Monday, October 10, 2016

Listen To The People; Include Health As A Fundamental Right In The New Constitution

By Saroj Jayasinghe –October 10, 2016

Prof Saroj Jayasinghe

In its most simple form, health means to be well or contented in the key dimensions of life (i.e. physical, mental and social dimensions). In other words, all our struggles, investments and conflicts are ultimately aimed at living a good quality life to a maximum. These are the fundamental goals of human existence from a secular point of view. It is therefore essential that such a basic dimension of existence should be included and enshrined as a fundamental human right in our constitution. The public consultations done by the government overwhelmingly supported this line of thinking.

The next few paragraphs outline the proposal in further detail.

Proposal

The new Constitution should include a clear statement on right to health. This includes a right to reasonable healthcare, but extended to other determinants of health. The latter is essential because, people fall sick BEFORE they come to healthcare (i.e. visit a clinic, pharmacy or hospital). For example, if the state ignores taking any action on air pollution, we will all choke to death or suffer from diseases such as asthma. Though the precise wording can be improved, examples of such statements include;

“The Constitution guarantees the progressive realization of rights that will enable everyone to enjoy the highest attainable standard of physical, mental and social dimensions of health”

“Every citizen has the right to a reasonable standard of living, adequate for the health and well-being of himself or herself and of his or her family, including the access to medical care, preventive services, basic amenities and social services”.

Why do we need such a proposal?

We need such an explicit statement because the current Constitution does not explicitly include health as a fundamental right, and has only an indirect statement (Article 27 2 (c): “the realization by all citizens of an adequate standard of living for themselves and their families, including adequate food, clothing and housing, the continuous improvement of living conditions and the full enjoyment of leisure and social and cultural opportunities”).

By Maheesha Mudugamuwa-October 10, 2016, 9:35 pm

Constitutional expert and Parliamentarian Dr Jayampathy Wickremeratne yesterday requested all political parties in the country to be flexible and help the government draft a new constitution.

He told a media briefing in Colombo that constitutional reforms were not for the benefit of a single person; it was for all the people.

Dr Wickremeratne said the previous two constitutions had been introduced for the benefit of the United Front and UNP respectively. But, at present since the UNP and SLFP were in power it was possible to make a new Constitution beneficial to the country.

At present a new constitution had not yet been drafted or not even a single provision made, he said, noting that the devolution of power and electoral system were being discussed.

Dr Wickremaratne, who is also a member of the Steering Committee of the Constitutional Assembly and the chairman of the committee that provides technical support to the Constitutional Assembly to draft the new Constitution, said that the need was for a new constitution and not amending the existing one.

The present Constitution was based on an executive presidential system and already it was having problems because the Parliament had to contend with provincial councils.

Therefore, a new constitution was a must to abolish the executive presidency, Dr Wickremeratne added.

Commenting on the constitutional provisions on religion, he noted that Sri Lanka had no state religion but Buddhism had been given the foremost place while the rights of other religions were guaranteed. Therefore, there was no need of changing the provision, he added.

Dr Wickremeratne stressed that the new constitution should provide a longlasting solution to the ethnic issue and a new electoral system should be introduced. Abolishing of executive presidency was one of the main tasks of the new constitution while the independence of the judiciary should also be ensured, he noted.

New fundamental rights provisions in the new Constitution should include children’ rights, women’s rights, social, economic and cultural rights and environmental rights, the constitutional expert said.

Referring to the TNA’s call for merging the Northern and Eastern Provinces through a new Constitution, Dr. Wickremeratne stressed that the decision of merging two provinces or states should be taken by the people of those provinces.

The Steering Committee would present a report on constitutional reforms to Parliament by November but it was impossible to set a deadline for the drafting of a new constitution, he said.

Dr Wickremeratne noted that he was of the opinion that the drafting of a new constitution should not be delayed and also it should not be done in a hurry.

Referring to the position of the President in the new constitution, he said the President should be the ceremonial head of the state with limited powers and appointed by an electoral college.

TNA fears law to replace anti-terror act may be old wine in a new bottle

October 10, 2016

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA), the premier Tamil political group in Sri Lanka, fears that the proposed new law to replace the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) may well be old wine in a new bottle with most of the controversial provisions being retained.

“It may even be worse than the PTA going by the influence of the Security Establishment on government’s thinking on these matters,” TNA’s spokesman and MP, M.A.Sumanthiran ha s said.

