⦁ Who won the battle? Rani or Julia?
⦁ Will the UN Human Rights Council take action against Sri Lanka?
⦁ Global displeasure towards state insanity
It is not an exaggeration to say that the attack on the peaceful protestors’ struggle site in Galle Face occurred less than 24 hours after Mr. Nil Wickramasinghe was elected president. Sri Lanka began negotiations with the International Monetary Fund at the beginning of this year in response to the severe dollar crisis caused by the country’s declining foreign reserves.
Apart from that, it is well known that the government made the first few months of the year extremely difficult by obtaining credit from countries such as China and India. As a result, the only way for Sri Lanka to get out of this crisis was to seek international assistance and complete the negotiations with the IMF as soon as possible in order to obtain loan facilities.
But, with the unexpected military attack on the struggle ground, everything has turned upside down. It’s been turned inside out. With this attack last week, the international community took steps to strongly condemn this attack by issuing announcements at a time when the country needed international support. The United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, Norway, the European Commission, the Human Rights Commission in Geneva, and the seven major countries, which are considered to be the group’s central group, issued statements condemning it.
GSP+ at risk
The most serious aspect of the European Commission’s announcement was the loss of GSP that the country had as a result of the attack.
Mrs. Julie Chang, the American Ambassador to Sri Lanka, issued a statement condemning the attack, which sparked heated debate. Ranil was involved in a verbal exchange with the American ambassador following the release of this announcement. However, we understand that the American ambassador did not make such an announcement based on her personal desire, but rather on instructions from Washington and knowledge of the situation.
The future of the Sri Lankan economy, on the other hand, is entirely dependent on the International Monetary Fund. Not that the government is unaware of it. It’s always IMF, IMF. That is why it is mentioned. The IMF representatives visited Sri Lanka recently and completed the first phase of negotiations; everything was ready to sign the office level agreement. However, according to recent news, the United States has decided to withdraw from its Washington-based IMF.
The headquarters has been advised not to impede the progress of these negotiations in any way. The IMF is influenced not only by the United States, but also by the main countries of the central group representing the Human Rights Commission in Geneva and other countries. We’ve heard that it’s being done.
On the other hand, another special point was also emphasised in Chang’s announcement on Washington knowledge. That is, to conduct an internationally recognised independent investigation into the relevant attack and to prosecute all those involved. However, the government provided no satisfactory response in the first round. It was the government’s position that such an investigation would make it impossible to maintain law and order.
US envoy is not happy
This government stance resulted in some heated exchanges between the government and American Ambassador Chung. It is a serious question whether we have the ability and strength to continue such a conflict, but due to the heat, Ranil and Chang met face to face last week. According to reports, Chang has questioned the government’s efforts to keep the state of emergency in place and has stated that she is keeping a close eye on the situation.
However, following the attack, the Geneva Human Rights Council issued the next serious warning to the government. Not only the Human Rights Council, but also its central group, issued statements condemning the attack in Sri Lanka. The Human Rights Board’s hint is clear in this regard. It means that Sri Lanka will have to deal with a major crisis at the Human Rights Council meeting, which begins in September. It was planned to pass a resolution condemning Sri Lanka at the Geneva meeting in March, but Sri Lanka avoided that situation in 1999.
However, following the Galle face attack, our sources indicate that the powerful countries of Geneva’s central group, led by the United States, have already begun to exert pressure on Sri Lanka to take strong action. As a result, there are already signs that Sri Lanka will have a major problem in Geneva next September.
International acceptance
In addition, another incident occurred last week that confirmed the government is in a serious crisis in managing the international community. These are the greetings issued by foreign countries following the election of a new president. In general, it is normal to receive a continuous flow of congratulations from the presidents and governments of the world’s major countries within the first 24 hours of a new president’s appointment, revealing the international acceptance of the new president.
However, the revolution in Sri Lanka was a one-of-a-kind event that we were unable to witness. No country congratulated Ranil within the first 24 hours of his election as President, and China was the first to do so after a few days. Following that, Russia issued a statement. However, it was customary for India, Sri Lanka’s main neighbor and regional power, to be the first to congratulate the country’s new president.
