when he had seen a civil society activist, Dilantha Vithanage among them. “I know who is behind all this. Don’t try to play with me by creating ethnic and religious disharmony. Where is Ranil’s lackey? Didn’t Mahagedaragamage (Asanka Mahagedaragamage) come? We know your extremist work. You can’t fool us,” the President had put on a show by shouting in front of the monks and media personnel.

Shocked by the President’s comment, Dilantha Vithanage had moved aside. After the discussion, the President had invited the monks to offer them alms and afterwards called Dilantha to have some lunch with him. The President had been engaged in a friendly chat with Dilantha during the lunch. When Minister Dullas Alahapperuma had approached them, the President had said, “Look how efficient Dilantha is? He is wasting his time near Minister Navinna. Find him a good job.”

After the lunch, the President had once again called Dilantha Vithanage to a corner and said, “Don’t take notice of what I shouted at you. People need to believe that we are not connected to these. Don’t stop your work because of what I said. Continue in the same manner. Speak to me directly if there’s any issue.”

The President had then given Dilantha a telephone number to directly contact him.

Sources said that Dilantha had thanked and worshiped the President and walked out of Temple Trees with the President’s direct telephone line.

Willie hit by Basil-Namal clash

Monday, 11 February 2013 

The cold war between Minister Basil Rajapaksa and parliamentarian Namal Rajapaksa has affected the Botanical Gardens and Public Entertainment Ministry Secretary Willie Gamage.

Gamage was among the most trusted state officials of the President along with Gotabhaya Rajapaksa and Dr. P.B. Jayasundera a few months ago. (Namal gears to extort graphite worth billions of rupees ) However, he has now been reduced to the post of secretary of a third level ministry. His latest appointment has been due to the pressure by Namal Rajapaksa.

The reason for Gamage’s downgrading was due to his objection to the attempt to sell a stock of graphite without calling for tenders. State intelligence units have also commenced an inquiry into the monies gathered by Gamage through irregular means.

The Ministers who were following Gamage for favours until a few months ago are now carrying various tales against him to the President and Namal Rajapaksa. Gamage is a contemporary of the Rajapaksas and also hails from Beliatte. The President was angered by Gamage’s decision to join the group that was trying to get Basil Rajapaksa appointed as Prime Minister.

SLFP Homagama organizer, Minister Bandula Gunawardena had recently complained to Namal Rajapaksa that Gamage had opened a road in his electorate without informing him. Namal had informed the President about the incident and the President had in turn reprimanded Gamage in filth.

The President had asked Gamage to apologize to Gunawardena.

Gamage had lamented about the incident to Minister Basil Rajapaksa. “Don’t go to apologize to these fellows. I will take care of what happens,” Basil had said.

It is learnt that a very disgruntled Gamage has now prepared his resignation letter and planned to give it to the President the next time he gets shouted at in filth for some reason.

Sri Lankan Islamophobia: Encroaching the mainstream?

11 FEBRUARY 2013

BY ABDUL HALIK AZEEZ

In this 'Daily News' article penned by one Shenali Waduge on Muslims in Sri Lanka and why Buddhists should be scared of their ‘encroachment’, she displays a high level of confusion, connecting disparate events in the Muslim world (fabricating where it suits her), taking them out of context and then applying them to Sri Lanka.

Particularly absurd is her apparently iron clad statistical theory of Muslim’s 4 phased strategic and collective effort to ‘take over’ the locality, wherever they are, and install an Islamic ‘theocracy’ whatever that may mean.

Ms. Waduge, I WISH the Muslim community was as united as you appear to think it is. Even if you appear to think that such unity is always used for nefarious aims. I WISH our leaders were half as focused on the problems affecting the community as you appear to allude. At least you seem to have more faith in their selflessness that I.

While she appears to think that Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Gulf States are synonymous with Muslims everywhere in the world, as if they are the ideal representation of what Sharia law and collective Muslim life is like, when it suits her, she likes to equate all of us with ‘extremist terrorists’, taking an about turn, since most of these ‘extremists’ are extremely anti-Saud. I wish she’d make up her mind.