“The Law Commission in its report to the government on replacing the PTA had apparently given suggestions which would have put the new law in line with international best practices. But I hear that the government consulted the Security Establishment and rejected the commission’s suggestions.”

“When I raised this issue in parliament in October 4, neither the Justice Minister nor any other minister reacted, though the Justice Minister reacted to my remarks on the amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code,” Sumanthiran said.

“This despite my warning the government that Sri Lanka will not get the European Union’s trade concessions under the General System of Preferences if it violates the UN Human Rights Commission’s resolution of October 1, 2015 which had clearly said that PTA has to be replaced with a law in tune with international best practices,” the MPsaid.

Sri Lanka had jointly sponsored the UNHRC resolution along with the US.
The Tamil MP, who is also a Supreme Court lawyer, fears that the new law will retain objectionable features of the PTA like preventive detention for indefinite periods and legal acceptance of “confessions” made to police officers in the first instance.

In the case of amendments to the Criminal Procedure Code, Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe rejected Sumanthiran’s demand to allow a detainee to get legal assistance when his first statement is recorded. Rajapakshe cited objections from the Security Establishment to any kind of legal assistance at that stage and said that their views could not be overlooked.

Unconvinced, Sumanthiran approached Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who got the introduction of the Cr.PC amendment bill postponed to allow consideration of the TNA’s objections.

-New Indian Express
-Agencies

Sumanthiran Contradicts Ranil’s Claim That All Parties Agreed To Give Buddhism Foremost Place In New Constitution

October 11, 2016

Tamil National Alliance’s spokesperson, M. A. Sumanthiran has contradicted a statement made by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe who recently claimed that all parties in Parliament had agreed to recognizeBuddhism as the foremost religion in the country under the new Constitution.

Sumanthiran

Sumanthiran said that, “A steering committee has been appointed, but we have not discussed this matter. Our stand is that there should be a secular constitution where there is no special identification for a single religion, and instead all religions should be given equal status in the country.”

Addressing a religious event over the weekend, held at the Sedawatta Weheragoda Temple in Kolonnawa, Wickremesinghe said, “everyone in Parliament, including the TNA has agreed to give the foremost position to Buddhism in the new Constitution.” He added that not only political parties but also Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, as well as Hindu and Muslim religious leaders are in agreement to continue to recognize Buddhism as the foremost religion in the new Constitution and therefore this clause will continue even in the new constitution. “No one should make this an issue,” Wickremesinghe said.

It is not clear how Wickremesinge came to such a decision. Even the Public Representations Committee on Constitutional Reform submitted several recommendations in May this year under the Religion Chapter.

The recommendations were;

i. Retain Article 9 (Chapter II) of the current Constitution with no change

ii. Heading of Chapter II of the current Constitution should state ‘Religions’ and not Buddhism and retain Article 9 as it is with no change

iii. Reformulate Article 9 of the current Constitution as follows:

“The Republic of Sri Lanka shall give all religions equal status. The State shall protect and foster Buddhism and the Buddha Sāsana while assuring to all religions the rights granted by Articles 10 and 14(1) e of the current Constitution.

iv. Sri Lanka shall be a secular State

v. Sri Lanka shall be a secular State while recognizing the role of religion in the spiritual development of people

vi. Heading of Chapter II of the current Constitution should State ‘Religions’. The clause should be revised as follows:
“The Republic of Sri Lanka will give all religions equal status”

By Jehan Perera-October 10, 2016, 8:15 pm

Among the systems of good governance put into place after the watershed elections of January 2015, the 19th Amendment to the constitution takes pride of place. Over the past one and a half years there have been other path breaking legal enactments also, such as the Office of Missing Persons Act (OMP) and the Right to Information Act (RTI) which have the potential to transform the way governance takes place in the country. If implemented in a positive spirit, the OMP can bring closure to the grief of families of the disappeared and serve as a deterrent to future resorts to enforced disappearances. The RTI can pave the way for more transparent governance so that what the government says and does is not out of sync. However, these are still in the future, as they need to be implemented.

At the present time it is the 19th Amendment that has set the tone, spirit and created the enabling environment for the present period. It brings into focus the two key principles of limits to power (through the reduction of presidential power) and checks and balances (through independent commissions). The independent commissions established under the 19th Amendment are the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery and Corruption, the Public Service Commission, the Human Rights Commission, the National Police Commission, the Election Commission, the Delimitation Commission, the Finance Commission and the Public Service Commission. Some of these commissions are better known to the general public than others.

