ISSUES

RMEC probe shifts to CBK By Amantha Perera  The inquiry into the fraud committed at the Sri Lanka Rubber Manufacturing and Export Corporation Ltd. (RMEC), is by all accounts a damning indictment of corruption in government. Not only has the on-going investigation unearthed that sums amounting to Rs. 541 million have been misappropriated, it also shows that political cronies and those in whose hands the country’s economic welfare laid, could just wash their hands off the mess that runs into millions of rupees.

Ironically, most of the monies have been swindled after President Chandrika Kumaratunga initiated a plan to develop the rubber industry following a drop in world prices.

The CID investigation uncovered 46 instances of misappropriation. The instances include double payments, false amounts paid to work never carried out and non-existent persons, payments being increased with the sole purpose of making a cut (some times as large as Rs. 8 million) and payments made without approval.

The CID investigation shows how the then RMEC Chairman, Sarath  Wickremasinghe arbitrarily increased amounts and made false claims for payments through front-men in order to make a quick buck. The monies were delivered to his residence in brown paper bags.

Wickremasinghe while being chairman had bought a luxury Mitsubishi Montero (WP GE 0709) in the name of his brother.

Not far behind is the former accountant W. G. N. Delduwa. She was in the know that Wickremasinghe was in the take and made sure that she too pocketed hefty amounts. A statement given to the CID describes how she approached a contractor for Rs. 300,000 and then made false vouchers when the contractor refused.

There are other instances where factory managers took Rs. 100,000 loans from the same contractor, which were never paid back.

 The CID recorded the statement of former prime minister and minister in charge Ratnasiri Wickremanayake at the parliamentary complex on December 26 last year. In his statement, Wickremanayake admits that Wickremasinghe was appointed as chairman, RMEC at his request with the President’s approval.

Wickremanayake told police that during 1998 and 1999, world rubber prices went down while earnings dropped. Kumaratunga had inquired what action could be taken to increase earnings and the minister had suggested that instead of exporting raw rubber, Sri Lanka should look at value addition.

The task of making a project plan was assigned to the RMEC. From the onset, Wickremanayake distanced himself from the RMEC. He says that though he was the minister in charge, he rarely got involved and that he only sent letters to the Treasury requesting monies to be released. This was after the monies had already been allocated on approval obtained from cabinet by the President.

In one instance, investigations revealed the Finance Ministry had allocated Rs. 170 million without cabinet approval. That was just weeks before the general election.

And now the CID has sought approval to record President Kumaratunga’s statement since it is she who will have to explain as the then finance minister, the allocation of these funds.

However, P. B. Jayasundera who headed the Treasury then, in his statement says Wickremanayake was chairing  meetings at the initial stages of planning.

At one point, Wickremanayake says that he did not read the project report and palmed total responsibility over to the RMEC. In the case of  Kumaratunga seeking allocations as finance minister, Wickremanayake says that she as the minister should make the request. His argument is that since the monies were loans, it was the finance minister who had to move the allocations.

From the beginning, Wickremanayake’s main objective was not to shed light on the investigation, but make sure that his role as the minister in charge is even far removed as a mere observer. In any case, Wickremanayake denies any knowledge of fraud while he was the head.

In September last year, the CID recorded the statement of Jayasundera. In his statement, Jayasundera stated that it was at meetings chaired by Wickremanayake attended by officials from RMEC and the Treasury that the decision was taken to develop the project. He said that it was on the request made by the RMEC that monies were allocated.

Jayasundera denied that he had any knowledge of the state of affairs at the proposed factory at Bulathsinhala. The factory in question was never completed, but there are reports that say it was.

On the issue of Kumaratunga moving for the allocations, Jayasundera too sticks by the argument that since they were loans, it was the finance minister’s task to move them.

Just a pawn

While Wickremanayake and Jayasundera both denied any knowledge of the fraud, according to the statements of one Norbert Perera, millions were swindled right under their noses.

Perera undertook contract work for the RMEC for a long time. And in the course of the work, Wickremasinghe hit upon the idea that through Perera, monies could be channelled for his own use. Though Perera’s statement indicate that he was just a helpless pawn in a mean game, the funds were swindled sometimes for ghost work that existed only on paper.

In the case of the Bulathsinhala Factory, Perera was tasked with clearing the land. The work was finished at Rs. 1 million. He was then asked to submit an estimate for the construction of the factory. Wickremasinghe okayed the estimate, but told Perera that 30% of the sum would be released initially and that the amount should be given to Wickremasinghe. Fraud No. 1.

When Perera said that he needed around Rs. 1 million to complete the work of the foundation, Wickremasinghe asked him to keep Rs. 1 million and give him the remaining Rs. 8 million. The money was handed over to the chairman in three instalments.

But Perera suffered losses in constructing the foundation. Despite continuous haggling, Wickremasinghe never released the monies to cover the losses, at one time saying that since there was a war going on the Treasury was finding it difficult to allocate funds. Initially, Wickremasinghe had promised Perera that his losses would be covered once the Treasury released money to construct the building.

In the case of the Kuruvita factory, according to Perera’s statement, his original estimate was for Rs. 8 million. When it was submitted, Wickremasinghe asked it to be increased to Rs. 12 million. He made a cool Rs. 4 million. Fraud No. 2.

Whether Wickremasinghe pocketed the money himself or was collection agent for a bigger fish is yet not known.

On these two counts alone, Wickremasinghe made Rs. 12 million. When the first instalment was paid, Wickremasinghe demanded Rs. 10 lakhs out of the Rs. 4 million be delivered to him and it was done.

When the CID questioned Perera whether he did not feel that he was committing a fraud, the reply was that he did not feel like that and thought that Wickremasinghe was just making his commission. The Rs. 4 million was paid to Wickremasinghe in four instalments.

Wickremasinghe was not only making cuts on big projects. The statements reveal that he was making Rs. 30,000 from the Rs. 268,500 set aside to repair the roof of the Kuruwita factory. On another occasion, he collected 10% from Rs. 814,824 released to fix machines at the same factory.

On another occasion, at Wickremasinghe’s insistence, an estimate of Rs. 2.9 million to construct a chimney at the Mawanella Factory was increased to Rs. 5.9 million simply because Wickremasinghe indicated to Perera that he intended to make a cut of Rs. 3.5 million on the project, and he did.

When Perera indicated that he was hesitant to make such huge over estimates, according to his statement, Wickremasinghe held back the monies due to him from the RMEC as ransom and said that he as chairman would worry about such matters.

Wickremasinghe used the same argument when making another Rs. 12 lakhs on developing a road at the same factory. The amount spent on the road was a mere Rs. 3 lakhs.

Veiled threat

In the case of the Bulathsinhala Factory, Wickremasinghe made Perera claim Rs. 8.4 million as monies to construct the buildings knowing well that it was not being done. On November 30, 1999, Perera made the request to release 30% of the estimated amount. It was done at the behest of Wickremasinghe who told Perera that he was urgently in need of the monies.

According to the statement, Wickremasinghe had made the veiled threat that if Perera did not comply, the sums due to him would not be released and future work would be allocated to others. When Perera consented, he was promised other work.

The monies were collected by Perera who went to the bank in Wickremasinghe’s RMEC vehicle driven by one Gamini, the Chairman’s driver. A sum of Rs. 8 million was delivered to Wickremasinghe at his residence.

Wickremasinghe had on one occasion through Perera made Rs. 50,000 when he was no longer the chairman.

The monies were delivered to Wickremasinghe when his wife was not present in the house.

His wife may not have known of the goings-on. But at least one female at the RMEC knew. It was Delduwa. When Perera claimed the cheques for the above Rs. 8 million. Delduwa told him that she knew that the monies were intended for the chairman.

All on the take

But Delduwa who was the chief accountant too was on the take and was getting about it in a similar manner as her chairman.

On one occasion, she made Perera claim monies for a fence that was not even half complete. While work had been completed only for 270 feet, Delduwa made Perera claim Rs. 3.5 lakhs for 900 feet. Of the monies, Delduwa made Rs 2.5 lakhs. The money was delivered to her office on April 6, 2000.

However, the factory manager had given a letter to the auditors that only 270 feet were complete. But according to Perera, the manger is also not clean. He had taken a Rs. 1 lakh loan from Perera and never paid it.

On another occasion, Delduwa requested a Rs. 3 lakh loan from Perera to complete a house. He refused saying he did not have funds.

