Serious doubts have been cast on Archbishop of Colombo, Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith and his political agendas to support Mahinda Rajapaksa at the upcoming elections with the revelation that his niece has been given a political appointment to the Sri Lanka embassy in Paris.
Ruwani Cooray, niece of Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith has not passed the foreign service examination nor been recruited to the foreign service through any accepted procedure. However she has been appointed as the second secretary to the Sri Lanka Embassy in France.
Ruwani does not have any relevant qualifications for this appointment other than her relationship to the Cardinal. Earlier Ruwani Cooray was posted to the Sri Lanka Mission in Manila, Philippines on the request of the Cardinal. With the significant role played by Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith to ensure the visit of his Holiness the Pope to Sri Lanka his niece has now been given a more opulent posting in Paris.
“The visit of the Pope has been a key political gimmick of the Rajapaksa candidacy which hopes to swing many catholic votes it had lost during the years due to the anti- minority, extremists elements within its ranks. Cardinal Malcom Ranjith who is a close confidant of Gotabaya Rajapaksa has assured the government that he will deliver on the promise of the Pope’s visit despite the Pope’s very clear policy that he will not visit a country within two months of an election being declared.” a member of Cardinal Ranjith’s inner circles told Colombo Telegraph.
Related posts;
Wikileaks: Mahinda Rajapaksa Is A “christian” – Says Archbishop
UNP MP Chandrani B’s Son Gets Diplomatic Posting
Sajin Appoints Rosy’s Daughter, 11 Others As CHOGM 70k Consultants
The Hidden Dynasty In The Justice System
Chirantha Amerasinghe / December 27, 2014
Non-fast typed version : It is very sad to see these comments, Cardinal Ranjith realizes what many of you don’t, The church is not to be a bug/nail in the path of the local government. Little can be done by the church by objecting the government of Sri Lanka. It is also the responsibility of a Archbishop to increase the number of churches in the country, Cardinal Ranjith has done it. If one believes the Catholic Church of Sri Lanka is in a position to go against the government of Sri Lanka and live to tell the tail, that person needs serious metal help.
The Church is our religion, the Cardinal has defended the Church teaching and done what is necessary to keep the church living admits a dictatorship government with extremist perspectives for a Buddhist only nation. Someone wants to say what he is doing is wrong… Metal hospitals are free and wide open. Be my guest. And oh Niece? If one is able to co-exist with a dictatorship government and keep our faith living why not? After all.. how can one claim the influence is obtained from Cardinal alone? Are all other DPL posts 100% clean? If you know a lot of people in this country and is up for the job, we all know, there are ways one can get things done in the country. In short, the one does not need to know the Cardinal to get a DPL post… and what is there to buy Cardinal Ranijth? Is Cardinal going to force us to vote for one specific political party? Stop being jealous of the Cardinal and his association with the political bodies instead of standing a sun torn desert cursing the land for being so far from a beautiful city.
/
Wera / December 31, 2014
You seem to forget a few facts. Despite the obvious support given to MR and GR which goes way beyond what can be ethically justified as acts to protect the church in Sri Lanka we also suffered attacks on churches, the imprisonment of the head mother of the home run by mother Theresa’s order on trumped up charges. The date for this visit was set before the announcement of presidential elections. Once the election date was set the prudent thing to do was to recommend a reschedule for the papal visit which was supported by some of the senior catholic clergy in Sri Lanka. What happened? Why was it not done? Was not the attempt to get down the Pope and fool Rome about the election a deliberate ploy? Stop acting like the three monkey’s who speak no evil see no evil and hear no evil. You do your cause a disservice that is unbecoming of a catholic. One of the most important teachings of Christ was to be righteous.
/
T . George UK / December 31, 2014
As a Roman Catholic I can say that Malcom Ranjith is a wolf under a Sheep clothing and his appointment as a Cardinal is questionable.
/
CITIZEN / December 31, 2014
Amerasinghe is uttering “bullshit”. There is no need for anybody to blindly obey a “dictatorship government” compromising the integrity of the Church. If Amerasinghe feels so, I think the best place for his is the “Mental Hospital” at Angoda!
/
christian / December 28, 2014
Mahinda can even buy the god. Ranjith, who is already a crook, is nothing. Jayawewa.
/
Diogenes / December 28, 2014
Catholics should take necessary action to excommunicate this shameless opportunist demon worshiper Malcolm Ranjith!
/
christian / December 28, 2014
Jude,
it is clear Ranjith is serving the government. No question about it and you know that. The question is if this is the (girl and the posting) the reason or is there something else. Raja may even have a file on him. you never know. lol.
