Australia says ‘No Discrimination’ demolishing the Anti-Sri Lanka lobby
Posted on July 12th, 2014
Shenali D Waduge
There is light at the end of the tunnel they say and liars will eventually get exposed. Not bad news at all. The position taken by the Tony Abbot Government is commendable. ‘Increasingly shrill’ was what Scott Morrison Australia’s Immigration Minister called critics. Having visited Sri Lanka and toured North Sri Lanka he was in a better position to declare whether Nazi’s prevailed in Sri Lanka other than those quoting from paid sources! ‘Do not use boat people’ to carry out a political agenda against Sri Lanka says the Abbot Government. Australia has shattered the efforts being subtly made to create UN precedents against Sri Lanka thereby placing an imperial foothold into Asia.
The boat people woes surrounding ‘stories’ of abductions, fear for life, ransom, torture, rape were all areas that Navi Pillai and clan had to gleefully generate ‘witness accounts’ in order to internationally flog Sri Lanka and accuse it of the now infamous lines ‘human rights violations’.
When Australia says they could not find a ‘single case of asylum seekers being abused by authorities’ it has put Pillai and plotters on the backfoot. Sri Lanka has exposed some liars of late too. Does anyone recall the story of Kathiravel Thayapararaja. He was declared tortured and killed by the Sri Lankan army. The story was reported internationally citing credible sources – the University Teachers for Human Rights- Jaffna, War without Witnesses, European Centre for Constitutional and Human Rights and even Australian Government Refugee Review Tribunal report which was actually quoting the exact wordings from pro-LTTE website Tamilnet went overboard in criticizing Sri Lanka.
The University Teachers for Human Rights actually gave the dates on which he was kidnapped, tortured and shot (13 September 2009) and even disclosed that he was taken to the Kalubowila hospital as well. Fast forward to 2014 May 5th, the supposedly kidnapped, tortured and dead Kathiravel Thayapararaja is arrested by the Dhanushkodi police, Tamil Nadu India while illegally trying to enter India. Another case of dead coming alive and not a word of apology was made by any of the parties that made the allegations and humiliated Sri Lanka via the paid press.
All the lies built up over the years have been demolished by Australia.
Let’s just quote Bob Carr, the former Foreign Minister. He compared LTTE to genocidal Cambodian dictator Pol Pot. He’s one Australian not in the Tamil Diaspora pocket!
- “Things I’ve been hearing from the refugee lobby are simply unsustainable,”
- “The idea that there is entrenched apartheid in the country like old South Africa or the West Bank just cannot be sustained”
- “You’ve got 12 per cent of the population of Sri Lanka of Tamil background and they are heavily represented in the leadership of the country. You’ve got Tamil political parties sitting in the parliament, Tamil judges, Tamil doctors and engineers, a Tamil business leadership.” – something we’ve been telling for some time now.
- The boat people racket is nothing that UN, Navi Pillai or the coterie of foreign government funded NGOs (international and local) are unaware of. If you know who owns the boats it’s a matter of knowing how many benefits from human smuggling – an international racket co-partnered with illicit drugs and global prostitution. Anyone keeping a tab on the flights leaving Afghanistan, the Albanian drug mafia and the scores of cases of foreign MPs caught with their pants down will reveal a sinister connectivity. All vices are connected and lead to the same lot of people, the advocates are those sorry lot of people trying to make their bank accounts a little fatter.
We have boat people, illegal immigrants, asylum seekers, refugees and finally Australia has been bold enough to declare them as ‘economic refugees’. It is something we have been saying all along with a very basic argument. If Sri Lanka is a Nazi land and the only recourse is to pay and seek refuge why are these innocent victims not taking the easiest and cheapest ride to Tamil Nadu? Why are they all seeking to take refuge in Australia, or Canada or Europe? Just to test this further, the next boat load of so-called refugees must be asked if they would like to be diverted to Africa and their answer would reveal the bitter truth. These refugees do not wish to escape anywhere – their choice is ONLY Western greener pastures.
Australia – well done for discovering the truth about ‘economic refugees’. Still not convinced – refugees turned back were in possession of IPhones, digital cameras, gold credit cards!
