“Even as the government prepares to celebrate the fifth anniversary of the end of the war there are disturbing events that show up the failure of government by law as opposed to arbitrary power. War-time legacies must not continue to haunt the country.” says the National Peace Council
Gotabaya – Secretary MOD
Issuing a statement the NPC today said; “The incident where two police officers on night time duty on the road were abducted by armed men in a white van, stripped naked, and one shot dead, is symptomatic of a larger problem that has gone unaddressed. It is an extreme manifestation of a phenomenon that occurred regularly during the war in which people suspected of terrorism were bundled into vans and disappeared.
“The continuation of abductions five years after the end of the war is totally unacceptable. So far it appears that the police are at a loss to find the perpetrators although they have the evidence of the surviving police officer and what he observed and heard. The National Peace Council is of the view that the failure to apprehend those guilty, and those who are behind the armed group in the van, is a clear manifestation of the breakdown of the Rule of Law . The brazenness of the action suggests that the perpetrators were confident that they enjoyed impunity. It is this deteriorating law and order situation that that calls for policy changes that address the roots of the problem.
“A creeping culture of impunity is being entrenched where some people seem to believe that they can get away with lawless behaviour. Lawlessness, all types of crimes such as armed daylight robberies, murders, rape and the sexual abuse of women, frauds of all type and corruption spreading into areas of national life confirms this slide. The recent brutal killing of a ruling party Urban Council member not far from Colombo is the latest addition to killings. There is also violence that targets religious minorities, the most recent being the torching of a Muslim-owned business by a mob led by religious clergy. It must be emphasized that the rule of law is the idea that all people will be punished if, and only if, they break the law. There is no impunity for anyone under the rule of law.
“The police have declared their intention to find the perpetrators. We note that in the past there have been occasions when alleged perpetrators were apprehended but killed in shootouts or in attempting to escape. This led to the failure to investigate what motivated the perpetrators and who protected them. NPC affirms the importance of following due process which are transparent and whose integrity is protected by a system of checks and balances. If the Government wants the co-operation of the people in the fight against crime it must get back to following the Rule of Law, the de-politicization of the Police and the Judiciary by restoring the Independent Commissions.”
Web / May 14, 2014
MR & co are the sole breachers of law. They should be punished for all the crimes in SL. Nowadays not even ministers can take law in their hands without MR & co blessing. All responsibilities of lawlessness falls on MR not even GR. . If just one gonna face war crime tribunal its MR. I think that time is not very far. Keep buying oil from Iran, continue the support for Russian invasion, jayawewa in hague
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Rationalist / May 18, 2014
The current Government of Sri Lanka, is supposed to be celebrating a ‘Victory’ this week.
How can the subjugation of Minorities in the same Country, be a Victory?
Shouldn’t they instead, be Meditating on the Reasons for their Inability to keep the Peace between the different Ethnicities and Religions in the Country?
Everyone except the Ruling Clan seem to know the Reasons!
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S. Modaya / May 14, 2014
NPC, many thanks for this!’
Please organize with Colombo civil society and JOINT OPPOSITION, a candle lite vigil to commemorate the dead in the Eelam wars – on May 18, 2014 also as a mark of protest against the Rajapaksa-Jarapassa regime’s militarization and victory parade in the land of the Sinhala Modayas.
Keeping the war alive with victory celebrations is the Mahinda Jarapassa regime’s principle means to DISTRACT Sinhala Modayas from the Rajapaksa family and cronies’ CORRUPTION AND CRIMINALITY No RECONCILIATION with minorities is possible because Mahinda Rajapaksa needs minorities to be the THREAT EXCUSE and build up the Sinhala military – to secure and protect the Jarapassa dictatorship. The name of the Rajapaksa game is DISTRACT (with racist attacks against minorities who “do not exist”), DIVIDE and RULE the Sinhala Modayas! The dead tiger and minorities are Gota’s excuse to keep a massive and expensive military and STATE TERRORISM APPARATUS in place to protect the Jarapassa dictatorship. Gota the goon in using Islamophobia and guess what, the dead tiger – to militarize Lanka and rule the Sinhala Modayas..
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Don Stanely / May 14, 2014
S. Modaya you are quite right! Both Sinhalas and Tamils MUST come together to commemorate the dead in the 30 year war and say never again to LTTE and STATE Terrorism.
If there was a decent UNP opposition the UNP leadership would have organized with civil society and other opposition members an alternative and MULTICULTURAL< MULTI RELIGIOUS AND MULTI-ETHNIC COMMEMORATION to promote RECONCILIATION among the communities in keeping with LLRC recommendations.
There should be such a MULTICULTURAL COMMEMORATION of the war every year – to ensure that there will not be another war. But today because Sinhala Modayas are ruled by a military dictator who uses SInhala racism to rule, Sri Lanka is hurtling towards another war and crisis with the Muslism this time!
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Dude / May 14, 2014
The Sri Lanka and foreign MEDIA and PRESS should BOYCOTT the Mahind Rajapaksa’s ego boosting military celebration of war victory – which is against the PRINCIPLE of NATIONAL RECONCILIATION.
For genuine post-war reconciliation, a commemoration of lives lost from all communities that is multicultural and multi-faith should be held, because people of all the communities died and suffered during the war.
There needs to be a NATIONAL commemoration of the war that reflects the multicultural social fabric.
Seems that the Matara war event is meant to be celebration of the Jarapassa military dictatorship. This is against the fundamentals of reconciliation.
