{"id":108854,"date":"2020-11-20T16:13:43","date_gmt":"2020-11-20T23:13:43","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=108854"},"modified":"2020-11-21T15:15:29","modified_gmt":"2020-11-21T22:15:29","slug":"the-pohottuwa-government-of-sri-lanka-part-2-c5c","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2020\/11\/20\/the-pohottuwa-government-of-sri-lanka-part-2-c5c\/","title":{"rendered":"THE POHOTTUWA GOVERNMENT OF SRI LANKA Part 2 C5c"},"content":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS<\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

Revised 21.11.10<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

US intervened\nin the two Presidential elections of in January 2010 and January 2015. US wished\nto somehow defeat Mahinda Rajapaksa and put a US puppet on the throne. It is\nwell known that the US meddled in the Presidential elections of 2010 and 2015,\nsaid the media. US ambassador Michelle Sisson was openly talking politics at\nembassy functions. She was adamant that the candidate to challenge Mahinda\nRajapaksa in 2015 should not be a UNP candidate but a common candidate. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The US\nfunding of Sirisena campaign in 2014\/2015 is not a secret though identities of\nrecipients remained confidential, said Shamindra Ferdinando.  US Secretary of State John Kerry said a\nmassive USD 585 million was spent in Nigeria, Myanmar and Sri Lanka to \u2018restore\ndemocracy\u2019. Some of this has been given, in Sri Lanka to civil society, citizen\nmovements and faith leaders.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sarath\nFonseka, the US candidate for 2010, failed to win. But   in\n2015, Maitripala Sirisena became President and Ranil Wickremesinghe was made\nPrime Minister. At long last, US was in control in Sri Lanka. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

USA planned\nto entrench itself comfortably in Sri Lanka. \u2018What we offer Sri Lanka is a true\nand transparent partnership, particularly in terms of development and\ninfrastructure, avoiding unsustainable debts,\u2019 said USA. \u2018Your country stands\nto gain substantially from these opportunities.\u2019  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Top US\nofficials bounced into Sri Lanka with confidence. US Secretary of State, John\nKerry, was the first to visit.  The\nSecretary of State is the highest ranking member of the US Cabinet. Sri Lanka\nhad a highly publicized, triumphant visit from Kerry, In May 2015. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kerry did not\nhide the fact that Sri Lanka was of great strategic importance to Washington.\nHe said, “Your country sits at the crossroads of Africa, South Asia, and\nEast Asia. The Indian Ocean is the world\u2019s most important commercial highway.\nAnd with its strategic location near deep-water ports in India and Myanmar, Sri\nLanka could serve as the fulcrum of a modern and dynamic Indo-Pacific region.\nThe US could play a leadership role in making this happen.\u201d .<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other officials\n followed. Nisha Biswal, Assistant secretary\nof State for South and Central Asian Affairs, had visited Sri Lanka six times\nby July 2016.  Alice Wells, who replaced\nher, was in Sri Lanka in August 2017. Samantha\nPower [US ambassador to the UN], Thomas Shannon, [US Deputy Secretary Defense],\nTom Malinowski [US assistant Secretary for democracy and Human rights] and US\nSecretary of the Navy, Ray Mabus, also visited Sri Lanka. There is a photograph\nof Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera holding hands with Biswal and\nMalinowski. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