Delduwa thereafter made a voucher for Rs. 6 lakhs. She wanted Perera to claim the voucher and give her the Rs. 3 lakhs. However, Perera refused to claim the voucher for work not carried out by him. Delduwa thereafter had claimed the monies for the voucher under the name Gamini Perera. Perera however, refutes that he ever claimed the monies.

Both Wickremasinghe and Delduwa have been taken into custody and released on bail.

The fraud at the RMEC came into light when the RMEC’s General Manager made the request to release Rs. 15 million to settle loans obtained from banks.

Thereafter, Secretary, Plantation Industries Ministry, K. A. S. Gunasekera and Interior Ministry Secretary M. N. Junaid requested for a CID investigation on July 12 last year. Cabinet had taken a decision to investigate the fraud on July 2.

Monies have been released to the RMEC on three occasions. Rs. 550 million on December 8, 1999 and another sum of Rs. 220 million on January 10, 2001. Both were done after cabinet approval.

However, another sum of Rs. 170 million was released without cabinet approval. The third instalment was released just before the 2001 election in November that year.

The CID has filed a case in the Fort Magistrate’s Courts over the fraud.

Before the CID investigation, auditors Ernst & Young found instances of glaring misappropriations.

Ernst & Young were entrusted the task to conduct a special management audit into the financial transactions.

The special audit covered the period from June 1999 to January 31, 2002. The auditors interviewed more than 30 people.

 Among the revelations that have been made in the report are instances where employees encashed cheques that were drawn to contractors.

Ernst & Young stated in the report that they have discovered incidents that prove that there was misappropriation. The most glaring examples are the dealings that were done on funds amounting to Rs. 1,058,291,969 obtained through two banks —  People’s Bank and Hatton National Bank.

The funds were obtained by the then chairman Wickremasinghe on the basis that a project to set up factories needed to be expedited.

However, doubts have been now expressed over the board paper that obtained the approval. The audit report has questioned the validity of at least one signature on the paper.

The chairman obtained board approval for the project to award tenders without going through proper tender procedure, according to the report.

The report further states that the project was given the go ahead despite several shortcomings at the preliminary planning stage itself, one being the feasibility studies indicating that performance was going to be zero.

On the issue of obtaining board approval to fast track tenders, Ernst & Young observe, “it is beyond doubt that this was done with the intention of misappropriation.”

The auditors also record how Chief Accountant Delduwa was given a free hand to handle the funds along with several other project officers. The accountant had instructed clerks working under her to type vouchers and not to prepare them manually.

During its research to compile the report, Ernst & Young found out that in some instances, the officers who were supposed to have initialised the payment vouchers denied such preparation when questioned, meaning the vouchers were fraudulent.

The audit report reveals that at least one quotation has been deliberately manipulated by the board and overstated in order to disqualify the bidder. The disqualification occurred regarding the offer by Elmech Engineering who had made a bid to build a factory in Horana.

The auditors found out that the board was given a paper prepared by a committee comprising of the chairman, general manager and the supplies officer, which over quoted the figure by Rs. 4,732,500 by manipulating the exchange rate.

More anomalies

On the issue of the board paper No. 64/1 that dealt with expediting the project to set up the factories, Ernst & Young states that the paper was not dated and of the two signatures, only one had a name that was of Wickremasinghe. The other signature looks more like a scribble.

There was also evidence of the factory area of the proposed buildings being overstated. In one case, the over estimate for the Elpitiya Factory was 775 square feet. On the awarding of the above tender, where the successful bidder quoted Rs. 4,616,788 higher than Elmech, Ernst & Young state, “under Section 29 of Guidelines of Government Tender Procedure, tenders should be referred to a Technical Evaluation Committee where members should be experts in finance and technical matters. However, there is no evidence to support that the above tenders were referred to any Technical Evaluation Committee prior to awarding.”

The total value of tenders thus awarded was Rs. 26,339,188.

The auditors also discovered evidence that suggest tenders were awarded to bidders whose bids had been submitted after the tender period expired.

Some of the most glaring anomalies have occurred in the mode of payments and in encashing cheques.

Ignoring a government circular that states subordinate officers should initialise vouchers, Accountant Delduwa had instructed staff to type their initials. The accountant has informed her staff that this was done under orders from Wickremasinghe.

Ernst & Young state that during interviews, some of the staff had denied preparing vouchers on which their initials were found.

An example being voucher dated June 24, 1999 for the payment of Rs. 3,181,497.60 to Vcom  Engineers for the construction of an effluent treatment plant. Initials LNH appear on the voucher. However, the officer who uses the initials denied that she prepared the voucher.

Ernst & Young are of the opinion that Delduwa “has completely failed to comply with the requirements most of the time while making payments to contractors,” and at times paid contractors more than the agreed amounts. In one instance, the over payment was Rs. 4,441,358.75.

The audit report further states that officers including the  chairman have failed to discharge their duties in a fair manner when authorising payments and as a result, have incurred a considerable loss to the corporation.

There have been irregularities in writing cheques with evidence proving that there were issuing of open cheques, cash cheques and without crossing ‘account payee.’

The audit has also revealed that cheques drawn on behalf of contractors have been encashed by employees of the corporation. “When cheque realisation details were checked with banks, it was found that some cheques have been  encashed by employees of the corporation,” the audit says in a section titled mode of manipulation.

The audit reveals evidence on three instances when cheques drawn on behalf of contractors were encashed by employees. Three cheques numbering 715751, 715752 (both drawn on cheques for Bank of Ceylon, Dematagoda and on behalf of S. Premasiri for wiring a factory at Kuruwita) and another bearing number 054123 (drawn on a cheque issued by Hatton National Bank, T. B. Jayah Mawatha and on behalf of M. H. N. Perera) were encashed by employees.

The first two were withdrawn by Mahendra Perera who admitted that the money was then handed over to Chief Accountant Delduwa. However, no documentary evidence was available, leaving the auditors to state, “we have a serious doubt about the genuinty of the payments,” which amounted to Rs. 1 million.

The third cheque was encashed by Gamini Perera, who at that time was the head of the project division and is now manager of the corporation’s factory at Munagama, Horana. The cheque was for the amount of Rs. 659,630.78. The recipient in the voucher, Perera, has not acknowledged the receipt of the amount. The audit has raised serious doubts about the genuineness of the payments. This is the amount that Delduwa claimed to complete the house, by the looks of it.

The audit has also revealed manipulation of tender procedure and withholding of information.

Plastic piracy on the rise

By Asgar Hussein

The recent spate of frauds involving counterfeit credit cards has alarmed authorities and prompted calls for tough legislation.

In fact, the latest reports issued by the Risk Management Division of Master and Visa International Asia Pacific list Sri Lanka as one of the countries in this region experiencing an unusually large number of fraudulent transactions compared to card sales volumes.

Organised criminal gangs are suspected to be involved in this racket. They often operate with the connivance of dishonest employees in sales outlets who are rewarded for their cooperation.

The counterfeiting of payment cards has assumed serious proportions globally. This has resulted in issuing and acquiring banks suffering losses running into millions of dollars. In fact, even in Sri Lanka this type of fraud has overtaken that perpetrated using lost and stolen cards.

In the recent past, the country has witnessed some major frauds involving skimmed counterfeit cards. Skimming refers to the replication of electronically transmitted data to allow or enable an authorisation to occur.

The CID last week uncovered such a racket when they arrested two youths. They are suspected of encoding counterfeit cards with genuine card holder’s data.

Skimming device

One of the suspects, Ahamed Zavahir was found in possession of a skimming device (encoder). It was the first time such a device was detected here. The investigators also seized a computer, encoding software and a diskette containing encoded card information of several genuine card holders mainly from the UK.

The other suspect, Mutukumarasamy Amalan is believed to have received the counterfeit cards from someone in Britain. These were encoded with genuine card holders’ data locally using Zavahir’s skimming device. They were also in possession of the card information of a Sri Lankan.

The CID seized seven such cards, but the youths are believed to have already sold 11 locally.

The investigators think that more skimming devices and software programmes capable of performing such operations remain undetected in Sri Lanka. They have sought Interpol assistance in their continuing investigations into the matter.

Another recent case was brought to light by a German Bank, after some German tourists complained that they had been charged for unauthorised transactions after they used their cards in Beruwela.

