Full Text Of Petitions Filed In The SC Challenging The Load Of Bills Suddenly Sought To Be Passed

By Colombo Telegraph -March 16, 2013 |

Fifteen petitions were filed in the Supreme Courts on Thursday challenging the constitutionality of 11 of the Bills tabled in parliament last Friday. We give below the text of several Petitions filed in the Supreme Court challenging the load of Bills suddenly sought to be passed by the Government.

The challenged Bills are; Strategic Development Projects (Amendment), Betting and Gaming Levy (Amendment),Nation Building Tax (Amendment),Fiscal Management (Responsibility) (Amendment),Finance, Value Added Tax (Amendment),  Inland Revenue (Amendment), Notaries (Amendment), Powers of Attorney (Amendment), Registration of Documents (Amendment) and Tax Appeals Commission (Amendment). 21 Bills were presented 8th Friday.

Click here to read the petition – Strategic Development Projects (Amendment)

Click here to read the petition - Betting and Gaming Levy (Amendment)

Click here to read the petition - Nation Building Tax (Amendment)

Click here to read the petition - Fiscal Management (Responsibility) (Amendment)

Click here to read the petition - Finance

Click here to read the petition - Inland Revenue (Amendment)

Click here to read the petition - Notaries (Amendment)

Click here to read the petition - Powers of Attorney (Amendment)

Click here to read the petition - Registration of Documents (Amendment) and Tax Appeals Commission (Amendment)

21 Bills below were presented 8th Friday;

Presentation of Bills

The Hon. Leader of the House of Parliament moved the following Bills:-

1. Fiscal Management (Responsibility) (Amendment)

(to amend the Fiscal Management (Responsibility) Act, No. 3 of 2003.)

2. Economic Service Charge (Amendment)

(to amend the Economic Service Charge Act, No. 13 of 2006.)

3. Excise (Amendment)

(to amend the Excise Ordinance (Chapter 52).)

4. Strategic Development Projects (Amendment)

(to amend the Strategic Development Projects Act, No.14 of 2008.)

5. Ports and Airports Development Levy (Amendment)

(to amend the Ports and Airports Development Levy Act, No. 18 of 2011.)

6. Telecommunication Levy (Amendment)

(to amend the Telecommunication Levy Act, No. 21 of 2011.)

7. Value Added Tax (Amendment)

(to amend the Value Added Tax Act, No. 14 of 2002.)

8. Customs (Amendment)

(to amend the Customs Ordinance (Chapter 235))

9. Betting and Gaming Levy (Amendment)

(to amend the Betting and Gaming Levy Act, No. 40 of 1988.)

10. Nation Building Tax (Amendment)

(to amend the Nation Building Tax Act, No. 9 of 2009.)

11. Inland Revenue (Amendment)

(to amend the Inland Revenue Act, No. 10 of 2006.)

12. Tax Appeals Commission (Amendment)

(to amend the Tax Appeals Commission Act, No. 23 of 2011.)

13. Finance

(to amend the Finance Act, No 16 of 1995, the Finance Act, No.25 of 2003, the Finance Act, No. 12 of 2012 and the Finance Act, No. 11 of 1963; to provide for the imposition of a crop insurance levy; and to provide for matters connected therewith and incidental thereto.)

14. Marriage Registration (Amendment)

(to amend the Marriage Registration Ordinance (Chapter 112))

15. Muslim Marriage and Divorce (Amendment)

(to amend the Muslim Marriage and Divorce Act (Chapter 115).)

16. Births and Deaths Registration (Amendment)

(to amend the Births and Deaths Registration Act (Chapter 110).)

17. Notaries (Amendment)

(to amend the Notaries Ordinance (Chapter 107).)

18. Kandyan Marriage and Divorce (Amendment)

(to amend the Kandyan Marriage and Divorce Act (Chapter 113))

19. Registration of Documents (Amendment)

(to amend the Registration of Documents Ordinance (Chapter 117).)

20. Powers of Attorney (Amendment)

(to amend the Powers of Attorney Ordinance (Chapter 122).)

21. Resettlement Authority (Amendment)

(to amend the Resettlement Authority Act, No. 9 of 2007.)

