Midweek Review

US promotes Mahesh, keeps Shavendra on blacklist

Published

5 years ago

2021/12/1

Sahan Weerasooriya

Kanag-Isvaran, PC, in GTF-TNA delegation for US talks

By Shamindra Ferdinando

Three years after his retirement, former Commander of the Army General Mahesh Senanayake has been inducted into the United States Army Command and General Staff College (CGSC) International Hall of Fame at Fort Leavenworth, on Nov 16, 2021.

An ex-graduate of CGSC, Senanayake has been recognised for his ‘outstanding military leadership for the nation and commitment to preserving global peace.’ Senanayake received CGSC recognition as a joint Tamil National Alliance (TNA)-Global Tamil Forum (GTF) delegation commenced weeklong discussions with US officials in Washington and New York. The TNA delegation included Kanaganayagam Kanag-Isvaran, PC and Jaffna District lawmaker Mathiaparanan Abraham Sumanthiran PC.

Sumanthiran entered Parliament on the TNA National List following the 2010 general election and is widely believed to be the international face of the party whereas the inclusion of top lawyer Kanag-Isvaran, in the TNA delegation raised many an eyebrow. However, the GTF pointed out that Kanag-Isvaran, had represented the TNA at the All Party Representative Committee (APRC). In addition, Kanag-Isvaran represented in the TNA delegation, that held 18 rounds of talks with the then Mahinda Rajapaksa government in 2011.

Mrs. (Dr.) Anne Nirmala Vijayalakshmi Chandrahasan, who had been in the delegation, had served the ‘Experts Committee’ set up to advise the APRC on constitutional and legal matters connected with the peace process and resolution of the national question. She was among the 11 members who submitted the Majority Report of the Committee in December 2006. She has been a consultant (2015 – 2016) at the Office of National Unity and Reconciliation (ONUR) in Sri Lanka, during the term of office of the previous Government of Sri Lanka.

Obviously, the TNA-GTF combination is making an effort to build up a strong case for international intervention here. Kanag-Isvaran has appeared in high profile cases such as the Colombo Port City Economic Commission Bill (2021), impeachment of Chief Justice Shirani Bandaranayake (2013) and de-merger of the Eastern Province from the North (2006).

Deputy Assistant Secretary, Ambassador Kelly Keiderling , Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs, who was in Colombo recently (Nov 13-15) was among those involved in talks with the TNA-GTF delegation.

At the conclusion of talks, the GTF, in a statement issued from the UK, expressed its deep appreciation for the US leadership at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in promoting accountability, reconciliation, and human rights in Sri Lanka. While calling for continued leadership of the United States Government at the UNHRC and in light of Sri Lanka’s failure to make satisfactory progress on implementing UNHRC Resolution 46/1, the TNA-GTF combination urged the US to consider a multifaceted approach in addressing the many challenges in Sri Lanka. The TNA-GTF joint delegation called for a deeper US role in promoting human rights, accountability, political resolution, and reconciliation in Sri Lanka. The US remains one of the worst human rights violators, both at home and abroad, with the 2003 invasion of Iraq on the basis of bogus claims that the then Iraqi government was developing Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMDs).

The TNA and the GTF reached consensus on a common approach in respect of Sri Lanka after the armed forces’ triumph over separatist terrorism in May 2009. In fact, the eradication of the LTTE has made their task easier. Had the Western powers managed to halt the Sri Lankan offensive, in early 2009, the LTTE wouldn’t have allowed the emergence of the GTF (the formal setting up of the organization took place in Feb 2010 at the British House of Commons) or freed the TNA from its grip (the TNA, having recognised the LTTE, in 2001, as the sole representative of the Tamil speaking people, relinquished its political rights).

Perhaps the TNA backing General Sarath Fonseka’s candidature at the 2010 presidential election should be examined against the backdrop of the eradication of the LTTE through military means. In fact, the US, arranged the formation of a grand coalition that comprised the UNP, the JVP, the TNA, the SLMC and the ACMC in support of Fonseka. The US cannot deny its role in forming the political alliance thanks to Wikileaks specific information as regards the 2010 political project, is now in the public domain.

The Tamil Guardian

, in a report dated Nov 18 dealt with CGSC recognition of Senanayake. The report headlined “Accused Sri Lankan war criminal inducted into US military ‘International Hall of Fame” quoted Commandant of the CGSC Lt. General Theodore Martin as having said Senanayake has “actively contributed to all major military operations conducted in the North and East of Sri Lanka”.

“His contributions towards resettlement of internally displaced persons and service towards the reconciliation process following a 27 years long civil war in his country are truly noteworthy,” declared Lt. Gen. Martin, adding that Senanayake was a “trusted and important partner in the bilateral military co-operation between our two countries which has contributed directly to a safer and more prosperous Indo-Pacific region”.

Did the Tamil Guardian oppose the TNA backing Fonseka? What is the GTF’s stand on the TNA backing for Fonseka, the war winning Army Commander?

The prestigious college has inducted altogether 285 international graduates from 75 different nations. Senanayake is the 286th, having studied at the college in 2000. The CGSC recognition of Senanayake should be examined taking into consideration the US categorisation of Commander of the Army Gen. Shavendra Silva as a war criminal.

The US found fault with General Silva for leading Task Force 1 (TF1) subsequently named 58 Division, the celebrated fighting formation that fought in both the west and the east of the Kandy-Jaffna A9 road.

Let us only pray that Gen. Senanayake will not become a brown Uncle Tom to serve the vile interests of US/Britain-led West against Sri Lanka in time to come.

Interestingly, close on the heels of the US recognition of retired Gen. Senanayake, some British MPs have launched a fresh campaign against Gen. Silva. Conservative Party lawmakers Theresa Anne Villiers and Elliot Colburn recently urged the UK to impose travel restrictions on Gen. Silva. They want Boris Johnson’s government to follow the US strategy in dealing with the Sri Lankan General.