The issuing bank in Germany which referred the issue to the acquiring banks here had suspected that the cards were skimmed using a skimming device implanted inside a Point of Sale  terminal. However, subsequent investigations by the banks here failed to detect any such tampering with the terminals.

The authorities are now conducting investigations to ascertain whether an external device was used.

A few months ago, a gang perpetrated a fraud against local travel agents running into several millions of rupees. They used skimmed counterfeit cards to purchase air tickets, sometimes with the connivance of employees. A major scam occurred at a leading ticketing agency in Colombo, supposedly with the connivance of employees there.

However, such incidents have now been largely reduced due to awareness generated within the travel trade following the arrest of two suspects, and continuing police action.

The credit card issuers have responded to this growing menace by forming the Task Force for Security and Risk Management (credit cards).

Its Chairman, Nalin Wijeratne said gangs which engage in counterfeit card fraud generally need the cooperation of dishonest employees in a sales establishment. “An alert cashier or salesperson can easily detect a counterfeit by following the proper card acceptance procedure,” he stated.

There are eight security features in a card which can be examined before a card is swiped.

If an outlet is found to have been negligent in this regard, the bank can recover the unauthorised charges.

The card industry here is lobbying the government for tough measures to combat the problem.

Wijeratne said they recently submitted a proposal to the authorities calling for the penal code to be extended to cover card fraud or the introduction of separate payment card legislation. However, the entire process is expected to take about a year before the proposed laws are enforced.

The task force has also recommended that offenders be punished with a maximum jail term of 10 years and a fine.

Inadequate laws

At present, the absence of specific laws covering credit card fraud means that offenders cannot be prosecuted successfully.

A major problem is that a victim is required to be present in person in court to furnish evidence. As such, sworn affidavits by foreign cardholders victimised by local counterfeiting operations cannot be accepted as valid documents to prove the fraudulent nature of a transaction.

By contrast, in countries like Singapore and Hong Kong, merely being detected using a counterfeit card is sufficient to sentence the culprit to prison.

Meanwhile, law enforcement agencies are now taking the issue more seriously — the CID is considering setting up a separate unit to handle credit card frauds.

It is also pertinent to mention that Sri Lankans travelling overseas should exercise caution in countries where credit card fraud is prevalent.

Card Centre Manager, HSBC, Sarit Wijeyekoon said high risk countries include South East Asian states like Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand and South Korea.

He advised card holders to be vigilant when transacting through credit cards in such countries. For instance, they should ensure the card is swiped before their eyes, and check the billing statement as soon as they return. Also, if they notice anything suspicious, they should promptly contact the bank and replace the credit card account.

Inform immediately

Wijeyekoon said if someone has lost his card, he/she should immediately inform the issuer, after which the holder will not be held liable for unauthorised charges.

Once a card is reported lost or stolen, the bank quickly blocks it on the Visa and Mastercard networks to which many establishments are connected.

According to Wijeyekoon, many customers request for very high credit limits which they may not utilise. “The danger in doing so is that if the card is lost, stolen or counterfeited, the offender can utilise the unused portion of the limit. It is therefore necessary that the customers request only for the credit limits they actually need,” he added.

He also said that HSBC, being an international bank, possesses much expertise and has the latest IT systems in place to monitor transactions. For example, the bank has in place a neural system that analyses credit card transactions and detects changes in the individual customer’s normal spending pattern. If such a change is noticed, the bank officials contact the card holder to ascertain whether everything is in order. This approach has helped uncover skimmed counterfeit card transactions.

Meanwhile, Mastercard is testing a new technology called ‘Magna Print’ to counteract this problem. Another breakthrough is expected in a few years when magstripe cards will be replaced with smart cards, thereby eliminating the possibility of counterfeiting.

Life and death of Krishnakumar (Kittu)

“Ilaitha Thigavaamaich Chaavaarai Yaare, Pilaitha Thorukkit Palar”  ( Who says they err, and visits them with scorn, who die and faithfully guard the oath  they’ve sworn)                                     

—  Thirukkurral No. 779 ( by Thiruvalluvar)  

By D. B. S. Jeyaraj

The 10th death anniversary of  Sathasivampillai Krishnakumar alias Col. Kittu was observed in various parts of the North Eastern Province on  January 16. In a meaningful gesture, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) launched the first FM broadcasts of their two radio services on that day. Both, the “Puligalin Kural” (Voice of Tigers) and “Thamil Eela Vaanoli” (Radio Tamil Eelam) relayed special broadcasts in Tamil and Sinhala on  January 16. Kittu’s death anniversary was chosen for two fitting reasons.

Contrary to the impression being projected by southern anti-peace propagandists, the Tiger radio phenomenon is not a post-ceasefire accord reality. While the LTTE has expanded and enhanced its reach, tone, wavelength and duration from January 16 onwards, the simple truth is that the Tigers first began their radio in 1985. It was confined to the Jaffna peninsula. This  venture  was started  by the LTTE when Kittu was its northern military commander. Kittu in fact was the driving force behind this radio and also other media organs like the first Tiger television network “Nitharsanam” and several journals.

Tribute

If that was one reason for launching the FM radio on January 16 to commemorate Kittu, the other reason was to denote the late LTTE  leader’s pioneering attempt to reach out to the Sinhala people. It was under him that the LTTE welcomed several southern political and religious leaders to Jaffna and initiated a dialogue. Although these initiatives came to naught then, the situation is seemingly different now with the LTTE hierarchy trying to communicate with the Sinhala people through mass media. In that context, it was deemed appropriate that tribute be paid to Kittu’s  memory.

The life and times of Kittu were in a very vivid sense the saga of a  modern northern warrior. Born on January 2, 1960, he lived for only 33 years and two weeks. His contribution to the Tamil liberation struggle within that brief life span was tremendous. He was a colourfully ebullient and flamboyant character. Kittu had striking leadership qualities. Immensely brave, he was very often in the thick of fighting. His exploits were the stuff of which legends evolve. 

Short in staturem be-spectacled and balding, Kittu hardly fitted the image of a revolutionary fighter. On one occasion, Kittu riding a motor cycle was stopped by the army. Little suspecting that this ‘bookwormish’ type of Jaffna youth was the daredevil Kittu, the army forced him to accompany them by riding the motorcycle between the military vehicles. He was being taken for routine questioning and the soldiers felt no qualms about letting  him ride the bike. Kittu biding his time diverted the motor cycle at an opportune moment into a by lane and then ran on foot through household compounds and made his escape.

Indelible  

His name will remain indelible in the military annals of contemporary Tamil history for two reasons. One of them  complimentary and the other somewhat condemnatory. It was during Kittu’s tenure as the LTTE’s Jaffna commander in 1985  that the Sri Lankan armed forces were prevented from  advancing outside their camps and more or less confined to barracks. Barring a few camps, the greater part of the peninsula was devoid of an army presence and in a semi-liberated state. It was claimed then that it was under Kittu that Jaffna was “free” of alien domination for the first time in 365 years. Despite the hyperbole, there was some truth in that because after the Jaffna kingdom was conquered by the Portuguese in 1621 the Tamils were never the masters of their fate.

If the image of Kittu as liberator of Jaffna was positive, there was a negative connotation to that power too. It was under Kittu that the LTTE launched fratricidal onslaughts on organisations like the Tamil Eelam Liberation Organisation (TELO) on April 28, 1986 and the Eelam People’s Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF) on December 1986. He also effectively silenced the People’s Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE) in   mid-January 1987 by executing its military commander Vijayabalan alias Mendis. Several minor outfits were also banned by Kittu. With the Eelam Revolutionary Organisation (EROS) toeing a pro-LTTE line, the Tigers  were the ‘uncrowned kings’ of Jaffna. It was this supremacy established by Kittu that paved the way for LTTE Leader Velupillai Prabakharan to relocate  from Chennai to Jaffna on January 5, 1987.

Kittu’s life was indeed remarkable because of his multi-faceted and courageous personality. In spite of losing a leg in a bomb attack, Kittu was gutty enough to continue life in a business as usual fashion with the aid of crutches and later an artificial limb.  He made his mark not only as a guerrilla fighter and militia commander, but also as an effective propagandist and seasoned political activist. After his fighting days ended, after the loss of his leg, Kittu went over to Chennai and ran the LTTE office there. He was jailed by the Indian authorities and later released in Jaffna. He went to the Wanni and administered the main LTTE camp in Mullaitivu. Later, he went to Britain and established the LTTE’s international secretariat in London. Compelled to leave Britain, he went over to Switzerland and engaged in effective lobbying in Geneva. Kittu was designated as the LTTE’s political wing head by Prabhakaran and returning to Jaffna by ship when his life ended tragically on the highseas off the Bengal bay in 1993.

