Australia should give victims a voice in tackling environmental crimes


Environmental crimes such as asbestos dumping are far from victimless. AAP Image/CFMEU, Dave Kirner

June 5, 2019 12.14am EDT

Contrary to popular belief, crimes against the environment are not “victimless”. They affect many people, animals, plants and landscapes. Crimes against the environment should not be taken lightly.

Broadly defined, environmental crimes are those that harm the environment. This includes acts such as polluting water or air, illegal fishing or trade in wildlife, and water theft. The international Environmental Investigation Agency reports environmental offending is “one of the most profitable forms of criminal activity”.

Australia is currently missing out on a hugely useful tool in the fight against environmental crime: restorative justice. This approach, which has been used successfully in New Zealand, deserves a nationwide commitment.

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Read more: Why a narrow view of restorative justice blunts its impact

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Restorative justice conferencing

Australia is a world leader in using restorative justice to deal with both adult and young offenders.

Simply defined, restorative justice is a process in which the victim, offender, and other parties affected by a crime come together to discuss the aftermath of the offence and its impact. Each party plays a role in resolving the dispute with the help of an impartial facilitator.

Restorative justice is all about restoring harm, preventing the crime from reoccurring, and fixing (or building) relationships.

Research has found that, compared with the traditional criminal court process, restorative justice can reduce the chances of reoffending, increase victim satisfaction, and prompt offenders to feel more responsibility for their actions.

During a conference, victims can explain the effect a crime had on them, and ask questions – giving them a voice in traditional proceedings. Offenders can give reasons why the crime happened, and apologise. A range of other outcomes may be agreed to in a conference, including compensation and community work.

However, our research reveals that conferencing is underused when it comes to environmental crimes in Australia.

New Zealand leads the way

New Zealand is leading the world in using restorative justice to deal with environmental crimes. This is largely a result of two pieces of legislation passed in 2002. First, the Victims’ Rights Act 2002 says that, if possible, the court (or other representative) must arrange a restorative justice conference at a victim’s request. Second, the Sentencing Act 2002 makes it mandatory for a judge to take into account any outcomes reached in a conference.

While more research focusing on the precise benefits is needed, anecdotal evidence from shows New Zealand’s approach is effective. Several judges, prosecutors and facilitators have praised environmental justice in addressing environmental crime.

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Read more: Three rivers are now legally people – but that's just the start of looking after them

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Australia is failing to reap the benefits

Unlike New Zealand, Australian courts have not embraced restorative justice for environmental offending. In fact, Australia has only used restorative justice conferencing in two cases of environmental crime: Williams (2007) and Clarence Valley Council (2018).

Both Williams and Clarence Valley Council involved offending against Aboriginal cultural heritage, in breach of New South Wales’s National Parks and Wildlife Act. The outcomes reached in the conferences went well beyond what a court could have imposed on the offenders.

For example, in Williams, where a mining company built exploratory pits and a private railway siding across areas of Indigenous significance, the maximum penalty at the time was a fine of A$5,500 and 6 months’ imprisonment. The judge suggested the parties engage in a restorative justice conference, during which Craig Williams donated A$32,200 worth of items to the local Aboriginal people.

In Clarence Valley Council, which concerned the council cutting down a protected tree, the council agreed in the conference to donate A$300,000 to the local Aboriginal community to fund research into cultural heritage. The council also agreed to create employment opportunities and youth initiatives for Aboriginal people.

These outcomes are far better in repairing the damage done than a mere fine or prison term.

Complementary to traditional prosecution

Despite these significant benefits, restorative justice conferencing is not a replacement for prosecution. It should be used only after the offender has been assessed as suitable, as in the cases of Williams and Clarence Valley Council.

Restorative justice conferencing can be suitable for all sorts of environmental crime, from water pollution to breaches of planning laws. In the case of offending against Aboriginal cultural heritage, conferencing may be appropriate given its ability to give a voice to members of the Aboriginal community who would otherwise be unable to participate in the formal court process.

The ideal time to integrate conferencing is after conviction but before sentencing, which we refer to as a “back-end model” of conferencing (the method most commonly used in New Zealand).

