News

                      Palace in the making

The Sunday Leader succeeded in getting pictures of the ongoing
construction of a mega villa at Deniyaya which is currently at the centre
of a political controversy.  The owner of the estate is Tusitha Ranawaka,
a close associate of a VVIP politician in the country.

No Presidential Election

By our Political Editor

Unless President Mahinda Rajapaksa is willing to forego two years of his current term, there will be no presidential election at any stage next year in 2011.  Amidst widespread speculation that President Rajapaksa is poised to call a presidential election in 2011 either preceding or after a General Election 'The Sunday Leader' reliably learns Rajapaksa will not do so given that in the event he does and he wins he will be compelled to forego two years from his current term of six years.

Former Chief Justice Sarath N Silva in a Supreme Court judgment delivered on August 26th, 2005 in case number: S.C. (FR) 278/2005 stated: “Commencement of the term of office of the President, signifies the commencement of the exercise of the executive power of the people on the authority of the mandate received at the election. The mandate is based on the exercise of the franchise at the election if the President in terms of Article 3 read with Article 4(e) of the Constitution. Viewed from this perspective it is in accord with the basic premise of the Constitution that the term of office of the President should commence on the date of election.”

”Accordingly I hold that the provisions of Article 31 (3A)(d)(i) should be interpreted on the basis that President will hold office for the period of six years commencing on the date on which the result of the election is declared being in the present case 22^nd December 1999."

This unanimous judgment by a five-member Supreme Court bench headed by Chief Justice Sarath N Silva came in response to a case filed by the all Buddhist Monk party, the JHU or the Heritage Party to seek a determination from the court.

The Supreme Court ruled in August 2005 that the term of the then president, Chandrika Kumaratunga, must end in November that year, rather than in November 2006 as she had claimed. The ruling was made in the backdrop of a rather desperate attempt to find a way out of the political impasse in Colombo that had at the time produced a succession of unstable governments and stalled peace talks with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

Kumaratunga, who first won office in 1994, was desperate to hold on to the extensive executive powers of the presidency for as long as possible. Having served two six-year terms, she was barred by the constitution from seeking a third. She called the last presidential election early in 1999 and was publicly sworn into office in the same year. The following year, however, a second secret swearing-in ceremony took place, details of which were leaked to the press in late 2003.

The opposition United National Party (UNP) insisted that fresh elections must be held in 2005 and launched a campaign to force the president to hold them. After the JVP left the UPFA, the UNP refused to either join the government or form a government of its own. Only in 2004, Kumaratunga had used her executive powers to summarily dismiss the UNP-led government, even though it had a majority on the floor of parliament, and to call fresh parliamentary elections.

The Supreme Court case was brought by Omalpe Sobhitha, an MP with the Sinhala extremist Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU), but a great deal was riding on it for the ruling class as a whole. Significantly, Kumaratunga appointed all five Supreme Court judges who presided over the case. Then Chief Justice Sarath N Silva and four Supreme Court judges; Nihal Jayasinghe, N. K. Udalagama, N. E. Dissanayake and Gamini Amaratunga. Moreover, Chief Justice Sarath Nanda Silva had officiated over the second presidential swearing-in ceremony in 2000.

President Kumaratunga at the time argued that the left-over year from her first term should mean she could stay in power until late 2006.

She had also stressed that her term runs until the end of 2006 as she is entitled for 12 years from 1994, her first appointment to the post of executive president.

Nevertheless, the main opposition United National Party (UNP) argued that her second term, which began in December 1999 when she called a snap presidential election a year early in late 1999, ends in December 2005 and the election must be held by the end of 2005.

Legal argument revolved around the interpretation of article 31 (3A) (d1) of the constitution. As one political analyst put it, the legal luminaries who appeared on behalf of the president “based their arguments on a comma” to justify her extraordinary claim to effectively extend her second term from six to seven years. The Supreme Court ruling declared in part that there was “no basis whatever to shift the year of commencement of office to 2000 when the election was in the year 1999”.

But the political character of the court decision was made clear in the judgement itself. In the event of any legal ambiguity, it stated: “A construction that results in hardship, serious inconvenience, injustice, absurdity or anomaly or which leads to inconsistency or uncertainty and friction in the system which the statute purports to regulate has to be rejected and preference should be given to that construction which avoids such results.” Simply put, in this case, the stability of the state was at stake and its preservation had to override other considerations.

