Is this a process for reconciliation or a process for betraying our armed forces?
Posted on July 25th, 2016
S.Akurugoda
As per a Information Note Circulated by Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu, Prime Minister has appointed a Secretariat to seek the views of the public on so-called process and mechanisms for reconciliation in Sri Lanka and seek suggestions for ‘their’ design of;
- Office of Missing Persons
- Truth, Justice, Reconciliation and Non-Recirrence Commission
- Judicial Mechanism
- Office of Reparations
- Any other mechanisms
The 11 member Consultation Task Force (CTF) with Paikisothy Saravanamuttu as its Secretary, is expected to conclude its sittings within a month commencing from July 2016.
The creation of the above 4 mechanisms has already been agreed by the current Ranil-Sirisena regime during the last September 2015 UNHRC session in Geneva. A bill for the establishment of the item 1 (above), Office of Missing Persons is to be presented to the Parliament very soon.
Thus seeking suggestions at this stage on the establishment of the above mechanism is nothing but merely an eyewash to mislead the general public. Considering the short notice of 5 working days given to submit views and the backgrounds of the NGO kingpins involved in the so-called Task Force are a confirmation of this deceitfulness.
Paikisothy Saravanamuttu, the Executive Director of the Centre for Policy Alternatives, since its inception, is well known for his activities to legitimise the LTTE and its terrorism prior to 2009 and since then justifying war crime charges against our security forces.
CPA and similar ilk were in the driver’s seat during the Chandrika-Ranil failed regimes attempting to brainwash the country from top political hierarchy to grass roots level, spending billions of rupees.
Anyone going through the media releases and the writings of the CPA (apart from their other activities), will see the extent of damage done to the sovereignty of our nation as it promoted the LTTE as an integral part of their so-called solutions.
Paikiasothy Saravanamuttu , in his media releases and writings always preached LTTE racism as nationalism and attempted to justify its terrorism and while calling for “internal self-determination ” and “federal” form of government assuring access to resources and financial autonomy for any structure agreed upon for the north and east. “The political structure that can accommodate the above as the aspirations of the people of our island, will have to be federal. Whether we call it federal or not and there still is stiff resistance to doing so, the state of the future will have to be federal in nature, if the country is to be united and at peace”. http://www.tamilcanadian.com/page.php?cat=40&id=1249.
While attempting to cover-up the LTTE terror campaign, Paikiasothy on many occasions called foreign countries , including India, to pressurize the Rajapaksa government, but not the LTTE. “What New Delhi could do is increase international pressure (on the Rajapakse government) and can try to cut off existing non-lethal military assistance to seek a political settlement,’’ he once told IPS.
As reported in Tamilnet on 24 May 2007, he characterized Sri Lanka as “the worst place in the world for civilians and stressed the need to negotiate with the LTTE, and the merger of the North-East,” in Washington while sighting ‘a Role for the United States Government’ .
CPA conducted seminars, lectures, workshops under the pretext of ‘Peace’ throughout the LTTE terror period to convince (unsuccessfully) the people that the LTTE is undefeatable and even make use of those activities to frighten them by suggesting the possibilities of R2P (Responsibility to Protect) situation, misinterpreting what was going on in the country at that time. Responsibility to protect by Paikiasothy Sarawanamuttu of CPA is a case in point. ( http://www.themorningleader.lk/20070801/issues.html)
On 28th August 2009, soon after the elimination of 3 decades long LTTE terror from our soil by our brave security forces and the political leadership, the two kingpins of CPA and National Peace Council were reported addressing a close-door meeting convened by the US Institute of Peace (USIP). Another notable participant of this discussion was Teresita Schaffer of The Centre for Strategic and international Studies, one of the former US Ambassadors to Sri Lanka, who was very critical of the Sri Lankan government during her tenure of office in Sri Lanka. As per media reports, the duos from the two NGOs basically said at a meeting, in Washington D.C. with former Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Mr. Robert Blake, was what Blake wanted them to say. After few months of these meetings, Ban Ki-moon appointed a panel to advice him (i.e the UNSG) on Sri Lanka’s alleged war crime charges which led to the current status of UNHRC resolution leading to the formation of above mechanisms.
Thus it is not surprising to see that the same NGO kingpins who supported LTTE and campaigned for LTTE as an integral part of a solution and paved the way to initiate a process for betraying the country’s security forces and the political leadership, have now been assigned the task of implementing the same process with the full blessings of the Ranil-Sirisena puppet regime backed by anti-Rajapaksha but pro-Prabhakaran elements.
