Divisions within divisions in the UPFA and

SLFP

By Our Political Editor-Sunday, November 29,

2015
President warns of action against those who vote against the Budget, but dissident

groups also remain strong while NFF seeks to go it alone

Concern over nine military officers meeting Sirisena without informing Army
Chief or Defence Secretary focus was alleged war crimes probe
Efficacious new action to combat corruption; several oversight committees
to ensure greater role for Parliament
A top-level meeting President Maithripala Sirisena held with a group of senior Army
officers has ruffled feathers in the defence and security establishment. Neither
Defence Secretary Karunasena Hettiaratchchi nor Army Commander Lt. Gen.
Chrisanthe de Silva had prior knowledge of the meeting.

Most of the nine senior officers who met President

Sirisena at a hotel in Negombo, while he was on a visit there, played a pivotal role in

the final stages of the battle to defeat militarily the Tiger guerrillas in May 2009. The
officers, some of whom are due for retirement reaching 55 years, are learnt to have
explained the roles they played during the military operation. The explanations come in
the wake of the UN Human Rights Council resolution in Geneva. Sri Lanka, which cosponsored it, has agreed to set up a court with international judges to try those
responsible for alleged war crimes.

Eyebrows over the issue were raised after both the Defence Secretary and the Army
Commander learnt of the event only after the Negombo meeting had taken place. It
has now come to light that a former official in the Defence Ministry had arranged the
meeting with the help of a minister.

Army Commander Chrisanthe de Silva is learnt to have met President Sirisena to

explain matters. He had said that the officers in question, as is the practice, had not
obtained his or the Defence Secretarys permission before the meeting. The move
prompted Lt. Gen. de Silva to send out a directive on November 5. This is what it said:

ALL LISTS LESS SLN/SLAF OFFICERS VISITING MINISTRY OF DEFENCE AND

OTHER HIGHER OFFICERS:
1. With immediate effect visiting the Ministry of Defence and other related high
officers shall obtain permission from the Commander of the Army through Military
Secretary. This rule shall be applicable even where the officer is called upon to visit by
the MoD or higher office.
2. Strict compliance.
Those who met President Sirisena at the Outreach Hotel in Negombo were Major
General Jagath Dias, Chief of Staff, Major General Mahinda Hathurusinghe, Adjutant
General as well as Colonel Commandant, Sri Lanka Artillery, Major General Kamal
Gunaratne, Master General Ordinance, Major General Shavendra Silva, Defence
Services Staff College, Major General Nandana Udawatte, Security Forces
Commander, Jaffna, Major General Prasanna de Silva, Military Liaison Officer, Ministry

of Defence, Major General Jagath Alwis, awaiting a posting from AHQ, Major General
Prasanna Silva, General Officer Commanding 51 Division and Major General Chagi
Gallage.

Informal pressure from US

The meeting between these senior officers and Sirisena came as Army Headquarters
in Colombo is busy formulating its own responses to matters that may surface before
special courts that the Government will establish to hear alleged war crimes.
Legislation for this purpose is to be introduced in Parliament in the coming year, a
move which has caused some concern among sections of the Sri Lanka Freedom
Party (SLFP). The current thinking in the Government is to establish such institutions
as High Courts dedicated to probing alleged war crimes. At a meeting with President
Sirisena before he departed to Malta, MPs raised issue with him. He asserted that
such courts would have to be set up since the Government had given an undertaking
to deal with human rights violations but did not elaborate how they were to be set up.
The issue also came into focus over the weekend during the visit to Colombo by
Samantha Power, US Ambassador to the United Nations. The much publicised events
she took part notwithstanding, her mission covered progress made by the Government
towards implementing recommendations contained in the US-backed resolution in
Geneva. That seemed a reminder that the issue is still high on the US agenda vis--vis
its relations with Sri Lanka. She did so at three different levels, with Foreign Minister
Mangala Samaraweera, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and President Sirisena.

