By Skandha Gunasekara
Following the gazetting of the Muthurajawela Wetlands under the Urban Development Authority (UDA), allegations of land grabs by the Government were made by various parties, including the Catholic Church, with protests erupting in various parts of the Western Province. It is against this backdrop that the Government, last week, considered repealing the controversial gazette.
Consequently, following incessant protests, the Government took the decision to revisit the gazette and make changes with the inclusion of recommendations of the Opposition as well as the clergy.
On 7 October, a gazette notification issued by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa, stated: “By virtue of powers vested in me under Section 2 of the Urban Development Projects (Special Provisions) Act, No. 2 of 1980, I, Gotabaya Rajapaksa, President of Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, upon the recommendation of the Minister-in-Charge of the subject of Urban Development, being of the opinion that Muthurajawela marshy land described morefully in the schedules hereto are urgently required for the purpose of conservation and sustainable use of the Muthurajawela environmental sensitive zone and to develop as a Ramsar Wetland by preventing unauthorised filling and encroachments of its land plots, do by this order, declare that the said lands are required for such purpose.”
Subsequently, several protests took place across the Western Province including Colombo against the issued gazette with groups alleging that the gazette would result in residents, churches, and other private property being taken over by the Government.
The matter was brought up in Parliament as well last Tuesday (9), with State Minister Nimal Lanza objecting to the gazette notification transferring the Muthurajawela Wetlands to the Urban Development Authority.
Objecting to the remarks made by the State Minister in charge of the subject, Dr. Nalaka Godahewa, in Parliament, Lanza stated that the gazette should be removed immediately.
He said that the gazette notification should be withdrawn without creating unwanted problems, adding that the people in the area were in an uproar over the gazette.
State Minister Dr. Godahewa said that around 1,200 hectares of the Muthurajawela Wetlands had been gazetted as a sanctuary. Another 162 hectares had been gazetted under the Environment Ministry in 2018. “However, although these lands have been gazetted, they don’t belong to the Government. We saw in the past that despite these lands being gazetted, environmental destruction continued. We found that a private company had demarcated many lands in parts of the Muthurajawela Wetlands as private property. The COPA (Committee on Public Accounts) report clearly states that around 65,000 perches of such lands had been bought by a private company. The UDA and environment and wildlife ministers jointly submitted a cabinet proposal for these lands to be gazetted under the UDA, and after developing it, to name it a national forest reserve.”
However, Minister Lanza said: “As you claim, 1,447 hectares had been gazetted and the Cardinal also said that illegal activities are taking place in this area. However, the issue is that now around 5,500 hectares have been gazetted. Hence, instead of piling on unnecessary issues, if the Government wants to declare a certain section as a protected zone, then just gazette only that area and withdraw this gazette. People’s lands, even my family lands and many churches, etc. will all come under this gazette and people will lose all their lands.”
Government renews attempts at assurance
State Minister of Urban Development, Coast Conservation, Waste Disposal, and Community Cleanliness Dr. Nalaka Godahewa, attempting to shed some light on the Government’s intentions behind the move, explained that it had been Cardinal Malcom Ranjith’s initial complaint about how unauthorised development activities were taking place in the Wetlands, that had prompted the Government to take action to prevent such encroachment in a protected area and bring the Wetlands under the Ramsar Convention.
“Muthurajawela has been illegally acquired by various people over the last three decades. About 11 months ago, His Eminence Cardinal Malcom Ranjith wrote to us at the UDA saying that Muthurajawela was being acquired by private parties to set up a golf course, and that he objected to that and he wanted us to look into that. So then, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa appointed a committee comprising three ministries – urban development, wildlife, and environment – to look into that, and they submitted a joint cabinet paper recommending that this area be taken over by the UDA, declared a Ramsar Wetland, and that it be preserved and later handed over to the Wildlife Department.”
The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands of International Importance holds the unique distinction of being the first modern treaty between nations aimed at conserving natural resources. The signing of the Convention on Wetlands took place in 1971 at the small Iranian town of Ramsar. Since then, the Convention on Wetlands has been known as the Ramsar Convention.
The Ramsar Convention's broad aims are to halt the worldwide loss of wetlands and to conserve, through wise use and management, those that remain. This requires international co-operation, policymaking, capacity-building, and technology transfer.
“There are several Ramsar wetlands in Sri Lanka, and in Colombo, the UDA maintains one such wetland: the Diyasaru Uyana. So, we have expertise in that. We want to apply for the Ramsar status to be bestowed for the remaining Muthurajawela Wetlands. This is an internationally accepted status and highly regarded by environmentalists,” State Minister Dr. Godahewa said.
