'From now on you have no name. You are prisoner 217': life in a Cuban jail

A brutal high-security prison was the last place Stephen Purvis expected to end up when he moved to Havana. Stephen Gibbs tells his story

Our man in Havana: Stephen Purvis languishing behind bars. Photograph: Pal Hansen for the Observer-- Before the fall: Stephen Purvis with his family before his arrest

 Day of reckoning: Stephen Purvis goes to court in 2013. Photograph: Ramon Espinosa/AP--The prisoner: Stephen Purvis. Photograph: Pal Hansen for the Observer

Stephen Gibbs-Sunday 19 March 2017

If you happened to go to a British embassy reception in Havana in the early 2000s, you would likely have met Stephen Purvis. You could not miss him. Six foot four, cropped grey hair, rum in hand, a broad smile and no shortage of good stories.

From now on you have no name.docx by Thavam Ratna on Scribd

Predators of press freedom use fake news as a censorship tool

March 16, 2017 

Predators of press freedom have seized on the notion of “fake news” to muzzle the media on the pretext of fighting false information. Nonetheless, many of them have taken recent statements by President Donald Trump as a means of justifying their repressive policies. This dangerous trend is a cause for concern to Reporters Without Borders (RSF). At a Washington news conference in February, Trump said: “We have to talk to find out what's going on, because the press, honestly, is out of control. The level of dishonesty is out of control.”

By targeting journalists in this manner, the US president ended a longstanding American tradition of promoting freedom of expression and sent a powerful message to media censors. The Washington Post called it “a gift to tyrants everywhere”.

In January, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan endorsed Trump’s latest allegations that the CNN television network was guilty of broadcasting “fake news” in its report on ties between the US president and Russia.

A warning to the media

The Cambodian prime minister, Hun Sen, appeared to have taken his cue from Trump when he said of journalists in February: "Donald Trump understands that they are an anarchic group.”

Two days earlier, his spokesman issued what he called a warning to foreign media outlets, threatening to “crush” those that endanger“peace and stability” and citing Trump’s treatment of the press as a justification for the warning.

“The so-called fight against fake news has become a propaganda tool for the predators of press freedom,” said RSF Secretary-General Christophe Deloire. “Of course, it is more necessary than ever for Internet users to disentangle fact from fiction in the flow of information. However, the fight against fake news should be conducted by promoting free and independent journalism as a source of reliable and high-quality information.”

Russia’s legal ban on the “dissemination of false information”

The Russian telecoms regulator is preparing a draft decree designed purely and simply to block all content that contains false information. Before Trump’s statement, Russia, ranked 148^th in RSF’s World Press Freedom Index, had already made it a requirement “not to disseminate false information” for bloggers to operate legally. The fight against “misleading information” has been a classic feature of post-Soviet Russia. The bill, imitated by several countries such as Uzbekistan, has enough leeway to allow for the broadest possible censorship.

Since July 2016, content aggregators are required to verify the veracity of reports that they publish if they do not come from media outlets registered in Russia, and could face harsh penalties.

The Russian Foreign Ministry has posted a new section on its official website dedicated to debunking fake anti-Russian news stories published by international news outlets.

The TV news network Russia Today, funded by the Russian government, went so far as to set up its own fact-checking service in March. Other Russian state media outlets, such as the news agency RIA Novosti, have also tried to take advantage of the ill-defined phenomenon of “fake news” to launch their own “Media Wars” sections, intended to highlight Western lies and attacks on the Russian media.

Punishing “fake news” denies journalists the right to make mistakes

In sub-Sahara Africa, the concept of fake news is often abused to put pressure on journalists. Some countries’ laws provide for severe penalties without taking account of the intentions of journalists, who sometimes simply make mistakes.

I any case, the penalty is disproportionate to the seriousness of the news report, even if it is wrong. In Côte d’Ivoire, for example, insulting the head of state or the dissemination of false news reports may be enough for a journalist to be taken into custody, despite the fact that such offences were meant to be decriminalised under the 2004 press law.

Last month, six senior Ivorian journalists, including three newspaper publishers, were detained and questioned in Abidjan, accused of “publishing false news” about an army mutiny earlier in the month.

