Burma has released 67 child soldiers in first discharge of the year – UNICEF

Min Aung Hlaing takes part during a parade to mark the 72nd Armed Forces Day in Naypyitaw, Burma, on March 27, 2017. Source: Reuters

25th June 2017

AS part of an ongoing process to end the forced recruitment of underage children into its army, the Burmese military has released 67 child soldiers.

According to AFP, as published by Burmese news site Mizzima, the former junta in Burma had steadily recruited underage fighters for decades until 2012, when the state’s army signed a pact – the Paris Principles on Children Associated with Armed Forces or Armed Groups – with the United Nations. This took place a year after the former junta gave up power after a 50-year reign.

Since then, almost 850 children and young people have been released from the ranks. However, there are no figured confirming how many of these underage recruitments remain among about 500,000 troops in Burma.

Coconuts Yangon‏ @CoconutsYangon

Myanmar releases nearly 70 more child soldiers: UNICEF https://coconuts.co/yangon/news/myanmar-releases-nearly-70-child-soldiers-unicef/ …

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4:28 AM - 23 Jun 2017

But efforts by the country’s young government under Aung San Suu Kyi has seen recruitment slow down as it works to help the former soldiers reintegrate into society as part of the peace process.

“We welcome this discharge by the Tatmadaw along with other measures it has taken to prevent new recruitments and the use of children. It is much more difficult to recruit a child today than it was 4 years ago, recruitment procedures have been centralized, physical checks are strengthened, and assigned military focal points ensure the ranks are aware of the standards” said Bertrand Bainvel, the UNICEF Representative, and co-chair of the UN CTFMR, in a statement.

The UN Country Task Force on Monitoring and Reporting (CTFMR) is now calling on the Burmese government to adopt the new Child Rights Bill, which includes a chapter on children and armed conflict.

SEE ALSO: Nearly half a million refugees have fled Burma – UN

The release of the children comes as US officials confirm that US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has plans to remove Burma and Iraq from a US list of worst offenders in the use of child soldiers.

According to Reuters, Tillerson overruled and ignored his own staff’s assessments and the recommendations of senior diplomats in both Asia and the Middle East on the matter, and rejected an internal State Department proposal to add Afghanistan to the list.

His plans have been criticised, with Human Rights Watch saying that removing Burma from the list would be a “completely premature and disastrous action that will effectively betray more children to continued servitude and rights abuses”.

Dr.Pulaski2017‏ @DrPulaski2017

.@realDonaldTrump and family must have business deals there. Only way they'd overlook human rights #TrumpRussia

“What’s particularly astonishing is this move ignores that the U.N. in Burma says that it is still receiving new cases of children being recruited” by the Myanmar military, said Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch.

Syrian government says it freed 672 prisoners

Some of those released say they were arrested for actions they took against government
Prisoners arrive at Baath Party branch in Damascus, ahead of their release (Reuters)

Reuters-Saturday 24 June 2017

Syria's government said on Saturday that it had released 672 prisoners who promised to accept the state's authority, a move it said was aimed at bolstering a "reconciliation" process.

Reconciliation is the term the government uses for local deals with rebels for them to either disarm and accept its rule or to leave with small arms for other insurgent areas.

"They have been released after promising not to do anything against the nation's security or stability," Justice Minister Hisham al-Shaar was quoted as saying by the official SANA news agency.

He said most of the prisoners were from Damascus, but there were others from across Syria, indicating the release was not linked to a particular deal regarding one rebel-held area.

SANA did not report what the freed detainees had been put in prison for, but some of those released told Reuters they were arrested for actions they took against the government.

Syria's opposition says reconciliation deals are forced on areas after prolonged sieges and intense bombardment. The United Nations has warned they may be used to force people from their homes.

President Bashar al-Assad has said he sees them as a way to reduce fighting in Syria and bring to an end the six-year conflict that has killed hundreds of thousands of people and made millions homeless.

