Ministry of Defence  – Media Centre

Remembering the 117^th death anniversary of Buddhist revivalist, Colonel Henry Steel Olcott, Defence Secretary General Kamal Gunaratne paid floral tributes to the statue of the late Colonel Olcott opposite the Fort Railway Station, Colombo today (Feb 17).

A pioneer of the Sri Lankan Buddhist revivalist movement, Colonel Olcott spearheaded the inauguration of Buddhist high schools in the main cities of the country, such as Ananda College in Colombo, Dharmaraja College in Kandy, Mahinda College in Galle, Rahula College in Mathara and Maliyadewa College in Kurunegala.

He also established the Young Men’s Buddhist Association (YMBA), lobbied for recognition of the Vesak full moon poya day as a national holiday and acted as an adviser to a committee appointed to design the Buddhist flag.

Principals of Ananda and Nalanda Colleges joined the Defence Secretary to pay floral tributes to the statue. The former president of Ananda College Old Boys’ Association and Old Anandians’ Sports Club, Sithendra Senarathna and the members of Parama Vingnanartha Buddhist Society in Colombo also attended the occasion.

Dialogue works

Larry C. Johnson is a veteran of the CIA and the State Department’s Office of Counter Terrorism. He is the founder and managing partner of BERG Associates, which was established in 1998. Larry provided training to the US Military’s Special Operations community for 24 years. He has been vilified by the right and the left, which means he must be doing something right. You can also follow him on telegram (t.me/sonar_21 (https://t.me/sonar_21) and https://sonar21.com.

Courtesy The Island

Elections will be held in time, opposition circulating rumours”

President Ranil Wickremesinghe on Thursday said that people of this country well know that there are no shortcuts to abolish the executive presidency.Responding to a query by a group of MPs at a meeting at the President’s Office in Colombo, the President said that the presidential election would be held on time and there would be no abolition of the executive presidency at this time, sources from the president’s office said.

I have clearly stated several times that I have no intention to put off the presidential elections. Funds for that purpose are there. The talks about attempts to abolish the executive presidency were circulated by the main opposition.

There is a competition between two divided groups in the opposition. When one group is seen ahead of the other in terms of popularity, the traditional opposition panics. They got their media friends to propagate this topic. They keep floating the same stories using my name.

People of this country know better than the opposition that the abolition of the executive presidency cannot be done in a hurry. There is a procedure to do that. We should not fall into their trap.

Do not waste your time on this. You speak of the economic revival programme that we are carrying out,” the President told the MPs.

Courtesy The Daily Mirror

Colombo, Feb. 18 (Daily Mirror)- The Supreme Court delivered a judgment in favour of the plaintiff party over a land dispute relating to a 90-perch plot of land in Kurunegala, which had traversed the halls of the courts for 52 years.

This case was first instituted in 1972 by the original plaintiff in the District Court of Kurunegala against the original defendant for a declaration of title to the land called Damunugahamulawatta”, ejectment of the original defendant from the said land, restoration of possession and damages.

On March 29, 1976, the Kurunegala District Court delivered a judgment in favour of the plaintiff. Subsequently, the defendant filed an appeal before the Court of Appeal against the District Court judgment. On October 25, 1984 the Court of Appeal set aside the judgment of the District Court and sent the case back for a fresh trial (de-novo) on the basis that the District Court Judge had not taken into consideration several documents produced as evidence. 

Following the second trial, the District Court, by judgment dated 28 April 1997, held in favour of the plaintiff. The substituted defendant then preferred an appeal to the Court of Appeal. The Court of Appeal, by judgment dated 02 December 2011, set aside the District Court judgment on the grounds that the plaintiff had failed to properly discharge the burden of proof to establish title and identity of the land in dispute. 

Being aggrieved by the Court of Appeal judgment, the substituted plaintiff (replacing the original plaintiff following his death) appealed to the Supreme Court. Leave to appeal was granted by the Supreme Court in this matter on May 6, 2013.

This  land dispute case was relating to Roman Law action called “rei vindicatio action”. It is settled law that in order to succeed in a rei vindication action, the plaintiff must, firstly prove ownership of the property and secondly, that the defendant is in possession of the property. The burden of proof is placed on the plaintiff to prove ownership on a balance of probabilities.

The appeal was allowed by the Supreme Court three-judge-bench comprising Justices S. Thurairaja, A.H.M.D. Nawaz and Achala Wengappuli and delivered a judgment in favour of the substituted plaintiff. 

“As the original defendant did not claim for a declaration of title to the corpus and instead claimed for his rights as a lessee under the agreement executed between himself and the original owner, the substituted defendant cannot take up a position different to the original defendant,” the Supreme Court held.

Courtesy Sputnik

© Sputnik / Stringer

On January 24, the Ukrainian Armed Forces shot down a Russian Air Force Il-76 military transport plane over the Belgorod region that was carrying 65 Ukrainian prisoners set for exchange.

Kiev’s British advisers are responsible for the deaths of the POWs and the crew of the Il-76 transport plane, which was shot down by a Ukrainian missile, an informed source familiar with the situation has told Sputnik.

“The attack on the Il-76 was carried out under pressure from British advisers without coordination with the air defense headquarters in Kiev and without additional double-checking of information on aircraft movements over the Belgorod region,” the source said.

Six Russian crew members, three Russian servicemen, and 65 Ukrainian POWs on board the airplane were killed after a missile hit the Il-76 over the Belgorod Region on January 24. The aircraft was en route for a planned prisoner exchange that was subsequently canceled.

The Russian Investigative Committee said that the Ukrainian Armed Forces used a MIM-104A guided missile fired from a Patriot system to shoot down the plane.

World

US State Dept. Dodges Questions on Ukraine’s Involvement in Terrorist Attack on IL-76

5 February, 21:04 GMT

Vladimir Putin called the attack a crime by the Kiev regime against its own citizens. According to him, the Ukrainian side knew there were POWs from the Ukrainian Armed Forces on board, but still attacked it. The Russian Foreign Ministry said that the plane crash raises a big question about the possibility of any agreements with Kiev.

Courtesy Adaderana

Another 418 suspects have been arrested by Sri Lanka’s police and security forces personnel within 24 hours which ended at 12.30 a.m. today (18 Feb.), as part of the ongoing countrywide anti-drug operation ‘Yukthiya’.

According to the Ministry of Public Security, detention orders have been secured against 8 of the suspects, while 2 arrestees were sent to rehabilitation centres.

Among the 418 arrestees are 8 suspects who had open warrants against them over narcotics-related charges and 113 others who had open warrants against them over non-drug related charges.

The narcotics taken into custody during this period include 133g of heroin, 103g of crystal methamphetamine (Ice), nearly 8kg of cannabis and 447 narcotic pills.

Courtesy Adaderana

A total of 793 traffic offenders have been identified within the first 15 days of February through the 24-hour surveillance system implemented to monitor traffic violations.

According to Police Spokesman DIG Nihal Thalduwa, 300 police stations across the country have been notified to take necessary action against the said offenders.

He further noted that nearly 26,000 cases of persons driving under the influence of alcohol were reported in 2023.

On 22 January 2024, Sri Lanka Police launched a special project through which traffic offenders in Colombo will be traced using a CCTV surveillance camera system.

නීතීඥ අරුණ ලක්සිරි උණවටුන  B.Sc ( Col), PGDC(Col)

2002 දී චන්ද්‍රිකා බණ්ඩාරනායක ජනාධිපතිවරිය සමයේදී 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධනයක් ආ බවත් ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ විනිසුරු 7ක් මගින් එයට දුන් ඒකමතික තීරණය උල්ලංඝනය කරමින් මෛත්‍රීපාල සිරිසේන ජනාධිපති සමයේ 2015 දී 19 සංශෝධනයක් නැවත ගෙනා බවත් ඇතැම් නීති විශාරදයෝ සහ ඇතැම් දේශපාල විචාරකයෝ අමතක කරති. එය එසේ අමතක කළ නොහැකිය. එය ව්‍යවස්ථා කුමන්ත්‍රණයකි. ජනාධිපතිවරණය පැවැත්විය යුත්තේ වසර 5කින් නොව වසර 6කින් වන්නේ එකී ව්‍යවස්ථා කුමන්ත්‍රණය නිවැරදි කිරීමෙනි. 2015 ගෙනා 19ය මගින් 2002 ගෙනා 19යේ පූර්ණ ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තිරණය උල්ලංඝනය කළ ව්‍යවස්ථා කුමන්ත්‍රණය පහත විස්තර කර ඇත.

2002දී පාර්ලිමේන්තුවට ගෙන එන ලද 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පතේ 5 වන වගන්තිය අනුව ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාවේ 70 වන ව්‍යවස්ථාවට ඉක්බිතිව 70 (අ) ලෙස ව්‍යවස්ථාවක් ගෙන එමින් වසරකට පසු ජනාධිපතිවරයාට පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීම අවශ්‍ය වන්නේ නම් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ නොපැමිණි මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන්ද ඇතුළුව පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ මුළු මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන් සංඛ්‍යාවෙන් තුනෙන් දෙකක සංඛ්‍යාවකට නොඅඩු සංඛ්‍යාවකගේ සම්මතය ඇතිව යෝජනා සම්මතයක් මගින් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ අනුමැතිය ලබා ගත යුතු බවට ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාව සංශෝධනය කිරීමට යෝජනා කර තිබුණි.

එකී 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පත 2002 සැප්තැම්බර් මස 19 වන දින ව්‍යාපාර සංවර්ධන, කර්මාන්ත ප‍්‍රතිපත්ති හා ආයෝජන ප‍්‍රවර්ධන සහ ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා කටයුතු අමාත්‍යවරයා විසින් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවට ඉදිරිපත් කර තිබූ අතර 2002 සැප්තැම්බර් මස 11 වන දින ගැසට් පත‍්‍රයේ පළ කර ඇත.

එම 2002 දී ගෙනා 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පත ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාවට පටහැනිය යන පදනමින් ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණයේ අභියෝගයට ලක්කරන ලද අතර සරත් නන්ද සිල්වා (අ.වි), වඩුගොඩුපිටිය (වි), බණ්ඩාරනායක (වි) ඉස්මයිල් (වි) එදිරිසූරිය (වි) සහ යාපා (වි) ද සිල්වා (වි) විසින් 2002 ඔක්තෝබර් 1 සහ 3 යන දිනවල ඒ සම්බන්ධව ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණයේ විභාගයට ගන්නා ලදී.

එහි තීරණයට අනුව ජනාධිපතිවරයාට වසරකට පසු පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීම අවශ්‍ය වන්නේ නම් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ නොපැමිණි මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන්ද ඇතුළුව පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ මුළු මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන් සංඛ්‍යාවෙන් තුනෙන් දෙකක සංඛ්‍යාවකට නොඅඩු සංඛ්‍යාවකගේ සම්මතය ඇතිව යෝජනා සම්මතයක් මගින් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ අනුමැතිය ලබා ගත යුතු බවට වන විධිවිධානය නීතියක් බවට පත් කිරීම සඳහා අවශ්‍ය වන නීතිමය තත්ත්වය එම විනිසුරුවරු 7 දෙනා විසින් දීර්ඝව විස්තර කර ඇත. වර්ෂ 2002 දී පාර්ලිමේන්තුවට ඉදිරිපත් කළ 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පතේ 5 වන වගන්තිය අනුව ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාවේ 70 වන ව්‍යවස්ථාවට ඉක්බිතිව 70 (අ) ලෙස ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාව සංශෝධනය කරමින් වසරකට පසු පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීම ජනාධිපතිට සීමා කිරීම ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාවේ 3 වන ව්‍යවස්ථාව එනම් ජනතාවගේ පරමාධිපත්‍යය උල්ලංඝනය කරන බවත් එය නීතියක් බවට පත් වන්නේ ජනමත විචාරණයක් මගින් ජනතාව විසින්ද අනුමැතිය දීමෙන් පසුව බව අගවිනිසුරු ප‍්‍රමුඛ ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණයේ විනිසුරුවරු 7 දෙනකු විසින් ඒකමතිකව තීරණය කර ඇත.

ඒ අනුව ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණයට එකඟව කටයුතු කරන්නේ නම් වසරකට පසු පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීම ජනාධිපතිවරයාට සීමා කිරීමේ ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධනයක් සිදුකරන්නේ නම් ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාවේ 80.2 ව්‍යවස්ථාව අනුව ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් නීතියක් බවට පත්කරන ආකාරයේ සහ 79 වන ව්‍යවස්ථාව යටතේ පනත් කෙටුම්පත හෝ ඒ විධිවිධානය ජනතාව විසින් ජනමත විචාරණයක දී අනුමත කරනු ලබන තෙක් නීතිය බවට පත් නොවිය යුතු බවට වන කථානායකවරයාගේ සහතිකයක් සඳහන් සටහනක් තබා ජනමත විචාරණයකදී තමන්ගේ ඡන්ද බලය ක‍්‍රියාත්මක කිරීමේ අවස්ථාව එළඹෙන තෙක් ජනතාව බලා සිටින අතර මේ වන තෙක් ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් ඒ අවස්ථාව ජනතාවට ලබා දී නැත.
එසේ වුවද 2015 දී ගෙනා 19 මගින් මෙය ජනමතවිචාරණයක් නොතබා සිදුකර ගැනීමේ ව්‍යවස්ථා කුමන්ත්‍රණයක් සිදුකළ අතර,
මෙය ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් සිදුකරන ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ 2002 දී ගෙනා 19ට දුන් ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණයට තීරණයට පටහැනි තත්ත්වයකි.

2015 ගෙන එන ලද 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පතට ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණය කියා ඇති පරිදි ජනතාවගේ කැමැත්ත විමසීමට ජනමත විචාරණය නොපැවැත්වීම සහ ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණ උල්ලංඝනය කිරීම සහ ව්‍යවස්ථා කුමන්ත‍්‍රණයක යෙදීම.

අග‍්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමා සහ ප‍්‍රතිපත්ති සම්පාදන, ආර්ථික කටයුතු, ළමා, තරුණ හා සංස්කෘතික කටයුතු අමාත්‍යතුමාගේ නියමය පරිදි 2015 මාර්තු මස 13 වන දින ගැසට් පත‍්‍රයේ 11 වන කොටස අතිරේකය (2015.03.16 දින නිකුත් කරන ලද) 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පතේ 19 වගන්තිය මගින්ද වසරකට පසු  පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීමට හැකි බවට අදාළ විධිවිධානය වෙනස් කර එය වසර 4 1/2 ක් දක්වා දීර්ඝ කරන විධිවිධානයක් පහත පරිදි දැක්වේ.

ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාවේ 70 වන ව්‍යවස්ථාව එකී ව්‍යවස්ථාවේ (1) වන අනුව්‍යවස්ථාව ඉවත් කොට ඒ වෙනුවට පහත දැක්වෙන අනු ව්‍යවස්ථාව ආදේශ කිරීම මගින් මෙයින් සංශෝධනය කරනු ලැබේ :-

(1) ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් ප‍්‍රකාශයක් මගින් පාර්ලිමේන්තුව කැඳවීම, පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ වාරාවසාන කිරීම සහ පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසුරුවා හැරීම කළ හැක්කේ ය:

එසේ වුවද, පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීම අවශ්‍ය වන්නේ නම් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ නොපැමිණි මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන්ද ඇතුළුව පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ මුළු මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන් සංඛ්‍යාවෙන් තුනෙන් දෙකක සංඛ්‍යාවකට නොඅඩු සංඛ්‍යාවකගේ සම්මතය ඇතිව යෝජනා සම්මතයක් මගින් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ අනුමැතිය ලබා ගත යුතු බවට එසේ නොවන්නේ නම් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ ප‍්‍රථම රැස්වීම සඳහා නියම කරගනු ලැබූ දිනයෙන් අවුරුදු හතරක් සහ මාස හයක කාලයක් අවසන් වන තෙක් ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසුරුවා හැරීම නොකළ යුතු බව දක්වා ඇත.

ඒ අනුව 2015 දී ගෙන එනු ලැබූ 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පත මගින්ද 2002 දී ගෙන එනු ලැබූ 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පත මෙන්ම ජනාධිපතිවරයාට වසරකට පසු පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීම සීමා කරන එනම් නොහැකි බවත් පත්කරන විධිවිධාන ඇතුළත් කර ඇත.

2015 දී ගෙනා 19වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පත නීතියක් බවට පත් කිරීමට පෙර එනම් 2002 දී ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණයේ විනිසුරුවරුන් 7 දෙනකු විසින් තීරණය කළ පරිදි පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීමෙන් ජනාධිපති වළක්වන විධිවිධානය නීතියක් බවට පත් කිරීමට පෙර ජනතාවගේ මතය විමසන ජනමත විචාරණයක් පැවැත්වීමට ජනාධිපතිවරවයා මේ දක්වා කටයුතු කර නැති අතර පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ නොපැමිණි මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන්ද ඇතුළුව පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ මුළු මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන් සංඛ්‍යාවෙන් තුනෙන් දෙකක සංඛ්‍යාවකට නොඅඩු සංඛ්‍යාවකගේ සම්මතය පමණක් 2015 දී මේ වන විට හිමි වී ඇත. නමුත් එය නීතියක් වීමට ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණය අනුව පැවැත්විය යුතු ජනමත විචාරණය පැවැත්විය යුතු අතර ජනාධිපති ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ ජනාධිපතිවරයා ජනතාව විසින් බලයට පත් කරන ලද්දේ ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණ උල්ලංඝනය කිරීමට නොව ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණවලට අනුව රට පාලනය කිරීමටය.

පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ මුළු මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන් සංඛ්‍යාවෙන් තුනෙන් දෙකක සංඛ්‍යාවකට නොඅඩු සංඛ්‍යාවකගේ ඡන්දයෙන් සම්ම්ත වී ඇති 2015 දී පාර්ලිමේන්තුවට ඉදිරිපත් කළ 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පත සඳහා ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණය අනුව නීතියක් බවට පත්කිරීමේ ඉදිරි පියවර ගැනීම වර්තමාන ජනාධිපති රනිල් වික්‍රමසිංහ ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් කළ යුතු වේ.

මෙහිදී යම් අයෙකු හෝ කණ්ඩායමක් ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණ අයුතු ලෙස හා අන්තනෝමතික ලෙස යොදා ගනිමින් ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණ අනුව කටයුතු නොකරමින් ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණ උල්ලංඝනය කරන ආකාරයට 2015 දී ඉදිරිපත් කළ 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පත සඳහා නීති විරෝධීව නීතිමය තත්ත්වයක් ආරෝපණය කරමින් සිටින හෙයින් ඒ සම්බන්ධව දැඩිව ක‍්‍රියා කිරීමද ජනාධිපතිවරයාට අයත් කාර්යයක් වේ.

ජනතාව විසින් ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ ජනාධිපතිවරයා බලයට පත්කරනු ලැබූයේ නීතියට අනුව රට පාලනය කිරීමට වුවද එය සිදු නොවූ අතර, මේ වැරදි තත්ත්වය නිවැරදි කිරීමේ පූර්ණ වගකීම ඔහුගේ අනුප්‍රාප්තික ජනාධිපති රනිල් වික්‍රමසිංහ ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් දැරිය යුතු අතර මෙහිදී කිහිප දෙනකු විසින් ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා කුමන්ත‍්‍රණයක් සිදු කර ඇති බවත් පැහැදිලි වන හෙයින් ඒ සම්බන්ධව පූර්ණ විමර්ශනයක් සිදුකර වැරදිකරුවන්ට දඬුවම් ලබා දීමද සිදු කළ යුතු වේ.

ඒ අනුව අනුප්‍රාප්තික ජනාධිපති රනිල් වික්‍රමසිංහ ජනාධිපතිවරයා ධූරය දරන්නේ 2019 දී පත්වූ ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ ජනාධිපතිවරයාගේ ඉදිරි කාලයට වන අතර 2015 ගෙනා 19 ජනමතවිචාරණයක් මගින් මේ දක්වා ජනතාව විසින් අනුමත කර නැති හෙයින් එහි සියලු විධිවිධාන එනම් ජනාධිපති ධූර කාලය වසර 5 කළ විධිවිධානය ඇතුලුව මේ දක්වා ආණ්ඩුක්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාව අනුව නීතියක් වී නැත.

මෛත්‍රීපාල සිරිසේන ජනාධිපතිවරයා වසර 4 1/2 කට පෙර පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසුරුවා හැරි අවථාවේදී එයට එරෙහිව ඉදිරිපත් කළ මූලික අයිතිවාසිකම් පෙත්සම් වලදී ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ විනිසුරු 7 ක් මගින් එය වැරදි බවට 2015 ගෙනා 19 අනුව තීන්දු කරමින් නඩු තීන්දුවක් (Judgement) දෙනු ලැබුවද පනත් කෙටුම්පතක ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණයක් (Determination) උල්ලංඝනය කර තිබේද යන්න (2002 දී 19ට දුන් ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණය) විභාග කිරීමට අධිකරණය බලය නොතිබූ අතර එකී අධිකරණය බලය ඇත්තේ ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණයක් ලබා දීමේදී හෝ උපදේශන අධිකරණ බලය ක්‍රියාත්මක කිරීමේදීය.

ඉහත නීතිමය කාරණා අනුව 2015 දී ගෙනා 19 මේ දක්වා ජනමතවිචාරණයක් මගින් අනුමැතිය ලබා නැති හෙයින් 2019 පත් වූ ජනාධිපතිවරයාගේ ධූරකාලය අවසන් වන්නේ 2024 නොවැම්බර් නොව 2025 නොවැම්බර් වලදී එනම් වසර 6ක් දක්වා ජනාධිපති ධූරය පැවැත් වෙයි.

