Sri Lanka’s Devolution Joke: Opportunity for minority politicians to advance careers in provinces
Posted on May 29th, 2016
Shenali D Waduge
The fundamental reason behind seeking devolution is to enable people of the provinces to be empowered. Having said that we find that in practice no such empowerment has taken place. 70 year plus Northern province Chief Minister lived all his life in Colombo and went to live in the North only after Prabakaran’s demise and the announcement of elections in 2012. The Eastern Province Chief Minister of late embroiled in a controversy involving the public humiliation of the armed forces is himself from Colombo. So what is this devolution talk that is being promoted? Is devolution a means of advancing the political careers of minority politicians by parachuting them to the provinces as Chief Ministerial nominees and thereafter promote them to make demands that have nothing to do with what the people in those areas really need, want or desire? Vaddukkodai Resolution has been parachuted from Colombo to the North. The People of the North have not demanded separatism. Those demanding separatism dont live in the North (Tamil Nadu politicos, LTTE Diaspora)
Why is this fact kept hidden by media? Those who are preaching about devolution must object to outsiders suddenly arriving and pretending to have lived in that province and speaking on behalf of the people who they never knew existed when they were happily living in Colombo?
The best example is justice Wigneswaran. He was born in Colombo in 1939. He spent the first 9 years of his life in Kurunegala. At age 11 he was admitted to the prestigious Royal College in Colombo. He obtained a BA from the University of London and LLB from the University of Ceylon. He joined the Ceylon Law College and became a proctor and advocate. He was President of the Law Student’s Union in 1962. He went on to become a magistrate, a judge of the District Court, High Court and Court of Appeal and finally a judge of the Supreme Court. Doesn’t anybody for a flicker wonder how C V Wigneswaran could come up in life and career to be a Supreme Court judge if there was discrimination against the minorities by the Sinhalese? Does no one question this?
So how does a man living in Colombo feel what the people of the Northern Province feel? Let us remind all that the nomination of CV Wigneswaran as CM candidate was not welcomed and TNA leader and India had to do much to insist on Wigneswaran’s candidature against Mavai Senathirajah.
How can Wigneswaran be the mouthpiece of the Tamil people for throughout the entirety of LTTE defacto rule did he ever once come out against the LTTE and on behalf of the mothers from whom LTTE plucked out children to turn into child soldiers? Did Wigneswaran and present day TNA leaders issue one statement in opposition of the LTTE? Did they even once write letters to the international community asking them to save ‘their people’ from the LTTE?
Let us remind everyone again in particular the UN, the foreign envoys, India and even the Sri Lankans who have got a little confused of late. Sri Lanka’s military action was not against the Tamil people but against an internationally proscribed terrorist group known as the LTTE. This terrorist group was responsible for killing Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims, Burghers and even foreigners. It was to save the citizens of Sri Lanka from murder and mayhem that the LTTE was ordered to be annihilated. This is where reference to Sri Lanka’s conflict as an ethnic conflict needs to end. Sri Lanka’s conflict was terrorist and nothing else. The ethnic groups live in harmony and have been in harmony even throughout LTTE rule.
Again we need to clarify that the 1983 riots was not ethnic either. Sinhalese did not attack Tamils. The UNP thugs who comprised Sinhalese, Muslims and Tamil underworld attacked Tamils and the Tamils were saved by the Sinhalese. This distortion also needs to be cleared. UNP is responsible for the riots and the men who ransacked homes and caused mayhem were UNP hired thugs of all ethnic groups who looted houses and shops thereafter.
We return to the much hyped appeals for devolution and when it comes out from the mouth of C V Wigneswaran it is indeed humorous. Here is a man living virtually all his life outside of the North who goes to reside in the North only after 2012 when elections have been announced. He is safe to travel to the North because the LTTE is now eliminated and there is no threat on his life and thereafter he is crying crocodile tears for the people of the North. It is quite hilarious when you put the truth in context. The situation is really no different to the non-Tamil politicians in Tamil Nadu who are demanding Tamil Eelam for Tamils because it is an excellent political campaign tool and publicity stunt as well.
