Rather than a reactionary response to the election of Gotabaya Rajapaksa, India appeared prepared for the political developments in Sri Lanka.
On November 18, Gotabaya Rajapaksa took the oath to become the eighth president of Sri Lanka. Well-known as the brother of former Sri Lankan President (and newly appointed Prime Minister) Mahinda Rajapaksa, Gotabaya also earned a reputation as the man who crushed the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) during his terms as defense secretary under his brother’s presidency (2005-2015).
According to several reports, the return of the Rajapaksas to the helm of power in Sri Lanka is bound to interest the Indian government, which was accused of orchestrating the Rajapaksas’ defeat in the 2015 elections. But India has showcased a combination of pre-emptive and proactive approaches rather than a reactionary approach toward the new Sri Lankan government.
A Proactive Strategy?
Going against reactionary expectations, New Delhi’s pro-active approach — primarily stemming from its preparedness for Rajapaksa’s victory — has surprised many. New Delhi’s preparedness can be seen in the fact that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was among the first leaders to call the president-elect after his victory on November 17 and invite him to visit India at his early convenience.” The invitation-by-phone was then followed by a not-so-publicized visit by India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar on November 19, during which he formally forwarded Modi’s invitation to President Gotabaya. Gotabaya accepted and is set to visit India on November 29 , which in all probability will be his first foreign visit after the election.
Glimpses of this proactive Indian approach were first seen all the way back in September 2018, when Modi met Mahinda Rajapaksa while the latter was on a personal visit to Delhi. The meeting came after Rajapaksa’s Sri Lanka Pdujana Peramuna (SLPP) swept local elections in February 2018, thus indicating a wave of support in his favor. The two again met in June 2019 during Modi’s first bilateral visit to Sri Lanka following his re-election in May.
A Pre-emptive Economic Approach?
An ongoing narrative running parallel to the return of the Rajapaksas is the island country’s further tilt toward China. Mahinda Rajapaksa’s term as president — from 2005 to 2015 — coincided with Colombo tilting heavily toward Beijing, at least when viewed from India’s perspective. This was deemed to be one of the core reasons for sourness in the relationship between India and Sri Lanka and led to the accusation from Rajapaksa that India meddled in the 2015 election, turning it against him.
But even as New Delhi witnessed increasing bonhomie between Colombo and Beijing, it did not stop the Indian government from upping its foreign aid assistance to the island country. Between 2012-13 and 2013-14, New Delhi’s aid assistance witnessed a significant increase from 2.48 billion Indian rupees to 4.20 billion rupees. This trend continued under the Modi government as well: 4.99 billion rupees were spent in 2014–15 and 4.03 billion rupees in 2015–16. It was around this time that there was also much chatter about how the Indian government might increase foreign aid to the Rajapaksa government in Colombo, despite the latter’s pro-China tilt. This suggests an attempt on the part of New Delhi to counter Beijing’s increasing influence in Colombo with cash. ADVERTISEMENT
India’s foreign aid spending in Sri Lanka started dropping from 2015-16 onward. The numbers witnessed a sudden drop in 2016-2017, when India spent a meager 990 million rupees, followed by an even lower figure of 770 million rupees in 2017–18. This shift began about right around the time of Sri Lanka’s 2015 national election, which saw the election of President Maithripala Sirisena. Sirisena came to power critical of the sitting government’s pro-Beijing policies. What could explain the rapid dip in aid? Maybe India believed that it was no longer necessary to spend large sums of money on the island country as a geopolitical incentive, now that a more pro-India leader was in power? Or, was it for pragmatic reasons, such as land acquisition hurdles? Or was it simply that the Indian projects in Sri Lanka witnessed completion during this period, hence the dip?
Subsequently, the figures have climbed back up modestly, with New Delhi allotting 1.65 billion rupees ($30.56 million) for 2018–19 and 2.5 billion rupees in 2019–20. The actual figures are yet to be published. Interestingly, the upward climb in aid allocations from FY 2017–18 came after Sirisena signed the $1.1 billion debt-for-equity deal on Hambantota Port with China in July 2017, permitting the latter to operate the strategic port on a 70 percent stake for a 99-year lease period. This was certainly a cause of concern for India, which probably wanted to regain lost ground in bilateral ties with higher aid allocations.
The modest upward trend also coincides with the victory of Rajapaksa’s SLPP in the local elections and Modi’s subsequent meetings with Mahinda. Modi’s outreach to Mahinda and subsequent climb back in New Delhi’s foreign aid to Colombo together form a solid argument for India’s preparedness and proactive approach toward Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka’s geopolitical and geostrategic importance to India is clear: It is a critical node in the Indian Ocean and a time-tested partner in the regional neighborhood. Thus, the island-nation fits perfectly with the Modi government’s Neighborhood First” policy. New Delhi’s current proactive approach has given the picture that its neighborhood policy is flexible and diplomatic.
It will be important for New Delhi to back its proactive approach with solid practical engagements with Colombo in order to not replicate the 2015 scenario. Luckily for India, Gotabaya, who has been assumed to be pro-China, recognizes the benefits of balancing between India and China. In his election manifesto, Gotabaya promised to renegotiate the Chinese lease of the Hambantota port. A report in The Indian Express quoted sources close to the Rajapaksas as saying that Gotabaya will have a special interest in strengthening a healthy relationship with India while exploring more trade partnerships with China and potential investors.” This along with Gotabaya’s acceptance of Modi’s invitation to visit India showcases the new Sri Lankan leadership’s eagerness to signal goodwill toward India and strike a balance between the two Asian powerhouses.
India’s proactive approach seems to be well appreciated by the Sri Lankan regime, and this can reap benefits for the relationship between the two nations. New Delhi cannot expect Colombo to reduce its economic and commercial engagement with and dependence on Beijing. What it can do in Sri Lanka is to strengthen its ongoing engagements, become punctual with its deliverables, and try to engage further into spheres in which the Chinese have a limited presence and India has the capacity to deliver. This will help New Delhi to strengthen its political capital in Colombo thus helping it reap gains for its current proactive overture.
Ashutosh Nagda is a researcher with the South East Asia Research Programme (SEARP) at the Institute of Peace and Conflict Studies (IPCS).
Sri Lanka’s visitor numbers have plummeted since April due to series of terror attacks on hotels and churches
The tenth of the population of the country that relies on tourism has suffered its worst year in memory
Seven months on from the attacks, the Foreign & Commonwealth Office has lifted its ban on casual visits
The ancient city of Polonnaruwa in central Sri Lanka is a shining place of palaces and shrines. I particularly admire the superb inscription left by one haughty ruler, informing an envious rival that he is like a jackal wanting to be a lion, a worm, a cobra, a sheep, a horse, a firefly, the sun. That’s one heck of a putdown.
These royal ruins — a UNESCO World Heritage Site dating back to the tenth century — are sprawling, staggering and world-class. Yet they are almost deserted.
It’s the same story all over the country. Gleaming hotels, empty. Glittering beaches, abandoned. Gripping museums, echoing with the absence of visitors.
Exotic charm: One of Sri Lanka’s many beaches. Sri Lanka’s visitor numbers plummeted because on April 21, Islamist suicide bombers with links to ISIS walked into three hotels and three Catholic churches and detonated devices, killing 259 people
Why? Because on April 21, Islamist suicide bombers with links to ISIS walked into three hotels and three Catholic churches and detonated devices, killing 259 people and injuring another 500.
Sri Lanka’s visitor numbers plummeted, and the tenth of the population that relies on tourism has suffered its worst year in memory.
I speak to Wasantha, 42, a soft-voiced souvenir vendor at Polonnaruwa who, from boyhood, has sold his cobra flutes and palm-leaf hats to visitors. Recently he took out a loan to buy a small guesthouse, but since April he has had to default on repayments. His message to foreigners is simple: ‘Our country needs you.’
The sad-eyed owner of an excellent nearby restaurant, Lasantha, 48, has pawned his wife’s jewellery to pay his staff to wait on empty tables.
It’s not surprising the bombings have affected tourism. But we’re now seven months on and the Foreign & Commonwealth Office has lifted its ban on casual visits. So where is everybody?
They’ll be back. But for the time being, you can enjoy everything this wonderful island in the Indian Ocean has to offer — and you can have most of it to yourself.
When I go snorkelling on the coral reefs off Trincomalee in the east, I’m the only client in the 20-seat motorboat.
‘There are many sharks here,’ says the boatman, Kaleel, as I wrestle with my flippers. ‘Would you like to see them?’
Stilt fishermen off the south coast of Sri Lanka. The tenth of the population that relies on tourism has suffered its worst year in memory
Sure, the blacktip reef sharks I swim with are small, about 4ft long. But their silhouettes look pretty disturbing as they pass by, grey and ghostlike.
Again, I’m almost alone when I reach the rock temple at Gal Vihara, and gaze on the four mighty statues of the Buddha. They’re among the most beautiful things I’ve ever seen, particularly the last of them, lying down, eyes closed, his hand seeming to cup his ear.
‘Not sleeping,’ the elderly attendant with the pencil moustache tells me. ‘Nirvana.’
I try a joke (‘He’s listening to Nirvana?’), but the old boy doesn’t seem to hear. By now my mood is as calm as a bodhisattva and I let it go.
Of course, I know my inner peace, born of blissful near-solitude, is at the cost of pain for millions of Sri Lankans.
‘In July and August, we had 350 tours booked,’ says my driver guide, Harold. ‘All of them were cancelled. English market, German market, Dutch market. All.’