මේ තත්ත්වය එනම් ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණ උල්ලංඝනය කරමින් ජනාධිපති ධූරකාලය වසර 5ක් බවට වන වැරදි තත්ත්වය නිවැරදි කිරීමට ජනාධිපතිවරයාට ගත හැකි පියවර 2ක් වෙයි. ඒ 2015 ගෙනා 19ට පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ 2/3 ලැබී ඇති හෙයින් එය ජනමතවිචාරණයකට යොමු කිරීම හෝ ආණ්ඩුක්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාවේ 129 ව්‍යවස්ථාව අනුව මේ සම්බන්ධයෙන් ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණයේ මතය විමසීමේ උපදේශන අධිකරණ බලය ක්‍රියාත්මක කිරීමය.

http://neethiyalk.blogspot.com/2024/02/2025.html?m=1

නීතීඥ අරුණ ලක්සිරි උණවටුන
B.Sc ( Col), PGDC(Col)
දුරකථන 0712063394
2024.02.16

By William J. Astore TomDispatch.com

Like many American boys of the baby-boomer generation, I played war” with those old, olive-drab, plastic toy soldiers meant to evoke our great victory over the Nazis and the Japs” during World War II. At age 10, I also kept a scrapbook of the 1973 Yom Kippur War between Israel and its various Arab enemies in the Middle East. It was, I suppose, an early sign that I would make both the military and the study of history into careers.

I recall rooting for the Israelis, advertised then as crucial American allies, against Egypt, Syria, and other regional enemies at least ostensibly allied with the Soviet Union in that Cold War era. I bought the prevailing narrative of a David-versus-Goliath struggle. I even got a book on the Yom Kippur War that captivated me by displaying all the weaponry the U.S. military had rushed to Israel to turn the tide there, including F-4 Phantom jets and M-60 main battle tanks. (David’s high-tech slingshots, if you will.) Little did I know that, in the next 50 years of my life, I would witness increasingly destructive U.S. military attacks in the Middle East, especially after the oil cartel OPEC (largely Middle Eastern then) hit back hard with an embargo in 1973 that sent our petroleum-based economy into a tailspin.

As one jokester quipped: Who put America’s oil under the sands of all those ungrateful Muslim countries in the Middle East? With declarations like the Carter Doctrine in 1980, the U.S. was obviously ready to show the world just how eagerly it would defend its vital interests” (meaning fossil fuels, of course) in that region. And even today, as we watch the latest round in this country’s painfully consistent record of attempting to pound various countries and entities there into submission, mainly via repetitive air strikes, we should never forget the importance of oil, and lots of it, to keep the engines of industry and war churning along in a devastating fashion.

Right now, of course, the world is witnessing yet another U.S. bombing campaign, the latest in a series that seems all too predictable (and futile), meant to teach the restless rebels of Iraq, Syria, Yemen, and possibly even Iran a lesson when it comes to messing with the United States of America. As the recently deceased country singer Toby Keith put it: Mess with this country and We’ll put a boot (think: bomb) in your ass.” You kill three soldiers of ours and we’ll kill scores, if not hundreds, if not thousands of yours (and it doesn’t really matter if they’re soldiers or not), because… well, because we damn well can!

America’s leaders, possessing a peerless Air Force, regularly exhibit a visceral willingness to use it to bomb and missile perceived enemies into submission or, if need be, nothingness. And don’t for a second think that they’re going to be stopped by international law, humanitarian concerns, well-meaning protesters, or indeed any force on this planet. America bombs because it can, because it believes in the efficacy of violence, and because it’s run by appeasers.

Yes, America’s presidents, its bombers-in-chief, are indeed appeasers. Of course, they think they’re being strong when they’re blowing distant people to bits, but their actions invariably showcase a distinctive kind of weakness. They eternally seek to appease the military-industrial-congressional complex, aka the national (in)security state, a complex state-within-a-state with an unappeasable hunger for power, profit, and ever more destruction. They fail and fail and fail again in the Middle East, yet they’re incapable of not ordering more bombing, more droning, more killing there. Think of them as being possessed by a monomania for war akin to my urge to play with toy soldiers. The key difference? When I played at war, I was a wet-behind-the-ears 10 year old.

The Rockets’ Red Glare, the Bombs Bursting in Air

No technology may be more all-American than bombs and bombers and no military doctrine more American than the urge to attain peace” through massive firepower. In World War II and subsequent wars, the essential U.S. approach could be summarized in five words: mass production enabling mass destruction.

No other country in the world has dedicated such vast resources as mine has to mass destruction through air power. Think of the full-scale bombing of cities in Nazi Germany and Imperial Japan in World War II, ending in the atomic destruction of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Think of the flattening of North Korea during the Korean War of the early 1950s or the staggering bombing campaigns in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia in the 1960s and early 1970s. Or consider the massive use of air power in Desert Shield against Iraq in the early 1990s followed by the air campaigns that accompanied the invasions of Afghanistan and Iraq in 2003 (and never quite seemed to stop thereafter). The butcher’s bill for such bombing has indeed been high, quite literally millions of non-combatants killed by America’s self-styled arsenal of democracy.”

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And indeed, as you read this, another country is now faithfully following America’s example. Israel is systematically destroying Gaza, rendering it essentially uninhabitable for those Palestinians who survive the ongoing rampage. In fact, early in its war of annihilation, Israeli leaders cited the Allied destruction of the German city of Dresden in 1945 in support of their own atrocious air and ground campaign against the Palestinians.

Looking at this dispassionately as a military historian, the Dresden reference makes a certain twisted sense. In World War II, the Americans and their British allies in their combined bomber offensive” destroyed German cities indiscriminately, seeing all Germans as essentially Nazis, complicit in the crimes of their government, and so legitimate targets. Something similar is true of the right-wing Israeli government today. It sees all Palestinians as essentially members of Hamas and thus complicit in last year’s brutal October 7th attacks on Israel, making them legitimate targets of war, Israeli- (and American-) style. Just like the United States, Israel claims to be defending democracy” whatever it does. Little wonder, then, that Washington has been so willing to send bombs and bullets to its protégé as it seeks peace” through massive firepower and genocidal destruction.

Indeed, of late, there has been considerable debate about whether Israel is engaged in acts of genocide, with the International Court of Justice ruling that the present government should strive to prevent just such acts in Gaza. Putting that issue aside, it’s undeniable that Israel has been using indiscriminate bombing attacks and a devastating invasion in a near-total war against Palestinians living on that 25-mile-long strip of land, an approach that calls to mind the harrowing catchphrase Exterminate all the brutes!” from Joseph Conrad’s novel Heart of Darkness.

In a sense, there’s nothing new under the sun. Certainly, the Old Testament itself provides examples of exterminatory campaigns (cited by Bibi Netanyahu as Israel first moved against the Palestinians in Gaza). He might as well have cited a catchphrase heard during America’s war in Vietnam, but rooted in the medieval crusades: Kill them all and let God sort them out.”

America’s Unrelenting Crusade in the Middle East

In the immediate aftermath of the 9/11 attacks, President George W. Bush got into trouble almost instantly when he referred to the war on terror” he had launched as a crusade.” Yet, as impolitic as that word might have seemed, how better to explain U.S. actions in the Middle East and Afghanistan? Just consider our faith in the goodness and efficacy of our” military and that all-American urge to bring democracy” to the world, despite the destruction visited upon Iraq, Libya, Syria, and Yemen over the last several decades. Or go back to 1953 and the role the CIA played in the overthrow of Iran’s legitimate democratic ruler and his replacement by the brutally repressive regime of the Shah.

Try to imagine such events from the perspective of a historian writing in the year 2200. Might that future scribe not refer to repeated U.S. invasions of, incursions into, and bombing campaigns across the Middle East as a bloody crusade, launched under the (false) banner of democracy with righteous vengeance, if not godly purpose, in mind? Might that historian not suggest that such a crusade” was ultimately more about power and profit, domination and control than (as advertised) freedom”? And might that historian not be impressed (if not depressed) by the remarkable way the U.S. brought seemingly unending chaos and death to the region over such a broad span of time?

Consider these facts. More than 22 years after the 9/11 attacks, the U.S. still has at least 30,000 troops scattered across the Middle East. At least one Navy carrier strike group, and often two, dominate the regional waters, while striking numbers of military bases (Little Americas”) are still sprinkled across countries ranging from Kuwait to Bahrain, from Qatar to the United Arab Emirates and beyond. So many years later, about 900 U.S. troops still illegally occupy part of Syria (not coincidentally, where that country produces most of its oil) and 2,500 more remain in Iraq, even though the government there would like them to depart.

Yankee Go Home? Apparently Not in My Lifetime

Meanwhile, American military aid, mostly in the form of deadly weaponry, flows not only to Israel but to other countries in the region like Egypt and Jordan. Direct U.S. military support facilitated Saudi Arabia’s long, destructive, and unsuccessful war against the Houthis in Yemen, a conflict Washington is now conducting on its own with repeated air strikes. And of course, the entire region has, for more than two decades now, been under constant U.S. military pressure in that war on terror, which all too quickly became a war of terror (and of torture).

Recall that the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003 led to the death of roughly a million Iraqis and the displacement of millions more as refugees. How could that not be considered part of a crusade,” even if a fitful and failing one? Yet, here’s the rub: just as those Catholic crusades of the Middle Ages weren’t entirely or even primarily about religion, so today’s American version isn’t motivated primarily by an anti-Muslim animus. Of course, there is indeed an inescapably religious aspect to such never-ending American war-making, but what drives those wars is largely naked greed, vengeance, and an all-American urge both to appease and amplify the military-industrial-congressional complex.

Of course, as was true in the years after 9/11 and is still true today, Americans are generally encouraged to see their country’s imperial and crusading acts as purely defensive in nature, the righteous responses of freedom-bringers. Admittedly, it’s a strange kind of freedom this country brings at the tip of a sword — or on the nosecone of a Hellfire missile. Even so, in such an otherwise thoroughly contentious Congress, it should be striking how few members have challenged the latest bombing version of this country’s enduring war in the Middle East.

Forget the Constitution. No Congressional declaration of war is believed necessary for any of this, nor has it mattered much (so far) that the American public has grown increasingly skeptical of those wars and the acts of destruction that go with them. As it happens, however, the crusade, such as it is, has proven remarkably sustainable without much public crusading zeal. For most Americans, those acts remain distinctly off-stage and largely out of mind, except at moments like the present one where the deaths of three American soldiers give the administration all the excuse it needs for repetitive acts of retaliation.

No, we the people exercise remarkably little control over the war-making that the military-industrial-congressional complex has engaged in for decades or the costs that go with them. Indeed, the dollar costs are largely deferred to future generations as America’s national debt climbs even faster than the Pentagon war budget.

America, so we were told by President George W. Bush, is hated for its freedoms.  Yet the freedoms” we’re allegedly hated for aren’t those delineated in the Constitution and its Bill of Rights.  Rather, it’s America’s freedom” to build military bases across the globe and bomb everywhere, a freedom” to sell such bellicose activity as lawful and even admirable, a freedom” to engage in a hyperviolent style of play, treating our” troops and so many foreigners as toy soldiers and expendable props for Washington’s games.  

It’s something I captured unintentionally five decades ago with those toy soldiers of mine from an imagined glorious military past.  But after a time (too long, perhaps) I learned to recognize them as the childish things they were and put them away.  They’re now long gone, lost to time and maturity, as is the illusion that my country pursues freedom and democracy in the Middle East through ceaseless acts of extreme violence, which just seem todrone on and on and on.

Courtesy TomDispatch.com

War, what is it good for? Absolutely nothing.

So that classic late 1960s song claimed. Still, for Bill Astore and me (and, I have little doubt, Joe Biden, too), such a thought didn’t cross our minds as we played with toy soldiers on the floors of our rooms as kids. I can still remember spending endless hours refighting both the Civil War and World War II — the war my father was in and, strangely enough, at least to me then, wouldn’t talk about — with my books piled high to create canyons and islands. However, as TomDispatch regular Astore says today, growing older, we did leave those toy soldiers and the floor wars behind, though he ended up an officer in the U.S. Air Force and I must admit that, 60-odd years later, I still have a box of the Blue and the Gray somewhere deep in a closet and a tiny General Ulysses S. Grant on a horse perched on a shelf by the desk where I’m writing this.

Ah, we boys and our toy soldiers. Unfortunately, at some level, it seems as if our leaders didn’t leave them behind at all. Only recently, three all-too-real American soldiers were killed in a drone strike on a base at Jordan’s border with Syria. And grim as that was — as well as a grim reminder that, so many years after America’s major wars in the Middle East ended, tens of thousands of our troops are still stationed on bases scattered across the region — the response has been grimmer yet. The Biden administration began with air strikes (including by B-1B bombers flown all the way from Texas) on 85 targets at seven sites in Iraq and Syria. Those sites were theoretically connected to the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’s Quds Force and affiliated groups. But as Simona Foltyn recently reported for the PBS NewsHour, some of those planes actually devastated an Iraqi force that claims to have had nothing to do with any attacks on U.S. bases, while also killing civilians. A day later, yet more air strikes were launched against the Houthis in Yemen. Republican lawmakers promptly claimed that such strikes were distinctly too little, too late.” And of course, even more plane, missile, and drone strikes across the region followed. As yet, there’s no end in sight to the reprisals for the deaths of those three Americans, even as the utter humanitarian disaster in Gaza and the possibility of a larger conflict in the region only grow.

All of this should be a reminder that this country, whatever the pretensions of its leadership and its national security bureaucracy, is no longer the sole superpower on Planet Earth as it was in 1991 when the Soviet Union collapsed. It’s a declining imperial power, increasingly in chaos at home. But with that, let me point you toward the floor of retired Air Force Lieutenant Colonel, historian, and TomDispatch regular Bill Astore’s childhood room and let him take it from there. Tom

by Shafique Khokhar Courtesy PIME Asian News

A mob attacked an Ahmadi place of worship in Kotli district, sending the caretaker to hospital with serious injuries. Previously, they had given the authorities an ultimatum to demolish the Ahmadi mosque. Despite CCTV footage, police have yet to make any arrests. We want justice,” Ahmadi leader told AsiaNews.

Azad Jammu Kashmir (AsiaNews) – Pakistan’s Ahmadi community has once again been targeted by extremist groups.

The latest attack took place on Monday in Bhabra, Kotli district (Azad Jammu and Kashmir), involving an Ahmadi place of worship.

During the attack, which included beatings and the use of firearms, several Ahmadis suffered injuries, with about eight men and five women seriously wounded. The attackers ransacked the Ahmadi mosque and tore down its minarets (pictured).

Despite being alerted by the victims, police were slow in reaching the scene of the incident, and by the time they arrived, the attackers, a group of 60 to 65 people, had fled the scene.  

During the attack, CCTV cameras were smashed and the mosque vandalised as the mob stormed the building, the preliminary investigation shows.

Upon entering the building, the attackers beat the caretaker, Wajid Hussain, with iron rods and hammers. He is currently in hospital in critical condition.

When other members of the community rushed to the victim’s aid, they too were violently beaten and abused by the attackers, who also stoned local houses injuring some residents, later taken to the district hospital in Kotli for medical treatment.

Since November last year, the place of worship has been targeted by extremists while complaints and reports to the police proved useless.

Some radical leaders had given Ahmadis until 16 December to clear the area and take down the minarets, or they would act themselves, which is what they did.

The raid comes at a troubled period for the country, after a general election that ended in an uncertain outcome with former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz forming a coalition government with Bilawal Bhutto and his Pakistan Peoples Party.

The new cabinet has not yet been agreed to, but it is already in the crosshairs of adversaries and independents linked to the jailed retired cricket champion and former Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has a large following in the electorate.

Last year a total 42 incidents of persecution were reported against the Ahmadiyya community and dozens of minarets were demolished; this year two incidents have been reported so far,” said Ahmadi leader Aamir Mehmood speaking to AsiaNews.

While demanding justice and the culprits’ arrest, he does not mince his words about the authorities who are duty-bound to protect citizens” and yet have “failed miserably”. We have videos of this attack and police can easily identify the attackers,” he added.

In Pakistan, the Ahmadi Muslim community numbers between 600,000 and two million (estimates vary), with 10 to 20 million worldwide, living mostly outside their place of origin.

Founded in the late 19th century in British India, the Ahmadi religion is largely considered heretical by mainstream Sunnis and Shias, especially among their extremist fringes. It honours its founder, Mirza Ghulam Ahmad, and has beliefs related to those of other religions.

In Pakistan, Ahmadis are not allowed to use Islamic greetings and prayers, or to call their places of worship mosques.

Along with Christians, they are one of the communities most victimised by the country’s blasphemy laws, which are used to persecute minorities.

By Rathindra Kuruwita Courtesy The Island

A National People’s Power (NPP) administration will not do anything that will undermine Indian security, but it will maintain economic and political relations with China, the NPP delegation to India told Indian officials, JVP/NPP Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake said in an interview with Sirasa TV, on Thursday (15).

In his first interview since his return to the country, Dissanayake said India had extended an invitation to the NPP in December.

However, we had other commitments in December. One of them was visiting China at the invitation of the Chinese Communist Party. We told India that we maintained full transparency in our external relations.”

The NPP leader said that the incumbent government’s privatisation drive had attracted both Indian and Chinese investors, and that had led to friction between the two major powers.

The government has decided to privatise Sri Lanka Telecom, and the two main contenders are Chinese and Indian interests. It’s the same with Lanka Hospitals. It is the government that wants Amul to buy NLDB.”

From the J.R. Jayewardene administration onwards, successive governments followed disastrous foreign policies that made Sri Lanka a battleground between major powers, Dissanayake said.

JRJ beckoned Americans to Sri Lanka, and at that time, India was with Soviet Union (Russia). This angered India. Then, other governments tried to balance China and India by selling each country valuable national assets and giving each country contracts that didn’t adhere to the tender process,” the NPP leader said.

The NPP adheres to a non-aligned foreign policy, Engaging all stakeholders transparently is the key to avoiding misconceptions and triggering hostilities, he said.

States operate in an information-sparse environment, which often leads them to operate on assumptions. The NPP believes in transparency and engagement in foreign and domestic affairs because of that very reason, he said.

We know that some individuals, who frequently attend Embassy functions, are spreading misinformation about us. On the other hand, we don’t really have the time to attend all these functions. However, in recent months, diplomatic missions have reached out to us because they think we will win elections, and we have used these opportunities to explain what our policies really are.”

The NPP leader said that their political opponents are very worried about their Indian visit because it dispels the narratives they have built about the party.

One of the claims made was that the NPP has no international connections or standing. Anyone who can think logically can understand that states engage with political actors that have power. India, China, the US, and many others are now engaging with us because they think we will win elections. Some people believed Ranil knew foreign leaders personally and that they would bail the country out. How has that worked out? States act out of strategic considerations. We have said this from the beginning. However, some of our political leaders thought it was a good idea to put a lot of their eggs in the ‘NPP has no international standing’ basket. Now this has been proven obviously wrong, and they are panicking,” he said.

Dissanayake added that they are well aware that the two main parties and their affiliates will do everything in their power to thwart an NPP win.

This is not like Ranil replacing Mahinda or Ranil replacing Gota. A lot of crooked elements are afraid of us coming into power. They will do anything to stop us, and already we are seeing strange political bedfellows emerging,” he said.

Courtesy Adaderana

The Chief Prelates of the three Buddhist Chapters have raised deep concerns about a potential risk of emerging social insecurity due to the privatisation of state assets.

They communicated this in a letter addressed to President Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Dilrook Kannangara

Chinese and Indian development models are completely different. Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, etc. achieved success thanks to the Chinese development model. Indian development model does not have that feature. Therefore, Sri Lanka cannot become India’s Hong Kong. Teaming up with India only leads to worse poverty, debt, economic disaster and unemployment for Sri Lanka.

The Chinese model is based on ‘common prosperity’ even before the concept was spelled out. It benefits not just China but also China’s neighbors and partners. Singapore was an under-developed fishing village in 1965 but thanks to trade with and investments from China it became one of the most developed countries in the world. Same goes for Taiwan despite political tensions, Hong Kong (before unification in 1997), Macau, etc. China is the largest trading partner of them. In addition, China is the largest trading partner of South Korea, Mongolia, Vietnam, Thailand, Japan, Russia, Myanmar, Malaysia, Australia, etc. If not for Chinese trade, Australia would be a third world nation. Even distant nations in Africa (Rwanda is a case in point) have achieved remarkable development thanks to China. This is no accident. It is due to the economic policy China follows towards itself and towards its partners. As a result, a large number of countries have joined China’s BRI and RCEP groups.

Unfortunately, this is not the model followed by India. The model followed by India can be termed ‘beggar thy neighbor’. India uses exploitative and restrictive trade practices towards its neighbors. As a result of this disastrous model and India Only” approach, India’s neighbors didn’t benefit from India’s development. Nothing at all. Unlike China India failed to rally its neighbors due to this greedy and overbearing policy towards its neighbors. SAARC, BIMSTEC and other regional initiatives either failed or stagnated. It gets worse. India deliberately disrupts regional countries’ economies. Examples include Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Maldives whereas China engaged in no such disruptions.

Another problem with India is its regular interference in politics and other domestic affairs of all its neighbors. India uses it to disrupt, destroy and scuttle development. China follows no such policy towards its neighbors. By interfering in internal matters, India profits in various ways. For instance, economic disruption and social chaos in Sri Lanka has been used to poach and/or smuggle fish, gold, gemstones, etc. from Sri Lanka. India-fueled chaos and security threats have pushed all neighboring countries backward in attractiveness in doing business and starting a business. In doing so India tries to emerge as the only destination in South Asia that is attracting investments, entrepreneurs from foreign nations and technology transfers.

The third major problem with India is its militant approach to regional security based on outdated ancient Indian military doctrines at a time when naval warfare was unheard of. The Indian Ocean” is not India’s Ocean. Other independent countries have the right to engage in commercial and military activities in the Ocean. Research vessels do not pose security threats. Docking a warship or a submarine does not pose any security threat. Let alone a Chinese vessel, India is often riled even when a regional warship (e.g. Pakistan) docks in Sri Lanka! These are quite normal occurrences in the modern world. Unfortunately, India gets agitated when it happens in Sri Lanka, Maldives, Pakistan or Bangladesh. With such a revisionist approach, there is little India’s neighbors can expect from it.