Govt Not Committed To Resolve Conflict – Sampanthan

• International community can help people if govt fails to deliver

By Mandana Ismail Abeywickrema-Saturday, March 16, 2013

 Leader R. Sampanthan says the government seems determined to imprint upon the Tamil community the status of an inferior people. He observed that the government’s performance has been under observation by relevant UN agencies and others who have presented resolutions. “The government most regrettably seems to think that by persistently engaging in denials and adopting tactics of delay and evasion it could avoid the fulfillment of its commitments and obligations,” Sampanthan noted.

Following are excerpts of the interview:

Q: How do you see the international community’s focus on Sri Lanka?
A: The international community’s focus on Sri Lanka is based upon not really what happened during the war and not merely on the assurances the Sri Lankan government gave the international community both before and after the conclusion of the war, particularly when some sections of the international community were of great help to the Sri Lankan government in successfully ending the war, but also on Sri Lanka’s performance and delivery on both its international obligations and other commitments made to the international community during the nearly four year period since the conclusion of the war. The international community’s appraisal of Sri Lanka is based upon its assessment of how Sri Lanka has performed also with regard to the implementation of the recommendations by the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission appointed by the Sri Lankan government itself and also the implementation of the resolution adopted by the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in March 2012. It will be futile to suggest that the international community is acting on anything but definite material that is available for its decision to be based upon.

Q: What are your views on the draft US resolution presented to the UNHRC in Geneva?
A: Since the adoption of the resolution in March 2012, although the Sri Lankan government has made no unequivocal commitment to the implementation of the recommendations of the LLRC or the resolution adopted by the UNHRC in 2012, the Sri Lankan government claims to have set in motion certain processes to fulfill its obligations. Apart from some physical infrastructure such as roads and bridges which do not make a great impact on the lives of people who have been rendered homeless and destitute as a result of the manner in which the war was prosecuted, and apart from the rehabilitation of a section of former LTTE cadres, many thousands of whom together with civilians are yet missing and unaccounted for, the Sri Lankan government has little else to indicate that it has fulfilled its commitments. The Sri Lankan government’s performance has been under observation by relevant UN agencies and others who have presented resolutions and the conclusions arrived at are as a result of studies and observations. The Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights whose technical team visited Sri Lanka has also made its own report in regard to the situation and the present resolution is based upon material thus obtained.

Q: You have said at the Global Tamil Forum conference that all necessary appropriate action need to be taken to ensure Sri Lanka complies with the international commitments and obligations. What action are you referring to?
A: It is not for me to dictate to the international community as to what action should be taken. These resolutions have been moved with certain objectives in mind and my view is that it is in the interest of this country and genuine reconciliation and goodwill amongst all the people who inhabit this country. These objectives must be achieved and the international community having outlined its objectives must in my view take whatever action that needs to be taken to achieve the said objective because the fulfillment of the objective as said before will be in the interest of all peoples.

Q: What implications do you think these actions would have on Sri Lanka?
A: That would be a matter largely for the Sri Lanka government to decide. If the Sri Lankan government were to fulfill its obligations and commitments, the implications would be most desirable for Sri Lanka. One can only hope that instead of issuing bald denials and acting with a sense of continuing impunity, the Sri Lankan government would in the interest of the country and all peoples take meaningful action to ensure that at least now it fulfills its commitments and obligations.

Q: Do you feel that the government has responded well to the concerns of the international community?
A: The government’s response in my respectful view has neither been genuine nor honest and the government most regrettably seems to think that by persistently engaging in denials and adopting tactics of delay and evasion it could avoid the fulfillment of its commitments and obligations. Most regrettably also, the time and space that the government seeks is not to fulfill its commitments and obligations but rather to fulfill its own agenda, which is to change the demographic composition of the North and East Provinces further and dilute and alter the cultural and linguistic identity of those areas. This in my view seems to be the primary objective of the government in seeking more time and space.