We next come to another accusation – torture. Tied also to a reason to flee Sri Lanka, the world would be aghast to learn that there are centers that take money to inflict wounds and foreign doctors to medically endorse that these wounds are real and recent. Technically, both ‘real’ and ‘recent’ are true but also true is that the wounds are paid for. Naturally the human rights commentators are puzzled how they can be self-inflicted. The wounds are definitely not self-inflicted but the wounds are inflicted because of consent. These wounds that Tamils are showing to immigration officials are ‘consensual wounds – paid for’. The fees are not cheap either and range from sterling pounds 5000 while the immigration racket process ends up having to dole out several more thousands of pounds too and there are solicitors that actually undertake this new crime. Cameron and Hague should wake up to these realities and do something before some of these wounds end up with fatalities. Lets also remember that some of these human smuggled boats were actually operated by LTTE and Canada has dossiers on this.
So we have a steady flow of lies and liars and lie promoters and they are all generating a very handsome income for themselves. They conduct human rights workshops, they publish books, appear on tv teary eyed at the violence in Sri Lanka and those that know the truth are wondering exactly how much has been disbursed into their accounts for such a display of drama.
Only countries plagued with illegal immigrants know the hassle the government has to endure. It is a load on the citizens of the countries whose welfare gets cut short to look after the welfare of other people. Naturally Australians are annoyed when they are now realizing that these are no refugees but economic migrants desiring to enter Australia on bogus stories and then take over their jobs and their welfare.
But, if Canada and UK feel that economic refugees are entitled to ‘refugee status’ they must stop playing politics and accept all applications without scrutiny. There is no requirement to be wasting time, money and effort to listen to woes of people if they are tutored and have paid for their wounds. There are actually centres that cater to training people on what to say, how to say, how to cry – the entire works. This is a bit unfair on genuine cases and totally destroys their ability to apply and seek refugee status. The other amusing factor is that these economic refugees who have previously fooled foreign governments that have granted them asylum and with time, right of stay enjoy coming to Sri Lanka as tourists and holiday makers and then wish to apply for dual citizenship so that they could sell their property and make money there too!
They say empty vessels make the most noise – just ignore them
July 12th, 2014 at 5:14 pm
Some Tamil fools say NR is behind boats. Obviously NOT true.
If so I salute NR for his EXCEPTIONAL STRATEGIC thinking. This is the type of thinking we need to screw up the Tamil lobby.
USE boats to destroy TNA VOTERS at sea without a trace.
Something strange happening in Jaffna and Vanni. ONLY Tamils know this because ours is a CLOSED community. Tamil women are AGAINST the withdrawal of the army form the north!! Now they are damn against ANANTHI who betrayed them.
There are 89,000 Tamil MAHAEER war widows. They get NO pension from the Tamil diaspora. MOST of them engage in the world’s oldest profession. A large number of OFF DUTY men patronize them which is NOT illegal. This is the black economy that is found in EVERY COUNTRY. The bitter truth. Don’t try to argue what is right and what is wrong because the truth is there is NO RACISM in these things. It is NOT illegal in SL.
As army is withdrawn from the north, these women and their 4 children each go hungry!
Now the govt. is trying to do MOST foolish things by paying them a monthly allowance. This is BAD. They BOAST to good Tamil families “look here cowards, LTTE paid us money then, govt. is paying us now. What do you cowards get? Nothing!”.
Govt. should immediately STOP paying a monthly allowance to Tamil war widows. GOSL is digging its own grave in more than one way. Don’t pay them. Keep the army which will provide them an earning in selling food, selling cashew nuts, etc., etc. Then there will be a WHOLE community of army supporters in the north. Misplaced mercy is stuffing up SL again.
“hitha onda gaani emathaama budding”.
