Reflections on that Channel 4 ‘documentary’
Posted on June 19th, 2011
Malinda Seneviratne-Courtesy The Nation
The most Channel 4 ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”revelationƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ about the ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”last days of the warƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ (i.e. the military moves to annihilate the LTTE and rescue hundreds of thousands of people being held hostage by that ruthless terrorist organisation) makes some serious claims of excess by the Sri Lankan security forces. The allegation is that the Government of Sri Lanka sanctioned executions, atrocities and shelling of civilians. The documentary also blames the LTTE for using civilians as human shields.
That last part of course is nothing more than tokenism. All those who have accused the Government of Sri Lanka of such crimes generally tend to say something bad about the LTTE, but stop short of calling for a relentless pursuing of co-conspirators and accessories after the facts of genocide and ethnic cleansing. They take refuge, on the rare occasions they do respond to queries over this deliberate ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”absentingƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ by telling us that terrorist organisations and states cannot be treated the same way. This is correct of course, although such differences are not relevant to the victims.
Human rights
Immediately after this ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”documentaryƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ was released, Alistair Burt, the British Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, charged with overseeing counter-terrorism (among other things) blurted out, ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”Channel 4 footage, constitutes convincing evidence of violations of international humanitarian and human rights law and if the Sri Lankan government does not respond they would support the international community in revisiting all options available to press the Sri Lankan Government to fulfill its obligations.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢
Given BritainƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s considerable track record in the matter of violating international humanitarian and human rights law, support for the same by key allies such as the United States of America, throughout the last 5 centuries and even as I write, the sanction of prisoner-interrogative methods that violate the Geneva Convention (not as random acts by errant interrogators but accepted and recommended practice that warrant elaboration in training manuals on the subject of interrogation, BurtƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s warnings reflect (at best) temporary memory loss and at worst ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”Business as Usual for a Rogue/Thug StateƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢.
It is sad indeed that Burt has not considered self-immolation or self-flagellation for BritainƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s role in Iraq (his Deputy Prime Minister said ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”Invasion of Iraq was illegalƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢; we know it was unwarranted since the given invasion-reason, ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”Weapons of Mass DestructionƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ was known to be a falsehood) and not castigated Barack Obama for the murderous adventure in Iraq. Either Burt has not seen footage of the horrendous crimes against humanity perpetrated by British and/or US militaries in Iraq, Afghanistan and now in Libya or his brain is tuned ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”not to be horrifiedƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ by British-made or Britain-sanctioned horrors. No talk of ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”international obligationsƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ there, one observes.
Political intent
The release-timing of this ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”documentaryƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ indicates political intent rather than any desire to obtain the real story about the last stages of the hostage-rescue mission. It is no secret that this was aired to coincide with moves in Geneva orchestrated by the sadly misinformed and the politically slanted to hurt Sri LankaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s reconciliation process. The key players in what can be called ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”an operationƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ are sadly compromised in that they have a considerable history of being with pro-LTTE or anti-Sri Lanka or both.
It is clear that these machinations have been wrought by the fact that preferred outcome did not materialise. These players were denied even a consolation prize when moves to save the LTTE leadership collapsed in the face of the determination of Sri Lanka to rid itself of the terrorist menace. It is indeed sad that people like Dushy Ranatunga end up giving character certificates to the British media which, as we know, have long been complicit in the agenda of that country to plunder resources and subjugate peoples, all in the name of democracy and human rights, the illegitimate heirs of that sad creature called ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”White ManƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s BurdenƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢. The BBC, for instance, has never retracted a report attributing the massacre of Buddhist devotees at the Sacred Bo Tree in Anuradhapura to the Sri Lankan Army. The LTTE propaganda machine did not die with Prabhakaran, one notes.
The compromised nature of the architects of this ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”documentaryƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ notwithstanding, what matters to us in Sri Lanka is whether or not the ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”evidenceƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ offered is authentic on all counts. Rajiva Wijesinha in an interview to Al Jazeera and in numerous articles on the subject has effectively argued that the material produced by Channel 4 is severely compromised on the issue of authenticity. The conspicuous absence of corroboration in Tamilnet reports from that time is, like he says, surprising. Add to this the fact that not all those who bat and have batted for the LTTE are/were Tamil, that there are/were Sinhalese in cahoots with the LTTE and its agenda, that the LTTE was in possession of Sri Lankan Army uniforms, that the LTTE had no qualms about butchering Tamils (e.g. blowing a bus loaded with disabled female LTTE cadres to facilitate greater mobility while fleeing the advancing troops) and the documentary provides more questions than answers. We must keep in mind that the landscapes shown in post-ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”shellingƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ photographs could have acquired the relevant scar-attributes on account of other kinds of action. Furthermore, there is nothing to say that if shelling had indeed occurred, the trigger was pulled by Sri Lanka security forces.
