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Recent LTTE Tamil Tiger Terrorist Atrocities in Sri Lanka

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Comments on TNA’s response to LLRC report - By Neville Ladduwahetty - The response below is limited to issues raised by the TNA that have a bearing on Accountability. Paragraph ii of the TNA response states: "The Commission falls dramatically short of international standards applicable to accountability processes". If, as assumed by the TNA, "international standards applicable to accountability processes" exist, the need for the UN Secretary General (UNSG) to appoint a panel to advise him "on the standards, benchmarks and parameters, based on international experience, that must guide any accountability process"(UN News Center, March 16, 2010) would not have arisen. The very fact that the UNSG resorted to such a measure confirms that "international standards" referred to by the TNA did not exist. Furthermore, the fact that the panel appointed by the UNSG did not fulfill their mandate clearly means that these standards do not exist even today. Paragraph vii of the TNA response refers to "violations of IHL* amounting to war crimes and crimes against humanity. These allegations include deliberately underestimating civilian numbers in the Vanni in order to deprive them of food and medicine; deliberately or recklessly endangering the lives of civilians in the No Fire Zone; targeting civilian objects including hospitals; and executing or causing the disappearance of surrendees". (*International Humanitarian Law.) (Island ; 26 January 2012).

Sri Lanka is not to be Divided - by Shenali Waduge - When a Government with a 2/3 majority in Parliament dodges making a decision on an issue that clearly demands prompt and clear deliberation, it calls for answers from that Government. A fault of all previous Governments has been to make promises that it cannot keep ignoring the desires of the country mass populace. The reality remains that any Government is only the custodian of governance. It is voted into power not to function to the dictates of foreign nations or to lobby minority parties that have no voice or to promise devolution of the country. All Governments must remember this at all times. Undoubtedly the 13amendment has become a topic that is creating more division than unity and it is for this very reason that it should be annulled. The parties seeking the implementation of the 13amendment do not have any voice amongst the general public. Who is India to dictate what should be & should not be implemented in Sri Lanka. It is only a neighboring country. Similarly, a group of puppets known as the TNA living in Colombo hiding from the LTTE deems itself the political mouthpiece of the Tamil people totally ignoring its shameless record of doing nothing for the low caste Tamil people who had been used for 3 decades to promote something called “self-determination” which in essence meant using poor & low caste Tamils turning them into child soldiers so that the rich & high caste Tamils could benefit locally & internationally. All these were taking place while year in & year out Tamil Nadu Indians were nicely making Sri Lanka their home…does this not explain the 294,000 Tamil civilians rescued by Sri Lanka’s military. A brave statistical count & verification of birth IDs will reveal how many of these “civilians” might be Tamil Nadu Indians!. That scores of Indians have berthed in Sri Lanka through 30 years is one of the reasons for India to insist on a deputy high commission in Jaffna and it is here where its intelligence would have already started to explore ways & means of disturbing the peninsular & elsewhere when India feels the need to exert pressure on the Sri Lankan Government (LankaWeb ; 26 January 2012).

Conspiracy! O’ Conspiracy!! - None could have failed to notice that whenever anything untoward happens in this serendipitous isle of ours, there is a "conspiracy" behind it. The latest is the attempted jailbreak - behind which is a "hidden hand". No country on this earth has more enemies than us. The UN led by Ban Ki Moon, The US, Canada, European Union, Hillary Clinton, Kouchner, Miliband, Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch and of course the Tamil Diaspora (=the LTTE rump), NGO’s, INGO’s and so on and on. Why, one may ask? The answer is evidently clear - it is because we "successfully defeated the World’s most ruthless terrorist group". Little matter that while we were upbraiding everyone else for not banning the LTTE, we did not do so ourselves - for "tactical reasons" - the principal one being that this would preclude "talks"’ And talk we did, in Rose Gardens and other salubrious locations in Japan, Europe and elsewhere. We helped sundry criminals to discard their combat fatigues and don suitable Western attire. Some continued to retain them to become Ministers (except for a brief respite in Prison garb abroad). On our side, the inimitable "Talkers" indulged their travel lust and continue to do so, even today, travelling indefatigably solving the World’s many problems. As totally predictable, the many rounds of talks failed - unable to provide a "Political Solution to the Ethnic Problem" - but this does not deter us from continuing to pursue this self same rainbow with the absolute certainty that we will again fail. The APRC which wasted a huge amount of time and money, consumed Bowser loads of Iced Coffee, truck loads of Pastries and produced a ponderous Report with their formula for a solution. I am sure this resides safely somewhere to be soon joined by another through an effort from that ultimate in wisdom and sagacity - a Parliamentary Select Committee (no less!). (Island ; 26 January 2012).

Some scribes on LTTE payroll – govt. - by Zacki Jabbar - Some journalists were funded by the LTTE and details about them would be revealed soon, the government said yesterday. Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella told the weekly cabinet press briefing in Colombo, that certain NGOs acting on behalf of the LTTE had paid the said media personnel through a ‘social welfare fund’. When a journalist asked why the government did not want to identify the persons referred to, the Minister said that some names had been mentioned earlier. Questioned further if it was fair to level allegations and then do nothing about it for over two years, Rambukwella said the laws required that proper procedure be adhered to, when it came to prosecution matters. Most of the ‘offenders’ were now abroad and they had carried on a very damaging campaign against the country, Rambukwella said (Island : 26 January 2012).

Tiger who blew up award winning author arrested - By Harischandra Gunaratna - The Central Province Anti Terrorist Operations Bureau on Monday arrested a man who has since allegedly confessed to being one of the Tiger cadres responsible for blasting the jeep carrying award winning author Nihal de Silva and six others at the Wilpattu National Park in the early hours of May 27, 2006 killing all seven. Nihal De Silva rose to fame with his novel ‘Road to Elephant Pass’ which was the script for popular and award winning film directed by veteran director Chandran Rutnam. He also won the Gratien prize for the novel. The police headquarters said that the suspect, a resident of Iluppakadavei, Mannar had been wanted for a number of crimes committed during the LTTE terror period. He is being detained by the unit for interrogation. It was a claymore mine laid by the suspect along with several other LTTErs that blew up the jeep. The Prado was blown up 40 kilometres deep inside the Wilpattu jungles and the explosions had created two huge craters, the Wild Life officials said. The group which arrived at the park on the previous day included six domestic tourists. They had occupied the Kokmotai bungalow which is in a corner of the park. A local guide who was with the group was also killed in the blast. Later, four mutilated bodies were found along with the wreckage of the jeep by the search parties a few yards away from the scene of the blast (Island : 26 January 2012).

14th Anniversary of LTTE's attack on Sri Dalada Maligawa

At 6:10 am on 25th January 1998, suicide carders of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE Tamil Tiger Terrorists) exploded a massive truck bomb at the entrance to the Sri Dalada Maligawa killing 8 persons including 2-year old infant and injuring about 25 others, all peaceful innocent civilians, who were on their way to offer alms at the temple that morning (click here for details)

The Bomb

The Blast

The Damage

International condemnation

More photos on Sri Dalada Maligawa and Central Bank attack by LTTE Tamil Tiger Terrorists (Sunday Observer : 29 January 2012).

JVP dissidents say 13 Plus won’t solve national issue - The Movement for People’s Struggle (MPS), a breakaway faction of the JVP, said today that the devolution of land and police powers or the implementation of the 13th Amendment plus would not resolve the national question. PMS member Pubudu Jayagoda, who was in the politburo of the JVP at that time, said that his political movement always accepts the right of Tamil people to demand their rights. “Politically, we do not believe that the devolution of land and police powers to the provinces can resolve the problem. We oppose it in principle. We have a basis for that. Yet, we urge the government to restore normalcy in the north. Still, the names of persons who are detained have not been revealed to their parents and relatives. There is heavy military presence in the north. These concerns must be addressed,” he said. Mr. Jayagoda said that the MPS would try to convince both the Sinhala and Tamil communities that this problem could be resolved only through the restoration of equality and democracy for all. He said that the elitist groups of both the communities could never reach out to the people in this manner (Daily Mirror : 25 January 2012).

Fourteenth anniversary of LTTE attack on Temple of the tooth - Today marks 14th anniversary of the LTTE suicide truck bomb attack on the Sacred Temple of the Tooth in Kandy. The attack on the Maligawa at 6.05 a.m. on January 25, 1998 killed at least a dozen pilgrims attending the early morning offering to the Tooth Relic. Many others sustained injuries. The destruction caused to the venerated shrine could not be erased from the hearts and minds of human beings, said the Diyawadana Nilame of the Sri Dalada Maligawa at the time Neranjan Wijeyeratne. Hearing the attack the Internationally famed Geologist Professor P. W. Withanage passed away due to shock before a stunned nation that day (Island ; 24 January 2012).

JVP dissidents will not oppose police, land powers to North - JVP dissidents said Monday that they were not against granting land and police powers to provincial councils in accordance with the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. Political Secretary of the Movement for People’s Struggle (MPS) formed by JVP dissidents, Pubudu Jagoda told the BBC Sandeshaya programme that if Tamil citizens’ demand was for police and land powers to be granted to the provincial councils, they must be granted. Jagoda, who was earlier a politburo member of the JVP, said that the newly formed MPS had no faith or trust in the Senate proposed by the government to bring about reconciliation and answers to problems facing the Tamil people. Participating in an interview with the BBC Sandeshya programme aired on Monday night, Jagoda said his movement did not approve of the TNA, but MPS too was for granting police and land powers to the Tamil people if that was what they needed. Democracy should be restored in the North. People should be granted their rights. Jagoda said that the MPS did not believe in devolution of power would empower the communities but if the people of the North demand those powers as a solution to the problems, the MPS would not object to it. The interview could be accessed at http://www.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/check/sinhala/meta/tx/sin1500?size=au&bgc=003399&lang=si&nbwm=1 (Island ; 24 January 2012).

JHU insists govt. has no mandate to go beyond 13-A

JHU insists govt. has no mandate to go beyond 13-A - By Sirimantha Ratnasekera - The government had no mandate to talk of a political solution beyond the 13th amendment to the Constitution, Jathika Hela Urumaya insisted yesterday. JHU media spokesman Nishantha Sri Warnasinghe told The Island that the people had voted for the Mahinda Chinthanaya manifesto which did not promise a solution beyond the 13th amendement to the Constitution. Warnasinghe said the JHU as a member party of the ruling alliance was totally in the dark about as to the posed Senate, its content and composition. None in the government had talked with us such issues. The government had not informed the JHU of such an introduction as a solution, he said. The JHU hoped to take up this solution being talked about in media once it got an opportunity to participate in the proposed Parliamentary Select Committee to evolve a political solution to the national problem. The JHU believed that whatever decision taken at the PSC had to be presented to public to obtain their consent, Waranasinghe said. President Mahinda Rajapaksa never had any discussions with the JHU over the issue of a senate but he had proposed a provincial council system without police and land powers to the North and East, he added (Island : 23 January 2012).

No ! not again. We have had enough of the 13th Amendment - By Charles.S.Perera - What is the necessity to broach the 13 th Amendment once again, when people are beginning to forget about it, and has begun to live as a free people without Indian interference into their well earned peace ? It all began again with the visit of the Indian External Minister Mr.S.M.Krishna, who our External Affairs Minister Prof. G.L.Pieries paying him a homage raised him to the status of a relative of the people of Sri Lanka. The Minister Pr. G.L.Peries has said of the visit of the Indian Minister of External Affairs Mr.S.M.Krishna that the « ……the spontaneous attendance by …….. S M Krishna soon after his arrival in Colombo at the Thaipongal ceremony on the invitation of President Mahinda Rajapaksa emphasized that the relations between the two countries is not just a relationship among friends but among close relatives which was exemplified vividly on this occasion. » Hence it is made apparent that the promise to implement the Amendment 13 plus, is a Thaipongal gift to our President’s new found Indian relative S.M.Krishna. It is very good to accept Indians as our relatives, even if the relationship is not reciprocated by the Indians with the same sincerity with which it has been offered. But it is a blow to the Sinhala people of Sri Lanka to adopt now the obsolete 13 Amendment in any form. The President Mahinda Rajapakse owes it to the people of Sri Lanka to remove the 13 th Amendment completely from the Constitution once and for all, without continuing to add insult to injury by talking not just about implementing Amendment 13, but Amendment 13 plus. The President’s offer to implement 13th Amendment plus is incoherent. It was a mere agreement accepted to facilitate a situation that existed 25 years ago. Apart from it having been enforced on us against the popular wish of the people it has no legal right to be included in the Constitution. Prof. G.L.Pieris is a constitutional lawyer and he should know (LankaWeb : 22 January 2012).

Amidst government’s call for a Senate TNA plans to visit India - A top level Tamil National Alliance delegation would soon visit India for talks with Indian leaders, TNA spokesman and parliamentarian Suresh Premachandran said yesterday. Though a date for the visit is yet to be fixed, it would take place soon, Premachandran said. Asked the reason for the visit, he said it was for political reasons in the aftermath of the TNA’s talks with the Indian External Affairs Minister S.M. Krishna last week. Krishna made a four day official visit to Sri Lanka last week and held discussions with the TNA too. Meanwhile, the government had already announced that it would propose the establishment of a Senate as part of a solution to the National Question and further announced that India had already approved this proposal. Though Premachandran said the visit to India was solely for political reasons, the TNA was against the appointment of the Senate and its talks with Indian leaders would center on the establishement of the Senate, it is believed that the TNA had rejected the government’s move has conveyed its views on the matter to the government. Government Media spokesman, Minister Keheliya Rambukwella Thursday said that the TNA should name its members to the Parliamentary Select Committee only through which a solution could be discussed to the problem (The Nation ; 22 January 2012).

Govt -TNA talks at dead end! - Talks between the government and the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) seem at a dead end with both parties unwilling to compromise. The two groups were scheduled to hold discussions last week but the talks did not commence as planned. Minister and member of the government delegation, Nimal Siripala de Silva said the government would hold talks with the TNA once the latter submits the names of representatives to the proposed Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC). “There is nothing happening. We will talk to them (TNA) when they submit their names to the PSC,” de Silva stressed. However, TNA’s Suresh Premachandran said the party would not go to the PSC unless a concrete agreement was reached between both parties during the discussions. “There is no point of going to the PSC without arriving at a concrete agreement on devolution. We think the PSC is anyway a time buying measure on the part of the government,” he pointed out. The TNA and the government have been involved in talks since January last year. Talks hit a roadblock after the discussions on August 4 when the TNA requested the government’s response to its demands. Talks recommenced the following month after a meeting between its Parliamentary group leader R. Sampanthan and President Mahinda Rajapaksa on September 2 (The Nation : 22 January 2012).

Senate – Already Discussed: TNA won’t quit talks - The TNA will continue to hold talks with the Government delegation to reach consensus on an effective and workable solution to the grievances of people in the North and the East and would not quit the talks under any circumstances, leader of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Rasavarodhayam Sampanthan MP told the Sunday Observer. They had reached an agreement with President Mahinda Rajapaksa and the Government delegation and this has been recorded in the minutes of the talks with regard to the appointment of their representatives to the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC). It was mutually agreed that the TNA would appoint its representatives to the PSC only after it reached consensus with the Government delegation on the basic aspects of power devolution. The TNA is scrupulously observing the mutual agreement and cannot be blamed for not appointing representatives to the PSC, he said. The TNA held detailed discussions with Indian External Affairs Minister S.M.Krishna on January 16, the day prior to meeting President Rajapaksa, on their position with regard to power devolution, he said. The question of setting up a Senate as a component of the devolution package was discussed between them and the Government delegation on many occasions in the past. The TNA had explained its stand. The TNA considered the Senate as complementary to an effective and meaningful devolution package and not as a component of it, Sampanthan said. The TNA is not averse to participating in the PSC and would take part in the talks at the right time. They prefer the devolution package going through the process of deliberation at the PSC, the TNA leader said (Sunday Observer : 22 January 2012).

Visit of Canadian Parliamentarian Delegation to Sri Lanka to assess the post- conflict Reconciliation and Development situation in Sri Lanka (8th to 11th January 2012) - by Asoka weerasinghe, Canada - I came across by chance the media release of your visit to Sri Lanka which renewed my faith in Sri Lanka-Watching-Canadian-Parliamentarians, and for that I want to say an effusive Thank You. It is true that once in a life time that one comes across an honest ‘shooting star’ politician, and I have no hesitation to say you two have entered that realm in my estimation. The last time, it happened to be Stockwell Day, who spearheaded the banning of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (aka Tamil Tigers) in April of 2006. He had the honesty and he had the guts, when for 13 long years the Liberals led by Prime Minister Jean Chretien and Deputy Prime Minister Anne McLellan, the Minister of Public Safety, defended the Tamil Tigers for not banning them when 30 odd western nations had banned them, and also let the Canadian Tamil Diaspora stuff the Tamil Tiger war chest with two million dollars a month to purchase explosives and sophisticated arms to kill my Sinhalese people and also the Muslims, like swatting flies in the thousands with claymore mines and suicide bombs (LankaWeb : 21 January 2012).

Kilinochchi's memorable moment - There are no less than nine banks already operative in Kilinochchi along with a clutch of financial institutions which are putting their best foot forward in sustaining the growth momentum of the Northern Province. This bit of valuable information we have on the authority of the Sri Lanka Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal. Hardly three years after the obliteration of the LTTE, whose final stronghold was Kilinochchi, this is indeed heartening news. It is our hope that prospects will remain bright for the Northern Province, including, of course, Kilinochchi, where the Commercial Leasing and Finance Company opened its 50th branch. Concurrently, a joint venture between the Bank of Ceylon and Cargills Ceylon Ltd, Yalpanam Dairy Ltd, was also launched in this once war- ravaged district which formerly wilted amid the roar and thunder of heavy weaponry but which never died. In fact, it has now been rejuvenated, thanks to the bravery of our Security Forces ably guided by President Mahinda Rajapaksa. In a sense, the challenges facing the Lankan polity in the North today are far more complex than those which confronted it in the field of battle. On the one hand, it has to begin in earnest with the nation-building process, which in itself presents a multi-faceted challenge. On the other, it has to persist with the process of economic development and this should be of country-wide scope, drawing heavily also on the growth momentum of the North (Daily News : 21 January 2012).

Navy finds hidden weapons - by Ridma DISSANAYAKE - Naval personnel attached to the Eastern Naval Command recovered a stock of LTTE weapons hidden in Devapura and Chilawatte areas on January 16 and 17. SLNS Dakshina naval troops began investigations following information they received. They also found a number of identity cards of LTTE members. According to Sri Lanka Navy sources, one T 56 weapon, one T 81 weapon, two T 56 magazines, one T 56 magazine, eight 81mm motor bombs, two 60 mm motor bombs and two hand grenades were also found (Daily News ; 21 January 2012).

President appoints Arun as Batticaloa District Coordinator - President Mahinda Rajapaksa has appointed Arun Tambimuttu as the District Coordinator to the President for the Batticaloa District with immediate effect. Arun’s parents Mr and Mrs Sam Thambimuttu were gunned down by the LTTE in front of the Canadian High Commission in Colombo in 1990. His father the outspoken lawyer and TULF MP died immediately at the scene of the shooting at Gregory’s Road and his mother succumbed to her injuries ten days later. Following the killing of his parents Arun left Sri Lanka and he returned to serve his country after the defeat of the LTTE. In a recent interview with The Island Arun showed he too was not afraid to speak out like his father and insisted what was required in Sri Lanka was equality for everyone and not separation or exclusive areas for different communities. After the assassination of his parents he went to UK and did his secondary and higher education there. He obtained a degree in economics from the University of Durham. Then he got involved in investment fund management and lived there for 20 years. He had returned to Sri Lanka thrice after the assassination of his parents - all three times to renew his passport. "I still hold a Sri Lankan passport. I never took a foreign citizenship". He has other impeccable political credentials his mother’s father, Senator Manickckam was one of the founding leaders of the Federal Party along with H.A.V. Chelvanayakam. One of his great granduncles was a State Council member, who was more a Ceylonese nationalist than a Tamil nationalist (Island : 20 January 2012).

The Suicidal 13th Amendment: No and Never! - by Janaka Yagirala - The 13th Amendment (13A) was forced upon us by India. It has caused enough trouble and waste. Billions of taxpayer’s rupees are squandered every year to keep these white elephant Provincial Councils afloat. A province in Sri Lanka is minuscule compared to a typical US state or Chinese province but for each province we have a laughable post known as a “governor” thanks again to the 13A. The best thing for Sri Lanka is to abolish the cancerous 13A altogether the same way our war heroes rid our motherland of the LTTE pestilence (also created by India!). Unfortunately our politicians seem to be caving in to Indian demands to implement this suicidal amendment. India has plenty of problems and priorities to address before meddling with the internal affairs of Sri Lanka or other neighbors like Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh. Kashmir needs a proper political solution before anything else. No cities in India have a continuous water supply according to the 2007 Benchmarking and Data Book of Water Utilities in India published by the Asian Development Bank. As reported in the Los Angeles Times on March 22, 2010 an estimated 638 million Indians lack access to basic toilet facilities. The World Food Program states that 230 million Indians go starving which corresponds to a quarter of the starving population of the entire world. According to the World Bank 37% of Indians over 15 are illiterate, which would translate to around 300 million (and the gold medal for illiteracy in the world). Under such conditions it is surprising how India is capable of giving “aid” to other countries. The Dalits of India still face the most inhuman discrimination anyone can imagine (Lankaweb ; 19 January 2012).

The 13th Amendment (13A) was forced upon us by India. It has caused enough trouble and waste.

Misuse of Canada Postal services - by Asoka Weerasinghe, Canada - Hon. Stephen Fletcher, MP, Minister of State (Transport), House of Commons, Ottawa; Dear Minister Fletcher: Re: Misuse of Canada Post Services by the Tamil Youth Organization. Thanks for your letter of January 9 in response to my complaint about the Misuse of Canada Post Services by the Tamil Youth Organization. I am responding to your request for my personal postal address now, since I have just returned from a holiday overseas. Catching up with my mail I now gather that it has been established that the stamp that has been produced by this Tamil Youth Group had never been authorized nor printed by Canada Post. Not withstanding the Conservative Government’s interest to woo the Tamil community, such counterfeiting of an official stamp for circulation with an anti-Sri Lankan Government graphic, which I gather was sold on e-Bay as a ‘collectors item’ should be investigated by your Security Department, and handed for possible legal proceedings to the RCMP. What is important is to nip in the bud of such illegalities by this Tamil Youth Organization in a community which is peppered with nefarious illegal activities such as credit card scamming, forging passports and immigration documents, et cetera, to pick up a fast-million bucks. What is also important is to inculcate into these new Tamil immigrant youth that their adopted home has rules to abide by and that they better live by the law of our great land. A response from you will be much appreciated (LankaWeb : 19 January 2012).

Controversial diplomat snares Gillard role - A TOP Australian diplomat heavily criticised for her role in ''rehabilitation'' ceremonies for alleged Tamil rebels in Sri Lanka has been rewarded with a job in Prime Minister Julia Gillard's department. Kathy Klugman will become head of the international division in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, a key foreign policy job. Ms Klugman, who was high commissioner in Colombo until this month, was condemned by rights groups in October for handing out certificates to Tamils after they were held for two years in a detention camp by the Sri Lankan government (WA Today : 19 January 2012).

Sinhala people always gave into others, allowing others to profit from what really belongs to them - By Charles.S.Perera - Sinhala people has always given into others and accommodated them through their inherent kindness, fair play and sense of justice. Today they are the ones that suffer most. The English Colonialists came to power sitting on the back of the Sinhala people, and once in power they dropped them, taking into confidence the Tamils and the Moors brought from abroad. If a Sinhala speaks for the rights of the Sinhala, many would be those who will treat him as a racist, chauvinist or a Sinhala supremacist. It is time that the Sinhala should no more feel shy about being one. Today after having been made to silently suffer for nearly thirty years by a group of Tamil terrorists, the Tamil National Alliance has begun to dictate terms to the Government of Sri Lanka, while the Ordinary Tamil people in the North and East are considerably better off than they were ever before. But their voices are not heard or they are made to parrot the Tamil politician who are seeking a power base to divide the Country. The Sri Lanka Government leaders praise the Indian Government and lay the red carpet to receive any one of the Indian Ministers paying a visit to Sri Lanka. So much so that they begin feel that Sri Lanka is already an Indian Colony, and issue directions as if they are the Masters (LankaWeb : 19 January 2012).

SI training for 40 Tamil police officers - by Yasaratne GAMAGE - The Police will start basic training for 50 Tamil speaking police officers who got through the interviews to be police Sub-Inspectors at Kalutara Police Training School, from January 25. They are youths from the North and East to be trained as Sub-Inspectors, police constables and woman police constables. The Police have decided to recruit Tamils to the Police service as a remedy to the language barrier which is a common issue in maintaining law and order and in administering the North and East. In a special press release, Police Public Relations Unit Director SP Ajith Rohana states that to safeguard the hard-earned peace after defeating LTTE terrorism there should not be anything that would deny the North and East community from enjoying life as the rest of the country. The LTTE earlier used the language barrier as an instrument to attract Tamil civilians for anti-government activities saying that they were underprivileged minorities in the context of language. The government will erase any doubt among the people in the North and East by recruiting Tamil speaking police personnel who will be deployed in those areas. The statement also says that as certified by the Constitution, the right to use the Tamil language by people when engaged in civil administration is an accepted right and this recruitment will confirm the fact. This is the first time ever in the 146 years Police history that such a large number of Tamil speaking persons were taken into the Police as Sub Inspectors. The move is also seen as a step in line with both national and international prescriptions to solve the language issue in Sri Lanka. In the near future, selected applicants for men and women police constables will be trained and deployed in the North and East which will enable the people to communicate easily when dealing with the Police. The Police Department aims to continue with the process and allow the people to enjoy equal opportunities to use language of their choice to build harmony (Daily News : 19 January 2012).

Thriving on the sufferings of the Tamils - by By S L Gunasekara - In the heyday of the LTTE, the TNA had it good. While the Tamils whom they claimed to represent suffered indescribable hardships, torments and agonies by reason of being under the jackboot of the Tigers with their little children being regularly kidnapped and their hard earned money extorted from them by the LTTE, the TNA which was supposed to represent them raised not a whimper of protest, but on the contrary, functioned as obedient servants and respectful acolytes of the Tigers, acknowledged them as being the sole representatives of the Tamils and obeyed their every whim and command. As a result of the patronage they received from the Tigers, not only did the members of the TNA secure seats in Parliament together with which they received relatively handsome salaries, a veritable cornucopia of perquisites all paid for by the long suffering public of the Republic of Sri Lanka which they disowned and sought to dismember, and were able to tour the capitals and flesh pots of the western world at the expense of others without spending a cent of their own money. All this was done by them purportedly to serve the Tamils – but even a mentally retarded child would realize that that could not be so because they never spoke a word against those tormenters of the Tamils who were kidnapping their children and extorting their money from them, either in Parliament or in those foreign climes. The only persons whom they attacked, supposedly in order to serve the Tamils, were those who were making every effort at unimaginable sacrifice, to liberate the oppressed Tamils from the oppression and thrall of the LTTE, namely the Government of Sri Lanka of whatever colouration, and its armed forces (island : 18 January 2011).

