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THE FIFTH AMENDMENT, THE PAPER CHASE AND THE ULTIMATE THREAT TO U.S. DEMOCRACY

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by Vijaya Chandrasoma

The Fifth Amendment of the Constitution of the United States of America is divided into five clauses, protecting the legal rights of the individual in civil and criminal cases. These are: the right to a grand jury; double jeopardy; self-incrimination; due process; and compensation when private property is used for public use.

The self-incrimination clause protects persons accused of committing a crime from being forced to testify against themselves. According to the US judicial system, a person is presumed innocent, and it is the responsibility of the state to prove guilt. Evidence gained from coerced confessions or from the testimony of the accused in a court of law, when their actual words may be used against them, are protected when they “take the Fifth”.

While taking the Fifth is not considered to be an admission of guilt in the legal sense, Donald Trump, former president of the United States, has often derided the Fifth Amendment in the past as the “refuge of mobsters”. At a rally in Iowa in 2016, he said: “The Mob takes the Fifth. If you are innocent, why should you take the Fifth? Only the guilty takes the Fifth.” He has, on numerous rallies during his presidency, railed about the implied guilt of those who take the Fifth.

Last week, Donald Trump, during his testimony in a case of tax fraud brought against him by Letitia James, the State Attorney of New York, invoked his Fifth Amendments rights on a world record count of 440 questions! Maybe Trump was right, after all, when he said that the Fifth Amendment is a “refuge of mobsters” and crooks.

Trump currently has so many charges against him in Georgia (Election Fraud), Washington D. C. (Seditious Conspiracy, Insurrection, Interfering with an Official Procedure and Defrauding the United States), the aforementioned New York trial (Tax and Insurance Fraud, Money Laundering). Add to these the Select Committee investigating into his role on inciting the events leading to the January 6 Insurrection, one’s head starts spinning.

Last week, the spinning increased violently with the news that a search warrant for his resort home at Mar a Lago, Southern Florida, had been issued by Attorney General Merrick Garland, on information that 11 more boxes containing classified documents had been stolen when Trump vacated the White House in January 2021. These documents were being held in an unsecured basement at the resort.

Six months after Trump was forced out of the White House, rumours were rife that Trump had stolen many boxes containing documents, and taken them to Mar a Lago. These documents belonged to the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) in Washington D.C. When the FBI questioned Trump about the removal of these documents six month later, his lawyers gave up 15 boxes containing White House documents. The Department of Justice gave Trump a free pass on the federal crime of illegal possession of government property, as it was thought that he had surrendered all the stolen documents on request.

Last week, acting on information that there were more documents unlawfully retained at the resort, the FBI, armed with a legally approved search warrant signed by a federal judge, raided the former president’s home. They served the search warrant to the former president three days before. Trump was at his club in Bedminster, New Jersey at the time, but his lawyers were present at all times during the search.

In a statement after the raid, Trump sobbed that his beloved home at Mar a Lago was “under siege, raided, and occupied by a large group of FBI agents. They even broke into my safe.” Reminds me of my European History teacher at Royal. Describing the violence during the French Revolution, he famously said, “Even the windows were broken.”

Trump, ever the victim, never the criminal, wailed that this unlawful raid was yet another witch hunt by the Democrats. He maintained that all the documents confiscated by the FBI were deemed declassified by him with his invisible presidential wand; that even if they were not so declassified, they were surreptitiously planted by the FBI. And, in any event, the documents belonged to him. They did not, they belonged to the National Archives.

His supporters immediately sprang to his defence, echoing his contradictory screams of victimization, that Trump is the target of a shadowy conspiracy, painting the FBI as jackbooted thugs – like the German Gestapo – operating on the orders of a tyrannical federal government.

Florida governor Ron de Santis, the leading non-Trump favourite for the Republican presidential nomination in 2024 called it “another escalation in the weaponization of federal agencies against the regime’s political opponents”. Florida Senator Rick Scott, whose telephone was seized by the FBI the day after the Mar a Lago search, indicating that he was suspected of complicity in the storage of stolen documents, described the FBI action as “third world country stuff.” The maniacs of the QAnon (a radical right wing cult), led by Congresswomen Tailor Green and Boebert are demanding the defunding of the FBI, while declaring a call to arms, with threats of an “armed rebellion” and “a civil war.”

Fears of violence have grown after the Mar a Lago search. A man armed with an AR 15 style rifle and a nail gun attacked the FBI office in Cincinnati, Ohio. He was killed by the police after shooting a nail gun at people. No one else was wounded. Another man drove his car into a barricade near the Capitol in Washington DC and killed himself.