July 12th, 2014 at 6:35 pm
While I generally hear what Shenali is saying I think her generally positive view of Australia is misguided. I personally don’t think that Australia is doing it because they love Sri Lanka or Sri Lankans. How is it that Australians can treat their native aboriginal populations so poorly and for Shenali to think they love Sri Lankans. No in my opinion, its more likely that Australia’s mainly white anglo-saxon population generally suspicious of the outside world and who hold deeply conservative christian white anglo saxon views which sometimes could be interpreted as racist, not too dis similar to the the Bible belt white American conservative populations in the conservative republican part of the United States were concerned that their country Australia would get swamped by boat people. Tony Abbot was voted in because he represented this strain of mainly white christian conservative Australian political viewpoint. Under pressure from this electorate to solve the problem of hundreds of thousands of boat people which has been increasing in coming to Australia over the last 15 to 20 years. The Abbot government who are unpopular with many politically liberal australians but popular with the conservative base. It is they who have sent fact finding missions to Sri Lanka to formulate a plan to stop tamil boat people making the perilous journey to Australia.
The Abbot Government and white christian conservative Australia which is the majority voter of Australia are obviously on Sri Lanka’s side. Also the favourable articles in the Australian media to Sri Lanka is coming from journalists who hold conservative white australian christian views. Because they want to put a stop to the boat people majority of whom at the moment are tamil from Sri Lanka.
However Shenali and other Sri Lankans shouldn’t make the mistake its because they have a close affinity with Sri lanka or becuase they love Sri Lanka. Or that they have suddenly seen things clearly as regards to the end of the war and the tamils. As this article seem to imply.They are playing for their interests.
I for one know that for much of the 30 year war. Australia did very little to condemn the LTTE terrorists. Also did little to stop LTTE fund raising activities during the 30 year war. Also Australian immigration and the Australian Embassy in Colombo, generally gave easier passage to migrate to Australia if you were Sri Lankan tamil rather than Sri Lankan sinhalese. As until recently the general Australian viewpoint was tamils were being discriminated against by the Sinhalese. This viewpoint was held for most of the 30 year war.
Australian Aboriginal people have been discriminated against and treated poorly since British Colonial times in Australia. Since then the white population and successive govts have done little to improve the lot of aboriginal people in Australia.
I am sorry if my views offend those Sri Lankans who hold a rosy view of Australia. White population of Australia is generally racist and treats its aboriginal population poorly obviously a hangover from British Colonial times which exists to this day. Yes Australia is a great place to live in if your a white Australians (not so great place if your an aboriginal Australian who live in dire conditions in Australia) and the millions of immigrants from around the world including Sri Lanka who’ve made it their home. But shouldn’t make the mistake that Australia is a fair place and all Australians are fairminded and see things clearly. No Australians are only looking out for themselves thats why they are helping the Sri Lankan Govt to help the Australian Govt to stop the Tamil boat people coming from Sri Lanka.
PS this is my personal view. I understand this could insult Sri Lankan Australians or those Sri Lankans who really admire Australia who would argue with me that my view of Australia is not the correct view. In summary Australia is wonderful place to live in having been there many times. Probably one of the best countries in the world to live in, but it is no fairminded place. Just ask those aboriginal people who would be prepared to give an honest opinion.
July 12th, 2014 at 9:30 pm
RohanJay,
I have no idea whether you are a Sinhalese, Tamil or Muslim. But please do not try to tarnish what ever the good image the Australians have about our country. I know quite a lot of people including my close relative who is living in an affluent part of that country. They never talk of ill of those people. If you are worth your salt they will try their best to keep you and will be in good terms with you. Also our people do not try to live in ghettos and try to segregate. Some even do not try to show that they are Sinhalese when talking to another.
As for Anglo-Saxons, I believe Abbott is a Celtic name. Better to know their divisions and their history also, like in the case of UK first.