/
Jude Fernando / December 28, 2014
With all due respect to our Church and Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith should answer in regard to the article, if this Girl Ruvani Cooray is his niece? and if so did she get the position through correct procedure or not…
/
Citizen / December 28, 2014
I feel Malcom Ranjith is lending a political hand to save his friend the President. It seems that the Pope had agreed to come to Sri Lanka although as a tradition the Pope does not visit any country during an election period. So what is this special preference for a country with just a handful of catholics. It seems that this is only an announcement at the request of Malcolm Ranjit to boost the image of the President among the catholics and get their vote. Just after the election after letting Malcolm Ranjith helping President’s chances the Vatican will announce that the visit of the Pope will be cancelled or postponed saving the age old tradition. The opposition should inform the Vatican that in view of the current political violence prevailing in the country that the Pope should reconsider his plans and inform the country of any changes well before the election. If the Vatican announce any change of plans after the election we Sri Lankan’s will treat this as an act of interference in Sri Lanka politics. This could result in a revolt against the catholic churches. So the Vatican has to take a stand casting aside the needs of Malcolm Ranjit.
/
Mevan / December 29, 2014
Chirantha Amerasinghe.
It is imperative that Cardinal Ranjith answers these allegations:
Is this lady his niece?
Has she been appointed to a diplomatic post?
Was the correct procedure followed?
If he does not, the charges will stick by default, thereby affecting the image and integrity of the post he holds, the catholic congregation in Sri Lanka as well as the message of the Worldwide catholic movement for truth and justice.
/
Mevan / December 29, 2014
Chirantha Amerasinghe.
Since it is now in the public domain, it is imperative that Cardinal Ranjith answers these allegations:
Is this lady his niece?
Has she been appointed to a diplomatic post?
Was the correct procedure followed?
If he does not, the charges will stick by default, thereby affecting the image and integrity of the post he holds, the catholic congregation in Sri Lanka as well as the message of the Worldwide catholic movement for truth and justice.
/
Catholic / December 30, 2014
Mr. Chirantha Amerasinghe,
You seem to have forgotten how Cardinal MR maintained complete ignorence on the following incidents when the Catholic Churches and Members of the Clergy were subjected to abductions, harassments etc. 1) Ambilipitiya & Homagama Churches were burnt/damaged by government goons. 2) Sisters of Mother Theresa’s Convent in Moratuwa were charged/harassed by an official operating from Temple Trees. No action was taken until the Vatican Press openly critisised him. 3)St. Anthony’s Church, Weliveriya was fired upon and the Sister Principal & the Parish Priest were threatened with death using a Weapon by an Army officer during the infamous Rathupaswela incidents. 4). Several catholic priests were abducted during civil war and upto now no information/explanations provided by the government. 5)Abduction of Rev. Fr. Joseph consequent to writing a letter to Pope Benedict in 2009 about the government’s atrocities. How did the contents leak out? 6)Recent incident in Kalutara, Katukurunda when the Police tear gased the praying Catholics & the Parish Priest. These are just a few of many incidents.
Main issue here is obviously Cardinal is under obligation to the President and has gone out of the way through his contacts, he has developed during his long stay in Rome prior to taking over the present position to influence Vatican to continue with Papal visit, deviating from its policy of not visiting a country facing an election. Our beloved Pope always speaks against corrupt Regimes & vices in the form of drugs etc. But the sadest part is corrupt Sri Lankans are the main contributors/Organisers selected for the event.
/
Paul Perera / December 30, 2014
It is foolish to believe everything you read on the internet, especially ‘news’ (personally I prefer the term ‘smears’) originating from Sri Lanka. A few minutes of googling leads me to believe that this is another example of someone with an agenda who added 2 + 2 and got 22!
Just consider a couple of news items I found on the internet. This paragraph below is a genuine diplomatic news page, which mentions that Ms Cooray was the second secretary in Manila. This was from an event in May 2014.
“The United Nations Center for Regional Development (UNCRD), represented by Ms. Chikako Takase and Mr. Choudhury Rudra Charan Mohanty witnessed the signing. Both emphasized the importance of the integrated conference to the post-2015 Development Agenda of the UN and realization of the Bangkok 2020 Declaration. The UNCRD are signatories to the MoU as observers.
Also present were the representatives from the Embassy of Sri Lanka in Manila, Mrs. H.M.G.R.R.K. Wijeratne Mendis, Charge d’Affaires and Ms. Ruwani Cooray, Second Secretary. Mrs. Melissa Cruz of the German International Cooperation (GIZ) and Mr. Vijay Joshi of ADB were also in attendance”
The paragraph below if from another bit of diplomatic news, dated March 2013.
“Second Secretary of the Sri Lankan embassy here in Manila, Ms. Ruwani Cooray, then introduced the beautiful country of Sri Lanka to the audience. Complete with materials and a history of the country, a lot of the participants at the event were interested in the rich culture and tourist attractions that are inherent in Sri Lanka. Ms. Cooray then stressed how several companies have started to invest in their country especially in terms of real estate. In addition, she mentioned the role of infrastructure and great relationships with other countries as key factors to a successful tourism industry.”
