PC polls victory will convey strong message to international community - Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva

By Uditha Kumarasinghe

Leader of the House and Irrigation and Water Resources Management Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva said he is confident that the Government delegation which represented the UNHRC sessions in Geneva is a strong team which can present our case before the UNHRC successfully. But the problem is with the "judges who are judging us". They may give a political judgement rather than a rational judgement based on the issues and facts. The Minister in an interview with the Sunday Observer said more than the Opposition, it is the Government that wants to debunk the myth of these unfounded allegations. Therefore, the Government would try its level best to make the UNHRC member countries aware of the true situation in Sri Lanka and the overall significant progress achieved after the end of terrorism.

The Minister said that the resounding victory the Government will certainly secure at the Western and the Southern Provincial Council Elections will deliver a strong message to the international community that foreign forces manipulating the political dimensions of Sri Lanka will not be permitted. All Sri Lankans irrespective of differences will stand by the Government rather than being misled through multiple means. In Ukraine, Venezuela and Egypt, we see how the external forces meddle with internal political situations and have brought devastation to such countries..

Q: UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay's omission of Sri Lanka's reply to her report on " Advice of Technical Assistance for Sri Lanka on promoting reconciliation and accountability amounts to "prosecuting Sri Lanka" before the UNHRC. Is this not something pre-planned at the instance of peace crusaders. How do you view this situation?

A: I think Navi Pillay is an experienced judge and she has worked within the UN system for a long period. This omission cannot be pardoned or condoned. We are suspicious about this issue. There is a lot of room for suspicion.

Q: UN Secretary General Ban ki moon accepting Navi Pillay's report is not surprising, since the anti-Sri Lanka crusade began with the UN Secretary General's commissioning of the Darusman Committee based on hearsay. Would you agree?

A: Ban ki moon's statement in the UNHRC is a ceremonial statement which is made at all times. When the UNHRC sessions commence, the UN Secretary General says good things about the UN system. He also refers to various activities things done by UN officials. There is nothing new. I don't think Ban ki moon has studied Navi Pillay's report and found that the allegations in the report are true. It is only a statement made by him at the UNHRC.

Q: It was reported in several newspapers that five Ministers have expressed their concern to President Mahinda Rajapaksa over the UNHRC sessions in Geneva. Could you throw some light on this as it is important to the country at this juncture?

A: I think that the new report was not correct. It has been put in a different context. Because this matter was discussed in the Cabinet. As a Cabinet Minister, I have no authority to disclose what was discussed there. But I can say that this news report should not be taken out of context.

Q: Justice Minister Rauf Hakeem's alleged report to Navi Pillay probably on human rights in Sri Lanka has led to a controversy in the backdrop of the Geneva summit. Could you enlighten us on this?

A: Since he is a colleague, I think it is better not to comment on it. Because as the Senior Vice President of the SLFP, I believe that we should not talk about certain things in the open. Even Buddha has requested to be silent where necessary. Therefore to comment on a particular action of a Cabinet Minister by another is unethical.

Q: What action has been taken by the Government to make the UNHRC aware of its commitment to ensure peace, stability, good governance and reconciliation despite heavy odds locally and internationally?

A: It is the responsibility of the Government to make the international community aware about the true situation in Sri Lanka. The Government is now in the process of fulfilling this task. But there is a necessity to expedite our process. The Government has made known to foreign governments, leaders and Foreign Ministers about the significant development drive and reconciliation process implemented in Sri Lanka since the eradication of terrorism up to now. The Government's missions which held bilateral meetings with so many state leaders and other high profile foreign dignitaries convinced that it is not genuine or justifiable the move adopted by some Western countries to move a resolution against Sri Lanka at the UNHRC.

Q: Don't you think the Sri Lankan mission to the Geneva summit would have been stronger if there were Opposition members and human rights experts?