Negombo, which is renowned for its golden sand and safe swimming. There are also a pageant of colourful boats
The charming Harold, 51, who is married with three sons to support, has had to accept help from his boss to pay his rent. His wife has gone to work, in a factory, for the first time since they married. ‘My oldest son is working,’ he says, ‘but he earns a very small salary. So four people depend on me.’
While we drive towards Jaffna, Harold’s mobile rings with good news: his middle son, 20-year-old Jeewantha, has been offered a job as a trainee pastry chef at the Shangri-La Hotel in Colombo.
But isn’t that one of the hotels that was blown up in April? ‘Yes.’ And isn’t he worried about the boy’s safety? He isn’t, and he explains why.
Sri Lanka is a mainly Buddhist nation, ethnically Sinhalese. Historically, the strife — most notably in the civil war that blighted the country from 1983 to 2009 — has always been between this majority and the Tamil minority in the north, most of whom are Hindu. There are also Muslim and Christian minorities, but, broadly speaking, these are a peaceful presence in the country, neither hating nor hated.
High season starts in Sri Lanka starts in November, so it’s not too late to book some winter sun. Pictured is Kali Kovil Trincomalee, a Hindu temple dedicated to the goddess Bhadrakali
TRAVEL FACTS
Thomas travelled with Rickshaw Travel on its 14‑night Sri Lanka Uncovered itinerary, from £2,398 pp (excluding flights) and includes accommodation, breakfast, transport with private driver and excursions (rickshawtravel.co.uk, 01273 322398).
To stay at Wasantha’s Monkey Garden guesthouse near Polonnaruwa, call +94 71 335 0823.
To book a table at Lasantha’s restaurant at Giritale, email hotelwaana@gmail.com or call +94 76 931 8308. To book a snorkelling trip with Kaleel, email nawfeer2005@gmail.com.
Even during the war, bombs were aimed at government buildings, never at Christian churches, let alone hotels. The point is, there is no pattern of targeting tourist areas. ‘The attacks that happened this April were a one-off,’ says Harold
It’s confirmed wherever I go: in 2019, things have been tougher for tourism even than during the civil war.
‘It’s the worst period in 40 years,’ says Prasath, 58, the boatman who takes me on a tour of the lagoon at Negombo. This is one of the places that was bombed, but the pageant of brightly coloured fishing boats makes it easy to forget.
It’s my first morning, yet in a couple of hours on the uncrowded water I see enough to justify my entire trip: idle iguanas, macaque monkeys busy among the mangroves, fat fruit bats hanging like black lanterns from the taller trees.
On my last morning, I stop in at the Shangri-La Hotel for a cup of coffee. Since it was hit in April, the place has been restored to its former pristine condition: you wouldn’t know anything had happened here. A slim and smiley boy, the hotel’s newest pastry chef, asks me to write that Sri Lanka is ‘the best country in the world to travel to’.
I’m happy to say so. What’s more, new developments set to open in 2020 include the Pekoe House hotel in Kandy and a new Alila hotel at Koggala in the south.
High season starts in November, so it’s not too late to book some winter sun. And you really should. This country needs you.
Sri Lanka: Where to go… and the best places to stay
THE SOUTH: Galle, the coast and Yala
The city of Galle in the south of Sri Lanka. It is a charming Dutch colonial city with 16-century stone ramparts and an imposing clock tower in the old quarter
The gateway to the south is Galle, a charming Dutch colonial city with 16-century stone ramparts and an imposing clock tower in the old quarter.
Beyond Galle are beautiful beaches: Weligama, Mirissa, Unawatuna and Tangalle — though some shelve into deep water and have strong currents, which make swimming dangerous.
Along this stretch are many of the island’s emblematic stilt fishermen, who perch on tall wooden poles. Inland are villages and rice paddies dotted with toffee-coloured cattle.
Wildlife — be it leopard, elephant or exotic birds — is prolific in the Yala and Bundala national parks.
Cultural highlight: The pilgrimage town of Kataragama, one of Sri Lanka’s most important religious sites with colourful nightly ceremonies.
Where to stay: Amangalla, Galle’s colonial grande dame, has 31 rooms and suites, a pool, Ayurvedic spa, two restaurants, library and mature gardens that date to the 1860s. B&B doubles from £424 (aman.com/resorts/amangalla). Fort Bazaar has 18 Moorish-inspired rooms and suites, a spa and a brassiere. B&B doubles from £212 (teardrop-hotels.com/fort-bazaar). The Bungalow has six stylish rooms and a charming restaurant in a 17th-century building; B&B doubles from £58 (thebungalowgalle.com).
On or near the beach: KK Beach is a boutique hotel with ten rooms and suites, an infinity pool and ocean-facing restaurant. B&B doubles from £193 (kkbeach.com). Overlooking the Indian Ocean and in 21 acres of gardens, Anantara Peace Haven Tangalle has 152 rooms and pool villas, three restaurants, an Ayurvedic spa and 25-metre pool. B&B doubles from £177 (anantara.com/en/peace-haven-tangalle). Peacock Villa — a family-run, four-room guesthouse set in a private garden — is a five-minute walk from Mirissa beach. B&B doubles from £50 (peacockvilla.lk).
Near Yala National Park: Bordering Yala National Park, Chena Huts by the Indian Ocean has 14 thatched cabins with ensuite bathrooms and plunge pools. All-inclusive doubles from £640 with daily safaris (ugaescapes.com/chenahuts). Located on the beach, a few miles from Yala National Park, Jetwing Yala has 80 contemporary rooms spread across 38 acres, a 75-metre outdoor pool, two restaurants and a spa. B&B doubles from £116 (jetwinghotels.com/jetwingyala). Close to the entrance of Yala National Park is Eco Island Sri Lanka, a campsite with eight tents with mosquito nets and private bathrooms. B&B tents from £61 (ecoislandsrilanka.com).
THE WEST COAST
A green sea turtle on Hikkaduwa’s coral reef. Resorts such as Hikkaduwa and Negombo are popular with beach goers
When visitors touch down at Sri Lanka’s international airport, many bypass the urban sprawl of Colombo, Sri Lanka’s capital, and head to the west coast beaches.
Resorts such as Beruwala, the stylish Bentota and old hippy haunt Hikkaduwa to the south and Negombo (five miles north of the airport) are renowned for their golden sand and safe swimming.
Further north lies Kalpitiya, a top spot for kitesurfing and dolphin and whale-watching.
Nearby Wilpattu National Park — home to leopards, elephants, monkeys, Coromandel sacred langurs and sloth bears — is Sri Lanka’s largest national park.
Cultural highlight: The Gangaramaya and Seema Malaka Buddhist temples in Colombo.
Where to stay: Wattura Resort and Spa, between the Gin Oya River and the Waikkal Beach, has 27 villas and suites, a pool and spa. B&B doubles from £232 (watturaresortandspa.com). The Scape is a contemporary hotel, a ten-minute walk from Negombo town, with 32 rooms, a beachfront pool and two restaurants. B&B doubles from £116 (pledgescape.com). Avani Bentota Resort has 75 ocean-view rooms, two restaurants, two freshwater pools and watersports. B&B doubles from £134 (avanihotels.com/en/bentota). Centara Ceysands Resort and Spa, on the Bentota peninsula, has a pool, spa, kids club and three restaurants. B&B doubles from £76 (centarahotelresorts.com).
CENTRAL: Kandy and the Hill Country
Tea pickers in the central province. The cultural highlight here is The Temple of the Tooth, which is the hub of the central highlands
Kandy, the cultural capital of the Sinhalese and home to its most important Buddhist shrine, the Temple of the Tooth, is the hub of the central highlands.
To the south is the Hill Country with regimented rows of tea plants, and the charming British colonial town of Nuwara Eliya.
East of Kandy is the dense forest of the rugged Knuckles mountain range. To the west is the Pinnawala Elephant Orphanage.
Cultural highlight: The Temple of the Tooth.
Where to stay: Originally a 1926 colonial planter’s bungalow, the Rosyth Estate House is set in a 62-acre private tea and rubber estate, with eight rooms, a huge Rock Villa comprised of two suites, a pool, spa and yoga sala. Half-board doubles from £197 (rosyth.lk). Vista House is a simple villa with three bedrooms, four bathrooms, a guest pantry and a private garden. Doubles from £27 (vista-house-lk.book.direct).
CENTRAL: The Cultural Triangle
Five of Sri Lanka’s eight World Heritage Sites are in the Cultural Triangle. Pictured is Sigiriya on Lion’s Rock
Five of Sri Lanka’s eight World Heritage Sites are in the Cultural Triangle, which is defined by the cities of Anuradhapura to the north, Polonnaruwa to the east and Kandy to the south-west.
The 5th-century fortress of Sigiriya is a challenging 1,200 steps to the top. Ten miles north-west are the Dambulla caves decorated with colourful murals of Buddhist and Hindu deities.
Cultural highlight: Sigiriya on Lion’s Rock.
Where to stay: Set on a ridge above a teak forest, Elephant Stables Dambulla has six villas (each sleeping up to four people) and a pool. B&B doubles from £147 (elephantstablesdambulla.com). Lak Nilla Guest House, a ten-minute drive from Polonnaruwa, has four simple rooms with ensuite bathrooms. B&B doubles from £25 (booking.com).
THE EAST COAST
Passekudah, Kalkudah and Arugam Bay, pictured, are excellent for surfing and other watersports
Its cities, Trincomalee and Batticaloa, are charming colonial outposts ringed by deep-sea harbours and labyrinthine lagoons.
At Trincomalee, visit historic Koneswaram Kovil, one of the island’s holiest Shaivite temples.
