Cardinal reiterates call for implementation of PCoI recommendations

By Shamindra Ferdinando

Justice for 2019 Easter Sunday victims and their families remains a high priority for Archbishop of Colombo Rt. Rev. Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith.

In spite of the incumbent dispensation dragging its feet, on the issue much to the disappointment and ire of the Catholic Church, the prelate is determined to continue his struggle.

Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith, in an exclusive interview with The Island at the Archbishop’s House, Borella, on Tuesday (21) emphasized his resolve and that of the Catholic Church to bring the ongoing campaign to a successful conclusion, whatever the impediments. The Catholic community expected justice, the Cardinal said, though the vast number of victims were Catholics, other communities, too, were affected. Those in authority shouldn’t forget that several dozens of foreigners perished in those multiple and almost simultaneous attacks.

“We had no option but to seek the intervention of the Geneva-based United Nations Human Rights Council as the government hampered the investigation. The decision was made against the backdrop of the government pursuing a strategy contrary to the promises repeatedly made in the run-up to the last presidential election in Nov 2019,” the Cardinal said.

The prelate examined the handling of the Easter Sunday investigation, taking into consideration the government statement at the ongoing UNHRC sessions. Addressing the 50th UNHRC session in Geneva, on June 13, Foreign Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris, who is also the Chairman of the ruling SLPP said: “On the Easter Sunday attacks, the Attorney General has sent out several indictments to High Courts and the Trials in this regard are proceeding.”

Asserting that an attempt was being made to deceive the international community and even the current crisis that had been caused by shortsighted policies of the incumbent dispensation exploited to cover up its own sins, the Cardinal urged the government to address what he called essentially an accountability issue. The prelate warned it would be a grave mistake on their part to believe that the time would solve the issues at hand. Referring to the 2015 Geneva resolution, co-sponsored by Sri Lanka, the Cardinal emphasized the inordinate delay in addressing the Easter Sunday issues would be disadvantageous to Sri Lanka struggling to cope up with an extremely dicey economic situation.

A statement issued by the Foreign Ministry quoted Prof. Peiris as having told Geneva sessions: “The international community is aware of the grave social and economic situation that Sri Lanka has been faced with in recent weeks. While this situation has been aggravated by ongoing global crises, including the pandemic, the focus of the protests has consisted of demands for economic relief and institutional reform. In recognition of these challenges and in moving forward in an inclusive manner, we consider it crucial to heed the aspirations of all segments of our people, in particular, the youth.”

The Archbishop of Colombo reiterated that whatever the bombastic public pronouncements made, both here and abroad, the government hadn’t heeded their serious concerns over the Easter Sunday investigations. The government owed an explanation and public apology as regards the failure on its part to implement recommendations made by the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (PCoI) into the Easter Sunday carnage.

The bottom line is that the recommendations made by PCoI, that had been appointed by former President Maithripala Sirisena and accepted by the incumbent President, were yet to be implemented, the Cardinal stressed. Sirisena, now an SLPP Member of Parliament, in his capacity as the President, named the five-member PCoI in late Sept 2019. The PCoI handed over its report to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on Feb 01, 2021.

Recalling the simmering controversy over the government withholding some crucial sections of the report, the Cardinal pointed out that none of the major recommendations had been implemented yet. “That is the crux of the matter,” the key member of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference said. “The moment a disputable decision to appoint a six-member Ministerial Committee to study the recommendations and the report of the Sectoral Oversight Committee on National Security was made we realized the duplicity of the current leadership. The government sought to suppress those reports,” the Cardinal pointed out.

The Committee headed by Minister Chamal Rajapaksa included Johnston Fernando, Udaya Gammanpila, Ramesh Pathirana, Prasanna Ranatunga and Rohitha Abeygunawardena.

The Cardinal said that the Catholic Church and the vast majority of people had been quite mystified by the appointment of that group as the recommendations were made by a highly qualified team. The PCoI, led by Supreme Court Judge Janak de Silva, included Court of Appeal Judge Nishshanka Bandula Karunaratne, retired Supreme Court Judges Nihal Sunil Rajapaksha and A.L. Bandula Kumara Atapattu and former Secretary to the Ministry of Justice W.M.M.R. Adhikari. H.M.P. Buwaneka Herath functioned as the Secretary to the PCoI.

Declaring that the hapless public, struggling to make ends meet, had lost faith in the current political party setup, the Cardinal said that none of those lawmakers earned the respect of the public. Their pathetic response, both in and outside Parliament, to the developing economic crisis, underscored the fact that the country couldn’t depend on the current lot at all. Instead of repeatedly warning of an impending famine, due to a toxic combination of reasons ranging from the overnight change in the agricultural policy to the forex crisis, the government should provide clear solutions, the Cardinal added.

Questioning the much touted ‘One Country, One Law’ concept that had been promoted by the incumbent administration, the Catholic Leader stressed that the country should be re-built on the basis of (1) equality in every aspect (11) law enforcement and related mechanisms, such as the Commission to Investigate Allegations of Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) should be free from political interference and (111) targeted action to eradicate waste, corruption, irregularities and mismanagement.

Having dismissed the International Monetary Fund (IMF) advice, the government was now pleading for a debt restructuring programme, the Cardinal said. However, perusal of reports of the Parliamentary watchdog committees, COPE, COPA and COPF disclosed in spite of the country asking for a moratorium on debt repayment, corruption was at full swing, the Archbishop said.

The Cardinal compared the government’s inaction in respect of the PCoI report on the Easter Sunday massacre and parliamentary reports that dealt with the events leading to the current crisis. “In both instances, culprits are known,” he said.

Responding to further questions, the leader of the Catholic Church said that the discovery of a hand grenade inside All Saints Church, Borella, on January 11, this year, revealed machinations amidst turmoil. The recovery of the grenade three days before the Catholic Church marked 1,000 days’ since the Easter Sunday massacre took an unprecedented turn when examination of CCTV footage of the church led to the identification of the person who brought the device into the church at 9.52 am on the same day. Despicable attempt to frame innocent persons for the grenade affair went awry due to the availability of the video footage, the Cardinal said, warning the country would pay a heavy price for staged incidents of violence. Violence that had been triggered by interested parties in several places during yahapalana administration, particularly Ampara and Digana-Kandy, in early 2018 and Beruwela and Darga town in 2014, in the run-up to the 2015 presidential poll, underscored the grave danger posed by elements hell-bent on exploiting ethnic and religious sentiments for their advantage.

The Easter Sunday massacre, too, should be examined in the same context, the Cardinal said, underscoring the responsibility on the part of the executive, the legislature and the judiciary to uphold the rights of all. Perhaps the major reason for the deterioration of good governance is the executive and members of the legislature keen on exercising political power than serving the people.

Rt. Rev. Malcolm Cardinal Ranjith also briefly discussed the efforts made by the Catholic Church to bring the war to an end during the presidency of Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga (1994-2005) and the first term of Mahinda Rajapaksa (2005-2010). The wartime Bishop of Mannar the late Dr. Rayappu Joseph had been involved in these attempts, the Cardinal recalled focusing on a journey they undertook in August 2007. Having secured approval from the then President Mahinda Rajapaksa and clearance from General Sarath Fonseka, they had met senior LTTE representatives at a location near Iranamdu tank east of the Kandy-Jaffna A9 road. “But, we couldn’t convince them to stop fighting.”