The informal diplomatic pressure from the United States was not the only factor this
week. An official legal delegation from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human
Rights (OHCHR) was also in Colombo this week to determine the progress made in
respect of implementing provisions of the UNHRC resolution. They held extensive
talks with officials in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on the different mechanisms the
Government has offered to set up. This includes the establishment of special courts

where international judges would be included, a mechanism for preserving all existing
records and documentation relating to human rights violations and abuses as well as
violation of international humanitarian law. The delegation has expressed the view that
a witness protection mechanism should be put in place by June next year. The
Government has already passed required legislation for witness protection to be
enforced in different phases. They have also made clear that the Government should
have a time line within which specific provisions in the resolution should be
implemented.

There has been a spurt of

Government activity related to
matters arising from the UN
resolution in the past few
weeks. One such instance was
a move to release LTTE
guerrilla suspects now in
custody. While measures are
under way to release those who
have not been served charges,
President Maithripala Sirisena greeting United States Ambassador to the United Nations
Samantha Power

legal impediments will prevent

the release of those against

whom action has been filed in courts. Private plots of land held by the military in the
North have been gradually restored to their original owners while surveys continue to
identify more such land. Business ventures carried out by the military outside its
encampments including restaurants and other shops along public roads have already
been shut down. However, the Government is yet to decide on major investments by
the military in major hotel projects and other tourist ventures. The Government is in
consultation with the UN to find slots for Sri Lankan troops in UN peace keeping
operations worldwide.

New opposition group

These developments come as a new opposition group, which claims it has more MPs
than the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), is preparing a string of public meetings to
oppose implementing the Geneva resolution. The group is headed by Mahajana
Eksath Peramuna (MEP) Dinesh Gunawardena, who said, This is one of our twin
priorities. The other is to educate the people on the mounting cost of living and other
hardships they would face. We are also going to expose the various inducements
Sirisena is offering in a bid to get MPs to back him. During the ongoing budget debate,
we are also raising issues over land and other matters.

The issue of hardships for the people has become the subject of concern for a few Sri
Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) members and ministers. They aired their grievances at a
Friday meeting chaired by Prime Minister Wickremesinghe. In attendance was
Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake. Wickremesinghe said yesterday that most
issues raised by ministers were on the need to provide cash subsidies to the coconut
and rubber industry too. They said it should be extended to over a hectare, which is
the ceiling imposed in the budget. He said Finance Minister Karunanayake had agreed
to make possible adjustments. The other common complaint was the lack of funds for
projects in their electorates. We have to address the issues raised by them. They will
have to keep their own voters happy, he said.

Another group of MPs, widely regarded as pro-Mahinda Rajapaksa, sought a meeting

with President Sirisena to discuss matters relating to the budget. At first, he said, they
should meet up with the ministers concerned. He later agreed and a meeting followed
another day. It was parliamentarians Dullas Allahapperuma and Kumara Welgama
who began the conversation. They said they were going to vote against the budget.
Sirisena replied that they should vote for the budget and said otherwise they would not
be able to deliver the benefits to their respective electorates. Bandula Gunawardena
was to add that if we do not object now, we will be mistaken to be a party to the

budget. It is in the interest of the party that we do not support it. Sirisena said he was
unable to give two different opinions, one in their favour and another for the party. As
far as he was concerned, he had endorsed the budget and that was the SLFPs view
too. Ministers S.B. Dissanayake and Nimal Siripala de Silva said the MPs should vote
in favour but others including Keheliya Rambukwella, Mahindananda Aluthgamage,
Kumara Welgama and Bandula Gunawardena declared that they would not.

