{"id":110025,"date":"2020-12-23T17:38:41","date_gmt":"2020-12-24T00:38:41","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=110025"},"modified":"2020-12-23T17:38:41","modified_gmt":"2020-12-24T00:38:41","slug":"the-pohottuwa-government-of-sri-lanka-part-2-c9a","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2020\/12\/23\/the-pohottuwa-government-of-sri-lanka-part-2-c9a\/","title":{"rendered":"THE POHOTTUWA GOVERNMENT OF SRI LANKA Part 2 C9a"},"content":{"rendered":"

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

One solution\nto the problem of a future Indian Ocean war is for Sri Lanka to return to the\npolicy of Non Alignment. The Non-Aligned\nMovement (NAM) started at\nBandung Conference of 1955, during the time of Prime Minister SWRD\nBandaranaike. It became a formal organization in 1961.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Under the\nChairpersonship of Prime Minister Sirimavo Bandaranaike, Sri Lanka helped this\nmovement reach its zenith in the mid 1970s. \nSri Lanka held a very successful Non-Aligned Summit in Colombo in\n1976.  After that, Sri Lanka occupied a\nrespected position in international relations. Sri Lanka was regularly\nconsulted at the United Nations. Sri Lanka\u2019s opinion was sought at the UN when\nissues came up. This is the highest recognition Sri Lanka has ever achieved in\nan international arena. Taking into\naccount our small size this was an extraordinary achievement, said analysts,\nproudly. Sri Lanka enjoyed status way above its size.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

When\nJ.R.Jayewardene became President, in 1977  \nhe took Sri Lanka away from Non Alignment towards alignment with USA.\nDuring his time, Sri Lanka started to vote all over the place at the UN,\nincluding support for UK\u2019s Falklands War. The UN stopped consulting Sri Lanka,\nbut NAM did not forget Sri Lanka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Former\nDiplomat Sarala Fernando recalled the warm reception she received in the\ncountries she went to. Sarala recalled , in the 1980\u2019s as a young diplomat in\nKenya, so many times I would meet friendship and warm smiles from people of\ndifferent levels in society, as Mrs. Bandaranaike was remembered as the world\u2019s\nfirst woman prime minister, and  Chair of\nthe Non Aligned movement. A considerable achievement in those days. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

I remember\nVice President Binh, when I presented credentials in Vietnam in the late 1990\u2019s,\nhaving warm words of friendship for Mrs. Sirimavo Bandaranaike and Sri Lanka\u2019s\nsupport during the difficult war time years, continued Sarala. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

During my\ntenure of office in Geneva (2004-2007), I remember the solidarity of the Asian\nGroup, and how delegation upon delegation stood with Sri Lanka, at the Human\nRights Council, recalling Sri Lanka\u2019s support extended to them in times of\ntheir need, concluded Sarala. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

NAM is still\nin existence, though in low profile.  NAM\nsupported Venezuela at the UN Human Rights\nCouncil.  It is now a forum of 120\nstates, not formally aligned with any major power bloc. NAM is   second only to the United Nations in size.\nIt represents two thirds of the world population and could be a formidable\nforce in the international arena, said analysts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Non Alignment\ndoes not mean remaining neutral where freedom of a nation is threatened.  It means joining non military alliances, to\ncombat the threat, said Tamara Kunanayagam. \u2018Non\nalignment\u2019 is not a passive movement.  It\nhas certain principles.  It stands for\nnon-aggression, non intervention, sovereignty, territorial integrity,\ncooperation, and multilateralism, added Kunanayagam. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

On the other\nhand, NAM is no longer the relatively unified block it was and some of its\ngiants, like India, have been compelled to take sides, admitted analysts. It has, in my\nview, faded in power and image and will have to be resuscitated for any future\nIndian Ocean war. Resuscitation will not be easy. Non-alignment  must be been supported by the whole of South\nAsia, for its to be effective and South Asia\u2019s biggest, fattest member, India,\nis totally aligned with USA. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the\nPohottu government wishes to return to a policy of Non-alignment and to its\nearlier status as a pioneer of the Non-Aligned Movement. We should recover our\nearlier position in the NAM, said Palitha Kohona.  Some senior NAM diplomats still have\nsympathetic feelings towards Sri Lanka, he said. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The best\nsolution for getting out of this dilemma would be to return to Non-Alignment,\nsaid the intelligentsia. National Joint Committee of Sinhala\nOrganizations said,<\/em> \u2018<\/em>We believe\nthat Sri Lanka should follow a foreign policy of Non-alignment.\u2019 <\/p>\n\n\n\n