Q: What do you think of the position of the Tamil community in the country, especially in the Northern and Eastern Provinces?
A: Pathetic. The government seems determined to imprint upon them the status of an inferior people. The military seems to think that the Tamil people can be subjugated. The government seems to think that through some development work the Tamil people can be appeased and induced to abandon their legitimate political, economic, social and cultural aspirations as a distinct people who have inhabited this country since time immemorial and traditionally occupied along with their Tamil speaking Muslim brethren in the Northern and Eastern provinces. The government should realize that a policy of integration would certainly be welcome and that a policy of either subjugation or forced assimilation must inevitably fail. The Tamil people through their democratic verdicts have clearly expressed their aspirations. If the Tamil people are to be treated as equals in the country their democratic verdict must be respected. The Tamil people must be able to live in equality with dignity and self-respect – that is the only way to genuine peace and reconciliation.

Q: What would you say of the government’s actions in post war Sri Lanka?
A: Most disappointing. An opportunity that presented itself after the conclusion of the armed conflict has been frittered away. Military triumphalism, majoritarianism and political expediency have taken precedence over a genuine effort to bring about reconciliation based upon justice and equality amongst the different peoples who inhabit Sri Lanka. The government also seems determined to continue to portray the existence of yet another military threat in order to justify its approach to governance. It’s a fiction, which the government seems determined to sustain because it can provide some justification to its approach to governance. The Tamil people on the other hand, by and large the vast majority of them, whether they live in this country or abroad, do not want to return to violence and are committed to reaching an acceptable, reasonable, workable, and durable political solution that would enable them to live as equals in the country. The government should abandon its fictitious perceptions and move towards arriving at such a political solution. The government should also understand that for several decades Tamil political agitations were democratic, non-violent and peaceful. It was the failure to implement commitments made and the unleashing of persistent racial pogroms against the Tamil people that resulted in an armed conflict.

Q: Do you have faith in the Rajapaksa government to bring about a solution to the ethnic issue? 
A: Not in the way they are now performing. I am sorry to state that I do not think that the present government is genuinely committed to the resolution of the conflict based upon democracy, justice and equality. The government, I think, is committed to pursuing policies that are politically expedient based upon narrow sectarian agendas that would enable it to continue in power. The government attaches no importance whatsoever to value the principles clearly demonstrated by the purported impeachment of the Chief Justice and the scuttling of the independent commissions such as the Elections Commission, Human Rights Commission, Judicial Service Commission, Public Service Commission, National Police Commission, Bribery Commission and the appointments to the higher judiciary – all of which are clearly indicative of the government working on an agenda which is not in the best interests of the country.

Q: Do you believe that the international community could help find a solution to the people in the North and East Provinces?
A: If the Sri Lankan government does not deliver I think the international community can help all the people in this country towards resolving the national question. All the people in the country must realize that such a resolution would be in their best interest and would be in the larger interest of the country as a whole. We should work unitedly to achieve this objective.

The GTF Comes Out Of The Shadows: What’s New In The Tamil Diaspora?

By Kumar David -March 16, 2013 |

Prof Kumar David

It is to be expected that the obliteration of the LTTE would transform all Tamil polity. Armed militancy has ceased in Lanka (except the hallucinatory hypocrisy of the Defence Ministry when cracking down on rights and freedoms), and the TNA has surfaced as the main political representative of the Ceylon Tamils. (Ceylon is used here to exclude Muslims and Upcountry Tamils and the generic Tamil hereafter refers to Ceylon Tamils). The status quo was slower to change in the diaspora and remained murky, but a recent visit to London permitted me a closer view. What I had hoped would be nostalgic nightly pub crawls with old buddies, turned into seminars at the School of Oriental & African Studies and King’s College (not university events but venues reserved by student societies), on Modalities of Emergent Dictatorship in Lanka & the National Question, and Great Power Balances in the Indian Ocean, respectively. I was also an observer at the GTF Convention in the House of Commons, and moreover had the opportunity to interact with diaspora youth – mainly Tamils, but a few Sinhalese as well. It was good experience; but no more of my doings; this essay is on political trends in the Tamil diaspora, principally in London, but extrapolation to the rest of the UK and Europe would be reasonable.

