Sri Lanka: The Road from Geneva

Sri Lanka: The Road from Geneva

Darisha Bastian-Thursday, February 6, 2014

 the Government is with UNHRC Sessions in March, staving off an international war crimes inquiry may prove the least of its troubles. Having alienated its most crucial ally across the straits and with inaction by Colombo forcing  a reaction by some of the world’s most powerful nations to act, Sri Lanka’s real problems may start when Geneva ends
Last Sunday (2) morning, American television audiences were treated to a 30 minute long form commercial about Sri Lanka, a place many of them would ever only hear of in passing during their lifetimes.

Sri Lank the Road From Geneva by nelvely

We need upto 10 years to reconcile – Sri Lanka      06 February 2014 2013, boom year for Ceylon Tea மலையக ஆய்வு மற்றும் ஆவண காப்பகம் .  06 February 2014 Sri Lanka has again said it needs more “time and space” to address reconciliation in Sri Lanka. In a 30-minute propaganda video, aired on US national television channel NBC, President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s Secretary Lalith Weerathunga said that Sri Lanka needs over a year to implement the bulk of the LLRC recommendations and up to 10 years to see “fruits in this whole issue of reconciliation” “Tell us if there is any better situation of a similar kind of scenario in the world elsewhere, we will take it. But I don’t think there is anything like that anywhere in the world,” he said while addressing concerns over the pace of the implementations of the LLRC recommendations. The government propaganda video was titled “Sri Lanka: Reconciling and Rebuilding”, and was produced by Washington-based lobby firm, Thompson Advisory Group (TAG) who have been hired by the Central Bank of Sri Lanka last year at a cost of $66,600 (SLRs8,337,600) per month. A column by Dharisha Bastians in Sri Lanka's Financial Times said the film was unlikely to have had any real impact. "...despite the best efforts of TAG, the public relations stunt is unlikely to have had any real impact on opinions that matter in terms of softening positions in Washington about Sri Lanka’s lack of progress on accountability and reconciliation, "US cable news shows, aired primarily to target American audiences are well known for their insularity in dealing with global issues. The Sri Lanka problem, though big news in South Asia and certain specific quarters of Washington, is not an issue on the radar of ordinary Americans. Those engaging on the Sri Lanka problem are far too well briefed about the situation on the ground to be taken in by striking presentations and video footage that seeks to change the prevailing international narrative." The infomercial features President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who promises a Truth and Reconciliation Commission, based on the South African model. “We have seen how Mandela handled it and I want to study that,” the president said. Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivaard Cabraal also make appearances, confidently expressing Sri Lanka’s capacity to conduct its own inquiries into allegations about the final phase of the armed conflict, hopes for reconciliation and unparalleled economic growth. The defence secretary insisted that there needs to be confidence in a local process and that any soldier found guilty of committing offences has already been dealt with, using existing legal processes. The Road from Geneva - Financial Times Sri Lanka (06 Feb 2014) More time and space is more of the same - Editorial (19 Feb 2013)

Mahinda Rajapaksa Promises Truth And Reconciliation Commission; Won’t Say When

February 6, 2014

President Mahinda Rajapaksa says he is ready to accept a South African style Truth and Reconciliation Commission, but stopped short of trapping himself into a deadline on its appointment in a specially commissioned infomercial that was aired on US television last weekend.

Thompson Advisory Group, a lobbying firm contracted by the Sri Lankan Government to carry out its image building in the US filmed the infomercial that aired on NBC on Sunday morning. The commercial is narrated by Gene Randall, a former CNN Anchor and PR consultant, who has carried out similar publicity campaigns for Chevron during an oil contamination scandal in the Amazon Rainforest.

Asked by Randall if he meant that he would appoint a TRC or if he was saying that there were commissions already in place, President Rajapaksa said: “No, no we are going to have it. We will we will. There are other commissions also. We want to know how much actually…that the people also come and give evidence there. Meanwhile we are, we want to appoint this commission too.”

“We have seen how Mandela did and we want to study that. When I was in the opposition I started this process. I went to Ireland, I met the Prime Minister,” he said.

Secretary to the Ministry of Defence Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivaard Cabraal and Presidential Secretary Lalith Weeratunga also feature on the 30 minute commercial.

The promotional video is part of Thompson Advisory Group’s attempt to uplift its PR efforts on the Government’s behalf ahead of the UNHRC sessions in Geneva next month.

