| Home and home battles
mar electioneering •
The European Union, Miliband, Clinton and company dictate to
UN
• President has appointed two courts martial to try General
Fonseka
• The opposition and Ms. Anoma Fonseka are carrying out a
misinformation campaign
• The legal status of Johnston as a cabinet minister has run
into question
 Despite
the parliamentary general election scheduled for April 8
only 25 days away, the major political parties in the fray
have so far confined their electioneering to media
briefings, whistle stops and house-to-house canvassing. The
UNP, as a prelude to their propaganda campaign proper, is
holding the meetings of the party’s district organisations
presided over by the party leader Ranil Wickremesinghe.
The ruling UPFA has planned to hold their major
propaganda rallies with President Mahinda Rajapaksa in the
chair, beginning this week, SLFP General Secretary
Maitripala Sirisena said. The President will preside over
the propaganda rallies to be held at district level. Prime
Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake, senior ministers and the
leaders of the constituent parties of the alliance will
participate in other meetings. According to UNP General
Secretary, the UNF will kick off their campaign with a mass
rally in Jaffna on March 19 which is to be the first in a
series of 32 rallies planned to be held across the country
by the party.
Intra-party candidate rivalry
Clashes, resulting from intra-party candidate rivalry- a
common malaise affecting the major political parties - have
already been reported from several parts of the country. A
series of untoward incidents where supporters of certain
UPFA candidates had set upon those of candidates of the same
party had been reported from Ratnapura, Anuradhapura, Galle,
Matara and several other areas. The UPFA candidates, who
participated in religious observances at the Jaya Sri Maha
Bodhi in Anuradhapura on February 27, later made a solemn
pledge before President Rajapaksa to conduct a peaceful
election campaign. However, the complaints about tearing
down of posters and cutouts, attacks on party offices and
causing damage to houses and vehicles by the supporters of
the fellow- candidates had begun pouring in to the party
headquarters from the following day itself.
There had been similar clashes between the supporters of
the UNF candidates as well. A group of supporters of a UNP
candidate had attacked Upulangani Malagamuwa of the SLFP (M)
contesting on the UNF ticket in Kurunegala and a group of
her supporters near the Mee-oya bridge at Galgamuwa.
Upulangani had complained to the Galgamuwa Police regarding
the incident. She had later apprised both Ranil
Wickremesinghe and Managala Samaraweera of this incident.
Galgamuwa UNP organiser Mohan Perera has been accused of
setting goons on Upulangani and her supporters. The UNP
leader had summoned Mohan Perera to Colombo on Wednesday and
pulled him up regarding the the ugly incident.
Wickremesinghe had also warned the errant candidate of
severe disciplinary action against him in case he repeated
the offence.
JVP `Manapa-pore’
At none of the previous elections did the JVP candidates
canvass for the preference vote. The party, on all previous
occasions, made it a point to canvass for the `Bell’ symbol
without exhibiting the preference numbers of the candidates.
However, the JVP contesting this symbol of the Democratic
National Alliance (DNA) have put on display the pictures and
the preference numbers of their candidates general election
under the `Trophy’ in the running at this election.
According to JVP insiders, the party had entered the
`Manama-pore’ to enable the JVP supporters to single out the
party candidates contesting under the DNA for voting at this
election.
Moneragala issue
The main item on the agenda of the UNP Working Committee
which met at the Sirikotha party headquarters last Tuesday
with the party leader Ranil Wickremesinghe in the chair was
the issue over the deletion of the name of Janaka
Tissakuttiarachchi from the Moneragala nomination list. A
majority of the Working Committee membership had failed to
turn up at this meeting. Nor was in attendance at the
meeting Ranjith Madduma Bandara who is facing the charge.
The committee, at this meeting, decided to appoint
Commodore Nihal Chandrasiri as the acting Chairman of the
Moneragala District organisation in place of Ranjith Madduma
Bandara. The Committee also decided to appoint K.Velauthan
as the opposition leader of the Uva PC replacing Ananda
Kumarasiri who is also facing charges in connection with the
nomination list affair.
The Working Committee also decided to delegate authority to
the party leader to look into taking a damage control
measure and also complaining to Police regarding the
unauthorised alteration of the nomination list.
However, the Moneragala UNP district leaders reportedly are
up in arms against the stance taken by the Working Committee
regarding this matter. They had earlier asked the UNP
leadership not to accommodate Tissakuttiarachchi on the
Moneragala district nomination list as the latter does not
hail from the district. Ranil Wickremesinghe, who had turned
a deaf ear to their request, had fielded Tissakuttiarachchi
on the Moneragala district list to accommodate SLFP (M)
leader Mangala Samaraweera.