Billions of taxpayer’s rupees are squandered every year to keep these white elephant Provincial Councils established under 13th Amendment

Eelaam Homeland struggle was to hide Tamil Caste difference & unify discontented Tamils - by Shenali Waduge - In understanding the nature of Sri Lanka’s conflict it is important to not only understand the nature of the Tamil caste & class system but analyze how intricately absorbed it is into the social, political, economical, religous hierarchy of how Tamils live or rather should live. The “ethnic” tag was introduced simply to sideline the divisions existing between Tamils & showcase a united front locally & internationally. Using “ethnic discrimination” by Sinhalese against Tamils was a perfect theme & perfect reason to start a conflict. The conflict enabled higher caste Tamils to keep a hold on lower caste Tamils by camouflaging the real intention & lower castes had no choice but to accept this homeland utopian vision. This did succeed to a great extent. It is now time for the world to know the truth and falsity of labeling Sri Lanka’s problem as “ethnic”. It is also time for Tamils to seriously think of their own future vis a vis continuing generations old caste systems or to follow the path of equality amongst the Tamils before accusing the Sinhalese (LankaWeb ; 18 January 2012).

LLRC report, basis for reconciliation - Indian External Affairs Minister - by Chaminda PERERA - The Indian government yesterday said that the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) has many constructive recommendations which would lead to genuine national reconciliation. Addressing the media in Colombo visiting Indian External Affairs Minister S M Krishna said that Sri Lanka government is committed to implement the LLRC recommendations. He said that the efforts that were taken to end the three-decades conflict should now be employed towards the creation of genuine reconciliation and India is always ready to assist Sri Lanka in this respect too. “We are ready to help in whatever way we can in a spirit of cooperation and goodwill” , he added. Krishna said that the Sri Lankan government has on many occasions conveyed to India that it would work for a lasting solution based on the 13th Amendment. He said that India expects the discussion between the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) would pave way for the settlement of the ethnic issue. Krishna added that President Mahinda Rajapaksa assured him that he would be committed to a settlement based on the 13 amendment and plus approach when he raised the issue with him yesterday morning. Touching on the fishermen’s issue, the visiting Foreign Minister added that no force should be used on fishermen. He said that the fishermen’s issues need to be addressed with utmost care and they should be treated in a humane manner. Meanwhile, an Indian High Commission press release quoted Indian External Affairs Minister S M Krishna as saying at the media interaction: “I am pleased to be in Sri Lanka again. At the outset, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Minister Prof. Peiris and the Sri Lankan Government for the warm hospitality extended to me and to my delegation. “Earlier, I had the opportunity to call on President Mahinda Rajapaksa. We had a useful exchange of views on ways to take the bilateral relationship forward. With Minister Peiris, we had the opportunity to review progress in various areas, including trade, services and investment, development cooperation, science and technology, culture and education. I am satisfied that the projects under our development partnership have progressed well since my last visit (Daily News ; 18 January 2012).

Thirteen minus not thirteen plus - By Nalin de Silva - The thirteenth amendment was forced on us by India following the infamous Indo Sri Lanka Accord, without considering the historical, cultural and geographical background and the Sinhala opinion. India for a long time had acted without listening to the Sinhala majority, without even taking into consideration the importance of Sri Lanka in respect of security of the subcontinent. Delhi listened only to Tamil Nadu, which had ulterior motives and hence to the Tamil Vellala leaders until non Vellala Prabhakaran appeared in the picture. As far as India was concerned there was repression of the Tamils by the Sinhala people but never wanted to find out the truth of the allegations made by the Vellala leaders. India should have at least learnt a lesson at the Thimpu talks that they cannot impose their views completely even on J R Jayewardene. The delegation sent to Thimpu by the government rejected the so-called Thimpu Proposals but India failed to realize that there was a Sinhala opinion against devolution of power to the Northern and Eastern Provinces of the country, based on historical cultural and geographical facts. India wanted the Sinhalas to recognize that those two provinces were the historical habitats of the Tamils; it turned a blind eye to the fact that the two provinces had been creations of the English (British Raj) and that final demarcation of the nine provinces was carried out only in 1889 three years after Ananda Vidyalaya was established. The term historical habitats which really meant Tamil homeland as far as the Vellalas and Prabhakaran were concerned, was never acceptable to the Sinhala people. When the Sinhala people were not prepared to accept the proposals of India to solve the so called ethnic problem India applied force on J R Jayewardene government with what is known as Parippu or Dhal diplomacy. JRJ, who had been ready to support the Americans and the English even against India, would have been surprised to find that he did not receive any support from his allies in the west when India dropped parippu, threatening to attack Sri Lanka if the government did not obey India (Island ; 17 January 2012).

TNA is not the sole representatives of Tamils

India backs PSC on ethnic issue - By Shamindra Ferdinando - Sri Lanka’s efforts to launch the much delayed Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) to recommend a lasting political solution to the national issue received a boost yesterday with India pledging support for it. Visiting External Affairs Minister Krishna yesterday afternoon declared India’s support for the proposed PSC, at a media briefing following discussions with President Mahinda Rajapaksa, Premier D. M. Jayaratne and External Affairs Minister Prof. G. L. Peiris earlier in the day. Minister Krishna was speaking in the wake of Sri Lanka suspending talks with the TNA pending the one-time LTTE proxy nominating its representatives to the PSC. Addressing the media at the External Affairs Ministry, Colombo, Krishna said that bilateral talks between the government and the TNA along with PSC deliberations involving all political parties, including the TNA could facilitate a political settlement. Commenting on his talks with President Rajapaksa, the Minister said that he had secured the President’s commitment to what he called 13th Amendment plus approach. "Sri Lanka has on many occasions conveyed to us its commitment to move towards a political settlement based on the full implementation of the 13th Amendment to the Sri Lankan Constitution, and building on it, so as to achieve meaningful devolution of powers. We look forward to an expeditious and constructive approach to the dialogue process. We believe that continuation of the dialogue between the Government and the TNA would pave the way for political settlement, including under the rubric of the Parliamentary Select Committee." Asked whether he had discussed a possible timeframe for reaching an agreement on the implementation of the 13 Amendment, Minister Krishna answered in the negative. Prof. Peiris said that having rigid timeframes couldn’t be considered a good approach. Minister Krishna said that his discussions with the Sri Lankan leadership had covered trade, services and investment, development cooperation, science and technology, culture and education (Island ; 17 January 2012).

Doctor who aided Tamil Tigers wants job back - A Sri Lankan doctor jailed in the United States for aiding Tamil Tigers rebels has asked to be allowed to return to work in north London. Dr. Murugesu Vinayagamoorthy spent four and a half years, from 2006, in a US prison for providing material support to the proscribed organisation. He now wants to return to his practice in Enfield, the General Medical Council (GMC) heard. He denies having been a member of the Tamil Tigers (Daily Mirror ; 18 January 2011).

Logically And Militarily The Tamil Tigers Will NEVER Resurge In Sri Lanka If Proper Measures Are Set In Place. Yet The Dangerous Rhetoric Of Some Sympathisers From Within, Continue In Abandon Needing A Response. - LankaWeb Weekly Editorial January 16th 2012 - In the fancy words of some, laced with quotes from musings of bygone literary elites to moot, it has been suggested that the Hon. Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has predicted that “the dead Tiger might arise!” But it might also be asked with a bit of tongue in cheek ~ “Where? Not in Sri Lanka surely ! and no more than a caution by the Hon Defence Secretary perhaps whose own musing at times are hinged to his broadminded sense of satire given his intellect of a very high elevation and his own perception of the theme “Prevention is better than cure!! Then of course, ” the Tigers rising from the ashes of an annihilating defeat” has always been wishful thinking by the residue of the vanquished LTTE and their supportive Tamil diaspora hopefuls where that “near-miraculous resurrection” refered to by certain self assertive scribes would be exactly that, a never transpiring impossibility in Sri Lanka where it is not only the majority Sinhalese led by the assertive team of Rajapaksas, their legislators , law enforcers and their administrators who will ensure this reality but also the real freedom loving Sri Lankan Tamils who are appreciatively aware that it was Tamil Tiger terrorism in the first place that let to their terrible sufferings and have openly declared their allegiance to the Rajapaksa regime with immense gratitude and not merely in a manner of speaking but in collective open defiance. They have asked the Tamil Tiger “would be resurrectors” to go to hell! To those who missed it this information was posted in the global media recently althought there may have been attempts to suppress it for very obvious reasons (LankaWeb ; 17 January 2012).

‘An appeal to the Tamil community’ – some comments - by P.A.Samaraweera, Australia - 68 eminent Tamil citizens published a letter in The Island of 6th Jan. titled, ‘An appeal to the Tamil community…’ Their main point was the eviction of nearly 80,000 Muslims from the North and East by the LTTE in Oct. 1990. The signatories are critical of the govt for not supporting their settlement and for bureaucratic hostility. This obviously is an observation to get the support of the Muslims. They have not condemned the LTTE for this eviction. The letter refers to inter-ethnic reconciliation between the Muslims and the Tamils. However, the Sinhalese had also been evicted from the North and East but they have been sidelined from this proposed reconciliation. It is interesting to note that this team had focussed only on the Muslims but not the Sinhalese who were evicted in the same way like the Muslims. The statement adds, “…never again will such a heinous act as the eviction take place amidst us …” But it is the LTTE rump who should say this and so far there had been no public disavowal of the eviction by them. When the LTTE was riding high some from this group were in their band-wagon. A quick glance shows that one is a NGO who participated in overseas LTTE seminars, openly supported the LTTE during the war and still writes sympathising for the LTTE cause. Then there is a journalist who backed the LTTE and who recently serialised the biographies of LTTE leaders in his website, hailing them as heroes. Another whose contributions to newspapers are slanting to the LTTE (LankaWeb ; 17 January 2011).

13A promotes separation, not integration

TNA move upsets DPL community - Govt. suspends talks - By Shamindra Ferdinando - A section of the Colombo-based diplomatic community, supportive of the TNA’s push for a substantial devolution package, has strongly opposed the release of statement highly critical of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) ahead of Indian External Affairs Minister S. M. Krishna’s arrival. Minister Krishna arrived in Colombo late yesterday afternoon. Authoritative sources told The Island that the TNA had made available copies of the statement to diplomatic missions seeking their consent before releasing it to the media. The diplomatic community had advised the TNA that such a course of action would be detrimental to the ongoing national reconciliation efforts, sources said. However, the TNA had gone ahead with its original plan, sources said. The TNA has dismissed the LLRC observations pertaining to accountability issues and reiterated its call for an international inquiry into war crimes allegations during the last phase of the conflict. The government reacted angrily as it suspended further talks with the TNA until it named its representatives to the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) on the national issue. UPFA parliamentarian and a member of the government delegation for talks with the TNA, Sajin de Vass Gunawardena told The Island that talks wouldn’t resume until the TNA nominated its representatives for the PSC. In a brief interview with The Island, MP Gunawardena said the TNA had conveniently forgotten that it refused to come before the LLRC, though it now blamed the representatives of victims denied an opportunity to testify. The LLRC headed by former Attorney General C. R. de Silva invited the Amnesty International, the International Crisis Group and the Human Rights Watch, too, to testify, though they turned down that request (Island ; 16 January 2011).

Cops nab LTTE sympathiser from Chennai - A suspected sympathizer of the banned LTTE was arrested by Kochi city police from Chengalpettu in Chennai in connection with a human trafficking case involving Sri Lankan Tamils. The case pertains to the incident in which an international human trafficking racket attempted to illegally transport 39 Sri Lankan Tamils toAustralia from Kerala on a fishing boat. A team from the Central police station in the city arrested the accused, who is said to be the kingpin of the racket, with the help of Tamil Nadu police. The arrested was identified as Senthuran (38) of Kandy, Sri Lanka. "We brought the accused from Chennai on Sunday and presented him before the local magistrate, who remanded him in judicial custody," police officials said. The police will seek the custody of the arrested from the court to nab other members of the racket. It was in September 2011 that city police thwarted the human trafficking attempt and arrested nine persons, including four Malayalis. Police also seized a fishing boat from Munnambam, which was arranged by the racket to transport Sri Lankan Tamils to Australia. The group had consisted of 28 men, seven women and four children (Daily Mirror : 16 January 2012).

Disappeared Tamils Were Asylum Seekers Who Never Made it to the Other End - by Kumar Moses - Here is Proof! It was always the practice of Tamil nationalists to put whatever blame for their misfortunes on the government and the majority. They call it ‘Tamil-only Grievances’. Everyone has grievances but they want the government to only concentrate on Tamil grievances ignoring others’ grievances. Unable to prove 40,000 deaths, they allege a large number of Tamils “disappeared” during the war. Some of them argue that it even continues to this date. As usual, they put the blame on the government for these disappearances! Absurd stories of white vans, grease devils and other mythical concocted tall tales have been created to put the blame on the government. However, the truth is they are primarily responsible for these disappearances. Over the years hundreds of thousands of Tamils illegally left the island and landed in India, UK, Australia, Canada and European countries. Most of them have now become citizens of these countries. India alone has over one hundred thousand Tamils who illegally left Sri Lanka by boat. Success of previous asylum seekers in rich developed countries was a powerful force drawing mostly young men to take the risk and sail for a better quality life. These boats are small fishing boats that frequently get into trouble in mid sea. All Tamil asylum seeker boats that reached Australian waters in 2009 and 2010 were dilapidated fishing boats. Needless to say these boats with such a huge number of persons on board plus food and fuel for the long journey cannot survive the perilous journey. An unknown number of them certainly sank into the seabed carrying their passengers with them. Over the years this number would add up to a sizeable figure. People who disappeared thus are the so called ‘disappeared’ Tamils (LankaWeb ; 15 January 2011).

Four rehab centres won't close - Despite the re-integration of ex-LTTE combatants who surrendered to the military nearing completion, the government has decided to keep four remaining rehabilitation centres for a further period for the rehabilitation of cadres being referred for rehabilitation by courts, officials said yesterday. Of the 11,000 ex-combatants who surrendered to the military during the last phase of the war, only some 400 remain to be reunited with their families. However, Rehabilitation Ministry Secretary A. Dissanayake told the Daily Mirror that LTTE cadres who were indicted in court were being referred for rehabilitation when charges against them had not been proven. “This happens on a regular basis. Then, we have to rehabilitate them. Therefore, we have decided to keep these four rehabilitation centres in Vavuniya and Polonnaruwa open further. From time to time, we receive ex-combatants for rehabilitation. They are sometimes referred for rehabilitation for over a period of one year,” he said. Mr. Dissanayake said ex-LTTE cadres who were reunited with their families were well looked after now. “We have arranged bank loan facilities for them to start various self-employment projects. Some of them have come up in life now through such programmes,” he said. Of the remaining 400 cadres who surrendered to the military, 47 will be released by the end of this month, while another batch of 300 will be released next month (Daily Mirror ; 16 January 2012).

Govt.-TNA meet on January 17

Tigers squeezed the Tamils dry - Ambassador Buddhi Athauda - By Shanika SRIYANANDA - Channel 4 video is purely an emotional video made by the Tiger propaganda machine and the allegations in this are not credible enough to claim even in the basic check list for war crime charges, levelled at Sri Lanka, this was the contention expressed by the Sri Lankan Ambassador to the Netherlands Buddhi Athauda.Based in the Hague, where the International Court of Justice,International Criminal Court and Court of Arbitration are located the Ambassador said the Dutch government was not taking a serious view about unfound war crimes charges against Sri Lanka. He said the Netherlands, is not a breeding ground for Tiger terrorism and will not permit Tamils to violate Dutch law and schools where LTTE ideology is propagated are under scrunity by the Dutch government. The Ambassador was of the view that Tamils could not claim that they were suffering in Sri Lanka as they had everything they needed to lead peaceful lives and their future was secure.“Sri Lanka is doing it better and faster than some of the Western countries, when they faced crises. Our recovery is now in full swing”, he said in an exclusive interview with the Sunday Observer .The Ambassador said except for a few hardcore Tigers who intend to revive the LTTE, Tamils abroad who handled the Tiger finances, under fictitious names were now fighting to own a chunk of this ill gotten money so that they could now lead comfortable lives and they were not interested in Eelam anymore (Sunday Observer : 15 January 2012).

Govt.-TNA meet on January 17 - The Tamil National Alliance(TNA) and the Government will sit at talks over the national question for three days commencing January 17,official sources said. TNA sources said the government had not rejected the demand for land and police powers and there was a possibility of further discussing those issues across the table. Meanwhile, Indian External Affairs Minister, SM Krishna is due in Colombo on January 16 for talks with the Colombo Government. Kirishna is also expected to tour the North to view development activities aided by New Delhi (The Nation : 15 January 2012).

Tamil-speaking policemen to be enlisted in N-E - by Jayampathy Jayasinghe - A massive recruitment program has been launched to enlist Tamil-speaking men and women from the Northern and Eastern provinces to foster a good relationship between diverse ethnic communities, Police Media Spokesman, SP Ajith Rohana told the Sunday Observer. Fifty Tamil-speaking males have been selected as Sub Inspectors of Police to undergo training at the Police Training School at Kalutara from January 25. On completion of training the Probationary Sub Inspectors of Police will be posted to Tamil- speaking areas of the Northern and Eastern provinces where they can attend to their work in their own language. This is the largest batch of Tamil-speaking Police Sub Inspectors to be selected since the setting up of the Police Department almost 146 years ago. The Police Spokesman said that following the recruitment drive launched last year the Police Department had received a large number of applications from Tamil- speaking individuals, men and women from the Northern and Eastern provinces who have expressed their willingness to join as police constables. The prospective applicants are being interviewed by senior police officers to fill the cadre of 350 constables which had fallen vacant in Northern and Eastern provinces. “We hope to recruit these constables as early as possible and they will be posted to Tamil-speaking areas,” he said (Sunday Observer ; 15 January 2011).

Royal Mail apologises over 'Tamil Tiger' stamps

TNA seeks insights from South Africa - The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) said yesterday that during its recent interaction with African National Congress (ANC) leaders it had sought insights from the findings and recommendations of the Truth Commission of South Africa. The TNA participated in the centenary celebrations of the ANC, which was once led by South Africa’s iconic former President Nelson Mandela. When asked about the visit, TNA leader R. Sampanthan said he and three other TNA parliamentarians, talked to ANC leaders on the sidelines of the celebrations. He said the ANC was vastly experienced in bringing about reconciliation and therefore meeting its leaders and seeking insights on the South African experience was a useful exercise. When asked whether he would brief the government on what transpired, Mr. Sampanthan said they were prepared to share the insights should the government asked the TNA about it. “The Truth and Reconciliation Commission was presided over by Mr. Mandela and Bishop Desmond Tutu. It was worthwhile meeting the ANC leaders.” The Truth and Reconciliation Commission was a court-like body for restorative justice after the abolition of apartheid. Those who were identified as victims of gross human rights violations were invited to share their experiences and some were selected for public hearings. Perpetrators of violence were also given the opportunity to give their testimony and request for amnesty from civil and criminal prosecution. The deliberations of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission were seen by many as a crucial component in the transition to full and free democracy in South Africa. Despite some of its flaws, it is largely thought to have been successful. Mr. Sampanthan meanwhile confirmed that his party would participate in talks with the government scheduled for January 17, 18 and 19 (Daily Mirror: 14 January 2012).

Tamil taxidermists stuff Tiger skins with stamps - by H. L. D. Mahindapala - The Tamil separatist movement is littered all the way, from the peak of the resolution passed in Vadukoddai (1976) to its lowest depths in Nandikadal (2008), with attention-getting stunts. These stunts and strategies scored heavily on propaganda. But in real terms their stunts and strategies failed to achieve any of their political goals. Some even boomeranged on them like the stamps issued in France. All their stunts and strategies have been expensive in human costs. Their investments in stunts, strategies and most importantly in violence have taken them at best into exile and at worst into Nandikadal. The Tamil separatists began with mass protest meetings at Galle Face green in 1956 and in Jaffna. Then, posing as Gandhians, they staged the stunt of distributing wooden pistols to the youth staging Gandhian satyagrahs in Jaffna. Then they decided to arm the youth. Their calculated strategy was to abandon the non-violent mainstream politics and resort to a military solution. This was officially affirmed at Vadukoddai in 1976 when they declared war on the rest of the nation. They threw the entire might of Jaffna human and financial resources to wage their war against the Sri Lanka state and lost – lost ignominiously (LankaWeb ; 14 January 2012).

Gota pulls no punches on the ‘Diaspora’ threat - The postage stamp fraud of the pro-LTTE expatriates in the West has straddled the Atlantic with Canada too discovering that 'Diaspora Tamils' there have resorted to this method of spreading pro-separatist terrorist propaganda via the national postal service. What was exposed in France and caused much embarrassment to the French authorities has caused similar problems for Canada Post too. Both countries have announced that they will be more vigilant about attempts to abuse their postal service for the purposes of the LTTE. Far reaching as this pro-LTTE postage stamp fraud is, it is only the serrated edge of much wider operations by the expatriate Tamil groups in the West to who form the rump of the LTTE's global establishment, as best described by Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa in his probing analysis of ‘Future Challenges to National Security in Sri Lanka’, in the lecture earlier this week, organized by Sri Lanka Foundation Institute and Associated Newspapers of Ceylon Limited. The Defence Secretary was very clear on the possibility of the re-emergence of the LTTE in Sri Lanka, as LTTE sympathizers abroad are still struggling to achieve the LTTE's separatist ideology in the country. He explained that although the LTTE's military defeat in May 2009… eliminated the primary obstacle to Sri Lanka's future prospects and brought back a long overdue sense of peace and stability to our people, it is vital that we do not take any of this for granted. Sri Lanka still has enemies, and they are still at work to bring back disharmony and conflict to our nation, he said (Daily News : 14 January 2012).

Will KP’s fund raiser case be heard in absentia? - The Colombo High Court today fixed for April 19 the case in which to consider whether the case against the LTTE chief arms procurer Kumaran Pathmanathan’s fund raiser be heard in absentia or not. High Court Judge Sunil Rajapaksa made this pronouncement before the High Court regarding the matter in which the suspects Ponniah Ananda Rajah alias Aiya and Subramaniam Sivakumar alias Rajan were indicted for raising funds in the USA, Canada, Malaysia, Norway, Sri Lanka and several other Asian and European countries to financially facilitate the LTTE movement in their activities. Senior State Counsel Riaz Bary submitted that the Attorney General Eva Wanasundera indicted the accused Subramaniam Sivakumar alias Rajan and Ponniah Ananda Rajah alias Aiya who were in charge of the financial property of Kumaran Pathmanathan alias KP. The second accused who facilitated the LTTE movement to raise funds in several European and Asian countries had absconded court and was living in America. He said the court issued a warrant by way of a red notice for the arrest of the second suspect who had absconded court. However up to now Interpol had not been able to arrest him. The accused had collected funds for LTTE organisations for two-and-a-half years, since 2007 in European and Asian countries. They were suspected to have run several business organisations and manufactured ships and boats for the LTTE and sea tigers with the funds raised by the accused. The first accused is detained in the Terrorist Investigation Division (Daily Mirror ; 13 January 2012).

British government responds: LLRC report, aid to reconciliation - The British government yesterday said that the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) report has many constructive recommendations for post conflict reconciliation and urged the government of Sri Lanka to implement its recommendations soon. British Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Alistair Burt in a statement to the British Parliament expressing the government’s views on the LLRC report said, The British government yesterday said that the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) report has many constructive recommendations for post conflict reconciliation and urged the government of Sri Lanka to implement its recommendations soon. British Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs Alistair Burt in a statement to the British Parliament expressing the government’s views on the LLRC report said, among other things, that Britain appreciated the fact that the Sri Lankan government has made the LLRC report public in full. He urged the Sri Lankan government to implement quickly the LLRC recommendations (Daily News ; 13 January 2011).

Govt-TNA discussions on - BY Nadira GUNATILLEKE - TNA leader R. Sampanthan had said his party will take part in discussions in connection with finding a solution to the issues of the Tamil community. This is a positive sign, Cabinet Spokesman and Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said. Addressing the weekly Cabinet press briefing at the Government Information Department Auditorium yesterday, Minister Rambukwella said that whatever solution worked out through these discussions should be endorsed by Parliament. “It is the last step in any solution. When the process of finding a solution starts from Parliament it saves time.” According to Minister Rambukwella the process of finding a solution to the Tamil issue was always dragged on by the TNA and other groups in the past starting from the ‘Thimpu Discussions’ and it is still dragging on. “We doubt whether they are really interested in finding a solution or not. I always say that the TNA should take part in discussions”, the minister added. Minister Rambukwella pointed out that the government has serious concerns about the distribution of police and land powers. This has already been explained in Parliament by Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva. “The government can grant certain areas of police and land powers”, he said (Daily News ; 14 January 2011).

Royal Mail apologises over 'Tamil Tiger' stamps - Sri Lanka has reacted furiously to a spate of "personalised" foreign postage stamps bearing the image of slain Tamil Tiger rebel supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran. The stamps, from Britain, Canada and France, were reportedly put together by overseas Tamil Tiger support groups, using services sanctioned by state postal agencies that allow people to combine personal photos with official stamps. "Sri Lanka has protested in the strongest possible terms and made it clear that any foreign mail with these stamps will not be welcome in Sri Lanka," a foreign ministry official told AFP on today. The official said they were the work of a "terrorist rump" trying to keep the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) alive after their final military defeat by Sri Lankan troops in May 2009. Following a formal complaint, Britain's Royal Mail apologised "for any distress caused" and said it had blocked the offending stamp and cancelled the account it was created on. Earlier this month, the foreign ministry called in the French ambassador to register its "acute concern" over similar stamps that had been put together there. As well as images of Prabhakaran -- killed in the final military offensive against the LTTE -- the stamps showed the LTTE flag with its sword-crossed tiger emblem. The LTTE is listed as a terrorist organisation by the European Union and Canada, as well as the United States. (Daily Mirror ; 13 January 2012)

Canada Post rejected original request for personalised pro-LTTE stamp - The original request for a personalised pro-LTTE postage stamp in Canada depicting ‘Tamil Eelam’ had been turned down by the Canadian postal service in May 2011, the Canadian High Commission in Colombo said yesterday. A spokesperson for the Canadian High Commission when contacted by the Daily Mirror said, “The original request for the personalised stamp in question was submitted to Canada Post through its Picture Postage website in May 2011. The submission was rejected and the payment was returned to the requester. The representative advised that officials of Picture Postage had determined that the image was not appropriate as a Canadian postage stamp.” “Such a stamp was never in legal Canadian circulation. Further investigation of Canada Post’s internal records confirmed that no other requests of this nature had been received since May 2011,” the spokesperson added. On January 3, Sri Lanka’s High Commissioner to Canada Chitranganee Wagiswara wrote to the Canadian authorities about pro-LTTE postage stamps said to have been issued by Canada Post. She had expressed the Sri Lankan government’s serious concern about the reported release of a pro-LTTE stamp and urged the Canadian authorities to investigate the matter and take appropriate action. On January 9, President and Chief Executive Officer of Canada Post Deepak Chopra clarified that such a stamp had never been printed in Canada. “I had this matter reviewed immediately upon receipt of your letter. Please be assured that the image has never been printed by Canada Post; it is a false representation of our picture postage programme and is being fully investigated by our Security Department,” he wrote to High Commissioner Chitranganee Wagiswara. He further explained that it “was not printed by our picture postage programme and is in no way part of our official philatelic programme which goes through a very careful selection process including approval by our Board of Director” (Daily Mirror : 13 January 2012).