Krishnakumar  like his leader and several other Tiger stalwarts hailed from the coastal town of Velvettithurai (VVT). His father , Sathasivampillai owned a printing press in Point Pedro town. He was an ardent supporter of the Federal Party (FP) and participated in many non-violent campaigns launched by the FP under the “Gandhian” S. J. V. Chelvanayagam to restore Tamil  rights. It is significant that the father named his eldest son  Gandhidasan (follower of Gandhi). Krishnakumar was the youngest of four in a family of two  boys and two girls. Both the sisters died early under tragic circumstances. Of the family, only Kittu’s brother now a refugee in India is among the living.

‘Good’ intentions

Kittu joined the LTTE at the age of 18 in 1978. He received weapons training at a farm in the Mannar District and later at a plantation in the Madurai District in Tamil Nadu. When the LTTE split into the Prabhakaran and Umamaheswaran factions in early 1980, Kittu remained loyal to Prabhakaran. In late 1980, Kittu returned home to his widowed mother in VVT and resumed studies at a Nelliaddy tutory. Despite these ‘good’ intentions, destiny decreed otherwise. The armed forces launched a savage crackdown in Jaffna after the Rs. 81 lakh robbery from a People’s Bank van at Neervely on  March 25, 1981. The army surrounded Kittu’s house at VVT to arrest him.  Kittu apparently was in his underwear at the time and escaped through the backyard in that state.

Kittu functioned as a comparatively junior member within LTTE ranks  from 1981 to 1983. His original nom de guerre was Venkat. This name  gradually metamorphosed into Venkittu and later Kittu. His codename for wireless communication was Kilo Delta. Later, when he  became Jaffna commander, Kittu was known generally as Kittar or Kittu Mama. 

In 1983, Kittu was part of the first batch of LTTE cadres trained by  Indian officials in North India. He was the best marksman in that batch and even excelled over his trainers in ‘friendly’ competitions. According to LTTE sources, Tiger Leader Prabhakaran, former first accused in the Duraiappa murder trial Kalapathy and Kittu were the Tiger top three in marksmanship at one point of time. 

Kittu returned to Jaffna and worked under Ravindran alias Pandithar. When Pandithar was appointed overall commander of the entire north and east, Kittu was elevated as deputy commander for Jaffna in 1984. Pandithar was ambushed and killed on January 9 at Atchuvely in 1985. Thereafter, Kittu took over as Jaffna commander. Kittu divided Jaffna into three zones,  Vadamarachchy, Thenmaratchy, Valigamam and appointed Soosai, Curdles and Johnny as respective area commanders. Rasiah Parthiban alias Thileepan was made Jaffna political commissar.

When Kittu took over the Jaffna peninsula, Mahattaya was in charge of the northern mainland known as Wanni, Victor was Mannar commander. Aruna and Santosham were Batticaloa and Amparai commanders. Each one reported directly to Prabakharan in India. Kittu’s stock rose after army  movement was restricted. Several advances made from different army camps were stopped by doughty Tiger resistance. The most significant successes were the foiling of a three-pronged advance from Elephant Pass, Palaly and Jaffna Fort and beating back a helicopter dropped commando assault in Suthumalai. With Jaffna in a state of “semi- liberation,” the LTTE established several structures of control in the peninsula. It even attempted to set up a parallel “civil administration.”

It was during this period when the armed forces found themselves unable to advance on land that the state resorted to aerial bombardment, strafing and artillery shelling of civilian areas. This was the beginning of the Sinhala dominated state’s descent into targeting civilians at random. This practice has continued up to the current  ceasefire. The commencement  of this practice was a sign of weakness by the state. Its writ had stopped running in Jaffna because the militants under Kittu had succeeded in bottling up the armed forces on ground. To many, a Jaffna resident seeing Kittu and his men hurrying in their vehicles to face the advancing enemy was often a reassuring sight.

 Media attention

 With most journalists making a beeline to Jaffna, Kittu became the primary focus of media attention. He made good copy moving about in a pick up truck in a barebodied state with magazine belts strapped across his chest and the pet monkey “belle” sitting on his shoulder. He also drove a green Lancer, a familiar sight on the streets of Jaffna. He also had a  pet leopard. Kittu was fond of animals and set up a mini-zoo named after Pandithar at Kantharmadam. Later, a childrens’ park was named after Kittu in Nallur.

This writer was perhaps the first journalist to obtain a question and answer interview in English from Kittu. It was published in the Indian news magazine Frontline in 1986. Kittu was very proud of that  interview and got it translated in Tamil. It was also aired over the Tiger radio. One point made by Kittu in that interview was significantly thought provoking. Explaining the success of the LTTE in the battlefield, Kittu said that it was due to bold leadership. Tiger commanders according to Kittu did not hang out in the back forcing the rank and file to go in front. Instead, they inspired by example and were in the vanguard urging cadres  to follow.  “Come up” and not “Go forward” was the clarion call of LTTE military leaders.

Kittu inspired loyalty and bravery among his men. He would liberally lace his commands with expletives, yet they loved him. He was also prone to using his fists on cadres as punishment. This would have been unheard of in a conventional army. He was also a stickler for internal discipline within camps. All premises had to be spick and span. The cadres too had to be  neat and tidy when there was a lull in fighting. After Kittu ceased command,  more than a hundred committed Tiger cadres quit the movement and went abroad.

One of Kittu’s feats was outsmarting former National Security Minister Lalith Athulathmudali in an exchange of prisoners. Kittu had two soldiers in custody and after some intricate negotiations, arranged for a swap with two Tigers in custody. Athulathmudali told the Colombo media that the two LTTE men were junior cadres. Later to his chagrin, he discovered that one of the released men bearing a false name was none other than Aruna, a very senior leader. The eastern commander was returning by sea from India and was picked up by the navy after the Tiger vessel was sunk. Aruna kept his identity secret and passed word of his capture to Kittu. Thereafter, Kittu manoeuvred the prisoner swap cleverly without arousing Lalith’s suspicion.

Kittu also welcomed President Kumaratunga’s late husband and popular cine idol Vijaya Kumaratunga to Jaffna in 1986. The visit and subsequent interaction was a landmark development and helped greatly to dispel some wrong notions in the south about the Tamil struggle.  Incidentally, the other two SLMP Leaders to accompany Vijaya were the late Ossie Abeygoonesekera and current Parliamentarian Felix Perera. It was only a  few weeks ago that the children of both were united in matrimony with Vijaya’s widow attending as a witness.

Hospitality 

Kittu also met with a UNP delegation led by former Yatiyantota MP Vincent Perera. He also welcomed some Buddhist clergy to Jaffna and went to the extent of offering pinkama on bended knee. He also invited and extended hospitality to the families of Sinhala servicemen in LTTE custody. It  was also Kittu who first began the practice of handing over bodies of  soldiers killed in battle to the army. The first such handing over was of some soldiers killed in Adampan. Former LTTE Political Wing member Rahim took the bodies to the Jaffna Fort. Kittu along with Rahim also took the popular Sinhala soldier “Capt. Kotelawela” on a visit to Jaffna while a war was on.

 Kittu’s ascendancy as the latter day “sankiliyan” of Jaffna underwent a violent jolt on March 30, 1987. Felled by the arrows of “Manmathan” (Cupid), Kittu had been in the habit of visiting his medical student girlfriend Cynthia every evening routinely. This predictability in movement was a cardinal error for an experienced guerrilla. On that fateful evening, an assassin lying in wait hurled a bomb killing Kittu’s bodyguard. Kittu himself was seriously injured and made a miraculous recovery, but was crippled for life. Later, Kittu was to marry Cynthia at the Colombo Hilton during the government-LTTE talks when Ranasinghe Premadasa was President.

Kittu naturally relinquished his Jaffna command after the injury. Yet, he was at the forefront again during the Vadamarachchy operation. Seated on the pillion of a motorcycle, Kittu no longer the fighting commander was going from place to place, position to position urging and encouraging the hopelessly outnumbered Tiger cadres to fight. He moved to India after the Indo-Lanka accord with the idea of obtaining a Jaipur artificial  limb. War however, broke out between the Indian army and the LTTE.

