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Government milking LTTE `gonibilla` to get `carte blanche` - Karu Jayasuriya
Wednesday, 29 July 2009 - 11:04 AM SL Time
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This is simply a tactic to buy time. We do not see any necessity to await the next Presidential Elections to provide a political solution to a national question which has been dogging this country for decades. In fact, it is an issue of critical importance that a political resolution is sought to a problem that saw the birth of the most ruthless terrorist organization in the world in our tiny island nation.
It was also, you will recall, the promise upon which the government undertook its military operation to rid the country of terrorism. However, the adoption of this tactic in no way comes as a surprise. President Mahinda Rajapaksa pledged to abolish the Executive Presidency when he sought a mandate at the last Presidential Elections. Therefore it is tantamount to a breach of pledge on his part to ask for time, and this will no doubt also affect the credibility of future promises.
The truth is that the government realizes its popularity is eroding faster than they expected. They also lack the confidence to put the country on the right track and they are fully aware that the situation is going to get worse in time instead of better. This is why they wish to seek a people s mandate as soon as possible, before the euphoria of the military wears off. This is a government that is willing to make long term sacrifices for short term gain, rather than the other way around. It has been the hallmark of this regime. For this government, survival is the name of the game. Everything else takes a back seat.
This government lacks the ability to make tough decisions. They seem to believe that the only way to keep everyone happy is adopt delaying tactics. In the process, they also seem quite content to fan the flames of racism and continue their policies of division which is the reason we ended up with this ethnic problem in the first place. What I see as the greatest strength of this regime, from inception, has been its ability to provide temporary satisfaction to all quarters, even when it calls for making contradictory promises to various parties. But therein too lays its Achilles heel.
This scrambling to appease all quarters, at the cost of what is best for the country at large, will be the downfall of this administration. Now that the war is over they don t seem to be doing anything with a sense of conviction. What this country needs are permanent solutions and not temporary patch up jobs. It is not prudent to play politics with national issues. This government, like many before them, will soon realise that they cannot fool all the people all the time.
2. There is however the contention that the civilians in the war ravaged North and East have little care for political solutions, leave alone the 13th amendment when their basic needs are yet to be met? Wouldn t it be fair to say that no political solution would suffice till the people s lives are improved?
As citizens of our country and as human beings in general, the internally displaced people of the north and east are entitled, at the very least, to have their basic needs met. This is naturally the easier of the things to do and of course we commend the government for prioritizing this aspect of resettlement and normalization. However, it does not take a genius to realise that with their basic needs for food, shelter and safety realised, the people of the north and east will come to need more.
The right to live as equal citizens of this land, with a degree of autonomy over their own affairs, dignity, economic growth and prosperity and such, enjoyed by others elsewhere in the country, are also their inalienable rights as people of this land. We cannot forget our history and the causes that gave rise to the LTTE, a movement that has plagued us for over 30 years. To forget all this would be to deny it, and that would be a grave mistake.
I believe that with regard to political solutions, at the very least, all that is provided for within the constitution of Sri Lanka can be granted forthwith.
There is no reason that these things can t be done simultaneously, while the government is also attending to resettlement. There is no hard and fast rule to say you have to do one after the other. I don t believe that Sri Lanka should bow down to international pressure but since we live in a global world we must learn the art of dealing with the international community and winning their confidence. We cannot live in isolation politically or economically. Unfortunately in the fog of war, Sri Lanka has been isolated to a great degree with significant world players. The regime has adopted a form of Rottweiler diplomacy, championed by a few politically-appointed megaphone diplomats of the regime, which has only hurt Sri Lanka s image, where meaningful engagement may have rendered more favourable results in the long term.
Following the long and bitter conflict, the world s attention is now on Sri Lanka and it is eagerly awaiting the fulfillment of the government s other promises to bring about a political solution once the phase of military operations is ended. The world is watching carefully I believe, at how Sri Lanka deals with her IDPs. But these are all external factors and greater world politics. No world player needs to bring home the fact that we must take care of our own citizens. It is our sacred duty and obligation to ensure that our people live in dignity and want for nothing. I don t believe in declaring outright victory until every citizen of the North, in whose name we waged this war, is able to live in dignity in their own homes. When all our people can stand up and say, yes, we are part of this great nation and we are all, truly free, then and only then can we celebrate.
3. How do you view the opposition both within and outside of the government towards the full implementation of the 13th amendment?