- Akurugoda
July 25th, 2016 at 2:15 am
Mangala must be replaced by a patriotic foreign minister. Actually Ranil, Sirisena, CBK traitors must be replaced too. However Mangala must be replaced as soon as possible. A country’s government should first and foremost look after the country’s security. sovereignty, territorial integrity and in the case of a small country such as Sri Lanka its unitary status. Mangala has betrayed Sri Lanka by accepting the UNHRC resolution which no country with any integrity will accept. Mangala must realise that those LTTE terrorists who massacred the citizens of this country for over 26 years simply because they wanted a large chunk of this island for themselves, illegally, that they should be dealt with in a very careful manner without betraying the security. sovereignty, territorial integrity and in the case of a small country such as Sri Lanka its unitary status, even if extremely powerful forces such as the US,UK, EU, Canada, Sweden, Norway and India are behind the LTTE terrorists. In addition, we must place forth the argument that those who settled in the island quite recently only during the past few hundred years i.e. the Sri Lankan Tamils who are only but 11.2% of the population do not have any rights whatsoever to demand over 28% of the land area, 66% of the coastline and 66% of the vast ocean resources which belong to Sri Lanka. This message should be conveyed to the TNA, the separatist terrorists and those who support them i.e. the US,UK, EU, Canada, Sweden, Norway and India as soon as possible so that they understand our position. This is the task of a foreign minister. Mangala therefore has betrayed Sri Lanka and must go. Sri Lanka cannot afford large self ruling entities which are illegal anyway since this island as a whole belong to all its people in total. It is the foreign minister’s task to covey this message to everyone concerned.
July 25th, 2016 at 2:50 am
The missing persons commission, the name is a misnomer. it should be called ‘those combatants on all sides who died in the war i.e. Sri Lankan Forces, Police Force. Civil Defence Forces, IPKF, Tamil Armed Groups against the LTTE and the LTTE terrorists themselves and whose bodies have not be found’. Therefore the name itself is wrong and invented by the UNHRC to tarnish the image of the armed forces of Sri Lanka.
The missing persons commission to date has receive 24,000 complaints from 1983-2009 period. Of this number over 5,000 are regarding missing Sri Lankan Forces members, whereabouts unknown, almost certainly executed by the LTTE terrorists. Over 12,000 complaints are against the LTTE itself recruiting young persons by coercion. Therefore over 70% of complaints are against the LTTE itself, of over 17,000 complaints. The rest of the complaints are I am sure about the whereabouts of LTTE combatants or terrorists who died while fighting but whose bodies have not been found.
My question is, why cannot the UNHRC the US,UK, EU, Canada, Norway, Sweden and India accept that Sri Lankan Forces, Police Force, Civil Defence Forces, IPKF, Tamil Armed Groups against the LTTE and the LTTE terrorists themselves died fighting in this war and leave it at that. What is the point in looking for these combatants now? Why is it that the UNHRC the US,UK, EU, Canada, Norway, Sweden and India never ever talk about the over 35,000 Sri Lankan Forces, Police Force, civil Defence Force members who died in the war? or the 1,200 IPKF members or the over 2,000 Tamils Armed Groups against the LTTE members who died in the war? or the over 6,000-7,000 Sinhala civilians and even Muslims civilians who were massacred by the LTTE? or the around (my estimate) over 3,000 Tamil civilians massacred by the LTTE?
Why is it that the UNHRC the US,UK, EU, Canada, Norway, Sweden and India is not concerned about the over 10,000 Sri lLankan Forces members permanently disabled by the war, or the over 23,000 Sri Lanka Forces members both temporarily and permanently disabled by the war? or the over 136,000 Sri Lankan Forces members who were injured due to the war?
Why is it that the UNHRC the US,UK, EU, Canada, Norway, Sweden and India not concerned about the over 65,000 Sinhala people and over 75,000 muslims ethnically cleansed from the North?
Why is it that the only the around 35,000 LTTE terrorists who died inclusive of Prabhakaran are the concern of the UNHRC the US,UK, EU, Canada, Norway, Sweden and India? Perhaps this missing persons commission should answer that question first.
July 25th, 2016 at 2:31 pm
Sumanthiran, like other supporters of Tamil separatism, begin their accusations against the Sinhala majority only with the assaults against the Tamil Community in the South.
