By Joe Leahy | Financial Times
.............................................................................................................................................................................................
The IMF had delayed disbursement of the tranche after Sri Lanka recorded a fiscal deficit of 9.9 per cent of gross domestic product in 2009, missing an earlier agreed target of 7 per cent. Sri Lanka, it appears, has come in from the cold. But it may take the country some time to fully thaw as allegations of rights abuse remain unaddressed.Announcing the budget for 2010 yesterday, the government said it expected a fiscal deficit this year of 8 per cent - still higher than the IMF target.
But the IMF seemed unfazed by this. “Despite the weaker-than-programmed 2009 fiscal performance, the government’s 2010 budget proposal, if carried out, would significantly address past fiscal slippages, mainly through comprehensive tax reforms and sizeable cuts in recurrent spending,” the IMF said in a statement.
The government said economic growth this year may be much as 7 per cent and predicted it could reach 8 per cent a year in the medium term.
The resumption of the IMF funding is good news for a government that is hoping to rebuild bridges with the international community after its conflict with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam separatist rebel group.
Commentators in the country are fond of accusing international bodies, such as the United Nations, as being somehow sympathetic to the LTTE, which fought for an independent ethnic Tamil homeland in the north and east of Sri Lanka until its defeat last May. Even countries, such as the UK and the US, which banned the LTTE as a terrorist organization and helped crack down on its international financial network, are often accused in Sri Lanka of supporting the rebels.
The country’s increasing alienation was underlined by moves by the UN to try to initiate an inquiry into alleged human rights abuses by both sides during the war. The investigation was thwarted after Sri Lanka martialed support from allies, such as China.
The European Union has also suspended trading privileges under its “GSP-plus” programme, citing human rights and civil liberties concerns.
Sri Lanka has hitherto thumbed its nose at such criticisms. But in recent days, President Mahinda Rajapaksa has begun reaching out, particularly to his giant neighbour, India. He has given reassurances that his country’s growing closeness with China - which is building major infrastructure projects on the island such as a new harbour - is not a threat to India.
The resumption of the IMF package will aid this idea that Colombo is gradually coming in from the cold.
But with accusations of rights abuses still pending and the government unlikely to hold any kind of inquiry that would satisfy its critics in the international community, a complete thaw still looks unlikely.
© Financial Times
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Sri Lanka seeks to end its cold war
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Sri Lanka restrains state wages, presents policy budget
The 2010 budget was delayed till June due to two elections in January and April.
Salaries, which cannot be delayed is usually the item that puts the greatest pressure on state cash flows and triggers money printing leading to inflation when enough taxes cannot be raised from the people.
Planned current expenditure would only go up 5.6 percent to 928.3 billion rupees.
The minister did not unveil new revenue proposals but said an upturn in the economy which was already expanding activity including imports would provide 817.7 billion rupees in revenue in 2010 up 16.9 percent from 2009.
The government cut taxes on cars and electronic good before the budget, which is expected boost revenues and also raised taxes on cigarettes and liquor.
The government is planning an 8.0 percent of gross domestic product budget gap (8.4 percent after grants) with a revenue deficit of 2.0 percent of GDP.
Sri Lanka has not had a surplus in the revenue account of the budget since 1987, but incredible claims of a revenue surplus had been made in recent years. A revenue deficit indicates state dis-saving which brings down that national savings rate.
Though the gap is high it is lower than the 9.9 percent (10.4 percent with grants) of GDP gap last year.
"We consider that the historically high budget deficit in this country must be phased out in order to reduce the debt burden and strengthen the financial situation so that our people will have better access to finance from our financial institutions," Amunugama said.
"We believe that such adjustment should be done through the improvement in the quality of government spending, by putting state assets to productive use and collecting revenue through a broad based and low tax regime."
Amunugama said they would not privatize state institutions or cut down public investments. Last year seven state entities lost more than 50 billion rupees or over one percent of gross domestic product.
He said ad hoc tax incentives given under the Board of Investment, the state investment promotion agency, would be phased out.
"The government also proposes in the medium term to bring down excessive tax rates on personal and corporate income as well as banking and financial institutions and do away with ad hoc and unproductive tax concessions offered by the Board of Investment and in terms of income tax laws," Amunugama said.
"The dichotomy between the BOI and non-BOI regimes will be corrected to create a level playing field."
