Sri Lanka war crimes resolution softened before U.N. debate

A Tamil demonstrator holds up a hand as they wear a glove covered with fake blood during a protest near the Commonwealth Secretariat in London November 15, 2013.

Tue Sep 29, 2015

A U.S.-backed resolution at the United Nations that seeks justice for victims of Sri Lanka's 26-year civil war has been softened to keep its government on board and allay the concerns of powerful neighbour India, sources say.

The latest draft, expected to be adopted in Geneva on Thursday, fails to specify the powers and role of foreign prosecutors and judges in trying war crimes suspects – a major shortcoming, in the eyes of human rights groups.

They and some diplomats say that reflects the balancing act needed to keep Sri Lanka's new reformist leadership on board while making a credible attempt to end a culture of impunity over what the U.N. calls the mass killings of tens of thousands of people by both sides in the final stages of the conflict.

"Everything now depends on implementation - the text was worded in a very ambiguous way," said Alan Keenan, Sri Lanka analyst at the International Crisis Group.

A judicial process with teeth would hold out a realistic prospect of punishment for senior figures in ex-president Mahinda Rajapaksa's government and military, as well as Tamil Tiger rebels, who waged a bitter final battle in 2009.

The U.N. has estimated that 40,000 people died, many of them civilians, as government forces tightened the noose around a patch of land on the Jaffna Peninsula where Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) rebels were penned in.

But the U.S.-led draft agreed with the Sri Lankan government falls short of explicitly meeting a call by the U.N.'s human rights chief for a special court staffed with international judges, prosecutors, lawyers and investigators.

Such "hybrid" courts have emerged in recent years as a way to deliver justice in places such as East Timor, Kosovo and Sierra Leone against powerful individuals capable of threatening judges or witnesses.

The text instead vaguely affirms the importance of participation in a Sri Lankan judicial mechanism of "Commonwealth and other foreign judges, defence lawyers, and authorized prosecutors and investigators".

John Fisher, Geneva director at Human Rights Watch, said the Sri Lankan government had resisted appointing an independent international prosecutor and a majority of foreign judges.

"Meaningful foreign participation and international monitoring will be needed to prevent local pressure and intimidation from interfering with a fair judicial process," he said.

"SUBSTANCE STILL THERE"

Sri Lanka argues that President Maithripala Sirisena's constructive engagement with the U.N. marks a break with the recalcitrance of Rajapaksa, whom he defeated in a presidential election in January.

Sirisena won backing on Monday from U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, who endorsed a "credible domestic process" with international support when the two met on the fringes of the U.N. General Assembly in New York.

How this would work in practice still needs to be hammered out. "In order to ensure credibility, we of course need some kind of international involvement. But it will be decided after the consultation process," one Sri Lankan official said.

A source familiar with the drafting discussions said the Sri Lankan government wanted to create the impression the resolution had been watered down to placate the majority Sinhala community that formed Rajapaksa's power base.

"The substance is still all there," said the source, who requested anonymity. The U.S. draft is widely expected to be adopted by consensus at the U.N. Human Rights Council meeting in Geneva.

A Western diplomat in Colombo and a source at the Tamil National Alliance, an opposition political party, said India had been at the forefront of efforts to ensure there was no full international war crimes probe in Sri Lanka.

This included lobbying by India to change the description of judges from "international" to "foreign" in the draft resolution, reflecting concerns that India could one day face a similar judicial reckoning in its disputed territory of Kashmir.

Sources familiar with New Delhi's thinking flatly reject those suggestions, saying the resolution was worded to reflect Sri Lanka's concerns about protecting its sovereignty.

(Additional reporting by Ranga Sirilal, Stephanie Nebehay and Douglas Busvine; editing by Andrew Roche) 

Conflicting Reconciliation

• (Posted on 28-09-2015)
• Research Fellow, Institute for Conflict Management In a significant shift in policy, on September 24, 2015, Colombo decided to co-sponsor a draft resolution (A/HRC/30/L.29) that was tabled at the 30th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva. The draft resolution titled 'Promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka', based on the findings of the OISL [OHCHR (Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights) Investigation on Sri Lanka], was sponsored by the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro; United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland; and United States of America (USA). Notably, the previous regime of Mahinda Rajapaksa had vehemently opposed a strident campaign by the international community, particularly western nations, to interfere in the country's internal affairs in the guise of 'investigation of war crimes' through the adoption of such resolutions.

