Gross violation of ‘Human rights’

2017-10-24

The latest issue of our sister paper Sunday Times carried a news item which quoted the Auditor General’s Department as saying that the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) was still holding on to a balance of more than Rs.3.2 billion from money remitted by the United Nations Compensation Commission (UNCC) to pay Sri Lankans who were employed in Kuwait during that country’s invasion by Iraq in 1990.   

The story further says, “the amount in US dollars at the prevailing exchange rate is more than US$20 mn. The payments are yet to be made because the bureau “had not implemented a formal methodology to pay compensation to the relevant workers,” says the 2015 Auditor General’s Report on the SLBFE. As a result, a balance of Rs.3,213,918,952 remains. Additionally, this has falsely been shown in accounts as a capital reserve when it should be termed a long-term liability.”   

What a crime! The SLBFE is the State agency that has been assigned to look after the interests of the Sri Lankan migrant workers in other countries. If this is the way it safeguards the interests of those earning foreign exchange for the country, what is the purpose of further running such an institution?   
There are two aspects being elucidated by this issue. One is the despicable lethargy prevailing in State institutions, especially when it comes to the problems of the ordinary people. Secondly, this is nothing other than callousness on the part of the public sector officials. The more than 100,000 Sri Lankans who had worked in Kuwait during the invasion of that country by Iraq had to undergo a hellish situation with some of them being killed, while some others being injured and almost everybody losing their earning and valuables worth hundreds of thousands of rupees. It had been revealed that eight Sri Lankans were killed and 32 injured due to the war from August 2, 1990 to March 2, 1991. The trauma they, especially the women and girls had undergone in a foreign country, sometimes without knowing the language of that country properly and without anybody to tell their harrowing tales, could not be imagined by others.   

Finally, Saddam Hussein’s government in Iraq was forced to compensate Kuwait and the UNCC was created in 1991 under a UN Security Council resolution to process claims and pay compensation for losses and damages suffered as a direct result of the invasion. The UNCC says it has concluded processing claims in 2005 and the total compensation awarded was US$ 52.4 billion to about 1.5 million successful claimants. Alas, this is 2017, twelve years have passed since, but the Sri Lankan bureaucracy has failed to make up its mind to pay the compensation to those who fell victims to a sudden cruel armed invasion while earning foreign exchange for the country.   

The most cruel part of this saga is that the authorities seem to have changed their mind later not to pay the compensation to the victims, as a balance of Rs 3.2 billion of the compensation fund that is with the SLBFE has falsely been shown in accounts as a capital reserve, whereas it should be termed a long-term liability, according to the Auditor general’s report quoted by the Sunday Times.   

Bureaucratic red tape and lethargy in State institutions has always been an obstacle in relief measures to the victims of disasters, apart from development activities. Seventeen months after the 2016 floods in the lower Kelani Valley areas, it was only on last Sunday that compensation for a fraction of victims for their material losses were paid at a function held at the Temple Trees. Home Affairs Minister Vajira Abeywardena said at this gathering, that it was after Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe’s intervention that the payment of compensation was possible. Besides, newspapers revealed recently that victims of landslides that occurred in 2016 were still languishing in tents. This is something more than lethargy. It should be termed as heartlessness of the bureaucracy.   

Sri Lanka: Hidden agenda driving for new Constitution?

Given this backdrop of the use of constitutional amendments to illegally prolong power, it is clear that if a new constitution is passed in 2017, the government could claim another five years

by Chandre Dharmawardana-Oct 23, 2017

( October 23, 2017, Ontario, Sri Lanka Guardian) When a pot of water heats up, small bubbles form, then bigger bubbles form, and convection currents begin to cause much agitation, increase of entropy and turbulence; the water is ready to undergo a dramatic “phase transition”. Water becomes steam. Social systems too, when highly stressed show increasing social turmoil, disruption and corruption. The normal course of justice is thwarted and those who control the purse begin to loot it.

If we go by the news reports, then Sri Lanka is in a state close to such a phase transition. President Maithripala Sirisena has enough executive powers to take action and cool the pot. But, instead, an additional factor of conflict has been introduced – an attempt to change the rule book enabling devolution of the purse to satisfy those inside and outside the country. Surely, given this cyber age where even a colony on the moon can be run from Cape Canaveral, devolution is a thing of the past. And yet, fake histories are put forward to justify such transfer of the power to loot the people by those who have traditionally looted them right in their so-called “traditional homelands”.

Preposterous claims are made justifying the fault lines of battles fiercely fought only just recently. A 3rd Century BCE king, Devaanam Piya Tissa, becomes a “Tamil king” in the narrative of a fiercely racist leader who demands that “Tamils marry only Tamils” to preserve their racial purity, harking back to the Tamil-Sinhala race riots of 1939 precipitated by similar utterances of G. G. Ponnambalam, who claimed that the Sinhalese were a mongrel race. The Tamil leaders need regional autonomy to enforce such rules of “racial purity”, even while their land is imminently threatened by the rise of sea level due to global warming. They need their part of the booty and their payback for facilitating the capture of the purse into the hands of a new set of thieves.

On the other hand, many have pointed out that the priority should be to resolving civil discontent that is threatening not only the government but every citizen’s well being. Many have questioned the need for re-writing the constitution at this hour. The first concern of a man falling into a fire cannot be a re-writing of the regulations for the fire brigade. The external pressure for the change of constitution put in by the US, UK and others working with a powerful diaspora, has been sharply questioned by Lord Naseby in the British House of Lords, affirming what jurists like Sir Desmond de Silva and others had already asserted. So, if the government wishes to abandon these divisive projects, it only has to capture the moment.

And yet, the rewriting of the constitution seems to be so important to the government that the Prime Minister attacked newspaper editors in public for reporting the opposition of the Mahanayakes to the attempt to change the constitution!

Is there a hidden meaning behind all this?

