Author: TELO Admin

Rumours which circulated on social media late last evening, announcing that Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa will resign from his Premiership post today are false and there have been no such discussions, Prime Minister’s Chief of Staff,yoshitha Rajapaksa told Daily Mirror yesterday.

A video news clip, quoting Minister Namal Rajapaksa as stating that Prime Minister Rajapaksa will step down from the Premiership post, spread rapidly on Whatsapp last evening, leading to questions if Rajapaksa would resign today.

However, the said news clip is one from 2018 when Rajapaksa remained in office for 52 days after which he eventually resigned. Yoshitha said the clip which has resurfaced on Whatsapp was false and there had been no such discussion for the Premier to resign. “This is nothing but fake news,” he said.

Due to the high profile majority supremacist policies of the Gotabaya Rajapaksa government, disparate and mutually antagonistic Tamil-speaking communities of Sri Lanka have come together to jointly struggle against the Rajapaksa regime.

Though the complaint about Sinhala-Buddhist majoritarian dominance was decades old, the minority Tamils and Muslims were stung by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s assertion of his Sinhala-Buddhist identity in his Independence Day oration on February 4.

The President had said in the very beginning of his speech: “I am a Sinhala Buddhist leader and I will never hesitate to state so.”

The Pottuvil to Poligandy (P to P) long march through the Eastern and Northern provinces of Sri Lanka from February 3 to 7, was primarily meant to highlight the festering grievances and the long standing demands of the North-Eastern Sri Lankan Tamils. But for the first time, Sri Lankan Tamil marchers shouted slogans highlighting the grievances of the Indian Origin Tamils working in the plantations, and of the Muslims, who are hurt by the government’s refusal to allow them to bury their COVID dead when their religion enjoins them to bury and not cremate their dead.

The P to P march was also meant to whip up support for the Tamils at the March session of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) where there could be vote on a resolution condemning Sri Lanka for alleged failure to investigate charges of “genocide, war crimes, and violations of human rights and international humanitarian law.” The report of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, has recommended “targeted sanctions” and reference to the International Criminal Court (ICC). The last recommendation stemmed from a demand made earlier by a united front of Sri Lankan Tamil political parties.

Tamil Parties Sink Differences

The exclusionary politics of the incumbent Lankan regime have brought together not only Tamils and Muslims but created a rationale for unity among the disparate and mutually antagonistic Tamil political parties. The long and hard struggle of the Indian Origin Tamil plantation workers for a daily wage of Rs.1000/- was also highlighted by the marchers. For the first time, leaders of the Indian Origin Tamils, who had earlier kept away from the movements of the Sri Lankan Tamils, threw in their lot with the latter.

Marchers’ Demands

The marchers demanded from the UNHRC the following: (a) a reference to the International Criminal Court (ICC) for War Crimes, Crimes Against Humanity and Genocide; (b) a guarantee that the genocide that (allegedly) took place against Tamils is not repeated; (c) a permanent political solution which should be founded on an internationally conducted and monitored referendum among the Tamils of Sri Lanka.

Exploiting Indo-Lankan Rift

The Tamils are also poised to exploit the present strain in the relations between Sri Lanka and India over the Eastern Container Terminal (ECT) in the Colombo port, and the grant of contracts to a Chinese firm to build and operate renewable energy power stations in the islands off Jaffna, not far from India.

India had strongly protested against Sri Lanka’s non-adherence to an existing agreement over the ECT and the grant of the power projects to China creating a security concern for India.

Commenting on the issue of the ECT and the northern power projects, current Member of Parliament and former Chief Minister of the Tamil majority Northern Province, C.V.Wigneswaran, said: “It is no secret that successive Sri Lankan Governments have cheated India many a time. This is another example. I expected this to happen after the Geneva sittings. I mentioned this in an interview with the media a few weeks ago. But it has happened slightly earlier.”

“There is news that the Sri Lankan Government wishes to lease out three of the Islands close to Jaffna to a Chinese organization to start certain projects to generate electricity. This is a serious matter. It is high time India identified the Tamils of the North East of Sri Lanka as their dependable friends and changed their present political stance making sure that the Tamil speaking in the North and East were granted the right to govern themselves while ensuring their safety.”

“If the Southern Block of India (the Indian Foreign Ministry) is to be safe, India must ensure self-determination for the Tamils of the North and East of Sri Lanka. It is appropriate for India to take the leadership to ensure a referendum in the North and East to be conducted by the International Community so that the Tamil speaking people would decide their political future.”

“What happened to the Eastern Terminal will sure happen to the 13th Amendment soon. India must realize that any solution to the ethnic problem within a Unitary State of Government is bound to fail.”

In 1987 during discussions preceding the Indo Sri Lankan Agreement there was speculation that India preferred the same rights given to their Regional States be given to the Provinces in Sri Lanka. But J.R.(President J.R.Jayewardene) tricked the Indians and brought out a toothless Thirteenth Amendment which gave very little powers to the periphery. After him President R.Premadasa went a step further and pulled out the Government Agents, Divisional Secretaries and Grama Sevakas from under the Provincial Administration and brought them under the Centre. Even the meagre Land and Police powers given under the Thirteenth Amendment have been denied to the Provinces up to date by successive Sinhala majority Governments.”

Finally, Wigneswaran warned: “The Sinhalese are generally adepts at giving ropes, meaning giving false hopes. They would be subservient until they get their things done. Once done they will take high ground. India must realize this. Unless India gains the goodwill of the Tamils of the North and East both will suffer in the long run.”