Kittu then transformed himself into a political negotiator and propagandist. He met several Tamil Nadu political leaders including DMK Leader Karunanidhi and sought support. Several interviews were given. An entire series of booklets exposing Indian army atrocities were published titled ‘Pawan Papers.’ Kittu also got down a prominent Tamil academic  from abroad to Chennai and obtained a legal critique of the Indo-Lanka  accord. It was published as a Tiger document. This is regarded as the finest  ever critique of the accord. Kittu was also far seeing enough to meet with a Muslim delegation led by Dr. Badiuddhin Mahmud in Madras and sign a power sharing formula for Tamils and Muslims. That agreement is worthy of emulation even now.

Tragic end

Kittu’s continuing role as a fifth columnist in India came to an end after the Indian authorities cracked down. He was arrested and jailed. Kittu commenced a protest fast. Indian authorities perturbed by the possibility of another Thileepan type martyr on their hands, took him to Jaffna and released him. Kittu went to the Wanni. Later, he came to Colombo as part of the negotiating team. In October 1989, Kittu moved to London to obtain an artificial leg. He shed his crutches and did get a “new” leg. Never a person to idle politically, Kittu set up an international secretariat for the LTTE in London. He became its first secretary general. All LTTE overseas branches were linked together under this.

He was compelled to move to Switzerland due to special circumstances. In Geneva, he engaged in intensive lobbying while coordinating functions of the overseas Tigers. His horizons widened greatly during this period and with the help of some friends, drew up a blueprint for democratising the LTTE. He was again forced to move to Mexico due to unavoidable circumstances. It  was at this point that the LTTE supremo summoned him back to Jaffna to take up duties as political wing chief. Kittu went to Singapore and headed for home in the Tiger ship “Ahat.” It was apprehended in international waters by the Indian navy. Knowing Kittu was on board, the Indians wanted to arrest him.

So Kittu sent the ship captain Jayachandran and other crew members away by boat. Thereafter, Kittu in the manner of fallen comrades took cyanide along with Kutty Sri and eight others. The ship was fired upon and sunk by the navy. Thus, ended the heroic saga of a northern warrior. He was posthumously given Colonel rank. Later, when crew members were produced in Indian courts, the judiciary ruled that the Indian navy had committed an illegal act  by detaining a ship on international highseas.

Kittu’s death came as a severe shock to all those who knew him. It was a big blow to Prabhakaran. Later, the LTTE’s artillery unit was named after Kittu. It is commanded by Bhanu. It was the Kittu artillery unit that was primarily responsible for several Tiger military victories including Elephant Pass. Now the Tiger’s broadcasts have been timed to commemorate Kittu’s name. Like most Tiger leaders he had his good and bad aspects. Nevertheless, there is no doubt that the name of Col. Kittu will be indelibly etched when the history of the Tamil liberation struggle is written.

An air hostess in tears

By Ranee Mohamed

When air hostess Tania Cadiramen took a flight home for Christmas, she was not only a mere passenger, but a patient too. But that was nothing new to her for she was a patient for as long as she could remember.

With tears in her eyes, she had watched charming colleagues walk up and down the aisle and thoughts of her own life flashed in the skies ahead. First it was laughter, fun and good times and then her life of glamour had died before her very eyes.

Tania Cadiramen from Kirula Road, Sri Lanka - beautiful, poised and full of charm. Tania who had traversed the world, seemed to have the world at her fingertips. Her beauty was acclaimed at a very young age and she started her flying career with AirLanka in 1992.

But on November 11, 1998, she was working for Emirates. Clad in her smart uniform she waited around midnight for the crew bus to pick her up from near her Dubai apartment.

"The crew bus came and stopped on the opposite side of the road. I was so excited because I was on this flight to Colombo and I was to see my parents," said Tania in tears. She was at home in the new year, to see her parents.

When the crew bus had stopped on the opposite side of the road, Tania had walked towards it with her bag.

The next thing she remembered was seeing a car come speeding towards her. "I saw the lights and I remember seeing two faces. I remember being flung against the windscreen and after that everything was numb," said Tania with tears in her eyes.

"The two men in the car were shocked. They came rushing to me with a first aid kit. I did my best to keep myself from losing consciousness because I had some valuables in my bag and the thoughts of my dogs being locked away in the apartment upstairs told me that I just could not lose consciousness," said Tania.

Tania had received first aid treatment from the two men in the car that knocked her down. But she found that she could not move her leg. She also found that she could not talk. Her blouse was soaked in blood and she was in a pool of blood too.

It did not take long for this sophisticated and beautiful woman to lose everything in life.

Instead of going home to Colombo, Tania was rushed to the Al Rashid Hospital in Dubai. "It was the worst nightmare come true. I was trying to contact my mother. Every minute was getting to be more and more painful," recalled Tania.

"When my mother came to me, I was at the Welcome Hospital. She had to take a flight and go through India to get to me because it was Christmas time and flights were difficult to get," said Tania.

Agonising treatment

It was the worst time in Tania's life. Lying there in a strange hospital in a strange land. "I was in hospital for 21 days and had to go through agonising treatment."

The accident broke Tania's jaw, teeth, big toe and also her leg. Both of the lower bones in Tania's leg, the tibia and the fibula were broken.

Lying in bed, Tania's life as an air hostess became a mere flight of fantasy, for she was soon confined to crutches. Her bones had to be held together with fixtures and she was also confined to a wheelchair. She had to undergo months of physiotherapy. "My fantastic life was replaced by tears," said Tania, who had to be in and out of operating theatres.

But Tania fought for life, she fought to stand up and be on her own. Being knocked down while on duty did make a difference, for Emirates Airlines todate pays for her medical expenses.

Tania's treatment, however, has proved to be very frustrating for her. For she had broken her leg the second time, in another place. The medical explanation she had been given was that her bones were wasting.

Trauma

Tania then had to undergo surgery that required bone to be taken from her hip to repair the bones in her leg that were breaking. "It gave me unbearable pain," said Tania.

"My leg began to waste and started breaking in different places. First it broke a little lower than the original place, then further up and again right in the middle. My trauma affected my parents too, for it was at this time that my father suffered a heart attack. It was also the time when my husband left me," said Tania in tears.

Tania who was given a ground job by Emirates Airlines, today, however, is without a salary. "Emirates pays for all my medical expenses, they give me accommodation and food," explained Tania, her loyalty for the airline not shaken by the nasty accident she had while on duty.

"I need to have answers to many questions. But nobody gives me direct answers. I need to know where I am going... I have lost everything. I have no life today," said Tania crying.

Tania's heartache is having had to give up her flying career, for she had flown for 11 years. "Those who fly for 15 years get many benefits. But it is not the benefits that I am worried about, it is being immobilised this way and the uncertainty around me," explained Tania.

Tania seemed to be both physically and financially drained and though she did try to fly after her accident, her leg suffered and she had to pay for it by being immobilised from time to time.

"I am amazed at the away my daughter is handling all this. She was adjudged a beauty queen once and today she is in tears. I can't bear to see my beautiful child suffer this way. Why did this have to happen to her?" questions Tania's mother, Diedre Cadiramen.

"For how long can she go on? What is her future going to be? Who will look after my daughter in the years to come? This accident made her lose her job, her good life and her marriage. What I can't bear is that this accident took away her laughter and her happiness. I have never seen Tania laugh in a long time," said a mother whose heart cries for her daughter.

Unbearable pain

Today, Tania cannot be in the sun for long because the metal in her leg heats and starts giving her unbearable pain. Similarly, she cannot wait in the cold for long because the metal in her leg starts to get cold and freezes her bones.

What happened to Tania Cadiramen in a few minutes changed her whole life. It can happen to any of us. Life is good sometimes, but it does not take long to change.

Some of us have hidden sorrows in life, but Tania has no hidden sorrows, for her life is one of sorrow. She does not have any hidden happiness either. She is a woman in pain, for she undergoes both physical pain and mental trauma day and night.

Not having something is not so difficult to bear, but having had it all and losing it all at once is perhaps one of life's great cruelties.

Arumugam orders  bowser for
himself as city goes dry

By Hemamala Wickramage

Housing and Plantation Infrastructure Minister, Arumugam Thondaman's first step during last week's water supply interruption was to look after  his own skin. He ordered a water bowzer be sent to his premises leaving the rest of Colombo city bone dry.

