Col R Hariharan
Highlights
·
Warm up for Presidential poll: President Rajapaksa appeared very confident of winning a third term as President when he met foreign correspondents in Colombo. Opposition parties failure to decide upon a common strategy to fight the election is proba
India reiterates support to Tamils: Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call for a political solution that addresses the aspirations of the Tamil community for equality, dignity, justice and self-respect within the framework of a united Sri Lanka after he met a Tamil National Alliance (TNA) delegation has probably disappointed Sri Lanka government.
· MoU
with China: During President Xi Jinping’s visit to Sri Lanka in
September two MoU will be signed for China to take over the maintenance of the
Chinese-aided Norochcholai power plan plagued by breakdowns.
Warm up for Presidential poll
President Mahinda Rajapaksa showed a lot of confidence in
getting re-elected to for a third term as president while answering questions
on forthcoming presidential election from foreign correspondents based in
Colombo when they met him at his residence. In the words of media he ‘shrugged
off his political rivals and appeared undeterred by the UN inquiry into
allegations of war crimes quietly gathering steam in Geneva.’
The President’s confidence comes from the continuing
leadership hiccups in the main opposition party – the United National Party
(UNP) where its president Ranil Wickremesinghe had to constantly fend off
challengers within the party. As a result a lot of contradictions had been
surfacing within the party leadership on some of the basic issues of
presidential poll – fielding a common opposition candidate, deciding on
possible UNP candidate for presidency, and clear stand on ethnic issues
including the Muslims.
Meanwhile,
former Chief Justice, Sarath N Silva threw a spanner in the works saying that
President Rajapaksa was not eligible to get elected for a third term though the
18th Amendment to the Constitution had removed the two-term limit on the
presidency. He argued that the 18th Amendment cannot be applied
retrospectively as President Rajapaksa was already serving his second term of
office when 18A was passed on September 9, 2010. He also said if Rajapaksa contests the poll
he would file an appeal in the Supreme Court. Justice Silva is a widely
respected jurist who has not only been Chief Justice but also Attorney General
and President of the Court of Appeal.
India’s support for Sri Lanka Tamils
A Tamil National Alliance (TNA) delegation of
parliament members visiting New Delhi had an hour long first-ever meeting with
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on September 23, 2014. The six-member delegation
was headed by TNA leader R Sampanthan .
According to Sri Lanka media Sampanthan’s
briefing focused on three different aspects - militarisation, colonisation and
the changing of the demography of the North. Some 1,600 acres had been taken
over from citizens there to accommodate military families. Some houses and
other buildings have been destroyed. Owners of these properties have filed
cases which were still pending. The TNA had brought these issues to the
attention of the President but no action had been taken. Sampanthan also
briefed him on the background to the TNA boycotting the parliamentary select
committee (PSC) and
Rajapaksa’s failure to fulfil his promise to India to
implement the 13th Amendment to the Sri Lankan constitution which called for devolving
autonomous powers to provinces benefiting Tamil minority.
After listening to them Modi is
reported to has advised the TNA to talk other political parties including those
of Muslims and plantation Tamils. Evidently the Prime Minister’s suggestion was
aimed at Tamils broadening their support base in Sri Lanka.
He is also reported to have
suggested that TNA have a direct dialogue with the government even if it is not
participating in the PSC. This is only a reiteration of Manmohan Singh
government’s advice.
According to official
statement issued from New Delhi “The Prime Minister stressed
the need for a political solution that addresses the aspirations of the Tamil
community for equality, dignity, justice and self-respect within the framework
of a united Sri Lanka. In this context, the Prime Minister urged all
stakeholders in Sri Lanka to engage constructively, in a spirit of partnership
and mutual accommodation, towards finding a political solution that builds upon
the 13th Amendment of the Sri Lankan Constitution.”
Prime Minister Modi’s clear
reiteration of India’s stand on implementation of the 13th Amendment probably
disappointed Sri Lanka government. Just as TNA delegation was visiting New
Delhi, Sri Lanka government had extended a red carpet welcome to Dr.
Subramanian Swamy who is chairman of the BJP strategic affairs committee. The
government was lulled into complacency after listening to the maverick
politician speaking in full support of President Rajapaksa.
Significantly, after the New
Delhi talks, the TNA delegation had detailed discussion with the Tamil Nadu BJP
president Ms Tamilisai and Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan. The BJP leaders
have assured the TNA that the BJP would see that justice was done to Tamils and
were confident the Modi government would fulfil their expectations.
Sri Lanka’s reaction to
TNA-Modi meeting lacked clarity. If the government holds direct talks with TNA
it would be negation of President Rajapaksa’s stand that deliberations on the
subject should take place in the PSC. The PSC was appointed to recommend
“measures to be taken to create a political environment, where all Sri Lankans
could live as one nation.” Opposition parties including the TNA have refused to
serve in the committee which at present 19 members from the ruling UPFA
coalition only. The term of the PSC has
already been extended once till December 21, 2014. It is doubtful whether any
breakthrough in the political impasse can be expected by then. With the
presidential poll in the air, President Rajapaksa is likely to stall the issue
till the elections are completed.
In the meanwhile, Sri
Lanka-India official talks to resolve the fishing dispute have failed after Sri
Lanka rejected an Indian proposal to allow Indian fishermen to enter Sri Lankan
waters for three days a week by entering into a Memorandum of Understanding
(MoU) between the two countries. India had proposed at the 2012 Joint Working
Committee meeting that Indian fishermen be allowed to fish in Sri Lankan waters for
three days a week and given a two-year grace period to switch from bottom
trawling to ordinary fishing.
MoU with China
Chinese will be signing two memoranda of
understanding with Sri Lanka on September 16, 2014 during President Xi
Jinping’s two-day visit to the island nation. They relate to China a providing
“technical cooperation for stable, efficient functioning of the Norochcholai
Coal Power Project.” The US$ 1.35 billion Norochcholai power plant built with
Chinese technical and financial assistance had become source of embarrassment
for them with repeated breakdowns.
Written on August 31, 2014
Courtesy: South Asia Security Trends, September 2014 issue
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