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> Tsunami funds - who's telling the truth?

CBK's battle rages with JVP

Chandrika Kumaratunga, Somawansa Amarasinghe, Wimal Weerawansa, 
Dilan Perera, K. D. Lalkantha and Mangala Samaraweera

Inside Politics

By Suranimala 

While President Chandrika Kumaratunga played for time over the joint mechanism for post tsunami reconstruction in the north east, the internal crisis within the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) snowballed with the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) forced to go on the defensive for tactical reasons.

For President Kumaratunga, getting the joint mechanism off the ground was of essence not only to get the donor funding flooding in but also to establish her credibility with the international community given the internal contradictions within her government.

And the pressure on Kumaratunga was that much more after the LTTE in a clever tactical move agreed to the Norwegian proposal for the joint mechanism notwithstanding reservations on several issues in the proposal.

Internal battles

Having thus agreed to the Norwegian proposal which was welcomed by the international community, LTTE's Political Wing Leader, S.P. Tamilselvan currently on a tour of Europe turned the heat on by stressing to all and sundry the ball was now in Kumaratunga's court to reciprocate positively.

In fact, on Wednesday, March 16, Tamilselvan at a meeting with the German Economic Cooperation and Development Minister, Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul stressed the urgency of finalising the joint mechanism and attributed the delay to internal battles within the ruling UPFA.

That the government's reconstruction effort is in itself a disaster of mammoth magnitude due to these internal battles is not lost on the President, who gave vent to her failures by taking a snipe at the Marxists and attributing it to a shortage of funds.

In her inimitable style, the President said she has not received five cents of the monies pledged and lambasted the JVP for its intransigence even as Foreign Minister, Lakshman Kadirgamar was on a state-funded visit with a media bandwagon to thank the British government and her people for the massive tsunami aid.

That irony apart, the President was caught in a catch 22 situation because of her desperate need for the abolition of the executive presidency using the mechanism of a referendum for which of course JVP's support was of paramount importance.

The Sunday Leader in fact last week exclusively reported on the LTTE's agreement to the joint mechanism proposal of the Norwegians and the President's decision to play for time in view of the threat by the JVP to quit the government.

This position of the JVP was reiterated during the last two weeks by Party Leader, Somawansa Amarasinghe and Propaganda Secretary, Wimal Weerawansa, placing the President on the horns of a dilemma.

Trapped into this corner, the President has since decided to beat the JVP into submission in a bid to get its support for the joint mechanism and thereby secure the international funding for the reconstruction effort and with it put in motion her political agenda.

Failure

This, the President knows she has to do sooner than later given the mounting public agitation over the government's failure on the post tsunami reconstruction with the UNP poised to mount its own agitational campaigns commencing end March.

The President's plight has not been made any easier with serious allegations of corruption levelled against her management of the President's Fund, over which the UNP is now in the process of drafting a complaint to the CID and the Permanent Commission Investigating Allegations of Bribery and Corruption.

The complaint not only targets the President but also her officials including the accountant of the fund and will come at a time the international focus is on how the President is handling the post tsunami reconstructions funds made available to the government.

No doubt with her mind swirling over the mounting problem the least she would want is trouble from her own camp and hence the decision to put the JVP on the defensive and get the backing of the Marxists for the abolition of the executive presidency as well as the joint mechanism.

Towards this end, the President sent a series of messages to the JVP she meant business, going so far as to even clip her confidant Mangala Samaraweera's wings for being supportive of the Marxists.

This Kumaratunga did with the taking over of the functions of the Media Ministry last week. Nobody could have anticipated this move by the President, especially given her close relationship with Minister Mangala Samaraweera.

It was a popular opinion both in the SLFP and in the country that Samaraweera was not just President Chandrika Kumaratunga's right hand, but both her right and left hands. And yet, the news of Kumaratunga's takeover was splashed all over the media throughout last week.

In fact, the move was so unexpected that many of those close to the government thought that the story was being spun by biased sections of the private media. But the background to the story made it painfully clear that this was in fact, not so.

Minister Samaraweera was informed that all subjects assigned to the Media Ministry would henceforth be controlled by a committee headed by the President on February 25. This was after Director General, Rupavahini, Nishantha Ranatunga and Deputy Minister, Dilan Perera both complained to the President about Samaraweera's pro-JVP tendencies.

Both Perera and Ranatunga strongly criticised the Minister's behaviour, with Ranatunga even going as far as to tender his resignation because he was finding it difficult to work with the Minister. It was as a result of these two discussions that the President appointed her special committee to monitor state-controlled media.

Many believe that the President's letter to Minister Samaraweera, informing him of the transfer of power, was written the same night the two meetings with Ranatunga and Perera took place.

Takeover of Media Ministry

According to the letter, all institutions coming under the Media Ministry would be run by the President. But it also went one step further, banning Samaraweera from making any further appointments, promotions and creating new positions within the Ministry. All these functions would henceforth be overseen by her, the Presidential directive said.

Minister Samaraweera received the letter on February 27. After he had read the contents therein, he was a greatly disillusioned man. But despite this, or perhaps because of this, the letter was not made public until last Monday (14). There was only one copy of the letter issued - to Secretary, Media Ministry, W.B. Ganegala. As a result, the letter remained private and confidential for nearly three weeks.