The beachside villages of Uppuveli and Nilaveli are diving and snorkelling hotspots, while Passekudah, Kalkudah and Arugam Bay are excellent for surfing and other watersports.
Cultural highlight: Koneswaram Kovil (temple).
Where to stay: The only hotel on Kalkudah beach, Karpaha Sands, has 17 tented suites, an infinity pool and a restaurant. Doubles from £166 (karpahasands.com). Hideaway is a rustic retreat with 14 rooms in tropical gardens, a restaurant and yoga lessons. B&B doubles from £56 (hideawayarugambay.com). A short walk from Uppuveli beach, Anantamaa Hotel has 28 rooms, two pools, a spa and restaurant. B&B doubles from £54 (anantamaa.com).
THE NORTH
Jaffna is a charming city with a discernible Indian influence and vibrant Tamil culture. Pictured is the Vallipuram Alvar temple
This region — considered Sri Lanka’s final frontier — is now accessible by rail.
Jaffna is a charming city with a discernible Indian influence and vibrant Tamil culture, despite the Dutch architecture.
Connected to the mainland by a mile-long bridge is Mannar Island where donkeys roam freely under Baobab trees, and the white beach stretches for miles.
Cultural highlight: Nallur Kandaswamy Temple in Jaffna.
Where to stay: The 44-room Jetwing Jaffna has a pool and restaurant. B&B doubles from £100 (jetwinghotels.com). Fifteen minutes from Jaffna, Dayanithi, a simple family-run guesthouse, has five rooms. B&B doubles from £15 (dayanithi.lk).
Colombo, November 22 (newsin.asia): Sri Lanka’s new Foreign Minister, Dinesh Gunawardena (70), is a hardcore left-wing nationalist belonging to the Mahajana Eksath Peramuna (MEP), an ally of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) led by Mahinda Rajapaksa.
The soft-spoken Dinesh Chandra Rupasinghe Gunawardena, born in 1949, has a background which should help him handle countries as diverse as the United States, India and China. These countries, which have developed high strategic and economic stakes in Sri Lanka because of its location in the Indian Ocean, pose a formidable foreign policy challenge to Sri Lanka. Previous Foreign Ministers have had to face tricky situations with mounting rivalries between big powers in the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).
After his schooling in the prestigious Royal College in Colombo, Dinesh, as he popularly known, went to Nyenrode Business Universiteit in Amsterdam and then to the University of Oregon in the US.
His father, Philip Gunawardena, was among the founder-leaders of the leftist Lanka Sama Samaj Party (LSSP), which had fraternal ties with the Indian National Congress during the struggle for Indian and Sri Lankan independence.
When Philip escaped from detention in Sri Lanka (then known as Ceylon) during World War II for opposing the war with Germany and Japan,, he headed for India for safety as the Congress too was opposing the war. But he was detained there also.
Dinesh’s mother, Kusuma Gunawardena, was also a left-wing politician whose ‘Viplawakaari Sama Samaja Party (VLSSP), had fraternal ties with the Communist Party of China. Kusuma, who was the second woman MP to be elected to the Sri Lankan parliament, was President of the Ceylon-China Friendship Society.
Though a staunch Sinhala-Buddhist nationalist, Dinesh is said to be worldly-wise” and not given to antagonizing those opposing him needlessly or wantonly. He will stand his ground as a Sri Lankan nationalist while diplomatically engaging his country’s detractors.
His close connections with the West, India and China and his amiable disposition will enable him to engage these countries in a non-abrasive manner. As a politician and Minister, Dinesh has also been in regular contact with a wide range of diplomats based in Colombo over a long period.
Dinesh is expected to handle the war crimes issues which will come up with the US and the UN Human Rights Council with a judicious combination of firmness and flexibility.
In his dealings with the world, Dinesh will be guided by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his senior in politics and long-time political ally, Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Since Japan is keen on playing a leading role in Sri Lanka (to checkmate China, its historical rival) Dinesh would be required to balance the interests of Japan and China even as he balances relations between rivals India and China. He is said to have close ties with Japan too which should stand him good stead.
The newly appointed Cabinet of Ministers is as follows:
Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa– Minister of Finance, Economic Affairs, Policy Development, Buddha Sasana, Cultural, Water Supply & Urban Development, Housing Facilities Ministry
Nimal Siripala de Silva– Minister of Justice, Human Rights & Legal Reforms
Arumugam Thondaman– Minister of Community Empowerment & Estate Infrastructure
Dinesh Gunawardene– Minister of Foreign Affairs, Skills Development, Employment & Labour Relations
Douglas Devananda– Minister of Fisheries & Aquatic Resources
Pavithra Wanniarachchi– Minister of Women & Child Affairs, Social Security, Health & Indigenous Medicine
Bandula Gunawardene– Minister of Information & Communications Technology, Higher Education, Technology & Innovations
Janaka Bandara Tennakoon– Minister of Public Administration, Home Affairs, Provincial Councils & Local Government
Chamal Rajapaksa– Minister of Mahaweli Development, Agriculture & Trade,
Dullas Alahapperuma– Minister of Education, Sports and Youth Affairs
Johnston Fernando– Minister of Roads & Highways, Ports & Shipping
Mahinda Amaraweera– Minister of Passenger Transport, Power & Energy
Wimal Weerawansa– Minister of Small Medium Enterprise (SME) & Enterprise Development, Industries & Supply Management
S.M. Chandrasena– Minister of Environment, Wildlife, Land & Land Development
Ramesh Pathirana– Minister of Plantations & Export Agriculture
Prasanna Ranatunga– Minister of Industrial Exports & Investment Promotions, Tourism & Aviation
There are no new faces in the cabinet. Addressing the appointees, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa said that State Ministers (Junior Ministers with independent charge of ministries) will be appointed next Monday, November 25.
The present government headed by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa is a temporary one. It could either stay until the next parliamentary elections in mid 2020, if a decision is taken to manage with the existing parliament, or it could go, if a decision is taken to dissolve the House and go for fresh elections ahead of time with a resolution backed by two-thirds of the MPs.
To get two-thirds majority, all parties in parliament must agree. While the ruling SLPP is keen on immediate dissolution to exploit the pro-SLPP mood in the country, the United National Party (UNP)-led alliance, which currently has majority in the House, is divided on the issue. Negotiations are on to resolve the contradictions.
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa says that a general election will be held at the first opportunity granted by the constitution.<br /><br />He was addressing his first Cabinet that was sworn in before him at his office this morning.
The swearing in of the 16 member cabinet of the caretaker government was held this morning at the presidential secretariat.
Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa was sworn in as the minister of Finance, Economic affairs, policy development, buddha sasana, cultural, water supply and urban development.
Nimal Siripala de Silva took oaths as the minister of Justice, Human rights and legal reforms.
Arumugan Thondaman was sworn in as the minister of community empowerment and estate infrastructure.
Dinesh Gunawardena foreign relations, skills development, employment and labour relations.
Douglas Devananda fisheries and aquatic resources
Pavithra Wanniarachchi women’s and child affairs, social security and health and indigenous medicine.
Bandula Gunawardena information and communication technology, higher education, technology and innovations.
Janaka Bandara Tennakoon state administration, home affairs, provincial council and local government.
UNP leader and former Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe says that he rejects the allegations which claim that he weakens the victory of Sajith Premadasa.
He was addressing a media conference held at Sirikotha today.
Meanwhile, the retired disabled soldier who staged a sit-in protest in front of Sirikotha is still continuing his agitation.
The disabled soldier demanded that Ranil step down from the party leadership allowing MP Sajith Premadasa to take over.
The disabled soldier told our news team that Sirikotha authorities are influencing him to withdraw from the protest.
From Dr. Sudath Gunasekara Former Permanent Secretary to Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranayaka and Ex- President of the Sri Lanka State Administrative Services Association (1991-19194)
Dear Sir,
First of all, please accept my heartfelt and warm Congratulations on your unprecedented and brilliant victory. We all know how much we struggled to get here for the past four and a half years. How many hundreds of letters we have written to newspapers and other news sites like Lankaweb. I am happy all those efforts have brought ample dividends by putting you in the highest place in the country.
Personally, this is no surprise for me as I knew it beforehand as I predicted very accurately in my Email to you on the 14th where I said you will definitely start with 65 lakhs and you should not get surprised even if you get 70 lakhs. I am copying that mail again here for you to verify in case you may have not seen it. As for me with my 35 years of experience in SLAS from a Post of Principle of a college to the level of Mrs. Bandaranayaka’s Secretary, ranging from the village, division district to the national level you victory was a foregone conclusion as I have said in the opening part of that mail
Looking at the
way you have started on the job I am really jubilant and feel proud to see you
have risen above all former Presidents just within the first 2 days in Office.
For example
1 By winning this election you have dispelled a long-standing minority myth that a Sinhala leader can never win without the votes of the minorities and put an end to the tyranny of minority politics in this country as well forever, in the same way how you won the so-called unwinnable war against the LTTE in 2009.
2 You started with the official swearing-in as the President at the most appropriate place in this Island nation the most sacred Ruwanweliseya and Jaya Sri Maha Bodhiya in Anuradhapura that was the capital of the Sinhala Nation for ove15 centuries, particularly at a time like the present after 204 years of subjugation to brainwashing and colonial rule. By doing so you have not only won the admiration of all Buddhists but also has conveyed an important message to the minorities. As such, there is no doubt about it. It is history-making for any Head of State and a new tradition set for all future Heads of State to follow.