In Madagascar, a new communications code has been strongly criticised by journalists for referring to the criminal code in its rulings on press offences, which could lead to the criminalisation of the profession. It provides for heavy fines for infringements ranging from insults to defamation, and refers to the dissemination of “false news”, an imprecise offence which removes the right of journalists to make mistakes.

In Somalia, the Universal TV channel was suspended on 5 March for broadcasting false reports alleged to have threatened the stability and peace of the region after it referred to overseas trips by the president.

Information control is key for those who want to impose their version of events

The South African government plans to impose a system of online control of the media in order to meet the “challenge” of “fake news”. Growing hostility to the media probably has its roots in an unprecedented crisis in President Jacob Zuma’s African National Congress, whose leaders tend increasingly to silence dissident voices.

In Burundi, the control of news and information is a key issue for the ruling authorities. The government fosters the idea that the media are partisan and that there is an international plot against the country.
Since 2015, any report or statement is instantly interpreted as either for, or against, the government and the goal of the authorities is to impose its version of events as the only one.

In Egypt, journalists are frequently accused of disseminating false information whenever they criticise the government, or report on sensitive issues that upset it. This widespread practice leads to self-censorship among journalists in their coverage of events for fear of joining the long list of colleagues who have been prosecuted and imprisoned.

The investigative journalist Ismail Alexandrani, an expert on the Sinai Peninsula, has been held since his arrest at Hurghada airport on the Red Sea in November 2015 on charges of publishing false information and of membership of the Muslim Brotherhood.

In Bahrain, the prominent citizen journalist and human rights campaigner, Nabeel Rajab, was accused last December of publishing false news about the kingdom of Bahrain in a cybercrime case. He could face up to two years’ imprisonment on this latest charge, which arises from interviews he gave in 2014 and 2015 to local and regional TV stations on human rights in Bahrain.

Fake news used by French politicians

The use of fake news to silence media critics is not the unique preserve of authoritarian or countries that are known for undermining press freedom. In France, the National Front, through its vice-president Florian Philippot, who has frequently categorised the work of journalists as “fake news”. During the programme “l’Emission Politique” on the TV station France 2 on 9 February, in which National Front leader Marine Le Pen took part, the party set up a “fake news alert team” which posted some 20 real-time alerts online “whenever members of the team believed that France 2 journalists put out fake news”.

Presidential candidate François Fillon earlier this month accused TV news channels of falsely reporting that his wife has committed suicide, before admitting no such reports had been broadcast.

In Italy, Beppe Grillo, the leader of the Five Star movement, accused Italian journalists of “manufacturing false news” designed to harm his party. He called for the creation of "a popular jury to determine the veracity of the news published”.

The FNSI journalists’ union said it amounted to the "lynching of all journalists". Five Star said journalists themselves were responsible for Italy’s low ranking in the World Press Freedom Index.

The United Nations concerned at growth of fake news

David Kaye, UN Special Rapporteur on the Promotion and Protection of the Right to Freedom of Opinion and Expression, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the Organization of American States, and the African Commission on Human and Peoples' Rights issued a joint statement on 3 March expressing concern at the use of “fake news’ for government propaganda and to curb press 
freedom.“Criminal defamation laws are unduly restrictive and should be abolished,” the signatories said.

"State actors should, in accordance with their domestic and international legal obligations and their public duties, take care to ensure that they disseminate reliable and trustworthy information."

A California waiter refused to serve 4 Latina women until he saw ‘proof of residency’

…© Courtesy of Brenda Carrillo Guillermina Carrillo, center, hoped her daughters — from left, Ana Carrillo, Elvia Zarate-Carrillo, Diana Carrillo and Brenda Carrillo — would never experience the kind of discrimination she did when she immigrated from…

Cleve R. Wootson Jr.-Mar 19, 2017

Mar 19, 2017

It was girls’ day out, and Diana Carrillo had abandoned her desire to eat healthy well before she, her sister and two friends got to the Southern California restaurant. The destination: Saint Marc, an upscale spot in the seaside city of Huntington Beach, where Carrillo had been once before.

As the waiter walked up to the table, Carrillo figured she’d splurge on the grilled-cheese sandwich and pay the $2 up-charge to add some of the restaurant’s signature bacon. To start, maybe she’d share a watermelon and cheese plate with her sister and friends.

