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As the Committee Stage debate of Appropriation Bill 2014 got under way in Parliament last week, the debate on the votes of the Ministry of Defence and Urban Development brought several issues into focus, with Opposition legislators questioning the role of the military which is engaging in civilian activities, as well as the Urban Development Authority’s (UDA). ongoing relocation programme for shanty dwellers in the City of Colombo.

Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Parliamentary group leader R. Sampanthan speaking during the debate, expressed concern about the degree to which the military appears to be putting down roots and becoming involved in what should be civilian activities in the North. He said that there was a compulsive need to tone down the extent of the oppressive military presence in the North.

“I have been careful about my comments in relation to the military. I am aware that it is a sensitive subject. I must say that, perhaps, a very large number of them are well behaved disciplined people. There can also be a certain number of bad eggs. That could be quite a number, particularly, if the military is sought to be used, in a way in which it should not be used,” Mr. Sampanthan said.

UNP Colombo District MP Sujeeva Senasinghe also referred to the situation in the North and said that, with the clear mandate given by the people at the elections to the NPC, those elected must be allowed to work independently. “If there is civil rule in other parts of the country, the same must be there in the North as well. The Government must prove it is genuine in its efforts to let the NPC take control of its own affairs,” MP Senasinghe said.

Technology, Research and Atomic Energy Minister Champika Ranawaka, however, was critical of the TNA, accusing their politicians from the North of engaging in communal politics.

“Today (Chief Minister Northern Province) C.V. Wigneswaran is engaging in the same communal politics that (Appapillai) Amirthalingam engaged in the past. It was the LTTE that engaged in ethnic cleansing, but the TNA politicians forget to talk about this,” the Minister said.

He also said that the war crimes charges leveled at the Sri Lankan armed forces were baseless. “The available statistics clearly show that there has been no mass killing of Tamil people in the North. The latest census to be undertaken soon, on the number of people killed due to civil unrest since 1983, will clearly illustrate this fact,” he added.

It was UNP Matara District MP Mangala Samaraweera who was the staunchest critic of the Ministry of Defence and Urban Development, particularly the programme undertaken to relocate shanty dwellers within Colombo City. He said an attempt was being made to change the demography of Colombo and break up the UNP vote base, so that the Government could win the next Municipal Council election.

“As they are doing in the North of this country, they are also now making sinister moves towards changing the demography of Colombo City,” he said.

Mass Media and Information Minister Keheliya Rambukwella who wound up the debate for the Government, said that the TNA Leader’s speech was clearly aimed at getting the military out of the North. “Even though the LTTE has been militarily defeated, the LTTE’s ghosts continue to haunt us in the form of the Diaspora. It is their agenda that was being taken forward by the TNA,” he said.

“Please don’t try to lay the groundwork for the re-emergence of separatist sentiments in this country,” he said. The votes of the Ministry of Defence were passed with 126 voting for and 9 against.