Clearly, only an international war crimes investigation of the Rajapaksa brothers will make them see sense!
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sach / May 16, 2014
Celebrating war victory is not something we do for MR.
It is our tribute for our fallen heroes, Sinhala, Tamil, Muslim and Burghers in SL army in the pursuit of eradicating LTTE and the 30 year plague.
If these heroes did not defend the front lines and gave their lives to fight against the murderous cult called LTTE, most of us would have blown off in a bomb in colombo, including the hypocrites in CT.
To the fallen heroes,
My salute!
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Native Vedda / May 22, 2014
sach the stupid
“It is our tribute for our fallen heroes, Sinhala, Tamil, Muslim and Burghers in SL army in the pursuit of eradicating LTTE and the 30 year plague.”
How many Tamils did serve in the armed forces and out of the lot how many did die?
No harm in paying tribute to fallen heroes. War criminals are not considered to be heroes in civilised societies. War criminals are war criminals.
Why didn’t the armed forces celebrate the victory over JVP Sinhala/Buddhist terrorists? Not only many soldiers died but their kith and kin were also the target of the Sinhala/Buddhist terrorists. Don’t you think your state has been practising racism over life and death and do you see double standards?
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Safa / May 14, 2014
“The incident where two police officers on night time duty on the road were abducted by armed men in a white van, stripped naked, and one shot dead, is symptomatic of a larger problem” – In other words there is a more powerful organisation than the police operating under political patronage of VVIP’s. Even the police are helpless. The above incident would then be a demnonic message to keep off their turf.
“the torching of a Muslim-owned business by a mob led by religious clergy” – The impunity of the religous majority to operate above the law and the impotence of the Police to protect the minorities.
We now face a situation where there is a mockery of law and order. Where select groups can operate over and above the law. Where the law enforcement authorities are hamstrung to look the other way. No doubt the police too will now feel the pain of the victims of their impotence. Soon the dogs will turn on their masters.
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ela kolla / May 14, 2014
NPC can also join in to celebrate the death and massacre of tamil terrorists rather than publishing crap.
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mike / May 14, 2014
Thana Kolla, I wonder how your crap was published??
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ela kolla / May 14, 2014
mike, i gave a candy bar to the woman who brought you to this world
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Navin / May 14, 2014
Kela Kolla, your dna is mixed up with dog spit. That is where your venom is coming from. Only if that place was not dry and if dog spit did not have to be used for lubrication, you would have been born with human genes. But its too late for that now! All that remains is to decide on extermination – like for the rabid dogs on the street.
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ela kolla / May 14, 2014
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ela kolla / May 15, 2014
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Silva / May 15, 2014
Navin,
But SL forces got rid of Tamil terrorists, the most ruthless terrorist outfit the world has seen. That’s a fact. Sad that 7000 civilians got killed. 7K was lot less than Iraq, Vietnam, Afgan wars. If forces didn’t finish the war Sri Lanka would have lost additional 40,000 tamils, Sinhala and muslims during the last five years.
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Maveeran / May 15, 2014
Ela kella, stop chatting shit and go [Edited out]
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ela kolla / May 15, 2014
maveeran, don’t you visit nandikadaal lagoon on 18th?
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Park / May 14, 2014
It is sad that the leadership shown by the Chief Minister Justice Wigneswaran in his analysis of war victory celebration could not be understood by the regime!
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Rev.Devil / May 15, 2014
Park….they pretend that as if they are sleeping. —but how long they could continue to cheat all the people !!?
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justice / May 15, 2014
Noone has been held responsible yet for the shooting deaths of 27 Welikada prisoners,by the Commission appointed to inquire.
When relatives of Nimalaruban,a prisoner beaten to death at Vavuniya prison filed a fundamental rights case,the Chief Justice ruled that the prisoner was a terrorist and that terrorists have ‘no rights’. He also said that he knew that the prisoner was a terrorist by his “personal knowledge”.
When the Bishop of Jaffna went to visit the prisoners at Anuradhapura after obtaining permission from the relevant authorities,he was informed that he had to obtain permission from “higher authority”.
Under the PTA,the Defence Secretary can hold anyone in a secret prison for as long as he wishes.
But our diplomats abroad,even in UNHRC,tell the world that citizens have all rights,and violations of human rights are ‘justiciable’.
This is the state of “justice” & Rule of Law today.
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sach / May 16, 2014
Want to see something funny and amusing? read what NPC says
“War Time legacies Must not continue to haunt the country”
and NPC CM wiggie goes on saying ‘Prabha is a hero, like keppetipola!’
and what is more amusing is TNA is concerned about policemen being abducted ! FUN TIMES!
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Park / May 16, 2014
There are two types of people in this world. One who think forward, the other group thinks backward. Unfortunately Sri Lankan politicians including the leader is in the second group. Not only the present President, most of the Past Presidents and Prime Ministers have been thinking backward. This is the main downfall of Sri Lanka. On the eve of Singapore’s independence Lee Kwan Yu mentioned that he wanted Singapore to be like Sri Lanka. Where is Singapore today and where is Sri Lanka today. Singapore had forward thinking leaders and went forward, we in Sri Lanka with our backward thinking leaders have gone backward. We have gone backward to the early years of Mahawamsa story and may be stopped just before the Lion mating with a human!
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Truth / May 16, 2014
Sri Lankan leaders and the average sinhalese keep saying about the “2500 year old civilisation” and do all the crime in the world!! Judging by what happened since independence, it is hard to believe whether they have even a 5 year old civilization!!!
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