She also doesn’t seem to have heard of a little event they call the Arab Spring where millions of Muslims stood up to depose tyrannical rulers, oppressing them since their so-called independence from the West. There’s a lot of dissent against existing rule in Gulf States too, but this writer doesn’t seem too interested in specifics, sweeping generalizations are her forte.

Around 1400 people have liked it on Facebook. And at least two of them are people I actually know. This is almost as hard to stomach as the fact that this bit of rubbish journalism was actually published in the 'Daily News'. Which, while not exactly a journalistic stalwart, is significant in its position as the closest thing we have to a state sanctioned English language newspaper; are we to assume that this anti-Muslim vitriol is also state sanctioned? Or at the very least published with the assurance that no one up there is going to seriously mind?

The 'Daily News' is legitimizing this garbage by publishing it. Is this is a glimpse of the next wave of erosion in Sri Lanka’s print media, heralding the advent of anti-Muslim sentiment from the underground world of pithy Facebook groups and into the edges of the mainstream? Stuff like this is dangerous, when you have a climate of growing social unrest. People susceptible to hate are not going to verify things that confirm their bias, especially when it’s published in a leading newspaper.

Conspiracy theories that gain a widespread following don’t just pop out of nowhere. If anti-Muslim sentiment finds an ever broadening audience it’s because it actually perceives what it takes to be a very real indication of ‘Muslim supremacy’ happening in society. But this can be based on misinformation and bias.

I was chatting to Indi about this, and he talks about this a little in his post as well. He thinks Muslims have increasingly appeared to distance themselves from the rest of Sri Lanka. Case in point the niqab or the veil.

While I sympathize with his argument; I do think that without the veil’s modern connotations (a misconceived notion that it symbolizes gender abuse, repression and Islamic extremism) it would have been much easier for people to accept it as a personal choice of consenting individuals in society. Indi to his credit, doesn’t think this warrants racism against Muslims.

Halal food does not mean that some secret chemical compound is inserted into all items certified Halal in some underground plant in the Empty Quarter (although admittedly this would make for excellent dystopic fiction). Halal just applies to the way food is prepared, according to certain standards of religious guidelines which include hygene and ethics.

Paying to obtain the Halal certificate is a decision purely based on choice and the profit motive. No one is compelling anyone to eat Halal. There’s plenty of non-Halal choice out there. No one is shoving Halal meat down feebly protesting throats.

Quite the contrary to what Ms. Waduge states, non-Muslims have full legal rights in Sharia courts by Islamic law. In fact, just consider that in the UK, non-Muslims are also turning to Sharia courts to settle some disputes in certain cases. If anything, it is a parallel system of law, and does not contradict the integrity of the country’s main legal system in any way.

In Sri Lanka, Sharia courts are merely a legal support structure for the Muslim community. There are no widespread plans to convert everyone to Islam and forcibly make them accept sharia law. And neither is here any such thing happening in France, England or anywhere else with a minority Muslim population.

To dissect the full scale of half truths, convolutions, blatant fabrications and outright lies in Ms Waduge’s article would take reams of text, and the question arises if it is actually worth refuting, as most of what she says in my eyes reeks of hate-speech and blatant fabrication, hardly the sign of a person looking openly for honest feedback. But if anything, it’s a good place to go for to get a gist of the prevalent misconceptions that are driving this new wave of Sri Lankan Islamophobia.

Sri Lanka As A Breakout Nation

By W.A Wijewardena -February 11, 2013

Dr W.A. Wijewardena

Sri Lanka as a Breakout Nation: Much more to be done to make it a reality

Sri Lanka: Breakout nation plus the Wonder of Asia

The latest development tagline added to Sri Lanka is that it can be the next “Breakout Nation”.

The Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal is reported to have first expressed this view when he addressed the best annual reports awards ceremony organised by the Smart Media in Colombo in August 2012. Later this was reconfirmed by him with a slight modification when he presented the Central Bank’s Road Map for 2013 in January 2013. In his first address, the Governor had been emphatic about the fact that Sri Lanka has already been a breakout nation and, therefore, had advised the Sri Lankan companies to expand and showcase themselves to the rest of the world (available here ). However, in the Road Map presentation, the breakout nation concept has been tied with the country’s existing development tagline, “the Wonder of Asia”, subject to a minor qualification. That qualification is that “if Sri Lanka can be successful in the next three years”, it “can surely be the next breakout nation” implying that it has to do a lot more to realise that goal (available here ).

