Tamil Nadu Govt.’s duplicity in illegal fishing exposed

Tamil Nadu Govt.’s duplicity in illegal fishing exposed

By Steve Creech Sunday Times 16-03-2025

The JVP/NPP government’s recent forthright support for the rights of small-scale fishermen and the defence of Sri Lankan maritime sovereignty off the northwest and northern coast (Opinion, March 9, 2025) will have come as no surprise to anyone who has followed this issue since the end of the civil conflict in 2009.

In 2013, the JVP’s Vijitha Herath was the first Sri Lankan politician to raise the issue in Parliament. The reprehensible silence on the issue by Sri Lankan Tamil politicians is in sharp contrast to the concerns expressed by Herath, foreign affairs minister in the present government. The self-same politicians supposedly represent the interests of northern Sri Lankan Tamil fishermen. Then, the collective silence of Sri Lankan Tamil politicians stemmed from their desire not to rock Chief Minister J. Jayalalitha’s boat; hence, they received political support in their quest for the rights of the Tamil people and demands for Tamil Eelam.

One of the Tamil Nadu trawlers taken into custody by the Sri Lanka Navy while it was engaging in illegal fishing in Sri Lanka's waters

A decade later, House Leader Bimal Ratnayake clearly has fewer qualms—and obviously no vested interests—when it comes to rocking Tamil Nadu’s boat on this issue.

Rathnayake’s recent statement is a timely and honest move, in keeping with the first six months of the NPP government’s tenure. Let’s call a spade a spade, shall we? The origins of this seemingly intractable issue lie in Tamil Nadu and nowhere else.

Coastal fisheries is a devolved subject under the Indian Constitution. The right and the responsibility to manage, regulate, conserve and develop coastal fisheries reside exclusively with the state government of Tamil Nadu. The central government in New Delhi can express concern, but only in extreme cases can it issue an advisory or, if there is a breakdown in constitutional machinery, invoke Article 356 of the Constitution.

The central government’s power to investigate the actions of Tamil Nadu public servants is restricted to instances where either the High Court or Supreme Court in New Delhi issues a direction or if Chief Minister M.K. Stalin himself specifically consents to an investigation of the state government’s failure to take appropriate measures to end illegal fishing by Tamil Nadu trawlers in Sri Lankan waters.

Until Chief Minister Stalin makes a call to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, there is little that the Indian Prime Minister can do to resolve this issue in the bilateral interests of India and Sri Lanka.

What can Tamil Nadu do to resolve this apparently unsolvable issue? A quick scan of the Tamil Nadu Marine Fishing Regulation Act, No. 8 of 1983 suggests that there are three simple legal steps that Chief Minister Stalin can take, which would collectively resolve as much as 90% of this issue overnight. Chapter 1, Section 3 (g) of the Act sets limits on the overall length (8 m – 15 m) and engine capacity (15 hp to 120 hp) of mechanised boats fishing in Tamil Nadu waters. Mechanised boats arrested by the Sri Lanka Navy have gotten noticeably bigger and, according to navy sources, considerably more powerful over the last ten years. The first step the Chief Minister can take is to cancel the licences of all mechanised boats measuring more than 15 m or having an engine with a capacity of 120 hp. Box 1 ticked, move on.

Chapter 2, Section 2(3), and the schedule attached state that mechanised fishing vessels shall leave their notified place of anchoring only after 5 am and shall report back at the notified place of anchoring not later than 9 pm. As such, mechanised fishing vessels shall remain at the notified place, anchoring till 5am the following day. The Chief Minister’s second task is to enforce time-bound restrictions on mechanised vessels under the Act, which restricts fishing to daytime hours between 5 am and 9 pm.

There can be little doubt that this temporal regulation was introduced in 1983 to prevent conflicts developing between small-scale fishermen and mechanised fishing vessels. The former fish passively at night, while the latter were prescribed to fish actively during the day. Forty years later, it is still not too late to enforce this law.

