Ceylon Today Editorial

Time to walk the walk

17th October 2015

In a bizarre turn of events, a middle aged woman was abducted by two unidentified individuals in Kambermalai, Jaffna when she was returning home following a Court case at the Point Pedro Magistrate's Court. The most noticeable aspect of this report is the fact that the woman was abducted in a white van in broad daylight, regardless of the many eye witnesses who had later given statements to the Velvettithurai Police who are currently conducting investigations to find the missing woman.

The 'White Van menace', as it has come to be known to the general public, due to the vast attention it attracted through media coverage and the mindfulness created by country's politicians, was predominant in the Southern part of the country. The menace also took the Northern sector of the country in a whirlwind, spreading fear and terror in the hearts of the populace like a grim virus created by a human hand. When the abductees who disappeared into the sliding doors of a white coloured van eventually ended up being found dead in some abandoned area, killed in the most gruesome manner, it did not help to quell that fear.

Enforced disappearances are not particularly new to our island country. Thousands of people have disappeared in Sri Lanka since the 1980s. A 1999 study by the United Nations found that Sri Lanka had the second highest number of disappearances in the world and that 12,000 Sri Lankans had disappeared, after being detained by authorities. Likewise, many of the documented cases of disappearances have been attributed to pro-government paramilitary groups that ran amok on the streets during the 1980s' Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) insurrections as well as during the Civil War against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) and other factions of the Tamil militant group.

Commissions such as the Presidential Commission to Investigate Complaints Regarding Missing Persons (PCICMP) have documented how thousands of people have been kidnapped by armed men and disappeared, without a trace. According to the Commission, they have recorded 19, 000 cases of missing individuals from the Northern sector of the country. These people are still missing, yet to be found or are presumed dead, while the remains of several individuals, executed, have been found.
More so, it was also reported that the controversial interim reports of the Paranagama and Udalagama Commissions were handed over to President Maithripala Sirisena last September. Paranagama Commission's report, headed by retired High Court Judge Maxwell Paranagama, mainly deals with investigating cases of persons from the Northern and Eastern Provinces, who were abducted or disappeared from their places of residence during the period, from 10 June 1990 to 19 May 2009. The interim report of the Udalagama Commission, also known as the Commission of Inquiry to Investigate, and Inquire into Serious Violations of Human Rights which are alleged to have occurred in Sri Lanka since 1 August 2005, was also among the reports which were handed over to the President.

Altogether there are more than eleven government appointed Commissions of Inquiry and Committees since 2006 to the present that investigates cases of enforced disappearances, political assassinations, violent crimes related to politics as well as alleged human rights violations that had occurred in the country. Among these are the most notorious cases such as the assassination of Tamil National Alliance MP Joseph Pararajasingham in 2005, killing of 68 people in Kebbithigollewa in 2006, killing of 98 security forces personnel in Digampathana in 2006, assassination of Nadaraja Raviraj and countless cases of missing persons and enforced disappearances. Almost all of these Commissions of Inquiry were appointed after, or in the latter part of the Civil War and are continuing even after a decade. And it is of utmost significance that these Commissions conclude investigations, submit reports to the authorities so that the much awaited justice finally sees the light at the end of the endless tunnel.

Despite the officers of the police, the security forces, and the politicians claiming that the 'white van menace' has come to an end with the entry of the yahapalana government, it seems as if the menace has come back to haunt the minds of the public. The recent incident reported in Jaffna is an eye opener to the police and the relevant authorities to be more vigilant of such instances. We are not suggesting that these instances are necessarily related to bad politics whereas it has the possibility that the method of the crime was obviously mimicked off the original perpetrations.

We are not calling for an increase of security measures or establishments in the North, or anywhere else in the country, but only asking for more police attention on conducting progressive investigations into these crimes. In a backdrop where women and children are abducted for unknown reasons and young girls are raped and murdered, it is of utmost importance for the police to be more alert.

The time for talk has concluded. Now it is time to walk the walk.

 



Daily Mirror Editorial

Participatory democracy and participatory development   

Though most people are unaware of it and others choose to ignore it, world poverty alleviation is a high priority issue because until and unless there is a more equitable distribution of wealth and resources, there is no justice and thereby there will be no lasting peace.

That is one of the main reasons why we are seeing so many wars, wars within wars, various forms of terrorism and uprisings in Syria, Iraq, Afghanistan and other areas. For instance the Unite States invaded Afghanistan on October 7, 2001, a month after the 9/11 attack on America. US President Barak Obama pledged he would pull all US ground troops out of Afghanistan by December this year. But after the Taliban took control of the important city of Kunduz earlier this month, President Obama changed his strategy and decided to keep more than 5,000 troops for training and advisory roles till the end of next year. Most military analysts agree that the stark reality is that after 15 years of operations by some 60,000 US troops with tens of thousands of casualties, the Taliban is today stronger than it was in 2001. Similar is the war in Syria where the US and Russia are on the verge of a head on confrontation, while up to five million innocent Syrians are suffering in refugee camps of various countries.

