Sunday Times 2
National dignity or national survival?
Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka squirted a stream of ice -cold logic into the escalation of overheated rhetorical wrath over the denial of travel visas to Sri Lanka Army Commander Shavendra Silva and his family by the US government when he pointed out that he, the former Army Commander too had been denied a visa by the US authorities when he wanted to accompany President Maithripala Sirisena to the United Nations General Assembly sessions in New York, but no such national concern was expressed about him.
Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka
Even though both Fonseka and his party, the UNP stood by Lt. Gen Shavendra Silva and condemned the sanctions imposed, to impartial observers the intense concern expressed by government leaders and those of the ruling party on the ban of Lt. Gen. Shavendra Silva and the mild manner in which the same imposition was disregarded when it was applied to Sarath Fonseka, left us wondering on the how the same punishment imposed by the United States came to be viewed differently. Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka the Army Commander that led the Sri Lankan army to victory in the near 30-year- old terrorist war was once hailed by the Rajapaksa regime ( that led the country at that time) as the’ Greatest Military Commander’.
But subsequent developments within the Rajapaksa regime which made Fonseka to quit the army and contest the presidency against Mahinda Rajapaksa, led to his arrest by the military police, tried by a military tribune and convicted of ‘Irregular army procurements’. He was stripped of his rank, military decorations and his pension forfeited. How he regained his release and deprivations is now history and need not be repeated here.
But even after Fonseka was promoted to the highest rank in the army, Field Marshal, and been appointed a cabinet minister, the US government’s rejection of his visa application did not cause the hullabaloo here that is being created now. May be Fonseka was not considered a true Green UNPer and the Yahapalanaya was a mix of Green and Blue.
Shavendra Silva too is an exceptional officer with and impressive military record having been the Officer Commanding the 58th Division that played a decisive role in the victory in the terrorist war. The manner adopted by the Rajapaksa government to this issue concerning the two army commanders made us wonder whether it is being viewed from the traditional bi-partisan perspective through which all Sri Lankan issues are looked at: Rajapaksa perspective and the UNP perspective.
However in this rare instance, the two sides have come together and stood by its army commander, as it should be. The impending General Election too may have contributed to this rare show of political and national unity. United we stand, divided we fall, is a call at times of national adversity.
But will this phalanx of national unity be of use when the UNHRC meets on February 24 and takes up alleged violations of human rights during the last phase of Sri Lanka’s 30- year- old conflict? The United States has withdrawn from the UNHRC calling it a ‘cesspool of political bias’ but has plenty of allies there to do its bidding. Americans have been bashed about in Third World countries for decades and right now are deservedly receiving a bellyful in Lanka with Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa himself describing the visa ban on Shavendra Silva and his family as ‘medieval justice’ of Europe.
Lt. Gen. Shavendra Silva
But does Uncle Sam care? Many things can be said of the hypocritical calls to justice made by Americans such as the one made by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo last week when he urged the Sri Lanka Government to promote human rights, hold accountable Individuals responsible for war crimes and human rights violations, advance security reforms and uphold its commitments pursue justice and reconciliation. The world , other than some western nations have been aghast at the recent assassination of Quasem Soleimani, Commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps while on a visit to Iran but the American President Donald Trump, who is fast being recognised as an international clown, is claiming responsibility and hailing it as an act of freedom. Americans, it appears are accustomed to taking Third World bashing as a popular sport and Sri Lankans may have been wasting the past week barking at the moon.
Little Lanka is flexing its muscles to take on the Superpower and the United Nations- the UNHRC—at Geneva soon, but most Sri Lankans are under the impression that nothing could be done against the mighty sovereign independent Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka. Every Sri Lankan would hope so.
The foreign debt is mounting over the Himalayas into China; a three- month moratorium from New Delhi we hope would come across the Palk Strait and we will batter the US and the UN at Geneva, are our hopes. Right now the spirit of Emden prevails in Lanka—nava gilunath band choon (Keep the Band playing as the ship sinks).