Columns

The key focus of the visit undertaken by a delegation of a 12-member cross-party delegation of MPs to Switzerland recently was Swiss federalism and the interaction between different political levels in Switzerland, according to Swiss media.

A report on the visit published in swissinfo.ch, the international online service of the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (SBC), has brought to light some of the secret discussions held in the past on the touchy topic of federalism in the country.

According to the report, over the years, the Swiss federalist model has regularly been cited as a possible path for reconciliation. Thus, in 1985, the Marga Institute in Colombo held a conference on federalism, where a Swiss parliamentarian and officials spoke. “The seminar was qualified as a great success by all the participants,” the Swiss news agency SDA reported at the time, albeit adding that the Sri Lankan government had only allowed the event to take place behind closed doors and without local media coverage.

In May 2002, during a ceasefire brokered by Norway, the Tamil Tigers’ political chief made a clandestine visit to Berne. There, he no longer advocated for a separate Tamil state but for “federalism and power-sharing between the centre and the regions”, according to the Swiss weekly magazine Die Weltwoche, which the news report quoted.

The Swiss foreign ministry had reported that the study trip was “successful and effective” and helped to build “mutual understanding across party lines”, adding that Switzerland will continue to support national reconciliation in Sri Lanka.

The difference, however, is Switzerland was a country with different cantons that came together to join the Swiss Federation, while Sri Lanka is trying to see the benefits of a united country dividing into provinces—the other way around.

Another ex-judge eyeing northern CM post—with Diaspora push

Vavuniya’s former High Court Judge M. Ilancheliyan is visiting Europe at the invitation of Tamil diaspora outfits, following his retirement in January after raising complaints about not being promoted to the Court of Appeal.

His visit, however, caused some concern in diaspora circles when groups tried to present him as an ‘alternative’ candidate for the post of chief minister if provincial council elections are held.

It seems that the former judge too went along with those lines, responding to Q&A sessions where he asked for the need to ‘clean’ politics and lead the people.

Days before his retirement, Judge Ilancheliyan wrote to President Anura Kumara Dissanayake urging him to consider appointing him to the next tier of the judicial ladder, but unfortunately it did not materialise.

Hearing all the mixed signals coming from the learned judge and those diaspora outfits, a concerned citizen who took part in the meeting in Paris was heard saying to his colleague, “We have had enough with ex-judges coming to politics after retirement.” He was probably referring to the time the Supreme Justice turned politician, C. V. Wigneswaran, who was elected as Chief Minister of the Northern Province, and how he ran the council. That seems to be a bad precedent set for Mr Ilancheliyan.

Harsha’s comments spark party rage

Colombo District SJB MP Harsha De Silva has come under criticism from within his own party for some of the contents of his speech in parliament on the budget.

Some SJB MPs say Mr De Silva’s comments that the “Treasury is overflowing…” have made it seem like the party is praising the budget. A senior SJB MP said his remark has caught the others in the SJB off guard and has been exploited by the government to show that even the opposition is praising its budget.

Prime Minister Harini Amarasuirya was among those who praised the SJB MP for acknowledging that the Treasury is overflowing. In fairness to Mr De Silva, he slammed the government for not using this surplus to provide relief to the public and accused it of increasing the tax burden by widening the VAT net by lowering the threshold.

Sugar Sunil shuns white

Industries Minister Sunil Handunnetti has once again become the butt end of jokes after he opened a sales outlet at Narahenpita which only sells brown sugar. This prompted many on social media to call him “father of brown sugar.”

However, he told parliament that he would rather be called the ‘father of brown sugar’ than the ‘father of white sugar’ – slang for pure heroin. Some quipped that as long as he is not called ‘sugar daddy’, it should be fine.

Meanwhile, the government is taking its brown sugar promotions seriously, with a Cabinet decision taken last month making it mandatory for all state institutions to use only brown sugar in food production.

Road to job security: Bimal’s OL formula

Transport Minister Bimal Rathnayake explained in Parliament on Thursday that around 300 persons recruited to the Road Development Authority (RDA) could not be made permanent, as they had not sat their Ordinary Level examination.

He suggested that they sit the exam, which is due in February next year. “There is no need to pass the exam. They only have to sit for it, and then we can consider making them permanent,” he said.

Pakistani ex cricket administrator caught at silly point

Pakistani cricket commentator Najam Sethi

Sri Lanka has won many new fans in Pakistan due to the decision to continue with the cricket tour there despite some hesitation after a suicide bomb explosion opposite the District Judicial Complex in Islamabad this week.

There have been numerous social media posts praising the Lankans and recalling the camaraderie between the two countries in the cricketing arena through the years.

