Govt. moves to stifle dissent over war as India turns on the heat

With the economic crisis confronting the country set to explode in all its fury by end year, President Mahinda Rajapakse presented a budget last week which held little real hope of alleviating the people's living conditions while news from the battlefront was anything but promising for a government that placed all its political eggs on a military solution to the ethnic conflict, signaling in the process desperate months ahead.

It is a realisation of the dark days ahead which prompted the government to look at ways and means of silencing the media so the people will not get a full measure of the crisis facing the nation. However that attempt too appeared to be coming a cropper making a bad situation worse and with even the ministers frowning upon the unfolding tragedy,  the search was on for  scapegoats to pin the blame.

Hitherto the government survived on a full dose of war hysteria with regular updates on the LTTE's inevitable decimation and the people lapped it up as they pledged to tighten their belts in the face of economic hardships to see an end to the menace called the Tigers.

Possibly believing the government and the people can survive on propaganda alone the media advisors in the administration thus continued to trumpet victories with news of various bunkers, culverts and Tiger strongholds captured almost on a daily basis, massaged by high LTTE casualty figures.

Casualties

What the government did not place before the people on a daily basis however was the full extent of the casualty figures on the side of the security forces who were fighting heroic battles or the large number of deserters, thus reinforcing in the minds of the people, victory was imminent.

And having in August said the security forces were within hooting distance of Kilinochchi and the fall of LTTE's administrative capital was just days away the people waited with bated breath, only to realise something was not quite right with what they were being dished as the days became weeks and the weeks turned into months.

This reality started dawning on the people slowly but surely with the government going silent on the fall of Kilinochchi and the Prime Minister in parliament giving monthly updates on security forces' casualties numbering over thousand, further to the Defence Ministry finally deciding to put a lid on releasing the casualty figures.

Day-dream

Confusion was worst confounded when the government last week started talking of moving towards Pooneryn without reference to liberating Kilinochchi in the teeth of LTTE Chief, Velupillai Pirapaharan's boast that doing so is a Rajapakse day dream. Add to this the botched attempt in parliament not  to disclose the security forces casualty figures for the month of October through the Prime Minister and finally having to do so under opposition goading by Energy Minister John Seneviratne.

The grim statistics finally disclosed for October were: 171 security forces personnel killed, 1122 injured, 38 civilians killed and 62 injured. In the month of September the forces personnel killed were 200 and the injured over 950.

Thus, the fact all was not honky dory on the war front the President realised compelling him to look at alternate strategies including one that is political while keeping a lid on dissent through means such as the Gazette regulations to control the electronic media with even the JHU becoming disgruntled.

Ironically, having goaded the President to go on an all out offensive irrespective of ground realities including human rights considerations which would impact on Sri Lanka's international relations and the economy, the JHU members are now privately conceding the war effort is not going according to plan and that the economy is in serious trouble.

Economy

Not only are JHU members who steadfastly opposed placing a political package on the table now conceding these factors in private, but are also stating the overall war effort will suffer if the economy continues to deteriorate and finds in Army Commander Sarath Fonseka a convenient scapegoat for the status quo.

The point these JHU members make is that the war could have been finished one month back but that the Army Commander did not want to do so until his extension due in December was given and as a result a golden opportunity was missed, resulting in a stalemate situation due to the onset of the monsoons.

While the Army Commander no doubt would scoff at such allegations, the fact remains the JHU thinking reflects a ground reality, which their members feel will only get worse due to the economic disaster waiting to happen in the backdrop of a global economic recession.

That the economy is starved for funds is no secret with the government unable to even meet its day to day commitments and this fact was best underscored by Health Minister Nimal Siripala De Silva on Wednesday, November 5 when he met the food suppliers to the government hospitals and issued a stern warning.

The cash crunch is such the government has not been able to pay contractors for services rendered in several sectors with suppliers providing food to the hospitals no exception, prompting them to withhold supplies until the millions owed to them for months of supplies were paid.

Given the seriousness of the situation, Minister Silva summoned a meeting of the contractors and promised to pay them 25 per cent of their dues with a warning not to ask for anymore payments at least for another two months whilst also demanding that they continue to supply food on credit during that period or face blacklisting.