He said some proposals from a presidential tax commission have already been implemented and a final report was due in August.
This year's budget gap of 438.8 billion rupees (without grants) would be plugged with 123.5 billion rupees in foreign financing (83.9 billion rupees in 2009) and 315.3 billion rupees in domestic financing (392.4 billion rupees in 2009).
The government would continue to invest in roads, post-war reconstruction and power.
Amunugama said the government wanted to push economic growth to over 8.0 percent a year and into double digits in the medium term by raising investments to 40 percent of GDP.
But the government also said it would 'protect' some sections of agriculture with heavy import duties as well as fertilizer subsidies, but would also reform and increase spending on education.
The government also hoped regulate and bring private sector into higher education, Amunugama said.
Earlier on Tuesday, the International Monetary Fund disbursed a 400 million US dollar tranche under a 2.4 billion US dollar bailout package signed in 2009 which was delayed pending the budget.
© Lanka Business Online
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
No drop in Sri Lanka defence spending in first peacetime budget
Estimates presented to Parliament showed the allocation for defence was expected to be 200 billion rupees (1.8 billion dollars), about the same as last year at the height of military operations.
Government ministers have said that payments were still outstanding on past military purchases.
The budget presentation coincides with a move by the International Monetary Fund to approve two more installments of 407.8 million dollars under its 2.6-billion-dollar credit line to the country.
The release of the budget has been delayed since February because of issues over budget targets.
The two loan installments had also been suspended pending a commitment by Sri Lanka to conform to government spending targets.
The national budget fell short last year because of the global financial crisis, election-related handouts and defence spending.
Sri Lanka is trying to revive its tourism sector as one of the measures to improve its economy It had been hard hit by the 26-year conflict, which ended with the defeat of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, which had been seeking a state for Sri Lanka's Tamil ethnic minority.
© Earth Times
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Sri Lanka, India in joint navy training exercise
During the discussion Prime Minister acknowledged the need to revive maritime public transport between India and Sri Lanka which would also upgrade the shipping facilities between the two countries. He pointed out that as a result the price of goods can be reduced considerably.
Secretary to the Prime Minister Mr. S. Amarasekara, Sri Lanka Navy Commander, Vice Admiral Thisara Samarasinghe and other high ranked Navy officers of the two countries were also present at the occasion.
© Lanka Puvath
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Sri Lanka's new government to present first budget
Junior finance minister Sarath Amunugama is due to present the tax and spending plans for 2010 following presidential and parliamentary polls earlier this year.
"It will be an investor-friendly budget," Amunugama told reporters on Monday. "It will focus on ways to stimulate economic growth and reduce the budget deficit."
The fiscal deficit was 9.7 percent of gross domestic product in 2009 and the government is targeting a deficit of eight percent this year.
Sri Lanka is under pressure to balance its books from the International Monetary Fund which approved a 2.6-billion-dollar bailout package last July after the end of the island nation's 37-year conflict.
Government forces wiped out the leadership of the Tamil Tiger separatists in May 2009 after a massive offensive that has been dogged ever since by allegations of war crimes.
The IMF said released another tranche of the bailout worth 407.8 million dollars on Monday after receiving assurances on tax reforms and spending cuts.
The government is expected to maintain defence spending in 2010 at about 200 billion rupees (1.8 billion dollars), about the same level as 2008 when fighting with the Tamil Tiger rebels was at a peak.
President Mahinda Rajapakse and his party were resoundingly re-elected earlier this year largely due to their success at ending the civil war and their perceived competence at fostering economic development.
Ahead of the budget, Sri Lanka last week raised taxes on tobacco, alcohol, wheat and milk foods, after halving import duties on luxury vehicles and electronic goods to spur economic growth, targeted at seven percent this year.
© AFP
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
IMF grants third tranche of $2.6 bln Sri Lanka loan
By Ranga Sirilal | Reuters
.............................................................................................................................................................................................
The IMF in February had delayed the payment after the government missed its 2009 deficit reduction targets and said that domestic budget borrowing -- consistent with a deficit target of 7 percent of gross domestic product -- was exceeded by a substantial amount.
"Despite the weaker-than-programmed 2009 fiscal performance, the government's 2010 budget proposal, if carried out, would significantly address past fiscal slippages," Naoyuki Shinohara, IMF deputy managing director and acting chair, said in a statement after a review of Sri Lanka's economic performance.