The FBI and the Department of Homeland Security have warned the public of an increase in violent threats posted in social media against federal officials and facilities, including a plan to place a so called “dirty bomb” in front of the FBI headquarters in Washington DC.

Attorney General Garland has received death threats after the search, as has Judge Bruce Reinhart, who is also facing a political firestorm for authorizing the search warrant. In despicable and vengeful desperation, Trump is threatening to release Closed Circuit TV footage at Mar a Lago during the search, which will identify, target and endanger the safety of FBI agents who were just doing their jobs.

After the attack on the FBI office in Ohio, Trump had a message conveyed to Attorney General Garland to the effect that “The country is on fire. What can I do to reduce the heat?” A veiled threat by the arsonist offering to help the firefighters!

Even if these seized documents were mainly collections of Aesop’s Fables and Grimms Fairy Tales, the removal of any documents, classified or not, from the White House by the outgoing president is in itself a federal crime. Not even Aesop or Grimm would have had the imagination to describe the criminality of the haul of documents seized by the FBI from Mar a Lago.

These documents show potential violations of three federal statutes, including the Espionage Act. They included five sets of documents marked “Top Secret SCI” (Sensitive Compartmented Information), granted access only to a handful of senior government executives on a “need-to-know” Top Secret Clearance by the Intelligence Community. These documents are considered germane to the nation’s nuclear arsenal and ongoing CIA investigations, which are deemed to have the potential to threaten the security of the nation.

Beyond belief is that these boxes of Top Secret documents had been lying, unsecured, in a basement of a golf club/resort, accessible to anyone visiting the resort, for over a year.

This will be an added case against Trump, which will be prosecuted along with the multitude of the other cases listed above. Trump is running low on his choice of defence lawyers, not only because of the volume of cases against him, but because few in the legal community wish to represent him as he famously stiffs his lawyers, refusing to pay their bills. Also, his regular lawyers like Rudy Guiliani, Lindsay Graham and Sydney Powers are too busy fighting their own indictments of election fraud and sedition.

The question that immediately arises is not that Trump is guilty of stealing Top Secret documents, but why he did it. And why they were being stored in an insecure basement of his home/resort? There is only one answer which is in perfect sync with the criminality of the former president. These documents are worth billions to our adversaries. Trump, who is beholden to no one but himself, certainly not to his country, who has never forsaken the opportunity to make a quick buck, would have sold them to the highest bidder. North Korean President Kim Jong Un, with whom Trump once claimed to be in love, his erstwhile puppet master Vladimir Putin and Saudi Arabian Prince Mohammed Bin Salman (MBS), come to mind as likely customers.

After the Mar a Lago raid, Fox News, as is their wont, rushed to the defence of Mein Fuhrer. Yet again, they try to defend the indefensible, to cover up and Foxsplain away the many instances of Trump’s crimes of extortion, obstruction of justice and sedition. In their eyes, Trump can do no wrong. And they persuade their many old, mainly white audience that Trumpism is the future of the country, against the evidence of their own ears and eyes. They lie, they obfuscate, they misinterpret the news to anger their already racist audience.

It was not always so. During the couple of decades I lived in the USA at the turn of the century, members of the Republican Party, including Fox News, espoused the classical conservative viewpoint. The Republican Party of yore was the Party of Lincoln, of law and order, small government, low taxation on the super wealthy and corporations, minimum anti-pollution ecological regulations, in short, espousing the Ayn Rand philosophy of “Full speed ahead and the devil take the hindmost”. Christianity was never poured down our throats. Live and let live was the order of the day. These opinions were right wing, but not virulently or violently racist and completely devoid of fact.

Although I am of a more progressive bent, I could live with these traditionally conservative policies. America had kind of lost its way and its thriving middle class of the 1970s with Reagan’s “trickle down” supply side economics in the ‘80s. But I was confident that, especially after the progress made by the Obama administration, the nation would finally auto-correct and catch up with the social democratic policies of the rest of the developed world.

I was spectacularly wrong.

Trump came along, and brought to the surface all the fascist prejudices of white supremacy seething during the administration of a black man. And Trump gave them the licence, even great pride to make public and violently act out these radical racist feelings without fear of government retaliation.