The opposition, Western countries and rights groups say the government has detained tens of thousands of Syrians without trial for political reasons, torturing and killing thousands of them. Assad and his government deny that.

Follow Jennifer @JennRollins1002 A large crematorium was built in #Syria's Sednaya prison to hide bodies of executed prisoners. #7DaysInSyria 2:52 PM - 12 Jun 2017

 Follow

Jennifer @JennRollins1002

A large crematorium was built in #Syria's Sednaya prison to hide bodies of executed prisoners. #7DaysInSyria

2:52 PM - 12 Jun 2017

Could Trump’s White House tapes ruse actually get him in legal trouble?

By Aaron Blake June 24 at 7:30 AM

President Trump and former House speaker Newt Gingrich have both now admitted, for all intents and purposes, that Trump's ruse about possible White House tapes was meant to influence James B. Comey's public comments. In an interview Friday with Fox News, Trump congratulated himself for the ploy.

“Who knows, I think his story may have changed,” Trump said. Asked whether his strategy was smart, Trump said, “It wasn't very stupid; I can tell you that.”

President Trump tweeted on June 22 that he doesn't possess — and didn't record — tapes of his private conversations with former FBI director James B. Comey. (Peter Stevenson/The Washington Post)

[Trump says he has no ‘tapes’ of Comey conversations]

Added Gingrich in an interview with AP: “I think he was, in his way, instinctively trying to rattle Comey. … His instinct is: 'I'll outbluff you.'"

But was it just political subterfuge, or was it something that could haunt Trump in his ongoing obstruction of justice investigation? Some have even suggested it could amount to witness tampering.

Norm Eisen, a former counsel to the Obama White House and frequent Trump critic, tweeted this after Trump's initial tweet:

 Follow

Norm Eisen

✔ @NormEisen

this tweet another possible trump crime: 18 USC 1512, witness intimidation. comey witness 2trump's possible obstruction by demanding loyalty https://twitter.com/realDonaldTrump/status/863007411132649473 …

8:31 AM - 12 May 2017

10,389 10,389 Retweets

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Meanwhile, Rep. Adam B. Schiff (Calif.), the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, also nodded in the direction of potential witness tampering on Thursday, after Trump revealed he had no tapes.

“If the president had no tapes, why did he suggest otherwise? Did he seek to mislead the public? Was he trying to intimidate or silence James Comey?” Schiff asked. “And if so, did he take other steps to discourage potential witnesses from speaking out?”

Trump isn't going to be brought up on charges for this — whatever punishment comes would be in the hands of Congress — and legal experts doubt he would actually be accused of witness tampering, given the circumstances. But some of them say it could feed into the obstruction of justice case.

“If Gingrich’s analysis of what was going on here is accurate and were to be accepted by a finder-of-fact, then this could definitely raise additional obstruction of justice concerns for Trump,” said Peter Zeidenberg, a former longtime Justice Department prosecutor.

Another longtime former Justice Department lawyer, American University law school professor William Yeomans, said, “I certainly think Trump's tape bluff contributes to the large, accumulating pile of circumstantial evidence that he intended to impede the Russia investigation.”

Ohio State University law professor Joshua Dressler disagreed. He said that Gingrich's explanation that the tapes tweet might have been malicious adds to the “smell of the obstruction claim.” But he said that's probably about it: “I don’t think this takes us much further than we already are.”

As for the specific tampering question: According to U.S. code, witness tampering is defined in part as when someone intimidates, threatens or “corruptly persuades another person, or attempts to do so, or engages in misleading conduct toward another person” with the intent to “influence, delay or prevent” testimony.

David Shapiro, a former FBI special agent and professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, said you could make a cause that this amounted to tampering and that Trump was “gaming the expected testimony” of Comey. But he said Trump could easily argue that he merely wanted any such tapes, if they existed, to be released. Trump, after all, never claimed to actually possess or record any tapes himself; he simply suggested they might exist.

