By Skandha Gunasekara Criticizing President Maithripala Sirisena’s speech made before the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA), the JVP charged that the President had been allowed to make such remarks by the imperialistic western powers in order to appease the Lankan masses. JVP Politburo member K.D. Lal Kantha told The Sunday Morning, that western powers wanted to the Yahapalanaya Government to remain in power, so that the West’s agenda could be implemented in the country. Excerpts from his interview: President Sirisena, in his speech at the UNGA, called on the international community to desist from interfering or influencing Sri Lanka in its reconciliation and accountability process. Does the JVP agree with this statement? Whether it’s a statement made by the President, Prime Minister or some other Minister, we cannot agree with statements made by the Government. This Government, since its inception, has been pandering to the whims and fancies of western imperialist powers. It is very likely that the West allowed the President to make such a statement. There is a strong wave of opposition among the citizenry in Sri Lanka. The West would have allowed President Sirisena to make such a statement to appease the masses, as the Western imperialist powers want this Government to remain. The West knows this Government will bend to their will and carry out their agenda’s for Sri Lanka. Are you, the JVP, satisfied with the measures taken by the Government to address issues pertaining to alleged war crimes and human rights violations? We cannot in any way be satisfied with the actions of this Government. This Government has no respect for the people. If there is anyone be it a politician, a police officer or an army officer who has broken the law; then he or she must be dealt with by the law. We are against foreign courts and judges. Such issues should be handled by the local judiciary, but the problem is that we do not have independent judiciary because of political interference. By not implementing law and order, the Government is opening the door for the Western imperials to interfere on grounds of various rights violations. If there was an independent judiciary, then there would be no room for the West to interfere. More and more from the minority communities are aligning themselves with minority parties while distancing themselves from the mainstream national parties. How does the JVP view this? What does the JVP hope to do in such a situation? If you look at this situation properly it is clear that the two main political parties, the UNP and the SLFP have been fooling these minor parties and their minority supporters. As a result, the minority cannot face their voters anymore. The minority, therefore, have been forced to move away from the two mainstream parties. The JVP hopes to join together with the minority parties and independent groups as a united force against the two main political parties. What does the JVP hope to do to face the Presidential elections? We have proposed the 20th amendment to the Constitution, which would do away with the Executive Presidency and establish a Parliament centric system. If the 20th amendment is not passed by Parliament then a Presidential election will definitely be held. In such a situation, we plan to join with the minority parties and independent group and field our own alternative presidential candidate. We want nothing to do with the SLFP and the UNP. While the concept of a common candidate is sound, President Sirisena destroyed that concept in Sri Lanka. He contested as a common candidate and then went on to align himself with a political party. He didn’t keep a single election promise and failed to deliver on his pledges. From now on, no Sri Lankan will believe in a common candidate or such a concept. That is why we are bringing in an alternative candidate. What expectations do you have of the upcoming Budget proposal? Since this Government came into power, the budget proposals have been nothing but symbolic. No real development has been done, and it is clear that the Budget is just a document they present to hoodwink the masses. The economy and the Budgets of this government have nothing to do with each other. The Government has already packed on huge amounts of taxes on to the people. This Government had the audacity to call on the public to curtail spending while Ministers and MPs are drawing massive salaries and are frequently on foreign tours spending public money to stay in luxurious hotels. This Budget will put a further burden on the masses by introducing more taxes. If this continues, it won’t be long before we see a people’s revolution. People are already on the streets. Protests and demonstrations are daily occurrence. As the rupee further depreciates; the burden on the people increases. This will lead to more political instability as well.