"Overall economic conditions in Sri Lanka are improving and the economy is likely to show strong growth this year," he said.
The completion of the IMF review means that it can immediately pay an amount equivalent to 275.6 million in special drawing rights ($408 million).
The $42 billion economy grew 7.1 percent in the first quarter from a year earlier, picking up from annual growth of 6.2 percent in the fourth quarter last year.
Both the central bank and the government expect 7 percent growth this year, up from an eight-year low of 3.5 percent in 2009, as low interest rates encourage business activity.
The central bank had earlier said the country had likely missed its 2009 budget deficit goal of 7 percent set by the IMF as a condition for the loan.
Sri Lanka's poll delayed the budget for 2010. A budget document showed Sri Lankan government expenditure for 2010 is estimated at 1.78 trillion rupees, up 1.9 percent from a year ago.
The global lender also said that its executive board had approved a request by the government to extend a stand-by arrangement by another year and break down future disbursements into seven equal amounts of SDR 137.8 million ($204 million) in the light of the recent delays.
The $2.6 billion loan was granted last July to avert a balance of payments crisis following the global economic crisis on condition that it get its spending under control.
The loan has helped to stabilise the rupee and boost investor confidence in government securities and the stock market.
© Reuters
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Defence ties of Indo-Lanka strengthened
By Hilwiah Roche
.............................................................................................................................................................................................
Welcoming the Navy Chief, the Indian High Commissioner said, “India and Sri Lanka Navy Chiefs have been engaged in wide ranging mutual interactions over the years. They have jointly participated in a number of prestigious maritime Defence Forums which include the 19th Sea Power Symposium held at the Naval war College in the USA and Indian Ocean Naval Symposium (IONS) held in UAE”.
It was only in April 2010 that the Sri Lankan Government improved the KSS harbour by modernizing jetties, deepening the harbour and accessing the roads.
Verma, would mainly visit the Kankesanthurai Harbour (KKS) in Jaffna to discuss the urgent need of repair and rehabilitation. To commence this project, ‘Nirupak’ the Indian Navy Survey Ship would arrive in Jaffna on 30 June to start the hydrographical survey of the harbour and begin the groundwork, such as dredging sea beds, repairing breakwaters and wreckage removal.
The KKS harbour which was abandoned for nearly 30 years during the civil war and severely damaged during Tsunami 2004, only served as transportation area for the Sri Lankan Navy and Government Ships for quite a long period.
Now that rapid developments in the sea transport system has started with Indian aid, the KSS Harbour is soon expected to operate as a * Peaceful modern commercial harbour* Sea-trade hub for the north and* play key role in passenger/cargo transportation.
Members of the Marine Industry in Sri Lanka, eagerly look forward to the once strategically important Kankesanthurai Harbour to play a key role in sea –operations of the island.
© All Voices
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Sri Lanka: Tamils dispossession worsens
By Chris Slee
.............................................................................................................................................................................................
Many of the Tamil inhabitants who were evicted from these areas to create the HSZs during the decades-long war are still unable to return to their homes.
The February 7 Colombo Sunday Leader said: “The HSZs have left 125,000-130,000 civilians displaced and unable to return to their homes in the north and east for the past 20 years.”
Many schools and other public buildings are also occupied by the army, as are large areas of agricultural land. On May 26, Tamilnet.com said agricultural organisations claimed the proportion of farmland under military occupation in Vanni and the Jaffna peninsula is as high as 80%.
In some of these areas, settlements for the majority Sinhalese ethnic group are being established. The Sri Lankan government has long had a policy of putting Sinhalese settlements in traditional Tamil areas. This is similar to the Israeli policy of putting Jewish settlements in the occupied West Bank.
Just as the Jewish settlements are intended to make an independent Palestinian state unviable, the Sinhalese settlements are intended to do the same for a Tamil state.
After the defeat of the LTTE in May 2009, 300,000 Tamil civilians who had been living in LTTE-controlled areas were placed in concentration camps. They were forcibly detained for more than six months.
Most are now allowed to leave. However, many are unable to because their houses have been destroyed, they are in areas made unsafe by land mines, or they are in areas occupied by the SLA.
About 80,000 Tamils remain in the camps. Others are living in makeshift shelters or staying with relatives. More than 10,000 alleged LTTE members are detained in secret camps.