Kumaratunga’s own party, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), stood Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse as its presidential candidate in 2005.

Sarath Fonseka Pulling his Punches  

By Munza Mushtaq and Cassandra Mascarenhas

General confusion prevailed in government quarters as to whether former Army Commander Sarath Fonseka had accepted his new appointment as Secretary to the Ministry of Sports with even Sports Minister Gamini Lokuge expressing his lack of knowledge on the issue.

Lokuge told The Sunday Leader yesterday evening, “I don’t know whether he has accepted this because I am in Matara, call me on Monday and I will tell you.”

President’s spokesman Lucien Rajakarunanayake also expressed his total unawareness on the matter. "I honestly don't know," he said.

Fonseka is reported to have told close confidantes that he will not accept any position which was likely to be an insult to his stature. He had said it was better that he leaves the country in dignity rather than accept positions which discredit his standing.

Attempts to contact Fonseka failed as his mobile was continuously switched off over the weekend.

Government’s defence spokesman minister Keheliya Rambukwella however shrugged off mounting criticism over the controversial appointment.

Rambukwella told The Sunday Leader that the appointment of Fonseka was in no way an insult to him as this was the senior most position when it comes to public administration.

The defence spokesman maintained on Friday that the former Army Commander had already accepted the new appointment.

Rambukwella further reiterated that Fonseka is currently holding the highest position in the military as Chief of Defence Staff and now Secretary to a ministry which is the highest position in public administration.

“People who have no idea about the government administrative structure are making baseless comments. If it’s an insult as everyone says, why did nobody voice any protests when Navy Commander Wasantha Karannagoda was appointed as a ministry secretary,” he said.

Both the United National Party (UNP) and the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) criticized the government’s decision to appoint Fonseka as a Sports ministry secretary insisting it was an insult on the ex-commander.

UNP MP Lakshman Kiriella pointed out that while the government was seen promoting terrorists in the likes of Karuna Amman, individuals who led the movement against the rebels are made mere secretaries that too with no relevance to their subject.

 “He has not accepted it yet but we see this as an insult to a person who has conducted the war very successfully. Karuna Amman who actively participated in so many raids against the Sri Lankan army is now a cabinet minister while Sarath Fonseka is a secretary who in reality has to bow down to Karuna Amman,” Kiriella said.

“This is a real insult to him and I hope he refuses to take up this new appointment,” he added.

JVP Propaganda Secretary Vijitha Herath told The Sunday Leader that the new appointment was not a suitable position for Fonseka.

“The government is trying to insult all military commanders, for example Wasantha Karannagoda was also appointed as Secretary to the Highways and Road Development Ministry. We see this as a very unhealthy development,” he added.  

Meanwhile, members of the general public too expressed their surprise over the new appointment highlighting that the new position did not give due recognition to Fonseka.

Factory Worker Nimal Istanil was of the view that the position of Secretary to the Sports Ministry was not a suitable job for the former Army Commander. “How can he be demoted in this manner, they can’t expect him to take orders from someone else? The job is not good enough for him; he should be given a better post, Istanil said.

J.V.P. Karunatunga, a three-wheel driver questioned the basis on which the appointment was made. “General Sarath Fonseka was an army commander, he has nothing to do with sports but in this country with all its politics, it does not seem to matter if the person is suitable for the job or not.”

Cash strapped government on begging spree

By Munza Mushtaq

Suffering from a massive financial debacle, the cash-strapped Mahinda Rajapaksa government is on an international begging spree in an effort to collect more aid to upkeep some 250,000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) in the north.

Despite receiving a sum of $ 225 million in foreign aid so far, the government appears to be suffering from a massive financial shortfall and has thus made a fresh appeal to the international community and the Sri Lankan expatriates seeking urgent help to maintain the IDPs’ day to day maintenance costs.

The fresh attempt comes following a stern warning issued by Britain, one of the largest aid providers who expressed disappointment in the manner the government was handling the displaced and even threatened to withdraw funding if no significant progress is seen soon.

“The ultimatum issued by British Development Minister Mike Foster has not gone down well with the government and it has thrown them into panic mode,” sources told The Sunday Leader yesterday.