But the mood soured quickly after the waiter appeared. Before he could serve the four Latina women, he said, they needed to show proof of residency. “I need to make sure you’re from here,” he said.

Flummoxed, the four women handed over their IDs. But as what was happening sank in, they fumed. “I looked at my sister and [my friend], and I said, did he really just say that?”

A few moments later, they walked over to the manager and told him what had happened. He offered them a separate section and his business card to make things right — but they had already decided to leave.

Still livid a few hours later, Carrillo, a 24-year-old business analyst from Orange County, Calif., posted about the incident on Facebook:

For a few seconds I thought maybe he was being a smart a– or joking but the fact that he said ‘I need to make sure you’re from here before I serve you’ was completely unacceptable.

How many others has he said this too? I hope this employee is reprimanded for his actions. No establishment should tolerate discriminatory actions from their employees. PLEASE SHARE WITH YOUR FAMILY AND FRIENDS!

People did. In a week, Carrillo’s post had been shared more than 600 times, and more than 100 people had posted comments.

Seeing the social media backlash, the restaurant’s management contacted Carrillo that Monday. They offered a VIP experience at the restaurant and pledged to donate 10 percent of the weekend’s proceeds to a nonprofit organization of the group’s choice. The four women declined the lavish meal, but asked that the restaurant donate the money to Orange County Immigrant Youth United.

Kent Bearden, the senior director of operations at Saint Marc, told The Washington Post that the waiter who had asked for the women’s IDs had been fired. It was the first time the employee had done anything like this, Bearden said, and he “had never received so much as a write-up” before.

“I don’t know if he had an agenda or not,” said Bearden. “My concern is he violated a company policy. 

We’re very specific about how we treat out guests. That individual did not treat a table of guests to the expectations that we set forth in that company policy, and that caused him to be terminated.”

Bearden stressed that the employee’s actions “are something that you can’t control. The true measure is how you then handle it as a company. I feel very proud of our team and how we tried to take a proactive approach, trying to create a positive out of this situation.”

Carrillo said she’d been warned about this kind of treatment by her parents but had never experienced it firsthand. She told The Post that she wondered if the employee’s insulting request was a result of “who is President.”

The Southern  Poverty Law Center recorded nearly 1,100 “bias-related incidents” in the month after President Trump’s election, including 125 in California. The group says such acts of harassment and intimidation have tapered off since then.

Carrillo’s parents both immigrated to the United States and still speak with accents. They worked hard to raise four girls, said Carrillo, who spent two years of high school in boarding school in New Hampshire.

Still, her mother said she worried about the discrimination her daughters would face. “She always told us, ‘I can handle discrimination,’” Carrillo said. “I know it’s part of my life.” She still remembers her mother telling stories of people making fun of her for not speaking proper English.

Hoping to not dredge up painful feelings, she decided not to tell her mother about the incident at the fancy restaurant.

“I actually didn’t tell her,” Carrillo told The Post. “I didn’t want to upset her. But she saw it on Facebook, and she called me the same day. I forgot she had Facebook.”

Read more:

This couple didn’t tip their Latina server. They left a hateful message instead.

White supremacist stabs interracial couple after seeing them kiss at bar, police say

‘The ice cream is as bitter and cold as the owner’: After tirade, Internet turns on woman’s business

Indonesia’s tobacco bill stubbed out but concerns remain

A street vendor holds cigarettes as he serves a consumer in Jakarta, Indonesia, March 15, 2017. Source: Reuters/Beawiharta

19th March 2017

INDONESIA’s President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo this week rejected a draft law that if approved could have led to a sharp increase in tobacco output, putting himself on a collision course with major players in one of the country’s oldest industries.

The bold move by the president has been lauded by tobacco control lobbyists and regarded as a step in the right direction for Indonesia, a country of over 70 million smokers, many of them children.

But according to Jakarta Post, Jokowi’s decision to send ministers to inform the House of his decision instead of inking a presidential letter has sparked concern that lawmakers would use the opportunity to lobby for Bill deliberations.

The English daily said the practice was unusual as Jokowi should have simply issued a letter to communicate his decision to the House, instead of sending messengers.

“Why wouldn’t [the president] issue a letter after making a decision…?” National Commission on Tobacco Control (KNPT) member Widyastuti Soerojo was quoted asking. “This will open channels for lobbying that could change the government’s standpoint.”