Sri Lankan army destroyed mass graves to hide evidence of large-scale civilian deaths, report alleges

This handout photograph received from the Sri Lankan Ministry of Defence on May 18, 2009, is said to be of troops walking amongst debris inside the war zone on May 17, when they helped evacuate the last of the Tamil civilians from the area around the city of Mullaittivu. A new report lists a litany of violations by both sides during Sri Lanka's civil war, notably rapes, torture, use of human shields and conscription of children.

Stewart Bell | February 5, 2014

Mass graves may have been “systematically destroyed” by Sri Lankan security forces at the end of the island’s separatist conflict to hide evidence of large-scale civilian deaths, a new report says.

The Public Interest Advocacy Centre said the demolition of burial sites containing thousands of war dead was one of many apparent “grave violations” that called out for international investigation.

Prepared by a panel that included a former chief United Nations war crimes investigator and the UN’s former spokesman in Sri Lanka, the report pointed the finger at senior government and military officials.

Flagrant and reckless disregard for the laws of war

Given the “well-established” command-and-control structures of the opposing forces, the “flagrant and reckless disregard for the laws of war” may well have been intentional and result in prosecutions, it said.

“More than four years after the end of the Sri Lankan civil war, the Sri Lankan government has failed to address serious and credible alleged violations of international law,” the panel wrote.

“An independent and comprehensive international investigation is needed into these alleged violations of international law. Failure to do so can only damage the prospects of meaningful and enduring reconciliation in Sri Lanka.”

AFP/Getty ImagesIn this handout picture from the Sri Lankan Defence Ministry released on May 17, 2009, is said to be of troops on May 16, after capturing the last patch of coastline in the Mullaittivu district held by the Tamil Tigers, leaving the rebels completely surrounded and cut off from any sea escape.

The report is the latest to urge the international community to hold to account those responsible for the unknown number of deaths that occurred when the Sri Lankan army cornered and defeated the Tamil Tigers in 2009.

Sri Lanka has consistently denied any misconduct and accused Western governments and rights groups of sympathizing with the Tamil rebels. “Influential countries should realize the difficulty of fighting such a ruthless terrorism,” President Mahinda Rajapaksa said at independence day ceremonies Tuesday.

The report lists a litany of violations by both sides, notably indiscriminate artillery fire, rapes, disappearances, torture, use of human shields and conscription of children. But it blamed the Sri Lankan forces for the vast majority of abuses.

“It’s a damning report,” said David Poopilapillai, spokesman for the Canadian Tamil Congress, which has asked Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird to push for sanctions against Sri Lanka. “What is alarming is there was an intent to commit these crimes.”

Sri Lanka, an island on a drift

Tomasz Augustyniak Feb 4, 2014(You cannot miss the billboards…)

COLOMBO: One of the very first things passengers getting off planes at Colombo's Bandaranaike International Airport see is a huge portrait of Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa. The view remains pretty much the same as one travels across the island. You cannot miss the billboards and posters in every nook and corner with the president staring at you.

Sri Lanka, An Island on a Drift by nelvely

A Nation Of Bystanders

 | by Tisaranee Gunasekara

“There must be some way out of here….”

( Bob Dylan (All along the Watchtower)February 6, 2014, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) Mel Gunasekera, the accomplished journalist; Lahiru Sandaruwan Rathnayake, the aspiring undergraduate – both died last week. The acclaimed journalist at the Zenith of her profession was murdered, reportedly by a non-professional thief. The unknown student at the threshold of his university life died, when a pre-existing health condition turned lethal during the military-conducted ‘Leadership Training Programme’ all university-entrants are subjected to.

A Nation of Bystanders by nelvely

De Facto CJ And Shiranee’s Attempt To Discover Leaks To Websites Fails

February 6, 2014 |

The Telecommunications Regulatory Commission has recently informed the de facto Chief Justice Mohan Pieris and Supreme Court Justice Shiranee Tilakawardane that they are unable to trace who gives information to websites operated from outside the country.

This response has been sent consequent to the request from the Supreme Court incumbents to the TRC to find out the sources who have been giving information about the judiciary to those websites, mainly theColombo Telegraph and Lankaenews.

