By Charles.S.Perera

People living in glass houses should not throw stones at others is an old adage .How could it be related to the damaging Statement the American Secretary of State Hilary Clinton made to the UN Security Council, against the most disciplined Armed Force of Sri Lank, which not only eliminated a heavily armed ruthless terrorist force from Sri Lanka, but also rescued over 200,000 Tamil civilians kept as a human shield by these terrorists ?

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Sex and rape are offences that could easily be made against any one, even against a most respected person and leave him to live with the stigma all his or her life. It was an ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…- innocent ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…- sex play by a 22 year old intern who crept under a US PresidentƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s table in the Whitehouse to give the President a little sexual excitement that occasioned, for the first time in the history of America, for a US President to be summoned before a Federal Grand Jury, in August, 1998.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ That being so the US State Secretary Hillary Clinton should have been more circumspect in making accusations against the Armed Forces of a Sovereign State. No one, not even the Secretary of State of America has the right to make a general statement accusing all armed forces of developing countries put together, for an offence that tarnishes for ever the good name of a Sovereign State.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The Secretary of State of America is an important personality , and no one expects her to make statements detrimental to a country or persons merely to satisfy the interest of a certain groups of people, or some interested parties. The statements she makes should be studied, and examined from different points of view, and above all verified for the correctness of the facts before presenting them not relying entirely on her informants, who may only have hear say evidence to support their claims.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ In this present instance she seems to have placed absolute trust in her informants, who are evidently the Tamil expatriates in America- who had for years supported the cause of terrorism in Sri Lanka. They have, therefore an interest to bring disrepute to the Government of Sri Lanka and its Armed Forces for the very reason of elimination of the terrorists, and Hillary Clinton has played into their hands.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ If the Secretary of State merely read out a report prepared for her, she should have read it before and got those responsible to verify whether the facts stated are correct and obtained from reliable sources.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The Secretary of State Hillary Clinton , as a responsible person, which she is, should have consulted the President of Sri Lanka directly or through the Ambassador of Sri Lanka assigned to her country before she made the damning statement against Sri Lanka. After all Diplomatic Mission are established and Ambassadors assigned to a country to be consulted.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ If the Secretary of State deliberately avoided consulting the Sri Lanka Ambassador, and instead consulted the Associations of expatriate pro-terrorist Tamils , who are the front organisations for terrorists banned in USA, to prepare her report to the UN Security Council, on Sri Lanka, what is the necessity to have Ambassadors in USA accredited to represent their countries.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Hillary Clinton has in her statement to the UN Security Council put ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…- within the same bracketƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ Congo, Sudan, Balkan, Burma and Sri Lanka as countries using rape as a tactic of war. She of course avoided putting America within that bracket despite the American Army being the worst case in this respect.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Violent sex attacks and rape by American soldiers in Iraq have been revealed and documented. She avoids that, to include Sri Lanka being a country using rape as a tactic of war. That itself makes her statement a false statement of facts. She accuses the Sri Lanka Armed Forces based on false propaganda material of the pro terrorist Tamil expatriates, who seem to have access to the Office of the Assistant Secretary of State for Asia Robert OƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢Blake claiming themselves to be the ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Tamils for Obama ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Rape is an offence with which not only the soldiers , but any one could be accused to create a doubt about their character in the minds of a listener. That was why quite often the rape is broached when the necessity to discredit a party arises. Recently the UK Channel 4 used that tactic , again to accuse the Sri Lanka soldiers for the death of three women in a bathing area.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ One who accuses a person, or even an army for rape without substantial evidence is a very low and a wicked person. Because, it defiles the character of a person, and leaves him to live all his life with that stigma. It is the worst form of character assassination.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has not only made an irresponsible statement, but put in question her suitability to hold such an important office in an administration which is looked up to by the entire world for its democratic principles, justice and fair play. It is respect for others, that bring respect to one self. If the Secretary of State does not deal honestly and honourably with developing countries, they will begin to doubt the honesty of America.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Hillary Clinton as the Secretary of State of America, should deal directly with the Officials of the respective countries without discriminating them for their size, or significance or not of their political importance. Politics are like personal relationships. A person who can be trusted to stand by , consults and advises is more a respected friend, than one who judges one, listening to gossip or tale carriers. Such a person is best to be avoided.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has made an obviously false, an incorrect, and a damaging statement against Sri Lanka Armed Forces without even wanting to know who Sri Lankans are , and who are their political leaders. Even a new resident who comes to settle down in a new environment, makes an effort to get to know the neighbours by either inviting them or calling over to see and speak to them, but Hillary Clinton as the Secretary of State of America is behaving like a bull in a China shop. She speaks with least concern for the people and governments.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Why is it absurd and foolish , more than being wicked , to say that the Sri Lanka Armed Forces used rape as a tactic of war ?

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Because the Sri Lanka armed forces did not resort to rape during its war against the terrorists as they could not have, even if they wanted to, because terrorists were vigilant and present even if they were not seen, and if the Soldiers were not alert in their duty of relentlessly pursuing the enemy, the out come would have been disastrous.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The military operations of the Government Armed Forces against terrorism lasted only about three years. Within that ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-shortƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ space of time the Army could not relax to seek pleasure, or ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…- rape like gunning down an enemyƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚, as they were kept on their feet chasing the enemy through rain or sunshine. The Armed Forces could not give the terrorists time to come back to attack them, therefore the soldiers kept the enemy running away from the advancing forces.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ In such a climate how could the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton speak about the Armed Forces using rape as a tactic of war. Hillary Clinton had merely been reading out a statement written by a speech writer whose imagination lacks intelligence.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ A political leader cannot behave like a ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-thugƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ making accusations and calling names to all and sundry. There should be a certain decorum and respectability in behaviour or in speech. A political leader of a great nation should search for information going to the very source not listening to every Dick and Tom, and Harry coming forward with half backed falsehood.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Once it was Navi Pillai the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights who collected information from the website of the terrorists to accuse the Sri Lanka Armed Forces for war crimes. And now it is sad to see the Secretary of State of the leader Nation of the World accusing Sri Lanka on hearsay evidence provided to her by the pro terrorist Tamil expatriates posing as the ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Tamils for Obama ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ These expatriates have been out of the reality of Sri Lankan political situation since they arrived in America in the 1980s. There is no reason for Hillary Clinton to have accused the Government of Sri Lanka depending on their evidence without speaking directly to the President of Sri Lanka or his accredited Ambassador in America.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ During the USA Presidential election campaign, Hillary Clinton spoke of not putting all terrorists into the same bag, as one is different from the other. That was a wrong evaluation of the reality. She considers that those terrorists that are harmful to America or Europe are real terrorists while others are ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…- freedom fightersƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ or liberators.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The terrorists who terrorise a country an its people, massacre innocent people, explode bombs, use suicide bombs are as much terrorists even if they have no intention of carrying out terrorism in America.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Hillary Clinton, now as the Secretary of State of USA should re-examine her earlier lopsided view of terrorism. Because she is now responsible for the well being of not only America, but also the humanity the world over, being the Secretary State of the leading Nation of the World. Therefore, her narrow view of terrorism carries no credence and is a danger to the world at large, unless she makes haste to inform herself from correct people in the correct quarters.