TNA hits out at LTTE, calls on Govt.

to
accept OISL report

Sunday, September 20, 2015

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) has fired a strong salvo at the Liberation Tigers of
Tamil Eelam (LTTE) after the OHCHR report accused them of committing war crimes.

The TNA called upon the Tamil people to use this moment of introspection into our
own communitys failures and the unspeakable crimes committed in our name. It said
that the alliance would accept and undertake to carry out our responsibility to lead the
Tamil people in reflecting on the past and to create an enabling culture and
atmosphere in which we could live with dignity and self-respect, as equal citizens of
Sri Lanka.
The statement came as most of the hardline polity of the Tamil community were absent
at the UNHRC sessions in Geneva which began Monday. That included even the TNA
firebrand Ananthi Sasheetharan, wife of slain LTTE Trincomalee political wing leader.

The TNA statement added: The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) welcomes the report of
the investigation conducted by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
(OISL) and its recommendations. The most important recommendation of the report
calls on Sri Lanka to establish a special hybrid court to try perpetrators of international
crimes during a nine year period with the participation of international judges,
prosecutors and investigators; and incorporating into domestic law war crimes and
crimes against humanity so that these prosecutions can take place. The TNA has
consistently called for these steps to be taken and welcomes the inclusion of these
critical recommendations in the OISL report. We further welcome the entire gamut of
recommendations of the OISL report, including those that relate to broader Transitional

Justice and human rights concerns.

We appeal to all parties, and particularly to the Government of Sri Lanka to accept
this report. The Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka assured the Human Rights Council on
Monday that there is a new Sri Lanka and that things will henceforth be different. He
admitted Sri Lankas history of broken promises and pledged to enter a new era. As an
expression of this change, the Government of Sri Lanka must now be willing to have
the courage to accept this report and work with the world community. To this end, we
ask the member states of the Human Rights Council to adopt all the recommendations
in the OISL report in the resolution to be presented later at this session. We ask the
Government of Sri Lanka to cooperate fully with the TNA and the international
community in dealing with the past in a manner that will assuage the feelings of the
victims of all communities, and to move forward to establish a brighter future for all of
Sri Lankas peoples.

We also accept and undertake to carry out our responsibility to lead the Tamil people
in reflecting on the past, and use this moment as a moment of introspection into our
own communitys failures and the unspeakable crimes committed in our name, so as
to create an enabling culture and atmosphere in which we could live with dignity and
self-respect, as equal citizens of Sri Lanka.

Minister apologises for inconvenience

Media Minister Gayantha Karunatilleke has apologised if any inconvenience was
caused to the public by the erection of a pandal and crowds turning up outside his
Ministry when he assumed office.

The Media Ministers private secretary said in a letter that .I am regretful that this

occasion caused residents of the area any inconvenience. It is unfortunate that what
was intended by the people to be celebration of the dawn of an era of good
governance and accountable practices, resulted in any inconvenience..

The large crowd that gathered were the Ministers supporters from the Galle District,
he says and adds .it was with regret I noted that the writer had stated it was
irrelevant whether the funds utilised were state or personal origin. While utilisation of
state funds for private purposes may have been the norm of the past it is most
certainly not the case now. No State funds were used for the function, he adds.

The Sunday Times did not say how the funds came. All it said was that the tamasha
caused great inconvenience to the public. The private secretary apologises to the
residents of the area on behalf of the Minister.

Poorgram seller now Uva Chief Minister

Its a rags to riches sort of story for Chamara
Dasanayaka who was appointed Chief
Minister of the Uva Province by President
Maithripala Sirisena this week.

Chamara being sworn in as Chief Minister

Chamara as he is known to many in the area

lost his mother due to cancer when he was only six and was raised by an aunt along
with four cousins on a tea estate in Demodara where his aunt worked as a tea plucker.
Poverty meant that Chamara had to give up his education at a young age and on hard
days he even had to sell kadala (gram) on the train to help his aunt make ends meet.

Now that he has attained high political office, Chamara, who was elected to Parliament
from the Badulla District but has decided to forego the seat to take up the post of Chief
Minister, says his objective is to serve the people who have placed their trust in him
and voted for him.

