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LAXMAN KIRIELLA ADMITS THAT THE UNP ALLEGATIONS ABOUT THE MIG TRANSACTIONS WERE HEARSAY EVIDENCE

By Walter Jayawardhana

Laxman Kiriella, official spokesman of the opposition United National Party (UNP) said their allegations against the government about the Mig transaction is hearsay and if the government is having solid facts about the transactions they must present them in the parliament.
Speaking in Sinhalese Laxman Kiriella who has become the public face of his leader Ranil Wickremesinghe, leader of the UNP, said they were presenting only “facts” told to them by one another - Eka Ekkena kiyapu”.

Kiriella, an Attorney at Law , who never should touch hearsay evidence professionally did not explain why his party selected hearsay evidence in this case without facts to substantiate them.
He said so when he was asked why they were not presenting solid facts to show there were corruptions in the Mig fighter plane transactions during an interview conducted by the BBC Sinhala language service-the Sandeshaya.

Recently, the Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickramanayaka said in the parliament that they were ready to face a parliamentary selct committee investigation about the purchase of the Mig fighter places.
But still, Kiriella said during the interview that the purchases of Mig fighter planes has been motivated to let a team who has come to Sri Lanka from the United States to earn a quick buck - an obvious reference to Defense Secretary , Gotabhaya Rajapaksa. He made this allegation without substantiating it. He did not also say whether he was having any kind of evidence to substantiate it.
Laxman Kiriella said by buying Migs you cannot defeat the LTTE and he wanted to stop these purchases. Comparing their leader with President Mahinda Rajapaksa he said the LTTE could be only defeated by presenting a federal solution like the United National Party.

“In the year 2000 we bought Migs- could we defeat the LTTE?” Laxman Kiriella queried arguing his case.

He said there is an attempt also to buy Mig 29 s and that should never be allowed by the parliament and this government is taking loans to buy weapons.

He accused the government of buying the Ukraine made Mig 27 planes through a third party called Belimissa Holdings Corporation in the United Kingdom and said although the government said this was a government to government deal it was not so and there was a third party.

Only a few days ago, facing a television interview by the Derana TV in Sinhalese language Defense Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said the government did not select the said corporation , and when all the transactions were finalized with Ukraine Mash , the state owned Mig manufacturing corporation they wanted their payments through Belimissa since the government was paying in installments. He said the treasury was also involved in this paying process and he was not personally involved.

Laxman Kiriella said without buying Migs , to push the country to a war, the government like the United National Party should accept a federal solution .

Kiriella failed to say that under the United National Party rule of Ranil Wickremesinghe the LTTE clearly rejected a federal solution to the ethnic question . This is what the Hindu newspaper following a close study of the LTTE and federal solution said during the UNP rule: “With the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam remaining noncommittal on federalism, there is apprehension in political circles that the group could renege on a specific commitment made two years ago to explore a "federal solution."

In 2004 the Hindu further added, “The LTTE move to express opinion on an agreement reached in Oslo two years ago and to reiterate that the separatist option had not been abandoned come ahead of the annual Heroes' Day speech by its leader, V. Prabakaran, on November 27.”
Kiriella did not explain how the LTTE could stop the war when the government accept a federal solution and stop buying the Migs.

When the interviewer told Kiriella that a UNP statement previously accused the government of letting 800 LTTE cadres to escape at Thoppigala and it had been pointed out that it was a sign of supporting the war Kiriella avoided answering the question.
During the interview he also admitted that even during the UNP regimes there had been corruption connected with war and he did not say what were they.

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