President Mahinda Rajapaksa yesterday for the first time openly criticised his former Ambassador to the UN in Geneva Dayan Jayatillake, saying he was making political statements and claiming he was now working for a non-Governmental organisation.
Responding to a question by the Al Jazeera Interviewer about the fact that his former Ambassador had strongly criticised the Government’s actions in Weliweriya where the armed forces are accused of shooting unarmed civilians, the President accused Jayatillaka of making statements for political reasons.
Dr. Dayan
“But he was your Ambassador, Mr. President,” the Al Jazeera reporter said.
“Yes he was my ambassador, but now he is a member of a very powerful NGO so they have their own views,” the President retorted, adding that this was a “democracy and anyone could say anything.”
The Al Jazeera reporter was quoting from Jayatilleka’s comment on the shootings at Weliweriya in which he noted: “The obvious observations will be, if this is how the State authorities treat unarmed Sinhalese, largely Buddhist civilian men, women and children who are protesting against polluted water, how must that state have treated the Tamils in the closing stages of the war?” Dr. Jayatilleka told Colombo Telegraph that the President’s assertion or allegation was completely and utterly without foundation in fact.
“Doubtless the President has been grossly misinformed,” he said.
The former Ambassador said the last time he was a member of a NGO was three decades ago, when he was a member of the now defunct Movement for Inter-Racial Justice and Equality in Sri Lanka.
“I can state unambiguously and categorically that I am not a member of any NGO, large or small, international or local,” Jayatilleka told Colombo Telegraph, adding, “I would also like to know which NGO I am supposed to belong to”.
Sudu Loonu / September 30, 2013
Well said Muthu. He is not only a condom. The [Edited out]
wants MR to use him again as one. That is through another
posting so he can say the opposite of all the cock and
bull stories he has related so far. Don’t you have any
shame in you Dayan Jayatilleke?
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Park / September 30, 2013
There is no point in Dayan, Rajiva and many others writing in various columns. The need of the day today is for all these politically savvy and smart individuals to rally behind one opposition candidate to contest in the next Presidential Election. This is the need of the day and not all types of advises that are in their writings.
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Email / September 30, 2013
These comments show how strong our government is!!!
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Cordelia / September 30, 2013
Chris Rajasingha, you have hit the nail on the head. In a free society there is the RIGHT OF ASSOCIATION and this is a necessary accompaniment to freedom of speech and freedom to criticise the government. You may do this as an individual or you may feel it is more effective to get together with others and do it as a group. The President’s answer demonizes all civil society groupings, and Dayan impliedly goes along with this. He should have added “and even if I was, SO WHAT?” and made a spirited defence of the dedicated work of the many and varied organisations whose concerns are the hapless victims of disasters whether brought about by natural causes or abuse of official power.
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Pera / October 2, 2013
If anybody sleep with stray dogs will wake up with tics.
Now you can’t remove those tics.
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