Unfortunately, after the Trump base of the radical right and Evangelicals crawled out of the woodwork, traditional conservatives continued to get their daily dose of misinformation from Fox News. They have been radicalized and corrupted by the fact-free propaganda machine of Trumpism. They consume as gospel the daily tariff of lies and criminal propaganda catered by Trump, through Fox News.

Fox News is the modern American counterpart of Goebbels’ German propaganda machine of the 1930s. They still pretend to believe and trumpet the big lie about 2020 election fraud. They continue to make ridiculous excuses for Trump’s criminal acts, bordering on treason. With this latest crime of stealing Top Secret documents, which amounts to espionage and treason, Trump faces his greatest test yet of his ability to survive scandal and escape imprisonment.

Should he succeed, and either he or one of his acolytes take control of Congress in the midterms in November and the White House in 2024, the United States of America would have abandoned the Great Experiment of Democracy born in 1789. Trump’s White Supremacist America would transform the world’s oldest democracy to the largest, most violently corrupt, nuclear-armed Banana Republic the world has even seen.

Hitler is long dead, but his dreams of an ethnically pure, white nation are being kept alive in the United States of America by Trump and his white supremacist Republican cult.



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US withdrawal from UNHRC, a boon to political repression and ultra-nationalism

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President Trump in a meeting with President Putin. The New York Times

The US’ reported withdrawal from the UNHRC and some other vital UN agencies could be seen as a fillip to anti-democratic and ultra-nationalistic forces worldwide. Besides, the stark message is being conveyed that the developing regions of the world would from now on suffer further impoverishment and powerlessness.

The UNHRC needs to be more effective and proactive in bringing to book those states that are lagging in upholding and implementing human rights standards. But thus far it has been notable in the main in only ‘naming and shaming’ periodically those countries that stand accused of human rights and associated violations. More states and their rulers who have proved notorious violators of International Law, for instance, need to be brought to justice.

Hopefully, the UNHRC would be more dynamic in carrying out its responsibilities going forward but it needs material, moral and financial sustenance in increasing measure as it goes about trying to implement its brief. By withdrawing its support for the UNHRC at this juncture the US has further weakened the body and thereby provided a stimulant to the forces of repression worldwide.

What ought to be equally disquieting for the ethically-conscious is the withdrawal of US support for the WHO, the UN agency for Palestinian refugees or the UNRWA and the Paris Climate Agreement. With these actions the US under President Donald Trump has forfeited all claims to being the world’s foremost democracy. It could no longer lead from the front, so to speak, in championing human rights and democratic development.

It is no coincidence that almost at the time of these decisions by the US, President Trump is meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. At the time of writing what transpired at these talks is not known to the public but it is plain to see that under the ultra-rightist Israeli Prime Minister, there would be no easy closure to the Middle East conflict and the accompanying blood-letting.

This is in view of the fact that the hawkish Trump administration would be hand-in-glove with the Netanyahu regime right along. There would be no political solution in the foreseeable future nor could it be guaranteed by the main stakeholders to the Middle East question that the current ceasefire would continue.

As mentioned in this column before, Israel would need strong security guarantees from the Palestinian camp and its supporters before it sits earnestly at the negotiating table but a policy of repression by the Israeli state would in no way help in resolving the conflict and in ushering even a measure of peace in the region. With the staunch support of the Trump administration the Netanyahu regime could stave off Palestinian resistance for the time being and save face among its supporters but peace in the Middle East would continue to be a lost cause.

The issues in focus would only be further compounded by the US decision to cease support for the rehabilitation and material sustenance of Palestinian refugees. This policy decision would only result in the further alienation and estrangement of Palestinians from the Western world. Consequently, Intifada-type uprisings should only be expected in the future.

As should be obvious, the US decision to pull out of the WHO would further weaken this vital agency of the UN. A drop in material, medical and financial assistance for the WHO would translate into graver hardships for the suffering civilians in the world’s conflict and war zones. The end result could be the alienation of the communities concerned from the wider international community, resulting in escalating law and order and governance issues worldwide. Among other things, the world would be having on its hands aggravating identity politics consequent to civilian publics being radicalized.

Considering the foregoing, the inference is inescapable that the US is heading in the direction of increasing international isolation and a policy of disengaging from multilateral institutions and arrangements geared to worthy causes that could serve world peace. As matters stand, it would not be wrong to conclude that the Trump administration is quite content with the prevailing ‘international disorder’.

One of the most negative consequences of the US decision to pull out of the UNHRC is the encouragement the forces of repression and ultra-nationalism could gain by it. In almost all the states of South Asia, to consider one region that is notable from this viewpoint, the forces of ultra-nationalism and majoritarian chauvinism could be said to be predominant.

