{"id":77673,"date":"2018-05-24T11:36:55","date_gmt":"2018-05-24T17:36:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=77673"},"modified":"2018-05-24T04:31:33","modified_gmt":"2018-05-24T11:31:33","slug":"the-disgusting-behaviour-of-c-v-vigneswaran-and-others-who-commmorated-the-ltte-dead-and-the-even-more-disgusting-conduct-of-the-president-in-not-punishing-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2018\/05\/24\/the-disgusting-behaviour-of-c-v-vigneswaran-and-others-who-commmorated-the-ltte-dead-and-the-even-more-disgusting-conduct-of-the-president-in-not-punishing-them\/","title":{"rendered":"THE DISGUSTING BEHAVIOUR OF C. V. VIGNESWARAN AND OTHERS WHO COMMMORATED THE LTTE DEAD, AND THE EVEN MORE DISGUSTING CONDUCT OF THE PRESIDENT IN NOT PUNISHING THEM"},"content":{"rendered":"

DHARSHAN WEERASEKERA, Attorney-at-law<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n

As a Sri Lankan citizen and a lawyer, I am thoroughly disgusted with C. V. Vigneswaran the Chief Minister of the Northern Province and the rest of the crowd of Eelamists who according to the newspapers commemorated the LTTE dead at a ceremony held in Vellamullevikkal on or about 18th<\/sup> May 2018.[1]<\/a><\/p>\n

I am even more disgusted with the conduct of the President who is the Head of the Government and inter alia<\/em> Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces, for not taking action to punish Vigneswaran and his acolytes for what they did.\u00a0 I give below my reasons for the aforesaid view.<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. WHAT IS WRONG WITH COMMEMORATING THE LTTE DEAD?<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    I wish to make quite clear that I am not against Tamils commemorating the LTTE dead in private.\u00a0 For instance, if a Tamil man or woman in the North or East had a son or daughter who died in the conflict, a son or daughter who also happened to be a LTTE cadre, it would be absurd of me or anyone else to suggest that those parents don\u2019t have a right to mourn their dead child, regardless of whether he or she was a terrorist.<\/p>\n

    Furthermore, our Constitution guarantees inter alia<\/em> the right to freedom of thought and conscience,[2]<\/a> which is understood to be an absolute right, meaning no derogation from it is possible for any reason.\u00a0\u00a0 So, I concede that if there are persons in Sri Lanka who for whatever reason mourn for the LTTE, persons who wish that the LTTE had won<\/em> the war, those persons have every right to hold such views as long as they hold them in private.<\/p>\n

    What Vigneswaran and the rest of the Eelamists who gathered on Vellamullevikkal on or about 18th<\/sup> May 2018 did is quite different.\u00a0 They made a public display<\/em>, accompanied by various symbolic acts such as lighting of lamps, making of speeches, singing of songs, etc. of their sorrow that the LTTE was defeated.<\/p>\n

    That is quite different from privately mourning the death of this or that LTTE cadre, because, by the aforesaid symbolic acts, they were expressing their sorrow at the defeat of the LTTE Organization<\/em> and what it stood for.\u00a0 They were saying in effect that, they were sad that the Sri Lankan State won<\/em> the war, which is the same as saying that they wish they were living in the State that the LTTE was trying to create!<\/p>\n

    If the above is what they are saying, and I can\u2019t interpret their behavior in any other way, such behavior is disgusting on two counts.\u00a0 First, whether Viggy and his pals like to admit it or not, they have benefited a great deal, and continue to benefit, from the Sri Lankan State.\u00a0 Vigneswaran for one is a public official, so he draws a salary from the public coffers.\u00a0 He also draws a pension from the public coffers.<\/p>\n

    If there were government servants in the crowd with Viggy, they are also drawing salaries or pensions from the public coffers.\u00a0 If there were university students, they are being educated at the public expense, which is to say, the State.\u00a0 So, if these folks (i.e. Viggy and his pals) want to publicly<\/em> express their longing for an LTTE-run State, which is to say Eelam, they should have the decency to first give up the aforesaid benefits.<\/p>\n