Another lobbyist, Tulus Abadi from the Indonesian Consumers Foundation (YLKI), urged Jokowi to stand by his decision, saying it complies with public demands.

“Jokowi must firmly announce that the deliberation will not take place as long as he is in office,” he said.
Under the draft law that seeks to protect domestic farmers, Reuters reported this week, manufacturers of tobacco products have to use locally sourced tobacco for at least 80 percent of their production, while imports of ready-to-use cigarettes may be subject to an excise tax of 200 percent.

SEE ALSO: Indonesian child-teen smokers on the rise

A cigarette seller serves a consumer on a street in Jakarta, Indonesia, March 15, 2017. Source: Reuters/Beawiharta

Smoking is entrenched as a way of life in Indonesian culture. According to reports last year, the country ranked fourth on the list of nations with the most smokers, behind China, Russia and the US.
A Quartz report in February quoted pro-smoking group Komunitas Kretek as saying smoking is a “human right” and that those pushing for Indonesians to kick the habit were being fueled by fundamentalists from the West.

“It is a human right to smoke. Smokers feel like they don’t have their rights anymore.

“We need to stand up for our rights!” the group’s head Aditia Purnomo said. The 25-year-old, now a chain smoker, reportedly lit his first cigarette at the age of 12.

Shredded Jack‏ @jahkarta

Indonesia, the “tobacco Disneyland,“ where everything from badminton to jazz festivals happens thanks to smoking

4:00 AM - 28 Feb 2017

SEE ALSO: British American Tobacco to shut down factory in Malaysia

A 2015 report by the KNPT says 240,000 people died in Indonesia in 2013 because of tobacco. Health Ministry data from 2010 says 3.9 million children aged between 10 and 14 years become smokers every year in the country, while more than 40.3 million aged between zero and 14 become passive smokers due to the high prevalence of adult smokers.

Acknowledging these alarming numbers, Jokowi said this week that he understood the concerns of health advocates.

However, the president also pointed out that the welfare of the country’s millions of tobacco industry workers needed to be taken into consideration.

“I want to remind you all about what I said in the Cabinet meeting in June 2016, that the tobacco issue must be seen from two standpoints,” Jokowi was quoted in Jakarta Post as saying when discussing the tobacco Bill.

According to Southeast Asia Globe last year, tobacco farming is seen as a valuable source of jobs for Indonesians, with as many as 500,000 farmers working on growing crops and a further 600,000 working in the manufacturing cigarettes.

An 8-year-old girl sorts and bundles tobacco leaves by hand near Sampang, East Java. Many tobacco workers in Indonesia are young children. Source: Marcus Bleasdale/Human Rights Watch

The industry is also an important source of tax revenue for the government, contributing as much as US$12.91 billion into state coffers in 2015, the third-largest contributor of any industry.

But in an editorial on Saturday, Jakarta Post urged the administration to stand firm on its decision not to allow debates on the Bill.

“The president must not have second thoughts, although we stand to lose state income from tobacco,” the media outlet wrote.

The leading English-language daily also said Jokowi’s decision to reject the Bill was not enough. The paper said the next step was to establish a roadmap for Indonesia that would help wean the country’s economy off its dependency on tobacco money.

“With a boost in public support for his decision, Jokowi’s government should issue a new roadmap to phase out tobacco production by shifting the dependency of farmers and cigarette factory workers to income sources other than tobacco.

“It will not be easy, but the blueprint would be a concrete sign of government support for citizens’ wellbeing,” it said.
ClearWay Minnesota‏ @ClearWayMN

Indonesia: "New tobacco road map needed"

7:20 PM - 17 Mar 2017

The paper acknowledged the potential loss of income but urged Jokowi to be reminded of the toll that aggressive cigarette marketing and poor law enforcement have had on public health.
“Lawmakers also claim they are defending part of the ‘national heritage’ — our world-famous, sweet-smelling kretek (clove cigarettes).

“Tell that to the coughing people forced to sit beside puffing passengers on angkot (public minivans).”

'Healthiest hearts in the world' found

Image copyrightMICHAEL GURVEN

By James Gallagher-18 March 2017

The healthiest hearts in the world have been found in the Tsimane people in the forests of Bolivia, say researchers.

