Sri Lanka sponsored an International Conference on Countering Terrorism in October 2007
Posted on July 17th, 2016
Courtesy: Sri Lanka Guardian
Sri Lanka should take the lead again in sponsoring another one in the light of an upsurge in international terrorism in many parts of the world
http://www.srilankaguardian.org/2007/10/international-conference-on-countering.html
Appended below is the Press Release for the Conference held in 2007
(October, 16, 2007, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) The Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute for International Relations and Strategic Studies is holding an International Conference on Countering Terrorism (ICCT) at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Conference Hall (BMICH) in Colombo from 18th October to 20th October 2007. The theme of this conference will be ‘Terrorism: A challenge to Democratically Elected Governments’.
It will highlight the challenges posed to democratically elected governments by terrorist movements and discuss strategies required to counter such threats. The Conference will discuss attendant issues such as terrorist fund raising, threats post by terrorist networks, socio –economic cost of terrorism, international regional responses to terrorism, the domestic dimension of terrorism, the role of the media and civil society, and prospects of transformation of terrorists, with in the ambit of adherence to democracy and human rights.
Within the framework laid down by the UN task force on terrorism, the conference will pursue the following objectives. To share the experience in counter terrorism measures adopted by democratic countries, to strengthen the long-term structural stability of democratic nation states engaged in conflict with terrorist groups, to promote public policies aimed at growth in development and protection of human rights while combating terrorism and to evaluate strategies that are aimed at dissuading disenchanted groups from resorting to terrorism to achieve political goals and explore ways and means of transforming terrorist to embrace non violent methods in seeking political end and to enter mainstream democratic society
The Conference (ICCT) will have eminent personalities in their respective fields lead eight thematic sessions. They are: Dr. Gerard Chaliand, Former Director, European Center for the Study of Conflicts from France (The threat posed by International Terrorist Networks), Judge Jean-Louis Bruguiere, Anti-Terrorism Judge of France. (International Responses to Terrorism), Gen. V. P. Malik, Former Commander of the Indian Army (Regional Responses to Terrorism), Dr. Rohan Gunaratna, Head, International Center for Political Violence and Terrorism Research, Singapore (Domestic Dimension of Terrorism), Mr. David Leppan, Founder & CEO, World-Check and Mr. Shanaka Jayasekara, Researcher, Centre for Policing, Intelligence & Counter Terrorism, Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia (Combating Terrorist Fund Raising), Dr. Saman Kelegama, Executive Director, Institute of Policy Studies, Sri Lanka. (Socio-Economic Costs of Terrorism), Mr. Shyam Tekwani, Assistant Professor, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore (Terrorism and the Role of the Media and Civil Society) and Mr. V. Anandasangaree, Leader TULF (Transforming ‘Terrorists’ – Lessons for Sri Lanka).
A concluding panel discussion on the conference theme will be chaired by Dr. Palitha Kohona, Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
Courtesy: Sri Lanka Guardian
Note: The Peace Secretariat played a critical role in organising this Conference which was conceptualized during the time Dr. Palitha Kohona was the Secretary – General of the Secretariat for Coordinating the Peace Process (SCOPP)
July 18th, 2016 at 2:52 am
Sri Lanka should tell the US that Sri Lanka cannot abide by the UNHRC resolution. The Sri Lankan Army did not commit any war crimes. It is the LTTE terrorists who committed war crimes throughout 26 years of war. No country with an ounce of self respect will place their army in harms way to be tried by a court domestic or hybrid of war crimes the army did not commit in anyway. If individual soldiers committed any crimes, a complaint can be placed in a court of law in Sri Lanka. Why is there a need for special judicial procedures? This government is a puppet of the US, EU, UK, Norway, Sweden, Canada and India and is so subservient to US interests that it is ready to try its own armed forces for crimes that the armed forces did not commit. All the while, the LTTE terrorists who committed war crimes are being shown as totally innocent. Using the ploy of wanting a new constitution which almost all Sri Lankans don’t want, this treacherous government is trying to create a separate state in the guise of a federal state as the TNA separatist terrorists and the US, EU, UK, Norway, Sweden, Canada and India wants. Sri Lanka should tell the US that Sri Lanka cannot abide by the UNHRC resolution. The worst that the US, UK, EU, Sweden, Norway and India can do is impose sanctions on Sri Lanka. So what? Sri Lanka can trade with all the countries of Asia and the rest of the world even if the US, UK, EU, Norway, Sweden and India imposes sanctions. Sri Lanka can grow rice, we have jack fruit, bananas, bread fruit and plenty of water too. So we will not starve just because the US, UK, EU, Sweden, Norway and India imposes sanctions. Also since we can trade with the powerful economies of Asia which includes the Middle East, South East Asia, South Asia, the Far East and Central Asia as well as the rest of the world, actually, we may be OK economically too despite any sanctions imposed by the US, EU, UK, Norway, Sweden, Canada and India. However by avoiding implementing the unjust UNHRC resolution, Sri Lanka will safeguard its independence and freedom which is the most important thing for the next thousands of years as we have safeguarded our independence and freedom for at least the last 2600 years and avoid the creation of a separate state or eelam in the guise of a federal state. So Sri Lanka must very urgently tell the US that we will not abide by the unjust UNHRC resolution but carry out our own domestic process of reconciliation as we see fit. Let the imperialist US impose sanctions. Nothing much will happen to our economy since we can trade with the powerful economies of Asia and the rest of the world instead but Sri Lanka would have preserved its independence and freedom for the next thousands of years and avoid the partition of the country and the creation of a separate state which will be Sri Lanka’s end.