The Chief Minister’s third and final step is to instruct the Indian Coastguard to arrest any mechanised vessel that engages in fishing within three nautical miles of the shore. Chapter 2 Section 5 (2) of the Act proscribed mechanised boats from fishing within three nautical miles of the shore. The enforcement of this regulation would have little impact on the issue in Sri Lankan waters, but it would greatly assist small-scale fishermen and fishworkers to recover their livelihoods and rebuild fish stocks in Tamil Nadu.

So, three simple steps for the Chief Minister to take in the coming week—all within the provisions of existing regulations for fisheries management in Tamil Nadu—that would immediately reduce illegal fishing by Tamil Nadu trawlers in Sri Lankan waters. The Sri Lankan Navy has sufficient capacity to eliminate the issue thereafter. As the Leader of the House recently made clear, the origins of this issue reside in Tamil Nadu. The resolution of this issue is to be found there too.

(Steve Creech is a freelance fisheries consultant whose specialities include Tamil Nadu trawlers’s fishing activities)🔺

Lankan team going to US for tariff talks

Lankan team going to US for tariff talks

A Sri Lanka delegation that will travel to the United States next month plans to discuss with the US Trade Office how it can avoid reciprocal tariffs that will come into effect from April 2, Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath said.

He said Sri Lanka would be unable to bear such tariffs on exports when the country’s economic situation remained volatile.

Last year, the US imported from Sri Lanka goods valued at US$3 billion, with more than 70% of the products from the garment sector going to the United States, making that country one of Sri Lanka’s largest trading partners.

However, last month industry analysts said the new US tariffs on Canada, Mexico, China, and several other countries would have a beneficial impact on countries like Sri Lanka as buyers are now reviewing their global supply chains and shifting orders.

MAS Holdings’ Chief Executive Officer Suren Fernando told the Sunday Times that they were receiving inquiries from international buyers who were hoping to shift part of their orders to suppliers like Sri Lanka.

US President Donald Trump announced recently that reciprocal tariffs would take effect on April 2 and target imports from countries that levied high duties on US goods. He said he believed the tariffs would level the playing field and protect American industries.

A high-level Sri Lanka business forum will be held in the US next month with representatives of the Finance Ministry, Foreign Ministry, and delegates from the business community.

Mr. Herath said they hoped to discuss the issue of tariffs during this visit with members of the U.S. Trade Office and seek relief for the country.

He expressed hope that Sri Lanka, working within the IMF programme, would receive a tax waiver, as the country could not withstand increased tariffs.

Reciprocal tariffs refer to imposing tariffs on imported goods from a specific country in response to similar tariffs that that country has placed on goods from the imposing nation.

The idea behind reciprocal tariffs is to create a balance in trade by ensuring that both countries are subject to the same level of duties on each other’s products. These tariffs are often used to pressure a trading partner into lowering their own tariffs or to retaliate against unfair trade practices.🔺

Sunday Times 16-03-2025

Ukraine to Get €3.5B From EU to Stabilize Economy, Rebuild, Modernize

Ukraine to Get €3.5B From EU to Stabilize Economy, Rebuild, Modernize

This is the third tranche of funds from the EU’s Ukraine Facility program which is authorized to provide up to €50 for Ukraine.

by Olena Hrazhdan | Mar. 17, 2025

The European Council approved €3.5 billion ($3.8 billion) in grants and loans for Ukraine’s macro-financial stability, reconstruction, and modernization. 

The money comes via the Ukraine Facility program – the EU’s financial assistance program for Ukraine started in 2024. This is the third tranche of funds to go to Kyiv, a press release from the EU Council says. 

As of Feb. 24, 2025, €19.6 billion ($21.4 billion) under the Ukraine Facility has been disbursed, the EU Council wrote. 

What is the Ukraine Facility program? 

Ukraine Facility entered into force on March 1, 2024, and is authorized, up to 2027, to provide up to €50 billion ($54.6 billion) of financing in grants and loans to Ukraine.

It became the key EU macro-financial program to support Ukraine’s recovery after Russia invaded the country in 2022, causing a 28% drop in GDP in 2022 and half a trillion dollars of damages for Ukraine over the next decade. 

Apart from recovery, Ukraine Facility’s requirements for reforms will also assist Ukraine in its EU accession process in the next four years. 