The answer to this puzzle is probably seen in the predicament faced by the UNP, the SLFP split into two, and even the JVP, TNA and the joint opposition. An ex-finance minster accused of unprecedented financial scandals is still treated as one of their VIPs seen in the company of the prime minster himself. He cannot be stripped of his status and thrown out because he may become embittered and reveal all. While many investigations are made, and many arrests are made, no one can be inculpated as everyone has skeletons to hide. Most politicians in power, from the highest ranks of the president and the prime minster to the lowest backbencher know that they cannot face the public and win an election. Hence, any means of avoiding elections would be a God send. Such a “magic wand” had already been used at least twice in this country. It was the SLFP-Leftist coalition of Sirima Bandaranaike which introduced a new republican constitution in 1972, declaring Sri Lanka to be a “Democratic Socialist Republic”. Unfortunately, democracy had been suppressed in a country under a quasi-permanent state of emergency since 1971. The Tamil Nationalists in the North had become increasingly violent, and met with unimaginative state repression. Mismanaged agricultural policies had produced food shortages in sharp contrast to that of a previous government. The death of Dudley Senanayake in 1973 and the depth of national mourning were the warnings that elections if held in two years will kick the government out. The emergency had been used to delay local elections and by-elections. It was then that the Sirimavo Government claimed a right to two additional years beyond 1975 under the new constitution! A five-year mandate became a seven-year hold on power. The undermining of the normal course of law and constitutional integrity was justified as the “ends justify the means” narrative of Left politics.

The JR Jayewardene government that replaced the Sirimavo government had no ideology other than the free-market tenet of getting rich, and staying in power by hook or crook. Its economists preached that market economics will optimize everything and prosperity will trickle down. Give the robber barons a free hand! Unfortunately, while a few got unbelievably rich in a very short time, most people became increasingly poor. Misguided but murderous youth uprisings in the south, terrorism in the North, and horrific state reprisals became a frequent feature.

JRJ’s government did not want to face elections. JRJ had introduced a new constitution with an executive president in 1978, and a 4th amendment in Dec. 1982 extending the life of the parliament to six years, and a sixth amendment in 1983. All this eroded the credibility of the parliament and established a pattern where constitutional amendments became a tool for the prolongation of unpopular governments. In 2013 Mahinda Rajapaksa proposed amendments so that there would be no limit on how often a President could be re-elected. That drafted amendment had addressed National issues of power devolution and also proposed to repeal land and Police powers vested with the Provincial Councils. The President did not understand that his family rule without accountability had discredited his government sufficiently to allow his enemies to hatch intrigue directly within his cabinet.

Given this backdrop of the use of constitutional amendments to illegally prolong power, it is clear that if a new constitution is passed in 2017, the government could claim another five years from then on, as the requirement for general elections in 2020 laid down by the previous constitution becomes caduc. This means the bond scams, highway construction scams, coal tender scams, and other myriads of commission scams, organic biofilm scams and other agricultural scams promoted by SEMS, the black-market sale of duty-free luxury vehicles, etc., etc., can go on unhindered. The current set of MPs, presidential advisers and other henchmen will continue to enjoy the perks of office, hardly ever attending parliament or having any need to go to their electorates. Instead, they will be on regular trips to foreign capitals when the diplomatic cocktail rounds become too boring. By 2022, many MPs will have become unbelievably rich, with wealth stacked in secret bank accounts in tax havens like Panama and Dubai. At that point they don’t need to contest elections as they would have acquired Green Cards with access to the land of Donald Trump. That is why a new constitution is needed by them and if maximum devolution is the price to pay, so be it. If even the word unitary has to be removed and replaced by a less clear “Orumitta” adjective, so be it!

BASL expresses grave concern over proposed constitutional changes

*... poses dozen queries to govt. seeking answers

*... questions fate of unitary character of state

*... frowns on apparent bid to introduce federalism

October 23, 2017, 11:08 pm 


The Bar Council of the Bar Association of Sri Lanka, at a special meeting, yesterday (23) resolved to express its grave concern about the proposed amendments to Articles 1 and 2 of the present Constitution.

The Bar Council also noted that proposed amendments in the Interim of the Constitutional Assembly of Sri Lanka had the effect of converting the Unitary character of the State to a Federal structure.

The Bar Council resolved to write to the government, urging it to respond precisely and with clarity to inter-alia the following questions:

1. What is the need/requirement for a new Constitution?

2. a) Will Sri Lanka continue to be Unitary?

b) If so, what [in brief] is the concept of a Unitary State?

3. What powers will be devolved on the Provinces?

4. a) Can the Central Government/ Parliament get back such powers if necessary?

b) if so, in what manner?

5. In appropriate circumstances, would the President have the power to exercise direct rule in the Provinces?

6. Will the Executive Presidency be abolished?

7. a) What would be the Court structure?

i. Will there be a Constitutional Court?

ii. If so, how are the Judges to that Court to be appointed?

a) How are Judges of the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal appointed?

8) i. Will there be criteria for such appointment?

ii. If so, what are they?

9. How will the judges of the Superior Courts be removed?

10. Will all Judges of the District Courts and Magistrates Courts throughout the country be appointed by the Judicial Services Commission and will their transfers and discipline subject only to the judicial Services?

11.

a. What are the Fundamental Rights that would be justiciable?

b. In what Courts would the Rights be justiciable?

12. Would the Courts have the power [up to a limited period of time] to review legislation if inconsistent with the Constitution?

The  BASL communique issued regarding the Bar Council Special meeting was signed by its President U.R. De Silva, PC.

CJ confirms LeN exposure : There are ‘rogue judges’ among judges –says CJ before judges themselves.!

(Lanka-e-News - 23.Oct.2017, 10.45PM)  As  Lanka e news had been revealing time and again there are ‘rogue judges’ among the  judges , and culprits among the referees, so it was confirmed , based on an announcement made publicly by  Priyasad  Dep the present chief justice at a conference before the judges themselves. 

The CJ disclosed  on the 21 st ,  based on his investigations  it has been confirmed  there are a number of individuals who are acting in a manner that is not compatible with the legal profession , and that situation  is not untrue . The CJ made this exposure without mentioning names.