Those who oppose the 13th Amendment have become part of the system. Sadly even those who acknowledged that dealing with the LTTE and dealing with the just claims of the Tamil people were two separate and distinct issues, are now taking a different stand. I believe this is largely an issue of national psyche. The military victory was so hyped and became such a fundamental part of peoples lives that all other considerations fell by the wayside. Sri Lanka seems to be facing a serious dearth of moderates.
While there is consensus that the LTTE had to be defeated militarily, in order for Sri Lanka to attain any kind of real peace, the LTTE s downfall will not automatically bring about peace. That is an illusion. Sri Lankans today are in a comfort zone, believing that with the LTTE gone, the problem is also over. Again, this is tantamount to forgetting the past, which will eventually come back to haunt us. Political parties are playing on this public psyche instead of aiming to educate the voters for the good of the nation in the long term they are adopting the tactics that would bring them the largest number of votes at the next election. This is not statesmanship. It is not the kind of leadership this country needs in this critical stage of transformation.
Prior to the war coming to an end locally and internationally it was argued by some people that the only reason why devolution and a political settlement were discussed was because of the LTTE. Now subsequent to the war coming to an end if we take a stand that the 13th amendment is not necessary or a political solution is not necessary then we will only be giving credibility to that argument. It is a great insult to our fellow citizens of the north and east, if we as Sri Lankans stand by such an argument at this stage.
Political parties will play politics, as always, with this victory and what must follow. I would appeal to all Sri Lankans to go back to the drawing board and recall the root cause of our terrorism problem. We are faced with a golden opportunity to do the right thing. If we do not address the ethnic issues facing the country politically now, rest assured it will reemerge again at another point of our history.
Perhaps we may not live to see it. But it will be the inheritance of our children and their children. Is this really what we want? We have an obligation to our future generations to ensure that Sri Lanka does not live through such a dark age ever again. It will be a good thing if this government focuses on its obligations as much as it does on its own rights.
The 13th amendment is part of our constitution so I cannot understand all this fuss about its implementation. Ignoring the 13th Amendment and the 17th Amendment is something no government can do without being guilty of a most heinous crime violating the constitution of the country.
4. The President recently warned parties against racism within. How much of a concern is this situation to the UNP as a Party long considered closer to the minority communities?
The UNP was not given its name randomly. The United National Party remains today, a truly national party, encompassing constituents belonging to all races, religions and regions. It is a political body under which all shades of opinion can unite and thrive. This is why there is and never will be room for racism or any form of extremism within the UNP, however expedient politically it might be. We believe in integration and not segregation. A person s religion, ethnicity, gender or caste has no bearing in the UNP.
Anyone who can make a positive contribution towards the country will get an opportunity under a UNP government. We believe this is why the UNP has always held the largest bases of both the majority community and the minority communities, despite what coalitions might have been formed on the other side. We remain the single largest political party in the country and that too has not happened randomly. It is because the UNP truly represents the people of this nation as they are and as they should be diverse, beautiful and united.
5. The LTTE last month announced that a committee was established to form a Provincial Transnational Government (PTG) of Tamil Eelam. There are signs that a decision has been made by the Committee very likely with the support of the Tamil Diaspora to secede from Sri Lanka and try to form a new nation state. How do you view this development?
Obviously we will oppose such a stance, but we continue to emphasise that the Government should take meaningful steps to win the confidence of the Tamil community. If the government proves its commitment and has a backbone to address the just claims of the people of the north and east, then all these dreams of secession and forming nation states will be relegated to the dream world. If not, things could turn around again at some point of our history.
This is why we stress that the final solution has to be political. We should not be arrogant about the military victory our soldiers won for us. We should not under estimate their sacrifices and we should take maximum use of this historic victory. These latest statements by the LTTE, which has been relegated to a sole voice in some corner of the world and cyberspace, prove only that the Sri Lankan government appears to lack the political maturity or diplomacy to destroy the LTTE politically despite their military success.
6. What will the UNP try to approach the Tamil people in the North with, where the upcoming election in Jaffna could be seen as a testing ground with, when Tamil Ministers like Karuna are strong on the opinion that it s only by being with the ruling party that they can get their rights?
As a national party, we are contesting all elections throughout the country. We are encouraged by the tremendous response that we receive from Jaffna and Vavuniya, as well as the plantation areas, which is a clear indication that the UNP policies are acceptable to all communities. We are confident that the silent majority will begin to speak up at the next elections, if the people of the north and east are allowed to exercise their franchise freely and without the fear of intimidation and threats.
