Intellectual discourse with Muslims, a sine qua non - Minister Wimal Weerawansa

By Uditha Kumarasinghe

Construction, Engineering Services, Housing and Common Amenities Minister Wimal Weerawansa said certain foreign forces were behind the agenda to create religious clashes in Sri Lanka.

Their intention is to turn minority votes and a certain amount of Sinhala votes into anti-Government votes.

The Minister in an interview with the Sunday Observer said that these clashes are instigated aiming at a regime change and a catastrophe which goes beyond that.

We should dTefeat extremist groups within the Muslims through intellectual discourse without paving the way for bloodshed as expected by the West and certain enemies in our own country.

If our society is dragged towards bloodshed, the advantage will be seized by these reactionary forces.

Western countries attempt to destabilize countries such as ours using buzz words such as democracy, human rights, good governance and the rule of law. But the real meaning of these words are not practised in Western countries. Has the democracy or good governance been restored in Libya, Iraq and Egypt after Western powers forcibly intervened and chased away Gaddafi , Saddam Hussein and Mubarak? After that these countries have been split.

Because the West wanted to draw up a new map for the Middle East and create new countries. That Western plan is being implemented now. I don’t think the patriotic people in Sri Lanka will allow Western forces to adopt the same strategy in Sri Lanka.

Q: Communal clashes break out occasionally in multi-ethnic societies. Do you agree that unbalanced reporting on the part of certain media organizations is largely to blame for recent clashes in Aluthgama and Beruwala areas?

A: Religious clashes occur even in the US, UK and various other countries in Europe. Various protests are made against Muslims by Catholic and Christian people in European and other Western countries. A series of similar incidents were reported in the US in the recent past. Some Muslim mosques and Muslim business establishments were set on fire in the US.

In addition, those who wear dresses with Muslim identity have been attacked on streets. Similar situation also prevails in the UK as well. In a certain incident in Britain, a policeman had even shot the people based on their ethnicity. That policeman shot and killed a foreign national because of his identity. He thought that person was a terrorist. Similar clashes prevail since the commencement of human history. But what happens is a minor incident in Sri Lanka is blown out of proportion to the world.

Any major incidents in the US, UK or Europe don’t get exposed even as a minor incident to the world. The massive communication power of the West is used to cover up their nakedness and exaggerate even minor incidents in other countries as a major incident. If we take our media, the Sinhala media is biased and the Tamil media takes the opposite view. It is obvious that media contributes to some extent to aggravate the situation. As a result, this kind of minor incidents in Sri Lanka are exaggerated to the world as major incidents.

Q: At the end of such communal clashes, the police have found subversive elements with strong foreign links at work. Would you like to explain?

A: Traditionally Muslims have been living in Sri Lanka for a long time. We have to admit the fact that the Sri Lankan culture is mainly based on Buddhist culture. That is why some of our cultural symbols are used even in churches and other religious places as well. Historical evidence has proved that other communities have also lived in our country over the past 500 years so that we recognise them as citizens of our country. The future of our country depends on the unity created among the Sinhalese and other communities. A few extremist organisations are operating within Muslim society over the past ten years. Thauheed Jamaat is an example.

Some Muslim fundamentalist organisations funded by Saudis are operating in Sri Lanka. The conduct of these extremist groups has also led certain sections of the Buddhist society to react in a violent manner.

Today these two extremist groups are clashing with each other. The Government should intervene to ban the activities of these newly formed extremist religious organisations. The existence of four religions Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism and Islam is more than enough for a small country like ours.

Q: Even at this moment certain foreign agents are operative in the country to trigger a change of regime so that their reactionary plans could be implemented. How is it that Sri Lanka has become a victim to such disruptive forces?

A: They are also behind the agenda of creating religious clashes in Sri Lanka. They want to turn minority votes and certain amount of Sinhala votes into anti-Government votes. When clashes between the Sinhalese and Muslims are instigated, Muslims will move towards the TNA , then they can make use of that situation to grab power in the Eastern Provincial Council. When Muslims are trapped in the hands of the TNA, that unity created can be used to merge the Northern and the Eastern provinces in future. This would also pave the way to get signatures from the TNA and SLMC Leaders and submit it to the UNHRC asking for self autonomy. It is not the Sinhalese who oppose to settle Muslims in the North, it is the Tamils who oppose to that move. But they don’t overtly express it because they want to win over the Muslims. When Muslims are settled, even when that opposition comes from the Tamils, it is exposed as a Sinhala Buddhist voice.

This clash is instigated aiming at a regime change and a catastrophe which goes beyond that. We should defeat the extremist groups within the Muslim society with an intellectual approach without paving the way for bloodshed as expected by the West and certain enemies in our own country. If our people are dragged towards bloodshed, its entire advantage will be taken by these reactionary forces.