There is uncertainty, flux, and thirdly a distinct emergent trend which I will discuss anon. Uncertainty is lodged in the mind of the relatively small part of the diaspora which remains loyal to the LTTE agenda – that is, to the concept of Thamil Eelam as a separate state of the Tamils in the island of Lanka. I would not venture a guess how large or small this sector is, but at my meetings only three or four people intervened such that it signalled them out as carriers of this ideology. The mood of pro-Eelam folk (LTTE loyalists and non-LTTE) was that Tamils would never get a fair deal from the Sinhalese majority; hence they would be better off in a state of their own. However, I did not meet a single person who argued that the Tamils should start again from where the LTTE left off. That is, a return to the armed struggle was deemed futile by implication; but when asked by what other realistic means Eelam could be reached, the replies were prevarications and irrelevancies.

In the past rich diaspora Tamils would pontificate for a separate state and contribute to LTTE funds, but carefully educated their sons and daughters as doctors, accountants and engineers. In LTTE times there was cannon fodder, children of the poor, of farmers and fishermen, mobilised on the ground, through whom this class could ejaculate its pent up nationalist frustrations while remaining ensconced in material comforts of Western prosperity. Sans the LTTE, sans the “boys”, sans children of the Tamil poor to feed to the guns of the Sinhala state, this option has dried up.

The flux in the middle

It is my reading that the majority of Tamils in the diaspora are no longer bearers of LTTE ideology hence it is false to use the term LTTE-rump as though it reflected the general mood of adults or youth. There is indeed intense, even passionate commitment to what can be called “the Tamil cause”; but equally, there is realisation that armed struggle and civil-war have failed and acceptance that Thamil Eelam is now a daydream unless delivered by Washington-cum-Delhi; or issues from a great movement of global Dravidians. But diaspora Tamils are not raving lunatics like Weerawansa; they know that Washington and Delhi may be usable for enforcing human rights or political solutions, but are not standard-bearers of Thamil Eelam. Or imagine Tamil Nadu and Malaysian Tamils exchanging their present positions for an irredentist Eldorado of global Dravidianism. Heck, they must sniff crack-cocaine before it comes to that!

To put it simply, the large mass of diaspora Tamils have bitter personal experiences, are angry about the carnage in the Vannie, and determined to oppose oppression of the minority, and hence will help defeatRajapakse siblings and state. However, apart from negative sentiments of rage, alienation and injustice, they don’t quite know what positive strategy to pursue. If Eelam is a bit of a stretch and if the Sinhala racist state is the enemy’, but if wary of democratic (and hopefully socialist) alliances with Sinhalese, Muslim and Christian progressives, where does that leave them? Much confused you might think – well not quite. The diaspora is not in stasis but in reflexive movement out of miasma and into some light; the mist is clearing and I prefer to look at the positive side.

The Tamil diaspora is in flux. It is letting go of the past but has not yet found a future. The agency which should have been a point of resonance, the left, is dead; the dead-left in Rajapakse’s pocket is despised. Smaller left parties are noticed, but at the bottom of the radar screen; none are significant. Unfortunately, more in the diaspora than in the Tamil community at home, the JVP is perceived as alien, not overtly racist but with nothing to offer; a predicament for which the JVP is itself 101% to blame! There is grudging acceptance that with the Tigers buried the TNA is the only game in town for the Tamils. All this may be platitudinous for some readers, but this shift of allegiance is gelling only slowly in diaspora minds.

A matter of some disappointment to me is that while there is, obviously, interest in a national democratic programme, it is difficult to engage diaspora youth in socio-economics. Try and you run into a stone wall or blank heads. Am I asking for too much? Give it time, they’ve hardly got over the LTTE delusion, maybe that’s enough for a decade. Only young people who return to Lanka and soil their hands in real issues can appreciate that ivory tower exclusively-nationalist thought is sterile. Even contributions from afar to a national democratic programme will be off the mark; I refer to the writing of a new constitution, economic strategy and the IMF, and social issues (health, education and women). Since the majority of youth will not return, acclimatised as they are to a new ethos, their main contribution will be engendering international pressure for democracy in general and minority rights in particular; still valuable.