“Thus, it seems doubtful whether Trump engaged in misleading conduct,” Shapiro said.

Renato Mariotti, another former federal prosecutor, agreed with Shapiro's conclusion.

“Perhaps someone could argue that the president's tweet could be used to discourage Comey from testifying, because his words would never precisely match a tape; I don't buy it,” Mariotti said. "
[Comey] testified carefully from notes he wrote shortly after the conversations. Perjury is not an issue unless you believe you are testifying falsely. People should keep in mind that not every foolish action is a federal crime.”

Zeidenberg agreed that Trump's defense would probably be that he was merely trying to get Comey to tell the truth.

“But my guess is that his lawyers are pulling their hair out because of statements like this,” Zeidenberg said. “He is dancing right up to the line, and just giving more ammunition to Mueller.”
Indeed, I've argued that being Trump's lawyer may be the second most difficult job in Washington, behind being his spokesman. And Dressler says the tapes ruse is problematic on both fronts — the legal one and the PR one.


“If I were making the argument for obstruction or impeachment, I would say that asserting a false statement that there are tapes — or, perhaps more accurately, hinting … that there are tapes that one knows is false — is an odd way to further justice,” Dressler said. “That makes defending Trump as innocent of obstruction more tenuous.”

New Orleans mayor: US climate change policy cannot wait for Trump

• Mitch Landrieu says cities will lead as federal government is ‘paralysed’
• NYC’s de Blasio backs push as Miami Beach shows anti-sea rise work

 Miami is one of a number of US cities at risk from the effects of climate change. Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty Images

Associated Press in Miami Beach-Saturday 24 June 2017

US cities will lead national policy on climate change after the Trump administration’s withdrawal from the Paris climate accords, working to reduce emissions and become more resilient to rising sea levels, Mitch Landrieu of New Orleans said at an annual meeting in Florida.

“I think most mayors in America don’t think we have to wait for a president” whose beliefs on climate change are disconnected from science, Landrieu said.

The US Conference of Mayors supported the Paris agreement, and according to preliminary results released on Saturday morning from an ongoing nationwide survey, the vast majority of US mayors want to work together and with the private sector to respond to climate change.

“There’s near unanimity in this conference that climate change is real and that humans contribute to it,” said Landrieu, who will replace Oklahoma City mayor Mick Cornett as conference president in Miami Beach this weekend. “There may be a little bit of a disagreement about how actually to deal with it.

“If the federal government refuses to act or is just paralyzed, the cities themselves, through their mayors, are going to create a new national policy by the accumulation of our individual efforts,” he said.

New York City mayor Bill de Blasio said US cities too often find themselves alone when trying to address the effects of climate change. De Blasio joined Miami Beach mayor Philip Levine on a tour of a South Beach neighborhood where the city has raised streets and installed pumps to send up to 120,000 gallons of water a minute flowing back into Biscayne Bay.

The project – aimed at keeping the island city dry amid rising seas – has received national attention, but Levine noted that not all communities can afford to fight climate change without state or federal funding.

“But if we don’t do it, who’s going to do it, right?” de Blasio said. “Cities and states around the country are now doing the kinds of things the national government should do. It’s just that we can’t depend on our national government anymore.”

A May survey of local sustainability efforts, conducted by the conference and the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions, initially only included 80 mayors who hold leadership positions within the conference. After Donald Trump pulled the US out of the Paris agreement, the survey was extended to all conference members and the mayors of about 1,400 cities with populations of 30,000 or more.

Cities still have months to respond to the questionnaire on low-carbon transportation options, renewable energy and energy efficiency programs, but the data received so far from 66 cities in 30 states showed 90% were interested in forming partnerships with other local governments to create climate plans, implement transportation programs or procure equipment such as electric vehicles.

The responses have come from cities ranging in size from 21,000 people – Pleasantville, New Jersey – to New York City’s 8.5 million. According to the survey, the majority want to buy or already bought green vehicles, and most also have energy efficiency policies for new and existing municipal buildings.

