What do they mean by integrity of sport?
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Panduka Keerthinanda - Pic by Sameera Weerasekara
Yet, since then, our performances have been sporadic, while we encountered more downs than ups. We confronted legal luminary Panduka Keerthinanda with this issue. He is an expert on our country’s sports laws, and also a follower and lover of sports. We asked lawyer Keerthinanda, “Why, who is to blame? Is it the sportsman or the administrator?” Keerthinanda responded, “We became independent in 1948, and won our first Olympic medal in 1948 through Duncan White. Thereafter, Susanthika Jayasinghe won the 200m Women’s sprint Silver at the 2000 Olympics. In cricket, we won the ICC World Cup in 1996. Thereafter, we came into the finals twice, in 2007 and 2011, and won the ICC T-20 Championship in 2014. In reality, our sports have moved to the highest level, internationally, yet, administratively, they have been thinking only of their personal benefits. They do not believe in supporting sports. They only think of personal gain and, because of these situations, politics has infiltrated in a bad way. If politics comes into sports, be it cricket, football, rugby, athletics or, for that matter any sport, we would plunge to the worst level.”
Keerthinanda said we are lucky to have won six medals at the just concluded Commonwealth Games. “But, to see that our sports are on the ascent, we should have discipline as a main ingredient,” he asserts. He said, “We should have integrity in sports. Especially, inculcate new laws that go with sports. In 2013, we implemented the anti-doping laws. That was the first at South Asian level. Then came the anti-corruption laws. But, unfortunately, so far our administrators, as well as the government, have failed to enact the ‘Anti-Corruption Law’ in this country.”
“In 2014, we drafted this during the tenure of Sports Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage. There was a committee and I was lucky to be appointed Secretary of that committee headed by Sports Ministry Secretary Anura Jayawickrema. There even was a member from the Interpol. We prepared a paper titled ‘Prevention of Match-Fixing’. There you see the administrators’ part as well as the player’s part. All have to be free and fair. Also it is a penal offence. Even recently, we have come across so many incidents of match-fixing. But what happens here is that, they sweep them under the carpet.It’s covered up. This is wrong procedure. If this trend continues, our quality of cricket and sports as a whole is at stake.”
Then we asked him how this local version of the Anti-Corruption Law would work along with the ICC Anti-Corruption Ethics and Laws. Keerthinanda explained, “Even if we have the ICC Anti-Corruption Laws working, we cannot implement them in this country. If we don’t have a law in this country, jurisdiction-wise we cannot implement. We can only suspend a player. But, if we have the local law also in force, we can definitely make sure, the law is implemented — like the WADA code, where the relevant local laws were passed in 2013. Thereafter, it becomes a law of the country. We should enact the local Anti-Corruption Laws. Then we should stop the political interference. We must encourage sports to be free and fair. That is my personal opinion.”
He pointed out that there is no harm in a politician getting involved in sports. But the politician cannot be given the opportunity to manipulate it. “He cannot have his own personal agenda working for his benefit. The effort should be for the sustenance and development of sports. In the past we had Minister Gamini Dissanayake who helped us achieve Test status in cricket in 1981. That is the good side of a politician getting involved in sport. My contention is that, anyone who gets involved in sport should practise the code, ‘Free and fair’.”
Then we pointed out that, the general practice in sport at present is that, if one is desirous of holding high office in an influential sports organisation, definitely, they should have the backing of a very senior local politician to back him/her. It is a common occurrence in the present context. Keerthinanda said: “What happens is that they have their ‘Favourite’ who is backed, not for the development of the game, but for the personal benefit of the candidate. This is all because sports and politics are going hand-in-hand. It’s like parliament. We have seen in the past how they manipulated and won elections. That is why, from time to time, we have to change the sports law of this country. We have introduced so many new regulations and laws. But still, these sports administrators try to creep through the loopholes. That’s why the whole system has to be upgraded, locally as well as internationally. We must link with the international bodies, especially with the ICC, FIFA, IOC and more. We must upgrade the sports law. We must bring proper persons into sports administration. Integrity-wise, we must think of developing the sport, not personal gain.”
At that point Sunday Musings came up with the argument — At Sri Lanka Cricket, they say they are on a drive to develop provincial cricket but, at the provincial and district level, we find useful political acolytes manning these positions. Agreeing with us, Keerthiratna explained, “Not only political acolytes, we find even criminal elements have got into sports administration. People who have committed offences have infiltrated. That is why, recently, we implemented the clause that, if someone who has been jailed for more than six months, he/she cannot contest. Yet, the thing is, there are so many loopholes within the judicial system, sports administration, they try to creep through.
“Then, also gambling. There are persons indirectly involved in gambling, which is totally against the laws of the world. We know the ICC’s Anti-Corruption Laws, which clearly say that anyone involved in gambling, directly or indirectly or, family members, siblings, son or daughter,they cannot contest and become an ICC director. But, in Sri Lanka, there are so many loopholes, and they get into the administration of sports. A sad situation indeed. Even in the IPL, there is betting going on, but officially, it has not been proved. But bookkeeping, match-fixing and betting are prevalent in sports.”
We asked what he means by “Integrity of sports”. He said, “It has to be free and fair. It has to be protected by all the laws of the land and the world. Sport is a thing that should be sans all effects that beset sports. When you take away the above ill effects out of sports, it becomes the Integrity of sport.”