• Who set Mawanella aflame?
• DIG in the dark
• CBK warns people against inciters
• Sanath to head Rupavahini
• UNP on vote hunt for two motions
• Arjuna's team challenges presence of ICC sleuths

Who set Mawanella aflame?

Mawanella was yesterday quiet and recovering from the May Day mayhem, but a political crisis appears to be building up with a post-mortem indicating that a gang allegedly backed by a PA minister was responsible for the orgy of violence.

Minister Mahipala Herath whose supporters are alleged to have involved in the violence which left two people dead and more than 100 shops or residences damaged, has denied the allegations. 

"At the time of the incident I was away in the Maldives. Though my electorate is in Rambukkana, I have supporters in Mawanella as well. Even within the party, there is rivalry because of my services," the minister said claiming that most of the shops and houses damaged belonged to PA supporters.

The main Muslim party, the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress, came out strongly yesterday saying there must be no whitewash of the Mawanella violence and that all those involved must be brought to justice.

Minister and SLMC leader Rauf Hakeem said they were seeking an urgent meeting with President Chandrika Kumaratunga to discuss the causes and remedial action. 

Mr. Hakeem who cut short a visit to Pakistan and flew back on Friday said the trouble had erupted due to police apathy and inaction resulting from political pressure or patronage."

As the SLMC High Command and Parliamentary Group prepared for a crisis meeting today, Mr. Hakeem said the committee assessing the damage and compensation for victims should include impartial and responsible persons from outside the area.

According to Sunday Times investigations, the political gang had allegedly been involved in extorting money from shop owners in Mawanella and Tuesday's incidents ignited from one of these 'kappam' demands.

Despite complaints to the Police in the area little or no action had been taken against the heavily-armed gang which received full protection from the PA politician, it is alleged.

Shop keepers and hotel owners told The Sunday Times that the gang members would often come to the hotels, have a full meal and leave without paying. Sometimes, they demanded takeaways as well.

They said Tuesday's incidents erupted after some of the gang members had come to a night hotel and allegedly demanded cigarettes at half the price. Thereafter the hotel staff had assaulted the gang members sparking off the clashes.

At least one of the gang members has been arrested, but the main culprits have not been taken into custody though they have been named in complaints.

The Mawanella town is still under heavy-armed guard in the aftermath of the violence. The town was clamped under a full-day curfew on Wednesday and a night curfew on Thursday. Police said the situation was now under control, though a few more incidents were reported.

The government has appointed a three-member committee to assess the damage and recommend compensation, Kegalle Government Agent K M Ariyaratne said.

He assured that a report would be submitted to the President within ten days and payments made after that. 

Minister Alavi Moulana who rushed to Mawanella during the incidents to help restore peace, said a ministerial committee headed by the Prime Minister was monitoring the situation and taking all steps to restore harmony, but opposition parties were firing heavily at the government.

Both the UNP and the JVP have blamed the government for not taking adequate precautions after the Mawanella unrest and thus allowing room for Friday's incidents in Colombo.

UNP spokesperson Karu-nasena Kodituwaku said it was evident that politicians were allowed to run Mawa-nella and police had been prevented from doing their duty.

A JVP spokesman said elements with political motives were now trying to create troubles between Sinhala and Muslim people. He called on the government to take tough action against those found to be inciting communal disturbances.

Sihala Urumaya Tilak Karunaratne said the incidents in Mawanella and Maradana had erupted because politicians did not allow policemen to carry out their duties.

DIG in the dark

When a Sunday Times reporter contacted DIG Gerard Ignatius around 5 p.m. on Friday, he said there was no need for a curfew. But at the same time, the Information Department was telling another reporter that a curfew was being imposed from 6. P.m.

Meanwhile the curfew imposed on 6 p.m. on Friday was lifted at 6. a.m. yesterday and police said no fresh incidents were reported.

The 12-hour curfew had been imposed in the country's Western Province to help restore order and keep people off the streets after incidents at Maradana, Maligawatte, Pettah and Grandpass on Friday in the aftermath of the Mawanella mayhem.