Every aspect of Sri Lanka’s ‘problem’ is manufactured by people who have no real lineage to it. The argument of devolution rests on the premise that people of the area wish to decide on matters important to them. The key operational word is ‘people of the area’. So why should Wigneswaran or any other Chief Minister who has not been domiciled in the areas even for 2 years decide on what people who are living in those areas should feel or want? It is quite absurd when people living in Colombo parachute themselves to the North and then tell the world what the people want for in essence it is not what the people want or even asked for but what he and those funding him want. Is it so difficult for people to understand this aspect?
With the two Chief Ministers of the North & East thinking they are the God’s gift to the areas they now hold portfolios in and throw their weight on the armed forces humiliating and degrading them in public, we can but remind them that both these characters would never have become Chief Ministers if the LTTE had not been vanquished and elections held in the North. It would be good if both re-imagined how life would have been for them if LTTE and Prabakaran prevailed. Perhaps it is good for all others to imagine life pre-May 2009 too.
Shenali D Waduge
May 29th, 2016 at 6:44 am
The country I was born is full of people of animalistic behaviour. No matter how hard we cry out our people don’t give a damn. One president bribed a mattaya while another president bribed a terrorist dravidaya. There is absolutely nothing you and I can do. Our valuble time and efforts are going down the gurgler. I do not think anymore in my old age. I feel sorry for our patriotic handfull of friends. If Ravi K sakodaraya loses in the no confidence motion I tell this sakodaraya not to worry, the backdoor is there to continue to rob the nation. Take poison bottle Po..aya and Dwarf Po..aya as an example.
May 29th, 2016 at 8:23 am
STerro:
Ravi K’s no confidence motion is a joke to fool people.
See what happens when it comes close.
Sri lankan parliament is a joke. Welikada has more respectable people.
May 29th, 2016 at 8:29 am
අහසින් කඩා පාත්වෙන උන් අවස්ථාවාදීව දේශනා කරනවිට උන්ට සාමාන්ය මිනිහා රැවටෙන්නේ අද ඇති අධ්ධ්යපනය මගින් දේශකයෝ ලබාගෙන ඇතාය සිතන පට්ටම් වල ට බය වෙලාය .උතුරේ මහායා අගවිනුසුරෙක් වූ නිසා කොහෙන් ආවද ඉස්සර කෙරුවේ මොනවාද නොසොයා උතුරේ උන් එමිනිහා වැළඳ ගත්හ . දකුණේත් ඔහොමය ජී එල් පීරීස් සදා කාලික ෆෙඩරල් වාදියෙකි දයාන් ද එහෙමය ප්රභා පරදු මහින්දත් දැන් ඔවුන් අතේය . මේක නම් කරුමයකි සරත් වීරසේකර මුළු ජීවිතයම කපකලේ රට බේරා ගන්නටය එහෙත් මිනිස්සු ඔහුව පරදුවේය මේක නම් මහම කරුමයකි මහින්ද නැවත ආවත් 13අ සහ පළාත් සභා අහෝසිකරාවිද යන්නවත් නොහිතන මිනිස්සු ඒ සඳහා බල නොකරන මිනිස්සුන්න්ට ජාතිකවාදියෝයය් කිවහැකි නොවේ ස්ටන්ලි කියනවා වගේ කල හැකි දෙයක් නැතුවා වගෙය් . මහින්ද හෝ ඩලස් හෝ පීරිස් ලා ටිකක් හෝ විවේචනය කලොත් එයාලාට ජන මාද්යත් වසීයය් . දැන් නලින් ද සිල්වාගේ ලිපි ජනමාධ්ය විසින් පල කිරීමට මැ ලිකරය් බටහිර ගිරයට අහුවුනොත් වෙනදේ කියන යට ඉඩක් නැහැ
May 29th, 2016 at 8:02 pm
CM Wigneswaran routinely argues for an INDEPENDENT EELAM, which is TREASON.
Then, CM Wigneswaran congratulates (see below) CM Jayalalitha of Tamil Nadu on her re-election as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. She has a ANNOUNCED A POLICY of helping to create an INDEPENDENT EELAM for Sri Lankan Tamils.
