President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s (AKD) revelation about the planned health sector reforms during the National People Power’s (NPP) new round of public rallies has given rise to unintended consequences, with his trivialisation of the public’s use of healthcare triggering backlash in Parliament and on social media platforms.
The blunder came even as Health Minister Dr. Nalinda Jayatissa was overseas receiving recognition for Sri Lanka’s healthcare system. Government Members of Parliament (MPs) and ministers attempted to contain the damage by saying that the President’s statements had been misinterpreted.
The series of NPP public rallies, which The Sunday Morning reported on first, was intended to reinforce declining popular support and showcase the achievements of two years in office. However, it seems that the Government has yet to get its messaging strategy fine-tuned. The President’s statement, as well-intentioned as it may be, has provided the Opposition another topic to rally around – that is, if the Opposition can manage to find itself and begin to become a formidable force.
Upholding harmony
While opposition to the 22nd Amendment grows in Colombo and rising prices in the international oil markets cast a shadow over energy security and electricity prices in the coming months, President Dissanayake last week continued working on the NPP’s stated goal of preventing religious disharmony and treating all religions equally, with several meetings with Catholic and Hindu clergy.
The President’s Secretary also met with upcountry Hindu priests last week. This, while the Indian Defence Minister, a proponent of Hindutva ideology, was visiting the island.
The President also met the All Ceylon Jamiyyathul Ulama (ACJU) at the Presidential Secretariat on Thursday (10), with the President’s Media Division stating that the ACJU had commended the Government for preventing any ethnic conflict from taking place in the country during its two years in office.
Namal organises rally from behind bars
Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) National Organiser, MP Namal Rajapaksa who was remanded over alleged bribery allegations linked to the controversial Airbus acquisition plan of the National Carrier SriLankan Airlines, is said to be housed in a ward with about a dozen remandees.
This is not the first time nor the second that Namal has found himself in a cell. According to sources within the prison, Namal is said to be keeping company with Chandana Kathriarachchi, a former Deputy Minister from Kesbewa, and several public officials who are also on remand.
Sources said that he was receiving his meals from outside the prison due to security reasons. Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa (MR) had visited his son at the Magazine Remand Prison, and told him to hold fast, adding that his fate would be decided by the public and through politics. Both Rajapaksas had discussed the political rally planned for Saturday (12) in Anuradhapura. It is learnt that Namal’s wife and child had not visited him in prison, while his mother had met him briefly.
Namal subsequently attended parliamentary sittings, arriving in a prison bus, and launched a verbal barrage against the Government. He later met Opposition MPs in Parliament and discussed plans for mobilising supporters for the Anuradhapura rally. Meanwhile, it is learnt that a Minister had met Namal in Parliament and complained that he felt unwelcome in courts following the introduction of the 22nd Amendment Bill. Both had joked about the impact of the amendment and parted ways after embracing each other.
UNP turns 80, Ranil bides his time
Former President and United National Party (UNP) Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe had invited delegates from all parties to the party’s 80th anniversary celebrations held last week, extending an invitation to Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) General Secretary Ranjith Madduma Bandara. It is learnt that Wickremesinghe’s former National Security Adviser Sagala Ratnayaka had delivered the invitation in person. UNP Chairman Wajira Abeywardena had personally extended invitations to senior figures in the Joint Opposition. It is learnt that all Opposition leaders who had been invited had attended the celebrations.
It is also learnt that the UNP is planning to maintain the momentum gained from the anniversary celebration until December. Sources in the UNP said that Wickremesinghe was closely following climate change challenges and had forecast that the next crop season would see significant losses.
Furthermore, it is learnt that the UNP plans to mobilise farmer unions to put pressure on the Government for relief. A discussion about how to do so has been held at the former President’s Flower Road office, with a number of senior UNP figures joining the meeting. They had agreed to hold district-level meetings to organise farmers in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile, Wickremesinghe had also met several industrialists and discussed the state of the economy and forex reserves last week. He had told several disgruntled businessmen that he feared Sri Lanka’s debt serviceability in the coming years, particularly in 2030, may not be what had been predicted. This, despite the upbeat attitude of the Government that all is well and going according to plan.
When a UNP official present had inquired if the party should raise the issue on political stages and in the public domain, the former President had said to wait and see how the situation unfolded. One businessman later observed: “Even Napoleon said, ‘Never interrupt your enemy when he is making a mistake.’”
Firebrand monks and rollbacks
Ven. Ampitiye Sumanarathana Thera was arrested by the Police in Batticaloa over an incident in which the monk, known for his on-camera rants and nationalistic rhetoric, had obstructed public officials of the Geological Survey and Mines Bureau (GSMB).
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court, in a landmark move, invalidated the presidential pardon given to firebrand monk and Bodu Bala Sena Secretary General Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara Thera, who was jailed over contempt of court charges.
The case of the golden gun
Indictments were filed on Thursday (10) before the Colombo High Court against former Minister Duminda Dissanayake and another suspect over the gold-plated Type-56 rifle which was recovered from an apartment in Colombo.
Stargazer called before CIABOC
Meanwhile, MR’s former astrologer Sumanadasa Abeygunawardena appeared before the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) on Thursday. He arrived at the commission to provide a statement in connection with an investigation into the Siriliya Saviya organisation. Former First Lady Shiranthi Rajapaksa was also summoned in relation to allegations relating to the same organisation; however, it is learnt that she had been seeking medical treatment last week and is yet to visit the watchdog.