They conveniently forget that the violence deliberately INITIATED by the Tamil Separatists YEARS BEFORE THAT with hit-and-run raids against Sinhala officials, Sinhala civilians and government facilities.
He forgets to mention that it took nearly 3 years of such murder and mayhem by his beloved “boys”, who the entire Tamil Community …. even in Colombo … quietly applauded, for the pot to finally boil over in July, 1983 when the bodies of those dead soldiers were brought to Colombo.
I applaud INSTEAD the restraint and patience shown by the Sinhala people up to July, 1983 and thereafter over a 30 year period when there was no such violence. Although I also condemn the violence of the July riots, I completely understand the reasons it took place, and the CULPABILITY of Tamil Leaders of the time in not rallying around the Nation to CONDEMN & PREVENT their own people from engaging on violence that triggered it.
They did not do that, and by their SILENCE & INACTION showed that they too shared and supported the RACIST TAMIL SEPARATIST SENTIMENT that soon grew into a full blown civil war …. with horrendous consequences for the three major communities of Sri Lanka.
They believed THEN, as they do NOW, that they can have their own separate Tamils-only cake in Sri Lanka, and eat a share of the Sinhala cake too. They thought that with Indian support they could demolish the Sinhala armed forces, kept forever weak and demoralized by divide and rule politics in Colombo and get their EELAM. They FIGURED WRONG …. because as in the previous 3,000 years of Sri Lankan history, we Sinhalese will NOT ABANDON our Motherland however long it takes to overcome our enemies.
I am sick of these MEALY MOUTHED WEASELS and UNREPENTANT RACIST TRAITORS wailing about their pain & suffering completely ignoring that they brought everything down upon their own heads by being racist, greedy and treacherous. They have to HELD ACCOUNTABLE!
I have had enough of these unrepentant racist murderers egging on, without LEGAL PUNISHMENT, Western Powers to counsel RECONCILIATION which is another code word for APPEASEMENT and giving the terrorists the EELAM they had failed to win through 30-years of unremitting violence and war crimes against both civilians and combatants.
I am sick of the DOUBLE STANDARDS and HYPOCRISY of the Western Powers who, while committing war crimes all over the globe in their war on terror, refuse to let Sri Lanka ….. one of the few developing nations still committed to democracy and human rights, to defend it’s democracy and sovereignty, and enjoy its hard won peace.
These Western Hypocrites wage global war in the name of human rights and drmocracy, to destabilize and change regimes in fa off countries, but REFUSE to SUPPORT & LEAVE ALONE one of the few democracies that has taken firm root in the developing world. They seem hellbent on convert in a democratic Sri Lanka into an anarchy must like Somalia and Libya today.
Instead of being ASSET, democracy is INCREASINGLY becoming a LIABILITY to Sri Lanka’s survival as a unitary sovereign nation.
I TOTALLY REJECT Sumanthiran’s statements posing as an INNOCENT WAILING VICTIM.
He is one of those who permitted, supported and egged on the RACIST Tamil Eelam project from its very inception, through the TNA’s role as the LTTE’s political proxy in Colombo, to the present when he magically finds himself to be the Leader of the Parliamentary Opposition dedicated to using that position to achieve the now defunct EELAM.
I say to him, we will NEVER LET YOU SUCCEED in creating an EELAM in Sri Lanka.
You will only impoverish and further destroy the Tamil Community if you try. You have an opportunity now to change your ways, but every move you make inimical to Sri Lanka’s existence as ONE Nation of ONE People sharing ONE National Destiny will rebound adversely on you and your community in the near future.
REJECT RECONCILIATION with UNREPENTANT RACIST SEPARATISTS!
PUNISH them SEVERELY for every TREACHEROUS MOVE! Spare the ROD and spoil the CHILD!
There MUST NEVER BE an EELAM, in any form, in part or whole, in Sri Lanka!
REPEAL the 13th Amendment, DISSOLVE the Provincial Councils, REJECT the ETCA, the FTA, the Hanuman Bridge and the Ramayana Religious Circuoit, and DENY ENTRY to MOST legal and ALL illegal immigrants, NOW before Sri Lanka CEASES to be Land of the proud and sovereign Sinhala People!
July 25th, 2016 at 4:23 pm
Agree totally with Ananda that further stupid acts by the present day Tamil leaders will only destroy the Tamil Community.
All the ‘cats are out of their bags’ now and truth prevails ….
We hope some good will come to all from this inane charade going on in Sri Lanka under UNP led Yahap in the guise of so called ‘Reconciliation’.