The Elections Commission, Bribery and Corruption Commission and Human Rights Commission engage in matters that have political relevance and are controversial. Therefore they receive more public attention than the other commissions. The Election Commission has come in for brickbats recently due to the continuous postponement of local government elections. The Election Commissioner, Mahinda Deshapriya, earned high praise for his conduct of the last presidential and general elections with much less independence than afforded under the present legislation. The Election Commissioner has pointed out that he can hold elections if the government provides him with the electorates and number of seats. The government has so far failed to provide these prerequisites with regard to local government elections on the grounds that the proper delimitation of electorates has yet to be completed. Each of the independent commissions can only work successfully if the rest of the government system cooperates with them.

QUALITY APPOINTMENTS

On the other hand, the Bribery and Corruption Commission and the Human Rights Commission have been acting with independence on their own steam with regard to tasks entrusted to them. The former has commenced taking action against leading members of the former government, even those once thought to be untouchable, and is now proceeding to take action against those from the former government who are in the present government. The latter has on occasion, and as needed, been forthright in providing major critiques of government actions, the most recent being the proposed amendment to the criminal procedure code, where it was intended that suspects should be denied access to a lawyer until they make their first statement (confession) to the police.

Even the best laws and mechanisms can be undermined by the appointment of those unsuited to head them. It is to the credit of the government and to the Constitutional Council which is vested with the powers of selecting appropriate persons that the appointments to the independent commissions have been of a high caliber. Those appointed are in general of a liberal and universalist disposition in relation to governance issues. In particular the appointment of Dr Deepika Udagama to head the Human Rights Commission and Prof Siri Hettige to head the National Police Commission are especially noteworthy as both of them have shown long years of commitment to liberal and universal values and been associated with civil society while also being eminent teachers at the national universities. What is promising is the willingness on the part of the independent commissions to work with the resources available in civil society to promote the good governance mandate of the government. The government does not view civil society as an enemy to be opposed and defeated as did its predecessor. This enables those institutions, and the sectors served by them, to benefit from the latest advances in technology, thinking and mechanisms to serve the Sri Lankan people better.

A recent example would be the international conference on "Future Policing for South Asia" which was held in Colombo last week and organized jointly by the National Police Commission, the Police Department, the Regional Centre for Strategic Studies, the Asia Foundation and the UN system in Sri Lanka. This conference brought in fresh thinking into issues of policing, both in the South Asian region and Sri Lanka in particular. It was attended by the heads of police from several Asian countries, as well as international scholars and experts in the field. The final day saw a discussion take place between the police and experts on issues of governance, democracy and accountability, community policing, new technology and environmental policing. The discussion on governance, democracy and accountability in particular showed the willingness of the police to be self critical and open minded in seeking the best solutions to enable them to better serve the people.

FUTURE STEPS

Prof. Hettige as chairman of the National Police Commission explained how it had embarked on policy formulation and programme development in collaboration with other state, civil society and international organizations to facilitate the process of transition. Taking steps to ensure better ethnic balance in the police and to rectify the present imbalances, keeping in mind that the three decade long war was caused by ethnic grievances which were increased during the years of war, has to be an important part of this transition. There is a need for a shift in mindset in the entire society away from a militarized approach to security to a civilian approach. The importance of the police in securing law and order needs to obtain greater priority and accordingly a larger quantum of resources commensurate to its importance.

There was a discussion on the issues of democratization of police. The first is accountability to the democratically elected government and its decisionmakers which is upward accountability. Second is accountability to the community. This is part of the police ethos of being a police service rather than a police force. As accountability requires a system of checks and balances, the need to strengthen investigative function of National Police Commission was proposed as well as to strengthen the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) of the police. In addition, it was proposed to improve the performance appraisal system and make it more transparent and systematic at the station, district and provincial levels. Having a system of social audit of police stations at the community level to make the police personnel more accountable to the community was another of the innovations proposed.