Time to go beyond the13th - The Bishop of Jaffna, Rev Thomas Saunaranayam is reported to have said that the Government must dialogue with the Tamil National Alliance in order to find a solution to what he called ‘the ethnic problem’. He adds that lasting peace must be based onthe aspirations of the Tamil people and that they (the Tamil people) must have the liberty to ‘live in peace in their own soil’. Dialogue is good as long as there is genuine intention to obtain progress in resolving issues. On the other hand, dialogue must be inclusive and open-ended. One in ten Muslims was displaced courtesy the conflict and therefore any discussion that excludes that community will necessarily be incomplete and unsatisfactory. This is why the TNA’s delay in sending names for to Parliamentary Select Committee is disappointing. The Bishop’s reductionism on aspirations is however troubling. Aspirations and grievances are usually conflated for political expediency, but when it comes to serious negotiations that seek lasting solutions, it is important to keep things real. This requires greater weight to be placed on legitimate grievances and not on wild aspirations which could potential rub people the wrong way and construct unnecessary walls between communities. The contention about ‘own soil’ falls into the realm of aspirations since that claims is at best contested and at worst unsubstantiated in terms of history, demography and geography. Co-existence, inter-communal harmony and the forging of a national identity stamped with the notion of togetherness are consequently compromised (The Nation : 7 January 2012).

An appeal and a memo by two groups of Tamil speaking civilians - by Sebastian Rasalingam Toronto, Canada - A salutary letter was published in The Island newspaper on Jan. 06, entitled ‘An appeal to the Tamil Community and its civil and political representatives’. It has been signed by sixty eight authors, starting with Ms. Jovita Arulanantham and ending with Mr. Ronnie Yogarajaha. This is the first time that a responsible group of at least nominally Tamil-speaking intellectuals stood up for the rights of Muslims evicted to satisfy the ‘exclusive Tamil-homelands dream’ originally enunciated in the Tamil-language handouts of the 1949 Ilankai Thamil Arasu Kadchi resolution. Participants of that meeting called for ‘driving out the invaders (Muslims and Sinhalese) from the traditional homelands of the Tamils’. I salute these sixty eight individuals as they have taken a step that some of us, dissident Tamils who have been oppressed and marginalized by the land-owning elite-class Tamils, have always asked for. They end with "and we shall unreservedly pledge our support to promote the pluralist character of society at all levels in our midst, and embrace a politics of inclusivity in the interests of democracy, justice and equality". This is precisely what we have been calling for, writing articles in English and Tamil, and pointing out that the ‘national question’ is not a simple matter of language politics. After all, the evicted Muslims are Tamil speakers as well. The Tamil nationalist struggle was spawned in its malevolent form by the Landed-caste Tamils to retain their ruler status. I say ‘Bravo’ to these writers (Island ; 6 January 2012).

LLRC, TNA and the LTTE - By Nalin de Silva - My intention is not to comment on the LLRC report which has made a number of recommendations on what is fashionably called reconciliation. The Sinhala and Tamil communities could have lived amicably if not for the Tamil Vellala politicians who were used by the English (British if you wish) to deny the Sinhalas, especially the Sinhala Buddhists their due place in the country and to weaken if not destroy the Sinhala Buddhist culture. The LLRC is another commission appointed in the tradition of the Colebrook –Cameron Commission, which I suppose is the first commission appointed by the English. Colebrook – Cameron took the first step to weaken the Sinhala Buddhist way of life by abolishing the Rajakari system and paving way to introduce the English educational system building on the then existing schools established by the Dutch. Almost all the members of commissions appointed by the governments even after so called independence that gave us limited political independence but not cultural or economic independence, have been products of the schools established by the English, and their thinking is invariably guided by the education that they had received. There are people who have broken away from this educational system and those who have attended so called vernacular schools (the word vernacular demonstrates the contempt that the English had for Sinhala and Tamil) but they are not appointed as members of the commissions appointed in the Colebrook – Cameron tradition (Island : 6 January 2012).

Devolution: A recipe for break up? - Durand Appuhamy, Negombo - When the Scottish Parliament was created with extensive devolved powers it was considered a landmark solution to Scottish demands for separatism and independence from the English. A prominent Scottish politician, George Robertson even claimed that devolution would "kill [Scottish] nationalism stone dead". I must admit, that I too then thought, that perhaps this example would provide a solution to our terrorist plus separatist problem. I did have my doubts and did express them in an article in The Island on the 24th Sept. 2007, under the title "Devolution Revisited" my book: In Defence of the Country. Today independence of Scotland is openly advocated and discussed by influential persons in UK and a Referendum before 2016 has been promised by Alex Salmond, the Chief Minister in the Scottish parliament. Prime Minister Cameron has also established a Cabinet Sub-committee of senior ministers to consider his government’s approach to a Scottish Referendum. Let me repeat my assertion of 2007, devolution is only a temporary Service Halt on the highway to separatism and independence. One country, one nation will soon perish once we enter the charmed portals of devolution. I say this despite LLRC’s favourable strictures on devolution. Beware all politicians!! (Island ; 4 January 2012).

Stamps bearing LTTE pics, symbols: France admits blunder - The French embassy in Colombo yesterday claimed that ‘Groupe La Poste’ of which French postal services were a part had issued a set of stamps bearing pictures and symbols of the LTTE by mistake. The admission was made in the wake of External Affairs Minister Prof. G. L. Peiris strongly condemning the French move at a meeting with the French Ambassador in Colombo Christine Robichon yesterday. External Affairs Ministry told The Island that the international community should thwart LTTE plans to propagate extremist views and sanitize terrorists. The French embassy issued the following statement yesterday: "Following reports published in different newspapers regarding the issuance in France of stamps bearing pictures and symbols of the LTTE, the Embassy of France in Sri Lanka wishes to inform the media and the Sri Lankan public that no such stamp is part of the official philatelist programme of France, neither on sale in the French post offices. The French Postal services, "La Poste", offers an online service through which customers can order limited quantities of personalized stamps under their responsibility and under specific conditions. It appears that individuals have used this service to order the above mentioned stamps. "La Poste" recognized that they failed to detect that the conditions had not been met and that some of these stamps have been printed by mistake. Having been informed by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs that LTTE is a movement which has been listed since 2006 as a terrorist organization by the European Union, "La Poste assures that no such stamp will be printed further. Since 1991, le "Groupe La Poste", of which French postal services are a part, is an independent public, industrial and commercial institution." (Island : 3 January 2012).

“PERSONALISED” TIGER STAMPS, NOT IN ANY WAY OFFICIAL; LA POSTE APOLOGISES FOR MISTAKE - MEDIA RELEASE-Embassy of Sri Lanka Paris With regard to stamps originating in France, bearing various symbols representing the LTTE, a terrorist organization listed as such by the EU, the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Paris wishes to make the following statement: The Embassy of Sri Lanka has been in communication with La Poste which is the issuing authority for official stamps, with regard to the matter of stamps bearing the symbols of an organization which was responsible for many atrocities that are well known by the world community. The Embassy wishes to inform the Sri Lankan public that it has received a communication from La Poste which informs us that one of their services includes the possibility for the public to create customized or personalized stamps with the option of choosing and uploading freely the image they expect to see. This facility is administered by 3 designated agents who receive over 2000 requests per week. These agents are required to put in place the necessary means for the verification of the images sent to their service by the clients/customers. La Poste accepts that a collection of “stamps with inappropriate visuals” associated with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, an association classified by the EEC as a terrorist group, had been printed “by mistake” (LankaWeb : 3 Janaury 2012).

Scrap the Thesawalamei Law that is Discriminative, Racist and Outdated

Scrap the Thesawalamei Law that is Discriminative, Racist and Outdated - by Dilrook Kannangara Not every Sri Lankan is equal before the law at the moment. Those who have the option of governed by the Thesawalamei Law have far more rights than others. The only remaining law in the entire world that legitimises caste discrimination is the Thesawalamei Law of Sri Lanka! It is a matter of shame on all Sri Lankans for keeping this highly discriminative law that glorifies caste divisions when the whole world is against it. Before major constitutional and legal changes are made for the purpose of reconciliation, simple yet highly effective available means should be used. Scraping the Thesawalamei law is the first step to effective reconciliation, human rights, women’s rights and equal rights to all. The longer it is kept, the more the hatred will be between ethnic communities and within the Tamil community between so called high caste Vellahlas and low caste Tamils (LankaWeb : 1 January 2012).

LTTE plans second armed struggle! - Intelligence authorities have uncovered a plan to resurrect the LTTE through an attempt to register an organisation for displaced in Vanni targeting another armed conflict, highly placed intelligence sources revealed. They said the plan behind the move was to recruit rehabilitated LTTE cadres who were in LTTE’s military units back to the now defunct LTTE terror group. They have also reached former LTTE military members who left the organisation earlier to the defeat of the LTTE. The planned organisation had designed itself to operate under three arms of the LTTE overseas based - Nediwayan, Rudrakumaran and Emmanuel Groups. These three LTTE ‘foreign-based arms’ were operating from the USA, Norway and Europe, sources revealed. The Defence Ministry has taken measures to educate the youth in the once war-torn areas on the impending dangers of the hidden plan mooted by LTTE sympathisers here and abroad. National Intelligence Chief of Military Major General Kapila Hendawitharana has alerted state officials in those areas of this hidden plan by pro-LTTE gangs. Meanwhile, intelligence sources have found evidence that overseas based LTTE groups continued to have contacts with pro-LTTE gangs operating as organisations for the displaced persons. The government has spent million of rupees to rehabilitate former LTTE combatants and educated them in different vocational fields paving the way to re-integrate them into the society (The Nation : 1 January 2011).

LLRC report covers all relevant ground - Australian MP - Good step in the right direction: Disna MUDALIGE - The Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) report sets the framework for practical reconciliation in Sri Lanka, said Australian Member of Parliament Telmo Languiller who is on a brief visit to look into the ground situation in post war Sri Lanka. Addressing a media conference in Colombo yesterday he welcomed both the LLRC report and the government’s response to it, stating that these provide a very good opportunity for Sri Lanka to build a peaceful country. He observed that the report has covered all relevant aspects and has included the comments of all relevant parties concerned. He also stated that it was a very good step in the right direction. Referring to the statement by Leader of the House and Irrigation and Water Resources Management Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva when tabling the report in Parliament, Languiller commended the government’s willingness and readiness to carry out independent investigations over the each and every incident with regard to human rights issues. He said that he would encourage the Australian government and his Parliamentary colleagues to continue to work positively with the authorities in Sri Lanka and its people, and to support the government’s endeavour to rebuild post war Sri Lanka. He observed that there is a massive improvement in the infrastructure facilities in the country compared with the situation during his previous visit about two and half years ago. He noted that there is huge progress in the construction of roads, bridges, houses, hospitals and schools in places he visited, especially in Jaffna. He said that the improvement of infrastructure in the country would help to attract more investments. Speaking on the challenges that lie before Sri Lanka, he observed that Sri Lanka should sort out the human rights allegations leveled against it before next Geneva Human Rights Council session in March. He noted that working towards practical reconciliation and a political solution to the national issue which can be acceptable to all communities while achieving economic development should be given high priority. Responding to a question by a journalist he also said that from his meetings with high ranking army personnel in the North, he was convinced that the forces would not be stationed in those regions permanently and that they were willing to move as soon as possible. During his visit Languiller also met the Defence and Urban Development Ministry Secretary, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa the External Affairs Ministry Secretary and many high ranking officials of the government. The visit was organized by Sri Lankan expats in Australia (Daily News : 31 December 2011).

Victor Base 1, Vallipunam - LTTE"s secret prison & torture chamber for POWs & Tamils (By: Shenali Waduge) LTTE the world's most brutal international terrorist organization may be no more yet how much of its inhuman atrocities is the world aware of or even ready to finally acknowledge? Why would those posing as "liberators" maintain torture prisons & run secret killing camps whose victims were its own men, women & children far more than State soldiers? The Victor Base 1 situated in Vallipunam was one such camp that was kept a dark secret known only to the top hierarchy of the LTTE & from where the dead will provide clues to take the LTTE to international trial for its crimes against humanity. Situated a good 4km into the dense jungles of Udyarkattu along the A-34 road in Puddukurippu, this secret prison cum torture chamber was built in 1997 with 24 cells made of steel doors & impossible to escape from which is why only 15 guards were stationed. Known only to a handful of top LTTErs, the torture chambers was frequented regularly by the LTTE supremo & Pottu Amman who watched each torture & killing take place. The cells were 8ft in height & 4ft in width with provision for a toilet yet captured LTTErs have affirmed that at times upto 15 prisoners had been shoved into one cell. The VIP POW cells shown to foreign emissaries & NGO heads were a mere whitewash to hide the actual prisoner cells that the LTTE were maintaining deep in the jungles of the Wanni run by Ratnam Master a member of the LTTE military intelligence while Gobi was kept in charge of the captured military personnel (Sri Lanka Defence Ministry : 29 December 2011).

LLRC report addresses issues of last stages of humanitarian op - Lankan envoy - Sri Lanka will hold accountable every person accused of irregularities during its decades-long conflict, the nation’s ambassador to the US Jaliya Wickramasuriya said. Wickramasuriya said the suspects’ names are disclosed in eyewitness testimony posted on the website of the government-appointed commission that issued the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) report. “There are no names [in the report], but there is a process to check accountability,” Wickramasuriya said in an interview with editors and reporters at The Washington Times. The Sri Lankan government has opposed an international investigation, and Wickramasuriya said that position has not changed. “We believe that a home-grown solution is the best solution for Sri Lanka,” he said. President Mahinda Rajapaksa appointed the LLRC in May 2010 to examine the war and post-conflict efforts. State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters last week that the report does not fully address all allegations of human-rights violations that occurred in the last phase of the conflict. Wickramasuriya said Nuland’s comments were inaccurate. “We were very upset about that statement,” he said. “The US is one of our very good friends, and we are a democratic country in the region. Sri Lanka should be credited at this time.” Moreover, the report adequately addresses the last days of the conflict, the diplomat said. Sri Lankan forces did not deliberately target civilians in no-fire zones, the report said. Wickramasuriya said Sri Lanka’s military had undertaken a “humanitarian operation” during the war to protect civilians, noting that government forces needed two years to clear the LTTE from their eastern and northern strongholds. “If we weren’t concerned about civilians, clearing that area wouldn’t take that long,” he said, acknowledging that there had been some civilian casualties. Courtesy :The Washington Times (Daily News ; 29 December 2011).

LTTE Human Right Violations and War Crimes against North East Muslims - by M.I.M. Mohideen - With the increased activities of the Tamil militants in the early part of 1985, the animosity and resentment of the Tamils towards the North East Muslims took a more acrimonious turn. Consequent to it, numerous incidents of extortions of money, robbing jewellry and other valuables at gun point, and threat to co-operate with the separatist movement took place. The breaking point came when the Tamil terrorists tried, in the course of robbing a rich Muslim trader, to take his daughter as hostage in Akkaraipattu, a predominant Muslim Town, in the Ampara District. Angered by this, the Muslims registered their protest by a- peaceful hartal from 08th to 12th April 1985 and hoisted Sri Lanka National Flag in the bazaar, declaring solidarity of the Muslims with the government and their rejection of the division of the Country. With this incident, the Tamil, Muslim ethnic violence swiftly spread to Kalmunai, Kattankudi, Eravur, Ottamawadi, Valaichenai, Muthur and Kinniya. Hundreds of Muslims were killed by the armed Tamil separatists and many billions of Rupees worth of properties belonging to both the Tamil and Muslims were burnt and destroyed. It is during the April 1985 riots, that the Tamil and Muslims fought each other as separate communities for the first time in the East. About 26 Muslims were killed and another 200 were injured when the IPKF shelled Ottamawadi, a predominant Muslim Village in the Batticaloa District on 02nd December 1987. A Number of houses and shops belonging to Muslims were burned and destroyed. Some Muslims women were also reported to have been raped by the IPKF. About 14,000 Muslims became refugees and fled to the North – Central Province, Polonnaruwa (Island ; 28 December 2011).

Live up to expectations of progressive opinion - The positive comment on the LLRC report coming from India and Russia is something Sri Lanka should warmly welcome. We need hardly say that the two countries in question are vital members of the world community and are pivotal to moulding international opinion in constructive ways. When they speak, the world is likely to sit up and listen. Therefore, we could say that India and Russia have once again proved to be very worthy friends of Sri Lanka. Through their comments on the LLRC report they have helped in enhancing the credibility of the report and have alerted world opinion to the fact that there is ample substance in the document which should not pass unnoticed. Accordingly, their comments are an ideal rebuttal of the negative views which are being aired in some quarters about the report. India and Russia are increasingly being seen as central to the vitality and growth of the world economy, besides being principal global military and scientific powers. Their support for Sri Lanka is a huge plus which the Lankan state should put to judicious use in the course of popularizing the LLRC report on a worldwide scale. For instance, by indicating that some principal global powers are fully supportive of the LLRC and its report we could further impress on international opinion that the report should in no way be trifled with. It is a vital instrument in the further transformation of Sri Lanka from a conflict-ridden country to one with immense possibilities and positives. This, the world needs to be told by us emphatically (Daily News ; 28 December 2011).

TNA & LLRC - By Dayan Jayatilleka - Whatever one may think of the LLRC and NORAD reports, it is incontrovertible that two of the three major players in the last stage of the Sri Lankan conflict have undertaken and undergone a preliminary audit of sorts—the Sri Lankan state and the Norwegians– while the third (and the second in importance) has not, and not even thought to. There has been no equivalent from within the Tamil civil society or the ‘Tamil nationalist movement’. While they continue to raise what each side may feel are legitimate issues and grievances in the soft polemics and manoeuvring between the TNA and the Government over their dialogue and participation in the Parliamentary Select Committee, the TNA’s increasing strident rejection of the LLRC report is altogether another matter of a different order. Distressingly, it permits the discrediting of more moderate and legitimate issues and concerns that the TNA may be raising. Thus the TNA’s ‘rejectionism’ may work to permit the rejection of the TNA as peace partner. Most sadly it forestalls the possibility of a pro-reform coalition of a cross-ethnic, cross-party character, which can support the implementation of the LLRC ‘framework’ (as the report terms it). That framework is a minimum programme for the reconstruction of Sri Lankan consciousness and citizenship along the lines of civic republican nationhood. It is also, arguably, the Sri Lankan reading most congruent with what we may term the Asian reformist or Asian Realist perspective of the Lankan situation (Island ; 27 December 2011).

LTTE arm funds Amnesty Int’l - The world’s self-proclaimed human rights watchdog – Amnesty International (AI), was now being bought over by the pro-LTTE organisations in Canada, reports from Toronto said. The Canadian Tamil Congress (CTC), an ardent supporter of the LTTE, has now completed collecting a first grant of US $50, 000 for AI. This grant has been confirmed by Alex Neve, Secretary General of Amnesty International in Canada. The pro-LTTE CTC kicked off collecting funds for AI from last September, organising a Canadian Tamil Walk-A-Thon at Thomson Memorial Park, Scarborough. AI has been aware of how the pro-LTTE CTC plundered money from Canada’s Tamil population since 2005. Ignoring all such anti-human actions, AI is now accepting grants from the CTC, the report added. In August 2006, nine Tamil Tiger supporters, including four from Canada, were arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) in the US for attempting to buy Russian-made missiles and firearms for the LTTE, a group listed as a ‘terrorist’ organisation by the U.S. One of the Canadians, Sahilal “Sahil’ Sabaratnam, was described by the authorities as the financial mastermind of the operation. At the time, Sahilal Sabaratnam was listed as the Director, Communications, of the CTC. Human Rights Watch has accused the LTTE of extorting money from Canada’s 250,000 strong Tamil population for years. Yet, the CTC has continued to deny such reports, effectively whitewashing the LTTE of its role in terrorising Canadian Tamils. According to well-known international terrorism analyst Professor Rohan Gunaratna, the CTC has also been identified as an LTTE front due to its links with the LTTE and its activities. Meanwhile, the peace-loving Tamil people in Canada have urged AI not to accept grants that are made by way of collecting ransom by the CTC. They have told AI that the war in Sri Lanka was now over and peace was fast returning to normal. Therefore, the actions of the CTC through AI were likely to cause breach of the peace in Sri Lanka’s north and east, the report said. AI is well known as one of the organisations that has been asking for a probe into the final phase of the war against the LTTE terrorists group but had made very little effort to express its opposition to killing of hundreds of civilians at a time by the LTTE bombs for more than three decades (The Nation : 25 December 2011).

Vile Vellahla Violence stamped on Tiger flag - by H L D Mahindapala - Over and above all other factors there is only one single over-determining character that defines the culture of Jaffna in all its dimensions - and that is caste. Jaffna without caste does not exist. Nor is there a peninsular culture outside the rigid caste system. Focusing on the “caste character” embedded in Tamil society, Sebastian Rasalingam, Toronto, Canada asked: “Can there ever be a “historic Tamil village” without its caste system?” (Lanka Guardian - July 4, 2011) Indeed, no! Jaffna without caste is inconceivable like Romeo without Juliet; or the peninsula without panamkottay. The caste culture of Jaffna is identified primarily with the greatest cult figure of orthodox Hindus - Arumuga Pillai who was later lionized as Arumuga Navalar (the Orator). He created and consolidated new caste architecture by restructuring the hierarchy according to the prevailing ground realities of Jaffna society. Jaffna, of course, inherited the Indian caste system without a substantial layer of Brahmins. The classical caste hierarchy demanded a divinely ordained layer at the top. The absence of Brahmins - they preferred to stay in India - created a vacuum in the caste system of the peninsula. It was Arumuga Navalar who stepped in to fill the vacuum. But he did it his way. He too was a Vellahla and he took the short cut by breaking away from the Indian model to create a new caste hierarchy according to the prevailing dynamics and local needs of Jaffna. With one arbitrary stroke he redefined the caste architecture by elevating the Vellahlas to the topmost level in the hierarchy (Lakbima News).

US Indefinite Detention – Sri Lanka PTA and Robert Blake - by Daya Gamage - The United States intensified its diplomatic pressure in the last decade or so, and Robert Blake, as American ambassador to Sri Lanka (07-09) and now as assistance secretary of state for South/Central Asian Affairs, talked (and presently talks) of the virtues of removing the 1979-enacted Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA). To Mr. Blake and to his state department, the PTA is a draconian piece of legislation; however it was targeted to counter terrorism in Sri Lanka, which erodes universally-accepted human rights. It is the same United States which endeavors to erase the PTA from Sri Lanka’s statute book is presently on the verge of enacting the most draconian law, in the name of combating terrorism, to indefinitely detain American citizens, resident aliens and others under military custody. The then American ambassador Robert Blake in his state-controlled TV network Rupavahini interview in early December 2006 and carried in full by state-controlled Daily News on 5 December, opined for what purpose the 2001 USA Patriot Act as opposed to Sri Lanka’s PTA is being used, and the difference of two constituencies in which the two laws are operating. Asked as to why Sri Lanka should not defend itself in pursuing terrorists when the United States is pursuing terrorists under the USA Patriot Act, Mr. Blake gave a signal to Sri Lankan administration saying “I think it is dangerous to make comparisons between one country and the next. Every single country is different. In our case, the terrorists that we are pursuing are mostly stateless organizations like Al Qaeda that are not based in any single country” clearly indicating that his country is faced with global terrorism that has no territory and that Sri Lanka’s terrorists are ‘non state players’ domiciled in the country (Asian Tribune ; 22 December 2011).

U.S. Response to Report from LLRC - by Ira de Silva London, Ontario,Canada - The Editor The Island Colombo, Sri Lanka; Dear Sir: I refer to the response of the U.S. as stated by Ms. Vctoria Nuland. If ever there needs to be an example of expecting others to follow concepts of transparency and accountability while violating and disregarding these concepts in their own conduct, this is the best. Ms. Victoria Nuland said the U.S. has concerns that the report prepared by the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission does not fully address all the allegations of serious human rights violations that occurred in the final phase of the conflict. Ms. Nuland refers to allegations of human rights violations in the case of Sri Lanka. In the case of the U.S. they are not “allegations”, there is proof of gross violations of human rights in U.S. conduct in Iraq and Afghanistan that have been in the public domain for over a decade which the U.S. has made no attempt to investigate or remedy. There is never going to be accountability or remedy because the U.S. policy is that the rights of non-U.S. citizens are expendable in imposing U.S. policy. “So this leaves questions about accountability” – has the U.S. shown “accountability” in any of it’s wars? Massive civilian casualties, many of them due to deliberate targeting of civilians as shown by their own documents, are dismissed without any accountability. So is the displacement of hundreds of thousands of people for which the U.S. shows no concern. The U.S. is consistently blind to the consequences of their own actions in this regard yet has the temerity to criticize a small third world country that has shown responsibility and concern in dealing with the displaced and in two years has done what the U.S. never intends to do. Their hypocrisy in overwhelming (LankaWeb ; 22 December 2011).

Ms. Victoria Nuland, US State Department Spokesperson -Your statement on Sri Lanka’s LLRC Report - by Asoka Weerasinghe, Canada - Ms. Victoria Nuland, US State Department Spokesperson 2201 C Street NW, Washington DC 20520, US; Dear Victoria Nuland: I just read the Sri Lanka’s Daily Mirror report titled, “ LLRC doesn’t address all allegations: US.” And it continued to say, “The United States Government said on Monday (19 December 2011) that the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission report does not address all allegations of human rights.” Well, Victoria, all that is a bit of Yankeeing around poking your American bully-fingers into another sovereign country’s internal business, isn’t it.? Coming out of you, isn’t it true that you Yankee-doodle-dandies’ are at fault, when you all have still not produced a War Bible – How to Win a War without Killing Anyone for Dummies. Nor has the smart-Alec UN’s Secretary-general Ban ki-Moon produced a War Bible – “How to Win a War without Killing Anyone for Dummies or else I will Moon You”, either. Isn’t it the lack of such a ‘US War Bible’ that was the very reason why when your Yankees invaded Iraq looking for Weapons of Mass Destruction, the excuse given for the invasion of a sovereign country, that no such weapons have still been found and that invasion was on a lie? But what you and I saw was the loss of over a million (1,455,590) lives of innocent Iraqis in this high-handed world policing exercise. And now comes the revelation that 2,500 of them were massacred by US troops. And according to the article in New York Times, US leaders, diplomats, refer to this loss of civilians of Iraq as collateral damage. Ha! So why all this nonsense, yankeeing about Sri Lanka? (LankaWeb : 21 December 2011).