Barely any Tsimane had signs of clogged up arteries - even well into old age - a study in the Lancet showed.

"It's an incredible population" with radically different diets and ways of living, said the researchers.

They admit the rest of the world cannot revert to a hunter-gathering and early farming existence, but said there were lessons for all of us.

Tsimane?

Image copyrightBEN TRUMBLE

Tsimane is pronounced "chee-may-nay".

There are around 16,000 Tsimane who hunt, fish and farm on the Maniqui River in the Amazon rainforest in the Bolivian lowlands.

Their way of life has similarities to human civilisation thousands of years ago.

It took the team of scientists and doctors multiple flights and a canoe journey to get there.

How does your diet compare with the Tsimane?

Image copyrightMICHAEL GURVEN

• 17% of their diet is game including wild pig, tapir and capybara (the world's largest rodent)
• 7% is freshwater fish including piranha and catfish
• Most of the rest comes from family farms growing rice, maize, manioc root (like sweet potato) and plantains (similar to banana)
• It is topped up with foraged fruit and nuts

It means:

• 72% of calories come from carbohydrates compared with 52% in the US
• 14% from fat compared with 34% in the US, Tsimane also consume much less saturated fat
• Both Americans and Tsimane have 14% of calories from protein, but Tsimane have more lean meat

How fit are they?

Image copyrightMICHAEL GURVEN

They are also far more physically active with the men averaging 17,000 steps a day and the women 16,000.

Even the over-60s have a step count over 15,000.

It makes most people's struggle to get near 10,000 seem deeply insignificant.

"They achieve a remarkable dose of exercise," says Dr Gregory Thomas, one of the researchers and from Long Beach Memorial medical centre in California.

So how magnificent are their hearts?

Image copyrightMICHAEL GURVEN

The scientists looked for coronary artery calcium or "CAC" - which is a sign of clogged up blood vessels and risk of a heart attack.

The scientists scanned 705 people's hearts in a CT scanner after teaming up with a research group scanning mummified bodies.

At the age of 45, almost no Tsimane had CAC in their arteries while 25% of Americans do.

By the time they reach age 75, two-thirds of Tsimane are CAC-free compared with the overwhelming majority of Americans (80%) having signs of CAC.

The researchers have been studying this group for a long time so it is not simply a case of the unhealthy Tsimane dying young.

Michael Gurven, a professor of anthropology at University of California, Santa Barbara, told the BBC: "It is much lower than in every other population where data exists.

"The closest were Japanese women, but it's still a different ballpark altogether."

Is it only diet and exercise?

Image copyrightMICHAEL GURVEN

They also smoke a lot less, but they do get more infections which could potentially increase the risk of heart problems by causing inflammation in the body.

One idea is that intestinal worms - which dampen immune reactions - could be more common and this may help protect the heart.

What can I learn?

Prof Gurven said: "I would say we need a more holistic approach to physical exercise rather than just at the weekend.

"Bicycle to work, take the stairs, write your story on a treadmill desk." (I didn't)

Dr Thomas said: "It could be to maintain health we need to be exercising much more than we do.

"The modern world is keeping us alive, but urbanisation and the specialisation of the labour force could be new risk factors [for an unhealthy heart].

"They also live in small communities, life is very social and they maintain a positive outlook."

What do experts make of all this?

Dr Gavin Sandercock, reader in clinical physiology (cardiology) at the University of Essex, said: "This is an excellent study with unique findings.

"The Tsimane get 72% of their energy from carbohydrates.

"The fact that they have the best indicators of cardiovascular health ever reported is the exact opposite to many recent suggestions that carbohydrates are unhealthy."

Prof Naveed Sattar, from the University of Glasgow, said: "This is a beautiful real life study which reaffirms all we understand about preventing heart disease.

"Simply put, eating a healthy diet very low in saturated fat and full of unprocessed products, not smoking and being active life long, is associated with the lowest risk of having furring up of blood vessels."

Follow James on Twitter.

BALLOT VS BULLET; OUR EXPERIENCE SHOWS THAT THE CHOICE IS NOT THAT EASY – R. SAMPANTHAN.

“Peace” in Vanni, May 2009.

