SLMC not bound with any party

The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) says that they had joined the government as both parties have a collective vision to develop the country but is not a slave of any of the state policies. The Leader of the SLMC and Minister of Posts and Telecommunication Rauff Hakeem, who is now clamouring for acquiring more 'power' as a minister and ready to end the 'UPFA - SLMC marriage' when he is unhappy with the way the government treat them, told the Sunday Observer that the SLMC is not permanently bound with any political party. He said that the SLMC would never let down the Mahinda Rajapaksa government until it secures the best interest of the people.

Following are the excerpts of the interview:

Q: How do you see the current political situation in the country?

A: There need to be de-escalation of hostilities as far as the war-front is concerned and on the top of it we also wish there could be acrimony among the parties in the South regarding a solution to the ethnic problem. This is basically is the wish of almost all the minority forces in this country.

Q: The general belief is that the SLMC is now more loyal to the UNP and the National United Alliance (NUA) is closer to the PA. So, do you think that you have betrayed the aspirations of the late leader?

A: I would say definitely not. In the first place I must disagree with you on the issue of us being a virtual appendage of the UNP. Of course we have entered into an electoral understanding at the time we contested the elections together. We have always contested on our own in many areas though we have contested with the UNP in some areas because we had to mutually strengthen each other.

We maintained our individual identity in many areas but in the meantime we also made use of the advantage in the present PR system through understanding with a major party.

That does not mean that we became virtually dependent of that party by coming into an electoral understanding.

In my opinion, though may we have come into an electoral understanding, one cannot jump to the conclusion that we have virtually become slaves of their policies. Of course, collectively we have a vision for the country. In contributing towards that collective vision, we have come to some understanding.

So, in our alliance or understanding with the present government, we have still not arrived at a broader policy framework because we joined the government half way through at the request of this government.

Q: What kind of a relationship exists between the SLMC and the NUA now?

A: I cannot speak for Mrs. Ashraff. But unfortunately Mrs. Ashraff, in my opinion, should not have broken away from the SLMC and we should be in one fold. But this has been inevitably weakened the party to some extent. She is the only NUA member in Parliament who is elected.

The NUA and ourselves are partners in establishing the Peace Secretariat for Muslims. That is a significant achievement where at least we had come together. As far as the peace process is concerned we do not have divergent opinions in presenting our views to resume negotiations.

At present we the SLMC is dominating in all the areas where the Muslims are living and when it comes to the Eastern province, now we control 11 local authorities. I do not think the NUA or any other party can claim to have power at local authority level. That shows you where the support lies.

Q: As one major political party that represents Muslims do you think Muslims are politically divided today?

A: Muslims are politically divided not only today. Ever since Independence they are politically divided. This is not a new phenomenon. For that matter, every community is divided today.

It will be ideal and for all of us to find a common ground on vital issues that concern the community. But that kind of consensus is difficult task to achieve. We have also know that when the need arises, we had always displayed collective responsibility at crucial times on behalf of the community.

Q: What are the major problems faced by Muslims today according to your assessment?

A: We have problems in every corner. At present, the law and order situation, particularly in the North and the East is a matter of concern.

Though the government has re-established its control in some areas, there appears to be para-military groups which appear to be having their own writ in some of these pockets. Some steps are being taken now progressively to see that the entire law and order responsibility would come within the Police Department and no other armed group would be allowed to engage in police functions or to conduct their own 'Kangaroo courts'. But this exercise, according to the Defence Secretary, has begun where he has given strict orders to prevent these armed groups enforcing their own writs in these areas.

The other important step that needs to be taken is to make the police force truly a multi-ethnic force. In my opinion, police in local areas should reflect the ethnic composition to win the confidence of the people. Now there is so much of mistrust in law and order machinery.

There is the language problem on one have and on the other religious and cultural misunderstanding. I believe, the police should be more friendly towards the local population as no police force can function without the support of the local population.

I think that if the police and the law enforcement authorities had taken timely effective preventive action, most of these disturbances could never have occurred.

Those who are responsible to maintain law and order, particularly the police appeared to be closing the stable after the horse had bolted. This is what happened in most of the serious cases where communal disturbances took place. This must be corrected. To get the confidence of the people they must have the feeling that the police are not an alien force.