At the conference held on the 21 st from 9.00 a.m. attended by  magistrates and district judges across the whole Island at the supreme court complex ‘Ceremonial court’ yard , the CJ made this announcement in Sinhala.

Commenting further , the CJ said , he has received a number of complaints about the malpractices and corruption of judges and chief justices , but when investigating though there aren’t concrete evidence , on the face of it there is a group which is conducting themselves in a manner that is not in consonance with the profession and ethics  of the  judges. 

There is such a group  in the Colombo chief magistrate courts . They are postponing cases without any grounds and even  leave the bench without hearing the cases  duly during  court time  , the CJ charged, while adding there are also such judges even in the high courts, and they  have got caught to him red handed. 

In any case laws are being enacted in accordance with the constitution , and the judges will have to obey those laws duly with a view to dispense justice. At least now the judges should follow correct practices and procedures , in order to serve the public , the CJ exhorted. Thereafter , SC judge Buwaneka Aluvihare delivered a lecture on granting of bail to accused in cases.  According to the Bail Act remanding is  the exception and   granting bail is the rule , he pointed out. It is true remanding pleases the public but remanding without grounds is wrongful , he noted.

In the evening a lecture was conducted on environmental laws , and a question time was allocated .  

Magistrates and district judges across the entire country including those of the North and East attended the conference .Many  of them seemed to be happy at the end. They  were happy that a conference was held with the participation of all the district judges and magistrates across the Island , instead of holding conferences at district levels. While  CJ was highlighting  the malpractices of some chief justices who are paid homage to like gods in some areas , it was evident some of them were rather unnerved and in fear as though they were guilt ridden. In any event they  seemed  pleased over the fact that all of them got an opportunity to assemble and meet at one point.

Meanwhile there exists  a shortage of 35 high court judges in the country , and that has  not still been met, and the Judicial Service Commission has sent a list of names  to the president  to make his selection . The president however  has told the Commission to send  some more names to make his choice  , it is learnt.

No matter what , the public are now watching,  like how cases were filed based on contempt of court charges by the two legged buffaloes and buffoons against Lanka  news and deputy minister Ranjan Ramanayake for exposing the unscrupulous judges , whether similar cases will be filed against the CJ too on contempt of court charges .

By Special Lanka e news court inside information reporter

Translated by Jeff

---------------------------
by     (2017-10-23 17:41:30)

Delay in 2017 Budget move locks billions of capital in listed firms

Oct 23, 2017

A near year-long delay in gazetting a 2017 Budget-approved liberalisation move is locking up billions of capital in listed firms and discouraging a higher inflow of foreign investment into the country, according to property sector experts.

In November last year, the Government via the 2017 Budget promised to introduce laws which would enable Public Limited Companies (PLCs) even with 51% foreign ownership the freehold right to land.

However, despite almost a year having passed, it hasn’t been gazetted yet and the delay and continuing ambiguity has jeopardised the country›s chances of attracting a higher inflow of foreign investments and additional economic value creation across various business sectors.

“Ideally, if Sri Lanka is keen to draw higher foreign investments for every economic or business sector, those which are best-in-class globally must be encouraged to take controlling stakes. This cannot be done at present because most of listed companies have land and property in them and under the Land (Restrictions on Alienation) Act of 2013 there are prohibitions on transfer of land of a company where foreign shareholding is direct or indirectly 50% or above. This 49% foreign ownership limit discourages foreign investors who are looking to buy a controlling stake in a listed entity,” Real Estate specialists Steradian Capital said.

“The current ambiguity is a big concern and discourages real higher foreign investment not only in real estate but in other economic sectors too,” Steradian Capital Co-Founders Hardy Jamaldeen and Archie Warman told the Daily FT.

 “This issue needs to be fixed soon if work to be started on promotion of Port City projects, estimated to generate $ 13 billion investment. It has a bearing on effective implementation of much-discussed Public-Private Partnerships policy of the Government and the planned divestiture of non-strategic State assets such as Hotel Developers (Hilton), Hyatt, etc., which have a portion of freehold land,”they added.

“In the Port City, the office space envisaged is 70% of Singapore office space. If the Government is keen to attract FDIs and make Port City a success as well as harness Sri Lanka’s strategic hub status benefits, then some of the archaic restrictions must be eased,” they emphasised.

They noted that CSE’s market capitalisation of $ 20 billion was equivalent to the value of only four-and-half-square kilometres of Colombo. Market capitalisation of regional peers is at least one time the GDP, which is $ 80 billion, so Colombo›s market capitalisation is four times less.

“Why we are of that shape and size is due to because of the lack of foreign participation due to the absence of encouraging policies. At the moment foreigners are only taking passive stakes in companies and that too as a means of diversification of geographical portfolio/exposure,” they said, adding that “higher market capitalisation and greater liquidity will attract big foreign funds and investors».

“As a country we must bring in higher quality technology, best-in-class processes and improve the skill set of our talent pool to be internationally competitive. If this is our aspiration we must pave the way from a regulatory perspective to enable world leaders in specific industries to either setup in Sri Lanka or take controlling stakes in listed companies to develop our local companies and take them to the next level. At present one of the options is a very slow burn whilst the controlling stake is not an option at all.

“If you look at the top 10 listed companies, how many people can buy or sell control? Maybe a very few. To improve size and shape and productivity, Sri Lanka needs to have a bigger cluster. Singapore transformed Marina Bay by easing restrictions and attracting a host of like-minded companies to develop that infrastructure in terms of property assets.”

Another point stressed by Hardy and Archie was that the capital of companies, conglomerates and family wealth offices on their balance sheet is tied up in land and buildings. Given the fact that borrowing cost is around 16-17%, the balance sheets are stretched.

“They don›t have the capacity or new capital for the next growth phase. If these segments can do a sale and long lease back arrangement, instead of borrowing at high cost, they can free up capital for expansion and next growth phase. This will trigger a wider economic growth scenario with more jobs and income to people, which the Government is keen to ensure. For this to happen we need a higher degree of foreign investors.”