The GTF Convention

The Global Tamil Forum’s convention at the House of Commons at the end of February was more a grand event than a conference where perspectives are debated and future programmes thrashed out. In what it set out to do, it was a great success and established two gains. Firstly it displayed that the British political establishment (Tories, Labour and the Lib-Dems) were willing to throw their weight behind a political solution and that they unanimously backed a call for reconciliation as per LLRC recommendations, accountability and independent investigation. The ANC added its voice as did Eric Solheim, Yasmin Sooka and Gordon Weise. The second achievement is that it added to the pressure building on GoSL at the UNHRC sessions in Geneva. GoSL is boxed in and under intense international pressure complicating its domestic putrefaction – impeachment travesty, Divineguma charade, senior ministers abusing the law with impunity on behalf of their progeny; a rotten catamaran long overdue to sink. These are two signal achievements of the GTF convention.

An initiative that did not work out well was the intention of inviting about two dozen progressive Sinhalese activists, leftists and journalists as a first step in building multi-ethnic mobilisation. In the end there were no more than four or five Sinhalese and no one high profile made a presentation. Never mind, these are early days and a start has to be made. People intending to return to the Island are concerned about bullying by state and chauvinists, and rightly so given the Rajapakse government’s rampant abuse of power against opponents. Second, and perhaps more important, the GTF had done little preparatory spade work. The organisation and its programme are unknown in Lanka; how can a Sinhalese participate in a convention on a very tricky issue without transparency on the nature of the host. If a large Sinhalese contingent was to participate, the programme agenda should also have been circulated and discussed in advance.

One criticism that does not trouble me at all is the charge that the GTF includes people who were once sympathisers or supporters of the LTTE. Any Tamil political organisation today will include plenty of ex-LTTE people. How can it be otherwise given the LTTE’s pervasive influence and energy for thirty years in both the diaspora and at home? Even the Rajapakse regime includes a strong contingent of ex-LTTE cadres; vide Karuna, Pilleyan, KP and paramilitaries who remain armed to this day. Douglas, though not ex-LTTE, also belongs to the tradition of armed Tamils. Every organisation, in which Tamils are present, now and well into the future, will contain former LTTErs. It is time to be plain about this and lay to rest this bogey which state, military and chauvinists use to marginalise Tamil political activity. I believe that the GTF, like the TNA and all Tamil political and non-political organisations, surely contains previous LTTE sympathisers and supporters. That’s fine by me; what’s important is the organisation’s current and future programme.

My assessment is that the GTF leadership has an understanding of the political dynamics outlined in this essay, is receptive to a genuine political solution and accepts the TNA as the on-the-ground leader, is thinking along programmatic lines including alliances in the South, and is desirous of progressive alliances with radical, democratic and leftist Sinhalese and Muslim movements. In respect of the last matter its practices are still in embryo, but will develop. The leadership often looks over its shoulder at the support base which spreads over a spectrum of maturity. Practice more than preaching will help the base to mature. I am of the view that the GTF is a forward-thinking diaspora Tamil political entity and it would be productive for activists of all communities in Lanka to relate to it, ignoring the shrieks that this suggestion will evoke from racist and chauvinist quarters and unavoidable intimidation by the Rajapakse state.

Lanka Crimes: CPI(M) Wants India to Press for Probe

NEW DELHI | MAR 16, 2013

India should press for a credible and independent probe into the alleged war crimes by Sri Lankan forces and seek devolution of powers by the island nation’s government to Tamil-dominated areas, the CPI(M) said today.

“At the UN Human Rights Council meeting, the government should take the stand that the Sri Lankan government should agree to a high level, credible and independent enquiry on the allegations of war crimes committed during the last phase of the civil war,” the party Politburo said in a statement here.

It said that though four years have passed since the end of hostilities between Sri Lankan army and the LTTE, “no meaningful steps have been taken to address the issues of atrocities committed during the last phase of the war. Enough evidence exists about war crimes against innocent civilians.”

The UNHRC had adopted a resolution in March 2012 asking Sri Lanka to implement the recommendations of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission. “Since then, there has been no progress in the matter,” it said.

The CPI(M) expressed concern at the declaration by Sri Lankan President Rajapaksa that no autonomy would be given to the Tamil-speaking areas.

“By this, he has gone back from his own stand that something more than the 13th amendment to the Constitution can be provided in terms of devolution of power to the Tamil- speaking region.”