Traditional energy sources still dominate, but the survey noted that more cities could use renewable electricity if their states passed legislation. Forty-seven cities spent nearly $1.2bn annually on electricity for city operations, and “with this level of purchasing power, coordinated efforts or shifts in demand from US cities will be of interest to energy utilities and provides”, the survey said.

Cardiologist: Breast implants skew heart attack test

Other tests are needed alongside ECGs to confirm or rule out a possible heart attack,MUTLU KURTBAS/GETTY--

The type of implants most commonly used in the UK are silicone gel,KLAUS GULDBRANDSEN/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

21 June 2017

Breast implants make it trickier to run tests that can help spot a possible heart attack, a cardiologist has said.

Dr Sok-Sithikun Bun, from Monaco, did a small trial, with 48 women, and found electrocardiogram (ECG) tests, which measure the electrical activity of the heart, were often unreliable because the breast implants "got in the way".

Dr Bun is presenting his findings at a conference in Austria.

Having a pre-implant ECG for doctors to refer to would help, he said.

"We do not want to frighten patients, but it may be wise to have an ECG before a breast implant operation," Dr Bun said.

"The ECG can be kept on file and used for comparison if the patient ever needs another ECG."

Doctors use ECGs to help them diagnose the cause of chest pain.

Small sticky patches, called electrodes, are put on the patient's arms, legs and chest and connected by wires to the ECG machine, which picks up and records the electrical signals, which can then be printed on to paper.

Faulty readings

The women in the ECG trial were in their early 30s to late 40s and healthy, with no known heart problems - 28 of them had implants, 20 did not.

Two independent heart experts, who had never met the participants and did not know whether or not they had had implants, interpreted the women's ECG results.

More than a third of the scans from the implant group were interpreted as "abnormal" by these experts.

But the women were given a clear bill of health with other heart checks.

"We think the abnormal ECG recordings were false readings due to the implants," said Dr Bun.

"We have two hypotheses. It might be the composition of the implant that acts like a barrier for the electrical signals coming from the heart.

"Or, it may be a slightly different position of the ECG [chest] electrodes due to the breast implants."

The danger was that ECG readings would be confusing for doctors and get in the way of them reaching a speedy diagnosis, said Dr Bun.

"Doctors could mistakenly conclude that a patient with breast implants has a manifestation of coronary artery disease if they believe in the false ECG findings," he said.

It is not clear if the size of the implant matters.

Dr Mike Knapton, from the British Heart Foundation, said the findings would apply to the significant number of women who have had breast implants, either following treatment for breast cancer or as a cosmetic procedure.

"These findings will help those reading an ECG to avoid the risk of a false diagnosis and any unnecessary follow-up tests or treatment."

SRI LANKA’S JUSTICE MINISTER ON WAR PATH; ATTACKS MINORITY RIGHTS DEFENDER AS A NGO FUNDED TRAITOR.

Image: Sandya Eknaligoda, holding a placard which says ” protect Lakshan Dias’s right to speak!” at a recently held protest against Justice Minister’s remarks. Credit: @vikalpavoices .

23/06/2017

Speaking to Ceylon Today Justice Minister Wijedasa Rajapaksa has indicated that he is going to take action against human and minority rights defender attorney at Law Lakshan Dias. His recent inflammatory comments on Lakshan Dias came under strong criticism form local as well as international human rights organisations.

Unleashing an anti NGO barrage he says that it is extremist NGO cohorts are the ones who attempt to suppress monks and Buddhists. They appear before media and blaspheme Buddhist monks.

Mr. Rajapaksa has been appointed as a member of Prime Minister’s Committee for the Implementation of the Geneva resolution last week.

Excerpts from interview published follows:

By Wijedasa Rajapaksa.