There was a similar dispute over the UNP’s Colombo
District nomination list as well. Western PC member of the
UNP C.Y.P. Ram too had sought a slot on the Colombo district
nomination list. A popular figure among the Tamil community
in Colombo, Ram was returned to the Western PC at the last
provincial elections by a large majority of votes. But,
Ranil Wickremesinghe had deleted his name from the Colombo
district nomination list following a strong protest made by
Ravi Karunanayake.
The UNP leadership has come in for flak from a large number
of members for the standard adopted in regard to the
Moneragala district nomination list vis-à-vis the Colombo
district nomination list.
Two out , two in
A question has now arisen over the ministerial portfolios
now being held by Johnston Fernando and Indika Bandaranayake
who recently crossed over to the government from the UNP
given the situation that they have forfeited their
parliamentary membership.
The UNP expelled Johnston Fernando and Indika Bandaranayake
from the party membership immediately after their defection
to join the government. UNP General Secretary, Tissa
Attanayake had sent letters to the Secretary General to
Parliament and the Elections Commissioner informing them of
their expulsion from the UNP. Attanayake, by his dated
December 17, had also requested that the two candidates, who
polled the next highest number of preference votes from the
Kurunegala district, be appointed to fill the two vacancies
in parliament.
Both Johnston Fernando and Indika Bandaranayake had
earlier filed petitions in the Supreme Court challenging
their expulsion from the UNP. However, they had withdrawn
the petitions following the dissolution of parliament on
February 9. They could not attend parliament when it met on
February 9 as by then their expulsion had become legally
valid.
When parliament meets again on April 6 to approve the
extension of the Emergency, Anura Gopallawa and D.M.
Bandaranayake, who occupy the two places next to Johnston
Fernando and Indika Bandaranayake on the Kurunegala district
preference votes list, will get the unforeseen opportunity
of being sworn in as members of the 6th parliament. Their
functioning as MPs will be confined to their voting on the
Emergency and they will cease to be MPs when parliamentary
sittings end in a few hours.
Now, the legal status of Johnston Fernando as a cabinet
minister has been called into question. In terms of the
relevant provisions in the constitution only a member of
parliament is eligible to hold a ministerial portfolio.
Therefore, it goes without saying that Johnston Fernando can
no longer attend cabinet meetings. By the same token, Indika
Bandaranayake too can no longer function as non-cabinet
minister.
UN on Sri Lanka
The UNO, which had been silent on Sri Lankan affairs for
some time, has now begun talking about human rights
violations and war-time incidents again. UN High
Commissioner for Human Rights, Navanethem Pillay had
recently repeated her call for a probe into certain
incidents which had been reported during the war.
A few days later, UN Secretary General, Ban Ki-moon had rung
up President Mahinda Rajapaksa to inform the latter that he
was going to appoint a panel of experts to report to him on
accountability issues relating to Sri Lanka. However, the
President had pointed out to the UN Secretary General that
the proposed move would constitute interference in the
internal affairs of Sri Lanka and a violation of the UN
Charter. “Six months have passed since the ending of the
war. And a peaceful atmosphere is prevailing in the country
now. We are even holding national elections. Therefore, I
strongly object to the appointment of such a panel to
inquire into our affairs,” President Rajapaksa had told Ban
Ki-moon. The President had also told Ban that if the UN
appointed such a panel, he would take all measures available
to him to oppose it.
Following the telephone conversation with President
Rajapaksa, Ban Ki-moon had told a media briefing that he
would be sending UN Under Secretary General for Political
Affairs Lynn Pascoe to Sri Lanka for further talks.
An American national, Lynn Pascoe had functioned as the US
ambassador for Indonesia and Malaysia before being appointed
as Under Secretary General of the UN. A one-time USA’s
Permanent Representative to the UN, Pascoe had functioned as
an active member of several American peace missions set up
for resolving certain regional political crises.
He paid a visit to Sri Lanka last September. The itinerary
of the proposed visit of Lynn Pascoe to Sri Lanka is
expected to be announced this week.
NAM hits out at Ban Ki
Meanwhile, the Non-aligned Movement (NAM) currently chaired
by Egypt, an organisation of 118 member nations has
articulated its protest against the UN move to appoint a
panel of experts to advise the Secretary General on
accountability issues relating to Sri Lanka. Egypt’s
ambassador Maged A. Abdelaziz, who is also the current
Chairman of the NAM Coordinating Bureau, has sent a letter
to UN Secretary General Ban Ki –moon protesting the proposed
move by the UN. (See the inset carrying United Nations
date-lined IPS dispatch containing the NAM letter addressed
to the (UNSG).
