Human Rights issue:

Another ploy of Western powers to subjugate Sri Lanka

Another insidious campaign to drag Sri Lanka into the quicksand has now been unleashed by the so-called ‘Western power group’ at the 22nd United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) sessions in Geneva, says Ven. Mahaelagamuwe Lankananda Nayaka Thera, better known as “Kuswala Veda Hamuduruwo”, a famous traditional Ayurveda Bhikku. At these deliberations, which opened on February 25, and continues until March 22, the self-proclaimed “champions of human rights” have begun to play around with Sri Lanka as if our country is their toy!, he said.

Since the three-decade brutal war on terror ended, these ‘Western powers’ have not allowed our motherland even to breathe the fresh air of peace and freedom, the prelate said in an interview.

“From the time that brutal terrorism was decimated, these countries have been meddling with our nation’s internal affairs, the prelate said. “The latest scene of this sordid drama is now being enacted in Geneva”, he pointed out.

The following are excerpts of the interview with Ven. Mahaelagamuwe Lankananda Nayaka Thera:

Question: The UNHRC is preparing to push through a resolution against Sri Lanka. How do you view this new development?

Answer: It is not a new situation that has emerged. These players who describe themselves as “Western powers” have been targeting Sri Lanka since the day peace dawned on our land after 30 years of terrorism.

Their ulterior motive is to subjugate our resplendent island so that they can rule over us as a nation under their jackboot. They are well aware of the strategic importance of the country. The small majority of ‘traitors’ in Sri Lanka may not realise the strategic value of the nation, but this ‘power group’ knows only too well the importance of bringing us under their thumb so that they can rule this country according to their dictates.

They want to pitch their tents here to achieve their sinister objective. Offering diverse privileges, these elements are trying to use various individuals and groups to create unrest and conflict in Sri Lanka. The human rights issue is just another ploy in their game-plan to subjugate our country so that they can rule the roost. They are seemingly obsessed with the human rights of the country’s Tamil community. It’s because the avenue through which they can creep into the country is by triggering a racial conflagration.

They are well aware of the ‘potential’ the strategy offers. So they are using the Tamil community as a ‘front’ and shouting themselves hoarse about so-called “human rights abuses”. The foreign powers initiated their game-plan in August 1983. Using the ‘Black July’ racial violence in 1983, the international community was able to push through a resolution against Sri Lanka in August 1983. Subsequently, another resolution was brought in March 1984.

In August that year, yet another resolution was moved and adopted. 1987 also saw a resolution against Sri Lanka being taken up before the Commission and carried through. At that time, the Human Rights Council was a part of the Economic and Social Committee of the United Nations and functioned as the Human Rights Commission.

The United Nations Human Rights Council was inaugurated in 2006. There are 47 member countries including Sri Lanka serving on the Council. In this backdrop, the current situation is not a new move against Sri Lanka. It is a longstanding issue. Western countries led by USA wants to transform peaceful Sri Lanka into another Iraq, Afghanistan or Syria. It will never become a reality.

Q: A genuine probe into human rights issues is understandable, but as you said they are trying to use it as a front to achieve their sinister objectives. What is your comment?

A: There are many endless wars in the world today and the US and other Western nations figure in all of them. But, nobody utters a word about human rights. Do these countries persecute wars by safeguarding human rights? The international bodies including the UNHRC threaten “tough action” only against small countries.

They abhor countries which refuse to sell their souls to powerful nations. They are cornered and attacked. Those in top positions in these organisations are mostly Americans and other westerners.

So, they merely obey the dictaters to crush small nations. Two countries which have hit the headlines in recent times are Iraq and Afghanistan. Syria is also being talked of now. In the wars of these three countries, the US plays a pivotal role.

India has always given its blessings to the Tamil community in Sri Lanka on the North-East issue. There is no doubt that India, to some extent, lent its support when an attempt was made to divide the country with the claim for a separate Tamil homeland. India would have felt that if it didn’t support the Sri Lankan Tamil issue, more room would have been left for the Tamils in South India to demand a separate homeland for themselves.

So the Indian government threw its weight behind the people of Tamil Nadu who supported a separate Tamil homeland in Sri Lanka. When the LTTE was cornered in a decisive battle during the regime of President J.R. Jayewardene, the then Indian Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi intervened to get the LTTE off the hook. Indian aircraft at the time air-dropped food supplies on the North.

It was to pacify Tamil Nadu. India also allowed the LTTE to run camps on its soil and facilitated arms training to them. Ultimately, Rajiv Gandhi fell prey to the LTTE and had to pay with his life for nurturing the terrorists.

Despite the bitter lessons learnt, India still supports any agenda against Sri Lanka’s interests. Another reason for India’s anti-Sri Lanka stand could be that it could not gain a foothold to play a dominant role in our development drive and thereby serve its own interests by acquiring some of our key assets and resources. India is also especially not too happy with our pro-China approach.

The US too is unhappy about the Sri Lanka-China relations. This scenario could have been the primary reason for the UNHCR resolution against our nation.

Q: Sri Lanka is now on a new global path. Do you think it is the root cause for international pressure?

A: Definitely, it is the reality of the situation. The primary reason for these actions against us was because Sri Lanka changed its course and embarked on a new journey that is apt, suitable and compatible with our interests, coupled with the postwar development. President Mahinda Rajapaksa changed the course of the nation and moved away from the demands and designs of the so-called Western foreign powers.

There is now positive development and progress in every sphere.

A new vista in foreign relations opened under the guidance of the President. Earlier, it was confined largely to the US and Europe.

China and Russia are now in the forefront in our foreign relations and countries such as Iran and Cuba have also gained significance in our reaching out to the world. Against this backdrop, more aid and assistance have begun to flow to Sri Lanka from these friendly nations.

With our country now on the path to economic prosperity, USA and Europe are among the countries taking the lead to undermine our progress by raising human rights issues. President Rajapaksa has responded silently and appropriately to the resolution against Sri Lanka.

Despite the perception that LTTE leaders were killed when they opted to surrender, frontline senior LTTE leaders who surrendered to the army were absorbed into the political mainstream by the President and given full security to function as political leaders within a democratic framework. Kumaran Pathmanathan, the leader of LTTE procurements, is today a government representative actively involved in spearheading development work in the North.

Former LTTE Eastern leader, Karuna Amman is today a government Minister and Pilliyan was the Chief Minister of the Eastern Province. Scores of LTTE cadres have been rehabilitated and some of them, including women, have been absorbed into the Sri Lanka Army.

One time enemies are now serving in the army. Thousands of innocent Tamils rescued by the military during the humanitarian operation have been resettled in their original homesteads. The people of the North and East enjoy more facilities than the people of the South. The US and others in the group which talk of human rights at the Geneva sessions should visit Sri Lanka and witness the rapid transformation, without just snooping around for half-baked stories in a futile exercise. They should come here and see the positive change.