I totally disagree with that allegation  that the United National Party  is a secular political party. The UNP has nowhere mentioned to be so and there is no possibility of happening that. It is the prime duty and the responsibility of the country as a whole to safeguard the pre-eminency of Buddhism and to protect the Buddha Sasana. That responsibility does not lie with a singular political party.
( In fact UNP issued a press statement insisting that it is a secular political party. Read the Sinhala language press release here: UNP press statement 19 June 2017.j PDF pg)

The lawyer  against whom I will take action to disbar a lawyer if he fails to apologize to the nation for his statement regarding alleged attacks on 166 Christian places of worship is a traitor and is in a mission to spoil the reconciliation process. He is eagerly waiting to grab an opportunity to create unrest in the country. These people behave in a manner similar to animals.

I am taking action against his statement. You can see the results in a couple of days.

Yes, of course!  I agree that those who attempt to curb the voice of Sinhala Buddhists are funded by NGOs. And those NGOs pay thumping amounts of money to those who engage in portraying a bad image of Sri Lanka that the minority ethnic groups are discriminated and tortured in the country by the majority. The more the religious unrest is prevailing in the country, the merrier for those who live by the aids of extremist foreign organizations. Some people, for instance the alleged lawyer who claimed that 166 Christian places of worship were assaulted, openly work for NGOs and some do not publicly appear to be so. But, all of them are being funded by NGOs.

They are prepared to engage in any unethical act if they are paid well. They neither practise a religion, nor they belonged to an ethnic group, and they do not have roots. They act in accordance with the whims and fancies of NGOs. If there is no crisis in the country and if it is peaceful, those NGOs will have to pack their bags and leave the country. If so happens, they will lose their means of living. They attempt to create religious and ethnic unrest merely for their survival.

That is why they create crises in the country to retain their income. They operated during the previous regime as well. In comparison to the previous regime, the freedom of expression and freedom of media are assured by this government. Hence, their presence and activities have become intense after this government came to power.

As we have assured media freedom, the media recklessly report what these NGO funded traitors jabber before the cameras and mikes. That is also one of the main reasons to aggravate this problem. Media has no idea what should or shouldn’t be done.Nowadays we cannot find journalists. There are only reporters who report whatever is being said by someone.

After we have paved the way for reconciliation in the country, NGOs and anti Buddhist and Sinhala movements began to operate with no hindrance. They abuse their freedom overtly. If this government was also to adhere to the procedures of the Mahinda regime, those movements and organizations would maintain low profiles. This government does not suppress them and have assured their freedom and that is the reason for their unwarranted behaviour.

I agree that they make use of the tender side of the reconciliation to operate in an unethical manner.
We do not subdue Buddhist monks in the country. Extremist NGO cohorts are the ones who attempt to suppress monks and Buddhists. They appear before media and blaspheme Buddhist monks. None in the government has reviled Buddhist monks.

Our Sinhala politicians are not intelligent enough to do so. The Sinhala Buddhist politicians do not have the vision to get together and stand up for their own ethnicity and religion. The disunity among the Sinhalese is the main problem why we cannot solve the racist and ethnic problems.

m in temple for the betterment of the people. They do not earn any profit by that. Those who cannot comprehend this truth have lodged complaints against broadcasts of Pirith at temples. That is a problem with their comprehension and knowledge. Pirith is chanted to bless people and the surroundings and the Bukkhus never curse or reprimand the believers of other religions. If someone is against chanting of Pirith I can say that they lack understanding.


Edited excerpts from a interview published in the Ceylon Today.

TNA – Is It Taking The Tamils For A Ride? – Part II

By Kumarathasan Rasingam –JUNE 23, 2017

Kumarathasan Rasingam

Continued from yesterday….