US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, declared on Feb 14, 2020: “I am designating Shavendra Silva making him ineligible for entry into the U.S. due to his involvement in extrajudicial killings during Sri Lanka’s Civil War. The U.S. will not waver in its pursuit of accountability for those who commit war crimes and violate human rights.”

Senanayake’s return

Senanayake served as the Commander of the Army from July 2017 to August 2019. He was succeeded by Silva in the run-up to the 2019 presidential election. Having received the command, Senanayake declared, in Kilinochchi those who retired from military service shouldn’t enter politics. Having said so, Senanayake contested the 2019 presidential election. The former Army Chief ended a distant fourth with less than 50,000 votes whereas Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who retired in the rank of Lieutenant Colonel back in 1991, polled 6.9 mn votes. Senanayake was the second Army Commander to contest a presidential election. War winning Army Chief General Sarath Fonseka was the first. Mahinda Rajapaksa routed Fonseka at the 2010 presidential election with the latter losing by a margin of 1.8mn votes.

Senanayake was among those who had been sent on compulsory leave in 2010 after Fonseka suffered defeat. The then government quite wrongly accused them of backing Fonseka, then accused of trying to stage a military coup against President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Within weeks after thwarting Mahinda Rajapaksa’s bid to secure a third term, Sirisena reinstated Maj. Gen. Mahesh Senanayake, Brig. Bimal Dias, Brig. Duminda Keppetiwalana, Brig. Janaka Mohotti, Brig. Athula Hannedige, Brig. Wasantha Kumarapperuma, Colonel Tilak Ubayawardena, Lt. Colonel LJMCP Jayasundara, Captain RMR Ranaweera and Captain WADC Chrishantha. At the time of their reinstatement, Daya Ratnayake had been the Commander of the Army.

Having contested the presidential election on the National People’s Party ticket, Senanayake unceremoniously left the country contrary to his much repeated promise to contest the parliamentary elections. Senanayake declared that his defeat at the presidential poll was not the end of his career but the beginning. Obviously the former Army Chief did not mean what he said despite his bravado.

It would be pertinent to mention that the 2019 Easter Sunday carnage paved the way for Senanayake to enter politics at the highest level by contesting the presidential election. Senanayake received substantial media coverage as the media targeted the then government over the lapses that led to multiple suicide attacks by the National Thowheed Jamaat (NTJ). The Easter Sunday carnage gave Senanayake the much needed exposure.

The Media was also blind to the fact that Army Commander Senanayake’s Military Intelligence, one of the biggest spy outfits in the country, managed to claim total ignorance of what took place and got off scot free.

Senanayake, who had never received media coverage during the conflict though CGSC declared Senanayake actively contributed to all major military operations conducted in the North and East of Sri Lanka, shamelessly exploited the Easter Sunday carnage to boost his ego. Senanayake steadfastly maintained that the Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI) hadn’t been aware of the warning received by the State Intelligence Service (SIS) from India on April 4, 2019.

The five-member Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) that probed the Easter Sunday carnage also never felt the need to examine the failure on the part of the DMI to thwart the NTJ terror project. In fact, so far, the DMI’s failure hadn’t been investigated at all. The Army should have at least conducted an internal probe to ascertain the DMI’s failure.

Had the DMI inquired into the Easter Sunday fiasco, it would realise a thorough inquiry into the execution-style killing of two policemen at Vavunativu, Batticaloa, on the night of Nov. 30, 2018, could have exposed the NTJ plot. It would be pertinent to ask the DMI whether the outfit initiated a fresh inquiry into Vavunativu killings after the recovery of explosives at Wanathawilluwa in January 2019. In between the Vavunativu killings and Wanathawilluwa, explosives recovery, the destruction of several Buddha statues took place in the Mawanella electorate. In early March 2019, Minister Kabir Hashim’s Coordinating Secretary Mohamed Naslim was shot at his home. The bottom line is that the then government should have been able to thwart the NTJ plot even without India passing specific information regarding the impending attack.

A humiliating failure

Over 12 years after the successful conclusion of the war, the country is still struggling to cope up with accountability issues. Sri Lanka suffered a debilitating setback in the third week of November when Sri Lanka’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York, Mohan Peiris, PC, failed to secure a place at the international Law Commission (ILC) that consists of 34 persons. Although some have depicted Sri Lanka’s failure as a personal setback suffered by Peiris, the writer is of the view the situation underscored the fact that the country continued to be hounded by the West. In spite of bombastic statements here, the incumbent government hasn’t even bothered to bring all available information, evidence and data before the UNHRC as part of an overall effort to clear war crimes accusations directed at the country. The declaration of the Army Commander as a war criminal in Feb 2020 hasn’t prompted the political leadership to take up the daunting challenge on the diplomatic front. In an exclusive interview with the writer in Sept 2019 in Colombo, Lord Naseby, who had made available powerful ammunition to be used against the Geneva Resolution expressed deep displeasure over Sri Lanka’s failure to properly present its case therein. Over two years after the last presidential election, the information that had been announced in the House of Lords in Oct 2017 remained unused. Sri Lanka’s rejection at the ILC should be studied taking into consideration the pathetic situation the country is in due to yahapalana betrayal of the armed forces and the failure on the part of the incumbent lot to take remedial measures.

US, Lanka fail at ILC election

The former AG who served as the CJ in the wake of the moving of the questionable impeachment motion in Parliament against CJ, 43, Bandaranayake, is no stranger to controversy. One cannot easily forget how the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) withdrew a high profile case. The CIABOC earlier moved court against Supreme Court Judge A.H.M.D. Nawaz (he currently heads a presidential commission of inquiry), former Power Ministry Secretary M.M.C. Ferdinando, current CEB Chairman), and Former Chief Justice Mohan Peiris (Sri Lanka’s PR in New York), over committing an offense under the Bribery Act in respect of irregularities in the purchase of a land in December 2010 for the Ceylon Electricity Board (CEB).