July 18th, 2016 at 2:54 am
Not only this, the treacherous Ranil, Sirisena, CBK, Mangala, idiotic UNPers, those INGOs working for thousands of dollars and even the JVP are trying to dismember the country via constitutional changes. We patriotic Sri Lankans should demand a strong central government, no more powers to provincial councils, no merger between provinces, ideally abolition of the 13th amendment to the constitution and absolute safeguarding of the sovereignty of the country.
The army did not commit any war crimes. it is the LTTE who committed war crimes. However, it is high time that Sri Lanka rejected the US imperialists UNHRC resolution and state at the UNHRC to leave Sri Lanka alone to get on with reconciliation as Sri Lanka sees fit.
Actually Sri Lanka today being accused of committing war crimes by the US, UK, EU, Norway, Sweden, Canada, India etc. is very similar to the way Saddam Hussein and Iraq was accused of possessing non existent WMDs. Although Iraq did everything possible to show the US, UK, EU, Norway, Sweden, Canada etc. that it did not possess WMD it was bombed anyway, regime change brought about since Iraq has massive amounts of oil which the US, UK, EU, Norway, Sweden, Canada companies wanted to extract at cheap rates by bringing on a puppet regime. A similar scenario is unfolding in Sri Lanka since Sri Lanka is located at a strategic location, the US wanting to establish a naval/air base at Trincomalee, the US wanting to establish further US army, navy, air force bases in the island, mineral resources, marine resources, control of the Indian ocean sea routes etc. For this, the separatist, terroristic Tamils who are subservient to the US are who the US is favouring to help them with this task. This is why the US favours eelam. All patriotic Sri Lankans should therefore tell the government to withdraw from carrying out the US resolution and to tell the US to leave Sri Lanka alone.
July 18th, 2016 at 2:58 am
Sri Lanka needs a strong central government in the form of the executive presidency. It is the executive presidency which is keeping the unitary state together since provincial councils have now been provided powers. Therefore if the executive presidency is abolished, the provincial councils will become more powerful and the separatist terroristic TNA will try to break away using threats the North and the East. the PR system is the fairest system which means each vote counts. It is a very democratic system. We do not need any changes to the constitution. These changes to the constitution are only suggested to bring on stealthily a federal or a separate state by falsely labelling it as ‘unitary’ to hoodwink the idiotic Sinhala Buddhists. We do not need any changes to the constitution which is what the separatist terrorists of the TNA, US, UK, EU, Norway, Sweden and Canada wants to dismember this country. Also it is the executive presidential system which can easily carry out programmes to develop the country since otherwise there will be endless wranglings within the cabinet and in parliament about what path to follow for development to happen. A well meaning executive president can easily implement a reasonable and suitable programme to take the country forward. Another main reason to keep the executive presidency as it is to counter the separatist threat since a strong executive president can stop any treacherous activities which goes against the independence, freedom, sovereignty, unitary status etc. of the country since the executive president is elected directly by the people’s vote and is answerable to all the people of the country as a result. So for all these reasons, there is no need whatsoever to change the constitution. However the provincial councils should not be given any more powers, there should not be any merger between provinces, ideally the 13th amendment to the constitution should be abolished and there should be a strong central government if Sri Lanka is to move forward as a country and since it is a small country.