Unfortunately, such forces seem to be on the rise once again in even post-Hasina Bangladesh. In Sri Lanka these forces are somewhat dormant at present but they could erupt to the surface, depending on how diligently the present government guards against their rise.

However, the government of Sri Lanka could not be said to be going the extra mile currently to blunt the appeal of ultra-nationalism, whether it is of the Southern kind or of the Northern kind. Crunch time for the Sri Lankan state would come when it has to seriously cooperate with the UNHRC and help bring those accused of war crimes in Sri Lanka to justice. On whether it could cooperate in this exercise would depend the democratic credentials of the present regime.

The cumulative result of the Trump administration weakening the UN and its agencies would be the relentless rise of anti-democratic, fascistic and repressive regimes the world over. Given this backdrop, one could expect the war in the Ukraine and those wasting civil wars in Africa to rage on. In the case of the Ukraine, the possibility of the US and NATO not being of one mind on ways of ending the war there, could render closure of the conflict any time soon impossible.

However, waiting on the US with the expectation that it would be pulling itself together, so to speak, before long and addressing the issue of international law and order would be tantamount to handing over the world to a most uncertain future. It is highly unlikely that the Trump administration would prove equal to the challenge of bringing even a measure of order out of the current global chaos, given the primacy it would be attaching to what it sees as its national interest.

Rather than wait in suspense, democracy oriented sections the world over would do well to come together in a meeting of minds, with the UN playing a catalytic role in it, to figure out how they could pool all the resources at their command to bring about a world order that would be more respectful of International Law in word and spirit.

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‘The Onset: A Short Story’: A philosophical drama attempting to redefine perception and cinema

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A scene from the movie with Hannah Brennen and Matt Heakes

Debut filmmaker, Thevin Gamage, presents a bold challenge to the time-honoured conventions of cinema. Through his daring short film, Thevin invites audiences to reconsider ‘the truth’ of cinematic rules. The 180-degree rule is broken with seamless subtlety, and a fresh perspective is offered on breaking the fourth wall.

This 13+ minute dialogue-driven drama, ‘The Onset: A Short Story’ featuring two actors and created with the collaboration of a debut cinematographer, was shot entirely in his living room—a testament to ingenuity and creative audacity.

The film not only aims to redefine the language of cinema but also thematically contests one of Plato’s most renowned teachings—The Allegory of the Cave. Thevin offers a fresh lens to examine ‘truth’ blending bold cinematic innovation with a philosophical exploration of perception, arrogance, and enlightenment.

At its heart, this story reflects the universal tension between belief and truth, highlighting the cost of breaking free from illusions. His debut is both a defiant act of rebellion and a bold invitation to shape the evolution of future cinema, leaving audiences with as many questions as answers.

Born into a family of artists in Sri Lanka, Thevin, grew up surrounded by a legacy of creativity yet confined by the traditional expectations of society. His parents achieved success as actors and later as entrepreneurs.

For Thevin, questioning the rules was not rebellion for its own sake—it was a search for freedom, truth, and new perspectives. This drive began in childhood, where strict parental expectations collided with his innate creativity. Movies became his escape, a lens through which he experienced life, love, and possibility.

Yet it wasn’t until his late twenties, after years of academic success and professional detours that he finally embraced his calling as a filmmaker. His audacious short film bridges his personal journey with his artistic vision. By breaking the 180-degree rule and redefining the fourth wall, the film demonstrates that cinematic rules can evolve—not as acts of rebellion, but as purposeful explorations of storytelling.

In the spirit of art and its boundless novelty, Thevin Gamage seeks to induct exactly that: originality.

His debut film is a bold exploration of cinematic boundaries and philosophical inquiry, redefining two foundational principles of cinema. This film invites audiences to experience a narrative that subtly bends the historical rules of the 180-degree rule and the fourth wall—often without them even realizing it.

This debut dares you.

It’s a resolute challenge to tradition and a provocative reminder that “rules” are just a few letters that form a word.

****

About young filmmaker

Thevin Gamage

Thevin Gamage is a South Asian filmmaker whose journey reflects both a profound reverence for tradition and an unrelenting desire to transcend it.