That is COLLUSION with ENEMY leader of a Neighboring Country with the AVOWED POLICY of BREAKING AWAY a part of Sovereign Sri Lanka.That too is TREASON.
The TNA which helped elect Wigneswaran as the CM of the Northern Province, had stated in its 2015 Election Manifesto that its GOAL is the creation of an INDEPENDENT STATE OF EELAM. Therefore, running as a TNA candidate is TREASON!
On at least these THREE COUNTS Chief Minister Wigeswaran is a TRAITOR to Sri Lanka!
Why has he not been ARRESTED, INDICTED, PROSECUTED, CONVICTED and IMPRISONED for TREASON?? Why is he STILL a Chief Minister ??
As long as we don’t ENFORCE the TREASON LAWS on the books, they will be FLOUTED with IMPUNITY to the DETRIMENT of Sri Lanka!
………………………..
Sri Lanka Northern Province CM eager to meet Jayalalithaa
Sun, May 29, 2016, 09:41 am SL Time, ColomboPage News Desk, Sri Lanka.
May 29, Colombo: Chief Minister of Sri Lanka’s Northern Province C.V. Wigneswaran in a congratulatory message to Chief Minister of India’s Tamil Nadu state J. Jayalalithaa on Saturday said he is eager to meet the Chief Minister to discuss Tamil people’s needs.
Mr. Wigneswaran, who brought a motion in the Northern Provincial Council (NCP) to congratulate Ms. Jayalalithaa on her victory in the Assembly polls for a sixth time, in his letter said the people of Tamil Nadu and Tamils living in north eastern province culturally and socially have close ties and those ties should be further strengthened.
“We expect that these ties should further be strengthened. I am eager to meet you to discuss our needs, mutual benefits and relationship,” he said.
Former Supreme Court Justice said he wishes to discuss with the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister the welfare measures that can be implemented for the Tamil women affected by war.
The Sri Lankan Chief Minister, recalling the steps taken by Jayalalithaa for winning the rights of Tamils in Sri Lanka, said her actions in the past for rendering justice to the people of the north-eastern province had received accolades in the North.
He commended the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister for the steps taken by her for the welfare of the Tamil refugees living in Tamil Nadu.
Thanking to her Sri Lankan counterpart’s congratulatory letter, the Tamil Nadu CM said in the last five years she had taken all possible efforts within her power to protect the welfare of Sri Lankan Tamils and to ensure justice due to them and she will continue to do so.
“I will continue to take efforts to ensure justice due to the Sri Lankan Tamils of the Northern Province of Sri Lanka, through the government of India,” Ms. Jayalalithaa said in her letter to Mr. Wigneswaran.
The Tamil Nadu CM reciprocating Mr. Wigneswaran’s interest to meet her said they shall meet on a day convenient to both of them.
The Tamil National Alliance controlled Northern Provincial Council however, opposed Mr. Wigneswaran’s motion to congratulate Ms. Jayalalithaa.
May 29th, 2016 at 8:07 pm
Peera asked the world bank for 10%. Dil Dil Gunawardanayo. Dumb dumb Beedi mudalali. Kaapan Kaapan ethi tharam mahajana mudal. See what happened to Mahinda Wijesekrata. Don’t worry god if there is will punish them. My Lanka run by pigs and the dogs. I feel very sorry to my patriotic few. It is not yaha palanaya. It is bloody same as before horuth haamuduwange, baduth haamuduruwange. unuth horu munuth horu. Punch a Battaramullo three times a day. In addition to two vehicle permits Sakodaraya bribing Battaramullos with another leasing car before the no confidence motin. So all 225 Battaramullos will vote for Ravi K sakodaraya. Thank you S.A.Kumar you taught me a word “Sakodaraya”
May 29th, 2016 at 9:07 pm
Stanley, you are not the only one with a sense of disgust of the quagmire this country has become.
Just take the unforeseen repercussions that the public insult Nazeer Ahamed offered the navy commander. It has brought out an official REVOLT of the armed forces against the government. They have unilaterally taken measures against this Ahamed by declaring army camps out of bounds for him and officially refusing him army security. The military, for the first time after the abortive 1961 coup has thrown the gauntlet at the government.