State Minister Dr. Godahewa noted that confusion had ensued soon after the gazette was published, as people had misunderstood the demarcation process of the gazette, resulting in the misconception that multiple grama sevaka (GS) divisions would be taken under the gazette and thus private property as well.
“The current objections stem from the fact that when people look at the gazette, the people have misunderstood that the areas that are mentioned in that as borders would also come under this gazette. This is not the case. But we have said that if anyone has any concerns, we are ready to have further discussions and change the borders. This is not a problem because, at the end of the day, the whole purpose is to protect the Wetlands. This claim by the Catholic Church that land and churches would be taken under this gazette is a complete misunderstanding. The misconception is that when you look at the gazette, it only provides coordinates of the GS divisions. However, what these coordinates mean is that even if there is an area bordering a certain GS division, then that division will be mentioned in the gazette, but that does not mean the entire area under that GS division will come under the gazette; rather, only that specific area. For example, the Negombo Lagoon has been declared under this gazette, so all the GS divisions that border the lagoon are mentioned in this gazette, but that doesn’t mean the villages are being acquired; not a single house will be acquired – unless, of course, such a building is an illegal construction within the protected area.”
Noting that the Muthurajawela Wetlands at present come under several gazette notifications, Sate Minister Dr. Godahewa said that the areas identified in the gazette had already been selected by the Department of Wildlife in 2018 for further protection, but such plans were abandoned due to a lack of finances.
“Muthurajawela currently comes under several gazettes including the Ministry of Wildlife and the Ministry of Environment, so we are combining all these. In fact, the areas that were identified in this new gazette are the same areas that the Wildlife Department was going to gazette in 2018. So, they prepared the gazette and identified the areas, but they couldn’t go ahead with the plan because there were concerns about the finances involved because the Wildlife Department doesn’t get much in terms of financial provisions.”
He said that the UDA had been selected for the task for three main reasons, including its financial strength.
“Therefore, this committee, composed of the three ministries, decided that the best institution to handle this was the UDA. This was due to several reasons. One being that the UDA has experience in Ramsar wetland development. Secondly, because the entire Gampaha District is declared as a development area under the UDA, and thirdly because, since our practice is not to chase anyone away without giving accommodation, the UDA is the only institution that has the financial wherewithal to relocate a party who is living within an unauthorised area. For example, when we relocate slums, we always provide them with housing. The Wildlife Department does not have the finances to do that. That is why they picked the UDA for this task.”
He said that once the area was declared, anyone who owned private property within this land could engage in any activity that was acceptable under the Ramsar Convention. “So, agriculture, fishing, and certain other things are accepted. As long as they work within the parameters of the convention.
Last Thursday (11), State Minister Dr. Godahewa had invited those who had raised concerns over the gazette, including the Catholic Church, to the Parliamentary Complex for a discussion.
He said that following the meeting, it had been decided that another committee would be set up to revisit the provisions of the gazette.
“I clearly explained at the meeting in the Parliamentary Complex that no houses or residences will be taken under this gazette. The gazette only talks about borders. So, we decided to set up a committee to review the borders and to make changes if needed. We said that we are 100% flexible in this regard, but said to come and look at the gazette in detail. The Committee will be chaired by Ministers Mahinda Amaraweera, C.B. Ratnayake, and myself. In addition, MPs from the areas represented in the committee would be Nimal Lanza, Dr. Sudharshini Fernandopulle, and Nalin Perera. We also brought in several Opposition MPs and made clarifications and asked them also to make suggestions. We also invited the Cardinal to include three representatives of his in the committee as well. If there is a call to remove the Lagoon from the gazette then we can do so, but it will be the people who will lose out by doing this.”
Objections and skepticism persist
Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) MP Harin Fernando said the Wetlands should come under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance and that bringing it under the UDA would result in people losing their homes and private property being taken over by the Government.
“This shouldn’t go to the UDA. It should go back to the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance because that’s how it has been and there are people who have already built buildings, taken bank loans, and gotten it approved. So, this being transferred to the UDA means that the law will be enforced strongly, meaning that all these people might risk losing their households. It is a serious issue and the most alarming factor is that the UDA Act is one of the most brutal acts that currently exists in Sri Lanka. So, even though the Government is saying they want to streamline it, it’s best if they pass a new law under the Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance and protect Muthurajawela and the surrounding areas.
