There is no doubt that the people of this country are increasingly becoming disheartened over the inability of the National People’s Power (NPP) Government to deliver on the promises made during last year’s national election campaigns. In particular, it has been a huge disappointment to the people who had expected the new Government to take immediate steps to alleviate economic hardships.
Realising the sentiments of the people, President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, while addressing the NPP’s May Day rally at Galle Face Green, Colombo last week, appealed to the people and the trade unions to give more time to fulfil the promises.
Claiming that the NPP now existed as a formidable political force in Sri Lanka and that rival parties and groups were no longer political movements but only a pile of scraps, the President said that the future of the country and its people relied on the NPP.
While it is understandable to some extent that the Government is unable to deliver on its promises on the economic front due to the present crisis, it has not made any tangible progress even on the political reforms front. In particular, the Government’s approach to repealing the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), which has been in place for more than four-and-a-half decades, has come under severe criticism.
Not only the NPP, but all the Sri Lankan governments that came to power after the end of the civil war in 2009 promised the international community to lift the PTA. But those promises were never kept. The law is still in force and the NPP Government, which had promised to repeal it, is also invoking it now.
GSP+ and the PTA
The European Union (EU) Generalised Scheme of Preferences Plus (GSP+) trade concession monitoring mission, which is currently on a visit to Sri Lanka, is said to have expressed concern over the Government’s delay in repealing the PTA.
It is reported that when the EU had enquired about a possible moratorium on the invocation of the PTA until it is repealed in order to be replaced by an anti-terrorism law, the Government did not appear to be interested in looking into it.
The EU granted the GSP+ trade concession to Sri Lanka following the 2004 tsunami disaster. However, Sri Lanka lost it in 2010 due to concerns over human rights violations. Although the country was able to avail of the concession again in 2017 during the ‘Yahapalana’ Government, in 2021 the European Parliament called for its reassessment, citing the continued existence of the PTA and broader concerns about rule of law.
The regulations relating to the GSP+ concession currently enjoyed by Sri Lanka will expire at the end of next year. Sri Lanka will have to reapply to receive those benefits under the revised regulations that will come into effect from 2027 and will be subject to strict adherence to the 27 international conventions on human rights, labour rights, environmental protection, and good governance.
The EU delegation is currently in Sri Lanka to make an assessment of the situation and to examine whether or not progress has been made in meeting the conditions associated with the continued granting of the GSP+ concession. It is reported that Foreign Affairs Minister Vijitha Herath briefed the delegation on the steps taken by the Government to eradicate corruption, strengthen democratic institutions, and promote reconciliation.
JVP’s contradictory stand
It may be noted that the Foreign Affairs Minister had already responded to criticism of the recent use of the PTA by the Government, saying that while his party was committed to repealing the PTA, the Government would continue to use the existing law until a new law was introduced in line with international standards.
The Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) leaders seem to have forgotten that they often claimed that there were many laws other than the draconian PTA to deal with terrorism-related crimes.
Ilankai Tamil Arasu Katchi (ITAK) General Secretary and former Parliamentarian M.A. Sumanthiran, in an article in The Hindu last week, made clear these contradictions in the JVP’s stand on the PTA.
“While in the Opposition, the NPP steadfastly refused to join any discussion on replacing this law with another ‘humanitarian law’ on the basis that the PTA must be repealed in toto. But, now in the seat of power, it too has started talking about another law that will be drafted to replace the PTA. Apart from constituting a committee to look into the possible repeal of the PTA, the Government is yet to take any significant step towards it.
“President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s ruling NPP Government has repeatedly vowed to repeal the PTA, both during the election campaign and since coming to power. Its pledge was taken seriously, given that its own party, the JVP, suffered immensely around its second armed uprising in 1987-1990.
“Although the PTA was initially brought to suppress Tamil militants, the State did not hesitate to use it against the Sinhalese, especially JVP cadre challenging it. More recently, the law has been used to target Muslims after the Easter Sunday attacks in 2019.
“We are watching the NPP’s moves on its own promise to repeal this dangerous piece of legislation that, without doubt, must go. Repealing the PTA is the best test one can put to the Government to see whether it can translate its pre-poll rhetoric into action,” said Sumanthiran in his article.
The challenge ahead
Based on the experiences of previous governments, it is doubtful how successful the NPP Government will be in its efforts to bring in a new law to replace the PTA. An important question is whether the Government can proceed without the concurrence of the defence establishment which is accustomed to (ab)using the act.
Following commitments made to the international community, in particular to the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) and the EU, two Governments, first with Ranil Wickremesinghe as Prime Minister and then as President, set out to enact a new anti-terrorism law said to be in line with international standards.
The draft of the bill presented by the ‘Yahapalana’ Government was called the Counter-Terrorism Bill (CTB) and the bill presented by President Wickremesinghe’s Government was called the Anti-Terrorism Bill (ATB). However, international and domestic human rights organisations, including the UNHRC, rejected both, saying they were more dangerous than the existing anti-terrorism law.
There is no doubt that the notorious PTA is probably the most misused law in Sri Lanka by law enforcement authorities. All communities in the country have been severely affected by it. But since the law has been a convenient tool for those in power to crush political opposition, there is another question as to whether the NPP Government will be able to think differently from previous regimes.
Not a single day passes without a murder or attempted murder in Sri Lanka today. Organised crime is a major challenge to the rule of law. At the same time, looking at the international situation, cross-border terrorism has become a permanent threat.
Therefore, the need for a law against terrorism cannot be completely ruled out. But drafting an anti-terrorism law that respects human rights and political freedoms is a huge challenge for any government. Where is an example of such a law?
(The writer is a senior journalist based in Colombo)