Although he had received the letter, Samaraweera refrained from discussing its contents with the President. He acted as if he had never got it at all, and continued as usual with his activities in the Ministry.

But on March 13, he needed to meet the President. He requested an appointment from President's House and was accordingly asked to dinner on Sunday, March 13. At dinner, Samaraweera informed President Kumaratunga that he would be going abroad for two weeks. He said that the overseas trip was to look into some official and personal matters.

Each time the Minister spoke to the President, his expression was one of great disappointment and regret. President Kumaratunga for her part, acted as if she had never issued a letter. But unable to keep mum any longer, Samaraweera said during the course of the meal sadly, "I got a letter saying that subjects assigned to my Ministry were being taken over. What is it you want done, Madam? I am bound to do what you want. There is no need to take bits and pieces from me."

"Why are you upset about it?" the President asked him, looking surprised. "There's no need to be upset," she added.

"Yes, I am upset," said Samaraweera, prompting Kumaratunga to ask him why he did not speak to her about it before this.

"I would have been happier if you had spoken to me beforehand. We could have done what you wanted without any exchange of letters. I don't need this Ministry. I told you that at the very beginning. But despite my reluctance to accept it, you gave it to me. You said the reason was because you needed to give the Media Ministry to someone whom you could trust. I did not misuse this trust. Whenever you want the Ministry back, you can have it," Samaraweera said bitterly.

JVP influence

But President Kumaratunga responded that she had no intention of doing that. "I don't need to do that. But right now, the control of the Media Ministry is not really in your hands is it? The JVPers have crept into various positions there and are doing as they please. ITN is almost totally run the way the JVP wants. What I can't understand is how you fail to see these things. Or is it that you don't look into these matters? I keep getting all these complaints. Even the programmes on Rupavahini are all about what the JVP is opening and projects they are doing. There is some fellow called Kulasiri at Rupavahini. He is supposed to be someone of that Dharmasiri whom I sacked. He does everything the way the JVP wants apparently," the President counter-argued. She added that if a committee was to control the Ministry, Samaraweera's job too would become easier.

"The JVP puts pressure on you also. When I appoint a committee you also have an answer to give them," the President told Samaraweera. But the Minister denied any such pressure from the JVP and inquired who the other members of the committee would be.

"I was planning to discuss this with you. What do you think about Mahindananda and Dilan for members of the committee?" the President asked.

Minister Samaraweera responded that while he had no problem with Mahindananda, he was not too happy about Dilan being appointed. "He has created problems with the JVP and with several SLFP ministers also. And he is also my deputy minister. That would be awkward," Samaraweera explained.

When the President asked him to suggest another name, Samaraweera responded that he thought Deputy Minister, Sripathi Sooriyaarachi was a worthy candidate. The Minister said that Sooriyaarachi had done quite well in several TV interviews and added that the Deputy Minister also knew how to behave.

But the President was none too impressed with the recommendation. "Don't even talk to me about that man. When I hear his name I am disgusted. You don't know the allegations against that man. He talks big at debates but if you exposed some of his activities the road wouldn't be long enough for him to run. Anyway, let's make a final decision on this matter after you get back from your trip," President Kumaratunga replied.

She also agreed to refrain from appointing Perera to the committee. Samaraweera went straight from President's House to the Bandaranaike International Airport from where he boarded a flight to Hong Kong.

But the next day, while overseas, Minister Samaraweera's mobile phone began to ring incessantly. All the callers were informing him that articles had been published in an English and Sinhala newspaper on Monday (14) stating President Kumaratunga had taken over the Media Ministry. The callers wanted to know whether the reports were true.

They also informed the Minister that President Kumaratunga had summoned all the state media heads to President's House on Wednesday (16). Minister Samaraweera called his secretaries and demanded to find out whether the stories were true. What disturbed him even more than news about the take over of the Ministry was the report regarding the state media chiefs being summoned.

Samaraweera's downfall

Thereafter, Samaraweera tried to contact President Kumaratunga to ask her about the developments but apparently she was very busy and unable to take his calls. Calling up the President's Personal Secretary, P. Dissanayake, Samaraweera asked him whether there was any truth in the reports. He said that he had been unable to contact the President and that he was concerned with her summoning a meeting with the state media chiefs. He advised Dissanayake to inform the President about his concerns and cancel the meeting. He also asked that a statement be issued about the news reports.

Despite the President's tight schedule, Dissanayake interrupted her and gave her Samaraweera's message. Kumaratunga accepted Samaraweera's position and asked Secretary Ganegala to cancel the meeting. She also advised that a statement be released. As soon as the statement was released and the meeting cancelled, Dissanayake called Samaraweera to inform him of the decision. The President's Secretary also told the Minister to forget the issue and carry on with his holiday.

At the same time even as the crisis within the UPFA deepened thus, several JVP members got some disturbing news. An officer attached to the state security informed JVP Propaganda Secretary, Wimal Weerawansa on Friday (11) by telephone that the President had ordered the National Intelligence Bureau and the CID to commence a secret inquiry into the assets of Weerawansa and JVP General Secretary Tilvin Silva.

According to the tip off Weerawansa got, a hotel allegedly owned by Silva in Weligama and Weerawansa's wife's business ventures were being looked into. The security officer urged the JVP MP to take action as soon as possible.

