Sunday Times 2
A question of police irresponsibility
The terror that shocked Sri Lanka on Easter Sunday was a coordinated attack aimed at killing a large number of people.
In the immediate aftermath, social media platforms carried a document from the intelligence section of the Police Department. It contained information passed on by the intelligence agency of a neighbouring country on April 4. It spelt out reliable information obtained from a terror suspect in the custody of intelligence officers of the neighbouring country. Acting on this information, the document warned of possible attacks on Catholic churches, hotels and even the high commission of the neighbouring country on April 21, Easter Sunday. Subsequently, on April 9 and 11, senior Police intelligence officers had alerted the heads of the security units protecting the President and other VIPs about the impending attack.
Why VVIPs?
The intelligence was fairly reliable that the attacks were to be carried out at churches and hotels. Strangely, the Police intelligence unit had thought it fit to safeguard the VVIPs and not the people. Not a single VVIP had been known to be a victim of these attacks. On the other hand, look at the number of innocent people, local and foreign, who have lost their loved ones. Did the Police Intelligence Service consider the lives of the people have less value than the lives of the VVIPs?
This is a clear case of failure on the part of the Intelligence Service to act on the positive hot intelligence from the friendly country’s intelligence agency, which, during the LTTE insurgency, had assisted Sri Lanka’s intelligence services and armed forces to track and destroy several LTTE vessels bringing in arms and ammunition.
But in this instance, our intelligence officers failed to treat the intelligence provided with the seriousness it deserved. Instead, they were engaged in the bureaucratic practice of passing on the information on a piece of paper to the IGP and other senior officers. It is reliably learnt that the IGP had sent down the paper to his most senior DIG with the acronym “FNA” (for necessary action). What a callous and irresponsible step taken by the head of the Department on receiving such vital intelligence about the danger lurking around the corner.
For all law enforcement operations, including intelligence gathering, the Police Department comes under a particular minister or under the President, in his or her capacity as the defence minister.
Together with Intelligence chiefs, the Police Chief should have met the Defence Minister, or in his absence to the Defence Secretary or the state defence minister and demanded that they take immediate action to order the armed forces and the Police to go after and the terrorist leader whose name and organisation had been mentioned, and other accomplices and alert the churches and the public of the impending attack. Hotels could have been alerted to be on the watch out for suspicious characters and urged to beef up security measures.
The Police should have also mounted surveillance units and strike units in addition to alerting the parties concerned. The IGP and Intelligence section of the Police Department had merely passed on the information from one to the other and not taken any positive action to prevent this dastardly act, which has plunged our country into a death pit.
Politicians
I am not a political analyst, but judging from what has been published in the print media, the political leadership has failed miserably and their failure was appalling. A minister, a follower of Catholicism, had unashamedly boasted in a Facebook post how he was informed by his father on Holy Saturday, the day before Easter Sunday, of a possible attack on Catholic churches. He had also said he did not go to Church on that day. What a disgraceful cowardly statement? Being a Catholic, he could have informed the Cardinal of the possible threat and averted the catastrophe. In fact, Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith had been critical of this minister’s conduct, and had said that if he had the information, he would have ordered the cancellation of all Easter Masses.
I am aware that the Security Council comprises senior members of the Armed forces, the Police Intelligence chiefs and government leaders. To my recollection, this council meets weekly and discusses the security situation of the country, and the intelligence received. It decides on the action to be taken immediately. But, alas, according to media reports, the Security Council has not even discussed the intelligence that was available from April 4th 2019. It is also learnt that the Prime Minister had been debarred from attending Security Council meetings for the past few months due to petty differences between the Head of State and the Prime Minister. What a sad state of affairs we have come to. The Security Council owes an explanation to the people for this serious lapse.
Responsibility
Persons given particular assignments should act responsibly, just as the head of a family does.
Directed by the President, the Defence Secretary tendered his resignation. The IGP, who was asked by the President to resign, is said to have been sent on compulsory leave. An acting IGP has already been appointed.
Field Marshall and Parliamentarian Sarath Fonseka, speaking in Parliament categorically stated that the entire Cabinet and the government should take complete responsibility for the colossal failure and resign. But so far, none of the politicians has resigned.
It is an open secret that the President and the Prime Minister are not facing the problem together due to their political differences. These differences between the topmost government personalities are well known to the entire world. The terrorist outfit would have made use of the lack of governance in this country to choose Sri Lanka to be its target. Besides, Sri Lanka has never aligned with any big power to combat the ISIS threat.
Terrorists
All terrorists are criminals. They have no race, religion or nationality. Extremists of all races and religions, embrace terrorism to achieve their so-called goals through death and disaster. They are brainwashed and mentally demented, hoping to achieve their goals by killing others. All Muslims are not terrorists or extremists. A majority of the Muslims have condemned and disassociated themselves from the carnage committed by the so-called ISIS outfit. With the help of the majority of the Muslims who are against this terror group, the government and the people should once and for all eradicate the presence of this group from our country through accepted law enforcement and legal methods.
Compassion
The Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith’s advice to the Catholics and others in his bid to avert any backlashes against the Muslims community and religious violence were words of wisdom and a message of compassion. The Lord Jesus Christ from the Cross pleaded to forgive those who tortured and crucified Him saying “Father forgive them for they know not what they do”.
Even Buddhist, Hindu and Muslim leaders have appealed for calm and understanding between different faiths in their messages for peace and unity. Let us continue to foster this unity and understanding so that we will emerge quickly out of this calamity as one Sri Lanka.
We are all Sri Lankans, let us join hands together, irrespective of our differences and give solace to those who have lost their loved ones and to those who are wounded and tormented. Let us build Sri Lanka as one nation.
“When you sow hatred, you reap hatred; when you sow love, you reap love”
(The writer is a retired Deputy Inspector General of Police)