Ten days have gone since the International Olympic Committee (IOC) summoned the top officials of the Ministry of Sports and National Olympic Committee of Sri Lanka (NOC) but the cold war between the two local factions remains intact.

The current NOC office-bearers enjoyed an extension to their present tenure, which was supposed to end on December 27, after the IOC duly informed the Minster of Sports, Mahindananda Aluthgamage that Sri Lanka’s amended Sports Law should be revived and changed. The IOC, which hinted that Sri Lankan sports governing bodies are directly or indirectly influenced by political high hands, has given Sri Lanka six months to make the changes and a further three months to conduct the elections of the NOC.

Sports Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage

Despite Minister Aluthgamage agreeing to the demands of the IOC, it is unclear if the Ministry of Sports is willing to make headway while at the same time the NOC’s officials too seem adamant at certain instances. By Friday it was reported that the Ministry of Sports was not in a position to appoint a joint committee, as recommended by the IOC, as the NOC made a contrasting response.

The Ministry of Sports has made an official request to the NOC to nominate their two representatives to form a joint committee to look into and discuss matters with regard to the changes that are to be made in the Sports Law of Sri Lanka. NOC General Secretary Maxwell de Silva, in his reply, has made it clear that independent individuals should be appointed to study the case.

“As discussed in Lausanne, Switzerland, independent people, outside the NOC or the Ministry of Sports, should be appointed to the committee. Or else the purpose will be not served,” the letter stated.

incumbant NOC chief Hemasiri Fernando (right) should sit together and fix matters, experts say. - File pics

However Minister Aluthgamage stated that such a decision, as claimed in the reply letter, was never discussed at the meeting with the IOC.

“As far as I’m concerned the IOC agreed to include representatives from the Ministry, NOC and even the IOC to discuss if Sri Lanka’s Sports Law contradicts Olympic values. We requested the NOC to nominate two representatives,” the Minister had said. The Ministry of Sports has nominated its Secretary Anura Jayawickrama as the Head of the Committee which has led certain factions in a state of confusion. Experts suspect that this is a move to outnumber the current set of NOC who too have seemed to contradict the facts agreed by the IOC.

The IOC in its official website states that the meeting, which was held in Lausanne with a delegation of the Government of Sri Lanka headed by the Sports Minister; the National Olympic Committee of Sri Lanka (NOC); and senior representatives of the Association of Summer Olympic International Federations (ASOIF), the Association of National Olympic Committees (ANOC) and the Olympic Council of Asia (OCA), ended successfully with the following agreements.

“The sports law, in force since 1973, will be revised within nine months, and the specific government regulations derived from the sports law will be reviewed within six months in order to make them compatible with the basic principles which govern the Olympic Movement. To that effect, and to ensure proper consultation with all concerned parties, a working group will be established immediately between the Sports Ministry and the NOC/national sports federations, also involving the IOC (representing the Olympic Movement as a whole),” the meeting minutes report read.

The IOC statement goes on to say that all national sports federations of Sri Lanka will have to liaise with their respective international federations to review their constitutions/statutes in accordance with the respective standards and the principles of the Olympic Movement.

“This process must be completed within six months under the supervision of each International Federation concerned, which will also decide, on a case-by-case basis once this process is completed, whether new elections will be required in the respective national federations.

“The NOC Constitution will also be reviewed with the IOC in order to ensure full compliance with the Olympic Charter and the IOC’s requirements. Then, the revised draft Constitution will have to be submitted to the NOC General Assembly for adoption, and be approved formally by the IOC. The new NOC Constitution will serve as a basis to conduct the NOC elections. This process (including the revision of the NOC Constitution and the NOC elections) will also be completed within six months. Until the NOC elections take place, the current NOC’s office-bearers will remain in place,” it goes on to say.

Despite the confidence placed down by the IOC, the Ministry of Sports also has taken certain moves that discredit the NOC. On Thursday the Ministry of Sports hosted a meeting with a number of top officials from national sports bodies, which also included certain former NOC officials who are not on good terms with the present office-bearers. At the same time the Ministry of Sports stated that it is ready to change the amendments that were made in 2013, to the Sports Act of 1973, which has led the IOC to question the NOC on the autonomy of the sports federations and associations of Sri Lanka. An independent observer stated that both the Ministry of Sports and the NOC are acting stubbornly and are on course to a major conflict if they fail to act swiftly on the matter.