As soon as he heard the news, Weerawansa called Silva and JVP Leader, Somawansa Amarasinghe and they decided to meet at the JVP headquarters later that day.

At the meeting, which was restricted to a few exclusive members, Weerawansa's tip off was discussed at length. What they were most keen to figure out was how exactly the President's mind was working. Amarasinghe pointed out that it was possible that Kumaratunga was digging into these things in order to incriminate him for something in the past and place him under arrest. Under the circumstances, Amarasinghe said, they need to act with extreme caution.

Weerawansa under investigation

Weerawansa stunned the meeting with another tidbit of information. "Apparently the AG's Department has advised that I be charged with the attack on Ravi's office. I don't know the truth of the report but they are trying to say that I had a gun in my hand," he said.

The MP added that the President had now moved on to the level of public attacks for which the JVP should be well prepared.

But Amarasinghe presented another perspective.

"The President's mental state these days is not good. She is in the last stages of her political life. Perhaps she is upset about losing power for good. So it is very difficult to say how a person like that will act," he said. Eventually, Amarasinghe called a politburo meeting on Tuesday (15) to discuss this and other matters.

The politburo meeting lasted over five hours, during which Small and Rural Enterprises Minister, K.D. Lalkantha openly accused Weerawansa of several indiscretions.

"The way I see it, the character known as Wimal Weerawansa is being closely watched by the entire country. Occasionally he does the JVP proud, but in some instances, his actions leave much to be desired. Look at Comrade Wimal's mobile phone. Our party members are now starting to ask me questions about it. If ever I go to a party meeting about 25 people surround me and start asking about whether he really has a phone like that. I reply that the Irudina is an UNP newspaper and that it is being printed in Ranil's house and try and shape it up that way. But I can't do that every day. The shirt you wear, the car you drive, the mobile phone you carry - all these are a problem for the people. It is very difficult for a JVPer to face these charges," Lalkantha berated Weerawansa.

The JVP Minister then went on to question Weerawansa about his mobile phone which is said to cost about Rs. 150,000. Weerawansa shot back that he had never bought the phone himself and that he had been gifted it by a Muslim businessman friend who had been to America. Weerawansa added that if necessary, he can refrain from using the phone.

But Lalkantha was not about to let him off the hook so easily. "There is no point in trying to hide the phone now. Next time, think twice before you accept gifts," he said.

JVP strategy

Next to be discussed was Weerawansa's tip off from the security officer. The politburo members were shell-shocked by the news that Weerawansa's and Silva's assets were to be investigated. Amarasinghe pointed out again the President's mental state.

"It is difficult for us to lock horns with the President. Let's restructure the party and secretly get ready for an election. We need to stop attacking and insulting her and begin flattering and praising her. We need to keep her on neutral gear to make sure we get our work done," the JVP Leader explained.

But firebrand Lalkantha had other ideas. He was of the opinion that if the President was to be restrained at all, the only way to do it was by continuing to attack her regularly. "Otherwise she will just wash her hands over our heads," he said. But even the hot-headed Minister conceded that if there was really a threat of arrest they should tread more carefully.

"If there is a threat of physical harm then we should try and resolve the matter and placate the President. But there has to be a majority agreement here," Lalkantha went on.

The politburo therefore decided to stop attacking the President and to commence praising her in their Sinhala tabloid Lanka newspaper.

Even as one major discussion at the politburo meeting drew to a close, another one caused a furor again. This was regarding a statement Amarasinghe is reported to have made during his European tour recently.

While in the UK, Amarasinghe met with Acting Head for South Asia, Commonwealth Association, Demus Doris. The statement had been publicised in the foreign media and was causing problems for international branches of the JVP.

During his discussion, Doris had asked Amarasinghe about his views on the peace process in Sri Lanka to which the JVP Leader had responded that the MoU signed between the UNF government and the LTTE was a very good one and that the JVP was committed to maintaining it while taking the peace process forward. As a party, the JVP was publicly extending support to the peace process, Amarasinghe had further said.

Somawansa's statement

Having read the reports of this interview, several members of the JVP overseas had asked General Secretary, Tilvin Silva why the JVP Leader was making statements that went against party policy to foreign dignitaries. As a result, Silva brought the issue up at the politburo meeting.

Amarasinghe simply replied, "Yes, I did say that. But if we try to rectify this statement, it will create a huge problem." Explaining his position further, Amarasinghe said, "In UK, officials want to support the peace process. Whatever we think as a party, when we go to places like that, it is necessary to say the right things. That official asked me directly whether we supported the MoU. If I had just said 'no' they would reject the JVP then and there. That's not all, Tony Blair's party is going to win the next election as well and so the same set of officers will set up government. I never thought the report of the meeting would get out though."

But Silva pointed out that the international branches of the JVP collect funds based on the stance against the peace process. When the JVP Leader makes a statement contrary to that position, it hurts the fund raising and causes a problem, Silva said.

But Amarasinghe was adamant that it would be difficult to correct the statement now. He added that they can't play with the British government the way they do with others and urged Silva to make the international branches aware of this situation.

Given this state of play, politicking will continue to hold centre stage in the government agenda and before long Kumaratunga will find the barbarians at her door. By then, it may be just too late for salvation.