However it is\ndifficult to see how Sri Lanka can practice Non-alignment. The issue of\nNon-alignment clashes with Sri Lanka\u2018s new policy of \u2018India First\u2019. Pohottu has\nstated that Sri Lanka will not be a strategic security concern for India. Sri\nLanka will not do anything harmful to India\u2019s strategic security interests,\nsaid Pohottu.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sri Lanka is\nthe only neighboring country, which does not have a land border with India,\nmaking it more independent that most other SAARC countries, observed analysts.\nSri Lanka is strategically located for India. India\u2019s National Security advisor\nShiv Shankar Menon noted that Sri Lanka is a permanent aircraft carrier in the\nIndian Ocean and this can be a threat to India.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Knowledge\nof contemporary India is lacking in Sri Lanka, observed K Godage in 2010.\nPathfinder Foundation signed a memorandum with the Indian think tank, Vivekananda\ninternational foundation in 2014   and set up a Center for Indo Lanka Initiatives in 2016. University\nof Colombo has a Centre for contemporary Indian Studies\n(CCIS), for research on contemporary India, and for those working in the\nfield of contemporary Indian studies. It has a journal, a library, guest\nlecture series and visiting scholars. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Military\nwise, Sri Lanka currently has links with India. India\u2013Sri Lanka\u2013Maldives\ntrilateral maritime security dialogue was held in Colombo in 2020. This was a revival\nof the National Security Advisor (NSA) level dialogue among the three\ncountries, which had began in 2011. The first talks were held in Male in 2011,\nSri Lanka hosted the second and the third was held in New Delhi in 2014. This\nwas attended by Mauritius and the Seychelles as \u2018guest countries\u2019. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\nIndia\u2013Maldives DOSTI joint Coast Guard exercise has been going on since 1991\nand is aimed at strengthening capabilities in the area of search and\nrescue operations, combating piracy and armed robbery, damage control, and\ncasualty evacuation at sea.  Sri Lanka\njoined in 2012.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

India\nis planning to fight China, militarily in the Indian Ocean. The Andaman\nand Nicobar Islands which are India\u2019s first line of defense on the eastern\nflank will now be headed by a commander who will report to C-in-C of the\nEastern Naval Command. India needs to further build on its nuclear-armed submarine\ncapabilities housed in Andaman and Nicobar Islands, said experts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

India\u2019s first\nMaritime Theatre Command (MTC) will be at the  \nKarwar naval base in Karnataka. Its commander-in-chief will have full\noperational control over the western and eastern naval fleets, maritime strike\nfighter jets and transport aircraft, two amphibious infantry brigades and coastal\npatrol vessels. This will be part of India\u2019s biggest-ever military\nrestructuring plan to build integrated land-air-sea war-fighting machinery in\nIndia. It will look after the country\u2019s 7,516-km coastline and 1,382 islands as\nwell as the entire Indian Ocean Region (IOR) and beyond. It will have two\nsub-theatres for west and east, said India proudly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But India\nlacks the money to expand its armed forces. The budget allocation for navy, for\ninstance, is far too small. Therefore, India has joined Australia, Japan, and\nthe United States to form the Quadrilateral Defence Alliance. India has also\nsigned agreements with France, South Korea and Singapore. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In the past\nIndia rebuffed attempts by US-allied nations to play a bigger strategic role in\nSouth Asia.  This changed because of\nChina.  India refused to invite Australia\nto the Malabar exercises in 2018 and 2019. After some hesitation, India invited\nAustralia to join in the 2020 Malabar exercises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

India has\nbeen given the task of establishing military links with the nearby islands, on\nbehalf of USA. In 2020, Mauritius with its predominantly ethnic Indian ethnic\npopulation, signed an agreement\nwith India to build a military facility in the Maldives. India is building a\nnew jetty and an airport costing USD 90- million, at the two Agalega Islands\noff the northeastern coast of Madagascar. These are\nabout 1,000 kilometers north of Mauritius. There was a small protest movement\nagainst this, but it was squashed. <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

India also approached\nthe Seychelles in 2020, with a proposal to build a military facility on\nAssumption Island, which will include an airstrip, naval jetty and a garrison\nof 500. There was a\nstrong protest against it  and the proposal was abandoned. China however,\nhas a presence in Seychelles. China has built a new Parliament building and a\nSupreme Court in the Seychelles. China has\nalso\ndonated two light aircraft and two naval vessels. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

India is\nunable to play a dominant role  in Indian Ocean politics because it lacks\nmoney.  In 2020, India has been ranked\n131 in the United Nations Development Programme\u2019s (UNDP) Human Development\nIndex. It has slipped two places from the previous report. In 2019, India\u2019s\nranking was 129.India is behind its neighbors Sri Lanka and China, who are\nranked at 72 and 85. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

