speak on 13 plus
UPFA allies JHU and NFF oppose extra powers while TNA also goes here and there
Rambukwella was quoted in different media articulating the government's position those Police powers to Provincial Councils under the 13th Amendment were not required. He went further to say that Constitutional Amendments were being proposed to remove or moderate references to police powers. Suddenly, weeks ahead of the Krishna visit, he articulated just the opposite of what he said -- the government was willing to discuss limited police and land powers with the Tamil National Alliance (TNA).
This on-again-and-off-again situation, without doubt, has undermined the government's credibility both domestically and internationally. There is little doubt that the Indian factor is the cause for the see-saw in policy change. However, making sweeping statements to appease visiting Indian dignitaries and thereafter falling back to another position can become a very costly exercise. More so, when there is very little or no inputs from the Ministry of External Affairs - once a powerful engine that guided and safeguarded Sri Lanka's foreign policy and national interest. This has left Sri Lanka's envoys abroad in a muddle over what to say on behalf of the government. Some, therefore, tend to echo their own private sentiments. Viewpoints kept changing in Colombo and they are not briefed. A Ministerial source said, "Rajapaksa could give several other subjects to Provincial Councils as set out in the Concurrent List of the 13th Amendment. That includes ones like Co-operative Societies etc."
The scenario has been made worse by the breakdown of talks between the government and the TNA as exclusively revealed in this political commentary last week. The situation seems paradoxical. President Rajapaksa has hinted that a political package to address Tamil grievances, including police powers, would have to be formulated by the proposed Parliamentary Select Committee. Hence the government wants the TNA to nominate its representatives to the PSC. On the other hand, the TNA has taken up the position that the talks with the government should go parallel with the PSC.
The Government delegation leader, Nimal Siripala de Silva, told the Sunday Times, "It is a Cabinet decision that the TNA should nominate its representatives to the proposed PSC to continue the negotiations with the TNA. As a negotiator personally I will not put this as a condition, but this is a collective cabinet decision. Therefore, the TNA should honour that. I have explained the government position to TNA leader Mr. Sampanthan. We do not want to pull out from the talks, but we hope they will make their nominations to the PSC."
However, at Tuesday's news conference, Peiris had a different version to relate. He was asked, "Is it true that the government has called off talks with the TNA? In that case where will a solution to the problem emerge from?
His reply: "It is not correct to say that the government of Sri Lanka has called off talks. Not at all. On the contrary we want to make the talks a success. And we believe that there is an absolute necessary condition for success. We cannot expect to achieve success in a matter that is complex like this if the talks exclude vast areas of political opinion in this country. They must find expression.
"It is because of the government's commitment to that spirit of inclusivity and its desire for a forum in which that kind of all inclusivity discussions could take place that the government has requested that the TNA to participate in the deliberations of a Parliamentary Select Committee which has not been constituted as yet. It cannot be constituted because the TNA is not sending in their names, so the government far from calling off the talks has said that it would like to make the talks constructive and purposeful by (the TNA) sending in the names of its representatives without delay so that the PSC can be constituted and the talks can move forward towards a practical solution."
The fact that the Cabinet had decided that there would be no talks until TNA forwarded a list was lost on Peiris. Maybe he was touring West Africa at the time and did not have the time to read the Cabinet minutes. If indeed he was present at the Cabinet meeting when the collective decision was taken then it makes his position all the more peculiar. Rajapaksa told Krishna that Police powers would be a matter that had to be determined by the PSC, but there was no mention of this by Peiris.
Interesting enough, talks between the government and the TNA began in January last year. It was after a meeting President Rajapaksa held with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh when he travelled to New Delhi to attend the Commonwealth Games in October 2010. Immediately after his return to Colombo, Rajapaksa held a meeting with TNA leader Sampanthan to initiate talks with the government.
TNA leader Rajavarothayam Sampanthan told the Sunday Times, "We are now being accused of not sending the names for the PSC. This is contrary to the decisions we made during talks with the government delegation.
"We don't want to name members to the PSC. If we do, they (the government) will stop the talks. If we don't, they will say we are boycotting. We are not boycotting."
Other TNA sources explained their fear that they would then be forced to heed whatever decisions made by the PSC that may include representatives of the Jathika Hela Urumaya and the National Freedom Front.
Udaya Gammanpila, Deputy Secretary of the JHU told the Sunday Times, "The announcement that the President had committed himself to the 13th Amendment to the Constitution 'plus' solution came from the visiting Indian Minister S.M. Krishna and not the President himself. This is a clear indication that this is something which the Indians want. The Indians should look at the consequences of the 13th Amendment. They sent their Army to Sri Lanka to supervise a truce with separatist guerrillas and implement Provincial Councils. The North never got its Provincial Council; it only saddled the rest of the country with white elephants in seven provinces. India eventually lost over 1000 soldiers and failed to achieve anything. Therefore solutions cannot be enforced on a country by force, persuasive or military.
"It has been the President's opinion that land and police powers cannot be given, but the Indians want these powers included. Whether it is police powers or land powers, it should be discussed at the PSC. This too they should be able to prove the necessity of such powers to be considered. India should find a way to pursuade the TNA to attend the PSC deliberations."
NFF leader Wimal Weerawansa told the Sunday Times, "We are still not clear on the character of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution and 'plus.' Any settlement would have to be within the unitary character of Sri Lanka. The government does not have a mandate from the people for a federal state in any form".
Some in the TNA also fear even the United National Party (UNP) may go along mostly with views of the government side for fear of losing its Sinhala vote base.
Sampanthan said the TNA'S precursor, the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF), was then opposed to the provi- sions of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. "We did not accept Provincial Councils. We wrote to late Rajiv Gandhi, then Indian Prime Minister," added Sampanthan. Edited excerpts of an interview with him appear in a box story on this page. This Amendment was the result of the good offices extended by India when J.R. Jayewardene was the President.
On the one hand, it is time for the government to be clearer on its intentions regarding the implementation of the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. A clear elucidation of its position would help those in Sri Lanka and outside to discern which the official policy is. That will lay to rest contradictory pronouncements. One stance externally and another internally will only pose serious problems of credibility for the government.
On the other hand, the critical question is how the imbroglio with the TNA over the conduct of talks and the proposed PSC will be resolved. If talks do not resume, the government would be left with little or no choice except to go ahead with a PSC. In such an event, whether the UNP or the Democratic National Alliance would nominate representatives would be a question. Otherwise, talking without TNA whose MPS are elected representatives in the North and East may turn out to be a pyrrhic exercise.