Sober appraisal
Still, the horrifying nature of the material produced and the serious nature of the allegations do require sober appraisal. Sri Lankans need to know
a) if such atrocities did take place and if so who really perpetrated them,
b) whether or not this atrocities, if proven to have been perpetrated, were the result of a deliberate policy by the military and political leadership, and
c) whether or not mechanisms are available in Sri Lanka to investigate and bring to book those responsible, if the answer to the ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”aƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ and ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”bƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ above happen to be in the affirmative.
It is heartening that the domestic mechanism mandated to set the parameters of post-conflict reconciliation, the LLRC, has decided to include this documentary in its deliberations. While some may argue that the LLRC falls short of expectations (a relative term that is politically loaded, let us not forget), the effectiveness or otherwise of that body (like all such mechanisms, domestic or international and regardless of composition ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” the LLRC is far more ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”representativeƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ than the panel that Darusman heads, for instance) finally rests on whether or not all relevant information has been appraised, the processes have been transparent and the conclusions consistent with the established facts.
Legal sanctions
G.L. Peiris, Minister of External Affairs, in a response to the Channel 4 ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”documentaryƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ has restored some sobriety to the discussion: ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”If the allegations levelled by ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”Channel 4ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ or any other party are found to be genuine, the LLRC will take due note of all such cases and remedial measures will be taken by way of legal sanctions. This process will also take into consideration all matters that are important to the Sri Lankans living in Sri Lanka, and therefore, it should be allowed to continue without any hindrance or prejudice.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ He has also responded to the scandalous hurry of the accusers (an impatience conspicuously absent in the rare occasions they have even in passing referred to excesses by US troops and those of its allies): ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”It is recalled that reports of some well-known Commissions in countries with much richer resources have taken decades to see daylightƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢.
The minister has noted the ill-will of the architects of that documentary and also the fact that it is designed not to heal but to exacerbate what wounds exist in post-LTTE Sri Lanka, but, as I pointed out above, mal-intent is only of peripheral interest to Sri Lanka. We need to come to terms with the truth, one way or another.
A very dear friend of mine, a Tamil who has lived many years in countries that have seen incredible degrees of violence, after watching the ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”documentaryƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢, offered the following comment:
ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”I watched the video again. No, I donƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t think it was fabricated. The voices and speech seem authentic. I think this happened-not within a few hours-maybe days or weeks. Am I horrified? No. Just desperately saddened because I have seen this kind of brutality many, many times over the years. What I cannot understand is why the government is denying this. All they have to say is ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Look, war is war. We tried peace agreements many times-they never worked. There was cheating, there was interference from outside. We had to stop this war. We did it. It turned out to be brutal; we could not avoid it. Mistakes were made-but we got peace.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ The Americans didnƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t deny Hiroshima – they killed innocent millions just to stop WW2. The Allies bombed Germany to smithereens. No one denies this. They say they had to do it. It was morally wrong, but the decisions were made. The government cannot expect too much help from India or China – they have their own human rights records to defend. If they do back SL, they will expect their pound of flesh. The latter part of the video showing army brutality is totally believable. Men become animals; some also become saints. Why should we defend the president – because the buck stops with him? I donƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t accuse him. That is not for us mere humans;
ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-vengeance is mine; I will repay,ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ says the Lord.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢
Doctoring
I am willing to give the Government the benefit of the doubt regarding ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”authenticityƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢, given the current state of fabrication-technology and the LTTEƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s track record (as referred to above). RajivaWijesinha raised the question of doctoring effectively. Even if itƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s not a fabrication, ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”systemicƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ and ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”official sanctionƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ is not established. The most interesting thing is the absolute absence of reference to who actually recorded the ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”terribleƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ footage.
This, however, is not my objection to my friendƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s analysis. I want to know the truth. ItƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s as simple as that. I think our domestic mechanisms, for all their flaws, are robust enough to obtain the truth. If they donƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t prove equal to the task, I will agitate. I donƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t need a mal-intentioned, ill-informed and morally corrupt outsider to fight my battles.
