Sri Lanka's new leader heads to China after winding back ties

Sri Lanka's new leader heads to China after winding back ties
AFP By Amal Jayasinghe

Sri Lanka's new president heads to Beijing this week for talks with China's leadership, seeking to smooth ruffled feathers after scuttling Chinese-funded projects and seeking stronger ties with regional rival India.

Maithripala Sirisena swept to power in January, ending a decade of rule by Mahinda Rajapakse, whose close alliance with Beijing had irked the island's traditional close ally India.

Sirisena has moved to wind back Beijing's influence, which became the strategically located island's biggest foreign financier and enjoyed significant political and even military influence under Rajapakse.

Sirisena has unnerved China by suspending a $1.4 billion "port city" project in Colombo that India considered a security risk, and ordering a review of other Beijing-financed projects and loans amid allegations of corruption.

Experts say the president will be seeking a divorce of sorts from China during the three-day state visit starting Wednesday, while trying not to upset the economic giant.

Sirisena will hold talks with Chinese President Xi Jinping along with other members of the leadership, Colombo said.

"The former government allowed China a free run in Sri Lanka," Sri Lankan political commentator Victor Ivan told AFP. "President Sirisena wants to maintain a normal relationship that will not irritate India."

The visit is about "bringing balance in Sri Lanka's engagement with two Asian rivals", P. Sahadevan, professor of South Asian studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi, told AFP.

Shifting influence 

Sirisena made India -- rather than China -- his first foreign trip after winning the January elections, seeking to rebuild ties with Delhi damaged by tensions over Beijing's influence on the island.

Delhi was reportedly furious after Chinese submarines were allowed to dock at Colombo port last year when Rajapakse was still in power.

Beijing has been accused of seeking to develop facilities around the Indian Ocean in a "string of pearls" strategy to counter the rise of rival India and secure its own economic interests.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Sri Lanka and other Indian Ocean nations in March in a bid to counter that influence, and reassert Delhi's traditional role in the region.

Sri Lanka Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera, who visited Beijing a month after Sirisena came to power, has said the new administration will not allow Chinese submarines in Colombo.

Colombo is also seeking to renegotiate huge loans given by China for projects at rates as high as 8 percent, Sri Lanka Finance Minister Ravi Karunanayake told reporters recently.

China had emerged as Sri Lanka's biggest single financier, accounting for about 40 percent of some $2.03 billion in foreign money spent on infrastructure projects in 2013, according to the latest Central Bank of Sri Lanka report.

China was also one of the few countries to defend Sri Lanka's human rights record under Rajapakse, who angered Western nations for refusing to cooperate with an international probe into allegations of war crimes on the island.

In contrast, the new government has won support from the West for its attempts at reconciliation between ethnic minority Tamils and majority Sinhalese, as well as moves to ensure accountability for crimes committed during the separatist war.

With Western backing and support from Delhi, the government has secured more time to address allegations that troops under Rajapakse's command killed up to 40,000 Tamil civilians while defeating Tamil rebels in the finale of the war that ended in 2009.

Sri Lanka strengthens laws against terrorist financing

Sri Lanka strengthens laws against terrorist financing
Mar 18, 2015 17:19 PM GMT+0530 | 0 Comment(s)

COLOMBO (EconomyNext) - Sri Lanka's foreign minister Wednesday sought parliamentary approval to strengthen laws against terrorist FINANCING and said a local inquiry into alleged
human rights abuses would help create better conditions for foreign INVESTMENT.


Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera said the amendments, giving effect to United Nations regulations on terrorist FINANCING, were in line with the country's international obligations.

The amendments include widened coverage of freezing orders, expanded provisions for handling foreign requests, reporting of attempted transactions and redress for persons
inadvertently affected.

"The amendments are aimed at strengthening Sri Lanka’s domestic legislative framework to comply with UN Security Council Resolutions on terrorist financing and MONEY laundering,"
Samaraweera said.