    Vigneswaran is free to give up his salary, perks and pension.\u00a0 Any government servants in the crowd are free to give up their salaries and pensions as the case may be.\u00a0 And any university students can give their place to some other deserving Tamil, Sinhala or Muslim student who I am sure would be quite happy to attend Jaffna University, one of the best universities in the island.\u00a0 Then, Viggy and his pals can at least claim something of a moral right to express disappointment that the Sri Lankan State defeated the LTTE.<\/p>\n

    Second, and more important, Vigneswaran and his pals are trying to portray to the international community that the Sri Lankan forces that defeated the LTTE were invading purported \u2018Tamil Lands\u2019 or \u00a0a \u2018Tamil Homeland\u2019 and they (i.e. Sri Lankan forces) have no inherent right to remain in those regions even after the victory.<\/p>\n

    If the above portrayal goes unchallenged, it will create a presumption in the minds of foreigners that in fact the Sri Lankan forces invaded a purported \u2018Tamil Homeland,\u2019 and are now occupying it against the will of the \u2018natives.\u2019\u00a0 Nothing could be further from the truth, and the international community must be told in no uncertain terms that, a) there is no such thing as a \u2018Tamil Homeland\u2019 in Sri Lanka in fact or in law, and b) the Sri Lankan soldiers who defeated the LTTE were operating in their own<\/em> country.<\/p>\n

    All they were doing is wresting control of a certain part of the country \u2013 i.e. the Northern Province and some parts of the East \u2013 from a band of criminals who had temporarily asserted control over those areas, and ensuring that the Constitution of Sri Lanka and laws that derive from same, and none other, prevail without let or hindrance in those areas.<\/p>\n

    If Vigneswaran and his pals are dissatisfied with that outcome, i.e., that the Constitution of Sri Lanka and laws that derive therefrom now operate in every inch of this country<\/u><\/em>, and they want to live under laws other<\/em> than those flowing from the Constitution of Sri Lanka, they can avail themselves of the right guaranteed under Article 14(1) (i) of the Constitution (\u2018Right to leave and return to Sri Lanka\u2019) and leave Sri Lanka.\u00a0 No one is stopping them.<\/p>\n

    To repeat, if living under the Sri Lanka Constitution and other laws of Sri Lanka is an unbearably horrible experience for Viggy and his pals, they are free to pack their bags and go.\u00a0 For instance, they can go to their one and only real \u2018homeland\u2019 the Tamil Nad in India.\u00a0 (Perhaps they will be happy there, and if they are not, they can always swim back or row back here again, the same way that I am informed on good authority many of their ancestors reached these shores in the first place!)<\/p>\n

    The point is that, they should let the people who like<\/em> Sri Lanka, who wish to live under the Constitution and other laws of Sri Lanka, do so in peace and tranquility?\u00a0 Instead, Viggy and his pals want to enjoy the protection of the Constitution and other laws of Sri Lanka when it suits them, and not when it doesn\u2019t, and moreover, all the while work to undermine, deprecate and belittle the said Constitution and laws.<\/p>\n

    It seems to me that, they are like parasites, sucking the lifeblood of the State, draining the State of its vitality and energy, without putting anything of substance or value back into it, or worse, waiting to contribute whatever of substance and value they have to Eelam<\/em>, if and when it is created!\u00a0 As I said, it\u2019s disgusting.\u00a0 I\u2019ll now turn to the even more disgusting conduct of the President.<\/p>\n

