News
Karu J urges national consensus on needed measures to address unprecedented crisis
Conflicting views add to chaos
Immediate solutions needed for power, fuel and transport issues
Allow people to plan their lives around power cuts
Urgently alleviate woes of the people
Former Speaker Karu Jayasuriya, in his capacity of Chairman of the National Movement for Social Justice (NMSJ), last week called on all Lankans to follow the example of Ukraine to formulate a common minimum program to respond to the country’s current unprecedented crisis.
“The fuel and electricity crises have disrupted the everyday lives of the people. The agriculture sector along with the economy has been completely destroyed. There appears to be a lack of consensus within the government on possible solutions, thereby further delaying the resolution of these many issues,” he said.
“Instead various parties to the government are presenting their own opinions on the matter adding to the existing chaos and confusion. The only obvious solution to face a catastrophe of this scale is to at least temporarily form a united national front. However, it can only be built if the government extends the hand of friendship to all other relevant parties.”
He said that NMSJ has launched a program prepared with the assistance of local and foreign academics and scholars under the leadership of renowned Sri Lankan scholar Prof. Rohan Samarajiva. A majority of the leading political leaders who participated in the discussion agreed that these proposals were suitable to be taken up for initial discussion.
“There was also a positive response from religious and civil society leaders. It is noteworthy that several members of the ruling party have also shown interest. The next few days of the week will be devoted to a public discussion entitled ‘A Minimal Common Programme to Respond to Sri Lanka’s Current Crisis’, Jayasuriya said. This will be followed by the presentation of a national resolution to the country.
Stressing that the government should take immediate action to alleviate the sufferings of the people, Jayasuriya called for immediate solutions to the issues in transportation and electricity. A former energy minister, he said the CEB can easily restore the power supply.
“If the railways and bus services collapse, the whole country will come to a stand still. It must be noted that the state apparatus is continuously failing to take decisions based on one point of view and is instead issuing statements expressing varying opinions and decisions leading to further chaos,” he said.
“For example, the President, the Minister of Finance, the Governor of the Central Bank, the Public Utilities Commission of Sri Lanka (PUCSL) and the Ceylon Electricity Board are all expressing different views on fuel supply these days.”
Jayasuriya stressed it would be a relief to the people and allow them to plan their work around the power disruptions If they can stick to a proper time table for power disruptions in a specific area instead of announcing a lengthy time period during which they may experience many power outages, it would be a relief to the people and would allow them to plan their work accordingly.
He made the further point that during this harvesting season, the suffering of the farmers due to the lack of diesel is evident through media reports. Their grievances are heartbreaking. There is also a severe shortage of medicinal drugs in the country. This is a dangerous situation. Our people are beset not only by shortages of essential items, but also by escalating prices.
“In the month of January alone, food inflation has risen by 24%. The main reason for this is the excessive printing of currency. Just days ago, an unfortunate incident was reported where a father in the Welipenna area had taken his life after being unable to secure food for his children for nearly three days and how the wife was forced to sell two chairs to feed them,” he said. “We mention this incident only because we are aware that this is a situation prevalent across the country. Malnutrition is on the rise and needs to be addressed immediately. The contribution of the low-income and middle-class families cannot be disregarded.”
Noting that the rich have been given huge tax breaks, he said the government should realize that there is a serious social injustice here. This is the opinion of the majority in this country. Therefore, even in this dire situation, the government must be flexible and take the lead in the effort to save the country with the support of all.
He expressed confidence that the leaders of the opposition will cooperate and act in a responsible manner. However their support can be obtained not by summoning political dissidents to the BMICH and by retaliating through presidential commissions, but by initiating mutual cooperation. It is the duty of the government to earn their trust.
“Engaging in political revenge but telling people that they abide by the ‘One Country, One Law’ policy only to blatantly violate it will not invoke their trust. It should be understood that the people do not approve of that process of the government. Governments that come to power with a large majority must bear in mind that they are the custodians of a country and not its owners who in reality are the people of the country.
“Therefore, one should not regard the mandate given to him by the people as an arbitrary power. It should also be noted that the people, who are the real owners of the government, will not allow such arbitrary acts.”
He noted that at the last presidential election, Gotabaya Rajapaksa received 6.9 million votes while at least 6.2 million voted against him. Therefore, the government should have realized that introducing any constitutional amendment or drafting the constitution that would suit its political agenda and not the country such as the 20th Amendment would only lead to the deterioration of itself and the country.
“We hope that the authorities will now understand the reality and act with great patriotism and love for the country,” he concluded.
…of seven SOCs only one constituted so far
Sri Lanka’s controversial MoU on Defence Cooperation with India was unlikely to be taken up any time soon in Parliament in spite of the House Sectoral Oversight Committee (SOC) on Governance, Justice and Civil Protection that has been assigned defence, authoritative sources told The Island.
Of the seven SOCs only one was activated with the recent election of Dr. Najith Indika, MP, as the Chairman of the Sectoral Oversight Committee on Governance, Justice, and Civil Protection of the Tenth Parliament.
The inaugural meeting of the current parliament was held on 21 Nov., 2024.
Sources said that the parliament had met for the last time yesterday (10) before the Sinhala and Tamil New Year holiday. It is scheduled to meet again on May 8.
The UNDP that has financially backed the establishment of the SOC system to help strengthen the role of the parliament recently reached a consensus with the government to reduce the number of SCOCs from 17 to seven. The Island, in writing, asked for the UNDP’s reaction to the operation of SOCs but had not received a response at the time this edition went to press.
The SOCs have the power to examine any Bill, except the Bills defined in Article 152 of the Constitution, Treaty, Reports including the Annual and Performance Reports relating to the institutions coming under its purview or any other matter referred to the Committee by Parliament or any Committee or a Minister relating to the subjects and functions within their jurisdiction.
