News

Geneva controversy: Ambika hits back hard at Foreign Ministry

Published

4 years ago

2022/02/12

Human Rights Advocate Ambika Satkunanathan has alleged that the culture of impunity is well documented, not only by civil society organisations, human rights defenders and the UN, but most importantly the Supreme Court and the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka. Since 2020 several incidents of violence by state officials have been publicly recorded. Yet, to date, the number of persons held accountable is negligible.

The former member of the Human Rights Commission said so in a statement issued in response to a statement titled ‘Human Rights: FM challenges Neelan Tiruchelvam Trust over its representations to Geneva ‘ in Feb 5, 2022 edition of The Island. The following is the text of her statement issued in response to the Foreign Ministry statement that dealt with Satkunanathan’s representations before the European Parliament Sub-Committee on Human Rights:”The FM statement contains numerous misrepresentations and insinuations, and appears to be aimed at silencing critique of government policies and actions.

In my statement to the Sub-Committee, I spoke of a number of issues, many of which I have previously written about with supporting evidence. This is available in the public domain. These are issues that other civil society organisations and activists have raised and documented over the years. In this context, the government labelling my statement “misleading”, appears to be an effort to downplay the issues raised and deceive the public.

It is disturbing the government has taken umbrage at my appeal to the European Union (EU) to advocate with the government to fulfil its international human rights obligations using GSP Plus trade privileges as a conduit. The GSP Plus privileges are dependent on the recipient fulfilling human rights obligations. The said human rights obligations are obligations the government has a duty to fulfill as a member of the United Nations and signatory to several UN conventions. These are obligations that provide protections to the citizens of Sri Lanka.

It is regrettable the government refuses to acknowledge that any adverse outcome of the GSP Plus review process would only be due to its failure to fulfill the GSP Plus scheme’s requirements. Hence, it is the government that has to take responsibility for any adverse outcomes. Instead, the government implies that those who advocate for the protection of the marginalised, such as Free Trade Zone workers, are responsible for a possible adverse outcome because they highlight the government’s failures. This is an attempt to deflect blame. To ensure there is no adverse impact on vulnerable communities, the government needs to acknowledge that the crisis is the result of its poor policy decisions, taken without bearing the best interests of citizens in mind.

Efforts to bring lasting peace to Sri Lanka are undermined by denials of the root causes of the armed conflict, i.e. discrimination. Instead, the MFA statement labels discussion of the root causes as LTTE propaganda. This is ominous given the decades long strategy of weaponising the PTA against Tamils. Implying such discussion is a danger to communal harmony, as the Ministry does in its statement, can be used to weaponise the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights Act to stifle dissent. The government’s use of these phrases will create fear amongst civic activists, especially in the North and East, and shrink civic space further. The very space the government denies is shrinking.

In this regard, the insinuations made in the Ministry’s statement are dangerous. My attention has been drawn to articles peddling false information about my supposed links to the LTTE being circulated on social media in the wake of the statement. The statement therefore could cause persons with racist ideologies to harass and perpetrate violence, including cyber violence against me.

The culture of impunity is well documented, not only by civil society organisations, human rights defenders and the UN, but most importantly the Supreme Court and the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka. Since 2020 several incidents of violence by state officials have been publicly recorded. Yet, to date, the number of persons held accountable is negligible.

The “war on drugs” (erroneously referred to as war and drugs in the statement) is being used to justify arbitrary arrests and detention as well suspected extra-judicial killings by police in Sri Lanka. The Bar Association of Sri Lanka too has raised concerns about this. It is important to curb the supply of drugs and international drug trafficking. However, such policies need to adhere to human rights standards.

Although the MFA claims Sri Lanka is a secular country, several statements have been made by the President in which he mentions inter alia, that ‘’protection of Sinhala Buddhists is his foremost responsibility’’ and that “all others who would love to live in unity have to be assimilated into this main socio-cultural basis of this country, based on rich Buddhist values”. This is illustrative of the Sinhala Buddhist nationalism to which I referred in my statement. Another example is the Presidential Task Force on Archeological Heritage Management in the Eastern Province, which has the membership of Buddhist clergy and is headed by a Buddhist monk. The ‘One Country One Law’ Task Force is chaired by Gnanasara Thera, who has publicly made inflammatory and discriminatory statements and incited violence against Muslim community. Such an appointment begs the question whether the government is concerned about the preservation of social harmony.