"The amendments will strengthen the capacity of the law enforcement and judicial authorities responsible for investigating MONEY laundering and terrorist financing."

Samaraweera also said government action to probe allegations of hman rights abuses in its war against Tamil separatists would strengthen its international credibility and create better
conditions for foreign INVESTMENT.

"Sovereignty carries with it great responsibility which involves duties towards one’s own citizens.

"When a government fails to discharge such duties, external intervention of an unwelcome nature is difficult to prevent," he said, referring to a UN human rights probe launched during the
ousted Rajapaksa regime.

The new government managed to get the UN Human Rights Council report on the allegations, to have been presented in March, deferred till September after promising a domestic inquiry
more robust than one Rajapaksa had done.

Samaraweera said Rajapaksa had "alienated communities within the country as well as Sri Lanka’s international partners" by refusing to address issues of concern locally.

"Taking action locally as a responsible nation that is accountable to all sections of our population, upholding the rule of law, good governance and democracy while working in cooperation with the international community is the only way to project ourselves as a country that is at peace with itself.

"This is the only way to enable a secure atmosphere that is essential for foreign investment that is required for the long-term economic development of our nation," Samaraweera said.

"It is our objective to ensure that the international recognition of our armed forces personnel is further strengthened by taking action against any misdemeanours that some individuals may have committed and tarnished the image of our forces." 

தமிழ் விவசாயிகளின் நிலப்பிரச்சனை: ``எந்த அறிவும் இல்லாத`` நீதியரசர்!

Sarath Fonseka promoted to rank of Field Marshal

Sarath Fonseka promoted to rank of Field Marshal (Watch Report)

 Mar 22, 2015  

The investiture ceremony was held at the premises of the Ministry of Defence under the auspices of President Maithripala Sirisena.

Sarath Fonseka is Sri Lanka’s first Field Marshal. The rank of Field Marshal, which never retires, is equivalent to the position of a cabinet minister and is the highest rank in the three armed forces of the world.

All Field Marshals carry a baton in their left hand, a symbol of their high position.

Fonseka joined the Ceylon Army on February 5th, 1970 as a cadet officer and after completing his officer training at the Army Training Centre was commissioned as a Second Lieutenant in the 1st Battalion, Ceylon Sinha Regiment.

He went on to hold several commands and staff appointments.

Sarath Fonseka served as a Battalion Commander; Brigade Commander; General Officer Commanding of the 57th Division; Commander, Security Forces Headquarters, Jaffna and Chief 

of Staff of the Sri Lankan Army before he was appointed Commander of the Army on the 6th of December 2005.

Following his appointment as the Commander of the Army, then Lieutenant General Sarath Fonseka went on to implement many reforms.

On the 25th of April 2006, Fonseka was targeted by an LTTE suicide bomber. Although seriously injured in the explosion, Fonseka, who was no stranger to battle wounds, returned to active service following a quick recovery.

As the Army Commander, he took the fore in cornering the LTTE from Mavilaru to Nanthikadal, and eventually accomplished the end goal with a complete victory.

Following the war victory, the commander who was among the heroes who made immense sacrifices to liberate the nation from the clutches of terrorism, was elevated to the rank of General.

He was then appointed as the Chief of Defence Staff.

An active PARTICIPANT in military operations including Balavegaya, Jayasikuru and Riviresa, Fonseka received many medals in appreciation of his unwavering service.

He is a recipient of the prestigious Rana Wickrama Padakkama, the Rana Shura Padakkama, the Vishishta Seva Vibushana, the Utthama Seva Padakkama and the Desha Puthra Padakkama.

After a military career spanning more than 30 years, Fonseka retired from military service, having ridden the country of the terrorism which had afflicted it throughout almost his entire career.

Today, he embarks on a new journey of service to the nation as Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka.