LLRC report to British Parliamentarians - Sri Lanka High Commissioner in the United Kingdom Dr Chris Nonis briefed British Parliamentarians from the House of Commons and the House of Lords, academics and Think Tanks, at an interactive dialogue on the LLRC Report in Portcullis House in the British Parliament on December 20. Dr Nonis articulated that the holistic approach of the LLRC is entirely consistent with restorative justice embedded with accountability. He further stated that it is a comprehensive, objective and impartial report which demonstrates the integrity of the LLRC, and it is set in the context of International Humanitarian Law incorporating the principle of distinction and principle of proportionality. He said that it has a wealth of content and provides a nuanced understanding of the conflict, and many lessons can be learnt from it. He stated that the release of the LLRC Report in full by the Government of President Mahinda Rajapaksa demonstrates both its sincerity and commitment and is a landmark in the reconciliation process of Sri Lanka in the post-conflict era. "This is an extremely welcome opportunity to discuss the way forward for Sri Lanka after what has been a very difficult period of its history. The High Commissioner gave us a very thorough overview of the (LLRC) report including answers to a wide range of questions. I know that a number of my Parliamentarian colleagues look forward with the intent to seeing Sri Lanka progress over the coming months and years," Conservative MP James Wharton said. Lord Rogan of Lower Iveagh who was a key figure associated with the Northern Ireland Peace Process and the Good Friday Agreement said: "As we know and have experience from coming out of a 40-year old conflict in Northern Ireland it takes time and patience to move from conflict to consensus politics and I would ask all peoples in Sri Lanka and the diaspora to have patience and give time and space for a peaceful solution to develop." (Daily News ; 23 December 2011).

High Level Australian Parliamentary Delegation concludes successful visit to Sri Lanka 8-14 December 2011 - A five member Australian parliamentary delegation visited Sri Lanka on the invitation of Speaker Chamal Rajapaksa from 8-14 December 2011. The delegation was led by Maria Vamvakinou M.P., of the ruling Labour Party and included Rowen Ramsey M.P., (Liberal), Harry Jenkins, M.P., (Labour) who till recently was the speaker of the House of Representatives, Dr Andrew Southcott, M.P., (Liberal) and Senator Helen Kroger (Liberal). The Australian MPs called on Speaker Chamal Rajapaksa at the Parliamentary complex in Sri Jayawardenapura and also witnessed the budget debate in the house. During the discussion both sides welcomed the opportunity to enhance cooperation between the two respective Parliaments and to broaden the dialogue between law makers of the two countries. The Australian delegation also held talks with the Leader of the House and Irrigation and Water Resources Management Minister, Nimal Siripala De Silva, Economic Development Minister, Basil Rajapaksa, Defence and Urban Development Ministry Secretary, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, S B Dissanayake, Minister of Higher Education and the Leader of the Opposition Ranil Wickramasinghe. The delegation also had a lively exchange of views with the President and members of the Sri Lanka - Australia Parliamentary Friendship Association haling from Government and Opposition ranks. Later in their visit the delegates called on the External Affairs Minister, Prof. G.L Peiris and held extensive discussions on developments in bilateral relations between the two countries. The delegation also traveled to the North of Sri Lanka with an overnight stay and met with Government Agent Jaffna Mrs Imelda Sukumar, the Bishop of Jaffna Rt Rev. Thomas Savundaranayagam, Security Forces Commander of the area Major-General Mahinda Hathurusinghe and visited projects for which Australian aid was being provided in that area (Asian Tribune : 23 December 2011).

SMH found guilty of misleading story on Tamil Tigers - The Australian Press Council has upheld a complaint against the Sydney Morning Herald over its reporting of the final stages of the civil war between the Sri Lankan government and the Tamil Tigers. According to the judgment, published by the SMH today but not yet online on the APC website, an article was misleading and inaccurate in its cover age of a UN report into an incident where surrendering Tamil leaders were allegedly killed while under a white flag. The headline on the report was “Australian entangled in a final act of civil war“. The UN report had said that it was an incident about which it had been “unable to reach a conclusion”. However, the paper later quoted from another part of the report, referring to different incidents which said it was “unable to accept the version of events held by the government”. The APC ruled: “The council considered that the UN report’s reference to government unreliability did not relate to this incident and that reference should have been made to the report’s inability to arrive at a conclusion about the incident. These problems led to the article being misleading and lacking in balance. Accordingly, the complaint is upheld on those grounds.” (mUmbrella).

Press Council adjudication on Tamil Tiger report - THE Australian Press Council has considered a complaint about an article in The Sydney Morning Herald on May 14, 2011, headed ''Australian entangled in a final act of civil war''. It concerned events at the end of the long war between the Sri Lankan government and the LTTE (Tamil Tigers). A reader, Harshula, complained about the article's treatment of an incident in which surrendering Tamil leaders, allegedly under a white flag, were reportedly killed by government troops. He said it should have mentioned that a United Nations report specifically categorised this allegation in a group about which it had been "unable to reach a conclusion regarding their credibility". The article had later quoted the UN report as saying that it was "unable to accept the version of events held by the government", yet this comment actually concerned events other than the ''white flag incident''. Harshula also complained about an assertion in the article that a leader who died in the incident had previously offered an unconditional surrender. He said that a later reference to contents of leaked cables should have included their mention of another leader's offer to surrender to a neutral third party as well as the LTTE's failure to respond to the government's request for the names of leaders who were willing to surrender. The newspaper agreed that the UN had been unable to reach a conclusion about the ''white flag incident'' but said it had called for further investigation, which the newspaper had then undertaken in great detail and reported in the article. The newspaper also argued that the UN's comment about the unreliability of the government's version of events included this incident. It pointed out that the UN report had agreed that there was an offer of unconditional surrender. It said the extra material from the cables was not relevant or necessary for balance. The council considered that the UN report's reference to government unreliability did not relate to this incident and that reference should have been made to the report's inability to arrive at a conclusion about the incident. These problems led to the article being misleading and lacking in balance. Accordingly, the complaint is upheld on those grounds (SMH : 21 December 2011).

Prof. Peiris decries US stand on LLRC - By Shamindra Ferdinando - External Affairs Minister Prof. G. L. Peiris yesterday decried a statement attributed to US State Department spokesperson, Victoria Nuland, on the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) report, as the most unreasonable statement issued by the State Department. Minister Peiris said that Ms Nuland’s statement had exposed again the double standards adopted by a section of the international community targeting Sri Lanka. The External Affairs Minister was addressing the editors of national newspapers and senior representatives of the electronic media at Temple Trees during President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s monthly meeting with the media. Commenting on US demand to reveal the proposed timetable or roadmap to address accountability issues, Prof. Peiris said that such a demand hadn’t been made of any other country. The minister regretted that the US had conveniently ignored a statement made in Parliament by Leader of the House, Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva, last Friday (16) following the presentation of the LLRC report. President Rajapaksa pointed out that Sir John Chilcott’s inquiry into the UK role in the 2003 invasion of Iraq was still continuing. According to the official website of the Iraq Inquiry, the former public servant needed time till summer next year to finalize a draft report (Island ; 20 December 2011).

Sri Lankan commission : Civilians weren't targeted

Sri Lankan commission: Civilians weren't targeted - By The Associated Press BHARATHA MALLAWARACHI (Associated Press) COLOMBO, Sri Lanka - (AP) -- A government-appointed commission concluded Sri Lanka's military did not intentionally target civilians at the end of the country's civil war and that ethnic rebels routinely violated international humanitarian law.The conclusions from the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission report, which was presented to Parliament on Friday, contradict an extensive U.N. report that accused the government of deliberately shelling civilian areas and possibly killing tens of thousands of people in the final months of the conflict.Human rights groups and the U.N. experts panel have called for an international war crimes probe, arguing that the government could not be expected to conduct a credible investigation of its own behavior during the conflict, which ended in May 2009. The government commission said some isolated allegations of civilian abuses by security forces needed to be investigated further, suggesting that any violations could only have resulted from soldiers who were not following orders. (NewsDay.com)

Sri Lanka working to rebuild - By: Paul Dobbyn - Sri Lankan visitor: Sri Lanka's High Commissioner to Australia Thisara Samarasinghe Sri Lanka's High Commissioner to Australia Thisara Samarasinghe was recently in Brisbane to speak to various audiences about his country's progress towards peace and reconciliation in the wake of more than 25 years of civil war. The State Government and members of Brisbane's Sri Lankan community, including Catholics, hosted the high commissioner. The Catholic Leader has published stories recently on concerns among Church groups and individuals about human rights abuses in Sri Lanka. The Leader accepted an invitation to interview the High Commissioner for him to respond to such criticisms. This is an edited version of journalist PAUL DOBBYN's interview with High Commissioner Samarasinghe in Brisbane on November 29. (catholicleader : Published: 18 December 2011)

The West, Mr. Wickremesinghe and the coat-hanger -By Dr. Dayan Jayatilleka -The Minister of External Affairs Prof GL Peiris usually gives no reason to be described as ‘irate’. That however, was the newspaper description of his uncharacteristically sharp remonstration, urging Opposition and UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe not to ‘outsource’ the role of the Opposition to the international/diplomatic community. The MEA website carries the story: "Prof. Peiris lambasted Wickremesinghe for taking all domestic issues before the international community instead of having local mechanisms to tackle problems faced by the Sri Lankans. An irate External Affairs Minister stressed that the responsibilities of the Opposition shouldn’t be handed over to Colombo-based foreign envoys..." (Source: ‘Don’t outsource Opp. responsibilities to foreign missions, GL tells Ranil’ The Island, 2 December 2011). Was there perhaps an unstated flipside to that coin? It may be argued that sections of the international community have also shown a propensity to outsource their Sri Lankan policy at least in part, to Mr Wickremesinghe or to rely upon him as an instrument of policy. (Island: 14 December 2011)

More UK funding to help ex-Tigers, de-mine North - British Deputy High Commissioner, Robbie Bulloch, visited the North this week, where he announced additional UK funding of £150,000 for the reintegration of ex-combatants after their release from custody. This brings the total UK contribution to £650,000 this year (approximately LKR116 million). He also visited a demining project in Jaffna, which is being supported by £3 million of UK money (approximately LKR 535 million). Commenting on his visit, the British Deputy High Commissioner said, "I am delighted to announce additional funding for the reintegration of ex-combatants, which we hope will help to bring about sustainable peace. The UK has long supported a range of initiatives to help Sri Lankans restart their lives after the conflict. Today, I saw a demining project which will enable people to return to their villages. And I had a chance to speak to people who are rebuilding their homes and starting their own businesses, with the help of British funding." The Deputy High Commissioner also visited the Thellipalai rehabilitation centre, and had a range of meetings with political and military leaders and members of civil society. The demining site is at Nagar Kovil in Jaffna. It is being cleared by the HALO Trust, a UK-based demining agency, to which the UK’s Department for International Development contributed £3 million pounds (LKR 535 million) in February 2011. The reintegration project is managed by the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). The UK contributes funds through the European Union (EU) to UNHABITAT for the building and repair of the homes of vulnerable people. The UK’s contribution to the current multi-year EU aid programme in Sri Lanka is around €19 million (approximately LKR 2.9 billion (Island : 2 December 2011).

The Collapsed House of Norwegian Cards - by Dr. Susantha Goonatilake - The over 200 page statement of failure on the Norwegian attack on Sri Lankan sovereignty in its faulty “Pawns of Peace: Evaluation of Norwegian peace efforts in Sri Lanka, 1997-2009? is a document on lessons we should learn. It was but a culmination of the 500-year attempt by the West to dominate us in cahoots with their local lackeys. It was the failure of a “spiritual and temporal conquest of Sri Lanka” as the Portuguese historian Queyroz termed the Portuguese intrusion. After the Portuguese had brutalized the country, Queyroz said that the Sinhalese were “pride itself”; and think only they in the world “observed and maintained the art of government, cleanliness and propriety and that all the other nations are barbarous, low and wanting in cleanliness and propriety – especially Europeans.” He said the Sinhalese considered those who do not eat as they do are the lowest and those who do not wash properly “neither clean nor proper” and that they do not bow to foreigners. As Norwegians did dirty dancing on us – “neither clean nor proper” – we must ask who wrote the report, which publications they read and whom they interviewed. An examination of this gives a list of those in the forefront of subverting our sovereignty and misinterpreting us to foreigners. And the misleading, apologetic report is the outcome. And I personally know the major institutions and the persons involved, having written about the latter in two books published by two leading Western academic publishers. But, before discussing the official Norwegian intervention, we should mention a little-known unofficial intervention, namely by the Norwegian academic Johan Galtung. I have come across the man academically. Once we both gave keynote addresses to the World Futures Federation, and a few weeks ago, at another global conference in a Greek resort. In a very pretentious interview at Al Jazeera he boasted how he wanted to bring peace by nearly dividing Sri Lanka but failed – he implied it was his greatest failure (LankaWeb : 1 December 2011).

Diaspora could contribute towards Northern development - President - The Diaspora could contribute in a significant manner towards development of the North, President Mahinda Rajapaksa said. “We have launched several programmes to develop the North and help our people there. There is a need to provide entertainment for the people of the North and more facilities for sports and recreation in addition to building more hotels. Both the private sector and the Diaspora could play an active role in the North,” the President said. President Rajapaksa also said that most in the Diaspora are yet to see Sri Lanka and Jaffna. He said that it is the right time for them to lend a helping hand. President Rajapaksa added that a Sri Lankan Tamil businessman is now operating a helicopter service to Jaffna and much could be done by the Diaspora. “There is free access and people can visit Jaffna as they wish,” said the President. Soon after opening Sri Lanka’s first expressway connecting Colombo with Galle last week, the President began the spadework for an expressway linking Colombo with Jaffna. “I will work on the Jaffna Expressway so that the distance can be covered in three hours,” he said (Daily News : 1 December 2011).

The Collapsed House of Norwegian Cards - After the Portuguese had brutalized the country, Queyroz said that the Sinhalese were "pride itself"; and think only they in the world "observed and maintained the art of government, cleanliness and propriety and that all the other nations are barbarous, low and wanting in cleanliness and propriety - especially Europeans." He said the Sinhalese considered those who do not eat as they do are the lowest and those who do not wash properly "neither clean nor proper" and that they do not bow to foreigners. As Norwegians did the dirty on us we must ask who wrote the report, which publications they read and whom they interviewed. An examination of this gives a list of those in the forefront of subverting our sovereignty and misinterpreting us to foreigners. And the misleading, apologetic report is the outcome. And I personally know the major institutions and the persons involved, having written about the latter in two books published by two leading Western academic publishers. But, before discussing the official Norwegian intervention, we should mention a little-known unofficial intervention, namely by the Norwegian academic Johan Galtung. I have come across the man academically. Once we both gave keynote addresses to the World Futures Federation, and a few weeks ago, at another global conference in a Greek resort. In a very pretentious interview with Al Jazeera, he boasted how he wanted to bring peace by nearly dividing Sri Lanka but failed - he implied it was his greatest failure (Daily Mirror : 1 December 2011).

Extremist Tamil Separatists Call For A Plebiscite In The North & East To Establish A Separate State Of “Eelam” - by Mahinda Gunasekera - The Declaration adopted by the separatist Tamils seeking international support for the holding of a plebiscite in the north and east of Sri Lanka to establish an independant, sovereign nation state of “Tamil Eelam” is appended below. As their military wing has since been eliminated in May 2009, they are now seeking the route of a plebiscite in the predominantly Tamil areas of the north and east to achieve the same goal of a separate state through the break-up of the sovereign, independent nation state of Sri Lanka where they enjoy equal rights. They are calling on the international community to uphold the South Sudan or Kosovo process that will enable them to form an independent state by carving out territory from Sri Lanka. As advocated by some of us, it is time that Sri Lanka referred the 13th Amendment creating Provincial Councils with devolved powers as imposed by India through the Indo-Lanka Accord of 1987 and the threat of military intervention, for a decision of the island’s people who were not earlier consulted on this issue at a referendum as to the retention or discarding thereof, and replacement of the Provincial Councils by District Councils with appropriate powers deemed adequate for such units, along with Grameeya Sabha with wider powers to meet the needs of the resident populace in each village where the majority of Sri Lanka’s people live, whilst at the same time remodelling the Centre where more powers would be shared with the minorities giving them a role in the day to day governance of the country. Such a move could be accompanied by greater decentralization of the administration by locating the central authority of each department and governmental body in the most appropriate place to maximise the outcome of the services provided and benefits accrued to the general public (LankaWeb : 30 November 2011).

Comment on Norwegian evaluation of their peace efforts in SL - By Neville Ladduwahetty - The report commissioned by the Norwegian Government titled "Pawns of Peace – Evaluation of Norwegian Peace Efforts in Sri Lanka 1997- 2009 answers some of the questions sought by the Sri Lankan Government’s Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC). The key answers sought by the LLRC were: "The facts and circumstances which led to the failure of the ceasefire agreement operationalized on 21st February, 2002…; Whether any person, group or institution directly or indirectly bear responsibility in this regard; The lessons we could learn from those events…". The Norwegian report was prepared by the Christian Michelsen Institute (CMI), Bergen, and the School of Oriental and African studies (SOAS), University of London. UK. According to Mr. Kumar Rupasinghe, one of the largest beneficiaries of the Norwegian Government ($6 million from 2004-2008) CMI "receives 80% of their funds from the Norwegian Government"(Daily Mirror, November 17, 2011). It could be concluded that the SOAS also received funding for its contribution to the report. Under these circumstances, this was an internal evaluation by the Norwegian Government, the only difference being that the task itself was outsourced (Island ; 29 November 2011).

Omanthai, Palai railway line construction in progress - by Sandasen Marasinghe Irangika Range and Disna Mudalige - The construction of the railway line from Omanthai to Palai is in progress, according to an answer tabled by Deputy Transport Minister Rohana Kumara Dissanayake in Parliament yesterday. The stretch from Omanthai to Palai which is 87 km would be reconstructed at a cost of US $ 185 million. The Indian government will provide a concessionary loan, the document tabled by the Deputy Minister said. Indian Ircon Company, a company belonging to the Indian government is constructing the section between Omanthai and Palai. A proper tender procedure was followed in selecting the Indian Ircon Company to reconstruct the railway line from Omanthai to Palai, the tabled answer added. Reconstruction of the Northern Railway line is a priority of the government. Therefore, it has decided to reconstruct this section expeditiously. Accordingly, discussions were held with the Indian government at diplomatic level and a MoU was signed between the Indian Ircon Company and the Presidential Task Force. Thereby, construction work of the section from Omanthai to Palai was awarded to the Indian Ircon Company, the tabled answer said (Daily News : 29 November 2011).

Elaine Pearson’s (Human Rights Watch) Presentation on Sri Lanka’s Human Rights Violations? – November 18,2011 - by Ira de Silva London, Ontario - Mr. Scott-Reid, M.P. Chair, Canadian House of Commons Sub-Committee on Human Rights of the Standing committee of Foreign Affairs & International Development. Re: Presentation by Ms. Elaine Pearson, Deputy Director, Asia Division of Human Rights Watch on Sri Lankan Human Rights – Nov. 18,2011; Dear Sir: I have read Ms. Elaine Pearson’s presentation on Sri Lanka to your Committee. I am sending this response to you and sincerely hope that you will read it as I believe that Ms. Pearson’s presentation has made various assumptions, used material that is unsubstantiated, relied on material such as the Channel 4 documentary which has been proven to be fabricated, “photo-shopped” and much of it originating from the LTTE propaganda publications such as TamilNet without verification or any attempt to determine the authenticity of the facts. Further, Ms. Pearson refers to the report given to the U.N. Secretary General which is called the Darumsman Report which is not a U.N. report because it was not sanctioned by the General Assembly or the Security Council but an advisory report for the Secretary General. The over-riding impression made by Ms. Pearson’s presentation is accusatory and criticism of the Government of Sri Lanka. It is plain that her mission is to achieve her organization’s objective of an investigation in Sri Lanka to which end she is seeking Canada’s backing. What I find most disturbing is that her organization is continuing to make statements ignoring all information and evidence that some of the claims made by them have been shown to be false. It indicates that Human Rights Watch (HRW) is not open to information and disregards whatever is available from many sources if it does not fit their mission to condemn Sri Lanka (LankaWeb : 28 November 2011).

LLRC first to Parliament then to UNSG

LLRC first to Parliament then to UNSG - By S.Selvakumar - The Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) report handed over to President Mahinda Rajapaksa last Sunday would be first submitted to Parliament within next fortnight and thereafter to United Nations Secretary General, top government sources disclosed. The eight member commission was chaired by former Attorney-General C.R.de Silva and comprised with former Foreign Secretary H.M.G.S. Palihakara, former advisor to the External Affairs Ministry Dr. Rohan Perera, Senior Attorney-at-Law M.T.M. Bafiq, former Deputy Secretary to the Treasury C. Chanmugam, former professor of Criminal Justice of University of Nevada, Karunaratne Hangawatte, former High Court Judge Maxwel Paranagama and Deputy Legal Draftsman Manohari Ramanathan. President Mahinda Rajapaksa appointed LLRC sequel to various comments made by several international organisations and certain countries on the conduct of the war against the LTTE and especially the damage caused to ordinary masses and properties during the final stage of the war. Several organisations commented on alleged atrocities by the government forces during the final phase ended in May 2009. The main sessions of the Commission was conducted at the BMICH while session was also held at several locations in the North and East. Several persons including academics, journalists, bureaucrats and ordinary people especially at Mullaitivu gave evidence before the Commission. The war was brought to an end in Mulliwaikkal in Mullaitivu where security forces killed the LTTE leader V. Prabhakaran and his close commanders. LLRC was appointed by President Rajapaksa on May 15, 2010 a year after the defeat of LTTE while United States Secretary General Ban ki-Moon submitted Darusman report to the Human Rights Council of September 14, 2011 (Nation : 29 November 2011).

LLRC report should be given a fair hearing - By Manjula FERNANDO - The Sunday Observer spoke to several personalities on the handing over of the much anticipated Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission report to President Mahinda Rajapaksa last week. The report which received a great deal of publicity in the international arena, drew equal criticism before it even wrapped up its work. Those among the most vociferous critics were the pro-LTTE groups and their sympathisers giving the impression that they feared the result would cripple their anti-Lanka campaign. The Government was firm in its stand and maintained that critics should reserve their comments, until the findings and recommendations were officially put out. The commission released a set of interim recommendations which are now being implemented with the blessings of the well-wishers of the nation. The Sunday Observer asked these individuals how the reactions and opinions expressed on the LLRC report will affect the ongoing reconciliation process that has been initiated by the Government as a means of healing past wounds and bringing communities together in the post-war phase (Sunday Observer : 27 November 2011).

In keeping with ‘collective insight’ of international community: Govt will discuss modalities to implement LLRC Report - by Manjula FERNANDO - The Government said it would discuss the modalities for implementing the LLRC report with the international community in keeping with its ‘firm resolve’ to continually engage with them and gain from their ‘collective insight’. External Affairs Minister Prof. G.L.Peiris said, “We want to be engaged by the ‘collective insight’ of the international community. As soon as it is published we will talk about the modalities of implementation. We are ready for such an exchange of views.” He was addressing the inaugural national conference on reconciliation at the Lakshman Kadirgamar Centre on Thursday. He said the international community must not receive this report with scepticism. Instead, it should be dealt with an open mind. “The report of the LLRC will be in the public domain shortly once it is tabled in Parliament. Please evaluate it, assess it, discuss it.” He said the Government faced a ‘bizarre’ situation in Geneva in September this year when attempts were made to put down on the agenda of the Human Rights Council of March 2012, a document which did not exist at all. The LLRC report was at the time non existent. “Almost every country that we spoke to, agreed that this was a total travesty of justice. The attempt was to malign the document before it was out. It was a demonstration of total prejudice.” The move did not receive support and at the end of the day the resolution against Sri Lanka at the Human Rights Council was not presented. “The LLRC in essence is a local mechanism. I think there has to be respect for the local mechanism and procedures. This is an established practice in the international system. There are specific resolutions in the UN General Assembly, where countries are encouraged to evolve their own solutions on delicately sensitive problems. This is necessary to reach sustainability. He invited the international community to visit Sri Lanka and ‘not to be guided by what is being told’ either by the [Tamil diaspora] propagandists or the Sri Lankan Government (Sunday Observer : 27 November 2011).

Pro-LTTE covert operations bared - By Shanika SRIYANANDA - While studying the final report of the much-awaited the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) regarding the root causes of the three-decade long conflict and also to counter the alleged war crimes charges, President Mahinda Rajapaksa in his address at the Convocation of the General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University (KDU) alerted the nation on covert operation by pro-LTTEers to disrupt normality under the guise of human rights violations. He said terrorists who attacked the government hiding within civil society, were now attempting to attack the government taking cover over human rights abuses today."Even though two years have passed since defeating terrorism, challenges faced by our motherland are not yet over. During the period of terror, the money earned by terrorists was spent on purchasing weapons, ships and aircraft. Today that money is spent on various misinformation campaigns and political conspiracies aimed at destabilising the country.False allegations levelled against the Government are still being circulated in the country. We need to understand that telecasting programs based on fraudulent information about the conflict, forming international human rights commissions against Sri Lanka, and claims about war crimes are all inter-connected", he said.“If this was a personal attack, it would have been easy for me to tolerate. But this is not so. These attacks are against the motherland. You need to understand that it is a threats against national security. It is the duty of all of us to work towards taking the country to a top position in the world. After the liberation of the country we did not forget our war heroes. We love them, respect them and trust them and will do that forever”, the President said. Bachelor and Masters Degrees in Management, Engineering Technology, Commerce, Technical Sciences and Arts were awarded do the graduates and trophies presented for 2011 by President Rajapaksa (Sunday Observer : 27 November 2011).

Weekly Defense Column by Keerthi Warnakulasuriya (Divaina : 30 October 2011)

Turn the lamp inwards, Gota tells war crimes accusers - By Shamindra Ferdinando - In the wake of Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) submitting its observations and recommendations to President Mahinda Rajapaksa, the government has reminded those pursuing Sri Lanka on the human rights front that excesses on the part of individual soldiers had occurred not only in Sri Lanka, but in many other theatres of operations. Addressing the inaugural session of the first national reconciliation conference on Nov. 24 in Colombo, Defence Secretary, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said that there had been many excesses by individuals in each and every war. He cited Vietnam, Afghanistan and Iraq as examples. Among the audience was the Colombo-based diplomatic community including US Ambassador, Patricia Butenis, who, in a now exposed diplomatic cable originating from Colombo alleged President Rajapaksa, his brothers, Gotabhaya and Basil and former Army Chief, Gen. Sarath Fonseka committed war crimes. The allegation was made in the run-up to the last presidential poll in Jan. 2010. Since then Wiki Leaks has exposed a spate of atrocities committed by US troops and intelligence services in Iraq, Afghanistan and other theatres of operations, thereby embarrassing the Obama administration. The UK, too, has commissioned two separate inquiries to probe Iraq war and its complicity in human rights abuses following 9/11. Commenting on accountability issues relating to Eelam war IV, Rajapaksa said that the government had punished those responsible subsequent to inquiries into allegations, including murder, rape and sexual abuse. He assured that appropriate action would be taken if fresh substantial evidence against its personnel is received. In Sri Lanka’s case, the rapid expansion of the military to meet the LTTE’s challenge had caused deterioration of discipline, Rajapaksa admitted, asserting there could have been some black sheep among those recruited during Eelam war IV. The armed forces doubled their total strength, with the SLA alone recruiting 100,000 personnel (Island : 26 November 2011).

