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Not under Indian pressure – MR

Tuesday, 28 June 2011 14:40

President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Tuesday denied that he had come under pressure from India to offer the minority Tamils a political solution, saying that any settlement to the matter will have to be approved by Parliament.

"There was no pressure from India on the thirteenth amendment of thirteen plus," Rajapaksa told reporters.

Responding to a query on the visit by Indian National Security Advisor Shiv Shankar Menon, Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao and Defence Secretary Pradeep Kumar, he said the Indians had only discussed with him routine bilateral issues.

The Indian officials visited Colombo early this month in the backdrop of a call by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa to impose economic sanctions on Sri Lanka.

Rajapaksa said Menon had indicated to him the proposal made by his own Cabinet minister Douglas Devananda on the need for Sri Lankan parliament to thrash out the question of a political solution to the island’s ethnic question.

He said appointing a parliamentary select committee on the ethnic question was not a delaying tactic. "Any solution that comes up will have to be approved in parliament," the president said. "I will back any solution approved by parliament"

"While having talks with political parties (with Tamil National Alliance) we can have PSC talks at the same time. If we wait for political party talks to end and then have PSC discussions, this will cause delays," he said. The president said the election for the northern provincial council will be held "next year".

He wanted the parties to start preparing for the polls which will be the first ever for the council since separated from the east in the supreme court ordered demerger of 2007.

On the present international campaign against Sri Lanka by the UN and other western nations, he said it was to be countered by submitting two separate reports. They will deal with the humanitarian nature of the government s military campaign that ended in May 2009 and the military aspects of it.

External Affairs Minister GL Peiris, who was also present, said that not all countries were opposed to Sri Lanka despite the UN special panel report which accused Colombo of war crimes. (PTI)

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Sri Lanka says Parliament Committee on political solution will strengthen Parliament-

Tuesday, 28 June 2011 16:15

President Rajapaksa

Sri Lankan President said that the appointing of a Parliamentary Select Committee to find a permanent political solution to the ethnic problem was by no means a delaying tactic, but one that sought to obtain the concurrence of Parliament for any decision made, said President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

“Sri Lanka is having a Parliamentary democracy and strengthening the Parliament is a vibrant democratic process as it is represented by all parties and all ethnic groups” said President Mahinda Rajapaksa

He was responding to a question raised at the meeting with editors of the local media at Temple Trees this morning.

He said it was view of many party leaders and MPs that the search for a solution should not be confined to discussions with one party. They saw they need to give an opportunity to Parliament, comprising all parties and groups within it, to consider a solution.

The Select Committee can work out a time frame to reach its conclusion. It will ensure collective responsibility of Parliament, and give ear to the concerns of all parties. This was a means of strengthening Parliament too, the President added.

The PSC will go ahead with its negotiations once it is constituted with the consent of all parties represented in Parliament while the Government continues the negotiations with the Tamil National Alliance.

"I will accept any decision or proposal given by Parliament. That is the proper democratic approach and recognizes that fact that a final decision should come from Parliament," he said.

Minister of External Affairs Prof. G. L. Peiris said that far from being a delaying tactic, the Select Committee procedure would in fact expedite the matter. Talks are already on with TNA. The 7th round of such talks is due next. It would be a delay if one waits for these talks to conclude to present a result to Parliament. What is considered by the Select Committee method is parallel activity. The process would be concurrent and not successive. It would amount to a telescoping of two consultative processes, the Minister said.

President Rajapaksa responding to questions on the need for the Select Committee in view of earlier reports of All Party Conference, the Vitharana Report etc., said that some parties did not participate in the All Party Conference. The Vitharana Report was not a final report. The conditions have since changed and a fresh parliamentary election has been held with a renewed mandate.

When asked what the position would be if TNA does not participate in the Select Committee, the President asked how they [TNA] could trust him if they cannot trust Parliament. President emphasized it is often said the powers of Parliament should be recognized and this is exactly what is intended by the Select Committee.

The final decision would have to be made by Parliament in keeping with democratic practice and I would accept it.