There are only two forces that can take on the government headlong: the army and the monks. The monks did go into the den of Ahamed and publicly upbraid him.they even launched a minor scale demonstration in the Batticaloa. But the reaction of the monks in general was very lukewarm and not at all in measure with the vulgar deed of Ahmed.
It is the military that has risen to the occasion.
These are only beginnings and do not forebode good for the government, this or any other.The military is asserting itself as a force to be reckoned with.
Trying to diffuse the tension the government has in allhaste convoked Rear-Admiral Rosayro to Colombo.The transfer ‘may have’ been in the offing, but why in .such indecent haste after the Ahamed incident?
Someone has to assert the superior rights of the Sinhala Nation,and it is a blessing to the Sinhala Nation that the army has fired the first salvo,and it is a daunting one.
This defiance of the army is sure to put the government on guard about dealing with the UN resolutions regarding the conduct of the last stages of the Ealam War.
The ballot policy of governments (MaRa’s and Sira-Ranil’s) have failed
What is looming on the horizon is the military bullet policy. This is good news for the totally orphaned Sinhala Nation and its Unitary State.
I tell you, Ahamed,for all his brave front, is shaking in his pants.
Mario Perera
Kadawata
May 29th, 2016 at 9:12 pm
Wineswaramis another Indian colonial parasite like others. All managed by the Indian Empire. Indian Empire wants the island as part of their Union and the Empire.
Let us unite and stand up to the Empire.
May 29th, 2016 at 11:22 pm
Ananda,
There is a huge reason why Perumal could be kicked out but Wigneswaran and Ahmed cannot be kicked out that easily.
In May 2009 Sri Lanka made two commitments, one to the UN by the president and the next to the UNHRC by Dayan for the implementation of 13A towards reconciliation. Now although the president has the power to remove them, these international commitments prevent him.
We have essentially replaced a temporary Parabhakaran with a permanent Tamil Eelamist maintained at taxpayer expense. Wigneswaran is very mild considering his replacement.
May 29th, 2016 at 11:28 pm
Mario, military defiance will result in the government calling the Indian army to “restore order”. That will result in large scale deaths of locals. The invading Indian army will not leave thereafter. It can only be prevented by concurrently removing the president and the government at the same time of defiance (or before). It is an impossibly huge step for a heavily politicised and fragmented military. Pro-UNP sections will counter the mutiny if any.
For these reasons, it is not advised the army interferes with governance.
May 30th, 2016 at 12:19 am
Dilrook,
I beg to differ. Everyone, like CM Wigneswaran & Sarath Fonseka are subject to the law of the land.
Like Gonseka was disciplined, this TRAITOR Wigneswaran MUST BE DISCIPLINED, otherwise many others like CM Nazeer will be encouraged to flout the law.
Speaking of DISCIPLINING miscreants, so far Arjun Mahendra has gotten away with LOOTING the Treasury of 2.5 Billion USD. That is another matter that should be investigated.
May 30th, 2016 at 2:41 am
De fleece 225 Battaramullos. Adolf please rise up from your bunker and come to my country. My mother Lanka is badly in need of a man like you Adolf.
May 30th, 2016 at 4:52 am
Ananda,
Nothing to disagree on the need to tame them and punish them. But the million dollar question is who is going to do it?
In May 2009 Sri Lankan leaders made an international commitment to the 13A in the name of reconciliation. Now we are forced to honour our own commitment. Wigneswaran and Ahmed know this very well and exploit it to the maximum. That commitment (plus the 1987 commitment to India) prevent us from even touching the 13A let alone abrogating it.
May 30th, 2016 at 2:03 pm
Mario,
Well said! And like you, I do not think that involvement of the armed forces in politics is a good thing, but like you I do not fault them this time for acting when the government they serve CLEARLY is dodging it’s own responsibility to defend and protect the armed forces from putative separatists.
Also, I agree with you that the SINHALA people are now ORPHANS in their own Motherland!
May 30th, 2016 at 2:37 pm
Dilrook,
The international agreement reflected in the 13A was REJECTED by the Tamil Community who continued their armed struggle for another 20+ years!
That agreement was de-facto NULLIFIED by the EELAM WARS 2, 3, and 4 waged by the LTTE and other separatist groups.