Typically, a back-end model involves the prosecution bringing charges before the court. The court then considers holding a restorative justice conference and, if appropriate, the proceedings are postponed to allow the conference to occur. The matter is later referred back to the court for sentencing.

This creates an opportunity for the sentencing judge to consider any results from the conference, but maintains a court’s essential oversight role by ensuring the outcomes reached are adequate, achievable and legally binding.

A more environmentally friendly response

Restorative justice conferencing can provide a more effective way of dealing with environmental harms because, according to Trevor Chandler, a facilitator in Canada, “punishment makes people bitter, whereas restorative solutions make people better”.

Of course, conferencing is not without limits. Just as restorative justice may not work for all young people, it may not work for all environmental offenders. Conferencing can require more time, money and energy than traditional court processes. However, this may be an investment well worth making for the environment.

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Read more: Restorative justice may not work for all young offenders

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It is time for Australia to follow New Zealand’s example by embracing a back-end model of restorative justice.

This would give victims a much-needed voice in the process, and create a better chance to heal ruptured relationships and restore the harm done to the environment as far as possible.

Air pollution kills 100,000 Indian children every year

An Indian youth wearing a pollution mask participates in a march to raise awareness of air pollution levels in New Delhi on November 15, 2017. Source: Prakash Singh

@AsCorrespondent-7 Jun 2019

THE noxious air hanging over India’s towns and cities kills more than 100,000 children under five every year, a damning study published Wednesday for World Environment Day found.

India has repeatedly failed to address environmental concerns. Last year a UN report found 14 of the world’s 15 most polluted cities were Indian.

And despite calls to action against pollution around the globe, Indian politicians mostly side-stepped the issue in the last election.

The State of India’s Environment (SoE) Report found air pollution is responsible for 12.5 percent of all deaths in the country — painting a bleak picture of the environmental record of recent Indian governments.

SEE ALSO: Air pollution can take a decade off your life expectancy

Carried out by the Centre for Science and Environment (CSE), the report also found 86 percent of Indian water bodies were “critically polluted”.

It added the country’s progress in renewable energy was “dismal”.

As of last month India had 280,000 electric vehicles, a fraction of the target of 15-16 million by 2020.

India’s Greenhouse gas emissions rose more than 20 percent between 2010 and 2014, while its natural gas and hydroelectric plants were in a “shambles”, it continued.

The report found gas-based power plants are running at 24 percent of their capacity, and hydropower projects are running at just 19 percent.

“The country’s progress in renewable energy in 2018-19 has also been dismal,” the CSE said.

“In wind, the country met only 6.3 percent of the target this year. In solar, it met 5.86 percent.”

SEE ALSO: Children exposed to air pollution are more likely to be obese

India also recorded a 56 percent rise in the number of industries creating hazardous waste between 2009 and 2016-17, while the number of grossly polluting industries soared 136 percent between 2011 and 2018.

India is projected to add 416 million town and city dwellers to the world’s urban population by 2050.

But Prime Minister Narendra Modi, recently re-elected in a campaign in which climate change was barely mentioned, instead tweeted appealing to people to “live in harmony with nature” on World Environment Day.

“We have been brought up in a tradition, where nature is equal to God. Where sanctity of nature is meaningful and where nature’s protection has been put at par with humans,” Modi said.

“On this Environment Day we all need to spare some time to think what can we do to make our planet clean and green,” he said.

© Agence France-Presse

Large Ebola outbreaks new normal, says WHO

Family members place leaves on the grave of a deceased relative who died from Ebola in Butembo

By James Gallagher-7 June 2019

The world is entering "a new phase" where big outbreaks of deadly diseases like Ebola are a "new normal", the World Health Organization has warned.

Previous Ebola outbreaks affected relatively small numbers of people.

But the Democratic Republic of Congo is dealing with the second largest outbreak ever, just three years after the world's largest one ended.

The WHO said countries and other bodies needed to focus on preparing for new deadly epidemics.

What is Ebola?

• Ebola is a virus that initially causes sudden fever, intense weakness, muscle pain and a sore throat.
• It progresses to vomiting, diarrhoea and both internal and external bleeding.
• People are infected when they have direct contact through broken skin, or the mouth and nose, with the blood, vomit, faeces or bodily fluids of someone with Ebola.
• Patients tend to die from dehydration and multiple organ failure.