Water Board sources told The Sunday Leader that a sudden failure in a power cable caused the interruption which left the entire Greater Colombo supply area high and dry for 48 hours. Only the supply lines fed by Labugama and Kalatuwawa reservoirs were   uninterrupted. The power failure affected the supply from Ambatale plant, and according to Water Board officials the cable was repaired with the Ceylon Electricity Board's (CEB) assistance. "We have taken this incident as a serious warning and to avoid future calamities of this nature our routine maintenance work has been intensified," said a Water Board official.

In the meantime The Sunday Leader also learns that the crisis caused heads to roll at the Water Board and a senior official in the Board's hierarchy has been asked to report to the Ministry regarding this incident. However there is no assurance that similar failures will not occur in future. Only Minister Thondaman is assured of his water bowser.

However, barely  two weeks into the new year, water cuts were not the only sentence imposed  on the  public.

The public is being made to swallow the bitter pill of sudden power cuts at regular intervals as  upgrading work at Kelanitissa power station resulted in three islandwide blackouts in quick succession. And more are likely to occur, though the CEB assured that it has taken all  precautions that were missing two weeks back.

Speaking to The Sunday Leader, General Manager, CEB, D. C. Wijeratne said currently the system's reliability is less due to maintenance and construction work going on. "The power failures occurred while we were trying to connect the new Kelanitissa  165 Megawatt combined cycle power plant in to the system. "Though we didn't anticipate any power failures when  165 megawatts got thrown off in one go, the outside machines found it difficult to take the load, hence the  blackouts," said Wijeratne.

For CEB to bring the new combined power plant in to full function it has to undergo a reliability trial. When asked how long the trial would take Wijeratne said, "it needs to be in operation continually for two weeks. Therefore, we are looking at a month or so for it to be connected to the existing system." In the meantime however, according to Wijeratne, the CEB plans to keep the public notified through prior media announcements of any future blackouts in connection with the power plant trial.

Traffic chaos at school closing time

By Shezna Shums

During the first week of January most of the schools in the island reopened. Along with the school children making their way to school and back, the roads get congested with office traffic,  especially during the mornings and late afternoons.

With the increasing number  of road accidents last year and the number of children being knocked down at pedestrian crossings, The Sunday Leader visited several schools to observe the behaviour of the school children as well as the motorists.

Another fact that made these observations and the reaction of students and motorists more important was the new awareness programme started by the traffic police. 

At all pedestrian crossings near schools on either side of the road there are baskets with yellow flags  in them. 

When crossing the road the students will pick up the flags and wave it to get the motorists'  attention.

Then the students wait for the motorists to stop and then cross the road.

SSP Alfred Wijewardena says that this programme has so far been implemented only in Colombo and that the traffic police is  trying its best to promote the programme as well as encourage the students to use the flags.

"The flags are used to indicate to the motorists that they are at the pedestrian crossing and also to signal from a distance so that the motorists can stop in time at the crossings,"  said Wijewardena.

The Sunday Leader visited most of the schools before they started in the mornings. At St. Peter's College the police warden was present and the children were crossing the road at the signal of the warden.

At Holy Family Convent the students were given yellow flags by the police traffic wardens and were also crossing the roads in an orderly manner.

The warden waits for students to  come and gather at the opposite side of the road, then the traffic is  halted  and the children cross the road at the signal of the warden.

This was also the case at St. Lawrence's school, S. Thomas'  College Prep, Royal College and Ladies College.

Speaking to some of the school authorities on their views  of this new concept, Deputy Principal, Visakha Vidyalaya, Mallika Silva said "it is a good idea to create a safe environment for the students and this concept should work."

However Carey College Principal, E.W.Wijesinghe says that he doesn't know if this will work - if  at  all it will take some time.

Usually the children are in a big hurry and they don't take time to cross the road, and they may not take the flag when crossing the road.  " I don't know if this will be practical."

 Wijesinghe also says that the police should educate the people - especially the motorists and trishaw drivers.

"Bicycles should not have goods protruding from the sides this is dangerous; this is the cause of a lot of accidents," said Wijesinghe.

 St. Bridget's Convent Primary School, Principal, Mary Renuka  thinks the new traffic programme is a good idea and there will be discipline and safety for the student.

She also added that since there's a lot of traffic near the schools, the programme will help reduce the number of accidents and parents will also have peace of mind. 

Speaking to The Sunday Leader, DIG Traffic Police,  Daya Jayasundara stated that he is positive about this programme and all the schools around the island have been told to start using these yellow flags.

"But this has to be both ways. There are times when the pedestrians don't use the crossing and just run across the street at the junctions.

"Some of the main causes of accidents are when overtaking from the wrong side, drunk driving, speeding and in the case of pedestrians, running across the road is the main reason," said Jayasundara.

"Especially when at a crossing, you can't expect the motorist to stop immediately - you have to give them enough time to apply the brakes and wave your hand to indicate you are crossing," added Jayasundara.

Another project the traffic police have started is that all 34 police divisions round the country have been instructed to have monthly meetings before the 10th  of every month. The meetings would include officials from the Road Development Authority, Telecom, Water Board, Electricity Board, Urban Development Authority, transport authorities as well as three wheeler and private bus drivers to discuss  problems and remedies.

Although the behaviour of students and motorists was tolerable during the mornings,  the behaviour of both the students and motorists at school closing time was very much different.

Especially at bus halts there are children standing so close to the curb   they could easily be knocked down by speeding buses.

There are also students who behave in a careless manner when they are at the side of the road where they joke around and push each other  which causes vehicles to suddenly screech to a halt in order to avoid collision.

After schools small children who are unaccompanied by an  adult have to take the bus home or go in a van, so there are cases where a 12 or 14 year old will take his younger sibling who may be seven or eight to the vehicle. Letting young children do this is dangerous as they are not mature enough to act responsibly in an emergency.

A common sight seen during 'after school hours' is of students playing cricket by the side of the road. When the ball goes across the road or sometimes right in the middle. without thinking to stop or look around a student will run across the road to get the ball.

Some students  who use  bicycles  to travel also tend to take their friends with them on the bicycle. In such instances one can see young school children cycling on the road without headgear and also some of them come very close to the side of  buses  or  vans that rush through traffic at times. 

If a bus or van turns suddenly there is a strong chance for the cyclist to fget knocked down and be run over by the other approaching traffic.

Most  school children use the bus as the main transport method. Buses are heavily crowded at times and  are  tilted to a dangerous level where at times when traveling, the edge of the bus scrapes the tarred road and even sparks can be seen.

Students are also seen hanging on bus footboards  virtually with one hand on the beam inside the bus. Apart from this they block the entrance with their huge school bags where no other passengers can get in or  out of the bus.

Motorists too when near schools can be undisciplined especially when picking  and dropping  their children.

Cars stop right in front of the school blocking the road and causing traffic jams behind and at times the cars stop in the middle of the road to pick up a child,  so the student has to run across the road, open the car door in the middle of the road and get in.

Bus  drivers  driving very fast to get to the halt first before the others is another thing that was observed.

The High Security Zone puzzle

By Risidra Mendis

High Security Zones (HSZ) have been  in currency for many years. But despite the high number of HSZs situated in the north and east a large percentage of people remain ignorant of what a HSZ really is. Why is  an area called a HSZ and on what basis is a decision taken to declare such an area as a HSZ ?  are questions that still create confusion among the Sri Lankan public.

However,  while the  public are yet to understand the reason for a HSZ, the much-awaited decision still lies  with the government and LTTE as to when they will agree to remove all guard posts and HSZs in the country.

According to a survey done by the Social Indicator (SI) which is the Social Research Unit of the Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA), 39.5% of Sri Lankans do not know what a HSZ is. The survey further says that it is mainly the Muslim community who are ignorant regarding the HSZ.

However,  the  survey done by  SI indicate that the Tamil community in the country believe that the HSZ is an impediment to the resettlement of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs).

Speaking to The Sunday Leader, Army Media Spokesman, Brig.  Sanath Karunaratne said an area is declared a HSZ when there is a large number of explosives and ammunition stored. When such ammunition is stored in a place there is a high risk for danegrous accidents to occur.

According to Brig. Karunaratne to prevent the public from  being harmed by a sudden explosion or by the enemy itself, protecting the ammunition from getting in to the wrong hands and for the prevention of terrorist attacks these areas are declared HSZs.