==========================

General Fonseka Made Field Marshal

By P.K.Balachandran Published: 22nd March 2015

COLOMBO:  Gen.Sarath Fonseka, Sri Lanka’s army chief during the 2006-2009 Eelam War IV, has been made Field Marshal in recognition of the pivotal role he played in defeating the dreaded Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). President Maithripala Sirsena conferred the title on him at a ceremony here on Sunday.

Fonseka is the fourth South Asian General to be made Field Marshal, the others being General Sam Maneckshaw and K.M.Cariappa of India, and Gen.Mohd.Ayub Khan of Pakistan.

Rendering justice to  Fonseka was Sirisena’s electoral promise because the General had been dismissed, arrested, tried and sentenced by Courts Martial on trumped up charges, at the instance of the then President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Fonseka had won laurels for the way he conducted the war against the Tamil Tigers. He abandoned conventional ways, matched the ingenious tactics and strategies of the LTTE, fully utilized the superior numerical strength and fire power of the armed forces, and kept up pressure on the enemy. He broke tradition by insisting on the full deployment of naval and air power to aid the war on land.

Fonseka broke army units into small groups of eight, and made these highly trained and motivated men infiltrate Tiger-held areas, track down the fighting cadres of the LTTE and eliminate them. He transformed the Lankan army from a defensive outfit to an offense force.   

However, President Rajapaksa suspected that Fonseka was harboring political ambitions and was planning a coup. He was arrested, tried, sentenced and deprived of his rank, medals and pension. But  thanks to international pressure, he was let off before he completed his sentence. He unsuccessfully CONTESTED for the Presidency against Rajapaksa in 2010. He entered parliament, but only to vacate his seat on being sentenced. As leader of the Democratic Party, he supported Sirisena in the last Presidential election.

Not all Lankans approve of the decision to make Fonseka Field Marshal. He was not popular in the army. And supporters of Rajapaksa say that other service commanders and former Defense Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa should also have been given equivalent titles.

PFLP: Results of Zionist elections simply reflect racist nature of the state

PFLP: Results of Zionist elections simply reflect racist nature of the state
Mar 18 2015

The Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine stated that the results of the Israeli election simply reflect the nature and structure of the racist, fascist Zionist society that produced these results and elected the Likud Party and its right-wing allies, who engaged in the most open and extreme anti-Palestinian attacks on our people and their rights throughout the campaign.

The growth of overt extremism and racism in the Zionist society and the climate of fascism is only fueled by the failure of Palestinian and Arab officialdom to confront the occupation state, as well as the international imperialist powers who provide cover for its crimes and rampant violations of international law and preserve its immunity and impunity from accountability or prosecution.

The Front emphasized that confronting Zionist extremism and responding to these elections requires a clear and decisive Palestinian policy that casts aside the illusions of reliance on futile negotiations, and instead builds a unified national strategy to confront the enemy and struggle for the full rights of our people, based on our strategic path of resistance to build on all achievements.

The Front demanded the immediate implementation of the Palestinian Central Council resolutions passed at its last session, to disengage with the occupation state and its officials, first and foremost, ending security coordination and rejecting the path of the Oslo Accords which have been so destructive for the Palestinian people, and to end the Palestinian internal division through a serious project of national unity based on a unified program and the rebuilding of the PLO through elected, democratic institutions embracing all Palestinian forces, and following up to seek prosecution of the leaders of the Zionist state in the International Criminal Court.

இனப்பிரச்சினைத் தீர்வு போன்ற சிக்கலான விடயங்கள் தற்பொழுது பரிசீலனைக்கு எடுத்துக்கொள்ளப்படமாட்டாது. மைத்திரி

பொதுத் தேர்தலின் பின்னரே இனப் பிரச்சினைக்குத் தீர்வு - மைத்திரி திட்டவட்டம்

இனப்பிரச்சினைத் தீர்வு போன்ற சிக்கலான விடயங்கள் தற்பொழுது பரிசீலனைக்கு எடுத்துக்கொள்ளப்படமாட்டாது.