Born into a family of artists in Sri Lanka, Thevin was shaped by a legacy of creativity and resilience. His grandfather, Sri Lanka’s first film makeup artist, pioneered his craft with remarkable dedication, laying the foundation for a family deeply rooted in the arts. Though Thevin never met him, his grandfather Regie de Silva’strailblazing work ethic and passion for storytelling helped shape the family ethos, inspiring Thevin’s mother and, in turn, Thevin himself. Reggie was the first Sri Lankan makeup artist. He went to India for his studies in makeup artistry and was active during the era when B.A.W. Jayamanne and Rukmani Devi pioneered the Sri Lankan film industry.

Thevin’s mother, Kumudumali De Silva, a celebrated Best Supporting Actress winner two decades ago and recent Lifetime Achievement Award honoree for her contributions to the wedding industry, met his father, Nihal Gamage, while on set. Together, they transitioned from the entertainment industry to entrepreneurial success, founding a wedding photography and bridal dressing business. Their ventures flourished, even leading to the publication of their own wedding magazine, providing a middle-class life of success and recognition.

Despite these creative roots, societal expectations in Sri Lanka compelled Thevin to pursue academics. After excelling at the University of Toronto with a degree in Political Science, Economics, and Psychology, Thevin still yearned for storytelling. In his late twenties, after years of professional detours, he enrolled in film school and committed fully to his craft.

Operating outside the framework of traditional film production companies, Thevin embraced the challenges of independence. From conceptualization to execution, his debut film is a testament to his determination, ingenuity, and unwavering commitment to his vision. His journey as an independent filmmaker exemplifies the power of creative freedom to challenge norms and shape unique perspectives.

Thevin’s work invites audiences to question, reimagine, and ultimately transform their understanding of storytelling. His journey is not just one of artistic pursuit but an act of defiance—an effort to inspire others to embrace the power of the arts and forge paths beyond traditional norms.

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Top three at 40th Mrs World pageant

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Mrs World – South Africa: Tshego Gaelae (L) / First Runner-up – Sri Lanka: Ishadi Amanda (M) / Second Runner-up – Thailand: Ploy Panperm (R)

While South African model Tshego Gaelae becomes the first Black woman to win the Mrs. World title in its 40-year history, we, too, were in the spotlight, at the finals.

Ishadi Amanda took the No. 02 slot, being the first runner-up at the prestigious pageant, held in Las Vegas, USA, from 29-30 January, 2025.

Thailand’s Ploy Panperm was placed third, as the second runner-up.

Sri Lanka’s Ishadi had support from the audience when her name was announced as one of the three finalists.

The Mrs World pageant winner, from South Africa, expressed her thanks on Instagram, saying, “To God be the glory. Thank you so much for the love and support, I am beyond grateful and elated! My beautiful South Africa, the crown is coming home,” she shared with her followers, encapsulating her elation and gratitude.

The Mrs World pageant, established in 1984, stands as the first international beauty contest solely for married women, providing a platform for married contestants to showcase not just their beauty, but also their intellect and community outreach efforts.

Before being picked as the winner, Mrs South Africa was asked: “What is the biggest challenge you have faced and achieved?” And her answer was brilliant:

Rosy Senanayake: Mrs World 1984

“I was so stressed on social media. Social media people should use it to share knowledge and good things. But it’s used to stress people out. But I stood up for myself without that social media pressure. I used the same social media that stressed me out to share good thoughts and hope to get to the victorious place I am today.”

Gaelae’s success is a testament to the ideals celebrated by the pageant, where diversity and empowerment take centre stage.

Gaelae balances her roles as a devoted mother, wife, labour relations manager, and model.

Being the first black woman to clinch the title at the Mrs World pageant has ignited a sense of pride and celebration among South Africans.

The Mrs South Africa Organisation, which played a crucial role in supporting Gaelae’s remarkable journey, also expressed their pride through a statement: “From Soweto to Vegas and now the World, @mrsworldpageant The Crown is Coming Home! Thank you to everyone who supported our queen on her incredible Journey.”

Gaelae returned home to a triumphant celebration fit for a queen.

At the airport to welcome her were her family, friends, church community, the Mrs South African team board and alumni, and the Executive Mayor of Johannesburg.

The crowning of the 40th Mrs World winner

And, guess what? Gaelae is now in touch with me!

Second Runner-up Mrs Thailand Ploy Panperm is quoted as having said: “I believe that modern married women have the potential to excel in multiple roles – as wives, mothers and even as beauty queens – embodying intelligence, talent and beauty.”

For the record, it was our very own Rosy Senanayake who brought Sri Lanka fame at this pageant … being crowned Mrs World at the very first Mrs World pageant, in 1984.

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