Sri Lanka’s Preparedness for UNHRC Session in September under Scrutiny
Government’s Delayed Response to UK Sanctions on War Veterans
Sajith’s Solo Fight Against ‘Desha Bandu’ Yields Results
Kavinga’s Deal-Making Tactics Uncovered
Government Applauded for Uniting MPs
Adm. Samuel Paparo’s Meeting with Government kept a secret
A Dire Warning
In last week’s Inside Politics column, we exposed the looming threat that Sri Lanka may face during the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) sessions in Geneva in September 2025. In addition to the usual human rights violation allegations raised at these sessions, we highlighted that the Batalanda Commission report could emerge as an additional weapon against Sri Lanka.
Just days after our revelation, the United Kingdom delivered a significant blow by imposing sanctions on former Sri Lankan Army and Navy commanders. These sanctions include travel restrictions to the UK and potentially confiscating any assets they may hold there. This move appears to be a calculated step in anticipation of the upcoming UNHRC session in Geneva and signals the possibility of further severe international sanctions in the months ahead.
Last week, we made an extraordinary revelation through Inside Politics, revealing the dire situation that Sri Lanka is set to face at the Geneva Human Rights Conference to be held next September. There, we said that in addition to the allegations of human rights violations leveled against Sri Lanka so far, the Batalanda Commission Report would also be used as a weapon by the international community against Sri Lanka.
Sanctions
A few days after we made this revelation, the United Kingdom imposed a serious ban on Sri Lanka, causing a stir in the entire country. Former army commanders Shavendra Silva, Wasantha Karannagoda and Jagath Jayasuriya were banned from the United Kingdom on human rights charges, and it was said that any assets they had there would be confiscated. The ban was not imposed just for coming and going, but rather for September.
Information currently being reported to us suggests that this ban imposed by the United Kingdom is only the beginning of a chain of serious events to come. Accordingly, it is also learned that several serious restrictions are set to be imposed by other countries internationally targeting Sri Lanka within the next few months.
Our revelations last week indicated that the Batalanda incident has given a great boost to the alleged state-sponsored attacks, killings, torture, etc. in Sri Lanka. By submitting the Batalanda report to the Geneva Human Rights Commission next September, certain countries are preparing to prove that human rights violations have occurred not only during the war in the North but also in the South with state intervention.
Debate on Batalanda
Knowingly or unknowingly, the Malima government has fallen into this trap by deciding to present the Batalanda Commission report to Parliament and hold a two-day debate on it. Also, the ‘Inside Politics’ column has heard that several security chiefs, including former President Ranil Wickremesinghe, who have been accused of being involved in the Batalanda incident, will face serious restrictions in the coming period.
However, with the imposition of sanctions by the United Kingdom on former army commanders Shavendra Silva, Jagath Jayasuriya, and Wasantha Karannagoda, who directly contributed to the war, former President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who provided the political leadership to end the war, also issued a special statement on Wednesday. In his statement, he emphasized that he would accept all responsibilities related to the war as the Commander-in-Chief. Mahinda also emphasized in his statement that his army commanders were carrying out his orders. It is also noteworthy that Mahinda issued this statement while he was receiving treatment for a leg injury in the hospital.
Accordingly, many people point out that Mahinda’s name is likely to be included in the next list of sanctions that is said to be imposed in the future. A few hours after the former president expressed his position regarding the ban in the United Kingdom, the government also officially announce its position. The statement issued by Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath stated that the government is prepared to appoint a fully-fledged independent commission to investigate the human rights allegations against Sri Lanka.
Who will face it?
However, with the international pressure on Sri Lanka now aiming for September, the next question the government has to face is who to entrust to manage this situation in a way that benefits Sri Lanka. The current Permanent Representative of Sri Lanka in Geneva is Ms. Himali Subashini Arunathilaka. Many people are now questioning whether she has the experience to manage this serious issue that Sri Lanka is facing.
Because there is a serious political dimension to this issue, many people think that a person with foreign relations and political experience must be there to manage such an issue. The government also has a serious question about whether such a character is currently in Geneva. If there is an officer with such experience currently engaged in Foreign Service, it is Mahinda Samarasinghe, who is currently serving as Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to the United States.