Even those able to return to their homes are not safe. They are subject to disappearances, sexual abuse and extortion by members of the SLA, Tamilnet.com said on June 12.
Despite the end of the war, a state of emergency is continually renewed by the government every month. It recently asked parliament for an increased military budget for the remainder of 2010 to help fund its continued occupation of Tamil areas.
Ever since Sri Lanka gained its independence from Britain in 1948, successive governments have used anti-Tamil racism to win the support of the Sinhalese masses. The two main capitalist parties, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and the United National Party, competed to be the most racist.
In 1948, Tamil plantation workers who were born in Sri Lanka but whose ancestors had come from India during the nineteenth century were denied Sri Lankan citizenship.
In 1956, Sinhala was made the sole official language. This put Tamils at a disadvantage in getting government jobs and accessing government services.
In 1971, a process called “standardisation” meant that Tamils had to get higher examination marks than Sinhalese to get into university. The next year, a new constitution made Buddhism (the religion of most Sinhalese) the state religion.
Peaceful Tamil protests were met with violent repression, not only by the army and police, but also by mobs of Sinhalese racists stirred up by politicians and Buddhist monks.
There was a series of pogroms against the Tamils, beginning in 1956 and culminating in the massacre of an estimated 3000 Tamils in 1983.
The result of these policies was rising support among Tamils for an independent Tamil state. This was reflected in the 1977 Sri Lankan parliamentary elections, when the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) won 18 of the 22 seats it contested on a platform of self-determination.
Some Tamil youth, not satisfied with the TULF’s peaceful methods, took up arms to fight for independence. Support for the armed struggle grew after the 1983 pogrom.
The LTTE developed into a formidable military force. It drove the SLA out of large parts of the Tamil homeland and established an effective administration for the liberated zones.
The imperialist powers always opposed the LTTE. The United States declared it a terrorist organisation in 1997, as did Britain in 2000 and the European Union in 2006.
The US and its allies, including India and Israel, gave military aid to the Sri Lankan armed forces. The Sri Lankan navy received Israeli Dvora fast naval attack craft.
In November 2007, the US donated a radar-based maritime surveillance system and a set of new rigid-hulled inflatable boats to the Sri Lankan Navy.
This aid was crucial, allowing the navy to cut off contact between LTTE-controlled areas and the outside world. It also countered LTTE attacks on ships carrying troops and supplies to the SLA’s occupation force on the Jaffna peninsula.
In a triumphalist September 12 article on the Sri Lankan navy’s role in the defeat of the LTTE, the newspaper Island noted the importance of “much needed international support”.
It said: “President Mahinda Rajapksa has publicly appreciated the support given by the US in this regard.”
The Sri Lankan air force used Israeli Kfir jets to bomb LTTE-controlled areas. The Sri Lankan army also received training and other assistance from the US and Israeli armed forces.
The solid imperialist support for the Sri Lankan government was thinly disguised by occasional expressions of mild concern about Sri Lanka’s human rights record.
The US Senate passed a motion in December 2007 that imposed some restrictions on the sale of military equipment to Sri Lanka, though equipment for the purpose of “maritime and air surveillance and communications” (i.e. the most important form of US aid at that time) was excluded.
In addition to the strong support it recieved from the imperialist powers, the Sri Lankan government also received military aid from China. Sri Lanka takes advantage of the rivalry between the US, China and India for influence in the Indian Ocean region to get aid from all three countries.
When seeking aid from the imperialist governments to fight the LTTE, successive Sri Lankan governments have put its fight in the framework of the “war on terror”. But the government of President Mahinda Rajapksa is also capable of using “anti-imperialist” rhetoric to attack Western critics.
If a Western NGO or government makes even mild criticisms of Sri Lanka’s human rights record, the government complains of “outside interference”.
In reality, the military aid by Western powers to the Sri Lankan government is a much greater form of “outside interference”. As New Socialist Party (NSSP) leader Wickramabahu Karunaratne wrote at Lakbimanews.lk: “Mahinda is using bogus anti west campaigns to cover up his chauvinist regime and his brutal repressions.
“A man who is completely dependent on the handouts of Americans, Indians and other powers, from time to time deploys his adjutants to make noises outside western embassies.”
The situation is grim for Tamils in Sri Lanka, but one bright spot is the growing organisation and mobilisation of Tamils in the diaspora.
