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During the separatist war, the Sri Lanka Army commandos, the ‘Red Berets’, were on the frontlines. They broke through the fortified enemy defences to pave the way for the infantry to advance, capture and hold territory once held by Tiger (LTTE) terrorists.

In one such incident, a brave commando, who ventured to mount a surprise attack on the advancing enemy, found himself surrounded. He faced a full frontal surprise attack in which he suffered a chest wound. Yet that incident stalled an enemy advance—the result of the sacrifice made by the commando.

He was bedridden thereafter and recovered months later. With his collective earnings and savings, he bought a small car on his retirement. It was to transport his ailing mother to the hospital every week. The father is dead.

Last week, he was driving home from a hill capital when a motorcyclist, with no registration number or riding licence, banged his car from behind. He went to a police station and lodged a complaint. Believe it or not, his vehicle was detained by the officer in charge of the traffic division. The reason was that he was not willing to provide him with the three bottles of arrack he allegedly demanded.

It took the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of the area to order the immediate release of the vehicle. Despite all the talk of a new image, corruption still persists in the
police. What more than in the traffic department?

Holiday in Sri Lanka part of alleged bribes given to New York City mayor

On Thursday, United States federal prosecutors filed charges against New York City Mayor Eric Adams, accusing him of taking illegal campaign contributions and bribes from foreign nationals. Lavish overseas trips to several countries included one to Sri Lanka, in exchange for favours that included helping Turkish officials bypass a fire safety inspection for a new diplomatic tower in the city.

Prosecutors allege that Mr. Adams, a Democratic Party stalwart, sought and accepted illegal contributions funnelled to his campaign through an unnamed official in the Turkish diplomatic establishment.

The official arranged for Mr. Adams and his companions to receive free or discounted travel on Turkey’s national airline to destinations including France, China, Sri Lanka, India, Hungary, and Turkey, according to the indictment.

Among other things, US prosecutors said Mr. Adams received free and steeply discounted flight upgrades valued at more than USD 100,000, free stays in opulent hotel suites, expensive meals, as well as campaign contributions from straw donors, some of which helped him qualify for more than USD 10 million in matching public campaign funds.

Also this week, Singapore’s former transport minister was convicted of receiving gifts while in office after he pleaded guilty before a local court.

Subramaniam Iswaran, 62, was initially charged with corruption, but prosecutors amended these charges at what was supposed to be the start of his trial on Tuesday, the BBC reported.

A corruption case involving a public official is rare in Singapore, a financial hub that prides itself on its squeaky-clean image, and Mr. Iswaran’s case has gripped the nation.

He now faces a fine or up to two years in jail for each charge of receiving gifts or gratifications, compared to a corruption conviction that carries a fine of up to $100,000 or up to seven years in prison.

NPP halts firecracker shows and other victory parties

Last Sunday was a bit hectic at most of the regional party offices of the National People’s Power (NPP) across the country as their presidential candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake was leading the election results, and they were getting ready to celebrate it with fireworks and other grand ways.

In some party offices, they even bought bundles of firecracker boxes—waiting for the formal announcement of the Election Commission that their candidate Dissanayake was elected to the highest office of the land. Then came a directive from party headquarters instructing them not to go ahead with celebrations of the election victory Sri Lankan style, like in the past, since that might hurt the ‘feelings of opponents’.

Some senior party officials gave a different interpretation to this command, saying that the NPP was trying to introduce a ‘new political culture’ and a venesak (change), stressing that the lighting of firecrackers amounted to environmental pollution and that would frighten animals too.

The change apparently continued even at the inauguration of President Dissanayake on Monday, where a simple ceremony was held to mark the event of a presidential swearing-in ceremony and transfer of power.

Unlike at past events, invitees were not given even a cup of plain tea or short eats after the conclusion of the event. One influential NPP official was heard reasoning to a colleague that “this is also part of the change.” The party is hoping to change the old ways and save some state funds, he added.

Police officer seeks bribe from police officer

A police sergeant and a cleaning service employee have been arrested by the Bribery Commission on charges of soliciting a bottle of arrack to obtain the necessary approvals needed to grant a cash reward for a police officer who arrested drunk drivers.

According to the Bribery Commission, the complainant police officer from the Battaramulla Unit of the Western Province (South Range) Traffic Police Division had worked on special duties with the Welikada Police. He had qualified to obtain a cash reward for his part in arresting drunk drivers while on duty.

The sergeant attached to the Keselwatte Police and the cleaning service employee who acted as a go-between were alleged to have solicited a bottle of arrack worth Rs. 3,640 from the officer to obtain the signature of the relevant court official and affix the official seal needed to complete the voucher necessary to obtain this cash reward.

The suspects were arrested by Bribery Commission officers at the premises of the Aluthkade No. 07 Magistrate’s Court on Thursday afternoon.

Facts wrong in congratulatory message from Colombia

Among world leaders rushing to congratulate new president Anura Kumara Dissanayake on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) was Colombia’s President Gustavo Petro. Much of the excitement was the perceived victory of a Marxist politician.

“The People’s Liberation Front led by the Marxist left has won the elections in Sri Lanka with 56% (sic) of the votes. The electoral victory occurs after the fall of a dictatorship,” President Petro said in his message.

The Colombian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) obviously got its facts wrong with regard to the Lankan elections and the country.

Former MPs jump the queue to get passports

While ordinary people wait for days outside the Department of Immigration and Emigration these days hoping to obtain a passport, former MPs and officials who just lost the perks and privileges of travelling on diplomatic or official passports, currently seek special treatment in their request for an ordinary passport, the layman’s travel document.

Governed by a number ‘chit’ system and ruled over by the police, the passport distribution system is hanging on by a thread as a botched tender in issuing new passports resulted in a shortage of travel documents. Only 1000 are issued a day currently, and the waiting time takes weeks—that is, if you don’t have connections at the right places.

These days, there have been multiple requests from former MPs to the department seeking ‘priority service’ to obtain new ordinary passports following the dissolution of Parliament.

This week, one such request came from a former Cabinet Minister who applied for a new passport on September 24, the day Parliament was dissolved, and received it within two days.

It is no secret that diplomatic passports are often misused by politicians and officials for various reasons. Earlier this year, former parliamentarian Ali Sabri Raheem was caught red-handed smuggling gold while travelling on a diplomatic passport from Dubai. He utilised perks that come with diplomatic passports, and they included visa waivers, legal protections, and exemptions from security and customs checks.

Meanwhile, ordinary people who want to obtain passports under the normal service turn up at the passport office as early as midnight just to secure a spot in the queue.

Wigneswaran quits active politics to give youth a chance

The Northern Province’s former chief minister and ex-parliamentarian C.V. Wigneswaran announced this week that he had decided not to contest the upcoming parliamentary polls as he wanted to step aside to allow young people to enter the political arena.

Announcing his decision on Friday, the one-time Supreme Court justice also noted that he started his new political party for the pure purpose of winning the rights of Tamil people.

“My wish is to make way to let the next generation take part in politics more actively and enable them to stand a chance to contest the upcoming polls,” Mr. Wigneswaran said.

He also had a special request for those other fellow leaders like him—senior citizens—who are holding higher posts in political parties. “I urge them to provide an opportunity for young people by remaining as mentors.”

The Jaffna electoral district lost one seat from seven to six MPs in the latest distribution of parliamentary seats, according to the Election Commission.

Thanking the people who voted for him in the previous parliamentary polls, Mr. Wigneswaran said he tried his best to secure “Tamil rights” and assured that he would continue to do that in the future as well. “Even though my residence is located in Colombo, I am staying in Jaffna to serve the people.”