It is still not late for TNA to change its fruitless course for the sake of future of Tamils to ensure its existence in Sri Lanka, preventing an extinction through assimilation, It is imperative for TNA to join the voluntary protests of the people already in progress, besides mobilising protest campaigns for the other actions of the successive Sri Lankan governments like the erection of numerous Buddha statutes and constructions of Buddha Viharas where there is hardly any Buddhists, (mostly in the North and East where Hindu/Christian/Muslims are in majority and where the Chief Minister of Northern Provide is a Hindu and the Chief Minister of Eastern Province is a Muslim) solely to carve an image for Sri Lanka as a Buddhist Sinhala Country.

A mass protest campaign either sit-in or satyagraha (Gandhian style) is the need of the hour to free the lands unjustifiably and unnecessarily seized and occupied by the security forces in the North. Lest TNA would have to bear the blame of complicity in the Sinhalisiation aimed at making the Tamils as minorities resulting in serious demographic changes.

TNA is also wholeheartedly supporting the government for most of its legislations and actions when TNA must focus their attention and campaign towards the international community viewing the internationalised awareness of Tamils’ issues and grievances. First and foremost is the issue of accountability for war crimes etc.

It is worth quoting what the US Ambassador to Sri Lanka Patricia Butenis stated in her memo to State Dept in 2010. “Responsibility for many of the alleged crimes rests with the country’s senior civilian and military leadership including President Rajapaksa and his brothers and opposition candidate Sarath Fonseka” [http: Wikileaks.org  Sri Lankan-President-alleged-war-html]

Secondly, TNA must pursue its election pledges with no let up particularly the setting up of a Federal system, failing which it is worth resigning the parliamentary seats and call for a renewed mandate from the Tamils to strengthen the demand.

Sri Lanka’s agenda and fate of Tamils is lucidly and accurately forecast by Gordon Weiss (Book Cage -page 227) “The evident brutality of the final phase of Sri Lanka’s war, the treatment of the civilians population, the post war militarisation, the rejection of accountability and the political refiguring of the nation imply a political objective that has little interest in the hearts and minds of those who were ‘rescued’. It suggests, instead commitment to the complete subjugation of the Tamil population by force, and an intention to sustain a grip over this restive group through terror and ethnic cleansing”. Unfortunately judging by the current trends on the ground, an astute sooth sayer might guess that the future for Sri Lanka’s Tamil citizens is bleak”. (page 224)
“Under the guise of development, the Sri Lankan Government is indeed using its Army to control the economy of Tamils majority areas, and to change the demography” (Bourke –  Australia – March 2012)

“The extinction of Tamil Tigers has once again made possible the total domination of the narrative by the state” . (Gordon Weiss – Cage Page 225)

There is little doubt the former UN Official Gordon Weiss who worked in numerous conflict and natural disaster zones – like Bosnia, Afghanistan, Darfur and Haiti, has even-handedly analysed the politics and war of Sri Lanka, and it is hoped Sri Lanka will change its destabilising and destructive   course and embark on the path of justice, accountability and reconciliation sincerely and honestly with concrete actions and without empty promises and undertakings to the UN and International community.

For the time being, TNA must cease to continue the history of betrayal and breach of trust and promises staining the dignity of Tamils.

Sampanthan’s worry and concern for the survival of this Government rather than the survival of the Tamils is simply unrealistic and just poor judgement.
Illankai Tamil Arasu Katchi’s  [ITAK’s] latest distressing episode in relation to Chief Minister of Northern Province Wigneswaran appears to be descending in to a full scale crusade to remove a principled person who has risen like a Goliath to challenge the trio ( Sam, Sum, Mavai) of ITAK.

This is nothing but a disgusting spectacle unfolding pitting one group of Tamils against another group of Tamils even calling for Hartal to show the strength as a non-violent struggle. By these actions, the Tamil leaders have plainly, simply fallen into the divide and rule trap of government to destabilize the Northern Provincial Council and paint a picture of disunity, lack of dedication and determination to agitate for the causes of Tamils with hoards of problems facing the Tamils who are still suffering after the brutal war. It is thus unpardonable for the Tamil leaders to waste their time and energy for the sake of self-glory, power and promoting of party interests at the expense of suffering Tamils.