Tamils in the US, Canada, Western Europe, Australia and elsewhere protested on the streets in large numbers during the final stages of the war. They have recently reaffirmed their support for an independent Tamil homeland in referenda held amongst Tamils in many countries.
They are acting as the voice for the Tamil struggle, which for the time being has been suppressed in Sri Lanka itself.
© Green Left Weekly
Monday, June 28, 2010
Sri Lankan monks protest UN panel
By Eranga Jayawrdane (AP)
.............................................................................................................................................................................................
The National Heritage Party consisting largely of monks said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon's appointment of the three-member panel last week was interfering in Sri Lanka's domestic affairs and helping terrorism.
Dozens of monks, laymen and laywomen marched to the U.N. office in Sri Lanka's capital Colombo, chanting slogans against the world body.
"The U.N. has no right, authority or mandate to appoint a committee. It's an interference with Sri Lankan affairs," party leader Rev. Omalpe Sobitha told the gathering. "The U.N. is acting as an agent of terrorism."
Sri Lankan military forces last year defeated the Tamil Tiger rebels, ending 25 years of civil war.
The rebels — designated a terrorist organization by the United States and the European Union — fought for an independent state for ethnic minority Tamils, mostly Hindus, after decades of marginalization by successive governments controlled by majority ethnic Sinhalese, most of them Buddhists.
According to the U.N., more than 7,000 Tamil civilians were killed in the last five months of the war that ended in May 2009. Human rights groups have accused both government forces and the now-vanquished Tamil Tiger rebels of deliberate targeting of civilians.
Ban's committee led by former Indonesian Attorney-General Marzuki Darusman, also the U.N.'s special rights investigator for North Korea, has been asked to advise him on the alleged abuses during the war's final stages.
The Sri Lankan government has already opposed the move as "an unwarranted and unnecessary interference with a sovereign nation."
Buddhist monks here are considered protectors of the nation and wield big influence in the country's social and political affairs.
© Brandon Sun
Monday, June 28, 2010
'India's views matter, don't care about the world' - Sri Lankan President
Interviewed by K Venkataramanan
.............................................................................................................................................................................................
Rajapaksa presented the post-war rehabilitation of Tamil refugees as one that was actually unbelievably fast rather than the tardy exercise the world says it is. "We have sent back most people to their homes, about 80-90%," he said. In the course of a two-hour-long conversation with K Venkataramanan at his Temple Trees residence in Colombo, he also hinted at giving himself an opportunity for more terms in office by amending the present Constitution which limits a president's tenure to two terms. Rajapaksa described the incarceration of his political rival, ex-army chief Sarath Fonseka, as something that was not of concern to him as it was a judicial matter, and spoke candidly about his support for an ethnically mixed population in the north, where traditionally Tamils constitute an overwhelming majority and his belief that Tamils and Muslims should choose to be part of a national parties instead of limiting themselves to regional or communal identities.
EXCERPTS:
Your popularity in the country is at its height. But aren't you worried about the international image of the country and your own personal image abroad?
Why should I worry about others? If India and neighbours are good with me, that is enough for me.
The UN has made adverse remarks about the human rights situation and many have called for an international investigation into war crimes in the last phase of the war.
They should understand the country's situation. Earlier, they said Prabhakaran was the world's most ruthless terrorist. But now, suddenly, when I defeated him, they are talking differently. I wonder if they would say the same if bin Laden were to be defeated. They can advise us, but they can't force us. No one can force us to do this and that.
The international community, including EU, even India, frequently asks you to speed up the process of finding a political solution. Where do you stand on that?
We will take our own time and the solution, you can't ask for an instant solution like instant noodles. Constitutions are not for one or two days. It is not a magazine which is published weekly or monthly. We can't change the Constitution frequently. We will have to take our own time. We will certainly change all this. My commitment remains.
The European Union has threatened to suspend GSP Plus tariff concessions for Sri Lanka.
I am not bothered. These concessions were offered soon after the tsunami. Now the tsunami (rehabilitation) is over, it helped us at that time. Now we must find new markets. Our people must know this: when I called the elections, they (EU) immediately called for suspension of tariff concessions. It was a politically motivated decision. If the EU doesn't want to give it (concessions), let them keep it. I don't want it. We have gone and explained what we have done. Now we have appointed it (an inquiry commission), not because someone wanted me to, but because I am committed to that.