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President to stand by Parliament’s decision

*Parliament will take responsibility for a solution

*Solution would be a joint effort of Parliament

‘I will stand by a solution arrived at by the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) on resolving the conflict. ‘The PSC will provide an opportunity for all parties in Parliament to participate in the process of finding a solution. Parliament will take responsibility for a solution, besides emerging strong in the process’ President Mahinda Rajapaksa said yesterday.

Speaking to newspaper Editors and Heads of media organizations at the monthly breakfast meeting with these personnel at Temple Trees, President Rajapaksa also said that the PSC process, rather being a ‘time-buying’ exercise, would be conducted in accordance with a time frame determined by Parliament.

‘The solution would be a joint effort of Parliament and will be the result of a participatory process. If Parliament provides me with a solution I will implement it’, he said. External Affairs Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris, Mass Media and Information Minister Keheliya Rambukwella, Preseidential Secretary Lalith Weeratunga and several other state officials were associated with the President at the meeting.

Explaining the rationale for the government conducting talks with the TNA on a solution to the conflict while going ahead with plans for a PSC process, Prof. Peiris said, in answer to a question, that the solution that is arrived at with the TNA too would be taken to Parliament.

But this is a long drawn process. The PSC effort, however, would run parallel to the state-TNA talks process he said.

The aim is to ‘telescope the two processes into a single time frame’. When asked why the government was not filing legal action against Channel 4 for the canards perpetrated by it, the President said that the government was mulling the possibility of filing a lawsuit and that legal opinion was being consulted.

He said that Channel 4 and other organizations of its kind were indulging in the ‘freedom of the wild ass.’

He cited the cases of proliferating websites which were responsible to no one but were freely disseminating defamatory and scurrilous material.

The President also explained that the government was preparing two reports in relation issues arising from Channel 4. These were not answers to Channel 4 but outlined current work undertaken by the state. One report detailed the humanitarian work being carried out by the state in the North.

The other report which is in preparation, relates to defence matters. The President also recollected that all Colombo-based ambassadors were invited by the state to witness via UAV the atrocities being committed by the LTTE at the closing stages of the conflict in 2009. He said that the Channel 4 creation was a mere sensational and fictitious film and not journalism of any kind.

Bombs were shown as being dropped in one place, for instance, but people were shown as dying in a completely different location. ‘This is fabricated material that could be submitted to the LLRC. The closing stages of the conflict were a life and death battle for the Security Forces. How could there have been time for rapes and other such excesses, the President questioned.

The following are some of the responses given by the President to issues which were raised by journalists:

On recent talks with India: No special demands were made by the Indian side. Our talks were most cordial and our relations are fine.

Provincial polls: Elections to the Northern Provincial Council will be held next year. This is a certainty. Nothing major occurred during the recent alleged incident involving the TNA in the North. The government would not hesitate to take strong punitive action against any wrong doers.

On talks with protesting university Dons: We cannot provide an exorbitant pay. There is a salary structure to be followed closely. But the issue is not the salary. It is up to journalists to probe this. However, there are signs of a resolution.

Right to Information: We do not oppose this. I’ll strengthen R to I. There is a Commission to tackle corruption. This can be resorted to. In fact issues can be taken up with me and I’ll help.

Channel 4: Foreign notables tend to only believe the LTTE. When these persons were questioned by Ambassador Kohona, for instance, at the Channel 4 screening recently they had no answers. At the screening only the President, the Defence Secretary and Minister Basil Rajapaksa were mentioned. So, one could figure out what the aim of Channel 4 was. We’ve nothing to hide. Nor are we condoning any wrong-doing by our Security Forces.

Arsenic issue: I’ll continue to eat rice. In fact I always eat red rice. We will only go by scientific studies. We won’t be misled by hearsay.

On the Commonwealth Games: Hambantota is being transformed into a Sports City. For this purpose, hotels, roads and other infrastructure are required. It is for all this that some money is being spent. If we want national progress we have to go forward. Expenses on infrastructure are not a waste of money. It results in progress. We should have a vision of the future and not stagnate. We should be far-seeing and march forward.

Sense of priorities: We do not neglect important sectors, like education and health. Only the building of structures like hotels is entrusted to the private sector. What is important for the people’s well-being is handled by the government. Due to infrastructure development in the South, an acre of land in Suriyawewa, for instance, is fetching Rupees 500,000. Thus has development helped in raising land

values.

(L.O.)