Wiggie wants Mahinda to

walk the talk

Sunday 25th May 2014
Going as part of President Rajapaksas entourage would give the impression that all
is fine between the Northern Provincial Council and the Government of Sri Lanka,
when in fact it is not, said Chief Minister of the Northern Province, C.V. Wigneswaran.
Wigneswaran, who hit headlines last week following his refusal to join a Presidential
delegation to New Delhi to attend Narendra Modis swearing-in ceremony, pointed out:
It is unfortunate that public affairs have become an exercise in tokenism. We act for
world consumption but not with sincerity. I declined the invitation because I did not
want to become a party to tokenism.
In an email interview with the Daily FT, the former Judge turned politician stressed:
Sinhalese leaders make a lot of fanfare attempting to speak in Tamil but do not recruit
adequate translators in Courts. There are cases which have languished for more than
20 years purely because there are no translators. Tamils are not allowed to sing the
National Anthem in the language they understand. We try to take shortcuts and
attempt to sweep the main issues under the carpet.
Following are excerpts from the interview:
Q: Why did you reject President Rajapaksas invitation to join his delegation to Indias
Prime Minister-elect Narendra Modis swearing in ceremony?
A: As indicated in my letter to the Minister of External Affairs, I declined the invitation
because I did not want to become a party to tokenism. It is unfortunate that public
affairs have become an exercise in tokenism. We act for world consumption but not
with sincerity. Sinhalese leaders make a lot of fanfare attempting to speak in Tamil but
do not recruit adequate translators in Courts. There are cases which have languished
for more than 20 years purely because there are no translators. Tamils are not allowed
to sing the National Anthem in the language they understand. We try to take shortcuts
and attempt to sweep the main issues under the carpet.
Going as part of the Presidents entourage would give the impression that all is fine
between the NPC and the Government, when in fact it is not. A parallel administrative
structure has been set up by the Governor and the Chief Secretary. Constitutional
provisions have not been followed. A climate of fear and intimidation has been re-
imposed and has now escalated. I serve the people who elected me they have not
elected me to run around the world to serve other peoples political projects.
Going as part of the Presidents entourage would give the impression that all is fine
between the NPC and the Government, when in fact it is not. A parallel administrative
structure has been set up by the Governor and the Chief Secretary. Constitutional
provisions have not been followed. A climate of fear and intimidation has been re-
imposed and has now escalated. I serve the people who elected me they have not
elected me to run around the world to serve other peoples political projects
We may have to enter into a more intense period in our political agitations. The Army
is taking over lands arbitrarily and bringing in people from outside the province to
settle them there. Lands are being taken over by the military and cultivated for their
benefit. The owners of such lands are internally displaced, unable to get back their
lands. Quarrying is going on unchecked and our resources are in danger of being
overexploited by outside forces to such an extent that those resources may be
completely exhausted. Fishing is another area where serious attention is needed.
Most importantly, the public have been intimidated and threatened by the suffocating
security arrangements, after the military put up a story of Tiger regrouping, taking us
back to an earlier era of checking and arrests
Now the Government has started placing obstacles in our way to tell the world that
though we were elected, we cannot proceed, but only they could. In other words, even
the few rights given under the 13th Amendment are being withheld from us to
somehow keep us immobile. The 13th Amendment is so weak that it can be stultified
by the Government with ease. The irony is that through its actions the Government is
confirming the case of the TNA that the 13th Amendment is inadequate!
The most important thing we should bear in mind is that it is the acts of Sri Lankans
and the Sri Lankan Government that have the greatest effect on Sri Lanka. If we are
committed to the rule of law, justice and equitable power sharing, we need not worry
about the effects of the coalition partners of our neighbouring countries. Your question,
however, is ominous for it seems to imply that we are not committed to those three!
Q: Dont you feel rejecting the
invitation will further damage the poor relationship between the TNA and the Sri
Lankan Government?
A: I dont think so. I think as a mature politician with 44 years in politics, the President
will not take my refusal personally. It is a matter of principle. He is a person who went
to Geneva with Minister Vasudeva Nanayakkara amidst great intimidation and
hardships 25 years ago to protest against human rights violations. I act on the basis
that he will respect my decision.