Mind you, the case of the hospitals is but one with the economic crisis and the cash crunch hitting virtually every sector, at a time the government has to continue funding a war which is also not going according to plan further to the pressure  mounted by Tamil Nadu setting the stage for a political and economic nightmare scenario for Rajapakse.

Solution

Having talked tough on foreign interference with regard to human rights and a political solution despite warnings by sections of the media and the opposition on the overall consequences such a course of beating the war drums alone will have on the security effort, the government was finally forced to concede a role for India in Sri Lanka's battle against the LTTE, limiting President Rajapakse's options in facing the political and economic challenges ahead.

So much so, following Senior Presidential Advisor Basil Rajapakse's visit to New Delhi where he had to listen to some tough talking by Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee and National Security Advisor M.K. Narayanan, the President had to concede in an interview to the Chennai-based Hindu newspaper there can only be a political solution to the ethnic conflict and it would be within an 'undivided Sri Lanka.'

This interview was seized upon by CWC's R. Yogarajan at Monday's All Party Representative Committee (APRC) meeting chaired by Science and Technology Minister Tissa Vitharana, where he said the debate over the 'unitary' and 'federal' state concepts have not been resolved by the President no less with the use of the 'Undivided Sri Lanka' concept. 

That apart, India of course was not averse to the government defeating the LTTE militarily going so far as to even encourage it but on condition that a political package which is an advancement of the 13th Amendment is placed on the table further to ensuring the civilians are not impacted in battle.

Having placed the government in that strait jacket, India added salt to the festering wound by insisting on providing food relief to the civilians in the Wanni despite Basil Rajapakse's protestation "Sri Lanka had enough food to meet the requirements of the internally displaced people."

Eat parippu

Not only did India say it will send 800 metric tonnes of food aid, but added Tamil Nadu would do likewise, and embarrassed by the outcome of his visit, Basil Rajapakse made it known such food aid will be distributed through the Sri Lanka government.

That claim led to a howl of protest in Tamil Nadu, which saw the Sri Lankan government once again being forced to eat humble parippu with New Delhi making it known the food aid collected in Tamil Nadu will be distributed through the Indian High Commission in Colombo using the good offices of the UN and ICRC and not the Rajapakse administration.

It was Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Muthuvel Karunanidhi who fired the first salvo on the food aid distribution following reports it would go through the Sri Lankan government, claiming the promise made to him was otherwise.

Considering Tamil Nadu is already on the boil due to the civilians' plight in the Wanni and the issue generating a momentum of its own where even popular film stars have come out, Karunanidhi was not to miss gaining maximum political capital and wrote to both Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Foreign Minister Pranab Mukherjee early in the week over reports of the Sri Lankan government's involvement in distributing Tamil Nadu food aid.

Drawing attention to the promise made to him by Mukherjee that the food aid would be distributed through the Indian High Commission in Colombo, Karunanidhi made reference to media reports which were to the contrary and asked for the Union Government's position on the matter.

Response

The implications of the Karunanidhi query was not lost on the Indian Central Government and an immediate response went out stating, "The relief material will be shipped to the High Commission of India in Colombo who will arrange for its distribution in the affected areas in northern Sri Lanka through the ICRC and the United Nations." The External Affairs Ministry Communication to Karunanidhi's fax query was addressed to the Tamil Nadu Chief Secretary K.S. Sripathi.

What the Central Government of India told Karunanidhi through that communication was that the Sri Lankan administration will have no role in the entire exercise, in effect that Sri Lanka has abdicated its sovereignty over the issue to New Delhi. And that from an administration which refused an investigation to qualify for the GSP Plus and save over 200,000 jobs on the very sovereignty and national integrity premises.

Little wonder then the government wanted to keep a lid on media freedom by introducing draconian regulations and that was the hot topic of discussion at Wednesday's cabinet meeting with Media Minister Anura Priyadarshana Yapa seeking cabinet approval to present the already gazetted regulations to parliament, helping in the process to identify the 'shame list' of those who did the drafting of the report.

(See box for full Cabinet Memorandum)

At the outset, Minister Yapa who was also minister in charge when The Sunday Leader was sealed in the year 2000 said he met with heads of the electronic media institutions where certain clarifications were sought of him and that he had given them four weeks to place on record their concerns.