The duo also pointed out that whilst free hold land issue remained very sensitive politically, “it is the exact point which the Government needs to decide whether it sincerely wants FDIs or not to usher greater development”.

“The sensitivities may be valid if small plots of land from individuals are being grabbed by foreigners, but via a new listed entity or existing listed entities, foreign investment will be for larger development purpose such as socio-economic infrastructure including affordable to mid-tier housing, leisure, mixed developments office space and industrial warehouses,» they emphasised.

“Sri Lanka is a very compelling destination within emerging markets. This is most certain for long-term property development, especially infrastructure in the property space such as office space, industrial warehouses, for which existing locked-up capital must be freed,” Steradian Capital co-founders added.

They dismissed the notion that the property sector is experiencing a bubble. Steradian is of the view that from a critical evaluation Sri Lanka remains underdeveloped, hence scope for further growth in the property market is logical.

“For the envisaged demand 10 years from now, we will need more capacity – be it office or industrial warehouse space, leisure properties or affordable housing,” they added.

By Nisthar Cassim

http://www.ft.lk

The Rohingya in our midst: Learning from the vulnerable

Photo by REUTERS/Mohammad Ponir Hossain via Newsweek


BISHOP DULEEP DE CHICKERA-10/23/2017

A Reflection

The Rohingya in our midst brought out the worst in some of us.

The aggression of a mob that sought to intimidate and deny these vulnerable humans of compassion and security, shockingly incited by some who carry religious responsibility in the community, will go down as a sad and shameful moment in our national conscience.

The swift intervention, of senior government ministers, to clarify and affirm our stance, however welcome, came too late. By then the contempt with which these vulnerable humans had been treated had done its damage. Their desperate dependence on our compassion and good-will had resulted in the humiliation and trauma instead of an already humiliated and traumatised people.

After fleeing the sectarian violence in Myanmar and a perilous journey by sea, this group of thirty one Rohingya were brought ashore by our navy to be held at the Mirihana detention centre. It was only after the devastating rape of a Rohingya woman, allegedly by an officer whose job it is to protect people that the UNHCR was allowed to do what it is there to do; provide humanitarian care for refugees.  Housed together for the first time they were surrounded by Sri Lankan neighbours with a traditional reputation for hospitality. The children of school going age were very rightly provided with opportunities for schooling; a gesture of some stability and the right and dream of every child and parent. This slow return to dignity was suddenly shattered through the violent reaction of a mob and the Rohingya were once again confined to a restricted space behind high walls in the south.

The lesson here is that when governments treat those dependent on our generosity and protection, arbitrarily, and relegate them out of sight and out of hearing, they fail in their humanitarian obligations and disseminate negative signals that no amount of verbal intervention to the contrary can undo. This creates a climate in which opportunists can easily endorse this mentality to do through visible violence what the government has set in place through structural violence.

While both these types of behaviour humiliate the helpless and the harassed, one difference stands out. The State is unconditionally accountable for its behaviour. Under no circumstances can those who represent the people in pursuing national wholesomeness and integration inflict or permit any kind of violence; whether against its’ own or those who seek refuge on its soil.

The Rohingya in our midst highlights the severe exclusion of humans by humans

Critical as these conditions are, the Rohingya are more than refugees or asylum seekers. They are a stateless people as well. In-spite of living on Myanmar soil they are not considered Myanmar nationals. They are consequently disqualified from constitutionally entrenched rights, freedom and basic facilities enjoyed by other Myanmar nationals; and denied recognition as a legitimate ethnic group in a land where numerous and diverse ethnic identities are recognised.

Despite some courageous exceptions, the majority Buddhists and minority Christians of Myanmar inaccurately portray and disown the Rohingya as ‘Bengali people’-illegal immigrants from Bangladesh. This is the wall of prejudice that Aung San Suu Kyi refuses to contest or dismantle.
This immediate crisis of nationality for the Rohingya is for the government of Myanmar to resolve. Given the current political intransigence as well as the systemic violence unleashed against them however, it will require sensitive diplomatic pressure, especially from friendly countries in the region, if the Rohingya are to eventually enjoy this universal human right.

The wider crisis of nationality for the world’s ten million stateless is to be addressed by the peoples and nations of the world. The scope of engagement if this is to happen should range from awareness at the level of schools world-wide, to global support for the UN Convention on the reduction of statelessness. Whether it is for the handful of Rohingya in our midst or the stateless of the world; it is the sustained combination of compassion, justice and diplomacy from peoples’ movements and the nations of the world that will one day eliminate this horrific humiliation of excluded humans.

The Rohingya in our midst points to a simmering ethno-religious tension

The Muslim identity of these stateless-refugees, more or less explains the lack of public solidarity with their plight and humiliation on our soil. Perhaps unknown to them, it is their religious identity that has made their presence in a land of four world religions, controversial.

For some time now there has been a growing prejudice against the Muslim community in the country. This is not a majority-minority tension as both, the majority Sinhala Buddhists and minority Sinhala and Tamil Christians are known to nurse negative feelings about our Muslims. Images of the chaos in the Middle-East and the hasty stereotyping of acts of global terror, undoubtedly feed these attitudes.

Together towards change 

Our collective response to this challenge cannot continue to be superficial. If it does we foolishly postpone a more serious conflagration. All mechanisms of reconciliation should without delay initiate conversations that address the causes of social prejudice against our Muslims. Sensitivity to the grievance and the rights of each other is of paramount importance and there can be no room for supremacy and intransigence. The unaddressed accumulation of these latter attitudes, seem to have spilled over into animosity.

Together towards life

If we are serious about living together with dignity and integrity, all of us; the religious as well as the secular will be obliged to engage in the task of introspection. To discern the kind of people we have become and then correct our own shortcomings before we become intolerable and offensive to others is a sign of humility and maturity. It is also a demonstration of good-will; that we recognise the public space is meant to be shared as equals with each other.