US supporters in Sri Lanka were pleased. America is very important\nto us, said Minister Harsha de Silva. 25% of our exports go to US and 70% of\nthat is garments. Changes in US trade policy have a large repercussion on Sri\nLanka, because of our dependency on the US economy, he added. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mangala Samaraweera said, \u2018Obama would\ncome up to President Sirisena to say \u2018Hello\u2019 at whichever international forum\nthey used to meet. This shows how far American relations have improved during\nthe recent times.\u2019 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Others were not pleased. They saw the Yahapalana government as a\npuppet government of the USA. Yahapalana government is   a \u2018fully pro-Washington regime\u2019 said Tamara\nKunanayagam. Tissa Vitarana said that Ranil Wickremesinghe was going to make\nSri Lanka a puppet of the USA like the Philippines. Loyal supporters of the USA are\nridiculed. Mangala Samaraweera is America\u2019s poodle and the West\u2019s darling,\nsaid Rajeewa Jayaweera. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The current government appears to be highly dependent on the West\nfor its political survival, said analysts. This link will not benefit the\ncountry.  Over a thousand so-called independent\n“Think Tanks” have been established both in the USA and in other\ncountries to influence governments towards USA projects. Institute of\nPolicy Studies and Advocata are playing that role in Sri Lanka, said Tissa\nVitarana. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

USA is not\nthat admired and welcomed in Sri Lanka. Critics seem to outnumber admirers. Even the USA\nembassy in Colombo is criticized.  USA is\nat present completing a huge embassy on Galle Road, amalgamating the old\nBritish embassy site. The new complex appears to extend from the Kollupitiya\njunction to the old Colombo Swimming Club area, covering the entire length of\nthe front wall of the Temple Trees, said critics. Within months of Yahapalana government\ncoming to power, the application form for a fixed deposit in a state bank asked\n\u2018are you a US person.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From a triumphal, highly visible start in 2015, with prominent\nvisits by Secretary of State John Kerry and other high ranking officials, the\nUSA  went  into low profile. Visits from US\nofficials  continued, but without much\npublicity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prime\nMinister Ranil Wickremesinghe paid a quiet visit to New York in July 2017. The Prime Minister was in New York\nprimarily, we are told, for a medical checkup. He had been earlier checked up\nand fully cleared in Singapore.  He was\ndeclared fit by the New York medical panel too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Since\nWickremesinghe happened to be in New York ,he would also meet with two\nofficials from the White House, who would represent President Donald Trump..Wickremesinghe\nwas also scheduled to address the United\nNations Ocean Conference. This indicates that the visit was planned well\nahead. Usually when Sri Lanka\u2019s   Prime\nMinister goes on a visit abroad, there is much publicity, including television\nand photos.  This time there was none.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo was to\ntravel to Sri Lanka on a short visit, in June 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo was to\ntravel to Sri Lanka on a short visit, in June 2019. Pompeo was accompanying\nPresident Trump for the G-20 summit in Osaka. The purpose of Pompeo\u2019s visit was\nto pressure Sri Lanka into signing SOFA. But he did not come. He cancelled his\nvisit.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The reason, said analysts was the growing\nprotests against the Status of Forces (SOFA) Agreement and strong objections to\nan American military base in Sri Lanka. The public opposed SOFA since it would\ngive the US forces unrestricted access to Sri Lanka as well as diplomatic\nimmunity. “<\/p>\n\n\n\n