There have been 2,025 cases of Ebola and 1,357 deaths from the virus during the outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

The largest outbreak, in West Africa in 2014-16 affected 28,616 people mostly in Guinea, Liberia and Sierra Leone. There were 11,310 deaths.

Yet the 12 outbreaks between 2000 and 2010 averaged fewer than 100 cases.

So why are modern outbreaks so much bigger?

"We are entering a very new phase of high impact epidemics and this isn't just Ebola," Dr Michael Ryan, the executive director of the WHO's health emergencies programme told me.

He said the world is "seeing a very worrying convergence of risks" that are increasing the dangers of diseases including Ebola, cholera and yellow fever.

He said climate change, emerging diseases, exploitation of the rainforest, large and highly mobile populations, weak governments and conflict were making outbreaks more likely to occur and more likely to swell in size once they did.

'Get to grips'

Dr Ryan said the World Health Organization was tracking 160 disease events around the world and nine were grade three emergencies (the WHO's highest emergency level).

"I don't think we've ever had a situation where we're responding to so many emergencies at one time. This is a new normal, I don't expect the frequency of these events to reduce."

As a result, he argued that countries and other bodies needed to "get to grips with readiness [and] be ready for these epidemics".

Soldiers of the armed forces of the DR Congo prepare to escort health workers

The outbreak in DR Congo continues to worry health officials.

It took 224 days for the number of cases to reach 1,000, but just a further 71 days to reach 2,000.

Tackling the disease has been complicated by conflict in the region - between January and May there were more than 40 attacks on health facilities.

Another problem is distrust of healthcare workers with about a third of deaths being in the community. It means people are not seeking treatment and risk spreading the disease to neighbours and relatives.

Dr Josie Golding, the epidemics lead at the Wellcome Trust, said the world needed to get better at preparing for such outbreaks.

"With Ebola in West Africa, that was the mobility of people and porous borders - that is now the world we live in, that won't stop," she said.

Climate change could lead to more outbreaks like cholera in Mozambique after Cyclone Idai, she said. But she hoped diseases resulting from humanitarian crises would not be a new normal.

"Preparedness needs to be better, we can see movement of populations and climate change, a lot of this we can see coming, and we need more resources to plan and prepare."

Follow James on Twitter.

Burning of Jaffna Library remembered 38 years on

190531 Jaffna library remembrance NA 1.jpg

Local residents and politicians gathered in Jaffna on Saturday to remember the burning of the library by Sri Lanka's security forces and state-sponsored mobs 38 years on. 

04 June 2019

The gathered mobs and state officers set the library, which was famous for being a crucible of Tamil literature and heritage, ablaze at midnight on May 31, 1981. 

The burning has since been marked by Eelam Tamils as an act of genocide.

Over 95,000 unique and irreplaceable Tamil palm leaves (ola), manuscripts, parchments, books, magazines and newspapers, housed within an impressive building inspired by ancient Dravidian architecture, were destroyed during the burning. Some texts that were kept in the library, such as the Yalpanam Vaipavama (a history of Jaffna), were literally irreplaceable, being the only copies in existence. It was one of the largest libraries in Asia.

The destruction took place under the rule of the UNP at a time when District Development Council elections were underway, and two notorious Sinhala chauvinist cabinet ministers - Cyril Mathew and Gamini Dissanayake - were in Jaffna. Earlier on in the day, three Sinhalese police officers were killed during a rally by the TULF (Tamil United Liberation Front).

Read more: 38 years on - Remembering the burning of the Jaffna Public Library

Muslims Now; Tamils Then

If the purpose of those who joined the LTTE was noble - for the family, community or even to preserve one’s individual dignity - then they would be celebrated exponentially provided we have submitted our pain to the system of Truth and therefore Natural Justice.