Q: If the invitation was made with good intentions, do you still feel it would have been
right to join the President since the invitation was extended to the President and not
for a Presidential delegation?
A: That is a matter to be answered by the protocol experts of the Ministry of External
Affairs!
Q: Indian media reported President Rajapaksas move to attend the ceremony was a
step towards reconciliation in his own country and defusing anger among Indian Tamil
parties over his visit. Your comments?
A: I am not aware of these media articles, but I cannot understand how the Presidents
visit to India is a step towards reconciliation in Sri Lanka. Steps towards reconciliation
in Sri Lanka will have to be taken in Sri Lanka. Further it is the very fact that he is
going to India for the ceremony that has created anger among Tamils and others. I like
to see these Indian media articles.
Q: The Government of Sri Lanka recently celebrated the fifth Victory Day but banned
commemoration of LTTE cadres who were killed during the latter part of the war. Your
comments?
A: I do not think your question is properly worded. It should read but banned
commemorating the death of those who were killed during the latter part of the war.
Every person has the right to commemorate the death of his or her kith and kin. When
tens of thousands of people of a community have died during a short period of time, it
is natural that their surviving relatives seek to commemorate the deaths of their
beloved together. Imagine telling the survivors of a tsunami not to have
public commemorations! Rituals and ceremonies help the living deal with their loss.
They help survivors get over issues like survivors guilt. This kind of ban demonstrates
a complete lack of empathy towards the psycho-social welfare of the people.
One wonders then, whether the Government and the Military are terribly scared of our
dead? Perhaps they feel any attempt on our part at remembering our dead during the
period a massive number of them were killed would resurrect them, and they might
come and give evidence before the international probing institutions!
Q: The Government has said since the LTTE is an internationally-banned organisation,
there is no wrong in stopping commemorating LTTE heroes. The Government has
further said that such commemorations would cause a threat to national harmony. Your
comments?
A: This is ridiculous and in logic is known as setting up a straw man. The question is
not about the LTTE, for the LTTE is dead. Let us say for arguments sake that there
are persons who are sympathetic to the separatist ideas of the LTTE here or abroad. If
so, catch them. Why witch-hunt those who remember our dead at the end of the war?
Even if such a person who died was an LTTE cadre, he was a son or a brother or a
husband of someone still living. What is wrong in their remembering their dead? Is not
the Government interested in making this into an issue for political purposes? If
Rohana Wijeweera could be remembered, or if 5 June 1971 could be remembered,
without any obstacles being placed on those functions, why this difference with regard
to our dead?
Q: What are your views about the present situation in the north?
A: Very critical. We may have to enter into a more intense period in our political
agitations. The Army is taking over lands arbitrarily and bringing in people from outside
the province to settle them there. Lands are being taken over by the military and
cultivated for their benefit. The owners of such lands are internally displaced, unable to
get back their lands. Quarrying is going on unchecked and our resources are in
danger of being overexploited by outside forces to such an extent that those resources
may be completely exhausted. Fishing is another area where serious attention is
needed. Most importantly, the public have been intimidated and threatened by the
suffocating security arrangements, after the military put up a story of Tiger regrouping,
taking us back to an earlier era of checking and arrests.
Q: TNA Parliamentarian M.A. Sumanthiran has said that you are the most suitable
common candidate to contest at the next presidential election. Your comments?
A: I have said I am not interested in the most unequivocal terms. Quite apart from my
disinterest and disinclination for any such venture, you have to understand the
difference between suitability and electability. Sumanthiran may have considered me
as suitable as a person. But presidential elections are not contested by persons in Sri
Lanka any more they are contested by Sinhalese and Tamils and Muslims.
Q: Some media quoted you saying the NPC is powerless and not capable of catering
to the needs of the Tamil people. Did you make such statement? Why?
A: There are two matters. Firstly there are serious inherent shortcomings in the 13th
Amendment. Quite apart from that, there is an issue of even those limited powers
being stultified and frustrated by a non-cooperative Centre. The present NPC is unable
to function with any reasonable success owing to the Governments recalcitrance.