Your swearing at this place has much more emotional significance to me personally. Because apart from its political, religious and social significance you have made, it was I who made this suggestion of swearing-in at Sri Dalda Maligava, Jaya Sri Maha Bodhiya, and Ruwanweliseya, to MR in 2005 writing from the USA. My suggestion was published in the Island paper by Prabath. This was the age-old hallowed tradition followed by the Sinhala Buddhist Kings
3 Your speech made at the occasion has no parallel in Sri Lankan history by any Head of State. It reminded me of the famous Gettysburg Address by Abram Lincoln. Your words carried more meaning than they had and must have echoed in the ears of all patriotic people in this country.
4 Removing
politician’s photos from all Government and replacing them with the State
Symbol is another historic decision you have taken
5 Appointments of the Secretaries, PB, Kamal, and Artigala, I think has set the example of putting the correct man in the correct place. This is what you called good Governance
6 Your decision to appoint a Cabinet of 15 Ministers is the best in statecraft taken by any politician in the post- Independence period. Because it shows your genuine concern for the people and their purse as it is directly related to excessive expenditure and colossal wastage of the government funds incurred by all governments up to date, just to maintain and keep tied a set of useless politicians and institutions to remain in power with least concern for the people while the whole economy was bleeding. Again it is a dream come true for me as I was the first man who proposed a Cabinet of 15 in this country a long time ago. Even in my latest mail of 14th Nov 2019 (”After the 16th of Nov. 2019, Presidential Elections; are we again going to have another six months of UNP miss-Government and total anarchy?) On page 3 para 4, I have mentioned like this I also would like to propose that the new President appoint a leaner cabinet of say about 15 for the interim period”.
7 The next thing I would like to mention here is your reaction to Tamilnadu politicians that appeared in today’s Decan Chronicle where you had asked them to talk sense or shut up” This was the kind of leader this country wanted and had been eagerly looking for the past 7 decades from 1948.
This is only 2
days record. I am sure your whole term of office will shine with this type of
shining golden pinnacles of the highest statesmanship.
8 Meanwhile finally, I also request you to follow the same principle in appointing Governors, Ministry Secretaries, Ambassadors and all top public positions without repeating the mischievous practice of appointing defeated politicians, their family members as all past governments had done. In my understanding all Governments since the inception of PCC in 1987 to date only one suitable man had been appointed as a Governor. All others were just political rejects, relatively disabled widows or personal friends of the respective Presidents, who should have found their places in a Home for the Aged. They knew next to nothing about governance or administration. Besides enjoying the fabulous luxuries of the past the only other thing they did was making the Government unpopular and officials unhappy. Also, none had commanded the respect of the officers or the people and everybody hated and cursed the Government for appointing such parasitic persons at public expense.
9 Another very important key area in Governance is the selection of Government Agents/District Secretaries. In my experience, not every SLAS officer who could be a success in the District/Divisional Administration. Apart from professional skills, they also need to have high skills in PR and empathy for people and their problems. They are the last links who take administration and social development to the grass-root level and people. Delivery of services to the Provincial, Divisional and Village level rests mostly in their hands. As such you have to be very selective in appointing people to these positions. During British times they appointed only the best brains to be in charge of Provinces and Districts as GAA and AGAA.
I hope and wish you will not do the same mistakes all the previous Governments did. I know you will not. I can vouch for you, a set of professional Governors in the 9 Provinces and GAA in the Districts will be an asset for your Government
If you need any clarification or advice on
these matters please contact me on the following links
TP 081 2232744/
071 8075326
No 2i Gemunu Mawatha, Hanthana Pedesa, Mahanuwara
PS: I am also
attaching herewith an AFP news release for your information and necessary
action. I wonder whether you can sue them for misinformation and malicious
reporting without knowing the political culture of our country.
Wishing you all
the best in your new Assignment and the
Blessings of the Triple Gem,
I just listened in utter disbelief at yet another attempt by RW to pour scorn and contempt at the ability too Sri Lankans to discern fact from fiction with his address announcing his decision to resign. Therein he aimed to present himself as one who furthered freedom and democracy, especially by establishing appropriate institutions. He even attempts to take credit for the success of the process of the recent presidential election.
Does he forget that he was at the helm of the administration that by fair means and foul prevented 9 provincial council elections, and so violating one of the most fundamental tenants of democracy, that he claims he protected? What a wonderful way of ensuring free and fair elections, don’t have them at all!
Does he suffer from amnesia of unimaginable proportions to forget that he was responsible for the biggest fraud in SL’s banking history, not once but twice, attempted to reinstall his pawn in this deceit and is still aiding the prevention of apprehension of this pawn. Is that his idea of furthering democracy.
Does he forget that even in the dying days of his administration, he oversaw the signing of the ACSA agreement behind the backs of the people, parliament and even his cabinet colleagues? This agreement has significantly compromised SL’s sovereignty and worse would have happened with his administration signing the SOFA and MCC, agreements, had there not been the countrywide opposition, this attempt provoked.
Does he forget that he was at the helm of creating a constitutional council” whose sole objective was hoisting on SL a constitution that would have seen the granting everything thousands of Ranaviru sacrificed their life and limb to prevent? This was only prevented by the President finally gathering the courage to pull the rug from under his feet, by withdrawing from the national government”
The very concept of creating a national government to enable countless ministers and deputies to hold together a disparate group of politicians, when he came to power promising to curb the excessive size of the cabinet of his predecessors, is repugnant to the core. This was to achieve his true aims, as above concealed from the electorate he duped to acquire power.
Overseeing the UNHCR resolution that sacrificed the honor of the Ranaviru whose sacrifices enabled him to commit these dastardly acts and making no attempt to correct this wrong even when such opportunities were presented to him on a platter especially by Lord Naseby, is yet another highlight of his claimed visionary guidance of Sri Lanka’s democracy.
The litany of deceit and deception that could be laid at RW’s feature endless. One would not be provoked into recounting these if RW desists from claiming credit for things, which in real life he has done just the opposite of.
An honorable expression of regret and remorse would be much more gentlemanly.
It was indeed delightful and thrilling to see Presidential Election results by Noontime on 17th November continuously unfurling with amazing outcomes showing Mr Gotabhaya Rajapaksa winning Southern electorates of all the 16 Southern districts with massive majorities which were unprecedented in previous elections and which negated early morning results unfavourable to him. While the results were coming in the air was filled with sounds of crackers and in the neighbouring shops stocks of crackers were sold out fast and the people had to use bamboo crackers to fill the void. When the announcement of results was over and Gota was declared as the President-elect the jubilant people waving national flags, motorcyclists, three-wheel drivers and vehicle owners took to the streets and joined in massive vehicle parades and mass rejoices. It reminded us the atmosphere prevailed in the country on 9th May, 2019, the victory day and 17th November, 2019 to become a Celebrity Day.
There were many conspiracies and machinations to prevent Sri Lankans achieving this triumph, mainly by the terrorist rump the Terrorist National Alliance (TNA) in collaboration with the two myopic leaders of the Muslim racist political miscreants, who allegedly intimated, coerced, bribed, misled, and forced Muslims in the north and east to join hands with Tamil terrorists deliberately ignoring the atrocities and mayhem caused by the terrorist Tamils to Muslims in the past while Muslims in the South joined with their ever-loving Sinhalese brethren and swelled the votes cast for Mr Gotabhaya Rajapaksa in concurrence with Ali Sabry, A.J.M.Muzammil, Mohammed Muzammil and the like.
The prat-fallen Sambandan Kotiseeya, who shamelessly and unblushingly carried out any and all scrubbing jobs for megalomaniac terrorist leader and his cohorts initially were agitating for a boycott of the election later changed their minds following directions received from the diaspora outfits. This position was further intensified when Sajith and the UNP agreed to grant their so-called 13 treacherous demands wholeheartedly and solidly. These demands were completely rejected by the Gota/Mahinda patriotic duo and said that those demands only deserve to be plunged into waste paper basket. These Tamils were also spreading the view that a winning candidate must get a substantial percentage of Tamil votes and without Tamil votes, no one can win the election. This made the JokerBaba further confident making him even to go for their meetings in pony driven carts. It would have been ideal for him if he rode on a Puttalam donkey!
The shameless
Sambandan seeya has told the heroic President Mr. Gotabhaya Rajapaksa to
respect what he called” the very substantial democratic verdict of the Tamil people of the
North and East and it is only then that they can bring about a sense of oneness
and the feeling that they are all equal citizens of one country and this
country will be protected and that by creating such an environment they can
achieve major economic and social development which will benefit all the people
of this country”.
We, Sri Lankans would like to flagrantly tell this shithead there is nothing to respect in you and your terrorist cabal, and we do not consider the election results of North and East as a democratic verdict but a forced, manipulated, and shameless bullied act without allowing the people to make their own independent decisions. We ask this shithead and his sidekicks why they did not allow the Tamils in the North and East to vote freely as they did in the February 10 LG elections? The outcome of the election results in the North and East cannot be believed at all as results of a fair and free election.
Due to the ignominious activities being done by the Terrorist Seeya and his cohorts we cannot consider these terrorist gangsters as equal citizens of this country. If they, the terrorist gang, have any sense of equality how can the diaspora proxy Sumanthiran, who is to take up the leadership of TNA after Sambandan Seeya’s demise, stated the following to mislead the Tamils, particularly in the North:
If Gotabaya wins, our worry is that the constitutional process might not only be stopped but the land that has been released might be taken again
We must first settle the issues and do the Constitutional reforms. And if that is done then, we will certainly invite the diaspora to come and invest
Mr Mahinda Rajapaksa is deliberately trying to whip up the Sinhala nationalistic feelings against us
The Tamils should unite to defeat the Sinhalese. He has said that the Sinhalese are united to make Gotabhaya victorious and to counter this move the Tamils should unite and ensure the victory of Sajith Premadasa.