Sri Lanka shouldn’t have contested the election for the LLC under any circumstances as defeat was inevitable. The election of the members of the Commission for a five-year term beginning on 1 January 2023 took place at the 76 th session of the General Assembly. Mohan Peiris had sought a place among the eight chosen from the Asia-Pacific region and was defeated badly. Let me reiterate that Sri Lanka should accept that the world has rejected the country, not the individual. Japan, China, South Korea, Thailand, Cyprus, Vietnam, India, Sri Lanka, the Philippines, Lebanon, Mongolia and Bahrain contested for the Asia-Pacific slots. Mohan Peiris obtained 112 votes out of 192. The elected Asia-Pacific group comprised India (163 votes), Thailand (162 votes), Japan (154 votes), Vietnam (145 votes), China (142 votes), South Korea (140), Cyprus (139) and Mongolia (123).

The US, too, failed to secure a place among the ILC. The world’s solitary superpower polled just 114 seats just two more votes than Sri Lanka. Among those unsuccessful contestants for the Western European and other States grouping are Spain, the US and Israel. Those who had sought to humiliate Sri Lanka over its failure to secure a place at the ILC conveniently ignored how the world looked at the US rights record. Norway, Portugal, Italy, the UK, Austria, New Zealand, France and Turkey comprised the Western European and Other States.

Sri Lanka represented the ILC (1992-1996 /John de Saram) and Rohan Perera (2007-2011). Perhaps, the TNA-GTF combination does not care about the US human rights record but merely expects the world power to exert pressure on Sri Lanka. The TNA-GTF combination is obviously exploiting the ongoing ‘battle’ between China and the US-led coalition to its advantage. Unfortunately, the incumbent government seems ensnared in political games having caused irreparable damage by waste, corruption and mismanagement at a time the country is facing a grave balance of payments crisis.

The latest debacle suffered at the ILC should prompt Sri Lanka to review the overall situation without further delay. The government should seek an opportunity to present Lord Naseby’s disclosure, relevant Wikileaks cables, the US embassy statement made in June 2011 in Colombo and all other related information before the UNHRC. Utterly irresponsible Sri Lankan bureaucracy since the sponsorship of an accountability resolution against the country in 2015 conveniently failed at least to mention how the UN shielded the LTTE at the commencement of the Vanni offensive. Sri Lanka’s continuing failure to set the record straight is quite astonishing as no person less than the Commander of the Army General Shavendra Silva remains blacklisted. While Sri Lanka bungles the defence of her own armed forces, the UNHRC that perpetrated a massive blunder by falsely accusing the Army of Mannar mass graves keeps its agenda on track.

We wonder whether our Foreign Ministry lacks officers of calibre to mount a fight back or are its talented officers held back due to internal politics? May be it is time the Foreign Minister takes remedial measures.

Let me finish this piece by reproducing verbatim what Michelle Bachelet told the UNHRC in March 2019.

The following is the relevant section bearing No 23: “On May 29, 2018, human skeletal remains were discovered at a construction site in Mannar (Northern Province), Excavations conducted in support of the Office on Missing Persons, revealed a mass grave from which more than 300 skeletons were discovered. It was the second mass grave found in Mannar following the discovery of a site in 2014. Given that other mass graves might be expected to be found in the future, systematic access to grave sites by the Office as an observer is crucial for it to fully discharge its mandate, particularly with regard to the investigation and identification of remains, it is imperative that the proposed reforms on the law relating to inquests, and relevant protocols to operationalise the law be adopted. The capacity of the forensic sector must also be strengthened, including in areas of forensic anthropology, forensic archeology and genetics, and its coordination with the Office of Missing Persons must be ensured.” The Bachelet report dealt with the situation here from Oct 2015 to January 2019.

But a radiocarbon dating analysis by the Beta Analytic Testing Laboratory in Florida, US, in respect of six skeletal samples sent there in January 2019 with the intervention of the Office of Missing Persons (OMP) established in accordance with Oct 2015 Geneva Resolution, determined them to be from the colonial era.

President’s Counsel Saliya Pieris, who gave leadership to that effort, is the head of the Sri Lanka Bar Association (BASL) now.

The US lab tests revealed that the skeletons belonged to a period that covered the Portuguese and the Dutch rule. Having repeatedly vowed to reverse the Geneva process, the SLPP, two years after the last presidential election, is yet to present Sri Lanka’s case before the international community. The SLPP government’s failure in Geneva at least to refer to the US lab tests contradicting Bachelet is nothing but treachery and negligence at the highest levels.

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Midweek Review

Opp. caught up in CIABOC offensive

Published

2 hours ago

2026/06/24

Sahan Weerasooriya

Mahinda Rajapaksa leaving CIABOC on 12 June, 2026

The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) on 12 June questioned former President Mahinda Rajapaksa regarding the USD 2 Mn bribe allegation directed at the late SriLankan CEO Kapila Chandrasena, whose body was found on 8 May in a close relative’s home in Kollupitiya. Chandrasena’s alleged suicide sent shock waves through political circles and interested parties questioned the circumstances leading to him being granted bail on 6 May on cash bail of Rs. 500,000 with three sureties of Rs. 10 million each. The Colombo Magistrate court also imposed a travel ban. The issue at hand is as to how Mohamed Riswan and Mohamed Irshan stood as sureties for Chandrasekera. Of all the investigations undertaken by the CIABOC, the USD 2 Mn bribe case is the most politically charged probe.