I hope the people will continue to address me as Chamara and not as Maha
Amathithuma (Chief Minister), he says.

British style Serious Frauds Office for Lanka

Legislation to set up a Serious Frauds Office (SFO), on the lines of the one in Britain,
will be introduced in Parliament.
This will replace the existing Financial Crimes Investigation Divisions (FCID). Some
Police officers are expected to travel to Britain to study the workings of its SFO ahead
of the introduction of legislation.

New Defence Secretary outspoken on Indias poaching

Just three days after he began work as the new Defence Secretary, Karunasena
Hettiaratchchi has dropped a bombshell.
This week, he accused Indian fishermen of carrying out economic terrorism in Sri
Lankas territorial waters.
Mr. Hettiaratchcis remarks came when he called on the Malwatte Mahanayake, the
Most Venerable Thibottuwawe Sri Siddharatha Sumangala Thera, last Sunday. After
the meeting, the new Defence Secretary answered questions from the media. Here is
the relevant Q & A:
Q: You mentioned that silence sometime has some meaning and everything cannot be

taken as a rosy picture. What does it mean?

A: Usually when a thief breaks into the house and few days later we tend to lose
attention thinking that he will not break in again. But we do not work in that manner
and we work assuming that there can be a threat. Security does not mean issues
arising from terrorism alone. It can be even from the sea. The Navy and the Air Force
protect these areas. We use new technology.

For instance, the Indian fishermen stay until 6 p.m. in their waters and cross over to
our waters thereafter to catch our fish and return. This is economic terrorism. There
are other areas such as drugs and smuggling contraband into the country. Most of
these have either to come across the sea or the airport. Therefore, security in all these
areas should be taken care of.

It is not only fighting the terrorists. It is a broad area. What I meant is when there is
silence we can assume that some groups are organising themselves. Therefore, we
should be vigilant and be ahead. These days there is talk of local and international
investigations. Thats why we say we have to be alert.

Notwithstanding the Defence Secretarys assertions, during talks in New Delhi, both
Premier Wickremesinghe and his Indian counterpart Narendra Modi have decided that
the issue should be resolved by the fishermen of the two countries. That, of course is a
neat Indian rope-trick not to have the issue resolved. The Indian PM had said that it
was an issue that concerned livelihoods. Of those of which country was the question.

Mr. Hettiaratchci who hails from Polonnaruwa was a student of the Madya Maha
Vidyalaya there. This school, which has now been re-named Royal College, was the
alma mater of President Maithripala Sirisena. He later graduated from the University of
Peradeniya in 1977 as a Civil Engineer with an honours degree. His first appointment
in the State sector was Irrigation Engineer in Polonnaruwa. He later became the

Chairman of the Central Environmental Authority (CEA) before being named as the
Chairman of the National Water Supply & Drainage Board.

Two MPs draw Presidents ire

President Maithripala Sirisena has severely criticised the conduct of two
Parliamentarians, one from the UNFGG and the other from the UPFA. Both had made
strong public remarks criticising the appointment on the National List of candidates
who were defeated at the September 17 Parliamentary elections and thereafter to
ministerial positions. Mr. Sirisena said that action should be taken against them.

Earlier, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe admonished the UNFGG

Parliamentarian. He told him that he should either withdraw his remarks or quit as MP.
He said party discipline was most important.

Sirisena among glitterati at Clinton event

President Maithripala Sirisena will be among a host of international political leaders,
Nobel Prize laureates and celebrities who will join former US President Bill Clinton and
Clinton Foundation vice Chair Chelsea Clinton when they host the 11th Clinton Global
Initiative (CGI) Annual Meeting later this month in New York City.

Among those who will be attending the CGI are Queen Rania Al Abdullah of Jordan,
Virgin Group founder Richard Branson, Australias former Prime Minister of Julia
Gillard and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Muhammad Yunus.

The event will coincide with the United Nations 2015 Sustainable Development
Summit which will be attended by more than 150 world leaders from September 25-27.
It is to formally adopt an ambitious new sustainable development agenda.
Posted by Thavam