July 25th, 2016 at 5:41 pm
We thank Mr Akurugoda for this article.
We sincerely hope that the OMP will take only the local Judges and that the Tsunami Missing (carried away by sea) will be accounted for properly.
No Foreign Judges will ever understand or know the local situation fully.
RW/CBK wo have come in through the back door, are not trusted mostly after the Peace Accord fiasco with Norway which was harmful to all in Lanka.
Tamil leaders such as Mr Saravanamuttu must reconcile within their own Tamil Community first and erase their Caste based barriers before Tamil leaders come to Reconcile the communities in Sri Lanka.
Mr Saravanamuttu’s organisation, the Centre for Policy Alternatives, has not addressed the troubles within the Tamil Community. These troubles based on Caste are some 3,000 yrs, coming from the Tamil Nadu area. There are now some 20 million Tamil Dalits in TN (per internet). As Caste is stated in the birth certificates issued in Tamil Nadu, Lankans can expect the Tamil trauma & emotional problems from those areas impinging for a long time more on hapless Lanka since Tamil leaders are bent on keeping the Tamil culture, which of course has Caste as one of the centre pieces. Even the Indian Govt Census, and therefore the Census in Tamil Nadu, is done on a Caste base.
In Lanka, the still in place Vadukoddai Resoln of 1976 only ensures DIVISIVE POLITCS for a long time more to come – the VR of 1976 is still not revoked officially – what hopes of a permanent peace when Yahap has not even addressed these points which have deep roots into the Tamil community ?
Neither has the 6-A ever been activated.
This makes the Sinhala community of Lanka virtual ‘sitting ducks’ for Tamil problems created outside of Lanka.
How does Mr Saravanamuttu propose to address these very real and true problems in Lanka today ?
July 25th, 2016 at 7:07 pm
Pakiya Sarawanamuttu cannot even speak Tamil. He can speak Sinhala. He is single and He draws a salary of more than 1 lakh from funds donated. He doesn’t like “unitary” Sri Lanka he supports a “united” Sri Lanka.
This is what he told public in a media interview.
Therefore he is simply a parasite, living thanks to unfortunate Tamils who trust his ideology and get into trouble. More these Tamils are in trouble, more he earns.
July 25th, 2016 at 10:04 pm
It simply BOGGLES MY MIND that this IDIOTIC & TREACHEROUS Yamapalana government has placed this SERIAL EELAMISTS PARASITE Pakiasothy Sarvanamuttu in charge of “RECONCILIATION”!
All his years upto now Pakiasothy has been demonizing the go etnments of Sri Lanka and defending the LTTE as VICTIMS of unfair DISCRIMINATION!
My God, how can this Yamapalanaya GOSL be so TREASONOUS as to foist this particular EELAMIST Fox in charge of the RECONCILIATION Hen House!
He will use this heaven sent opportunity to further nail the Sinhala People to the War Crimes wall and add more fuel to the fire of Sri Lanka’s national disintegration!
July 25th, 2016 at 11:18 pm
I agree on Pakiasothy Sarvanamuttu. He was the head of the Human Rights Commission appointed by Mahinda from 2006 to around 2008 until he resigned. Now Sirisena has given him another post. It makes no sense to appoint this well known NGO activist to anything.
However, we must not be put off to make submissions to the Commission or Task Force he is in. Their rejecting or ignoring our submissions is proof the report and recommendations they come up with are a fraud.
July 26th, 2016 at 1:58 am
Even if the constitution will be changed since this idiotic government follows whatever instructions the US, UK, EU, Norway, Canada, Sweden, India, the TNA and the separatist terrorists tell it to do, we must ensure that the unitary status of the country is not compromised in any way whatsoever. The clause in the 13th amendment which says that ‘the North and the East is the homeland of the Tamil speaking people’ must be deleted since it is totally false when looking at the history of the island. This clause must be replaced with the clause ‘the entire island is the homeland of all its peoples’. The provision which allows for the merger between two provinces should be deleted. As much subjects from the concurrent list should be included in the national list. Under no circumstances should land, police or fiscal powers be given to provincial councils. All of us need to ensure that the above happens since if the system reverts back to a parliamentary system and the presidential system is scrapped, the only way to ensure the unitary status of the country is the make sure that the provincial councils do not get any more powers than they have at present. The Public Security Ordinance should not be amended in anyway as well. If any provincial councils acts out of line, the head of government should dissolved such a provincial council and direct rule by the head of government should be enforced under those circumstances.