Together across borders

Another essential step towards building social trust is that our tendency to speak and act, out of self-interest only, has to stop. It is this communal preference that repeatedly sends distorted messages that the needs, benefits and privileges of our own ethno-religious community matter only and most. To tread the same soil and breathe the same air and remain neutral in or indifferent to the wider social realities that exclude and crush others is a recipe for social turmoil. A primary lesson that has evaded us at much cost for too long is that that we cannot expect dignity and freedom for our own if we do not cross borders in solidarity with other grieved and violated communities.

The options we face

If we do not come to our senses and shift from our self-seeking ways, the chances are that whatever vision and energy there is for life together will diminish and impoverish us slowly. Signs that this could already be happening are worrying. Far from upholding the highest human ideals and cooperating for the common good, our secular pursuits and established religion in particular, have acquired a reputation for being unreasonable and obstructive of fresh expressions of advancement, healing and liberation.

We cannot have it both ways. We could either stay with our self- centred and exclusive ways that polarise us and undermine social integration and stability or we could break from this bondage to stand with each other in our common pursuit of a more safe, just and integrated world for all. To imagine that the latter is a betrayal of our identity; national or ethno-religious, is a myth. To rise above division and endorse the human race as the highest race as taught by the Buddha and generate just compassion for our neighbour amongst whom the vulnerable stranger takes precedence, as Jesus taught, is to the contrary a manifestation of our highest collective human values.

It is those who seek to consolidate their power bases, political, religious or ethnic, by controlling our emotions and freedom who suggest otherwise.

With Peace and Blessings to all.

Editors note: Also read, Countering the Fascists on the Streets: A Lesson from Australia by Channa Wickremesekara.

Cannot ignore Missing Persons issue Current Govt will be sent home Ananthan

BY Mirudhula Thambiah

Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Vanni District Parliamentarian and central committee member of the Eelam People's Revolutionary Left Front (EPRLF) N. Sivasakthy Ananthan said, southern politicians are of the view that if the recommendations in the interim report are implemented, the country will be divided. This is completely a political drama to safeguard their vote bank.

"Southern politicians know very well that the interim report has nothing beneficial for us. These fake campaigns will never affect the people in the South but will definitely affect those in the North and East," he said.

Following are excerpts of the interview:

How do you view the President's stand on the issue of three prisoners detained under the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), who have been on hunger strike for the past 27 days?

A: These prisoners are requesting to have their cases transferred back to the Vavuniya Courts from Anuradhapura. They have been subjected to communication issues at the Anuradhapura Courts as they are not fluent in Sinhala and have no translator.These prisoners have even complained that they have signed on documents written in Sinhala, and that they were unaware of the content and it was not explained to them. However, the case was dragging at the Vavuniya Courts and currently it had been transferred to Anuradhapura where they are faced with a language barrier.

It is the fundamental right of the prisoners to know what is said by the lawyers and judges. However, in the current situation they are not in a position to understand the proceedings.

It is a simple issue. The Government can adopt an easy solution by changing the case back to Vavuniya Courts. However, the Attorney General's Department is of the view that there is not enough protection for the witnesses if the case is heard in Vavuniya. This is unacceptable.

It is eight years since the end of war and there are more than 150,000 security forces deployed in the North. The President, Prime Minister and the other important figures have visited the region. Do you think the witnesses have more security problems than these figures?

The same pattern was followed in the Kumarapuram case, where the case was transferred to Anuradhapura. Finally the suspects (Navy personnel) were acquitted. When this case was transferred to Anuradhapura the witnesses had to travel from Trincomalee to Anuradhapura. We could see similar developments in the case of school girl Krishanthy.

Therefore, refusing to transfer the case back to Vavuniya is seen as a selfish political motive. If the government cannot consider reconciliation at this juncture, how will they implement it on a larger scale?

Most of the Tamil politicians and activists are of the view that the PTA suspects should be pardoned under general amnesty. How far is it practical?

A: We cannot accept general amnesty. There are many who have not committed any crime and have been arrested under suspicion. They have been detained in prisons for a very long period without any action. The government should take steps to release them similar to how the JVP members were set free. These suspects may be connected to the LTTE or arrested on suspicion.

Those connected to LTTE had to take up arms because their political rights were denied. They felt that the people were oppressed.

Even the security forces have been involved in the violation of human rights during the war and post war.

Practically, if they want to try these suspects in courts, their cases must be heard in a rapid manner. The government should either prove them guilty or release them without dragging the process.
Therefore these prisoners should be released unconditionally.

Deaths of mothers of missing persons were reported recently. It was said that seven such deaths occurred recently. These mothers have died due to physical as well as mental stress. How do you view this situation?

A: One of the mothers from Musali, Mannar died recently. I attended her funeral. Her husband and son both went missing eight years back. She went in search of them to all authorities including army camps, police stations, International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and political leaders, requesting to find the whereabouts of her loved ones.

Most women are affected like this mother. The struggle of the families of missing persons has been taking place for the past eight months in the North. This protest is held on the side of the A9 road. Most of these women are elderly and aged 60-80.

Their demand is to see their loved ones before they die. It has been two years since this government took over. If these missing persons are relatives of the President, Prime Minister or the Opposition Leader, will they set aside the issue? They will take rapid actions.

If the same protest had held in the South, all figures from religious leaders to political leaders would have insisted to solve the matter. But unfortunately it is the North and they have failed to address their grievances.

Families of missing persons are neglected without any livelihood allowances or any other assistance. The prisoners and their families have voted for this government with the expectation that it would solve their grievances. They should reveal if those missing persons are alive or dead.

Around 24,000 people have given oral evidence to the Paranagama Commission. Those who surrendered to the security forces at the end of the war were registered by the army. If they were LTTE members, their names and designations would have been registered.