In the throes   of Tiger rivalry

Relatives of the two youth protesting on the main highway, Army patrols in Chenkalady, A Police officer guards the LTTE office in Batticaloa after it was bombed and PLOTE head in Batticaloa, Baheerathan shows his injuries

By Amantha Perera in the East  

Since his defection, Vinyagamoorthi Muralitharan alias Karuna and cadres loyal to him have been carrying out sporadic targeted attacks against the LTTE. In return, Karuna associates and sympathisers have been murdered.  The internecine killings that had dipped following the tsunami have once again increased in the east. Last week The Sunday Leader journalist Amantha Perera and freelance  photographer Buddhika Weerasinghe reached a hideout used by Karuna cadres for the first time since the defection. The Karuna cadres led by Mangalan Master had taken refugee at a Tamil village named Thivichchenei in the Polonnaruwa District. 

The road that leads to Thivichchenei in the Polonnaruwa District is nondescript. The tar road crisscrossing acres of paddy fields  turns into a dirt track closer to the village, just like at any other village deep in the rural areas.

Then again it is not usual to find a youth armed with a powerful machine gun manning a bunker at the entrance to the village like at Thivichchenei. The young man with the gun was a member of a group that is waging the war in the east on behalf of renegade former LTTE Eastern Commander, Karuna.

The hamlet of 78 Tamil families has been paying host to the group led by Mangalan Master, a senior Karuna lieutenant, since the group arrived and set up operations at the village about seven months ago. According to military sources, there are about 60 armed Karuna group members, including very young cadres, in the village.

"They (villagers) treat us well," a member at the guard post said while awaiting instructions from Mangalan Master whether to allow the journalists in. Approval was not granted and we had to turn around at the entrance.

The village lies about 10 kilometres from the main Habarana-Valachchenei highway, and is a traditional Tamil village that lies next to a Muslim village sharing the same name. According to military sources in the area, the renegade LTTEers were welcome by both communities when they defected last April and have been operating from the village ever since the arrival.

"They were clothed, given shelter and fed by them," soldiers in the area of the village said.

The area is dotted with military encampments and there is one about two kilometers from the village on the main access  road. However, at the village that lies north west of Welikanda, there was no presence of government security in any official form. It is totally under the control of the Karuna clan.

Access denied

However, villagers in the area said that most of the time access was denied to outsiders to Thivichchenei.

It is an open secret even in Batticaloa  that armed Karuna members operate out of the village. All along the way villagers kept saying, "Yeah! We have heard that armed men are there, but we don't know."

The soldiers at the last army check point were nervous of the snoopy journalists but did not prevent them from proceeding.

Eleven months after he fled to government held areas, a year after he rebelled against LTTE Leader Velupillai Pirapaharan, after countless denials by the government that it was not providing any support to the rebels and avowals that there was no presence of Karuna supporters in any way in the east by the LTTE and hundreds of murders and irrational killings, we had finally reached a hideout used by Karuna men inside government controlled areas. And it was nothing more than a quiet village hamlet.

Roads connect Thivichchenei to another village further north, Omadiyamadu, yet another base used by Karuna cadres according to the LTTE. The Tigers have constantly said that Karuna cadres were using the border area from Omadiyamadu to Aralaganwilla close to Maha Oya as a staging ground for attacks until recently when they changed tune by blaming all the attacks on military intelligence.

The calm at Thivichchenei had been shattered long before last week. It was obvious that the internecine violence between the erstwhile comrades in arms during the last eight months had driven fear into the civilians. "You talk about one, the other kills you; you talk about the other, the reaction is the same," a villager who for very obvious reasons wanted no attributions, said.

The LTTE has indicated since the defection that several groups aligned with Karuna like the one led by Mangalan Master have been operating in the border areas that separate the Batticaloa and Polonnaruwa Districts.

Violence has now spread deep into the Sinhala dominated areas of Welikanda and  Sevanapitiya. On March 7, six people including a Sinhalese were killed in Kolankanwadeiya, a village close to Sevanapitiya. The military blamed the LTTE for the murders saying the victims were supporters of the Karuna faction.

The LTTE has denied any involvement and blamed the Karuna group for the killings and the subsequent propaganda blamed them. Last week there were reports that said it may have been a contract killing carried out by the Karuna faction.

SLMM Head in Batticaloa, Steen Joergensen confirmed to The Sunday Leader the monitors too had heard the story but had so far not made any breakthrough to the murders during their inquiries.

Fear

On March 14, two Tamil youth from Karapola, a Tamil village about three kilometres from Thivichchenei were dragged out of their houses and shot in the head. Military sources said the Wanni Tigers were responsible for the attack which they said was carried out to drive fear into the villagers who had been accommodative of the Mangalan Master group.

The deceased, Sugu Selvanadan and Subramanium Gunesekera, both aged 20, were friends of Karuna group members according to military sources. "One Karuna member called Murali was a classmate of theirs and they had helped out in field work," they said, referring to villagers helping in with the harvest.

In fact, one of the Karuna group members The Sunday Leader was able to talk to for a little while at Thivichchenei too hailed from the nearby village of Mutugala. The Defence Ministry in a statement issued from Colombo said that the Karapola assailants had been led by a Wanni cadre identified as Madhi.  Earlier it had said that the two were sympathisers of the Wanni faction but later retracted the claim.