It is quite clear that these
racist Tamils in the guise of representing the Tamil masses have no intention
at all to do anything for their welfare and have never spoken about lack of
drinking water facilities shortages in educational facilities, need of road
development, housing requirement of road improvements, fishing problems, want
of additional buses, improvement to train facilities, improvement of health
facilities, but only on the need for them to self rule, devolution of power and
amendments to the constitution. This
shows that they are keeping the Tamils of the North and East locked up in the
Thimpu demands of 1985 for over 30 years just for their personal survival.
It was not due to the faults of the governments that the Tamils are in this pathetic situation but because this Colombo based politicians who enjoy all parliamentary privileges and a luxury living. Just visit Upper Kotmale and see how Mahinda Rajapaksa government has provided to the people of Kotmale with spacious houses and all other facilities for a modern living along with the inauguration of the Upper Kotmalee Power Plant project.
Pathetically what these
racist TNA did for the last 4 ½ years was protecting the Ranil Wickremasinghe
government and voting in favour of all horrendous legislations including Budgets.
It is very clear that these white-clothed terrorists have no interest in serving the Tamil community and what they want is promote discontent in them, particularly in the Tamil youth and pave the way for the revival of the LTTE financed by the diaspora. Therefore the first and the immediate task of the new government should be adopt legislation to disenfranchise Sambandan/Sumanthiran et al and create the atmosphere for establishing unity among all Sri Lankans. The charges against the TNA cabal may include promotion of hatred among the people of this Country on ethnic basis, failure to look after the needs and shortcomings of the Tamils who have elected them to Parliament, active involvement in moves to segregate this country, and violating the constitution.
The newly elected president of the Republic of Sri
Lanka has acted with his intellectual decisions with NO partiality or partisan
politics in the appointment of executives in the governing team.
Firstly, the appointment of General Kamal
Gunaratne was an excellent choice for the position of Defence Secretary
where the General will act with positive innovative and ingenious thoughts for
the benefit of the country. The administration (Law & Order) of illicit
drugs, narcotics, and caribous, etc responsibility was entrusted to the
military which is another excellent decision.
The decision of not portraying
pictures in government offices, but the government emblem is another decision.
Stopped foreign travel of
government officials.
Private celebration expenses to
be carried by their own finances.
Cleaning up of the Western
Province immediately and to have a clean WP was a dream of the SLPP government.
Such major decisions taken by the President indicate
GR’s intellectual, capability, and capacity and proves that Knowledge is
Power”.
GR’s decisions here indicate that His Excellency
possesses the following qualities.
The initiative is a
self-starting quality of a person/professional. Proactive is an added value to
a self-starter. A person must be a troubleshooter” than a trouble
maker”.
Leadership: I believe
that behavioralpattern inflicts upon leadership
quality. Good listening skills and respecting others’ views is a prerequisite
for leadership.
Decisive: Being in an advisory
capacity senior civil servant have to make decisions based on their judgment
criteria, which, however, should not deter politician’s policy, however, shall
not put the country to risk. It is presumed that the president HE GR has
considered all of this.
Analytical Skills: A
person has to have high-quality analytical skills to solve problems. Statistical
and Reliability analysis is required for economic studies. With the military
background HE GR has proved that he has the qualities.
Self-Discipline is another
criterion Civil servants and politicians should possess. Staff should be added
value to the organization not a liability and shall be a role model for the
young ones.
Addressing the defeat
of the Tamil politicians (2019): it is indicative that they always cling onto mud-slinging and be on the die-hard,
prehistoric side of the political arena. For the last 70 years, the reactionary
political parties of the Tamils have been claiming for ethnic solutions. What
have they not got? What is meant by ethnic solutions? Tamils are in all the
districts. They were given Provincial administration where they did not act with
the authority of developing, however, issuing appointment letters to coolies,
etc. It is better for the Tamil politicians to sit down and think where they
have gone wrong. All the old cognitively impaired and the terrorists with
criminal thoughts should leave politics and give room for the young University
intellect students with positive, creative and productive thoughts from the
University of Jaffna to enter politics.
Sambanthar +
Sumanthiran + Mavai — Please do not drive Jaffna + Tamils to take the path of
the 60s and 61 s like that of the mad Bulls, Amirthalingam, Naganathan, and SJV
who drove the country to scarcity. Please co-operate with the government of SL
and, maybe join SLPP and take a couple of portfolios and develop the country.
Please do not be lickers to get jobs for your kith and kin. We have entered a
new era with the new leader HE GR + MR to make the country progressive and
liberal. Please be creative and not destructive and think before you act.
Sumanthiran with his Master in Law degree from a prestigious University
(Monash) should not defame the University but act according to the standard of
the University.
Vijayakala Maheswaran should leave politics and go home to maintain
her home.
Chandrika should never come back to SL. She has been a poisonous
worm.
TAMIL POLITICIANS: YOU
ARE HERE TO SERVE THE PEOPLE OF SRILANKA NOT MASTERS IN A NARROW AREA WITH
RACISM SATURATED IN YOUR MIND & SOUL.
Gotabaya Rajapaksa was elected the seventh Executive President of the Republic of Sri Lanka at the election held on 16.11.2019. He won comfortably with 52.25 % of the votes, with his rival trailing behind with 41.99%. Gotabaya Rajapaksa polled a total of 6,924, 255, out of 13,252,499 votes. Gotabaya won in 7 of 9 provinces and 16 electoral districts. He also won the postal vote of 17 districts.
The Presidential election of 2019 was
impatiently awaited by those who wanted the Yahapalana government out. Whenever Yahapalana government did something
they did not like, the angry public said, ‘wait till the next election
comes’. Sri Lanka loves elections.
Voters have been going to the polling booths from 1931 onwards.
This Presidential election was a crucial
election and voters did not want anything to mar the results. The queues were
disciplined, orderly and the voting was brisk There was a very high turnout of
87.31%, probably the highest turn out ever. The voters had no trouble with the
long ballot paper. They knew exactly where to put the cross. The number of
rejected votes was a mere 1.41 % (135,452).
The election was conducted efficiently and smoothly. The officials in charge are by now, very experienced in conducting elections. Election monitors from abroad confirmed that the elections were clean. European Union team said the election was peaceful, technically well managed and efficiently administered by the Election Commission. Asian Network for Free Elections (ANFREL) said the election was peaceful, orderly and successful. These foreign election observers were bound by the Declaration of Principles for International election Observers (UN 2005).
The transfer of power took just 2 ½ days. Polls opened at 7 am and closed at 5 pm on 16th and by noon on the 17th, the winner was known because Sajith Premadasa conceded defeat. The result was officially declared by 5 pm on the 17th, 24 hours after the polls closed. By noon on the 18th Gotabaya Rajapaksa had taken oaths as President of Sri Lanka.
It was clear from the huge enthusiastic crowds that attended his election meetings that the popular vote had been won by Gotabaya well before the election. Crowds pursued him everywhere. They even accompanied him when he went to cast his vote!
The election was considered so crucial that around 2 lakhs of Sinhalese living abroad, came at their own expense, risking their jobs, to vote for Gotabaya. They came not only from countries like the UK and France but also from Kuwait, Egypt, and Italy. Television cameras showed them coming out of the Arrivals section of Katunayake Airport with their trolleys draped with the Sri Lanka flag and posters of candidate Gotabaya. They spoke to the camera and said openly that they had come to vote for Gotabaya and that the country was facing a serious crisis.
The Maha Sangha came out in strong support of
Gotabaya. We saw them daily on television news, telling us what they thought of
Yahapalana and instructing us on how to vote. Think before you vote, they said.
This election was a rata gana, daruwo gana, Sambuddha Sasana gana hitana chandayak.”
We need a ‘ratata adara karana, ayomaya nayakayek’, they said.
The Maha Sangha openly promoted Gotabaya. Gotabaya has a vision, also he delivers any project he undertakes, the Sangha said. They were happy when Gotabaya won. Asgiriya and Malwatte openly welcomed the result. The Maha Sangha were there at Ruvanvelisaya looking, for the first time in five years, calm and relaxed. This was the President they had wanted.
Pohottu ran a well-coordinated campaign. Professional groups and business persons supported it. Volunteers were enlisted at the grassroots level. There was a surprising sophistication in the Pohottu campaign, said, observers. SLFP was not known for this level of sophistication.
President Gotabaya appreciated the support he got. Hundreds of thousands of people, who had never worked for a political party previously, volunteered their time and resources for our campaign. I also appreciate the role played in the election campaign by professional organizations like the Viyath Maga, various national organizations, the business community, academics, artists, social media influencers, expatriates who came to Sri Lanka to vote and the youth. I have not met most of them personally, but they did their duty for the country. I thank them all, he said in his inaugural speech.
Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s victory was greatly
welcomed. Crackers were lit when Gotabaya’s nomination was announced. There was fireworks, kiribath and rejoicing
in the streets when he won. But the biggest celebrations took place when
Gotabaya was sworn in as President. The
celebrations went on the whole day and spilled over to the next day as well.
(See Derana 6.55 news 19.11.19)
The celebrations included Raban playing, three-wheeler and scooter parades and lots of cheering. Most of all there were dan salas offering kiribath. There were dan salas on the next day too. Television cameras showed enormous trays of kiribat, combs of fat plantains and dozens of consumers. In Colombo cameras showed a dan sala with the food in brand new clay pots and a bunch of Nelum pohottu on the side. In Matara they served the food on kenda kola. Passengers travelling on buses had food thrust on them. The media, both print and television, commented on the dan sala aspect of the celebrations, because it was so prominent. (see Derana 12 noon news of 19.11.19 for a lengthy presentation of these celebrations.)