There is an untapped reservoir of liberalism within Sri Lankan society especially at its higher levels, which includes the public service. It must be remembered that the public service voted for a change at the last elections, as the postal votes of public servants indicated. At higher levels of society, the educational opportunities are greater and so are the possibilities for mixing with those of other backgrounds. After the bitter experience of three decades of conflict there is little or no resistance to the need for greater ethnic inclusivity in state institutions or in the decision making bodies. There is a willingness to practice pluralism as opposed to remain separate. But targets need to be set and checks lists of what needs to be done have to be formulated. Or else inertia will dictate that the practices of the past continue. There continues to remain a need for more Tamil speaking police personnel in those parts of the country where Tamil speaking people live in significant numbers, especially the North, East, central hills and Colombo. The 19th Amendment provides the enabling environment for this type of positive change to take place through the policy directions of the independent commissions.

Who will change – JHU or Paranawithana?

Oct 10, 2016

Co-chairman of the JHU and media deputy minister Karu Paranawithana says the country no longer allows politics by racists or religious extremists.

This situation has been brought about by toppling the Rajapaksa regime and by the ‘Yahapaalana’ government gaining power, he says.

He is responding to questions with regard to his appointment as co-chairman of the JHU and his political future.

The JHU will take several important decisions in view of the prevailing political situation, said Paranawithana.

He said his sole objective was to take the JHU in a new path in Sri Lankan politics by renouncing racism and building a civic nationalism under the leadership of minister Patali Champika Ranawaka.

Will the name be changed?

When asked as if the JHU will change its name as it indicates a certain racist line, Paranawithana said no such decision has been taken so far.

However, that is possible if the need arises, said the deputy minister.

He also said the JHU would become a party totally devoid of Buddhist monks.

Educational reforms

The JHU will pay special attention to education reforms in the future, he added.

Regulatory Reforms To Assure Due Compliance With Laws, Transparency & Good Governance

By Chandra Jayaratne –October 10, 2016

Chandra Jayaratne

Chairman,
Sri Lanka Accounting and Auditing Standards Monitoring Board,
3rd floor, Bible House Building,
293 Galle Road,
Colombo 3.

President,
Institute of Chartered Accountants of Sri Lanka
30A, Malalasekera Mawatha,
Colombo 7.

Dear Sirs,

Regulatory Reforms to Assure Due Compliance with Laws, Transparency & Good Governance

It is reported by professional analysts and also commonly believed by intellectuals, that;

the significant fall in tax revenues to gross domestic product ,from around twenty percent to around ten percent, may be due to a high level of tax, customs duty and excise evasion / avoidance, grant of excessive and unjustified tax holidays and specific exemptions; and
the share of the informal black economy has increased significantly over the last several decades; and
a significant extent of money laundering has taken place over the last decade, mainly using proceeds of crime, bribery and corruption; and
leading bankers believe, that a majority of financial statements and valuation reports presented in securing loans and other facilities, as well as financial facilities supported by project linked estimates submitted to lending agencies, are inaccurate, contain gross misrepresentations and are prepared violating accepted principles and standards; and
a significant minority of professional practitioners have aided and abetted in the carrying out and concealment of above; and
a regrettable failure of due enforcement of laws and regulations are visible throughout the economy;

and these issues need addressing with essential regulatory reforms.

Good governance champions and investigators have reported significant deficiencies at individual entity level regard management action and regards external audit review effectiveness;

not having in place strong chains of control and compliance processes;and
low effectiveness of professional due diligence, upholding of ethical standards and conduct and application of professional best practices;
ineffectiveness of the operation of audit committees eg. Audit committee Chairman persuading a highlight on ‘going concern status’ to be removed by the auditors;
use of inappropriate accounting policies eg. Small business standards adopted in entities with billions of rupees of turnover, profits, assets etc and these accounts not being submitted for review by the SLAAMB;
audited accounts issued without effective disclosure of related party details eg. By noting that related party details are to be filled in by the management;
secretarial companies with related party networks to auditors operating as the Company Secretary of audited companies;
misleading tagging of assets to avoid impairment provisions eg. Uncollateralized REPO’s;
auditors and professionals providing regulatory agencies and investigators with incorrect information eg. Auditors misrepresenting facts to COPE;
classification of taxable revenues and taxable profits as exempt income and exempt profits;
bankers, professionals and othersentities, required to exercise caution in terms of FATF 40 guidelines for control of money laundering and terrorism financing, failing to do so; and not obtaining ‘know Your Customer” declaration; and not exercising due diligence in crediting proceed of large cash deposits/inward remittances as well as outward remittances and withdrawal of large amounts in cash;

2016-10-10

The Board of Management of the South Asian Institute of Technology & Medicine (SAITM) said today it had secured approval both from the Police and from the Kaduwela Pradeshiya Sabha keep specimens of human body parts and bones for teaching purposes.