Mahinda Samarasinghe, who served as a former MP, Minister, and Cabinet Minister, came to serve in Geneva under the government of Mahinda Rajapaksa after the victory of the civil war, which was a very critical period for Sri Lanka. At that time, when the international community once brought proposals accusing Sri Lanka of war crimes, Mahinda Samarasinghe was able to successfully defeat the proposal with the support of other international countries. In addition to Mahinda Samarasinghe, Professor G.L. Peiris is also known as an excellent intellectual with similar foreign relations and political experience.
However, under the current situation, there is serious doubt as to whether the government will call Mahinda Samarasinghe or G.L. to handle the Geneva issue. If so, there is a serious question as to whom the Sri Lankan delegation that the government is preparing to send to manage the Geneva issue this time. However, it is also reported in the ‘Inside Politics’ column that the government is currently planning to send Mahinda Samarasinghe, who is in Washington, to Geneva. Against this backdrop, it is now quite clear that the human rights resolution to be presented against Sri Lanka in Geneva this September will become increasingly serious.
Sajith on Deshabandu
The Malima government has now submitted a no-confidence motion to the Speaker against IGP Deshabandu Tennakoon, who has been in hiding for 21 days and has been suspended from his post by the court, with the signatures of 115 MPs. The Malima government has leveled 27 serious charges against Deshabandu Tennakoon in the no-confidence motion. However, although the government is trying to show that this incident regarding Deshabandu Tennakoon is something new and that it is taking strict action against him, in reality, the incident regarding Deshabandu is not a new one that has come to light recently, but it dates back to the term of Ranil Wickremesinghe. Although the current Malima government is trying to show that it is taking action against Deshabandu Tennakoon, when Ranil proposed to appoint Deshabandu Tennakoon as the IGP during Ranil’s government, the strongmen of Malima did not raise a single word against it.
The one who fought against Deshabandu Tennakoon alone was the Opposition Leader, Sajith Premadasa. During Ranil’s government, the former IGP C.D. Wickramaratne retired, and although several names were proposed for the post of IGP, Ranil chose Deshabandu Tennakoon among them. Since there were already several serious allegations against Deshabandu, when Ranil proposed Deshabandu’s name and sent it to the Constituent Assembly, Sajith waged a major battle against it in the Constituent Assembly.
At that time, Sajith and Kabir Hashim, as members, also voted against Deshabandu Tennakoon in the Constitutional Council. At that time, when the representatives appointed by Ranil to the Constitutional Council voted in favor of Deshabandu Tennakoon, it paved the way for a serious crisis in the Constitutional Council.
When the Constitutional Council opposed Deshabandu in the first round and did not approve his name, Ranil once came to Parliament and made unwarranted threats to the Constitutional Council. After making such threats, Ranil took steps to propose Deshabandu’s name to the Constitutional Council once again. It was opposed for the second time as well.
In this instance, the two representatives representing the government in the Legislative Assembly voted in favor of Deshabandu, while the two representatives representing civil society organizations, along with Sajith and Kabir, voted against Deshabandu. Two others abstained from voting. Accordingly, the result was that four people opposed the name of Deshabandu Tennakoon, two voted in favor, and two others abstained from voting. Based on this, the Legislative Assembly had taken steps not to approve Deshabandu’s name.
Yapa’s Foul play
But what happened next was something that no one expected. The then-former Speaker, Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena, who had the casting vote, had written a strange letter to Ranil informing him that four people had voted against Deshabandu Tennakoon’s proposal, two had voted in favor and two had abstained. If the votes of the two who had abstained were considered as two votes in favor of the proposal, Mahinda Yapa informed Ranil through his letter that he would cast his vote to Deshabandu Tennakoon and to consider the proposal as passed.
Accordingly, as soon as this letter became public, Sajith, who strongly opposed it in Parliament, made a serious statement. At that time, Sajith said that the letter sent by the Speaker to the President was completely illegal and that certain articles of the Constitution had been blatantly violated. Accordingly, Sajith said that he was ready to resort to legal action against it, and he broke with the tradition that had existed until then and tabled the daily reports (minutes) of the Constituent Assembly to substantiate his statement.