“What the Government is saying is that the Wildlife Department is not very organised and therefore, there are lots of discrepancies. However, I think the Government should take necessary steps through a vetting process rather than completely handing this over to the UDA, especially because these lands are in high demand due to the Port City coming along.
“There are quite a few GS divisions that will be affected, so I think there will be a massive uproar in the next seven days if we do not see a proper solution. In Parliament, we saw even government MPs objecting to this move and sharing the same sentiment that this should not go to the UDA.”
He said that despite State Minister Dr. Godahewa making promises that no private properties would be affected, a change in government would negate any such promises.
“The problem is that once it has been gazetted, the law will apply. Ministers and governments change, but the gazette will be active, and later on, if the UDA sells this land to a foreign buyer or a buyer that they pick up, the people of that area run the risk of losing their lands and livelihoods. So, at this juncture, we are not able to believe what Godahewa is saying. This is evident by the fact that government MPs from those areas are objecting to this gazette. So, Nalaka Godahewa should have first consulted the MPs in his own Government who come from that area before presenting this gazette to the public.”
He then charged that the UDA Act itself was draconian in certain aspects, as any area coming under its purview could see residents evicted and private property grabbed without notice.
“We have seen in the past how the UDA cleaned out Colombo. There were people who had permits and rights, but the UDA can remove any person that comes under its purview without any notice. So that is why lots of people have gone to court and filed writs and FR applications. So, the downside of being under the UDA Act is clear, and that’s why the people are panicking.”
MP Fernando warned that a massive protest would be staged if the Government failed to revoke the gazette in the stipulated time period, and invited all groups and parties to take part in the protest.
“We will stage a protest in such a way that the Government and the country will know, especially the President, who does not get to know about all these problems. We will plan a massive protest in the coming weeks in Negombo if they do not revoke this gazette. We have clearly said that this is not a political movement. It has no political angle and we want to invite everyone of every caste, religion, and political community to support us because this cause is beyond politics. It is to protect our land. I was quite overwhelmed when the government MPs shared the same views as us.”
SJB MP Kavinda Jayawardhana, who raised concerns in Parliament last week, told The Sunday Morning that a number of SJB MPs had taken part in a meeting with the Government last Thursday (11) pertaining to the gazette. “We haven’t been included in the committee as far as I know, but on Thursday, there was a meeting with (State) Minister Godahewa and some of the SJB MPs, and we clearly told the Government that we would support it in terms of taking measures to protect wildlife. But we are against the fact that the UDA is taking over Muthurajawela, the land from Peliyagoda to Negombo, and the Negombo Lagoon. So, we are against the gazette.”
He said the Government had called on the SJB to make recommendations so as to revisit the gazette.
“The Government did invite us to make suggestions and recommendations for amendments to the gazette. We have requested a write up from the Government, which it forwarded to us, and we are yet to go through it. Once we go through it, we will decide.”
Meanwhile, the Catholic Church had filed a petition against the gazette at the Supreme Court.
Counsel appearing for the Cardinal said that the main objections were that the gazette did not specify any details and that there was a possibility of the people living in the surrounding area being affected.
“The Cardinal has filed action in the Supreme Court to annul the gazette. The main objection is that we don’t know the details. It is a very broad gazette, and they don’t state the specifications. So, we have filed action on the basis that people will get affected and on the basis that it’s extremely broad without any specific details.”
The Counsel noted that the Government had invited the Cardinal to appoint representatives to the newly appointed committee and that the Catholic Church hoped to co-operate with the Government through such a mechanism.
“There was a meeting in Parliament that we took part in, where we had a very cordial discussion with the Government, where they agreed to revisit the gazette, and they want to see whether the Church can co-operate; we said we will. Now, they are going to appoint a committee, in which there will be three representatives from the Church, to revisit the gazette and see what could be done to take it further. The Church is very keen to demarcate the area of the Wetlands, as we are not very happy with all the encroachment that is taking place, i.e. sand fillings, roads being dug up, etc., so it will help us, but at the same time, we can’t allow our people to get affected.”
The Counsel told The Sunday Morning that the Cardinal would be making the appointments to the committee. “The appointments to the committee will be made at the Cardinal’s discretion. It is possible that a member of the clergy would be appointed to the committee to make recommendations.”
Gazette on Muthurajawela Wetlands: Mounting protests make Government rethink move
13 Nov 2021
Gazette on Muthurajawela Wetlands: Mounting protests make Government rethink move
13 Nov 2021
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