The commission is about the lessons learnt and what should be done for national reconciliation. You must have your own view on this. What will you say are the lessons learnt from this conflict and what are your suggestions for national reconciliation?
The people must trust each other. We have to build that trust. In Colombo, about 30 years ago, Sinhalese were the majority. Today, they are a minority, about 27%. There are more Tamils and Muslims now. But I don't see this as a problem. I believe in mixed population. Earlier, there was and they had no problem like this. Only politicians make althese issues for their own ends.
There are fears of complete Sinhalisation of the north and east. Will the Sinhalese people be settled in those areas in large numbers?
They were there, you know. They were chased by Prabhakaran, so, if anybody wants to go there, yes, they can. What if somebody were to say that in Colombo, the Tamils have come in large numbers?
Is it true there are 25,000 Chinese workers in Sri Lanka?
How can it be 25,000? Must be the Chinese who work here as dental technicians. They have been here for such a long time. I remember during the time of the Sirimavo Bandaranaike regime, the opposition started a campaign saying Bandaranaike had sold this country to China. And they came out with photos of these dental technicians. They took their photos and were publishing it saying China, China. I feel it is the same cry of China, China now. Others are saying India, India. Now they are saying we are selling this country to India. The JVP has declared we are selling this country to India.
Between all these developments, where do you see your relations with China?
We are a non-aligned country. Our neighbours are Indians. I always say, Indians are our relations. From the time of Emperor Asoka, we have had that culture. The whole culture, irrigation, architecture has been built up over the last 2,500 years. You can't break that. But that doesn't mean we won't get commercial benefits from others. From China, or Japan, or whoever. They will come here, they will build, they will go back. India comes here, they will build and they will stay. This is the difference. In simple terms, whenever our relationship is stronger and we get close to India, this campaign begins. They start to say India has started to rule, and they know India is very sensitive about Pakistan or China. So they will use these factors to upset the Indian public. Well, I think even the LTTE used this point.
How do you see your recent visit to India and the joint statement that spoke of cooperation in various fields?
I think it was a very successful visit. The agreements that we signed, in fact most of them, are concerned with development work, especially in the north, infrastructure development, railways, housing projects (50,000 houses in the north and east), power plant project in Sampur. All those things are necessary for development of this country.
Some of these ideas have been around for 2-3 years. However, not much progress has been made. Do you think work will speed up now?
I very much hope so. We need to have targets. Earlier, we could say the delay was due to the terrorist problem or something. Now we cannot say all those things. We agreed that all projects will be started by 2010.
How do you foresee Indo-Sri Lankan relations over the next five years?
It will be very strong. We had certain things in the past, but now it is very good, we understand them, they understand us. This is the best time we have had at all levels. Even the people-to-people contacts, business, politicians.
Do you think India has something to contribute to resolution of ethnic and political issues in Lanka?
I think a solution must come from among ourselves. It must be a homegrown solution. You can't bring something from outside and implement here. We must know what it is and people must accept it. If the majority rejects it, we can't ignore that. So, any solution must be acceptable to all communities. And 13th amendment (to devolve power), India's proposal, with that we introduced provincial councils (in the north and east). From there, of course, we have to develop it.
So the 13th amendment plus (for more decentralisation) is a reality.
That plus is mine (Laughs). Yes, it is a reality. I want to go and discuss first with the Tamil parties. We want to see that the provinces are able to share the powers at the Centre. This is very important.
That's where the idea of the Upper House (Senate with members nominated by provincial councils) comes?
Yes
Do you think the situation is more conducive for a solution, with the consent of the Tamil National Alliance?
Yes, but they must also realize our difficulties, and the concerns of the majority. We have a saying in Sinhala: "Someone burnt by fire, will be scared of even fireflies."
You mean fears of the majority?
I mean the fears of all. They also must realize all this. Without the majority, you can't implement it. This is what happened to the 13th amendment. It is only the diaspora who want to keep these issues, the conflict, alive. The younger generation has moved on. Now, there are younger Tamil leaders emerging.
What is your total vision for the Tamil people who had suffered during the war?
If the south gets gold, you can't give iron to the north and the east; I want to give them gold too. This is the simple answer. For the last 30 years, they didn't get all this. They must feel that there is no discrimination.
What about the rehabilitation process? Is there an overall architecture for the entire process of resettlement and rehabilitation to include economic activities and livelihood opportunities?