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On which “beast’s” back does the burden of governance (not) rest?
 Friday, 23 June 2017

I was very hopeful when circumstances necessitated a national government of sorts in a hazy summer concatenation now long forgotten. At the time, we all thought the union of two major mainstream mindsets would result in a smorgasbord of good things – governance included.

There would be a unitary vision; a joint effort at ensuring things were done in a unified national interest; a strategic streamlining of mission and passion just short of symbiosis whereby all would be well in the many spheres where we the people had mandated our servants – our elected representatives who would appoint their own mandarins and govern out of sight, out of mind, until we were called on to replace them… Or endorse another term, depending on their performance in the honeymoon period – and beyond – into their unusual but welcome political alliance.

Or so we thought, being idealistic; hoping that the beast with two backs being made by previously implacable foes would ally our aspirations for ‘peace with justice’ with their political ambition to do or be damned – but both parties proved to be a disappointment; with neither beast providing a platform for the people’s hopes; just oxen pulling in different directions, and bellowing about hardly anything worth bothering about.

The new political culture was no genuine new political culture; but rather a hybrid creature roughly sewn together in a pastiche of personalities and preferences: lacking character and principle as the rude star turn in the ensuing pantomime into which governance has descended of late…

MPs: Mouthing platitudes

Politicos are often mouthpieces for their respective political parties, as well as their more powerful patrons with hidden agendas and vested interests. However, when they utter utter inanities or patent absurdities, the public are compelled to draw a firm but fair line. Despite the seeming meaningfulness of the sentiments expressed by a brace of ministers recently, there is far more significance to their utterances than might immediately meet your eye.

How lame it is when the less than honest horse hustler rails against the crooked cattle wranglers on the adjoining ranch. Hearing a minister who has done the rounds, politically speaking, laying down the law unequivocally on a matter of fiscal and fiduciary ethics reminded me that those who live in barns should not throw dung… unless they expect bovine excreta to be thrown back at them… until the Augean stables of their own as well as joint and mutual making are cleansed, they would do better to hold their peace.

That the minister in question is concerned with fraud and financial crime and punishment is commendable. If only the minister and the politico-legal machinery he is speaking on behalf of were to put their money where their mouth is, it would be far more credible and worthy of the headlines he made in essaying his fait accompli.

Political pundit’s patter

According to Minister Mahinda Amaraweera, the government’s good intention is to prosecute politicians and public servants who misuse public funds, and abuse (or let fall into disuse) the state’s national resources. Does he know – as Virgil did, because the road was smooth then as now – that the path to hell is paved with mere good intentions?

The minister added that his administration would not permit the perpetrators of fraud and/or other financial crimes (as well as a spate of corrupt practices) to roam free… but would take legal action against them… Which is all well and good… but how can and must he and his naïve ilk account for the inordinate number of sharks and big fish at large to enjoy ‘life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness’ – while sprats and minnows languish in gaol… for petty misdemeanours as much as incurring the wrath of the present powers that be? The Founding Fathers of our Democracy must shudder that ’twas ever thus… one revengeful regime no more noble or pure than the other honourable administration of doubtful probity!

The master psychologist with amazing insight into the state’s bureaucratic mentality inferred that certain government servants – perhaps both elected and appointed public officials – wrongly believed that they were not going to be prosecuted to the full extent of the law, being simply suspended for a while. However, this would not be the case, the insistent minister added, adducing that (as Churchill intimated) appearances can be deceiving. Or, as this could be misinterpreted, “keep up appearances – therein lies the test… the world will give you credit for the rest…”

In a statement virtually guaranteed to make the minister regret his pronouncement, he further asseverated (with an emphasis on the first syllable): “We will ensure that if and when found guilty, those wrongdoers who are discovered breaking the law will be jailed for seven to eight years at the very least.” Maybe he forgets that the law and the lapses of its enforcement – like love, as Jesus said – cover a multitude of sins… So he’s sitting pretty in asserting (again, the same emphasis) that with the sitting president, there would be no let up or lacunae in law enforcement. Perhaps the Lord Archer model of politicians doing penance in prison would suit some of the minister’s fine-feathered friends better – if only the ruling party would be humble enough to turn the spotlight on themselves!