Conflicting Reconciliation by Thavam Ratna

Sri Lanka: UN Resolution Could Advance Justice

The core group presenting the Sri Lanka Resolution to the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, Switzerland on September 21, 2015. 

© 2015 Sunanda Deshapriya

SEPTEMBER 28, 2015

(Geneva) – The United Nations Human Rights Council should adopt a resolution ensuring a robust international role in Sri Lanka’s justice mechanism for abuses during the country’s brutal civil war, Human Rights Watch said today. The resolution, expected to be adopted on October 1, 2015, contains a number of strong provisions but will need to be thoroughly implemented for victims to obtain genuine justice.

“This resolution makes it clear the time has come for the Sri Lankan government to act,” said John Fisher, Geneva director at Human Rights Watch. “The resolution’s endorsement of a judicial mechanism with international participation is an important recognition of the need for an international role to ensure justice for victims.”

The resolution draws on the new report by the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights detailing numerous abuses by both sides in the conflict, and the government’s failure over decades to hold those responsible to account. Among the report’s concrete recommendations is the establishment of a special court “integrating international judges, prosecutors, lawyers and investigators” with an independent Sri Lankan investigative and prosecuting body. While the proposed resolution does not specifically call for a hybrid national-international justice mechanism, if fully implemented it offers a greater hope for justice than past failed promises by the Sri Lankan government on justice for human rights abuses.

Unlike in past years, Sri Lanka has agreed to co-sponsor the resolution, which was presented initially to the Human Rights Council by the governments of the United States, United Kingdom, Montenegro, and Macedonia. Overall, the new Sri Lankan government, voted into power in January 2015, has acted in a more cooperative manner with the international community. It has, however, resisted including an independent, international prosecutor and a majority of international judges, which would create the greatest chance of success for justice.

“The new Sri Lankan government, through getting on board with this resolution, is making important promises to all the victims of Sri Lanka’s war,” Fisher said. “However, meaningful foreign participation and international monitoring will be needed to prevent local pressure and intimidation from interfering with a fair judicial process.”

The Sri Lankan government has accepted many recommendations to improve the human rights situation, including a repeal of the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act and reforms to the Witness and Victim Protection Law, both long called for by victims’ rights groups. The government has also agreed to accelerate the return of lands confiscated by the security forces; to end the divisive military involvement in civilian activities in the country’s north and east; to investigate allegations of attacks on civil society, media, and religious minorities; and to work towards devolution of authority from the centre in line with the 13th amendment to the constitution.

“The resolution is a far-reaching call to address pressing needs for reform,” said Fisher. “An early test of the government’s sincerity will be if the Prevention of Terrorism Act is repealed and not simply replaced by another bad law with another name.”

Human Rights Watch expressed concern about inadequate provisions for international oversight of implementation of the terms of the resolution. The resolution only calls for an oral update from the High Commissioner during the Council’s 32nd session in June 2016 and a written implementation report at the 34th session in March 2017. The government will also need concrete proposals to ensure compliance with international law in addressing grave abuses, including command responsibility, so that charges brought reflect the gravity of the crimes and target those most responsible.

“If implemented, the Human Rights Council resolution on Sri Lanka could prove to be a milestone for addressing past and ongoing human rights abuses,” Fisher said. “The burden now rests with the government to fully honour its pledges and with UN members to see that it does so. This is not a time to cross Sri Lanka off the list of countries requiring scrutiny. For real progress, now is the time to work with the government to ensure reforms are real and lasting.”

Siobhain pushes government for justice in Sri Lanka

25 September 2015

Siobhain brought together a number of other MPs to call for the UK government not to turn its back on international participation in securing justice in Sri Lanka.

Back in 2013, the Prime Minister publicly called for a ‘credible and thorough’ international war crimes inquiry via the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), citing the importance of independence in order to ‘[bring] justice and closure and healing’.

However, most recently, UK support for a strong international justice mechanism seems to have been diminishing, with the UK's present position being the support of a solely national 'political solution, mediated by the international community’.