    2.0 THE PRESIDENT\u2019S RESPONSE TO THE ACTIONS OF VIGGY AND HIS PALS AND WHAT IS WRONG WITH IT<\/strong><\/p>\n

    From what I have been able to gather by reading the newspapers, the President\u2019s response to antics of Viggy and his pals was, a) to make a purportedly unequivocal statement that Sri Lankan forces did not commit war crimes as alleged by the international community especially the UNHRC,[3]<\/a> and b) to engage in various ceremonies such as almsgivings, lighting of lamps, etc, in remembrance of our fallen soldiers.\u00a0 My problems with the aforesaid two responses are as follows.<\/p>\n

    a) The purportedly unequivocal statement that Sri Lankan forces did not commit war crimes<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

    Even if the president made an unequivocal statement as alleged, it is completely meaningless, because the actions of the Government since 2015 \u2013 a Government of which Mr. Sirisena is the Head \u2013 clearly and unequivocally shows that the Government has accepted that war crimes were committed.\u00a0 I shall give below just a few of the facts that support this conclusion.<\/p>\n

    The U.N. Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in March 2014 authorized the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) to undertake a comprehensive investigation into war crimes and other crimes allegedly committed during the war.\u00a0 The final report of that investigation, called the OISL report (OHCHR Investigation on Sri Lanka) concluded that there was sufficient evidence to show that the State \u2013 as opposed to individual soldiers \u2013 committed war crimes.[4]<\/a><\/p>\n

    The report was released to the public on 16th<\/sup> September 2015, but forwarded to the Government one week prior to that.\u00a0 The Government accepted the report without a single objection or qualification.[5]<\/a><\/p>\n

    Next, the aforesaid report became the basis for UNHRC resolution 30\/1 of October 2015, drafted and tabled by the United States and co-sponsored by the Government of Sri Lanka.\u00a0 Operative Paragraph 1 of the resolution clearly and unambiguously endorses without reservation the conclusions and recommendations of the OISL report (i.e. the report that claimed that sufficient evidence exists to show that the Sri Lankan State committed war crimes).<\/p>\n

    Therefore, by the act of co-sponsorship, the GOSL has also accepted without reservation the aforesaid conclusions and recommendations.<\/p>\n

    Next, at the March 2017 session of the UNHRC, the U. S. drafted and tabled a resolution that re-affirmed resolution 30\/1 of October 2015.\u00a0 The GOSL one again co-sponsored this resolution, which means that the GOSL re-affirmed its acceptance of the conclusions and recommendations of the OISL report (which said the Sri Lankan State committed war crimes).<\/p>\n

    If the GOSL had any objections to the OISL report and its conclusions, it could have raised those objections before the resolution was adopted.\u00a0 To my knowledge, no objections were raised.<\/p>\n

    Finally, I turn to the report of the UNHRC\u2019s Universal Periodic Review on Sri Lanka, which was completed in December 2017, and taken up for discussion during the Council\u2019s session in March 2018.\u00a0 Chapter 3 of the report (Paragraphs 119 \u2013 130) sets out the \u2018Voluntary Commitments of the Government of Sri Lanka,\u2019 which is to say they are commitments that the Government has accepted without question.\u00a0 Paragraph 128 is as follows:<\/p>\n

    \u2018Fulfill commitments contained in Human Rights Council resolution 30\/1 towards the operationalization of the Office of Missing Persons, and the establishment of a truth-seeking commission, an office for reparations, and a judicial mechanism with a special counsel.\u2019[6]<\/a><\/p>\n

    As mentioned, the above report was released in December 2017, and taken up for debate in March 2018.\u00a0 That means, as of March 2018, the unequivocal position of the GOSL was that is accepted without question the recommendations of resolution 30\/1 of October 2015, which in turn was based on the conclusions and recommendations of the OISL report, which to repeat found that the Sri Lankan State committed war crimes.\u00a0 So, either Mr. Sirisena is unaware of any of this, in which case as Head of the Government he is inexcusably negligent, or he is lying.<\/p>\n