Meanwhile everyone’s wondering why the microscope of ‘good governance’ has failed to identify a single microbe in a plethora of high-profile killings under the previous regime? Is it that the truth hurts – or that realpolitik (whereby sauce for the enemy goose is sauce for our frenemies’ gander) rules the roost in the republic under the same panoply of pragmatic politics? No one gets their just desserts in the end under any administration to date… save those treated to rough justice by the assassin’s bullet or grenade, or the terrorist’s landmine or suicide vest…

Not one to beat about the bush, the minister went on to declare that Yahapalanaya’s ostensibly sea-green (with a dash of pea-blue) incorruptible administration was not established to protect thieves, rogues, and sundry scoundrels – but to prosecute them. And I can just hear JFK’s Marilyn Monroe saying in the background, “Yes, son, that’s all well and good, but first you have to find them.” She had another piece of advice which might also suit our punitive panjandrums thumping the drum on finding out who’s been naughty and nice… “I am trying to find myself. Sometimes, that’s not easy…” – can the do-gooder declaratives take a look in the mirror, please?

Thus we all know – as the erudite and well-informed minister does, having the facts at his fingertips – that, currently, “several cases of fraud and corruption are being investigated”; and, presently, “some of the miscreants have been produced in court”. Well, who is he trying to impress – Jesus, or Jeffery Archer? And just who does he think he or the president are – Virgil? Churchill? JFK?

Ministering angels bedevilled

Therefore pardon my faith in platitudinous law-enforcement by law-abiding politicos if I and my dog (Greek, “cynos”) remain cynical (English, “doggedly despondent”). We are down in the mouth about much else that ails the republic these days. Not least of which is a minister wearing two hats who can’t seem to quite make up his mind whether to be an idiot about one portfolio while being an ideologue about another, and (in the limit) utterly idiosyncratic about both.

Ideally, a servant of the people cannot serve two masters – the state as well as self… And if only the minister in question could muster enough honesty to master the principle that he is a servant of the people and not a slave to any perverse ideology founded on ethno-nationalist chauvinism (in the guise of protecting a special interest group), he could still do justice to one – if not both – of the ministries than come under his purview.

But a peculiar keenness to curry favour with the prelates – perhaps with an eye on present or future portfolios, maybe even that of the Mikado himself under an emerging power bloc in the emerging blue party – has compromised his common sense as much as his usually calm demeanour and sense of composure on matters of national interest. Despite being a highly-respected legal eagle in certain circles, and notwithstanding his stature as a leading business magazine’s erstwhile ‘Sri Lankan of the Year’, Justice Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe is showing an rather unsettling tendency to run with the hare and hunt with the hounds.

Which prompts me to ask: Who let the dogs out – again? Why at this time… Where is the much vaunted law and order we relied on? How is it that those masked men with hidden agendas and vested interests can cry, “Havoc!”, and let slip the dogs of war… and no less than the justice minister of a democratic-republic be seen not to be on the side of the angels? And, in fact, on the contrary, rush in where devils fear to tread? When will albeit powerful ministers learn that portfolios are temporary; fame or even notoriety short-lived; and personal peccadilloes while in office the legacy that even the best of well-meaning mandarins leave behind?

If only anger-maddened agenda-driven monks spewing vitriol – and their political masters mouthing inane platitudes after them, or adopting attack as the best form of defence, as in the Lakshan Dias fiasco – would sober up, the volatile words spoken in our nation today would be far less inflammatory ... and there’d be peace with justice, rather than simply the absence of conflict – and justice with peace among even the ministering angels in whom there was once such hope…