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Five make-or-break months for Rajapaksa regime
- National Collective gets support from Mahanayakes for abolition of PCs but world pressure forces Govt. to go ahead with polls
- Cracks within UPFA widen while UNP patches up splits; SLMC defies President to go it alone
Ahead of a summit of Commonwealth leaders later this year, two different campaigns gained momentum with equal vigour this week.
One is the preparation by the ruling United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) and opposition political parties for the Northern, North Western and Central Provincial Council polls. Choosing candidates has become the primary task for them. Important among the polls is the one for the Northern Provincial Council, for the first time since the 13th Amendment to the Constitution in May 1987. Last week’s events revealed that cracks have already developed within the UPFA on the issue of fielding candidates.
The other is the on-going campaign by the National Collective to abolish the Provincial Council (PC) system. Two of its constituent partners, the All Ceylon Buddhist Congress (ACBC) and the Jathika Sangha Sammalenaya (JSS), called on the country’s two leading Buddhist prelates — the Mahanayake of the Asgiriya Chapter, Most Venerable Udulagama Shri Buddharakkitha Thera and the Mahanayake of the Malwatte Chapter Most Venerable Thibattuwawe Shri Sumangala Thera — in Kandy on Wednesday. They won their support for their campaign to abolish PCs. The ACBC delegation was led by its President Jagath Sumathipala and the JSS by it secretary, Ven. Dodangoda Sarananda Thera.
The Asgiriya prelate said the Mahanayakes had objected to the Provincial Councils even when they were being set up by the late President J.R. Jayewardene. He added, “At that time not many could protest about it. Today the problem has been aggravated. If land and police powers are given to (PCs in) the north nothing would remain with the Government. The country will be divided into nine different parts. It is the fault of our political leaders. The Provincial Council system should be abolished.”
The Malwatte prelate declared that there were far too many councillors (PC members) now. “There is no use of them, because they do not serve the public. My view is that the PC system should be abolished. If there are clauses which are dangerous or inimical to the country’s interests in the 13th Amendment, those too should be changed,” the prelate said. ACBC leader Sumathipala told the Sunday Times, “We are due to call on the Mahanayake Thera of the Amparapura Nikaya on Saturday and the Mahanayake Thera of the Ramannya Nikaya later.” The National Collective is also to hold more meetings in principal towns.
As its campaign gains momentum with the support of the Mahanayakes, the National Collective is worried about what it says are efforts by “foreign interests” to disrupt its activities. One of its key players, Technology and Research Minister Champika Ranawaka, said he complained to the internet search engine, ‘Google’, that there had been several attempts in the past weeks to hack into his e-mail account. He had learnt that the efforts had been made by unidentified hackers in Qatar. “We are still going into the matter. It is definitely an attempt to destabilise us and carry out disinformation,” he told the Sunday Times. “We will expose more details in time to come. “There may be others who are facing the same problem though we are unaware of it so far,” he said.
Signs of cracks in the UPFA emerged the previous Saturday in Kandy. President Mahinda Rajapaksa had summoned leaders of the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) for a meeting that related to workings of the Eastern Provincial Council. However, ahead of that event, an informal discussion got under way over the President’s wish that the SLMC contests under the UPFA banner. Those who had turned up for the meeting over EPC issues were on hand. They included Minister and UPFA General Secretary Susil Premajayantha, Minister and Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) General Secretary Maithripala Sirisena, Minister A.L.M. Athaullah and Minister Rishad Bathiuddin.
President Rajapaksa had just returned from a public engagement the previous Saturday evening. It related to a ceremony to take charge of the Ehelepola Maha Adikaram Walauwwa, a part of the Bogambara Prison for conservation as a historic site. Arrangements have been made at the President’s House in Kandy for Iftar or breaking fast in the month of Ramazan. Playing the role of Imam (Muslim theologian) was the EPC Tourism Minister Nazeer Ahamed. Minister Hakeem broke the news that the SLMC would go it alone at the upcoming elections to the three Provincial Councils. He was to explain that the SLMC has been doing so in the past three years. President Rajapaksa was to charge that the SLMC, which contested the EPC polls on its own, had not come forward to defend the Government when the opposition raised issues. There had also been confrontations between groups supporting the UPFA and those backing the SLMC. He expressed unhappiness over the SLMC move. “All parties in the UPFA should get together,” he declared. However, Hakeem was to complain that “we have been given step motherly treatment.” The Rajapaksa-Hakeem tête-à-tête ended inconclusively. The Muslim ministers and councillors chose a part of the President’s House to say their Maghrib prayers. Then the official business of the day began.