Writ of Habeas Corpus was taken up for hearing at the Mullaitivu Courts regarding those who surrendered to the security forces during the end of war. The army commander who gave evidence in courts initially said that civilians and LTTE cadres surrendered to the security forces. When he was questioned if he has details regarding those who surrendered, and he agreed to submit it in courts. When he submitted the names, he had provided information of those who have undergone rehabilitation.

The courts also questioned him regarding the registered names of those who surrendered soon after the war and taken in buses to the IDP camps. Names of those who surrendered in Omanthai or Vattuvakal would have been mentioned in a book. The courts finally asked for that book. But so far the officers are not in a position to submit the evidence. Therefore, at this juncture, families of missing persons have been cheated.

This government will also face the same consequences as former president Rajapaksa if they fail to address the issues. He cheated the people and as a result, he was sent home. The same will be repeated for the current government if they ignore missing persons and PTA prisoners.

Your Party Leader Suresh Premachandran said recently that ITAK had cheated Tamil people after obtaining their mandate. They have failed to fulfil their promises. However your party is a coalition of the TNA. If they have cheated why do you continue to stay in the coalition?

A: ITAK failed to fulfil the promises made in the election manifesto in 2015. We as a coalition said that we will bring a solution in a merged north-east, within a federal system by solving the prevailing issues like missing persons, political prisoners and land issues etc.

But currently, they said a north-east merger is impossible now. We can go for a similar alternative by fulfilling the demands made by the Muslim community. When we submitted recommendations to the constitutional reforms steering committee, we insisted that at least the north-east should be a secular state. But none of our recommendations have been properly included to the interim report. Thus ITAK had stepped away from the manifesto they promised to implement.

Why do think some of those in the South are against the Interim Report? What outcome do you expect in future?

A: Politicians in the South campaigned in the political arena against the LTTE for the past 30 years. However, currently since these politicians don't have the LTTE, they have begun to fight amongst themselves. The Jaffna University community, Tamil People's Council, the Northern Chief Minister, EPRLF and intellectuals have said that Tamil people are not in a position to accept the interim report.
In such a situation, if the Southern politicians say that if the recommendations in the interim report are implemented, the country will be divided, is completely a political drama to safeguard their vote bank. They know very well that the interim report has nothing beneficial. These fake campaigns will never affect the people in the south but will definitely affect those in the North and East.

How do you view the effects of the 20th Amendment? Is it an advantage to the North-East representation?

A: We wanted to discuss the pros and cons of the amendment and then decide if we are pledging our support. However, before we took decisions within our party, the ITAK announced that TNA is in support of the 20th Amendment.
Email: che.myhero@gmail.com

Constitutional obstructionism

Buddhist clergy in a street protest

 2017-10-24

Recently Buddhist High Priests have been showing a rather unholy penchant to torment the government, perhaps making use of the opportunity that no one is now calling from the President’s House to threaten with ‘Sanga Bedaya’ (division among Sanga) unless Maha Nayakas toe the line.  
However, it is still a lopsided approach on the part of monks who have resolutely kept mum when they ought to have spoken up in the past. Any self-respecting religious leader should have condemned the attack on Rohingya refugees in Mount Lavinia by a mob led by monks. Most Buddhist leaders did not exhibit that minimum level of human compassion, nor did they care to speak out against a series of past attacks on Muslims.  

Similarly, when ex-president Mahinda Rajapaksa rolled back basic fundamental freedom of people, and introduced the 18th Amendment to the Constitution, with no public consultation at all, only a few monks, with known credentials of social activism spoke out. Maha Nayakas did not.   

In the not-so-distant past, white vans roamed freely and the inmates of the Welikada prison were summarily executed. Media institutions were attacked; journalists were killed in broad day light. Self-professed love of Maha Nayakas did not make a ripple of practical expression.  

Therefore, this sudden upsurge of interest suggests something else: There seems to be a grand puppet show with maestro puppeteer Mahinda Rajapaksa pulling strings from behind. The recent uproar in high temples ought to be viewed and treated as such.  

Last week, the Karaka Maha Sangha Sabha of the Malwatu & Asgiriya Chapters announced their opposition to the new Constitution or any amendments to the present Constitution and urged the government to stop the Constitution drafting process.   

Then during the weekend, monks in Kalyani Karaka Sabha of the Kotte, Sri Kalyani Samagri Dharma Maha Sangha Sabha demanded the ‘temporary’ withdrawal of the proposed new constitution.  
Democracies are not run by clerics and we are not living in a theocracy. Where clerics rule the roost, they have effectively recreated a medieval hellhole in the 21st century. Look no further than Iran and Saudi Arabia. And modernizing clerics have grasped the vast changes in their modern societies and made amends with it. For instance, a couple of years ago, ex-Arch Bishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams said Britain is now a ‘post-Christian society’. Interestingly, he was rebuffing the then Prime Minister David Cameron who wanted Britain to be “more confident about our status as a Christian country” and “more evangelical” about faith.  

Condemned the attack on Rohingya refugees in Mount Lavinia by a mob led by monks. Most Buddhist leaders did not exhibit that minimum level of human compassion, nor did they care to speak out against a series of past attacks on Muslims

The political strategy of using religion as a tool of regime legitimization is not new, and often it has led nations along a less democratic and religiously and ethnically exclusivist path. In a dispassionate note, for the most part of the independence in Sri Lanka, the Buddhist high priests have played an obstructionist role in the country’s nation building exercise. Their pernicious influence, made worse by spineless political leaders (S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike was aptly called ‘Sevala Banda,’) led neither to peace nor prosperity. From 1956 onwards, Buddhist Right had obstructed every conceivable effort to address minority interests, which partly due to repeated snubs by the Sinhala elites, later took a violent turn, culminating in a three decade long terrorist war. To believe that the continued indifference to the same grievances would not repeat the history, would be naïve. It would take time, but, when the Tamils forget the prohibitive cost they incurred thanks to Prabakaran’s misadventure, another megalomaniac would try that again.   

Sri Lanka as a country, and all its communities, suffered as a result of history obstructionism by the monks. We paid both from lives and our unfulfilled dreams of prosperity.  