The villagers themselves had a different story to tell. They blamed the Karuna group for the murder. They said that one Lakshman - a member of the Karuna group - led the seven members who had assassinated the youth after calling them out of their houses.

On March 16, they brought the two caskets onto the main highway and staged a public protest against the presence of Karuna cadres in the area. The protest was supported by monks at the nearby village temple at Susirigama who said if the demands were not heeded by the authorities, they would join in a massive protest organised for March 29.

According to Kasan, a villager from Karapola, the Karuna group has been harassing the villagers ever since they came in. They had abducted youth from the village to work in the fields and held them incommunicado for days. Kasan's own brother, Jegadasan, has been missing for 15 days after he was taken away by the Mangalan Master group. "We can't make police complaints because they have threatened to kill us," he said.

Military sources in the area however said LTTE sympathisers from Valachchenei and Batticaloa had infiltrated the mourners and were instigating them against the Karuna group. "They are being used to drive a wedge between the villagers and Karuna group."

The same sources said the Tigers had found it easy to infiltrate deep into Sinhala and Muslim areas on the Batticaloa-Welikanda border using the harvesting season as cover. Many migrant workers from Batticaloa and other areas including the uncontrolled areas are in Welikanda temporarily employed in the paddy fields. The military said LTTE members too were among them.

"They hide weapons somewhere; in the night they carry out attacks. By morning they are field workers."

Escalating violence

The violence near the Sinhala areas has now prompted the SLMM office in Batticaloa to open a point-of-contact office in Welikanda. "It will be operational for six months at least," Joergensen said.

Since the murder of former LTTE Political Head for the East, Kausalyan on February 7, killings that came to a halt with the tsunami have dramatically increased. Several reports subsequent to the Kausalyan slaying linked Mangalan Master to the attack. The attack took place at Namalgama, further north on the main highway.

The LTTE has been targeted on several occasions. Its female Political Head for Batticaloa, Kuveni, was shot on February 22 near Akkaraipattu and on March 6, Robert Kandamarasa Udyakumar alias Pushparaja was killed at Kirimichchi which is under the LTTE.

On the night of March 12, a few hours before the Karapola double murders, the LTTE political office in Batticaloa came under grenade attack around 7: 30 p.m. No one among the 15 LTTErs in the office were injured and no serious damage was caused by the explosion that took place in the garden.

However, last week's attack was the fourth on the office since the Karuna defection. The office is located near a police post and LTTE members were pointing at the lethargy of the police in preventing or apprehending the attackers as proof of their charge that the security forces were at least turning a blind eye to the rivals.

The Tigers are now blaming the intelligence units of the army for carrying out the attacks. "We blame the military for the attacks, and people cannot expect us to remain patient forever," LTTE Political Head for Batticaloa, Anubmaran said on the morning of the attack. It was the murder of his predecessor, Ramalingam Padmaseelan alias Senathiraja on July 13 last year that set off the internecine killings in the east.

Anubmaran told The Sunday Leader the Tigers had handed over evidence to suggest the involvement of the military in the attacks. That included photographs of an army like helmet and cigarette butts from the site of a recent attack within areas held by the Tigers.

The Tigers said the Kausalyan attackers too had been in attire similar to that of the military. The guardsman at Thivichchenei was wearing a greenish outfit which would have been difficult to distinguish among army fatigues.

Joergensen of the SLMM however said the monitors had not come across any evidence to suggest a link to the military with regard to the attacks. "We have no evidence the army is doing this," he said.

Despite repeated denials by the Tigers that they are not carrying out  reprisal attacks, targeting of rival political party members and  sympathisers has continued.

Rival Tamil parties operating in Batticaloa are equivocal as to who is behind  the attacks - the LTTE.  The Eelam People's Revolutionary Liberation Front (Pathmanabha) (EPRLF) and the People's Liberation Organisation of Thamil Eelam (PLOTE) have written to the SLMM accusing the LTTE of murdering members.

No action

The EPRLF letter listed seven murders of members since February 20. "I want to die at the hands of the LTTE, then only will I be known as a democratic leader," EPRLF National Organiser, Ira Thurairaththinam told The Sunday Leader from the Batticaloa office.

"The attack by the LTTE on our members is continuing and we have complained and no action has been taken by you," PLOTE Batticaloa Deputy Leader, T.S. Baheerathan wrote to the SLMM the day after his office was bombed on March 12. Baheerathan told The Sunday Leader the LTTE uses safe houses in Batticaloa provided by sympathisers to store arms that are used for attacks.

The Batticaloa offices of the EPRLF and the PLOTE are provided security cover by the police and army.

Joergensen said the SLMM inquiries have not revealed anything to lend credibility to the charges. "We simply don't know who is behind them. There are a lot of targeted killings going on. But the civilians are not under threat, it is not like people shopping are being gunned down," Joergensen said.

For the time being that might be true of Batticaloa, but not so in the Muslim dominated Ottamavadi. Three weeks back Karuna told a website that the Wanni Tigers were engaged in making friendly overtures to the Muslims. He reminded them of LTTE atrocities against Muslims, ironically notwithstanding his own complicity in them as then eastern commander. This followed meetings LTTE Political Wing Head, S.P. Tamilselvan held with Muslim leaders.