 

by Gajalakshmi Paramasivam-7 June 2019

 

I took the coach from Colombo to Jaffna. The travel time was greater than travel by train but the seating as more comfortable than the train seating. Loading my baggage was also easier. It so happened that the tuk-tuk guy was a Muslim. He spoke all three languages. We were stopped on the way - around Puttalam-Kurunagela junction. Some bags were checked. Those who seemed Muslim were checked more rigorously than us. I felt for them but realised that as minorities we have to endure such difficulties to feel more strongly Sri Lankan. From the point of the Sinhalese soldier, common faith was lacking to know whether the Muslim passengers were likely to use destructive weapons in public areas. Hence I consciously urged in my mind, for the soldier to do his duty. The checks in Jaffna are now by civilian officers. I decided to make it easier for myself by carrying only a few items in my handbag. It is indeed very different to the Jaffna I was groomed by.

 

 

The cab driver in Sydney said in relation to the Easter attacks, as to why the Muslim leaders did not openly reject the guys who were showing signs of disorderliness. I said they did but that it was not enough. This morning when I received communication about Ms Ananthi Sasitharan leading a group that was lamenting about missing persons. I have served their parallels within the Vaddukoddai community and hence it was not a new issue. But the ways in which we deal with the issue are different. Ms Ananthi was blaming Tamil politicians. I helped the women to rely on their strengths after escalating the matter to the highest level possible. I pooled my own resources towards this. I guess that the lesson learnt through my own maternal uncle who was tortured to death during World War II helped me not feel responsible as a member of the family. The decision was made by my uncle to earn money for my mother’s dowry. That was a noble cause which resulted in premature death. But if not for that decision, my uncle would have been just one of the others and not special. Being special, he receives ongoing credit through marriages - my mother’s her children’s and grandchildren’s. The credit happens through the Universal system of truth which is not limited by time and place relativities. But we need to invest in that system.

 

If the purpose of those who joined the LTTE was noble - for the family, community or even to preserve one’s individual dignity - then they would be celebrated exponentially provided we have submitted our pain to the system of Truth and therefore Natural Justice. If they rely on politicians who have not invested in wider world but are often the instruments used by selfish persons - and waste their energies for lesser purposes - then they fail in their duty to their loved ones, through their own local system in which they have invested.

 

Ms Ananthy Sasitharan talks about Human Rights. As a group, militants who recruited forcibly deprived those recruited - of their basic human right to be with their families until they independently make up their minds. UN or the Lankan Government cannot restore those rights that the militant leadership that Ms Sasitharan represents took away. One of the ladies said that her husband who was taken away was in the ‘movement’. He then has to pay off his debt to the members who were forcibly recruited znc their families. In our case, our uncle made up his mind as an independent person. Hence his family is clean of negative human rights karma and all of us enjoy the value of noble cause exponentially.

 

Human Rights are the rights that are based on truth that humans discovered. The investment that the discoverers of truth made becomes the rights of their heirs, including by birth but not limited to birth. Since I was born to parents who chose to be governed by the common law of Sri Lanka and by the law of Thesawalamai - I have every right to live through that pathway and consciously reject any other pathway. In fact it is a natural duty to the extent my parents invested in that pathway. Children born to militants have the duty to carry on along that pathway and face the consequences. But not so the children of civilians.

 

Therein lies the solution which would protect us from getting cheated again and again.

Spirit of pluralism

The Iftar gathering organised by the Sri Lanka Muslim Civil Society (SLMCS) at the Colombo Town Hall on May 25. Picture by Chaminda Niroshana

Saturday, June 8, 2019

To alleviate the fear, anxiety and suspicion of our fellow citizens, particularly Muslims who have been accused of a crime which they themselves reject in horror, we should be committed. Let me repeat. Let us not retire our remorse, our human loyalty and the basic responsibilities of citizenship when we are called upon to affirm these things in the service of another section of humanity.
Apparently, doctors, engineers, and all professionals currently resident in the United Kingdom, US and other able countries wanted to send a message calling all mosques to ask Muslims to step out and light a Buddhist lantern outside their homes in the past Vesak. This indicates unfortunate misery they are in. Why should Muslims do such things in a democracy? The Buddha always said if one is convinced of teachings only pay respect to him and his order. It would be a sign and a positive sign only if you are convinced; otherwise, it is a sign of surrender to bigotry Buddhist extremists.

