Lanka’s return to democracy
Monday, October 26, 2015
While steps are taken by the government to implement the resolution passed in the UNHR conference, the fascistic elements in the opposition are preparing for a confrontation.
They might claim that they are concerned about the sovereignty of the country; or else scream and shout about coming federalism and division of the country.
They tell the people that more blood should be shed to protect the right of Sinhala people. At the same time they will exaggerate any error made by the government to show that new rulers are trying to bleed the people. For example, Dinesh screamed “The Good Governance regime, on 6th October, retracted its controversial, negligently and recklessly drafted Telecommunication Levy (Amendment) Bill which it had placed before Parliament on the Order paper of 22nd September 2015 with the objective of imposing additional levies on persons receiving telecommunication services.”
Hybrid war crimes court proceedings
The Bill sought to load further burdens on consumers, and to impose retrospective punishment, which is against natural justice, yelled the leaders of the MEP. According to them “This Bill attacks and violates the Sovereignty of the People (Articles 3 and 4) of the Constitution…” They said it was planned imperialist attack and they championed the cause of protecting rights of the common masses, this time in avenues of advanced technology. However, answering to the question raised by Dinesh Gunawardena on October 6 in the Parliament, Minister Lakshman made announcement of the withdrawal of the Bill. May be negligence but certainly no threat to sovereignty of the people!
Then came the case of political prisoners. Government at first claimed there are no political prisoners. Mass pressure made the government to change the stand and the President agreed to give a solution before November 7. However the Opposition MP Wimal Weerawansa charged that the government was planning to produce former LTTE members, who are to be released from prisons in the near future, as witnesses against the armed forces for the proceedings of the proposed Hybrid Court.
National Freedom Front (NFF) Leader Weerawansa said he was informed by reliable sources close to the government regarding the plan. “All arrangements are being done by the Maithri-Ranil coalition government to make our forces guilty as war criminals in the Hybrid War Crimes Court proceedings.”
What a horrible lie! He added that prisoners, who were found guilty for involving in LTTE terrorist activities, would be released in the next few months by the government in order to prepare them for Hybrid Court proceedings. The hunger strike launched by suspected ex-LTTE detainees had been called off after an assurance given by the President. Wimal comes out with this completely contradictory story, assured with Gobbles law that any lie repeated will be accepted by the frightened masses as a true statement. In the mean time former President Mahinda Rajapaksa said that he felt proud when he saw President Maithripala Sirisena speaking in Sinhala at the General Assembly of the United Nations in New York early few weeks ago. However, he also reminded the listeners that he had spoken both in Sinhala and Tamil at the UN General Assembly for the first time in history!
As the Government begins the process of mending broken human and political connections to move towards a consolidated national unification, questions are being asked at what cost this process will take place. Who will be held accountable to the human tragedies? Will the process create more problems than answers?
The opinions of the Diaspora are crucial in the process for Lanka to move forward. It may be useful to consult all Diaspora; over six years after the war as the Diaspora play a key role. Diaspora groups including the Sinhala Diaspora are building international opinion on the country. The Global Tamil Forum (GTF) is a very powerful Tamil Diaspora organization based in London, and who have managed to make a big say on how successive British Governments have dealt with Lanka. From the time Mahinda Rajapaksa became President and managed ruthlessly, to suppress the LTTE, the GTF has been discouraging both the international community and the Tamils in Lanka and outside from supporting Rajapaksa’s policies.
GTF leaders
I can remember in 2010 GTF leaders argued that Mahinda will follow a policy against the global capitalism to create a Polpot type regime in Lanka. They clearly underestimated the support Mahinda got from global capitalist powers. In the end it is not the global powers that knocked him out, but the oppressed masses. However, come January eighth, 2015, the GTF encouraged the Tamils to vote for change in what is popularly now known as the peoples’ democratic revolution.
Speaking to The Sunday Leader, GTF spokesman Suren Surendiran said that GTF called for change with the primary objective of reconciliation in mind. “GTF was the only Diaspora organization that publicly encouraged Tamil voters in Sri Lanka to freely exercise their franchise to stop and reverse the trajectory on January eighth. We did that with the primary objective of reconciliation in mind,” he said. Since then, GTF has formally welcomed the change on January eighth and publicly acknowledged the constructive steps taken by the new President including the democratic transition process initiated by his new government. To strengthen its commitment, in April 2015, GTF participated in a dialogue in Singapore on promoting reconciliation and strengthening of democracy in Lanka with a group of political, civil society, academic, Diaspora and other international stakeholders.
“In May, GTF congratulated the President and the government for the passing of the 19th Amendment, although in its adopted form, had lot to be desired. Despite that, the GTF acknowledged publicly the spirit of change and the new political atmosphere involving consultations and compromises as breathtakingly fresh in the context of Sri Lanka and said that it gave hope that such conditions, if further developed, will be conducive to resolve other pressing issues faced by the people,” Surendiran said.
The new Government has also identified the need for dialogue with the Diaspora and in June, in London, together with the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), the GTF discussed with various stakeholders including the Minister of Foreign Affairs Mangala Samaraweera. Several potential confidence building measures between all communities within and outside Lanka and how the Tamil Diaspora could assist by bringing its exceptional capacity and capabilities were discussed. Thus the Tamil liberation movement has decided work with the democratic forces in the south.
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