Q: The Western world invokes the bogey of human rights, communal harmony and power devolution to implement their hidden agendas to destabilize third world countries. Could you explain?

A:US Aid is distributing money among election monitoring organisations. As this information has been revealed , now various people are formulating project reports. Why is this money given to these organisations? Is there a big issue or problem in Sri Lanka’s election system? Can it be sorted out when this money is given? This money is given to these organisations to carry out their campaign to topple the Government. The US embassy is to recruit another 5000 youth to work in their social media websites and they will be nominated by UNP Parliamentarians.

The embassy will pay them a monthly stipend. Their intention is to make use of these youth in their social media websites to topple the incumbent Government and justify the Western policy of intervention.

Western countries attempt to destabilise countries like us using buzz words such as 'democracy', 'human rights', 'good governance' and 'the rule of law'.

But the true meaning of these words are not practised in Western countries. Has democracy or good governance been restored in Libya, Iraq and Egypt after the Western powers forcibly intervened and chased away Gaddafi , Saddam Hussein and Mubarak? After that these countries have split.

Because the West wants to draw up a new map for the Middle East and create new countries. That Western plan is being implemented now. I don’t think the patriotic people in Sri Lanka will allow Western forces to adopt that same strategy in Sri Lanka.

Q: Could Sri Lanka pin any hope for change of attitude by the new UN High Commissioner for Human Rights towards Sri Lanka in the context of human rights?

A: Whoever he is, that chair is given to a person who would dance according to the whims and fancies of the US. This post can be compared to that of the Convener of Inter University Students Federation.

Because the convener is not elected democratically so that any person nominated by the JVP has to be accepted. Likewise, the person selected by the US will sit in that chair. But the US does not want to say that they selected the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.

The JVP also says the same thing. Therefore the person appointed to the post of UN High Commissioner for Human Rights will have to implement the US imperialist agenda in a shrewd manner. This prince of Jordan was educated and brought up in the US.

He has even written a report against the Jordan Army. Those who don’t think of their roots or their motherland are ideal for such a post. When Sinhala- Muslim clashes are instigated here, he can give the impression to the world that Muslims are harassed in Sri Lanka.

We have to realise when attempts are made to sort out some of our problems in a confrontational manner and the repercussions. I think the incoming UN High Commissioner for Human Rights will even exceed the limits of Navi Pillay.

Q: Various segments of society including some politicians are of the view that hate speech should be banned as it is detrimental to racial harmony. What is your view regarding this?

A: After a lapse of 30 years, we eradicated terrorism from our soil. But there are problems to be sorted out. We should sort them out without clashing with each other. It is not advisable to ignite flames and later douse them.

Thousands of youth sacrificed their lives to douse the flames of terrorism. Once again this country should not turn into sacrificing thousands of precious lives. There are some extremist developments in our country. But we should sort out them without turning them into disasters. If we can’t do that even after we won this war against terrorists, and not be recognised as a country which can stand on our own feet and as an independent nation.

Unfortunately, a group of 'Sinhala Buddhist patriots' and heroes who were not there during the period of the war against terrorists has now been created now. They have an agenda given by external forces. According to that agenda, they ignite racial flames among the people. But they can’t do that alone.

The Thauheed Jamaat is also an extreme organisation. Both these factions are handled by external forces. The Thauheed Jamaat gets funds from Saudis and some Sinhala Buddhist extremists get funds from Norway. The Buddhists should adopt an intellectual approach in resolving their problems.

The Government has also a responsibility to find out the root-cause to those problems and rectify them. If both of these objectives are not fulfilled, various clashes will occur in this country as expected by the external forces.

Q: What have you got to say about the Canadian Government’s latest poppycock that women and children in the North were abused during the war against terrorists?

A: Canada looks like the right hand of the United States. Since the inception, Canada fell in line with the Tamil separatist agenda. Therefore we cannot expect a different stance from Canada. If these Western countries claim that they are anti-terrorists, the present LTTE Leader Rudhrakumarn is in the US and late LTTE theoretician Anton Balasingham’s wife Adele Balasingham is in the UK. Gnanakoon who sent money to a UNP MP is in the US. These Western countries oppose terrorism which affects only them.

But they extend support to terrorism which destabilises countries like ours. If we realise the double standards adopted by these Western forces, we can only overcome this challenge. Nobody has said that our Security Forces committed such activities at the final stage of the war against terrorists. After a lapse of four or five years of defeating terrorism, there is no use of levelling baseless allegations. If that kind of incidents occurred as claimed by Canada, those who were in camps would have told that when they came out from the camps.

It was our Security Forces who rescued the lives of thousands of innocent Tamil people including Prabhakaran’s parents and relations. The West has only the experience of what their Armed Forces did in Afghanistan, Iraq and some other countries. Their Armed Forces massacred thousands of innocent people and got vicarious pleasure out of it.