This week, the high command of the SLMC met in Colombo and decided that the party would field candidates for all three PC elections. When it comes to a national election, the SLMC is to contest under the SLMC banner. The high command also lifted the suspension of two of the party’s former North Western Provincial Council members for endorsing the UPFA move to make changes to the 13th Amendment after speaking against it. The former Councillors are Rizwi Jowharshah and Abdeen Yehiya. The SLMC decision will pitch itself on a head on collision course with the UPFA.
“For strategic reasons, we have allowed some partners to contest specific districts. Other than that, we want them to take part in the polls under our banner,” Basil Rajapaksa, Minister of Economic Development and the Sri Lanka Freedom Party’s national organiser told the Sunday Times. An example, he said, was allowing Arumugam Thondaman’s Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC) to contest the Matale District. Another was Periyasamy Chandrasekeran’s Upcountry People’s Front (UPF). It has been similarly allowed to contest the Nuwara Eliya District. Thus, the SLMC’s decision to go it alone, without the formal sanction of the UPFA leadership, is bound to draw the UPFA leadership’s ire. The question then would be the SLMC’s future as a partner of the UPFA; but then, politics does make strange bedfellows and it is the art of the possible. Victory at the polls is the ultimate aim of all parties, and coalitions are formed thereafter.
The real business for the evening; matters relating to a boycott by UPFA Councillors (including SLMC) demanding action against Eastern Province Governor, Rear Admiral (retd.) Mohan Wijewickrema, and Chief Minister Abdul Majeed were taken up. For a short period members had avoided attending Council meetings held in Trincomalee.
President Rajapaksa began with a firm remark that the Governor was his own appointee and any moves against him amounted to an action against the President. He also said the ministers should cooperate with Chief Minister Majeed. He referred to a previous occasion when he was to meet them but was compelled to hand over the task to Ministers Premajayantha and Sirisena. This was because he had been held up in Jaffna on an official visit. “You all agreed to the request of my two ministers to attend Council meetings after this discussion with them. However, you all kept away thereafter,” he pointed out. Rajapaksa said that any shortcomings would be corrected by the Governor and the Chief Minister. Former Chief Minister, Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan (Pillayan), who was to voice the views of the Councillors, only complained about allowances and other issues. The meeting saw a verbal duel between Ministers Hakeem and Bathiuddin.
The SLFP Central Committee which met on Friday chaired by President Rajapaksa took a number of policy decisions relating to the upcoming PC polls. Minister Rajapaksa said one such decision was that no UPFA MP should contest any of the three provincial councils where polls are being held. The move is a direct blow to Douglas Devananda, leader of the Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP). He had not only wanted to contest but also be the Chief Ministerial candidate for the Northern Province. He will have to relinquish his parliamentary seat (and his portfolio) if he wishes to do so.
Now, EPDP members will receive only limited nominations to specific electorates in the Northern Province. This does not look pretty for the EPDP. In fact, it is almost a vote of no confidence in the party by the UPFA leadership. Minister Rajapaksa said three Nomination Boards interviewed applicants to select candidates for the three provinces. Two of them have already forwarded their list whilst the third was now finalising its list for the NPC polls. “In the case of both the North Western and Central Provinces, most positions have gone to those who served as councillors. In the North, there will be a number of new faces,” he said. Minister Susil Premajayantha, who is chairman of the nomination boards, is now on a visit to Jaffna and the list of candidates is to be finalised upon his return to Colombo. He said a cabinet minister would be placed in charge of each district where the polls are being held. Groups of MPs in charge of electorates would function under them.
BRITISH TAMIL CONSERVATIVES DINNER: Alastair Burt, Minister for Sri Lanka at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office talks to Callum Mcrae and Frances Harrison. Also in the dinner was Jonathan Miller who is not in the picture.
The main contender at the NPC polls, touted as the possible winner, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) decided on C.V. Wigneswaran, a former Supreme Court judge as its chief ministerial candidate. Early this year, President Rajapaksa who heard reports of such a possibility had verified it from Minister Vasudeva Nanayakkara. His son, Nirmalan Kanthan, is married to Wigneswaran’s daughter. He had checked and reported back that there had been no such move then. Minister and National Freedom Front (NFF) leader Wimal Weerawansa, known usually to reflect views of the UPFA leadership, told a meeting that the TNA Chief Ministerial candidate had been picked by two Colombo diplomatic missions. NFF members said he was alluding to the United States and India. The TNA leadership met in Vavuniya yesterday to finalise the party’s list of candidates. It was after a visit to India by party leader Rajavarothayam Sampanthan.