The issue was FINALLY SOLVED MILITARILY by MR’s GOSL.
It is now a matter of CHOICE for the GOSL to keep or eliminate the 13A that was REPEATEDLY REJECTED by the Tamil Community it was supposed to satisfy, AND as such has PROVEN UNABLE & INEFFECTIVE in satisfying them.
If so, why are we CONTINUING to offer it to them, when they consider it merely a stepping stone a sovreign EELAM?
Instead, just as the waging of the war by successive GOSL’s was because the rest of Sri Lanka will not accept the breakup of Sri Lanka, we are now DUTY BOUND to implement a form of government that PRECLUDES such a breakup PERMANENTLY
The International Agreement supporting the 13A became NULL & VOID when the beneficiaries REJECTED IT and waged war for decades.
Furthermore, agreement imposed by FORCE under the threat of military occupation are ILLEGAL. It the duty of the victimised nation to abrogate it as soon as it is possible to do so, as in the case of the Munich agreement partition of czechoslovakia on the eve of WWII. The 13A was IMPOSED on SL by INDIA under military threat of invasion and occupation. Sri Lanka MUST REPEAL IT if only for that reason.
There are NO INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS that remain in force after the underlying issue has been subsequently settled through war.
If that were not so, the Versailles agreement at the end of WWI, the Munich Pact that delivered the Sudetenland to Nazi Germany, the Ribbentropp- Molotov agreement that partitioned Poland between Nazi Germany and the Soviet Union, and so on, would all remain valid and in force even after all of those agreements were rejected by one or more parties by going to war, and finally settled by victory in war.
It is ASININE for the GOSL to feel morally or ethically bound by that VIOLATED and EXTERNALLY IMPOSED agreement. It is NULL & VOID …. we should move onto SECURING the FUTURE INTEGRITY of Sri Lanka.
Only the Foreign Threats by India and the West, and the opposition of our own Sri Lankan TRAITORS remains to be COUNTERED.
May 30th, 2016 at 3:27 pm
Dilrook,
You said that Wigneswaran is very mild considering his replacement.
I am not sure about that. Wigneswaran is at odds with the TNA leaders because he, in collusion with Tamil Diaspora elements, is demanding an independent EELAM right now in Sri Lanka.
Although the ultimate goal of the TNA leaders is the same, they want to achieve it gradually without undermining the Yamapalanaya Govt ththey rely on to achieve that end. They FEAR that if they adopt his tone that the Yamapalanaya will be OUSTED and they will have to deal with a PATRIOTIC GOSL led by a reunified SLFP that has revised it’s party constitution and ousted Sirisena.
Who knows, such a Patriotic GOSL may even REPEAL the 13A and the TNA could lose there powerbase in the Northern PC, and ALL the paychecks and perks they currently enjoy. Remember, PRABHAKARAN met his end by demanding ALL, perhaps the TNA jokers have learned the lesson that it is not safe to provoke the Lion!
May 30th, 2016 at 4:12 pm
“the million dollar question is who is going to do it?” BUT NO ANSWER
Software got caught in a DO LOOP. remove the do loop and continue, otherwise absurd waste of time. No point blaming others, we can’t find a solution.
1ILOVE=MY BRO
13A = ELAM
IF MY BRO = 13+ = LLRC = WIGGI= JIHAD GO TO 5
SINCE MY BRO = JIHAD= WIGGI = LLRC = 13+ GO TO 6
5 USA=INDIA=WIGGI=EVIL
RW=CBK=MS=JVP=JHU=EVIL
WHOEVER NOLIKE MYBRO= EVIL
5 CONTINUE
6 MYCOUNTRY>MYBRO
2ILOVE=MYCOUNTRY
3ILOVE=SINHALA
4ILOVE=BUDDHIST
STOP
END
May 30th, 2016 at 5:32 pm
Dilrook,
Ignoring this MR-hating FOOL Dham cranking his software do-loop in the background, let me answer your question of “who is going to do it?”
Only the Sinhala Buddhists now rallying again to the Patriotic Cause will do it ….