It is also learnt that in the meantime, de facto Chief justice, Pieris has sought similar information from theAjith Nivad Cabraal through the Economic Intelligence Unit of the Central Bank. The Unit conducts regular surveillance on the accounts of citizens in cooperation with the military and police intelligence operations.  Both Cabraal and Pieris are part of the cabal headed by Secretary to the Ministry of Defence Gotabya Rajapaksa. Called the Tuesday tea party these three individuals are known to meet at the Central Bank every week. The country’s economic, defence and judicial decisions are known to be made at this meeting on the instructions of Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

Meanwhile junior judges have aired their displeasure over the de facto CJ’s affiliations with the Central Bank Governor which has recently resulted in one of Cabraal’s loyalists, Assistant Governor Batagoda being called to lecture for judges at the Judges Institute.

De facto CJ, Pieris was earlier appointed as Chairman of Seylan Bank by Secretary to the Ministry of Defence Gotabaya. A few months ago, the de facto CJ also summoned the judges of the Commercial High Courts and told them that the Government was unhappy with the judgments against the banks and the banks cannot function effectively with their orders. Soon thereafter, in an unprecedented move, all commercial court judges were transferred out of the commercial courts during the annual transfers.

JVP revisits Bribery Commission


By Gagani Weerakoo-February 6, 2014 


It is now a month since the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) filed a complaint with the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC), against its Chairman, Jagath Balapatabendi, but the commission has failed to conduct a semblance of a probe into the matter. This compelled the JVP to meet the Secretary to the Commission, this time against its lukewarm attitude towards the first petition, accusing the Bribery Commission of attempting to sweep the complaint against its Chairman under the carpet by needlessly delaying the investigation.

JVP Revisits Bribery Commission by nelvely

Human rights violated says UNP

By admin on February 5, 2014

The UNP today said that there were human rights violations committed by the Government and they need to now set things right.

UNP MP Lakshman Kiriella said that the Weliweriya incident where villagers were attacked when demanding water and the Welikada prison riot where several inmates were killed, are good examples of human rights being violated.

“The law and order situation has completely broken down in the country,” he said.

Kiriella also said that the media in Sri Lanka have been suppressed by the Government and they control the media to the extent that the media refuses to tell the public the truth.

He also accused the Government of double standards saying the Government says one thing locally and something else internationally.

Kiriella said the Government had made several promises to the international community but failed to fulfill those promises.

He said several Government Ministers had assured the UN Human Rights Council that the 17th amendment to the constitution will be implemented but the Government has failed to do so.

The MP said the UNP is willing to help the Government on the human rights issue but the Government must first do it’s part in order to obtain that support.

He said the Government must launch a domestic human rights investigation which meets international standards, as earlier promised to the international community.

The MP said that by launching a domestic probe the Government will be able to avoid an international war crimes investigation. (Colombo Gazette)

TEEN COMMITS SUICIDE OVER FACEBOOK PHOTO

February 6, 2014 

A 16-year-old schoolgirl of the Kurunegala area committed suicide over a photograph that was published of her on facebook.

The principal of the her school in Kurunegala summoned her and her parents over a photograph that was published of her on the popular social networking site with regards to a love affair that she was maintaining.

The girl who had not informed her family about the relationship had hanged herself later on at her home using a sari.

Her body was taken to the Kurunegala hospital and will be handed over to the parents today (February 6).

Ranil escapes assault 

  February 6, 2014 

United National Party (UNP) Kalutara District MP, Palitha Tewarapperuma, yesterday attempted to assault Party Leader, Ranil Wickremesinghe, for not giving nominations to the candidates suggested by him. The incident had taken place during the UNP Parliamentary Group meeting.


At the beginning of the meeting, UNP Colombo District MP, Sujeewa Senasinghe, had complained about the step-motherly treatment he had been receiving from the party leadership. While Senasinghe was expressing his views, MP Tewarapperuma had requested an opportunity to speak.
Soon after Senasinghe had concluded the speech, Tewarapperuma had started strongly criticizing Wickremesinghe and Chairman of the Leadership Council (LC), Karu Jayasuriya.


Addressing Wickremesinghe using the derogatory term 'thamuse,' Tewarapperuma had claimed that his son was not given nominations to contest the upcoming Provincial Council election due to his surname, 'Tewarapperuma.' He also said his son even went to Kachcheriya to change his surname. Tewarapperuma had emphasized, unlike the many sissies in the UNP he is a real man and those sissies do not allow any man to come up in the UNP. He claimed, "Sissies in the party are afraid of real men like me, hence they only work with other sissies."
While Tewarapperuma had been continuing his diatribe, Wickremesinghe had attempted to leave the room. However, Tewarapperuma had tried to drag him back into the room by grabbing hold of the Party Leader's coat.