Weerawansa was also in the news this week for his comments last month that he would resign his ministerial post if Police and Land powers were not withdrawn from Provincial Councils. However, Minister Weerawansa told the Sunday Times, “it is our campaign that has led to the appointment of a Parliamentary Select Committee. We have achieved that objective. Therefore, why should I resign?” the minister who staged a fast unto death in July 2010, asked. That fast was to call upon UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon to terminate a panel he named to probe alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka. He called off the fast a day after it had begun and the UN panel went on to give a damning report on Sri Lanka.
The main opposition UNP is also busy finalising its list of candidates. This is in the midst of other issues confronting the party. One was a reported move by the UNP Kurunegala District parliamentarian Dayasiri Jayasekera to cross over to the Government ranks. This is particularly in the wake of meetings he has had with President Mahinda Rajapaksa. In fact Rajapaksa, who had a meeting with former members of the North Western Provincial Council a fortnight ago, sounded them out on what they thought of Jayasekera being the Chief Ministerial candidate. A unanimous response from the former councillors was that they would abide by any decision Rajapaksa made. However, a discordant note was sounded by senior Minister S.B. Nawinna. He told a colleague, the Chief Ministerial post of the NWP should not be given to a UNPer who is getting ready to cross over. He complained that another UNP MP crossed over and had done damage to the UPFA. He was alluding to a current cabinet minister. There were also other groups, with strong caste interests, who were not in favour.
It is in this backdrop that Jayasekera had what a senior UNP parliamentarian described as a “heart-to-heart chat” with leader Ranil Wickremesinghe. It came on Friday afternoon at Siri Kotha, the UNP headquarters. Facilitating the meeting was UNP Colombo District parliamentarian Ravi Karunanayake. However, he only escorted Jayasekera to the conference room and withdrew. It was first a one-on-one between Wickremesinghe and Jayasekera. A while later General Secretary Tissa Attanayake joined in. The parliamentarian who wished to remain anonymous said, “Jayasekera spoke of all his grievances. The main thrust of his complaint was that he had been overlooked in favour of Akila Viraj Kariyawasam, another young MP from the district. This was despite his securing the largest number of preference votes in the Kurunegala District; he found no recognition in the party.” Wickremesinghe had assured that the issues raised by Jayasekera would be addressed and urged him to continue to remain loyal to the party.
Karunanayake declined to comment on the meeting saying, “You should ask MP Dayasiri.” Jayasekera was not contactable. One of his supporters said he had switched off his mobile telephone in view of the large number calls he was receiving. Most of them, he said, were to inquire whether he would join the Government and become the Wayamba chief ministerial candidate.
The upcoming provincial polls will see what roles the two UNP erstwhile deputy leaders — Sajith Premadasa and Karu Jayasuriya — will play. They are yet to be placed in charge of campaigns in any of the three provinces, though there were reports that they will address UNP propaganda meetings in whichever areas they wished. They also played some role in short-listing of candidates for the provinces. So far, the UNP has named former Speaker Joseph Micahel-Perera, Matara District Parliamentarian Mangala Samaraweera and Karunanayake to be in charge of the campaign in the North Western Province. Karunanayake has in addition sought to be in charge of the Northern Province too. He is likely to be appointed along with UNP MP Vijayakala Maheswaran and UNP National List MP D.M. Swaminathan. The UNP National Organiser and financer Daya Gamage has been placed in charge of the Matale district, while MPs Lakshman Kiriella, Wasantha Aluvihara, John Amaratunga, R. Yogarajan and party treasurer Senarath Kapukotuwa will co-ordinate the Central Province election campaign. A propaganda committee which includes Prof. Ganganath Dissanayake, Sudath Chandrasekera, Dinesh Dodangoda and Kalpa Guruge has been named. Mangala Samaraweeera, UNP’s head of communications told the Sunday Times, “We are finalising our nominations. We will hold meetings with party activists in the Kurunegala, Puttalam, Kandy and Nuwara Eliya districts from August 3,” he said.
The Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) will contest all three Provincial Councils, its leader, Somawansa Amerasinghe told the Sunday Times yesterday.