Q: How far here the aspirations of Muslims achieved under the Mahinda Rajapaksa government? Are you satisfied with the steps taken by this government to solve these problems?

A: We have joined the government seven months ago. When it comes to attempts of forcible settlements and then dismantling previous settlements or resettlement of IDPs there are problems.

There are attempts under the patronage of some influenced people to deprive land owners of their permits to cultivate the lands. These instances were highlighted by us.

What we found is that these things have to be nipped in the bud before they are allowed to escalate. We have various hot spots like those in the East and whenever such things happen we will take action quickly to bring them to the notice of the government agent of the area or higher officials or the President's advisor, so that we can prevent them.

Whenever we complain to the government, they have given us the assurance that it would not to allow such things to take place. We have had mixed results.

Q: What is the situation of the Eastern region after it was liberated from the LTTE?

A: There are steps taken to improve the livelihood activities. Some restrictions by the government have affected hundreds and thousands of people in this region and these should be relaxed in order to allow the fishermen to engage in fishing in their traditional fishing areas.

The strict checks on movement of people and vehicles have caused some delay and disenchantment among the public. So, the cumbersome procedures that have been put into place need to be dismantled as they appear to be affecting the return to complete normalcy. These people need to feel that they are living peacefully.

There is no point in liberating an area if we are unable to bring it to total normalcy.

We know that it is bound to take a little while. We do admit that there are practical difficulties in bringing in the climate of absolute safety overnight. But that need is an urgent priority.

Q: Once the SLMC has blamed the government for not consulting the party about the development programs in the East, where a large number of Muslims are displaced. Did you get an opportunity to discuss the matter with the government?

A: The government had few discussions with members of the Parliament and the officials regarding their 'Nagenahira Navodaya' program.

One particular feature of this program is a top to down process. What I would wish to see is a bottom to top process. Any development must start from the grass roots upwards. But as it is, we have top down process. And here we need to take all our requirements and get the approval from the top.

We would appreciate if there is better coordination and consultation, so that more inputs can be made in identifying different programs that could be beneficial for the people of the area.

These projects would be sustainable so that one would not overlap with the other and also can prevent unnecessary wastage of funds.

I see even in this budget, the appropriation bill shows us that over Rs. 130 billion have been allocated to Nation Building. Here one Ministry has got a large allocation of funds. This is the question of how much of consultation that is taking place with Ministers representing different areas and how much it is properly planned before the government embarks on very ambitious ventures.

Q: Do you think that as a responsible political party the SLMC has lost the chance to look into the grievances of the Muslim community in the North and the East?

A: Certainly not. We have been a primary political force which has focused on the issues of Muslims and not simply of the people in the North and the East but also those who are living outside the North and the East. We certainly do look into people's grievances and try to solve some problems. We are not a political party that help only the Muslims but the non-Muslims in other areas.

Q: Now the government is planning to conduct elections in the East. How conducive is the climate in the Eastern region to hold Provincial Council and Local Government elections?

A: Unless the government is confident that they can maintain law and order fully under their purview it is unlikely that they will get the people's support as they are somewhat reluctant to be involved in elections. First, the cultural violence that appeared to have taking place in some areas may have to be de-escalated very fast. Proper monitoring of the law and order should be put into place.

The conducive climate for the democratic political process to hand over nominations and contest will have to be ensured. For the major political forces to contest in the elections, they must first feel that they are safe.

And also it should be ensured that the prevailing security situation would not be disturbed by intimidation harassment. These are the vital elements that the government must first ensure before deciding on an election.

Q: How do you see the attempts by the opposition and some political parties to topple the government and are you a part of that secret deal while you are supporting the government?

A: Unfortunately always this suspicion is aired about the SLMC. It is a very unenviable position. We do have a strong leverage in national politics. But, as we are a principal party, we do not believe in conspiracies and behind the scene negotiations.

We always deal with thing very openly and we have been told those people in the government with whom we are having these deals that any discussions with the SLMC need to be very transparent.

We have no permanent binding to any political force in this country and our only interest is to secure the best interest of people who voted us. We joined this government with the hope that the best interest will be safeguarded.