IS THE TNA TAKING THE GOVERNMENT ON A RIDE? - By Gomin Dayasri - Metric that matters most is whether TNA with whom Government has initiated a dialogue genuinely want the reconciliation process to succeed. Or are they merely posturing together to placate foreign embassies? The Government gains if reconciliation becomes a success unlike the TNA. But is the Government capable of structuring and contriving a reconciliation process because of an inadequate intellectual grasp? TNA –being a demagogic ethnic party, cats – paw until 5/19, of the LTTE: faithful to its unadulterated racial politics, are in peril if it achieves harmonious relationships with the South, disturbing their perpetual political ploys. They thrive on alleging discriminatory treatment by the majority Sinhalese: generating hate and hostility, instilling fear and anguish, to collect votes. Alleging discriminatory treatment is understandable but to vituperate while engaged in the reconciliation process is to make a mockery of amity talks. The attitude of the TNA cannot attract confidence in a dialogue, by globe- trotting with a complaint sheet to the West , already whirling a rod to spank Sri Lanka. It is an effort to extract the maximum through unwanted foreign political interventions while discrediting the image of Sri Lanka abroad among Lanka skeptics. If their narrow plank of peddling disharmony between ethnic communities collapses, TNA will fall into a whirlpool. A reconciled North/East will allow the two national parties of the South to make an impact on the Tamil voters on broader issues. Their desire is to prevent national parties- PA, UNP and JVP- from penetrating into the Tamil constituencies. Unlike the TNA, Muslim parties in the East have related to the two main national parties and advanced their cause. So too were individual Tamil parliamentarians and politicians in the past, some with left leanings, before being decimated by the LTTE. Not so the TNA and its predecessors, who deemed such persons – traitors to the Tamil cause. The North/East voters are more inclined to participate in the reconciliation process than the TNA realizing the beneficial aspects. Following the road map of the LTTE, roadblocks on ethnic harmony are created by the TNA, for their political advantage. TNA holds a dominant position in the Tamil electorates, a rainbow coalition of many shades of northern opinion on a single slate without a virtual opposition. Minister Devananda’s EPDP [A heart throb of the Liberal/Marxist leaning pro-13th amendment’s latent stragglers in the UPFA holding high office] is more a liability than an asset to the UPFA. EPDP creates a negative image among the voters except among the islanders, for its misdeeds in the North. Southerner Mahinda Rajapakse commands greater respect (LankaWeb : 26 November 2011).

Sinhala genocide and the British - by Janaka Perera - Saturday, November 26th marks the 193rd anniversary of the execution at Bogambara, Kandy of the patriot and national hero Monarawila Keppettipola, who led the first anti-British independence struggle (1817-18) in the Uva Province. It is a fitting occasion to examine the track record of the ancestors of some of today’s international ‘human rights’ champions and democracy advocates. No Sri Lankan Government will be able to totally undo the damage that the British did to the Uva Province socially, economically and culturally in the course of brutally crushing the uprising. The repercussions of this genocidal scorched earth policy are felt to this day in the Uva region, where entire villages were wiped out and crops and livestock destroyed. For 57 years after independence the Uva heroes remained officially on the traitors’ list. Their descendants too were helpless in officially dealing with this grave injustice until the present regime revoked three years ago the notification issued on January 1, 1818. The alien occupation of the kingdom in March 1815 signaled the end of over two thousand years of self-rule and the whole island became part of the British Empire, paying homage to the English monarch. In should be noted here that the former Nayakkar Kings of Kandy – though they were South Indians and their ancestral religion was Hinduism – ruled according to Sinhala customs and recognized Buddhism as the State religion. This was in sharp contrast to the British who did everything possible to weaken and undermine the Sinhala Buddhist culture. Their Trojan horse in this conspiracy was Christianity. Before long the Kandyan Chiefs and the people realised their freedom had been bartered. The Bhikkus joined the people in demanding the king of their own to protect Sinhala way of life and to uphold age-old Buddhist religious traditions (Sinhale Hot News : 26 November 2011).

Richard Armitage Do You Have Alzheimer’s disease? Or Alzheimer’s was induced To You By Tamil Sangahm in Boston, USA? - by Kithsiri Athulathmudali, Florida, USA - Referring to the Erick Solheim’s Carnival held in Oslo, on November 11th 2011 (This is similar to the Carnival Co-Chars had inNew York hosted by Japanese Yasushi Akashi and Richard Blake) when president Rajapakse went to address the UN). At this meeting in Oslo, you insulted the President of Sri Lanka, Mahinda Rajapakse, in the speech you gave at this meeting. No Sinhala American can stay deaf to such remarks. So, I will challenge you for every word and sentence you uttered at this meeting. Unlike Erick Solhiem’s speech that was published in full text on the Colombo Telegraph webpage, I have to go by sections of your speech that were published on various websites and news media (LankaWeb : 26 November 2011).

The Defence Secretary says Sri Lanka need not to be guided by an external force to establish reconciliation among the ethnic groups

I challenge anyone to prove that the Tamil people have not been treated as equal citizens and are still not treated as equal citizens and have lost their dignity and self respect as Sambandan cry? - by Dr Sudath Gunasekara, President Senior Citizens Movement Mahanuwara - This is absolute false and typical baloney of vituperative and communal Tamil politics. Before they point the fore finger at the Government on these stale issues they must first understand that every time they do so at least three fingers in their hands directly point at them and their conscience, for they know that they are lying. So the more they accuse the Government the more it boomerangs on them. It would have been better if Sambandan had told us as to in what specific areas they are not equal as citizens of this country, supported by concrete data. I also do not understand as to what he means when he says that they have lost their dignity and respect. Like any other politician when they behave in undignified and treacherous manner like this little realizing that they are only reaping what they have been sowing over the past few decades. Things like dignity and respect after all are things one has to earn in the hard way. But when they behave like monkeys I wonder how they could earn the dignity and respect of others. They must first be respect worthy and dignified in their action and behavior if they want to be respected and accepted as a dignified lot. If you want the other man to respect you, first, you must respect him and show him that you honestly respect him both by action and word. Without you first smiling at a person I can assure you that you will never see a smiling face in this world. I invite Sambandan and his click or any other who thinks the way they do to look at the following simple facts. There has been no bar for any man or women irrespective of his race, language o religion to rise to any position in this country. The only two positions these people have not been able to reach are the posts of President and the Prime minister for obvious and very valid reasons created by the very Tamils communal politicians (but not by the ordinary Tamils). Had they been given the opportunity this country would have been an EELAM long time ago (LankaWeb : 25 November 2011).

A reply to Sampanthan who went to Toronto to say, “ ….we cannot trust The Government of Sri Lanka ” - by Charles.S.Perera (In Toronto while Sampanthan set aflame hatred of expatriate Tamils against Government, Vasudeva Nanayakkara pleaded for peace and reconciliation .). Did you see Sampanthan and his cronies since their visit to USA and Canada ? They are dressed up like Englishmen, in coats and ties. Sampanthan went to Toronto in Canada, and on the 30 October,2011 made a long speech to a gathering of expatriate Tamils at the Sri Iyappan Temple Auditorium. It was a speech to the expatriate Tamils in Canada to inflame their anger and hatred against the Government of Sri Lanka and the Majority he does not mention by name. What was strange reading that speech (appearing in Transcurrent) is that he has mentioned the word “Sinhalese” only once in his speech, referring to “them” as the Majority. In that one occasion he says, “We consider Sinhalese as our brothers and sisters. Many are ready for a just solution. A just, implementable and lasting solution should be found. But, I would like to make it clear that if such a solution was not put forwarded, we will not accept any other mirage of a solution » In contrast to the speech of Samapanthan to the Expatriate Tamils in Canada was a public Meeting hosted by the Canadian Sri Lankan Community mainly expatriate Sinhala and attended by Mr.Sam Rajendran of the Canadian Tamil Cultural Association, at which the Minister of National Languages and Social Integration Vasudeva Nanayakkara, pleaded for peace and reconciliation to heal the wounds of past conflicts. However, in Canada Sampanthan mixed up the histories. Sri Lanka is a country with a longer history and a richer culture than Canada. Even the name Canada came to be used some where in 1545. The name Canada is derived from Kanata the name of a small Indian village, which Jacque Cartier borrowed and vulgarised to Canada, using it as the name of the areas occupied by the French and later when the French ceded their conquests to the English, the whole of the area occupied by the French and the English was called Canada. The British expelled the French settlers as and when they occupied the respective areas. However, some of the pioneer French settlers remained, most of them in Quebec and others in Manitoba, Ontario etc. Canada became Independent only in 1982. The land they call “Canada “ was occupied by the aborigine Indians who were massacred by the invading British and the French, and now not even mentioned making the Canadians of today made to be the owners of the land (LankaWeb : 25 November 2011).

UK has no regrets over defeat of terrorism in SL, says British HC - By Shamindra Ferdinando - The government believes that a visit to the Eastern Province undertaken by British High Commissioner, John James Rankin, is timely, particularly in view of the ongoing attempts by the international arm of the LTTE, including those living in the UK, to undermine Sri Lanka’s post-war development process. Government sources said the three-day visit, which concluded on Thursday (Nov. 24), would have helped the British to make a realistic assessment of the ground situation. The External Affairs Ministry said that diplomatic missions were free to organize visits to Northern and Eastern provinces, where they could meet people of all communities affected by the conflict. HC Rankin met Chief Minister of the Eastern Province, Sivenesanthurai Chandrakanthan aka Pilleyan at the CM’s Secretariat, Kanniya Road,Varothayanagar. He also had a discussions with EP Governor Rear Admiral (Retd), Mohan Wijewickrama at Governor’s Secretariat, Lower Road, Orr’s Hill and Government Agent of Trincomalee Maj. Gen. (retd) T.T. Ranjith Silva and the Deputy Mayor of Batticaloa. The Defence Ministry said that a fresh review of the situation in the Eastern Province would help the UK identify Sri Lankans who sought asylum in that country citing security concerns, though the war had ended over two years ago. The British HC said that Rankin also took the opportunity to visit the Kiliveddy IDP site in Trincomalee and the Kithuluthuwa village in Morawewa, home to a resettled Sinhalese community. The British HC spokesperson quoted the High Commissioner as having said: ""This is my first visit to the East, which is a fascinating and beautiful part of Sri Lanka. I have found it extremely valuable to meet so many people from the Muslim, Sinhalese and Tamil communities and to see the diversity of people here. Nowhere is it more obvious that Sri Lanka’s different people must work together, after years of conflict, to bring a sustainable peace to the country." (Island : 25 November 2011).

External solutions not for Sri Lanka - Defence Secretary - People reaping the rewards of peace - SL one of most secure and stable countries - by Ishara MUDUGAMUWA - Sri Lanka as a sovereign nation with a rich culture and a proud heritage does not need external guidance to achieve post conflict reconciliation. This will be achieved through an organic, local effort consistent with our culture and our values, and not based on external ideals imposed by others, Defence and Urban Development Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said. He was delivering the keynote address at the inaugural National Conference on Reconciliation at the Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute of International Relations and Strategic Studies yesterday. “It is evident that cultural norms differ from country to country. People living in the United States of America, or Australia, or Canada, or the United Kingdom, or any other country, have no proper understanding of the ground situation in Sri Lanka nor do they understand our current cultural context. It is not for outsiders to impose their values or their judgments on Sri Lanka.” he said. “Sri Lankans who suffered from the war for 30 years and who are now reaping the rewards of peace will find solutions to our national issues. But outsiders have no idea about the post war situation in Sri Lanka,” the Defence and Urban Development Secretary said. “Presently, the country is striving to achieve prosperity on the foundation of peace resulting from the defeat of terrorism. Reconciliation is an essential part of this endeavour, and it is one that will be achieved. As we step forward into a peaceful and prosperous future, I have every confidence that all of us, irrespective of our ethnicity, religion, caste, gender or political affiliation, will put aside our differences and work and live together. We will first and foremost be Sri Lankans,” he said. Further he said that Sri Lanka’s experience with terrorism began in the 1970s. By the time President Mahinda Rajapaksa assumed office in December 2005, terrorist activities in the country had continued for nearly thirty years. They did huge damage to the country’s economic,social and cultural development. They killed approximately 9,800 civilians and grievously wounded more than 10,000. He also noted that the LTTE’s skill at political assassinations was another defining feature of its campaign of terror. Starting from Jaffna Mayor Alfred Duraiappa the LTTE killed seven Cabinet Ministers, 37 Parliamentarians and more than 50 office-bearing political figures during its terror campaign. Its intention was to undermine Sri Lanka’s democracy. They also assassinated democratic leaders and intellectuals in the Tamil community in order to style itself the sole representative of the Tamil people the leaders of other armed groups in the Northern and Eastern areas. “The overall impact of the LTTE’s terrorism was devastating. In addition to the thousands of casualties it caused, the aura of fear and uncertainty it created had a severe impact on all Sri Lankans. In areas outside the LTTE’s control, ordinary peoples’ day-to-day lives were transformed. Parents did not travel together in the same vehicle for fear of orphaning their children by getting caught in a bomb blast. Students’ school attendance dropped every time rumours spread about impending terrorist attacks. Law and order deteriorated as terrorism fostered crime and corruption. The underworld became more powerful and its members gained access to arms and ammunition from various armed groups operating in the country at large. An entire generation grew up under a veil of fear.” he said (Daily News : 25 November 2011).

‘LLRC report in House as early as possible’- by Nadira GUNATILLEKE - The Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) report will be tabled in Parliament as early as possible, Cabinet Spokesman and Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said. Addressing the weekly Cabinet press briefing at the Government Information Department Auditorium yesterday, Minister Rambukwella said that the report had been handed over to the President by the Commission and it will be tabled in Parliament as early as possible. Minister Rambukwella spoke about the incident that took place in Parliament during President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s 2012 budget presentation. Minister Rambukwella said that the accepted tradition of the Sri Lankan Parliament is for all members to stand up when the Finance Minister enters Parliament with the budget proposals. This tradition was continuously followed without any interruption in the past. But this year this long standing tradition was broken by the Opposition. Therefore, it is not justifiable to blame the government MPs only. According to Minister Rambukwella, conflicts are not something new to the Sri Lankan Parliament and similar things had happened in the past. The same type of incidents take place in Parliaments around the world. It is not something unusual. The Sri Lankan Parliament never allowed unnecessary items to be taken into Parliament. Files named ‘Shame’, posters etc are not required for the budget. They are required for a parade. The Speaker is the authority in Parliament. He has already commenced a full investigation into the incidents. Such incidents cannot be accepted on any round. Responding to some questions posed by journalists, Minister Rambukwella said that two persons had been taken into custody in connection with the Lasantha Wickramatunge murder. ‘A full investigation is proceeding in connection with the disappearance of journalist Prageeth Ekneligoda and details cannot be revealed yet. There are some journalists who tell utter lies at international conferences. Everything reported in newspapers is not true. Therefore nobody can accuse government officials and say that they tell lies. They are responsible government officials who represent the government, he said (Daily News : 25 November 2011).

Elaine Pearson’s (Human Rights Watch) presentation on Sri Lanka’s Human Rights violations - by Asoka Weerasinghe, Canada - Mr. Scott-Reid, Conservative MP for Lanark-Frontenac-Lennox and Addington Chair, Canadian House of Commons Sub-Committee on Human Rights of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development. A Response to the presentation by Ms. Elaine Pearson, Deputy Director, Asia Division of Human Rights Watch on Sri Lankan Human Rights Situation on 18 November 2011. Dear Mr. Scott-Reid: It is with great admiration to you and your Sub-Committee on Human Rights of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development, that I request your generous indulgence to read my response to Ms. Elaine Pearson’s presentation on Sri Lanka. I am a Sri Lankan-Buddhist of Sinhalese origin and have lived in Canada since August 1968. Being a Canadian of Sri Lanka origin I claim my right to speak for the silent voices of the 22 million peoples of all ethnic groups back in Sri Lanka who had the courage of their convictions not to buy a plane ticket to get on a plane and land at the Pearson International Airport in Toronto and say, “I am a refugee running away from persecution and discrimination by the majority Sinhalese in Sri Lanka”, who are weeping silently asking the world to give their Peace a Chance as they want to live in harmony among all ethnic groups as one family in one Sri Lanka, as they love Sri Lanka, their Motherland, which may not be perfect, and yet happens to be their home with warts and all. And I hasten to add that 41% of the population in the capital of Colombo is peopled by Tamils, the place where the July 1983 riots happened, an ugly blimp in Sri Lanka’s recent history, and yet they are living in harmony with the majority Sinhalese at this very place and wish to continue to live in harmony and happily ever after (LankaWeb : 24 November 2011).

Battlefield excesses will be probed, if any – GR - By Shamindra Ferdinando - The government yesterday assured the international community that those individual acts of excesses, if any, on the part of the Sri Lankan military, during the final phase of the eelam conflict, would be dealt with in keeping with the domestic law. This assurance was given by Defence Secretary, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa at the inauguration of one-day conference, ‘Reconciliation: The way forward for post-conflict Sri Lanka’, at the Lakshman Kadirgamar Institute of International Relations and Strategic Studies (LKIIRSS). Defence Secretary Rajapaksa emphasised that the government wouldn’t hesitate to punish those guilty of battle-field excesses though there was no truth in the exaggerated figures of civilians killed, quoted by various parties, ranging from 10,000 to 40,000. "During the course of the Humanitarian Operations, investigations were conducted on all allegations, including those concerning major offenses including murder, rape and sexual abuse. Swift action was taken by the military to punish those individuals found guilty of such crimes. Action was also pursued in civil courts. If, in future, any substantial evidence is provided about crimes committed by its personnel, the Sri Lankan military will not hesitate to take appropriate action. In this context, it must also be stressed that the government is committed to following through on its responsibilities in terms of accountability. The Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission appointed by the President in 2009 has gone into all matters concerned with the conflict. Its report has been handed over to the President, and if there are any specific allegations or evidence of crimes therein, investigations will be undertaken and necessary action taken against those involved. The Government is also committed to implementing general recommendations made by the LLRC with regard to reconciliation," the Defence Secretary said. Rajapaksa pointed out that those shedding crocodile tears for battle-field deaths of civilians had conveniently turned a blind eye to loss of civilian life due to other factors such as forced conscription. The conference was attended by the Colombo-based diplomatic community, including those pushing for an international war crimes tribunal in the wake of unsubstantiated UN report on accountability issues (Island : 24 November 2011).

Norwegian peace model and its faults - By Sri Hewa Witharana - Looking at analysis done by Norwegian govt via NORAD is a document that brings Norwegians into serious disrepute as a peace negotiator. NORAD is a respected organization. The report started by insulting Sri Lanka and saying “The conflict is understood here as being rooted in processes of incomplete state formation, which led to competing ethno-nationalist projects.” This statement it self is enough to justify why Norway failed since it ignore how and why Sinhalese Buddhists assert them selves in 1948 after 500 yrs of foreign colonial insults and domination to their country and, how all of these colonials try to erase Sinhalese Buddhist civilization that span more than 200 yrs. Trying to assert Sinhalese Buddhist culture in 1948 we may have done some harm to the minorities rights even though this was not the intention. Interested parties agitated and also help from the past colonial country push the country into an ethnic hot bed which originated from the British and still continue that policy for their strategic gain. Norwegians biggest mistake was that whole history and present issues were taken from few anti establish local traitors who are basically prostituting for foreign dollars… If see CPA, it means either Centre for Paid Advise or Centre for Prostitution and Ass licking. For Norwegians some in this organization look like academics but they are not and some of them are failed Marxists who love dollars and nothing but parasites living on peoples miseries (Asian Tribune: 24 November 2011).

The Defence Secretary says Sri Lanka need not to be guided by an external force to establish reconciliation among the ethnic groups - Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapakse says that Sri Lanka need not to be guided by any external force regarding achieving national reconciliation. He further says that the government is ready to reconcile the ethnic groups through a methodology inherent to Sri Lanka based on its national culture. Sri Lankan citizens have a genuine understanding on the current situation of the country more than anybody else. The Defence Secretary recalls that the Sri Lankan population, who are presently enjoying the benefits of peace were tormented by brutal terrorism several years ago. Mr. Gotabhaya Rajapakse adds that Sri Lankan people are preparing to establish national reconciliation by joining together as one nation. The Defence Secretary delivering the inaugural address at the national reconciliation conference which commenced in Colombo further said that Sri Lanka which acted in determination to defeat terrorism will march forward with the same determination to realize the goal of national reconciliation. Commenting on the various accusations launched against the humanitarian operation carried out in Sri Lanka, Mr. Gotabhaya Rajapakse said that the security forces had focused special attention to prevent any civilian becoming victim of the operations. The report on the commission on Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation has been handed over to the President. The Defence Secretary added that the government has stated that it is prepared to take action if any irregularity has taken place as a result of its recommendations. A systematic programme is needed to be implemented through the reconciliation process to ward off the agitation created in the minds of the general public as a result of exposure to terrorism. The Defence Secretary pointed out that however, it is regretting to find out that certain politicians as well as countries are following a policy favorable to the tiger organisaiton (SLBC : 24 November 2011).

Investors anxious to invest in the North

Court finds Bush and Blair guilty of war crimes - Those who lobbied to have George W. Bush and Tony Blair tried for their role in the Iraq War have finally got their wish. Though the verdict of the court carries no legal weight, its supporters believe its symbolic value is beyond doubt. The court in Malaysia where the trial took place may not have the power to convict, but the verdict against the former British and American leaders was unanimous. “War criminals have to be dealt with – convict Bush and Blair as charged. A guilty verdict will serve as a notice to the world that war criminals may run but can never ultimately hide from truth and justice,” the statement from the Perdana Global Peace Foundation read. The foundation was set up by former Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamed, who was always a staunch opponent of the war against the regime of Saddam Hussain in 2003. He previously branded Blair and Bush “child-killers”. The tribunal, which consisted of a former federal judge and several academics, paid particular attention to the failure of the Western military to find a single weapon of mass destruction in Iraq. WMDs were cited by the Western coalition as a major reason for their military intervention. It also declared the war to be in contravention of the will of the United Nations. “The evidence showed that the drums of war were being beaten long before the invasion. The accused in their own memoirs have admitted their intention to invade Iraq regardless of international law,” said the tribunal. The tribunal has no powers of enforcement, and as yet there has been no response from Bush or Blair. But the Perdana Peace Foundation says it hopes to maintain pressure from the international community on the two leaders, both of whom have now retired from domestic politics. Meanwhile, Donald Rumsfeld, the US Secretary of Defence during the Iraq War, is next on the list to have his case heard by the mock court (rt.com : 23 November 2011).

MR warns of post-war threats to national security - By Shamindra Ferdinando - President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Tuesday (22) said that some of the self-styled human rights champions had the audacity to call the killing of hardcore LTTE terrorist Thamilselvan in a SriLanka Air Force raid an attack on the peace process. Such criticism was part of their strategy to force Sri Lanka to call off its battle against LTTE terrorism, the President told the annual Convocation of Sir John Kotelawala Defence University (KDU) at Temple Trees, where the conferment of Bachelors and Masters degrees on 51 SLA, 23 SLN, 12 SLAF and 4 (three from the Maldives and one from Nepal) took place. President Rajapaksa alleged that those who had backed the LTTE’s cause were still active and posed a serious threat to Sri Lanka’s post-war recovery process. He urged the armed forces to remain alert to the persistent threat though the LTTE’s military muscle had been neutralised. A pair of jets bombed Thamilselvan’s hideout in Kilinochchi in the first week of November 2007 within two weeks of the devastating LTTE raid on Anuradhapura airbase. President Rajapaksa alleged that the LTTE had the backing of certain individuals, various organisations and political parties. Responding to criticism of the conduct of the Sri Lankan military by a section of the international community, the Commander-in-Chief recalled the circumstances under which his government had moved essential items to the Jaffna peninsula, Jaffna islands and Mullaitivu at the height of the war. Having failed to secure an international guarantee for the protection of food ships, the government had shouldered the responsibility of conducting the humanitarian operations, the President said. Many of those who had benefited from the government’s humanitarian efforts had now conveniently forgotten the situation at that, he said. The President emphasised the need for the military to be aware of the threat emanating from external elements due to Sri Lanka’s strategic position in the Indian Ocean. The President said, "As you have received higher education, unlike those trained in the handling of weapons, you should be able to comprehend the ground situation here and rapidly changing economic and political scenes at global level. You should be aware of the current focus on the Asia Pacific region." President Rajapaksa emphasised the importance of those holding command positions at all levels to be disciplined. Those holding junior ranks and ordinary soldiers didn’t like to carry out orders given by an undisciplined senior, he asserted, while warning that the failure on their part would bring them to ridicule in the eyes of their juniors. The President urged the newcomers to earn the respect of those under their command (Island : 23 November 2011).

Replying to Anandasangaree’s the desperate plea of a patriot for a permanent solution - By Charles.S.Perera - Writing to the President of Sri Lanka Anandasangaree says, « Although both of us entered Parliament together in 1970, I am more senior to you in age and in politics. Hence I have a moral duty to tell you frankly what I feel about every one of your actions and decision. Although the writer did not enter Parliament with Anandasangaree, he knows that Anandasangaree was a member of the LSSP . And as the writer is of the same age as Anandasangaree he thinks he also has a moral duty to tell Anandasangaree that he is the worst Tamil racist and a hypocrite. His membership in the LSSP had been bogus and hypocritical, because if he was a sincere member of the LSSP he cannot today speak in the language of a separatist Tamil racist. He was awarded the 2006 UNESCO Madanjeet Singh Prize for the promotion of tolerance and non-violence, which he did not deserve. He calls himself a patriot, and the writer challenges his patriotism. A patriot is one who loves his country and his compatriots whatever their race, colour or religion. A patriot does not seek to divide the people, a patriot loves the unitary status of his country, and does not seek to divide it territorially or communally. But Anandasangaree divides people as Sinhala and Tamils, he does not work for the unity of the people, he wants federalism which is a sort of divisionism. Therefore he is not a patriot. If Anandasangaree wants to be a real patriot , he should give up his call for a Federal Constitution or an Indian model. He should not treat the Tamil Community as a different entity. He should instead be a bridge to bring in the Tamil Community into the mainstream of the Sri Lankan people without allowing them to tear away from the fabric of Nationhood. Sri Lanka could progress faster if all communities get together to give a hand . It is the Tamils who stand on the way of progress with their pseudo “ethnic problem” and show to the world outside a division within. It is the Tamil diaspora which has brought Sri Lanka to disrepute, accusing the President and the Armed Forces for military crimes when they know very well that the elimination of terrorism was a necessity for any progress and that the military operations were against the terrorists and not against the Tamil people (LankaWeb : 23 November 2011).

LLRC report to Parliament in Dec - President Mahinda Rajapaksa will submit the LLRC report to Parliament next month, Presidential Spokesman Bandula Jayasekera said (Daily News : 23 November 2011).

