Asoka Weerasinghe Kings Grove Crescent . Gloucester . Ontario . K1J 6G1.Canada

31 January 2012

Hon. John Baird, MP., PC,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  CanadaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s Minister of Foreign Affairs, House of Commons, Ottawa
His ExcellencyƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Bruce Levy, Canadian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, Colombo Sri Lanka.

Dear John and Bruce:

Re.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Sri Lanka heading towards harassment by Western nations at the UNHRC Meetings in Geneva in March 2012.

The concocted Reports on Sri Lanka that are coming out like multiplying vermin, by self-appointed Human Rights ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”PolicingƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ Organizations like AI, ICG, HRW, and UNHRC, ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ accusing that democratic island nation of Human Rights violations, War Crimes, and other silly nonsense and CanadaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s Foreign Minister, John Baird keeps getting on his High Horse and doing his Nepean Song and Jig spitting all over Sri Lanka as you did on January 23^rd at the Royal Commonwealth Society in London, and trying your best to ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ vilify and crucify Sri Lanka to the wall, all for the want of a Tamil vote at the next federal election. ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Shame on you John!

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ I now see that Louise Arbour the CHEO of the International Crisis Group ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ (ICG) in Brussels, is crying for the Sri Lankan women, talking of a discriminatory gender gap in Sri Lanka.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  I want to get some pertinent facts put in place in front of your eyes, John, before you piggy-back on Louise ArbourƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s Nonsense Report on the empowerment of Sri Lankan women, and use it as one more tool to crucify Sri Lanka to please the Tamil Tiger rump in the GTA to garner their votes for the next federal election.

I am not quite sure what Bruce Levy is going to report to you John from Sri Lanka about gender equality in Sri Lanka, but here are some Global Economic Forum Facts, before you go ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ irreverently about ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Sri LankaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s lack of empowerment of the Sri Lankan women, hinting that the west would like to see a regime change in Sri Lanka.

Fact 1:ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Sri Lanka was the first country in the world to elect a woman Prime Minister.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  And that happened in 1960, when Sirimavo Bandaranaike was voted in as the Prime Minister.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 

Fact 2: It took Canada a shocking 33 years before we elected Kim Campbell as the first woman Prime Minister of Canada on June 25, 1993.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  She lasted just five months as the Prime Minister of Canada.

Fact 3:ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  There was indeed a relevance when CanadaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s Vic Toews, the Manitoba Conservative MP and President of the Treasury Board yelled during Question Period on June 6, 2008, from the floor of the House of Commons, ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-She is a disgraceƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚, when Liberal MP, Martha Hall Findlay, a lawyer herself, called the Stephen HarperƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s Government to acknowledge Louis ArbourƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s work as the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  It was high drama when one was portrayed as an irrelevant person in high office by oneƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s own country, Canada.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Wow!ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  This is the very same person who is going after a pound of flesh of Sri Lanka.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  She is indeed a disgrace, as Vic Toews portrayed her to be.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Her information on Sri Lanka is suspect and John, and if you are thinking of piggy-backing on her words/reports on Sri Lanka to crucify Sri Lanka, just forget it as you would be measured as a suspectƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  ‘disgraceful’ character with an anti-Sri Lanka vengeance, who finds applause from the sidelines by the anti-Sri Lankan Tamil Diaspora who have promised their votes for the Conservatives, as sweet music to your ears.

Fact 4: And these facts are very important. Bruce, make note of this information from the Global Gender Gap Index Tables (World Economic Forum, Geneva) and please donƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t deviate or misquote from these Facts. ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ I donƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t trust you anymore!

In 2011, Sri Lanka ranked 31^st overall out of 135 tracked countries, while Canada was not that far ahead at No.18.

For the ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”Health SurvivalƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ Canada ranked 49, but guess what John and Bruce where Sri Lanka stood? ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ She was at No.1, and this is no typo, Sri Lanka was indeed No.1, while Canada ranked No.49.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Holy MosesƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚, you might say, and that is the fact.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Eat your hearts out John and Bruce!

As for ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Political empowermentƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚, Sri Lanka was ranked at No.7 out of 135 countries, and Canada was ranked at No.36.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  So your guess is good as mine, why Louise Arbour, the person that Vic Toews slammed as a ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-disgraceƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ to Canada, is not coming after Canada and is going after Sri LankaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s pound of flesh. This is what rogues these Human Rights ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”policingƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ Organizations are, like Amnesty International who now sits on the thrown of Tamil Tiger rump ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-His MasterƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s VoiceƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ having accepted ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”Walk-a-ThonƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ funds of $50,000, from the Canadian Tamil Congress (CTC) last September, who were the defenders of PrabhakaranƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelamn (LTTE) during the latter months of the war in 2009, wanting them to survive another day to fight for their separate state, Eelam, that Canada provided funds surreptitiously.

Hope this information helps you John, before you get on your High Horse one more time to vilify and spit at Sri Lanka which happens to be my birth-country which I still love so dearly, as CanadaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s Minister of Foreign Affairs. ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 

What Sri Lanka needs is constructive support for its reconciliation between aggrieved communities having come through ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ a hemorrhaging 27 year ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ bloody war, and not constant harassment, to overcome problems and building a more prosperous Sri Lanka to secure a good and a solid future for its next generations.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Think about it John and Bruce!

Sincerely,

Asoka Weerasinghe