By Capt. Vasabha Sri Lankans as a nation are fast becoming immune to the many anticlimactic moments thrown their way by politicians of various strata. The latest being President Maithripala Sirisena’s speech at the 73rd UN General Assembly (UNGA) in New York last week. The President’s was to be the key highlight of the week as well as provide an indication of the path steered by the Government. For all the bravado lashed out by Sirisena in Sri Lanka, in the run up to the UNGA, the final speech delivered by him amounted to nothing short of a damp squib. The majority of Sri Lankans who were unaware of the behind-the-scenes drama that took place prior to the delivering of the speech were left scratching their heads trying to figure what exactly the President was trying to point out. Minister of National Integration, Reconciliation and Official Languages Mano Ganeshan however, was unable to hide his disappointment. Ganeshan tweeted on his official twitter account that “President #MY3 disappointed both #Sinhala & #Tamil extremists @UNGA. It's fine at the Moment with less controversy. Behind the scene activities be behind.” (stet) A deeper inquiry into the “behind-the-scene activities” referred to by Ganeshan resulted in the revelation of the changes that were made to the President’s speech after he had landed in New York. A source from New York told The Sunday Morning that had the President delivered his initially prepared speech, it would have been a “disaster” in many aspects. In the run up to Sirisena’s departure to New York, JHU stalwart, Megapolis Minister Patali Champika Ranawaka announced to the media a proposal prepared to address the allegation of war crimes that had been looming over the country since the end of the war. In it, he proposed the granting of a common pardon to the persons who were accused of committing crimes while attaining war targets, which included both the LTTE and the armed forces. TNA MP M.A. Sumanthiran quickly responded to this proposal saying the TNA was not agreeable to such a pardon for war criminals. His opinion was that war criminals cannot be compared with LTTE suspects. Sumanthiran told the media that a truth-seeking mechanism should be put in place to first determine the various crimes committed during the period of the war before discussing a general amnesty. It is during this period that the President held a meeting with media heads where he indicated that he would present a proposal to the UNGA during his speech to address the issue of human rights that dangles like the sword of Damocles over the nation. However, The Sunday Morning learns that several key ministers in the Government and the Prime Minister had, at the time, decided to intervene and explain the position of Sri Lanka before the international community and the importance of the manner in which the Government should deal with the resolution before the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva. Several key foreign missions in the country had also supported the Premier and the ministers in trying to prevail upon the President not to make any rash moves that would sour Sri Lanka’s relations with the international community. Apart from the international community, any speech of a general amnesty may not have boarded well with the minority communities in the country, especially the northern Tamils and the eastern Muslims. Sirisena finally said at his UNGA address: “As an independent country we do not want any foreign power to exert influence on us. We want to appeal to the international community to give us the room to resolve the problems that we are facing so that the right of the Sri Lankan people to find solutions to their problems is respected”. The President’s speech has now left many questions unanswered. Key among them is what are the specific “problems” he refers to and what mechanism has he initiated as the Head of State to address these “problems.” It is pertinent to note that there’s growing dissention within the Government ranks as well as the forces that pushed for the 8 January, 2015 change due to the slow action against corruption and crimes, impunity, and slow progress in the reconciliation process. Three-and-a-half years later, Sirisena and the Government need to get its act together and start answering the questions that are being frequently posed to them. Between last year and now, there has been a change in the President’s speeches made before the UNGA. Last year he said: “I must mention here that, at a moment when Sri Lanka is committed to a course of good governance by strengthening democracy, human rights, and fundamental rights while winning the goodwill of the international community, I look forward to the kind support of the United Nations. We have been a member of United Nations for 62 years. “Sri Lanka has always been a country that has respected its treaties and conventions, agreements, and rules and regulations while acting to improve such relations further. As such, in our country’s journey, where we protect our independence and sovereignty, we respectfully request the support of the international community for us to go on a moderate but steady path to achieve our targets in order to find sustainable solutions to the allegations levelled against us. “I request the support of all of you to promote peace and fraternity, so that my beloved country and its people can rise from the current situation. That is why I emphasise that it is for a slow and a successful journey that we need the support”. Unfortunately, looking at the comments