    And yet, he has the nerve to stand in front of a gathering that, to the best of my knowledge, included the Service Chiefs, decorated officers and men and women of the armed forces, combat veterans, and perhaps most poignant, the fathers and mothers of fallen soldiers, and say with a straight face that the Government\u2019s position in regard to international allegations that our troops committed war crimes is that no such crimes were committed.\u00a0 As I said, it\u2019s disgusting.<\/p>\n

    b) Lighting lamps, giving alms, etc. in remembrance of the fallen troops<\/u><\/strong><\/p>\n

    The newspapers also published numerous photos of the President lighting lamps, participating in almsgivings, etc. in remembrance of our fallen troops.\u00a0 That\u2019s admirable.\u00a0 On the other hand, the President is required and indeed empowered to defend the Constitution and other laws of Sri Lanka and in general to protect the country from all enemies, both foreign and domestic.<\/p>\n

    It is not in dispute that, roughly 29,000 Officers and men and women of our armed forces died during the war with the LTTE, with a further 15,000 completely disabled and thousands of others wounded.\u00a0 Those valiant men and women made that enormous sacrifice in order to protect the country from its enemies, in this case a domestic one, and to prevent such enemy from creating a separate State within the territory of Sri Lanka.<\/p>\n

    If there is the slightest possibility that the aforesaid enemy or the ideology which fed such enemy is being revived, it is the moral as well as legal obligation of the President to make sure such efforts are stamped out.\u00a0 Even a fifteen-year-old can understand that, commemorating the LTTE, including making statements conveying the impression that it is a tragedy that the LTTE lost the war sustains and nurtures, or has the potential<\/em> to sustain and nurture, the ideology that nourished the LTTE.<\/p>\n

    Therefore, reason and common sense suggest that the best and most practical way for a President to honour our fallen troops is do everything in his or her power to hold persons responsible for such commemorations, or any other actions that in effect celebrate the ideology of the LTTE, accountable under the law.\u00a0 Under the circumstances, the President could have, indeed still can, do the following three things:<\/p>\n

      \n
    1. He can haul Vigneswaran before the Court of Appeal under Section 3 of the 6th<\/sup> Amendment o the Constitution. <\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      Section 3(1) of the 6th<\/sup> Amendment or Article 157(a)(1) of the Constitution as amended states:<\/p>\n

      \u2018No person shall, directly or indirectly, in or outside Sri Lanka, support, espouse, promote, finance, encourage or advocate the establishment of a separate State within the territory of Sri Lanka.\u2019[7]<\/a><\/p>\n

      As explained earlier, Vigneswaran and his pals publicly commemorated the LTTE, and in doing so made sure to convey to the outside world that they are very much in sympathy with the LTTE\u2019s ideology, including its ultimate goal of creating a separate State within Sri Lanka.\u00a0 Isn\u2019t that \u2018indirectly\u2019 supporting separatism for the purposes of Section 3 quoted above?<\/p>\n

      I am not the Supreme Court, so I cannot pronounce on the matter. But, Mr. Sirisena as President can instruct the Attorney General to file an indictment against Vigneswaran.\u00a0 Section 3 makes provision for a trial before the Court of Appeal.\u00a0 So, why doesn\u2019t Sirisena do this, and we can all find out what is and isn\u2019t possible under Section 3?<\/p>\n

      Viggy might still wiggle out, i.e. the court might say Viggy\u2019s actions don\u2019t violate section 3, but nevertheless the section will be interpreted<\/em>, and this will make it easier to resort to it on future occasions, say, when Viggy and his pals try other tactics.\u00a0 What\u2019s the use of having constitutional provisions purportedly to protect the country from separatists, if we never test them?\u00a0 On the other hand, if the court finds Viggy guilty, he\u2019s finished, and so are his pals!\u00a0 Either way, Mr. Sirisena will have done an enormous service to the country.<\/p>\n

        \n
      1. The President can ask the Supreme Court for an Advisory Opinion on the Legality of UNHRC resolution 30\/1 of October 2015.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