Evaluating the Norwegian evaluation - By Dr. Dayan Jayatilleka - Taken as a whole, the Norwegian study is a valuable and welcome addition to the growing literature on the war and our times. It is however, wrong or empty at its very core. Wrong not only in what it sees and says, but perhaps even more so, in what it does not—in what it fails to or chooses not to see and/or express. The NORAD study is characterised by an absent analytical core. Though I am critical of its post–mortem of the armed conflict and efforts at peace-making, the Norwegian study of the failed peace efforts in Sri Lanka does contain important and valuable observations concerning the international aspect (Ch 7: ‘The International Dimensions of the Peace Process’) and domestic political dynamics and trajectories (Ch 11: ‘The Primacy of Domestic Politics’) . In the section that deals with the international dimension the report significantly admits that "Possibly, Western pressure may have had an adverse effect, as it created additional anxiety and time pressure for the government during the final offensive" and goes on to quote a Wikileaks cable and an observation by me: "Senior Sri Lankan diplomat Dayan Jayatilleka noted ‘It was a neck-and-neck race between the historic chance of finishing off the Tigers and concerted international pressure interrupting the offensive. […] The international pressure was too strong for the Sri Lankan state simply to ignore but too weak to stop the state’s military campaign. […] We had to outrun the pressure by accelerating the military offensive and closing the endgame as soon as possible’ (Jayatilleka, 2010)." (p 79). The observations in the Norwegian study on Sri Lankan politics and political history are considerably more objective than most domestic commentaries, both hagiographic and hysterically denunciatory. The scholars from the School of Oriental and African Studies and the Christian Michaelson institute, brought together by NORAD have held up a mirror before the national political developments of the recent past (Island : 22 November 2011).

Heh, Heh, Hillary, the Horror, the Horror - by Prof. Rajiva Wijesinha - I could scarcely believe it when I was told that Hillary Clinton’s reaction to the death of Colonel Gaddafi was, ‘ We came, we saw, he died.’ The statement seemed so vulgar, and at the same time so asinine in its meaningless parodying of Julius Caesar, that I could not imagine that it had actually been made by the Foreign Minister of the most powerful country in the world. I checked then, and was told by someone I can rely on that she had indeed said. ‘We came, we saw, he died….heh, heh.’ He had seen this on CNN. I was immensely saddened by this. Some months earlier I had written about what I thought was a civilized element in the lady, the awe that seemed apparent in her eyes while she was watching the killing of Osama bin Laden. That had seemed to contrast with the steely determination of the others in the room, and I had fancied that the maker of policy was at least aware of the wider moral dimensions of that particular execution. But now it seemed morality was trumped totally by what seemed to be unashamed gloating. Of course there was a difference, in that the Americans were clearly responsible for the killing of Osama bin Laden. The lady knew this was a defining moment for American decision makers, for clearly they were behind what could be seen as cold blooded murder. But I assume the powers that be felt this was a risk that could be run, that the argument could be made that Osama was a threat to national security even if disarmed and in custody, and therefore it could be argued that the decision had been made as a form of self defence (Island : 22 November 2011).

Sri Lankan president receives response to scathing U.N. report - Sri Lanka's response to a scathing United Nations report alleging war crimes and human rights violations has reached the president's desk. President Mahinda Rajapaksa received the 400-page document on Sunday night. The response, compiled by the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission, will be presented to Parliament, though Rajapaksa did not say when. At their president's urging, Sri Lankans took to the streets in May to rail against the U.N. report, which cites "credible allegations" that crimes were committed by both sides during the final stages of the country's civil war. A three-member U.N. panel recommended that Sri Lanka immediately conduct an investigation into the alleged violations of international law. Human rights groups have already alleged both government troops and Tamil Tiger rebels violated humanitarian laws and that thousands of civilians were killed during the war, which ended in May 2009 after the government declared victory. The rebels had fought a 26-year bloody separatist war that left thousands dead and large numbers of others internally displaced, according to the United Nations. The U.N. report concluded there were "credible allegations, which, if proven, indicate that a wide range of serious violations of international humanitarian law and international humanitarian rights law was committed both by the government of Sri Lanka and the LTTE (rebels), some of which would amount to war crimes and crimes against humanity." In the war's final stage, which lasted from September 2008 to May 2009, the Sri Lankan army advanced into an area of northern Sri Lanka known as the Vanni, where about 330,000 people were trapped by fighting. The report said the government used "large-scale and widespread shelling" that left many civilians dead. Some of the shelling happened in no-fire zones where the government had encouraged civilians to congregate, the report said. Government forces also shelled a U.N. hub and food distribution lines and fired near International Committee of the Red Cross ships that were picking up the wounded, the report said. The government also shelled hospitals on the front lines, some of them repeatedly, the report said. "Most civilian casualties in the final phases of the war were caused by government shelling," the report said. A spokesman for U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said Ban hopes the U.N. report "will make a contribution to full accountability and justice so that the Sri Lankan government and people will be able to proceed towards national reconciliation and peace." (The Official web Portal of the Government of Sri Lanka ; 22 November 2011).

Investors anxious to invest in the North - BOI Jaffna special corr - The Board of Investment (BOI) Jaffna Region Deputy Director R Jeyamanon said that foreign as well as local investors are anxious to invest in 26 investment schemes in the North. Tourism, hotel management, garment industry and ice production are some of the fields of investment the investors are interested in. The foreign and local investors are willing to invest in 10 schemes. They have earmarked schemes for investment in Kilinochchi, Mannar and Vavuniya. A scheme at a cost of Rs 5,600m is among the schemes to be implemented in the Vavuniya and Mannar districts. Investors from Japan, China, Malaysia and Singapore are engaged in feasibility study of investment in the Northern Province, he said (Daily News : 22 November 2011).

North-South transfers of top civil servants to build amity - By Franklin R. Satyapalan - The Government has initiated a programme of transferring Tamil Government Agents from the North to the South and Sinhalese Government Agents from the South to the North, with the view to give Sri Lanka Administrative Service officers an opportunity of building amity among the communities. Secretary to the Ministry of Public Administration and Home Affairs Bandara P. Abeyakoon confirmed that the Government Agent for the Mullaitivu district S. Pathinathan had been transferred out as the Government Agent of Moneragala District and assumed office yesterday . And SLAS official who had functioned as the Secretary of the Commission to Investigate Bribery and Corruption Sarath Ravindra has replaced him as the Government Agent of the Mannar District. Abeykoon said that many new changes were being implemented with the approval of the Cabinet by Minister W. D. J. Seneviratne and the draft of the new reforms bill was before Parliament . According to the reforms District Secretaries would be named as Government agents and given appellate powers over the Divisional Secretaries to hear appeals in matters concerning land problems." In the coming days numerous other transfers of Government Agents between the North and the South were likely to take place, he said (Island : 21 November 2011).

Sri Lanka Lesson Learnt Commission hands over its report to President - Sri Lanka Lesson Learnt Reconciliation Commission LLRC appointed to see whether any people, group or institution bears any responsibilities for the conflict in the country handed over its final report to President Mahinda Rajapaksa Sunday evening at the Temple Trees. "Chairman of the LLRC Mr.C.R,de Silva handed over the report to President Mahinda Rajapaksa at Temple Trees" President Media Director General Mr. Bandula Jayasekara told news.lk In May 2009 the Sri Lankan government concluded a thirty-year struggle against an internal terrorist insurgency which affected all communities and divided the nation. Sri Lanka now has an opportunity to create a multi-ethnic, democratic and peaceful future for all Sri Lankans. To support the drive towards national unity and reconciliation after decades of division, an independent Commission on Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation was established. It held its first sitting on Wednesday 11th August, an important landmark step for Sri Lanka as it returns to peace and stability. Commission is part of an ambitious wider package of measures taken by the Sri Lankan government to drive the process of reconciliation and create the basis for a stable, prosperous future. Other measures include rolling back emergency legislation; an accelerated programme of resettlement, which has already resettled 90 per cent of the 300,000 people displaced internally; rehabilitation and retraining programmes for former combatants, including child soldiers; and sustained investment the north and east of the country to create the economic basis for unity and integration. The independent eight-person Commission brings together eminent individuals representing all of Sri Lanka’s communities. The Commission realises the enormous responsibility placed upon it at this important moment in Sri Lanka’s history. Its conclusions will be drawn from the experiences and observations of the Tamil, Sinhalese and Muslim people, all of whom have suffered greatly during the past 30 years. Based on international examples of best practise, key areas of interest for the commission: • How to prevent a conflict such as this happening again; • Whether any people, group or institution bears any responsibilities for the conflict; and • Restorative justice – the steps that need to be taken to compensate or restore losses, whatever nature or form they may take (The Official web Portal of the Government of Sri Lanka ; 20 November 2011).

White Breed’ at Channel 4 and concocted videos… By Prasad Gunewardene - Once again the ‘White Breed’ at Channel 4 who speaks and write English, a language falsely claimed as the ‘Queens Language’, though it has its original roots to a tribe in Germany centuries ago as evidence, are now preparing another concocted video on baseless and unfounded ‘war crimes’ in Sri Lanka, displaying the venomous pattern of the old imperial hegemony in insulting the people of Asia, as they’ve done to Africa and Latin America from time immemorial. A few months ago, responding to a call by Sri Lanka’s Defence Secretary, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, to take action against Channel 4 for airing an irresponsible video insulting the legitimate troops of Sri Lanka, the British government stated that Britain believed that ‘Free Media’ was a vital part of democracy, and it did not exercise control over media contents. The question that arose from the British statement was - Whether such a free media is allowed to tarnish the image of another democracy resorting unethical and undemocratic standards? (The Nation : 20 November 2011).

Norway’s failed bid - by Bandu de Silva - I refer to your very forthright editorial comments on this issue in today’s issue of The Island (19th November 2011). I myself wanted to comment on what the Norwegian Report and Minister Eric Solheim said concerning India but put it off in order to confine first to deal with the alleged "Premadasa Contact" with the Norwegians which was published in The Island Nov 19. The Editorial is on the spot in saying that what Norway and Solheim say of India is not to be taken seriously. This, in a nutshell, is exactly what I wanted to say. Norway and Solheim knew very well that India did not want any outside parties to involve themselves in the Sri Lankan affair. India maintained a stoic silence when the Norwegian initiative commenced and the Norwegians/Solheim correctly read what that silence meant. So understanding what Indian sensitivities were in coming to meddle in what might be called India’s back-yard problem which can have serious repercussions for India, they rushed to New Delhi not only initially to explain what their role was and many more times later to explain what was taking place. Norway might have wished to get India to play a dominant role in the Norwegian sponsored move. That is, as what the Norwegian Report now says, so as ‘Norway would be seen to be part of a wider international alliance’ just as it did in buying –in Sri Lanka’s biggest donor (Japan) and trading partner (EU) as well as the global sea power (US)……..to provide them with some leverage …..[and] decrease its exposure as a solitary mediator."However, the Norwegian report itself quotes (un named) Indian diplomatic source saying that "Norway gave the LTTE some legitimacy which we found very uncomfortable". Another Indian source is quoted in the Report saying that ‘Indians never factored Norway as a serious presence. … and were sceptical of what they could actually do….. India had very clear ideas about acceptable parameters for a settlement; it would not countenance anything beyond the 13th Amendment. …Also the LTTE could not be part of the solution."(The Island, 17th Nov,2011). As the Report observes, they [Indians] were respectful". This might have been misunderstood as ‘collusion. ’ (Island ; 20 November 2011).

LLRC report to President today - By Arthur Wamanan - The final report of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) will be handed over to the President Mahinda Rajapaksa today. Spokesperson for the now defunct LLRC, Lakshman Wickremasinghe said the report would be handed over to the President today at 11am at Temple Trees. The LLRC was dissolved on November 15 after the completion of its final report on its findings and submissions given by various personalities and members of the public. The commission was appointed by the President on May 15, 2010. The LLRC conducted several sessions in various parts of the country including Colombo, Jaffna, Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu and the East. It was initially given a deadline of six months till November 15, 2010 to produce its report. The deadline was extended due to the interest shown by people to come forward and place their submissions to the commission. The commission was given the mandate to inquire and report on matters that took place during the ceasefire period from February 22, 2002 and May 19, 2009. The commission was to look into the facts and circumstances which led to the failure of the 2002 ceasefire agreement and the sequence of events that followed thereafter up to the end of the war in May 2009. It also looked into whether any person, group or institution directly or indirectly accepted the responsibility in this regard and possibility of taking further action through necessary institutional, administrative and legislative measures to ensure that there would not be a recurrence of such events (Nation : 20 November 2011).

Sri Lanka Lesson Learnt Commission hands over its report to President

Govt - TNA set dates for talks - By S.Selvakumar - The Government and the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) have drawn up an agenda and set future dates for talks aimed at finding a durable solution to the ethnic problem. This follows extensive discussions between the two sides last week centered on devolution of powers, land matters and powers to be devolved to the Governor and that of the Government’s role. The new dates for talks have been fixed for December 1,6,14 and 15. The Government was represented by Ministers GL Peiris and Nimal Siripala De Silva with Parliamentarians Sajin Vass Gunawardene and Rajiva Wijesinghe while the TNA delegation led by its leader and Parliamentarian, R. Sampanthan included MPs Suresh Premachandran, Mavai Senathirajah, M. Sumanthiram with Attorney-at-Law, Kanaga Iswaran at the talks held on November 16. It was the first meeting with the Government after the TNA delegation returned to the country after their recent visit to the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada. TNA sources confirmed the fresh dates set for talks with the government and issues on the agenda for discussion starting next month. Subjects of Law, Judiciary, Devolution of Powers and the Powers of the Centre would be the main topics in the agenda at future talks. TNA sources noted that it would examine the government’s keenness and commitment to resolve issues affecting the Northern and Eastern population to decide on the scope of enhancing future discussions (Nation : 20 November 2011).

Colombo-based foreign diplomats brace for LLRC report - The functioning of a number of local government bodies comfortably won by the UPFA has suffered a crippling blow from the conflicts between the heads and the ruling members of these bodies. The chairmen of some councils were not able to hold the inaugural sittings due to boycotts staged by the ruling party members. At some other councils the resolutions moved by the chairmen have been defeated due to the members of the ruling party voting against them. The heads of the local bodies thus stumped by the ruling party members themselves have complained to the SLFP General Secretary Minister Maitripala Sirisena about the no-go situation they are placed in (Nation : 20 November 2011).

Weekly Defense Column by Keerthi Warnakulasuriya (Divaina : 30 October 2011)

Norwegian Report:A Pawn or Prawn? - By Gomin Dayasri - The official Norwegian assessment of its 12-year peace effort (1997-2009) in Sri Lanka titled "Pawns of Peace" is a mere surface scratch. The judge and the jury in the report being Norway, the fault lines are spread in other directions omitting to mention the more sensitive mistakes Norway made. The report is a whitewash of its Sri Lankan adventure. It could re-enact a repeat performance elsewhere due to a faulty analysis: that may prove costly to another nation prepared to accept their assistance and attention. Deep down Norway’s intentions were honorable, but left in the hands of Solheim, it was subverted by playing the role the LTTE assigned to him - of being their favorite son from a favored nation. Solheim tried to live-up to their expectations due to his long association with the LTTE, losing credibility for Norway and himself. The named trouble-shooter became more renowned for causing rather than taming trouble. Norway needed an impartial unbiased facilitator to head the project. This became apparent watching his sometime substitute Bauer at work, with his more even-handed treatment. Their Ambassador in Sri Lanka communicated home the opinion of the crowd he kept company with – the embassy crawling alienated Colombo society which did not help Norway to monitor the ground situation correctly. Normally earth bound, Norwegians landed on a flawed Sri Lankan surface and remained permanently in a faulty territory - an error that enlarged with their ambassador’s stay in Colombo being extended. Probably Solheim wanted him in town. A laid-back European nation, affluent on North Sea oil, piggybacked in the name of Nobel, invested its nouvelle rich dividends in the business of peace mongering. Norway played for its own glory, without a semblance of an insight into Asian culture. Norwegians became fried "Prawns of Peace" marooned in a Lankan lagoon. Good- natured Norwegian citizenry back home were unaware of the truth of its misguided Sri Lankan mission (Island : 19 November 2011).

Norway's failed bid - The foreign powers involved in Sri Lanka's failed 'peace' process couldn't have been unaware that the LTTE was making preparations for war as they received intelligence feeds from even NATO, Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has said, in a brief interview with this newspaper, commenting on Norway's recent admission that the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) received assistance from foreign intelligence agencies. Even those without access to such intelligence reports knew what the LTTE was up to! Immediately after the signing of the flawed CFA, LTTE ideologue declared at a press conference in Kilinochchi in 2002 that Prabhakaran was both President and Prime Minister of the areas under his control and the Tiger leader reiterated his call for the LTTE cadres to shoot him dead if he ever gave up eelam. The LTTE used the CFA to take delivery of arms shipments, move heavy weapons to strategic locations, recruit combatants, raise funds, retrain and infiltrate other parts of the country. Norway and its NATO allies were aware of the LTTE military preparations but did not mind them as they thought that no harm would befall the outfit, which they considered invincible. In 2008, even after the army had taken the battle to Kilinochchi, Eric Solheim said he was confident that Prabhakaran would spring some surprises on the advancing troops. He told some RAW contacts in Oslo that to the Sri Lanka army Kilinochchi would turn out to be what Stalingrad had been to the Nazis; he not only warned that the army would be entrapped and destroyed in Kilinochchi but also insulted the Sri Lankan military by likening them to Nazis! (Island : 18 November 2011).

NATO, Norwegian military roles in failed peace process exposed

‘Yal Devi’ again in two years - By Don Asoka Wijewardena - The reconstruction of the Railway track from Pallai to KKS will be completed by 2013. Indian Railway Construction International Ltd (IRCON), which is a government owned company of India, has been awarded the contract to complete the project within two years. EXIM Bank of India will provide financial assistance to the tune of US$ 50 million for the project. The Sri Lankan government expects to resume the ‘Yal Devi’ train operation once again, after the completion of the track, Transport Minister Kumara Welgama announced at the agreement signing ceremony between India and Sri Lanka at Taj Samudra Hotel yesterday (18). Minister Welgama said that the construction of the railway line from Pallai to KKS was badly needed as the people in the North were facing numerous transport difficulties due to inadequate transport facilities. The mission of the government was the provision of a safe, reliable and punctual rail transport service for both passenger and freight. The distance between Pallai and KKS was 55 km. The IRCON company had undertaken the project to be completed within two years, but engineers were positive that the construction could be completed ahead of schedule. It would be a boon to the people in the North, the Minister added. Indian High Commissioner Ashok K. Kantha said that India would see things in their correct perspective and assured that the construction would be completed ahead of schedule. The designs of buildings and culverts were according to Indian standards and specifications. Therefore, Sri Lankan Railways would have to check designs with the Sri Lankan standards and specifications. If there were any major discrepancies, IRCON would revise the designs accordingly. He added that apart from the above observations, the technical proposal would meet the requirements of the railway department. IRCON had agreed with the above observations to make necessary arrangements to comply with such requirements (Island : 18 November 2011).

Yal Devi to run to Kankesanthurai by end of 2013 - By end of 2013 - Yal Devi (Goddess of Jaffna) will again run to Kankesanthurai from Colombo. The express train which was named in the 50s (though services commenced much earlier), had to be curtailed in the early 90s because of the war between the Tamil Tigers and the Sri Lankan forces. It was then terminated at Thandikulam, but now runs till Omanthai. On Friday, IRCON and Sri Lanka Railways signed a Memorandum of Understanding to construct the US $ 150 million KKS- Pallai line. Indian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka Ashok K Kantha said that once the IRCON projects are completed, full connectivity will be restored till Thalaimannar. He said that the wreck removal works at the KKS harbour were on schedule and the harbour will be operational by middle of next year. This would give a big fillip to connectivity with India since Nagapattinam was just over 60 miles away. The project in the Northern Province was not just about restoration of normalcy, it would signal full momentum of economic development, he said. Work on the three IRCON railway projects – two in the north and one in the south – were going smoothly and all three projects will be completed on schedule if not ahead – middle of 2013, he added. Railway Board (Member) A.P.Mishra said that the Indian Railways were always willing to help out Sri Lankan Railways whenever a request was made. Railways were the lifeline of India (Hindu : 18 November 2011).

Failed peace process: NATO, Norwegian military roles exposed - By Shamindra Ferdinando - Now that Oslo had admitted that the Norway-led Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) received intelligence from both the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), those running the peace process couldn’t have been unaware of LTTE’s preparations for war, Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said yesterday. He was commenting on the Norwegian peace evaluation report released in Oslo last Friday. "In spite of foreign intelligence services confirming our own assessment regarding LTTE preparations for war, those spearheading the peace process turned a blind eye to the rapidly deteriorating situation," Rajapaksa said. The Norwegian study quoted SLMM head as having said that RAW only reached them through informal channels, therefore they couldn’t be fully trusted. "They weren’t giving it to us to be nice. We would always ask ourselves why they want us to know this. Intelligence provided by NATO only confirmed what they already knew," the SLMM Chief was quoted as having said. However, the Oslo-funded study revealed that the Norwegians had high level meetings in New Delhi with RAW. The Norwegian-led SLMM comprised men from Scandinavian countries. The study also cited the SLMM as having alleged that Sri Lanka, the LTTE and India opposed the mission having radar surveillance. Defence Secretary Rajapaksa said that the Norwegian report only proved the failures on the part of those running the peace process. In fact, the SLMM could reveal the intelligence it had received from NATO or any other regional or global power, the Gajaba veteran said. He said that the failed Sri Lankan peace process should be a case study for the global community. Commenting on a query attributed to Hanssen Bauer and Brattskar whether the ethnic and political problems in Sri Lanka could be solved by military means for which he was quoted as having said, ‘yes’, the Defence Secretary emphasized that the crisis caused by the LTTE needed a military response. "What really surprised me is that a section of the global community still seems to believe in a political solution to a terrorist problem," Rajapaksa said. The Defence Secretary pointed out that the report also admitted the Sri Lankan military had been denied an opportunity to take part in substantive negotiations, while Norwegian military experts were involved in ‘military technicalities of de-escalation, advanced positions and front lines.’ Former Navy Commander Vice Admiral Daya Sandagiri told the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) the step-motherly treatment given to the Sri Lankan military in the run-up to the finalization of the CFA (Island ; 17 November 2011).

LTTE unlikely to release civilians trapped on the Vanni front - Norwegian envoy told BR: By Shamindra Ferdinando - Norway believed that the LTTE wouldn’t accept a tripartite proposal to release the civilian population trapped in the Vanni east in the final phase of the conflict. Authoritative sources told The Island that the then Norwegian Ambassador in Colombo Tore Hattrem had written to presidential advisor MP Basil Rajapaksa regarding the LTTE’s perceived refusal to release those trapped on the Vanni east frontline. Referring to a telephone conversation he had with MP Rajapaksa earlier in the day, Ambassador Hattrem wrote to the MP: "The proposal to the LTTE on how to release the civilian population now trapped in the LTTE controlled area has been transmitted to the LTTE through several channels. So far there has regrettably been no response from the LTTE and it does not seem to be likely that the LTTE will agree to this in the near future." The Norwegian diplomat captioned his terse four-line letter ‘Offer/proposal to the LTTE.’ Government sources told The Island that those wanting to haul Sri Lanka up before international war crimes tribunal had conveniently forgotten Prabhakaran’s refusal to let the civilians go. Responding to a query, sources said that disgraced Norwegian peace facilitator, Erik Solheim last Friday declared that a truce could have saved some 40,000 civilians. Minister Solheim was speaking at the launch of a Norway-funded evaluation of its peace initiatives in Sri Lanka. Sources said that those attacking President Rajapaksa over accountability issues should seek a clarification from Ambassador Hattrem with regard to Sri Lanka’s claim. In fact, it would be interesting to know the identities of those helping the Norwegians to convince the LTTE, sources said. The Norwegians went to the extent of having a clandestine meeting with Kumaran Pathmanathan alias ‘KP’ on Feb. 26, 2009 in Malaysia to work-out a deal. Sources said that the government ordered the army to go ahead with the largest rescue operation in contemporary history in late April 2009. Those shedding crocodile tears for people of the Vanni had turned a blind eye as long as they felt the LTTE could turn-around the ground situation. Sources said that some military experts as late as Dec. 2008 and early Jan. 2009 asserted that the Vanni war could go either way (Island : 17 November 2011).

Terrorists deprived children of education and human rights – Army Chief - Commander of the Army Lieutenant General Jagath Jayasuriya, speaking at a ceremony held at the BMIC on Tuesday (15) morning, to present scholarship grants for the year 2011 to the Children of Officers and Other Ranks serving the Sri Lanka Army Volunteer Force (SLAVF), said "Terrorists in the past deprived the people in the North and East of their inalienable rights to education and human rights". The commander said the three-decade-long bitter fight against terrorism lowered the standards in all spheres of the social fabric. "One need not be surprised if one heard that there were men in the North and the East who had-failed to receive an iota of education in the past 30 years due to the cycle of terrorism. The terrorists used force, abducted or forced children to wear cyanide capsules and carry guns, violated their sacred right to education and confined their valuable lives to underground bunkers". In his brief address, after the awarding of scholarships, the Army Commander said that the unwavering leadership of Commander-in-Chief President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who rose to the occasion firmly and courageously, with the able guidance offered by Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa, enabled the Army to eradicate the military muscle of the Tigers. This paved the way to establish peace and harmony in society to realise the aspirations of the entire citizenry at the opportune time. The awards presentation, organized for the second consecutive year by the SLAVF, on a proposal made by Major General D. R. A. B. Jayathilaka, Commander, SLAVF, this year offered 461 scholarships to students of Grade 5, Year 11 (GCE O/L) and university entrants who had obtained the highest scores in their respective fields. The recipients of scholarships were children of families of SLAVF officers and other ranks, both serving or retired from the service. Mrs. Manjulika Jayasuriya, President of the Seva Vanitha Army Branch, parents of scholarship recipients, invitees and a gathering of senior officers, including Major General R.M.D Rathnayaka, Chief of Staff, Army Headquarters, Major General A. L. R. Wijethunga, Deputy Chief of Staff and Major General A.0 Obeysekara, Deputy Commandant SLAVF, attended the ceremony (Island : 17 November 2011).

Lessons learnt by Norway Pawns of Peace – Evaluation of Norwegian Peace Efforts in Sri Lanka 1997-2009 - In this concluding section, we publish verbatim extracts from the Norwegian government commissioned evaluation of their peace efforts in Sri Lanka, on the lessons learnt from their experience in Sri Lanka. We attempt to bring together the strands of a recurring theme in this evaluation, namely the primacy of domestic politics in the story of war-making and peacemaking in Sri Lanka. The narrative of chapters 4 to 6 is to a large extent a narrative of political developments. It was argued that the characteristics of Sri Lankan politics left the Norwegians with very limited room for manoeuvre. These characteristics included the pathologies of the Sri Lankan state, the non-negotiability of competitive state building projects, the dynamics of ethnic outbidding and inter-party rivalries and the history of failed negotiations. These constraints were unlikely to be overridden by any external intervention, still less by a mediator with limited leverage. While it is difficult to separate out Norway’s role from the peace process more broadly, the evidence suggests that the choice of a different facilitator or fine tuning the negotiation model would have made little difference to the final outcome (Island : 17 November 2011).