The European Union, British Foreign secretary David
Miliband, US State Secretary Hillary Clinton and French
Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner and the like who had been
anti-Sri Lanka have not stopped nagging Sri Lanka as they
did during the war in the North. Political parties
supporting the government attribute their anti-Sri Lanka
attitude to the influence the Tamil Diaspora wields over
them in their countries. Addressing a media briefing held in
Colombo last week, Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka said
that the increasing incidence of interference in Sri Lankan
affairs by the Western countries betray their malice towards
Sri Lanka. He said, “These Western countries affronted by
the government’s refusal to carry out the agenda they had
set for Sri Lanka during the final phase of the war in the
North, are engaged in a sinister conspiracy against Sri
Lanka.” Minister Ranawaka also pointed out that British
Foreign Secretary David Miliband and French Foreign Minister
are now waging ‘an ideological war’ on Sri Lanka in an
indirect bid to win the support of the pro-LTTE Tamil
Diaspora in their countries at the elections round the
corner.
Ban-Ki a puppet
JHU media spokesman, Nishantha Sri Warnasinghe told the same
media briefing that Ban Ki-moon has become a puppet in the
hands of the Western nations. ” Ban Ki-moon has to carry out
the agenda set by the Western countries if he is to keep his
office. People like Miliband and Hillary Clinton are behind
the decisions being taken by the UN,” he explained.
Two Courts Martial try Fonseka
President Rajapaksa, on the recommendations of the Army
Commander, appointed two courts martial on Thursday. The
same panel of judges will conduct the proceedings in both
courts. Three serving Major Generals comprise the panel.
Major General H.L. Weeratunga is the President of the panel.
The other two judges are Major Generals A.L.R. Wijetunga and
D.A.R..B. Jayatillake. Rear Admiral W.W.J.N. Fernando, who
is an attorney at law, will function as the Judge Advocate.
The two courts martial due to meet at the Navy headquarters
will commence sittings on March 16 and 17. General Fonseka
has been granted permission to retain lawyers to look after
his interests at the court proceedings. Meanwhile,
arrangements have been made to video all sequences in the
court proceedings.
JVP questions legality
Addressing as media briefing in Colombo on Thursday, former
JVP parliamentary group leader, Anura Kumara Dissanayake
said that there is none in the army legally qualified under
the Army Act to court - martial General Fonseka as the
latter held the highest rank in the security forces. The
Army Act says that those on the panel of judges should be
those above the rank of the accused under trial. There is
none in the army holding a rank higher than that held by
General Fonseka in the army. Therefore, there is no
possibility of appointing a panel of judges to try him,”
said Anura Kumara Dissanayake.
Petition in supreme court
Meanwhile, it is learnt that a team of lawyers including
former Chief Justice Sarath N. Silva are planning to file a
petition in the supreme court challenging the legality of
the courts martial set up to try General Fonseka. They are
to submit to the supreme court through the petition that
trying Fonseka by courts martial violates the provisions of
the Army Act as those on the panel of judges appointed are
below his rank and also it is illegal to subject a person no
longer in the service of the army to a trial conducted by a
court martial in terms of the provisions of the Army Act.
According to informed sources, General Fonseka has decided
to boycott the courts martial.
Wife complains
Meanwhile, Anoma Fonseka has told the media that her husband
is not getting adequate ventilation as the windows of the
room where he is being detained are covered by nailed
planks. The General last week staged a fast too saying that
he was not being allowed to speak to his daughter over the
phone that his wife used to bring with her. Later, he
spurned the offer by the Army of a telephone to speak to his
daughter. However, he gave up the fast when he was allowed
to speak to his daughters using his wife’s telephone.
Anoma Fonseka now brings both lunch and dinner for the
General from home. Meanwhile, a cook has been made available
to prepare his breakfast. Facilities for reading books also
have been provided in his double room- cell. His wife has
been allowed a two-hour period to visit him. Meanwhile,
Anoma Fonseka had said that the General spends about two
hours in telephone conversation with his daughters in the
United States.
President recalls prison days
Commenting on the facilities made available to General
Fonseka during a chat with a group of senior ministers,
President Rajapaksa had reportedly said, “The opposition and
Ms. Anoma Fonseka are carrying out a countrywide
misinformation campaign saying that the General has been
reduced to a virtual prisoner and he is being subjected to
severe ill-treatment. But the truth is that he is not being
held in a prison, but in the official quarters of the former
Navy Commander. He is being provided with necessary
amenities. He has not been incarcerated in a place like
Welikada or Bogambara. But I am a person who has languished
in prison for the ‘sin’ of fighting for the rights of the
people. The UNP government had me jailed on trumped up
charges. The judge said that I could be transferred to the
prisons hospital. But I did not seek the comforts of the
prisons hospital like some ‘big people’. I slept on a torn
piece of a mat spread on the floor like other ordinary
prisoners. I did not ask for telephones. Nor did I ask for
good food. I did not stage a fast either. I had to suffer
the attacks by fleas.”
|