Meanwhile, in a appeal targeted at the Sri Lankan expatriates living in Britain, the Sri Lankan High Commission in the UK said, “While the Government of Sri Lanka is appealing to the international community for financial and material support, the Sri Lanka High Commission in London wishes to make a similar appeal to the Sri Lankan diaspora living in London for appropriate contribution to this noble cause. This is a unique opportunity to express your solidarity with the needy people and reinforce your patriotism and commitment to your motherland.”

The High Commission will only be accepting cash donations citing purposes of convenience and no material donations are currently being accepted.   Continuous attempts made by The Sunday Leader to contact Human Rights and Disaster Management Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe proved futile. Human Rights Ministry Secretary Rajiva Wijesinha was also not available for comment, at the time this edition went to press.

Meanwhile, the government raised its defence expenditure by another 20 percent on Thursday.

Parliament approved an additional Rs. Rs. 33 billion to be utilised for payment of salaries, to beef up former LTTE controlled areas and to pay compensation to those who lost their lives during the war.

Blake urges for political settlement and freedom of movement

The United States on Friday underscored the importance of a political reconciliation in Sri Lanka while also urging the government to allow thousands of Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) to move freely around the country.

Assistant Secretary of State for South and Central Asian Affairs Robert Blake told a meeting at the State Department, “The U.S. has stressed to the government that to achieve a lasting peace, it must promote justice and political reconciliation for all parties and dialogue with all parties, including Tamils inside and outside Sri Lanka, on new mechanisms for devolving power.”  

During a meeting with 16 Sri Lankan-American community representatives, including representatives of U.S.-based Sri Lankan-American cultural and media organizations, Blake also emphasised on the need for the Sri Lankan government to improve human rights and accountability, a statement issued by the US State Department said.   

Assistant Secretary Blake recommended that Sri Lankan Americans seek opportunities to channel their resources and expertise toward supporting national reconciliation and the reconstruction of Sri Lanka.

Low voter turnout at Southern polls

By Nirmala Kannangara and Cassandra Mascarenhas

Low voter turnout was witnessed at yesterday’s Southern Provincial Council Election along with several election related violations being reported by opposition parties and independent election observers.

The Department of Elections said approximately 65% had cast their vote in Galle, while the voter turnout in Matara and Hambantota districts was around 60% to 65% in each district,

UNP General Secretary Tissa Attanayake charged that yesterday’s election was one of the worst in the recent past due to a high scale of intimidation and other form of threatening reported from the three districts specially during the run-up to the polls.

Meanwhile UNP candidate and Chief Organizer for Baddegama, Ananda Lanerolle alleged that UPFA candidate Sajin Vass Gunawardena had visited estates and distributed gifts and even cash to workers.

JVP sources said that one of their party supporters was assaulted by a group of UPFA supporters at Kimbulgoda, Matara and he was admitted to Akuressa hospital yesterday afternoon.

Meanwhile, Deputy Elections Commissioner W.P. Sumanasiri said that several complaints of voters not being able to cast their vote because they did not have an Identity Card were sorted out with immediate intervention.

The Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) reported 29 election violations and urged for the need to immediately implement the 17^th Amendment which will make way for the setting up of an independent Election and Police Commissions without which the country will never witness a free and fair election.

National Coordinator CMEV Attorney at law Tusitha Siriwardena told The Sunday Leader that at end of voting, 29 incidents were reported which included eight major incidents.

“In polling booths in Galle and Matara, ruling party supporters have distributed propaganda leaflets, while in Matara a JVP supporter was assaulted by two UPFA supporters,” he said.

CAFFE Spokesperson Keerthi Tennakoon said incidents have been reported from Akuressa, Dickwella, Devinuwara, Lunugamvehera and Yakkalamulla where ruling party members have assaulted opposition party supporters.

Also vehicle convoys belonging to UNP and UPFA were spotted near polling booths in Matara and Galle.

PAFFREL Executive Director Rohana Hettiarachchi said out of the 23 complaints received, a majority of them were propaganda related violations.

Meanwhile, Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said that yesterday’s election was held in a free and fair manner.

Colombo ignores Alston?  

Repeated requests from UN special rapporteur on arbitrary and extra-judicial killings, Philip Alston to visit Sri Lanka has reportedly been greeted with silent treatment, it is learnt.

The Sunday Leader learns that following the telecasting of the controversial Channel 4 video footage which showed a man in Sri Lankan military uniform executing suspected Tamil civilians, Alston had requested to visit the country to discuss the clip and to carry out independent verifications on the authenticity of the video, but has not received either a positive or negative response from the government.