Gotabaya Rajapaksa received his primary and secondary education at Ananda College, Colombo. He joined the Sri Lanka Army as a Cadet Officer in 1971 and became a Second Lieutenant in 1972. From the Sinha regiment, he was transferred to the newly created Gajaba Regiment in 1983. In 1989, he was appointed a commanding officer of the 1st Battalion, Gajaba Regiment. He continued in this regiment till 1990 and rose to the rank of Lieutenant Colonel. He attended the Advanced Infantry Officers Course at the United States Army Infantry School, Fort Benning, in 1983 and obtained a Master’s Degree in Defence Studies at the University of Chennai in 1983.
Gotabaya participated in some of the most
hard-fought battles in the war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
(LTTE). He participated in Operation Liberation,” the offensive mounted to
liberate Vadamarachchi from the LTTE in 1987. He commanded his battalion in
Operation Strike Hard” and Operation Thrividha Balaya” in 1990.
As a reward for gallantry and excellence in
combat, he was awarded the Rana Wickrama Padakkama (RWP) and Rana Sura
Padakkama (RSP) in 1991. He worked closely with outstanding Army officers
including Denzil Kobbekaduwa and Wijaya Wimalaratne. Gotabaya’s rise to the Presidency
marks the first instance of a former military officer becoming the President of
Sri Lanka.
Gotabaya Rajapaksa
retired from the army in 1992. He
obtained a Post Graduate Diploma in Information Technology from University of
Colombo in 1992. In 1998, Rajapaksa and his family migrated to the United
States of America. His wife’s family were living there and his wife wanted to
join them. He worked as a Systems Administrator in the IT department of
Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, California.This gave him valuable exposure to the west. His ideas for
beautifying Colombo probably came from what he saw in Southern California, said
observers.
Gotabaya returned to Sri Lanka and held the powerful post of Secretary, Ministry of Defence from 2005 to 2015, in the two successive Mahinda Rajapaksa presidencies. His achievements during this period are many. He elevated Sir John Kotalawala Defence Academy to a fully-fledged Defence University in 2007
Gotabaya played a key role in ending the
three-decade-long war through an expertly-conceived and skillfully-coordinated
military strategy. He was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Letters by the
University of Colombo in 2009 in acknowledgment
of his role in winning the war.
He saw to the rehabilitation of over 12,000 former LTTE cadres, a rehabilitation project which has won the admiration of other nations. He also saw to the de-mining of the north by the military and restoring normalcy in North and the East. To consolidate national security, the Department of Immigration and Emigration, the Registration of Persons Department, and the Coast Guard were brought under the Ministry of Defence.
In 2010, Gotabaya Rajapaksa took over the
Urban Development Authority, with very positive, very visible results. Within a
short span of four years, he made significant changes in metropolitan Colombo
and several other cities. Walls of public buildings were brought down creating
a more open, relaxing environment in Colombo.
Recreational areas and walking paths were constructed in Battaramulla, Madiwela, Kaduwela, Bellanwila, and Nawala. He initiated the renovation of many old colonial buildings and structures in Colombo, including the colonial Race Course area, Dutch Hospital precinct, and Independence Arcade, In the greater Colombo region. He used the armed forces for these projects, an excellent move.
He negotiated the Metro Colombo Urban Development Project. Shanties in Slave Island were demolished and the inhabitants provided with flats elsewhere. A huge flood and drainage management project were started in the Colombo city. Under this project, Colombo’s drainage infrastructure, including its micro drainage channels, primary and secondary canals, and lakes were redone. Canals in Colombo were cleaned, and they became attractive and inviting. This flood and drainage project, which probably incorporates sewer renovation, is in progress today. (continued)
Two
years ago, people knew that yahapalanaya was failed and it was the most corrupt
regime ever came to power in the country. In my writing indicated that Mr.
Gotabaya Rajapaksa will be the right person to lead the country and he will win
with the support of Sinhala people, who represent about 78% of the total
population. The results of the
presidential election in 2019 indicated that Sinhala people are still divided
and the next general election must focus to unite all Sinhala people and to
obtain more than 75% of the power of the parliament. The foreign influences
have been working against the unity of Sinhala people and Mr. Gotabaya
Rajapaksa clearly stated that he could have won with the support of Sinhala
people but he appealed to Tamil and Muslim people to join with him. However,
Tamil and Muslim people attempted to divide the power of Sinhala people, but
the effort was unsuccessful.
The
major responsibility of the new president is changing the current political,
economic, social and cultural environment.
To change the environment, Mr. President and his government must focus
on the economy first and the national unity through a cultural design to the
country. Sri Lanka’s economy has stuck with macroeconomic and microeconomic
problems. Major macroeconomic problems associated with mainly fiscal issues,
which are budget deficit with higher spending.
Loss-making public enterprises, unproductive provincial councils created
by the 13th amendment to the constitution are major casual factors
for increasing government spending and the government needs taking effective
actions to control and limit government spending. If government can balance or
can get an excess budget it will positively impact on the value of Sri Lanka’s
rupee. Debt service also a serious problem within the current status of the
economy, however, it could be easily controlled if the economic growth lifts to
at least 6% within two years and then increase to 8% by an increase in
production especially agricultural area and encouragement of quality import
substitutions. The productivity of employees is lower and increasing
productivity and improvement of the quality of service in public and private
sectors are vital issues need to be focused.
The
other significant macroeconomic problem is depreciating the foreign value of
Sri Lanka rupee. The major strategy for
this issue should be to increase foreign reserves to the US $ 25 billion in the
country by export development, tourism promotion and encouraging foreign
employees to remit money to the country without sending to developed countries.
To increase foreign reserves, it is important to consider the strategies used
by Taiwan and South Korea. China can help more to increase foreign reserves. Immediately Sri Lanka can negotiate with
China to exchange the US $ 50 billion worth of Sri Lanka rupees to Yuan or US
dollars to increase reserves to gradually settle this agreement. In this way, Sri Lanka can increase the
foreign value of Sri Lanka rupee. If these mentioned macroeconomic problems
quickly consider, other problems such as unemployment would be automatically
solved as it is linked with major problems.
Micro
Economic problems are related to mismanagement of public enterprises and
government departments. Microeconomic
problems are associated with productivity and the government needs taking
effective steps to retraining staff and many human resource management related
issues. Economic issues could easily
tackle in the country and attract public support.
Social
and cultural changes related to creating a cultural design in the country. This idea expressed by people saying one
country one law. Abolition of personal
laws introducing anti-discrimination laws is the way for a cultural design and
such actions would lead to the national integration of all races and
communities and it would be a successful reconciliation.
Gotabaya Rajapaksa swept to power in the recent presidential polls in Sri Lanka, marking the return to centre stage of his powerful political family on the island nation. Asanga Abeyagoonasekera, director general of the Institute of National Security Studies Sri Lanka, spoke with Rudroneel Ghosh about the political and regional implications of the election result:
What are the main factors that contributed to Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s victory in this election?
There were mainly three factors. First is the economy which has plummeted to 2.7% GDP growth, the lowest in a decade. This had sharply escalated the cost of living for ordinary Sri Lankans. Outgoing PM Ranil Wickremesinghe of United National Party (UNP) was the one who was running the economy so the economic failures were blamed on him, which helped Gotabaya. Second, the bipartisan model between UNP and elements of Sri Lanka Freedom Party which was introduced in 2015 had serious flaws and it ended up with a constitutional crisis last year which saw a serious rift between the executive president and the PM. People saw this as instability in governance and realised this wasn’t the way to go forward.
And third is the security threat that emerged after the Easter Sunday bombing this year which claimed more than 250 lives. This factor helped Gotabaya project himself as a solution because he is from the defence apparatus and solved the big ethnic crisis involving the Tamil Tigers that affected Sri Lanka for 30 years. So he was seen as someone who would strengthen the national security. Gotabaya’s main challenger was Sajith Premadasa of UNP but there was a trust deficit between the people and UNP, especially after the Easter bombing and the report of the parliamentary select committee that highlighted serious intelligence gaps and administration flaws in the previous regime.
Would you say there was ethnic polarisation, with Tamils largely voting one way and the majority Sinhalese in another way?
Clearly, deep polarisation was seen in this election. In the 2015 presidential polls, Tamils and Muslims voted for Maithripala Sirisena who secured victory. If you see then President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s statements after that election loss, he clearly said that he did not believe he lost the polls because the majority Sinhalese had voted for him. So from 2015 to now, you can see the Rajapaksa brothers worked on winning the Sinhalese vote even more and Gotabaya this time has certainly won an even greater portion of the majority community than his elder brother did earlier. In fact, Gotabaya says in his inaugural speech after the result, I was elected by the Sinhalese vote, and my expectation from the Tamil and Muslim electorate was not met. But I want you all to join me now.”
With Mahinda too now returning as PM, what does the return of the Rajapaksas mean for Sri Lankan politics?
Most people are rejoicing. They have come back after just four short years and this clearly shows that the bipartisan government that was created in 2015 did not deliver. The interesting thing would be the differences in Gotabaya’s policies and Mahinda’s policies. Gotabaya has mentioned in his manifesto that he will stick to meritocracy and technocracy, and change the political culture. We have to see how he will implement these values. Overall, people are seeing the Rajapaksas as a solution to economic woes and security threats. Now it is up to them to deliver.