There can be other things that the Muslim community can do, but not bow down to fascistic intimidate. The same goes for other religious communities. It was reported that Venerable Baddiya Thera spoke to Buddhists; His Eminence Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith speaks to the Catholics. Members of the clergy belonging to other faiths no doubt will speak to their respective flocks. Yes, they could get together and help the anti-fascist campaign of the Yahapalanaya led by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Fascistic terrorism

When schoolmates and friends in abroad, concerns were raised about issues of safety, we must thank them but insist that we will take care of all families to the best of our ability under Yahapalanaya. We are part of one family. Other would take care of me and I would take care of him, no need to elaborate. I speak only for myself and my comrades, but each one of us can, and perhaps should, consider speaking for her. Hopefully in ways that heal and bring people together; rather than drive them apart. The fight is all ways necessary, the threat at hand: fascistic terrorism. It would be a fitting tribute to those who laid down their lives to rid this country of the terrorist menace and bring in devolution and amity accepted a decade ago.

The recent statements from foreign specialist and well-wishers against violent extremism and hate speech, showed clearly they remind us of the responsibility to protect; and very sadly they are alarmed about the growing acts of violence on the basis of religion, including attacks against homes, places of worship and businesses, in several Provinces of Sri Lanka. It has ceased according to Yahapalana leaders, only some monks and fascistic elements are actively campaigning against Muslims. The recent spate of attacks against Muslim communities in Sri Lanka, a majority Buddhist country has been condemned strongly by Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.

The attacks committed recently followed deadly attacks carried out on Easter Sunday of April 21, 2019, by an ISIS organised group against churches and hotels in various parts of the country in which more than 200 people were killed and hundreds were injured. However, these alien ideological people have been captured or killed.

Premier Wickremesinghe explained the situation recently to all active supporters of the regime. The campaigns that treacherously claim that the attack on Christian churches is made by local Muslims, led to the recent violence in Sri Lanka. This treacherous campaign target local Muslims has highlighted a growing influence of nationalist and extremist views of identity in Lanka, putting religious minorities at risk.

 

The Foreign Advisers stated that “it is in the interest of all ethnic and religious groups in Sri Lanka, as well as the Government, the opposition, civil society and the security sector, to work collaboratively in taking appropriate action and immediately stop these hateful attacks. The country is trying to move forward from a traumatic period of inter-ethnic armed conflict, but these attacks are pushing Sri Lanka backwards. If not adequately dealt with, the recent violence has the potential to escalate even further.”

Political and civil society activists

The Advisers send by friendly countries acknowledged and welcomed the swift response of the Government, including by deploying the Security Forces to protect affected communities, and political and civil society activists to address and stop the spread of false information and incitement to violence. They also encouraged the Government to make sure that these and other past similar attacks are fully investigated and those responsible for instigating or committing these violent acts are brought to justice and made accountable.

The political and civil advisers insisted that the Government needs to give the example that it will not tolerate the spread of prejudice and hate among groups within its population. This needs to be done at the national and local level, by putting an end to local discriminatory practices that perpetuate religious intolerance and violence. All Yahapalana activists offered their support to work with the Government on inter-faith and inter-religious harmony and inclusivity. This was accepted by the organisations of the Muslims and other support organisations.

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe with vigour addressed meetings stating that “Sri Lanka has a pluralistic society. As a Sri Lankan one could be a Buddhist, be a Hindu, be a Muslim, or be a Christian. All these communities are entitled to their identity, to freely exercise their religion and to live in peace and security in Sri Lanka, as recognized by the country’s Constitution. We call on all Sri Lankans to respect one another.” In the meantime, many countries in the United Nations are concerned about emerging incidents of communal violence and tension in the aftermath of the Easter Sunday terrorist attacks. They called on the Government and the Security Forces to ensure that the situation does not escalate.

Fear, anxiety and suspicion

Obviously; who are we if we cannot take care of each other, especially suppressing anxiety, fear and suspicion? At this moment when we could best affirm our humanity, neighbourliness, friendship and loyalty? Nobody wants us to give into ISIS or any other heinous campaign. The call is not for dropping of the guard of course. Everybody pleads let not fear, suspicion and anxiety move us to displace fear by picking easy targets as proxies for ‘The Enemy’. Let us drop the fear. Let us not miss judge. Above all, let us not arrogate upon ourselves the tasks of the hunter and punisher. Let Police and Security Forces do their duty without anger and cruelty.

