SLMC with Govt, no alliance with TNA - MT Hassen Ali

By P. Krishnaswamy

The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) General Secretary and veteran parliamentarian M.T. Hassen Ali told the Sunday Observer that they are with the government although they are contesting the Eastern PC polls on their own tree symbol. The recent resignation of their party Chairman Basheer Segu Dawood from his position as Deputy Minister was his own decision and it was not a collective decision of the party, he said. The speculation that they may form an alliance with the TNA if an adequate number of seats are obtained by both their parties together to form the Eastern PC administration is unfounded. It is not unlikely that the UPFA will form the administration, he said. Protecting their people's rights and welfare is their political objective and, in democratic traditions, they are seeking the people's mandate on this, he said. Whether or not they will form an alliance with the Government in the Eastern PC is something which they will decide after the polls, he said.

Excerpts of the interview:

Q: Your leader Minister Rauff Hakeem is a responsible member of the Cabinet, but your propaganda campaigns in the run up to the Eastern PC polls are contentious and, in many instances, opposed to the policies of the UPFA Government. Can you please explain?

A: We are a separate political party which joined the UPFA to support the 18th Amendment which is still in force.

The President who wanted to serve more terms as Executive President sought our support and we agreed because he is not a weak President, but a strong and charismatic President and we believed that he will be able to convince the majority community on the national need of devolving powers to the minority communities or making other special arrangements to address their grievances to bring about lasting peace in the country.

We are certain that he is committed to this objective and is working on it. But there have been some setbacks in his endeavour for one reason or the other.

When we joined the UPFA we never signed any MoU committing ourselves to support in any future elections. In fact we wanted to sign an agreement of a different nature but that did not materialise.

We also wanted to sign an electoral agreement to contest the Eastern PC. That again did not materialise. This was due to the attitude of some of the UPFA constituents.

We are a separate entity, a separate political party representing the Muslim community. We have our own aspirations for the well-being of our community and an agenda to address their grievances. So we are canvassing on these lines. We are waiting for the people's reply. Already we have gained substantial ground.

Our position is being well received and well responded by our people. We strongly believe that the people will give their mandate in favour of us. Every political party has its own target. We also have our own target.

Q: Your party chairman Basheer Segu Dawood recently resigned from his position as Deputy Minister while your leader is continuing as a Cabinet minister. What is your party position with regard to your alliance with the UPFA?

A: The resignation of party chairman, Basheer Segu Dawood, from his position as Deputy Minister was his own decision. He has issued a statement explaining the circumstances that compelled him to resign. It may be that he had problems in canvassing for the party in the run-up to the polls while holding a Deputy Minister's post. It was not a collective decision of the party.

We are with the Government and we look forward to the devolution of power to the Muslim community in terms of the 18th Amendment which is still in force, taking into consideration the fact that the Muslims are a distinct ethnic community.

We want a separate unit of devolution for them, a separate council or any other special arrangements to safeguard their independent identity and to address their problems.

They need equal treatment and dignity same as the other communities. We do not think there is anything wrong one Muslim being a Chief Minister among nine.

Q: If your party is truly interested in safeguarding the welfare and rights of the Muslim community, why did you not join hands with the other major Muslim political parties in the run-up to the Eastern PC polls responding to proposals of Muslim religious leaders and intellectuals?

A: We would welcome if the other major Muslim parties come forward to join hands with us. None of them responded favourably to such proposals. It was up to them to take a decision on that. The problem is that every political party has its own agenda. They cannot stand on their own. They cannot contest polls without taking advantage of the resources of Cabinet portfolios. But we can. We had already contested the parliamentary, PC and local government polls on our own tree symbol and have proved our strength.

Q: Speculation is rife that you will form an alliance with the TNA if there is a possibility of both of your parties together forming the PC administration?

A: This is all sheer nonsense. These are matters that have to be decided after the polls. Not only we, but even the Government can form an alliance with the TNA or even with the opposition UNP.

What is wrong with that? They are democratic political parties of this country and they are contesting the polls under democratic traditions. They are citizens of this country. It is also not unlikely that the Government will win and form the administration without any alliance.

The Government, or anybody for that matter, should not look at us as enemies simply because we are contesting the polls on our own, under democratic principles. We are only exercising our democratic rights. The CWC is contesting the Sabaragamuwa PC polls on its own cockerel symbol.

The Socialist Alliance of Ministers Tissa Vitharana Nanayakkara and DEW Gunasekera has fielded its own candidates. But our party contesting the polls seems to be the most talked about topic of the day. I think this is unfair.

Q: Provincial Councils have been set up under the 13th Amendment which in turn, was a sequel to the Indo-Lanka Peace Agreement of 1987. You had accused that the Muslims were not consulted and their problems were not addressed under that agreement. Do you think that contesting the PC polls is rational?

A: It is true that the 13th Amendment did not address the problems of the Muslim community. But contesting elections is a different matter altogether.

The SLFP too boycotted the PC polls at the inception but later they contested it. We contested all elections to establish our strength among our community and so we will do in the future as well.

Q: Apparently you have an understanding with the TNA on certain crucial issues relating to the North-East re-merger. Will your party persuade them to take part in the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) for addressing the Tamils' grievances?

A: We participated in the All Party Conference (APC), the All Party Representative Committee (APRC) and all other forums. We participated in the APC and we responded to the LLRC and we submitted some proposals to the Government.

We will continue to take part in any negotiation process and in any forum. But the TNA being a separate political party may be having their own reasons for not participating in the APC.

Q: Is your party targeting the Chief Minister's position in the Eastern PC?

A: We are not talking about a ceremonial Chief Minister who will function as a rubber-stamp of others. We are talking about a Chief Minister with some dignity and who will act on his own and deliver the goods.