One such post was from Najam Sethi, a prominent Pakistani media personality, businessman and cricket administrator. In an X post, he said, “The Sri Lankan Cricket Board will recall that international cricket continued in Sri Lanka during the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) insurrections, particularly the second one from 1987 to 1990, amidst significant violence and bombings.” He added that it was a conscious and courageous decision by the Sri Lankan cricket authorities and the government to use cricket as a symbol of national defiance of the terrorists. “The sight of a cricket match continuing after a bomb blast was a powerful message that life, and the spirit of the nation, would not be terrorised into submission.”

Ironically, it was the leader of the same JVP, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, who intervened to ensure that the matches continued despite some players wanting to return. Poor Najam Sethi may not have known that in Colombo, the JVP was also commemorating the death of its one-time leader, who was held responsible for those insurrections he refers to in 1987-89. Unless he got it mixed up with the Pakistani cricketers coming to play cricket in Sri Lanka with the Indian cricketers in South Asian solidarity during the 1996 World Cup when it was the LTTE ‘violence and bombings’ that were in full swing.

As for the cricket, it seems the Sri Lankan players think the swing bowling of Haris Rauf and the wily spin of Saim Ayub are more to the point to worry about.

With Lonely Planet pushing Jaffna, ADB steps in to boost northern tourism

With Lonely Planet, a well-known international travel guidebook, naming Jaffna as one of the best places to visit next year, there has been so much focus from the tourism industry and a renewed push to develop tourism in the region.

ADB Country Director Takafumi Kadono speaking on North's tourism potentials

As institutional support, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) came forward to assist northern tourism with a training programme provided for youngsters. ADB’s Country Director Takafumi Kadono was in Jaffna this week to attend an event titled ‘Rediscovering Northern Sri Lanka: Empowering Youth and Shaping a New Tourism Identity’.

Addressing the youth, Mr Kadono also recalled his brief experience and shared lessons on the tourism industry in his youth. He said he had cleaned hotel rooms during the day and worked at a restaurant in the evening for extra bucks—cleaning wine glasses and silverware.

He told the young graduates that tourism is also a professional sector where visiting tourists expect a decent quality service from places they visit.

Mr Kadono also said the Northern tourism industry has to be community-based, featuring its rich culture and social and geographical locations, thus creating a unique identity.

Blindfolded Mayor: Now open your eyes to the city’s sorry state

A blindfolded Colombo Mayor Vraîe Cally Balthazaar is taking part in the march to create awareness about difficulties faced by visually impaired people

Politicians are known to engage in many attention-seeking exercises—and Colombo Mayor Vraîe Cally Balthazaar this week engaged in one such event by going blindfolded, joining a group of vision-impaired people to raise awareness about the daily challenges they face in moving about the city.

“I am going blindfolded so I can understand what it is to be in the city without sight,” Mayor Balthazaar said during the awareness walk.

While the objective is laudable, it is ludicrous to think that walking blindfolded would even bring her close to understanding the daily struggles of people living with vision impairment. The mayor, who has the blessings of sight, needs to keep her eyes wide open and implement programmes to ensure that people with disabilities are secure when they visit the city. They say that ‘none are so blind as those who refuse to see’.

The harsh reality of Colombo is that, even for people with no vision impairment, walking on the streets is dangerous given the uneven pavements, the potholes and the drains. Streets have gone to the dogs in more ways than literally. Hence, this kind of activity may make for good photo opportunities, but they do little to help people.

That said, it’s important to note the NPP has taken the laudable step of appointing the country’s first vision-impaired MP, Sugath Wasantha de Silva, but the country’s Parliament itself lacks basic facilities for people with disabilities.

Gammanpila’s UNP links began in womb

Pivithuru Hela Urumaya (PHU) Leader Udaya Gammanpila joined Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) National Organiser Namal Rajapaksa and several other opposition figures for a meeting at United National Party (UNP) leader Ranil Wickremesinghe’s office on Colombo’s Flower Road to discuss preparations for the upcoming joint opposition rally on November 21.

Politics do make for strange bedfellows, as UNPers listened patiently not only to their own leaders but also to the visitors from other parties who addressed them regarding the preparations. However, it was the PHU leader who noted that he is not as unfamiliar to the UNP as those present believed.

“I had gone canvassing for the UNP while I was still in my mother’s womb. My uncle was the then UNP organiser for Nawalapitiya,” Mr Gammanpila revealed, to loud laughter and applause from those present.

Mind your language, Speaker warns MPs

Speaker Jagath Wickramaratne on Thursday warned MPs against using unparliamentary language in the House and against insulting each other.

Addressing the House, the Speaker said such behaviour has come to his attention frequently during recent Parliament proceedings. He noted that such language is disrespectful to the House and is deeply regrettable.

He urged MPs to pay special attention to the matter and extend their support in this regard.

The Speaker’s warning comes after repeated incidents of offensive and, at times, downright vulgar language being used in the House by MPs from both sides. There have been several occasions in recent weeks where offensive remarks and words have been stricken from the Hansard.

So much so that often in bars when such foul language tends to be used, people would say, “Hey, stop using parliamentary language.”