UN agency promises probe into LTTE maritime ops - by Shamindra Ferdinando - The Sri Lanka Navy on Tuesday (15) urged the UN agency, International Maritime Organisation (IMO), to investigate how the LTTE had operated a fleet of ships in spite of being a proscribed organisation. Rear Admiral J. S. K. Colombage raised the issue with Ms. Brenda Pimental, IMO’s Regional Coordinator, at the Galle Dialogue 2011, at the Light House Hotel, Galle. The SLN veteran pushed the IMO for a cohesive inquiry to identify shortcomings in the system and adopt remedial action. Colombage said that the illegitimate LTTE operation could be a case study for the UN agency. The official was responding to Ms. Pimentel, after she presented a 30-minute paper on ‘Current Challenges in Global Maritime and IMO initiatives’ on the second-day of the confab attended by 19 countries, including nuclear powers, US, Russia, China, France, India and Pakistan. Although the government of Sri Lanka had acted swiftly and decisively when asked to implement the International Ship and Port Facility Code (ISPS Code), Sri Lanka’s plea for action against the LTTE wasn’t heeded. The ISPS Code is a comprehensive set of measures to enhance the security of ships and port facilities developed in response to perceived threats to ships and port facilities, in the wake of Al Qaeda attacks on the US. "The LTTE shipping fleet flouted all international laws. It operated with impunity in spite of a range of laws governing international shipping operations," Colombage said. An agitated Ms. Pimentel requested the SLN to make representations to the London-based IMO promising to take up the issue. The IMO, formerly known as the Inter-Governmental Maritime Consultative Organisation (IMCO), was established in Geneva in 1948 and came into operation 10 years later. Ms. Pimentel said that the IMO would be meeting again in London next week. Rear Admiral Dato Musa bin Omar, Assistant Chief of Staff, Plans and Operations, Royal Malaysian Navy, seated next to Ms Pimentel, assured Colombage that Malaysia would throw its weight behind its request. Omar asserted that a joint appeal by several countries would make a difference at the IMO. In August 2009, Malaysia facilitated the arrest and extradition of Kumaran Pathmanathan alias ‘KP’, who had played a pivotal role in LTTE ‘shipping operations’ since early ‘90s. Captain Kalana Jinadasa, currently based in the Northern Command, queried whether the IMO could take punitive action against those countries, which provided flags of convenience to LTTE ships. Capt. Kalana suggested that those countries should be accountable for co-operating with the LTTE (Island : 16 November 2011).

India was to blame! Pawns of Peace – Evaluation of Norwegian Peace Efforts in Sri Lanka 1997-2009 - Norway was chosen as a facilitator, not only for its expertise, but also because it was a small power without geo-strategic interests and colonial baggage. Being a less powerful player, Norway felt it had to consult the US and India, the former as the world’s superpower and the latter as the regional hegemon. The Norwegian team understood that without their backing (explicit or tacit) they could achieve little. While the US appeared to be unambiguously positive, India’s response to Norway’s role was less committal and less optimistic. India did not object since they saw Norway as non-threatening and gave them (lukewarm) support in the absence of any obvious alternatives. As one Indian informant commented: ‘the attitude was: try it and we’ll see what happens, [but] the Indians never factored Norway as a serious presence. They were respectful, but sceptical of what they could actually do... India supported Norway because they thought it would not work anyway’. India had very clear ideas about the acceptable parameters for a settlement; it would not countenance anything that went beyond the 13th amendment in terms of devolution of power to the north-east. Also, the ‘LTTE could not be part of the solution. ‘ For both the US and India, Norway was useful as a medium to the LTTE because of their own anti-terror restrictions. The downside, according to one Indian diplomat, was ‘that Norway gave the LTTE some legitimacy which we found very uncomfortable’ (Island ; 16 November 2011).

Should Norwegian money bags be our conscience? Or, should Norway be held responsible for the LLTE ‘s killings? - by Ranjith Soysa - The study conducted on Norway Peace Plan has revealed many issues which will be vital for the present and future policy makers of Sri Lanka. While some Sri Lankan politicians, many members of the business fraternity and all the foreign funded NGOs including a number of journalists supported the Norwegian peace treaty, the majority of the Sri Lankan people clearly understood the hidden agenda of the Vikings. One of the important areas which was not discussed in detail in the study referred to was the dubious role played by Norway in her attempt to help directly the establishment of LTTE’s Eelam and provide legitimacy to the LTTE. In a memorandum addressed to the UN Counter Terrorism Committee on 9 Oct 2004, by the World Alliance for Peace in Sri Lanka comprising 17 organizations based in a number countries, a request was made to probe Norway’s role as the country has acted in violation of UN Resolution 1373 (2001) By that resolution, Norway was obliged to a) criminalize the wilful provision or collection of funds for terrorism; b) freeze resources of persons who commit or attempt to commit terrorist acts; c) prevent the financing of terrorism d)prohibit their nationals or any other persons within their territories from making funds, finances et available to terrorists. The memorandum queried whether a “state/facilitator” can place itself above international law in the name of peace and open the doors to terrorism and its related activities within its borders. It stated that Norway’s entry as a state/facilitator has been compromised by its refusal to abide by the legal provisions expressed in Resolution1373 (LankaWeb : 16 November 2011).

Northern development: Projects worth Rs 50,000 Million launched in resettled areas

Norway is not alone - by Nalin de Silva - Norway has issued a report before the LLRC and what is clear is that the Scandinavian country tries to hide the involvement of the UK, the US and other European countries in the so-called peace process. Norwegians could have waited for the LLRC report as they have not gained anything special by trying to beat the latter. The involvement of Norway is clear and what they want to hide is their attempt to establish an Eelam in the Northern and Eastern Provinces of the country. The so-called confederation that the Norwegians were after was nothing but two states and we are reminded of the Apex bodies that had been proposed in the course of "peace discussions". Solheim thought that Sri Lanka was his kitchen and used to visit the country too often. However, the million Krone question is why Norway decided to get involved in the Sri Lankan "peace process". There were some who thought that Norway was interested in our oil but we always felt that Norway was only a puppet that had some experience in dividing countries, and the UK and the US were making use of Norway’s ability in "unmaking nations" to use a terminology in vogue during the hay days of "peace activities". It is very likely that the Norwegians decided to issue the report at this juncture at the insistence of English who probably wants to humiliate the LLRC. The US is supporting its former colonial master though the big power has nothing much to gain by establishing Eelam. The so-called superpower does not need to establish another country in order to do business (exploitation) and the pundits would be groping in the dark without learning any lessons on the way the colonial powers work towards the betterment of their cultures and races (Sri Lanka Guardian : 16 November 2011).

Lecture by Dr Rohan Guneratne at the British Council - Globally renowned terrorism expert Dr. Rohan Gunaratne will be delivering a lecture to the British Scholars Association on the topic "Future of Sri Lankan Security: countering the LTTE on western Soil" today (16) at the British Council auditorium at Alfred House Gardens, Colombo 03 from 5:00pm. Dr. Rohan Gunaratne has been following the terrorism problem of Sri Lanka from its inception and has been closely working with state authorities providing advice and guidance. He is currently the head of Singapore's International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research (ICPVTR), one of the largest specialist counter terrorism research and training centres in the world. He is also Professor of Security Studies at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore and a Senior Fellow at the International Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism, Oklahoma, USA. Gunaratna serves on the advisory board of International Centre for Counter- Terrorism in The Hague. Dr.Gunaratne has authored fourteen books in his area or specialisation which includes several on the Sri Lankan conflict. The lecture is free & open to the public. Please call British Scholars Assosiation Secretary Dr. V. U. Rathnayake on 0718262877/2337737 & on renp@sltnet.lk and reserve your seat early (Sri Lanka Defence Ministry : 16 November 2011).

Defence Secy calls for boosting maritime security - All coastal nations vulnerable to threats - Cites LTTE as example - by Dharma Sri Abeyrathne - Sri Lanka while insisting that the lack of a coordinated effort to uphold maritime security affects oceangoing vessels and the coastal nations, yesterday called for greater cooperation to boost such security. Defence and Urban Development Ministry Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said the Sri Lankan experience in combating one of the most ruthless terrorist organizations in the world - the LTTE- is instructive in facing the threats of maritime security. He said that the LTTE smuggled formidable arsenals of weapons which included most modern weapons and light aircraft. “None of these items were made in Sri Lanka. They were manufactured in various parts by LTTE front organizations and operatives illegally, smuggled them into Sri Lanka via sea,” he said. The Defence Secretary was delivering the keynote address at the inauguration of Galle Dialogue 2011 - the international maritime security conference at Light House Hotel in Galle yesterday. The event was organized by the Sri Lanka Navy. Defence and Urban Development Secretary Rajapaksa said that the LTTE managed to ship this equipment to the country in over 20 large vessels and a large number of trawlers registered under different flags. He said that the Sri Lanka Navy went into deep sea on five occasions to destroy eight of these floating warehouses during the humanitarian operation between 2006 and 2009. The Secretary added that far reaching measures are needed at the highest level to address this threat in a coordinated fashion. “All costal nations are vulnerable to threats from the sea and terrorists will exploit the weak points in our defences to their advantage,” he added. He opined that the overall maritime security can be enhanced through cooperation of maritime powers by sharing intelligence, joint and coordinated patrols as well as exercises to boost interoperability. Referring to Somali pirates, Rajapaksa stressed that the existing international maritime laws and practices have proven ineffective in combating the activities of Somali pirates. “Merchant vessels were traditionally forbidden to carry weapons, the protective measures adopted by them were often too weak to withstand the escalating sophistication of the pirates,” he said. Rajapaksa added that some countries like the United States have adjusted their maritime laws to enable private security personnel to travel on board merchant vessels. The Secretary noted that a few countries have expressed interest in sending personnel from their national militaries on board merchant vessels to provide security for those ships and have requested Sri Lanka’s assistance during transit (Daily News ; 16 November 2011).

Northern development: Projects worth Rs 50,000m launched in resettled areas -Jaffna GA Imelda Sukumar - by Chamikara WEERASINGHE - Infrastructure development projects totaling to Rs 50,000 million have been launched in areas where internally displaced people have been resettled in the Jaffna Peninsula as at present, said Jaffna district GA Imelda Sukumar yesterday. Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa has given land clearance to more than 85 percent of lands affected by landmine contamination for development after successful de-mining operations, said Sukumar. Thousands of infrastructure development projects are now underway in these areas which had been security zones for decades barricading public access into them and thereby preventing development, she said. Access to sea has also been established in Jaffna, she said. A team of World Bank officers that recently visited the peninsula, said that Jaffna’s physical progress was high, said Sukumar. “During their six-day visit, they have asked me to speed up the financial progress in Jaffna for contractors who have undertaken various development activities and have not presented their bills. “This has created a small gap between the physical progress and the financial progress,” she explained. Prior to 1983, the production of fish in Jaffna was 40,000 metric tonnes per annum. ‘However, with the start of fishing operations in Jaffna after liberating the sea in 2009, the fishermen in Jaffna have been producing 20,000 metric tonnes,’ she said. “This is due to a trawling problem in the sea by foreign vessels, said Sukumar.” Illegal trawling has discouraged the fishermen. It has prevented us from achieving the targets set out by us,” she added (Daily News ; 16 November 2011).

Defence Secretary says: Greater int’l cooperation needed to end threats to Indian Ocean region security - The lasting solution to threats of piracy cannot be undertaken by individual nations in isolation, but only through greater international cooperation, Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said. The Defence Secretary was addressing the International Maritime Security Conference, Galle Dialogue 2011, at Light House Hotel, Galle yesterday. It was organised by the Sri Lanka Navy under the aegis of the Defence Ministry. The full text of the Defence Secretary’s speech (Daily News ; 16 November 2011).

Lanka at ‘critical point’ post-LTTE – Moragoda - A prominent Sri Lankan politician who played a key role in the peace process says his country stands at "a critical point" when decision makers need to make choices to help heal the wounds of a war that ended two years ago. "We stand at a critical point. We have an opportunity to make our future," Milinda Moragoda, who has held many cabinet posts in the past, said on the sidelines of an event here. Sri Lankans could "either lay the foundation for a prosperous Sri Lanka or potentially sow the seeds for another conflict", said the 49-year-old, who in December 2009 founded the Sri Lanka National Congress with a view to promoting national unity, inclusiveness and political reforms. Moragoda was one of the key speakers at the release of a Norwegian government-sponsored but independent study on the reasons Oslo’s role as a facilitator failed to bring peace to Sri Lanka. Formerly of the United National Party, he played a vital role in events that led to the 2002 ceasefire agreement between Colombo and the Tamil Tigers. The truce later collapsed, sparking off fresh war that led to the decimation of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in May 2009, formally ending a conflict that had ignited a quarter century ago. Moragoda said Sri Lanka remained a divided country, the most visible and major factors factored around religion and ethnicity. "Political parties have become tribal, there is too much patronage system," said the former MP who is now considered close to President Mahinda Rajapaksa. "A lot of this," he added, "is because of the corrosive impact of the war." Sharing his insights on Sri Lanka, he said the conflict, which claimed tens of thousands of lives between 1983 and 2009, had destroyed many core values and caused cracks in society. "We need to come together as a society. We need to feel less insecure. "Our post-independent politics divided rather than united us, demonising one group or the other. Post-war (2009), we need to be less parochial, more visionary." Moragoda argued that contrary to what many outside Sri Lanka may think, the average Sinhalese was not racist. "There is nothing wrong with Tamil or Sinhalese nationalism per se. But they should not get destructive." (Island ; 15 November 2011).

Ambassador Tamara Kunanayakam affirms :” There is no single model of development valid for all peoples, at all times”- by Ambassador Tamara Kunanayakam - Media Release - The right to development is a universal and inalienable human right, an integral part of our human heritage, which is as much a prerogative of States as it is of individuals. Speaking at an event to commemorate the 25th Anniversary of the Declaration of the Right to Development organized by the Non-Aligned Movement, the Organisation of Islamic Countries and the Office of the High Commissioner of Human Rights, Ambassador Tamara Kunanayakam, as Chairperson/Rapporteur of the United Nations Working Group on the Right to Development, reminded the international community that the Declaration recognizes “the human person, both individually and collectively, as the central subject of development” and that “there is no single model of development valid for all peoples, at all times. The realization of the right of peoples and States to determine their own economic, political, social and cultural systems, without externally imposed conditionalities, is a prerequisite for the realization of all other human rights”. She recalled that the historic principles contained in the Declaration rest on sources of legality and that the basic principles can be traced back to the 1955 Bandung Conference of African-Asian States, the new concept having entered the UN debate through the Non-Aligned Movement. For newly independent States, political independence from colonial rule had not brought with it the promised economic independence or social wellbeing. Externally driven development strategies focusing on growth rather than on people and an international division of labour that favoured the dominant powers had further exacerbated socio-economic disparities and the external dependence of developing countries (LankaWeb : 15 November 2011).

Beware of Tamil Fraud - by Asoka Weerasinghe, Canada - Rathika Sitsabaiesan, MP (NDP) for Scarborough-Rouge River, House of Commons, Ottawa; Dear Rathika: Holy Ganesh and Vishnu! Well…well…what do you know!! Did you read the news item BEWARE OF FRAUD! It is all about five of your Tamil people, perhaps convention refugees, who very likely cheated their way into Canada saying that they were persecuted and discriminated by the majority Sinhalese in yours and my Sri Lanka, the same mantra that you keep doling out in parliament to disgrace Sri Lanka that you knew very little of when you left that island at the age of five other than recollecting playing under coconut palms and mango trees. But here is the scoop Rathika. These Tamils, or should I call them Canadian-Tamils, that Canada adopted have been identified as Jeyaparan Shanmugalinga 27, of Markham; Sabesan Mathiabaranam 39, of Toronto; Jegatheeswaran Velautham 49, of Markham; Stanley Rajadurai 34, of Toronto and Gunaratnam Selvakumar 37 of Brock Township. May be that you knew at least one of them if not all, or may be none of them. After all you are a politician who would go about like other politicians kissing babies with a broad Cheshire cat grin and shaking hands. Their crime is that they are a GTA wide ATM fraud -ring, facing a total of 52 charges. The police say that the five of the above were arrested out of seven, and the investigators had seized $35,000 in cash along with four vehicles, including a Porsche Cayenne and BMW X5. Rathika your supporting the Tamils to be brought over from Sri Lanka saying that they are persecuted smacks right in your face as a God damn lie… as it looks like they are not being persecuted but these guys like many others were seeking places far afield from Sri Lanka where they believe that the roads are paved with green $20 dollar bills and Klondike gold nuggets and thousands of green $20 dollar bills stacked in ATM machines that they can steal from. Well…Rathika…what are you going to do about it? I at least hope that you will take care of your Canadian constituents from your Tamil fraudsters and break ranks with your party and vote for every Crime Bill in parliament and stop your nonsense about Sri Lanka’s war crimes just because her soldiers whipped the butts of the Tamil Tigers, the ruthless terrorists and eliminated them on 19 May 2009, whom you so proudly endorsed in your Facebook pages with their red flag with a growling tiger surrounded by bullets and Kalashnikovs after winning the Scarborough-Rouge River riding to enter Parliament (LankaWeb : 15 November 2011).

5000 families resettled after demining north and east - History has been created by a local organization by establishing the first ever South Asian humanitarian de-mining organization to clear the mine infested areas, which facilitated successful resettlement of over 5000 internally displaced families. This programme was initiated by Milinda Moragoda Institute for Peoples’ Empowerment (MMIPE) in 2003, which saw removal of landmines from a vast area exceeding 25,000 acres, facilitating those areas to be resettled and brought under economic activity, a press release issued by the MMIPE said yesterday. MMIPE’s humanitarian mine action programme commenced with technical support and training of local demining teams by two Indian organizations, Sarvatra Techincal Consultants and Horizen. Financial support for this humanitarian programme was provided by the Norwegian government. At present MMIPE is carrying out de-mining activities in Muruthankulam and Cheddikulam in the Vavunia District and Pulmudai in the Trincomalee District. When completed these three tasks would enable release of additional 1000 acres for paddy cultivation. The first stage of mine clearance under the programme enabled release of 25,000 acres of land in Kandasamy Nagar, Kuppiyagama, Chekkadipallavu A, Chekkadipallavu B, Ammivaithan, Ellamaruthankulam, Maruthankulam and Maruthodai, in the Vavuniya District; Poomaranthan and P/Pandivirchan in the Mannar District; Pullaiadicholai-Muttur, Poonagar, Ichchalampattu, Sankankuli, Maavillaru, Tennaimaramvadiya, Pulmudai in the Trincomalee District; Dematawewa, Diyaittawewa, Yan Oya, Thanthirimale, Kanugahawewa, Yakawewa and Kongollawa in the Anuradhapura District (Island : 14 November 2011).

India, LTTE met ’secretly’ before Sri Lanka truce: Eric Solheim

Sufferings of tamil people: 'LTTE, former Tamil leadership responsible' - Traditional Industries and Small Enterprise Development Minister Douglas Devananda said at a ceremony at the 'Nallur Navalar' Cultural hall in Jaffna on November 6, that the root cause of the difficulties that the Tamil people faced was the incorrect course of action the former Tamil leadership had resorted to. The minister said that it was the vanquished LTTE and TNA, including the former Tamil leadership, that caused immense sufferings to the Tamil people. "They are responsible for the problems faced by the Tamil people. The government is looking into the difficulties and problems of the Tamils and easing their pain now," the minister added. The ceremony was held to mark the handing over of appointment letters to 160 graduates and distribution of agricultural equipment to selected farmer families in the area. Minister Devananda who was the chief guest on the occasion said that the delay in giving appointments was due to the fact that the Northern Governor and he were of the view that no injustice should take place in giving appointments. Though some delays had taken place, the appointments were given to the most suitable, consequent to conducting an examination for this, the minister added. He also said that those who felt that some injustice had taken place when granting appointments, as had been reported in a Tamil newspaper that day, could certainly take legal action The minister said that it was necessary to make use of the opportunity given to them by serving and guiding the people by creating an ideal society whilst bettering them selves. The new appointments comprised of staff officers, project assistants, soil analysts and pre-school teachers. Minister Devananda said in the past the Tamil politicians misled the people and in the future, it was imperative that people tread a correct political path so as not to let unfortunate incidents of the nature that occurred in the past to recur. "Those who received appointments as pre-school teachers had the responsibility of moulding our future generation and making them law-abiding and duty-bound citizens of our country", he said. The minister thanked President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Northern Governor Maj Gen G A Chandrasiri on behalf of the people of the North. Concerning the development of agriculture in the North, the minister said that he had contemplated providing agricultural equipment on concessionary loan basis to farmers so that an average farmer could contribute more to the development of the country as a whole. He went on to say that the wish of the Tamil people was to live as Sri Lankans with an identity of their own. And that every citizen in this country was bound to perform a certain duty towards national security and progress of the country (Daily News : 14 November 2011).

Premadasa too sought Norwegian help - report - by Shamindra Ferdinando - The Norwegian-funded inquiry into its peace efforts in Sri Lanka has revealed the late President Ranasinghe Premadasa sought Norwegian help to establish contact with the LTTE, in June 1990. A report, which primarily discussed Norwegian peace efforts in Sri Lanka from 1997 to 2009, explained the circumstances leading to the then Foreign Minister A. C. S. Hameed meeting Norwegian politician, Arne Fjortoft, a long time resident in Sri Lanka, on behalf of President Premadasa, wanting a back-channel with the LTTE. Under the auspices of the Norwegians, Minister Hameed had a clandestine pow-vow in Geneva, though the meeting failed to produce the desired results. Political sources told The Island that Premadasa had never discussed the move to involve the Norwegians after the LTTE resumed hostilities in the second week of June, 1990. The LTTE assassinated President Premadasa on May Day, 1993. The Premadasa-Prabhakaran honeymoon lasted only 14 months, beginning, May 1989. In fact, Norway offered its services to the government and the LTTE soon after the IPKF quit Sri Lanka, according to the report. Another hitherto unknown fact disclosed is a request to Norway to head a ceasefire monitoring mission comprising Canada and the Netherlands. Amidst moves to formalize a ceasefire between CBK’s government and the LTTE, the LTTE resumed hostilities in April 1995. In spite of the war, the Norwegians had pressed ahead with their initiative,with key officials and advisors, Neelan Tiruchelvam, G. L. Peiris, Jehan Perera and Lakshman Kadirgamar. The LTTE assassinated two of them, while Prof. Peiris survived a suicide attack directed at CBK. "The choice of Norway came about in 1999 through mutual dialogue through the Catholic Church. President Kumaratunga requested the LTTE to clarify which third parties would be acceptable to them and they provided a list of five countries, of which Norway was one. Kumratunga then selected Norway." The Norwegians had several secret meetings in 1999 with Kadirgamar and Prof. Peiris, mostly in Switzerland and also with CBK (Island : 13 November 2011).

India, LTTE met ’secretly’ before Sri Lanka truce: Eric Solheim - Indian officials met in "secret" with the LTTE ahead of Sri Lanka’s 2002 truce although New Delhi considered the Tamil Tigers a terrorist group, Norwegian cabinet minister Erik Solheim has revealed. The former envoy to Sri Lanka also said - confirming for the first time ever an IANS report of 2008 - that India played a covert role in events that led to the Tamil Tigers and Colombo signing a ceasefire agreement (CFA) nine years ago. The repository of tremendous information related to the Tamil Tigers, Solheim spoke at length to IANS at his office here after addressing a meeting over the weekend where a report was released on Norway’s role in Sri Lanka’s peace process. According to Solheim, the minister for environment and international development, Indian officials held a "secret meeting" with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) before the CFA was signed in February 2002. Solheim declined to say where the meeting took place or who participated in the meeting from the two sides. If true, this would be the first known meeting between Indian officials and the LTTE since New Delhi banned it in 1992 for assassinating former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi a year earlier. Solheim also added that contrary to public knowledge, the Indian government, then led by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), played a key behind-the-scenes role in the framing of the Norwegian-sponsored CFA. He said he himself held several meetings with India’s national security adviser and officials of the Indian intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) as Colombo and the LTTE inched towards the CFA. He said some meetings with RAW officials took place at the New Delhi airport. IANS had reported the Indian covert role but without naming RAW due to a request from sources who gave details of the intelligence agency’s involvement in the CFA - which until then was seen as an exclusive Norwegian baby. The CFA ushered in months of peace in Sri Lanka before falling apart. The LTTE and the Sri Lankan regime went to war again in 2006, leading to the decimation of the Tigers in May 2009. Solheim told IANS that as Sri Lanka’s and LTTE leaders quietly discussed the CFA in 2001-02, New Delhi was kept informed of each and every development. India, he said, gave "sound advice" and "constantly good and refreshing inputs". He said India did not want any "major international player" to get involved in the peace process and even suggested which countries should be part of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM), a Nordic body meant to oversee the CFA. Indian officials made it clear to Solheim, he said, that they were bitterly opposed to any break up of Sri Lanka and that "Tamil Eelam would never be acceptable". Solheim added that LTTE ideologue Anton Balasingham, who died of cancer in 2006, understood India’s importance in the region and maintained that "nothing done contrary to Indian interests will ever work". But LTTE chief Velupillai Prabhakaran, who met Solheim about 10 times in all, starting in 2001, was an "absolute amateur" in international politics even though he was a "military genius", the minister said. Balasingham also complained to Solheim that both Prabhakaran and LTTE intelligence chief Pottu Amman insisted for months that their group had no role to play in Rajiv Gandhi’s killing. "They tried to convince Balasingham that they had nothing to do with it," Solheim recalled. He quoted Balasingham as saying: "I did not believe the story, and they eventually stopped lying to me." (Island : 13 November 2011).

OPEN LETTER TO ROY G. WIGNARAJAH, Media Coordinator for TGTE, Canada - by Asoka Weerasinghe, Canada - OPEN LETTER TO ROY G. WIGNARAJAH, Media Coordinator for TGTE, Canada; Dear Roy Wignarajah: I have just read your Press Release of November 6, 2011, TORONTO TAMILS PROTEST AGAINST SRI LANKAN DUPLICITY, the subject was the Deepavali Celebrations organized by the Sri Lanka High Commission in Ottawa, and the Sri Lanka’s Consular Office in Toronto held at the Korean-Canadian Association facilities. Well…well…well…Roy, that was something…a hell-a-va read. “How can these Tamils be so bloody stupid”, I muttered under my breath. At the very outset, let me request that you do not go to your lawyers and send me a letter saying that you are going to sue me for defamation for what I am going to tell you, as your anti-Sri Lanka Tamil Organizations are pretty good at that, as they have done it in the past to me to intimidate me and shut me up. The last paragraph of your press release said – “The rally ended at 7:00 PM peacefully with the observance of silence to the fallen war heroes and civilians of the now besieged Tamil nation, and an oath of allegiance to the Tamil Eelam nation.” Phew! Man, that was a load of crap, wasn’t it Roy? You are damn crass weren’t you to have the gall to say “…observance of silence to the war heroes and civilians of the now besieged Tamil nation.” What Tamil nation, Roy? Are you hallucinating, or what? If you were speaking of Tamil Nadu, your homeland, I am not sure it was a case of being besieged even though your Tamil Tigers played pucks on the streets of Tamil Nadu, and the police had to haul your guys to the police stations and put them behind bars to keep the calm on the streets and bazaars. You may recall how on May 19, 1982, a shootout occurred at about 9:45 in the evening at Pondy Bazaar, Mambalam, in Madras between the LTTE’s Sun God, Prabhakaran and PLOTE’s Uma Maheswaran. When Prabhakaran and Ragavan (alias Sivakumar) of the LTTE armed with revolvers opened fire on Jotheeswaran and Mukundan (alias Uma Maheswaran) of the PLOTE. Remember! These guys took over the streets of their Motherland, Tamil Nadu. During this shootout Jotheeswaran sustained bullet injuries in his right and left thighs. Maheswaran was also shot at but escaped unhurt. Remember! (LankaWeb : 13 November 2011).