Therefore, they are not ready to believe the mentality and the behaviour of our Security Forces are different than their soldiers.

Q: The Government has bared a conspiracy to kill state intelligence officers similar to what happened at Millennium City. Could you explain what has really happened? Won’t the traitors be severely dealt with?

A: MP Mangala Samaraweera’s argument was that some intelligence officers help the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) organisation. I don’t know whether this is true or not. If we think what he says is true, how can that happen. It is not only in the BBS, intelligence officers may be within the National Freedom Front, UNP, SLFP and the JVP. They may conduct themselves as a member of those particular political party. But that does not mean they are there for the well-being of that party. They may within that party just to gather information.

That is the nature of intelligence services whether we like or not. If one or two intelligence officers are connected to the BBS, definitely they may be there not to promote the BBS but to find out information about it. Such a person may be in the kitchen of Mangala Samaraweera’s house as well. If somebody questions why an intelligence officer has been deployed at Samaraweera’s kitchen to cook, it is an absurd question.

Because that is not the ultimate objective of that person. Mangala Samaraweera is not an infant who cannot understand this. He is doing this betrayal deliberately. Because he wants to tell the world that the BBS is running with the help of Government intelligence officers. Mangala is fabricating this story to bring that lie to the world. I would say that this is a statement entirely based on a traitorous intention.

Q: Intelligence sources have revealed that certain Western diplomatic missions have a secret campaign to collect information to place before the UN investigation panel to exert pressure against Sri Lanka and tarnish the country's image. What have you got to say about this?

A: A few of the Western embassies have turned into political offices.

They are ready to do whatever possible for the victory of the Opposition candidate at the next Presidential Election. The Government should take certain measures at this juncture.

The Government has already taken steps to control the irresponsible conduct of NGOs. Likewise if some Western embassies have exceeded the limit of their diplomatic immunity and intervene into our internal matters, steps should taken to arrest that situation diplomatically. By doing so, we can prevent such developments. If we don't take this seriously, those who work at these embassies may attempt to elect their own puppet as the Head of the State of this country. If this mistake is made once again, the country would go back on the reverse. The person identified by the majority of the people should be elected as the country's eader, not anybody who is required by external forces.

Q: What is your party's stand on the recent visit of South African Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa?

A: We have submitted 12 proposals to the President. One of that proposal is South African or any other foreign representatives should not be used as facilitators when the discussions are commenced between the Government and the TNA on power devolution or any other matter.

We put forward that proposal because we came to know that South Africa is going to play the role of facilitator when the Government-TNA talks commenced. The visit of the South African Deputy President has proved that there is some sort of accuracy on the information received by us.

However, the statements made by Mass Media and Information Minister Keheliya Rambukwella and Deputy External Affairs Minister Neomal Perera have endorsed the fact that the Government has no intention whatsoever to seek his contribution as a facilitator for any future discussions on the national question.

Because if we give them any role to be played on Government-TNA talks, this issue will be internationalized once again.

Q: What is the Government's response to your twelve point program? Some sections of the people perceive this as a political stunt to hoodwink the masses?

A: We don't want to put forward 12 proposals to cater to the needs of the Government. If we didn't do this, some people will say that we are not doing that in the interest of the Government. When we criticise the Government, they say we do that to cater to the interest of the Government. When we praise the Government for its good work, the allegation is “ Aanduwata kade yanawa” .

Those who level baseless allegations against us will continue to do so, but we will play our legitimate role for the country. We put forward these twelve proposals to rectify the shortcomings that we have witnessed in the Government. The Government has agreed to these 12 proposals on policy basis.

At present its action plan is being formulated. We would tell the country shortly on the initiatives to be taken based on this action plan. It is the country which would finally benefit from this.

We don't want to help the agenda of the forces who are against the country. We only want to rectify errors. Those who attempt to topple the Government do not realise these initiatives taken by us. Because they are blind due to their greed to grab power.

But those who have a proper vision can see it. Our sole intention is to rectify the errors of the Government and direct it in a people- friendly direction.

Q: What really made you to call on Ven.Maduluwawe Sobitha thera recently? Was it centred on politics and if so what is the outcome?

A: Ven. Sobitha thera from the National Movement for Social Justice requested a discussion with us. I held a discussion with Ven. Sobitha thera on Tuesday. He told us of three immediate reforms to be made within the country.

They are the abolition of the Executive Presidency, Electoral reforms and the Establishment of Independent Commissions. We also explained our position on these particular issues.

Though we have different views, we discussed these issues. But during the discussions, Ven. Sobitha thera didn't speak about any Common Candidate or extending his support to such a candidate.

We gave our view on those three reforms and also explained what urgent reforms that are needed for the country.