Soon after the meetings, Muslims from Ottamavadi were targeted. A.R. Raheem, a three-wheel driver, was shot and killed at Kirimichchi, 500 meters from the Pushparaja murder site two weeks back. Several Muslims who had gone to LTTE held areas to collect fire-wood went missing  and protests erupted in Ottamavadi on March 11.

The missing later resurfaced and said they were chased around by a bunch of wild elephants and not marauding Tigers. The  military had initially charged the Muslims were abducted by the Tigers. The Tigers for their part had earlier indicated to the Muslims not to support the Karuna group.

"We are not pointing our finger at any one. This is the work of other groups," President, Ottamavadi Jumma Mosque, Lebbe Hajiar said. The LTTE last week condemned the attacks against the Muslims and said outside forces were trying to disrupt the cordial relations between the two communities since the tsunami.

Bridging the divide

"All bitterness is gone after the tsunami," Hajiar said. The new LTTE political head for the east, Marshall last week initiated several meetings with Muslim leaders from Ottamavadi.

While the Tigers were making efforts to bridge the divide between them and the east's sizable Muslim community, the once friendly ties between them and the security forces are seemingly  waning.

The SLMM's efforts to organise a meeting between the two sides have proved futile. Both sides have also adopted accusatory language in press releases detailing events in Batticaloa.

Joergensen has been meeting with representatives of both parties regularly but has so far failed to clinch a joint meeting. "I don't know why it is so difficult (for both sides) to meet," he lamented. The only positive factor of the meetings other than maintaining a continuous dialogue has been that both the Tigers and the security forces have reiterated their commitment to the ceasefire.

The SLMM mandate limits it from initiating any sort of contact with the Karuna group. "We have had no contact with them. Karuna is not part of the ceasefire," Joergensen observed.

But it is Karuna and those still under him that the LTTE would have to contend with in the coming weeks.

The Tigers have posted two very senior military commanders on either side of Batticaloa.  Banu who is the eastern  military commander operates from south of the town, and Balraj, the overall deputy military commander has been posted to Vaharai and areas further north.

Anubmaran confirmed that Balraj is operating in the area but said the presence of the top military rankers was nothing out of the ordinary. "It is usual. Now people get to know this, but they were moving all the time during the war."

Balraj is engaged in strengthening  cadre levels according to the political office head. Karuna had recruited under-aged children during the ceasefire according to Anubmaran and all of them had been discharged. According to military sources, Karuna had sent home close to 2,000 child soldiers once he severed ties with Kilinochchi.

Child recruitment

Soon after the LTTE wrested control of the east, the SLMM and UNICEF records indicated a sharp rise in complaints of child recruitment in the east. That seems to have stopped, according to the SLMM. "We are still getting reports of forcible recruitment of adults," Joergensen added.

Pro-Karuna sources last week said more than 40 LTTE Intelligence Wing cadres and pistol gang members had entered government-controlled areas at Omanthai in Vavuniya on March 17 and reached Batticaloa. They were believed to be working under senior Intelligence Wing cadre Newton, who had been sent from Kilinochchi to the east. There are already at least 25 cadres working under Newton according to pro-Karuna sources.

Bracing for more violence

The east last week appeared to be bracing for more violence. "Killings are going to rise,"  PLOTE's Baheerathan warned. Not missing a beat, the pro-Karuna Tamil National Front released a statement last week calling on Tamils to unite in the effort to defeat Pirapaharan's dictatorial ways.

It said that militant cadres who left the LTTE are stranded and in need of support. The release came under the signature of S. Cheran, who also released the statement claiming full responsibility for the Kausalyan murder.

The military had racked up security in the area. All vehicles entering and leaving Valachchenei are subjected to checks just south of the Valchchenei bridge reminiscent of the war era.

New tents have been constructed for civilians to line in to be frisked and have their baggage checked. Similar additions are coming up at Welikanda as well. The military said the new checking was put in place following the Kausalyan murder. In any event, the east is a bomb on a timer.

The young Karuna cadre manning the bunker was aware of it. "One day we kill them, the next day they kill us," he said.

And it will continue until one day there is only either we or them left in Batticaloa.

Gearing up for a referendum

Chandrika Kumaratunga, K.N. Choksy, Dilan Perera and Wijedasa Rajapakse

By Dilrukshi Handunnetti 

With the post-tsunami fervour to rebuild the nation on a fast decline, the United Peoples' Freedom Alliance (UPFA) has now announced a different programme - a political one as opposed to the developmental one.

Last week saw all the constituent partners of the government shedding their differences to signify support for the holding of a referendum to ask the people of the country whether the executive presidency should stay or go.

The decision to attempt abolition of the executive presidency may have come a decade late, but it comes at a politically opportune time from a President who needs to look for other options to stay on as chief executive. And even undertake an Rs.700 million exercise in a desperate bid to extend her stay.

Meanwhile, her trouble-plagued government is planning a campaign to offer moral justification to the referendum that comes in the aftermath of a catastrophe and a year of unfulfilled political pledges.

As one cabinet minister told this writer, "It is better to do the right thing, even though the decision may be based on political necessity." The government reasoning is that the President is now twice duty bound to abolish the office as her original pledge was made to the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) presidential candidate, Nihal Galappatty whose political grouping is a significant coalition partner of her government today.

