Australia’s Call For Revoking Sri Lanka’s Commonwealth Membership Rings As Hollow As Canada’s Call For Boycotting Colombo
Posted on September 20th, 2011
LankaWeb Weekly Editorial
Sept.18th 2011
Both Australia and Canada seem so cocksure and adamant about their declarations on Sri Lanka’s human rights records without a real shred of tangible evidence beyond doctored Tamil tiger sponsored fabrications, pro LTTE activist propaganda and Tamil sympathy,that it seems almost laughable, truly apathetic as well as ignorant on their part and needs to be dragged down as balatant affrontery against a Sovereign Nation legitimately defending Sovereignity and Territorial integrity and the spread of global terrorism.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ AUSTRALIA’S ‘ Greens’ are said to be readying to launch the first major challenge to Sri Lanka’s Commonwealth membership today when the party calls for its suspension pending a full investigation into allegations of war crimes committed in the final months of the country’s civil war. It needs to be noted that this call is based on allegations and that the definition Civil War is a misnomer where it was not a civilian uprising against the Nation but a armed internal insurrection by terrorists! Here the brain capacities of the pundits orchestrating this call against Sri Lanka show either a shortage of grey matter or else their biases and conflicts of interest in favour of the Tamil lobby seems to have an unprecedented air of urgency for very obvious reasons both in the case of Canada as well as Australia who seem to be very partial towards Tamil sobstories and paying homage to them where one wonders if the motive behind all this is to canvass electoral votes and appease a certain infiltration of Tamil influence amongst them in return for a nod at the polls which some believe is more than likely albeit speculative.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ One questions the legitimacy of any campaign to suspend Sri Lanka from the Commonwealth and with what mandate as it is said to kick off on the 19th Sept. with a roundtable meeting of human rights activists and jurists involved in collecting evidence for an international war crimes probe to discuss ways of building popular support for the move. Sure sure! the moment human rights activists and jurors are mentioned perhaps the world will be aware of the role such sources play in the interference into the internal affairs of many sovereign nations around the world and the reference to building popular support for the move has every indication of the huge Tamil activist conspiracy which seems to have gained momentum over concocted melodramatic sobstories where the violated rights of the Sinhala, Muslim and other ethnic communities mainly by tamil sponsored terrorists hardly seems to be of any significance when in fact they should as the attrocities committed by them were the real crimes in Sri Lanka and the role of the Armed Forces a pivotal one in confronting, disrupring and destroying what was a threat to national security and a legitimate one.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Last week’s mood of the Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper seems also to be steeped in a conflict of interest situation where it appears that his call “to lobby for a boycott of the proposed Sri Lanka-hosted Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in 2013 unless it could prove significant progress on human rights” seems shallow and transparent towards Tamil sympathy as all he has is hearsay and graphically altered material to draw his conclusions inasmuch as the Australian ‘Greens’ who might as well be a green party lobbying for global warming in a manner befitting all the Green Metaphors floating around the world today and equally significant that everything linked, borders on speculation more that veracity and perhaps when Australia hosts the next CHOGM in Perth late next month they too should be lobbied for their human rights violations in treating boat people and various teemimg masses of humanity seeking refuge there not forgetting how the Aboriginal People faced the same fate many years ago where at times their treatment at the hands of the Australian authorities has been said to be brutal and shocking where rednecks and ex-convicts once ruled in tandem
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ When Greens senator Lee Rhiannonis is quoted as saying “given the international momentum behind the push for a war crimes probe” one wonders in perplexity at times, what this so called “international momentum” is that she refers to? and whether it is what a mere handful of misguided Nations ( United Nations notwithstanding with no intentional pun!) purely on the instigation of the global Tamil diaspora and the so called LTTE ‘rump’ which has become painfully obvious in recent times are broadcasting around the world to discredit Sri Lanka where the more discerning know the extent to which these are delibareately orchestrated concoctions and how insignificant and ineffective they would be if viewed in an open and honest perspective.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The support she was hopeful of building by way of bipartisan political support for Sri Lanka’s suspension from the councils of the Commonwealth is probably wishful thinking and needs to be dissected and bared ( the message not the messenger that is!) as support in favour of the oppressors of Sri Lanka rather than anything beneficial or benevolent towards the Nation which is showing massive growth and progress in the aftermath of the defeat of the terrorists where only the disgruntlements of those who supported the terrorists in all probabilities the root cause of this call to investigate and shameful on those who continue to persist in it knowing fully well their real agenda where one day they could well be held accountable for their own irrationalities!
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Lately there are growing speculations around the world from many quarters about what the net worth of the Commonwealth really is and whether or not it is a dying vestige of colonialism which had its shameful incursions into virgin territories where the end result was unlimited horrors and sufferings of innocent people holding their sovereignity in indigenous entitlement and annexation of territory for their respective monarchs nothing more than criminality by foreign invaders So in the worst case scenario of ” Sri Lanka’s expulsion from the Commonwealth” ludicrous and unthinkable as it may sound, perhaps it probably would have no real bearing on how badly Sri Lanka would be affected and a mere reflection on the conspiracies against Sri Lanka which in the end could have a beneficial effect towards her smooth functioning where there are very powerful allies in her support and those who would eventually rally round her in the face of such a gross injustice and could replace all the benefits and more towards the rapid development and growth her so called Commonwealth allies in pretence are attempting to ursurp and the Commonwealth perhaps a dirty word which may have to be re-defined and something utterly cheap and common based upon wealth and greed whilst wondering whether it is that far removed from the middle class morality of the likes of Australia Greens and the present Canadian Administration to name a few who seem to sound either hypocritical, blinkered or both!