The CPI(M) said New Delhi should take up this matter and press Colombo to arrive at a political settlement so that adequate power is devolved to the Tamil-speaking areas.

FILED ON: MAR 16, 2013 13:12 IST

How The Old Economic Triad Is Becoming The New Cockup

By Rajan Philips -March 16, 2013 

Rajan Philips

Land, exports and infrastructure: How the old economic triad is becoming the new cockup

The process of colonial economic development is common knowledge. Vast stretches of land were consumed by the development of plantation agriculture producing tea. The tea plantations were export oriented, while the plantation labour was immigrant-based. The colonial government used tax revenue from export earnings to build infrastructure – roads, rail, ports, electricity, and water & sanitary services – primarily to service the plantations but extending the infrastructure across the country. The process limped along after independence with inconsistent and ill-executed modifications: land alienation for irrigation and agriculture for internal colonization and food production (under UNP governments); crude attempts at industrialization via state corporations (SLFP governments): and ‘open sesame’ after 1977 (totalitarian presidential governments). But the old economic triad is becoming the new cockup and in unprecedented ways under the stewardship of the Rajapaksa government. How so?

The change from the old triad to the new cockup could be illustrated by the four bottom line considerations of social, economic, financial and environmental impacts. It is fair to say that the articulation of land, exports and infrastructure in colonial times was primarily based on financial considerations. The analyses of social, economic and environmental impacts did not figure as prominently as financial considerations, nor were the methodologies for analyzing and dealing with those impacts available in the 19^th and early 20th centuries. But these methodologies and practices are now standard practice in public policy and public investment in most countries. They were standard practices in Sri Lanka too for the first three decades after independence but not anymore.

Economic triad: pluses and minuses   Read More

UN Human Rights Council: Adoption of the Outcome of Sri Lanka's UPR

MARCH 14, 2013

During the UPR process in November 2012, Sri Lanka rejected 100 recommendations – nearly half of those proposed by United Nations member states, including many related to accountability and justice issues.  Among the rejected recommendations was one to implement the government’s own Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) recommendations. Instead the government committed only to implement its National Action Plan on the LLRC – which ignores nearly 50 percent of the recommendations made by the LLRC.

The LLRC’s recommendations were themselves already severely limited in scope. The UN Human Rights Council noted with concern that the LLRC report “does not adequately address serious allegations of violations of international law.” Human Rights Watch criticized the LLRC report because it disregards the worst abuses by government forces, rehashes longstanding and unfulfilled recommendations, and fails to advance accountability for victims of abuses during Sri Lanka’s civil armed conflict. By restricting its focus to the National Action Plan on the LLRC, the Sri Lankan government indicated that it is even unwilling to accept and implement recommendations by its own body.

In addition, as further evidence of its lack of commitment on accountability, the government turned down basic recommendations focusing on the need to end impunity and investigate serious allegations of human rights violations. For instance, the government rejected a call from the US to “end impunity for human rights violations and fulfill legal obligations regarding accountability.” It also rejected Thailand’s recommendation to strengthen relevant legislative and administrative measures to ensure transparency and non-impunity in the judicial process on all alleged enforced disappearance cases including investigation, prosecution and reparation, which would help contribute towards its national reconciliation.

In many instances, the Sri Lankan government rejected the recommendations by arguing that it had already implemented them. However, that assertion is fundamentally untrue.  For example, the government stated that it had established a database where families of those forcibly disappeared can search the whereabouts of their loved ones, despite a complete absence of evidence that victims have had access to such a database. Notably, the government of Sri Lanka rejected all the recommendations that were made during the UPR regarding the need to protect human rights defenders and their work. Sri Lanka has a dismal track record on this issue. Since the March 2012 resolution was passed, civil society and media in Sri Lanka who are critical of the government or support accountability have come under attack.

Finally, the Sri Lankan government, both during the UPR and this Council session, repeatedly stated that it has cooperated fully with the United Nations. Yet among the recommendations rejected by the government were those requesting its full cooperation with the UN Special Procedures, including responding to pending request to visit the country.