However, there was a lot of talk in the political world last week about not congratulating India in such a way. After China and Russia congratulated him, India congratulated him a few days later. But there was something special about Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s greeting. Normally, when Modi congratulates a country, he does not question its democratic framework.
This was evident in the congratulatory message sent to Mr. Gotabaya Rajapaksa upon his election as President in 2019. According to reports, India congratulates Gotabaya on his victory. However, the mention of the democratic framework in Modi’s late announcement indicates that India is in some trouble regarding the Galle face-attack.
On the other hand, it is noteworthy that no greetings have been sent to Ranil from countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, or the European Commission. According to the news in the ‘Rajya Rahas’ colmn, some discussions have taken place between these countries’ foreign offices regarding congratulating Sri Lanka’s new President, and there has been a long exchange of views regarding whether to congratulate Sri Lanka, in what manner, and what position should be taken there.
According to the ‘Rajya Rahas’ column, those countries have decided to send a strong message to Sri Lanka by participating in this discussion if they congratulate Ranil in any way. The impact of the Galle Face Attack on the International Monetary Fund, on the other hand, was clearly visible in a statement issued by the agency last week. If Sri Lanka expects debt relief from the IMF, it should first consult with its country’s main creditor, China, and take steps to restructure debt payments, according to the statement.
In general, China has never entered into a debt restructuring process with any of the countries to which it has made loans. It is the Chinese government’s fiscal policy. In such a case, it is unclear whether the financial fund notified Sri Lanka to restructure the Chinese debt because the theory holds that the medicine that is not administered is a seven-pot of anthrax oil and a little more.
Many parties argue that the financial fund presented this proposal as a diplomatic strategy to delay loan granting. If that is true, no one can imagine the magnitude of the crisis that Sri Lanka will face by the end of this year. In this context, Ranil’s first group meeting of the ruling party after being elected President was scheduled for last Tuesday in the auditorium of the newly constructed building behind the Ministry of Finance.
Ranil has not yet begun his duties at the Presidential Secretariat as President, so he is carrying out his official duties from the top floor of this building. The first MP group meeting was attended by Mahinda Rajapaksa, Namal Rajapaksa, and Shashindra Rajapaksa, as well as 80 to 90 Pohottuwa MPs.However, at this council meeting, several ministers gathered to question Ranil about the military assault on the struggle, but their expressions changed dramatically because Ranil had invited two special people to this meeting.
Defense secretary explains
Defense Secretary Kamal Gunaratne and the Chief of Intelligence Services were the two special people. Following a brief remark, Ranil informed the Defense Secretary and the Chief of the Intelligence Service about the Galle face incident. There, the Defense Secretary could be seen enthusiastically presenting information about the operation to a group of government MPs.
The defense secretary even went so far as to use the words used by the army during a major operation on several occasions. It was also observed how the defense secretary used phrases such as “gave a game…”, “gave a job…”, and so on.
The intelligence chief then began to make comments. After a thorough examination of the evolving situation, the head of the intelligence services took steps to present the struggles that began on August 9th for four months and the events reported by the intelligence services to be carried out on August 9th one by one. The intelligence chief, who had discovered several militant plans, informed the group of MPs about the next steps that would be taken if they failed. Some of the details he revealed there are grave.
He stated that some incidents were planned to be blamed on the government, as well as an attack on army personnel. In addition, the head of the intelligence services stated that these struggles have begun to be led by an invisible hand beyond the visible people on the ground. The intelligence chief also took steps to reveal some of their identities.
Following the intelligence chief’s speech, the ministers began to speak. According to that, Madhura Withanage, who spoke first, was seen making some rather ridiculous explanations of certain points raised by the Defense Secretary.
You acted as defense secretary even when the former president was on duty, didn’t you? Isn’t it the same emergency law that was put in place at the time? But will you explain why it was impossible to suppress the struggle at the time and why it is now possible? ” When Madhura asked, the defense secretary said that under the new regulations, the defense force has more powers than those regulations, and thus it can be implemented quickly in carrying out the duties.”
Mohan Silva then spoke up. Mohan stated that when the MPs’ houses were set on fire, Mr. Kamal Gunaratne was acting as Defense Secretary, and what he was doing as Defense Secretary at the time. There, the Defense Secretary stated that he immediately issued a strict statement condemning it and even issued orders to shoot the saboteurs. However, Mohan Silva provided an excellent response.