It is probably safe enough to speculate here on the surmission ~heaven knows how many more will be inspired by this syndrome calling for investigations into HR violations in Sri Lanka ~ to suit the whims of the Tamil Lobby specifically which seems to throw caution to the winds in how they choose to intimidate Sri Lanka with no fear of reprisals for themselves and absolutely without conscience or attention to rationality tangible evidence and logic.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ And consequently it needs to be said that Australia’s call for revoking Sri Lanka’s Commonwealth Membership rings as hollow as Canada’s Call courtesy of Mr Stephen Harper towards boycotting the forthcoming Colombo Summit and meaningless !
September 20th, 2011 at 11:26 pm
Wait and see The President Rajapaksa’s addressing to the General Assembly on September 23rd and his subsequent meeting with Ban Ki-moon UN Secretary General on 24th Saturday. After his address most of those Western countries will back-up realizing the truth. Lies cannot go on truth will come forward.
Even those who are canvassing to expel Sri Lanka from Commonwealth will get the picture. However Sri Lanka should get away from Commonwealth membership and bankrupt British Empire. Lets have a referendum to decide whether SL should continue to be a member of Commonwealth or not. I am sure 98% will vote to get away. So Greens & Blues of Ausi can keep the Queen on their head for ever.
September 20th, 2011 at 11:37 pm
@dhane
I don’t think so. They already know the truth but don’t want to admit it.
Even before the Ban Ki Moon report came out they were blaming us. Navi Pillai was blaming us since 2009. How on earth they decided there were war crimes at that time without any proof? They made up their mind. Now they are looking for excuses.
Nothing will change.
September 21st, 2011 at 3:10 am
A. The only crime Sri Lanka did was to be the only democracy in the planet to eradicate terrorism. The division of Sri Lanka in to two states called Sri Lanka and Tamil Eelam was to be the catalyst to break up India. This great dream is now a pipe dream. Although Sri Lanka has wiped out the horror outfit LTTE, it is still internationally active. We know who are paid by them, but not how much.
B. What about Greens lobbing for sanctions against USA for killing 750,000 in Iraq when they went looking for WMD. Well, are Muslims not human?
C. In the UN, some enemy nations of Sri Lanka tried this action and came second best. It will be same again. What ever they do, they will not be able to restart a war in Sri Lanka or to break up India.
September 21st, 2011 at 3:41 am
India should open their eyes & help Sri Lanka. By any change if Tamil Eelam created in SL then it will spread to Tamil Nadu and war will start for many years to continue. Tamil diaspora need ONLY to create a “base” to form their Homeland for 72 Millions of Tamils which is approx 6% of the total Indian population.
September 21st, 2011 at 11:19 am
We notice that all the yowling from various sources sympathetic to the ltte rump abroad, the lies, the noise, the same trumped up stories, mostly the same people with a few new faces, start just before and during the UN sessions in New York ! Must have a connection, yes ? They can’t yowl at Tamil Nadu for the real Caste/Poverty issues, so they pick on Lanka which gives FREE education & FREE health care to everyone, including the Tamil citizens. Wonder who plans all this rot, for money too. What a world – Kali Yuga, no doubt !
September 21st, 2011 at 11:49 am
The British Commonwealth was formed in 1931 when the Statute of Westminster gave legal recognition to the independence of British crown colonies. Last eighty years several countries were suspended from Commonwealth.
Newfoundland was one of the original Dominions at the time of the Statute of Westminster 1931. On April 5, 1932, several thousand people marched on the Colonial Building and forced Prime Minister Squires to flee. Newfoundalnd was suspended from British Commonwealth on February 16, 1934. Newfoundland joined Canada on March 31, 1949.
In 1801, the kingdoms of Ireland and Great Britain merged to form the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. The majority of the island seceded the United Kingdom in 1922 following a war. The Anglo-Irish Treaty concluded this war and established the Irish Free State as a self-governing dominion within the Commonwealth. Northern Ireland chosed to remain as part of the United Kingdom. Ireland was one of the original Dominions at the time of the Statute of Westminster 1931. Ireland was excluded from Commonwealth after passing the Republic of Ireland Act in 1949.
Zimbabwe began as the British crown colony of Southern Rhodesia, created from land held by the British South Africa Company. Zimbabwe was suspended from Commonwealth on March 19, 2002. Zimbabwe voluntarily withdrew from Commonwealth on December 07, 2003.
Fiji was a British crown colony up until 1970; Fiji left in Commonwealth in 1987. Then Fiji rejoined Commonwealth in 1997. Fiji was suspended from Commonwealth on June 06, 2000. Fiji’s suspension from Commonwealth was lifted on December 20, 2001. Again Fiji was suspended in 2006 due to the the 2006 Fijian coup d’état.