The outcome of the polls for the three Provincial Councils will be the forerunner for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in November this year. “We are trying to get the maximum benefit for the country. Different cabinet sub committees have been named to deal with different aspects,” said Minister Rajapaksa.
His remarks came as it transpired in London that Britain was pressing alarm buttons over their country’s media representation at CHOGM. The British Government’s official view was expressed by none other than Alistair Burt, the Foreign and Commonwealth Minister in charge of a few Asian countries including Sri Lanka. The occasion was the Sterling Pounds 60 a plate annual dinner of the British Tamil Conservatives at Maygreen Manor in Brentwood.
A group of Conservative MPs and representatives of the Tamil diaspora — the Global Tamil Forum and the British Tamil Forum- were among the attendees. There was an array of food — breast of chicken, loin of lamb and pancakes filled with vegetables — for the main course. The starters were leeks and potato soup, smoked salmon and crab cakes. Whilst savouring the food, Burt responded to questions from participants. Three of the guests were Callum Mcrae, producer of two controversial films on the military defeat of Tiger guerrillas, Frances Harrison, one-time BBC correspondent based in Sri Lanka, now an active anti Sri Lanka lobbyist, and Channel 4 journalist Jonathan Miller. Mcrae and Harrison were engaged in a twitter war of words in the recent weeks with Bandula Jayasekera, former head of the Presidential Media Unit and now Sri Lanka’s Consul General for New South Wales. Jayasekera, who enjoys ambassadorial status, is now based in Sydney.
Burt was asked at the dinner whether Mcrae, Harrison and Miller would be granted accreditation if they wished to cover CHOGM. He said that after the recent developments over twitter, and reports from the British High Commission in Colombo, the UK Government had raised issue with the Commonwealth Secretariat. The Secretariat in turn had raised issue with the Government of Sri Lanka. That is how several Government dignitaries in Colombo had through statements and official pronouncements made clear there would not be any barrier for British journalists to travel to Sri Lanka for CHOGM. He said Premier David Cameron would be accompanied for the summit “by as many journalists as possible in his entourage.”
A few weeks ago, Premier Cameron in a letter to British MP Lee Scott who is the head of the All Party Group on Tamils, noted; “The Commonwealth is an organisation that is committed to the values of democracy, freedom, peace and the rule of law. I hope that all Commonwealth members will use this summit in November, and the intervening months, to press the Sri Lankan Government to uphold these values….. I fully intend to do so”.
Then, he went on to say, “The Foreign Secretary and I will also take the opportunity at the summit itself to shine a spotlight on the progress that has been made, and if necessary, to deliver a tough message to the Sri Lankan Government about the need to do more”. This is one of the most stringent missives to be sent to a host country even before the summit; something that Colombo has taken lying down in the fear of not doing anything to jeopardise its efforts to host the event.
Another question asked was whether Commonwealth Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma was making progress on whether Sri Lanka was pursuing ‘Commonwealth values’. Burt replied that he could not answer for Sharma. He could only say that the UK Government differed from Sharma’s views, a hint that Britain differed with Sharma about Sri Lanka even hosting CHOGM. Earlier, Burt had set out what was described as Britain’s official position vis-à-vis Sri Lanka and CHOGM in response to a question. Here is the relevant extract from the Hansard of the House of Commons:
“Kerry McCarthy: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs pursuant to the answer from the Deputy Prime Minister to the right hon. Member for Bermondsey and Old Southwark of 15 May 2013, Official Report, column 634, on the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, what consequences the Government is considering against Sri Lanka; and under what circumstances such consequences would be invoked. [166179]
“Alistair Burt: The British Government continues to raise concerns about lack of progress on post-conflict reconciliation, accountability, and the current human rights situation with the Government of Sri Lanka. We have been clear that we expect progress in both these areas and also access by media and civil society to the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM), as well as free, fair and peaceful Northern Provincial Council elections in September.
“In attending CHOGM, the Prime Minister and the Foreign Secretary will see the situation on the ground, speak with the Government of Sri Lanka, and draw international attention to either progress made or the lack of it.
“We co-sponsored the Human Rights Council Resolution on Sri Lanka which passed with increased support in March 2013. The council will return to the issue of Sri Lanka in September and next March. If that is against the backdrop of insufficient progress on Sri Lanka’s own commitments, or deterioration in the human rights situation, we will look for a strong and unified response.”