July 13th, 2014 at 6:33 am
RohanJay has misunderstood the subject matter in Shenali’s commentary. Shenali is not saying Australia or Sri Lanka or Norway or India or for that matter any country is perfect and fair in all their dealings. The issue Shenali has raised is about the facilitation of bogus refugees into Australia and to other economically developed nations, by fraudulently bashing Sri Lanka as a place the Tamils are tortured, persecuted etc. The latest is to say Sri Lanka is a Nazi state, which statement could also be interpreted as an insult to the Jewish people for insinuating they lied about the holocaust, because if they were treated like the Tamils, then, the Jews must also have had a cushy life enjoying equal rights in Nazi Germany, like how the Tamils in Sri Lanka are enjoying. Instead, Shenali’s point is that Australia has discovered the truth about these bogus refugees and are acting accordingly. This stance of Australia in relation to refugees and Sri Lanka, has nothing to do with the situation of the aboriginal people in Australia or the pathetic plight of natives in Canada and Norway. Australia certainly is acting to protect its interests by not being fooled to believe the lies propagated by the Tamil Tiger terrorist and their network of paid lawyers, NGOs, journalists, politicians etc .
Good on you Shenali and hope more people would read your articles and also visit Sri Lanka to form their own opinion.
July 13th, 2014 at 4:17 pm
Sri Lanka – Australia relations sailing ahead: Australia broke ranks with ‘world bullies’ to assist Sri Lanka
By Manjula Fernando
SundayObserver.lk
July 13, 2014
The Sri Lanka’s high Commissioner in Australia Admiral Thisara Samarasinghe in an interview with the Sunday Observer said Sri Lanka is unrelentingly attacked by so- called refugee advocates for the four per cent of asylum seekers from Sri Lanka when there was 60-80 per cent refugees arriving in Australia from elsewhere.
At the commissioning of the the two hi-tech patrol boats:The commissioning ceremony was held last week at the Colombo Port. The Immigration Minister Scott Morrison flew in for the ceremony graced by President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa
High Commissioner in Australia Admiral Thisara Samarasinghe
“But no media, or refugee advocates criticise those countries like the way they attack Sri Lanka. You can see the disproportionate interest whipped up by the anti- Sri Lanka groups.”
Admiral Samarasinghe said Sri Lanka’s close relations with Australia go beyond its partnership in curbing illegal immigration, adding that the government appreciated their decision to break ranks with the West to openly condemn unfair internationalization of the challenges faced by Sri Lanka.
Excerpts of the interview,
Q: Australia and Sri Lanka seem to have entered into a new level of bi-lateral cooperation with Australia defiantly taking a position to challenge the West’s opinion that Sri Lanka had conditions so worse that people wanted to flee. Your comments?
A:With the end of the conflict, Sri Lanka had a gigantic task of telling the rest of the world, how brutal and how atrocious was the terrorism that existed in Sri Lanka. Although terrorism was there for 30 years, the West in particular turned a blind eye to what was happening. Sri Lanka kept on saying this and now this is being openly acknowledged by the present Australian Government, just as the former Government did.
During the days of terrorism, President’s were targeted and assassinated, Cabinet ministers and Tamil politicians were killed, places of worship and economic nerve centres were destroyed.
As for the rest of the world, it did not merit their attention. People never expected that Sri Lanka will eliminate terrorism once and for all from Sri Lanka. The western world thought separatism will succeed and were preparing for such a situation. But with the courageous lead of President Mahinda Rajapaksa, the armed forces, civilian administration collectively defeated terrorism. This is the message conveyed to Australia in very strong terms and with factual evidence.
Facts covering each area of conflict was put together and made available. This coincided with the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in November 2011 in Canberra. Minister Prof.G.L.Peiris termed the seven days stay of President’s Rajapaksa in Canberra as one of the best diplomatic triumphs for Sri Lanka.
With that the Sri Lanka High Commission had a platform to launch and educate the Australian Federal Parliamentarians. There was extensive engagement to answer their every question.
The media which never allowed Sri Lankan high commission officials to come on TV, shifted their stance. These avenues were explored and this engagement from both sides, I would say the turning point to bring the relations to such a high level.
Q: The present Foreign Minister and the Immigration minister also toured Sri Lanka while they were in the Opposition ?
A:Yes, the Sri Lankan High Commission facilitated a visit to Sri Lanka of Foreign Minister Julie Bishop and the current Immigration Minister Scott Morrison, when they were opposition members. They were permitted to travel to any part of the country with no hindrance. A program was held in Colombo with the Government and another with the Opposition in Jaffna. They spent three days in Kilinochchi and Jaffna. All allegations of war crimes and abductions, persecution and systematic rape, were raised and answered. Minister Julie Bishop is a lawyer.