‘Yes, we recall you saying that as well. But my house was also burned down that night, according to Mohan Silva.
At one point, the MPs claimed that the Janata Vimukti Peramuna and the Frontline Socialist Party were working together to carry out the sabotage. But Ranil had a different response.
Ranil Defend JVP & Peratugami
They will never be together. They are in different places. So don’t worry about it…,” Ranil replied.
Tissa Kuttiarachi then spoke. Tissa’s issue was with his vehicle.
Our security has now been assigned six police officers. I brought three people with me to Colombo. However, these individuals are dressed in uniform. So even if you stop for tea on the way, you are afraid of being beaten. So go ahead and do something about it. In addition, we require another vehicle to transport these people. So at the very least, give us a double cab.’ Tissa Kutty stated, but Ranil did not receive a proper response.
However, Rohitha Abeygunawardena spoke at the end of the discussion. Rohitha informed Ranil that the 134 votes obtained in the presidential election should be promoted further.
‘Now, in the last presidential election, we received 134 votes. We must keep this going. Several of our members have now stated that they will not attend the group meeting after we invited them to do so. They are a self-contained group. Others are newly self-containt. This cannot be allowed to occur. We want to protect the 134 votes you were given. So, please take charge in this matter… When Rohit asked Ranil, Ranil gave a fantastic answer to save himself.
One man party
‘I can’t do that. I am a single person in a single party. Pohottua is a different party. It has leaders. I cannot give orders to another party. The leaders of that party should do that…’ Ranil took steps to save his body.
All-party government has recently emerged as a hot political topic. or the federal government Or the provisional government. There have been various discussions in various places about this. Ranil met with a group that included Mr. Maithripala Sirisena of the Sri Lankan National Party last
Thursday to discuss the formation of an all-party government. After some time, Wimal also wrote to Ranil, indicating that he would support an all-party government on Thursday.
As a result, Basil is currently working behind the scenes to reorganise the pohottuwa and launch the strengthening programme. Because the local government election must take place before March of next year, and the government is also committed to holding the local government election. As a result, Basil began the programme to re-strengthen the party within the parliament last week.
That is, Tissa Kuttiarachchi, Jayantha Katagoda, Madhura Withanage, and Kokila Harshani Gunawardena, all ardent Pohottuists, have been appointed as government assistant organisers. Aside from that, plans are in the works to hold a massive party convention in August or September next year in order to strengthen the party by calling for a party convention.
Aside from that, Mr. Dhammika Perera’s resignation was another sign that Basil would not remain silent. When Mr. Gotabaya Rajapaksa left the country, Dhammika submitted his resignation letter to Pohottuwa. However, according to the news, Dhammika’s letter of resignation was not accepted by Basil , and Dhammika was informed let that letter be in that form. The implication for members of Pohottuwa’s party is that they will remain silent in parliament for another week or two.
They remain silent in this manner in order to support the programme of forming an all-party government by bringing together the major parties. If not, Basil’s plan is to form a Pohottu government using the Pohottu majority in parliament. Basil’s plan is to give all ministerial positions to Pohottuwa members, as well as state and deputy minister positions.
A special representative of President Ranil, on the other hand, has prepared a separate power for Ranil in parliament and launched an operation to strengthen Ranil. It is Nimal Lanza, who is regarded as a strong man in the pohottuwa, who is taking the initiative for this. Lanza is now known in politics as a genius who maintains close relationships with all MPs and can strike political deals.
Basil in action
As a result, Lanza has held numerous rounds of talks with MPs who have broken with the pohottuwa , members who are currently independent, MPs who are disappointed with the pohottuwa, MPs who are angry at the Rajapaksas, and MPs from Wimal Weerawansa and Anura Yapa’s groups. Although it is unclear what Lanza’s goal is at this time, the ‘Rahya Rahas’ column has learned that Lanza has amassed a group of 56 MPs through such discussions.
Basil, on the other hand, is well aware of Lanza’s mission. Basil is keeping a close eye on this from the head office in Pohottuwa, according to the ‘Rajya Rahas’ column. It’s also been reported that Basil is working on a separate plan to deal with it. It is also known that, against this backdrop, Basil has rushed the establishment of a new government.