பொதுத் தேர்தலின் பின்னர் அமைக்கப்படும் தேசிய அரசே 13ஆவது அரசமைப்புத் திருத்தம், இனப்பிரச்சினைத்தீர்வு மற்றும் பிரதான பிரச்சினைகள் குறித்து பரிசீலனை செய்யும்.

அதற்கு அனைத்துக் கட்சிகளும் ஒத்துழைப்பு வழங்கவேண்டும்.

  

ஊடகங்களின் ஆசிரியர்கள் மற்றும் முகாமையாளர்களை நேற்றுக் காலை சந்தித்துப் பேசிய போதே அவர் இவ்வாறு குறிப்பிட்டார். 

Mangala- Local inquiry create better conditions for FOREIGN INVESTMENT!

Sri Lanka strengthens laws against terrorist financing
Mar 18, 2015 17:19 PM GMT+0530

COLOMBO (Economy Next) -

Sri Lanka's foreign minister Wednesday sought parliamentary approval to strengthen laws against terrorist FINANCING and said'...........................................;

A local inquiry into alleged abuses would help create better conditions for  FOREIGN  INVESTMENT. 

Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera said the amendments, giving effect to United Nations regulations on terrorist FINANCING, were in line with the country's international obligations.

The amendments include widened coverage of freezing orders, expanded provisions for handling foreign requests, reporting of attempted transactions and redress for persons
inadvertently affected.

"The amendments are aimed at strengthening Sri Lanka’s domestic legislative framework to comply with UN Security Council Resolutions on terrorist financing and MONEY laundering,"
Samaraweera said.

"The amendments will strengthen the capacity of the law enforcement and judicial authorities responsible for investigating MONEY laundering and terrorist financing."

Samaraweera also said government action to probe allegations of human rights abuses in its war against Tamil separatists would strengthen its international credibility and create better
conditions for foreign INVESTMENT.

"Sovereignty carries with it great responsibility which involves duties towards one’s own citizens.

"When a government fails to discharge such duties, external intervention of an unwelcome nature is difficult to prevent," he said, referring to a UN human rights probe launched during the ousted Rajapaksa regime.

The new government managed to get the UN Human Rights Council report on the allegations, to have been presented in March, deferred till September after promising a domestic inquiry more robust than one Rajapaksa had done.

Samaraweera said Rajapaksa had "alienated communities within the country as well as Sri Lanka’s international partners" by refusing to address issues of concern locally.

"Taking action locally as a responsible nation that is accountable to all sections of our population, upholding the rule of law, good governance and democracy while working in cooperation with the international community is the only way to project ourselves as a country that is at peace with itself.

"This is the only way to enable a secure atmosphere that is essential for foreign investment that is required for the long-term economic development of our nation," Samaraweera said.

"It is our objective to ensure that the international recognition of our armed forces personnel is further strengthened by taking action against any misdemeanours that some individuals may have committed and tarnished the image of our forces."

Foreign spies helped oust Mahinda – Gota

Foreign spies helped oust Mahinda – Gota
March 17, 2015, 12:00 pm

By Shamindra Ferdinando

Former Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa says that some countries had the wherewithal to overthrow democratically elected governments, though Sri Lanka lacked such capacity.

War veteran Rajapaksa points out that there had been many such interventions over the years in various parts of the world. Sri Lanka was a case in point, Rajapaksa said.

The ex- Defence Secretary was responding to a query whether he endorsed his brother and former President Mahinda Rajapaksa accusation that the US, British and Indian intelligence services had got him ousted. Alleging that he had been a victim of a conspiracy involving intelligence services in an interview with The Hindu, the former President said that India’s Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) was operating without the sanction of the government.

The comment was made ahead of former Sri Lankan leader’s one-on-one meeting with Indian PM Narendra Modi.

Northern Provincial Councillor Dharmalingham Siddarthan is on record as having said that at the behest of the RAW; Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization (TELO) assassinated two Jaffna district members of parliament, including his father Visvanather Dharmalingham (MP for Manipay) and K. Alalasundaram (MP for Kopay) in early September 1985.