They had an opportunity to verify these allegations.When they came back they made it public that there need not be any refugees from Sri Lanka and Sri Lanka is stable, peaceful and the opportunities are enormous for right thinking, peaceful and disciplined citizens to start a life.This, I would consider as another turning point. The government changed in September last year and the same bipartisan approach to Sri Lanka continued.
Q: Former Foreign Minister Bob Carr was quoted in the Media dismissing reports that Sri Lanka abused returnees. He had said that his government did not find a single such case. Why is it that the media and refugee advocates are not willing to accept this fact?
A:That is the most disturbing aspect and it a disgrace to those organisations. Basically negative stories are given prominence – it’s a bad, wrong and unfair story. These stories are spread by groups with vested interest. They are pawns of so- called human rights groups, groups indulging in human smuggling and those with the connivance of LTTE fronts.
Senator Carr, visited Sri Lanka in 2012, when they were faced with the issue of returning Sri Lankan asylum seekers. The embassy staff was allowed to travel and make inquiries. They found no concrete evidence to prove that people faced harassment.
But that was not enough to silence the so- called human rights activists and some of the media.
A Greens Party Senator came up on television saying white vans were abducting people and there was systematic rape. I challenged this person by asking the meaning of systematic rape. The reply was out of context.
She tried to quote a Sri Lankan Minister whom she said was in Australia at the time. The Minister, in fact, was not in the delegation that was visiting Australia.
She had been pumped wrong information by so- called Sri Lankan activists who are actually speaking on behalf of separatist fronts. They travel to Australia with funds coming from elusive sources to discredit the country.
There are various such bankrupt Sri Lankan groups operating in Australia. This is a serious challenge. The Sri Lankan High Commission together with the consulates in Sydney and Melbourne, and the pro Sri Lanka diaspora have been trying to counter their nonsensical claims. We have made it clear that none of the returnees will ever be subject to torture or harassment.
The bad stories will succumb in the presence of true facts. Sri Lanka has already shown that, Australian government has got over these cooked up stories.
They have been sensible and honest. Australia has broken rank from the West, not getting on board to criticise Sri Lanka. We must appreciate that stance.
Q: The latest trend seem to be refugees in India turning up at Australian shores claiming asylum status. The recent asylum boat has left Pondicherry and was reportedly carrying Lankans living in a refugee camp in India. They are neither being forced to return to Sri Lanka, nor are they being persecuted in India. Can these people be processed under the UN refugee convention?
A:They will not be considered under the UN refugee convention unless there is stark evidence of the reasons they claim. Whenever people are found attempting illegal means of entry to Australia, they are given less priority. There are genuine claimants in neighboring states, waiting to be evaluated under the Refugee Convention and come to Australia.
I will not comment on this particular asylum boat, because it is now a matter before the Australian High Court. They will tackle the new situation purely on merit, considering where the boat was detected, where they were rescued, the country of origin, and if the international UN systems are available for these people to go back to their places of origin.I must emphasise that currently there is no communication between Sri Lanka and Australia on this particular incident.
Q: It is alleged that family members of the boat people who are already living in Australia fund these illegal voyages. Can’t the Australian government put a cork on such funding channels?
A:They are doing their best. From whatever the information that we have shared and they have gathered independently, Australian authorities are quite aware of an organised network. This ring is very active in abstracting false refugees. I will give one example, I am quoting the media, according to the reports the so called desperate refugees supposed to be fleeing atrocities are equipped with satellite communication, satellite roaming facilities, telephone numbers of refugee advocates, they have the confidence to contact them. We could see from that itself how well organised this racket is. Two years ago when I said these human smuggling boats coming are funded from the receiving end, I was criticised. Today I have been proved right. The Australian authorities are very much aware of it.
The influx of Sri Lankans to Australia got to the highest point with eight percent in 2012, since then it has come down to 4 per cent last year and to nothing from December last year to June this year.
But there is a 60 – 80 per cent of refugees coming from other parts of the world. But no media, or refugee advocates criticise those countries like the way they attack Sri Lanka. You can see the disproportionate interest of the organisations. This is in my opinion, are stories whipped up by groups with vested interests.