Malinda Seneviratne is a freelance writer who can be reached at msenevira@gmail.com
June 19th, 2011 at 6:15 pm
Thank God Sri Lanka wiped out the great evil that was the LTTE. I am pretty sure the footage that was shown on Ch.4 was a group of unfortunate Sinhalese Soldiers who were captured by the LTTE then executed then the Ch.4 Dr Goebbels department of propaganda got to work on it and turned it around to make it look like the it was the LTTE that was executed. We all know what the Evil LTTE does with prisoners. They never respected the Geneva conventions unlike the Sri Lankan soldiers. I have heard so many stories of LTTE killing prisoners in cold blood. They also filmed their gruesome actions. They are not called the most ruthless barbaric terrorist group for nothing. Unfortunately westerners brought up on western mainstream media propaganda will never get it unless they had lived in Sri Lanka for many years during the 80s, 90s and 2000s to understand how evil the LTTE were. Only a few bright western analysts like Webster Tarpley in the United States fully understood who and what the LTTE really were. Unfortunately most people in western countries arn’t as bright as Webster Tarpley so they will not understand the truth without extricating themselves from mainstream western news propaganda of which Ch.4 along with FOX News is one of the absolute worst offenders.
I am convinced this video is a doctored video. Very easy to do if your a good propaganda film maker.
I am glad Sri Lankans are coming out around the world to demolish Ch.4′s lies.
June 20th, 2011 at 11:09 am
The London Times on the morally-bankrupt “channel-4”:
“Choosing to Die [Terry Prachett’s BBC 2 documentary on euthanasia] was billed, hyperbolically, as the first time the moment of death has been shown on television. It isn’t. Not by many, many deaths. What they meant was the first death of a white western man in a sitting room; there is death all over television all the time. Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields, Channel 4’s documentary on that country’s civil war, was made up of little else but the moment of death. Just before we get into it, I am going to pause, yet again, to have an eye-rollingly weary word about Jon Snow’s comic ties and jocund socks. And to explain why I mind and why they matter. The ugly garish ties are worn to semaphore the fact that this is a chap who is only wearing a suit because the headmaster says he must. Inside, he is really a far more relaxed, counterculture kind of dude, not at all the establishment flunky the two-piece single-breasted implies. It is a pathetically and worryingly childish pose in a man approaching retirement who wants what comes out of his mouth to be taken seriously. Back to the programme.
Channel 4 has been flogging this story for more than a year, ever since it was given an unattributed but disturbing clip of footage that appeared to show Tamil Tiger prisoners being executed. It has showed it so often, to righteously harangue the Sri Lankan ambassador and various spokesmen, that now nobody will talk to it. The channel has accumulated a large collection of samizdat amateur footage from mobile phones and video cameras – mostly unattributed and uncorroborated. It mixes this footage with comment from unnamed sources with distorted voices and shadowed faces. And human rights lawyers. It was brutal, it was shocking, but it wasn’t journalism.
Not a second of this has been shot by Channel 4; none of the eyewitness accounts comes from journalists.
Snow’s commentary was intemperate and partisan, and it was all held together by assumptions. Channel 4 News has drifted from providing news broadcasts into being an outlet for nodding spokespeople and assorted NGOs and environmental pressure groups, or anyone who can provide interesting or sensational film. It follows the old American news adage, “If it bleeds, it leads”.
What was depressing about this particularly bloody special was not just that it had precious little context or considered thought, but that the people who will suffer most from it are not governments or soldiers, but the victims of this brutal war, who deserve a more measured professionalism and due diligence, and who deserve better than this compilation of gore, topped and tailed by a man in a comedy tie.
Finally, the most demeaning and prurient part of it all was that the penises of the naked men being executed were smudged out, as if they were the shocking part. And the pubic hair of abused and murdered women was coyly pixelated so as not to be titillating. The horror of war tidied up like Japanese porn, to save us the embarrassment and distaste of having to look at the genitals of the dead.
This was a piece of politically correct sanitising that was degrading and humiliating for the viewer and the viewed, but was symbolic of this programme’s contorted news agenda. It really was the most astonishing and misjudged editorial decision from a news broadcaster that has grown into the habit of poor judgment on almost everything. Channel 4 News once had clever and astute reporters; now it boasts a revolving handful of Autocue readers with hair issues. And its arts coverage, which was by far the best of any terrestrial news, is now ill-informed, naff and embarrassing. This documentary was a low point in a continuing slump.
What both Choosing to Die and the Sri Lankan documentary suffered from in different ways was empathy – which is very popular in documentaries these days. What both should have had was a buttoned-up sober detachment.”
June 22nd, 2011 at 10:39 am
A documentary showing American army command was complicit in the killing of 3,000 prisoners who were separated out from the total of 8,000 POWs and transported to a prison compound in the town of Shibarghan, was aired in Germany in 2002. It was covered-up nicely by the West:
German TV aired documentary charging American war crimes in Afghanistan
http://www.wsws.org/articles/2002/dec2002/docu-d21.shtml
Wonder if Channel-4 and its ltte cronies saw this.