USA now had to\nengage in soft power all over again. However, a few items of popular American\nculture were already in place. They seem to date from the year 2000. Valentine\u2019s\nDay came to Sri Lanka. This took off with a bang.  Personal love was emphasized. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Then in 2002\na session of Free love or something was planned in Vihara Maha Devi Park in\nMay, the month of Wesak.  The Maha Sangha\nintervened and squashed it. The Sangha said that this project was not an\ninnocent one. It had an ulterior motive. It was intended to subvert, to\noverturn the local culture. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mothers Day\nstarted around 2010, followed much later by Fathers Day. In Sri Lanka too, like\nin America, these events were intended mainly to help sell merchandise. The\nmotive was commercial. Children of elite westernized families in Colombo are\nnow starting to hold Halloween parties, and Colombo has started eating dough nuts.\nSome caterers specialize in only doughnuts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The U.S. Embassy   launched\nan American Innovation Hub (iHub) in Matara in March 2018 in partnership with\nthe Matara District Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The iHub is located in\nthe Matara Chamber of Commerce building.  \nThe iHub offers thematic programs, all free of charge, and a selection\nof U.S. books and DVDs. It is intended to promote English language learning,\nencourage study in the United States, and introduce the local community to\nAmerican culture and values. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The U.S.\nembassy thereafter   signed a Memorandum\nof Understanding with the Matara Chamber of Industry and Commerce in September\n2018 to open an American Corner in Matara. This will replace the IHub. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 The American Corner will offer free programs\nand training. Programs will include English classes, coding and computer\nskills, leadership and public speaking training, and a range of film screenings\nand cultural opportunities.”   This\nhas attracted audiences of different ages and diverse backgrounds.\u201d  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mo\u2019 Mojo, an\nAmerican zydeco band, came in February 2017 on a U.S. Embassy sponsored visit\n.There were public performances in Jaffna and Colombo; workshops for music\nstudents; and master classes for Sri Lankan musicians.We bring American\nmusicians here to increase understanding of the United States diverse musical\nheritage and to strengthen our cultural connections with Sri Lankans,\u201d the\nembassy said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To mark seven decades of diplomatic relations betwixt Washington\nand Colombo, the US had a series of performance by trombonist Wycliffe Gordon\nand the International All Stars in March 2018. They performed in Colombo, Galle\nand Matara.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The band played before all sorts of people, who ranged from those\nthat were merely curious about a band playing out there, to those who were able\nto recognize the inherent value in hearing and seeing a sophisticated musical\nexploration in improvised music, by a group of consummate professionals with\nauthenticity behind every note they played, said Arun Dias Bandaranaike. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This soft\npower was urgently needed, because another election was looming. USA is clearly\ngoing to play a role in the 2019 Presidential poll, said analysts. There were\nat least three Presidential candidates who were considered pro-USA. The UNP\ncandidate, the JVP candidate and a private candidate, former Army Commander Mahesh\nSenanayake. There is speculation to why JVP has presented a candidate this\ntime, said critics.  JVP last contested\nthe presidency in 1999. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mahesh\nSenanayake left the country after 2010 election. He was in the Fonseka group.\nHe   returned in 2015. Many do not know\nwhere he went, said Former Army Major Ajit Prasanna.\n<\/em>Senanayake had gone to USA where he worked on intelligence in\nAfghanistan and Libya, then held a senior position in the American embassy in\nDubai.  He served USA for five years,\nsaid Ajit\nPrasanna<\/em> on television news. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Following\nGotabaya Rajapaksa\u2019s victory in 2019 US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo issued\na statement saying the US is ready to work with the new government. The west\nthen turned to the next election, the General election.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 Western governments   took a keen interest in the outcome of the\nGeneral election of August 2020, said the media.  Western diplomats had been speaking to all the\nkey players in the election. Most of the diplomats went to Jaffna. They were\nsounding out the current thinking and public mood in the Jaffna peninsula. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One western\ndiplomat had asked several prominent Tamil candidates about the prospects of a\nfuture alliance of minority political parties, Tamils, Muslims and Christians, would\nit have political clout.  One diplomat had\nheld all his meetings at Jetwing North Hotel in Jaffna. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

When the 2020\nGeneral election ended, U.S. Embassy in Colombo issued a statement, saying they\nlooked forward to partnering with the government and new Parliament. The United\nStates congratulates Sri Lanka on conducting the elections in a peaceful and\norderly manner, despite the challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic, US said.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

US sees Sri\nLanka as a valuable partner, one that will contribute to regional stability\nand prosperity as a hub of the Indo-Pacific region.\u201d We look forward to partnering with the\ngovernment and the new parliament. US reminded the new government to uphold\nhuman rights and the rule of law. ( Continued)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS Revised 21.11.10 US intervened in the two Presidential elections of in January 2010 and January 2015. US wished to somehow defeat Mahinda Rajapaksa and put a US puppet on the throne. It is well known that the US meddled in the Presidential elections of 2010 and 2015, said the media. US ambassador Michelle […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[104],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-108854","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kamalika-pieris"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108854","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=108854"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/108854\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=108854"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=108854"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=108854"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}