Unfortunately, Sri Lanka does not have a leader with a backbone to tell this self -evident truth, and also to define the role of monks in the affairs of the government.   

All religions are invasive in their own right, and penetrate societies with a sizable portion of pre-modern populace. That is exactly why Communists shut the churches and temples; more discerning secularists like Kemal Ataturk, the founder of modern Turkey, strictly disassociated the State from the religion.  

Neither President Maithripala Sirisena nor Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe seems to have political courage to challenge the obstructionism of the Maha Nayakas. Instead, Mr. Wickremesinghe blames the media for ‘misreporting’: He alleged that the media had mislead the public and Malwatta Mahanayaka was not even in the country. He was soon clarified by another head priest who claimed the announcement by the Maha Sangha has been issued with the endorsement by the Maha Nayakas.  

Mr. Wickremesinghe has to speak on behalf of the government and not for the Malwatta Maha Nayaka. But that political courage is missing. What Sri Lanka needs is political unambiguity of the caliber of Sir John Kotalawala, who never hesitated to call a spade a spade, or Ranjan Wijeratne, who had to throw away all political niceties to save the country from tyranny, when security imperatives warranted to do so.  

Last week, the Karaka Maha Sangha Sabha of the Malwatu & Asgiriya Chapters announced their opposition to the new Constitution or any amendments to the present Constitution and urged the government to stop the Constitution drafting process

Why this government is vacillating in each of its policy decisions is mainly due to the absence of political will. A government’s primary task is to govern, and to that end use all available legal, administrative and coercive powers at its disposal. Sri Lanka cannot act like a fully- fledged democracy before it becomes one. Doing that would let determined peripheral forces to undermine the state. Even democracies have their limits of political nicety, as Spanish experience in Catalonia reveals.  

Ignoring these interest groups or blaming media for reporting about them would be of little help. The government ought to say it loud and clear that the new Constitution is an affair of the state, and its people, and not something that is exclusive to Maha Sanga.   

A few visits to high temples and gifts of few elephants could also buy temporary silence. However, if there is a calibrated attempt to undermine the government, some individuals may need to be interviewed by intelligence agencies. To that end, the government needs to bring all its agencies of coercive power under a personality with popular legitimacy and calculated ruthlessness. 

All I can think about is Sarath Fonseka.   

Violent Monks and the Buddha’s Dispensation

Featured image courtesy AntanO

KALANA KRISHANTHA-on 10/23/2017

The world is going from bad to worse, day by day; with the spread of conflict, terrorism, political instability, poverty and impending economic crises spreading like wind. At times, the interpretation of religious teachings too cause controversy and can wreak havoc. However, above all Buddhism is purely based on nonviolence. Yet, in countries such as Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Tibet a group of monks (not all of them) have been behaving in a violent manner, at times even with the support of political leadership in those countries. They are unnecessarily influencing the country’s political affairs and spreading racism. In summary, they promote violence, which can be considered as deeply disrespectful to the Lord Buddha who endorsed a philosophy of non-violence.

The Purpose of Buddhism

Buddhism is not a traditional religion or series of rituals. It is a way of life or philosophy. According to Lord Buddha’s teachings, all livings beings are entangled in an interminable cycle of life and death. To be born as a human is a rare thing. In this lifetime, what humans should do is to try and understand the reason for suffering and make an effort to eradicate the cause by following the Eight-fold Path.

Ideal Bhikku Life

A Bhikku or Buddhist monk is a person who has dedicated his whole life to being rescued from the interminable cycle of life and death, while supporting and guiding lay followers to do the same.
 There is sufficient evidence from Buddhist tripitaka scripts depicting Lord Buddha advised his followers what path to take. Two hundred and twenty seven (227) disciplinary rules are included in the vinaya pitaka (The moral guide for bhikkus). According to these rules, the ideal bhikku should be a simple character in society without consuming money, or pursuing a luxury lifestyle.

The Theravada tradition encourages self-enlightenment and solitude for monks. The below stanzas, extracted from the Khaggavisana Sutta, reflects this view.
Renouncing violence
for all living beings,
harming not even one,
you would not wish for offspring,
 so how a companion?
Wander alone
like a rhinoceros.
For a sociable person
there are allurements;
on the heels of allurement, this pain.
Seeing allurement’s drawback,
wander alone
like a rhinoceros.
One whose mind
is enmeshed in sympathy
for friends and companions,
neglects the true goal.
Seeing this danger in intimacy,
wander alone
like a rhinoceros.
From the Bhikku Vagga in Dhammapada:
Cakkhuna samvaro sadhu
sadhu sotena samvaro
ghanena samvaro sadhu
sadhu jivhaya sarmvaro.
Kayena samvaro sadhu
sadhu vacaya samvaro
manasa samvaro sadhu
sadhu sabbattha samvaro
sabattha sambuto bhikkhu
sabbadukkha pamuccati.
Verse 360: Restraint in the eye is good, good is restraint in the ear; restraint in the nose is good, good is restraint in the tongue.

Verse 361: Restraint in body is good, good is restraint in speech; restraint in mind is good, good is restraint in all the senses. A bhikkhu restrained in all the senses is freed from all ills (Samsara dukkha).

Lord Buddha expected his followers or monks to be disciplined in this way. According to Buddhist philosophy, the tendency to direct attention on external things can become a barrier for his spiritual journey towards Nibbana. Lord Buddha discouraged his followers from talking about mundane things and always encouraged them to talk about the Four Noble Truths – the truth of suffering, the truth of the cause of suffering, the truth of the cessation of suffering and the truth of the way to cessation of suffering.

According to Buddhist scripts, there are 32 types of chatter (colloquially known as animal chatter) which fall under the category of idle / frivolous chatter: The first five types are mentioned below.