The fourth and most crucial matter is India’s past performance in mutual agreements with Sri Lanka. Sadly, India never kept its part in any mutual agreement between the two nations. The same goes for Pakistan, Bangladesh, Maldives, China and Nepal, and they have put distance between themselves and India. At the very minimum India has no regard whatsoever for Sri Lanka’s maritime boundary. Indian poachers invade Sri Lanka’s territorial waters everyday ably sponsored by the Indian national and state governments and the military. The opposite is not tolerated. India disregards the Constitution of Sri Lanka and the legal framework. Indian impositions resulted in constitutional amendments and law changes in Sri Lanka with no benefit for the island nation. No other country has so brazenly interfered in internal matters.

Due to these factors, Sri Lanka stands to lose it all than gain anything from closer economic ties with India. Not just Sri Lanka, but all regional countries are facing drain of their economic resources and opportunities due to India.

S.Akurugoda

As per a news item that appeared in The Island of 12 .02.2024 titled ‘ SLPP MPs not consulted on ECTA, alleges government member’, MP Sarath Weerasekerais is urging President Ranil Wickremesinghe not to exploit the continuing political, economic and social crisis to advance his agenda.  https://island.lk/slpp-mps-not-consulted-on-etca-alleges-govt-member/. The SLPP MP said that the two countries suspended talks on ETCA in 2018 following a spate of protests here. Negotiations commenced in 2016 between Modi’s India and the Yahapalana government, a year after Mahinda Rajapaksa’s defeat at the 2015 presidential election.

Interestingly, MP Sarath Weerasekera is one of the SLPP members who voted to elect Ranil Wickremesinghe as the President of the country and is still a member of the government group. Although the MP has not stated what the President’s agenda, it is not a difficult task to presume what his agenda would be for those who are aware of what the current President Wickremesinghe has done during his political carrier.

UNP leaders are well known for signing notorious agreements, detrimental to the country in many ways, with foreign powers or with their involvements, without going through the parliament or briefing the contents of the agreements to the opposition political parties or the general public. 

We remember how the UNP leader J.R. Jayewardene (JRJ) signed the Indo-Lanka Pact, in 1987, amidst curfew, disregarding the opposition to the treacherous agreement, its repercussions and the composition of the country. Later, the Constitution was amended to accommodate what was agreed. Fortunately, no government has yet devolved the police and land powers, as per the said agreement, based on ethnic lines. If fully implemented, it will be irreversible and, if an attempt is made to reverse them, the consequences will be disastrous.

President Wickremesinghe, overturning the mandate given by the people during the last presidential election,  is making wild declarations openly accepting a fully implementation of 13A without even having the decency to consult or to get the consensus of the other political parties before making such a declaration. There is no mention of the fully implementation of the 13th amendment in the declaration of the President Gotabhaya who was elected with a mandate of 6.9 million in the last presidential election or in the recommendations of the committee appointed by him to prepare a new constitution.

Similarly, the CFA, arranged by the Norwegians, and signed by the UNP leader Ranil, and the terrorist leader, Prabhakaran, in 2002 without the knowledge or the approval of the country, was not transparent and didn’t serve any purpose to the country. Unless this foolish agreement was abrogated and the LTTE defeated, militarily, to remove the so-called “LTTE territories”, the situation of the country would be entirely different today. Its legality is questionable since the agreement was signed by the PM who was neither the Head of the Executive nor the Head of the Cabinet of Ministers. 

We remember how the UNP leadership believed that the government would have to give up the area it seized from the LTTE to facilitate the peace process and how he attempted to satisfy the requirements of the so-called international community and the Norwegians, who were openly interfering with the internal affairs of a sovereign nation (Sri Lanka) with sinister motives.

We also remember how PM Ranil Wickremesinghe attempted to sign the MCC agreement before the last presidential election without presenting it to the parliament. His Finance Minister Mangala Samaraweera has said that the agreement will be presented to Parliament after signing it.  Ranil-Sirisena’s so-called ‘yahapalana’ government handed over the Sothern deep sea port of Hambantota to China for 99 years in 2017.  In addition to moving forward with ETCA, the latest is the reported planning to hand over the Milco, airport management of three ports, telecom, aviation etc Fuel storage etc to India.

Thus signing any form of treacherous agreement by a UNP leader like Ranil, behind closed doors disregarding its consequences, is not a surprise at all. Unfortunately, most of our politicians, and who elected them to power today have either forgotten or are not aware of even the most recent past including the mass murders during JVP insurrections (1971 and 1987-1989) and LTTE’s 30-year terrorism. As I remember, Uma Maheswaran, the founder and leader of the separatist People’s Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE), told once how the Sinhalese have a short memory. Unfortunately our political party leaders today are queuing up to see the Indian PM Modi, either expecting help to hang onto power or to grab power by hook or crook.

S.Akurugoda

Ministry of Defence  – Media Centre

‘Currently, we proudly stand with the strength of over 1800 military engineers, spanning diverse domains such as Civil, Mechanical, Electronic, Telecommunication, Marine, Aeronautical and many more. Our primary objective is to elevate the aspirations of our young military engineers. We aim to propel them to greater heights in the engineering realm by providing the necessary support and resources to attain chartered engineering qualifications.’

Defence Secretary General Kamal Gunaratne made these remarks as the Chief Guest of the inaugural Military Engineering and Technology Conference organized by the College of Military Engineering and Technology Sri Lanka (CMETSL) at the Wave N’ Lake Navy Banquet Hall in Welisara today (Feb 16).

Further speaking, the Defence Secretary emphasized the critical role of technology in shaping the future of military operations. He highlighted the need for a dynamic and adaptive defence strategy while stressing the importance of staying ahead in the rapidly evolving landscape of military technology, which is paramount to national security.

During the proceedings of the day, several eminent retired senior tri-forces officers were presented with honorary CMETSL membership certificates by the Defence Secretary.

The conference was held under the theme Engineering for the Future: Managing Modern Challenges in Military Technology and Engineering,” with the aim of fostering collaboration between the military and technology sectors providing a platform for discussions on cutting-edge advancements, security challenges and the role of innovation in modern defence.

President CMETSL and the Director General Engineering of the Sri Lanka Navy (SLN) Rear Admiral Ravi Ranasinghe, made the welcome address while the keynote speech was delivered by the founder and CEO of WSO2 Dr. Sanjiva Weerawarna.

This inaugural conference of the CMETSL saw the convergence of military and technology expertise in the country and the resource personnel from key stakeholders in the military and technology sectors such as Maj. Gen. Tuan Fadyl Meedin (Retd), RAdm AV Abeyasena (Retd), Air Cmde Jayasiri Amarasena (Retd), Director General Electrical and Electronic Engineering of SLN RAdm Wiraj Leelarathna, Head of Information Security Dialog Axiata Plc Farash Samat and Strategic Adviser and Vice President of Huawei Technologies Lanka Pvt Ltd Indika De Zoysa who also presented their own conceptual research papers to the audience. The conference also provided a unique opportunity for attendees to engage in dialogue and exchange ideas on key issues facing the intersection of military and technology.

Chief of Defence Staff General Shavendra Silva, Commander of the Navy Vice Admiral Priyantha Perera, Commander of the Air Force Air Marshal Udeni Rajapaksa, Major General Renuka Rowel (Retd), Acting Additional Secretary (Defence) Harsha Vithanaarachchi, Additional Secretary (Defence Services) Jayantha Edirisinghe and Vice Chancellor of KDU RAdm Dhammika Kumara, Major General Harindra Peiris, Sri Lanka Army Chief of Staff were notable distinguished invitees present at the conference.

අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මාධ්‍ය අංශය

මහරගම ප්‍රාදේශීය සම්බන්ධීකරණ කමිටුව, එහි සභාපති අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය දිනේෂ් ගුණවර්ධන මහතාගේ ප්‍රධානත්වයෙන් 2024.02.15 දින රැස්වූ අවස්ථාවේදී අග්‍රාමාත්‍යවරයා මේ බව සඳහන් කළේය. 

එහිදී අදහස් දැක් වූ අග්‍රාමාත්‍යවරයා –

අද රට මත්ද්‍රව්‍ය සම්බන්ධයෙන් බොහොම නරක තත්ත්වයකට  පත්වෙලා. දැන් පත්කර තිබෙන විශේෂ ඒකකය මගින් ඔබතුමාලා වුණත් ඕනම වෙලාවක අත්අඩංගුවට ගන්න පුළුවන්. මෙතන තියෙන්නේ තාවකාලික සුභ සිද්ධියක් නෙවෙයි.  රජයේ සේවකයින් ලෙස ජනතාවගේ අනාගත සුභ සිද්ධිය උදෙසා තමන්ගේ රාජකාරිය හරියට ඉටු කරන්න. මේ සම්බන්ධයෙන් රජය අරගෙන තිබෙන තීරණ සියල්ල ක්‍රියාත්මක කිරීම රජය දැනටමත් ආරම්භ කර තිබෙනවා.

පොලිස්පතිවරයා සහ ඒ පිළිබඳ අමාත්‍යවරයා විශේෂ ඒකකයක් මගින් දිනපතා ඒ පිළිබඳ මෙහෙයුම ක්‍රියාත්මක වීමේ ප්‍රගතිය බලනවා. අපට නරක නාම එපා. මට සහයෝගය දුන්නා, ආණ්ඩුව හදන්න සහයෝගය දුන්නා, ජනාධිපතිතුමාට සහයෝගය දුන්නා කියලා මත්ද්‍රව්‍ය හා ඊට සම්බන්ධ වූ හෝ වෙන නීති විරෝධී දේකට සම්බන්ධ  දේවලට මැදිහත් වෙන්න බැහැ. එවැනි ද්ට පළමුවෙන් මැදිහත් විය යුත්තේ පොලිසියයි.

නගර සභාව, පොලිසිය සහ ප්‍රාදේශීය ලේකම් මේ පිළිබඳ අවධානය යොමු කළ යුතුයි. රැකියා නාමයෙන් වෙනත් නීති විරෝධී කටයුතු සිදුකරන තැන් කරුණාකරලා නීතිය ඉදිරියට ගේන්න. පොලිසිය සිදු කරන මෙහෙයුම් සඳහා ග්‍රාම නිලධාරීන් සහ මහ නගර සභාව සක්‍රීයව සහ අවදියෙන් සිටිය යුතුයි.

පැමිණිලි කරනතුරු අපි බලා සිටිය යුතු නැහැ. තොරතුරු ලද වහාම ක්ෂණිකව ක්‍රියාත්මක විය යුතුයි. ඒ සඳහා ග්‍රාමසේවක නිලධාරීන්ගේ පූර්ණ සහයෝගය පොලිසියට ලබා දීමට කටයුතු කරන්න. පසුගිය කාලේ මහා සංඝරත්නය නිරන්තරයෙන් ඒ පිළිබඳ අදහස් ප්‍රකාශ කළා. අද ඒවා ක්‍රියාත්මක කිරීමේ එක මතයකට පැමිණ සිටීම සතුටට කරුණක්.

නගර සභාව, පළාත් සභාව, විවිධ දෙපාර්තමේන්තු සියල්ල ආවරණය වන පරිදි සංවර්ධන ඉලක්කයන් ක්‍රියාත්මක විය යුතුයි. නගර සභාව ක්‍රියාත්මක නොකරන ව්‍යාපෘති පිළිබඳ වගකීම නගර සභාව ගත යුතුයි. නගර සභාව ඉදිරිපිට තියෙන කණුව කැඩිලා නං ඒක හදන්න විමධ්‍යගත අරමුදල් අවශ්‍ය නැහැ. ඇස් දෙකට පේන දේ කරන්න විමධ්‍යගත අරමුදල් දෙනකන් ඉන්න එපා.

මහරගම ශාසනාරක්ෂක බල මණ්ඩලයේ සභාපති පූජ්‍ය නිකපොත චන්ද්‍රජෝති හිමියන් වෙත මුව ආවරණ ප්‍රදානය කිරීමද මෙහිදී අග්‍රාමාත්‍යවරයා අතින් සිදු කරනු ලැබීය.

හිටපු බස්නාහිර පළාත් ප්‍රධාන අමාත්‍ය ඉසුර දේවප්‍රිය, හිටපු බස්නාහිර පළාත් සභා මන්ත්‍රීවරුන් වන උපාලි කොඩිකාර, සලෝචන ගමගේ, කාන්ති කොඩිකාර සහ රජයේ නිළධාරීන් මෙම අවස්ථාවට සහභාගී වූහ.

අග්‍රාමාත්‍ය මාධ්‍ය අංශය

නීතීඥ අරුණ ලක්සිරි උණවටුන B.Sc ( Col), PGDC(Col)

http://neethiyalk.blogspot.com/2024/02/2015-19-2002-19-2025.html?m=1

2002 දී චන්ද්‍රිකා බණ්ඩාරනායක ජනාධිපතිවරිය සමයේදී 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධනයක් ආ බවත් ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ විනිසුරු 7ක් මගින් එයට දුන් ඒකමතික තීරණය උල්ලංඝනය කරමින් මෛත්‍රීපාල සිරිසේන ජනාධිපති සමයේ 2015 දී 19 සංශෝධනය නැවත ගෙනා බවත් ඇතැම් නීති විශාරදයෝ සහ ඇතැම් දේශපාල විචාරකයෝ අමතක කරති. එය එසේ අමතක කළ නොහැකිය. එය ව්‍යවස්ථා කුමන්ත්‍රණයකි. ජනාධිපතිවරණය පැවැත්විය යුත්තේ වසර 5කින් නොව වසර 6කින් වන්නේ එකී ව්‍යවස්ථා කුමන්ත්‍රණය නිවැරදි කිරීමෙනි. 2015 ගෙනා 19ය මගින් 2002 ගෙනා 19යේ පූර්ණ ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තිරණය උල්ලංඝනය කළ ව්‍යවස්ථා කුමන්ත්‍රණය පහත විස්තර කර ඇත.

2002දී පාර්ලිමේන්තුවට ගෙන එන ලද 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පතේ 5 වන වගන්තිය අනුව ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාවේ 70 වන ව්‍යවස්ථාවට ඉක්බිතිව 70 (අ) ලෙස ව්‍යවස්ථාවක් ගෙන එමින් වසරකට පසු ජනාධිපතිවරයාට පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීම අවශ්‍ය වන්නේ නම් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ නොපැමිණි මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන්ද ඇතුළුව පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ මුළු මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන් සංඛ්‍යාවෙන් තුනෙන් දෙකක සංඛ්‍යාවකට නොඅඩු සංඛ්‍යාවකගේ සම්මතය ඇතිව යෝජනා සම්මතයක් මගින් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ අනුමැතිය ලබා ගත යුතු බවට ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාව සංශෝධනය කිරීමට යෝජනා කර තිබුණි.

එකී 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පත 2002 සැප්තැම්බර් මස 19 වන දින ව්‍යාපාර සංවර්ධන, කර්මාන්ත ප‍්‍රතිපත්ති හා ආයෝජන ප‍්‍රවර්ධන සහ ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා කටයුතු අමාත්‍යවරයා විසින් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවට ඉදිරිපත් කර තිබූ අතර 2002 සැප්තැම්බර් මස 11 වන දින ගැසට් පත‍්‍රයේ පළ කර ඇත.

එම 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පත ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාවට පටහැනිය යන පදනමින් ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණයේ අභියෝගයට ලක්කරන ලද අතර සරත් නන්ද සිල්වා (අ.වි), වඩුගොඩුපිටිය (වි), බණ්ඩාරනායක (වි) ඉස්මයිල් (වි) එදිරිසූරිය (වි) සහ යාපා (වි) ද සිල්වා (වි) විසින් 2002 ඔක්තෝබර් 1 සහ 3 යන දිනවල ඒ සම්බන්ධව ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණයේ විභාගයට ගන්නා ලදී.

එහි තීරණය අනුව ජනාධිපතිවරයාට වසරකට පසු පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීම අවශ්‍ය වන්නේ නම් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ නොපැමිණි මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන්ද ඇතුළුව පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ මුළු මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන් සංඛ්‍යාවෙන් තුනෙන් දෙකක සංඛ්‍යාවකට නොඅඩු සංඛ්‍යාවකගේ සම්මතය ඇතිව යෝජනා සම්මතයක් මගින් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ අනුමැතිය ලබා ගත යුතු බවට වන විධිවිධානය නීතියක් බවට පත් කිරීම සඳහා අවශ්‍ය වන නීතිමය තත්ත්වය එම විනිසුරුවරු 7 දෙනා විසින් දීර්ඝව විස්තර කර ඇත. වර්ෂ 2002 දී පාර්ලිමේන්තුවට ඉදිරිපත් කළ 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පතේ 5 වන වගන්තිය අනුව ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාවේ 70 වන ව්‍යවස්ථාවට ඉක්බිතිව 70 (අ) ලෙස ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාව සංශෝධනය කරමින් වසරකට පසු පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීම ජනාධිපතිට සීමා කිරීම ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාවේ 3 වන ව්‍යවස්ථාව උල්ලංඝනය කරන බවත් එය නීතියක් වන්නේ ජනමත විචාරණයක් මගින් ජනතාව විසින්ද අනුමැතිය දීමෙන් පසුව බව අගවිනිසුරු ප‍්‍රමුඛ ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණයේ විනිසුරුවරු 7 දෙනකු විසින් තීරණය කර ඇත.

ඒ අනුව ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණයට එකඟව කටයුතු කරන්නේ නම් වසරකට පසු පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීම ජනාධිපතිට සීමා කිරීමේ ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධනයක් සිදුකරන්නේ නම් ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාවේ 80.2 ව්‍යවස්ථාව අනුව ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් නීතියක් බවට පත්කරන ආකාරයේ සහ 79 වන ව්‍යවස්ථාව යටතේ පනත් කෙටුම්පත හෝ ඒ විධිවිධානය ජනතාව විසින් ජනමත විචාරණයක දී අනුමත කරනු ලබන තෙක් නීතිය බවට පත් නොවිය යුතු බවට වන කථානායකවරයාගේ සහතිකයක් සඳහන් සටහනක් තබා ජනමත විචාරණයකදී තමන්ගේ ඡන්ද බලය ක‍්‍රියාත්මක කිරීමේ අවස්ථාව එළඹෙන තෙක් ජනතාව බලා සිටින අතර මේ වන තෙක් ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් ඒ අවස්ථාව ජනතාවට ලබා දී නැත. මෙය ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් සිදුකරන ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණයට පටහැනි තත්ත්වයකි.

2015 ගෙන එන ලද 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පතට ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණය කියා ඇති පරිදි ජනතාවගේ කැමැත්ත විමසීමට ජනමත විචාරණය නොපැවැත්වීම සහ ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණ උල්ලංඝනය කිරීම සහ ව්‍යවස්ථා කුමන්ත‍්‍රණයක යෙදීම.

අග‍්‍රාමාත්‍යතුමා සහ ප‍්‍රතිපත්ති සම්පාදන, ආර්ථික කටයුතු, ළමා, තරුණ හා සංස්කෘතික කටයුතු අමාත්‍යතුමාගේ නියමය පරිදි 2015 මාර්තු මස 13 වන දින ගැසට් පත‍්‍රයේ 11 වන කොටස අතිරේකය (2015.03.16 දින නිකුත් කරන ලද) 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පතේ 19 වගන්තිය මගින් පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීමට අදාළ ජනාධිපතිවරයා සීමා කරන විධිවිධාන දැක්වේ.

ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථාවේ 70 වන ව්‍යවස්ථාව එකී ව්‍යවස්ථාවේ (1) වන අනුව්‍යවස්ථාව ඉවත් කොට ඒ වෙනුවට පහත දැක්වෙන අනු ව්‍යවස්ථාව ආදේශ කිරීම මගින් මෙයින් සංශෝධනය කරනු ලැබේ :-

(1) ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් ප‍්‍රකාශයක් මගින් පාර්ලිමේන්තුව කැඳවීම, පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ වාරාවසාන කිරීම සහ පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසුරුවා හැරීම කළ හැක්කේ ය:

එසේ වුවද, පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීම අවශ්‍ය වන්නේ නම් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ නොපැමිණි මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන්ද ඇතුළුව පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ මුළු මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන් සංඛ්‍යාවෙන් තුනෙන් දෙකක සංඛ්‍යාවකට නොඅඩු සංඛ්‍යාවකගේ සම්මතය ඇතිව යෝජනා සම්මතයක් මගින් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ අනුමැතිය ලබා ගත යුතු බවට එසේ නොවන්නේ නම් පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ ප‍්‍රථම රැස්වීම සඳහා නියම කරගනු ලැබූ දිනයෙන් අවුරුදු හතරක් සහ මාස හයක කාලයක් අවසන් වන තෙක් ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසුරුවා හැරීම නොකළ යුතු බව දක්වා ඇත.

ඒ අනුව 2015 දී ගෙන එනු ලැබූ 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පත මගින්ද 2002 දී ගෙන එනු ලැබූ 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පත මෙන්ම ජනාධිපතිවරයාට වසරකට පසු පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීම සීමා කරන විධිවිධාන ඇතුළත් කර ඇත.

2015 දී ගෙනා 19වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පත නීතියක් බවට පත් කිරීමට පෙර එනම් 2002 දී ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණයේ විනිසුරුවරුන් 7 දෙනකු විසින් තීරණය කළ පරිදි පාර්ලිමේන්තුව විසිරවීමෙන් ජනාධිපති වළක්වන විධිවිධානය නීතියක් බවට පත් කිරීමට පෙර ජනතාවගේ මතය විමසන ජනමත විචාරණයක් පැවැත්වීමට ජනාධිපතිවරවයා කටයුතු කර නැති අතර පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ නොපැමිණි මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන්ද ඇතුළුව පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ මුළු මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන් සංඛ්‍යාවෙන් තුනෙන් දෙකක සංඛ්‍යාවකට නොඅඩු සංඛ්‍යාවකගේ සම්මතය පමණක් මේ වන විට හිමි වී ඇත. නමුත් එය නීතියක් වීමට ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණය අනුව පැවැත්විය යුතු ජනමත විචාරණය පැවැත්විය යුතු අතර වර්තමාන ජනාධිපති ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ ජනාධිපතිවරයා ජනතාව විසින් බලයට පත් කරන ලද්දේ ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණ උල්ලංඝනය කිරීමට නොව ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණවලට අනුව රට පාලනය කිරීමටය.