It is hoped that Minister Karuna and his ilk refrain from using armed force to swing voters and that they have entered the democratic processes in a meaningful and sincere way. If the election is free and fair, the UNP has no cause to be worried. The people s will rules.
7. Do you feel that the UNP s last strong connection to the minority communities may have been lost with the President s statement to Parliament that there were no longer minorities in the country thereby coming closer to the Tamil people?
Certainly not. If words were enough to sway the minority communities, we would never have had an ethnic problem. The people are fully aware that the UNP genuinely has the interests of the Tamil people at heart. It is always important to read between the lines, when politicians make statements. Recent events clearly demonstrate that the real meaning of the statement - there are no minorities in Sri Lanka any more - there are only people who love the country and those who don t is that all opposition representatives and supporters will be categorized as traitors and only supporters of the government are seen as patriots.
This is an extremely dangerous trend and a continuation of the tactics this government has used throughout the military conflict. A vibrant democracy cannot function under such an environment. Today the government has given a clear a message to our constituents, and that is you are either with us or against us.
Look at the media fraternity for instance. They have been brow-beaten, intimidated and murdered into submission. You will remember that many of those journalists who have paid heavy prices for writing the truth have been members of the majority community. So I ask you, when even the Sinhalese who do not necessarily agree with everything the government does live in mortal fear of their lives, what do you think is going through the minds of those in the minority community?
What kind of faith can they have in the President s words? I believe that all communities know in their hearts that in order to restore democracy, have proper access to credible information and a respect for human rights it is nothing but essential to elect a government led by the UNP.
8. The UNP accuses the government of breaking its promises to the people. But in all fairness to the government isn t it fair to say that it kept its biggest and most important promise to the country and rid it of terrorism?
We are willing to give a substantial amount of credit to the government for providing political leadership to the fight to eliminate terrorism. However, although it may not seem very populist to say this, it cannot claim full credit for its success. Giving full credit to the government is like giving the man of the match award to the batsman who scores the winning runs, as I have said before. Intelligent people believe that it is the UNP that destroyed the LTTE politically. People believe that Karuna`s defection was the downfall of LTTE and even some ministers in the present government have stated in the past that Karuna was a creation of the UNP.
The other significant point is that it is the armed forces that actually won us this battle and the armed forces represent the entire country and not a single political party. It is after all the Sri Lanka Army and not the UPFA army that fought this battle in our name. Politicians who sat in comfort in Colombo are so quick to take maximum mileage out of the sacrifices of the soldiers. As an ex-soldier it saddens me that slowly but steadily, politicians are trying to take far too much of the credit, ignoring the soldiers who actually fought in the battlefront.
And we must remember that the winning the war was only one promise. All this time, the war provided the necessary excuse for the non-implementation of all the others good governance, rule of law, democracy and media freedom that was promised at the Presidential Elections. With the military operations now behind us, the excuses are fast running out. I don t think the Sri Lankan people have given this government an indefinite blank cheque. Eventually, patience will run out. The government has for too long neglected all other facets of government.
And what s more, instead of building on messages and themes of hope and reconciliation, they are intent to continue to the politics of fear. By constantly reminding the people that the LTTE operatives are still among us, are still waiting to raise their heads, they are hoping to ensure their survival. As long as the LTTE gonibilla can be milked, this government thinks it will have carte blanche. It is almost Machiavellian, these tactics, but I believe that the Sri Lankan people will eventually call their bluff.
9. The UNP has charged the government against failing to give it its due in contributing towards the victory over terrorism. But doesn t the facts where LTTE strengthened itself under the UNP s CFA remove such claims?
We can spend days explaining and dissecting the pluses and minuses of the CFA. Karuna is a product of the ceasefire as mentioned before. It also gave our troops the opportunity to revamp and reorganize and enhance their armoury. At the same time, there were problems with the ceasefire, but an independent, unprejudiced analyst will tell you it had its positives, and perhaps in some cases, the pros outweighed the cons. I don t deny that it was in no way populist, nor did it play to the tune of our nationalistic fringe which is intent on seeing everything as a treacherous conspiracy.
But remember the moment recall the situation Sri Lanka was in, devastated by innumerable elections and terrible terrorist attacks on our airports and economic nerve centres. We required that break. We were reeling and it was the best thing at the time. There were places it could have been improved upon, but while it is easy in the euphoria of this victory to label it a treacherous document, a brief look at our recent history might change perceptions.