Finally, the link below will display a newsletter dated September 2012 from Sri Lankan embassy in Manila, where you will see an article about Phillipines – Sri Lanka Business Council, where Ms Cooray appears in a photo. Even then she was a Second Secretary.
http://www.scribd.com/doc/109711197/Embassy-of-Sri-Lanka-Manila-Newsletter-4#scribd
So, it looks as if Ms Cooray has been in the diplomatic service as a junior official for at least two years. You have to ask yourself why this kind of news gets circulated now. You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to figure out why – it is written by a person who wants to tarnish the image of Sri Lankan Catholics in general and Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith in particular. Pope Francis’ visit to Sri Lanka in January has become heavily politicised. Unfortunately, there are some Sri Lankans who don’t like Catholics, so this type of smear appeals to them and very quickly, it gets re-posted on the internet.
In my day at Peradeniya University 40 odd years ago, students used to put up amusing ‘kalaa paththara’ in the middle of the night on hall of residence notice boards. Now of course you don’t need that. Mischief makers can do this sort of thing in the privacy of their bedroom! Please folks, this is nothing but a nasty little ‘kalaa paththaraya’. I even wonder if the author of this slander got the right Cardinal. The previous Cardinal, if memory serves me right, was Cardinal Cooray. Perhaps someone can enlighten us if Ms. Cooray actually is related to Cardinal Ranjith. Finally, what about the poor slandered Ms. Cooray who seems to be serving the country well? Who is going to put that right? After two or more years in Manila she probably deserves a better posting to Paris.
/
Aela / December 30, 2014
Mr. Paul Perera, we are certainly not obliged to believe everything on the internet, however one does not need the internet to know that Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith has been blatantly partial to the president.
The majority of Catholics are definitely not happy with this situation.
/
Paul Perera / December 30, 2014
Mr. Aela, you’re missing the point. You say a majority of Catholics are not happy with the Cardinal. Can you quote a survey, or is that your personal prejudice?
Care to comment on the accuracy of the article in question? As for Cardinal Ranjith I will say this, unfortunately in Sri Lanka, religious leaders have to walk a political tight-rope in order to protect their flock. If the opposition candidate gets elected next month, you shouldn’t be surprised to see the Cardinal warmly congratulating the new President.
/
BBS Rep / December 31, 2014
Paul,
All else is irrelevant.
The Pope as stated generally does not like to visit any country within two months of an election or within two months post election. This is strictly to ensure that he is not taking any role in the electoral process of that particular country.
But our Cardinal Ranjith has no such qualms. He is clearly seen exhibiting his unabashed political partiality in stupendous fashion. Cardinal Ranjith is committing a Cardinal sin.
/
Aela / December 31, 2014
Mr. Paul Perera, come on, do I have to provide results of a survey to give an opinion? When I say the majority of Catholics are not happy with the way our Cardinal has been supporting MR, I mean exactly that! I am not referring here to the allegations about the job for his niece.
/
Paul Perera / January 1, 2015
This is for the benefit of readers who are ignorant of the facts. The Pope’s visit to Sri Lanka was arranged before a snap election was called. There has been a long campaign to canonize Joseph Vaz. A Wikipedia entry for Joseph Vaz provides all the relevant details. Pope Francis’ visit to Sri Lanka was arranged well before President Mahinda Rajapakse called a snap election in January. When the election date was announced, Cardinal Ranjith is reported to have appealed to Sri Lankans not to politicise the Pope’s visit. I have included below two references to support the facts.
From Facebook page for papal visit to Sri Lanka (https://www.facebook.com/papalvisitSL2015?fref=nf)
4 August 2014
“Accepting the invitation from the civil authorities and the Episcopate, His Holiness Pope Francis will make an Apostolic Trip to Sri Lanka from 12 to 15 January and in the Philippines from 15 to 19 January 2015. The program for the trip will be published shortly.”
From Vatican Radio website, 13 September 2015:
“The Catholic Church in Sri Lanka has urged the nation not to politicize the visit of Pope Francis in January amid reports that President Mahinda Rajapakse may hold a snap election early next year. Cardinal Malcom Ranjith, the president of the Catholic Bishops Conference of Sri Lanka, CBCSL, called on the government not to use the Pope’s presence in the country January 13-15 as a “political tool”. His remarks came amid intense media speculation that Rajapakse, who removed the two-term limit on the presidency after his 2010 re-election, was preparing a poll early next year.
“We have told the president that it is not appropriate for a Pope to visit a country that is in the middle of an election campaign,” the cardinal told reporters in Colombo. “The visit should not be used as a political tool by the government, or the opposition, or anybody else for that matter.” Sri Lanka is mainly a Buddhist country, but it has a 7.5 percent Christian population whose block vote could be decisive in the event of a close presidential election. The Cardinal said the position of the Catholic bishops is that the papal visit must be free of politics.
So, can Cardinal Ranjith be accused of supporting Mahinda Rajapakse or anyone else? I think not. I have already exposed the lies in the article about Ms Ruwani Cooray’s appointment as Second Secretary to the Paris embassy.
/