In a statement on the ongoing CID investigations into Wasim Thajudeen's missing body parts, the institution said its request for bones for educational purposes was made in 2011, much earlier than Mr. Thajudeen's death.

It reiterated that the list compiled when issuing bones did not contain the name of Wasim Thajudeen.

“Specimens of the human body and of bones are kept at our institution only for purposes of education, as is the common practice in most medical faculties. These specimens are securely stored at our Museum for medical teaching. All specimens received by SAITM have been taken over following the due and established processes with the the take- over is documented, supervised and certified by the relevant authorities,”

“SAITM has no control over the procedures of issuing bones from the JMO's office and our records do not reveal that any body part of Wasim Thajudeen had been sent to SAITM. The list given to us when issuing bones does not contain the name of Wasim Thajudeen,” the statement said.

It said SAITM Vice Chancellor Prof. Samarasekera who was being investigated in connection with the missing body parts during the initial postmortem examination conducted by him as the then Colombo Chief JMO voluntarily took leave of absence to facilitate the CID investigations conducted at SAITM.

China invites India to join Sri Lanka offshore city project

A general view of the China-funded Colombo International Financial City's construction site. REUTERS/Dinuka Liyanawatte

Offer to take part in investment opportunity could signal a new phase in Sino-Indian economic relations

By MUNZA MUSHTAQ OCTOBER 10, 2016

In what could signal a new phase in Sino-Indian economic relations, China has invited India to help in developing Sri Lanka, including taking part in the multibillion dollar Colombo International Financial City funded by Beijing.

Addressing a forum in Colombo, Chinese Ambassador in Sri Lanka, Yi Xianliang said the project was open for collaboration with India and that his country welcomed constructive partners.

“We welcome any third party to join Sri Lanka and China. We are not opposed to India or any other country. China already has many business relationships with India,” Yi said at the forum organized by the Sri Lankan National Chamber of Commerce in September.

The Indian High Commission in Colombo was cautious about accepting the invitation saying it did not have sufficient details about the Colombo International Financial City, formerly known as the Colombo Port City. However, the High Commission’s spokesperson was quick to add that the government continuously encouraged Indian businesses to invest in Sri Lanka.

“Already, we have quite a number of Indian companies who have made substantial investments in Sri Lanka. Of course, as and when there are further opportunities, more and more companies from India will invest in Sri Lanka,” said Esha Srivastava, First Secretary of the High Commission’s Press, Information & Culture Wing, told Asia Times.

Sri Lanka and India’s bilateral relations are at an all-time high, and Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said on Thursday he and his Indian counterpart, Narendra Modi have decided to sign the controversial Economic and Technology Cooperation Agreement (ETCA) before the end of this year. The decision comes despite stiff resistance from Sri Lanka’s opposition parties as well as doctors and IT professionals who fear that the deal will lead to an influx of low grade Indian professionals entering the Sri Lanka job market.

Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe (L) shakes hands with his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi during a photo opportunity at Hyderabad House in New Delhi, on October 5. REUTERS/Altaf Hussain

Addressing the India Economic Summit in New Delhi, Wickremesinghe, who was a guest speaker at the event, said: “The proposed economic and technology cooperation agreement with India will be signed by the end of this year. Prime Minister Modi and I have decided that we should conclude it by this year.”

Wickremesinghe was optimistic that the agreement will offer a strategic economic advantage to Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan Premier also attempted to balance ties between India and China at the summit by saying India and China have the power to drive global economic growth.

“The balance of economic power in the world is shifting to Asia, and India and China remain the only two countries that can drive global economic growth,” he said.

Wickremesinghe also used the summit in New Delhi to allay Indian fears that China may be attempting to set up a military base in Sri Lanka in the guise of increased infrastructure funding.

Strategic move

“There has been a lot of suspicion of a military element to the Chinese funding. But that is not there,” Wickremesinghe said.

Threatened by China’s increasing interest in Sri Lanka, India has in the recent past expressed concerns that Beijing may be extending so much funding in an effort to establish a military base in the country, and the rebranded Port City was also a long term strategic move by China.