We Are Nothing If We Are Not All

By Malinda Seneviratne -March 16, 2013 |

Malinda Seneviratne

Api venuwen api (all of us for all of us) was a defining slogan as the entire nation stood with the President, the Government and the security forces in the last years of the struggle to rid the country of the terrorist menace. Today, almost four years later, the country faces another test, this time from external sources. A few days from now the UNHRC will take up a US sponsored resolution on (read ‘against’) Sri Lanka. Given realities of global power balance (and imbalance) in all likelihood, the resolution will pass. There is very little that Sri Lanka can do about international busybodies with pernicious agendas backed by bucks and guns, not even if Sri Lanka had the finest diplomats on earth.

As is mentioned in the Dhammapada (Verse 11, Sariputta Thera Vattu), ‘those take untruth for truth; they take truth for untruth, persons can never arrive at the truth, for they hold wrong views’.

The silver lining, paradoxically, in these trying circumstances is the opportunity to separate friend from friend-claimant. India, for example, is said to be negotiating another ‘watered down’ resolution, but this should not fool anyone. India would love to come off as ‘friend’ even as it wrangles a resolution that will keep Tamil Naduhappy and its interests in Sri Lanka safe from usurpation by China (for example).

Come next Sunday, we will know.

Whatever happens, Sri Lankans must reconcile to the fact that in the face of adversity and in times of celebration we are best when we are united, i.e. when we are in api venuven api mode.

Now absolute unity in any polity is a myth. We can only speak of degrees of unity. We can be united against a common enemy, even if we are at odds with one another. Sometimes adversity prompts blaming. When faced with storms beyond our strength we take our frustrations out on lesser ‘enemies’. Sometimes we even conjure enemies where there are none.

It is not possible of course to explain animosities between followers of different faith in terms of what’s happening in Geneva right now. However, regardless of Geneva, it is prudent to reflect on the notion of unity and the attendant virtues of tolerance, compassion and wisdom as we struggle to obtain and experience the full meaning of the term ‘citizenry’ in a post-terrorism Sri Lanka.

There is reality and there is perception. Human beings are frail and this frailty cuts across all identity markers, all faiths, all ethnic groups, all classes, castes and age groups. No community can claim it is blameless in taunting, causing grievous hurt and insulting another. It is this very fact that is used by those persuaded by less than religious motives to make point, exaggerate, raise anxiety level and in these and other ways mobilize the lowest human sentiments for political projects that have nothing to do with the teachings they profess to abide by.

Religious fervor is an easily sharpened sword. Those who use that instrument have an edge over those who are probably closer adherents to fundamental tenets. All the more reason for those who would hesitate to be swayed by religious-politics to stand up and be counted, stand up and stand between executor and would-be executed, literally and metaphorically.

A good Buddhist is a good human being. So too a good Hindu, a good Muslim and a good Christian. All religious texts are made for interpretation and therefore for pernicious misinterpretation. That’s politics. But all texts contain notions of tolerance, compassion, giving and wisdom.

People say we cannot afford another ‘July 1983’. The reasons, it is claims, is the flak Sri Lanka will receive internationally. This is not true. We cannot afford another ‘July 1983’ not because of the exaggerations it will spawn, the distortions and the political instability, but that it will leave us impoverished in terms of how we relate to each other, individually and as collectives.

Extremism is not always produced by extremists. The TULF was ‘moderate’, the LTTE was not. But malice, exaggeration of grievance, inflation of aspiration, provocation, planting of mistrust etc., unleash forces that are beyond the control of the unleashing entity.

A ‘Good Buddhist’ would be a failure if he let anyone in his/her name or the name of ‘Buddhism’ harm anyone of any other faith, whatever wrong he/she may have done. ‘Revenge’ has no place in Buddhism. Neither is it resident in Hinduism, Islam or Christianity. Infringement of the law has to be taken care of law enforcement authorities, not private citizens. If laws are deficient or law enforcement authorities errant, then these flaws have to be corrected. We cannot have unauthorized entities interpreting the law and enforcing it.

Api (us) is not an ethnic-specific term. It is an inclusive one and moreover one that finds resonance in all faiths. If a Muslim does not recognize the humanity of a non-Muslim then he is a lesser Muslim. The same holds for a Buddhist. If a Buddhist sees a lesser creature in a Christian then he/she diminishes him/herself and his/her fellow Buddhists.

