We defeated both the Govt, and the UNP: Somawansa

The Budget 2008 had very little for the downtrodden people of Sri Lanka and those who drafted it want to continue robbing the public funds while politicising the war, says JVP leader Somawansa Amerasinghe. In an interview with The Sunday Times, the JVP leader explains why his party voted against the Budget during the second reading and abstained during the third reading. Excerpts:

During the second reading of the budget, we voted against the Government. During the vote on the third reading, we saw some political changes after November 19 that would have caused anarchy. At the same time we had to take into serious consideration the fact that the government ignored the concerns raised by our party regarding the budget.

Those were moves to cause anarchy by the UNP the other reactionary elements that were trying to grab power. That would have led to anarchy. We had to find a way to prevent that from happening and oppose the government simultaneously.

Not two. But there were three stances. First, we opposed the budget. Then we supported the government unconditionally and unwaveringly to pass the allocations for the Ministry of Defence. Then the third. We opposed both the government and the reactionary forces led by UNP. The budget did not have anything to take the country forward economically. Thus, we were unable to vote for the budget.

We opposed it then. We need to defeat terrorism if we are to achieve national unity and development. Therefore, we supported the vote on the Defence Ministry. During the budget debate, particularly after the vote on second reading there were reports of MPs trying to cross over to the Opposition and vice versa. This was not for the benefit of the country. Both the Government and the Opposition United National Party (UNP) must be blamed for degrading the dignity of the people.

We believe we were successful in unmasking such people. Both sides were talking about patriotism. They were talking about military operations against terrorists for their own benefit. There was no meaningful debate on the budget. The debate in Parliament was dull. It was the most politicised debate since independence. We tried to raise the level of the debate. We are satisfied that our comrades played the role of a shadow cabinet. We wanted to focus on finding solutions for the acute economic crisis facing the country.

Without thinking of personal benefits, we did the correct thing to abstain from voting during the final vote. By doing that, we raised the awareness of the people and their political consciousness. We have demonstrated how to oppose the Government and the UNP simultaneously which is the exact role of the JVP - a role entrusted to us by the people. This country is badly in need of an alternative that is capable of forming a government to build this country, to regain Sri Lanka. It was good for the country. Quite clearly the Mahinda Rajapaksa regime is a minority Government. They have only 111 seats as the voting showed. Three votes came not from their ranks.

The UNP and the SLFP (PA) have betrayed this country during the past 60 years and they are still betraying the country. They will be betraying the country in future also, no doubt. Without planning for the future, they are trying to topple the Government. The Government is doing nothing to solve the problems of the people. They failed miserably. No wonder the UNP and the SLFP supporters are distancing themselves from their leadership. They have no strategies to regain Sri Lanka politically, economically socially and culturally.

We wanted to warn the Government. We wanted them to know that the budget did not provide any vision to take the country forward. Those who drafted the budget did not think about the downtrodden people of this country. Fifty per cent of the population is under the poverty line. They do not have a strategy to achieve the much-needed economic growth. They have ignored the financial regulations and administrative regulations because they want to continue robbing the public funds. They allowed the financial institutions to crumble. There is no financial discipline.

This decision was arrived at, taking into account the political situation that prevailed after the second reading of the budget. The climate was quite different. We reviewed the situation seriously and took that decision. This was a defeat for both the Government and the Opposition. We did not back any side.

This is a silly argument. Our members do not depend on a pension. Even at present, all salaries, allowances of JVP MPs go to a common account. These funds are being used for party work and welfare work for the people such as providing computer literacy for young men and women without charging any fees. Of course, we pay the MPs for their transport, expenses etc. We have been doing this from the very beginning.

We do not waste public funds. Like other political parties we do not spend extravagantly. For example, when the Government wanted to repair the Galle bus stand that was devastated after the tsunami, they wanted to spend five million rupees. We got it done with Rs. 1.5 million. See how we have saved public funds. There are many examples. The public is well aware of this. We manned four Ministries at one time. If there was a public function where the Minister and his Deputy were to go, they went together in a Double Cab.

We had no dialogue whatsoever. Nor did we have any appeals from the Government. Of course, there were appeals from those close to the Government. We did not have any talks. There was nothing for us to talk about.

We have already said what the Government has to deliver. Talking about patriotism does not fulfil everything. There should be good governance. Patriotism is nothing but good governance linked with military actions against LTTE terrorists. If they can cover up everything and talk only of military successes, it is a terrible mistake. The country needs unity and good governance.
They can claim they have won the war. But like Winston Churchill, they can lose the next election .

There are some achievements. We are not confident, not satisfied about these where corruption is concerned.

It was a terrible mistake. There is no ceasefire now. The Government is politicising the war. They wanted to use this to get the budget passed. We demand that the Government should abrogate the CFA. It has violated the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the country. The Security Forces have liberated the East. Yet the CFA declares there are LTTE controlled areas there.

The military gains are meaningless in that situation. The CFA allowed the LTTE to talk about what they call their areas. This is a myth. The late S.P. Tamilselvan, alluding to Air Force attacks, claimed that "they( Sinhalese Govt.) are violating our air space and sovereignty." If the Government wants to start talks in future with the LTTE it would say they could do so using the CFA as the beginning. The CFA allows Norway to mediate. That itself gives an opportunity for Norway to meddle in our internal affairs. This is unacceptable. That is why the CFA should go.

At the moment, the LTTE is attacking. If he thinks he must ban because they attack, there is no sense in that. It is absurd. We cannot understand his delay in banning the LTTE. But we have some reservations. When the LTTE is banned, the Government can use repressive laws to persecute those in the opposition, the media, civilian groups and others.

We oppose the persecution of innocent people. The JVP will not keep silent. We have defended the rights, for example, of the media. We condemned the attack on The Sunday Leader press although we have serious concerns about its practice. We condemned the harassment of The Sunday Times journalists. It is the responsibility of the Government to ensure media freedom and human rights.

This Government is not capable of preventing outside forces interfering in the internal affairs of this country by safeguarding the democratic rights and human rights. The JVP will continue to fight for sovereignty, territorial integrity and independence of this country and for unity, democracy and good governance. Our aim is a multi-ethnic, multi-cultural Sri Lanka that will mobilise all its strengths and capabilities and release them to achieve its deserving position among the giants of Asia.