පාර්ලිමේන්තුවේ මුළු මන්ත‍්‍රීවරයන් සංඛ්‍යාවෙන් තුනෙන් දෙකක සංඛ්‍යාවකට නොඅඩු සංඛ්‍යාවකගේ ඡන්දයෙන් සම්ම්ත වී ඇති 2015 දී පාර්ලිමේන්තුවට ඉදිරිපත් කළ 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පත සඳහා ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණය අනුව නීතියක් බවට පත්කිරීමේ ඉදිරි පියවර ගැනීම ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් කළ යුතු වේ.

මෙහිදී යම් අයෙකු හෝ කණ්ඩායමක් ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණ අයුතු ලෙස හා අන්තනෝමතික ලෙස යොදා ගනිමින් ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණ අනුව කටයුතු නොකරමින් ශ්‍රේෂ්ඨාධිකරණ තීරණ උල්ලංඝනය කරන ආකාරයට 2015 දී ඉදිරිපත් කළ 19 වන ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා සංශෝධන පනත් කෙටුම්පත සඳහා නීති විරෝධීව නීතිමය තත්ත්වයක් ආරෝපණය කරමින් සිටින හෙයින් ඒ සම්බන්ධව දැඩිව ක‍්‍රියා කිරීමද ජනාධිපතිවරයාට අයත් කාර්යයක් වේ.

ජනතාව විසින් ගෝඨාභය රාජපක්ෂ ජනාධිපතිවරයා බලයට පත්කරනු ලැබූයේ නීතියට අනුව රට පාලනය කිරීමට හෙයින් මේ වැරදි තත්ත්වය නිවැරදි කිරීමේ පූර්ණ වගකීම ඔහුගේ අනුප්‍රාප්තික ජනාධිපතිවරයා විසින් දැරිය යුතු අතර මෙහිදී කිහිප දෙනකු විසින් ආණ්ඩුක‍්‍රම ව්‍යවස්ථා කුමන්ත‍්‍රණයක් සිදු කර ඇති බවත් පැහැදිලි වන හෙයින් ඒ සම්බන්ධව පූර්ණ විමර්ශනයක් සිදුකර වැරදිකරුවන්ට දඬුවම් ලබා දීමද සිදු කළ යුතු වේ.

එය නිවැරදි කිරීම ජනාධිපතිවරණය 2024 නොව 2025 දී එනම් වසර 6ක් දක්වා ජනාධිපති ධූරය පැවැත් වෙයි.

නීතීඥ අරුණ ලක්සිරි උණවටුන
B.Sc ( Col), PGDC(Col)
දුරකථන 0712063394
2024.02.14

Sri Lanka News

The remark by a Sri Lankan Tourism Minister suggesting that Sri Lanka is part of India has sparked concerns about the erosion of Sri Lanka’s sovereignty. While historical, cultural, and geographical ties between the two nations are undeniable, asserting Sri Lanka’s independent identity is crucial in safeguarding its sovereignty and national interests.

In conclusion, while India and Sri Lanka share deep-rooted historical, cultural, and economic connections, asserting Sri Lanka’s sovereignty and independence is paramount. The recent remark by a Sri Lankan Cabinet minister underscores the need for careful navigation of bilateral relations, respecting each other’s sovereignty, and fostering cooperation based on mutual respect and understanding.

By Shivanthi Ranasinghe Courtesy The Island

The general takeaway from the disastrous and premature ending of the Gotabaya Rajapaksa Administration is very simple. Non-politicians do not make good Presidents. Those with financial literacy blame that Administration’s economic management that saw the country into an almost economic collapse. However, the general consensus is that the cause was not ill-founded policy decisions. It is more because of the corruption led by key politicians in the Government. 

Voters are gravitating into two camps

As both presidential and parliamentary elections loom close ahead, the public is divided into two camps. Unfortunately, unlike previous times, these two camps are not political parties. It is rather two streams of thought. 

One thought by the disenchanted public is complete disinterest in the upcoming elections. As such, this group is not keen to cast their vote at any of these elections. They do not care who is in power at the moment nor who should take power thereafter. It is their conclusion that no matter who comes to power, the situation in the country will remain unresolved. 

The other group is not as pessimistic. They believe a system change is possible. However, there is scepticism whether it is possible for such a pivotal change from the same faces that has dominated politics for the past few decades. Notwithstanding this doubt, political parties are engineering crossovers as they near for the battle for power. 

Why SJB is losing confidence

As such, the SJB had warmly welcomed SLPP big names such as Professor G.L. Pieris and Dr. Nalaka Godahewa. This move had not been perceived as a positive one by those watching from the sidelines. 

Professor Pieris, in particular, has been President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s shadow. During the Mahinda Rajapaksa Government, he guided and directed the entire foreign policy. Sadly, the erudite scholar was unable to understand that the war against terrorism was far from over. 

After we defeated the LTTE and annihilated the group, the battle ground simply shifted to the august halls of the UNHRC in Geneva. We were thus unable to understand the basis of the unsubstantiated allegations that began to pile up against us. Therefore, the last years of the Mahinda Rajapaksa Administration was marked with increasing tensed relations with certain geopolitical powers. Relations especially between the US and Sri Lanka were definitely confrontational. 

There was a stark absence of true diplomacy. We did not keep a cool head to initiate or continue a dialogue to establish our stance. Apart from a couple of wild theories as to the objective of levelling  accusations of war crimes, we did not engage in a serious effort to understand the reasons that ostracised us from these powers. 

This failure directly contributed to the ousting of President Mahinda from power. During the next four years, when the Yahapalana Government was in power, Professor Pieris continued to be an ineffective advisor to Mahinda Rajapaksa. He did not see the value of countering the war crime allegations or defending our forces. This period is marked with a dark cloud as our military intelligence networks were being dismantled and senior officers were being investigated by the CID. 

The Easter Sunday Attacks in 2019 was a direct consequence of dismantling our intelligence units. At the subsequent Presidential Commission of Inquiry, the defence offered, for not acting on the foreign intelligence of an imminent attack received, that it could not be verified by our local intelligence agencies. While the Yahapalana Government is directly responsible for weakening our intelligence, the Mahinda Rajapaksa led opposition is also responsible for the political apathy when our officers were being persecuted. 

During the rise of Gotabaya Rajapaksa as the presidential candidate, Dr. Godahewa too became a star. His pleasant personality and the unique ability to explain complex issues in simple language, that is comprehensive to the ordinary people, made him a popular orator. Yet, during his time as a State Minister he became increasingly unapproachable. 

Thus, the SJB opening doors to these SLPP personalities may not translate into the political strength SJB is hoping to garner from such an admission. However, SJB is not interested only in the political faces. Recently they welcomed into their fold both former Army Commander General Daya Ratnayaka and former Navy Commander Admiral Daya Sandagiri. 

General Ratnayaka’s presence had annoyed Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka, who as the Commander of the Army led to the victory against terrorism. As he points out, General Ratnayaka held powerful positions in the Gotabaya Administration. However, his real contention might be due to more personal or professional reasons. 

General Ratnayaka joining SJB might make SJB’s other partners also uncomfortable. SJB’s political strategy has been to include minority parties. Whether the self-preservation agendas of these minority parties and General Ratnayaka’s strong nationalism will be able to reconcile with each other remains to be seen. 

Is AKD a political mirage? 

It is amidst this scepticism that NPP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake is rising as a political star. His recent visit to India, hosted by the Indian Government, shows that even foreign forces are beginning to take him seriously. 

His most ardent fans are the bourgeois class. It is their view that the prevailing political culture of today will never change with present political faces. The NPP – a seed born from the JVP – has never held power. However, as first the JVP and then as NPP, those representing have been in politics as long as most other incumbent politicians. Therefore, the premise that only a politician should become the president is satisfied. 

Traditionally, the bourgeois class and the JVP/NPP saw each other as the enemy. During both the 1971 and 1988-89 uprising, the JVP’s target was the middle class. As far as the JVP was concerned, it was the private sector that sucked the blood of the innocent working class. 

Those who remember those violent insurgencies can list the number of paddy stores, transformers, buses and other infrastructure that the JVP incinerated. They will also recount the horrors inflicted on the JVP victims. However, none had yet undertaken a study of  the damage caused to the entrepreneurship of this country. Many of the middle class, who had business interests and capabilities, simply migrated from the country. The lack of investments is one of the number one reasons for our economy to languishes. 

The JVP ideology would have died a long time ago had it not been for their hold on the university unions. The presence of these unions has not helped the progress of our tertiary education. In fact, it intimidates many who qualify for a tertiary education from entering the local universities. 

Yet, the NPP is gaining confidence as they are seen by their new found fan club as the answer to corruption. Whether that would indeed be the case remains to be seen – especially as we seem to be having an oversimplified understanding of what corruption is. 

In the minds of most, only the politicians are corrupt in this country. Yet, is this really the case is the question. Yahapalana Government too tried to address corruption by persecuting politicians and senior officials of the Mahinda Rajapaksa Administration. While this destroyed certain political careers and aspirations, it did nothing to redress corruption. 

Pilfering of national resources is however not a crime committed by a few. The unpalatable truth is that corruption in Sri Lanka is more deep rooted and we all are more or less part of the problem. That means, whatever solution introduced to eliminate corruption will hurt all of us. Will NPP have the sensibility to address corruption in a manner that we are all willing to take the bitter medicine is the question. 

This is a serious question that needs a serious answer. Without the corporation of the nation, in which every one of us is willing to have our comfort zones encroached, a system change would not be possible. 

(ranasingheshivanthi@gmail.com)

By  Uditha Devapriya Courtesy The Island

India’s decision to invite JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake has made headlines in every local paper, and practically every Indian paper.

The visit is significant for at least two reasons. First, the JVP-NPP is not the country’s main Opposition. At the General Elections in 2020, it obtained a dismal three per cent but enough to secure three seats in Parliament. For such a party to merit an invitation from New Delhi speaks a lot about India’s perceptions of Sri Lanka’s politics.

Second, it extended an invitation to a Party that has historically not had amicable relations with India. During the 1980s the JVP distinguished itself for its anti-India rhetoric. Nanda Malini’s Pawana, which expressed the hopes, frustrations, and sentiments of the JVP and its supporters, likened the Indian Army to hota-bariyo or pigs. an Army of Marauders that had to be resisted and fought no matter what. The Indian government’s decision to invite such a Party, and that Party’s decision to accept the invitation, is thus very telling.

To be sure, the JVP never really left the 1980s, not even when it entered the democratic mainstream in the 1990s. Even now, on issues that became relevant during that period, like the 13th Amendment and devolution of power, it remains tight-lipped.

Despite transitioning into the JVP-NPP, the Party has also not been above playing to populist-chauvinist politics. Though it speaks big about the failures of the last 75 years, it too has been a part of politics in the country, playing the spoiler and occasionally, as in 2003 and 2009, joining other outfits. While it likes to boast of being a cut above the rest, as it is in many respects, its critics have frequently underscored what they see as its contribution to Sri Lanka’s political culture. The Party has never seriously contested these claims.

What the JVP-NPP’s critics fail to realise is that the JVP-NPP is gaining ground and winning electoral space, and fast. Marginalised by both mainstream parties, the UNP and SLPP, and also by the SJB – which has now effectively ruptured into several sections, the latest rupture signalled by Sarath Fonseka’s critiques of and attacks on Sajith Premadasa – it is seen, rightly, as a Party standing outside the mainstream.

If the Indian Government saw it fit to invite such a Party, it tells us one thing and one thing only: the Indian Government sees it as a big player, mover, and shaker in Sri Lankan politics. This is an Election year, and for India, Elections in Sri Lanka are always a big deal. As things stand, every other person on the street, every other youth on the ground, has expressed support for the JVP. Whether they vote for the Party at an Election remains to be seen. What matters is the groundswell of support that it has secured.

As Dayan Jayatilleka has noted, India made its move quickly. By being the first country to ‘recognise’ the JVP, it effectively checkmated China. The JVP already has links with the Communist Party of China: it sends congratulatory missives to the CPC and even visited Beijing last December. But this was not on an official invitation. Delhi’s strategising has, in that sense, elevated the JVP’s global presence, squaring the circle.

The JVP is frequently depicted as an archaic and outdated Party, full of socialist ideals that supposedly do not work in real life. Though its version of communism is not, contrary to what its critics may think, comparable to the economic policies of the Soviet Union, the JVP is committed to revolutionary politics and sees Elections as a means of achieving a radical programme for the country and economy. Established parties are wary of such visions: the latest MP to take the JVP’s statement on IMF reforms to task, Harsha de Silva, says the Party has no clue about ground realities or the difficulties facing the economy.

This is only half-correct. The JVP’s economic policy is evolving and eventually will adapt to the ground realities de Silva is talking about. But what de Silva and the SJB have left out is the backlash the government’s commitment to austerity has generated from the people. That backlash is bound to find its pivot in the Party which is least likely to enforce the savage tax hikes and austerity that the SLPP-UNP regime is implementing. If the JVP fits the bill, people will rally around it, notwithstanding the McCarthyite hysteria against it.

At the same time, the JVP is re-strategising and rebranding itself, though not at the cost of its most fundamental tenets. For instance, it recently met an IMF delegation, and declared that it had no issue with IMF reforms provided that they are in ‘the national interest’. For the government and the SJB, this seems to show that the JVP is opposed to debt restructuring. But, the JVP’s concern is more about how restructuring is being enforced.

What we are seeing now is austerity for the poor and welfare for the rich. The Supreme Court, for instance, has named those responsible for the economic crisis and accused them of financial crimes. Yet those named have yet to be punished or penalised. It is that rift, between those who suffer and those who don’t, that has pitted people against economic reforms. The JVP-NPP has been able to stay ahead of the game, ahead of the government and the SJB, precisely because it has identified this rift.

This, in other words, is the JVP-NPP’s unique selling point. Sri Lanka’s public consciousness is to be found not at airconditioned media conferences or seminars, but in other spaces: on the ground, in villages, universities, and slums. There is much anger against the government within these spaces. The JVP has been able to channel that anger. If it is excluded, that anger will seek other channels, outside a democratic framework.

There are worse things that could happen in Sri Lanka than a leftwing government. Not all the mantras of free markets and privatisation out there can save a government from the fury of the masses. India appears to have realised that and has moved accordingly. It knows that the JVP is gaining political real estate. Rather than ignoring it, thus letting other countries cosy up to the Party, New Delhi has intervened the way it should. If that does not burst the government’s and the main Opposition’s bubble, nothing will.

By Jude Amory Courtesy Ceylon Today

In the intricate landscape of counterterrorism and geopolitics, the British Government’s manoeuvres often resemble a perplexing tango, where their steps seem choreographed with contradictory grace. Amidst this dance, one glaring anomaly stands out: the UK’s curious tolerance of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), an organisation steeped in terror and infamy.

Picture this: a group known for its macabre mastery of suicide attacks, the LTTE held the world record until the rise of ISIS. Yet, despite its grisly resume, the LTTE finds a cosy haven on British soil, unfurling its flags and ideologies with impunity. It is a spectacle that raises eyebrows and begs questions.

In a flagrant display of disdain for the principles of peace and unity, the LTTE international network unleashed a brazen spectacle on the streets of the UK last week. Brandishing their LTTE flags, banners adorned with images of Prabhakaran, and other sinister iconography, they boldly pushed forth the LTTE’s agendas by calling for a separate State in Sri Lanka. Their actions, occurring on Sri Lanka’s revered Independence Day, were not just provocative – they were a deliberate affront to the very essence of sovereignty and solidarity. By dubbing this historic occasion a ‘Black Day’, they not only spurned the celebrations of freedom but also sought to sow seeds of division and discord amidst a nation striving for unity and reconciliation.

LTTE supporters raise the terrorist flag next to the Union Jack during separatist protests in London

The demonstrations in London were financed by the ‘Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam’, a proscribed LTTE front group headed by Visuvanathan Rudrakumaran, the lawyer, friend and financier of Prabhakaran. Would the UK extend a similar welcome mat to the Islamic State, al-Qaeda, or Hezbollah, inviting them to strut their stuff on British streets? It is a rhetorical query that underscores the inconsistency in the government’s counterterrorism stance, akin to hosting a circus of chaos under the guise of free speech.

Have the British forgotten that not too long ago, international ships were always under threat of piracy by LTTE’s ‘Sea Tiger’ wing, off the North-East of Sri Lanka, or have they forgotten the scores of suicide bombings that massacred innocent civilians across the country? It is a common truth that the British stand for democracy; yet, is there any democracy in tolerating a terrorist group that has carried out assassinations of elected leaders of not only Sri Lanka but of India as well?

Rudrakumaran and LTTE leader Prabhakaran together during the height of LTTE terror

Peering behind the curtains, one cannot ignore the whispers of political dalliances between British parliamentarians and LTTE sympathisers. With heavy LTTE lobbyists behind the Tories and Labour, funds and votes blind the very principles of some English politicians. These lawmakers are swayed by the allure of donations and votes, turning a blind eye to the spectre of terrorism lurking in their midst.

But let’s not overlook the glaring paradox – the UK’s robust crackdown on Muslim extremist groups juxtaposed with its leniency towards non-Muslim terrorists like the LTTE. It is as if the Government is playing a game of selective outrage – doling out justice based on ulterior motives rather than fundamental principles of security and integrity. By enabling LTTE groups and supporters from openly operating in the UK, the British Government collects leverage against Sri Lanka by using one of the most pressing factors in Sri Lankan security, politics and foreign policy. The failure to hold the orchestrators of LTTE demonstrations accountable sends a clear message – terrorism, it seems, is a crime worth celebrating. It’s a slapstick comedy of errors where justice takes a backseat to political expediency.

In the shadowy corridors of the UK’s LTTE network, a dangerous echo persists – a chorus of separatism and strife that seeks to resurrect the spectre of Tamil Eelam, the dream child of the megalomaniac Vellupillai Prabhakaran. Multiple LTTE fronts in the UK continue to unabashedly peddle this divisive narrative, openly advocating for a separate State carved out of the fabric of Sri Lanka. Yet, these perilous calls for terrorism find scant resonance among the peace-loving Tamil community in Sri Lanka, who have long yearned for reconciliation and unity. Instead, the LTTE’s international network, largely comprising former militants, abettors, financiers, and sympathisers, along with select Tamil politicians in Sri Lanka, persist in championing a separatist agenda driven by personal ambition and vested interests. Their misguided efforts stand in stark contrast to the aspirations of the Tamil people in Sri Lanka, who seek not division, but the embrace of a shared future rooted in harmony and mutual respect.

In this theatre of the absurd, the UK unwittingly sets a precedent, inviting other nations to follow suit in tolerating terrorist demonstrations. And what of the audience – the impressionable minds witnessing this sinister spectacle? The glorification of terrorism through public displays risks planting seeds of radicalisation in fertile soil. It is a chilling reality where the applause of the few drowns out the cries of reason and morality. Amidst the chaos, the silence and inaction of the British Government speak volumes.

In the end, the UK’s dalliance with terrorism is not just a dance – it is a dangerous liaison with darkness. The time has come for the Government to trade in its dancing shoes for boots on the ground, to confront terrorism with unwavering resolve and unyielding principles. For in this grand theatre of geopolitics, there can be no encore for those who sow the seeds of chaos and terror.

In the face of such brazen displays of separatism and terrorism, it is imperative that the UK Government and the international community stand firm in their commitment to upholding the principles of peace, unity, and justice. The LTTE’s misguided endeavours to resurrect a divisive agenda rooted in violence and discord must be met with resolute condemnation and decisive action. As we look towards a future defined by collaboration and coexistence, let us not forget the lessons of history nor forsake the aspirations of those who seek a path towards genuine reconciliation and unity. In the end, it is through unwavering resolve and unwavering solidarity that we can truly overcome the shadows of division and pave the way towards a brighter, more harmonious future for all.

About the Author:

Jude Amory is a National Security Analyst (amoryjude@gmail.com)

By DR. C. S. WEERARATNA Courtesy The Island

A trade deficit typically occurs when a country does not produce enough goods for its citizens. When production cannot meet demand as in Sri Lanka, there is a need to import thereby widening the trade deficit.  A persistent trade deficit is detrimental to a country’s economy because it is financed with debt. The trade deficit in Sri Lanka had been persistent over a long period of time (Table 1)

Persistent Trade Deficit tends to have a negative impact on employment, growth, and value of the currency. If we are to reduce the trade deficit it is essential that exports are increased and imports are reduced as much as possible.

Increase export earnings

The dire need to increase our export earnings to meet the severe financial crisis we are facing today has been emphasised by many. As indicated in Table 1, exports during the last six years (this is the case even in earlier years) have not increased by any substantial amount in spite of an Export Development Board and numerous other related authorities. Increasing exports is of paramount importance to improve our economy. It is because of the importance of increasing exports that the government brought a National Export Strategy. But what are we going to export?

Plantation Sector

Our major exports are plantation crops, tea, rubber and coconut. Around 800,000 ha are cultivated with plantation crops. However, as indicated in Table 2, the production of these major export crops does not show any substantial increase during the last five years.

As shown in Table 2, tea production has been fluctuating around 275 million kg per year during the last few years. Annual rubber production shows a tendency to decrease. Coconut production has fluctuated around 300 million nuts per year.  This appalling situation in the plantation sector can be attributed to many factors, but the Ministry of Plantation Industries and the relevant authorities appear to have not taken effective strategies to remedy this situation. If the productivity of this sector is raised, it would be possible to increase foreign exchange earnings thereby reducing the trade deficit. It is necessary that the relevant authorities take appropriate action to increase the production of the plantation crops.

A large number of crops other than tea, rubber and coconut cultivated in Sri Lanka have a high potential as export crops. There are 24 agro-ecological zones, each characterised by specific climate and soil. This makes it possible to cultivate different types of crops. Among these are spice crops such as cinnamon, pepper and nutmeg, tuberous crops, horticultural and floricultural crops, medicinal herbs etc. which have a considerable export potential. In 2020, spice crops earned around US $ 400 million. There are many organizations such as the Ministries of Agriculture, Industry and Commerce, Export Development Board, Industrial Development Board etc. but, there appears to be no proper plan to increase the production of these crops.