19/03/2017

The choice should not be difficult, looked at superficially

But our experience shows that the Choice is not that easy

It is quite difficult, why is it not that easy?

It is because Human Society is so complex, so diverse as to necessitate that Governance is structured so as to meet such complexity and diversity.

It is the mode and the manner of Governance that decides the Choice between the Ballot and the Bullet. 

Governance in a country, is based upon the Country’s Constitution. Constitutions of countries play a vital role in the structure of Governance. Governance encompasses the exercise of Legislative Power, Executive Power and Judicial Power.

Each one of these fields of authority has a crucial impact on the manner in which a Country is governed, on the lives of people in relation to the Government, and in relation to each other.

The Constitution is therefore crucial. Different Countries frame their Constitutions as desired by them. It largely depends on the leadership that a Country provides to the framing of a Constitution .Wise leadership ensures that a country’s Constitution is largely based upon a reasonable Consensus. 

Consensus accommodates Diversity, it avoids Complexity. Human society is diverse ,it is complex. Societies in most countries are multilingual, multi ethnic, multi-cultural, and pluralistic in character, they vastly differ from each other.

Constitutional arrangements need to accommodate such diversity, such complexity. If there is such accommodation society is stable. Such stability promotes development, and is able to achieve peace and prosperity. Lack of such accommodation promotes discontent and conflict, instability, lack of development, absence of peace and prosperity.

The Ballot is the democratic way, based upon dialogue, a free exchange of views, and the making of choices based upon one’s judgment. It is a rational process, if this process fails, then it is the Bullet, which is not merely a response to discontent and conflict, but also the apparent means to seek a remedy to the perceived injustice.

We have the experiences of several Countries, both positive and negative where the Ballot has prevailed and been successful, and also where the Bullet has been resorted to with its painful consequences.

I would like to refer to my own Country, Sri Lanka, though small an important Country in the Indian Ocean region. SriLanka is a multi-ethnic, multi lingual, multi-cultural Country comprising of the Sinhalese who are the Majority and have their own distinct identity, the Tamils, and the Muslims who are numerically a minority and have their own distinct identities. This is accepted in Sri Lanka and is not a bone of contention.

The Tamil speaking people have historically inhabited the North Eastern part of the Country and are in a majority in every district in the North Eastern part of the Country, while the Sinhala people are in a majority in the rest of the Country. This too is accepted and is not a bone of contention.

The Country attained independence from Colonial rule in 1948.Before Colonial subjugation, there were Sinhala and Tamil Kingdoms in the Country, which were captured by different Colonial powers, differently, and at different times. These different territories were unified together in 1833 under British Colonial Rule.

All people, the Sinhalese, the Tamils and Muslims joined together in their demand to achieve Independence.

Sri Lanka’s first Constitution was framed in 1948 by our Colonial rulers. It provided for Majoritarian rule with certain safeguards, which were soon disregarded. Thereafter, we have had two Constitutions, one in 1972 and the other in 1978.It is the latter that exists today.

The 1972 Constitution was framed by one of the two major Sinhala political parties without the consent of the other major Sinhala political party or the consent of the Tamil political party mainly representing the Tamil people of the North East.

The 1978 constitution was framed by the other major Sinhala political party without the consent of the major Sinhala political party that framed the 1972 Constitution or the consent of the political party mainly representing the Tamil people of the North East. The 1972 Constitution and the existing 1978 Constitution, were not framed on the basis of consensus, they were unilateral actions of the political party in power at the relevant time .They empowered majoritarian rule.

The political culture prevalent in Sri Lanka has unfortunately been that in order to achieve and retain political power the tendency has been to confer on the majority Community a supremacist position, in preference to truth justice and equality .It must be realised that this approach has resulted in Sri Lanka, not being able to attain its rightful place in the World.

The demand for a change in the structure of Governance has prevailed from shortly after Independence, the demand was made by the Tamil people in the North East who alleged that they were treated as Second class Citizens, that injustice was meted out to them, in matters relating to their Civil, Political, Economic, Social and Cultural rights. They were subjected to physical violence whenever they made just political demands .This happened for several decades without any retaliation from the Tamils.