Of the Rajapaksas, former State Minister Shasheendra Rajapaksa is so far the last to be indicted. CIABOC on 19 June filed indictments before the Colombo High Court against him and two others Sepalika Saman Kumari and Keerthi Bandara Kotagama. According to the charges, the accused are alleged to have committed the offence of corruption and aided and abetted the commission of the offence by using official influence to pressure certain government officials, attached to the Office for Reparations, to obtain compensation amounting to Rs. 8.85 million for a property built on a state land by Shasheendra and destroyed by marauding Aragalaya mobs.

By Shamindra Ferdinando

The ruling National People’s Power (NPP) government last week emphasised, in no uncertain terms, that it wouldn’t tolerate the growing Opposition challenge.

Amidst the growing controversy over the continuing detention of retired Maj. Gen. Suresh Sallay. in terms of the draconian Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), under humiliating conditions, in connection with the ongoing investigations into the 2019 Easter Sunday carnage, police arrested Sugeeshwara Bandara, leader of the New People’s Front (NPF). The Central Crime Investigation Bureau (CCIB) apprehended him on 18 June and the Fort Magistrate’s Court remended him till 1 July..

The CCIB also apprehended Binoy Hettiarachchi who was accompanying Bandara. Hettiarachchi served as a media coordinator at the former President Ranil Wickremesinghe’s Flower Road Office. Police intercepted their vehicle at Kollupitiya where the arrests were made like in an action-packed movie. Hettiarachchi was freed four hours later.

But, it would be better to identify Bandara as the former private secretary to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa as well as the Director General of Special Projects at the Presidential Secretariat in the wake of Ranil Wickremesinghe taking over the presidency.

Accused of receiving two salaries simultaneously, under the President’s Expenditure Head, Bandara who managed the media for Gotabaya Rajapaksa, in the run-up to the 2019 presidential election, is under investigation for abuse of government vehicles and employing government workers for political work.

Having launched his political career as the Colombo District organiser of the alliance New People’s Front, a breakaway faction of the UPFA, in February, 2024, Bandara contested the November, 2024, parliamentary polls on the New Democratic Front (NDF) ticket. But, of late, Bandara, as the leader of NPF, became one of the most active opposition activists, aligned with the political grouping, dubbed People’s United Opposition, operating from Ranil Wickremesinghe’s Flower Road Office.

Bandara drew the wrath of the government when he launched a noisy protest outside Finance Secretary Dr. Harshana Suriyapperuma’s residence at Akuregoda, Pelawatta, on 26 April, where he and his protesting supporters were given a shower of excreta. The group, led by Bandara, demanded the Finance Secretary’s resignation over the theft of USD 2.5 mn from the Treasury. No less a person than President Anura Kumara Dissanayake reacted angrily to Bandara’s actions.

Acknowledging the right for legitimate protests, the President warned against protests directed at residences of officials. On 18 April, Bandara led a protest outside Agriculture Minister K.D. Lal Kantha’s recently built luxury residence at Weliwita, Kaduwela, where he questioned how the JVPer managed to build such a home as he was on record as having repeatedly said that he lived a difficult life.

The police apprehended Bandara as he was returning from a meeting between senior representatives of the People’s United Opposition and the IMF Colombo at the Tiki Bar, Shangri-La. In spite of negligible parliamentary presence, with those elected on the NDF ticket at the last parliamentary election not really speaking in one voice, the Flower Road project has become a headache for the government.

In fact, the Flower Road operation has been causing continuous harassment to the NPP, while the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB) struggled to play its anticipated role as the main Opposition. Instead of conducting a cohesive campaign against the cocky NPP government, members of the SJB seem to be pulling in different directions at the expense of the common opposition front.

Regardless of the Wickremesinghe-led grouping vowing to press ahead with its campaign, the arrest of Bandara is obviously meant to have a detrimental impact on the activities of the Opposition.

It would be pertinent to mention that Bandara had been among those who stayed with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the President’s House, in Colombo, as a massive protest erupted on 9 July, 2022. Bandara was among the last to flee the President’s House as the military withdrew, amidst mounting pressure on their positions.

The police arrested Bandara as former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa moved the Court of Appeal in terms of Article 140 of the Constitution to prevent him being arrested under the PTA. The wartime Defence Secretary sought the court intervention in the wake of police probing the 2019 Easter Sunday carnage and obtaining a travel ban against him.

The court heard Romesh de Silva PC’s submissions on behalf of the ex-President on 18 June. The court deferred the hearing to 24 June. The crux of the matter is that the ex-President fears that the CID is about to arrest him on the basis of a statement made by fugitive Azad Moulana, in Paris, linking Sallay directly with the Easter Sunday carnage.

NPP intensifies pressure

The NPP seems confident of its current course of action meant to pin down the Opposition. In spite of unbridled corruption being the major issue on the post-war election platform, no political party succeeded in going flat-out against the political opposition.

However, the NPP allowed the judicial process to continue. The first major sentencing was announced on 2 April, 2025, just six months after the parliamentary polls, handsomely won by the NPP. The Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) moved the Colombo High Court successfully against the former Chief Minister of the North Central Province S.M. Ranjith Samarakoon.

Colombo High Court No. 01 Judge Adithya Patabendige sentenced him in terms of Section 70 of the Bribery Act. The HC declared the former CM perpetrated malpractices by ordering fuel to his personal secretary’s vehicle. The personal secretary happened to be Shanthi Chandrasena, wife of his brother S.M. Chandrasena, a former Cabinet Minister and one of the most powerful Ministers to represent the North Central province.

The ex- Chief Minister and the second accused, his personal secretary, were convicted guilty of two charges. Both were sentenced to 16 years rigorous imprisonment and were also ordered to pay a fine of Rs. 200,000/- with an additional two-year prison term in case of default.

Deputy Director General Asitha Anthoney appeared on behalf of the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption.