When Wickremesinghe had started screaming in protest, only John Amaratunga and Akila Viraj Kariyawasam had come to his rescue. When Wickremesinghe's security detail had come into support him, Tewarapperuma had scolded them and chased them away.


At that point, UNP Vice Chairman, Lakshman Kiriella, had tried to intervene, but Tewarapperuma had scolded him too.
Tewarapperuma had then returned his appointment letter as electoral organizer to Kiriella. Furthermore, it is learnt that Kiriella had apologized to Tewarapperuma.

Crises in democracy put national elites in the dock

THAILAND, Bangkok -February 5, 2014

: Thai soldiers stand guard at the Government’s temporary office in the permanent secretary for defence suburb of Bangkok on February 4, 2014. Thai anti-government protesters vowed to press on with street rallies aimed at ousting Prime Minister Yingluck Shinawatra after a disrupted election failed to cut a path through the kingdom’s political crisis.AFP

Crises in Democracy Put National Elites in the Dock by nelvely

Burma arrests 5 journalists

 February 5, 2014

Burma Times – Yangoon- IN WHAT SOME fear could be a backsliding to authoritarian rule, Burmese police arrested five local journalists over a report they published alleging the existence of a secret chemical weapons plant operated by former Burmese generals.

The Southeast Asian Press Alliance (SEAPA), a regional network of media organizations advocating the freedom of the press, said the arrests were “a throwback to the junta days.” The organization added that the arrests were “a grim reminder to the media community in Burma (also known as Myanmar) that the recent relaxation of media freedoms in the country is still very limited.”

The Philippine Center for Investigative Journalism is a founding member of SEAPA.

An alert issued by SEAPA quoted an account of the arrest published by The Irrawaddy, a news magazine that specializes in Burmese issues. The Irrawaddy said the arrested journalists belong to the the publication Unity Weekly.

The five journalists were arrested for a news report entitled A secret chemical weapon factory of the former generals, Chinese technicians and the commander-in-chief at Pauk Township.” The Irrawaddy said the report included photos of the supposed chemical plant, and appeared in the January 25 edition of the publication.

Those arrested were Lu Maw Naing, a reporter in Pauk Township, Tint Sam the CEO of Unity Weekly, and reporters Yarzar Oo, Paing Thet Kyaw, and Sithu Soe.

Another Burmese publication, The Voice, said the five are being held at the notorious Insein prison on charges of leaking state secrets. The SEAPA news alert says the charges are non-bailable, and carry a possible death sentence.

The SEAPA alert said the three biggest journalist groups in Burma have already released a joint statement questioning the arrest, and calling on the Myanmar Press Council to “mediate in behalf of the detained journalists.”

The Myanmar Journalist Union, the Myanmar Journalist Association, and the Myanmar Journalist Network said the arrest of the five journalists “reminds us of the practice of the former military regime.”

“The incident puts a serious dent on the illusion of press freedom that the Myanmar government seeks to project.” said SEAPA executive director Gayathry Venkiteswaran.

“The arrest of the journalists and censorship of Unity Weekly’s 25 january issue also illustrates the urgent need for concrete guarantees to protect the work of journalists,” she added. “The credibility of the government, which has been carefully built up since 2011 is seriously at stake because of this incident, which appears more like a cover-up of the report.”

SEAPA added that while there is no independent confirmation yet of the Unity Weekly news report on the chemical weapons plant, such an installation would “seriously dent the international credibility of the government that has transitioned towards democracy over the last two years.”

CORNERING A BRAVE PALESTINIAN MAN OF PEACE – OPED

By Nicola Nasser

FEBRUARY 6, 2014

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas stands now at a crossroads of his people’s national struggle for liberation and independence as well as of his political life career, cornered between the rock of his own rejecting constituency and the hard place of his Israeli occupying power and the US sponsors of their bilateral negotiations, which were resumed last July 29, despite his minesweeping concessions and backtracking “on all his redlines.”

CORNERING A BRAVE PALESTINIAN MAN OF PEACE – OPED by nelvely

Italy rescues more than 1,100 migrants in rafts south of Sicily

Rescue from overcrowded rafts comes as seven die while trying to swim from Morocco to Spanish enclave of Ceuta

Some of the migrants rescued by the Italian navy about 120 miles south-east of Lampedusa. Photograph: Reuters

 Thursday 6 February 2014

The Italian navy has rescued more than 1,100 migrants from nine large rafts in the waters south of Sicily.