Defending a mandate

Interestingly, Kumaratunga has been recently defending her presidential mandate of 62% of the popular support received in 1994 as one given largely for the abolition of the executive presidency - a mandate she is now determined to give some expression.

According to President's Counsel and UPFA Parliamentarian, Wijedasa Rajapakse, the government is studying the possibility of posing three questions before the people at the proposed referendum. However, one question is of foremost significance - the question of the executive presidency.

The other two questions are whether the people considered federalism as the most viable solution to the ethnic question and whether the country required urgent electoral reform.

According to Article 85 of the Constitution, the president is empowered to submit to the people by a referendum every bill or any provision in a bill certified by the cabinet of ministers or which the Supreme Court has determined as requiring the approval of the people at a referendum provided there is a two thirds majority in parliament in favour of such a bill.

Further, the 1978 Constitution specifies that such approval should also be by an absolute majority.

Kumaratunga maybe setting herself an insurmountable task in order to extend her stay in mainstream politics, but there are several legal issues that complicate the very exercise proposed.

The snags

Then there are the more political issues such as getting the minority political parties to support the move. The Tamil National Alliance (TNA), the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) and the Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC) have collectively opposed any move to abolish the executive presidency. This also means not receiving the necessary support for such an exercise, if such is proposed to the house. That also means the government's failure to secure the necessary two-thirds majority in the house.

General Secretary, SLMC, A.T. Hassan Ali told The Sunday Leader that the party would simply oppose any move to abolish the executive presidency which is very much needed for the protection of the minority political needs.

The CWC stance remains the same. Group Leader, TNA, R. Sampanthan confirming the party stance explained that it was mandatory that the office of executive president be continued.

While the nitty gritty is yet to be discussed, Deputy Minister of Ports and Civil Aviation, Dilan Perera proposes a way out for the government - a constitutional reform exercise that would transfer some of the executive powers to the prime minister "to dilute the high powered office - the abolition of which remains a prime need."

Perera, a former deputy minister of justice, argues that a balancing act might be needed to receive the minorities' support in parliament, but insists that the executive presidency must go as it has proved a bane to the country since its introduction in 1978.

However, the drafter of the very constitution that created the powerful office, former Constitutional Affairs Minister and President's Counsel, K.N. Choksy feels that if there is no two thirds majority in support of the abolition of the executive presidency, the holding of a referendum would prove futile as there would be no legally binding effect.

UNP against total abolition

"Of course, there could be any number of non-binding referenda held but then where is the moral authority and the legitimacy required?" Choksy opines. 

He says that the required majority is mandatory and there could never be any derogation of the provision if the matter is to be referred to the people at a referendum.

As for the United National Party's position, he is clear that the party is in agreement to certain amendments, but not for the complete abolition of the office.

He further says that according to Article 3 of the Constitution, sovereignty is in the people and inalienable and that sovereignty includes the powers of government, fundamental rights and the franchise which could be exercised through the legislature.

As for referring very broad and general questions to the people, Choksy believes that questions need to be "explanatory and lucid, not vague."

However, Wijedasa Rajapakse who believes that the holding of a referendum is the correct mechanism to test the pulse of the people, does not feel that questions need to be strictly legalistic as long as the idea is clearly conveyed. "For example, if the question is about federalism, people now know that we are asking whether they accept extensive devolution with separate provincial or state governments. That is clear enough," Rajapakse asserts.

However, he agrees that these questions should not be too general.

One of the points raised by the main opposition UNP, following the call for a referendum on several questions, is that the questions should be more specific so that the people vote for or against specific concerns raised.

In support, they also cite the infamous 1982 referendum held by the first Executive President, J.R. Jayewardene. Despite the moral validity of Jayewardene's referendum which is still believed to be a dubious exercise undertaken by the UNP to extend the life of parliament, it still had been a constitutional exercise with the question being very specific - whether the same parliament should continue for six more years or not.

Accordingly, the UNP also insists on specific questions to be posed to the people.

According to Rajapakse, the third question is possibly going to deal with electoral reforms. While justifying the need for such an exercise, the UPFA for the time being has not considered whether specific models should be proposed when people are asked to choose. "That won't be necessary," says SLFP General Secretary, Maithripala Sirisena.

Electoral reform

Sirisena feels that the country has been needing a new electoral system that does not make candidates kill each other for preferential votes and feels that asking for a straight 'yes' or 'no' to change would suffice.

"All these constitutional and legal concerns cannot be put across to the people in that way. The question has to be simple and general," he argues.

When queried about the many possible electoral reform models, Sirisena says that the SLFP as well as the UPFA have been clear on the model they propose. The government's premise is that there need not be specific models proposed at a referendum.

"Nothing has been really finalised. These questions would be reconsidered and further fine-tuned. Anyway, our lawyers have told us there cannot be legal impediments to broad questions. More specific legal questions might confuse the people," adds Sirisena.

And Rajapakse fortifies the point by adding that people do understand that when they are asked to vote for or against federalism, the real question is whether they are in favour of devolution of power under the 13th Amendment as opposed to federalism.

As for the decision to hold a referendum, the UPFA is now specific. "Yes, we will hold it. It is long overdue and these changes too are long overdue," says Sirisena.

Tsunami funds - who's telling the truth?