1. Rajakatha – Talk about kings
2. Corakatha – Talk about robbers
3. Mahamatta katha – Talk about ministers of state
4. Senakatha – Talk about armies
5. Bhayakatha – Talk about dangers

Monks who did not behave with physical and verbal discipline were severely criticised by Lord Buddha in his sermons according to the Tripitaka scripts:
Na mundakena samano
abbato alikam bhanam
icchalobhasamapanno
samano kim bhavissati.
Yo ca sameti papani
anumthulani sabbaso
samitatta hi papanam
“samano” ti pavuccati.
Verse 264: Not by a shaven head does a man become a samana, if he lacks morality and austere practices and tells lies. How could he who is full of covetousness and greed be a samana?

Verse 265: He who has totally subdued all evil, great and small, is called a samana because he has overcome all evil.

The Sri Lankan Context

Historically, real Buddhist teachings have become polluted by so-called, “Sinhala Buddhist Culture”. This practice has continued even from the age of ancient kings. The most recent significant event was the Mavil Aru incident. According to Buddhist texts, when the Sakya and Koliya people entered into conflict for water resources, Lord Buddha became the buffer for war and preached to them about the bad effects of war and the good effects of harmony. Here in Sri Lanka, in 2006, Buddhist monks became the front-liners for a disastrous war. This depicts how far the purity of Buddhist teachings has deteriorated here.

During the war and even after, many Buddhist monks appeared to give preference to the Sinhala race. However, pure Buddhism rejects racism and ultimately, the very concept of “race”. Buddhism itself teaches about the impermanency and emptiness of all prenominal things. How can a factor like race be said to prevail in such circumstances? Race is not a determinant of a person’s character. People are good or bad solely in terms of their actions, and that’s how they should be judged—not by their race.

There’s a wonderful saying in the Vasettha Sutta   where the Buddha notes that, with common animals, you know the animal by its coloring and markings, whereas the same standard doesn’t apply to human beings: There’s no physical mark that tells you whether a person is trustworthy or not. If you judge people as good or bad by their appearance, you’re reducing human beings—yourself and others—to animals. So, Buddhist monks should have nothing to do with racism, nor should they advise Sinhalese to have more children which would only serve to increase craving.

Lord Buddha appreciated silence, calmness and serenity. Yet today, as is apparent from many protests, Buddhist monks are the main force spreading violence, both physically and verbally. The recent incident involving Rohingya refugees being housed in Mount Lavinia can be considered as a prime example.

Lord Buddha only advised the kings and did not issue orders. What Lord Buddha did during his time was not related to racism or extremism. Yet what is currently happening is that monks are giving orders to the government to avoid bringing about the long awaited new constitution. The reasons they are putting forward for this is solely based on religious extremism and racism; principles that the Lord Buddha totally rejected.

It’s clear that despite Buddhist teachings preaching of the pure and eternal, religious institutes and implementation on the ground are deteriorating rapidly. There remain pious monks in Sri Lanka who live calm and serene lives while giving spiritual advice to lay people. However, an increasing number of racist, extremist groups have been tarnishing the image of Theravada Buddhism of Sri Lanka.

There is a famous quote by the Lord Buddha. “My dispensation will be vanished, not because of external forces, but as result of some empty people, who will become monks in future.”
It seems that his prediction is being realized.

Editor’s Note: Also read “Power, Religion and Impunity” and “Some Questions about Violence and Theravada in Buddhism“. 

Government remembers the pensioners during elections only

 Oct 23, 2017

There are around 550,000 pensioners who had retired prior to 2016. This has led to a huge disparity between the pensions of those who retired before and after 2016. Further these two groups of pensioners had been employed on the same scale and had received the same promotions and appointments during their service, yet due to this situation, there are great anomalies between the two sets of pensioners and the pensions they receive, the All Ceylon Government Pensioners United National Organisation pointed out.

Pensioners in this country, despite having served the country their whole life, are forced to take to the streets in protest against the unfair treatment they are dished out and their meagre pension payments. Adding insult to injury, in addition to receiving meagre pensions, in some cases pensioners lament that they do not even receive their pensions. However, the government seems to be least interested in helping them out. Political leaders, both in government and in the opposition, prefer beating drums about their own interests.

The All Ceylon Government Pensioners United National Organisation has urged the government to resolve pension anomalies expeditiously taking into consideration the difficulties pensioners face with the escalating cost of living. This organisation is the voice of the voiceless pensioners and they warn that if the government fails to provide these pensioners a favourable response early, further protests will be staged in order to highlight the gravity of the issue.

The All Ceylon Government Pensioners United National Organisation urged the government to take measures to resolve the pension anomalies of 2016 at least, before the elections are being held. They said uplifting the living standards and taking care of retired government servants is the responsibility of the government. The President of the All Ceylon Government Pensioners United National Organisation Siri Singappuli said although these pensioners who are old and weak are not at an age where they can engage in protests and hunger strikes, yet they would not hesitate even at the cost of their lives, if the government fails to take note of their grievances. He pointed out that the government only remembers the pensioners during elections. However, he warned that if the government fails to take note of the grievances of pensioners and provide them solutions, the All Ceylon Government Pensioners United National Organisation has the power to manipulate over a million votes. In this country election  victory is determined by a meter 200,000 to 300,000 vote difference. Therefore under such circumstances, the government should take note of the importance of the over million pensioners of this country who could in fact be the decisive factor in the next elections. They are an invaluable tool to the government and the government should be mindful as to keep them on their side.

The main document that determines pensions is the pensions is the 1934 pension code. This is the main document available today related to pensions. The decree issued under the signature of the British King in 1947, paragraphs 64 (1), (2) and 65 of the constitution stipulates that payment of pensions for retired government servants is the responsibility of the treasury. However, with the  1978 constitution, that situation changed and with time many complications began to arise. In 2002 and 2016 the free pensions rights was abolished because it was powerlessness. Due to the abolition of the free pension rights state pensioners have now split into two groups. One group are those who had retired prior to 2016 and who are enjoying their pension privileges, the other group  are those who have no claim to free pension as they have retired after 2016. There is also a great disparity between these two pensions.

AshWaru Colombo