Many do not feel as if this new position is good enough, given continued human rights abuses in Sri Lanka: the need for international participation, according to a most recent UN report, is clear. How can the Sri Lankan people have faith in a purely national mechanism, when key witnesses still do not have access to proper protection and are afraid to speak out? How can a national tribunal convened by a government whose members are themselves implicated in the crimes be expected to hold the right people thoroughly to account?

As Siobhain's letter states: 'Six years after the end of the brutal civil war, not one person has been prosecuted for war crimes, despite the fact that forty thousand Tamils died in the final stages of war alone. We cannot stand by and let limited national mechanisms fail to provide the victims of inhumanity the fairness and justice that they truly deserve.

The justice process must have people’s full confidence if it is to bring closure and a new beginning for the Sri Lankan people.'


You can read the letter, sent to the Prime Minister, the Foreign Secretary, and the Minister of State (Hugo Swire) below:

Dear Prime Minister,

Justice mechanisms in Sri Lanka
We are writing to express our concern and disappointment regarding the UK’s changed position on Sri Lanka’s justice mechanism, and in the sincere hope that this position will be reviewed.

Back in 2013, the Prime Minister publicly called for a ‘credible and thorough’ international war crimes inquiry via the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC), citing the importance of independence in order to ‘[bring] justice and closure and healing’. This was a position that we all supported, but we are distressed to learn that the UK’s official position now seems to be that of supporting a purely national mechanism in Sri Lanka, according to remarks made by the Rt Hon. Hugo Swire MP, Minister of State at the Foreign Office.

As the Minister stated in the Westminster Debate on the subject on 15 September 2015; ‘Our expectation is that Sri Lanka will now take forward the [UNHRC] report’s recommendations… [The new government in Sri Lanka] has our full confidence… We need to understand that there has been a sea change in Sri Lanka. We need to get behind the new administration.’

There is no doubt that the election of President Sirisena represents a considerable improvement and renewed hope for the country. But this is no reason to pass all responsibility for justice to the national government, and we do not share the Minister’s overwhelming optimism.

Change in Sri Lanka is slow, and confidence in the state apparatus is very low amongst Tamils. Even more concerning is the recent report from Freedom From Torture, Tainted Peace (2015), which has shockingly found that torture, mainly of Tamils, has continued well into the new government. As the report notes, there has been limited action from the new administration to tackle vested interests in the military, police and intelligence services. Furthermore, President Sirisena himself served as Defence Minister in the final days of the civil war, when most civilian casualties occurred. Meanwhile, many of the most senior government and military figures remain unchanged from those dark days.

How can the Sri Lankan people have faith in a purely national mechanism, when key witnesses still do not have access to proper protection and are afraid to speak out? How can a national tribunal convened by a government whose members are themselves implicated in the crimes be expected to hold the right people thoroughly to account?

There is no evidence either that a national mechanism alone will enable justice truly to win through, or that the new government’s good intentions will be strong enough, or that the administration is competent enough, to act. Indeed, Sri Lanka is not itself a signatory of the Rome statute, which means that its laws do not cover a number of the international laws that were clearly breached during the civil war.

The Tamil people themselves therefore support a hybrid mechanism which incorporates both national and international involvement. This is reflected in the request for UK assistance made by the Chief Minister of the Northern Province in July 2015, in order to reach a ‘political solution, mediated by the international community’.

The UK is in a position of huge importance on this issue, and it therefore has a moral obligation to push for the course of action that really brings justice to the Sri Lankan people. We can assert a position where we express hope in the new government without suddenly releasing ourselves from our moral responsibility.

Indeed, as the UNHRC report states:

"The Council welcomes the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Report on Sri Lanka and fully endorses all the recommendations, especially creating a Hybrid Court with International Judges, Prosecutors and Investigators."

"The Council further urges the High Commissioner to submit a report in the March, June, and September 2016 Sessions of the UNHRC about the progress in setting up the Hybrid Court and Prosecutions."

The Minister of State has suggested Sri Lanka simply needs a ‘credible domestic mechanism that meets international standards’ (Westminster Hall, 15 September 2015), but we do not agree that this is enough. Instead, the need for a hybrid mechanism that combines the best of national and international action to achieve the mutual goal of justice for the Sri Lankan people is clear.

