When it comes to getting the state of emergency extended by another month, the government has no problem in securing the support of the majority of MPs. Except for the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), others have been supportive of the motion, However, the UNP and the JVP have begun to show serious reservations regarding the manner in which the government uses or misuses emergency regulations. These tough regulations, they say, are not only used to crack down on LTTE terrorism but also to deny to the people many of their democratic rights.
Taking the government to task in Parliament last week were the JVP members who were infuriated by the killing of Nandana Balage. A dedicated party worker, Mr. Balage was shot dead in Veyangoda allegedly by people linked to the government.
 |
| Bimal Ratnayake |
"We have been extending our support to the motion to extend the state of emergency in support of the armed forces who are fighting the terrorists. But today this government is taking away the people's civil rights using these regulations. When one Hitler is being put down in the north, another is rising in the south," said an angry Bimal Ratnayake, the JVP's Kurunegala district MP.
He went on to name some of those allegedly behind the murder of Mr. Balage and said the JVP did not expect any justice from the "Rajapaksa Police" but was hopeful the people would ensure that justice was done.
"When criminals know they can operate above the law, the situation can only get worse... But the JVP's resolve to fight injustice will only be strengthened by the killing of our comrade," Mr. Ratnayake said.
The UNP which has been abstaining from voting on the emergency as a mark of support for the soldiers also launched its usual attack on the government, accusing the government of suppressing media freedom, abusing state power and ignoring waste and corruption in the state sector.
Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe made a special statement in the House on the non-appointment of the Constitutional Council (CC), saying that at a time when democracy was under threat in the country, failure to appoint the independent commissions only made the outlook bleak. "The names of the nominees for the CC have been sent by the relevant parties and there are no hurdles to appointing the CC. It must be done without delay," he demanded.
The term of the CC lapsed in February 2006 and umpteen statements on the issue have been made in Parliament mainly by the UNP but by now it seems all this has been a futile exercise, given the fact that there is no serious interest on the part of the Government to have the CC in place.
Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake rose to respond to the Opposition Leader, but he dodged a direct reply to the issue and eventually ended up putting the ball in someone else's court as has been the practice for months.
 |
| Ranil Wickremesinghe |
Finally when asked if the Prime Minister could tell the House when the CC would be appointed, he said no date could be given.
Thus the filibustering continues. The Opposition will be making many more such statements on the 17th Amendment in the House and the government will be coming up with the same reply. The CC, which is likely to herald some sort of good governance, will be in limbo.
The government may be able to sidestep issues such as the implementation of the 17th Amendment but there are other issues which it has to face head on.
One such issue is that while it is winning the fight against the LTTE in the battlefront, on the international front the fight is proving much tougher - a fact acknowledged by Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama in Parliament. The Minister did not mince his words when he spoke on the failure by the International Community (IC) to act against the LTTE. Expresseing his disappointment, he said punitive action against the LTTE by the IC remained largely on paper and even in countries where the proscription was in place, its implementation amounted to nothing.
"Fund-raisings by the LTTE operatives continues unabated. Public demonstrations in countries that have banned the LTTE have now graduated to the blatant use of the terrorist organisation's name, insignia and cut outs of its leader. These countries offer various excuses why legal action cannot be taken. I am only left to question the validity of the proscription," the Minister said.
House Leader Nimal Siripala de Silva who wound up the debate on the emergency praised the members of the armed forces for their sacrifices and President Mahinda Rajapaksa for his "great" leadership given to the fight against the terrorists.
He also ridiculed the recent statement by the Opposition Leader that he would abolish the executive presidency if the UNP came to power. "He tried many times to win the presidency and having failed, he wants to abolish it now. It's a case of sour grapes," the Minister said.
The government also announced that elections to local authorities in the north would be held shortly as the government wanted civil administration restored there as soon as possible like it did in the eastern province.
|
E-mail