However, it is a notable occurrence that while Sajith was fighting against Deshabandu all alone within the Constituent Assembly and the parliament, no Compass representative spoke a word about it. However, ironically, the JVP and Compass, which remained silent when Deshabandu Tennakoon was appointed as the IGP, has now had to bring a no-confidence motion against him.
But the sad thing is that even the SJB MPs did not say a word about Sajith’s actions in Parliament when he saw Deshabandu’s mistakes in advance and directly opposed them. At that time, when Sajith was waging a big battle against Deshabandu inside Parliament, the ‘Inside Politics’ column also heard that many SJB seniors pressured Sajith not to do so.
At that time, these groups pushed Sajith against the wall and told him not to express any views against Deshabandu Tennakoon. But Sajith did not succumb to that pressure from within the party at all. However, Sajith pointed out to some in the SJB that a person like Deshabandu Tennakoon, who has serious charges, should never be appointed as the IGP. Now, Sajith’s stance back then has been 100% confirmed through the no-confidence motion brought against Deshabandu.
Sajith’s exposure
The government has decided to debate the no-confidence motion against Deshabandu Tennakoon on April 8 or 9. The government has also decided to debate the Batalanda incident on April 10. However, some are now accusing the government of planning to gain political advantage in the local government elections scheduled to be held on May 6 by pointing to Deshabandu Tennakoon and Batalanda. Accordingly, it is reported to the ‘Inside Politics’ column that Sajith is also preparing to make a special statement in that debate. It is about the pressure that Sajith came under when he fought against Deshabandu Tennakoon in the Constitutional Council. It is reported that Sajith is preparing to make a long and controversial revelation about who exerted that pressure, how he faced it, and what they said while exerting such pressure. Many are pointing out that Sajith will detonate another political bomb with the revelation of this information.
Kavinda’s Deal
On numerous occasions in the past, we have pointed out through the ‘Inside Politics’ column that several people within the SJB are hatching secret deals with Ranil. Reportedly, some SJB MPs obtained bar licenses through these deals made when Ranil was President, and some MPs received government funds. It is also mentioned that other MPs made deals with Ranil to acquire land. Our report also pointed out that other MPs even obtained licenses from Ranil to build arrack manufacturing companies in exchange for bar licenses; some SJB MPs went to Nuwara Eliya with their families to eat and drink with Ranil to hatch such deals. Our column also exposed how secret discussions were held at the homes of several senior SJB members, including Kabir Hashim, to join Ranil.
Ranil did all this with one thing in mind. Ranil’s only desire was to fish out SJB MPs and somehow destroy Sajith and SJB. Therefore, Ranil stretched out his arms and gave these SJB MPs what they demanded. Ranil even granted two to three bar licenses to some MPs.
With the announcement of the local government elections, Ranil wanted to somehow tie the UNP to the SJB and infiltrate UNP candidates into the SJB lists and put the final nail in the coffin for SJB. Ranil used Thalatha Athukorala, who was once close to Sajith in the SJB, for this process. Ranil planned to put Thalatha in the forefront and bring the SJB representatives who were friendly with Thalatha out of the SJB and into the UNP. When we exposed Ranil’s plan through the ‘Inside Politics’ column, Ranil’s plan also fell apart.
Expel immediately
However, some of Ranil’s cronies have not completely left the SJB. This was seen through the participation of SJB MP Kavinda Jayawardena in the ceremony held at the Sedawatta Temple in Kolonnawa last week to mark Ranil’s birthday. Getting into action to destroy SJB, Ranil once again invited several SJB MPs to attend the birthday ceremony. He planned to bring out an SJB team and put on a big media show, keeping the election in mind. Due to this subterfuge of Ranil, many SJB MPs who knew very well that he would use not only birthdays but also other people’s funerals for his political gain had refrained from attending the ceremony. The only one who went was Kavinda Jayawardena. It was also noteworthy that even UNP stalwarts like Akila Viraj, Naveen Dissanayake, and Ashu Marasinghe, who had been invited to the event, refrained from attending.