During a visit to Sri Lanka in late September, Indian Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said India will invest US$2 billion in Sri Lanka over the next three to four years.

However, despite the announcement, China continues to be the island’s largest foreign funder, especially after the US$1.4 billion financial city project took off. China is expected to pump in another US$8 billion in foreign direct investments into the new offshore city.

The offshore financial center aims to attract more than US$13 billion in foreign direct investment from investors outside Sri Lanka such as reputed international banking and financial services companies as well as malls, hotels, and apartment complexes, among others, with China taking the lead to promote the project.

Shiran Fernando, economist at Sri Lanka’s Frontier Research, said the open invitation by the Chinese Ambassador to India was a positive move. “If it happens, it will have an overall positive impact on the success of the project in terms of bringing in more investors into the fold. It would also help Sri Lanka to balance the geopolitical tensions that have emerged as a result of the project,” he said

PERPETUAL TREASURIES’S PROFIT NOT 5 BILLION BUT 10 BILLION SAYS DR. W.A. WIJEWARDENE

(Perpetual Treasuries owner Arjun Aloysius; image from Sri Lanka Morror)

10/10/2016

Deputy Governor of Sri Lanka Central Bank Dr. W.A. Wijewardene says that the profit earned by the Perpetual Treasuries was not 5200 million but 10,000 million. He has said this in an interview with Mr. Faraz Aly on the News First channel.

Dr. W.A. Wijewardene is a renowned financial analyst.

He says that the Monetary Board should immediately take action to save the country from this situation and added the interest rates had risen to 5% due to the menace.

In the interview he implies that Arjun Mahendran, then governor of the Central Bank willfully manipulated interest rates to get advantage for his son-in-law’s company Perpetual Treasuries.

Arjun Mahendran was appointed as the Central Bank governor by the Prime Mister Wickremesinghe and the president Sirisena refused to give him a extension.

He poses the question that how a company with very small resources could earn such a massive sum of money within a short period of 15 months.

( By SLB with the inputs form Lanka Truth)

listen to the interview in below video.

VIP Brats and the Rule of Law

Politics is also a continuation of things, good, bad and ugly -- including the usual antics of the progeny of a privileged few. Even though the faces in the government will change and the new powers-that-be would promise to be the harbingers of good things, but behind this facet, like all humans, they are malleable and susceptible to the temptations that naturally come with power.

umans, they are malleable and susceptible to the temptations that naturally come with power.

2016-10-11

A mob allegedly linked to President Maithripala Sirisena’s son Daham is said to have gone on rampage at a leading night club in Colombo after they were denied entry on the early hours of Saturday. An employee of the club who received head injuries is being treated at the Colombo General Hospital. Police say they are investigating.
The latest incident is disappointing, not for its gravity -- many get into bar fights and that is a malady

as ancient as the invention of booze, though one would expect better behaviour from the sons and daughters of public figures. The latest affair is disappointing for the current Government, and the President himself has, with a seeming genuineness, been trying to make a clear break from the past, when the abuse of power was itself a pastime of the rich and the politically powerful.
However, it is not easy to make that clear break and worse still his own son is now implicated in reenacting the past.
The acid test for the Government and the President himself would be how they respond to this. They themselves could reenact the past; cover up the incident, make the police tell the courts that CCTV footage is lost and no evidence found and still better, try to prove the suspects were at a pirith puja at the time the so-called incident happened. Gag the media or it can let the police investigate the incident freely, file charges if there are any, and let the rule of law take its own course.

No matter the course of action the Government chooses to follow, it will set a precedent; the former, which would foster further lawlessness and the latter, which would rein in the same.
The ex-president chose to ignore the abuses of power by the members of his own family and a long list of their coterie. Such a leeway given to them, begot further lawlessness. Serial offenders such as Mervyn Silva’s prodigal son Malaka terrorized the patrons of night clubs. The ex-president’s goons raped a foreign woman and killed her fiancé in Beliatta. His youthful son, Rohitha assaulted a Rugby referee at a club match, the media was told not to report the incident. However, at the end, ex-president Rajapaska himself became a hostage of the antics of the people around him; public wrath was directed at him for his failure to hold his goons accountable. No amount of cover up could help hiding the ugly details of abuse of power; the egregious impunity with which they took place was an open secret and now being retold in the court; some such revelations are as mind boggling as the abdication of the alleged ownership by Basil Rajapaksa of a luxurious house built on a 16-acre block of land.