For instance, the Provincial Councils Act says the Chief Secretary shall be a person
appointed by the President with the concurrence of the Chief Minister. Our Chief
Secretary was not so appointed. She was the handmaid of the Governor and the
President before we came into the scene and continues to be so, metaphorically
speaking.
The office of the Chief Secretary is an important office. Presently the Governor and the
Chief Secretary have set up a parallel administration and she has filed a case in the
Supreme Court seeking to divorce the Provincial Council from the parallel
administration arbitrarily set up by the Governmental machinery. The stultification by
the Government proves one of the fundamental flaws of the 13th Amendment i.e. it
depends on the largesse of the Centre to function.
Q: The TNA insisted on and demanded NPC elections, but now says it is powerless.
Why?
A: The TNA was quite aware of the shortcomings of the 13th Amendment. We
contested the election with utmost good faith to ensure that we could do the maximum
for the people who were suffering. We wanted to cooperate with the Government and
take all urgent steps to cater to the immediate needs of a war-torn society. The TNA
consistently stated that it would advance the issue of proper power sharing
independently. We contested the election so that the people could give their clear
mandate. Our elections did show what our people thought and they gave an
overwhelming mandate to the TNA.
But now the Government has started placing obstacles in our way to tell the world that
though we were elected, we cannot proceed, but only they could. In other words, even
the few rights given under the 13th Amendment are being withheld from us to
somehow keep us immobile. The 13th Amendment is so weak that it can be stultified
by the Government with ease. The irony is that through its actions the Government is
confirming the case of the TNA that the 13th Amendment is inadequate!
Q: What is the point of being in power if you are unable to fulfil the needs of your own
people?
A: What do you mean by being in power? Your question is like saying, what is the
point of being the Queen of England when it is Parliament that wields power? The
power that we have in terms of the law is minimal. What we are allowed to exercise in
reality is far less. So the assumption in your question is incorrect.
However, we are in a position of influence. Even though we have been able to have
little success in the economic area, we have done a lot in other areas. We have
brought a sense of unity and integrated awareness among our people. The people are
no longer scared of the Army as they were prior to the elections. In fact our brave
women have questioned Army intrusions into civil matters.
I believe the storytelling that took place recently about a Tiger regrouping had taken
into consideration the newly-found freedom among our people. They needed an
excuse to go back to their old tactics of keeping the people mute and scared. We have
had occasion to publicise the sufferings of our people. We have also made advances
in other more concrete areas, though our achievements in those areas are modest.
We have carried out a six monthly review and are publishing brochures on the work
carried out by our ministries.
We are the voice of our people and they need our support. We shall not let them
down. We will continue to do our best.
Q: Is it true that you will withdraw from your position and the TNA will boycott the
NPC?
A: The NPC is run by the TNA. I am a part of it. I have no knowledge of any boycott.
Q: What do you think about the victory of the Baratiya Janatha Party (BJP)?
A: We expect the new Prime Minister to look at problems not from parochial
standpoints but from practical and pragmatic standpoints. He has a very impressive
track record in Gujarat and has been an amazing mobiliser of people. In fact, when we
assumed office in the NPC in September last year, I cited Shri Narendra Modis vision
about people-centred governance as being worthy of emulation.
Q: What kind of impact will it have on Sri Lanka?
A: That remains to be seen.
Q: When India has a strong government, minorities such as Jayalalithaa Jeyaram will
lose their bargaining power. How will this affect Sri Lanka?
A: That depends on the approach adopted by the new Indian Government. If they
seek to act in cooperation with their allies in different States, they may enhance their
power further and consolidate their gains. The most important thing we should bear in
mind is that it is the acts of Sri Lankans and the Sri Lankan Government that have the
greatest effect on Sri Lanka. If we are committed to the rule of law, justice and
equitable power sharing, we need not worry about the effects of the coalition partners
of our neighbouring countries. Your question, however, is ominous for it seems to
imply that we are not committed to those three!