Kavinda had also attended the local government candidates’ meeting held in Gampaha under the patronage of Sajith a few hours before attending Ranil’s event. Kavinda is the Gampaha District Secretary. Accordingly, even though Kavinda attended the event under the patronage of Sajith, it is notable that he did not inform Sajith or the party’s General Secretary Ranjith Maddumabandara that he would be attending Ranil’s birthday event to be held at least a few hours later. Instead of informing him and getting permission from the party and attending, what Kavinda did was secretly attend Ranil’s birthday event without telling anyone.
When Kavinda attended Ranil’s event, Sajith was attending a local government candidate meeting in the Puttalam district. After the news of Kavinda attending Ranil’s event was revealed by the ‘Mawrata’ website, many of those present at the meeting strongly protested against Kavinda and made representations to Sajith.
Sajith told all of them that Kavinda had attended the meeting held in Gampaha a few hours ago, but Kavinda had not informed the party even a word about attending Ranil birthday party. At the same time, almost all the local government candidates present at the meeting strongly pointed out to Sajith that disciplinary action should be taken against such double-dealing MPs who go beyond the party’s ideology and deal with Ranil and expel them from the party. These candidates pointed out that these individuals had made deals with Ranil during the last presidential election to defeat Sajith and also pointed out to Sajith that the party would be destroyed because of such MPs.
As soon as the meeting ended, Sajith’s mobile phone was continuously receiving calls from constituency organizers across the country. Everyone who spoke there pointed out to Sajith that such individuals should be expelled from the party, regardless of their rank.
‘What is the meaning of this, sir? We are getting ready to face this election. Then our people go and sit with Ranil and talk. Is it right to do this during this election? This will be a big disadvantage for our party. He behaved in the same way during the presidential election. Not only did he make deals with Ranil, but he also did not organize Gampaha properly. Therefore, we request you to immediately remove him from Negombo and give that position to a new young man. “If you can’t do this at least now, then you should decide this MP after the election…”, these people told Sajith. Sajith told all those who spoke to him to be patient at this time when an election is being held. Sajith also told them that he was ready to take strict action against all those who went beyond the party’s ideology and made deals after the election.
A bouquet for the compass
A special occurrence in the government’s maiden budget was that was noted during the budget voting unlike in previous Mahinda’s and Gotabaya’s two thirds governments all the NPP MPs were present for the voting and voted with the government.
Unlike in the previous two-thirds majority governments, no MP had gone abroad, fallen sick, or excused them by claiming they were not in Colombo, nor abstained for personal reasons.
But this time, it was very noteworthy that all 159 MPs of the compass government were present in the House during the vote. Even though the Speaker did not vote representing the compass, the budget received 159 votes. This was because an opposition MP, Mr. Kader Mastan, also voted in favor of the budget.
For the first time in recent times, the Malima government has set a political example and has properly handled its MPs. It is significant that despite some disagreements between Malima and the JVP, they were able to manage it well during the budget vote.
What did Paparo say?
Adm. Samuel Paparo, the Commander, U.S. Indo-Pacific Command, visited Sri Lanka Last week. Although the visit took place without any prior publicity, a discussion arose in the political arena after the Presidential Media Unit released relevant photographs to the media. In addition to the President, Samuel Paparo and the US Ambassador to Sri Lanka, Julie Chang, were also seen in the photographs. Although a top US security official visited Sri Lanka in this way, it was a special event to see it take place as a normal visit.
This is because, previously, during the Ranil Wickremesinghe administration, the head of the US Secret Service and the CIA visited Sri Lanka, and steps were taken to tighten security in Colombo. So much so that the government had even closed roads and provided him with tight security. However, this time, none of that happened, and the government had taken steps to provide Paparo with security under the existing system as usual.
However, many believe that Paparo’s visit was not a fluke. Two weeks before this visit, US Ambassador Julie Chang made a surprise visit to Washington. During that visit, she arranged to hold several crucial rounds of discussions with the country’s diplomatic officials. Paparo’s trip to Sri Lanka was planned as a result of Chang’s discussions.
Secret meeting?
The government did not report anything specific about the matters discussed during the discussion with the President. A statement issued by the Presidential Media Unit stated that several matters, including maritime security, were discussed. it is noticed US is currently focused on the entry of the Chinese research vessel into the Sri Lankan ocean zone.