The Hindu newspaper has reported that Sri Lanka has granted approval for an energy project on three islands located off Sri Lanka’s coast.

The report noted that Sri Lanka’s recent decision to pull out of the East Container Terminal deal with India and Japan is not the only challenge to New Delhi’s interests emerging this year.

It added that Sri Lanka had cleared a Chinese energy project in three islands off the Jaffna peninsula, barely 50 km from the Tamil Nadu coast, a week before reneging on the 2019 East Container terminal agreement.

According to the report, hybrid renewable energy systems are to be installed in the Nainativu, Delft, and Analaitivu islands based on cabinet approval received on the 18th of January.

The tender for these projects had been handed over to the Sinosoar-Etechwin joint venture in China upon receiving the approval of the cabinet.

Meanwhile, the Sri Lanka Tea Board has signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Fujian Star China International Trade Company Ltd., to promote Pure Ceylon Tea in the Chinese market.

Under the 15-year agreement, Fujian Star China International Trade Company will purchase more than 4 million kilos of tea from Sri Lanka annually.

Although the Sri Lankan Embassy in China said that the Chinese company will purchase tea on a pre-agreed price, the Sri Lanka Tea Board said that tea would be exported under the existing market rates in Sri Lanka.

As reports emerge on trade and investment ties between China and Sri Lanka, Imran Khan, the Prime Minister of Pakistan that is a close ally of China, is due to visit Sri Lanka this month.

The Pakistani Prime Minister will visit Sri Lanka on February 22 of this month and will deliver a special address in Parliament at 2 pm on February 24.

Against such a backdrop, cabinet spokesperson Keheliya Rambukwella has said that Sri Lanka will hold talks on the UN human rights chief’s report before the 46th UNHRC sessions begin on February 22.

Co-Cabinet Spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella confirmed that the Sri Lankan government has received complaints from the Indian Government over the power projects handed to China on islands in the sea close to the Indian coast.

He told reporters this morning that those power projects were already approved and the complaints will be looked into and discussed in detail with relevant authorities.

The Sunday Times reported that India has lodged a strong protest with Sri Lanka on the award of a tender to a Chinese company to set up three renewable energy projects in outlying islands off the Jaffna peninsula.

It reported that this decision came even before the Cabinet of Ministers decided not to give India and Japan the East Container Terminal in the Colombo Port. The protest was triggered by the Department of Information releasing the decisions of the Cabinet about the approval of the Hybrid Renewable Energy Systems in the northern islands on January 18.

The Sunday Times quoted diplomatic sources as saying that India’s protest was on the grounds that such a move would raise security concerns for it. The islands concerned are the Delft Island, Analativu and Nainativu.

The islands, separated by the Palk Strait from India, were in close proximity to India’s coast.
It was also reported that energy project’s local partner, the Ceylon Electricity Board, has finalized matters related to the project by identifying lands for the joint venture with Etechwin of China. The funds for the project are to come from the Asian Development Bank.

The USD 12 million projects have been awarded to MS/Sinosar-Etechwin Joint Venture in China based on the recommendation given by the Cabinet-Appointed Standing Committee on Procurement.

Under the project, international competitive bids were called to install hybrid renewable energy systems in the three islands utilizing accessible energy resources to improve the efficiency of the prevailing energy network.

However, the Indian High Commission in Colombo refused to comment on the matter when inquired by EconomyNext.

The Core Group on Sri Lanka has confirmed it will be submitting a Resolution on Sri Lanka at the upcoming session of the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva.

The British Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the UK in Geneva, Julian Braithwaite, informed the UNHRC yesterday (Monday) of the decision to submit the Resolution.

The confirmation was made as the UNHRC met to discuss its plans for the 46th Session of the UNHRC which will be held from 22 February 2021 to 23 March 2021.

The Core Group on Sri Lanka consists of Canada, Germany, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and the United Kingdom.

Braithwaite said that a Resolution will be submitted to the Council on promoting reconciliation, accountability and human rights in Sri Lanka.

The Resolution is a follow-up to one already co-sponsored by the former government, from which the current administration withdrew last year.

Braithwaite said the Resolution will be based on the recent damning report on Sri Lanka by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet.

Bachelet had last month made public a damning report on Sri Lanka and has proposed targeted sanctions, such as asset freezes and travel bans against credibly alleged perpetrators of grave human rights violations and abuses.

The UN report warns that the failure of Sri Lanka to address past human rights violations has significantly heightened the risk of such violations being repeated. It highlights worrying trends over the past year, such as deepening impunity, and increased militarisation of governmental functions, ethno-nationalist rhetoric, and intimidation of civil society.

Nearly 12 years after the armed conflict in Sri Lanka ended, impunity for grave human rights violations and abuses by all sides is more entrenched than ever, with the current Government proactively obstructing investigations and trials, and reversing the limited progress that had been previously made, states the report, mandated by UN Human Rights Council Resolution 40/1.

The report urges enhanced monitoring and strong preventive action by the international community, warning that “Sri Lanka’s current trajectory sets the scene for the recurrence of the policies and practices that gave rise to grave human rights violations”.

Among the early warning signals the report highlights are the accelerating militarisation of civilian governmental functions, reversal of important constitutional safeguards, political obstruction of accountability, exclusionary rhetoric, intimidation of civil society, and the use of anti-terrorism laws.