Out of the 6.5 million hectares of land, around 2.0 million hectares are in the Wet Zone. About 75% of it is cultivated and most of this land is of low-productivity mainly due to soil degradation. In the Dry Zone, out of the 4.5 million hectares only about 2 million hectares are in productive use. Thus, there is a large extent of potentially cultivable land in the Dry Zone. Most of the soils in the Dry Zone are relatively more fertile than those in the Wet Zone. Non-availability of adequate rainfall during the Yala season is one of the limiting factors of crop production in the Dry Zone. However, better water management practices would reduce this limitation. Also, various major irrigation projects such as Mahaveli, Kirindi Oya, Muthukandiya and Inginimitiya provide irrigation to about 200,000 hectares in the Dry Zone. The recently inaugurated Moraghakanda project is expected to provide irrigation water to nearly 80,000 ha. The numerous minor irrigation projects too would increase the irrigable area in the Dry Zone. Thus, there is a considerable potential to increase the level of crop production in Sri Lanka, export of which would enable to increase exports and reduce trade deficit.

Agro-Industries:

Promoting industries based on agriculture (agro-industries) will have a considerable positive impact on increasing export earnings thereby reducing trade deficit. There is an urgent need to develop agro-industries in Sri Lanka, which will have a tremendous positive impact on employment and rural poverty. A large number of crops cultivated in Sri Lanka, including rice, have a considerable potential in various agro-industries. However, only rubber, coconut and a few fruit crops are used in industries. Crops such as cassava, horticultural and floricultural crops, medicinal herbs, cane, bamboo, sunflower, castor, ayurvedic herbs such as katuwelbatu , etc. have a considerable potential as export crops, but are not cultivated to any appreciable extent for want of better and improved varieties, technological know-how, relevant market information etc. Development of agro-industries will also increase export income and will have a tremendous positive impact on the economy of the country, and also provide employment opportunities among rural people. Private sector can be involved in such projects for which appropriate technical assistance needs to be given by the relevant public organisations. However, there appears to be no proper long-term plan to develop agro-industries, except for some ad-hoc projects. The Ministries of Industries and Agriculture should implement an effective Agro-Industrial Development Programme, in collaboration with the private sector, which undoubtedly would improve export income, employment opportunities and incomes in the rural areas.

Small and Medium-Term Industries

Products of crop based Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs), have a high export potential and play a very important role in economic development of Sri Lanka because they have the capacity to achieve rapid economic growth, while generating a considerable extent of employment opportunities. Promotion of SMEs would result in increasing industrial output of the country, leading to more exports. However, not much emphasis appears to have been placed on improving SMEs, except providing loans from banks. A main factor which limits the SME sector is inadequate raw materials.

Increasing cost of Imports

While some talk about strategies to increase exports, there appears to be not much emphasis on reducing crop-based imports, which will have an appreciable impact on reducing trade deficit. Our import costs are likely to increase due to escalation of freight costs as a result of Houthi attacks in the red sea. This will widen our trade deficit.

Most of the food imported such as sugar, milk food, lentils, onion, maize, etc., which involves around US$ 2,000 million annually, can be locally produced, thereby reducing expenditure on food imports. For example, nearly 16% of food imports is spent on importing sugar, most of which can be locally produced. Sugar production in the country has not increased by any appreciable amounts during the present decade in spite of three sugar companies, Pelwatta, Sevanagala and Hingurana and the Sugarcane Research Institute. Kantale sugar factory remains closed over a long period, while a plan to cultivate sugarcane in Bibile remains shelved. There are crops such as coconut, kitul and palmyrah which can be used to manufacture sugar-based substances such as jaggery and treacle, but there appears to be no effective strategy to promote the production of these crops.

 With regard to milk production we have around 1 million cattle consisting of mostly indigenous breeds. Their productivity is low (1-3 litres/day) mainly due to the poor nature of the breeds and inadequate low-quality feed supply. As a result, annually we import nearly 300 million US dollars worth of milk and other dairy products. There appears to be no effective plan to increase local milk production by improving the local breeds and supply of cattle feed. The dairy industry has a potential to contribute considerably to Sri Lanka’s economic development. But, instead of implementing an effective viable plan to develop the dairy industry in the country, the government imported around 20,000 cattle from New Zealand and Australia involving USD 73 million. Importing cattle to improve the dairy industry in the country is a futile action, as importing cattle alone is not going to increase milk production in the long run, unless there is an effective programme to upgrade local cattle breeds, promote cultivation of  improved pasture grasses which can be grown under coconut and provide better veterinary practices.

Nearly 300 million US dollars worth of rice (a carbohydrate) is imported annually when there are many tuberous crops such as innala, sweet potato, yams which can replace a part of the rice we import thereby reducing expenditure on imports.

Eppawala Apatite (EA), which was discovered a few decades ago still remains partly underutilized. EA can be used to manufacture phosphate fertilisers. But still we grind the rock and use the ground apatite as a P fertiliser, while spending millions to import Single Superphosphate and Triple Super Phosphate, which can be manufactured from EA.

The expenditure on subsidiary crops such as chillies, green gram, ground nut, potato etc, is millions of US dollars. The average per hectare yields and the extent of these crops have not increased by any appreciable amount during the last decade. In fact, chili production has decreased during the last few years.  In the recent past, a former Minister of Agricultural Development Chamal Rajapaksa, appointed an Advisory Panel to make proposals to develop the agricultural sector in the country so that there is a quantitative and qualitative increase in crop production at a lower cost with no damage to the environment. During the last few years numerous programmes such as AMA’, Waga Sangramaya and Govi Sevana” were implemented. All these activities/programmes, appear to have not made any appreciable positive impact on the agricultural sector of the country indicated by increasing expenditure on food.

Science and Technology.

Effective use of Science and Technology (S&T) would tend to reduce imports and increase exports. During the last two decades, effective use of Science and Technology (S&T) enabled most of the South and South East Asian countries to develop substantially. However, in Sri Lanka, in spite of a number of scientific organisations such as the National Science Foundation, National Institute of Fundamental Studies, National Research Council of Sri Lanka, National Science and Technology Commission, which use a considerable amount of scarce financial resources, S&T has been used to a relatively very little extent to decrease imports which will tend to reduce trade deficit thereby improving the economy of the country.

A primary objective of use of S&T in a developing country such as Sri Lanka must be to conduct appropriate studies on the critical issues and advise the authorities on relevant action to be taken. Science and Technology need to be used to utilise locally available resources. Conducting research alone will not lead to economic development, unless the technologies developed by research are commercialised. Organisations such as the Industrial Development Board, the Board of Investments etc. need to coordinate with the relevant scientific organisations to attract investments on commercialisation of proven technologies. Vidatha Centers have been established in many DS Divisions to commercialise S&T. Perhaps the Ministry of Technology and Research may indicate to what extent these Vidatha Centers have been effective in commercialising S&T.

In Sri Lanka, during the last two decades, perhaps a few hundreds of research studies, involving billions of rupees worth of scarce resources, have been conducted. Findings of these research projects were presented at numerous conferences, seminars etc. It is important that we utilise these research findings to find solutions to some of the pressing problems of the country. But there appears to be no effective system to achieve this. Instead, the authorities are concerned in conducting more and more seminars and symposia without any plan to effectively utilise the findings/conclusions.

The authorities concerned should discuss these issues and take appropriate action. There has been rhetoric on economic development during the last few years. It is meaningful and effective actions that are necessary.

Courtesy Hiru News

The National Physical Planning Department has designated 11 temples of significant archaeological, historical, and sacred importance as Sacred Sites in the Government Gazette. These areas, now recognized as sacred sites, had their respective documents submitted to the Presidential Secretariat yesterday (15), presided over by Mr. Saman Ekanayake, the Secretary to the President.

Ambagaswewa Purana Rajamaha Vihara belonging to Horovpatana Divisional Secretariat Division of the Anuradhapura District, Pothuvatawana Maha Vihara belonging to Dankotuwa Divisional Secretariat Division of Puttalam District, Ampara Muhudu Maha Vihara of Pottuvil Divisional Secretariat Division of Ampara District, Maddegama Raja Maha Vihara belonging to Dompe Divisional Secretariat Division of Gampaha District, Uddhakandara Rajamaha Vihara belonging to the Tissamaharamaya Divisional Secretariat, Hambantota District, Sri Saddharma Yuktika Vana Senasuna (Monastery) belonging to the Kuchchaveli Divisional Secretariat division of Trincomalee district were designated as sacred sites.

Further, Dambadeniya Sri Vijaya Sundararama Raja Maha Vihara belonging to the Narammala Divisional Secretariat division in Kurunegala district, Shanthi Viharya belonging to the Kuchchaveli Divisional Secretariat division of Trincomalee district , Kabalewa Ambawa Sri Sudharmarama Purana Vihara and Gambhara Siddha Kabala Mul Soonyam Devalaya in the Kuliapitiya West Divisional Secretariat division of the Kurunegala District and Yan Oya Rajamaha Vihara belonging to Trincomalee Kuchchaveli Divisional Secretariat Division, Sagara Pura Samudragiri Vana Senasuna which belongs to Kuchchaveli Divisional Secretariat Division of Trincomalee District were also declared as sacred sites.

As a result, the total count of sanctuaries recognized as sacred places of worship in Sri Lanka has now risen to 142. President’s Secretary Saman Ekanayake affirmed President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s unwavering commitment to upholding and protecting Buddhism in accordance with the Constitution. Additionally, the Secretary to the President highlighted various government initiatives aimed at advancing Buddhism, guided by the President’s directives.

These include plans to initiate archaeological excavations at the Maha Vihara, the epicenter of Theravada Buddhism, establish the Maha Vihara University, and construct an international Buddhist museum in Kandy.

The gathering was chaired by Most Venerable Balangoda Sobhita Nayaka Thera. Also in attendance were Most Venerable Ganthune Assaji Maha Nayaka Thera, as well as Most Venerable Medagama Nandawansa Thera.

Minister of State Shanta Bandara, Member of Parliament Samanpriya Herath, Secretary of the Buddha Sasana Ministry of Religious and Cultural Affairs Somaratne Vidanapathirana, Commissioner General of Buddhist Affairs, Director-General of the Physical Planning Department, along with officials from related institutions and donors of temples, attended the event.

Prior to the presentation of the”Puja Bhumi Sannaspathra” a charitable donation was also made at the Presidential Secretariat in honour of the Maha Sangha who graced the occasion with their presence.

Story by Andrew Griffin Courtesy The Independent

Graphene, a wonder material” that could help solve some of humanity’s deepest problems, has cleared a major hurdle towards practical uses.

Graphene is the world’s thinnest, super-strong and super-flexible material. It could have dramatic applications in everything from engineering tissue to making new kinds of technological devices.

However, scientists have been concerned that it could cause damage to human health, which could cause significant problems for its practical use.

Now researchers say that inhaling the substance does not seem to have any short-term adverse effects on the lungs or cardiovascular function.

It marked the first controlled exposure clinical trial of its kind, which used ultra-pure graphene oxide, which is a water compatible form of the material.

The researchers recruited 14 volunteers to take part in the study, who breathed in the material through a face mask for two hours while cycling in an exposure chamber.

Effects on the lungs, blood pressure, blood clotting and inflammation in the blood were monitored, before the exposure and at two-hour intervals.

The volunteers returned two weeks later for further experimentation.

Researchers concluded there were no negative effects on the lungs, blood pressure or all other areas examined.

They did notice a slight suggestion that inhalation of the material can change how the blood clots, but emphasised this was very small”.

Researchers said they would need to further experiment with the substance to see if longer exposure poses a risk to health, and if other forms of graphene are dangerous to humans.

Graphene was first synthesised in 2004 by scientists, who hailed the substance a wonder” material.

It is a form of carbon, consisting of a single layer of atoms in a hexagonal lattice.

Scientists around the world are actively studying graphene to see if it can assist with cancer and other health conditions.

Dr Mark Miller, of the University of Edinburgh’s Centre for Cardiovascular Science, said: Nanomaterials such as graphene hold such great promise, but we must ensure they are manufactured in a way that is safe before they can be used more widely in our lives.

Being able to explore the safety of this unique material in human volunteers is a huge step forward in our understanding of how graphene could affect the body.

With careful design we can safely make the most of nanotechnology.”

Professor Kostas Kostarelos, of the University of Manchester and the Catalan Institute of Nanoscience and Nanotechnology in Barcelona, added: This is the first-ever controlled study involving healthy people to demonstrate that very pure forms of graphene oxide – of a specific size distribution and surface character – can be further developed in a way that would minimise the risk to human health.

It has taken us more than 10 years to develop the knowledge to carry out this research, from a materials and biological science point of view, but also from the clinical capacity to carry out such controlled studies safely by assembling some of the world’s leading experts in this field.”

Professor Bryan Williams, chief scientific and medical officer at the British Heart Foundation, said: The discovery that this type of graphene can be developed safely, with minimal short-term side effects, could open the door to the development of new devices, treatment innovations and monitoring techniques.

We look forward to seeing larger studies over a longer timeframe to better understand how we can safely use nanomaterials like graphene to make leaps in delivering lifesaving drugs to patients.”

By Sena Thoradeniya

Anura Kumara Dissanayaka was in India. Media reported that it was on an invitation by Indian Government. According to Indian media reports this visit was organized by Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR) affiliated to the Ministry of External Affairs and the delegation was accompanied by Eldos Mathew Punnoose, Counsellor at the Indian High Commission in Colombo. 

(1) Nonverbal Signals

Anura Kumara in a full suit was seen in conversation with Indian External Affairs Minister Subramanyam Jaishankar who was wearing a sherwani type Indian dress.  Anura Kumara has shed both his kapati kit and military type battle dressand preferredto be like Ranil, the Anglomaniac. Milinda Moragoda the ace pro-American – Indian – Sri Lankan” was never seen in full suit while he was Sri Lanka’s envoy in New Delhi. Anura Kumara’s one-time guru, Somawansa Amarasinghe wearing a full suit, embraced RW, at a presidential election meeting held in support of Sarath Fonseka.

Anura Kumara was in conversation with Jaishankar without any aides. So, we surmise that their tete -a-tete was not in either Sinhala or Hindi.  But their gestures, facial expressions, eye contact and other nonverbal signals (look at the facial expressions of Jaishankar, he was amused, how he was playing with his fingers and his posture, while Anura Kumara was somewhat bewildered, why this man not going beyond basic courtesies!) signify something else.  Anura Kumara’s posture is significant.

He was not that parlor boy who kowtowed to Julie Chung. Some say he was tutored by Julie Chung how to conduct himself with foreign dignitaries after his dismal appearance before her! Anura Kumara wears a red tie; Colour of the tie worn by Donald Trump and a Sri Lankan business tycoon! The painting in the background is symbolic. Krishna with gopis (milkmaids) in Vrindavan?

2. What They Discussed?

We don’t know what Anura Kumara discussed with Jaishankar. But Jaishankar’s X message gives a clue. A good discussion on our bilateral relationship and the mutual benefits from its further deepening. Also spoke about Sri Lanka’s economic challenges and the paths ahead”.

What bilateral relationships” the External Affairs Minister of a sovereign government has with a minor party in another country? According to a media report Jaishankar has assured that India with its Neighborhood First” and SAGAR policies will always be a reliable friend and trusted partner of Sri Lanka.  

Did Anura Kumara question India’s Neighborhood First” and SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region) policies? RW meeting Indian Premier Modi in mid-July last year was lured by Modi’s Neighborhood First Policy” and SAGAR Vision, to take Sri Lanka into India’s orbit.

Did Anura Kumara question RW’s MOUs and declarations exchanged with the Indian Government, Energy and Power Connectivity, Air Connectivity, Land Connectivity, Maritime Connectivity, Trade, Economic and Financial Connectivity, People-to-People Connectivity? Does Anura Kumara know that his trip to India had been arranged at a time when these Connectivity Programmes” are already being implemented step by step? People owe an explanation from NPP/JVP whether they approve these MOUs.

Did Anura Kumara question India’s role as a member of QUAD (Quadrilateral Security Dialogue, of Australia, India, Japan and the US) established to counter China, militarily and diplomatically in the Indo-Pacific Region?

3. Media Hype

A wrong notion was spread by mainstream media and social media in India and Sri Lanka respectively, that India invited Anura Kumara for discussions because of his popularity and he will be the next President of Sri Lanka and form the next government.

These reports were based on a survey conducted by USAID-funded Institute of Health Policy (IHP), Sri Lanka Opinion Tracker Survey (SLOTS) for Presidential Elections Voting Intention for December 2023: if there is a Presidential Election today who would you vote for? According to the SLOT, 50% of the respondents had said that they would vote for NPP. What is their sample size? These estimates were based on 522 interviews conducted in December 2023. In October 2023 their sample size was 567. From 1 October 2021 to 7 January 2024 sample size was 14941. This is a very small fraction of the total number of voters.  They say that the margin of error was assessed as 1-4%. It is not necessary to emphasize that voters’ preferences, especially of floating voters change drastically with one single incident. Examples abound.   

This was given wide publicity by an Indian TV channel WION (World In One News), an English language news channel based in New Delhi, owned by Essel Group, an Indian multinational conglomerate. Its journalists who are very close to Modi, include personnel of DD News, India’s state- owned Door Darshan. This group operates India’s Zee Media Corporation. WION displayed a graphical representation of the above survey results dubbing NPP as a Marxist-Leninist party! It became a momentous news item to Indian media personnel, describing Anura Kumara as island nation’s the most popular politician at the moment”.

Do these media personnel ask themselves in which country a Marxist-Leninist” party mobilizes retired military officers and other ranks into a Tri Forces Collective” (Thrivda Hamuda Balavegaya)? They should be taught the ground reality that it is only an act of establishing a para-military force. JVP was never a Marxist-Leninist party; those who witnessed its genesis and operations know this very well.  

Are we to believe that RAW and CIA are naive to trust the results of a survey conducted by an unknown Institute while they have their own estimations and world-renowned analysts?

IHP results are shown by some bogus theorists who propelled Vardarajah Perumal, Premadasa and many other politicians in the South, who got plum diplomatic appointments from two Presidents and who was in GR camp initially, to urge the voters to give a chance to NPP to lead. 

Anura Kumara’s trip was certainly arranged to brief him about the above-mentioned Connectivity Programmes”, to silence him and his NPP followers about Indian interventions and investments in the country and to enlist him and his followers to QUAD’s anti-China ensemble-may be to play a really low instrument!

It was reported that Anura Kumara had met with India’s Defense Advisor Ajit  Doval and Indian Foreign Secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra. What are Anua Kumara’s expertise in international and defense matters?

Did he ask them why India had sent her INS Karanji submarine to Colombo on 3 February 2024? Was he briefed about and had he accepted that India is the primary security provider in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR)? 

Did he raise that hundreds of Indian fishing vessels crossing Indo-Lanka maritime boundary, poaching and plundering our fishery resources depriving the livelihood of thousands of fishermen in the North and East and other migrant fishermen, let alone Ukraine and Gaza? 

(4) Untangling a Tangled Web

(i) Baglay, Santhos Jha and Julie Chung

Addressing a Sanga meeting organised by NPP in Kandy on October 11. 2019, Anura Kumara said: the method used by imperialists to conquer countries has changed. In the past they conquered countries using cannons, but now they conquer countries using briefcases. Patriotism means understanding the new face of foreign invasion and making a decision as to if we will bow down to it or not. We ask for loans from the US, they say we will give you loans but we want land. Sometimes these embassies choose the Presidential candidates, they sometimes choose the leaders of the parties.”

Anura Kumara has correctly identified his predictable metamorphosis associated with briefcases and foreign trips three years ahead of 2024. How do we explain this? Is it a premonition as some say or karmic undertones? It was a public secret that RAW throwing out millions of rupees to Left, left- of- center political parties in Sri Lanka to contest first Provincial Council Elections! 

There are many presuppositions to state that Anura Kumara’s tripwas arranged by Gopal Baglay, the former Indian High Commissioner in Sri Lanka and Santhos Jha the present High Commissioner, Julie Chung, the American envoy and Ranil Wickremasinghe. The origins of this trip go back to the two meetings Julie Chung had with Anura Kumara.

Julie Chung met with Anura Kumara just a few days before July 9, 2022 and twittered: To me the JVP is a significant party. They have a growing presence. They resonate with the public during recent times. They are a growing political party and their ideas are accepted by the public”. She very well knew JVP’s active involvement in Galle Face Carnival, how it attempted to storm and occupy the Parliament, how their rabble-rousers bellowed that they can occupy Hulftsdorf and they knew where the judges of the Supreme Courts live.

Haiti’s President Jovenal Moise was assassinated in July 2021. The murder took place when Chung was Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs. She had met Moise on June 26, three weeks before the murder. Very soon she was appointed as US Ambassador to Sri Lanka and presented her credentials to GR on 25, February 2022, just 34 days before Mirihana incident. Some may argue it as a demotion but it was only a move from one hot spot to another. On July 09, 2022 GR was nearly lynched.

Just a few days ahead Anura Kumara’s visit to US, Julie Chung visited JVP party headquarters accompanied by US Embassy’s Political Officer Mathew Hinson and its political expert” Nazreen Marikkar on 19, October 2023. After her meeting Julie Chung posted on X (formally twitter): Today I met Anuradissanyaka and discussed current political & economic issues. Important to listen to diverse perspectives and engage with various political parties in a democracy”. (please see our posting on November 1^st, 2023).

This meeting was none other than providing a last-minute briefing before his departure. Nobody can rule out Anura Kumara meeting proxies of the US State Department. On his return he met an IMF delegation on January 19, 2024. Neither the IMF mission nor the NPP revealed anything about their discussion.

Anura Kumara met with outgoing Indian High Commissioner in Sri Lanka Gopal Baglay on November 17, 2023, his successor Santosh Jha on 23, January 2023 and German Ambassador on 31, January 2024.

