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One of Sri Lanka's most outstanding administrators Bradman Weerakoon has been named as the Prime Minister's secretary.
The 71-year-old Mr. Weerakoon, an ex-civil servant, has served six of the country's 10 prime ministers.
He first served as secretary to Prime Minister S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike during the 1956-59 period and later became secretary to Prime ministers Wijayananda Dahanayaka, Dudley Senanayaka, Sirimavo Bandaranaike and Ranasinghe Premadasa. .
Mr. Weerakoon entered the administrative service then known as the Ceylon Civil Service at the age of 23.
In 1983, after the July riots, he was appointed Commissioner General of Essential Services with wide Emergency powers. He left government service in 1984 on being selected as Secretary General of the International Planned Parenthood Federation headquartered in London.
Meanwhile Nauffer Rahuman, the former Secretary of the Leader of Opposition has been appointed as the Secretary to the Leader of the House while Saman Lalitha has been appointed as the Secretary to the government whip and Ashoka Athurugiriya as Secretary to the leader of Opposition Ratnasiri Wickramanayake.
The UNF is yet to name its Leader of the House and the government Whip.
A UNF spokesman told The Sunday Times that the names of Karu Jayasuriya and John Amaratunga had been proposed for the Leader of the House while A.H.M. Azwer and Mahinda Samarasinghecould be appointed as the Government Whip. A decision will be taken before Parliament meets on December 19.
From Neville De Silva in London
The British Government's duplicity in claiming to fight global terrorism was exposed when it shut its eyes to the LTTE publicly addressing meetings in London though the organisation has been officially banned.
Not only did Anton Balasingham, the LTTE's chief spokesman and negotiator, address the December 1 Heroes Day meeting, but his speech was simultaneously broadcast over the pro-Tiger radio station, claiming exclusivity.
Mr. Balasingham's address implied that the British authorities had granted him leave to do so, though the Terrorism Act 2000 under which the LTTE was banned, states that the group cannot operate in the UK, that to claim to be a member of the organisation is an offence and it cannot even display its symbol in public.
In his introductory remarks Mr. Balasingham said that whether or not he would speak that day had been a "problematic matter".
"There was a question as to whether or not the British government would grant me permission to make a speech," Mr. Balasingham said. This shows Mr. Balasingham was well aware that it was an offence for him to speak as a member of the LTTE and address public meetings.
Mr. Balasingham's remark implies that he or the LTTE had sought permission or that the British authorities were already aware of his impending participation. Either way his bold public appearance confirms British acquiescence.
The fact that neither the Home Office nor Scotland Yard, which is in charge of implementing the Terrorism 2000 Act that was piloted through parliament by then Home Secretary Jack Straw, have so far acted against the LTTE for violating its own law, manifestly shows connivance between the British authorities and the Tamil Tigers, a former LTTE member now living in London said.
"This has been going on for a long time. The British are selling arms to both sides in the conflict. The LTTE used to buy British arms through devious sources in Europe and elsewhere. When Hong Kong was a British colony, Tiger arms buyers used to make contact and sign contracts in Hong Kong", he said
A former member of PLOTE said that the British were aware how much the LTTE was involved in the British economy as it was in Europe.
"Unless the Tigers really get caught up in a nasty situation like that killing in Southall where a Tiger money launderer and credit card crook was killed by another Tiger over sharing the loot, the British authorities look the other way", he said.
Three months ago, at the height of Prime Minister Tony Blair's resounding statements about fighting shoulder to shoulder with the US against terrorism, I posed some questions to Scotland Yard that denied even having heard of the LTTE or the Tamil Tigers.
In fact the Metropolitan Police Press Office did not know that 21 organisations had been banned, nearly seven months after the law it was supposed to implement came into operation.
Balasingham in his Heroes Day speech claimed that British MPs still come to see him.
"I asked a British MP who came to meet me recently whether stone throwing by Palestine children is terrorism," he said conceding that contacts were still being continued in violation of the law.
An Asian political analyst said that Britain is peeved that it has not had a pivotal role to play in any peace negotiations between the Sri Lanka Government and the Tigers, the Tigers having accepted Norway as an intermediary.
London is still keen to play this role and hence it is treating the LTTE with kid gloves, while profiting financially by other means.
While the Labour government is struggling to get another anti-terrorism law through a sceptical House of Lords, it allows organisations already banned to violate the existing law with impunity.
"That is British justice for you," said an Asian human rights lawyer laughingly.
South Korea's runaway foreign workers, including some 3,000 Sri Lankans, have been offered an amnesty to facilitate their return to home countries, the Foreign Employment Bureau said.
Sri Lankans who have run away for their original workplaces and found employment elsewhere illegally are requested to obtain repatriation permits issued by the Ministry of Justice in Seoul and advised to obtain their travel documents from the Sri Lankan embassy there.
The amnesty offer valid upto December 31 includes waiver of a US $ 8000 fine, assistance for Airfare in the case of bankrupt workers, assistance for withdrawal of trainees savings and assistance for obtaining overdue wages from the employer.
Runaways interested in voluntary repatriation have been advised to consult the Korea Federation of Small and Medium Business or their original workplace in South Korea.
In one of the biggest narcotics busts, Customs yesterday detected Rs. 12 million worth of heroin being smuggled in by four passengers who flew in from Chennai on two different flights. Customs Narcotics Division Chief K. A. Dharmasena said the first detection of five kilos was found in a inner section of a water boiler carried by one passenger who came on an Indian Airlines flight. Minutes later three passengers who flew in on a SL airlines flight from Chennai were found to be carrying a total of three kilos in the false soles of their sandals.
A Navy doctor who alleged he was arbitrarily demoted on the basis of lacking swimming qualifications has been granted special leave to appeal by the Supreme Court last Friday.
The decision was based on the question of law whether a third party, (in this case the Navy Commander) can alter the status of an officer once the President who is head of the armed forces has commissioned such officer to a substantive rank and whether such an alteration is reasonable.
The petitioner Dr. Ishanthe Gunatileke citing the Navy Commander among the respondents, appealed against his demotion from the rank of Surgeon Lieutenant to acting Surgeon Lieutenant, a post not provided for in the Sri Lanka Navy.
Mr. R.K.W. Goonesekere, constitutional lawyer, referring the political column of The Sunday Times of December 9, has sent the following letter to us.
"I refer to your centrepage article in The Sunday Times of 9 December under the headline 'Duel over Defence Job' in which references have been made to me. I wish to correct some statements and conclusions that your Political Correspondent has made.
"I have had consultations with Mr. Lakshman Kadirgamar, P.C. former Minister of Foreign Affairs, on several occasions recently at his request on constitutional matters relating to the present Constitution. It is correct that I have met the President with Mr. Kadirgamar in this connection. It is wrong to say or suggest that I advised on prorogation of Parliament followed by holding of a Referendum and the later dissolution of Parliament ( although the last is not mentioned in the article). These were political decisions taken by the Government at that time. My meeting with the President was to explain the constitutional powers of the President.
"It is correct that I met the President on 6 December with Mr. Kadirgamar with whom I had discussions on the outcome of the election and a possible UNP victory. It was our opinion, subsequently conveyed to the President that in the event of the UNP obtaining a plurality of seats in Parliament, the Leader of the UNP would have to be appointed Prime Minister. After that, in the exercise of other powers of the President and in the governance of the country a consensus should be reached. A note was prepared referring to the relevant Articles of the Constitution. I have also to clarify that I had no discussions with the Attorney-General and/or Solicitor-General on the President's powers at any time.
"In conclusion I wish to say that I am a constitutional lawyer and do not play the role of political adviser."
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