Who will lead them? In the absence of a New Patriotic Party led by MR, it will be the JOINT OPPOSITION led by MR.
Whatever people say, MR has a very large following, especially among the common voters. The majority of the Buddhist monks, and the traditional guru, veda, kamkaru, sangha and welenda balavegayas will rally to him. In addition, Sinhala Buddhists misled by the REGIME CHANGE scammers and agahst at the corruption, financial mismanagement, treatment of war heroes and the threats yo the integrity of the motherland will also rally to his banner. The more the Yamapalanaya tries to demonized and punish the Rajapaksa Family, the more it will boomerang against them!
When a Patriotic governments comes to power, everything including REPEALING the 13A and PUNISHING TRAITORS like Wiggy will come to pass! But, to empower such a government we have to FIRST educate the people on what is happening to their Motherland and show them the way forward!
The sophisticated elites and minorities hoping for a payoff for helping to suppress the Sinhala Buddhist will be drowned in the coming Tsunami!
I thought I had answered this question of yours in the past, but it seems to need repeating ….. in a do-loop if necessary.
May 30th, 2016 at 5:45 pm
Stanley Perera said
“Thank you S.A. Kumar, you taught me a word “Sakodaraya” “!
Thank you Stanley! Classic! Hilarious!
May 30th, 2016 at 6:07 pm
Ananda,
I don’t hate MR even 1/2 more than RW,CBK lot. Anyway , you answered the question , finally. So mu agitation worked !
Do you remember Lorenzo bet with you long time ago to cut off his finger if MR cut off 13A.
That is the problem you don’t understand because you are caught in the DO LOOP.
13A is his Chintanaya, one of his basic foundation of government, his grass roots, his pillar of success which you can’t ask him to demolish without getting him to rehabilitation.
I do accept that there is no one in the visible horizon who could replace him but it was so when CBK’s time too people could not think beyond her.
He has to go for a better one to appear. Otherwise we are stuck with RW MS.
Your judgement is all wrong when you say “educating people”. He should either educated himself or get out. People will vote him , surely, when there is no one. That is what he is aiming at. But will that benefit Sinhalaya ? NO.
May 30th, 2016 at 6:40 pm
Dham,
BS! 13A is not MR’s Chintanaya …. it is a BURDEN he inherited that he COULD NOT JETTISON.
If he had rejected it before the war was won, he would not have been allowed by India and the West to utterly defeat the LTTE and rid Sri Lanka of terrorism once and for all.
Remember, that throughout Eelam War 4, an Indian troika was kept appraised about the conduct of the war by a Sri Lankan troika composed of Gota, Basil and I think Lalith Weeratunga, or the chief of Intelligence. That was the only way that MR was able to get the freedom from foreign intervention to utterly destroy the LTTE.
All of you armchair pundits trying to second guess MR now either don’t know what really happened, or have conveniently forgotten it now that the war is over and your families can live in safety, and you cN ply your separate partisan agendas.
IGNORAMUSES, FOOLS, and what is worse INGRATES!
May 30th, 2016 at 6:48 pm
Ananda,
I did not type it the way I wanted to say ( this decease getting very frequent now).
It should read as “13A is in his Chintanaya”. That was what in my mind when I wrote it.
Of course he did not create it. But he mad use of it to his benefit.
Now it has become HIS CHINTANAYA.
If we have the same aim , we should not accuse each other, regardless of opinions.
May 30th, 2016 at 6:56 pm
Dham,
If you
1. Do not hate MR 1/2 as much as the Yamapalanaya con artists, you certainly have a strange way of showing it, demonizing him and parroting everything that the REGIME CHANGE scammers say.
2. If you accept there is no one to replace MR, and we Sinhala Buddhist ORPHANS depend on him again for RESCUE, why do you continue to undermine him?
Sinice you DO UNDERMINE our sole defensive shield, I am forced to conclude that you are opposed to the Sinhala Buddhists reclaiming their lost rights and privileges in this motherland of theirs.
You can’t chase with the hounds and run with the hare; it has to be one or the other. You must be logical and consistent. If you are contradictory and errativ, we will draw our own conclusions as to who you are (patriot, or covert ptopagandist) and where your heart and mind lies. It is your choice!