        Only the President can invoke the consultative jurisdiction of the Supreme Court under Article 129 of the Constitution.\u00a0 Judging by the fact that Mr. Sirisena invoked the said provision in early January to find out if he could stay in office for 6 rather than 5 years, it is clear he knows of the existence of the provision.\u00a0 So, why can\u2019t he use it to ask the SC about an issue that, overall, is far more important to the country, especially the armed forces?<\/p>\n

        If the SC decides that any of the provisions of resolution 30\/1 violate the Constitution, it will be the firmest possible basis for Parliament to revisit the legislation establishing the Office of Missing Persons and also Ratifying the Convention on Enforced Disappearances, two devises that can be used by Sri Lanka\u2019s enemies to amass false evidence against our troops.<\/p>\n

          \n
        1. If there were government servants or university students at Viggy\u2019s event, the President can instruct the relevant ministries to take administrative action against them.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

          For instance, he can have the government servants in question be sacked or transferred, and the students expelled.\u00a0 Let them drive tuk-tuks or fish off the Jaffna Lagoon for a living.\u00a0 Why not make an example of at least a few of these rotters and wanna-be terrorists?<\/p>\n

          The point is this.\u00a0 As President, Mr. Sirisena could have taken any of the aforesaid concrete actions, indeed he still can, to honour the troops, especially those who fell in battle.\u00a0 He has not done so, and instead has chosen to make a show of lighting lamps, and such like things.\u00a0 I find that disgusting, or at any rate, disgraceful<\/em>.<\/p>\n

          Dharshan Weerasekera \u00a0lives and works in Colombo.\u00a0 For constructive criticism<\/u> and\/or questions about this article or any of his other work, he can be reached at:\u00a0 dharshanweera@yahoo.com<\/a> <\/em><\/p>\n

          [1]<\/a> I am relying on the report of this incident in the \u2018Divaina\u2019 of 20th<\/sup> may 2018.\u00a0 The relevant article in Sinhala is titled, \u2018Uture koti semaruma jayatama,\u2019\u00a0 Divaina<\/em>, 20th<\/sup> May 2018, page 1<\/p>\n

          [2]<\/a> Article 10 of the Constitution<\/p>\n

          [3]<\/a> I am relying for this claim on an article in the Sunday Times of 20th<\/sup> May 2018, titled, \u2018SL Military Did Not Commit War Crimes: President.\u2019\u00a0 It reports on the President\u2019s speech at the Ranaviru Commemoration ceremony at the National War Memorial at the Parliamentary Grounds.\u00a0 However, the quotes attributed to the President in that article do in any way show that he unequivocally rejected the allegations that Sri Lankan troops committed war crimes.\u00a0 But, it is quite possible that the original Sinhala version of his remarks conveyed such an unequivocal meaning, and I\u2019m willing to give him the benefit of the doubt.<\/p>\n

          [4]<\/a> See for instance paragraphs 5 and 6 of the OISL report,\u00a0 A\/HRC\/30\/CRP.2, www.ohchr.org<\/a><\/p>\n

          [5]<\/a> See for instance, Note Verbale No. UN\/HR\/1\/30, 15th<\/sup> September 2015, www.mea.gov.lk<\/a><\/p>\n

          [6]<\/a> A\/HRC\/37\/17, 29th<\/sup> December 2017, para 128, www.ohchr.org<\/a><\/p>\n

          [7]<\/a> Article 157a(1) of the Constitution<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

          DHARSHAN WEERASEKERA, Attorney-at-law As a Sri Lankan citizen and a lawyer, I am thoroughly disgusted with C. V. Vigneswaran the Chief Minister of the Northern Province and the rest of the crowd of Eelamists who according to the newspapers commemorated the LTTE dead at a ceremony held in Vellamullevikkal on or about 18th May 2018.[1] […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[117],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-77673","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-dharshan-weerasekera"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77673","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=77673"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77673\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77673"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=77673"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77673"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}