Breakout nation should not be a mere wishful thinking

When a development tagline is announced by a leading official, it is picked up by others and engraved as a permanent phrase in the country’s development policy lexicon of the day. Accordingly, the newly elected President of the National Chamber of Commerce of Sri Lanka, veteran entrepreneur, management expert and quality Guru Sunil Wijesinghe, in his installation address warned that the achievement of breakout nation goal should not lead to economic divide and should not be confined to a mere “wishful thinking”. Having drawn the attention of his audience to previous unsuccessful episodes of seeking to benchmark the country to similar catchy goals like becoming a Newly Industrialised Country or NIC in early 1990s, he went on to emphasise the need for having a coordinated strategic plan to make “the breakout nation goal” a reality (available here ).

Ruchir Sharma: Sri Lanka has the potential of becoming a breakout nation

Read More

Economy embargo in Geneva resolution.

Monday , 11 February 2013
The resolution brought by U.S against Sri Lanka in the forthcoming March month in Geneva will consist many rigid proposals namely  to confirm the democracy in Sri Lanka, appointing a special committee to operate under the Human Rights Council, imposing economy embargo are included is the information leaked.

Copies of the resolution which will be submitted by U.S against Sri Lanka is pooled with the Ambassadors of the respective countries supported the resolution last time in a personal manner.

To affirm democracy in Sri Lanka,  appointing a special committee to operate under the United Nation Human Rights Commissioner Nawaneethampillai, and  this panel to function from Sri Lanka are the proposals included in this resolution is the information revealed from diplomatic circles.

Urging to implement in the proper manner the recommendations of Reconciliation Commission, protecting the human rights, preventing persons getting disappearing and to affirm the independence of judiciary are some issues insisted in the resolution is according to reports.

Reducing  Sri Lanka forces existence in north, settlement for the  north and east peoples land crisis by processing with  a permanent working plan and set up in accordance with international laws and policies in arresting persons and detaining, affirming the freedom of speech, granting  adequate powers to provincial councils and many proposals are included in this resolution.

Possibilities are to submit a proposal to impose economy embargo against Sri Lanka at the UN Human Rights Council is according to reliable sources.

There are possibilities for more amendments in the resolution prepared by U.S in the next two weeks are according to information from diplomatic circles.

Monday , 11 February 2013

Interview with Alistair Burt on Sri Lanka

Interview with Alistair Burt on Sri Lanka

 Groundviews-11 Feb, 2013

The BBC’s Charles Haviland interviewed Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign & Commonwealth Affairs Minister Alistair Burt on 1st February 2013, during an official visit to Sri Lanka which saw the Minister meet with a range of stakeholders including the government, TNA and civil society as well as travel to the North of the country.

Groundviews recently participated in and archived a Twitter interview with Minister Burt on Sri Lanka, conducted after he returned to the UK. The interview with Charles Haviland is vital record of the Minister’s thoughts on Sri Lanka, including comments, in his official capacity, on the government’s human rights record, progress of reconciliation post-war, the prospects of a political settlement and concerns over the independence of the judiciary and arising from this, the question of whether Sri Lanka is suitable as a venue for the CHOGM meeting.

Since the interview has not been published anywhere else to date, including on the BBC,Groundviews is pleased, with permission, to reproduce it in full below.

Early Warning On Likely Voting Pattern In Geneva And Its Remedy

By Jehan Perera -February 11, 2013 

Jehan Perera

The opportunity that President Mahinda Rajapaksa may have had last week to visit New Delhi and canvas Indian government support for the forthcoming session of the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva had to be abandoned due to protests that erupted from Tamil Nadu state in South India. The President’s brief trip triggered protests in Tamil Nadu as well as in New Delhi and Tirupati over allegations that he was denying Tamils in his country equal rights. The President’s declared purpose in visiting India was to go on a religious pilgrimage to the place of Enlightenment of the Buddha in the north of India and to a Hindu temple in the south of India.