Yes, we have a programme, we have a plan. I have appointed a Presidential Task Force which undertook the entire planning process with government agencies to implement. We are slowly implementing it. The first stage is demining and the second stage is to send the people there. When you are resettling them, they must have roads, hospitals, schools, the village headman's office, divisional secretary's office, in short the basic infrastructure. We have all the officials in place. Now, we have to resettle nearly 47,000 displaced people. Of these, some 19,000 are with their relatives. Even the people who are in camps who have no houses will soon be resettled.
In this process, do you think it would be better to have locally elected representatives? Is there a plan to hold the Northern Province elections?
Yes. They need pradesiya sabhas (local councils). The next step is holding the provincial council elections. But we need some time, as we have had enough elections.
There are complaints that the Eastern Province CM does not have any power and that implementation is centralized.
He has all the powers. Now he (Eastern Province chief minister Pillaiyan) has gone abroad. He has taken 27 members or so abroad. They have gone on a study tour! I thought that money could have been used to build some roads. These are not controlled by us.
In the last parliamentary election, Tamil and Muslim parties that contested as part of the UPFA did not use their own party names or symbols. Do you want them to be seen as only a part of national parties, or should they have their own independent parties?
It depends. The main political parties will also put up their own candidates. I would like to see that all these people do not stick only to those areas. When you have political parties which stick to only to those areas, they could get communal. It is much better that they join the national parties. They should join the majority, the whole country. Whether they are Tamil, Sinhala or Muslim, they are citizens of the country. They are not separate citizens.
Do you plan to change the powers of the president?
There are some ideas. I want to go to the parliament. I do go to meet people and for functions. I miss parliament.
Is it merely about attending Parliament, or about making the office accountable to Parliament?
Now, under the proposed Constitution, the president should attend Parliament once in three months. There are proposals that there should be an executive PM and a ceremonial president. These are ideas of those who want to destabilize the whole country. They don't want a strong leader.
What is your vision for the country, covering the political and development questions and all the challenges faced by your presidency?
Without development, there is no peace, and without peace, there is no development. If peace is there, development will come. The development should be people-centric. You can't remain isolated in the world. You have to win over all these people: neighbours, Asians, European Union or the US. As a non-aligned country, I believe in being closer to all the countries. But we must do this in our independent ways. Unfortunately in the past, our foreign policy was wrong. We antagonized neighbours. I will never do that. I know the consequences.
What about the future of Sarath Fonseka, who remains in custody?
I am not interested to know. There is a case. If he is freed also, I am not concerned. The matter is with the judiciary. I will not interfere with the case. After the victory, he wanted to raise another 200,000 soldiers. When I asked him why, he said he wanted small army camps everywhere. I said he couldn't do that as it was the job of the police to maintain law and order. And he said there was an external threat also. I wanted to know from where and he said, from India! I told him I will handle that. That was his mentality. He wanted to fight the whole world.
He has made statements that war crimes were committed.
When he is in Parliament, he goes there very early and stays there throughout the day until the staff tell him that they have to go home. He gets all the freedom there and speaks to people.
Will you get a third term? There are rumours that you are going to amend the Constitution to remove the two-term restriction for anyone to hold the president's office.
For that you have to wait and see. It is only after six years. I prefer to be in Parliament, but after six years I might also decide to retire. So, what I always say is, it is a democratic right of a person or citizen to contest. Let the people decide. By the Constitution, you can't restrict it. It is the people's right to elect their leaders. The losing candidate has no restriction, and can keep contesting, but the winner is not allowed to contest more than two times.
© The Times of India
This site is best viewed with firefox
Visit the JDS New Website
Read the urgent alerts - act now!
Sri Lanka's Killing Fields
No Impunity for Enforced Disappearances
UN REPORT ON SRI LANKA
where is prageeth?
Amnesty: Failures of Sri Lanka's LLRC
Permanent Peopls's Tribunal on Sri Lanka - Final Report
Sivaram: A walk down memory lane
Remembering Lasantha
Subscribe to JDS newsfeeds
UN EXPERTS conclusion backs the JDS video
SL Execution Video : The truth comes out
A legacy unforgotten
Post-war justice in sri lanka : International Commission of Jurists
Evidence of Police Brutality in Sri Lanka
A Study of Police Torture in Sri Lanka