Indo-Lanka security relations
Last week saw a landmark visit to Colombo by Indian Minister of Defence Rajnath Singh, the first such in almost four decades and the first to visit Colombo by an Indian defence minister after the controversial Indo-Lanka Accord was signed by both Indian Ocean neighbours in 1987. Singh, a senior Minister in the Narendra Modi Government, met President AKD, Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya, and Deputy Minister of Defence Maj. Gen. (Retd) Aruna Jayasekara. He also visited the Ministry of Defence and the memorial for the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) in Colombo.
Singh also launched three Bailey bridges constructed by Indian Army engineers at three locations in Sri Lanka in aid of post-Cyclone Ditwah rebuilding efforts. A notable absentee during Singh’s visit to Colombo was Secretary of Defence Air Vice Marshal (Retd) Sampath Thuyacontha, who The Sunday Morning learns was in North America on an official visit.
While three Memoranda of Understanding (MOUs) were entered into during Singh’s visit, a defence official in Colombo told The Sunday Morning that some of the details of the MOU entered into between India and Sri Lanka’s National Defence College (NDC) had only been informed to the NDC command chain at the last moment.
Meanwhile, the MOU on air defence guns will see the sensors of six Indian-built Bofors 40 mm L/70 anti-aircraft guns modernised. The Bofors L/70 gun, of which Sri Lanka acquired 24 in the late 1990s and early 2000s from India following the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam’s (LTTE) inroads into using airpower, is an integral part of the island’s anaemic air-defence architecture.
At the time, in the late 1990s, it was reported that Sri Lanka’s efforts to acquire an advanced air-defence system from the Czech Republic, where the LTTE’s fleet of Zlin light sports planes that were later used as night harassment bombers originated, had been stalled due to ‘international pressure’.
According to the Indian Defence Minister, who addressed a gathering on board one of the Indian Navy’s latest warships, the guided missile frigate INS Udaygiri, at the Colombo Port on Tuesday (8), the vessel had ferried spare parts for the Sri Lanka Navy Offshore Patrol Vessels (OPVs) of Indian origin and for India’s Bharat Electronics-built Indra II air surveillance radars, which are in service with the Sri Lanka Air Force (SLAF). He also said that India and Sri Lanka had held initial discussions about establishing a security-related Artificial Intelligence (AI) training lab in Sri Lanka to help train Sri Lankan armed forces in the latest domain of warfare.
“Secure sea lanes, freedom of navigation, respect for international law, and unhindered maritime trade are pivotal for the collective security and prosperity of the Indian Ocean Region (IOR),” Singh stated. He called for enhanced cooperation between India and Sri Lanka to shape a favourable and secure maritime environment and tackle emerging maritime challenges before they evolved into serious threats to developmental interests and a brighter future.
The Indian Defence Minister also highlighted the significant progress achieved in bilateral maritime cooperation, adding: “In this regard, our mutual association in the Colombo Security Conclave (CSC), which focuses on maritime safety, counter-terrorism, cybersecurity, and organised crime, becomes more relevant than ever before.”
The Sunday Morning learns that Sri Lanka has been slow to respond to Indian requests regarding the CSC, which has drawn concern from New Delhi. It is also learnt that the host country agreement and granting of diplomatic clearance for the Secretary General of the CSC is yet to be finalised by Colombo.
“There is some political resistance to granting these privileges, which we have even granted to United Nations agencies and organisations like the Colombo Plan,” a senior Government official close to the matter said, adding: “India won’t wait forever. If they move the CSC to another country or city, Sri Lanka loses the only regional security architecture we have in our country.”
Meanwhile, it is reliably learnt that both sides had discussed the thorny issue of foreign marine scientific research vessels – mainly ones from China – conducting surveys in the Indian Ocean and Sri Lankan waters. India and countries like the US, Japan, and Australia view such activity by China and Russia with suspicion, arguing that the data collected can be used for military purposes, such as underwater warfare and disruption of critical infrastructure.
The NPP Government has been dragging its feet in formulating a national policy and new Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for such research requests. It is learnt that China is mounting pressure on Sri Lanka not to cave in to demands from other countries and allow their research vessels to conduct surveys in Sri Lankan waters and its Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ).
Furthermore, it is learnt that Sri Lanka and India had also discussed the maintenance of the ageing SLAF fleet, which has many aircraft currently grounded and not in an airworthy condition. The operational unavailability of aircraft, especially helicopters, has hampered Sri Lanka’s capacity to respond to climate-related disasters and the annual flood season, both of which impact the country in terms of lives lost as well as economic losses.
Of MiGs and shady deals
Meanwhile, the Financial Crimes Investigation Division (FCID) summoned former Commander of the Air Force, Marshal of the Air Force Roshan Goonetileke to record a statement about the controversial wartime arms purchase of nearly half a dozen MiG-27 jet aircraft. Former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa was also summoned to the FCID on Friday (11) to record a statement about the same deal.
Palestine
Representative of Sri Lanka to the State of Palestine Mohamed Farook Mohamed Fawzer paid a courtesy call on Ramallah and Al-Bireh Governor Dr. Laila Ghannam at the Governorate Headquarters on Monday (7).
The meeting reaffirmed the long-standing friendship between Sri Lanka and Palestine and explored avenues to strengthen diplomatic, economic, educational, and cultural cooperation. Representative Fawzer reiterated Sri Lanka’s five-decade commitment to the Palestinian cause and support for ongoing multilateral efforts to uphold international law and promote a peaceful resolution.
German parliamentary group visit
Meanwhile, a four-member delegation from the German-South Asia Parliamentary Group led by Member of the German Bundestag Nicklas Kappe is expected to visit Sri Lanka from 15 to 17 September.
The multi-party delegation, accompanied by Chargée d’Affaires a.i. Sarah Hasselbarth is expected to hold several meetings in Colombo with senior members of the Government, as well as meetings with senior Government and Opposition figures. They are also expected to visit the Port of Colombo.