We sincerely hope the UK government will turn away from its ‘hands-off’ approach, to reassert the importance of international oversight, and to call explicitly for the full implementation of the UNHRC’s recommendations. Full justice and accountability requires not just the use of existing national mechanisms but full institutional reforms and international supervision to ensure these crimes can never happen again.

Six years after the end of the brutal civil war, not one person has been prosecuted for war crimes, despite the fact that forty thousand Tamils died in the final stages of war alone. We cannot stand by and let limited national mechanisms fail to provide the victims of inhumanity the fairness and justice that they truly deserve. The justice process must have people’s full confidence if it is to bring closure and a new beginning for the Sri Lankan people.

We look forward to these matters being taken into account and the UK’s position on this important subject being reviewed.

Yours sincerely,

Siobhain McDonagh MPSenior Vice Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Tamils

Joan Ryan MPVice Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Tamils

Mike Gapes MP

Barry Gardiner MP

John Mann MP

Stephen Pound MP

Steve Reed MP

Virendra Sharma MP

Stephen Timms MP

TNA hails U.S.-backed resolution on Sri Lanka

A file photo of Tamil National Alliance leader, R. Sampanthan.

"This is perhaps the best possible resolution that could have been achieved at the UNHRC", says TNA leader R. Sampanthan.

• T. RAMAKRISHNAN-September 29, 2015
• 
  

The draft resolution on Sri Lanka tabled at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) by the U.S. and other countries has addressed the main issues of accountability and reconciliation, according to the Tamil National Alliance leader, R. Sampanthan.

The involvement of Commonwealth and other foreign judges, defence counsel, prosecutors and investigators would give the judicial process “much greater degree of credibility”, the TNA chief told The Hindu on Tuesday. “You can’t blame the people who are sceptical [of the domestic judicial process] because the previous experiences were quite bad.”

The references in the resolution to the need to evolve an acceptable political solution and the proposed review of implementation of the resolution at the 32nd and 34th sessions of the UNHRC are “welcome features”, he said.

“This is perhaps the best possible resolution that could have been achieved at the UNHRC on the basis of a consensus.” Mr. Sampanthan also recalled that resolutions on Sri Lanka were adopted at the UNHRC during 2012-2014 through voting.

Asked whether he was confident of the full implementation of the resolution, the TNA leader said that a “honest implementation will become inevitable,” against the context of “a resolution based on consensus.” He urged all to join together to make sure that the resolution was “honestly implemented in the interests of the whole country and all people living in the country.”

Emphasising that an early settlement to the Tamil question should be found by next year, he said it must be “reasonable, workable and durable.” “Our people must feel that they have a new future where they honestly think that they belong to this country and this country belongs to them.”

Justice mechanism controlled by Sri Lanka will not be credible say Tamil parties, civil society and trade unions

29 September 2015

Expressing concern over the consensus resolution on Sri Lanka due to be tabled at the UN Human Rights Council, North-East civil society groups, trade unions and Tamil political parties, including three out of the four constituent parties of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) stressed that “a mechanism, which is by and large managed and controlled by the Sri Lankan state, will not in our opinion be deemed credible by the victims in Sri Lanka”.

Justice Mechanism Controlled by Sri Lanka Will Not Be Credible Say Tamil Parties, Civil Society and Trade U... by Thavam Ratna

Sri Lankans disabled by war, forgotten in peace

Mayuran Sivachandran, seen here in August 2015 in Mulaittivu District where fighting raged between Sri Lanka government forces and the Tamil Tigers, lost his leg in 2008 to a war-related injury.

A man permanently injured during the war is seen in August 2015 in Mullivaikal where the last battles were fought-Government soldiers who suffered permanent injury during the war are seen at a victory commemoration event in Colombo in May 2014

By Amantha Perera -29 September 2015

KARADIYANARU, Sri Lanka, 16 September 2015 (IRIN) - Sri Lanka’s decades-long civil war ended six years ago, but it’s not over for many victims who suffered permanent injuries during the conflict.

Government soldiers can receive assistance packages for injuries sustained in service, including the continuation of salaries for those able to work at desk jobs, or long-term care in military-run facilities for those severely disabled. But there is no programme to help civilians and former Tamil Tigers who remain permanently affected by injuries during the war.