As long as this government stands by those assurances and treat us with dignity I do not think that this government has anything to fear.

The government must allow us to function freely in the areas where we have been given responsibilities; we should be able to carry out our work within our purview so we can do justice to the positions that we are holding under this government.

I, as a Minister in charge I must bring down the tariff on phone. I must be able to implement policies which will allow people to have better facilities at less cost.

Power should not be concentrated on one place and it should be shared. Development funds must be made available to everyone to work and contribute. This is our expectation and this is what we call dignity. Then we can call ourselves full partners of this government.

Q: Does this mean that you are not satisfied with the functions assigned to you or are you not given a free hand in your Ministerial functions?

A: I would say we could do more and we are all under utilised. Power is entrusted to us to be able to do our work.

Q: Do you say that you are a powerless Minister?

A: No. I think I can do much more in the telecommunication sector.

The Telecommunication Regulatory Commission is a body that always being a part of this Ministry but it is not under the Ministry at present.

To drive polices and to have healthy competition, there has to be a proper guidance and political leadership. Now the entire Ministry is a shell without the TRC. The day I took over as the Minister I told the President that without the TRC that this ministry is of no use.

If it is given to me, I must be in a position to have control and supervision over the Board and administration and then only we can improve the services.

I am sure that I could do more in the telecommunication side. I have brought this to the notice of the President but it has been delayed and hope things would improve soon.

Q: Are you ready to help the government at the budget?

A: Why shouldn't I help the government at the budget. There should not be unnecessary doubts on this.

I am part of the government. The appropriation bill shows that there is an uneven distribution of funds among Miniseries but that is how the budget has been prepared. We will hope there should be a more coherent and fair distribution of funds in the future.

Q: You are a politician, who joined all the successive governments with certain conditions. Do you think that this time you are trapped?

A: That is a very good question. We joined the government at their request in February this year. Before joining we had a few rounds of discussions on the basis which we join the government. So it remains as an expectation to achieve these objectives in addressing the grievances in the Muslim society.

If we are to continue with them for the rest of this parliament we naturally should have more support to achieve our objectives. We have to use our leverage that we have within in government to achieve our objectives. In the meantime we are also quite mindful about of the difficulties that the government is placed in. The fiscal position may not be that rosy. I think it is a collective responsibility.

We have been looked at as a party that inclined towards the UNP. That feeling may be still lingering in the government. The fact is we are an independent party, which would be always harnessed to the advantage of any party and any government in power. But, I do not think I am trapped. I am free to leave whenever I want. That is my strength. I represent another party and I always tell the government if I am unhappy.

Q: Once you have said that you joined the government to 'stop poaching of your MPs'. Have you been able to stop this by joining the government?

A: Yes. Indeed. I think I was able to do that because I have already lost four members before joining the government. We had to deal sincerely. We have decided that we need to be a disciplined and respected party. In my opinion it is wrong to say that we have been trapped. But whether we like it or not, the truth is that this government had in poaching. So, as a party leader I had to take a prudent decision to prevent poaching. I should know my strengths and weaknesses. On the other hand, the government and the opposition know the strength of the SLMC when it comes to an election. Whether it is the UNP or the PA they would always be attempting in various ways to weaken us.

Q: Is there an urgency in putting the APRC proposals out?

A: The initial euphoria was there in getting a result out of the APRC and we had noticed that there was an urgency a month ago. But I think because of the budget there is some deliberate delay in putting out the APRC proposals. Though it is very regrettable the President Rajapaksa appears to be determined that he will do it in his way we are not very pleased with it. We want some urgency as we do not want this current situation to be continued. On the other hand he appears to be in some sort of dilemma without knowing which way he would lead. One thing is sure, he needs to decide either way very soon in bringing a solution and he has to come out with a devolution package.

Q: How do you see President Rajapaksa as a leader and as a friend?

A: Well as a leader he is a very charismatic man. He has his own charisma. He has not forgotten his simple ways. He is a grass roots politician who has not lost that touch. That is one of his greatest strengths.

As a friend, as I have heard from his many friends that he is somebody who does not forget his friendships. So, I wish I could be a friend of his and I have to be counted as a friend too.

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