(ii) Ranil Wickremasinghe

Why we bring Ranil Wickremasinghe to the reckoning?

(a) RW appointed NPP’s Central Committee Member Upul Kumarapperuma, a President’s Counsel (PC), the lawyer who represented the interests of notorious Garnia Barrister aka Sriyalatha Perera in Swiss Embassy case.  

(b) At a reception held to felicitate a recently appointed PC, RW had quipped to an NPP Attorney-at-Law that very soon Anura Kumara will be in his side.  

(c) Why did Sri Lankan High Commissioner in New Delhi receive Anura Kumara? Was it in accordance with protocol? Anura Kumara is just a party leader. Unimaginable.

(d)RWdelivering the government policy statement at the commencement of the new session of Parliament recalled the cooperation between the JVP and Yahapalana government, and asked why it could not cooperate with the present government for common good. RW recalled that Anura Kumara had nominated one Ananda Wijepala as the head of the anticorruption office and some documents pertaining to corruption were still with the JVP leader. These were the documents JVP brought to the meeting held at the SLFI at the height of the Galle Face Protest.It seems that JVP had not returned those files to anti-corruption Committee, giving a reprieve to corrupt politicians and officials. But the JVP backed the corrupt Yahapalana government, defended it when Maithripala tried to dislodge it by appointing MR as the Prime Minister.

(e) While SJB and some other MPs left the chamber when the President commenced his speech on 6 February 2024, JVP’s Harini Amarasuriya remained in her seat. Others who remained were Fonseka, Rajitha Senaratna, Champika Ranawaka, Kumar Welgama, Ishak Rahuman, Faizal Cassim, AHM Fouzie and Vadiwel Suresh. This list signifies what is going to happen in near future. RW took Anuradhapura SJB MP Ishak Rahuman to Perth. Earlier he took Polonnaruwa District SJB MP Kings Nelson to US, Vadivel Suresh and Ajith Mannapperuma to Uganda respectively.

(f) This happened a few days after SJB protesters were attacked with water cannons, tear gas and batons.

(g) Close on the heels ofJaishankar meeting Anura Kumara, the former on February 9, 2024 met with RW at the 7^th Indian Ocean Conference in Perth, Western Australia. RW, no doubt had got a briefing from Jaishankar about the outcome of his discussion with Anura Kumara. RW at this conference said that Indo-Lanka land bridge will enhance regional connectivity and feasibility studies for it is underway. 

(h) These are not accidents. Anura Kumara and NPP grandees need much more time to understand overt and covert operations of diplomacy, although their followers now sing hosannas that they are accepted and recognized by world leaders!

(i) RW will be happy to see Anura Kumara as Leader of the Opposition, a repetition of 2015. But how? Forthcoming political deals would unravel the grand strategy. The time is not yet opportune; we are not phony forecasters.  

(5) US – India Factor

In the forthcoming Presidential/Parliamentary elections US and India factor will be crucial. In such a context muting Anura Kumara and his cabal is essential for both US and India. Now India has kindled hishubris as the President-in-waiting. Already Thondaman in the plantations has declared his allegiance to RW. India will definitely tell the TNA and other Tamil groups what stand they should take at a national election. 

Will the US and India attempt to bring down RW’s government, engineering another regime change supporting a person like Anura Kumara as they removed GR and Imran Khan?  What they want is to neutralize NPP/JVP. It is wishful thinking that India wants to remove RW when he at every forum says that he is bound to safeguard India’s security concerns and ready to give everything to India in a platter, making Sri Lanka India’s vassal state.

(6) Why India Using NPP/JVP?

(a) To test and neutralize NPP/JVP and stop their anti-Indian stance in Sri Lanka;

(b) It is bunkum to say that India is worried about NPP’s rise shown in public meetings;

(c) There is another myth propagated by capitalist press and others who are less informed that India establishing close relations with NPP after the recent political developments in theMaldives.This is a false interpretation ofJaishankar’s advice given to Indians, Why Bharat Matters”: My first advice to you, the next time you want to take a holiday go to Sri Lanka. I’m serious. Please go to Sri Lanka and I say this to all of you”.

It was to further cripple Maldives tourist industry. Already thousands of bookings of Indian tourists who planned to visit Maldives were cancelled to step up pressure on the Maldives. At the expense of Maldives Modi wants to develop and promote Lakshadweep as a tourist destination. He was seen holidaying in a Lakshadweep beach. Mohamed Muizzu had to sack three State Ministers who ridiculed Modi.  Indian Coast Guards boarded three Maldivian fishing vessels operating within the Maldivian economic zone, to bully and intimidate Muizzu who requested to withdraw an Indian military contingent from the Maldives.

Jaishankar’s advice also can be interpreted as root binding” RW and Sri Lanka, not to go against Bharath. With this he aims at the Maldives too. It was threatening: don’t deviate! Don’t be the prodigal son! I can put the best robe on you; put a ring in your finger; sandals on your feet; can kill the fattened calf and feast and celebrate.”

On 12 February, 2024, India launched its Unified Payments Interface (UPI) services at a virtual ceremony, enabling availability of UPI settlement services for Indian nationals touring Sri Lanka and Mauritius. Another blow to the Maldives. Anura Kumara needs much more political maturity to understand these intricacies of state craft.

The second part of Jaishankar’s adviceis more like a mocking comment on Sri Lanka. When the world had turned its back India was the one and only country that came to their rescue- not in a small way- we actually committed US dollars 4.5 billion to Sri Lanka – much more than the package the then Sri Lankan government was negotiating with the IMF at that time.” He recalled his past experiences what he saw, Sri Lanka running out of food, essential supplies and fuel. Mix with normal persons in Sri Lanka of the road and ask what they think of India. Their answer will make you grow in stature”.  

It is only liberals and capitalist press say that if not NPP/JVP come into an understanding with India, they will be isolated in global politics, equating it – just a minor party in Sri Lanka having only 3 MPs – to Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea), a regional military power. 

India already knows that Anura Kumara is in Julie Chung’s pocket.  It is to bind AKD to India’s national security concerns and forcing NPP to act accordingly and go against China, toeing the line of QUAD.

It is a planned strategy to tame NPP/JVP, to tame them using soft diplomacy. To show that India is an economic powerhouse; having a growing economy which is able to supersede other nations; to get an assurance to join in India’s efforts in containment of China; to solicit support for India’s efforts in full implementation of 13th Amendment and power sharing.  India knows that they have a conduit inside in Harini Amarasuriya who openly supported full implementation of 13^th Amendment, a member of the Public Representatives Committee on Constitution Reforms (PRCCR) appointed by Yahapalana government which recommended removal of our national symbols.

(7)  ETCA

India needs unhindered passage of the Economic and Technology Cooperation Agreement (ETCA) which talks have already resumed.  India and Sri Lanka suspended talks on ETCA in 2018 on account of protests. We recall the opposition for ETCA from professionals and various politicians.   RW had taken it up again and he said that Sri Lanka has plans to establish a free trade agreement with India by the end of March 2024. ETCA will open the service sector to Indians. This will be aggravated with the so-called Land Connectivity, establishing a land bridge across Palk Strait developing land access and Maritime Connectivity, a ferry service to begin between Kankasanthurai (KKS) and Nagapattinum and resumption of ferry service between Talaimannar and Rameswaram (already begun), and Air Connectivity between Chennai and Jaffna, Trinco, Batticaloa and other destinations in Sri Lanka. Has Anura Kumara changed his ideas regarding ETCA? Lower segments of the NPP will be mostly affected by the influxof Indian workers.

(8) India’s New Investments: Meetings with Government Officials and Members of the Business Community

Anura Kumara also met the officials of the Observer Research Foundation (ORF) an Indian global thinktank based in Delhi, founded by Dhirubhai Ambani of Reliance Industries which provide research and advisory services on security, strategy, economy, energy and resources. Did Anura Kumara chant Down with Ambani” or Jai Ambani”!

He visited the headquarters of the Unique Identification Authority of India (UIDAI) of Ministry of Electronics and information Technology in New Delhi. This organization is responsible for managing Aadaar, India’s national ID system which provides 12-digit ID number based on a person’s biometrics, (10 finger prints, 2 iris prints and photo of face and demographic data.Aadaar is the world’s largest biometric ID system considered as the most sophisticated ID programme in the world.

Sri Lanka’s India-funded unique ID card project is in the process of appointing a new consultant while fresh tenders have been called after Madras Security Printers (MSP) and Protein Technologies which won the tender earlier have been disqualified. India has given an advance aid of 450 million IR to Sri Lanka for this project which aims to collect biometric and biographic information including facial, fingerprints and iris data. Funds are given by the Indian government, data collected by Indian firms, stored in a centralized system, India having access to personal data of Sri Lankan citizens breaching data privacy. An Indo-Sri Lanka Joint Project Monitoring Committee (JPMC) has been already appointed to oversee the progress of this project.  Did Anura Kumara raise his objections? Did Anura Kumara chant Down with India-funded unique ID card project or Jai India-funded unique ID card project”!

Look at the places where the NPP delegation was taken by the Indian authorities! Is it because NPP’s growing popularity” and India’s fear of it or something else? By showing India’s wonders to a set of Sri Lankan rhetoricians India had tamed them never to raise their ugly heads against their investments in the Island, to proceed with India’s plans without undue resistance.

The Hindu” has quoted Anura Kumara: we do know that India who is our closest neighbor has become a major political and economic center. So, when we take economic and political decisions, we will always care it will impact India”. What he said was any decision Sri Lanka makes should be done in keeping view of the impact it has on India.

Thus, Anura Kumara has given a firm assurance to India that their investments are safe.

It was reported that Anura Kumara had said that, we are mindful of India’s concerns including its security.” We are not competitors, but India is”. He had stated that they stand for neutrality in foreign policy. These were the words of a tamed person. This is the biggest victory India gained in neutralizing a leader of a minor party of a tiny island in the Indian Ocean.  It is tantamount to accepting India as the security provider. In other words, Anura Kumara had shown his willingness to stand together with India and its major ally the US against China.   

A few weeks before his departure to India Anura Kumara lambasted Ranil W in Parliament for selling Sri Lanka to India; his long list began with repairs at Durraiyappah Stadium, Jaffna, KKS harbor expansion, Palali airport modernization, hotels at Nilaveli beach in Trincomalee, selling Pulmoddai mineral sand facility to Birlas,  giving Mannar Islands to Adanis and other Indian investments in the Trincomalee area including operations of IOC.     

At the same time, NPP’s CEB trade union boss Ranjan Jayalal flayed Indian investors, criticized deals with Adanis. He further said Mahaveli power houses are to be given to Adani.  Repeating what his boss said he said RW is going to hand over Mannar Islands to Adani and Sri Lanka’s dairy industry to Amul. He further stated that Modi will demand Sri Lanka to hand over Mannar islands and Trinco to India. Did Anura Kumara in his discussions with Indian business leaders ask them to reverse their decisions?

But just before his departure he praised Indians, how India has resolved its ethnic and religious problems, the strides taken by them in developing their country economically, that Indians are leading several US firms such as Google, while Sri Lanka is bogged down in nostalgia.

Whilst Anura Kumara enjoying Indian hospitality, Indian media reported that Sri Lankan Minister Haren Fernando who is attending a meeting in Mumbai had said that Adani Group is negotiating with Sri Lankan authorities to manage three Sri Lankan airports, BIA, Mattala and Ratmalana. Did Anura Kumara raise his objections? Did Anura Kumara chant Down with Adani” or Jai Adani!

Petronet LNG Ltd., India’s biggest LNG company is going to begin shipping LNG to Sri Lanka in 2025, in containers loaded on ship and later to build an import terminal to supply LNG to two gas-fired power plants in Sri Lanka, Yugadanavi and Sobadanavi.  It will ship 850 tons of gas daily from Kochi, super-chilled gas in containers. A small regasification unit will turn LNG into gaseous state again in a gas fired power plant. Petronet also plans to commission a Floating Storage Regasification Unit (FSRU) at Colombo port. Petronet imports LNG from Qatar Energy LNG, Qatar and Australia.  Discussions are on to set up Indo-Lanka LNG pipeline from Kochi and Colombo. Already the so-called Energy and Power Connectivity has begun.

Petronet’s subsidiary is Adani Petronet, Dahej. Indian High Commissioner Santosh Jha, marking India’s 75^th Republic Day on January 26, 2024, confirmed that energy and power grid connectivity had already begun and he expected an early conclusion of ETCA. Did Anura Kumara raise his objections? Did Anura Kumara chant Down with Petronet” or Jai Petronet”!

Indian High Commissioner Santosh Jha also said that Adani’s 500 mw wind power deal should progress. Land acquisition began for Mannar Wind Power Project (MWPP)of Adani Green Energy Sri Lanka Ltd. (AGESL). Original plan was changed into a government-to government deal (originally unsolicited) for two wind projects of 286 mw in North West of Mannar and 234 mw in Northern Poonaryn. Cabinet Appointed Negotiation Committee (CANC) has raised concerns over its pricing as it was expensive.  Did Anura Kumara ask them to lower the unit price? Did Anura Kumara chant Down with Adani” or Jai Adani”!

Anura Kumara visited Amul, while his loud-mouthed farmer organizer” lambasting Amul, for buying Sri Lanka’s MILCO. MILCO will be given to Cargills Ceylon and National Dairy Development Board, India and Amul (Anand Milk Union Ltd of Gujarat Milk Marketing Federation Ltd. based in Anand, Gujarat, Modi’s pocket borough. In July the Cabinet decided to lease out all 32 NLDB farms totaling an acreage of 28000 acres and MILCO factories, all MILCO and NLDB sales centers and 97 milk collection centers owned by MILCO to the proposed joint venture company. Colombo milk factory at Narahenpita which is in operation now, will be demolished. Employees and Trade Unions of MILCO have filed a petition before the Court of Appeal against its privatization.  Did Anura Kumara raise his objections? Did Anura Kumara chant Down with Amul” or Jai Amul”!

Did Anura Kumara raise his objections to Indian pressure to withdraw Mobitel lawsuit against the merger of Airtel and Dialog? Airtel Lanka is a subsidiary of Bharati Airtel Limited, Indian multinational telecommunication company, the second largest in the world.  RW in January 2024 requested Mobitel Non-Executive Chairman and CEO to withdraw their legal action against TRC, Airtel and Dialog. According to E-Con E-News, telecom industry analysts argue that proposed merger will grant Dialog to provide predatory pricing in the market, driving other operators out of market ending market competitiveness, affecting the general public driving the market prices up. Did Anura Kumara raise his objections? Did Anura Kumara chant Down with Airtel” or Jai Airtel”!

The government of Sri Lanka has shortlisted India’s Jio Platforms, an Indian multinational technology company Ltd. the largest mobile network operator in India, a subsidiary of Reliance Industries of Mukesh Ambani, and Gortune International Investment Holding Ltd. of Amsterdam as the two pre-qualified bidders for the sale of 50.3% stake in Sri Lanka Telecom. Did Anura Kumara raise his objections? Did Anura Kumara chant Down with Ambani” or Jai Ambani”!

(9) The Myth of Gujarat Model”

Anura Kumara visited Ahmedabad, capital ofGujarat and met with Chief Minister of Gujarat Bupendrabhai Patel, a BJP member and local business leaders at Gandhinagar.At a subsequent meeting held with Gujarat Industry Minister of State a presentation was made on the Gujarat Model” used by the Indian government as a development model.  

We don’t think that Anura Kumara or any other in the NPP/JVP had studied socialist models of development other than paying lip service to socialism. Was he briefed about the criticisms of the Gujarat Model”that so manyeconomists,researchers and academics aredisillusioned with the Gujarat Model”, that it is nothing but a jugglery of words, its hype is hollow and fake, growth is elitist not reaching masses? 

 Gujarat Model” was the brainchild of Narendra Modi, the then Chief Minister of Gujarat. It is characterized with heavy investment in infrastructure, unprecedented incentives and subsidies to the corporate sector on capital, interest, land and water supply to attract investment. It was reported that Tata-Nano (like Suzuki and Hyundai) got 30,000 crores IR subsidies. Land was acquired from common grazing land, protected areas, national parks and from irrigated fertile land. The price started from 1/= Indian Rupee. After giving unprecedented incentives and subsidies to the corporate sector the state government was left with limited funds for education, health, environment and provision of employment. This triggered mass agitations, men and women performing Jal Satyagraha”, remaining immersed in waters up to chest high. The worst affected was tribal population. Thousands of them were forced to migrate.

Does the Professor (we don’t know his credentials; at least in what university he teaches and what subject) who accompanied Anura Kumara, presumably to give him technical advice, know about the Gujarat Model” or whether he raised his concerns about it?

This is a fine lesson to so-called Rathu Sahodarayas”. If Anura Kumara and his clique propagate this model in Sri Lanka all the business conglomerates, chambers will support them adding a  Business Balakaya” to NPP fold!

This trip signifies present pro-Chung JVP’s right deviation from ultra” leftism in 1971 and killing spree in 1988-1988, capitulation to Indian regional hegemonism and shedding its anti-Indian chauvinism.     

Anura Kumara’s comments after visiting Technopark at Thiruvanthapuram (formerly known as Trivandrum, capital of Kerala),is interesting to political analysts and his followers if the latter have an iota of sensibility to understand what their leader does in the name of left” politics. According to United News of India he said Sri Lanka can follow the growth strategies of Technopark and collaborate with IT companies of India to burgeon its nascent IT sector to benefit Sri Lanka. Incidentally the CEO of Technopark is a retired military officer, Col. (Retd) Sanjeev Nair. He further stated that collaboration with Technopark would be a good strategy which will bring benefits to Sri Lanka in building its IT ecosystem.  

Anura Kumara was given an electric (push) cycle to ride and was seen riding it as the harlequin in a circus while other Indian ringmasters, acrobats, trapeze artists, tightrope walkers and jugglers were watching him!

(10) Indian Expansionism and the Love-hate Relationship

It is true that the JVP talked about something called Indian expansionism”; a myth has been created by local media that Wijeweera inherited it from China and comrade Shanmugathasan. But what China, Shamugathasan and other pro-China groups in Sri Lanka expounded by Indian expansionism” was not what was vulgarized by Wijeweera. Without discussing about India’s  border disputes with China, providing refuge to Dalai Lama and other Tibetan dissidents at Dharmsala, wars with Pakistan, occupation of Kashmir, how it subjugated Sikkim, undue interferences with Nepal and Bhutan, JVP found Indian plantation workers as agents of its mythical Indian expansionism”.

The allegation made against Indian plantation workers was, in their line rooms they adorn pictures of Gandhi and Nehru and the calendars they hang depict pictures of Indian matinee idols such as MGR, Shivaji, Jayalalitha et al and their allegiance was to India. JVP wanted to uproot tea bushes in Kandyan areas and plant the land with manioc. JVP said that indentured plantation workers live a comfortable life compared to upcountry peasants with free dwellings, estate schools, estate dispensaries and pullemadu” (crèches) for toddlers and they have deprived the latter’s livelihood, all which were historically, economically, socially and culturally untrue.

JVP/ DJV went on a killing spree against the induction of IPKF and opposed the 13^th Amendment and Provincial Councils; killed supporters of 13^th Amendment, Provincial Councils and those who contested Provincial Councils Elections (SLFP did not contest PC elections) and voters. Killings continued during the Presidential Elections held in December 1988 and General Elections conducted in February 1989 respectively. Thus, prominent SLFP, CP, LSSP, Sri Lanka Mahajana Party, NSSP leaders/candidates, left trade union leaders and leaders of other left groups totaling hundreds were eliminated.

JVP/DJV killed even petty traders who sold coriander imported from India; renamed Mysore dhal as rathu parippu, Bombay onions as loku loonu and Bombay motai  (a crude type of candy floss sold by mobile vendors to lesser privileged children) as nice motai; vilified IPKF  as Indian Wanduru Hamudawa” (Indian Monkey Brigade); issued a directive asking all Indian businessmen to leave Sri Lanka ; 11 of them were killed including some employees at Pelwatta Sugar Company.    

In spite of this, JVP established contacts with RAW after killing some IPKF soldiers in Trinco.  It was recorded that the intermediary was a media person who was later killed and dumped in the mid sea taken in a helicopter. For the first time claymore mines were activated in the South; technical knowhow was passed by RAW through Tamil separatists. Even in January 2003 police found a claymore mine in Ahungalla. It was documented that during the height of JVP/DJV offensive JVP maintained unofficial as well as official contacts with the Indian High Commission in Colombo.

So, the love-hate relationship of JVP with the Indians is a very complicated phenomenon continued by different leaders of JVP up to this point.

Leaving Sri Lanka clandestinely Somavansa Amerasinghe first sent his wife and son to India; afterwards Somavansa came to India in a boat; he came to France via Thailand. From India a RAW agent had accompanied him to France. These are well documented.

Somavansa, coming back to Sri Lanka thanked VP Singh, the Indian Prime Minister from 1989-1990, at a meeting at Kalutara. When Singh died in 2008, Tilvin Silva and Somavansa went to the Indian High Commission with white flowers to offer their condolences.

(11) Harini Amarasuriya Again

Why Harini Amarasuriya was elected as NPP’s National List MP overlooking JVP’s former Ministers, MPs, other stalwarts of the party and academics and professionals included in its National List such as Kumar David, the Trotskyite, Lal Wijenayaka, the LSSP dissident and Yayapalana constitution maker (now NPP Central Committee Member – strange alignments!) and some CP academics, was not a mystery. Anura Kumara knew her Indian-US – and NGO connections well (please see: Janus-faced JVP: False Conceptions and Harini Amarasuriya Factor” posted on 14 December 2023).

Next we reveal a lesser known fact – that she was a member ofPublic Representatives Committee on Constitution Reforms (PRCCR) headed by Lal Wijenayaka,appointed by yahapalana government. Its 333 paged final report was presented to Sirisena on 10, May 2016.  It proposed a United Sri Lanka paving the way for a federal state.

Among the recommendations of the Committee were replacing the present national flag with one suitable for a secular state, removing all majoritarian” symbols, providing constitutional safeguards to LGBTIQ community, doing away with denominational and single gender” schools (boys/girls), establishment of a Malayaha (Upcountry) Tamil Development Commission.