There had never been any really coordinated CIABOC campaign against corruption. No political party, or a particular family, felt threatened by CIABOC. Both those in and outside Parliament acted with impunity. They feared no one. There was no need to be because the powerful and the influential operated above the law.

Just a couple of weeks after sentencing of S.M. Ranjith Samarakoon and Shanthini Chandrasena, the CIABOC arrested the latter’s husband, one-time Deputy Economic Development Minister and Special Projects Minister, S.M. Chandrasena. The CIABOC took him into custody on 4 July, 2025.

The CIABOC accused the former Minister of causing loss to the government by distributing seed corn, imported at a cost of Rs 25 mn, in 2024, among the farmer community in the Anuradhapura district, at a subsidised price. The distribution had taken place ahead of the 2015 presidential election contested by Mahinda Rajapaksa and estranged former SLFP General Secretary Maithripala Sirisena. The CIABOC alleged that Chandrasena exerted undue influence on the Director (Planning) and other officers of the District Secretariat and distributed seeds through his political allies to gain an advantage in the 2015 presidential election and incurred a loss to the government.

Chandrasena was granted bail on 1 August, 2025. He was indicted on 12 June before the Colombo High Court.

Before further discussing the ongoing anti-corruption campaign, let me introduce the top leadership of CIABOC. The Commission consists of Justice W.M.N.P. Iddawela (Chairman), K.B. Rajapakse and Chethiya Goonesekera P.C, with High Court judge R.S.A. Dissanayake as its Director General.

The sentencing of the S. M. Ranjith Samarakoon didn’t really bother his side. The arrest of his brother S.M. Chandrasena, too, didn’t really upset those facing charges. But, sentencing of former Minister Mahindananda Aluthgamage and former Sathosa Chairman and former Trade Minister Nalin Fernando on 29 May, 2025, sent shock waves through the Opposition.

The Colombo High Court Trial-at-Bar sentenced Aluthgamage and Fernando for committing the offence of corruption by purchasing 14,000 carrom boards and 11,000 checkers boards through Sathosa, allegedly to distribute to schools and sports clubs selected by the Sports Ministry, and distributing them to party offices of the government, during the 2015 presidential election campaign thereby, causing a loss of over 53 million rupees to the government, stunned the Opposition.

Aluthgamage was sentenced to 20 years of rigorous imprisonment, Fernando received a sentence of 25 years of rigorous imprisonment. Additionally, a fine of Rs. 100,000 (hundred thousand) was imposed for each count.

The CIABOC’s Assistant Director General Mrs. Anuththara Jayasinghe and Assistant Director General Mrs. Thushari Dayaratne conducted the prosecution.

During the Yahapalana government Aluthgamage spearheaded a high profile anti-corruption campaign, dubbed ‘Yahapalana Top 10 kamba horu’. The then Joint Opposition (JO) group, led in Parliament by Dinesh Gunawardena, published a 750-page book, targeting the Yahapalana ministers. Mahindananda, who spearheaded that campaign, is now serving a long sentence.

The JO group consists of UPFA lawmakers who declined to throw their weight behind the then President Sirisena aligned with the UNP.

Let me mention the names of those against whom the accusations were made by the JO.

Yahapalana corruption

The JO dealt with 10 major cases. (1) The Treasury bond scams perpetrated in 2015 and 2016. Accusations were directed at Ranil Wickremesinghe, Ravi Karunanayake and Governor Central Bank Arjuna Mahendran. The losses were estimated at Rs 26 bn. (2) causing losses amounting to Rs 10 bn through the fraudulent import of vehicles. Ravi Karunanayake was named the chief culprit (3) Misappropriation of Mahapola funds to the tune of Rs. 1 bn. Allegations were directed at Malik Samarawickrema (4) Stealing from an insurance scheme implemented for the benefit of those going for employment in West Asia. The JO accused Thalatha Atukarale of misappropriating funds amounting Rs 1.5 bn (5) Receiving Rs 1.5 bn through the leasing of Hambantota port to China on a 99-year lease. Ranil Wickremesinghe, Malik Samarawickrema and R. Paskaralingam were named the offenders (6) Kabir Hashim was accused of causing a loss of Rs 54 bn by cancelling aircraft ordered from Airbus Industries for the national carrier (7) fraudulent activities pertaining to the release of paddy stocks held by the government. The JO estimated the losses caused to the government at Rs 10 bn. (8) Scam in vehicle parts. Ravil Karunanayake was accused of causing losses amounting to Rs. 6.5 bn, (9 A) Dr. Rajitha Senaratne was accused of leasing of the Modera fisheries harbor and procurement of eight vessels to catch fish, fraudulently, and thereby causing losses up to Rs 1 bn, (9B) The JO also found fault with Dr. Senaratne for perpetrating Rs 1.5 bn fraud in the procurement of medicine and lastly (10) Ranil Wickremesinghe, Malik Samarawickrema, R. Paskaralingam and Charitha Ratwatte were blamed for a massive fraud in the procurement of coal for the Norochcholai coal-fired power plant. That particular fraud was estimated at Rs 5 bn.

Although the JO transformed itself to Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) later, to successfully contested the 2019 presidential election, none of the above-mentioned cases were investigated. As far as we know, none of those cases had been dealt with during the SLPP rule, from November, 2019, to July, 2022. Faced with an externally backed regime change operation, the SLPP invited Wickremesinghe, who had been named by them in three major corruption cases, to accept the premiership in May, 2022, and presidency in July same year.

So far, there is no indication whether the mentioned JO allegations had received the attention of the CIABOC or the Attorney General of the government. As far as we know of all the politicians and officials, Wickremesinghe is the only one facing imminent threat due to the ongoing case pertaining to him visiting the UK in September, 2023, to join his wife Prof. Maithree at the University of Wolverhampton at her graduation ceremony.

Wickremesinghe has been accused of squandering nearly 17 mn rupees at a time the country was in deep economic turmoil. The Fort Magistrate’s court is scheduled to take up the case on 8 July.

