Peter is on leave - this debate Johnned out
The debate on the security situation was heavy on hype and billed to be studded with star players: Tilak Marapana, John Amaratunge, Wimal Weerwansa and the lot. But, from all accounts the debate petered out, even though I managed to witness only some parts of it, at which point it was definitely petering out. Or Johnning-out was more like it- because John Amaratunge was on his feet most of the time, and his voice was trailing off, its gravitas now gone, a shadow of what was heard in the house during the no confidence motion against him some months back.

Then John Amaratunge wound down, and the mace was taken away. There were shouts of 'mini maruwa, mini maruwa.'' (murderer murderer.) There was no animation at all. Opposition MPs stood erect, looked at the Interior Minister before his getaway and accused him of murder. Having spoken of Chandi Malli and Sunil Mendis etc, in his customary tone of Mafia prosecutor regaling his fans in the tavern, Amaratunge, even if he was speaking in his subdued voice had already transformed the House into a rogues gallery by association.

Muslim ladies from a girls school who wore maximum headscarves and populated almost the entirety of the visitors gallery that day were assailed with cries of ''rape rape murderer murder''. It was only Tilak Marapana's promise that "Sri Lanka army will look after intelligence operatives in the future'' which seemed to indicate to these Muslim ladies that their parliament was not entirely about rape and murder. What a sense of humour among talk of murder, mayhem and rape. Sri Lankan army intelligence operatives will be given security cover in the future to prevent assassinations, he says!! A bow all round then to Marapana for retaining his sense of the funny, when everybody around was losing theirs.

Amaratunge, of the I forgot-my-Hacks subdued voice at one point threatened to take off the coats of all police officers who are partisan and don't do their job. At this point the opposition hecklers really got carried away with their rape fantasies - - threatening to strip somebody or the other completely, and not just the coat only. I am sure they were not talking of Amaratunge. John Amaratunge was by now immune to all this however and he droned on. Appropriate, because soon he talked of vehicles. Vehicles can now be driven without any hindrance, he said. Was it to parliament? It couldn't be -- because all vehicles still need to be parked a quarter mile away before one gets into the shuttle bus to get into the House. What are they afraid of? That next time they'll bring a hearse into the porch?

John Amaratunge's reference to vehicles needed some clarification - and it came in slow motion. He said "now vehicles are free to come from the North and the East.'' At least that gives Minister Tilak Marapana a job to do. He can guarantee the safety of army intelligence operatives and policemen in Dehiwela from the assassins who freely arrive in these vehicles thanks to John Amaratunge's new security regime. Small wonder Marapana was having the last laugh?

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