Sources said that out of the seven SOCs only one had been activated during the past five months though the government and the Opposition agreed to share the leadership of them.
Accordingly, it was agreed that the government would appoint chairpersons to four SOCs –– Economic Development and International Relations, Health, Media and Women’s Empowerment, Science, Technology and Digital Transformation and Governance, Justice and Civil Protection .
It was also agreed that the Opposition would appoint chairpersons to the SOCs on Infrastructure and Strategic Development, Education, Manpower and Human Capital, and Environment, Agriculture and Resource Sustainability to the Opposition.
India and Sri Lanka on April 5 signed six MoUs on HVDC interconnection for import/export of power, cooperation in the field of sharing successful digital solutions implemented at population scale for digital transformation, defence cooperation, multi sectoral grant assistance for Eastern province, health and medicine and pharmacopoeia cooperation. In addition to them, India, Sri Lanka and UAE signed a tripartite MoU cooperation in development of Trincomalee as an energy hub.
The Island asked Ali Sabry, PC, who served as foreign minister during Ranil Wickremesinghe’s tenure as the President (July 2022 to Sept 2024) whether the seven MoUs had been discussed during that period. We also asked him whether those MoUs should have been discussed at SOCs before finalisation.
Sabry said: “Most of the MOU to my knowledge were discussed except the one on Defence Cooperation, which I am unaware of. General procedure is the relevant line ministry prepares the initial draft and gets the input from the Foreign Ministry and goes for stakeholder consultation of all ministries and agencies involved. Then the President’s Office grants its sanction and with the approval of the AG, it goes before the cabinet of ministers. With Cabinet approval, the government could sign the MOU.”
Sabry said that he was of the opinion that once the government signed a particular MoU, it should be placed before the parliament. “MOU’s are generally not legally binding and only signify the desire to work together. If the signed MoUs were to be implemented, then they have to be followed by agreements or laws.”
He emphasised the pivotal importance of transparency in the whole process. The ex-minister said: “I think transparency is crucial in these matters. Concealment leads to speculation and assumption of the worst. The MOUs should be tabled in Parliament for public information. Discussion at the relevant SOCs would have been helpful. There are growing fears fueled by lack of information in the public domain. This is a private comment, not to be attributed to me.
Asked whether MoUs, particularly the ones on defence and energy had to be approved by the Attorney General, the former minister said that the AG has to advise the MoUs compatibility with the Constitution. “But Article 157 of the Constitution does not apply; the 2/3 majority stipulated there envisages only investment treaties.” Foreign Minister Vijitha Herath assured Parliament on April 8 that the AG had cleared all seven MoUs and none of them were inimical to the country.
By Shamindra Ferdinando
The Court of Appeal yesterday ordered the Election Commission (EC) to accept 35 additional nomination papers for the 2025 local government elections, which had been previously rejected by election officials.
The ruling was issued yesterday by a bench comprising Acting President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Mohamed Lafar Tahir, and Justice Priyantha Fernando. The court ordered the relevant Returning Officers to accept the nominations following hearings on several petitions filed by political parties and independent groups challenging the rejections.
Last week, the Court of Appeal ordered the EC to accept 37 previously rejected nomination papers.
by A.J.A. Abeynayake
The Communist Party (CP) of Sri Lanka yesterday (10) expressed grave concern over the NPP government’s unilateral decision to enter into a defence MOU with Quad-member India.
The CPSL urged All democratic and progressive forces to pressure the government to reveal the contents of the defence agreement with India. It also asked the NPP government to revive the Indian Ocean Peace Zone proposal at the UN and mobilise global opposition to militarisation in the region. All democratic and progressive forces had to build a United Front against a New Cold War, the CP has said.
General Secretary of CP Dr. G. Weerasinghe has issued the following statement: “This decision has been taken without consultation or debate in Parliament and in the context of a New Cold War and heightened militarisation of the Indian Ocean.
During Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to Sri Lanka from 4-6 April, a defence MOU was exchanged between Secretary of the Ministry of Defence of Sri Lanka retired Air Vice Marshal H.S. Sampath Thuyacontha and Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri.
Indian media has framed this MOU as being part of Indian strategy to counter China’s presence in the region.
President Anura Kumara Dissanayake assured Modi that Sri Lanka, “will not permit its territory to be used in any manner inimical to the security of India as well as towards regional stability”. While the CPSL has no fundamental objection to this, questions remain over India’s own commitment to regional stability.
The fact is that India is a member of the Quad and has partaken in US efforts to contain China in a New Cold War. In 2024, current US Secretary of State Marco Rubio tabled a bill in congress to grant India a status on par with NATO members. During a meeting between Modi and US President Donald Trump in February, India and the US entered into a 10-year defence partnership framework to transfer technology, expand co-production of arms, and strengthen military interoperability.
By entering into defence agreements with India, there is a very real danger of Sri Lanka being dragged into the Quad through the back door as a subordinate of India. Sri Lanka could become a de facto part of the Indo-Pacific Strategy and compromise its non-aligned status. This would be antithetical to Sri Lanka’s interests as China is a major investor and trade partner for the country and has supported our sovereignty in international fora.
Sri Lanka is currently not directly embroiled in any conflict with an external actor and therefore has no need to enter into defence agreements. The last defence agreement that Sri Lanka entered into was with the UK-Ceylon Defence Pact (1947-1957), which was a neocolonial arrangement detrimental to Sri Lanka’s sovereignty and international relations.
The defence MOU with India could also be interpreted as a step towards further militarisation of the Indian Ocean, which is a violation of the UN Declaration of the Indian Ocean as a Zone of Peace which both countries supported.”
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