(12) What Next After the Initial Euphoria?

JVP/NPP propaganda boys hailed Anura Kumara’s trip as a proof of their party’s international recognition. At the press briefing held on 10/2, immediately after the return of NPP delegation Wijitha Herath said something very amusing. All selling and leasing of national assets or any other economic transaction should be done according to Procurement Guidelines.

But until its Indian tour NPP opposed Indian investments not because of shortcomings or problems associated with adhering to Procurement Guidelines or lack of transparency. On the whole it opposed selling and leasing of national assets; don’t sell power, energy, oil tanks, ports, telecom, to India, Adani or Amul. Now they demand to follow Procurement Guidelines strictly!

Many of his followers who are ignorant of Procurement Guidelines may think that this is a new proposal made by Herath. But Procurement Guidelines were officially proclaimed by MR as President on January 27, 2006, 18 years ago and Procurement Guidelines were issued by National Procurement Agency Chairman/CEO by an 85 paged document to all heads of Ministries, Departments, Corporations and Statutory Bodies, PCs, Local Bodies and Public Companies. Isn’t Herath aware of this being an MP for so many years? What he says is to follow Procurement Guidelines and sell and lease out accordingly. If you follow Procurement Guidelines it’s okay. Even if malimawa comes into power we will follow Procurement Guidelines. But India does not need a malimawa; RW is doing it now smarter than any other person.

Herath said, We explained to India that our position was safeguarding Sri Lanka’s sovereignty,whileguaranteeingregional security. We would not do anything that upset our regional security. We assured that none of our actions would do any harm to regional security.” This is an assurance given to India that NPP would not do anything to harm India’s security. India does not need this assurance from NPP as India has RW to guarantee regional security!

On 12 February, 2024, India launched its Unified Payments Interface (UPI) services in Sri Lanka at a virtual ceremony, enabling availability of UPI settlement services for Indian nationals touring Sri Lanka. RW’s another MOU exchanged with the Indian government during his visit to India in 2023, the much touted Trade, Economic and Financial Connectivity, designing INR as a currency for trade settlement and tourism, digital payments, digital economy was thus adopted. Does the NPP know that this is not a solution to dollar crisis as it prevents transactions in US dollars? Did they voice their opinion against it? 

There are poodles who do not bark much. Instead of Negative Reinforcement, Positive Reinforcement (praise, rewards, affection, recognition, acceptance) can be used to help the poodle to learn that there are better ways than barking. India has done it. Who cares who follows, European Union or NATO? 

KAMALIKA PIERIS

The Tamil Separatist Movement has shown strong opposition to the presence of Buddhist temples in the north and east. Tamil Separatist Movement   vehemently objects to the construction of Buddhist temples and demands their removal.

Tamil Separatist Movement   objects to construction of new Buddhist temples, Buddha statues and shrines. It objects to   the presence of Bhikkhus in those temples and to the excavation of ancient Buddhist temples. Tamil Separatist Movement calls this Buddhistization.”  Tamil Separatist Movement   responds by destroying Buddhist ruins,   by     vandalizing   Buddhist statues, by  threatening bhikkhus who had come into the north and east,building kovils on the sites of ancient Buddhist temples and by creating contested sites.

Tamil Separatist Movement complains loudly that Buddhist temples are built in the north and east where there are no Buddhists. However, they do not object   when Christian missions start evangelist churches.

Since the end of the Eelam war, a large number of Buddhist viharas and Buddha statues have sprouted in the North thanks to the Sri Lankan armed forces, Tamil Separatist Movement complained.

There has been an influx in the rediscoveries” of Sinhala Buddhist sites in predominantly Tamil and Muslim areas by Sri Lanka’s Department of Archaeology, it said. These rediscoveries” of Buddhist sites are affecting the Tamil homeland concept. Further, this rediscovery” of  Buddhist sites, with   the  assistance of archaeology , helps in the takeover of  Tamil land.

 This strategy  of  using ancient ruins, has been in operation for several decades, but it is now accelerated. Overzealous Buddhist monks have started to construct Buddhist temples on  state land saying they  are Buddhist archaeological sites.

In 2016, after the Yahapalana government came to power, there were numerous demands for the removal of Buddhist temples, statues, and shrines built in the Northern Province,.  In August 2016 TNA MPs met Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe and complained about Buddhist temples and statues being built in the area. 

The Northern Provincial Council   passed a resolution in 2016 prohibiting the construction of Buddhist temples in the north.   It had no legal standing, said lawyers.

Tamil Peoples’ Council, headed by Northern Province Chief Minister C.V.Wigneswaran said,  in a statement  issued in 2016    that Buddha Viharas are sprouting like mushrooms in areas where there are no Buddhists.

The Tamil Peoples’ Council ,  invited people to join a mass protest in Jaffna on September 24, 2016 to demand a stop to the construction of Buddha statues and Buddhist temples in areas in the Northern Province where there are no Buddhists.

C.V.  Wigneswaran issued a statement saying stop erecting Buddha statues and Buddhist temples illegally and in places where there are no Buddhists..  He also objected to putting up Buddha statues and temples  on private lands.

There were 131 sites of Buddhist religious worship in the North, of which 67 were in Mullaitivu. . These were ‘unlawful’ as there was no Sinhalese living in those areas. They must  be removed immediately, said the Tamil Separatist Movement  in 2018.  

Tamil Separatist Movement tried to  internationalize  this matter. Global Peace Support Group  made an appeal in March, 2010 to Hindus in India saying  Sinhalese Buddhism is waging a war against Hinduism in Īlam”.

The British Tamil Forum  launched in 2017 a book titled Proliferation of Buddhist structures in Tamil Homeland-sowing the seeds of disharmony.” The book  says that Buddhism is the root cause of the massive bloodshed and genocide in Sri Lanka”

In  January 2021 the  Tamil Separatist Movement sent a message to  Federation of Saiva (Hindu) Temples U.K, saying that concerted action by Hindus all over the world is urgently needed to halt the large-scale Buddhistization and colonization of lands belonging to Hindu Tamils in  Sri Lanka.

Federation of Saiva Hindu temples, UK, an umbrella body of 32 Hindu temples in the UK  issued a statement in 2023. They  named specific Hindu temples  which they said  had been  systematically targeted by the hate driven Archaeological Department”. They said that  this was  part of a political  strategy to  marginalize the Hindu community in Sri Lanka.

K  Annamalai , Tamil Nadu BJP President went to UK  in June 2023 and spoke at a Chamber in the House of Lords. The event was organized by British Tamil Sangam and Sangamam UK. He said  that  the emergence of Buddhist archaeological sites in the north and eastern provinces of Sri Lanka ,  has caused tensions between Tamils and Buddhists.  The Northern and Western provinces  of Sri Lanka have maintained a unique culture and identity for more than a thousand years,  said Annamalai  .

Tamil Separatist Movement plans to use the legal system to obstruct the building of temples. It was reported in November, 2020, that M.A. Sumanthiran, has formed an advocacy group of lawyers to deal with the Buddhist challenge to Tamil dominance. Twenty-seven attorneys-at-law attended the first meeting. The group vowed to challenge the government with lawsuits to claw back what Tamils have lost.  

Two plaints have been filed at the Trincomalee High Court. One plaint challenged the acquisition of state land to construct Buddhist temples in Kuchchaveli Divisional Secretariat area in Trincomalee District. The other challenged the high-handed acquisition of 354 acres of paddy land in Thennamaravadi, obtained a stay order in favor of the petitioners, prohibiting the transfer of the lands to Buddhist temples.

Tamil Separatist Movement charged that the  Department of Archaeology   has   obstructed Hindu worship  in  temples under their charge. They have restricted public access to  kovils citing ongoing archaeological research”. A youth who attempted to worship at a temple in Vedukkunarimalai, Vavuniya was arrested.

Tamil Separatist Movement hit ouit in all directions. Bhikkhus  who have come into the North and east to develop new temples were threatened and told to  go away.In August 2016 the Chief incumbent of the Sambodhi Vihara Temple in Kokilai, Mullaitivu Sri Tissapura Gunarathana thero said TNA Provincial Councilor Raviharan threatened him to stop developing the temple and leave  the area.

Tamil Separatist Movement   charged that Buddhist temples are built on the sites of Hindu temples and on private Tamil lands. While Tamil landowners whose properties were occupied by the Air Force in Keppapilavu were protesting, the military was reportedly seen constructing a Buddhist temple on their occupied land, said Adaalayam Centre.  

Tamil Separatist Movement charges that  Buddhists have destroyed Hindu Kovils.. M.A. Sumanthiran said, there is very clearly, a pattern and an agenda” in the escalating instances of attacks and vandalism on Hindu temple deities in the north.

Tamil Separatist Movement takes the position that it is being persecuted. It poses as a martyr. Many historical Hindu temples are under siege by the government which has declared virtual ‘holy war’ against Hindus and their places of worship, it said. Under the cloak of identifying Buddhist     ruins of archaeological importance, the Department of Archeology has laid siege to historical Hindu temples and build Viharas in their places in the north and east.

The ancient Kunjumappa Periyasamy Temple, located at Ilankaithurai Muhaththuvaram, on the coast above Verugal was worshipped by Tamil-speaking Veddahs and Tamils since ancient times. When the villagers returned in 2008, after the war they found the temple destroyed, and replaced by a large Buddha statue, and a new temple, constructed by the army.

The Malal Neeliyamman temple in Kallady, south of Ilankaithurai, was used by the LTTE for a communications tower for LTTE’s Voice of the Tigers radio station. The Hindu temple was destroyed by the Sri Lankan Air Force . The area was taken over by the military in 2006. Archaeology Department   thereafter designated the area as a historic Buddhist site and a Buddhist temple, Pashana Pabbatha Rajamaha Vihara, was built.

 When Tamil residents returned to their village in 2007, their attempt to reconstruct the destroyed temple on its original site was blocked by Ven.Ratnapura Devananda and the Sri Lankan military.  The Tamil people reconstructed the temple on the roadside. In 2016, this new temple was burnt to the ground. The court case was dropped in January 2019, reported Tamil Guardian.

 Verugal did not have a Sinhala population, but the military and Buddhist monks from the south grabbed land to build their temples, said PEARL. LTTE had used Verugal as a communication center and demolished a rock with six inscriptions to fix the radio transmission tower. LTTE   had   built a Sea Tiger base and a kovil at the site in 2003.

 After the war, The Archaeology Department designated the area as a historic Buddhist site. The ruins of an ancient dagoba, a korawak gala,   and other ruins of an ancient temple were scattered around an area of 50 acres.

In 2007 a new temple, Lanka Patuna Samudragiri Vihara’was built near the Buddhist ruins. The village was   renamed to Lanka Patuna”. This name is now official and appears on birth certificates. The Tamil residents do not like this, reported Tamil Guardian. (Continued)

KAMALIKA PIERIS

Strategic Buddhist sites in the northeastern region have been turned into ‘Contested Sites’ by the Tamil Separatist Movement. The most recent Contested Site was Kurundi, but there were two  before that.

In January 2019 a group of about 200 persons led by northern politicians stormed the precincts of Gurukanda Raja Maha Viharaya in Nayaru, Mullaitivu, claiming that the temple had been built on a land belonging to Hindu devotees, reported the media..The group included local politicians and devotees of the adjoining Neeraviadi Kovil. 

There was a clash between the Chief Incumbent of the temple and the intruders. They demanded the deeds of the temple. The Buddhists could complain to any one they liked but they would not allow the Gurukanda temple to function, said the intruders. The intruders threatened to cause bodily harm to the temple’s Chief Incumbent.  .if the chief priest disturbed the day to day affairs of the kovil, he would be killed, together with all present there. 

The mob was so strong that the police found it extremely difficult to bring the situation under control. The intruders attempted to snatch the mobile phones of  those who were videoing the scene.  Mullaitivu police filed action in the courts against both parties for breach of peace.

The Mullaitivu police dismantled the CCTV cameras installed at the Viharaya .The CCTV system had been installed by a private company as a security measure since the Chief Incumbent of the temple Ven. Mihindupura Ratanadevakitti didn’t live in the temple most of the time. Police said that there was a court order to the effect no constructions or installations would be allowed in both the temple and the adjacent kovil premises.

The matter went to courts, Director General of Archeology, stated in court that Gurukanda Raja Maha Viharaya in Nayaru, had a history of over 2,000 years with  many Buddhist artifacts and an ancient monastery.  Also that it was against the law to build a Hindu place of worship in the place where there was an ancient Buddhist temple.

Officers of the Archaeological Department M.V.G.K. Asanga and I.P.S. Nishantha had   visited Gurukanda Raja Maha Viharaya. They found ruins of a monastery, remains of a stupa, bricks, roof tiles and  pot shards. They dated the temple to Anuradhapura period.

They reported that a road has been built bifurcating the temple premises  and land plots have been demarcated. Several Buddhist  artifacts were found during the road building. A stupa which had been bulldozed, had a diameter of 10 meters. There was a new temple there at present. A small Hindu temple,  Neeravi Pillaiyar  temple  is also located on same site, the report said.

TNA leader R.Sampanthan made a statement in Parliament on the matter. Neeraavi Pillaiyar Temple at Chemmalai in the Mullaitivu District was a site of controversy as the Sinhalese in the area tried to take over a Saivite temple, he said. Gurukande Viharaya had been forcibly constructed between 2004 and 2009 when no civilian was permitted to visit the area.

 “More recently an attempt was made to restore that temple. This led to unrest in that area between the people who are all non-Buddhists and the monks who had come there. Upon this matter being reported to the relevant Magistrate, an order was made prohibiting the reconstruction of the temple. The Chief incumbent of the temple filed an application in the Provincial High Court of the Northern Province district of Vavuniya and the matter is still pending, Sampanthan said.

Suren Raghavan said that the boundary of the temple was under dispute. Though  the Gazette notification of 2016 said the temple was an archaeological site, the boundary was not mentioned. A problem arose when new measurements were taken to mark the boundary. While the measuring was going on, ‘both parties had a debate  regarding their historical heritages.” There was an army camp there during the war.  They had a set of buildings which they had handed over to the chief priest, added  Raghavan.

Shenali Waduge npted that  Gurukanda Raja Maha Viharaya shot to public attention on 14 January 2019 – Thai Pongal Day when a group of unruly protestors led by former TNA provincial councilor T Raviharan stormed the temple and in a very ugly & abusive manner shouted at the Chief Incumbent of the Temple claiming the Buddhist temple had been built on a land belonging to Hindu devotees. Not stopping there, they began digging to construct a Hindu temple inside the temple premises.  

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFVEe7u9Dmo   shows the illegal act of forcibly entering a Buddhist sacred site & forcibly digging to lay the foundation to put a kovil inside the Temple premises. All those who took part should face legal action, said Shenali. Video clips showed that the group included a Catholic priest. Why is a Catholic priest heading protests for a Hindu kovil inside an ancient Buddhist temple.

A B Mandawela, Director General of Archaeology giving evidence before the Mullaitivu Magistrate S. Lenin Kumara,  confirmed that the Gurukanda Raja Maha Viharaya in Nayaru had a history of over 2000 years. the land on either side of the Kokilai-Mullaitivu road are Buddhist sacred archaeological sites including the Gurukanda Raja Maha Viharaya  The Commissioner of Archaeology explicitly told the Magistrate that it was illegal to build a Hindu kovil inside the ancient Buddhist temple,

Gurukanda RMV is a declared sacred Buddhist site. No one has any right to storm the place and begin illegal constructions which is what the TNA politicians led by Raviharan were doing. This constitutes violating penal code too. The police must file action against TNA for violating Antiquities Act. Buddhist monks headed by  Ven.Ahungalle Jinananda  are proceeding to file criminal charges against TNA’s Raviharan and others too under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

Mullaitivu police were deployed round the premises. The police filed action against both parties for disturbing peace. S.Lenin Kumara Mullaitivu Magistrate  however ordered the construction work on Gurukanda to be stopped.

Mullaitivu Magistrate had also  given [permission to name the  site Neeravi Pillair Kovil.  Therefore In June 2019   the name board of Gurukanda Ancient Rajamaha Vihara in Mullaitivu was removed by the officers of Road Development Authority .

The Chief Incumbent  said that The officers of RDA informed me that they are going to remove the name board of the temple and accordingly they came and removed it. But they did not remove the name board of Neeravi Pillari Kovil which was displayed in Tamil. They removed our name board and they went away after handing over it to us.    He said that the vihara concerned was registered at the Ministry of Buddha Sasana and hence its name board can be displayed. This board had been there for the last ten years. There is no further information .

Gurukanda was Tamil Separatist Movement’s first try at creating a  Contested  Site. It was therefore necessary to state their position. 

In October 2019, Jaffna People’s Forum for Coexistence issued a statement .The Forum said,  When the local Hindus protested against the construction of the present Gurukanda Rajamaha Viharaya after the end of the war in a location which they consider as part of the premises of the Neeraviyadi Pillayar Temple, the Department of Archaeology defended the construction claiming that an ancient Buddhist Dagoba existed in that location two thousand years ago.

However, the Maritimepattu D.S. Division, within which the disputed site is located, observed that no Buddhist temple had existed in the land where the Neeraviyadi Pillayar Kovil is situated and that there was no evidence to support that Buddhists had lived in the neighbourhood.

The Forum wants to place on record that for the past several decades the Department of Archaeology has been engaged in politicizing the history of the island, especially its northern and eastern regions, in ways that favor the agendas of chauvinistic politicians and communal-minded Buddhist monks. The Department has often ignored the religious and ethnic realities observed at present in places where the minorities live in large numbers and the political and cultural changes that have taken place in those areas across the passage of time.

The Jaffna People’s Forum for Coexistence assets that Sri Lanka is a plural society. It has been home to different cultures, languages and faiths in constant movement. The Forum wishes to reiterate that the pluralist demographic history of the island spanning over 2000 years is one of constant movement of different communities .  .the Forum opposes any action that threatens the religious, ethnic and linguistic pluralism of Sri Lanka . To pit one community against another,will prove to be destructive.  Let us ensure that our actions in the future will reclaim its plural history.

The Gurukanda issue must  be resolved carefully and amicably, based on appropriate and genuine historical evidence, in a manner where history is not used for legitimizing exclusivist claims about territory and polarizing the communities concerned, concluded Jaffna People’s Forum for Coexistence

In July  2019 A Hindu-Buddhist conflict developed in Trincomalee over a mound found near the Kinniya hot wells  Archaeological Department had gone there to do some routine conservation work. In the process some bricks had got dug up. Buddhist and the Hindus both claimed these bricks. Bhikkhus such as Ven. Ampitiye Seelavansa of Velgam vihara    said they belonged to an Anuradhapura era stupa which has been leveled and a Hindu temple built on top. Hindus said this was the ruins of a Pillaiyar kovil.

The locals were extremely aggressive towards the conservation work, said the Archaeological Department. A crowd of Tamils had gathered.  Tamil politicians had also come.  Television news showed the  two groups fighting. Police, riot squad and Special Task Force were called in. Police came with a magistrate order, to stop the protest, that it would cause communal tensions.

Thereafter, Kokila Ramani, a resident of Trincomalee, petitioned the Provincial High Court,  saying the land where the Kinniya  hot springs are located belonged to her and the Archaeology Department is trying to construct a Buddhist structure there without her permission. The Department plans to construct a temple on the site of a Hindu kovil and Hindu devotees are being obstructed from entering the site by the Department, she said. TNA Parliamentarian M.A. Sumanthiran appeared for her.  Provincial High Court Judge M. Illanchiyan issued an interim injunction suspending the conservation of the Kinniya hot springs which will remove the alleged ruins of a Hindu kovil. There is no further information on this matter.

 The  Tamil opposition to Buddhist temples has extended also to cremation of chief priests on the temple premises. Two such protests are on record.

In 2017 A group of 12 lawyers   had gone to courts to prevent the last rites of the late chief incumbent of the Naga Vihara, Ven. Meegahajandure Gnanaratana, being performed at the Jaffna Fort Sports Ground. The restraining order had been sought on two grounds. Permission had not been obtained from Jaffna Municipal Council and secondly,  the cremation of bodies could damage the environment. Jaffna Magistrate Katheeswaran  did not agree. He refused to issue a restraining order. Last rites were conducted with the participation of the armed forces and the police.

The second   protest was  at Gurukanda Raja Maha Viharaya. The chief priest of Gurukanda, Ven. Colomba Medhalankara ,passed away in Colombo in September 2019. Neeraavi Pillaiyar Temple promptly filed a police complaint that that if the body of the priest is brought to the  Gurukanda temple,   while a court case is going on, there will be trouble.

Mullaitivu police informed  Magistrate’s court. The magistrate ordered that the  body of the deceased priest should not be cremated or buried in  Gurukanda temple, until a final order was granted in the  court matter.

Court was informed that the  Buddhist  temple was willing to conduct the cremation ceremony at another location and  that the  Hindu temple was agreeable to this.  Court  then ordered that the cremation  be conducted at the second location. Maritimepattu Predeshiya Sabha intervened to say  that arrangements were made for the cremation without obtaining permission in terms of the Cemeteries and Burial grounds Ordinance.

After the order was made a group of monks led by Ven. Galagodatte Gnanasara of Colombo,  took the body of the deceased chief priest to the  temple premises and cremated the body there. The cremation was attended by several monks   and took place amidst sadukara from a large crowd.

An equally large or possible larger crowd were there to oppose the cremation, observed the media. Television cameras showed heated arguments. Police were there. A clash occurred and the priest of the Hindu temple was severely injured. A lawyer appearing for the  Hindu Temple was  assaulted.

Several monks spoke to  Derana television  after the cremation. It is a Buddhist tradition to cremate a monk in the temple premises.     If Gnanasara did not go this cremation would not have taken place, they said.

Regarding the ownership dispute, the monks told Derana, that the Archaeological  Department should   point out that Gurukanda is on  protected territory. 3 acres at Gurukanda belong to the  Archaeological   Department. Court should be told this. Ven. Polonnaruwe Thilnakara  said there was no kovil there earlier.