made by Sirisena in 2017 and 2018 at the UNGA, there are doubts on whether the “change” in tone is for the better. Assassination plot Be that as it may, Sirisena’s woes in New York will only be compounded when he arrives in Sri Lanka. There are several difficult issues to deal with – ranging from the latest developments in the alleged assassination plot involving the Deputy Inspector General (DIG) of the Terrorism Investigations Division (TID) Nalaka de Silva and the implication of Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) Ravi Wijegunarathne as well as former Navy Commander Admiral Wasantha Karannagoda in the case of 11 missing youths. It has now surfaced that DIG de Silva, a few weeks prior to acquiring two Light Machine Guns (LMGs) with a range of 300-1,600 metres for the TID, had made a request from Inspector General of Police (IGP) Pujith Jayasunara to set up what seems like a paramilitary unit within the TID. De Silva had requested that a group of 10 personnel from the TID be assigned to the Police Special task Force (STF) for special training and that combat weapons like Mini Uzi and MP5s be issued to them. According to the request, the TID personnel were asked to be trained in Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT) and also to set up a quick reaction team within the division. The Sunday Morning reliably learnt that IGP Jayasundara had approved the request and forwarded it to the Head of STF DIG M.R. Latheef in order to carry out the requests outlined in de Silva’s note. However, DIG Latheef had turned down the request. Hence, de Silva was prevented from setting up his paramilitary unit within the TID. The question that begs an answer is what would the TID – which is an investigative arm of the Police without need for combat operations – require LMGs and a paramilitary troupe for. The division is not called to provide security either. This expose comes in the backdrop of DIG de Silva’s involvement in an alleged plot to assassinate President Sirisena and several Opposition VIPs as exposed by Namal Kumara of the Anti-Corruption Force (Dooshana Virodhi Balakaya). Namal Kumara hails from the village Bendirekka in the Maha Oya Police Division in the Ampara District. He currently resides in Warakapola and has worked with several NGOs that worked against the drug menace. It is learnt that he had come across IGP Jayasundara’s mobile number at a public event where he had publicly announced his contact details. Namal Kumara had then initiated a discussion with the IGP, who in turn had introduced him to DIG de Silva to acquire his services as an informant. Kumara, after releasing the recording of a conversation between de Silva and himself about the alleged assassination plot, has now disclosed discussions on planned attacks on Muslim politicians and the inciting of racial clashes in Digana earlier this year. The Criminal Investigations Department (CID) is continuing the investigation. Meanwhile, the Indian national detained by the CID – Marcili Thomas – was issued a detention order by courts while the Judicial Medical Officer (JMO) directed him to a psychiatrist for further investigation. The CID arrested him on the evening of 20 September after Kumara had informed the CID that a suspicious person, who could only converse in English and Tamil, had visited his residence in Warakapola on 19 September, and had left after Kumara had complained about the individual to the Warakapola Police. However, the individual had returned to the Warakapola residence the next day and the CID had taken him into custody at the time. The Indian High Commission last week announced that the Indian national in CID custody had a history of mental illness. The Indian High Commission said it had seen media reports that an Indian national, claiming to have information about threats to the lives of prominent Sri Lankan leaders, was detained by the Sri Lankan Police. “Taking a serious note of the matter and acting on limited information provided to us by Sri Lankan authorities, we immediately alerted Indian counterparts to conduct a background check of the said individual. Preliminary inputs indicate that the said individual has had a history of mental disturbance since 2000,” the High Commission said. The CID is continuing with the investigation. The case of missing youths On the other hand, the CID’s investigation into the case of 11 youths who went missing in 2009 has taken several new twists. President Maithripala Sirisena intervened heavily in the case to prevent the CID from taking any form of action against the CDS. The President charged that he was not kept abreast with the progress of investigations being carried out by the CID. However, The Sunday Morning learnt that the Law and Order Ministry had received a letter in June this year from the CID, detailing the progress of the investigations and the implication of CDS Wijegunarathne in it. Given the President’s claim of being in the dark about the matter, it seems that the Law and Order Ministry had failed to hand the letter to the President. According to the letter sent by the CID to the ministry, it was clearly stated that Wijegunarathne, according to information unravelled in the probe, could be charged for the violation of Clauses 198 and 209 of the Penal Code, which pertains to the punishment for allegedly aiding and abetting a crime. The President, upon his return to the country, is to receive a detailed report directly from the CID outlining the progress of the investigation and the CDS’ alleged involvement