It was the timing of the visit that gave rise to speculation that the primary purpose was otherwise.  The Sri Lankan government would be keen on ensuring Indian support for itself this time in Geneva.  On the last occasion in March 2012, the Indian vote went in favour of the US-sponsored resolution, much to the dismay of the Sri Lankan government.  The Indian vote was seen as a breach of trust by Sri Lanka’s closest neighbor.  But of more consequence was the moral support that India provided to the United States.  There is no doubt that undecided third world countries were more prepared to yield to US pressure after the Indian decision to vote in favour of the resolution became known to them.

This time around the government’s hope will be that India breaks ranks and does not support the resolution that the US is preparing.  A face-to-face meeting between President Rajapaksa and Indian Prime MinisterManmohan Singh would have provided the Sri Lankan government with the opportunity to exercise pressure for such an Indian concession.  However, the manifestation of public opposition in India to the President’s visit was dramatic.  Despite the security arrangements and prohibitory orders, protestors managed to reach close to the road route before the Sri Lankan president’s convoy passed and raised slogans.  In both New Delhi and Tirupati, police arrested over 100 protesters.

In Chennai, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalitha blamed Prime Minister Manmohan Singh for the watered down US resolution at the UN Human Rights Council meet last year.  The chief minister urged the Indian government to table a resolution on violation of human rights in Sri Lanka at the UN.  This is similar to what happened in March 2012 also where the Indian government cited domestic compulsions in justifying its act of voting against Sri Lanka on the issue of the US sponsored resolution.  The furor over the President’s visit to India provides the Sri Lankan government with a useful early warning as to the pressures on the Indian government and how it is likely to vote on this occasion too.

GOVERNMENTAL DEFENSES

On the other hand, the Sri Lankan government has also been active in fortifying its defences against the prospective US-sponsored resolution. This includes the sustained campaign to win friends and influence fellow third world countries by setting up newly forged diplomatic relations with them.  Government leaders notably External Affairs Minister Prof G L Peiris have been making cogent arguments for the benefit of members of international bodies, educating them about the meaning of their charters and how they include the principle of non-interference in the internal affairs of other countries.

A second governmental initiative has been to provide progress reports that highlight the implementation of its action plan pertaining to the recommendations of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission.  The UN Human Rights Council resolution of March 2012 called on the Sri Lankan government to implement the constructive recommendations of the LLRC.  For a still unexplained reason only about 80 of the LLRC recommendations numbering over 160 have been mentioned in the government’s action plan.  Only 3 of the 18 LLRC recommendations that called for participation by civil society have been included in the government’s action plan.

The government recently invited foreign diplomats to a presentation of its implementation of its action plan.  It is ironic that the government has neither discussed progress report with the general public or with civil society nor has given publicity to it.  Neither has the government publicized nor distributed copies of the LLRC report and its recommendations to the general public in the Sinhala and Tamil languages, even though  these are the official languages of the country in which the vast majority of people are conversant, unlike the English language which is accessible to only a relatively small minority.  It is doubly ironic that a government as nationalist as the present one should be so intent on catering to the international community and not to its own people.

Those in the government charged with implementing the LLRC recommendations, or even the limited number of recommendations of the government’s action plan, ought to read and internalize what the LLRC report so earnestly states. The LLRC commissioners were handpicked from amongst the most eminent of Sri Lankan public servants and professionals. In their report they provided a methodology of implementation that involves the whole of Sri Lankan society.  The government has to bear the main responsibility for implementing the recommendations, but in addition there are recommendations that are addressed to the political parties, religious leaders, civil society organizations and artistes.

TRUSTING PEOPLE

At the time that President Rajapaksa was experiencing the hostility of Tamil activists in India, I was in Batticaloa in the east where I was reminded of the need to work in reconciliation with all communities.  A Muslim participant at a discussion on the LLRC that I was participating in said he wanted to show me the town of Kattankudy.  I thought he would show me its new developments and prosperity.  But instead he took me to the Meera Grand Jumma Masjeed where in 1990 over a hundred worshippers were killed by the LTTE.  He also showed me the bullet holes in the walls that had not been closed up and which serve as a reminder of wounds that have not been healed.  In the mosque I met a Moulavi who had been a little boy with his father when it was attacked, and saw his father being killed.  So would it be in the case of other massacres that Tamils and Sinhalese also have experienced.