Many people believe that the fact that Vimal, who had previously supported the Dallas side, suddenly voted for the government’s emergency law and sent a letter to Ranil with 12 points proposing to support the government is the result of Lanza’s operation. Dallas’s side is also taken aback by Vimal’s unexpected change.
Japan friendship
Japan is known as a true friend who has always assisted Sri Lanka. Japan did not expect anything in return for its assistance in this manner from Sri Lanka. Japan had no other hidden agendas or ulterior motives. From that day forward, Japan has completed all investment and development projects that have benefited Sri Lanka. In doing so, Japan did not pay any commissions or engage in any illegal transactions.
However, several incidents occurred with the emergence of the Gotabaya Rajapaksa regime that harmed this good friendship with Japan. The most notable was the light rail project from Malabe to Fort, which was signed during the Yahapalana administration. The government was forced to pay crores of rupees in compensation to Japan as a result of the Gotabhaya administration’s decision to halt work on the project without providing a reason.
Although the previous government intended to award the development of Colombo Port’s eastern terminal to India and Japan, the project was halted when the Gotabhaya regime took power. As a result, India was given the western terminal rather than the eastern terminal, and Japan dropped out of the project entirely
Nimal exposed in the parliament
As a result, Japan’s only major project in Sri Lanka to date has been the expansion of Katunayake Airport. However, in the final days of Gotabhaya’s reign, a serious problem arose due to a complaint that Nimal Siripala de Silva, the Minister of Aviation at the time, influenced the company in charge of the project, ‘Taisei.’
We disclosed this to the country for the first time three weeks ago via the a website, and following our disclosure, Mr. Sajith Premadasa, the leader of the opposition, took steps to question it in Parliament.
Furthermore, according to official information, after the information about this effect was reported, the company in question complained to the Japanese ambassador in Sri Lanka, and the Japanese ambassador took steps to complain about it during a lunch conversation with the president. The Japanese ambassador is also known to have complained to the opposition leader about this.
As a result, Gotabaya, who acted quickly, temporarily removed Nimal Siripala from his position as minister and launched an investigation into the complaint. While these investigations were underway, Gotabhaya was forced to resign from his position and leave Sri Lanka. As a result, after Ranil assumed the presidency, a three-member committee comprised of retired High Court Judge Kusala Sarojini Weerawardena, retired Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police SM. Wickramasinghe, and S.M.G., a senior administrative officer, was formed to conduct the related investigation. panel was chosen.Nimal Siripala was already planning to join the government after Ranil’s committee.
Chamber of commerce revelation
Taisei Company has also informed us that it has decided to exit the Katunayake Airport expansion project. Meanwhile, Mr. Duminda Hulangamuwa, Vice Chairman of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce, appeared on a television programme last Thursday and stated that the Japanese government has issued a special notice to suspend all projects in Sri Lanka.
This is due to debt non-payment. Mr. Hulangamuwa also stated that he met with representatives from Japan, the United States, and India, who informed him that significant aid could not be given to Sri Lanka until they began a joint programme with the International Monetary Fund. Taisei Company has also informed us that it has decided to exit the Katunayake Airport expansion project.
SJB Executive committee meeting
The executive board meeting of Samagi Jana Balawega was held this year at the opposition leader’s office. A large number of ‘Krtyadhikari’ board members were present, and many important decisions about future activities were made there. ‘What happened during the election of the President of the Parliament?’ enquired one of the executive committee members
All decisions were made democratically, with everyone’s input considered. We made decisions from outside and did not come inside to implement them. We made decisions after deliberating internally. That’s why we decided to back Dallas,’ Sajith explained.
According to Ashok Abeysinghe, some members of our party voted for Mr. Ranil Wickramasinghe over Dallas.
‘Some people who don’t even know how to add and subtract wear bagels like that.’ I am certain that no one in our party did that…’ Sajith emphasised.
‘Have you met Mr. Ranil Wickramasinghe?’
‘ Nalin Bandara inquired.
‘I met him at the party leaders’ meeting,’ he said.
‘What exactly did you say?’ asked Mujibur Rahman, smiling.‘
He is ready to tell you everything that happened. He has stated that he is considering forming an all-party government. And he stated that everyone should be gathered. We appreciated the ‘Husma’ programme as the only opposition. He also stated that he wished to speak with me
.
