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Human Rights? The Commission and its bad joke What the Commission report does not do is to put the issue in any kind of perspective. The LTTE has killed or disappeared 25 persons, but has also ''killed and disappeared'' (just to take one example) 762 innocent policemen who surrendered -- repeat surrendered --- to the LTTE during the President Premadasa's peace initiative. This is not during combat, this is the ''killing and disappearing'' of over 762 persons, more than twice the number of persons accused by the Human Rights Commission of ''having been disappeared'' by the army. Disappeared in the correct sense of the word, as bodies were not returned. True the Sri Lanka Human Rights Commission might take up the position that ''these were the complaints received and investigated,'' etc., Indeed, the reports does say that the commission investigations did not cover ground that was covered by previous commissions. (Report covers period 1990-98). But, to put
the issue in perspective consider that the LTTE has carried out
: Murders 762 innocent policemen who surrendered to the LTTE during president Premadasa's peace initiative, Murders 191 Muslims praying in a mosque and Buddhist pilgrims worshiping the Sri Maha Bodi in Anuradhapura Murders up to 68 Tamil and Sinhala politicians · The Murder of Neelan Thiruchelvam, outstanding scholar, and close comrade in arms of the current chairperson of the Sri Lanka human rights commission Ms Radhika Coomaraswamy. The report also neglects to mention the continuing cases of disappearances and killings of this year 2004 - which has to read as LTTE over 50 at least, and the armed forces none. Now, the report is for a certain period. But that fact is not contextualised. A) The Human Rights Commission cannot and should not issue a report of select complaints, however true it may be that these are the complaints the Commission has got, without making comment about the actual perspective of disappearances, killings and assassinations on both sides to the conflict overall. Any person -- say a person from Mars or probably from France or Europe -- reading this report, will get a very lopsided view of the Sri Lankan conflict, which it appears the Human Rights Commission maliciously wants to present. B) News reports can further distort the situation in the absence of any other detail about the periods covered etc., Reading various news reports it can be construed that this is the human rights picture for the current period. (AP says ''report of investigations of the Human Rights Commission made this year, '' without clarifying time period.) Which of course is far from the truth, and in fact the reverse is true for this year, which is that Muslims, government operatives and political opponents of the LTTE have come under the gun whereas the Sri Lankan army has behaved itself to an extent to which it can be said that it is not guilty of any killing at all. On the other hand, during the actual period of 1990 - 1998 covered by the Human Rights Commission Report the following were some of the observations made by UTHR (J): "The LTTE's unconscionable massacre of Sinhalese civilians along the Eastern border had also no doubt added to the fear among civilians of reprisals by the armed forces" That's from a UTHR (J) report of 1995. Weren't these civilians disappeared/brutally killed? (Disappeared would sound unctuous.) ""Dehumanisation and traumatisation: Many children were used in tasks such as the torture of political prisoners, and in massacres, even of women and children in Muslim and Sinhalese villages.'' Again a UTHR report of the 1990s. This one sentence of the UTHR (J) report says a) LTTE used children b) LTTE massacred women and children in Muslim and Sinhalese villages.' Were these people not "disappeared/killed?'' Were the Sinhalese not considered people? The Human Rights Commission can hide behind explanations that the report is all about complaints that were investigated during a given period. A report needs to put things in perspective, and if some atrocities were not complained about -- because they were so atrocious and blatant or because of the still prevalent threat of LTTE branding and targeting Tamils who have gone against them or because they happened later, then that needs to be said, unless there is a malicious attempt to blow things out of perspective to malign the Sri Lankan army and Sri Lankan state. It adds insult to injury to state that the LTTE ''disappeared'' 25 Muslims (only!) The LTTE in fact tortured and disappeared one of its own leaders. Mahattaya, and many along with him at about the time the period covered in the Report commences. "The honeymoon between the UNP and the LTTE of 1989 - 1990 was fatal for many Tamils and thousands of them went to Prabhakaran's underground torture chambers never to emerge!'' These were not disappearances? Ask H. Sathyan, the Tamil writer of the article quoted from. It is in fact incumbent upon a Human Rights body to investigate disappearances that have never been complained of! Human Rights report my foot….. Jana