It is worth noting that the LLRC report itself makes the point that reconciliation is not only implementing a series of administrative actions.  It is also a process of healing to be administered with empathy, care and compassion.  The report also calls for a full understanding of the grievances of the victims and the intensity and magnitude of their suffering.  All parties to the conflict need to acknowledge their part in what happened and express remorse for the suffering that was inflicted on so many people.  There needs to be special attention given to the personal tragedies and traumas of the victims and their families for which civil society organizations are best suited.

The government’s failure to take the people of the country into its confidence on the issue of the LLRC report is all the more perplexing as it is the outcome of a process initiated at the instance of President Rajapaksa himself.  Whether in Batticaloa in the east or Matara in the south, the participants at discussions on the LLRC report are impressed by its wisdom and ask why the government is not implementing it in full.  This is testimony to the spirit of moderation and justice that continues to inhabit society at all levels but which has been suppressed by the aggressive nationalism brought about by the war and its triumphal aftermath.

In this context the national interest will be better served if instead of being preoccupied with justifying itself to the international community, the government focuses its attention on creating awareness about the LLRC report and the reasons for implementing its recommendations amongst the Sri Lankan public.  Sri Lankans of all ethnicities want a new future that overcomes and transcends the past. The moral power and achievements that flow out of implementing the LLRC recommendations with people’s participation will speak for themselves in a manner that the international community will have to recognize and respect. Deeds always speak louder than words.

Nudge for Sri Lanka on independent judges

Updated Mon Feb 11, 2013 7:58am AEDT

PHOTO: Commonwealth Secretary-General, Kamalesh Sharma, opened talks with Sri Lanka on Sunday by pushing for judicial independence on the island.

The Commonwealth Secretary-General opened talks with Sri Lanka on Sunday by pushing for judicial independence on the island, as Canada renewed calls to boycott the bloc's summit in Colombo later this year.

Secretary-General Kamalesh Sharma is holding talks with Sri Lankan leaders in Colombo on the rule of law and the separation of powers after the island defied international appeals and sacked its chief justice in January, the bloc said.

Mr Sharma's four-day visit to Sri Lanka came as Ottawa urged others in the 54-member grouping to stay away from the November Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) hosted by Colombo.

Canada had reported Sri Lanka to the Commonwealth over the alleged violation of the organisation's democratic values by ignoring two court rulings and sacking Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake last month.

She had given rulings which were thought unfavourable to President Mahinda Rajapakse's regime which is also accused of failing to probe war crimes allegations against Sri Lankan troops which defeated Tamil rebels in 2009.

"Sharma is expected to discuss, among other issues, options for advancing Commonwealth values and principles, including the independence of the judiciary and the separation of powers," the Commonwealth said in a statement.

The statement said the Secretary-General was also discussing arrangements for the November summit which is going ahead despite Canadian objections.

Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has warned that he may refuse to attend the summit unless Sri Lanka addresses allegations of atrocities during the closing battles of the war against separatist Tamil rebels in 2009.

Mr Sharma in September asked the two countries to resolve their differences and ensure the smooth conduct of the summit.

Sri Lanka has denied allegations from international rights groups that government troops killed up to 40,000 civilians during the civil war.-AFP

DR Congo: War Crimes by M23, Congolese Army Response to Crisis in East Should Emphasize Justice

Jennifer Fierberg-Feb-10-2013

“The M23 said they were going to free us, but instead they came to kill us. What kind of liberation is that?”

Courtesy: csmonitor.com

(Washington, D.C.) - (Goma, February 5, 2013) – M23 rebels and Congolese army soldiers raped scores of women and committed other war crimes during the rebels’ occupation of Goma in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, http://www.hrw.org/drc in late 2012, Human Rights Watch said today.

Ongoing talks among parties to the conflict, countries in the region, and the United Nations should ensure that any agreements include holding those responsible for war crimes to account and that rebel commanders with abusive records do not serve in the Congolese army, Human Rights Watch said.