Unfortunately, one of the asylum seekers committed suicide recently, claiming that he will be tortured if returned, this incident is being exploited by the media, to bash Sri Lanka.
They are quite aware that this is a big racket and with the latest policy of Prime Minister Tony Abbot’s Liberal Government, Australia has vouched to stop the arrival of illegal boats. The asylum seekers arriving now will be located in off shore processing centres in PNG and Nauru, and even the successful asylum claimants too will not be settled in Australia under their strict revised laws. Such laws have been brought in to deter Australia bound illegal sea traffic.
Q: How do you describe the claim that there are push factors in Sri Lanka to make these economic migrants to flee the country?
A:They have long realised the conditions in Australia were pull factors for illegal migrants than the push factors in the countries of origin. The push factors existed in Sri Lanka during the conflict. The LTTE was forcibly recruiting youth for fighting and forcing them to commit suicide.
The other push factor was that your life was at risk due to bomb explosions happening in the South as well as the North. With the dawn of peace these push factors have been eliminated and now only a pull factor is there.
Q: You said since December 2013 there has been no boat arrivals in Australia. What could have caused it to resume last month? The campaign to mislead people has again resumed. There are various organisations in Australia and Sri Lanka who try to convince potential victims that if you go there and in their custody, there is a good chance of settling down in Australia.
A:When questioned, failed asylum seekers who were stopped within Sri Lanka before taking off, confessed to this intention. To get qualified to stay in Australia they need to come up with a nasty story about Sri Lanka. Immigration officers had little knowledge of Sri Lanka in the past. To address this the Sri Lankan High Commission issued awareness material for immigration officers on Sri Lanka’s current situation, after 2009.
The boats leaving Sri Lanka, create a negative image for the country and this is exactly what the anti Sri Lanka diaspora wants. Driven by an objective to discredit Sri Lanka, they need to maintain the flow of Lankan refugees to Australia or elsewhere.
These voyages are not funded by the asylum seekers themselves. If you are arranged a paid journey to the first world for a better standard of life, people will succumb to that. In my opinion these are the factors for the persistent flow of boats.
Q: Will it be possible to stop the flow of boat people who risk not only their life but the lives of innocent children ?
A: This will definitely come to an end provided both countries continue to show their commitment to end the flow of illegal sea migration.
I must emphasise that all this is done primarily to stop people dying at sea. Since 2009, nearly 1200 people from different countries have perished at sea trying to reach Australia on a boat, due to the work of money hungry human smugglers. It was a great achievement that there has been no deaths for the past one year.
The second achievement will be to dismantle the human smuggling network. Criminals who flourish by this unscrupulous trade. The earning capacity of smugglers are fast diminishing now, this is so much so that they are offering even free passage in some instances.
The third intention is to keep our borders intact, to stop boats from leaving or turning up illegally at our shores.
Australian and Sri Lanka set up a Joint Working Group on Human Smuggling and Transnational Crime. The Sri Lankan side of the group is led by Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the Australian side is led by Secretary to the Department of Immigration and Border Protection, Martin Bowels. The first meeting of the working group was held in Colombo in December 2012.
The second meeting was held in Canberra in April this year. A 14 member delegation led by Secretary Defence and representing the Ministries of Justice and Law and Order, and the Police Department, the Coast Guard, Immigration Department, the External Affairs Ministry and the Attorney general’s department took part in the meeting, also attended by their Australian counterparts. It was inaugurated by Immigration Minister Scott Morrison.
This mechanism will immensely help curb the menace of human smuggling within the region. Admiral Samarasinghe was in Sri Lanka last week to attend the commissioning of the two Patrol crafts donated by Australia to the Sri Lanka Navy. Prime Minister Tony Abbot’s government took a decision to provide the two hi-tech boats with absolutely no cost to Sri Lanka. Admiral Samarasinghe said the gift was a tribute to the Sri Lanka Navy for their contribution in stopping boats with illegal asylum seekers leaving Sri Lanka.