Highly placed sources said Alston had requested to visit Sri Lanka especially following allegations that a considerable number of killings had taken place during the final months of the war which officially ended in mid May this year.

“It appears that the government is not interested, hence the silent treatment,” sources said.

However, a Foreign Ministry official denied any such requests being made to Colombo via Alston’s office.

The UN rapporteur last month said none of the studies carried out by Sri Lanka on the Channel 4 video appeared to be independent because at least three of the four persons involved in the investigations had government links. (MM)

Elections Commissioner over-rules police transfer 

By Nirmala Kannangara 

Elections Commissioner Dayananda Dissanayake has cancelled the transfer of  Weligama Police Head Quarters Inspector (HQI) Mahesh Kumarasinghe who was issued a transfer order over a musical show of a UPFA candidate.

Kumarasinghe was transferred to a police station in the Galle District last week after he refused to give permission to Galle District UPFA candidate Hemal Gunasekera to continue a musical show after 10 p.m. early last week.

 “Since this was against the noise pollution regulation, I did not allow them to carry on the show and as a result I was transferred to a Galle police station the very next day for carrying out an impartial job,” Kumarasinghe told The Sunday Leader.

According to Kumarasinghe the musical show organisers had even pelted stones on the police station around 11 p.m. the same night injuring onlookers and police officers.

However the transfer was cancelled by the Elections Commissioner after the issue was brought to his notice.

 “Acting on election guidelines the Elections Commissioner reinstated me at the same police station,” Kumarasinghe said.  

Government harassing Pillayan’s advisor  

By Munza Mushtaq  

Senior Advisor to Eastern Province Chief Minister Dr. K. Vigneswaran is allegedly being penalised by a highly placed government official for failing to tow the government’s viewpoint.

Sources said that the official has already stopped issuing the monthly allowance to Vigneswaran and his security has also been pulled out.

“Continuous appeals to Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa and even to the police have fallen on deaf ears,” sources said.

Meanwhile, in a manner to  intimidate, several white vans had been circling around his office and residence soon after a police complaint was lodged by the senior advisor.

“But no amount of appeals have helped so far,” sources said.

It is learnt that the excuse given for the abrupt stop in monthly payments has been that the appointment of Dr. Vigneswaran was not carried out in the proper manner, however the authorities had been paying him for a period of almost one year before abruptly stopping the pay recently.

Sources said that the penalising commenced after Eastern Province Chief Minister Sivanesathurai Chandrakanthan alias Pillayan opposed the Local Authorities Special Provision Bill because it took away certain powers from the provincial councils.

“They assume that Pillayan made the decision based on Vigneswaran’s recommendations,” sources said.

EU to go ahead with processing GSP+ despite govt. stance

By Mandana Ismail Abeywickrema 

The EU is to continue processing the Generalized System of Preference Plus (GSP+) for Sri Lanka and release its final report within the course of the month regardless of the government’s decision not to respond to concerns raised by the EU.

EU Commissioner for Sri Lanka, Bernard Savage said the process was ongoing regardless of the Sri Lankan government’s decision not to respond to the interim report released by the EU on alleged violation of key conventions by the country. He said once the final report was released by the end of the month, the EU Commission would make necessary recommendations to be adhered to in offering the facility to Sri Lanka.

The final outcome on whether Sri Lanka would receive the GSP+ facility would be known in about two months, Savage said.

Meanwhile, addressing the media on Monday (5), Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama said Sri Lanka was confident of receiving the GSP+ facility by January next year.

However, when asked if the EU had given any positive response to the Sri Lankan government with regard to the renewal of the GSP+ facility, Savage said, “I do not know as to what would have prompted the Foreign Minister to make such a comment.”

“We regret that there is no formal cooperation from the Sri Lankan government with regard to renewing the GSP+ facility,” he added.

Ambassador to Belgium, Luxembourg and the EU, Ravinatha Aryasinha last week said that the Sri Lankan government would continue to engage on the issues of concern with the European Commission although there would not be any formal response to the EU interim report.

Senior Presidential Advisor Basil Rajapaksa who was in Brussels last week said he did not lobby for the renewal of the GSP+ facility for the country during his visit.

However, he said the GSP+ and the issue about the IDPs were the main issues discussed during his meetings with senior representatives of the EU Commission.

