By AHRC –
This morning, according to reports, the main gates leading to the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka remained closed and heavily guarded in order to prevent the Chief Justice, Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake from entering in order to continue to function as the legitimate holder of the post of Chief Justice. She has rejected the ouster by the president as illegal. Her view is supported by the judgement of the Court of Appeal delivered last week on the basis of the interpretation of the law regarding article 107(3) of the Constitution which deals with the removal of judges of the superior courts.
Meanwhile President Mahinda Rajapaksa has picked Mohan Peiris, who is known to be involved in the business affairs of the Rajapaksa family, as her replacement. Mr. Mohan Peiris who heads many business enterprises after his retirement as the Attorney General has been chosen for no other reason except for his expected blind loyalty to the president and his family.
Blind loyalty to the president is now the criteria and the question of legality has now been replaced with this imperative for such loyalty. With the president dismissing the respect for the Constitution as interpreted by the Supreme Court as an irrelevant factor to the affairs of the state it is quite natural that he no longer wants any kind of loyalty to the law as a criteria to be followed by the Supreme Court as well as other courts of the country.
Mr. Mohan Peiris’ record as the Attorney General has amply demonstrated his capacity to prefer expediency over legality. He has quite daringly withdrawn indictments against persons who were initially indicted by the Attorney General’s Department on the basis that there is adequate evidence to proceed against them. He has also filed indictments against persons purely on political grounds which are well illustrated by the cases against the former general, Sarath Fonseka who contested the election as the common candidate against President Mahinda Rajapaksa. He has also glaringly abused the Attorney General’s powers for personal purposes such as to help the clients he formerly represented. Above all he has abused the powers of noli prosecue in order to acquit persons who were undergoing investigations into serious crimes such as murder. He has a proven capacity to manipulate the law to suit the political requirements or requests by the government or those who are associated with the government.
His task as the Chief Justice would be, above all, to attack the judges who will still want to act independently and whose sole loyalty is to the law. His job will be to subdue them and create a consensus to support the president and those associated with the government unconditionally. An associated aim would be to ruthlessly suppress the lawyers who in recent times have risen to uphold the rule of law and to protect the dignity and the rights of the individuals as against the repression and suppression of the government.
It is quite symbolic that on the morning of the day of his appointment the gates of the Supreme Court were closed and locked. He is expected to keep them closed and locked to ensure that any citizens demanding justice should not enter the premises.
To daringly defy the rule of law in favour of the government is the task expected from him.
On the occasion of the signing of the letter of removal of Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake we stated that this marks the end of an era, the end of “the good old days” where the courts were expected to play the role of the protector of the freedoms and liberties of the citizens. The era that has now begun is when the courts are expected to be instruments of repression supporting the government at all costs.
Mr. Mohan Peiris would be rightly called the President’s Chief Justice (PCJ).
The only path that is open for judges, lawyers and the freedom loving citizens is to resist and oppose this whole scheme of constitutional dictatorship.
Related posts;
Mohan Pieris Sworn In As The 44th Chief Justice
Breaking News: Mohan Pieris Is Proposed As The Next CJ
Proposing Mohan Peiris As CJ Belies The Claim That The Impeachment Was All About Integrity
Aspirant CJ Mohan Pieris Exposed: Professional Misconduct As Attorney General
Mohan Pieris: The Best Fitting CJ For A Lawless Regime
13 Jan, 2013 -The 1978 Constitution Is Fulfilled
Wiping Out The Critical Intellect – Will the MR Push Us Into That Abyss?
jaya / January 15, 2013
AS you have mentioned the “Blind loyalty ” is the only criteria to choose such a person for highest post of judge in Sri Lanka.
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Ben Hurling / January 15, 2013
Wonder how corrupt Rajapassa clan members sleep at night. Mohan Pieris is a disgrace to Sri Lanka and her people. When citizens of the country needed help to resist the dawn of dictatorship, he sided with the dictator. Disgusting is not the word.
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Lawyer / January 15, 2013
Mark my words countrymen.
The Supreme/Court of Appeal Judges will shamelessly sit with this rogue Mohan Peiris ignoring their own verdict.
They might even claim that they were misled by Judge so and so.
There will be a que of lawyers at Mohan Peiris’ chamber wishing him well and also claiming ” I was always with you” or “I was misled by so and so. sorry sir.”
Life will go on in this beautiful land inhabited by the shittiest people on this planet
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robert / January 15, 2013
Well said “Lawyer” – I agree this is the most likely outcome. Let’s check back in a couple of weeks … everybody will be operating as if this CJ fiasco never happened !!
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janaka / January 15, 2013
Shavendra you must be aware the uneducated uncultured helping hambantota dogs are not too sure about your support and are trying to move you from UN to South Africa?
Make a Musaraff type return and with your former commander Fonseka remove these lying thieving dogs?
Hang them at Galle Face?
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K A Sumanasekera / January 15, 2013
Prabakaran must be laughing in his grave. What he could not do to Sri Lanka Idi Mahin is doing to the country.
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shankar / January 15, 2013
this guy tried to pardon a fellow who raped his daughters aged 2 and 4.
Read the link below for wonder of asia CJ
(Srilankamirrror) – The president has reversed a decision about to be implemented to grant a pardon for a man convicted of raping his own daughters, aged two and four years, `Ravaya` reports.
Justice ministry secretary Suhada Gamlath and a prisons commissioner Asoka Hapuarachchi have informed the newspaper about the new decision, taken to prevent any public uproar.
Yesterday morning (Dec. 01), when `Ravaya` had inquired from Mr. Gamlath, he had confirmed the accuracy of the pardon to be given, proposed by former attorney general Mohan Peiris, and that he had signed the relevant documents.
However, Mr. Hapuarachchi and prisons chief P.W. Kodippili had claimed that they were unaware about the matter.
The convict had been given a 36-year prison term, a Rs. 250,000 fine and a Rs. 25,000 compensation.
He had begun serving the jail term in 2003 at Welikada Prison.
On the day prior to the delivering of the verdict, he had fled to the US and married a woman there.
The US police had notified Sri Lanka about him after he had maltreated her.
The man is said to be rich, with lands owned by him spread throughout the country.
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lankika / January 15, 2013
I think this is the correct way to print the picture of the new Cheap Justice – up side down, since he was appointed under an upside down law. I think in the future all media should follow this format to show the opposition to this appointment.
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Gamini / January 15, 2013
It is a shame for the legal profession to tolerate a rogue as their new CJ and to pay obeisance to him.They should make a unified effort to throw this rougue out
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Don Quixote / January 15, 2013
Well done nice picture !
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Kina / January 16, 2013
@Lawyer, Robert,
While I’m sure you too are disgusted and strongly oppose the president’s dictatorship; we should be wary of not spreading a sense of submission to such atrocities. I see absolutely no point in you foretelling/predicting the future about what it is going to be. Perhaps, a better approach would be to advise on how it should be instead. One thing we can’t afford to lose is hope. Instilling hope with just words and not action you may argue – yet words are a start! Let’s start getting really pissed off and more importantly show it.
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damn fool / January 16, 2013
Blind loyalty is not just for CJ but for any/most positions even is corporate life in Sri Lanka. It’s a culture. About time we accepted it and acknowledge it to try to change it. There is no meritocracy. Full stop.
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