May 30th, 2016 at 7:07 pm
Ananda, you brought an excellent point of discussion. In fact, that is the reason for Sri Lanka’s renewed commitment in 2009.
I also agree with what you said before this.
[Quote] There are NO INTERNATIONAL AGREEMENTS that remain in force after the underlying issue has been subsequently settled through war. [Unquote]
This is true and is referred to as frustration. However, the parties may still agree the matter has not been frustrated. This is exactly what happened. India, West, Japan and Tamils feared the worst – demise of 13A as the underlying matter ended. They immediately got down Sri Lanka’s president within a week of ending the war and got him to commit to 13A. The Joint Statement by Ban Ki Moon and Sri Lanka’s president was issued on May 23, 2009 reaffirming Sri Lanka’s commitment to 13A.
[Quote] President Rajapaksa and the Secretary-General agreed that addressing the aspirations and grievances of all communities and working towards a lasting political solution was fundamental to ensuring long-term socio-economic development. The Secretary-General welcomed the assurance of the President of Sri Lanka contained in his statement in Parliament on 19 May 2009 that a national solution acceptable to all sections of people will be evolved.
President Rajapaksa expressed his firm resolve to proceed with the implementation of the 13th Amendment, as well as to begin a broader dialogue with all parties, including the Tamil parties in the new circumstances, to further enhance this process and to bring about lasting peace and development in Sri Lanka. [Unquote]
Consider what this did in addition to the renewed commitment to 13A. It took away the avenue available until then to get rid of 13A on grounds of undue influence and duress.
Now Sri Lanka cannot turn back and say 13A was forced. Although it was forced in 1987, in 2009 a triumphant Sri Lanka voluntarily declared its “firm resolve to proceed with the implementation of the 13th Amendment”.
Unfortunately, the bad news doesn’t end there.
Just 4 days thereafter, Sri Lanka drafted a UNHRC resolution and presented it through a friendly country (Cuba). It was passed with a majority which was (falsely) hailed as a victory! That too committed Sri Lanka to the full implementation of 13A.
In addition, in 2008 Universal Periodic Review, Sri Lanka gave a voluntary pledge to implement 13A.
(103.Sri Lanka will take measures for the effective implementation of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution.)
Further, the 2009 May joint statement between the Indian Prime Minister and the Sri Lankan President, the Prime Minister emphasised that a meaningful devolution package, building upon the 13th Amendment, would create the necessary conditions for a lasting political settlement.
As you can see, between 2008 and 2009, Sri Lanka made 4 voluntary commitments to the UN, UNHRC and India to implement 13A. Due to these repeated voluntary commitments, we are unable to assert undue influence and duress in 1987 and repeal 13A after 2009. It would have worked before 2008.
In your next comment you said Wigneswaran is going against the TNA. Not true. This is a well thought after plan to push the Tamil Eelam agenda. The apparent TNA-Wigneswaran rift is a gimmick much like the Jayalalitha-Karunanidhi gimmick. TNA MPs fear the repetition of the 1983 6A oath but Wigneswaran is backed by 13A and five (5) commitments Sri Lanka made internationally to uphold it in 1987, 2008 and 2009. He has nothing to fear. Anandasangaree is a similar case. He would blame TNA but ends up proposing the same thing.
I find your third comment containing the following very difficult to believe.
[Quote] Who will lead them? In the absence of a New Patriotic Party led by MR, it will be the JOINT OPPOSITION led by MR. [Unquote]
Mahinda is a very trustworthy leader (in comparison to others). He keeps his word (in comparison to others). As such, it is unthinkable he will go back on 4 commitments he made to the UN, UNHRC and India on implementation of 13A. That will totally destroy his credibility internationally (though he will be a local hero again). Leadership ambitions of Basil and Namal also prevent this as Mahinda wants them to be seen as credible in the eyes of UN, UNHRC and India.
That is why it is a precondition for patriots to get a commitment to abrogate 13A well before pledging their support. I think it will be extremely difficult (if not impossible) for Mahinda to go back on 4 international commitments and promise he will abrogate 13A. It can be overcome by replacing Mahinda by another in the JO as the leader who will unequivocally agree to abrogate 13A. In that case, Mahinda’s credibility will remain intact.