“We discussed about the GSP+ and the IDPs, but the four member ministerial committee appointed by the President will address the issues related to the renewal of the GSP+,” he said.

Also, last week, President of the European Parliament delegation for relations with South Asia, Jean Lambert had reportedly said the protracted detention of IDPs is disproportionate and conflicts with key provisions of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).

Displaced trapped between military and monsoon — Amnesty 

A quarter of a million Sri Lankans now being held in de facto detention camps are facing a humanitarian disaster as monsoon rains threaten to flood camps, Amnesty International said last week.

Months after the government of Sri Lanka set up camps in Vavuniya District in the north-east of the country following the end of the conflict there, the authorities are still failing to deliver basic services.

Camps remain overcrowded and lack basic sanitation facilities and heavy rains in September saw rivers of water cascading through tents with camp residents wading through overflowing sewage.

“People living in these camps are desperate to leave. The government must ensure that the displaced are treated with dignity. They have a right to protection and must be consulted on whether they wish to return to their homes or resettle,” said Yolanda Foster, Amnesty International’s Sri Lanka expert, who is in contact with relatives of people inside the camp.

 “The provision of protection, assistance and return is not an act of charity but a basic right,” said Foster.

A recent escapee from Chettikulam camp told Amnesty International how some women had to give birth in front of strangers without privacy.

“Medical staff are only available in the camps 9 to 5,” the escapee said, “people start queuing for medical assistance from early morning...how can you expect a lady who is pregnant to stand in a queue for hours? If the war has ended why doesn’t the government let these people out?”

 Amnesty International has also received reports that the military is blocking release attempts by the civilian administration.

 Since the war ended in May 2009, thousands of people detained in camps have been subjected to ‘screening’ processes by the security forces.

 While screening processes need to be followed to ensure that people are not members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) they should follow proper procedures and not be used as an excuse for collective punishment.

 There are separate detention facilities for approximately 10,000 ex-LTTE combatants.

 The government  has widely publicised recent releases from the camps yet Amnesty has received reports that many are simply transfers to  other camps where the displaced may be subjected to rescreening by local authorities.

Maharagama UC in financial crisis  

The Maharagama Urban Council (MUC) is currently suffering from a massive financial crisis due to alleged mismanagement of council funds.

MUC Deputy Chairman Senaka Kalubowila alleged that mismanagement of council funds by Chairperson Kanthi Kodikara over the past few months has resulted in the council having to obtain another additional Rs.30 million.

“The budgetary allocations for 2009 ended in June and the MUC requested for an additional Rs.30 million but this too has been utilised for unknown purposes,” Kalubowila alleged.

According to Kalubowila, on Monday a contractor had assaulted the Council’s Accountant for issuing a cheque which had bounced due to shortage of money in the MUC’s bank account.

“This could not be considered lightly as this is the second time within one month that contractors have assaulted MUC employees for not releasing their payments. Although we have raised our concern on how public funds are used for personal matters by the Chairperson, authorities have so far failed to take any action on our complaints,” Kalubowila claimed.

Minister calls for detailed report on Friday’s blackout

Power and Energy Minister John Seneviratne has called for a meeting with Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB) officials on Monday to discuss the all island black out on Friday to take steps to prevent such a situation from occurring in future.

Seneviratne said that he had requested for a detailed report from the CEB in relation to Friday’s black out and also remedial measures to be taken to prevent it from happening in future.

He said the power failure on Friday was due to a break down in the cable that carried power from the Kolonnawa sub station to the Kelanitissa generation complex. However, the full restoration of the power supply had taken many hours due to the tripping of the circuit once the cable was restored. (MIA)

Police turn a blind eye to election violence

By Nirmala Kannangara 

Saturday’s Southern Provincial Council election shattered the momentary lull enjoyed during elections held in the recent past, due to excessive violation of the election laws, including violence, misuse of public property and the blatant disregard of election regulations. 

The ‘eventful’ run up to yesterday’s election which covered the districts of Hambantota, Galle and Matara was marred by violation after violation resulting in independent election monitors criticising the Department of Elections and the police for their failure to take stringent action against the culprits, who have most often been either members or supporters of the government.

The Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CAFFE) and People’s Action for Free and Fair Elections (PAFFREL) alleged the government’s outright involvement in election violence in the Southern Province and accused the police of turning a blind eye to the many culprits who go scot free after committing major violations.