Responding to another query, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said that external intelligence services had subverted the former administration taking advantage of what he called privileged status enjoyed by them. Major countries maintained specialized units meant for clandestine operations outside their borders, therefore the former President’s accusation could be realistic, the one-time Commanding Officer of the celebrated first battalion of the Gajaba Regiment said.

Asked whether he felt the intelligence services under him had failed his brother by not identifying the then SLFP General Secretary Maithripala Sirisena’s move, Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said that secret services countered threats to national security. Rajapaksa insisted that intelligence services hadn’t been used in political projects under any circumstances.

Well informed sources told The Island that Maithripala Sirisena’s move, though being brought to the notice of the then SLFP leadership several weeks before the actual switching of allegiance by the top minister was ignored. Gotabhaya Rajapaksa said that Sri Lanka never acquired a capability to tap hand phones though it could have helped anti-terrorist operations. Although, land lines could have been monitored, no one of importance used them any longer to enable us to benefit, he said.

Gotabhaya Rajapaksa paid a glowing tribute to intelligence services while recollecting the circumstances under which they managed to apprehend Kumaran Pathmathan in August 2009 and kill Gopi over one-year ago. Even Welle Suda had been apprehended by Pakistan during the previous administration, though he was brought to Colombo only after the change of the government in early January, the former Defence Secretary said.

Commenting on the assassination of the then Sunday Leader editor Lasantha Wickremetunga in early 2009, Rajapaksa said that the new government should investigate further and tangible measures to bring those who had been responsible before a court of law.

Dismissing long persisting accusations that he in his capacity as Secretary to the Ministry of Defence ran death squads, Rajapaksa said that similar allegations were directed at previous governments. The outspoken former Defence Secretary said that those who had served him as soldier bodyguards were professionals and weren’t involved in any clandestine project beyond their legitimate tasks. The former Defence Secretary emphasized that he could vouch for the conduct of those who had served him loyally.

Weapons found in floating armoury are not state owned: Gotabaya

Weapons found in floating armoury are not state owned: Gotabaya
March 17, 2015  12:01 pm

Ex-President’s brother and former Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Monday (16) asserted that weapons recovered from the floating armoury in the southern port of Galle are not owned by the state.

While claiming that cabinet approval has been granted for the Avant Garde Maritime Services (Pvt) Ltd and the Rakna Arakshaka Lanka (Pvt.) Ltd, Rajapaksa expressed that both local and internationally recognised institutions have obtained its services.

The observations were made at the Derana 360° programme.

According to the ex- Defence Secretary, the firearms are owned by those international organisations who obtain services of the security firms.

He also denied allegations levelled by former Minister Mervyn Silva. Earlier, the ex-Minister accused the former Defence Secretary of being involved in several high profile assassinations carried out in the country in the recent past and also blamed him for creating the ‘white van’ culture.

Rajapaksa also dismissed allegations that he was backing the controversial Buddhist organisation ‘Bodu Bala Sena (BBS).

Watch the full interview (In Sinhala below) 

Mahinda to contest for PM post

Mahinda to contest for PM post

March 17, 2015 16:23

Mahinda Former President Mahinda Rajapaksa has decided to contest for the post of Prime Minister under the Sri Lanka Labour Party at the next Parliament elections.

Labour Party leader A. S. P Liyanage said that the former President had talks with his party on the matter and has also gathered support for the move from some Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) members.

Mahinda Rajapaksa had decided to contest under the Sri Lanka Labour Party after failing to secure the full support of the SLFP to be the Prime Ministerial candidate of the SLFP.

A. S. P Liyanage, a leading businessmen in Sri Lanka, had contested past Presidential elections but had often used his time on State media during election campaigning to speak in support of the former President.

Rajapaksa was replaced by current President Maithripala Sirisena as the chairman of the SLFP following the January Presidential elections.

The former President was later named as an advisor of the SLFP. (Colombo Gazette)