The political demand of the Tamil people for necessary changes in the structure of Governance was democratically supported ,overwhelmingly ,by the Tamil people of the North East, at every General Election to Parliament from 1956-up to date and at every other election whether provincial or local for a period of more than Sixty years .

The democratic verdicts of the Tamil people were not given recognition .The Tamil people are thus being governed without their consent and against their will in violation of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations.

After that, there was armed revolt by Tamil Youth for almost three decades .Such armed revolt commenced more than three decades after the country attained independence and after all democratic and political processes had failed .This was a classic instance, in which the Bullet filled the void created by failure in the process of the Ballot. It stresses the importance of respecting and recognizing the verdicts of the Ballot. Such respect and recognition is the surest way to dispense with the need for the Bullet.

The result of all this has been that up to fifty percent of the Sri Lankan Tamil population have fled the country and live in several Countries the World over. The Sri Lankan Tamil Diaspora is spread throughout the World. More than 150000 Tamils have been killed. During the armed conflict, all people Sinhalese, Tamils and Muslims suffered immensely. Further violence would result in more Tamils fleeing the Country.

The Conflict has received international attention and four resolutions have been adopted by the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2015.

The resolutions deal with violations of International Human Rights Laws and International Humanitarian Laws by both parties to the conflict, the Sri Lankan State and the armed rebel outfit. The implementation of the resolution adopted in October 2015 is being currently reviewed by the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva. It deals with the Transitional Justice Process, issues pertaining to Land. Missing persons, detainees, and the evolution of Constitutional Arrangements that will bring about a just and acceptable political resolution to this conflict.

In recent times far reaching political changes have also taken place in Sri Lanka, through the process of the Ballot, through the democratic process. At an election prematurely called after the Constitution of Sri Lanka was amended to enable the then holder of office of President to contest even beyond the stipulated two terms, an authoritarian and insensitive regime which failed to be inclusive of all peoples who lived in the country, has been replaced by a new President and a new Prime Minister and Government through the process of the Ballot, emphasizing once again the utmost importance of the democratic process. This happened in 2015.

The new Government has committed itself to the making of a Constitution for the Country based upon Consensus and has commenced the process. The fact that the two main political parties are in alliance together in Government offers the Country a historic opportunity that was not available at the time of the making of the 1972 and 1978 Constitutions. The main Tamil Political Alliance in Parliament very largely representing the Tamil people of the North East is working with the new Government in its endeavours to formulate just and acceptable Constitutional proposals. The Tamil people are committed to evolving a just reasonable workable and durable political solution within the frame work of a single undivided and indivisible Sri Lanka. The parties largely representing the Muslim people are also a part of the process. For the first time in post independent Sri Lanka, an opportunity is available for the framing of a Constitution, based upon a substantial and reasonable consensus amongst political parties and all peoples in the Country. This opportunity must be pursued with genuine commitment.

Indian primeminister Narendra Modi addressing Sri Lanka parliament

Before I conclude may I quote a paragraph from the speech delivered by Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to the Sri Lankan Parliament on 13th March 2015. “For all of us in our region, our success depends on how we define ourselves as a nation. All of us in the region, indeed every nation of diversity, have dealt with the issues of identities and inclusion ,rights and claims, dignity and opportunity for different sections of our societies .We all have seen its diverse expressions. We have faced tragic violence: we have encountered brutal terrorism and we have also seen successful examples of peaceful settlements. Each of us has sought to address these complex issues in our own way .However, we choose to reconcile them.to me, something is obvious: diversity can be a source of strength for nations.

When we accommodate the aspirations of all sections of our society, the nation gets the strength of every individual .And when we empower states, districts and villages, we make our country stronger and stronger. You can call this, my bias. I have been a Chief Minister for 13 years; a Prime Minister, for less than a year!

Today, my top priority is to make the States in India stronger. I am a firm believer in cooperative federalism .So, we are devolving more power and more resources to the States and we are making them formal partners in national decision making processes.

Sri Lanka has lived through decades of tragic violence and conflict. You have successfully defeated terrorism and brought the conflict to an end. You now stand at a moment of historic opportunity to win the hearts and heal the wounds across all sections of society. Recent elections in Sri Lanka have reflected the collective voice of the nation: the hope for change, reconciliation and unity. The steps that you have taken in recent times are bold and admirable. They represent a new beginning.