The most number of incidents

According to PAFFREL Executive Director Rohana Hettiarachchi, the most number of incidents reported were from the Hambantota District, while Galle and Matara too had recorded many major incidents including intimidation of opposition party supporters by UPFA members, threatening, assault and the use of firearms by UPFA party supporters to intimidate opposition supporters and candidates.

 “Allegations have been levelled against the ruling party, the police and the Elections Department for the increasing election violence and the violation of election laws in the Southern Province. This appears to be the worst ever election compared to the previous provincial council elections held in recent times,” Hettiarachchi told The Sunday Leader.

 “The police and the Election Department’s failure to take necessary action against ruling party members who have openly violated election laws over the past few weeks compelled us to go before the Supreme Court. The Attorney General who appeared on behalf of the Inspector General of Police agreed to take immediate action against the law breakers irrespective of party politics. However we are yet to hear or see any development on this assurance,” he said.

Failure to implement the Law

He blamed the Election Department for its failure to apply the Election Law impartially on all contesting parties and attributed the deteriorating situation to this lapse on the part of the Elections Department.

“This is not the first time the Elections Commissioner failed to take action against the political parties that violated the election regulations. Unless severe action is taken against the parties and individuals concerned we will never be able to see a free and fair election in this country,” claimed Hettiarachchi.

Spokesman for the Campaign for Free and Fair Elections (CAFFE), Keerthi Tennakoon blamed the ruling UPFA party as the culprits behind the increased cases of violence reported particularly from the Hambantota District. He claimed that without government backing, there was no possibility for such large scale violations and violent incidents to occur.

 By Thursday morning, CAFFE had received 236 complaints of election related violence.

JVP offices burnt

On October 5th alone, seven JVP party offices were burnt in Hambantota, which is a JVP stronghold while their supporters have come under continuous intimidation from groups in the district.

“Without government backing, all these incidents could not have happened in one day. The failure of the police to arrest the offenders even after complaints had been lodged clearly show that even the law enforcement officers are partial towards certain political parties when it comes to executing their duties,” he noted.

Tennakoon also expressed disappointment over the failure of the authorities to remove election posters, banners and hoardings of UPFA candidates while promptly removing banners and hoardings of opposition party candidates.

 “Although the candidates are not allowed to display posters in places other than party offices UPFA candidates were allowed to display their posters even on public buildings. It appears, these restrictions do not apply to ruling party candidates. However opposition party candidates have been prohibited from displaying their banners, etc,” Tennakoon said. 

Turning a blind eye

He also accused the Road Development Authority (RDA) of turning a blind eye to violations committed by UPFA members such as painting party symbols on roads in Hambantota. He also said that the RDA was quick to institute legal action against the JVP last month for painting their party symbol on the same road just a few yards away from the UPFA symbols.

“The government departments too are now politicised and although the government talks much about holding a free and fair election, rampant misuse of public property during the southern election clearly shows what sort of a free and fair election this would be,” Tennakoon said.

Meanwhile the All Ceylon Transport Workers’ Union (ACTWU) General Secretary Sepala Liyanage told The Sunday Leader that Sri Lanka Transport Board (SLTB) buses have been sent to the south for election campaign work and added that this would cost the SLTB millions of rupees.

“These buses designated for public use have been sent for election propaganda work,” Liyanage said.

Workers attached to many other government departments  and agencies including the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB), Ceylon Petroleum Corporation (CPC) and even teachers attached to government schools in some parts of the country have been granted special paid leave to carry out government propaganda in the south.

It has also been alleged that vehicles of the National Lotteries Board (NLB) have been sent to Matara for its Working Director H.G. Sirisena’s son’s election campaign.

“This is public money wasted and even though we have brought the misuse of public property to the attention of those responsible, no action has been taken to rectify this,” sources said.

Workshop for women writers  

Applications are invited from amateur female writers in Sinhala, Tamil and English between the ages of 18 and 35 years, to participate in a unique writers’ workshop which will be conducted free of charge in November at the Sri Lanka Foundation Institute ( SLFI), Colombo 7. 

Participants at the workshop will be able to benefit from a series of fascinating in-depth lectures on a variety of subjects, delivered by eminent persons engaged in the fields of writing novels, short stories, and poetry, as well as writing for cinema, television, radio, stage plays and translations. 

