How will this drama end?

By Dr Upul Wijayawardhana

Yet another act in the drama aimed at destabilising Sri Lanka was staged at 23:00 BST (British Summer Time, which is an hour ahead of GMT) on Tuesday 5th September, when Channel 4 broadcast its ‘Dispatches’ programme titled ‘Sri Lanka’s Easter Bombings’. Not being broadcast in primetime, it was obviously not meant for local consumption, as by that late hour most Brits would be either too sleepy or too drunk to watch it! Of course, it was meant for international consumption, especially that of the United Nations Human Rights Council before its September meeting; one of the three regular meetings held every year, the other two being in March and June. Timing was not accidental, being aired just before a UNHRC meeting, just like the two previous C4 ‘anti-Sri Lankan’ programmes; ‘Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields’, being first aired in June 2011 and ‘Sri Lanka’s Killing Fields: War Crimes Unpunished’, first aired in March 2012.

Perhaps, some TV channels in Sri Lanka got it absolutely correct when they branded this a ‘mocumentary’, as it was a programme that completely lacked balance, being almost hilarious. It was dependent almost entirely on the words of an asylum seeker in Switzerland, who fled Sri Lanka when he was about to be charged for forgery whilst acting as the wingman of the former LTTE leader of the East, turned politician. Some of the claims he made had more holes than in Swiss cheese! There was another government official who made some vague accusations, comprehension of which was made even more difficult by ‘voice-distortion’. The usual anti-Sri Lankan commentators of Sri Lankan origin were there with their expected comments and the voiceover of the programme was done by a C4 announcer of Indian origin who could not even pronounce Sri Lankan names properly, justifying him being branded by some as a ‘coconut’!

Inspector of Police Nishantha Silva, who with his family were afforded safe and secretive passage to Switzerland on the day Gota was elected, courtesy of the then Swiss ambassador, also appeared in a short segment mostly to accuse Gota of the murder of the former editor of the Sunday Leader. I may have misheard in my sleepiness but got the impression that he was mentioning WhatsApp messages that implicated Gota. If he referred to WhatsApp, it is an impossibility as WhatsApp became a means of communication long after that assassination. Whatever messages they were, surely, he could have got the Yahapalana administration to act on the evidence he had, as he was very powerful during that regime. It was nice to see him coming out of his Swiss provided luxury to admit his failure!

It cannot be forgotten that it was the same Swiss Ambassador who attempted to make an international incident out of the falsely alleged abduction of one of the local employees of the Swiss Embassy, a week after Gota was elected. He completely supported her charade and may well have orchestrated it. After a great delay, she was found guilty recently and was given a prison sentence. After completion of this, I am sure she will end up in Switzerland! Fortunately, Gota withstood pressure and did not allow the ambassador to take her to Switzerland on the ambulance plane he had chartered. Pity, Channel 4 missed the chance of making yet another anti-Sri Lanka documentary!

Interestingly, one of the threads running through all this, is the involvement of Switzerland and one wonders why. It looks as if the reputation of Switzerland as a neutral country is itself a charade! Switzerland is famous for chocolates, cheese and clocks but it is no secret that it got rich by its banking system which encouraged all sorts of corrupt practices. Though regulations are supposed to have been tightened, one wonders whether corrupt practices still do exist and Tiger money parked in Swiss banks is doing the talking!

It is a great shame that Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith has lent credibility to this programme by his comments. I used to hold him in high regard and really wonder whether a person of his eminence would have done so had he seen what was to be broadcast. In fact, his attitude seems to have completely changed after the pronouncements made, shortly before retirement by the former Attorney General. He was the first person to refer to a mastermind behind the Easter bombings and has steadfastly refused to elucidate further. Many of us ‘truth-seekers’ were very disappointed when he refused to divulge what he knew to the CID. Perhaps, he is waiting for the opportune moment. Having missed the chance of pouring his heart out to Channel 4, he must now be waiting for the international inquiry demanded by the Cardinal and Sajith!

As expected, politicians reacted to this expose in a manner entirely suited to themselves. What surprised me was the reaction of some regular Muslim writers, not to The Island, who seem to use this to deflect the blame away from Islamic fundamentalism, one going to the extent of titling his piece “Who tells the truth: Moulana or Sallay?” Though many consider him to be an efficient government servant who discharged his duties effectively, Sallay was referred to as the chief government spy, in the C4 documentary disparagingly. The reasoning in the programme is highly questionable. Most importantly, why should Gota and Pohottuwa plan such a sinister move when they were already in a winning streak as shown by the results of local government elections? Even if we assume that allegations against Gota and Sallay are correct, is it not the failure of Yahapalanaya in not heeding to warnings that resulted in this avoidable catastrophe?

Gota has issued a clear statement explaining that international agencies including the FBI and Scotland Yard were involved in the investigations and it is a pity that whistleblowers delayed blowing their whistles! As suggested by terrorism expert, Rohan Gunaratna, let Scotland Yard be invited to review all the evidence including that of retired AG and whistleblowers.

It has become pretty obvious that the train of events for the ouster of Gota started from the day of his election, the behaviour of some members of his family making it very easy for that to be achieved. However, what should concern us is that the process has not stopped, as well illustrated by this C4 documentary. It looks as if ‘the chosen one’ by the powers behind is the JVP leader. Even though he holds no special position, American ambassador, the permanent representative of the UN and others visit him.