NFFs paper advertisement

As the meeting ended, moves for a vote of no-confidence against Finance Minister
Karunanayake were taking shape. After 44 MPs, mostly UPFA constituents and SLFP
MPs backing Rajapaksa, had signed it, it was handed over to Speaker Karu
Jayasuriya. Those backing the no-faith move had been consulting lawyers to ascertain
the legal consequences if they voted against the budget. The advice, one source said,
was that they could face expulsion if they had not raised objections within the
parliamentary group itself and gone on record over it. Sirisena has told his confidants
that he would take appropriate action against those defying his appeal to support the
budget. This, in fact, has added to the woes of the dissidents. They had earlier been
livid with National Freedom Front (NFF) leader Wimal Weerawansa, after he had
placed Sinhala newspaper advertisements calling for applications from candidates to
contest on his partys ticket at the upcoming local elections. If he grabs our fellows,
what are we going to do, lamented one of the dissidents to their leader. He pointed
out that their membership will get depleted and there will not be many with them. It
was decided to talk to Weerawansa too, after he returns from a European tour.
Weerawansa is addressing Sri Lanka groups in some countries about what he calls
the dangers posed by the Geneva resolution. Another undisclosed issue, his party
insiders say, is to raise funds for the local government polls.

Time to form a party

That message seems to have seeped into other party cadres too. On Friday evening,
the D.A. Rajapaksa memorial oration was delivered by Dinidu Kumaratunga, a relative
of the late Munidasa Kumaratunga. Giving an overview of the political developments,
he suggested that it was time to form another party like the SLFP. Both Mahinda
Rajapaksa and brother Chamal, former Speaker, were present at the event. The
subject became the topic of discussion among those present. Yet, most signatories to
the no-faith move, one source said, may refrain from voting and thus try to minimise
the disciplinary action they are likely to face. There was some confusion and
speculation that arose as a result of a chance meeting between President Sirisena
and former Minister Basil Rajapaksa. It was at the wedding of the second daughter of
former Minister Arumugam Thondaman. Basil Rajapaksa had chosen to go to the
wedding at Thondamans residence at noon when he had hoped most VIPs would
have come and gone. However, when he was seated in the hall, Sirisena arrived and
occupied a table near the entrance.

Basil who wanted to make a hasty exit, for his misfortune, was stopped by a personal
security detail of Sirisena. This was to allow Sirisena to make his exit. Sirisena who
rose from his seat turned backwards to see Basil standing right there. Kohomada or
how are you? he asked. Basil said he was well. Sirisena was to remark that he arrived
late since he had to fly to Matale for the opening of the Mahatma Gandhi Centre. If
that chance meeting was cause for speculation in some circles, there was bad news
for Basil Rajapaksa the next morning. He received a Police message that he has to
turn up at the Special Investigation Unit (SIU) of Police headquarters to make a
statement. He presented himself and was to tell a friend that his travails were not
ending.

Sweeping changes in Bribery Act

For the Government, on the other hand, proposals in the budget are not the only issue
in focus. Mounting criticism that it has not done much that is tangible to cope with

bribery and corruption, another element in the Geneva resolution, has spurred the
Government into action. It is now studying a draft policy and framework of action to
efficaciously combat corruption and fraud. This has been recommended by members
of the Presidential Task Force for the Recovery of Stolen Assets.

It has recommended changes in the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery

or Corruption Act. It is firstly to re-name it as the Independent Commission to
Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption. The territorial jurisdiction of the
Commission is to be expanded enabling it to deal with offences committed by Sri
Lankans overseas. The Commission is to be empowered to disseminate intelligence
and investigational findings to other law enforcement agencies which shall not be
deemed to amount to a breach of confidentiality. The Commission is to be empowered
to prosecute state and private sector individuals and corporates. It will have a data
base and monitor the acquisition of assets by specified persons. It will be empowered
to conduct prosecutions either by itself or outsource it to the Attorney General. Even
those outside the Police Department are to be enlisted as investigators.

The Police Ordinance is to be amended to establish a Financial and Economic Crimes

Investigation Department (F&ECID) instead of the existing FCID. It has been
recommended that such a body, in the first instance, be established by the Police
Chief through a Gazette notification.