I am confident of a future Sri Lanka defined by unity and integrity, peace and harmony and opportunity and dignity for everyone. I believe in Sri Lanka’s ability to achieve it. It is rooted in our common civilizational heritage. The path ahead is a choice that Sri Lanka has to make and it is a collective responsibility of all sections of the society and all political streams in the country. But, I can assure you of this: for India, the unity and integrity of Sri Lanka are paramount .It is rooted in our interest. It stems from our own fundamental beliefs in this principle”

This opportunity to conclusively reject the Bullet in favour of the Ballot must not be missed

Major General’s book becomes war crime dossier: FM

March 18, 2017, 7:25 pm 

ECONOMYNEXT -Anti-Sri Lanka activists have snapped up retired army general Kamal Gunaratne’s tome to buttress their allegations of war crimes against government forces, Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera said.

The 741-page "Road to Nandikadal" published by Gunaratne the day after he retired from the army, was a catalogue of atrocities committed by government forces since early 1980s, the minister told reporters at his ministry last week.

Setting fire to homes of Tamil civilians, killing innocent civilians and plundering valuables of homes under the guise of cordon-and-search operations have been listed by Gunaratne in minute detail.The minister said the language used by Gunaratne also indicated that he derived pleasure by seeing the death and destruction around him and in his own words he had admitted that as an officer he did nothing to discipline soldiers under his command.

The book details how government forces set fire to homes and buses in Jaffna during the "1983 referendum (sic - page 30)"  and Gunaratne as a young officer "watched it unfold, at times with amazement and at times with eagerness." The referendum was actually held in December 1982.

Gunaratne’s original unit, the Rajarata Rifles, was disbanded but Gunaratne himself escapes punishment according to his book and the unit emerges as the "mighty Gajaba Regiment."

Minister Samaraweera said Gunaratne’s book was replete with day-to-day incidents where Gunaratne admitted that he personally assaulted Tamil youngsters for riding motorcycles without wearing helmets. The minister described the book as a betrayal of the Sri Lankan military.

The book was launched in September last year at Colombo’s  Ananda College auditorium in the presence of former president Mahinda Rajapaka and his defence secretary brother Gotabhaya. However, serving military officers, many of whom are old boys of Ananda, were conspicuous by their absence.

Several majors general who had retired recently have privately criticised Gunaratne for understating the contributions of his seniors as well as colleagues such as retired majors general Prasanna Silva and Jagath Dias.

Gunaratne also speaks of soldiers robbing Tamil homes during cordon-and search operations and blames troops from the air force and navy for allegedly mistreating army personnel during the war.

He claims he was the first officer to have captured a suspect who took cyanide in military custody.

"I became famous in the army as the first officer to capture a terrorist who swallowed cyanide in custody. I regret not having been able to discover the cyanide when we searched him, upon capture."

"I was happy to see these terrorists, who were born as children of our motherland and were trying to destroy it, dying one by one," Gunaratne says in his book.

He also took pleasure at the deaths of Tamil political leaders at the hands of Tigers.

"Whilst there may be some who were saddened by these killings, I must confess  that as a young patriotic officer who had witnessed too much of hatred and mayhem caused by their ideology, I was happy. Though I may have been wrong to feel such happiness, it is the unvarnished truth," Gunaratne said in page 80 of his book.

Minister Samaraweera said Gunaratne’s book was being distributed abroad by pro-LTTE diaspora group to discredit the Sri Lankan army and support their claims of systemic persecution of Tamils. It was also being circulated in Geneva during the Human Rights Council sessions.

"This book provides evidence to those who accuse Sri Lankan forces of war crimes," the minister said.

He also noted that Gunaratne’s account of the discovery of LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran’s body contradicts with an another account he gave the Lakbima newspaper in June 2009, less than a month after the end of the war.

On page 729, Gunaratne says Prabhakaran was wearing military camouflage uniform of the LTTE and that he also had his LTTE identity card and dog tag when the  body was brought before him by soldiers on May 19, 2009.

However, in an interview to the Lakbima newspaper on June 7, 2009, Gunaratne had claimed that it was his troops who dressed Prabhakaran in LTTE military uniform and that the terror leader was in civilian clothing when he was killed.

By his own account, he had tampered with a dead body.