Along with funding the state budget, Ukraine Facility makes private investments and provides technical assistance. In return, Kyiv must implement economic reforms.

The third review to receive the tranche ended successfully, the EU Council wrote in the press release. However, had Kyiv failed to carry out reforms, it could have lost out on funds received a smaller tranche or faced audits.

On Monday, the Lithuanian prosecutor general’s office attributed the arson attack in Vilnius in May 2024 to Russia’s military intelligence agency, the GRU.

“The Council concluded today that Ukraine had satisfied the necessary conditions laid down in the Ukraine Plan … Ukraine successfully demonstrated that it had implemented 13 different steps,” the EU Council’s press release wrote. 

The EU has played a critical role as a financial partner alongside the US since mid-2022, and most EU leaders have continuously supported Ukraine since then. 

While American aid was disbursed rapidly to cover emergency needs – often with minimal bureaucratic hurdles – the EU took a more measured approach.

The EU’s macro-financial assistance required coordination among member states, making the process slower, but it was strategically designed for mid-term economic stabilization rather than short-term relief.

Olena Hrazhdan is Kyiv Post's Business Reporter. She previously wrote for leading Ukraine's business media covering banking, private and public finance, macroeconomics, retail, and legal issues, She also became a Fellow of the International Monetary Fund’s Journalism Fellowship. She can be found on "X" @OlenaHrazhdan.🔺

Trump-Putin call set for Tuesday over ceasefire talks, Kremlin confirms

 

President Donald Trump announced the call Sunday and said there would be concessions over land and power plants.

March 17, 2025  By Mary Ilyushina and Dan Lamothe

President Donald Trump and Russian leader Vladimir Putin are set to speak in a phone call Tuesday to discuss ending the war in Ukraine, the Kremlin confirmed Monday, as the United States seeks Moscow’s support for a 30-day ceasefire proposal.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday that the call will be mainly about settling the conflict in Ukraine but is also “an important step that sets the tone for the movement to revive relations between the states.” Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine began in 2022.

Trump announced the planned call Sunday, stating there was “a very good chance” of reaching a deal. “We are doing pretty well, I think, with Russia,” he told reporters aboard Air Force One. “We’ll see if we have something to announce maybe by Tuesday.”

When asked what concessions Russia would make in a potential deal, Trump said discussions have taken place about “dividing up” assets. “We will be talking about land. We will be talking about power plants,” he said. “I think a lot of it has already been discussed at length by both sides, Ukraine and Russia.”

Last week, U.S. officials said “the ball is now in Russia’s court” after Ukraine agreed to the ceasefire deal. Putin has, so far, resisted fully endorsing the U.S. proposal, citing “nuances” that require “painstaking research” as his troops seek to push Ukrainian forces out of the southwestern Russian region of Kursk and strip Kyiv of a key bargaining chip in the talks.

Putin said Thursday that Russia would agree to a ceasefire only if it led to long-term peace, hinting at conditions such as barring Ukraine from receiving U.S. military aid or mobilizing new forces. He also questioned how such a ceasefire would be enforced.

Russia has consistently put forward maximalist demands that Ukraine views as unacceptable. In June, Putin said Russia would immediately stop hostilities if Ukraine surrenders four southeastern regions that Russian troops partly occupy and renounces plans to join NATO.

Moscow also dismissed proposals from Western countries to deploy foreign peacekeeping forces in Ukraine as a guarantee of its long-term security.

It remains unclear what security assurances Ukraine would receive to protect itself from future attacks or whether Trump would secure any meaningful concessions from Putin.

Steve Witkoff, an envoy for Trump, said Sunday that his most recent meeting with Putin was “positive” and that differences between Russian and Ukrainian officials appear to have “narrowed.”

“I was with the president all day yesterday. I’ll be with him today,” Witkoff said of Trump, speaking on CNN’s “State of the Union.” “We’re sitting with him discussing how to narrow it even further.”

Witkoff, when asked whether Putin is the impediment to a peace deal, said: “I don’t want to put words in President Putin’s mouth, but I think he’s indicated that he accepts the philosophy of President Trump. President Trump wants to see an end to this.”