Sena inspires moves to reach top As the crowds gathered the President said that it was time for action. This resulted in the establishing of a monitoring committee. It was supposed to oversee the drafting of a broad strategy for the SLFP to go for elections. Kumaratunga looked very confident and was brazing for battle. Susil Premajayantha has been made the overall chief of the new committee. Susil Premajayantha heading this committee is one of the two spokesman appointed by President Kumaratunga entitled to speak about the JVP SLFP alliance effort. But ironically after the conclusion of Jana Sena Premajayantha has been heard passing a remark "Lilliputs have been scared off by the awakening of Gulliver" referring to the love hate relationship between the two parties. As the President finished appointing the committee which included Felix Perera veteran SLFP MP from Gampaha and Dilan Perera, " Please read the list back to me" she had thundered "Oh Sripathis name is not there put him in" she told. Felix Perera who a few months back accused Mangala Samaraweera strongman as a Rasputin got up and said "Madam I cannot work with him" President Kumaratunga respecting the veteran SLFPers words tried to look for a solution but again the mystery inclusion of a man who is responsible for many internal disputes in the party began to haunt the seniors. As Jeyaraj Fernandopulle was left out intentionally from this critical meeting the plague of discontent activates itself within the SLFP ranks as a malicious virus destroying the human body from the inner cells. As internal turmoil racks the party the leadership is persisting with the strategy of keeping a few who many seniors see as a direct threat to the party. The wrath of the new generation's short cut success stories of these new SLFPers saw the knocking out from action some dynamic leaders in the party. The SLFP is developing a Colombian cartel culture as no leader is safe from the dirty politics of elimination. Earlier it was Mahinda Rajapakse who was targeted indirectly attempting to link him up with the highest level of conspiracy. Jeyaraj Fernandopulle, Richard Pathirana and A.H.M Fowzie suffered the same fate. But Kumaratunga was in an entertaining spree the whole of last week as she enjoyed the sight of Blues filling in most of Colombo. The SLFP group meeting on Tuesday drew the same mood. As SLFP parliamentarians were congratulating each other, President was seen taking a few pot shots at the "vote for alliance camp". "Who said the SLFP was weak", "who said we can't fight it out alone" she cried out like a Spartan general commanding an army which was ready to lay its life for the cause. "Now is the time to form the government" "its time to commit our lives in forming the government" cried a gruff voice lifting this Spartan spirit. Janaka Bandara Tennekoon who was pumped up by his valour from storming a police station recently uttered this battle cry. A MP from the group shouted Janaka "please don't go to Nawaloka after making your hara-kiri dive ". The cheeky MP broke spirit of battle silencing the gruff Spartan hoplite. Though President Kumaratunga overjoyed by the pull factor of the Jana Sena she immediately invited the JVP for a meeting last Saturday. But surprisingly "alliance" became the forbidden word in the full two hour discussion. The red trio of Wimal Weerwansa, Anura Dissanayake and JVP General Secretary Tilvin Silva were present. Kumaratunga briefed the JVP on the decisions she took on the Norway monitors and importantly on the future plans to form a new government. The discussion turned a bit serious as both sides attempted to make excuses on why they traded fire at Public gatherings. The discussion ended reaching no particular agreement adding nothing to break the hurting stalemate. Post mortem on Jana Sena was carried out by the propaganda and information unit of the SLFP. All the number of participators were accounted to make a head count to monitor who has contributed mostly to the procession. The procession from Chandra Silva stadium was immensely contributed to by Janaka Bandara Tennekoon, from Pedris Park Rohitha Abeygunawardena, Campbell Park the Samurdhi member delegation brought by Jagath Kumara and controversially the Sugathadasa headcount has been topped by Sripathi Sooriyarachchi. The pathetic scenario is that the latter is a member of the SLFP propaganda and information unit. Dinakara the official SLFP newspaper is also suffering from the same rifts. As last week Mervyn Silva was prevented by the President in entering a brawl when he tried to avenge justice to a stooge of his when a fist fight broke out earlier between some journalists. Amidst the rush to form a new government the Desha Hiteishi Jathika Viyaparaya released its Anuradhapura declaration Tuesday. The JVP spearheaded movement co ordinated by Ven Elle Gunawansa saw Mangala Samaraweera making quite a controversial statement on the formation of the SLFP - JVP alliance. Though the vociferous messiah of the alliance Anura Bandaranaike who never missed a DJV rally unfortunately could not attend as he had a date with Sai Baba. Mangala Samaraweera desperate to form the alliance tried to knock off the main obstacle to the brokering of the marriage on the principles of devolution of power invited the JVP to join forces hinting that the decision to devolve power can be solved through conducting a referendum. Again the point man of the SLFP was thinking in terms of first taking over power. As so called patriots who love their country along with forces who unveil documents to rescue the state, the government was trying to regain the whole of Sri Lanka. Pragmatic elements in society are looking at what the LTTE is going to unveil after a whirlwind tour to a multitude of European countries. As the Sinhala community is fighting a proxy among each other in the South behold what is going to be unveiled in the North. |
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