(Daily Mirror)
My dear Mahinda Aiya,
Ayubowan, vanakkam, assalamu alaikkum and best wishes as the government works confidently for a bountiful betel harvest in the National New Year — while the wounded elephant is rambling somewhere in the jungle with jingles and jumbles and the new trophy looks like a tainted tincan.
Most independent analysts say the ruling United People’s Freedom Alliance appears to be heading for victory, though claims of a two-thirds majority seem to be far-fetched. Yet a stark reality of life is that mountain-top glory could in a moment of time turn heroes into zeros or patriots to villains, especially if there is excessive arrogance and abuse of unlimited power. Instead and especially among the ruling elite we need to see a spirit of compassion, selfless and sacrificial service for the common good of all.
For the main opposition United National Party and its allies contesting under the elephant symbol at the April 8 general elections, internal squabbles and struggles appear to be still rumbling. Reports say that the UNP is facing internal controversies in several areas including the tippex fiasco in the Moneragala district and conflicts over the national list. One of the disputes is the decision to put the UNP general secretary Tissa Attanayake on the national list, instead of having him contest from the Kandy district. Several party front-liners are known to have strongly criticized this move but opposition UNP leader Ranil Wickremesinghe believes his faithful general secretary could play a more effective role at a national level instead of fighting for preferential votes in one district.
The newly formed Democratic National Alliance led by the detained General Sarath Fonseka with the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna expected to be its main driving force also appears to be deflated or in the doldrums. Last week the president as commander-in-chief appointed a three-member military court comprising three major generals to try General Fonseka on seven charges. The general court martial took place on Tuesday and yesterday with General Fonseka still insisting that his arrest and trial were illegal. The charges against General Fonseka include some relating to alleged violation of army laws on the basis that he held political talks with opposition leaders while he was chief of defence staff.
Former chief justice Sarath N. Silva in a lengthy article published in The Sunday Times quoted chapter and verse from the Constitution to show that the arrest, detention and court martial of General Fonseka were unconstitutional. This comes amid reports that the government is examining the possibility of appointing a commission to probe the out-of-court conduct of the former chief justice. Mr. Silva called a news conference on Monday to launch a bitter attack on the government. He accused it of suppressing dissent and media freedom among other human rights violations and demanded that the state of emergency be lifted immediately as proof of the government’s commitment to democracy.
While the UPFA is riding high and mighty on the national scene, the biggest challenge to it appears to be coming from the United Nations and the international community. Earlier this month the UN Human Rights Commissioner Navaneetham Pillay issued her annual report for 2009 saying she believed there was substantial evidence of human rights violations and war crimes during the final months of the war against the LTTE. Acting fast on this report UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon telephoned you and said he was considering the possibility of setting up a panel of experts for an initial inquiry on these charges. But according to a statement issued by the presidential secretariat you told the UN Chief in the strongest possible terms that you would not tolerate any such interference in Sri Lanka’s internal affairs. Latest reports indicate that the UN Chief may be having second thoughts about the setting up of such a panel, but another bombshell was fired from the United States when the State Department in its annual human rights reports made serious charges against Sri Lanka. Government leaders are hitting back at both the UN and the US in what appears to be a confrontation that could have serious consequences.
India’s Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao, the one-time High Commissioner in Sri Lanka also came to Colombo for a three-day visit. Reports indicate that she urged government leaders to act fast in finding a reasonable political solution to the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka because New Delhi fears any delay might lead to the re-emergence of the LTTE on the international stage with the setting up of a Provisional Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam. Yet many analysts believe that India is also now playing double games and treble games to achieve its own geo-political objectives in regional and international spheres.
Whatever the trends or indications, the reality is that while excessive power is dangerous, absolute power could be disastrous. Thus the question being asked by many independent analysts and citizens of goodwill is whether the bells are tolling for democracy in Sri Lanka.