Witkoff said he doesn’t disagree with Trump’s assessment that a peace deal could be reached within weeks. “This is a highly, very complicated situation,” Witkoff said. “And yet we are bridging the gap between two sides.”

Sen. Mike Rounds (R-South Dakota) struck a more cautious note moments later on the same television program. “Time will tell,” Rounds said, “whether Putin is deceiving us.”

Rounds said Putin started the war and is the aggressor in it. If Putin is changing his mind and recognizing the damage that his war has done to his economy and military, Rounds added, there may be a way to move forward as long as there is an “enforceable peace.”

“Whatever agreements we make, they have to be enforceable or they will not work when we’re dealing with Mr. Putin,” he said.

Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha on Monday outlined what he called Kyiv’s “non-negotiables.”

“There are fundamental issues,” Sybiha said in an RBC-Ukraine interview. “Ukraine will never recognize occupied territories. Second, no country has the right to veto the choice of the Ukrainian people or Ukraine’s decision to join any alliances, whether it is the European Union or NATO.”

U.S. national security adviser Michael Waltz said Sunday that Ukraine’s permanent membership in NATO is “highly unlikely,” echoing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s remarks last month that membership was not on the table in recognition of “hard-power realities on the ground.”

When asked what other security guarantees Ukraine would seek, Sybiha said that while alliance membership “remains the most effective security guarantee,” other measures may include air and naval patrols performed by allied forces and continued support for Ukraine’s defense industry.

France and Britain have led the effort to create a “coalition of the willing” — countries that would help guarantee any agreement, including by putting troops inside Ukraine. British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s spokesman said Monday that more than 30 countries had joined the coalition. “This will be a significant force, with a significant number of countries providing troops and a larger group contributing in other ways,” he said.

Western leaders have called on Russia to reciprocate Ukraine agreeing to a ceasefire “on equal terms” and threatened to further exert pressure on Moscow if it hijacks the proposal, according to a statement released following the foreign ministers meeting of the Group of Seven nations in Charlevoix, Canada.

The ministers “discussed imposing further costs on Russia in case such a ceasefire is not agreed, including through further sanctions, caps on oil prices, as well as additional support for Ukraine, and other means,” the statement said, adding that the West may go ahead with a plan to use interest generated from frozen Russian sovereign assets to support Ukraine.

One of the most significant measures Russia faced since the 2022 invasion was the freezing of more than $300 billion in Russian central bank assets held in the West. For the European Union, which last year adopted a plan to funnel revenue to Ukraine if needed, it was a way to pressure Moscow without inviting legal challenges or undermining trust in their financial systems.

Putin condemned this strategy as “theft.” Paris has recently proposed using the assets as collateral, allowing them to be seized if Moscow were to violate a potential ceasefire agreement.

Serhiy Morgunov in Kyiv contributed to this report.🔺

Modi's remarks appreciated: Chinese FM spokesperson

Indian PM Modi's recent positive remarks on China-India relations appreciated: Chinese FM spokesperson

Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Mao

By Global Times Mar 17, 2025   

In response to a media inquiry regarding Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's recent remarks on India-China ties in a podcast interview, in which he emphasized dialogue over discord, and also noted that differences two neighboring countries are also natural, but our focus is to ensure that these differences don't turn into disputes. That's what we actively work toward, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said on Monday that Prime Minister Modi's recent positive remarks on China-India relations are appreciated. 

In October last year, Chinese President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Modi held a successful meeting in Kazan, providing strategic guidance for improving and developing China-India relations. In recent months, both sides have earnestly implemented the important consensus reached by leaders of the two countries, strengthened exchanges and practical cooperation at various levels, and achieved a series of positive outcomes, said Mao.

Mao said that in the 2,000-year history of China-India interactions, friendly exchanges and mutual learning have been the mainstream, contributing significantly to world civilization and human progress. 

As the two largest developing countries, China and India share the common task of national development and revitalization. They should foster mutual understanding, mutual support, and mutual achievement, which aligns with the fundamental interests of their combined 2.8 billion people, meets the shared aspirations of regional countries, and follows the historical trend of the rising Global South. This approach also benefits global peace, stability, and prosperity, said Mao. 