Let us be vigilant but resist all urges to revenge. Let not fear, anxiety and suspicion immobilize us to do nothing and be a burden to the society. To alleviate the fear, anxiety and suspicion of our fellow citizens, particularly Muslims who have been accused of a crime which they themselves reject in horror, we should be committed. Let me repeat. Let us not retire our remorse, our human loyalty and the basic responsibilities of citizenship when we are called upon to affirm these things in the service of another section of humanity.

Cardinal blunders should worry the Catholics

Not a single of the other Mahanayakes took any notice. Buddhist organisations ignored. Not a single respected public figure had come to exhibit solidarity. Yet, here we see our Cardinal hopping there, and worse, making a political speech

 Friday, 7 June 2019

Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith seems to be loving the limelight and the glow, however spooky, of politics. I have pointed out before how His Eminence has a penchant for popping up in public affairs when he shouldn’t and avoiding intervention when he should intervene. In terms of timing and appropriateness His Eminence doesn’t fare well.

This time, the Archdiocese in Colombo has, perhaps, realised the Cardinal needs defence and it issues a statement refuting Minister Mangala Samaraweera’s charge. That isn’t enough to cover what seems evidently clear was an intervention that should have been avoided.

Our Cardinal should have not rushed to pay his respects to the fasting Rev. Athuraliye

Rathana Protocol
Firstly, the Cardinal violated a sense of protocol. The incident was pretty, prosaic and ordinary with no high level involvement at all. The protocol at Cardinal level is on general par with the Mahanayakes, the President and Prime Minister.

Such protocol can be set aside for interventions of a universally humane nature like caring for the sick. It is pertinent to know that even the Malwatte Chapter had not given their blessings to the monk who chose the doorstep of the great temple to ‘fast unto death’.

Not a single of the other Mahanayakes took any notice. Buddhist organisations ignored. Not a single respected public figure had come to exhibit solidarity. Yet, here we see our Cardinal hopping there, and worse, making a political speech.

Besides, Sri Lankans don’t take fasts-unto-death seriously because, as Wimal Weerawansa dramatised some years back under Rajapaksa rule, these fasters have no intention of dying. So it was with Rev. Athuraliye.

Rev. Athuraliye Rathana
I deliberately refer to this monk with the prefix ‘reverend’, because he is a well-ordained and educated monk with a record of excellent personal behaviour and a mentor to many in the past. Rev. Rathana has himself ordained many a monk local and foreign who speak well of the ‘guru’.

That was his past. His sojourn, later, into the shit world of Sri Lankan politicians was a case of sleeping with the dogs and getting ticks on the body.

Even in politics, however, we cannot forget his role in forcefully breaking into the Mavil Aru Dam that had been blocked by Prabhakaran. While even Mahinda and his men got cold feet, Rev. Athuraliye forced the rupture of the dam in order to let the water flow into the thousands of acres of paddy. This incident was really the trigger point of the war that even Mahinda preferred avoiding at that time.

Politics and its untruth has soiled a good monk. The potential for power has aroused a natural greed that, as remarked by the Buddha, that we men and women do innately possess. This is where this monk now is. He has switched parties from UPFA to UNP and now he seems to be in limbo searching for opportunities. He has been looking for causes and now he has got one.

The Cardinal’s Office
This is an office at the top level of the hierarchy of the Roman Catholic Church. It is a position whose incumbent must at all times hold with dignity and without space for ordinary people to call in question and spit on. Our Cardinal had also been picked by Rome to join the small cluster of Cardinals who had to select the last Pope. What a sacrosanct position!

Mangala Samaraweera
On this occasion, it was not an ordinary citizen but a senior Minister matured in politics for many, many years who felt himself impelled to complain about Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith.

Mangala Samaraweera is no Wimal Weerawansa or Gammanpila. He speaks forthrightly, but after much thought. He is the one who recently had the courage to state that Sri Lanka is not a ‘Sinhala Buddhist country’.