"Not a cent" - President and P.B. Jayasundera - "money coming in"

By Mandana Ismail Abeywickrema 

Confusion reigns over donor funding to Sri Lanka in the aftermath of the tsunami with President Chandrika Kumaratunga going public last week that the government is yet to receive even five cents in cash as tsunami aid from foreign donors. The statement was however contradicted by Treasury Secretary Dr. P. B. Jayasundera the same week when he told The Sunday Leader that donor funds have been coming into the country for post-tsunami development work and infact there has even been an improvement in the cash flow.

President Kumaratunga addressing a meeting at Yayawatte in Tangalle to mark the launching of a housing scheme for the tsunami displaced, said the government only had the money which came directly to the President's tsunami fund and the Prime Minister's fund. The total amount collected was close to Rs. 1 billion, which according to the President would be utilised for housing projects for the displaced.

However, according to Dr. Jayasundera tsunami aid pledged by foreign donors are coming into the country, and he added that approximately US$ 450 - 500 million in expenditure is expected to be incurred by the donors through various redevelopment projects for 2005.

Three-phase process

Explaining the mechanism involved in aid pledged, Dr. Jayasundera observed that it is a three-step process, which is also time consuming.

The first he said is the pledge made immediately after the disaster, which is then converted into commitments by the signing of an agreement between the relevant parties and the final step is expenditure, where the donor would meet the monetary requirements to complete the respective project.

So far, the country has received US$ 150 million from the World Bank, US$ 250 million from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for immediate budgetary support, US$ 80 million from the Japanese government, in addition to funds made available by several INGOs.

Dr. Jayasundera noted that since December 26, 2004, the government has spent close to Rs. 10 billion on relief work with Rs. 6 billion being recoverable.

He further observed that 2005 would be a year that would reflect the country's continuous economic improvement.

Dr. Jayasundera dismissed statements of an imminent economic crisis as being politically driven.

He said that while any economy would have to face risks, it is important to recognise and manage them for the betterment of the country.

Improved performance

The substantially improved performance in the agriculture sector, especially the bumper paddy harvest is expected to reasonably reduce rice prices in the coming months.

Prices of food items, which escalated due to the drought that prevailed last year, although still fairly expensive, are expected to come down in the next few months, according to Jayasundera.

"Food production has been better than last year," he said.

The performance in the industries and services sectors is also expected to be buoyant this year.

Dr. Jayasundera noted that in the industries sector, the apparel sector is expected to top US$ 3 billion in exports.

However, the country is still experiencing the lagging effect of high petroleum prices as well as last year's drought.

"The country is still on a high fuel structure," Dr. Jayasundera said.

He explained that the country was never at a profit making level in the fuel sector to reduce prices.

The lagging effects of the drought were reflected in agricultural goods, which in turn compounded the problem of rising inflation.

Dr. Jayasundera is hopeful that with the reduction in rice prices and the coming of harvest, vegetables too would come down in price.

Be that as it may, the Colombo Consumers' Price Index (CCPI) for the month of February 2005 was 4004.8. This shows an increase of 18.1 index points or 0.5 per cent from the January 2005 index number of 3986.7. This is an increase of Rs. 36.62 in the expenditure value of a "market basket" when compared to January 2005.Short supply

The increase in the CCPI for February 2005 is mainly due to the increase in prices of beef, most varieties of fresh fish, eggs, some varieties of vegetables, betel and arecanuts. These price increases can be mainly attributed to the short supply of locally produced agricultural consumer goods to the main markets in Colombo city.

However, prices of rice, bread, wheat flour, dried chillies, lime, red onions, coconut oil, dried fish - salaya, coconuts, and potatoes have decreased during this month.

The annual inflation rate on the basis of 12 months moving average increased to 10.1 percent in February 2005 from 8.8 percent in January 2005. It is however interesting to note that the annual inflation rate runs into two digits again in this month after February 2003.

Dr. Jayasundera pointed out that it would take time for the market to adjust its prices to reflect the economy's positive side.

He said that if the current economic trends continue, inflation could be reduced in the next few months.

He however noted that the greatest challenge faced by the country is bringing down the cost of living.

In this aspect, the Treasury Secretary highlighted the importance of prudent management of the public sector enterprises.

Strain on coffers

Dr. Jayasundera observed the plight of the Ceylon Electricity Board and the Ceylon Petroleum Corporation, as putting much strain on the Treasury.

He also noted that there would be some concern with regard to balance of payments, as it is expected to be higher than last year with the increase in imports in the aftermath of the tsunami.

The fiscal deficit in 2005 is estimated to increase due to expenditure on relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction work.

As pointed out by Dr. Jayasundera tsunami related expenditure is expected to be funded entirely through foreign donor assistance, the private sector and NGOs.

However, looking at the positive side, Dr. Jayasundera said that the stabilising of the exchange rate would reflect on the market by end April or May.

Revenue measures taken - the new VAT system and other taxes imposed - are expected to help consolidate the budget for the year.

Also, according to Dr. Jayasundera, the IMF's immediate budgetary support is expected, along with the debt relief offered by bilateral donors amounting close to US$ 250 - 300 million.

"The year can now be planned to reduce pressure on the exchange rate and borrowings," he said.

Year 2005 is expected to be a development driven one, which in turn is expected to portray the country's resilience and continue with the growth momentum.