Sri Lankans Disabled by War, Forgotten in Peace by Thavam Ratna

A Letter To The President On An Effective Finance Commission & Essential Prerequisite For Genuine Devolution

By Chandra Jayaratne –September 29, 2015 

Chandra Jayaratne

Dear Mr. President,

An Independent, Representative, Professional and Visionary Finance Commission Discharging its Accountability with Efficiency, Economy and Effectiveness Is Key to Achieving a Balanced, Inclusive and Equitable Socio Economic Development of the Provinces and the Country

Your commitment to ensuring peace, harmonious co-existence, and embedding shared positive societal values and norms amongst all citizens, and associated commitments for growth and development led sustainable prosperity and happiness to be shared by all citizens, where ever they may live in the country, have been clearly articulated in following speeches you delivered since assumption of office;

• Independence day[i]
• Occasion that marked 100 days since election as President[ii]
• Ranaviru Day[iii]
• Ceylon Chamber of Commerce Economic Summit[iv]
• Meeting with the Diplomatic Community[v]

Within the next few days, You and the Government led by you, will accept further commitments arising from;

• The adoption of the new UN Sustainable Development Goals 2016-2030[vi]
• The resolution on promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka[vii]

The above commitments of the government, especially in removing inequalities in national resource allocations led disparities in provincial value addition and household incomes, to be delivered will require change management led new leadership approach to socio-political and economic governance of Sri Lanka.                                          Read More

Foreign ministry changes Geneva draft in Sinhala translation

Sep 29, 2015

The Sinhala translation, posted in the foreign affairs ministry website, of the draft proposal submitted to the UNHRC’s 30th session has two big mistakes. Both mistakes are in the very important paragraph on the participation of international judges in the mechanism for accountability in Sri Lanka. Many websites have carried articles quoting this wrong translation and claiming it to be a victory of Sri Lanka.

It is unclear as to whether these were intentional or a mistake, but the paragraph in question is being quoted as a victory of the government. See mistake in the translation:

In the sixth paragraph, ‘special counsel’ has been translated differently in two instances. Firstly, it has been translated as a විශේෂ කවුන්සිලයක් and secondly as a විශේෂ උපදේශක කාර්යාලයක්. Also, it also claims to be විදේශීය විනිසුරුවරුන්ගෙන්, විත්තිය වෙනුවෙන් පෙනී සිටින නීතිඥයන්, අභිචෝදකයන් හා විමර්ශකයන්ගෙන් සමන්විත විශේෂ උපදේශක කාර්යාලයක සහභාගීත්වයක්. It is an office to be set up by the government and not a consultancy office of international judges’

Secondly, in the same paragraph, ‘participation in a Sri Lankan judicial mechanism’ has been translated as ශී‍්‍ර ලංකා අධිකරණ යාන්ත‍්‍රණයක බලය යටතේ අවශ්‍ය බව. Based on this, websites have carried articles claiming a minimal international involvement in an accountability mechanism. The original English draft does not mean so.

Given below are how the foreign affairs ministry website carries the sixth paragraph in English and Sinhala respectively:

Best athlete title goes to Point Pedro for the first time

John Tarbet Junior Athletic Championships

September 19, 2015, 7:35 am 

Balachandran Ananth (left) of Hartley College, Point Pedro and Prasadi Lakshani of Holy Cross College, Gampaha with their awards.
 (Pic by Kamal Wanniarachchi)

by Reemus Fernando

An athlete from Point Pedro won the best athlete title of the John Tarbet Junior Athletic Championships for the first time at Anuradhapura on Friday.

Sri Lanka Schools Athletic Association officials praised the efforts of Balachandran Ananth of Hartley College, Point Pedro and Prasadi Lakshani of Holy Cross College, Gampaha after they were declared the best athletes in the boys’ and girls’ categories, respectively, at the four-day championship which concluded with St. Benedict’s College, Kotahena and St. Joseph’s Balika, Kegalle winning the overall titles on Friday.

"Balachandran Ananth is the first athlete from the entire Jaffna peninsula to have secured the best athlete title in a Sir John Tarbet Athletic Championships," an official of the SLSAA told The Island in a telephone interview from Anuradhapura.