In terms of the recommendations, a separate Unit to be named Prosecution of

Corruption and Fraud Unit in the Attorney Generals Department is to exclusively deal
with matters pertaining to the FCID and the CIABOC. It is to function under the
Attorney General and is to be headed by an Additional Solicitor General with ten
senior officers.

Sectoral Oversight Committees

A Government official said yesterday that Premier Wickremesinghe is now studying

the recommendations and priority would be given to the implementation. Another
resolution Wickremesinghe will move in Parliament, the official said, was for the
appointment of Sectoral Oversight Committees, among other matters, to oversee the
economy, international relations, national security, legal affairs, media and energy.
Once they are set up, all Bills, Resolutions, Treaties, Reports and other matters within
their jurisdiction are to be referred to the relevant committees for report prior to being
placed before the House. Some of the more significant highlights:
Not later than six weeks after the first session of Parliament, each Sectoral
Oversight Committee shall, adopt its oversight plan for that Parliament.
Such plan shall be submitted to the Committee on Parliamentary Business.
In developing its plan each committee shall, to the maximum extent
feasible Consult with other committees that have jurisdiction over the same or
related legislative projects, programmes, or agencies within its jurisdiction
with the objective of ensuring maximum coordination and cooperation
among committees when conducting reviews of such legislation projects,
programmes, or agencies and include in its plan an explanation of steps
that have been or will be taken to ensure such coordination and
cooperation;
Review specific problems with Government rules, regulations, statutes and
court decisions that are ambiguous, arbitrary or nonsensical, or that impose
severe financial burdens on individuals;
Give priority consideration to including in its plan the review of those
legislative projects, programmes, or agencies operating under permanent
budget authority or permanent statutory authority; and
Give a view toward ensuring that all significant legislation projects,
programmes, or agencies within its jurisdiction are subject to review every
10 years.
A Minister may refer any matter to the relevant Oversight Standing
Committee having jurisdiction over the subject, function, department or
institution coming under the Minister.
The Speaker shall refer each Bill, regulation, resolution or other matter that
relates to a subject listed under an Oversight Standing Committee above in
accordance with the provisions of this Standing Order
The Committee which has primary jurisdiction shall fix a deadline within
which the Committee asks for an opinion and must deliver if it is to be
taken into account in the Committee which has primary jurisdiction.

 Each Committee when acting in the exercise of its jurisdiction shall submit
to the Speaker a report in respect of each item considered by the
Committee. The Speaker shall cause such report to be tabled before
Parliament.
Any Report by a Committee on any Bill or regulation shall comprise draft
amendments if any to the proposal accompanied, if appropriate by short
justifications. Any such amendment to a Bill will be submitted by the
Speaker to Parliament during the Committee stage of such Bill under as an
amendment moved by the Chairman of the Committee or such other
member designated by the Committee.
Any such amendment to a regulation will be submitted by the Speaker as
an amendment moved by the Chairman of the Committee or such other
member designated by the Committee. (c) Parliament may by motion
approve the recommendations of any non-legislative report placed before
Parliament.
The Sectoral Oversight Committees come in the wake of the United National Partys
pledge that it would ensure a greater role for Parliament in governance.
Quite clearly, the complaints against the Government are not over re-structuring the
state mechanisms for tackling bribery or corruption. To the contrary, it revolves around
that fact that despite many pledges, particularly ahead of presidential and
parliamentary polls, no tangible action has been taken against any one in many high
profile cases. Whether that will see the light of day seems an important question.
With regards to issues related to the Geneva resolution, events this week have made
clear that the Government will not be able to free wheel using the goodwill of the
prime mover of the resolution on Sri Lanka, the United States. The visit by the legal
team from the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), a direct
consequence of the resolution, lays bare that matters are being monitored closely.
Thus, Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera, who has been pursuing issues related
to the resolution now, has a bigger task. He not only has to implement provisions in
the resolution but also prepare himself to brief the UN Human Rights Council at its
March sessions on what progress has been made.
Posted by Thavam