A: Human rights experts are already there. If you take Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe, he is a human rights expert. Those who work at the External Affairs Ministry are well aware with the situation. As for Opposition members they never showed an interest in the prevailing situation and were not in the previous sessions as well. I am confident the Government delegation represented at the UNHRC sessions in Geneva is a strong team which can put forward our case before the UNHRC very well. But the problem is with the 'judges' on the panel. Are they impartial? Because they will give a political judgement rather than a rational judgement based on the issues and the facts.

Q: The Opposition has alleged that the Government had not taken adequate steps to face the US sponsored resolution at the UNHRC. Is there any truth in this?

A: Whatever the Government does, the Opposition will level baseless allegations. Whatever work is fulfilled by the Government to face this issue, the Opposition will only criticise the process adopted by the Government. They don't take existing realities into account. The Government wants to debunk these unfounded allegations. Therefore the Government will try its level best to make the UNHRC member countries aware of the true situation in Sri Lanka and the significant progress achieved by us after the end of terrorism.

Q: If credible investigation means dealing with human rights violators who have targeted civilians during the war, then American drone attacks in Pakistan and Afghanistan and NATO Armies killing of civilians in Afghanistan are cases in point to be dealt with. Why is the UN Security Council or UNHRC silent?

A: This is the double standard adopted by these Western countries. The violations which they have engaged in from time immemorial as well as in the recent past are serious. If you take America as an example, it was built by the people who came from Europe who killed thousands of Red Indians and chased them into the mountains. If you take the British, they killed more than 100,000 young people in Uva and Wellassa. Now they are making a big hue and cry on human rights. This is something which we have to understand. They are applying double standards. The motive behind this resolution is not a genuine motive but it is a political one to destabilise Sri Lanka. At present the US and the UK are engaged in a massive campaign to get votes in favour of their resolution against us. Being a small country, yet defending its sovereignty and safeguarding the dignity of our Armed Forces, Sri Lanka is ready to face any challenge at the UNHRC.

Q: What is the outcome of your mission to South Africa. Is there anything to learn from South Africa's experience in its transition to a rainbow democracy?

A: My visit to South Africa was to inform them about the reconciliation process which has been adopted in Sri Lanka and what we have done so far by seeking their support at the UNHRC. But we had an opportunity to discuss their peace process and reconciliation process and we learnt a lot about their reconciliation process. In the future, we will adopt whatever is possible from their process which would suit our country.

Q: Individual cases of Facebook killings" are no reason for the Government to interfere with the social media. There should be other ways and means of curing these social ills. Your views?

A: The Government has not taken any decision whatsoever to ban Facebook. This is false propaganda and rumours spread by the enemies of the Government. The Government will never take such a decision as claimed by political opponents.

Q: In what way could the victory at Western and Southern Provincial Council elections could help strengthen the Government since it is in full control of its affairs?

A: Because winning the PC elections will give a strong message to the international community that the foreign forces will not be able manipulate the political dimensions of Sri Lanka. The people of Sri Lanka irrespective of differences will stand by the Government and they cannot be misled through multiple means. If we take Ukraine, Venezuela and Egypt, we can see how external forces meddle with internal political situations and have brought devastation to those countries. This is the lesson that we have to learn. Because the people were divided in those countries. They were cheated and misled by NGOs and other organisations and devastated the social fabric of all those countries. Therefore this Provincial Council election results will show that the vast majority of the people are with the Government and they cannot be manipulated by any Western force.

Q: The continuing drought portends an El Nino crisis in the country seriously affecting paddy cultivation and other agricultural produce. Does your Ministry have a contingency plan to meet such a situation?

A: Yes, we have a contingency plan. But of course it is difficult to fight with nature.

Unless the rains come on time, we can ensure the drinking water distribution. As for agricultural water distribution which depends mainly on rain it will be a difficult task. At the moment, new irrigation schemes such as Moragahakanda, Kalu Ganga and Deduru Oya are under construction. Once these projects are completed, the amount of water that can be stored will be much more. This will compensate in some manner even in the case of a drought situation. That is why we are planning new reservoirs and irrigation projects.