Mao also noted that being partners in mutual achievement and realizing "a cooperative pas de deux of the dragon and the elephant is the only right choice for China and India." China is willing to work with India to fully implement the consensus reached by their leaders, take the 75th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic ties as an opportunity to advance exchanges and cooperation across various fields and levels, and promote the healthy and stable development of China-India relations.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi emphasized the need to strengthen ties with China despite past tensions, advocating dialogue over discord and cooperation over conflict during an interview with MIT research scientist and podcaster Lex Fridman, which was released on Sunday. Modi also underscored that India and China should engage in healthy and natural competition rather than confrontation,according to Indian media reports. 

New US airstrikes on Yemen increase pressure on Iran-aligned Houthis

New US airstrikes on Yemen increase pressure on Iran-aligned Houthis

By Mohammed Ghobari March 17, 2025

Summary

US carries out new airstrikes on Yemen, Al Masirah TV says

US responds to Houthis' threats to international shipping

New wave of airstrikes began on Saturday

Houthi-run health ministry says at least 53 killed 

 A ship fires missiles at an undisclosed location, after U.S. President Donald Trump launched military
strikes against Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis on Saturday over the group's attacks against Red Sea shipping,
in this screengrab obtained from a handout video released on March 15, 2025. U.S. Central Command/
Handout via REUTERS

 ADEN, March 17 (Reuters) - The United States carried out new airstrikes on Yemen on Monday, the Houthis' Al Masirah TV said, increasing pressure on the Iran-aligned group and expanding the biggest U.S. military operation in the Middle East since President Donald Trump returned to the White House.

Responding to the Houthi movement's threats to international shipping, the U.S. launched a new wave of airstrikes on Saturday. On Monday, the Red Sea port city of Hodeidah and Al Jawf governorate north of the capital Sanaa were targeted, Al Masirah said.

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At least 53 people have been killed in the attacks, the Houthi-run health ministry said on Sunday. Five children and two women were among the victims and 98 have been hurt, it said.

The Houthis, an armed movement that has taken control of the most populous parts of Yemen despite nearly a decade of Saudi-led bombing, have launched scores of attacks on ships off its coast since November 2023, disrupting global commerce.

The strikes, which one U.S. official told Reuters might continue for weeks, come as Washington ramps up sanctions pressure on Iran while trying to bring it to the negotiating table over its nuclear program.

An Emirati official last week passed on a letter from Trump, who took office in January, proposing nuclear talks with Tehran - a proposal that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei rejected as "deception" by Washington.

Iranian Foreign ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei said on Monday that Tehran would respond to the letter "after full scrutiny" of it.

The Houthis say their attacks, which have forced companies to re-route to longer and more expensive journeys around southern Africa, are in solidarity with Palestinians as Israel strikes Gaza.

The U.S. and its allies characterise them as indiscriminate and a menace to global trade.

Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi said on Sunday the militants would target U.S. ships in the Red Sea as long as the U.S. continues attacks on Yemen.

Under the direction of al-Houthi, who is in his 40s, the ragtag group has become an army of tens of thousands of fighters and acquired an arsenal of armed drones and ballistic missiles. Saudi Arabia and the West say the arms come from Iran. Tehran denies this.

While Iran champions the Houthis, the Houthis deny being puppets of Tehran, and experts on Yemen say they are motivated primarily by a domestic agenda.

The Houthis' military spokesman, without providing evidence, said in a televised statement early on Monday that the group had launched a second attack against the U.S. aircraft carrier USS Harry S. Truman in the Red Sea.

'AXIS OF RESISTANCE'

The Houthis are part of what has been called the "Axis of Resistance" - an anti-Israel and anti-Western alliance of regional militias that also includes the Palestinian militant group Hamas and Lebanon's Hezbollah and is backed by Iran.

Israel has severely weakened many of Iran's regional allies since being attacked by Hamas gunmen in October 2023.

Israel has assassinated the top Hamas and Hezbollah leaders, and the fall of another Iranian ally, Syria's Bashar al-Assad, also dealt a blow to Tehran. But the Houthis are still standing, along with pro-Iranian militias in Iraq.