Approval

Continuing, Yapa, a lawyer by training said what he wanted to do through the cabinet paper was seek approval to place the regulations before parliament in terms of the Sri Lanka Rupavahini Corporation Act, comments which saw President Rajapakse coming in with some advise on the futility of misleading the media.

Yapa in fact also lied to cabinet when he said heads of the electronic media were given four weeks time to send in their concerns in writing, when in fact no such time-frame was given as later disclosed in writing by TNL's Shan Wickremesinghe and the Sirasa Group.

Said the President - "By virtue of you gazetting the regulations, it has become law. You are bringing it before cabinet to merely keep the ministers and parliament informed. Now that you have gazetted the regulations, let us give approval but since you have given four weeks for the media organisations to respond, wait till that period is over before presenting it to parliament. You cannot fool the media. Some of the editors like the Leader Editor Lasantha are lawyers. They know with gazetting, it has become law. You cannot fool them."

Making  his own contribution at this point was Environment Minister Champika Ranawaka who took a broadside at Minister Yapa for not following proper procedure. Ranawaka said while Yapa must be commended for discussing the regulations with the media industry, he added the Minister should have done it before issuing the Gazette.

Responded the President in support of Yapa - "True but the Minister had appointed a committee. The Minister listened to their views before finalising the Gazette."

Coming in at this stage was Construction Minister Rajitha Senaratne, who not only championed the cause of the media but clearly showed he had studied the subject although careful to not ruffle too many feathers in making his comments.

No doubt realising the regulations were targeting the Sirasa Group in particular, Senaratne in what was seen by many colleagues as a smart move did a dummy stating the government should not push all parties onto one platform through such gazettes because of one or two media groups.

Ammunition

Said Senaratne - "Why should we give more ammunition and publicity to Kili Maharaja and Shan Wickremesinghe by bringing in such regulations? They can be anti government but why give them more prominence and ammunition by doing this and in the process getting other media groups also against us? We must win those not with them by having a dialogue and the way to do so is not by bringing regulations to punish them. These regulations are too wide in scope and arbitrary. It is not helpful to this government."

Added Senaratne - "So don't approve these regulations and push them away. Wait till the discussions with the media groups are concluded and then decide. After the four week period is over, this can be considered."

Having said that Senaratne dealt at length on the legal implications and the impact the regulations will have on media freedom and added he cannot support it with good conscience, a similar view which was later articulated by Human Rights Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe.

Said Samarasinghe - "If you look at the cabinet paper, what is being asked for is only approval to place the regulations before parliament. That being the case, let us wait till the Minister brings it back after the four week period."

Interjected the President - "Yes that is all the cabinet paper is asking for. Then why don't we give all the ministers an opportunity to present their views also and take it up in four weeks."

Added the President - "Now all this will go in the Leader paper. Like I was accused of being the reporter in the past, there are many reporters to the Leader in the cabinet today. Some are doing my job now."

The hat

Not stopping at that, the President looked at Minister Ranawaka and said an even bigger problem is the Daily Mirror with the newspaper calling some ministers soon after the cabinet meeting is over to find out what was discussed and the President's comments were received with good humour leaving it to those who thought it fit to don the hat of the 'Reporter.'

During the course of this discussion, the President was to also say there were many legal pundits in cabinet who should know the law regarding Gazette regulations and called upon International Trade Minister G.L. Peiris to bat on the issue, which he proceeded to do.

The Minister said once the regulations are gazetted they have the force of law. It could be amended when the regulations are presented to parliament. He said only once parliament approves them that the regulations will come in to force.

Not to be outdone, Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama came up with his own legal interpretation of the law with Minister Sarath Amunugama claiming the regulations must be presented to parliament within three months after gazetting.

The other ministers disagreed with that view and the President finally said approval will be deferred until the view points of  all the ministers are received, possibly not realising the issue was already before the Supreme Court with several media organisations and MTV challenging the validity of the Gazette in the Supreme Court that very Wednesday.

And the following day, the President met with the ministers again to get approval for the budget with none daring to voice any disapproval though their long faces said it all.

The people would, given the contents of the budget and the ground realities on the war-front be thus best advised to tighten their belts further and ready for the long haul.