South Africa joined Commonwealth in1931. South Africa left Commonwealth in 1961. South Africa rejoined Commonwealth in 1994.
Cameroon, independent since 1960, joined Commonwealth in October 1995. Mozambique, which had long expressed a desire to join Commonwealth and had been connected with it throughout the long Southern African struggle for racial equality, joined Commonwealth in November 1995. Maldives became independent in 1965 but did not join Commonwealth until 1982.
Myanmar – formerly knowan as Burma – independent since 1947, chose not to join Commonwealth. Pakistan left Commonwealth in 1972, after Commonwealth recognised the new state of Bangladesh, but rejoined Commonwealth in 1989. Again suspended from Commonwealth few times.
Nigeria, joined Commonwealth since independence in 1960 and was suspended from Commonwealth in November 1995. The suspension from the Commonwealth was lifted in 1999.
September 21st, 2011 at 12:52 pm
In another comment, in response to a presentation mady by Mr. Asoka Weerasinghe, I have pointed out that this is not such a simple threat to rest on our laurels and wait hope against hope for the world leaders to understand the truth. Just look at what the highest civil servant of the world – UNO Secretary General did in blatantly violating the rlues of procedures and trying to smuggle in his “Darusman Report” to the Human Rights Council, in connivance with Ms. Navaneethan Pillai. What was the motive behind this move? It was nothing but to give “Leagal Status” to this report by getting it through the Human Rights Council. We know that if this report is to achieve its goal of appointment of a “Internationa Investigation”, it has to be through (a) a resolution by the General Council (b) a decision of the Seccurity Council or (c) a resolution by the Human Rights Council. The Secretary General knows that (a) and (b) are not that easy. So he turned to the easiest and the friendliest body, the Human Rights Council. We also have to bear in mind the closest relations that one of the members of the Darusman committee has had with Ms. Navaneethan Pillai. All the ground work was done for its submission to the Council, but fortunately one of the EU delegates “spat out” the “plan”, which I call it a “coup d’etat’, at a luncheon meeting and a disaster was avioded in time, thanks to the Sri Lankan delegations’ quick response. But please remember this is not over. It will spark at any time.
Immeadiately after this episode, we hear a loud voice from the Prime Minister of Canada calling all the members to boycott the Commonwealth summit to be held in Sri lanka in 2012. Who follows next, none other than UK who has issued an ultimatum asking Sri Lanka to gurantee ‘human rights” and display “transparency”, berfore the end of December 2011. Who comes next, the Greens of Australia. Many more will join in the coming weeks and months.
Recalling the incident of attempting to submit the “Darusman” report to the Human Rights Council by the Secretary Geaneral of the UNO, without giving notice to the affected party, i.e. Sri Lanka, you will notice that only nine countries have written a letter to the Commissioner General requesting that this report be not brought before the assembly.
Firstly, I feel that this attempt by the Secretary General in conivence with the Commissioner of the Human Rights Council should have been condemned without reservations. Next, the Security Council should investigate this action of the Secretary General and submit a comprehensive report to the General Assembly. If, any one or both these officers are found to have violated the procedures and acted in contravention of rules and procedures they should be held responsible and appropriate action be taken against them.
So, Sri Lanka, in the name of justice, fair play, transparency etc. must call upon the members of the UNO to make a decision to clean up the mess and bring back good governance.
In my view, getting away and issolating outselves from the world is not the answer. Such a decision will be suicidal. So, let us be in these organzations and air out our opinion and fight for truth, justice and fair play and we will triumph. Let’s be determined and resolved to work through the existing systems.
September 21st, 2011 at 12:57 pm
Thayabharan as you said Commonwealth looks like Jokers club!
September 21st, 2011 at 1:44 pm
They have no other work to interfere in peaceful countries. But these Greens have no real power. They are a very small party. Foreign affairs is not something they can influence.
September 21st, 2011 at 1:49 pm
LANKAWEB Editorial! I quite support to the views of LankaWeb, and also agree with the comments that Sri Lanka has been short changed by TWO officials namely Secretary General & N. PILLAI..Human Rights Commissioner of sorts. In May 1999 after 30 years of TERRORIST WAR, finally Sri Lanka emerged victorious to the amazement of many.
At that time certain groups tried to blame Sri Lanka, for defeating TERRORISTS. As George W BUSH, fomer President of USA said there are NO GOOD terrorists or bad terrorists. Terrorist is a TERRORIST period. They were surprised when large number of member states of UN supported the counter proposal by Sri lankan Govt in 1999. Now they are trying to take revenge. Even Indian foreign & defence ministers were critical of N. PILLAI & how the UN officials handled defeating terrorism in Sri Lanka.
Enough is Enough, it is high time Sri Lanka takes our culture, our people out of this” COMMON NUISANCE “as people in UK called it 1960s. Leave the Commonweath with our pride in tact.
Thanks for the editorial I am quite impressed. ~Gamunu Alahakkone. P.Eng (Canada), C./Eng (UK), Retired Engineer