If Mahinda does not give a firm commitment to go against what he promised 4 times to the international community and abrogate 13A or if the JO fails to replace him with a leader who promises to remove 13A, patriots must form a new political party mainly to destroy 13A and save Sri Lanka. I like to see Gunadasa Amarasekera, Gevindu Kumaratunga, Sarath Weerasekera, Venerable Ellawala Medhananda, Venerable Elle Gunawansa and even Venerable Athuraliye Rathana and Champika (if he is a true patriot) in it in addition to Wimal Weerawansa and Udaya Gammanpila (if they are true patriots as they claim). Gotabhaya Rajapaksa and Lalith Weeratunga have expressed similar sentiments about 13A.
When the Motherland is facing an existential threat to its very existence and when Sinhalese and Buddhism are faced with extinction, the last thing we can tolerate is indecision.
May 30th, 2016 at 7:26 pm
Dilrook,
You said,
That will totally destroy his credibility internationally (though he will be a local hero again)..
I don’t agree it will destroy his credibility. Yes we want him to be a local hero , yet again.
These were the promised he made. But they cannot do anything if the law and order is properly established with no room for ANY accusations, he will be able to establish credibility this time. He has already lost credibility not because he defeated LTTE ( they can’t say that in open anyway).
May 30th, 2016 at 7:50 pm
Dilrook,
I AGREE with you for making REPEALING the 13A and DISSOLVING the PCS, perhaps as the result of a Nationwide Referendum to provide a FIG LEAF for MR and others who agreed to implement the 13A to hide under, as a COMPULSORY CONDITION for supporting a MR-led JO or ANY OTHER PATRIOTIC PARTY in the future.
The MORE we gain support for this as a PRE-CONDITION for support of Patriotic Sri Lankans, the more it will force the leaders to throw their support to it.
If MR does not, or cannot, support it, then he should step aside and let others lead the Patriots.
May 30th, 2016 at 8:29 pm
Ananda,
Thank you. Fully agree. So that is the way forward.
May 30th, 2016 at 8:36 pm
Dham,
Actually you may be right on that going by the examples Ananda gave. In addition, USA has gone against its commitment in 1990 to Russia that it will never expand NATO into Russia’s borders. That commitment ended the Cold War. Russia became just another duped country by American duplicity.
By now USA has not only expanded NATO into Russia’s door step with Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia, etc., it has already put Russian deterrence under threat by further expanding NATO into Poland and Romania. This extremely volatile situation can (on paper) spark WW3 soon. If the guardian of the free world can go back on such a crucial commitment easily, going against 13A commitments will be a small matter internationally.
Locally it will make Mahinda or anyone who does it a bigger hero than those who won the war. Prevention is better than cure. Getting rid of 13A can avert wars which is equal to winning those wars without casualties.
May 30th, 2016 at 8:54 pm
Thank you Ananda.
May 31st, 2016 at 5:48 am
We do not need provincial councils which only promotes separatism. The provincial councils only duplicate the already existing system of ministry, district secretary, divisional secretaries, grama niladhari system which has functioned for decades. In addition, there are the municipal, urban councils and pradeshiya sabhas who elect their officials to ensure that there is local government representation and to ensure that local matters are dealt with. The ministry, district secretary, divisional secretaries, grama niladhari system is how government plans get implemented at the district, divisional and the grama niladhari level. The only thing the provincial councils do is duplicate this already existing system and is totally unnecessary. Since Sri Lanka is a small country. Therefore what is agreed at the parliamentary level in terms of plans can be implemented islandwide via the ministries. If anyone in any province wants to suggest anything innovative, they can do so via their MP at the parliamentary level. A small country such as Sri Lanka needs a strong central government and just one plan for the entire island to move forward. For this the existing ministry, district secretary, divisional secretaries, grama niladhari system is sufficient. At the local level there are the municipal, urban councils and the pradeshiya sabhas to take care of local matters.
May 31st, 2016 at 8:53 am
I agree with Plumblossam. It is a burden on the tax payers to have somany organisation to run a tiny island. It is an absolute joke.