in the case. The latest twist to the case is the implication of former Navy Commander Karannagoda in the case. Albeit many assumptions have been made on Karannagoda’s alleged involvement in the case, the CID, it is learnt, has now received a witness statement implicating Karannagoda. The CID last week presented a report to the Colombo Fort Magistrate’s Court on a statement recorded by retired Rear Admiral Shemal Fernando on the statement given by Karannagoda to the CID about the case. Fernando served as Karannagoda’s Secretary during the 2008-2009 period. The report presented by IP Nishantha Silva of the CID to Fort Magistrate Lanka Jayaratne stated that when recording a further statement by Fernando on 18 September, 2018 about the case of the missing youths, he had stated that then Navy Commander Karannagoda was informed of the abduction of the youths and that they were being held at Gunside in Trincomalee. Fernando added that the youths were alive when Karannagoda was informed of their whereabouts and that the youths went missing a few days later. Fernando was informed of the missing youths in 2009 by then Minister Felix Perera whose friend’s son was among those abducted. Perera had asked Fernando to look into the matter and had then found the whereabouts of the youths. Perera had in writing (letter dated 17 June, 2009 on a Fisheries Ministry letterhead) and by telephone informed Karannagoda about the matter and informed him of their whereabouts. According to Fernando, he had later learnt through media reports that the youths had been killed. He has further blamed Karannagoda who was then Navy Commander and Lt. Colonel Sumith Ranasinghe for the youths’ death. In his statement to the CID, Fernando noted that had Karannagoda acted on the information given to him, the youths would not have lost their lives. Basil returns Amidst all this chaos, former President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s brother and the think tank behind the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP), Basil Rajapaksa returned to the country. Although he was initially due to return to the country in October, he arrived in Sri Lanka earlier for two reasons – to take on the SLPP’s campaign for the next election and to prepare for the court cases against him that are to be taken up next month. Interestingly, his return to the country was welcomed by a majority of the SLPP members in the Opposition, since they felt the void in the party’s electoral organising and campaign that developed in the past few months would now be addressed. Looking at the campaign of the SLPP Opposition group, the relief of the senior SLPP supporters seems reasonable. Opposition MP Namal Rajapaksa was steering the SLPP campaign in Basil Rajapaksa’s absence and despite the hard work put in by him to rile up all forces to join the party’s campaign, there has been a difficulty to meet the initial expectations. One of the key reasons is the attitude of senior Opposition members towards Namal’s conduct. The feeling of being side-lined as seniors and a return to the pre-2015 scenario is definitely not what most senior Opposition members envision in their political futures. Following the conclusion of Janabalaya Colambata earlier this month, Namal and his loyalists announced that similar agitation campaigns will be held island wide, starting from Kurunegala. Accordingly, a Janabalaya agitation campaign was held in Kurunegala last week, Tuesday (25). However, the Kurunegala Janabalaya was converted into a religious observance in order to invoke blessings on MP Johnston Fernando, who is in Police custody, and other Opposition members. Namal, on his twitter account stated: “#Janabalaya in Kurunegala against this corrupt, unskilled, ignorant Govt. & their continuous political vilification. We are with MP #Jonston Fernando, another victim of Govt. revenge agenda. We call to end political victimization & focus on people’ needs.” (stet) However, it will now be interesting to see the course of the SLPP after Basil’s return. SLFP reforms Meanwhile, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) is looking at moving forward aggressively with its reforms agenda. The committee appointed by the party’s central committee to discuss the way forward met on Tuesday (25) to finalise its report to be handed over to President Sirisena when he returned to the country. The agenda for the meeting was set by Deputy Minister Lasantha Alagiyawanna and MPs Malith Jayathileka and Dayasiri Jayasekera. The committee met at 10 a.m. at the Mandarina Hotel in Colombo and the meeting went on till around 7 p.m. The discussion was mainly focused on how the party would continue in the Government and prepare for the elections. A member of the committee told The Sunday Morning, special attention was given to rebuilding the party base in the villages. Accordingly, the committee prepared a set of reforms covering short term and long term goals. The SLFPer explained that it was unanimously agreed by the committee that the President and Prime Minister hold honest discussions to address the issues faced by the Unity Government. “Otherwise, there’s no way forward,” he stated. “The President also needs to discuss the 2019 Budget with the Prime Minister and play a role in its formation as well,” the SLFPer added. Meanwhile, Ministers Mangala Samaraweera, Malik Samarawickrema, Mahinda Amaraweera, and Alagiyawanna initiated a discussion to iron out differences between the SLFP and the United National Party (UNP) in the Unity Government.