The commissioning ceremony was held last week at the Colombo Port. The Immigration Minister Scott Morrison flew in for the ceremony graced by President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa.
July 13th, 2014 at 4:40 pm
Indeed, do amend the “NGO Act” to ensure that TREASON against the Nation cannot be committed by NGOs bought lock, stock and barrel by FOREIGN PAYMASTERS of the Tamil Diaspora, and by Foreign Nations plying their hegemonistic agendas!
Monitor EVERY PROGRAM of their activities, and EVERY PENNY of their funds, and PUNISH the officials of these NGOs by confiscating not only their official business assets, but also their PERSONAL PROPERTY. Make certain that they cannot shield and hide their assets by various legal shenanigans. Levy a special tax on EVERY NGO PROGRAM to pay for Government Oversight require to ensure that they abide by the law.
The so-called “Bar Association of Sri Lanka” bemoans restrictions on the NGOs as an assault on “fundamental freedoms” of the people.
HOGWASH, I say! Every FOX eyeing the HEN house says that!
I say that the most fundamental freedom of the People of Sri Lanka is their Right to Life which must be safeguarded first before all else. To that end all those who are working to undermine and overthrow its popularly elected government must be monitored and stopped dead in their tracks.
The “Bar Association of Sri Lanka” is a sorry UNPATRIOTIC institution that dares to call itself by that “National” name misrepresenting its agenda in the service of Sri Lanka’s enemies.
It is HIGH TIME that the GOSL appointed a High Commission to Investigate the Bar Association’s motives and connections and its hand-in-glove collaboration with enemies of Sri Lanka under the guise of fighting for “human rights” and “democrazy”.
Now, where have we heard of those terms before?
From those bipolar advocates of the “Arab Spring” fiascos, who now merrily dismembering Syria perhaps?
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Government to amend ‘NGO Act’
By Sajitha Prematunge
Sunday, 13 July 2014 02:22
» NGO ‘companies’ to come under Secretariat
» ‘Selective targeting’ charges TISL
» Transparency International of Sri Lanka not even an ‘NGO’
Just four days after banning media interactions of NGOs, the government now says it will amend the Act governing NGOs to streamline the operations of NGOs registered in Sri Lanka.
Speaking to ‘The Nation’, Director National Secretariat for Non Governmental Organizations D.M.S. Dissanayake said, “In the future non-profit guarantee limited groups registered under Companies Act will have to register under the NGO Secretariat.”
A large number of non-governmental organizations operating in Sri Lanka are registered under the Companies Act. Meanwhile, over 1400 others come under the Voluntary Social Service Organizations [Registration and Supervision] Act Number 31 of 1980, where they must register with the NGO Secretariat.
The NGO Secretariat recently released a circular prompting all NGOs registered under the Secretariat to stick to their mandate by preventing from carrying out activities such as conferences, workshops, journalist training programs and issuing press releases for which prior approval have not been sought through annual action plans.
The Nation asked whether it is pragmatic to demand NGOs to obtain approval for all conferences, workshops, journalist training programs and issuing press releases in their annual action plan, especially since most of these activities are not pre-planned.
Dissanayake said that the instructions recently issued by the National Secretariat for Non Governmental Organizations has been misconstrued.
“The projects and programs of NGOs, in which districts they are conducted and funding agencies are taken into account when registering NGOs with the Secretariat,” said Dissanayake. “The 1421 NGOs registered with the NGO Secretariat are required to seek approval through submission of annual Action Plans containing details of activities, such as workshops, training programs and press releases to be undertaken in the forthcoming year.”
Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremasinghe, raising the issue in parliament recently said that the circular is a violation of Article 14 of the Constitution, which guarantees freedom of speech, expression, publication, assembly and association.
“It is not a violation of Article 14 because it was a set of guidelines requesting NGOs to stick to their mandate,” said Dissanayake. When questioned whether the NGO Secretariat has the authority to take action if a certain NGO acted beyond their mandate, Dissanayake answered in the affirmative. Dissanayake pointed out that disseminating press releases and training journalists in itself is acting beyond their mandate. “The Secretariat has not given approval for any NGO to train media personnel or issue press releases.” He further explained that any NGO should seek approval from the Secretariat to disseminate press releases.