Mangala has at all times been beyond communalism, advocating a Lanka that belongs to all its inhabitants. He is not a cheap politician who has a bent for populism. He is a Minister who has excelled in every job assigned to him. Mangala loves to drive home the truth, as he sees it. He has never robbed ever and this is rare for Lankan pollies.

In this instance, Mangala tweeted the papal office about what he saw as an action by the Cardinal that can be interpreted as one giving an impetus to the firming of gathering communalist sentiments in the country, particularly at a time when racism has been engineered on a wide scale by political forces.

I cannot see how the statement of the Archdiocese can call Mangala in question. The Archdiocese statement, as reported in yesterday’s Daily Mirror, asserts that His Eminence Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith visited the fasting monk because he read the latter’s action as one “on behalf of the victims of the Easter Sunday attacks demanding the expediting of the outcome of the investigations that are underway and the removal from office of two governors and a Cabinet Minister who are alleged to have had close ties with those responsible for extremist terrorist activities in Sri Lanka”.

Archdiocese statement misleads
I am afraid the Archdiocese’ defence misleads. The fast had been only with one demand and that is that the two governors and Cabinet Ministers be removed forthwith. The monk gave 24 hours’ notice to the Government and then started the fast. Now, all these three persons in public office were Muslim. The monk demanded that they be removed without even an investigation.

Why no investigation? Because they were Muslim? How else can anybody with common sense read this?

Contextual background very pertinent
Furthermore, it is very pertinent to take an account of the contextual background of the fast. In the background was the widespread arousal of anti-Muslim emotions. Muslim shops in Kandy and in many towns of the country had to close down depriving these traders and their workers of their livelihood. Sinhala Buddhist mafia jingoism was on the march.

Ven. Gnanasara was breathing fire and we all know he had a dark history of allegations of lashing Muslims. Gnanasara announced that if the fasting monk’s demands are not met within 24 hours he would ensure a ‘carnival of fireworks’, throughout the island. Newspapers reported that the final act of this raucous gang would be to oust Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe’s elected Government. Gnanasara said that.

His Eminence the Cardinal has obviously not perceived all these ramifications when he decided to pay homage to the monk; he didn’t take a look at the wider context. He should have. Consequently, he unavoidably gets associated with all these gangs and sinister forces. The Cardinal, in effect though unwittingly, became a status lender to a rabid gang of racists on the march.

Political character
The above considerations point out clearly that the fasting incident had not been an isolated one but one with a clearly political character having threatening implications for our democracy and our healthy body politic.

President Sirisena suddenly releasing Gnanasara from jail and the Athuraliye fast following on the heels of that controversial pardon seemed ominous to the politically savvy.

The Opposition demand to pressurise and bring down the Government is well known and the involvement of some Pohottuwa politicians in the riots has been documented.

The Cardinal’s political howler
In this context I would say that the Cardinal made a howler of huge proportion by making public a political assessment asserting, as he did, a blatantly political statement: “A country belongs to the people; not to the rulers.”

To make such a statement during this visit to the fasting monk was unwarranted. He meant that the current Government leaders think that the country belongs to them. To be fair by the Government it has thus far acted within a democratic framework and has expressed commitment to quit if the electorate wants it that way at elections.

This is, in fact, the polar opposite of the Rajapaksa Government both during office and out of office as was evident when they joined President Sirisena in a Constitutional coup for 52 days until they were booted out by Parliament.

Incidentally, while numerous leaders opposed that illegal move we didn’t see Cardinal Ranjith say anything. A man like him so fond of speaking on public issues should have opposed the violation of the Constitution. He did not. On many an issue like this where the violators were the Rajapaksas His Eminence observed silence, giving us the impression that the Cardinal is being driven by political agendas.

Conclusion
Such a supposition tied up with the inappropriate visit to the fasting monk may constitute a whistle-blower which the Archdiocese should seriously take a look at.
(The writer can be reached via sjturaus@optusnet.com.au.)

NEW FAKE NEWS/HATE SPEECH LAWS: ARE THEY REALLY NECESSARY? – HIMAL KOTELAWALA

07/06/2019

(republicnext) Earlier this week, the Government announced fresh moves to curtail the spread of fake news. The Cabinet of Ministers on Wednesday (5) approved a revision to the country’s Penal Code and Criminal Procedure Code enabling “swift and stringent legal action to be taken against those who engage in false news distribution and hate speech.”

