Sri Lankan President is haunted by war excesses against the Tamils
Wednesday, 8 December 2010
Zaglul Ahmed Chowdhury
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse is haunted by serious allegations of war excesses -- particularly during the closing phase of the civil war against the Tamil rebels -- even as he has just been sworn in as the President of the island state for a second successive term. The President, who won the second term with a resounding majority in the presidential elections earlier in the year, faces allegations of violations of the human rights from different quarters both at home and abroad. Mahinda Rajapakse’s image has been largely tainted by such allegations and he remains controversial for all these accusations despite emerging much stronger after his successful finale of the civil war against the rebels.
The Sri Lankan President was recently in Britain and his itinerary included a speech at the prestigious Oxford Students Union. But he had to call off the programme following demonstrations by the Tamils and their sympathisers against the President, accusing him of gross human rights violations. They even chanted slogans for his trial for the alleged “crime against civil population” in Sri Lanka. However, the President and the Colombo government have denied such charges as over-blown and being spread by the interested quarters.
Sri Lanka was long shattered by a civil war that lasted for nearly three decades centring on the demands of the minority Tamils, living mostly in the northern region of the country. The Tamils, constituting about 18 per cent of the total population of the country, complained religious and ethnic discrimination against the majority Sinhala community. The long-drawn civil war saw the rebels engaged in a fierce conflict against the Colombo government, which was hell-bent on crushing the insurgency. The fortune swung from one side to the other during the three decades of the war as the ultimate outcome hung in the balance. Finally, the government troops gained the upper-hand following a sting of successes in the battlefront. The insurgent leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran, along with his key associates, was killed and the rebellion was crushed. President Rajapakse and the army chief Gen. Sarath Fonseka led the war in political and military fields respectively and both are credited with the extraordinary achievement in the success of the government side.
But rather paradoxically, these two key figures of the victory in the war fell apart and to the extent that Gen. Fonseka challenged the president in the last presidential polls, which Rajapakse won. The bitterness caused by the rivalry continued and the former army chief finally landed in jail. A military court found him guilty of several charges brought by the government and he was stripped of his military rank and other facilities -- the decisions were later approved by the president. Gen Fonseka, who however won a parliamentary seat from Colombo later, called all these action as “political vendetta”. He also accused the president of committing excessive repression on the Tamil insurgents and the civilian population during the last days of the war. Some human rights bodies alleged that Prabhakaran and his close aides were killed mercilessly by the troops although they sought clemency. However, this allegation could not be confirmed because of allegations and counter-allegations.
Basking in the glory of the hard-earned ‘victory’ in the civil war, Mahinda Rajapakse widened his area of influence as he brought in his close relations like brothers in key positions of Speaker of parliament and defence secretary of the government. He also moved to change the constitution allowing more than two terms for presidency. The existing provisions of the constitution permit only two terms, like the American one.
Notwithstanding his popularity mainly among the Sinhalese community, Mahinda Rajapakse finds himself increasingly embroiled in controversies because of all these acts as opposition at home accuses him of having lust for power and seeking to eliminate democratic values through various tactics. The president, who appears more confident, denies such accusations.
But the rank of his critics has swelled as he patently sought to consolidate power and many said he was planning a long-term scheme to remain at the helm of affairs with the help of his close people. He and his supporters said all are being done as per the provisions of the constitution and normal practice.
But the fact remains that the Sri Lankan president, despite being successful in the war and again winning comfortably the elections -- both presidential and parliamentary -- remains mired in allegations of excesses committed during the last phase of the war when many civilians were reportedly killed by the soldiers. Later, many Tamils, who were confined in camps, were also subjected to inhuman treatment, according to human rights watchdog bodies. The United Nations and several other international agencies also blamed the government of carrying out oppressive measures against the Tamil civilian population as well along with the rebels. An angry Rajapakse turned a Nelson’s eye to such allegations and seemed to be coming down heavily against the critics. Sri Lanka is a bad country for the media persons because of apparent lack of freedom and insecurity.
The south Asian nation, which made impressive progress in the socio-cultural areas, despite the long civil war, with its remarkable rate of literacy, clearly needs to be more tolerant as society and the democratic country should be more accommodative of the views of the opposition and the minorities. President Rajapakse, whose success in the war is unquestionable, is haunted by allegations of repression and he needs to shed this image by becoming more humane and democratic in attitude and policies. The Colombo government should also impartially investigate into the wartime human rights violations to improve its image.