SLPP parliamentary group leader Namal Rajapaksa is also facing a major legal challenge. The former Minister has been indicted on charges of criminal misappropriation of Rs. 70 mn in connection with the controversial Krrish project. The indictments have been forwarded to the Colombo High Court by the Attorney General, alleging that Namal Rajapaksa misappropriated funds by receiving Rs. 70 million from the Indian real estate company for the development of rugby in Sri Lanka.

Yoshitha Rajapaksa, too, has been dealt with by the CIABOC. The Rajapaksas have been accused of lowering qualifications required to join the executive branch of the Navy and then sending him to the Royal Naval Academy in the United Kingdom at taxpayers’ expense. Produced before the Colombo Additional Magistrate, Yoshitha was released on three personal bail bonds of Rs. 5 million each.

Producing Yoshitha before court on 17 June, Deputy Director General of the Bribery Commission, Ruvini Wickramasinghe declared: “”Your Honour, the complaint regarding this incident was received on June 25, 2016. Accordingly, the Commission initiated investigations. The complaint states that the suspect had participated in naval training programmes held in England and Ukraine by misusing government funds, while depriving qualified applicants of such opportunities. At that time, this individual, who is a civilian in the dock today, was also a civilian in 2006 when he was deemed eligible for the Royal Navy Young Officer training at the Royal Naval Academy in the United Kingdom. The opportunities to receive this training are extremely limited. Your Honour, selection to this prestigious course is usually based on being the most outstanding cadet officer during a two-year training period or based on performance during training. However, this suspect, although a civilian in 2006, was proposed and included in the list and was sent for the course in haste.”

The Deputy Director General also stated that Yoshitha Rajapaksa had undergone medical examinations required for overseas training even before being officially recruited into the Navy.

The court was also told that though Sri Lanka previously received scholarships from the UK the Rajapaksa government funded Yoshitha to the tune of Rs 6.2 mn.

Opp. attacks CIABOC

The Opposition has repeatedly attacked the CIABOC with its Director General Ranga Dissanayake being the primary target. Accusing Dissanayake of being a JVPer, the Opposition has repeatedly questioned the conduct of the High Court judge demanding that the CIABOC inquired into the top official’s conduct, especially with regard to the alleged suicide of former Sri Lankan CEO Kapila Chandrasena who had been under investigation pertaining to the receiving of USD 2 mn bribe to facilitate procurement aircraft from Airbus Industrie during Mahinda Rajapaksa’s second term.

Former Foreign Minister Prof. G. L. Peiris, a regular speaker at Flower Road media briefings, alleged that the CIABOC was a political tool in the NPP’s hands.

A section of the Opposition to question the circumstances one-time JVP heavyweight Nandana Gunatilleke died in January this year at the Ragama Teaching Hospital after accusing Dissanayake of pursuing an agenda beneficial to the JVP, a charge denied by the High Court judge. When the writer raised the allegations with Dissanayake, he emphatically denied any wrongdoing on his part https://island.lk/ciaboc-dg-denies-jvp-link/.

The CIABOC has simply ignored accusations directed at its DG who proved through his actions that he really meant high profile public pronouncements against corruption.

Former Deputy Minister and ex-MP Sarana Gunawardena was sentenced to a total of 16 years rigorous imprisonment by the Colombo High Court on June 8, 2026.

During the Yahapalana administration many cases, filed by the CIABOC as well as the Attorney General, were either dismissed or dropped due to lapses on their part. The accused in such cases were ex-MP Sajin Vass Gunawardena, ex-EP Chief Minister Sivanesathurei Chandrakanthan alias Pilleyan, ex-Ministers Johnston Fernando, Rohitha Abeygunawardena, Basil Rajapaksha, Mahindananda Aluthgamage and Janaka Bandara Tennakoon and former AG and CJ Mohan Peiris.

Regardless of Opposition protests, the public appreciate tangible action against corruption. However, the NPP has not been free from serious allegations against it since the last general elections. The release of suspicious 323 containers, plus two containers filled with ice, in January, 2025, followed by the massive coal scam perpetrated in September 2025, loss of over USD 2.5 mn from the Treasury and controversial Aswesuma payments, as well as wealth, accumulated by NPP Ministers as revealed by declarations made to CIABOC, shocked the electorate.

The NPP has failed to counter allegations. The circumstances under which Energy Minister Kumara Jayakody resigned, along with Energy Secretary Udayanga Hemapala, on 17 April, just a week after the NPP defeated the no-confidence motion moved by the Opposition against the Energy Minister. dealt a devastating blow to the NPP’s much touted integrity. The NPP couldn’t explain as to why a person under investigation by the CIABOC for an alleged fraud perpetrated during the Yahapalana government was accommodated in President Dissanayake’s first Cabinet. Indicted before the Colombo High Court, Jayakody’s case commenced last week.

Asset declarations of some NPP Ministers have shocked the country. The SJB has called for CIABOC to investigate them without delay and prove that CIABOC was not only going after the Opposition. Ministers Lal Kantha and Wasantha Samarasinghe are two of the top JVPers who have attracted attention as the Opposition hits back at the government.

SJB MP Mujibur Rahuman said that the JVP/NPP owed an explanation as to how their members amassed so much wealth since 2024 as they repeatedly claimed their inability to meet even their basic needs. But, their asset declarations exposed their blatant lies.

Midweek Review

Geopolitics of the Indian Ocean

Published

2 hours ago

2026/06/24

Sahan Weerasooriya

Listening to the Winds, Reading the Waves:

Prof. Gamini Keerawella’s latest publication, Winds and Waves: Geopolitical Currents in the Indian Ocean since 1945 will be launched on 5 August at the Auditorium of the Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies (BCIS). The keynote address will be delivered by Prof. T. V. Paul, James, McGill Professor of Political Science at McGill University, Canada and the former President of the International Studies Association (ISA).