If you are interested in participating in this workshop for women writers, you are requested to send us an application with the following details:

1. Name

2. Age

3. Address

4. Photocopy of your ID

5. A short creative work by you ( please certify that it is your own work), before October 20, to:  

Sthree Shankthi Productions,

198/4, Siriwimal Uyana, Nawala

Mannar District to be free of mines by October 15

By Raisa Wickrematunge 

The Horizon Group, a Pune-based NGO, is confident of completing demining operations in Mannar by October 15.

Project Manager Colonel P.M Neena said that the teams working in Mannar had recovered 3077 anti personal mines, 1756 Unexploded Ordnances (UXOs) 53,764 rounds of small arms and ammunition and six other weapons.

The Horizon team is concentrating their operations in the Rice Bowl and Giant Tank area in Mannar.

Neena said that the unofficial deadline for the operations had been set by Chairman of the Presidential Task Force Basil Rajapaksa. He added that he was confident that Horizon would clear the areas under their purview by the stipulated date.  Horizon has four teams carrying out demining operations in Sri Lanka.  Two of these were originally put to work in Mannar. The other two were at work in Batticaloa and Vavuniya.

 However Neena said that the team in Batticaloa had cleared the area successfully, and had been re-deployed to the Mannar District. He said the top priority was the clearing of the Mannar District as the government hoped to commence resettlement in the area on October 15.

Neena added that Horizon was one of the first INGOs to employ women as deminers, and added that they had “proved their worth even ahead of the men in this field.”

Neena has said that Horizon is aiming to at least clear the land needed for immediate use. If there are areas which still need to be cleared when resettlement begins, Mine Risk Education Teams (MRETs) will be used to educate returning villagers.

Institutions not audited by Aud. Gen. outside scope of COPE

By Mandana Ismail Abeywickrema 

The parliamentary Committee on Public Enterprises (COPE) says the Treasury needs to formulate a more effective method to monitor the functions and finances of institutions established with public funds but registered as private companies, as they did not come under the purview of the parliament.

COPE Chairman, Minister W.D.J. Seneviratne said COPE did not have the mandate under the Standing Orders and the Constitution to monitor companies established with public funds and registered as private companies.

Seneviratne said COPE could only monitor the functions of institutions that are audited by the Auditor General.

“The law does not provide for the Auditor General to audit companies registered as private institutions even if they are established with public funds,” he said.

Seneviratne said the monitoring of such institutions was up to the Treasury.

However, he added that given the concerns raised with regard to the operation of such institutions, the Treasury needed to formulate an effective method to monitor them.

Recent observations made by the Attorney General stated that COPE, which investigates the accounts and other undertakings of public institutions, could not inquire into the accounts and activities of institutions like Mihin Lanka, SriLankan Airlines, Maga Neguma, Lanka Logistics, Airport and Aviation Company, Lanka Transformers Limited, etc. that have been established with public funds.

Deniyaya clash: Police refuse to register complaint  

By Raisa Wickrematunge 

Police have refused to register a complaint by the United National Party over last week’s Deniyaya incident where some supporters of the United People’s Freedom Alliance (UPFA) allegedly attacked several opposition parliamentarians and their vehicles.

UNP General Secretary Tissa Attanayake and Parliamentarian Ravi Karunanayake were continuously turned away from several police stations when they went to lodge a complaint over the incident.

“The police in Deniyaya refused to let us lodge a complaint about the incident, made excuses and told us to go to the Matara police,” UNP MP Ravi Karunanayake said.

Karunanayake said that they had then attempted to lodge a complaint in Matara but this too had also been refused. He added that Attanayake had finally been successful in lodging an entry at Police Headquarters in Colombo with some difficulty as the police had queried as to why a complaint had not been lodged in Deniyaya.

Karunanayake said that the UNP candidates were prevented from proceeding on a road which was constructed using Maga Naguma funds. “This road is public property,” Karunanayake said and queried as to why they were prevented from using that road.  Meanwhile a police entry has been lodged alleging that the UNP candidates had trespassed on the road and caused a public disturbance in Deniyaya.

 “We are going before the general public. Now they will know that a palace is being built in Deniyaya. Earlier, efforts were being made to suppress this information,” he said.

It was alleged that the clash occurred because the UPFA members did not want opposition candidates to know that the road was being developed in conjunction with the VVIP palace.