Will Gotabaya’s victory see more Chinese involvement in Sri Lanka?
Mahinda had a very pro-China position and he upgraded relations with China to a strategic level. Gotabaya has mentioned in his post-result address that he will not get into global power struggle and will bring Sri Lanka into a neutral position. So he is talking about creating a non-aligned policy for Sri Lanka. The difference between Mahinda and him here is that he has been in the West. He was a US citizen until election time. We have to see if Gotabaya can balance the US, China and India spheres in Sri Lanka. But China is obviously our largest economic and trading partner. The Chinese are very much there in our development projects. How Gotabaya is able to balance China’s infrastructure diplomacy with other nations’ interests here will be interesting to see. But relations between Sri Lanka and China are strong. And the Rajapaksas have showcased this strong relationship in the past.
How do you see New Delhi-Colombo relations panning out now, with Gotabaya as president?
Gotabaya has said he will have a strong relationship with New Delhi. Plus, he has been working with Indian foreign service officers and knows the Indian set up well. But I think there will be a significant difference in the way he builds his relationship with New Delhi as compared to his brother. We will also see this difference in the way he builds his relationship with south India and the Tamil community. Overall there will be a stronger Lanka-India relationship.
The hard-fought seventh Presidential election in Sri Lanka has just ended with a convincing victory for former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa. His achievement in securing over 52 per cent of the votes cast in the face of reservations expressed by minorities in that island-nation must be seen as an important development for South Asia and the extended Indo-Pacific region.
We now hear that his first State visit after formally assuming office on 18 November will be to India on 29 November. India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar has just concluded an unannounced two-day visit to Colombo (on Monday and Tuesday) to have what he described as a ‘warm meeting’ with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to convey a message of ‘partnership for shared peace, progress, prosperity and security’ with New Delhi.
Recent observations appearing in the public domain suggest that all four of the above-mentioned factors could pose a significant diplomatic and strategic challenge for both countries given the past Rajapaksa regime’s pronounced tilt towards China.
There is currently a view that Sunday’s Presidential election result in Sri Lanka will most certainly have a bearing on the presence of both India and China in the Indian Ocean region, especially in the context of Beijing, which has been making impactful inroads.
Editorials appearing in various Indian media through the week seem to be somewhat cautious and sceptical. One such editorial in an Indian daily said: “It is possible that Rajapaksa would like to change course and build better relations with India.”
However, it further goes on to say: “New Delhi must prepare for a pro-China tilt in Colombo, some spillover of Lanka’s Tamil politics to Tamil Naduâ¦. India must act as a constructive partner in the face of the likelihood of continued political tussle in Sri Lanka till the November 2020 (Parliamentary) elections.”
I spoke with two former Indian diplomats – K.P. Fabian and G. Parthasarathy – recently on their assessment of the election result in Sri Lanka.
Ambassador Fabian said: “India will have to play its cards carefully given Sri Lanka’s closeness to China in the recent past.”
“(Gotabaya) Rajapaksa has won primarily because of the majoritarian Sinhala vote bank and the Buddhist clergy. Premadasa, on the other hand, has secured more votes from the 15 per cent Tamil and 10 per cent Muslim communities in Sri Lanka,” he stated further, adding “Long term, Sri Lanka will have to maintain good relations with its immediate neighbours.” Ambassador Parthasarathy reiterated New Delhi’s long-held view that the China factor is deeply ingrained in Sri Lanka’s political psyche.
The election result could see India’s relationships changing not only with Sri Lanka, but also with Myanmar, the other neighbouring country scheduled to hold elections in 2020.
He said both countries have an “intrusive and less-than-healthy Chinese presence” and “the Chinese take an above-normal interest in the domestic politics of both these countries.”
He also felt that Sri Lanka and the Rajapaksa family personally would continue to be under international scrutiny for alleged serious human rights violations committed during the civil war between Government troops and the LTTE in the 1980s and 1990s. If past precedent is anything to go by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa would continue to receive support from Beijing, he maintained.
These are challenging and difficult times for South Asia and the extended Indo-Pacific region. The Indian Government has wisely gone ahead with an outreach towards Colombo and the new President, but will reiterate clear red lines that it would not like to see being crossed.
As one editorial said earlier this week, New Delhi would welcome Colombo engaging with Beijing so long as it does not “affect Indian security interests.”
Malaysia – India
Malaysia is showing increasing interest in procuring India’s Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas. Kuala Lumpur recently put out a tender for supply of 36 new light combat aircraft and if it reaches an agreement with New Delhi, it will be the first foreign sale undertaken by the Indian Government-owned aerospace and defence company Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).
India’s Tejas is competing with China’s JF-17, South Korea’s T-50 Golden Eagle, Russia’s YAK-130, BAE Systems’ armed Hawk and Sweden’s Gripen. There is a concern, however, that the proposed deal may not take off due to diplomatic and trade ties between both countries currently being strained over Kuala Lumpur’s recent negative remarks on New Delhi’s move to change the special quasi-autonomous status of the former State of Jammu and Kashmir.
China and Bangladesh
China and Bangladesh continue to seek ways to improve bilateral trade ties. Both Governments have just inked a $72 million joint venture to implement a mega water project in the emerging smart city township of Purbachal on the outskirts of Dhaka in phases by 2023.
The joint venture between the Chinese United Water Corporation and Delcot Water Limited of Bangladesh is the first Public Private Partnership (PPP) water sector project in Bangladesh.
The over 6,000-acre Purbachal is the biggest planned township coming up to Dhaka’s north-east.
China is already implementing $10 billion worth of infrastructure projects in Bangladesh. Apart from Purbachal, the other major projects coming up are a Chinese Economic and Industrial Zone, the Payra Power Plant, the 8th China Bangladesh Friendship Bridge and the International Exhibition Centre.
China and Afghanistan
On Monday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang said Beijing is keeping all communication lines open for holding the intra-Afghan talks in China.
He said China supports comprehensive and inclusive “Afghan-led, Afghan-owned” peace reconciliation processes and is willing to provide a platform for dialogue and exchanges.
(Ashok Dixit is a New Delhi-based media consultant and a former senior editor with two of India’s leading multi-media news agencies ANI and IANS. He is also the son of India’s former National Security Advisor and Foreign Secretary J.N. Dixit)
President Gotabaya Rajapaksa today (21) requested Archbishop of Colombo, His Eminence Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith to nominate a representative from the archdiocese for the proposed committee on Easter Sunday attacks which is to be established soon.
Meanwhile, Cardinal Ranjith has urged President Rajapaksa to take legal action against those who are responsible for the attacks despite their status, ethnic community or religious beliefs.
President Rajapaksa called on Cardinal Ranjith at his official residence in Colombo today.
The Cardinal, during the cordial discussion, commended President Rajapaksa for the initiatives he has taken so far.
Cardinal Ranjith told the President: We cannot say justice was delivered to the nearly 300 people who lost their lives during the Easter Sunday attacks. Proper investigations have not been done on those who are alleged to be responsible for the attacks. In a way, they have tried to brush everything under the carpet. We must look into every aspect and area that led to these bombings and murders. We cannot allow anyone who acted to cause harm to these people to walk free, in spite of their social status, community of faith. We hope your government will ensure that justice will be delivered to those who were affected by the incident.”
Responding to this request, President Rajapaksa said: First, I will appoint an independent committee to look into this matter and to find out who was behind it and how it happened. Second, I have already taken action to prevent such attacks from taking place in the country once again. I have appointed the best person as the Defence Secretary who is highly experienced. I have instructed him to re-build our intelligence units. I instructed him to re-establish the security networks that existed during my time as the Defence Secretary. He has also been instructed to focus on intelligence gathering and arrest those who are still free. Thirdly, as investigations continue, I will bring justice to the families of victims who haven’t been compensated in any way. These are the three aspects I am planning to focus on. You would have more confidence in the process if one of your representatives too is appointed to the proposed independent committee. That is why I waited until this discussion and haven’t appointed the committee yet. I have already an appointment to give my testimony before the current committee.”
The President further stated that what he is referring to is not about giving statements but about appointing a representative of the Cardinal to the committee.
When Cardinal Ranjith said many other countries have their own secret services to work on intelligence and terrorist threats, the President said: We too had such intelligence service, but they were systematically compromised. There wasn’t a better intelligence service than ours back then. It was out intelligence units that located all safe houses of the LTTE in the south, but the best intelligence unit belongs to the Army because their skills were hones over 30 years of conflict. But unfortunately, they were rendered powerless. I am sure that if we allow them to continue their work without hindrances, terrorism will not rear its head again in the country.
In response, Cardinal Ranjith said their work shouldn’t also be influenced by politics.
Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa has been sworn-in as the new Prime Minister of Sri Lanka, before newly elected President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
The event, graced by many other distinguished guests, is taking place at the Presidential Secretariat in Colombo.
New Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa will shortly assume duties in his new post.
Former President Maithripala Sirisena and former Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, who officially stepped down this morning, were also present on the occasion.
Earlier today, former Premier Ranil Wickremesinghe stepped down from his position and tendered his resignation to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
Meanwhile the interim Cabinet of Ministers, which was scheduled to be appointed today, has been put off until tomorrow (22), political sources told Ada Derana.
Mahinda Rajapaksa had served as Opposition Leader of Sri Lanka until his appointment as the new Premier today.
This is the third time Mahinda Rajapaksa is taking office as the Premier. He had been appointed Prime Minister after the UPFA had gained a slim majority at the Parliamentary Elections of 2004.
He had briefly served as Prime Minister again, for a period of just 52 days, during the time of the constitutional crisis in the country in October last year.