Prof. Keerawella, Professor Emeritus of History at the University of Peradeniya, has dedicated hisbook to the memory of Dr. Newton Gunasinghe, the eminent sociologist and Marxist theoretician who encouraged him to venture beyond disciplinary frontiers. In many respects, this work represents a successful realization of that intellectual endeavour. In her testimonial to back cover of the book, Dr. Radhika Coomaraswamy observes that “Gamini Keerawella offers a nuanced and layered account of the Indian Ocean region’s strategic evolution from the era of decolonization to the contemporary phase of intensifying great-power rivalry. Its distinctive analytical perspective makes it an important contribution to the study of international relations, maritime geopolitics, and regional strategic dynamics.” This assessment accurately captures the significance of the work, and I fully endorse her judgement.

This volume constitutes the final publication of a trilogy that explores the evolving dynamics of international relations from a distinctly Sri Lankan perspective. The first study examined the trajectory of Sri Lanka’s defence and foreign policy, while the second revisited the origins, evolution, and principal constituent elements of international relations as an academic discipline from a Global South perspective. The present work broadens the analytical canvas by tracing the shifting geopolitical contours of the Indian Ocean since 1945 and examining the evolving interplay between great-power competition and regional agency.

Indian Ocean not merely maritime transit space

At the heart of Prof. Keerawella’s analysis is the argument that the Indian Ocean is not merely a maritime space of transit but a living archive whose language is inscribed in tides, trade, and collective memory. To uncover the deeper structures that have shaped the region, he draws on Michel Foucault’s concept of the archaeology of knowledge, probing beneath the visible layers of historical experience to reveal successive strata of thought, exchange, and power. This approach enables him to trace the multiple origins of the Indian Ocean’s geopolitical significance through the sedimented traces of how the ocean has been known, governed, and imagined across time. Complementing this perspective is Fernand Braudel’s concept of the longue durée, which provides the framework for understanding the long-term evolution of Indian Ocean geopolitics. As Keerawella notes, for Braudel, history unfolds not as a single linear sequence but as a layered field of continuity and change, revealing the deeper architecture of the past—the slow yet powerful currents that shape political and economic developments beneath the surface of events (Keerawella 2026: xxiii).Prof. Keerawella further notes that later historians such as K. N. Chaudhuri and M. N. Pearson drew on Braudel’s insights and adapted them to understand the Indian Ocean as a polycentric world.

Prof. Keerawella argues that the terms employed in the title of this work—Winds, Waves, and Currents—evoke the ocean’s dual language of surface movement and underlying structure. In his reading, winds and waves signify motion: the visible and often turbulent forces that carry ships, peoples, commodities, and ideas across shifting maritime frontiers. Currents, by contrast, refer to the deeper and less visible forces that shape historical trajectories and connect coasts and continents through enduring patterns of interaction. As he observes, while winds and waves represent the restless dynamics of the ocean’s surface, currents embody the slower yet more consequential energies that operate beneath it, binding disparate regions into a larger maritime system (2026: xx).

Metaphors and Conceptual Foundation

Building on this conceptual foundation, the author employs winds, waves, and currents not merely as metaphors but also as analytical categories. Winds represent changing strategic directions and geopolitical realignments; waves denote recurring cycles of commerce, conflict, and interaction; and currents symbolize the deep structural forces that connect societies across space and time. Viewed from a distinctly Sri Lankan perspective, the volume demonstrates how a strategically located small state at the centre of the Indian Ocean perceives and navigates this maritime space through its own strategic lens. The book opens by situating Sri Lanka within the intersecting forces of history, geography, and power that have shaped the Indian Ocean world. It advances the notion of a dual strategic consciousness that has informed Sri Lanka’s external engagements: a persistent sense of vulnerability, rooted in colonial experience and geographical exposure, coexisting with a cosmopolitan outlook forged through centuries of maritime exchange. Prof. Keerawella contends that this dual consciousness constitutes the underlying framework through which Sri Lanka has historically interpreted and responded to developments in its external environment.

Winds and Waves is a comprehensive study comprising eleven chapters and an extensive introduction that establishes the analytical foundations of the work by treating the ocean simultaneously as text and method. The opening chapter situates Sri Lanka within the wider Indian Ocean system, tracing the island’s navigation through shifting configurations of power while emphasising the agency of small states. The Indian Ocean is presented not merely as a strategic arena but also as a moral and political space, linking Sri Lanka’s historical experience to the broader aspirations and consciousness of the Global South.

Revisiting British withdrawal

The book revisits Britain’s withdrawal from the Indian Ocean, arguing that it was not simply a consequence of post-war decline but the culmination of deeper structural transformations in the international system. Decolonisation, Afro-Asian nationalism, and the emergence of bipolarity fundamentally altered the regional order and created the conditions for Britain’s retreat. In turn, this withdrawal opened the way for superpower competition, particularly between the United States and the Soviet Union, transforming the Indian Ocean into major theatre of Cold War geopolitics.

A substantial portion of the volume is devoted to examining the policies and strategic trajectories of the major powers. The author traces American engagement from Cold War containment through post-Cold War maritime predominance to contemporary Indo-Pacific formulations, demonstrating that U.S. strategy has evolved through the interaction of structural imperatives and changing strategic discourses. Particular attention is paid to the 2026 U.S.–Iran War, which is interpreted as a transformative event that exposed the limits of military hegemony and accelerated patterns of strategic hedging and multi-alignment among regional actors. The book also explores the Soviet Union’s entry into the Indian Ocean in 1968 and the subsequent re-emergence of Russia under Vladimir Putin through selective naval deployments, arms transfers, and strategic partnerships, illustrating what the author characterises as the recurrent rhythms of great-power engagement in the region.