“The killings and rape by M23 and government forces around Goma were fueled by an environment in which horrific abuses are rarely punished,” said Daniel Bekele (http://www.hrw.org/bios/daniel-bekele), Africa director at Human Rights Watch. “The UN and others involved in talks should send a strong message to rebel leaders and Congolese army commanders that they will not be rewarded for their atrocities.”

In the two months since the M23 occupied Goma in late November, Human Rights Watch interviewed more than 180 victims and witnesses of abuses, family members of victims, health workers, civil society leaders, and others who provided detailed information on alleged war crimes committed by M23 fighters and Congolese army soldiers.

The M23 rebel group, named after a March 23, 2009 peace agreement, took control of Goma on November 20. After entering the city, their leaders publicly declared that their movement was disciplined. Yet beyond the center of town, the M23 spread terror through deliberate attacks on civilians and threats against those who spoke out against them.

After the M23 occupied Goma, soldiers from several Congolese army units based nearby retreated to Minova, a town 50 kilometers away. Over the next 10 days, they went on a raping and looting rampage in Minova and neighboring communities.

The M23 officially withdrew from Goma on December 1, after the Congolese government agreed to negotiate with them. Talks began in Kampala, Uganda, http://www.hrw.org/africa/uganda, on December 9, but have made little progress.

African countries and the UN are holding parallel discussions about the conflict. These include a proposal to deploy an African-led “intervention brigade” to operate within the UN peacekeeping force in Congo, MONUSCO. The brigade’s mandate would be to robustly enforce peace, prevent the expansion of armed groups, neutralize the threat posed by these groups, and disarm them.

The intervention brigade should have a clear mandate to arrest people wanted on international warrants for war crimes and crimes against humanity, and assist Congolese authorities in the enforcement of national arrest warrants, to bring them to justice, Human Rights Watch said.

Read Full Article

Cyber attacks continue apace on govt websites

[ Monday, 11 February 2013, 12:19.49 PM GMT +05:30 ]

A series of cyber-attacks on government sites are making official documents and other information vulnerable, computer experts warned yesterday, reports Sunday Times. Upto now about 50 official websites have been hacked with the latest being the website of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC), the report states.

“It is a sign that these sites are vulnerable and they have not been upgraded or information has leaked through an access to a folder. These are caused due to negligence or not knowing the fact that a simple user name and password can be used for hacking,” he said. According to a well-known cybercrime archive, Zone-H, among the Sri Lankan websites that have been hacked this year are the Employees Provident Fund, the Justice Ministry, the National Museum, the Immigration Department, the Agriculture Department, the Probation Department, the Uva Province Tourism division and the Strategic Enterprise Management Agency (SEMA). Last month, the websites of the Media Centre for National Security (MCNS) websites, the North Central Provincial Council, the Ports Authority, the Board of Investment, the Nelum Pokuna Theatre and Sports Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage, Rupavahini and One Sri Lanka television channel were hacked. The MCNS site — www.nationalsecurity.lk — could not be accessed even yesterday. The websites of the Foreign Employment Bureau, the Sri Lanka Customs, the Telecommunication Regulation Commission, the Valuation Department, the Finance Commission, the Medical Research Institute, the Lanka Interoperability Framework (LIFe) and the Heritage Ministry were also hacked. The hacking varied from homepage/front page defacing and adding text or images to folders.

TN parties for anti-Lanka motion

• On Friday, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa had demanded India to take initiative in introducing a resolution in the UN council to impose economic sanctions against Sri Lanka. (Express/File)

By Devirupa Mitra-11th February 2013 

With Parliamentary session all set to begin, the UPA Government is girding up to withstand pressure from both the DMK and AIADMK to support a resolution in the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) against Sri Lanka. The Centre is, however, keeping all options open.  

The US had announced last month that it would introduce a ‘procedural resolution’ during the next session of UNHRC. The resolution is expected to be put to vote before the session ends on March 22, when the Indian Parliament will also be in session.

With the DMK begining the groundwork, it remains to be seen, if there would be a re-run of last year’s intense pressure mounted by the Tamil regional parties.