Friday's curfew created huge traffic jams as workers streamed out of Colombo to get home and clogged telephone systems delayed calls.

CBK warns people against inciters

In an address to the nation the President said that she saw a connection between the events in Mawanella and the attempts to create communal disturbances in Colombo and also in the railway strike.

President Kumaratunga vowed the government would not hesitate to take stern action against those trying to create trouble.

She said the government had been able to contain the situation within a day because of its strength.

She said the government will not allow anybody to spread hatred against religions or against any community and added that it would also not allow a division to be created between Sinhalese and Muslims.'It is not easy to cure the wounds created by ethnic problems', she said. 

She said there was no doubt that the persons trying to create trouble in the south want to help the LTTE adding that evidence was emerging about the connection between the LTTE and extremist and opportunist groups in the south.

She said that if problems were created in the south troops would have to be pulled out from the north.

'We have to be mindful of this fact. The public have to be careful about groups who try to gain power by creating problems. The PA is not willing to see the hopes of the people dashed', she said.

The President said her government will work towards maintaining ethnic harmony among all communities.

Sanath to head Rupavahini

He will take over as Chairman of the Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation from next week.

A streamlining of the SLRC's services is on the cards, according to informed sources.

UNP on vote hunt for two motions

By Shelani de Silva

Party sources said the committees appointed to draft these motions would meet within days to seek various views and finalise the motions. He said that contacts would be made with PA members — officially and behind the scenes.

The leadership crisis in the UNP erupted last month mainly over charges that party leader Ranil Wickremesinghe had deflated a move by the joint opposition to defeat the government on the budget. 

UNP source had said the party had received assurances of support from PA members including a senior minister. 

For the no-confidence motion to be passed, the support of the JVP's ten MPs is vital.

UNP sources had earlier expressed confidence that the JVP would support the motion. But JVP spokesman Wimal Weerawansa said that while they were open for discussions with any party, they had not yet decided whether to support the move to defeat the government.

Arjuna's team challenges presence of ICC sleuths

By Laila Nasry

When Cricket Board investigator Desmond Fernando summoned Mr. Ranatunga for an interview on May 2, his lawyers had protested to the presence of two foreign officials, stating that they had no proper mandate either from the ICC or the local body to be present during the interview. 

Mr. Ranatunga's legal team consisted of S. L. Gunesekara, Kalinga Indatissa, Hemaka de Alwis, Jeevantha Jayatileke and Indika Karunajeeva.

Jeff Rees and Bob Smalley, the two foreign officials from the ICC said their presence was to facilitate the BCCSL inquiry.

Mr. Fernando then intervened stating the inquiry consisted of two parts — the first part involving questions fielded by himself and the second part involving questions fielded by the two foreign officials. 

This was countered by Mr. Ranatunga's counsel who said rules of natural justice involved the accused being told the essential element of the allegations levelled against him. They said this basic principle had not been followed. 

The inquiry was finally conducted by Mr. Fernando who fielded all questions to Mr. Ranatunga in the presence of his lawyers while the two ICC officials sat through the entire proceeding. 

Mr. Ranatunga was interviewed on four allegations based on a statement made by Indian bookmaker Mukesh Gupta in a report released by India's Central Bureau of Investigations.

The relevant sections of the report stated:

"Around this time probably in 1994, Sri Lanka came to India to play three test matches. I talked to Aravinda de Silva and Ranatunga and they agreed to under perform in the First Test at Lucknow. They also told me that they are only two of them and they have not talked to the other players in the team but since they were the Captain and Vice-Captain of the team, there would not be much difficulty. Accordingly, they lost the First Test and I made some money. 

If I remember correctly, I paid around $ 15,000 to De Silva after the test. They were also ready to do the other tests but the 'odds' were very low and I also had a suspicion that they had also fixed those matches with the help of Manoj Prabakar with somebody else so I did not take much interest. 

Around this time, my relationshiop with Manoj Prabakar deteriorated since he had become very money minded and also involved with other bookies of Delhi and Bombay and even some big punters." 

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