Essentially the superpowers and others appear to have been tackling the symptoms instead of the root causes of poverty and injustice.

Last Saturday the world marked the International Day for the Eradication of Poverty. It comes in the afterglow of the adoption of the Transforming Our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
 

According to the United Nations, the Agenda, which succeeds the Millennium Development Goals (MDG), contains 17 new and ambitious goals – in the forefront among them being the mission to “end poverty in all its forms everywhere”.

UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in a statement to mark the occasion called on the international community to recommit to think, decide and act together against extreme poverty -- and plan for a world where no-one is left behind.

The aim must be prosperity for all, not just a few. This seems impractical if not impossible in a crisis, where one percent of the people, comprising scores of multi billionaires have or control more wealth than the other 99 percent.

Capitalism does provide some benefits like business, investments and jobs but as US presidential frontrunner Hilary Clinton said last week, we need to save Capitalism from destroying itself through excessive selfishness and greed, which are colour-washed as entrepreneurship and competitive enterprise.
In Sri Lanka the National Government seems to have taken some effective steps for sustainable development with the focus on the rural economy and eco-friendly initiatives. Even the former regime’s leaders now admit that superhighways, megacities, and huge projects alone cannot bring sustainable development benefitting all the people and bring about a lasting peace with justice.

Though the war ended in 2009 the former regime tended to be more ‘triumphalistic’ and arrogant instead of taking effective steps to address the root causes of the war.

This is the same dilemma being faced by the US and other big powers.

Thankfully the new Sri Lankan government seems to be conscious of the need to win the peace also by bringing about multi-racial, multi-religious and multi-cultural unity in diversity.

Extremism in any form needs to be rejected, while we protect, promote and even celebrate diversity, so that the Sri Lankan identity of all people will be restored.

Participatory democracy needs to go along with participatory development as we move towards building a new Sri Lanka in a spirit of consensus and consultation.  

Daily News Editorial

Eradicating Drugs

17th October 2015

The passing down of the death sentence on drug kingpin Gampola Vidanalage Don Samantha Kumara alias Wele Suda earlier in the week marks a significant victory in Sri Lanka's battle against illegal drugs. He was arrested in Pakistan in January and brought to Sri Lanka. Several Sri Lankan and foreign accomplices of Wele Suda have also been arrested and their cases are pending.

However in the overall order of things, this is just one instance of how drugs have virtually invaded our shores following the liberalisation of the economy. Over the last few years, there have been several massive detections of heroin and other dangerous substances at various points of entry to Sri Lanka, including the Colombo Port and the Bandaranaike International Airport. Sri Lanka thus gained a dubious reputation as a transit point for the international illegal drugs trade. It was no secret that powerful figures including politicians were behind the free flow of drugs to the country, apart from corrupt elements in law enforcement and revenue collection agencies who looked the other way when drugs were brought in.

According to the latest statistics published in our front page yesterday, over 763 kilos of heroin are consumed per year in Sri Lanka. The National Dangerous Drugs Control Board has said that over 45,000 Sri Lankan drug addicts use over two kilos of heroin daily. An estimated 350 heroin peddlers and dealers operate in the city of Colombo with about 45 of them dealing in wholesale transactions involving hundreds of millions of rupees, the sources said. Since these statistics do not indicate the rates of usage of other narcotics substances including cannabis and cocaine, one can only assume that the drug problem is much bigger than this figure suggests. Taken as a whole, substance abuse (including legally available tobacco and alcohol) is a bigger social menace than we perceive it to be.

Seven hundred kilos is by no means a small quantity in a country where the possession of a few grams of heroin is enough to qualify for the death sentence. This means that despite the best efforts of the Navy, Coastguard, Customs, Police Narcotics Bureau and other law enforcement agencies, large quantities of illegal drugs continue to be smuggled successfully. All attempts must be made to cover this loophole. It is generally known that in any country, the law enforcement agencies can only apprehend around 10 percent of the drugs smuggled in. Navy sources say that illegal drug trafficking in Sri Lanka is on the rise. Heroin and cannabis (also grown locally) are the most common drugs seized in the country with 80 percent of these drugs finding their way via the sea route.