The Ministry has conflated the process of militarisation, with the military occupation of land. The former includes the military undertaking tasks that were and should be within the purview of civilian entities. The phenomenon of militarization has been meticulously recorded by civil society, including myself, and is publicly available for reference.

Despite the Ministry’s claim the government views civil society as partners and not adversaries, regrettably, its statement singling out my statement to the EU, is the perfect example of the government’s intolerance of dissent. Furthermore, several civil society organisations and activists, particularly from the North and East, have been questioned by the Terrorism Investigation Division (TID) during the last year. That they are being subject to these “routine security checks” when there is no prima facie evidence of wrongdoing, casts doubt on the government’s assertion of partnership with civil society.

As a Sri Lankan citizen, it is my right and civic duty to question the actions of elected representatives of this country when such actions lead to the suffering and marginalisation of vulnerable communities, and demand accountability. Only a country that respects this right can be considered truly independent and democratic.

Finally, the Ministry has referred to my position as Chairperson of the Neelan Tiruchelvam Trust in the statement. However, I did not make the statement to the Sub Committee as Chairperson nor represent the Trust at the hearing. I delivered the statement in my capacity as a human rights advocate, and it in no way has any relationship to the Trust.”

All News Advertisement

News

President proposes; Speaker disposes

Published

3 hours ago

2026/01/12

Thilina Walpola

Dr. Wickramaratne

AKD’s request to Harsha:

Speaker Dr. Jagath Wickramaratne has frustrated an attempt by Chairman of the Committee on Public Finance (CoPF) Dr. Harsha de Silva, MP, to intervene to settle the continuing dispute over the appointment of a new Auditor General.

Dr. De Silva yesterday told The Island he had recently written to all members of the Constitutional Council (CC) drawing their attention to the urgent need to address the issue at hand. The AG’s position remains vacant since 08 Dec, 2025. AG W.P.C. Wickremanayake retired in April and since then there have been a couple of Acting appointments. The CC has declined to endorse any of President Dissanayake’s nominees as the AG.

Asked whether he had taken up the issue with the CC following President Anura Kumara Dissanayake soliciting his support in this regard, MP de Silva said that he had written to CC members as agreed with the President.

The former UNPer and one-time State Minister said: “I did so, giving due respect to CC’s independence, underscoring the critical importance in them working with the President to resolve the crisis. I alluded to the need to have transparency in public financial management during this post-cyclone period where large amounts of funds are being transacted on multiple fronts, both domestic and foreign.”

Responding to another query, Dr. De Silva emphasised that he had clarified that the President must send the names of qualified and experienced persons to the CC for consideration. “However, these letters were returned to me by the Speaker, without being delivered to members of the CC. The Speaker didn’t give an explanation. Thus, except for members who are MPs who had been copied via email by my committee office, others never received my letter of concern. Even though I questioned, in Parliament, the basis of his refusal to forward my communication to the members of the CC of which he is Chairman, no answer was given.”

The CC consists of Dr. Jagath Wickramaratne, Speaker and Chairman of the 10-member body. Dr. Harini Amarasuriya, Prime Minister, Sajith Premadasa, Leader of the Opposition, Bimal Rathnayake, Aboobucker Athambawa, Ajith P. Perera, Sivagnanam Shritharan, and three civil society members namely Dr. Prathap Ramanujam, Dr. Dilkushi Anula Wijesundere and Dr. Dinesha Samararatne. None of the President’s nominees could obtain CC’s approval as all of them were rejected by the CC.

The present CC was introduced by the 21st Amendment to the Constitution which was endorsed on 31 October 2022.

