A shameless attempt

The masses discovered the identity of the real traitor when a pro-UNP weekly carried banner headline on a controversial interview with New Democratic Front (NDF) Presidential election candidate Sarath Fonseka last Sunday.

Many patriots, politicians, religious and social leaders described it as the greatest betrayal after Fonseka made a desperate attempt to discredit the efforts of the Security Forces which destroyed the LTTE terrorist outfit and its leaders.

In a shameless attempt to disgrace the country, its democratically elected Government and the valiant Security Forces, Fonseka told the newspaper that it was Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa who ordered to kill the Tiger leaders who wished to surrender. Fonseka not only attempted to distort the facts to reproach the Defence Secretary but also made a desperate attempt to wash his hands off ignoring his collective responsibility as the then Army Commander.

That too is understandable as Fonseka attempted to woo the votes of the Tamil community and also to garner the support of the international community. But the fact is that Fonseka apparently forgot the 'crime' he was committing by making such an irresponsible, inaccurate and fabricated statement. His act was a betrayal of the nation, its people and the fellow soldiers who fought with him in the battlefront.

We must also not forget how Fonseka, as a US Green Card holder, apparently agreed to divulge war secrets of Sri Lanka's humanitarian operation to the Department of Homeland Security, during his recent visit to the United States. Fonseka originally agreed to face such questioning but when things looked more serious, he informed the Sri Lankan authorities 48 hours after granting an appointment to the US Homeland Security.

Perhaps, Fonseka would have had a special interest in securing his American citizenship as his two daughters and the son-in-law have been living in Oklahoma. But it was the Government which took prompt action and facilitated his safe return to Sri Lanka without facing any questioning by the US authorities.

He was making an unsuccessful attempt to tarnish the good name of the Security Forces, and thereby discredit the Government and President Mahinda Rajapaksa. That too is understandable as Fonseka is now making use of anything and everything in his hunger for power. Thanks to the opportunist Opposition politicians including Mangala Samaraweera, Somawansa Amarasinghe, Rauf Hakeem and Mano Ganeshan, Fonseka is now marching from grace to disgrace!

The Defence Secretary had never given such instructions to the Security Forces. But even if he had done so, we see nothing wrong in killing the leaders of a terror outfit which had killed thousands of innocent civilians over the past three decades. If the Defence Secretary had not instructed the Security Forces to take stern action against the top LTTE terrorists, Fonseka would have told that the Government let the terrorist leaders go scot-free after the Forces had cornered them.

It is interesting to find what the JVP's stance on this is. Being strong supporters of Fonseka, either Amarasinghe or Anura Kumara Dissanayake must openly tell whether the Defence Secretary was right or not, even if he had ordered the Security Forces to kill LTTE terrorists.

All those are stories concocted by Fonseka to woo minority votes. He claims to be the hero who marshalled the troops and ordered to kill LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran. Then he comes out with a different story, stating it was the Defence Secretary who ordered LTTE leaders Nadesan, Pulidevan and Ramesh shot. But the stubborn fact is that Fonseka was in China during the final week of the battle against terrorism in Vellamullivaikkal.

Until last week, the masses respected Fonseka as a war hero even though many detested his alliance with a set of bankrupt politicians who not only ridiculed the Forces during the war but also made every attempt to reverse war gains. But with irresponsible statements to discredit the Security Forces, Fonseka went from hero to zero. Having realised the hollowness of his statement, Fonseka held a hurriedly arranged press conference on Monday to deny it. If the newspaper had misquoted him, the denial should have come during his media conference on Sunday itself.

Despite such a serious lapse, Fonseka has been soft on the newspaper and said that he does not intend to take legal action. The bitter truth seems to be is that Fonseka had apparently made such a statement and is bluffing now.

Following the costly utterance, Samaraweera and Dissanayake are shielding Fonseka at every news conference. It was clearly evident when Samaraweera often interrupts Fonseka and volunteers to answer questions from the media on behalf of the NDF candidate.

Unfortunately, Fonseka has become part and parcel of an international conspiracy to haul the President, the Defence Secretary and other war heroes before an international war crimes tribunal. It appears that Fonseka is just a contractor in an international scheme to defame the image of our war heroes and destabilise the Government.

Fonseka's act of betrayal is historic and betters all the other previous ones, including the Millennium City betrayal in Sri Lanka's political history. Since international forces do not have any proof to charge Government leaders or war heroes of genocide, they had attempted to make such an allegation using a military leader who had been at the battlefront.

Fonseka should not commit the crime of defaming the image of the war heroes who freed the country from the clutches of terrorism. The former Army commander-turned-politician's statement is one of the worst betrayals made with political objectives for personal gain. He has contradicted his own previous statements.

If Fonseka is to regain the confidence of the masses, he must prove that he is sincere, responsible and a mature leader. Unfortunately, Fonseka, who dreams of capturing power at any cost, has made so many controversial and treacherous statements during the past couple of weeks that his defeat is a foregone conclusion.