Much of the world's heroin supply is now routed through the vast Indian Ocean, but with the limited resources available to the Navy, it is impossible to block all drug smuggling attempts. As outlined by State Minister of Defence Ruwan Wijewardene at the recently concluded Meeting of the Senior Drug Enforcement Officials of the Indian Ocean Region, all countries in the region should come together to share intelligence on drug trafficking and act upon them. Wele Suda's case itself is a good example of such intra-SAARC cooperation. Naval and other forces should also conduct joint operations where possible to block and intercept drug traffickers. The Sri Lanka Navy recently conducted a Visit Board Search and Seize (VBSS) exercise of the type used to hunt for drug smugglers' boats on the high seas. These agencies must be given more training on, and exposure to, drug busting operations. All countries should make a concerted effort to destroy drug plant cultivations. Strengthening surveillance at entry points such as ports and airports is essential, with more trained personnel, sniffer dogs and advanced detection equipment.

President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe have vowed to eradicate the drugs menace from the country as part of the Government's programme of work. They have already taken several steps in this direction, including strengthening the law enforcement agencies, Excise and Customs and the Judiciary which is essential to take action against drug lords regardless of their social stature or political links. It is important to nab the biggest drug dealers, not just the small-time street peddlers.

It is also vital to rehabilitate drug users, but it is even more important to prevent others, especially schoolchildren and youth, from falling into the same pit. Parents must be the first line of defence against drug abuse, but schools have an even bigger role to play in weaning children away from illicit narcotics, tobacco and alcohol. The media, print and electronic, too should play a bigger role, highlighting the deadly dangers of drug abuse so that a negative image on illegal drugs is created in the minds of readers and viewers. Eradicating drugs is not just the responsibility of the Government and law enforcement authorities, but the whole society should be part of this noble exercise. 

The Island Editorial

Three cheers for CIABOC

17th October 2015

Some people usually don’t have a civil word to say about the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC). But, it earned public plaudits on Thursday, when it arrested three Customs officers for accepting a bribe of Rs. 125 mn in Colombo. In fact, ‘even the ranks of Tuscany could scarce forbear to cheer’.

 

All institutions, both public and private, are full of crooks who wouldn’t even scruple to cheat their mothers if they could make money. The Customs Department has its own share of corrupt elements who have brought it into disrepute.

 

Governments keep increasing indirect taxes even on essential commodities at the expense of the poor when the state loses revenue due to corruption among other things. If the aforesaid Customs officers had been able to do what they had taken the bribe for, the state coffers would have lost millions of rupees. How much the state loses annually due to corruption in the Customs is anyone’s guess.

 

The second annual Chapman University Survey on 'American Fears' has recently revealed that the Americans are more afraid of a corrupt government than a terrorist attack or bio-warfare. The survey listed the top 10 things that people in the US fear most. The Americans are wise enough to realise the grave danger corruption as well as its crippling impact on the state machinery poses to any society. Future is bleak for a country that does not combat corruption with might and main. Half hearted efforts won’t do.

 

It is high time Sri Lankans learnt to fear corruption as their American counterparts rightly do and mobilise themselves to combat the menace without relying on politicians to do that for them.

 

Now that the CIABOC, which was once accused of catching only sprats, has netted three sharks will it conduct an investigation if a complaint is made as regards the colossal campaign expenditure incurred by the two main parties, the SLFP and the UNP; will it order their leaders, general secretaries and treasurers to account for their campaign finances?

 

Meanwhile, behind every corrupt deal in the public sector there is a private sector crook. It takes two to tango where mega corrupt deals are concerned. Most of the state-owned cash cows have been sold for a song to some tycoons with political connections. The Supreme Court has declared some of them null and void, but no action has been taken against those responsible for those fraudulent transactions. New laws are needed to enable the CIABOC to probe private sector crooks responsible for state sector corruption.

 

Corruption has eaten into the vitals of Sri Lankan society to such an extent that even Presidents have complained of attempts to bribe them. Chandrika Kumaratunga, while she was the President, said someone had offered her a bribe. President Maithripala Sirisena has also claimed that the tobacco industry tried to bribe him in a bid to scuttle the government moves to introduce tough anti-tobacco laws. No names have been named though those who tried to bribe the heads of state should have been brought to justice immediately. It is a serious offence to offer bribes. Why no complaints were lodged with the CIABOC is the question. Kumaratunga and Sirisena, being two leaders at the forefront of an anti-corruption campaign, ought to name names and call for action at least now. Better late than never!

 

In 1994, the SLFP-led People’s Alliance, the UNP the JVP (whose MP had contested on the Sri Lanka Progressive Front ticket) and others in Parliament joined forces to strip the CIABOC of its power to initiate its own investigations without waiting for complaints to be made. The big guns of these parties are today on a crusade to rid the country of bribery and corruption! Let them be urged to strengthen the CIABOC and create an environment for it to operate free from political pressure.