"Both Balachandran and Lakshani did really well. They deserve praise," he said.

Ananth won the title for his feat of 45.91 metres in the Under-15 discus throw.

Prasadi Lakshani won the award for the best jumper of the meet and the best athlete title in the girls’ category for her feat of 5.32 metres in the Under-15 long jump.

Sandumini Chaviprabashi Bandara of St. Joseph’s Balika, Kegalle won the Under-15 girls’ 400 metres in 60.9 seconds to earn the award for the best 400 metres runner of the meet according to results released by the Sri Lanka Schools Athletics Association.

Her victory in the 400 metres meant that St. Joseph’s won all sprint events in the Under-15 girls’ category. She was also the winner of the 200 metres (Wednesday). The Under-15 100 metres was won by her teammate T.M.M. Piumini Weerasooriya who clocked 13.5 seconds. St. Joseph’s dominance in sprint events was the key for them to win the Overall Girls championship. They aggregated 69 points. Ladies College with 39 points and Lyceum International Wattala with 37 points were the first and second runners up in the girls’ category.

Although St. Benedict’s did not win many golds they managed to aggregate more points by securing several silver and bronze medals. The Bens collected 78 points to take the Overall Boys title. St. Mary’s College, Chilaw (62) and Royal College, Colombo (56) finished second and third.

SC Judges Abrew And Marasinghe To Be Impeached – Political Judges To Be Punished

September 29, 2015

The government of Sri Lanka has decided to impeach two Supreme Court judges namely Rohini Marasingheand Sarath De Abrew sources close to Justice Minister Wijedasa Rajapakshe told Colombo Telegraph.

Justice Rohini Marasinghe

According to the sources the government had concluded investigations into judge Rohini Marasinghe and especially her husband who was operating a legal consultancy that had direct links to the cases that was presided by his wife and her work concerned.

Judge Sarath De Abrew on the other hand who has a history of violent behavior, currently has a case pending against him at the Mount Lavinia Magistrates Courts filed by a woman who was assaulted by him with a pistol. The woman in concern had initially recorded her statement with the Mount Lavinia Police earlier on the 26th of June 2015.

In an earlier related incident Judge De Abrew had gone on to display his violent streak in the Business Lounge of the Bangalore airport where he verbally abused his colleagues when returning from a Judges conference. In that particular incident on the 23rd April 2013, he was reported to be boisterous for over a ten minute period. During that time Judge De Abrew had gone on to hit one of his colleagues with a bottle of water leaving many other onlooking passengers at the Business Class Lounge in awe.

This move comes in the wake as the government is on a drive to bring about discipline and professionalism to the judiciary.

Read More

Russian President Vladimir Putin Speaks At UN

( September 28, 2015, New York City, Sri Lanka Guardian) The export of the so-called democratic revolutions continues, as the international community fails to learn from mistakes, which have already been made, Russian President Vladimir Putin said addressing the UNGA.

He cited the example of the revolutions in the Middle East, when people wished for change, “but how did that turn out?”

He said that instead of triumph of democracy “we have violence and social disaster,” where no one cares about human rights, including the right to life.

US President Obama Addresses UN

( September 28, 2015, New York City, Sri Lanka Guardian) President Obama issued a strong condemnation of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s use of force in Ukraine in an address to the United Nations General Assembly on Monday, warning world leaders of “dangerous currents” that stand to threaten international stability.

“We cannot stand by when the sovereignty and territorial integrity of a nation is flagrantly violated,” Obama told world leaders at the 70th annual session at the United Nations.

“Imagine if instead Russia had engaged in true diplomacy and worked with Ukraine and the international community to ensure its interests were protected,” Obama said. “That would be better for Ukraine, but also better for Russia and better for the world. This is why we continue to press for this crisis to be resolved.”

Minister’s brother as port chairman!

\

Sep 29, 2015

Dhammika Ranatunga, brother of ports and shipping minister Arjuna Ranatunga, has been appointed chairman of the Sri Lanka Ports Authority, say SLPA sources. Dhammika, a resident of the US, returned to Sri Lanka after the ‘Yaha Paalana’ government came to power.