New Delhi\ndoes not have the economic heft that Beijing has. Beijing has considerably increased\nits presence in what India considers to be its own backyard \u2013 particularly the\nMaldives, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and Bangladesh.  China- which did not even\nhave an embassy in Male till 2011- is now Maldives\u2019 largest lender with a loan\nof $3.1 billion. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

China is also\nleading in military strength. In the last 5 years, the total tonnage of new\nwarships and auxiliary launched by China exceeds the total tonnage of Indian\nNavy since independence.  Between the\nperiod 2000-2018, China built more frigates, submarines, corvettes and\ndestroyers than India, Japan and South Korea combined.  In 2020, China already has the world\u2019s\nlargest Navy with 350 warships and submarines, and plans to reach a force-level\nof 420 by the end of this decade.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

India is not\ninterested in winning friends and influencing people. India takes a belligerent\nstand with its neighbors. India has engaged in a huge propaganda plan against\nPakistan, which is described below.  India\ncould not possibly have carried this out alone. India lacks both the knowhow\nand the money. This venture shows USA involvement, both in money, contacts and\nmethod. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

EU\nDisinfoLab, based in Brussels, reported in 2020 that it has uncovered   a media network, intended to tarnish the\nimage of Pakistan abroad. “It is the largest network we have\nexposed,” the EU DisinfoLab said. The network was designed primarily to\n“discredit Pakistan internationally” and influence decision-making at\nthe UN Human Rights Council and European Parliament.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Asian News\nInternational (ANI) established in 1971, led this   activity. \nANI was India’s largest wire service \nwith more than 100 bureaus in India, South Asia and across the\nglobe”. Indian news media, especially broadcast media, relied heavily on\ncontent provided by ANI. ANI’s news reports were also published in many\nmainstream Indian news outlets and publishers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

EU DisinfoLab\ndiscovered that ANI had also helped to distribute information on fake media\noutlets.  Its content was   reproduced on more than 500 fake media\nwebsites across 95 countries. “There were layers of fake media that would\nquote and republish one another. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

EU DisinfoLab\nsaid it had never encountered such co-ordination between different stakeholders\nto spread disinformation. The uncovered\nnetwork was one of the most persistent and complex operations he has seen, said\nan expert on disinformation. You need more than a few computers to plan and\nsustain such an action,” he said. The efficiency of the operation showed,\nsophistication and drive. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\ninvestigators   uncovered 265 pro-Indian sites operating\nacross 65 countries, and traced them back to a Delhi-based Indian holding\ncompany, the Srivastava Group (SG). The Srivastava operation had begun in late\n2005, a few months after the present UNHRC was established. The Srivastava operation\nis spread over at least 116 countries and has targeted members of the European\nParliament and the United Nations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\ndisinformation network had a two-pronged strategy, one at Geneva the other at\nBrussels. .In Geneva, Srivastava Group had links with at least 10 UN-accredited\nNGOs, as well as several other organizations which were used to promote Indian\ninterests and criticize Pakistan internationally. They were in charge of lobbying and\nprotesting, and taking the floor at the UNHRC on behalf of accredited organizations.\nThere were several hundred pro-Indian interventions by the non-accredited NGOs,\nwhich were repeatedly given the floor at the UNHRC on behalf of the accredited organizations,\nmaligning Pakistan. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

 On other occasions, NGOs and organizations\nwhich seemingly had nothing to do with Pakistan or India according to their\nstated objectives would get the opportunity to speak at the UNHRC and target\nPakistan. NGOs were permitted to raise whichever issue they wish when they are granted\nspace to speak on the floor. “There are no rules stating that an NGO must\nspeak to specific issues explained an official. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Brussels,\nthe focus was on the Members of the European Parliament. They were taken on\ninternational trips and solicited to write “exclusive” op-eds for\nfake outlets like EU Chronicle, which would then be amplified using ANI. This\noperation impersonated regular media outlets. It used the letterhead of the\nEuropean Parliament, registered websites under avatars with fake phone numbers,\nprovided fake addresses to the United Nations, and created publishing companies\nto print books of the think-tanks they owned. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Demonstrations\nin Europe conducted by organizations linked to the Srivastava Group were\ncovered by ANI, as well as by fake media websites linked to SG. DisinfoLab\nfound at least 13 instances of ANI re-publishing mostly anti-Pakistan and\nsometimes anti-China op-eds originally published on EU Chronicle, one of the\nfake news sites linked to SG.Source https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/world-asia-india-55232432<\/a> (continued)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS One solution to the problem of a future Indian Ocean war is for Sri Lanka to return to the policy of Non Alignment. The Non-Aligned Movement (NAM) started at Bandung Conference of 1955, during the time of Prime Minister SWRD Bandaranaike. It became a formal organization in 1961. Under the Chairpersonship of Prime […]<\/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-110025","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\/110025","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=110025"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/110025\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=110025"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=110025"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=110025"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}