Since Monday, a delegation led by DMK leader M K Stalin, including senior members of Tamil Eelam Supporters Organisation (TESO), visited a number of foreign embassies to lobby in support of the US sponsored draft resolution. They have reportedly held talks with diplomats from Italy, Malaysia and Montenegro.

The delegation also met the US embassy officials and Russian diplomats. Last year, Russia had voted against the resolution and asked Sri Lanka to launch a probe into war crime allegations. On Friday, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa had demanded India to take initiative in introducing a resolution in the UN council to impose economic sanctions against Sri Lanka, till it agreed for a political settlement, providing equal rights to the Sri Lankan Tamils.

The pressure is likely to mount on the Centre, with both the AIADMK and DMK expected to outdo each other during the Parliamentary session, which begins from February 21. 

According to sources, the DMK is likely to press for a calling attention motion in both the Houses, while the AIADMK is expected to demand a half-an-hour discussion on the subject, where it would refer to the status of rehabilitation of Sri Lankan Tamils and the progress made on political settlement.The TESO, which enjoys the DMK support, is slated to hold a conference in Delhi on February 7. The venue is Constitution club - a stone’s throw away from the Parliament. Keeping the pressure on Sri Lanka, the US had announced its plans for a resolution in the UN council, when a three-member state department delegation visited Colombo last month. In a statement it had said that the 24 countries, which had supported the 2012 resolution, would do the same this time.

Contrary to impression created in Sri Lankan media, India has not yet taken a call on the resolution. The decision would largely depend on the final wording before it is put to vote. The US indicated that the resolution would be a stock-taking exercise of the action taken by Sri Lanka, since the previous resolution.Last time, India had tried to engage Sri Lanka in making changes to the resolution but in vain. Yet, Indian diplomats worked with the US and other sponsors to make sure that the final resolution was not very intrusive. “It had been a totally unilateral move (to renegotiate the resolution),” said sources.

This time, India may not take such an active role, since there isn’t much political imperative to do so. It was to appease the Jayalalithaa Government that the UPA had backed the 2012 resolution. It was then in a hurry to mollify the state government, whose cooperation was required to crack down on the protests against the Koodankulum Nuclear Power Plant.Instead of getting involved, India wants the Americans and Sri Lankans to have direct talks  on the resolution. It means that Colombo has to make a u-turn from its stand last year, when it wanted to have no role in negotiating the resolution.

A lot will depend on the wording of the draft resolution. The US and other sponsors would submit the draft to the council 10 days before the final vote. “Even the draft will undergo lots of changes at the last minute, before it is voted upon. So, it is too early for us to take a call right now,” said a senior government official.

Why case of Tamil convicts is different

DC | R. Bhagwan Singh -Mon, 2013-02-11

Chennai: Both were acts of terror but the case of Afzal Guru is ve­ry different from that of the three Ta­mils condem­ned to death for the assassination of Raji­v Gandhi. The belief in TN is the ending in the two stories need not be the sa­me. Many political parties and social outfits here insist the three convicts must not meet Guru’s fate.

The most striking difference between the two cases is that while a majority of political parties, particularly BJP, have been braying for Guru’s death for involv­ement in the Parliament at­ta­ck of December 2001, none is asking that the hangman be called for the three Rajiv convicts — Perarivalan, San­­than and Murugan. In fact, the general demand from parties is that they either they should be set free or their sentences sho­uld be commuted to life imprisonment. How­ever, a few Congre­ssmen in TN occas­ionally make noises about the delay in carrying out their executions but nob­ody takes them too seriously.

The national refrain is that Guru was han­ged for political reasons sin­ce the Co­ng­ress wanted to deny the BJP a campaign plank about national security, which was why the saffron party was repeatedly asking why Guru had not been hanged yet. In TN, political obser­vers believe that carrying out the death sentence of the three Tamils would scuttle wha­tever chance the Cong­ress and its allies in the state stand in the 2014 Parliament poll.

The courts deliver the death sentence but the executive, for pure political reasons at times, decides on the execution. “This decision on Guru too could have been for creating a jolt and diverting attention. Ironi­cally, the government whi­ch has been indecisive on scores of major issues and events is at last claiming decisiveness through this act of sheer cowardice”, says Sadanand Menon, prominent writer and rights campaigner. 

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