Rajiva Wijesinha
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International Relations and Security 17 – Inductive Processes
November 13, 2013 in International Relations and Security | Tags: Benjamin Dix, casualty figures, Convoy 11, Darusman Report, Frances Harrison, Gordon Weiss, government, human rights, ICRC, Kath Noble, LTTE, Marga Institute, Michael Roberts, Ministry of Disaster Management, Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Human Rights, Neil Buhne, Network of Informers, NGO, Petrie Report, Save the Children, TamilNet, The Numbers Game, UN, Wanni | Comments closed
I was finally spurred, by the enormous effort made by a few expatriates to take a careful look at the casualty figures for the conflict, to try myself to put together some figures systematically. Long ago I had made some estimates, based on the details I had got from Tamilnet as well as on figures from the ICRC of the sick who had been taken to hospitals in government controlled areas. But though government has now accepted what I said, at the time I was even criticized for my candour by those who should have known much better.
I should note that I was not entirely on my own, for the army, understanding better than most what was at stake, helped me with visits to the sites where the fighting had taken place, and in particular to the hospitals which were largely undamaged, contrary to the propaganda put out about them. But when the books I produced were ignored, I thought it better to concentrate on reconciliation with regard to the future.
Recently though I have been heartened by two envoys who have done well in dealing with the media telling me that I had been their initial inspiration. And when Michael Roberts and the Marga Institute produced 'The Numbers Game', and the remarkably sharp journalist Kath Noble assessed this positively, I thought I should make yet another effort.
Political Machinations 17 – Falsifying history
November 9, 2013 in Political Machinations | Tags: 13th Amendment, Christian, Dayan Jayatilleka, Foreign Ministry, Geneva, Indian government, Karan Singh, Mahinda Samarasinghe, Minister of Education, Ministry of External Affairs, Palitha Kohona, Secretary of Defence, TamilNet, UK, UN Secretary General | Comments closed
I have been reading with some bemusement the recent exchanges regarding the role and views of my old friend Dayan Jayatilleka, who has been under attack because of his support for the 13th Amendment and devolution. This is an old story, and he is well able to defend himself. But recently there has been a change, because he is attacked not only for what he believes – which he would be quite happy to deal with – but also on the grounds that he caused problems for the government because he defended us forcefully against attacks in the international arena way back in 2009.
The argument is that he put us in a difficult position through his defence, which involved commitment to the 13th Amendment. As I have said before, this is nonsense, because all he was doing was reiterating what our old friend Mahinda Samarasinghe would describe as the consolidated position of the government of Sri Lanka. This had been expressed clearly by the President in a joint communiqué with the Indian government as also in a joint statement issued together with the UN Secretary General. This last indeed contained material relating to accountability which I thought unnecessary, but which it seemed only Dayan and I, thought of as outsiders with no diplomatic training, recognized was potentially dangerous. Foreign Ministry officials saw no problem with that commitment on the part of government, though later Palitha Kohona told me he had advised against that clause, and it was only the President's haste to settle the matter that curtailed further discussion.
That having been said, the clause would have caused no problems had we interpreted it straight away on our terms. It was the culpable neglect of what we had pledged that has contributed to our problems, and that was nothing to do with Dayan, who was given the cold shoulder soon afterwards. He was to spend a year in limbo, until the President recalled him to service in Paris, where he did a fantastic job.
Countering Terrorism, Countering Othering
June 11, 2011 in Interactions with the West | Tags: David Miliband, HRW, Kerry Report, Lawrence Smith, LTTE, Neil Buhne, Osama Bin Laden, TamilNet, Wanni | Comments closed
The recent seminar on Countering Terrorism was a rich and enlightening experience. It helped me to understand further the deep sense of hurt that our military and political officials feel about the swarm of attacks they now have to face with regard to allegations of war crimes. I had known earlier from the statistics I collected from daily TamilNet reports that we had done our best to fight a clean and careful war. Until the end of 2008 we had succeeded, in the Eastern Province, and also during the whole operation to retake the Western part of the Wanni. Even then though, we had to face allegations that had no basis whatsoever in fact, as with the Human Rights Watch claim that we had engaged in indiscriminate attacks on civilians in the East.
The Report that accompanied this assertion, which hardly anyone read in full then, which has now been forgotten though the sensationalistic claim still reverberates, makes it clear that there had been only one incident in which civilians had died. That had been caused by mortar locating radar, with the LTTE having been proved to have been inside a refugee centre, bearing weapons and with bunkers having been prepared.
Human Rights Watch grants this but claims that there is no evidence that the LTTE used heavy weapons. Sadly, in their zeal to target the Sri Lankan government, they omitted to put on record the obvious demand, that the LTTE should not use refugee centres as places from which to fire. The stunning silence of the now hysterical international community seems to have encouraged the LTTE to use this tactic with impunity again and again.
The UN Network of Informers
May 30, 2011 in Post-Colonial Practices | Tags: Alan Keenan, Coffee Club, Darusman, Darusman Report, DFID, EU, ICG, IRIN, LTTE, OCHA, Peter Holdsworth, TamilNet, UN, Zola Dowell | Comments closed
The revelation by the Darusman Panel that the UN had networks of observers in 'LTTE-controlled areas' has not received the attention it requires. The propriety of the UN setting this up needs to be questioned, inasmuch as it indicates what seems to be a parallel source of authority without reference to the government of the country.