Both the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) and the Transparency International Sri Lanka Chapter recently requested President Dissanayake, in writing, to propose a suitable person to the post of AG. The BASL, in another statement that dealt with the forthcoming vacancies in the CC due to three civil society members completing their terms, declared its concern over possible attempts by the President and the NPP government to fill the vacancies with rubber stamps.

The three civil society members will complete their terms on 18 January. In terms of Article 41E of the Constitution, the CC meets at least twice every month, and may meet as often as may be necessary. The Chairman presides at all meetings of the CC and in the absence of the Chairman, the Prime Minister, and in the absence of the Prime Minister, the Leader of the Opposition presides at the meetings of the CC.

Asked whether the CC could be disrupted due to the end of civil society members’ terms, an authoritative official pointed out that in case new appointments were not made the current members could continue.

The Parliament has not so far called for applications to fill the forthcoming vacancies.

by Shamindra Ferdinando ✍️

News

Sri Lanka loses Rs.7.5 bn due to coal tender irregularities: FSP

Published

3 hours ago

2026/01/12

Thilina Walpola

Pubudu

The NPP government’s coal procurement process has once again come under scrutiny following allegations by the Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) that substandard coal has been imported for power generation and that tender procedures were manipulated to favour a specific supplier.

Addressing the media after a party meeting in Maharagama on Saturday, FSP Education Secretary Pubudu Jagoda said a test report issued by the government laboratory at the Lakvijaya Power Plant had confirmed that the latest coal shipment unloaded in Sri Lanka did not meet the required quality standards. According to the report, the coal’s calorific value ranged between 5,600 and 5,800 kilocalories per kilo, below the 5,900–6,200 kCal/kg range specified in tender requirements.

Jagoda warned that lower calorific value coal would require higher volumes to generate the same amount of electricity, increasing costs significantly. Preliminary estimates, he said, indicated an additional financial burden of around Rs. 7,500 million, which might eventually be passed on to consumers through higher electricity tariffs.

The FSP also accused the government of tailoring procurement rules to benefit the Indian supplier, which has deposited bonds for long-term coal supply for the upcoming season. Jagoda alleged that tender conditions had been altered to accommodate the company, pointing to changes in coal reserve requirements. Under the 2021 Sri Lanka Coal Registration Document, suppliers were required to maintain a minimum reserve of one million metric tonnes with a gross calorific value of 5,900 kCal/kg. This threshold, he said, had been reduced to 100,000 metric tonnes in the 2025 document which is a 90% reduction raising serious concerns.

He further cited past allegations against the Indian company, including findings in a 2016 Auditor General’s report that the company violated procurement guidelines regarding a rice supply contract with Sathosa in 2014. Jagoda also referred to legal issues involving individuals linked to the company, and the suspension of a representative by the International Cricket Council in 2019 over match-fixing allegations.

Beyond company-specific concerns, Jagoda criticised what he described as systemic manipulation of the coal tender process. He questioned why the coal tender, typically called in February or March, was delayed until July, despite electricity being declared an essential service. He also alleged that the tender submission period had been progressively shortened from the internationally accepted six weeks to five weeks, and now reportedly to three giving an unfair advantage to suppliers with existing stock.

The Ministry of Energy has recently issued an amended tender to procure 4.5 million metric tonnes of coal for the Lanka Coal Company for the 2025/26 and 2026/27 periods, following the cancellation of an earlier tender.

Jagoda warned that delays and irregularities could lead to coal shortages, higher spot market purchases, increased electricity costs, and even power cuts if hydropower generation falls short. He called for urgent investigations into the procurement process, insisting that the burden of alleged mismanagement and corruption must not be transferred to the public.

by Chaminda Silva ✍️

News

CID summons SJB MP for criticising education reforms

Published

3 hours ago

2026/01/12

Thilina Walpola

Prasad

SJB Gampaha District MP Prasad Siriwardhana has been summoned to the CID today (12) for questioning in connection with a statement he made on a private television channel regarding education reforms.

He was earlier asked to report to the CID on 10 January to make a statement. However, as Siriwardhana had notified the authorities that he was unable to appear on that day, he was subsequently asked to come today.

Siriwardhana is one of the critics of the shortcomings of the education reforms introduced by the NPP government.