Patrol helicopters identified the overcrowded rafts about 120 miles south-east of Lampedusa on Wednesday and four navy vessels participated in the rescue which ended early on Thursday. The navy gave no details about the nationalities of the migrants involved.

Meanwhile, Moroccan authorities say emergency services have recovered the bodies of seven people who drowned after attempting to swim to the Spanish enclave of Ceuta. Authorities told the state news agency that at least 200 migrants tried to swim to the enclave, which is on a peninsula jutting out from the Moroccan shore.

Italy is a major gateway into Europe for migrants, and arrivals by boat more than tripled in 2013 from the previous year, fuelled by Syria's civil war and strife in the Horn of Africa.

In October, 366 Eritreans drowned in a shipwreck near the shore of the Italian island of Lampedusa, which is located about halfway between Sicily and Tunisia. More than 200, mostly Syrians, died in another shipwreck a week later.

With two Spanish enclaves on its coast, Morocco is a magnet for immigrants from all over Africa seeking jobs in Europe.

Every month, hundreds of immigrants attempt to force their way into Ceuta, near the city of Tetouan, and Melilla to the east.

Over the past two decades, Italy, Greece and the Mediterranean island of Malta have borne the brunt of migrant flows and have urged the EU to make a more robust and coordinated response.

ICEP report finds SL crimes a result of 'deliberate planning and policy decisions'

05 February 2014

The International Crimes Evidence Project (ICEP) on Sri Lanka, carried out by the Public Interest Advocacy Centre (PIAC), made several conclusions that added to mounting evidence that the Sri Lankan government was responsible for vast crimes against humanity.

conclusions that added to mounting evidence that the Sri Lankan government was responsible for vast crimes against humanity.

The report provides an in depth evidence based analysis of alleged attacks on civilians, denial of h

The report provides an in depth evidence based analysis of alleged attacks on civilians, denial of humanitarian assistance, extrajudicial killings, rape and sexual violence, torture and cruel treatment, enforced disappearances and post conflict violations committed by the Sri Lankan government.

Key findings from the report entitled ‘Island of Impunity?’ are reproduced below,

“The report illustrates violations perpetrated by both parties to the conflict and in particular, widespread torture, sexual violence and enforced disappearance, which continue in part today, perpetrated by SFs (Sri Lankan Forces) on the civilian population.”

“There are also allegations of collusion and other acts by the Sri Lankan state, which inhibit accountability for wartime crimes and protect perpetrators.”

On indiscriminate killings of Tamil civilians,

“The impact of attacks on civilians suggests that the use of military force was manifestly disproportionate to any anticipated military advantage.”
“There are reasonable grounds to suspect that the incidents and patterns of incidents considered in this report are the result of deliberate planning and policy decisions.”

“Some attacks.. could be evidence of a direct attack on civilians and as such could amount to the war crime of attacking civilians."

“The evidentiary material gathered by ICEP calls into question why the Sri Lankan Army selected these areas to be NFZs (No Fire Zones) given their proximity to the  LTTE’s defence lines and existence of LTTE targets.”

“Mortars and air-burst munitions, are indicative of a failure to program artillery fire control systems with the coordinates of these NFZ and therefore suggests an intention, or at least recklessness, regarding the actual target.”

On the denial of humanitarian assistance,

“The Sri Lankan Government deliberately understated the number of civilians in the conflict zone and the need for food and basic medical supplies. ICEP has compelling evidentiary material suggesting that civilians starved to death.”

“reasonable grounds to suspect … members of the Sri Lankan Government denied humanitarian assistance, in such a way as to amount to the war crime of cruel treatment and/or the crime against humanity of persecution or other inhumane acts.”

On post-conflict violations,

“allegations are that human remains from mass burial sites in the conflict zone were exhumed and were covertly destroyed. This highlights the urgent need for an internationally-mandated investigation.”

The report concluded,

“An independent and comprehensive international investigation is needed into these alleged violations of international law. The absence of such investigation will also ensure the ongoing impunity of those on both sides of the conduct who have committed violations, thereby emboldening those who may continue to abuse the civilian population.”

Exclusive UN's Sri Lanka Report Cites Syria & Rwanda, Despite Haiti Claims Accountability by nelvely