The extract that refers to this network also records how it was formed: 'An internal "Crisis Operations Group" was formed to collect reliable information regarding civilian casualties and other humanitarian concerns. In order to calculate a total casualty figure, the Group took figures from RDHS as the baseline, using reports from national staff of the United Nations and NGOs, inside the Vanni, the ICRC, religious authorities and other sources to cross-check and verify the baseline. The methodology was quite conservative: if an incident could not be verified by three sources or could have been double-counted, it was dismissed. Figures emanating from sources that could be perceived as biased, such as Tamil Net, were dismissed, as were Government sources outside the Vanni'.
The sweeping manner in which Government sources outside the Vanni are put on par with Tamil Net requires consideration in a context in which the UN is supposed to be working together with Government. Unfortunately this type of loose talk was encouraged by a lack of precision of the part of various agencies in Government. I have written enough about the battle I had almost single handed to ensure accountability to Government, only to be criticized for this even by people in government who thought I was upsetting good helpmates of Sri Lanka. So here I will only point out the effrontery of the European Union which had prepared 'Modes of Operation for Aid Agencies' which asserted that such agencies held the balance between Government and the LTTE. I got rid of this nonsense the week after I took over as Secretary, after which the Europeans lost interest in the Modes of Operation.
The Panel's Two Showpieces
May 7, 2011 in Post-Colonial Practices | Tags: Afganistan, Channel 4, Darusman Report, hospitals, HRW, Iraq, LTTE, Sarath Fonseka, TamilNet, UN, US State Department Report, UTHR (J), White Flag | Comments closed
Female LTTE cadre training civilians
In the almost two years that have passed since the LTTE was defeated, there have been numerous allegations about possible War Crimes, but in fact there have been only two major instances adduced. One was the Channel 4 video which was shown on August 25th 2009, the second was the White Flag allegation.
Before that Human Rights Watch had produced a Report which dealt with a few areas it considered the basis for War Crimes charges. One of these related to the episode in which foreign UN officials stayed behind in Kilinochchi, ostensibly to bring out the UN local employees and their families whom the LTTE was keeping behind forcibly. The Darusman Panel also mentions this episode, using it as the basis for allegations about the numbers killed and attributing responsibility for these deaths to government. I have dealt with this episode and those allegations, pointing out first the manner in which the advance of our forces was stopped during that time as we waited anxiously for these guys to be allowed to come out, second the insidious behavior of the leader of this little adventure, Chris du Toit, and third the admission of the UN that much of the firing was established as having come from the LTTE side, although they had first accused us of being responsible.
Media Reports and Human Rights Queries
March 18, 2010 in The Fonseka Papers | Tags: Sarath Fonseka, Sunday Leader, TamilNet, US State Department Report, White Flag | Comments closed
General Fonseka with the present Army Commander General Jagath Jayauriya.
A report in December in the 'Sunday Leader' that serious Human Rights violations were committed by the armed forces several months ago is extremely disturbing. The information is said to have been supplied by Gen Sarath Fonseka in an exclusive interview.
Such a claim by Gen Sarath Fonseka is not new. There was also a report some months back of him saying something similar, but claiming responsibility for this himself. This report was a significant component of the American State Department report on possible war crimes. That said he made a speech at his old school, in which he had appeared in triumphalist mode. He was reported to have claimed that he 'managed the war like a true soldier' and resisted pressures from others, and thus 'We destroyed any one connected with the LTTE'.
That story raised questions which the government has pledged itself to answer through the committee appointed to report on allegations contained in the State Department report. In fairness to the State Department, it did not assert that Gen Fonseka had thus incriminated himself, but rather referred to reports which required explication. The government then is duty bound to question Gen Fonseka with regard to the report. The current interview makes it even more essential that the matter be inquired into.
20th Century Classics
A Presidency Under Threat – 2014
Anatomy of an Election
Constitutional Reform
Council of Asian Liberals and Democrats
Creative Writing and Criticism
Disaster Dysfunction and Breakdown: Threats to National Sovereignty
Enemies of the President's Promise
English Economics and Management
Interactions with the West
International Relations and Security
Lessons Learnt & Reconcilliation Commission 2010
Liberal Party Sri Lanka
March of Folly
Memory , Understanding and Education
Networks of Informers
Political Machinations
Political Principles
Post-Colonial Practices
Post-Conflict Challenges
Principles for a new Constitution
Reconciliation: Looking Forward
Reflections on recent changes in the Middle East and North Africa
Reform Agenda
Rights Responsibilities and Constitutional Reform
Sri Lanka Rights Watch
Strengthening institutions and organizational capacity
The Care of Children
The Fonseka Papers
The Great War Crime Games
The Road to Reconciliation
The Role of Parliament in Promoting Good Governance
The Structure of Government
Book Review, Island 21 March 2010 – The Best of British Bluff By Rajiva Wijesinha
Daily News Editorial 26 May 2010 – ON UNIVERSITY EDUCATION
Daily News Sri Lanka 4 August 2010 – CORI Report Outdated and No Basis for Guidelines
Getting Better – July 2009
We Support Ourselves
Travels on Reconciliation work 84
From a city of aquatint 60
Rajiva Wijesinha Blog
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