After this discussion, Frontline Socialist Party representative Duminda Nagamuwa immediately called a press conference and said that the government should immediately inform the country about the matters raised during the discussion with Paparo. However, there is no sign of a proper response from the government.
Promised Chinese relief?
Meanwhile, a few weeks ago, we had reported on the ‘Inside politics’ column that China was preparing to provide a large relief package to Sri Lanka ahead of the President’s visit to China. We pointed out that China is scheduled to assist during this visit, especially for the expeditious construction of the Pothuhera-Galagedara section and the Kadawatha-Mirigama section of the Central Expressway.
We also reported that the Chinese authorities who met the President before the visit had asked the President to make any request he wanted during this visit and that they are ready to grant it. It was also reported that 78 agreements were signed between the government and China during the visit. All of them were reported on the ‘inside Polirtics’ column, and two weeks ago, we had also mentioned on the column that all these reliefs had been delayed by China.
Even a statement made by Mr. Bimal Ratnayake, who participated in the inspection of the Central Expressway the other day, there indicated that the relief that China was providing would be delayed somewhat. The truth is that during the Chinese visit, the President promised China that he would resolve the issue of the research vessels without damaging China’s pride. But the government has still failed to fulfill that promise. The reason for this is that India and the United States have now intervened in this issue. Accordingly, the government has requested China to provide some time to resolve several issues arising from foreign relations.
Wait and see stand by China?
However, the information we have indicates that China has taken a firm decision in this regard. It is learnt from unofficial sources that China has decided to postpone the visit without fulfilling anything agreed upon until the damage to China’s pride is compensated.
While this information is being reported from China, India’s Adani has also left Sri Lanka, cancelling his energy project. Adani is considered one of India’s most powerful businessmen and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s close friend. Modi is scheduled to arrive in Sri Lanka on the 6th, against the backdrop of Adani’s departure. During his visit, Modi will inaugurate the Punarin Renewable Energy Project from Colombo and will also be present at the inauguration of another project of Adani, the Western Terminal of the Port.
Ranil Grieve
However, former President Ranil Wickremesinghe also stated Adani’s departure from Sri Lanka, saying that it is not appropriate for Sri Lanka to lose an investor like Adani and that the message given to India through this will be detrimental to Sri Lanka. Accordingly, many speculate that Modi will deliver a special message to the President during Modi’s visit to Sri Lanka. Many think that it will not be a good one for Sri Lanka.
Especially with Adani’s departure, the government is not in a good position regarding India. Many think that the message that Modi will give through this will not be beneficial for Sri Lanka.
In addition to the Adani incident, it can now be seen that the government is preparing to create a conflict with another world-famous businessman, Elon Musk, by suspending the operation of Starlink internet facilities in Sri Lanka. Adani is a close friend of Indian Prime Minister Modi, just as Elon Musk is a close friend of US President Donald Trump. Accordingly, a clash with Adani is like a clash with Modi, and a clash with Musk is like a clash with Trump.
Starlink hold!
It was former President Ranil Wickremesinghe who laid the foundation for bringing Elon Musk’s Starlink internet connection to Sri Lanka. During his foreign trip, Ranil invited Elon Musk to come and invest in Sri Lanka. Accordingly, after Elon Musk expressed his willingness to do so, Ranil’s government at that time also took steps to amend the 28-year-old Telecommunications Regulatory Act.
A strong accusation made against it at that time was that there was a possibility that Sri Lankan information could be leaked to other parties through this Starlink system. Accordingly, the operation did not proceed during Ranil’s government. However, with the coming to power of the Compass government, an investigation was conducted into this matter, and it was revealed that the necessary data storage and security systems to obtain Starlink facilities had not yet been created. It is also reported that the Starlink company has issued a notice that it will not operate in Sri Lanka until they are created.
Many others have also raised doubts as to whether there has been strong influence from somewhere to suspend this project. We also investigated this matter and found out that government officials had taken steps to suspend it temporarily due to the lack of proper procedures. However, international reports have indicated that the government has banned this project and that there has been pressure from some powerful sources.