In further violence in the Middle East, an Israeli airstrike killed three Palestinian men in Rafah in the southern Gaza Strip, local medics said on Monday. The three had left their homes to collect firewood, family members said.

Israel's military, which began its Gaza campaign after the deadly Hamas-led attacks on Israel in October 2023, said it had conducted attacks in central Gaza and Rafah against "terrorists" operating near their forces and trying to plant bombs.

The bloodshed underscores the fragility of a three-stage ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas mediated by Qatar, Egypt, and the U.S. There was no sign of progress from renewed talks on sustaining a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas.

The Houthis said last week they would resume attacks on Israeli ships passing through the Red Sea if Israel did not lift a block on aid entering Gaza.

Israel's suspension of goods entering Gaza for 16 days has increased pressure on the enclave's 2.3 million people, most of who have been made homeless by the war. The suspension, which Israel said was aimed at pressuring Hamas in ceasefire talks, applies to food, medicine, and fuel imports.

Houthi fighters have also fired drones and missiles towards Israel.

Israel, which has hit multiple Houthi-linked targets in Yemen, has warned the militants to halt their strikes, saying they risked the same "miserable fate" as Hamas, Hezbollah and Assad. Trump has warned Iran to halt support for the Houthis.

Reporting by Yomna Ehab, Hatem Maher, Ahmed Tolba; additional reporting by Nidal al-Mughrabi in Cairo; Writing by Michael Georgy, Editing by Timothy Heritage🔺

What is the Batalanda Report?

Following a disastrous interview with Al Jazeera’s Mehdi Hasan by former Sri Lankan president Ranil Wickremesinghe, the Batalanda report and his role in facilitating torture has come into the spotlight.

We take a look at the report and at Wickremesinghe’s alleged role.

Mar 11, 2025 Tamil Guardian

What is the Batalanda Report?

Established in 1995 under then Sri Lankan president Chandrika Kumaratunga, the Batalanda Commission Report investigated the alleged use of Batalanda Housing Scheme as a secret detention and torture facility between 1988 and 1990 during the violent suppression of the second Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) insurrection.

At the heart of these allegations was Ranil Wickremesinghe, the then Minister of Youth Affairs and later Minister of Industries, accused of enabling and overseeing these operations. The report, handed over to Kumaratunga on 27 March 1998 and published as Sessional Paper No. 1 of 2000, details accounts of enforced disappearances, systematic torture, extrajudicial killings, and political cover-ups.

The Second JVP Insurrection and State Repression

The JVP insurrection (1987–1989) marked one of the bloodiest periods in Sri Lanka’s history. Initially a Marxist movement, the JVP evolved into an anti-government armed rebellion, targeting state institutions and security forces. The Sri Lankan government responded with brutal counterinsurgency tactics, leading to the deaths of an estimated 40,000–60,000 people, many of whom were summarily executed or disappeared.

The security forces—including the police, military, and paramilitary death squads—were given sweeping powers to detain, interrogate, and eliminate suspected JVP members. Among the many illegal detention sites used for torture and killings, Batalanda Housing Scheme in Sapugaskanda became infamous.

Batalanda: A torture chamber disguised as a housing scheme

The Batalanda Housing Scheme, a government-owned residential complex, was allegedly converted into an illegal detention and interrogation centre. The Kelaniya Police Counter-Subversive Unit (CSU) was identified as the primary force responsible for operations at Batalanda.

Torture and extrajudicial killings

Survivor testimonies and police informants described Batalanda as a site of systematic torture, where suspected JVP members and sympathisers were subjected to:

•    Severe beatings and electric shocks

•    Waterboarding and suffocation

•    Burning with heated metal rods

•    Rape and sexual violence

•    Forced confessions under duress

Many detainees never left Batalanda alive. Their bodies were either:

•    Secretly disposed of in mass graves

•    Burned using rubber tyres to destroy evidence

•    Dumped in rivers or abandoned locations

One of the most chilling findings was the use of “tyre pyres”—a method where bodies were placed inside burning tyres to erase all traces of evidence.