Colombo NGOs major recipients of Norwegian funding

TNA-Government dialogue restarts on Nov. 16 - By S.Selvakumar - Following their return to the country on Thursday the TNA delegation headed by its leader parliamentarian R. Sampanthan would hold the next round of talks with the Government on Wednesday 16, TNA sources said. A TNA delegation comprising of its leader Sampanthan, General Secretary Mavai Senathirajah and spokesman Suresh Premachandran would form the TNA delegation at the talks with the Government. Senior ministers Prof. G.L. Peiris, Nimal Siripala de Silva, Dinesh Gunawardena would comprise the government delegation. At this meeting ways and means would be explored on reaching agreements on suggestions made during the last round of talks, TNA sources said. Words exchanged regarding their 10-day tour of the USA, Canada and Britain, would not be an impediment for future talks with that party, Senior Minister Dinesh Gunawardena said on the return of the delegation to the country (The Nation : 13 November 2011).

Arrest of two persons raises fears: Has LTTE stepped up smuggling and regrouping in Tamil Nadu? - The arrest in Tamil Nadu of two persons with LTTE links over gold smuggling has raised fears in the State that the LTTE has stepped up smuggling and regrouping. Two people were arrested on Friday night in India when they attempted to smuggle about 20kg of gold from Sri Lanka, the Times of India reported. In another incident, a 45-year-old woman was taken into custody by Trichy Customs officials while trying to smuggle 1.2 kg of gold bars from Sri Lanka. The two cases of attempted gold smuggling from Sri Lanka to Tamil Nadu have alerted Customs officials to review security along the coastline in Nagapattinam, particularly highly sensitive places such as Kodiakadu, Kodiakarai and Velankanni. The two persons, S Anand (28) and Kodiakarai Vedayan (26), were arrested at the Vedaranyam check post while trying to smuggle 156 gold bars, valued at Rs 2.5 crore that were allegedly transported from Sri Lanka by sea to Kodiakarai (Point Calimere) in Nagapattinam district. Acting on a tip off, the Nagapattinam Customs officials mounted their vigilance at the 11-odd check posts in the Nagapattinam coastal belt. One of the vehicles, which was intercepted at a check-post near Velankanni was found to contain the gold bars. Intensive investigations revealed that the two arrested persons, were associated with persons who allegedly had links with some of the accused in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. The smuggling activity that was at its peak during the LTTE heydays, have resumed in recent times with renewed vigour after a gap of 15 years, perhaps because interested parties are transporting the wealth from Sri Lanka to their supporters in Tamil Nadu, said another officer who did not wish to be named. The police and Customs tightened investigations after they learnt that Anand was none other than the son of Kodiakarai Shanmugam, who had been arrested for the crime of sheltering some of the accused in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case, and who later committed suicide in police custody.In the second incident, K Chandra (45) of Pudukottai was arrested when she tried to smuggle the gold bars valued at Rs. 3 million into the city. Customs officials said the woman, who landed in Trichy from Colombo on a SriLankan Airlines flight on Thursday, had concealed the gold bars in her sari. She has been remanded to judicial custody after the air intelligence filed a case against her.(Air Intelligence) at Tiruchirappalli airport, Earnest Ravi said the gold bars bore the ‘Swiss’ mark and as such Sri Lanka was only used as a conduit point as the smugglers think the island nation is less strict. Customs officials said that it was common knowledge that the gold bars did not originate from Sri Lanka and the international smuggling ring used Kuruvis (paid transporters) from southern coastal towns for the bigger job now, as the security along the coast was slackening after the LTTE was decimated by the Sri Lankan Army (Sunday Observer : 13 November 2011).

Deepavali celebrated in Canada amidst sabotages - Sri Lanka High Commission in Ottawa, Canada and the Consul General’s Office in Toronto in collaboration with the Sri Lankan Tamil Community celebrated the Deepavali festival recently at the Korean Cultural Centre in Toronto for the second time. The significance of this year’s event was the participation of large numbers from the Tamil community despite the repeated requests by LTTE-rump elements to boycott the event. There were also attempts to disrupt and sabotage the program by infiltrating their supporters to the event, but the program went on successfully as planned, Sri Lanka High Commission in Ottawa said in a statement. Prior to the event, a Tamil radio channel requested people repetitively to join a demonstration against the government of Sri Lanka, which was held outside the premises participating only around 100 people. The Minister of National Languages and Social Integration Vasudeva Nanayakkara was the Chief Guest at the celebrations where over 400 Sri Lankans participated. The Deepavali celebration commenced with a special Hindu pooja conducted by Siva Shri Thiyagarajah Kurukkal of the Sri Durrka Hindu Temple, North York, Toronto to invoke blessings to all Sri Lankans living in and outside the country. In his speech, Minister Nanayakkara reiterated the need for the Tamil and Sinhala communities living outside the country to interact with one another with dignity and respect emphasising on the importance of national festivals in enhancing relations between communities. He underlined the importance of learning each other’s language and the role of his ministry in implementing the National Language Policy with a view to bringing reconciliation and one Sri Lankan identity. High Commissioner Chitranganee Wagiswara referring to peace building and many hurdles that Sri Lanka has to face, urged Sri Lankan Diaspora to extend their support and contribute towards peace and reconciliation as sons and daughters of one nation. The Consul General Karunaratne Paranawithana in his welcome address stated that none should be allowed to destroy the historical bond between the communities living in Sri Lanka. This bond needs to be maintained in Canada and the High Commission and the Consulate General’s Office were there to facilitate this process, he further emphasised (The Nation ; 13 November 2011).

Kohona Briefs UN on LLRC Report - By Easwaran Rutnam - The report of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) will be presented to Parliament, the Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka to the United Nations Dr. Palitha Kohona told the UN last week. The Sri Lankan Mission to the UN in New York said that Dr. Palitha Kohona also informed the UN Security Council that the LLRC has made interim recommendations, many of which have already been implemented by an inter-ministerial mechanism. He said that throughout the final phase of the armed conflict, from 2006 to 2009, Sri Lanka engaged with the UN and its agencies, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and representatives of the international community and civil society – both in Sri Lanka and outside. Kohona said that the challenges Sri Lanka faced in protecting its civilians was a challenge to the State itself and its institutions. “Yet, the Government remained committed to its zero casualty policy. Our troops underwent training to distinguish between combatants and civilians. Assistance was obtained from the ICRC in the training of troops in human rights law. However, the inevitable casualties of a conflict imposed on the state and ruthlessly effected by the terrorists are now the basis of a massive propaganda campaign,” the Sri Lankan Mission to the UN in New York quoted Dr. Kohona as saying. He further said that in keeping with the principle that it is first and foremost the responsibility of States themselves to investigate infractions of global humanitarian standards, the government established the LLRC to address a range of issues relating to the conflict, reconciliation and confidence building and accountability (Sunday Leader : 13 November 2011).

Army to quit houses in Jaffna before New Year - By Arthur Wamanan - Around 50 houses occupied by the military in the Jaffna peninsula are to be handed over to their owners at the end of this year. Jaffna Security Forces Commander, Major General Mahinda Hathurusinghe told The Nation that over 200 houses that were occupied by the military had already been given back to its owners. Concerns are raised by various political parties and organisations over the continuous military occupation of private properties. Hathurusinghe said the military had been in the process of vacating the houses and handing them back their owners since the end of the war, which resulted in the relaxation of security measures in the peninsula. “We will be handing over around 50 houses to the owners by the end of this year and continuing to do so in the next few months,” he said. He however said that military would continue to occupy a few houses in areas that are considered vital in view of security concerns (The Nation : 13 November 2011).

President Mahinda invites Chief Minister Jayalalithaa to visit Sri Lanka and get first hand information - In an exclusive interview with Times Now TV of India, at the Maldivian capital of Male, President Mahinda Rajapaksa has responded to many questions raised by the interviewer on the LTTE activities, rehabilitation in the North, welcoming the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalitha, Sri Lanka’s infrastructure development and relations with India and China. Given below are excerpts from this interview. There are some intelligence reports that there are financiers of the LTTE in many corners of the earth who are trying to keep the spirit of the LTTE alive. Do you aware of it and are you doing something about it? The President said that Sri Lanka still fear the rise of LTTE in Sri Lanka. He said in Canada, in U.S., Europe and even in Australia they are collecting money, they are organizing themselves and they are making a big campaign, and they have lot of contacts. He said that Sri Lanka has freed almost all cadres, fighters after rehabilitation and send them back to their own people. We have informed the countries about their activities and the Netherland government has charged some of them and sent to six years imprisonment but the campaign is going on. About rehabilitation and reconstruction work being carried out the President said that anyone can visit the North and see by themselves what is happening there. On a question about permitting Tamil Nadu Chief Minister to visit Sri Lanka, the President said that she is welcome in Sri Lanka and Sri Lanka want her to come and see what is happening in the North and get first hand information on what is going on there. He said that Sri Lanka has nothing to hide and the country is very proud of its achievement. On Sri Lanka’s relationship with China and its effects on Sri Lanka’s relationship with India, the President that India is his relation and India is a relation of Sri Lanka and China is a friend of Sri Lanka. He said that the first of building infrastructure in Hambantota such as building of the Port and the Airport was given to India and they did not want to take it up. He said he does not know why India did not make use of the opportunity. He said that Sri Lanka needs to develop the country, develop the infrastructure and hence it had to be given to other countries. He said not only China even the United States has invested in Sri Lanka. He said that China building infrastructure will in no way affect India strategically. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkiugo5C9vU (Asian Tribune : 13 November 2011).

Govt will act firmly on LLRC recommendations - The Government will act firmly on the recommendations of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) which is due to submit its report on November 19, President Mahinda Rajapaksa said yesterday. In a wide ranging interview conducted in Addu, Maldives and broadcast by the Indian news channel NDTV, President Rajapaksa said if the LLRC Report highlights any human rights violations by any persons, the Government would not hesitate to take action against them. “If they endorse it (any rights violations), we will take action. I am not going to shield anyone. Neither do I wish to do so,” the President said. He said he would study the LLRC Report and present it to Parliament. It becomes a public document thereafter. He said although everyone talks of the final 10 days of the fighting, no one talks of the past 30 years. “How many people have died? How many political leaders have died? Even a Prime Minister of India was killed,” he said. He said the Government was moving swiftly in the process of reconciliation, in terms of resettlement and political reconciliation. More than 95 percent of those displaced have been resettled. The government has begun a dialogue with the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), he told the interviewer. He said that the TNA delegations have been visiting the UK, USA and other countries seeking solutions and canvassing support for internal matters without discussing them with the government. “We have 23 political parties in Parliament and we would appoint a Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC). That is the best place to settle this issue. Let the Government and the Opposition get together and propose a solution.” He said the TNA was yet to name their representatives to the PSC. Referring to the Indo-Lanka fishing issue, the President said that Sri Lanka over the past year had to stave off over 40,000 Indian boats intruding into Sri Lankan waters. It was rather unfortunate that the Jaffna fishermen were being deprived of their rights to fishing. “It is a problem for Sri Lanka, but we have never taken them into custody following a request by the Indian Prime Minister. Earlier the Navy handled it but now even the Navy has been asked not to do so. At present we have allowed them,” he said. The President called for a give-and-take policy with regard to the fishing issue. The matter is now under discussion. However, it is best that the Sri Lankan and Indian fishermen meet, discuss and resolve this problem without the Government coming in (Sunday Observer : 13 November 2011).

Proposals to benefit nation-LLRC - By Viranajan Herath - The officials of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission expressed hope that Sri Lanka could shed the dark impact of the armed conflict and attain stability, socio-economic development if the recommendation of the LLRC were implemented. A statement issued by the LLRC said implementation of its recommendations could be a long term task but they would find solutions to the vital issues facing the country. LLRC started its sittings on May 15, 2010 and will wind up its work on November 15. Its final report is due to be presented to President Mahinda Rajapaksa on November 20. In its work, LLRC had held 57 public hearings and had made 12 visits to 40 places in the North and East to conduct public hearings and enquiries while it has also entertained 5,100 written representations from various stakeholders and concerned members of the public (The Nation ; 13 November 2011).

Sri Lanka Govt will act firmly on LLRC recommendations

Lankan envoy outlines reconciliation efforts during Houston visit - Sri Lankan Ambassador Jaliya Wickramasuriya used a three-day stop in Houston last week to highlight Sri Lanka's continuing redevelopment and reconciliation work more than two years after it successfully concluded its long conflict against terrorism.Noting a recent visit to Sri Lanka by three U.S. congressmen who issued positive reports of post-conflict progress, Ambassador Wickramasuriya urged Sri Lankans living in Houston to share Sri Lanka's success story with their American friends and neighbours."If any of you have not been to Sri Lanka recently, I invite you to go," Ambassador Wickramasuriya said. "It is a good time to be there. And if you have been there recently, go again - you won't believe the changes that take place even in a short period of time. Seeing is believing. One thing that you will notice right away is that the people of Sri Lanka are very happy. The long conflict is over and they feel safe again."Ambassador Wickramasuriya spoke on Oct. 27, "Wonder of Asia" reception, which was organised by Dr. Bandula Wijay, Sri Lanka's newly-appointed Honorary Consul in Houston, at the DoubleTree Hotel. The audience comprised consuls general, honorary consuls, representatives from the Houston Mayor's office and several Congressional officers, business people and members of the Sri Lankan community.Ambassador Wickramasuriya thanked Dr. Wijay for organising such an impressive event, which showcased what Sri Lanka could offer to the world. Dr. Wijay, an accomplished scientist in the United States, also highlighted U.S. investment opportunities in Sri Lanka, and invited U.S. citizens to visit Sri Lanka to experience astonishing diversity. Ambassador Wickramasuriya told the gathering of Sri Lanka's innovative efforts to resettle civilians displaced by the conflict and to rehabiliate former terrorists."We have cleared more than 500,000 LTTE landmines, and de-mining operations are continuing," he said. "This work has allowed people to move back into their homes and communities. We have given amnesty and job and educational training to 11,600 former LTTE militants. They are being released to society.We have also rehabilitated more than 1,000 child soldiers who were kidnapped by the LTTE and forced to fight (Sunday Observer : 13 November 2011).

“ Hapless Harper Cuddles up to the LTTE for votes” - By Edwin Koonz, Boston Stephen Harper’s excited call for an “independent international investigation” into the final stages of the conflict in Sri Lanka, while being unbelievably misplaced, comes at a crucial juncture in Sri Lanka’s history as it prepares to host the next CHOGM and the next Commonwealth Games. In an interview with CMR, the cowboy from Calgary, also stated that he “Intends to make it clear to my fellow leaders that, if we do not see progress in Sri Lanka in terms of human rights and accountability issues, as the Prime Minister of Canada, I would not attend the Summit in 2013”. These emotional statements by a somewhat conservative leader, who may not be occupying the PM’s house in 2013, surprised the international community and the Sri Lankan authorities. Is this a reflection of Harper’s vested interest and political aspirations? Is it a not too transparent move to secure Tamil diaspora votes? But, in terms of eliminating the misuse of democracy and standing up to domestic pressure groups, it’s a pathetic display of cowardice. However, the CHOGM ignored the hapless Harper and confirmed CHOGM 2013 to Sri Lanka and the efforts by the likes of Harper, Rudd, et al to establish a Commonwealth HR Head Honcho were shouted down by 16 countries. The ability of terrorist pressure groups to operate in Canada and influence politicians is becoming an increasing concern. This isn’t the first time that a Canadian politician has succumbed to the temptations of the “minority vote”, (despite the fact that the minority funded, armed and trained terrorists). In 2000, the then Finance Minister Paul Martin and Member of Parliament Maria Minna lent their weight to legitimatize a terrorist organization by attending a fund raiser for the LTTE. It was established that funds raised in Canada were used to purchase explosives for the LTTE. More recently the Canadian LTTE mouth piece, Jim Karygiannis, went as far as to eulogize the departed tiger supremo, Prabhakaran at a “Pongu Thamizh” (Tamil Uprising) event in Toronto (Asian Tribune : 13 November 2011).

LLRC report will consolidate national reconciliation - When the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) releases its report within the next couple of weeks, all allegations against Sri Lanka and concocted stories on alleged human rights violations will be laid to rest. LTTE sympathisers and those who made wild predictions prior to the release of the LLRC report will have to eat humble pie when the report is out. It was, indeed, a crying shame that some countries and a few international organisations jumped to their own conclusions even before the LLRC report could be released. This unbecoming conduct would undoubtedly prove that those who can't see beyond their nose would still continue to sympathise with the now defunct terrorist outfit - the LTTE which had killed thousands of people during the three decades of terror. The LTTE leadership, which projected itself as the sole representative of the Tamils, not only inflicted untold misery on the people in the North and the East, but also forcibly held innocent civilians as a human shield. The so-called liberators of the Tamil-speaking people showed no mercy whatsoever to anyone who opposed their terror acts and sprayed bullets on those civilians who attempted to escape. This alone is ample testimony to the savagery of the world's most ruthless terrorist organisation. The LLRC, appointed by no lesser person than President Mahinda Rajapaksa, which comprised an eminent group of persons, had been entrusted with the onerous task of taking a closer look at Sri Lanka's humanitarian operation and make recommendations on the country's reconciliation and resettlement. The LLRC has been conducting its own investigations in a responsible and transparent manner cross-examining all stakeholders in the battle against terrorism and humanitarian operation. The impartial manner in which the LLRC conducted its own investigations would no doubt help it release its final report with what suits the best interests of the country in its reconciliation and development drive. Irrespective of ethnic and religious affiliations, all Sri Lankans are eagerly looking forward to the LLRC report with utmost confidence that it would guide the nation that does everything possible in its development drive since terrorism was eradicated. The Government has nothing to fear as it had conducted the humanitarian operation in the best interests of the nation. The supreme sacrifices by the Security Forces paid rich dividends as they rescued over half a million people, mostly Tamils, who had been subjected to untold privations under the LTTE's barbaric rule. Barely anybody in the international community or those now shedding crocodile tears on the human rights of LTTE cadre, favoured the taciturnity on the pathetic plight of the hapless civilians in the North and the East who were held in a vice-like grip by the LTTE during 2006-2009. With the valiant Security Forces liberating those civilians, making the supreme sacrifice, in the world's largest human rescue mission, enough and more prophets have emerged from nowhere to pontificate to us on human rights (Sunday Observer : 13 November 2011).

Weekly Defense Column by Keerthi Warnakulasuriya (Divaina : 13 November 2011)

LLRC concludes its work, hopes recommendations will be implemented - The Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) said yesterday that it will officially conclude its work on Tuesday (Nov. 15) and will hand its final report to the President on Nov. 20. ``The success of the Commission’s work will of course depend on the extent to which its recommendations are implemented, especially in the context of the tardy track record of successive governments in that regard,’’ it said. It said that the recommendations focus on a broad range of issues vital for building post war reconciliation, stability and socio economic development. The Commission is confident that its recommendations would constitute a framework for action by all stakeholders including the government, political parties and all communities," it said in a news release. "This framework would go a long way towards constructing a platform for consolidating post conflict peace and security as well as amity and cooperation within and between the diverse communities in Sri Lanka," it said. The LLRC said that it believes that the government as well as all political parties and leaders must manifest political will and sincerity of purpose to take necessary action to ensure implementation of the recommendations. "The Commission makes an earnest appeal to all parties concerned, in particular the government, to make all efforts to that end through consensual approaches," LLRC said. The Commission was appointed on May 15, 2010 and held 57 public sessions and undertook 12 field visits at over 40 locations to talk to the people in the North and East and other affected areas of the country. Over a thousand people appeared before it to make representations and the Commission additionally received and analyzed over 1,500 written submissions.LLRC’s Media Consultant, Lakshman Wickremesinghe, said that public interaction activity in Colombo and throughout the country lasted nearly 11 months and unscheduled meetings with the general public, especially in areas affected by the conflict and in IDP settlements, were also held (Island : 12 November 2011).

Tamil Nationalists Suffer Multiple Humiliating Defeats in Australia, India and USA - by Kumar Moses - Tamil Elamists have been defeated comprehensively throughout the world. When their floating weapons warehouses were sunk one after another, they didn’t even admit it. They pretended nothing happened. It’s the same pretending game they play now. All patriotic Sri Lankans who invested their time and effort must celebrate these defeats of Tamil nationalists. The few in number but dedicated patriotic web spaces deserve the praise of all. It is Nanthikadal part fifty as nothing else compares to the gravity of the new set of defeats Tamil Nationalists suffered recently. They are well accustomed to defeats and stay very quiet in defeat without acknowledging it. In Australia they suffered multiple defeats. Hardcore Tamil nationalist Seeman was refused entry to USA! It dealt a very powerful blow to Tamil nationalists around the world just a few weeks after Global Tamil Forum head Father SJ Emmanuel was refused entry to India. To top it all, USA told the visiting Tamil national alliance delegation in no uncertain terms to shed Tamil homelands nonsense, stop complaining about changing ethnic composition of the north and the east and work towards a ‘workable solution’. TNA leaders aired shock and disappointment when they met Tamil Diaspora at a series of meetings. All this happens just a few weeks to go for the report of the LLRC. At last, USA, Australia and India have allowed reconciliation a chance. Indian and US strategic interests have been craftily flexed for Lanka’s benefit as a clever sailor would turn his sails appropriately to travel in any direction, even towards the wind (LankaWeb : 12 November 2011).

Colombo NGOs major recipients of Norwegian funding - by Shamindra Ferdinando - Perhaps the principal financial beneficiary of the Norwegian-led peace process is a group of Colombo-based NGOs and their Norwegian partners, according to the much awaited report on ‘evaluation of Norwegian peace efforts in Sri Lanka (1997-2009)’ released in Oslo on Friday. But the Norwegians, according to the report had been involved in Sri Lanka as far back as 1991 with the blessings of the then Ranasinghe Premadasa government. The Oslo-funded report confirmed what we have been saying over the years that the NGOs had been the main beneficiaries and funding was continuing in spite of the conclusion of the conflict in May 2009. Germany, Japan, US, UK and Scandinavian countries, too, provided sizeable financial support to local NGOs as well over the years,Norway had provided a staggering NOK 201 mn (approximately $ 28 mn) to local NGOs during 2001 and 2004 to promote peace building, rehabilitation and reconciliation. Interestingly, of that amount, over NOK 200 mn had been received by 10 NGOs, with Kumar Rupesinghe’s Foundation for Co-Existence receiving the lion’s share (NOK 35 mn or $ 6 mn) during 2004-2008. Norway paid NOK 60 mn to the Milinda Moragoda Institute for People’s Empowerment (MMIPE) which engaged two Indian NGOs, Horizon and Sarvatra to carry out mine clearing operations following the signing of the CFA agreement in Feb. 2002. The study revealed that de-mining NGOs had received the larger share of the funds made available to the MMIPE. Sarvodaya, Sewalanka, the Sareeram Sri Lanka National Foundation, the Hambantota District Chamber of Commerce, One-Text Initiative, the National Anti-War Front (also led by Kumar Rupesinghe), the National Peace Council, Centre for Policy Alternatives, the Forum of Federations, the People’s Front and LTTE front organization, the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization (TRO) and the LTTE Peace Secretariat were the other beneficiaries. The report went out of its way to target Kumar Rupesinghe by identifying him as one of the main beneficiaries, while leaving identities of other NGO players out. Rupesinghe is widely believed to have fallen out with his one-time sponsors over his relationship with the Rajapaksa administration. Since then Norwegians had cut funds to Rupesinghe prompting an angry reaction from him. Nine Norwegian NGOs had received NOK 804 mn over a period of a decade beginning 1999. Although, the report didn’t provide a breakdown of the funds made available to them, the nine NGOs were identified, with the Norwegian Refugee Council recognized as the leading institute among the grouping. The study acknowledged that relationship between Norway and its supporters among the international community and NGOs had caused anger among a large section of the population. "Donors’ close relations with a small group of Colombo-based NGOs weakened the popular legitimacy of civil society and fuelled Sinhala nationalist concerns about the influence of international actors on political affairs in Sri Lanka," the authors of the report stated. Successive Norwegian government had felt that Sri Lankan NGOs could win over the population through propaganda, though the strategy never succeeded (Island : 12 November 2011).

India wanted LTTE 'put in its place': Norway report

The Return of the Tamil Brigade -by Prof. Hudson McLean - The Return of the Tamil Refugees from Tamil Nadu demonstrates the success of the Mahinda Rajapaksa Government policy of humane fairness. As most of the supporters of LTTE Terrorists claim unfair treatment of Tamils in the North and left the shores of Sri Lanka to their historical Homeland of Tamil Nadu. Those loud mouth pundits in Tamil Nadu and other Indian politicians should look at how the Motherland of India treated their own Kith & Kin. I doubt very much that if these “refugees” were treated with kindness by their Motherland, they would return to Sri Lanka. Would they call Sri Lanka “The Frying Pan” or “The Fire”? Now its upto those who returned and specially those expats in foreign countries, the various governments, to Put-up or Shut-up! Either support the Government of Sri Lanka and their Tamil cousins or alternatively Rent-a-Tub and take any of them who wish to leave Sri Lanka to any country who wish to accommodate (Lankaweb : 11 November 2011).

Norwegian study sheds light on Ranil’s flawed ‘peace’ deal - By Shamindra Ferdinando - A study funded by the Norwegian government says the internationalisation of the Sri Lankan conflict by the then Premier Ranil Wickremesinghe was based on the belief that the LTTE couldn’t be defeated militarily. The UNP-led UNF government believed that in the event of fresh hostilities, the US and India would throw their weight behind Wickremesinghe’s administration, the report said. Wickremesinghe’s strategy had received the backing of the Colombo business lobby, which believed permanent peace would give an opportunity to turn Sri Lanka into another Asian Tiger. The much delayed evaluation of Norwegian peace efforts in Sri Lanka (1997 to 2009) captioned ‘Pawns of Peace’ was released in Oslo yesterday. What the then government hadn’t realised was that internationalisation of the conflict had been part of the LTTE game plan, the 149-page report says: "From an LTTE perspective internationalisation of the conflict had long been part of the LTTE strategy. Its Diaspora networks became increasingly important in the 1990s, not only as conduits for fund raising, but also as means to influence Western public, international organisations and policy makers." In its comments on the role played by those who provided security guarantees (US and India) to Premier Wickremesinghe, ‘Pawns of Peace’ is somewhat critical of India’s position: "India had very clear ideas about the acceptable parameters for a settlement; it wouldn’t countenance anything that went beyond the 13th Amendment in terms of devolution of power to the nort