HSZs and Security Zones (SZ) exist in all parts of the country. Certain rules and regulations such as no parking of vehicles, entry allowed only to persons carrying identity cards and partial passage are imposed within the zones. Nevertheless, the public, irrespective of whether they reside in Colombo, outstation or the war torn areas, are yet to come to terms with the existence of such places.

While the argument continues between the army and the LTTE over the HSZs, the history of the zones is not that clear.

According to Brig. Karunaratne even though it is difficult to say when the first HSZ was declared, it was in 1980 that the surrounding area of the Palaly  camp consisting of an area of 300 by 300 meters was named as a HSZ.

However after the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) left the country in 1990 war broke out. The army then had to acquire other areas closeby and extend the HSZ. But when the LTTE started firing Pasilan 2000, a home made mortar with a range of 200 meters, the security forces had no other option than to expand the limit of the HSZ again and again. "As   terrorism  in the affected areas kept increasing, so did the HSZ," Brig. Karunaratne said.

According to Brig. Karunaratne depending on the prevailing security threat in the country it will be decided if an area needs to be declared a HSZ. "But at the same time with the ongoing peace process, certain HSZs in the north and east have been dismantled, with the intention of bringing back people's lives to normalcy," Brig. Karunaratne said.

When  war broke out in the north and east around 20 years ago the normal routine of the north eastern residents' day to day life slowly changed. The residents were soon to witness the many army checkpoints and areas declared as HSZ within their territory.

With the constant movement of army personnel in sight and identification papers always required within HSZs, the residents were compelled to change according to the times and situation.

However today after the signing of the MoU although hundreds of residents keep returning back to their homes in the north and east, the remaining HSZs in these areas are causing them great inconvenience. While the army is trying their best to do away with HSZs wherever possible  in the north and east, the question that still remains is will the people of the north and east see the dawn of a day with no HSZ.

CGR grinding to a halt

Ceylon Government Railway (CGR) continues to remain deep in the red, suffering from major losses. The latest crisis to unfold is the Ceylon Petroleum  Corporation (CPC) issuing an ultimatum to CGR to pay outstanding fuel charges amounting to Rs. 350 million by the end of January.

General Manager, CGR, Priyal de Silva told The Sunday Leader that he expects the Treasury to take steps to settle the amount by the set deadline.

According to de Silva, the  CGR fuel bill has had a total outstanding amount of Rs. 857 million as at November 2002. CPC had earlier requested the amount be paid by December 2002. "After very many requests to the Treasury, a sum of Rs. 300 million was released which brought down the initial outstanding amount to Rs. 557 million," said de Silva.

CGR is on a current credit line of nearly Rs. 115 million from CPC. Out of a further unpaid Rs. 440 million, de Silva says Rs. 90 million is to be deducted as money owed by CPC. CPC owes this money to CGR in transport and storage charges. "The balance  amount of Rs. 350 million is what needs urgent settlement before the month ends," said de Silva.

The recent fuel price increases have added an unexpected burden to the CGR's woes of higher water, electricity and telephone tariffs. "Fuel alone isn't enough to run trains," de Silva added.

CGR uses a massive 30 million litres of fuel per year which is approximately 2.5 million litres per month. The yearly total  needed for fuel is approximately Rs. 1,100 million according to de Silva.

However, CGR is given only less than half the needed amount each year -  Rs. 500 million. The Treasury then takes steps to settle the outstanding fuel bills using the available money at the end of the year. However, the spoke in the wheel this year has been the initial low allocation of funds by the cash strapped Treasury.

According to CGR sources, trains are used daily by nearly 150,000 city workers from outstations. Compared to bus travel, train travel costs less than half the price per km - travellers pay 25 cents per km on train while  for bus travel it is 54 cents per km. "Even if train ticket charges are revised with an increase of 50% - 60%, it is still less than the amount paid for bus travel," said de Silva. According to CGR sources, the last CGR ticket price revision took place in 1996. As things stand, the only practical solution is to consider another price revision to get CGR out of the red.

Meanwhile, speaking to The Sunday Leader, Chairman, CPC, Daham Wimalasena said upon CGR's request, the period for payment has been extended till the end of the month. When asked what action will be taken if CGR fails to comply he said "CPC will take it up at that time."

Wimalasena added that while there are no plans to increase local fuel prices yet, a jump in world prices would make a price revision inevitable.

- Hemamala Wickramage

What's cooking at 'MC'?

The Majestic City Food Court has been operating without a Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) licence since 2002.

CMC Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Pradeep Kariyawasam says that the CMC will issue  a "closure order this year." Action is to be filed under the Unlicensed Trade Act and the Food Act.

The food court last obtained a  CMC licence for the year 2001 and Kariyawasam said that he is looking into how the licence was given to the food court.

Some of the problems at the food court are that the hygienic and sanitary conditions are not up to standard and  also garbage removal is not done properly. Furthermore, food is being made when they are not allowed to do so and cooked as well as uncooked food is stored in the same place which is against the rules and regulations of running a food outlet within CMC limits.

Also there is no space for the workers and at times their clothes are kept on top of the place they prepare the food.

"This is a tragedy waiting to happen," says Kariyawasam.

"Another problem  the food court has  is the lack of  ventilation - each stall is supposed to have an exhaust fan over the stove but they don't and exhaust fans that were inspected at the court had oil in them," said Kariyawasam. Owing to this there are fumes that get emitted to the corridors, which is  unhealthy for the workers as well as the customers.

From the entire number of stalls there were only two that were of a satisfactory level.

Speaking to The Sunday Leader,  Deputy Chairman,  Majestic City, J. P. Page said that they have issued warning letters to some of the stalls to stop their cooking.  They cannot make them stop cooking unless they file a case and take it to courts, which may last for about six years where they may claim the land in the end if they win, but this is too long.

"The CMC has the authority to cancel their licence to stop them from operating, but we can't do anything to stop them from cooking," said Page.

- Shezna Shums

Money to upgrade road  but
not to clear mines

Despite the Asian Development Bank (ADB) allocating Rs. 800 million towards rebuilding the A9 highway from Omanthai to Jaffna, no funds have been made available to clear mines that still lay buried in areas surrounding several segements of the A9. The  buried mines  present a potential danger to residents who would want to resettle, a news report from Tamil Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO) in Kilinochchi highlighted.

The TRO report further said that rebuilding of the 100km long Muhamalai to Puliyankulam segment of the A9 was to ceremonially begin on January 14 - the auspicious Thai-Pongal day.

Thousands of claymore mines, unexploded ordnances released from Kfir jets, artillery/mortar shells, tank ammunition and hand grenades were removed from areas in Muhamalai, Pallai, Iyakachchi, Elephant Pass, Mankulam, Kanakarayankulam and Puliyankulam by the TRO-organised mine clearing division in the last few years, sources said.

Sources said in the last four days alone 12 cattle were either killed or severely wounded by mines that exploded in the Elephant Pass and Uppalam area where the land is not yet safe for resettlement. TRO is also engaged in removing  wounded cattle from the danger areas and handing  them over to their owners.

(Courtesy TamilNet)

Pay hike for all govt. employees

The government is planning to grant a salary increase to every government employee by the end of this year, Lands Minister Dr. Rajitha Senaratne said.

The Minister told The Sunday Leader that the government is now in a stable position to afford an increase to all government servants. He said once the salaries of the government sector  is  increased to a reasonable level,  invariably the private sector too would be compelled to follow suit.

Minister Senaratne said the government is now in the process of completing repaying all the "bad loans" inherited from the previous People's Alliance (PA) government and added all such 'bad loans'  would be paid before this year's budget.

Asked whether the cabinet has taken a decision with regard to the salary hike, the Minister said  cabinet has  come to an understanding unanimously that government sector salaries should be increased.

"Laws have flaws" - Mowlana

Veteran Trade Unionist and Western Province Governor, Alavi Mowlana said while he welcomed the government's efforts to sort out the north- east problems, the government has failed to address its mind to the escalating cost of living.

Mowlana told The Sunday Leader that the present cost of living was causing much inconvenience to the general public and the government should introduce a scheme to grant incentives to the producers, instead of enacting fresh labour laws. "Laws do have flaws," he said.

He said the people have lost  interest in even participating in some of the protest campaigns initiated by the main opposition because they are preoccupied and are burdened heavily as they have to worry about what they should eat or drink the next day.