We are nothing if we are not all.

*Malinda Seneviratne is the Chief Editor of ‘The Nation’ and his articles can be found at www.malindawords.blogspot.com

S.G. Punchihewa, Champion of a decent society

S.G. Punchihewa, Champion of a decent society

By Dr. Paikasothy Saravanamuttu 

SUNDAY, MARCH 17, 2013

”I am deeply honoured and very pleased to be able to contribute an article on an individual who is a lawyer, human rights activist and communicator and one who possesses the attributes I outlined in abundance.  S.G. Punchihewa has spent decades of his life, serving the peoples of this country, tirelessly talking and writing about rights through good times and more frequently through bad and even worse times”


Sri Lanka faces the challenge of moving from a post-war to a post–conflict situation defined in terms of the causes of conflict not being sustained and certainly not being reproduced.  This means a solid solution to the situation of the internally displaced in terms of their livelihoods and housing, the proper rehabilitation of LTTE cadre and their reintegration and acceptance by society, resolving the issue of detainees, “surrendees”, of those who died and those who were killed during the war, healing the scars of the survivors, reversing the culture of impunity in respect of a host of human rights violations and the honest search for a political and constitutional settlement that will ensure the equality of all the citizens of Sri Lanka irrespective of their particular identities.  This means addressing fairly and squarely the question of whether true unity can be achieved without reconciliation and true reconciliation without accountability.

Reinforcing all of this are challenges of governance that predate the war.  These relate to the integrity of public institutions and processes, checks and balances on the exercise of executive power and authority, their immunity from corrosive politicisation, “state capture” and the curse of the consolidation of executive power at the centre in one ethnic group, elite, a single party, individual or family.

All of these make up our polity and our political culture and all of this cries out for reform and transformation.  This can only be achieved if citizens actively participate in this reform and change.  No functioning democracy can be sustained if its citizens are part of an audience watching the farce or tragedy that passes for government and governance – they have to be the players, the stake -holders. Without their vigilance, democracy will be distorted and eventually destroyed.

For them to be actively engaged in transformation it is important that they understand the importance of that transformation, the urgent need for it and their pivotal role in its realisation.  Not every citizen is aware of the complexities of governance in terms of the plight of others, the overarching significance of the rule of law and the critical role of reconciliation for unity.  Likewise, not every citizen is aware of their own rights or the duties and responsibilities that go with them.  Awareness -raising of the citizenry of their rights and responsibilities requires effective and committed communicators who can speak to the public at large in easily accessible prose and speech-which are clear and cogent without exaggeration or distortion. This requires the communicator to understand rights and responsibilities in a functioning democracy and moreover to be able to communicate this effectively and believe in the message to be communicated.  Sincerity, commitment, coherent understanding, passion and humour are indispensable attributes for a lawyer, a human rights activist and communicator.

I am deeply honoured and very pleased to be able to contribute an article on an individual who is a lawyer, human rights activist and communicator and one who possesses the attributes I outlined in abundance.  S.G. Punchihewa has spent decades of his life, serving the peoples of this country, tirelessly talking and writing about rights through good times and more frequently through bad and even worse times.  He has never lacked in courage and integrity, sincerity and commitment in outlining the consequences of the abuse of power and of the allure of power by and to those who have exercised it in successive governments.  He does it without fanfare, simply and intelligently, getting his argument across gently and ever so effectively as a result.

I have had the privilege of working with him, sharing the stage with him, reaching out to citizens throughout the land from north to south and east to west and marvelled at his energy and commitment and that gift of communication breaking down the complexities of issues and concepts with homespun wisdom and mischievous humour.  Whether it has been university students, politicians, school-teachers, lawyers or farmers, SG has been equally eloquent and effective on human rights, language rights, devolution and reconciliation.

Civil society anywhere in the world needs such individuals.  They are gifted and rare. They are a treasure.
 SG, I salute you, above all for your tireless efforts and dedication and the natural gifts you bring to bear on making this our country a decent and civilised society in the sense that the Israeli philosopher Avishai Margalit meant when he wrote about a society in which institutions do not humiliate people and people do not humiliate others.