According to the amendment proposal submitted by acting Minister of Justice and Prison Reforms Ranjith Madduma Bandara, anyone found guilty of “spreading false news or hate speech, could face a fine of up to Rs. 1 million or a five-year prison sentence or both.”

The Government is selling this is as a much-needed attempt to curb the spread of fake news which, to be fair, has taken endemic proportions of late, reaching a fever pitch in the aftermath of the Easter bombings. In its official communique released to the media, the Government Information Department goes as far as to paint the Cabinet’s decision as a positive response to civil society concerns.

Law and order authorities as well as civil society leaders have been increasingly concerned about the rising social tensions and worsening ‘hate speech’ messaging both on the internet as well in public statements by various groups in recent weeks following the shock suicide bombing attacks on Easter Sunday, April 21st.

Aggravating these tensions have also been numerous news media reports that critics say fail to meet basic professional and legal standards of authenticity and reliability. With such public messaging, the law and order authorities are facing challenges in curbing public reactions and managing social tensions.

Civil society, it turns out, is less than enthusiastic. Even if it was well-intentioned, activists and legal experts point out that the proposed amendment could have wide-ranging implications to freedom of expression and could potentially be used to suppress opposition to the Government.

Human rights lawyer Bhavani Fonseka told RepublicNext that, with the caveat that it’s difficult to critique a draft Cabinet proposal without having seen it (the document has yet to be made public), she is “very concerned” about what is being proposed and what it might entail.

“There are serious concerns as to what they’re proposing and how it’ll be implemented. The other question is whether we actually need a new law or an amendment to the Penal Code or Criminal Procedure Code when we have laws already in place,” she said, calling for transparency on the part of the Government in its legal reform process.

Fonseka also questioned the dearth of prosecutions within the existing legal framework against parties accused of propagating hate speech, particularly in instances of communal violence from Aluthgama in 2014 to Minuwangoda this year.

“The existing laws provide sufficient powers to the Attorney General’s Department to indict and prosecute. There is sufficient evidence to show there was incitement in various incidents that occurred in 2014, 2015 and in Digana last year, but we have yet to see a single conviction or even a prosecution. My concern is why are we talking about introducing new laws when there are existing laws that are not being used?” she said.

“It goes to the heart of impunity that when we already have the laws, no prosecution has taken place,” she added.

In addition to the Penal Code, provisions in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) Act as well as the Emergency Regulations now in place, experts contend, are more than enough to combat fake news and hate speech.

Attorney-at-Law and Research Director at Verité Research Gehan Gunatilleke, who has also yet to see the Cabinet proposal in question, expressed similar views.

Considering politicians are the biggest purveyors of false information, he told RepublicNext, half the Parliament would be at risk of being arrested.

“Laws of this nature are typically used to target critics of government. This of course includes the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and the Joint Opposition (JO). It includes outspoken critical voices. The moment the Bill is published, I imagine the JVP and JO will oppose it quite sharply,” he said.

Citing Malaysia as an example, Gunatilleke said, laws on fake news are typically applied to help governments save face.

“In Malaysia, soon after the law was passed, they went after people who allegedly brought the police into disrepute. They eventually repealed the law in Malaysia because it was seen as a major abuse of power,” he said.

“We all know how this is going to work. The person who spreads a fake story about Muslim restaurants mixing ‘sterilisation pills’ is never prosecuted. But the person who claims the police stood by idly while mobs attacked his shop is arrested,” he added.

Insisting that the existing laws, including provisions stipulated in the ICCPR Act, are more than sufficient to combat dangerous false news and incitement to violence, Gunatilleke said echoing Fonseka that if the so-called fake news is designed to incite violence, it is already covered.

“The existing law is already quite broad. The  ICCPR Act, plus the emergency regulations are overbroad as they are. But even these overbroad provisions haven’t been used to prosecute those who have incited violence,” he said.

Gunatilleke also questioned the Government’s commitment to curtailing hate speech.

“No politician has been held to account for spreading false information. This impunity reveals that the state isn’t actually interested in dealing with harmful speech. So the real risk is that these laws will be used to target the critics of government,” he said.

RN