The rise of China receives extensive treatment as one of the most significant structural developments of the twenty-first century. Through the Belt and Road Initiative, port development projects, and naval modernisation, China has translated growing economic power into expanding strategic influence. The author contrasts Beijing’s assertive posture in the South China Sea with its relatively restrained approach in the Indian Ocean, where economic diplomacy and cooperative security initiatives have assumed greater prominence. Equally significant is the discussion of India’s transformation from a regional power into an emerging global strategic actor. The evolution of Indian maritime strategy—from Nehruvian custodianship to contemporary blue-water ambitions—demonstrates how a rising power navigates structural constraints while expanding its strategic reach. Initiatives such as SAGAR, naval modernization, and deepening partnerships with the United States, Japan, and Australia have positioned India as a central actor in the evolving Indo-Pacific order.

Roles of Japan and EU examined

The volume also examines the roles of Japan and the European Union in shaping the contemporary maritime order. Japan’s transition from post-war restraint to proactive strategic engagement, embodied in the Free and Open Indo-Pacific (FOIP) vision, illustrates how middle powers adapt to changing geopolitical realities through coalition-building and maritime capacity enhancement. The European Union’s engagement is portrayed through less visible but nevertheless significant mechanisms, including trade, development cooperation, maritime governance, and norm diffusion, contributing to what the author terms a form of “quiet-making multipolarity” that encourages restraint, stability, and pragmatic cooperation.

Moving beyond conventional geopolitics, the book broadens the analytical framework to address a range of non-traditional security challenges confronting South Asia in general and Sri Lanka in particular. Climate change, piracy, illegal fishing, maritime terrorism, public health vulnerabilities, and digital insecurity are examined as transnational challenges that transcend the capabilities of individual states. The author argues that these issues reveal the limits of unilateral action and underscore the growing importance of cooperation, collective action, institutional innovation, and middle-power leadership in maritime governance.

Prof. Keerawella further situates the Indian Ocean within the wider context of the emerging Asian Century. Asia’s resurgence—driven principally by China and India and reinforced by the dynamism of Southeast Asia—is presented as a major reconfiguration of global power. In this transformation, the Indian Ocean functions as a vital maritime artery connecting energy resources, manufacturing centres, and consumer markets. At the same time, the author cautions against deterministic interpretations, emphasising that the realisation of the Asian Century remains contingent upon how the region responds to persistent inequalities, environmental challenges, governance deficits, and intensifying strategic competition.

Assessing how SL has navigated shifts

The book concludes by returning to Sri Lanka and assessing how the country has navigated contemporary shifts in the regional and global balance of power under the National People’s Power (NPP) government that emerged in the aftermath of the Aragalaya of 2022. The author demonstrates how economic crisis, demands for accountability, and aspirations for a new political culture have reshaped the domestic context within which foreign policy is conducted. Under President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, Sri Lanka is portrayed as pursuing a carefully calibrated strategy that combines engagement with international financial institutions, enhanced cooperation with India in defence and energy sectors, continued economic engagement with China, and functional security relations with the United States. The government’s response to the 2026 U.S.–Iran War—rejecting military access requests from all parties while extending humanitarian assistance—serves as an illustration of the author’s broader argument that strategic flexibility, principled neutrality, and diplomatic agility remain essential for small states navigating an increasingly complex Indian Ocean order.

Taken together, the book advances several interconnected propositions. First, the Indian Ocean is entering an increasingly multipolar era in which power is exercised through complex networks of cooperation, competition, and interdependence rather than rigid alliance structures. Second, small states are neither passive spectators nor mere proxies of great powers; they possess strategic agency and navigate competing pressures through hedging, diversification, and calibrated diplomacy. Third, Sri Lanka’s strategic behaviour—characterised by navigating asymmetry through flexibility and ambiguity—reflects a historically rooted dual consciousness that combines vulnerability with cosmopolitan engagement. Fourth, non-traditional security challenges and environmental governance are no longer peripheral concerns but central components of the evolving regional order.

Need for adaptive navigation

Prof. Keerawella argues that contemporary statecraft in the Indian Ocean requires adaptive navigation rather than rigid alignment. In a fluid and contested maritime environment, survival and influence depend less on resisting structural change than on understanding and responding to it with prudence, flexibility, and strategic clarity. The book therefore offers important insights into how small states can transform structural vulnerability into strategic agency and convert exposure into opportunities for engagement within a changing regional order.

Combining historical depth with contemporary analysis, it provides a nuanced understanding of the interaction between great-power competition, regional transformation, and the strategic choices of smaller states. The book will be of considerable value to students and scholars of international relations, political science, strategic studies, and maritime affairs, while also offering useful perspectives to policymakers, diplomats, and practitioners. Equally important, it opens several promising avenues for future research on the Indian Ocean and the emerging Indo-Pacific order.

Hermeneutic approachs

Methodologically, the study draws upon hermeneutic approaches to examine the geopolitical and maritime environments that shape relationships among states, societies, and historical processes. The result is a work that is both analytically rigorous and intellectually engaging. This review has sought less to evaluate the book in a conventional sense than to introduce its central themes and encourage a wider readership to engage with its arguments. Having highlighted the many merits of the volume, it is worth noting one technical shortcoming: the absence of an index. Given the book’s wide thematic scope and rich empirical content, the inclusion of an index would have significantly enhanced its value as a reference tool for researchers and students alike.

In sum, Prof. Keerawella listens attentively to the winds, reads the waves with analytical precision, and traces the deeper currents that shape the Indian Ocean world. The outcome is Winds and Waves: Geopolitical Currents in the Indian Ocean since 1945, a timely and thought-provoking contribution published by the Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies.

Reviewed by
Dr. Ramesh Ramasamy
Department of Political Science, University
of Peradeniya