Sajith revealed everything that happened to the Working Committee after meeting with President Ranil
After that, Chaminda Wijesiri stood up.
This is not a government, Mr. President. This is a continuation of the pohottuwa. Not only that, but this is a government that shields Rajapaksa. There is no way with this administration. There are no multi-party governments in this country. This is a joke. It is a lie. So let us pretend to be the opposition party…’ said Chaminda.
‘Yes, the repression has begun since the day this government took power. Galle face got hit less than a day after the President was sworn in. It was a heinous attack. ‘Can we form an all-party government with those people?’ Rajitha Senaratne asked.
Let us assemble the entire opposition. Let us assemble a formidable force. Give me your approval for that…’ Sajith said, emphasizing the importance of mobilizing the opposition.
Finally, the working committee made several decisions.
It was decided unanimously to vote against the emergency law enacted to suppress the right to express opinions, the right to protest, and the right to protest the problems that the people face on a daily basis.
It was decided not to engage with the oppressive government, which is directly and indirectly unleashing state terrorism in a repressive manner while failing to provide genuine solutions to the people’s problems.
It was decided to support the establishment of a committee system in Parliament to find solutions to the pressing problems of the people in the parliamentary democratic system.
Emergency regulations debate
Meanwhile, opposition leader Sajith made a special statement in Parliament during the emergency regulation debate.
Sajith stated that the government led by the President has lost hope of working together to build a positive country, but he does not have opportunistic politics, and instead of joining the government, he will provide the best possible opposition support for the country’s building.
‘We’re talking about the emergency right now.’
There’s a rush without medicine. There is a sense of urgency in postponing surgery. There is a rush to give medicine to patients. The farmer is in a bind because he is out of fertiliser. There is an emergency situation in which the farmer has not been compensated. There is an emergency situation in which those who blew gas and cylinders were not compensated. Fishermen who cannot do their jobs without oil are in desperate need.
A person with a small daily income suffers a sudden loss of income. In this self-employed country, there is a sense of urgency for the needy. There is a sense of urgency in female-headed households. There is a pressing need for the disabled community. The hired man has a problem. When the public servant’s entire salary is deducted for the loan he took today, there is an emergency.
When the malnutrition of mothers’ children worsens in front of their eyes, there is a sense of urgency. When small and medium-sized industries collapse and are destroyed, there is an emergency, and 45 lakh people lose their jobs. There is a sense of urgency as the tourism industry continues to decline. When the construction industry is on the verge of collapse, there is a rush.
When jobs are lost, there is a huge rush. ‘There is a suddenness when this country’s intelligentsia leaves the country, and brain drain occurs when they go abroad.’ When the people are in a frenzy and cannot fill the three veils, there is a sense of urgency. When the innocent families go down to the lake where the two brothers are in the village and try to dig some potatoes from the lake to eat, the identity of that little man is revealed unexpectedly.
There is a rush when someone goes to beg for money and is unable to get even a small amount. When a tricycle driver cannot earn a living, there is a sense of urgency. Those people face a major crisis if they are unable to pay their lease instalments. There is word that the new Covid is making an appearance. There is also an emergency with a virus called monkey pox, which puts the virus at risk. This is the urgency with which people live, my friends.
This is the world’s emergency. This is the true crisis. This is a true emergency. However, the debated urgency is the urgency that spreads threats, roars, brutality, and state terrorism. That is why it is critical…’ Sajith stated.
Meanwhile, Sajith stepped in to stop the government’s plan to hunt down activists across the country. Sajith summoned his legal team the moment it was announced that the government would arrest those who had contributed to the civil war, particularly the Galle face.
Today’s president has forgotten why he was elected. They are still stunned by what happened to Rajapaksa. That is why they exact such vengeance on the strugglers. As a result, give all of these people the best legal representation possible…’ Sajith informed his lawyers.
Sajith reminded the government that it is conducting a hunt for democratic fighters and that it must immediately stop pursuing fighters who fought for a democratic country. This hunt sends an extremely sad message to the international community. This scandal has nothing to do with President Ranil Wickremesinghe. We are sorry that the people in this frying pan are suffering…’ he said.
Kapila Punchihewa