This temple matter can escalate,  said  Bellanwila Dammaratana. Foreign forces are wanting to intervene and incidents such as this will be used for this.    TNA is behind this the monks said.  They scolded Yahapalana as well. We sacrificed ourselves to establish these temples. We went into jungles. It is we who looked after Buddhism in the north, the monks  told Derana, with emotion.

Former Northern Province Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran, thereafter, led a protest opposite the Mullaitivu Divisional Secretariat against the cremation in the temple premises while a court  decision was pending. Several politicians, both national and local    as well as lawyers, civil society activists and the public in Mullaitivu joined the protest. Some, including lawyers, wore black arm bands.

The protestors demanded legal action against the  cremation. It was violation of a court ruling.  Violating a court ruling  constitutes Contempt of Court. They  demanded the immediate arrest of Galagodaatte Gnanasara and others responsible for cremation. They were extremely critical of Gnanasara Thera’s involvement in the matter, and wanted to know  whether the country has a separate law for Buddhist monks. They  burnt an effigy of  Ven.Gnanasara .  

The Attorney General should take legal action within three days against all those who are involved in the incident including Ven.Galagoda Aththe Gananasara along with the other Buddhist monk who had openly protested against the court order.  Attorney General must assure them in writing that he will  do so. Unless swift action was taken, the demonstrations would continue..

The demonstrators, then marched from Mullaitivu Divisional Secretariat to Mullaitivu District Secretariat and  handed over a memorandum to the District Secretary to be forwarded to the UN envoy in Sri Lanka..They also protested opposite the Mullaitivu Magistrate’s court.

All the lawyers of Northern and Eastern provinces led by Batticaloa Bar Association President K.Narayanapillai boycotted court duties in a black arm band protest outside the Batticaloa court premises. The Mullaitivu Trade Association closed shops and carried out a hartal in support of the demonstration.

TNA’s R. Sampanthan wrote to the President Sirisena, saying, the corpse was cremated in close proximity to the “Theerthakerni” tank in the Hindu temple premises containing Holy water for use by the Deity. The temple and the premises were  thus desecrated. He urged  President Sirisena to ensure that those who cremated a Buddhist prelate’s remains at Chemmalai, Mullaitivu in violation of a court order are brought to justice.

A second contempt of court action was filed in 2020  by TNA MP Shanthi Sriskandaraja..The petitioner has sought an order to issue a rule on the Respondents, directing them to show cause as to why they should not be punished for contempt of court for violating the Mullaitivu Magistrate’s Court order preventing the cremation of the body of the late chief incumbent of the Gurukanda Raja Maha Vihara in Mullaithivu on a disputed property.  

The petitioner maintained that the Buddhist temple known as the Gurukanda Raja Maha Viharaya had been forcibly constructed between 2004 and 2009, when no civilian was permitted to go into that area which is within the precincts of the already existing Hindu temple. 

Following the death of the chief priest of the Gurukanda Raja Maha Viharaya, the Mullaitivu police filed a report in the Magistrate’s Court stating that in the event that the late chief priest’s body was brought to the land that is in dispute, it would result in a breach of the peace in the area. Subsequently, the Mullaitivu Magistrate issued an order directing the police to ensure that the cremation was not conducted on the Hindu temple grounds.  

 The petitioner further submitted that with the intervention of Ven. Gnanasara Thera, the body of the Chief priest of Gurukanda Raja Maha Viharaya was cremated on the premises in dispute and the police had allegedly failed to prevent the Court order from being violated.  ( Continued)

By Shamindra Ferdinando Courtesy The Island

Wimal Weerawansa

National Freedom Front (NFF) leader Wimal Weerawansa says the proposed Economic and Technology Co-operation Agreement (ETCA) with India should be examined in the context of India’s geopolitical strategy in respect of Sri Lanka.

Referring to a recent declaration by SLPP MP Rear Admiral (retd.) Sarath Weerasekera that the government parliamentary group hadn’t been consulted on the proposed agreement discussed at any level though Cabinet spokesman Bandula Gunawardena announced finalisation of the ETCA by March this year, dissident SLPP MP Weerawansa alleged that New Delhi was tightening its grip on Sri Lanka.

In a brief interview with The Island, following JVP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s visit to India, Weerawansa discussed a range of issues, including the IMF’s intervention, US-India strategy pertaining to post-war Sri Lanka and what he called a murderous tax regime meant to heap further burden on those struggling to make ends meet.

Pointing out that the ETCA would be an extension of the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) the two countries signed during President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga’s tenure, MP Weerawansa warned of unprecedented catastrophe if President Ranil Wickremesinghe was allowed to go ahead with his agenda.

MP Weerawansa asked whether bankrupt Sri Lanka struggling to cope with rising unemployment could open the service sector to India, thereby further aggravating the problems here. The NFF parliamentary group consists of six MPs, including National List member Mohammed Muzammil.

Acknowledging the financial assistance to the tune of USD four billion provided in the wake of the economic-political-social crisis in 2022, MP Weerawansa questioned whether India was taking advantage of the situation here to rapidly advance its expansionist policy.

Responding to another query, MP Weerawansa said that the Wickremesinghe-Rajapaksa government should be held responsible for facilitating the Indian project.

Alleging that the Indian take-over of Sri Lanka was being blatantly carried out in the name of the much-touted India’s ‘Neighbourhood First’ policy and her maritime vision SAGAR (Security and Growth for All in the Region), the former minister urged political parties to examine and compare the situation here and the developing situation in the Maldives following the election of China-backed Mohamed Muizzu as the new Maldivian President in last September.

Indian-backed Ibrahim Mohamed Solih suffered defeat at the presidential poll, thereby dealing a significant blow to the overall New Delhi’s strategy there, MP Weerawansa said, adding that some Sri Lankans had been deceived, perhaps willingly by Indian declaration that Indians should choose Sri Lanka as their next travel destination. Indian action was meant to undermine the tourism industry in the Maldives, MP Weerawansa said, New Delhi should never be allowed to pursue such corrosive strategies.

Commenting on the recent launch of Unified Payment Interface (UPI) services in Sri Lanka and Mauritius, the NFF leader alleged that in the name of strengthening financial connectivity India was taking over the smaller economy. If the incumbent government went ahead with ETCA, the consequences would be far reaching and the damage to the country’s independence, cherished for over two millennia, irreparable.

The former minister said that the IMF remedies wouldn’t help the country to regain economic stability though the government depicted the USD 2.9 bn bailout package as the panacea for all our ills. As a result of steep increase in electricity tariffs and unbearable tax regime the local industries couldn’t compete with foreign companies, MP Weerawansa said. The President backed by the SLPP seemed bent on undermining the national economy.

One-time JVP propaganda secretary said that the current JVP leadership contributed to the developing strategy. Their recent high profile visit to India close on the heels of their US tour late last year revealed the ugly truth. Those ex-members of the military and police who had pledged their support to the JVP should be mindful of the developments taking place on the political front as India sought to consolidate its regional supremacy.

Referring to an Indian submarine visiting Colombo port on the day before Independence Day this year, MP Weerawansa said that a section of the influential India media declared that it was a huge diplomatic victory for India over China in Sri Lanka as it happened in the aftermath of Sri Lanka imposing one-year moratorium on Chinese research vessels visiting her ports.

In spite of continuing turmoil in every sector, the government sought to protect the interests of the affluent. Quoting a recent UNDP survey, MP Weerawansa pointed out that just 10% of the rich shared 64% of the gross national income. According to the UNDP, 50% of the population, struggling to make ends meet, shared just four percent of the gross national income.

It would be a grave mistake on the part of the down-trodden to believe the ruling class, having learnt a bitter lesson in the wake of unconstitutional change of power in 2022, was likely to look at issues at hand in a humane manner.

The ex-minister also dealt with issuing of freehold titles to farmers by an utterly irresponsible and scheming government. Alleging that a significant number of farmers would mortgage their land because of wide scale poverty/indebtedness, MP Weerawansa said that the rising cost in paddy production also due to VAT (Value-Added Tax) on tools and other essentials would cause farmers to give up cultivation.

We would end up importing rice to meet the growing paddy shortfall,” MP Weerawansa said, adding that a strategic rethinking was necessary to identify challenges and reach consensus on a common programme to stabilize the country. The IMF package wouldn’t save us, the NFF leader said, reminding Sri Lanka sought such interventions on 16 previous occasions.

The former firebrand JVPer said that Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena was yet to respond to his specific allegation that US Ambassador Julie Chung, during the violent protest campaign in Colombo on July 09, 2022, asked him to take over the presidency, regardless of Constitutional provision that deemed the Premier should be the successor.

Nick Turse courtesy The Intercept

A formerly secret map from AFRICOM shows a network of 29 U.S. military bases that stretch from one side of Africa to another.

Nick Turse

LAST MONTH, ABOUT a dozen al-Shabab fighters infiltrated the perimeter of a military base in Manda Bay, Kenya. One of them took aim with a rocket-propelled grenade, firing at a U.S. surveillance plane and touching off an hourslong firefight. When it was all over, the two American pilots of that plane and a U.S. soldier were dead, two other U.S. military personnel were wounded, six surveillance aircraft and helicopters were destroyed, and parts of the airfield were in flames.

Where there are U.S. bases, there is the potential for such attacks, because bases are not just launching pads for offensive military operations, but targets for them too. Since 9/11, the U.S. military has built a sprawling network of outposts in more than a dozen African countries. The Intercept has obtained U.S. military documents and a set of accompanying maps that provide the locations of these African bases in 2019, including the one at Manda Bay. These formerly secret documents, created by the Pentagon’s Africa Command and obtained via the Freedom of Information Act, offer an exclusive window into the footprint of American military operations in Africa.

Maps of U.S. Enduring” and Non-Enduring” bases in Africa. The Pentagon defines enduring” bases as providing strategic access and use to support United States security interests for the foreseeable future.” Non-Enduring” outposts — also known as contingency locations” — are defined as supporting and sustaining operations during contingencies or other operations.” Contingency locations can be categorized as initial, temporary, or semipermanent. Images: U.S. Africa Command

During testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee late last month, Stephen Townsend, the commander of AFRICOM, echoed a line favored by his predecessors that AFRICOM maintains a light and relatively low-cost footprint” on the continent. This light” footprint consists of a constellation of more than two dozen outposts that stretch from one side of Africa to the other. The 2019 planning documents provide locations for 29 bases located in 15 different countries or territories, with the highest concentrations in the Sahelian states on the west side of the continent, as well as the Horn of Africa in the east. Since the plans were created, according to AFRICOM spokesperson John Manley, two bases have been shuttered, leaving the U.S. with an archipelago of 15 enduring locations” and 12 less-permanent contingency locations.” The documents note, however, that AFRICOM is actively seeking to enhance its presence and is primed for expansion in the future.

ENDURING FOOTPRINT 2019	NON-ENDURING FOOTPRINT 2019
Chebelley, Djibouti	Bizerte, Tunisia
Camp Lemonnier, Djibouti	Arlit, Niger
Entebbe, Uganda	Dirkou, Niger
Mombassa, Kenya	Diffa, Niger
Manda Bay, Kenya	Ouallam, Niger
Liberville, Gabon	Bamako, Mali
St. Helena, Ascension Island	Garoua, Cameroon
Accra, Ghana	Maroua, Cameroon
Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso	Misrata, Libya
Dakar, Senegal	Tripoli, Libya
Agadez, Niger	Baledogle, Somalia
Niamey, Niger	Bosasso, Somalia
N’Djamena, Chad	Galcayo, Somalia
	Kismayo, Somalia
	Mogadishu, Somalia
	Wajir, Kenya

U.S. Africa Command’s Enduring Footprint” and Non-Enduring Footprint” in 2019.

Violent extremism and insecurity on the continent has increased exponentially during the very years that the U.S. has been building up its network of bases, providing billions of dollars in security assistance to local partners, conducting persistent counterterrorism operations that include commando raids, combat by U.S. Special Operations forces in at least 13 African countries between 2013 and 2017, and a record number of U.S. airstrikes in Somalia (just over one attack per week in 2019). There are now roughly 25 active militant Islamist groups operating in Africa, up from just five in 2010 — a jump of 400 percent — according to the Defense Department’s Africa Center for Strategic Studies. Militant Islamist activity also hit record levels in 2019. There were 3,471 reported violent events linked to these groups last year, a 1,105 percent increase since 2009. Reported fatalities resulting from African militant Islamist group activity also increased by 7 percent over last year, to an estimated 10,460 deaths. The situation has become so grim that U.S. military aims in West Africa have recently been scaled back from a strategy of degrading the strength and reach of terror groups to nothing more than containment.”

THE CURRENT ARCHIPELAGO of U.S. outposts in Africa represents a decrease of seven sites from the 34 bases detailed in a set of briefing documents by AFRICOM science adviser Peter Teil that were published by The Intercept in 2018. The new 2019 AFRICOM planning documents provide information on five bases slated for closure, including a longtime enduring” site in Gaborone, Botswana, and four contingency locations, or CLs, in Faya Largeau, Chad; Lakipia, Kenya; Benina, Libya; and Gao, Mali. Shuttering the CLs, according to the documents, is part of an effort to seek efficiencies by consolidating … functions at a reduced number of posture locations,” while the removal of Gabrone was chalked up to a lack of DoD [Department of Defense] property or routine DoD presence” and the fact that Botswana does not acknowledge or desire any formal DoD access at the international airport.”

Manley refused to say which two additional bases were dropped from the 2019 list. The fluctuation in the number is not related to Misrata and Tripoli,” he told The Intercept in response to a question about whether the Libyan outposts were the others closed. But it is worth noting that since the 2019 base posture document was produced, the U.S. pulled its forces out of the North African nation. Due to increased unrest in Libya, a contingent of U.S. forces supporting U.S. Africa Command temporarily relocated from the country in response to security conditions on the ground,” AFRICOM announced last April as the Libyan civil war flared up. Those troops have never returned, according to Manley, and a recent inspector general’s report states that they won’t be redeployed until there is a ceasefire in Libya’s civil war.

It’s also worth noting the documents state that U.S. Army Africa uses space at host nation facilities” in Theis, Senegal, and Singo, Uganda, even though the bases are not listed on AFRICOM’s maps. While these cooperative training locations” are not officially considered outposts by the command, they raise the question of whether 29 bases is actually a more accurate count. Whatever the real number of bases, the recent alteration of AFRICOM’s footprint in 2019 appears to be a strategic consolidation as the command fortifies its presence in some of the continent’s hottest hotspots. Of the 6,000 or more U.S. personnel deployed in Africa, about 1,200, according to Manley, are in West Africa, with a significant percentage in Niger, which has become the key American hub on that side of the continent. Around 500 Special Operations forces are reportedly deployed on the other side of the continent in Somalia, the site of America’s most intense and longest-running undeclared war in Africa.

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While the five U.S. outposts in Somalia rank second only to the six in Niger when it comes to America’s footprint on the continent, AFRICOM is actively seeking to expand its presence in the Horn of Africa. Additional posture and/or capacity is required in East Africa to more efficiently employ limited aviation resources in support of U.S. activities in southern Somalia,” according to the formerly secret files, which also mention the potential establishment of one or more [contingency locations] in Somalia to support Somali National Security Force development.” The 2019 planning documents also state that five contingency locations” were recommended to be upgraded to semi-permanent” status: Baledogle, Kismayo, and Mogadishu in Somalia, and Arlit and Diffa in Niger.

What are the forces at these bases doing there? In Diffa, according to a recent inspector general’s report, a small unit of U.S. Special Forces has been providing advice and assistance to Niger’s 51st Special Intervention Battalion, which conducts operations in the Lake Chad region. Another Special Forces detachment has been engaged in train, advise, and assist activities with a local counterterrorism force in Arlit, Niger.

The presence of U.S. commandos at Diffa and Arlit first came to widespread notice in the wake of the October 2017 ambush by Islamic State militants in Tongo Tongo, Niger, that killed four U.S. soldiers. The U.S. base at Baledogle received attention last September when it was attacked by the Somali terrorist group, al-Shabab. Manda Bay, Kenya, where al-Shabab killed the American soldier and U.S. pilots, is still another enduring” location from AFRICOM’s 2019 list. In the wake of the attack last month, its defenses were also hardened and its troop strength markedly increased.

I think it’s self-obvious we were not as prepared there in Manda Bay as we needed to be,” AFRICOM’s Townsend told the Senate Armed Services Committee on January 30. Al-Shabab managed to penetrate onto that airfield. A lot of people don’t know, but the base where our troops live is not where the airfield is. But they were able to get access to that airfield, kill three Americans and destroy six aircraft there. … There’s about 120 infantrymen there on the ground now who are securing that place, and they’ve been working hard since 6 January to put in the appropriate level of defenses. So I am confident that by the time they are done, Manda Bay will be much more properly defended.”

Secretary of Defense Mark Esper speaks during a news conference at the Pentagon in Washington on Jan. 27, 2020. The Army, for the first time, will send soldiers from one of its new training brigades to Africa to expand the use of the new specialized units as the Pentagon looks at possible troop cuts on the continent. Photo: Jose Luis Magana/AP

The attack in Kenya came at a time when Defense Secretary Mark Esper was already considering proposals for a major drawdown of U.S. forces on the other side of the continent, in West Africa, including the possible abandonment of a recently built $110 million drone base in Agadez, Niger. According to Manley, the Pentagon’s so-called Blank Slate Review process is still ongoing, and there has been no change to U.S. force posture” in Africa as of yet. I haven’t made any decisions yet on West Africa or East Africa,” Esper said recently, while at the same time calling on European nations to step up in Africa.”

Talk of scaling back U.S. posture and presence in Africa has prompted fierce pushback in Congress. These personnel and installations are critical in combatting the ever-increasing number of violent extremist groups throughout the region that pose an immediate threat to our partners and allies,” wrote U.S. Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., and Chris Coons, D-Del., in a January 15 letter to Esper. The senators argued that any withdrawal or reduction would likely result in a surge in violent extremist attacks on the continent and beyond as well as increase the geopolitical influence of competitors like Russia and China.” James Inhofe, chair of the Senate Armed Services Committee echoed these concerns. Today, more than a dozen terrorist groups with ties to Al Qaida and ISIS are operating across Africa,” he said late last month. Many of these groups have ambition to attack Americans and our partners. Without sustained pressure, the threat posed by these groups will.”

But in the face of deteriorating security and gloomy Pentagon assessments, some experts question this rationale. The current, overly militarized approach to fighting terrorism in Africa is not working,” said William Hartung, the director of the arms and security project at the Center for International Policy, or CIP. As the U.S. military footprint and military activities have increased, terrorist violence has grown and terrorist groups have proliferated.”

His colleague, Temi Ibirogba, a program and research associate with the Africa Program at CIP, noted that the rise of violent extremism in Africa in the face of persistent U.S. military engagement since 9/11 should be cause for skepticism of the more is better” strategy. The U.S. military should be considering alternative approaches like better coordination with African regional and continental organizations and encouraging African governments to consider negotiations in certain cases,” she told The Intercept.

In recent years, the U.S. military has carried out no fewer than 36 named operations and activities in Africa, including at least eight 127-echo” programs, which are named for the budgetary authority that allows U.S. Special Operations forces to use host-nation military units as proxies in missions aimed at violent extremist organizations, or VEOs. Run by Joint Special Operations Command, the secretive organization that controls the Navy’s SEAL Team 6 and the Army’s Delta Force, or by theater special operations forces, these 80- to 120-person units, operating with the assistance of U.S. commandos, are primarily engaged in counterterrorism operations, especially ones aimed at high-value targets.

The 2019 AFRICOM planning document notes that U.S. forces will continue to conduct counter-VEO-focused activities” from 16 separate bases. Even discounting the two counter-VEO bases in Libya that appear to have been closed since the map was created by AFRICOM, this leaves one each in Kenya, Mali, and Tunisia, as well as five in Somalia, four in Niger, and two in Cameroon at Garoua and Maroua. The site in Garoua is a drone base that was profiled by The Intercept in 2016. In 2017, the Intercept revealed that while the U.S. military fortified its base in Maroua, known as Camp Salak, the outpost also served as a scene of illegal imprisonment, torture, and even killings.

Facing a potential drawdown of forces, AFRICOM has been making the case that its bases and the missions run from them are integral to U.S. interests. Strategic access to Africa, its airspace, and its surrounding waters is vital to U.S. national security,” Townsend told the Senate Armed Services Committee late last month. He and others have argued for what they contend is AFRICOM’s supposed bang for the buck. What U.S. Africa Command accomplishes with relatively few people and few dollars, on a continent three-and-a-half times the size of the continental United States, is a bargain for the American taxpayer,” Manley told The Intercept.

But a recent inspector general’s report, examining U.S. counterterrorism efforts in Africa, raises serious questions about the utility of billions of tax dollars spent on U.S. bases, operations, and assistance to local partners. Even after a decade-plus spent fighting militants in Somalia, the threat posed by al Shabaab and ISIS-Somalia in East Africa remains ‘high,’ despite continued U.S. airstrikes and training of Somali security forces,” the Defense Intelligence Agency told the Defense Department’s Inspector General. The DoDIG further noted that al-Shabab not only remains a potent threat” due to its ability to conduct high-profile attacks, recruit fighters, and finance ongoing operations,” but that the group appears to be a growing threat to U.S. personnel and interests in the region.”

The DoDIG’s assessment of West Africa was even more dire. VEO violence in West Africa grew rapidly over the past 2 years; in Burkina Faso, Mali, and Western Niger, VEO violence increased by 250 percent since 2018,” according to the report. AFRICOM told the DoDIG that security in West Africa continued to deteriorate during the final quarter of 2019 as terrorist groups launched a growing number of offensive attacks against military facilities and troops … often resulting in large numbers of casualties” to U.S.-allied armed forces. VEOs in West Africa are not degraded nor contained to the Sahel and Lake Chad region,” the command admitted.

Given the current state of affairs, the Center for International Policy’s Hartung believes that the United States needs to reevaluate its approach. It’s time for an honest reassessment of U.S. anti-terror strategy in Africa, including greater transparency about the size and scope of U.S. military operations there,” he told The Intercept. The underlying drivers of terrorism, including poverty, corruption, and repression, do not have military solutions.”