Why VVIP brats get into antics is partly due to the sense of entitlement. They are entitled to some privileges, due to the simple fact that their fathers and mothers being presidents, ministers and military top brass while their well-being is tied to the peace in mind of the people who govern the country often though, those privileges are prone to abuse. When countries become civilized, they get rid of their feudal sort of those entitlements, keeping only the most needed.
However, most countries at our social and economic levels find it hard to define those parameters and that failure in general contributes to the overall breaking down of the rule of law and the creation of two-tier societies. That is partly a cultural problem; societies still affected by the residual effects of feudalism, and shielded from the exposure to the tarns-formative effect of market capitalism are more likely to revere the ‘big man’, who is a law unto himself. In that social milieu, ‘a big man’s’ merit is measured by the number of acolytes and by bodyguards who accompany him.

"When the powers-that-be are not restrained by the law, there is nothing that can stop them. On the other hand, they would not amend their acts, until the law proves itself that it is capable of putting them in their place"

However, this is more of an institutional problem. When the powers-that-be are not restrained by the law, there is nothing that can stop them. On the other hand, they would not amend their acts, until the law proves itself that it is capable of putting them in their place. That is a catch-22 situation in countries where the rule of law has been a hostage of their native political leaders.
Surely, it was not right to smash a nightclub. However, the problem is not this one particular incident per se, which at the rate things happened in this country is trifling. More important is how it would reflect on the broader question of law and order. That would depend on the Government’s course of action.

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From isolation to integration: addressing stigma on World Mental Health Day

AMALINI DE SAYRAH AND RAISA WICKREMATUNGE on 10/10/2016

The very mention of the town “Angoda” has widespread negative connotations, as the National Institute of Mental Health is situated there. This points to the wider issue of stigma that surrounds the treatment of mental health issues. In order to mark World Mental Health Day on October 10, Groundviews visited the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) and found that the reality was far from the picture painted by perception.

We compiled a story on Microsoft Sway based on the visit, along with discussions with others working in the mental health sector.

View the story here, or below:

In the run up to World Mental Health Day, we also created a short video to address some myths surrounding mental health treatment, accessible here, or below:

Visit our Instagram page to see more pictures around the visit to NIMH.

Covert Operation To Cover Up Daham Sirisena’s Misdeeds At Clique

October 10, 2016

Clandestine moves are afoot to cover up the weekend nightclub brawl allegedly orchestrated by President Maithripala Sirisena’s son, Daham, which left several security guards of the nightclub injured.

Highly placed sources said that the management of the Clique Nightclub, located on Union Place, Colombo 2, has not only issued gag orders on the staff against speaking to anyone other than the police, but steps have already been taken to cover up the incident. As a result, one of the victims, who was beaten by the gang has told the police that he is unable to identify anyone of the culprits.

Daham Sirisena | File photo

The Management of Clique has meanwhile used the club’s venue manager to make a statement denying the involvement of the VVIPs son in the incident.

In a video statement on YouTube, venue manager of Clique, Christopher Kern said, “yes, there was an incident between 2.00 am to 2.30 am, where some guests tried to enter the club, but there was a delay in allowing them entry as it was busy inside the club, but later everyone was allowed to go in. While leaving the club premises, three security officers of the club came under attack, which resulted in several glasses being damaged.”

Kern went on to say, “there has been some media reporting that a VVIP’s son was involved in the incident, I can confirm that there was no son of any VVIP’s at the time of the incident, as I was also on duty at the time of the incident.”

However, another source pointed out that as the night club is situated on the sixth floor of the building, there was no possibility for Kern to have been present on the ground floor during the time of the attack. “Usually, only the security staff of the club are at the entrance of the club, not the venue manager. So it’s impossible for him to have been present at the scene of the incident, because the gang attacked everyone on site with bats,” he said.

In just 48 hours since the incident took place, the case has already suffered a setback with the 34 year old injured guard who was admitted to the Accident Service soon after being attacked claiming that he is unable to identify the culprits who attacked him.

However, the CCTV footage shows that the incident took place under good lighting conditions, and therefore it is impossible for the victims to not have seen at least one of the attackers. None of the attackers had disguised their faces during the attack.

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