But to expect the government to recognise these truths is futile. It is not just the UNP, but many others unconnected to our party have now begun to believe that this government is insecure because it has always shown a tendency to be reluctant to give credit where it is due. Sri Lankan and Buddhist culture holds the principle of kelehi guna salakeema or being grateful for kindness extended to one, as extremely sacred. This government most certainly does not.
It is not a good thing to discard people once they have served your purpose and harass and intimidate them. Look at the way the government is treating Mangala Samaraweera and Tiran Alles who were instrumental in bringing the President to this position have been completely beaten down. . They are public enemy No. 1 as far as this government is concerned. They are the victims of a concerted witch hunt orchestrated by this regime.
This government s greatest trump card was winning the war and nothing else, but already there are murmurs that those who provided military leadership for the victory have already been forgotten now. So now people are saying that if the government can forget such key personalities, then we should not be surprised if they forget the voters who brought them to power.
We cannot forget that it was the CFA that won the hearts and minds of the international community and proved to the world that the LTTE is not interested in a political solution. Violating the CFA was the biggest mistake the LTTE made. It exposed them in the eyes of the world and in the eyes of the community they were claiming to represent as being insincere stakeholders in the peace process. It is thanks to the CFA that the LTTE began to lose this critical support.
Think about it why did the LTTE force people to boycott the last presidential election, knowing full well that the lack of the north east vote would deny the UNP Leader the presidency? Would they do that to someone they so loved, and believed they could get anything out of? Our people have been carried away by this nationalist sentiment and they have forgotten the hard truths of this bitter conflict. But it is also our failure as a party, to have failed to articulate these truths properly to the people of this country.
10. Minister Muralidaran (Karuna) maintains that the while every past government worked on a racial element against the Tamil people President Rajapaksa was the only leader who was really reaching out to the people understanding their need for development. How will you defend the UNP under which rule the LTTE started?
As mentioned before Minister Muralidharan s advent into democratic policies was the result of the UNP s ceasefire agreement. This has been confirmed even by the Government Ministers. It is a case of understanding politics. What is he supposed to say about the government when he is after all holding the vice presidency of the SLFP?
11. The UNP has continued to criticize the government against corruption. But the Junior Finance Minister Ranjith Siyambapalitiya yesterday claimed that the government couldn t act beyond the law although the Auditor General, the Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) and Parliamentary Accounts Committee (PAC) had revealed waste and corruption?
He should consider the Bribery Commission s submissions and no political intervention or sympathy to be given to offenders. The models of Hong Kong and Singapore would be ideal for Sri Lanka. The truth is that this government does not have a keen interest in preventing corruption. It does not have the political will to change the status quo.
As mentioned earlier, the government wants to keep everyone happy and when you want to keep everyone happy it is not possible to make hard decisions for the good of the country. All good decisions are also tough to make, but if we have the courage to make those decisions, long term success will be attainable. I would say that this is the most corrupt regime Sri Lanka has ever see and sadly, I think things are going to get much worse. Still, I hope that for the sake of this country that my hunch is wrong.
12. Minister Siyambalapitiya had asserted that the former Auditor General S. C. Mayadunne s claims that the loss of tax revenue due to waste and irregularities could be as high as over Rs. 380 billion over several years, could be wrong?.
There is no denying the colossal waste that is going on in the state sector. I am told that even in the distribution of funds for development in the provincial areas, as much as 30-40 percent is being wasted due to corruption. These are areas that must be looked into putting politics aside. To say the Auditor General s claims Could be wrong is very weak. Where are the facts to back it up? Are they contesting Mayadunne s figures? It is sad that good governance is not a priority for this government, because if they approach all other governance matters with the same diligence and unswerving devotion they did the war, perhaps we would see great change. But this is not an area they care too much about.
13. Despite, attempts by various elements to attract international pressures against the government during and after the war, the Secretary General of the UN continues to assert that he was convinced of the government s claims of full accountability especially on the civilians?
We are not challenging UN Secretary General s comments. However, we in the UNP and the Opposition have not been allowed to travel beyond Madewachchiya without permission. Moreover as members of democratic parties and the UNP as the leading opposition party, we have been prevented from traveling to Vavuniya to select candidates for the Vavuniya local government elections. We were refused permission and eventually the candidates had to be invited to Anuradhapura to meet with us.
The interviews were to be done by the Deputy Leader, Chairman and General Secretary of the party. This is a very serious insult to Parliament and we had to seek refuge for our rights in the Supreme Court. The Court decision is awaited. It is beyond my imagination why the government is doing this if it has nothing to hide. If you have no skeletons in your closet, then there is nothing to fear.
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Source(s)
• transcurrents.com
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