Besides the meeting of heads of state of the Commonwealth, Sri Lanka is focusing on three main events during the CHOGM. Minister Rajapaksa said they were the Business Forum, the People’s Forum and the Youth Forum. The first is designed to enhance Sri Lanka’s foreign investment portfolio and draw more investors.
In the light of this, sections of the Government are concerned over the exclusive revelations made in the The Sunday Times (Business Times on Sunday July 7) of alleged irregularities in the multi-million dollar Krrish development project to be located in the Transworks House in Colombo Fort. The fact that such a project was being awarded to a lesser known company was first revealed in the front page lead story of the Sunday Times of September 2, 2012.
At the centre of this controversy is said to be the grand-daughter of a one- time SLFP cabinet minister, a prime mover. She had brought to light some alleged irregularities where a powerful bureaucrat had reportedly benefited from kick-backs. The issue was then raised by UNP parliamentarian Ravi Karunanayake. He told a public meeting in Colombo North that big names were involved in irregularities. Earlier, a website banned in Sri Lanka had made some scurrilous references to senior officials who were not improperly involved in the project. The Ministry of Defence and Urban Development made an appeal that those making allegations should lodge a complaint with the Police. Karunanayake told the Sunday Times, “I will not go to Police and help others increase their commissions. We have made several complaints to the Commission to Investigate Bribery or Corruption. None has been probed. The complainant can become the victim.”
Cabinet approval was given to the Krrish project on a recommendation made by President Rajapaksa in his capacity as Minister of Defence and Urban Development in August last year. In his recommendation to Ministers, Rajapaksa conceded that the land was “archaeologically valuable.” Here is the description he gave: “The land situated at Colombo Fort, bordering Chatham Street, Lotus Street, D.R. Wijewardene Mawatha and York Street is called ‘Transworks Square land.’ Archaeologically valuable former Public Works Department Building which is called Transworks House is situated within the land adding enormous value to the development of rest of the land.
“Major portion of the subject land which is an extent of 2A-03R-34.45 P (two acres, three roods and 34.35 perches) is duly vested with the UDA (Urban Development Authority) under Section 6(1) of the Crown Land Ordinance. Part of the land where the Transworks House is situated which is in extent of 1A-1R-9.0P is being vested with UDA under Section 6(1) of the Crown Land Ordinance. In addition to the above, a portion of land in extent of 33.10 perches shown as lot 1 in P.P.Co. 6188 has been vested with the CEB (Ceylon Electricity Board) where an electrical substation is located. Accordingly, the total extent of land available for development will be 4A 1R 03.45 P (totally 683.45 perches) after vesting the portion of land with UDA where the Transworks House is located.
“Except the plots occupied by the Transworks House building and CEB substation, the balance portion of the subject land has been subdivided into three lots and leased out to Central Bank of Sri Lanka, People’s Bank and Overseas Realty (Ceylon) Ltd.”
These developments come in the backdrop of Government’s plans to withdraw police and land powers from the Provincial Councils. Notwithstanding Indian concerns over the move, Minister Basil Rajapaksa has told the Chennai-based Hindu newspaper “that Sri Lanka would never risk a provincial government forming its own “army” through devolved police powers.” Elaborating on his remarks, Minister Rajapaksa said there was an instance when there has been an army under a Provincial Council. He was alluding to the Tamil National Army which operated in the Eastern Provincial Council limits after the withdrawal of the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) withdrew in 1987.
This is an aspect Rajapaksa had raised with India on his recent visit to New Delhi. He has also, External Affairs Ministry sources said, pointed out the role of the Police in terms of the Indo-Sri Lanka Accord. Minister Rajapaksa said that article 2.10 of Indo-Sri Lanka Accord stated “The Government of Sri Lanka will utilise for the purpose of law enforcement and maintenance of security in the Northern and Eastern Provinces the same organisations and mechanisms of Government as are used in the rest of the country.” “This clearly means the use of the national police force,” he pointed out.
The provincial polls, the scene setter for the CHOGM, are indeed a strong test for the UPFA. As a parallel measure, the Government has embarked on addressing some human rights issues raised by the UN Human Rights Council. This is ahead of the visit by UN Human Rights High Commissioner Navi Pillay next month. That all these are precursors to the Human Rights Council sessions in Geneva in September and later in March next year make one factor very clear — the UPFA has to tread carefully and restore its credibility. The process has to begin almost immediately.
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