The SLPA chairman previously was Dr. Lucky Panagoda, a dual citizen of Sri Lanka and Britain. Since he had clashed with the subject minister during the first 100 days, minister Ranatunga has decided to appoint a person who can be maneuvered easily, say the sources.

When contacted, a ‘Yaha Paalana’ activist told Lanka News Web, “What is the purpose of the presidency if his son cannot be taken to the UN? Similarly, what is the purpose of a ministership if his brother cannot be given a chairmanship? Do not get excited. Let’s see.”

‘Thajudeen’s vehicle did not catch fire because of accident ‘ -All expert reports including analyst’s

(Lanka-e-News -29.Sep.2015, 6.30PM) The metal debris found  belonging  to  the vehicle of rugby player Mohomed Wasim Thajudeen which was supposed to be involved in an accident and a subsequent fire that resulted , do not indicate that they  had caught fire ,J.A.S. Jayaweera , the assistant commissioner (technical) of the Registration of  Motor vehicles (RMV) dept. has stated in his report to the additional magistrate Nishantha  Peiris  yesterday (28)

The report also states that it cannot be said  definitely how the fire started or how it spread.

On a directive issued by the magistrate on the 14 th of August , the  vehicle No. K Q 6543 in question that was near the Shalika hall belonging to the CTB was inspected on the  25 th of August at 9.30 a.m. by a team including additional government analyst  A. Welianga ,  Toyota Co. technical advisor W.L.Perera and  assistant goverment analyst M.L.W. Jayamanna ,   Jayaweera informed court.

After the collision the vehicle was immobilized, and consequent upon  the accident , as the front and under sides of the buffer , and the left side wheel were damaged  ,the harm caused to the driver is most trivial , the report further indicates.

The steering wheel getting detached is unlikely in such an accident .Based on an inspection of what is remainiing of the steering wheel , and the other burnt parts , it can be concluded that the steering wheel was destroyed by the fire, Jayaweera had indicated in his report.

In a report contained in 6 pages ,  the assistant commissioner Jayaweera had further stated , the metal parts could not have got burnt due to such  an accident ..However , how  the fire started and  spread cannot be stated for sure , the report goes on to state. 

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by     (2015-09-29 13:00:46)

MR Personally Responsible For Rs.100 Million Advertising Bill According To Presidential Elections Act

September 29, 2015 

A senior member of the United Peoples Freedom Alliance says that it is former president and current parliamentarian Mahinda Rajapaksa who is responsible for non-payment of dues to a state owned TV channelfor broadcasting advertisements for his 2015 presidential campaign.

Rajapaksa who was questioned over the matter by a presidential commission of inquiry recently had said that the responsibility for the payments was vested with the UPFA as he was the party’s nominee for the polls.

According to the UPFA senior a candidate prior to handing over nominations has to appoint an election agent and this agent will be responsible for the campaign issues of the candidate including relevant payments.

In the event that no such appointment being made such candidate shall be deemed to have appointed himself as his election agent.

The UPFA bigwig said that as Rajapaksa had not appointed an agent it is he who should bear responsibility for the matter.

Rajapaksa was questioned recently by the Presidential Commission of Inquiry appointed to probe corruption and abuse of power during the previous regime.

A special team of Presidential Commission of Inquiry to investigate and inquire into Serious Acts of Fraud, Corruption and Abuse of Power, State Resources and Privileges (PRECIPAC) visited Rajapaksa’s Mirihana residence to record a statement.

The Commission summoned Rajapaksa to record a statement on a petition lodged about the losses incurred by the State during the last presidential election.

The special team questioned the former president over non-payment of dues to a state-owned TV channel for broadcasting advertisements for his 2015 presidential campaign.

An audit inquiry has found that the state television Independent Television Network has incurred losses over Rs. 101 million as Rajapaksa has failed to pay the dues to the state TV for advertising his election campaign.

Same audit has found that the ITN had agreed to broadcast Rs. 44.7 million of advertisements for current president Maithripala Sirisena but only aired Rs. 2.6 million worth advertisements despite the agreement.

Mentioned below is a clause in the Presidential election act on the above issue;

Presidential Elections Act (No. 15 of 1981) – Sect 31

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