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zaglulbss@yahoo.com
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse is haunted by serious allegations of war excesses -- particularly during the closing phase of the civil war against the Tamil rebels -- even as he has just been sworn in as the President of the island state for a second successive term. The President, who won the second term with a resounding majority in the presidential elections earlier in the year, faces allegations of violations of the human rights from different quarters both at home and abroad. Mahinda Rajapakse’s image has been largely tainted by such allegations and he remains controversial for all these accusations despite emerging much stronger after his successful finale of the civil war against the rebels.
The Sri Lankan President was recently in Britain and his itinerary included a speech at the prestigious Oxford Students Union. But he had to call off the programme following demonstrations by the Tamils and their sympathisers against the President, accusing him of gross human rights violations. They even chanted slogans for his trial for the alleged “crime against civil population” in Sri Lanka. However, the President and the Colombo government have denied such charges as over-blown and being spread by the interested quarters.
Sri Lanka was long shattered by a civil war that lasted for nearly three decades centring on the demands of the minority Tamils, living mostly in the northern region of the country. The Tamils, constituting about 18 per cent of the total population of the country, complained religious and ethnic discrimination against the majority Sinhala community. The long-drawn civil war saw the rebels engaged in a fierce conflict against the Colombo government, which was hell-bent on crushing the insurgency. The fortune swung from one side to the other during the three decades of the war as the ultimate outcome hung in the balance. Finally, the government troops gained the upper-hand following a sting of successes in the battlefront. The insurgent leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran, along with his key associates, was killed and the rebellion was crushed. President Rajapakse and the army chief Gen. Sarath Fonseka led the war in political and military fields respectively and both are credited with the extraordinary achievement in the success of the government side.
But rather paradoxically, these two key figures of the victory in the war fell apart and to the extent that Gen. Fonseka challenged the president in the last presidential polls, which Rajapakse won. The bitterness caused by the rivalry continued and the former army chief finally landed in jail. A military court found him guilty of several charges brought by the government and he was stripped of his military rank and other facilities -- the decisions were later approved by the president. Gen Fonseka, who however won a parliamentary seat from Colombo later, called all these action as “political vendetta”. He also accused the president of committing excessive repression on the Tamil insurgents and the civilian population during the last days of the war. Some human rights bodies alleged that Prabhakaran and his close aides were killed mercilessly by the troops although they sought clemency. However, this allegation could not be confirmed because of allegations and counter-allegations.
Basking in the glory of the hard-earned ‘victory’ in the civil war, Mahinda Rajapakse widened his area of influence as he brought in his close relations like brothers in key positions of Speaker of parliament and defence secretary of the government. He also moved to change the constitution allowing more than two terms for presidency. The existing provisions of the constitution permit only two terms, like the American one.
Notwithstanding his popularity mainly among the Sinhalese community, Mahinda Rajapakse finds himself increasingly embroiled in controversies because of all these acts as opposition at home accuses him of having lust for power and seeking to eliminate democratic values through various tactics. The president, who appears more confident, denies such accusations.
But the rank of his critics has swelled as he patently sought to consolidate power and many said he was planning a long-term scheme to remain at the helm of affairs with the help of his close people. He and his supporters said all are being done as per the provisions of the constitution and normal practice.
But the fact remains that the Sri Lankan president, despite being successful in the war and again winning comfortably the elections -- both presidential and parliamentary -- remains mired in allegations of excesses committed during the last phase of the war when many civilians were reportedly killed by the soldiers. Later, many Tamils, who were confined in camps, were also subjected to inhuman treatment, according to human rights watchdog bodies. The United Nations and several other international agencies also blamed the government of carrying out oppressive measures against the Tamil civilian population as well along with the rebels. An angry Rajapakse turned a Nelson’s eye to such allegations and seemed to be coming down heavily against the critics. Sri Lanka is a bad country for the media persons because of apparent lack of freedom and insecurity.
The south Asian nation, which made impressive progress in the socio-cultural areas, despite the long civil war, with its remarkable rate of literacy, clearly needs to be more tolerant as society and the democratic country should be more accommodative of the views of the opposition and the minorities. President Rajapakse, whose success in the war is unquestionable, is haunted by allegations of repression and he needs to shed this image by becoming more humane and democratic in attitude and policies. The Colombo government should also impartially investigate into the wartime human rights violations to improve its image.
.....................................
zaglulbss@yahoo.com