Ranil Wickremesinghe’s alleged role

During the commission hearings, several witnesses directly implicated Ranil Wickremesinghe, alleging that:

•    He facilitated the creation of the illegal detention centre at Batalanda.

•    He provided political cover for the security forces operating there.

•    He personally visited the Batalanda site, where detainees were tortured and killed.

Despite mounting evidence, no legal action was taken against Wickremesinghe. The commission ultimately ruled that he bore “political responsibility” for Batalanda’s operations but did not recommend prosecution, allowing him to continue his political career.

Who is Vincent Fernando?

Vincent Fernando was a caretaker employed by the National Youth Services Council, an institution that fell under the purview of Ranil Wickremesinghe during his tenure as Minister of Youth Affairs and Employment. 

The name was brought up directly to Wickremesinghe by Mehdi Hasan, in an interview aired on Al Jazeera last week.

Fernando was initially stationed at a circuit bungalow in Nilaveli, Trincomalee, where he became acquainted with Wickremesinghe, who frequently stayed at the premises during official visits. This association led to Fernando being handpicked by Wickremesinghe to serve as the caretaker of his personal circuit bungalow at the Batalanda Housing Scheme in Biyagama, an area that later became notorious for its alleged use as a detention and torture site during the 1987–1989 JVP insurrection.

•    Fernando officially assumed duties at the Batalanda circuit bungalow on April 1, 1982, after receiving a letter of appointment from the National Youth Services Council.

•    His responsibilities included maintaining the residence, preparing meals for Wickremesinghe, and managing household affairs.

•    He worked there in two separate stints: from 1982 to 1985 and then again from 1987 to 1994, during the peak of the counterinsurgency campaign.

During this period, Batalanda Housing Scheme became infamous for reports of enforced disappearances, illegal detentions, and extrajudicial killings. The site was allegedly used by police death squads under ASP Douglas Peiris to abduct and kill suspected insurgents of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP). Fernando, as the bungalow's caretaker, witnessed high-profile police officers frequenting the premises for meetings with Wickremesinghe.

Vincent Fernando provided critical testimony to the Presidential Commission of Inquiry on Batalanda, implicating Wickremesinghe directly in discussions concerning illegal detentions and extrajudicial killings. 

He testified that officers regularly visited the circuit bungalow and engaged in discussions about "subversive activity". He also recalled hearing Wickremesinghe instructing police officers with the chilling phrase "Get them out," which he understood to mean executing detainees.

Fernando further disclosed that several houses within the Batalanda complex were used for detention and torture, particularly B1, B4, B8, and a house next to A 1/8, where he reportedly witnessed a detainee being hung.

Fernando’s sudden and mysterious death shortly before the commission concluded its hearings raised serious concerns. At the time of his death in 1998, he was only 36 years old. The circumstances surrounding his passing were never investigated, as the commission lacked the authority to probe unexplained deaths.

What has happened now?

In a fiery Al Jazeera interview aired last week, Wickremesinghe claimed that the report does not exist as it had not been officially tabled in parliament.

When confronted with a government inquiry naming him as a “main architect” of securing the site, Wickremesinghe first denied the report’s existence, before backtracking and questioning its validity.

“Where is the report?” he remarked with his hands folded. “I deny all those allegations… where is that commission?”

“There is nothing to be found against me… I am telling you there is no report.”

A copy of the report was shared by the International Truth and Justice Project and held up by former BBC Sri Lanka correspondent Frances Harrison during the interview, who said she was “flabbergasted”. “It shows the impunity that he is supporting. It’s absolutely shocking” 

In the aftermath of the interview, the Sri Lankan government announced that they would be tabling the report, as well as launching a fresh inquiry into allegations against Wickremesinghe, including his alleged role in the Batalanda torture camp, the Central Bank bond scam, and the Easter Sunday attacks. 

Speaking to reporters, Deputy Minister of Public Security and Parliamentary Affairs Sunil Watagala stated that the government would take "necessary steps" to investigate Wickremesinghe, particularly with regard to the Batalanda report, which was raised during the Al Jazeera interview.

“The NPP government is committed to transparency and will take action on all accusations, where Wickremesinghe previously received political protection,” said Watagala.

Read the full text of the report here.🔺