"If a kilo of flour is increased by  three rupees, the shop owner down the lane increases  each  hopper by three rupees. Who is there to monitor and carry out  checks  on them?" he asked.

Def. Sec. seeks meeting with Karuna

Defence Secretary Austin Fernando has written to the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) requesting a meeting with the LTTE's Karuna.

Defence sources said that the discussion between the duo is expected to focus on ceasefire violations as agreed to at the fourth round of talks in Thailand.

 SLMM sources said they expect to draw up an agenda of the meeting and inform both individuals regarding the venue.

Defence sources said that they are optimistic that the discussion between Fernando and Karuna would take place prior to the next round of talks scheduled for  early February.

A boy-man paradise

By Amantha Perera

The sticker on the gate at number 14A was by all means a misnomer. The sticker elaborated on the laws against child abusers. It is under the very sections in the Penal Code that seven suspects apprehended at the house are charged with now.

When a police team and officials from the National Child Protection Authority (NCPA) raided the house located in Ethukala, Negombo two weeks back, they apprehended the seven suspects along with 11 under-age boys, most of whom were under 16 years.

Two of the boys and a main actor - who police now refer to as Ravi - were taking part in a porn movie. The others just watched.

The raid, in fact, was a sting operation. NCPA had got wind of persons indulging in child porn productions and had cultivated a producer through a decoy. When trust was established, the police officers conveyed that they were interested in child porn movies. It was easily arranged.

No less than 11 boys were roped in for the production with the promise of girls who were due to appear in the afternoon shoots after school. Some of the children were taken from far as Colombo by pimps. When the police raided the house, there were five pimps present.

Sex and drugs

According to officials at the NCPA, at the time of the raid, there was no hard-core action taking place. "The man and the two children were naked and the fellow was rubbing his genitals on the children's bodies," NCPA officers said.

However, they are more than certain that the abuse would have taken more macabre forms if not for the raid. Some of the children were smoking and the suspicion is that they were under the influence of drugs. A boy from the vicinity told The Sunday Leader that one his friends who was among the boys was given drugs mixed in his food.

Police have not ruled out the possibility of at least some of the boys being sexually abused days before the raid. Some of them had spent about two days in the company of the pimps.

The raid went off well for the NCPA and police. But beyond that it is a blank. That is where the problem lies. The police, NCPA and NGOs working on child abuse and the rest of the country are clueless about the extent of the problem.

No one may quite know how large the demon is, but just take a stroll down the beach at Ethukala and in no time the realisation dawns that it is enormous - a big, fat, ugly creature romping on the beach.

Young boys and foreigners frolic on the open beach. Foreigners - male, female , alone or otherwise - are approached on the beach and propositioned with everything from drugs to nine year old boys.

Only the approach takes place on the beach. The real action is inside the rooms. There is hardly any restriction on foreigners taking visitors to their rooms.

Even if there were, it would not serve a purpose: there are more than enough 'guest houses' that can fill the vacuum. In any event, there are houses taken over by foreigners, maintained for the 'boys.'

The by-lane where the infamous house is located lies in the midst of all this. Just a few houses from it lies a palatial residence of a foreigner. According to information gleaned off scared residents and others, the lane thrives on dealings with foreigners.

In fact, the house is rented. The names on the gate read Peter Vanhaadel and Hass Faust. When the raid took place, they were not in the house. It was the caretaker, Jayantha, that police took into custody.

According to a guest house owner, common knowledge in Negombo is that if male foreigners take over a residence and only boys are seen walking in and out of the place, well "they are in the boy scene." That was what was taking place in the house that was raided.

The guest house operator tells the story of the boy-men quite nonchalantly. It is nothing new in this town that is a boy-man paradise. Men and boys all over is a day to day affair here.

Game time

While The Sunday Leader reporters were speaking with him, several under-age boys were approaching two male foreigners sunbathing. In shorts, the boys creep upto the foreigners on their knees as if they were just playing. If the men are interested, it's game time.

Just a while before, another was seen approaching a middle-aged couple frolicking in the sea. "Oh this is nothing, wait till it is dark and you will see what is really on offer."

Soon his attention was drawn to a frail foreigner helped down the stairway of the opposite hotel by a young local boy. "Now that is a couple. That guy has been coming to Sri Lanka for years to be with the local chap."

If foreigners cannot be bothered with the touch and play on the beach, there is always sex on the shelf. Negombo is no Pattaya but just talk to the touts, it comes really close.

It is in the midst of this that the porn movie was being filmed, no big deal, right!

Negombo and specifically Ethukala have played host to a number of high profile paedophiles, starting with the notorious Viktor Bauman who was deported in the late 1990s. He was sentenced in Sweden and according to details that were presented at the case, he probably would have abused close to 1000 local boys.

His palatial home still rests in Negombo, in the same vicinity as 14A, and his family members still look after his business interests.

In 1998, police caught Jan Nilsen, a Norwegian, in the company of a minor boy. The trial dragged on and he was convicted by the Negombo High Court but was later acquitted in the Appeal Court.

However, the media attention on the Nilsen case as well as the Bauman case achieved one thing: it deterred, at least for a short while, paedophiles converging on Sri Lanka.

In fact, a guide book named Traveler's Survival Kit says that Sri Lanka has something of a reputation for sexual tourism and adds just underneath that police have been acting more stringently on child sex cases.

But this is not only about old men having sex with young boys. This is about commercial exploitation, about websites, about movies, about paedophile rackets that thrive in places like Negombo.

The NCPA has evidence that there are websites that advertise local boys and make available pornographic material of local minors. In 1995, according to one activist, there were around 10,000 known child sex sites. By last year that number had jumped to 40,000.

Movies have always been a part of paedophile rings. As way back as 1995 there were movies being produced in Sri Lanka. The Sunday Leader was given the opportunity to watch such a movie shot in the southern beaches, in which local boys frolicked naked on the beach and masturbated for the camera, among other things.

A former child sex worker in Negombo interviewed by The Sunday Leader in 1998 related that once he was made to have sex with another boy while a foreigner filmed the two.

The situation has not improved since then. "If at all it is worse, now there are nine year olds in the game," our guest house friend observed.

And the assessment is true. There is no need for minute planning to get a minor to bed or produce a porn movie. Right there on the beach, The Sunday Leader reporters posing as Middle Eastern tourists could have taken two nine year old boys into a hotel room and do as they pleased. The enticement was a promise to buy bicycles. The rot just keeps setting in.

"It is very difficult to break the cycle," observed Sunil Gamage, who works with the child rights group, PEACE.

"Once they become too old for the foreigners, it is the former child sex workers who turn into pimps," Gamage who has been working with abused children since 1992 observed. "It is a vicious cycle."

Track record

There is no data available of how many children sell sex. Some estimate the figure to be around 10,000 while others go upto about 35,000. Nor is there awareness about the spread of venereal diseases.

The only deterrent has been the bad publicity. Not a single foreign paedophile has been sentenced in Sri Lanka. In fact, Armyn Paffhauser, a convicted molester walked out of an open air detention center and has never been heard since. That is the track record.

Even in the present case, the indication is that the two foreigners whose names appear on the gate are unlikely to be prosecuted.

While authorities wrestle with how large the problem is, in places like Ethukala easy money lures poverty-stricken children to ply the trade.

"You cannot blame the child," Chairman, NCPA, Professor Harendra De Silva said last week (see box). Poverty is what drives under-age children and sometimes the parents to sell skin. The boys who took part in the movie were paid a mere Rs. 500 each. Way back as 1995, there was evidence to suggest that customers were paying amounts as large as Rs 10,000 to watch such a movie. The sale price for such a movie runs into several lakhs.

The house where the arrests took place belies the fact that big money is in the circle. The parameter is protected with security alarms and 10 foot high walls.

It is no secret that sections of society in Ethukala are quite comfortable with what is going on. When Bauman was being produced in court, people demonstrated urging authorities to leave their "benefactor" in peace.

"Just because a boy sleeps with a foreigner, he will not get pregnant," one of the protestors barked at journalists.

According to its head, to tackle such a problem, the NCPA has three officers. And nothing is being done about domestic abuse.

The present case too, would die a natural death. For the time being, child sex would leave the beaches simply because of the media glare and then return once the spotlight is off.

As long as the sun , the sand, foreigners and money mingle on the poverty stricken beaches off Ethukala, child sex will always be just another stroll on the beach.