Two brothers are holding the top positions in the government for the first time in the history of Sri Lanka.
Colombo, November 21 (newsin.asia): It is sad to see the communal attitude of some Sri Lankans including people around me. I felt like sharing this story with you all. Please spare a moment and read it.
Pictured with me are Sri Lankan Tamils who had fled to Tamil Nadu by boat to save their lives at the height of the war.
During my higher studies in Kerala, India, I wanted to meet Sri Lankans living in Tamil Nadu refugee camps and write about them.
Although I went with two of my friends from Chennai, I had second thoughts on whether the refugees would speak to me because I am a ‘Sinhala Buddhist’. However I did go to a camp anyway with the belief that as people of my country, they will talk to me.
What happened there is what you all need to know.
They first wondered why I had come to visit them all the way from Kerala. But after doubts were cleared they took me in and welcomed me as if I was like one of their family. They told me that I was the first Sri Lankan to visit them at the camp since they left Sri Lanka and settled in the camps in the 1990s.
The refugees told me how nicely they used to live in harmony and peace before the war in Sri Lanka, how dismal their lives in the refugee camp are and how longingly they dream about returning to their motherland.
But at the same time they were scared to go back, ambivalent about as to how fellow Sri Lankans will welcome them as a considerable number of them had affiliations with LTTE members in the past. They said all they wanted was to die in the country of their birth.
Simona, a 70-year-old mother of five, had a son in the LTTE who died at the age of 22 in the war. Her husband had also died in a shell attack.
Before the war, we were living happily and peacefully with Sinhala people. We had a beautiful life in Sri Lanka,” she recalled.
The inmates of the camp did not let us leave without having lunch which was made in one of the houses in the camp. We were served rice with potatoes, beans and boiled eggs.
Those women who, I felt, were like my mother or aunt, hugged me and wished me good health. I was in tears.
As a journalist and a Sri Lankan, that day is cherished as one of the most unforgettable days in my life.
Sinhala, Tamil, Muslim or Burgher, we are all Sri Lankans. But we are labeled as Buddhists, Tamils, Muslims or Burghers. It is true that there are extremists in every religion. But, why are we looking at everyone with the same lens? We all have such short lives. Why waste time spreading hate? Wouldn’t it be the greatest victory for Sri Lanka if we all can get together as one strong army and work for a brighter future?
Colombo, November 20: Indian Foreign Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar’s air-dash to Colombo with a friendly message from Prime Minister Narendra Modi within two days of Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s stunning victory in the November 16 Sri Lankan Presidential election, has put Indo-Lanka relations on a new trajectory.
India-Sri Lanka relations had deteriorated badly in the final phase of Mahinda Rajapaksa’s Presidency (2005-2014) because of the latter’s tilt towards China, India’s rival in the Indian Ocean Region.
New Delhi felt that the tilt had compromised its strategic and economic interests in the geo-strategically located island country. When Mahinda Rajapaksa was defeated in the January 8, 2015 election, he blamed India and the West for it, though the actual cause of his defeat was his alienation from the majority of Sri Lankans, including the majority community, the Sinhalese.
With the advent of the Good Governance” government of President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe in 2015, India expected Colombo to give it the economic and strategic space it deserved. But except for some projects like the Emergency Ambulance Service and the rural housing project, nothing major was given to India while the Rajapaksa-era dalliance with China continued.
Hambantota harbor was controversially given to a state-owned Chinese company for 99-years for just US$ 1.2 billion on the specious ground that the country could not meet its overall debt repayment obligations.
In April 2017, India and Sri Lanka signed a comprehensive MOU covering a number of joint venture projects in the field of energy and infrastructure. India proposed to convert the China-built but empty Mattala Airport into a humming air hub in strategically placed South Sri Lanka. But negotiations on it proved to be long drawn out and fruitless.
India was keen on constructing a container terminal in Colombo given the fact that 70% of the port’ s business was with India. Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe was for it but the Ports Minister and the President were against. Now, it is to be run by a joint venture between Sri Lanka, Japan and India. India’s plan to economically develop Trincomalee remained on paper and a long pending project to build a 500 MW coal fired power plant in Sampur was called off in the eleventh hour by President Sirisena.
The state of affairs annoyed New Delhi and it was reported that Modi ticked off one of the top leaders visiting India.
However, despite disappointments New Delhi still believed that it is better to have a non-Rajapaksa government in Colombo than a pro-China” Rajapaksa regime, though all Indian projects under Rajapaksa’s rule, like the project to built 50,000 houses in the war affected North-East and the railway projects, were accepted and completed ahead of time.
Nevertheless, a time progressed, relations with the Rajapaksas were re-established by High Commissioner Taranjit Singh Sandhu, an experienced Sri Lanka hand. At the request of Mahinda Rajapaksa, a meeting with Modi was arranged when the latter was on a visit to Colombo. The Rajapaksas had by then realized that antagonizing India would do them no good. They were pleased with the meeting with Modi. They decided to accommodate India’s strategic interests in the island vis-à-vis China. Even then suspicions about the Rajapaksas remained.
But Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s somewhat unexpectedly stunning victory over the ruling party’s Sajith Premadasa by 1.3 million bought home the fact that he has the solid support of the majority of Sri Lankans if not the minority Tamils and Muslims. Therefore it made sense to welcome him and build upon the goodwill generated in the meetings between Modi and Mahinda Rajapaksa.
Not surprisingly, Modi was the first foreign head of government to tweet his congratulations to Gotabaya and also to call him up on the phone. The language of the congratulatory message and Modi’s invitation to Gotabaya to visit New Delhi motivated Gotabaya to reply not only warmly but also mention the need for cooperation in the field of development, and more importantly, in the security sphere.
The Rajapaksas had sensed that Indian Ocean Security, now under challenge from emerging China, is of primary concern to New Delhi and that offering cooperation in keeping order in the ocean would be extremely comforting to India.
The exchange of the messages was quickly followed by the visit to Colombo of the Indian Foreign Minister Dr.S.Jaishankar, the trusted Modi-man in the Foreign Ministry with hands-on experience of handling Sri Lanka, as a foreign service officer.
The meeting with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Tuesday was described by Jaishankar in his tweet thus: A warm meeting with Sri Lanka President@GotabayaR.conveyed PM@narendramodi’s message of a partnership for shared peace, progress, prosperity and security. Confident that under his leadership #IndiaSri Lanka relations would reach greater heights.”
Jaishankar also met former President and opposition leader Mahinda Rajapaksa who will lead the political team when he is appointed Prime Minister shortly. Jaishankar also announced that Gotabaya would be visiting New Delhi on November 29, which will be his first foreign trip as Lankan President.
In his meeting with Modi, the Indian Prime Minister will seek the revival of project proposals gathering dust as a result of the previous government’s indifference. Indian Ocean security and India-Sri Lankan cooperation in ensuring that China does not change the rules of the game as it had done in South China Sea will be discussed. Cooperation will also be sought in keeping track of Islamic radicalism in Sri Lanka and India and taking timely action.
It appears that the Gotabaya regime will give in to reasonable Indian demands in the matter of its security and even agree in principle that India will be Sri Lanka’s primary security provider.
India would be welcome to execute development projects, but China is likely to continue to have a major role in infrastructure development because of its ability to fund ventures and execute them fast.
China Factor
China, which has a major presence in Sri Lanka through infrastructure projects, is not going to go away. And this was made clear by President Xi Jinping in his congratulatory message to Gotabaya. Xi underlined the fact that Sri Lanka is a part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and expressed confidence that the Gotabaya Administration would strengthen cooperation under the BRI.
Tension With US
While ties with China will continue to be smooth and Gotabaya will handle India sensibly and diplomatically, a rough ride is expected vis-à-vis the United States because of its penchant for raising war crimes issues and going back to the unsavoury past, which Gotabaya is opposed to.
The voting pattern in the Presidential election shows that Gotabaya got elected mainly with the support of the majority Sinhalese community and that community is against going back to the alleged war crimes. The issue shows their armed forces, which rid the country of terrorism and separatism, in bad light.
Gotabaya’s voters will never agree to their soldiers to be dragged before any internationalized war crimes judicial mechanism. The majority community will never allow the government to sign the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) with the US which could turn Sri Lanka into an American military base.
In a statement on Monday, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo had said that the United States wants to work with Sri Lanka in deepening good governance and promoting justice, reconciliation and human rights.” He also said he wanted the two countries to cooperate in fostering a free and open Indo-Pacific region where all countries can prosper.”
Although Rajapaksa has publicly stated that he would treat all Lankan communities equally and has appealed to the Tamil and Muslims join his journey towards prosperity, the latter two communities still see him in his war-time avatar of a no-nonsense and tough as nails Defense Secretary with a pledge to destroy the separatist and terrorist LTTE. For the Muslims, Gotabaya is still the spirit behind the Buddhist extremist Bodu Bala Sena (BBS).
The fears lurking among the minorities could be fanned by communal parties in the coming parliamentary and provincial elections. With the UN Human Rights Commission meeting periodically to discuss Sri Lanka, human rights groups both in Sri Lanka and abroad, would keep ethnic animosities alive.
This could give the US a handle to interfere in Sri Lanka and twist its arm. These possibilities will make Gotabaya wary about the US. US-Lanka relations are unlikely to be a happy in contrast to relations with India and China.
The Maha Sangha reiterated that legal action should be taken immediately, against ministers who have allegations against them including Mangala Samaraweera, Raajitha Senaratne, Ranjan Ramanayake, and Patali Champika Ranawaka.
These views were expressed during several media briefings held across the country.