“The NGO Secretariat can make various proclamations,” said Human Rights Activist, Nimalka Fernando. “But I can provide training under a tree to a group of women, without the approval of the NGO Secretariat Director. Such is my right of assembly.”
“I have a democratic right to criticize the unconstitutional manner in which the country is being governed, where the president makes the decisions without so much as consulting the cabinet. The parliament is reduced to a mere rubber stamp,” rebuked Fernando.
July 13th, 2014 at 4:52 pm
Appalled, My Foot!
This is the very same Bar Association of “Sri Lanka” that recently received funding from USAID!
His Master’s Voice is VERY EVIDENT in EVERYTHING that the Bar Association says and does!
The “Bar Association of Sri Lanka” is a sorry UNPATRIOTIC institution that dares to call itself by that “National” name misrepresenting its agenda in the service of Sri Lanka’s enemies.
It is HIGH TIME that the GOSL appointed a High Commission to Investigate the Bar Association’s motives and connections and its hand-in-glove collaboration with enemies of Sri Lanka under the guise of fighting for “human rights” and “democrazy”.
BEGONE, Fools!
Begone before your houses fall down upon your heads! … the patriotic majority of the people of Sri Lanka will not forget your servile treachery!
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Bar Association of Sri Lanka appalled by restriction on NGOs
ColomboPage News Desk, Sri Lanka.
July 12, Colombo: The Bar Association of Sri Lanka in a communiqué said that it is appalled by the recent circular issued by the National Secretariat for Non-Governmental Organizations in relation to the activities of the NGOs.
The BASL further said that the repercussions of the circular might have far reaching impact on a free and democratic society.
BASL charged that according to its observations, the post war Sri Lankan society was increasingly “precipitating into a crypto military and authoritarian state”.
BASL said the circular violated the fundamental principles that governed a free and democratic society guaranteed by the constitution and it was completely militating against the rule of law principles of the country.
“The contents as well as the implications of the said circular is against the directive principles of state policy enshrined in the Chapter VI of the constitution as well as violation of freedom of Expression and Speech, freedom of Assembly and Association, Freedom of occupation as guaranteed by the Article 14 of the Sri Lankan Constitution. We observe that this attempt is nothing but yet another effort to silence the alternative public opinion of the society through inculcating fear psychosis among the section of the society enhancing the autocratic writ to a fearful height,” BASL said in its communiqué.
The circular issued on July 7 2014 to all NGOs by the National Secretariat for NGOs, which is under the Ministry of Defense and Urban Development, orders them to refrain from “conducting press conferences, workshops, journalism training and dissemination of press releases”. The authority claimed such activities were beyond the mandate of NGOs.
The BASL condemned the circular issued by “an officer within the Ministry of Defense in gross violation of the fundamental rights of the polity” and urged the authorities to revoke this “autocratic circular that has the effect of bringing further damage to the country Nationally and Internationally.”
July 13th, 2014 at 6:44 pm
“Government to amend ‘NGO Act’”
INCOME TAX NGOs.
That will be beautiful.
Run-nil is a bloody fool. He says getting NGOs to register this way violates freedom of accociation. Then fool, COMPANIES ACT also violates it big time!!
ALUTHKADE BAR has overstepped its mandate and now trying to dictate terms to LAW MAKERS in parliament.
Lawyers cannot make laws. They must SHUT THE GAP UP and FOLLOW the law handed down to them by parliament.
e.g. When the master takes his dog for a walk on a leash the dog tries to go here and there (apart from shitting and pissing all the way). But the master doesn’t let the creature go anywhere it pleases.
It is time GOSL LEASHED the Aluthkade BAR and NGOs.
July 14th, 2014 at 3:53 pm
Excellent article on a vital subject. Obviously Sri Lanka needs the level heads of the leaders of other nations to bring down the deliberate attempt to demonize Sri Lanka. I am going to copy and paste this article in my word perfect for future reference. My congragulations also extends to the government of Australia and to Shenali D Waduge for bringing this issue so clearly to all of us. Thank you Ms. Waduge