![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.colombotelegraph.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2012\/01\/gota-and-mr-colombotelegraph.jpg\" "\\"Gota")
<\/a>President "would not change even a roadside checkpoint" without first consulting Gothabaya<\/p><\/div>\n
The Colombo Telegraph found the related leaked cable from the WikiLeak database. The cable is classified as \u201cCONFIDENTIAL\u201d details the Presidend Rajapaksa\u2019s decision making process. The cable was written on May 15, 2007 by the US Ambassador to Colombo Robert O. Blake.<\/p>\n
Under the subheading ambassador Blake wrote \u201cPresident Rajapaksa relies on his brothers, Defense Secretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa and Senior Advisor to the President Basil Rajapaksa, for advice on security matters and political affairs respectively. Although he trusts them both, our contacts say the President has more respect for Gothabaya than for Basil. An embassy contact told Pol Off that the President is insecure in his job because he knows that Sri Lanka, as a “semi-feudal” society, still has great respect for aristocracy. He fears that because he is not from an elite family, but rather from a village in the deep south, support for him within the SLFP is a thin veneer that will last only as long as he is in power. This perception of disloyalty within the SLFP has caused him to rely even more heavily on his brothers for support and advice. Many Embassy contacts from both the ruling and opposition parties have expressed frustration with the level of influence Basil and Gothabaya have on policy.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cAccording to Embassy contacts, the President, who holds the portfolio of Defense Minister, makes all defense and security decisions in consultation with Gothabaya. One Embassy contact told Pol FSN that the President “would not change even a roadside checkpoint” without first consulting Gothabaya. Gothabaya has nearly full autonomy on military decisions. He and Army Commander Fonseka have a close relationship and work well together; Fonseka was one of Gothabaya’s commanding officers when he was in the Army. The other military commanders follow Gothabaya’s instructions faithfully for fear of being replaced. Key presidential decisions that reflect Gothabaya’s influence include appointing Sarath Fonseka as Army Commander, closing the A-9 highway to Jaffna, and appointing Victor Perera as the Inspector General of Police.\u201d the ambassador further wrote.<\/p>\n
Related news;<\/p>\n
WikiLeaks: Rajapaksa Trio Powerful, But Increasingly\u00a0Isolated<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n WikiLeaks: Discord between the brothers -half to Basil, half to\u00a0Gota<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n WikiLeaks: Basil is corrupt, limited educated and expelled from\u00a0school<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n Below we give the\u00a0relevant part of the cable;<\/p>\n […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":21,"featured_media":3647,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,63,27],"tags":[1139,1134,1741,1457,1263],"class_list":["post-3641","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","category-politics-2","category-wikileaks","tag-democracy","tag-human-rights","tag-rajapaksa-brothers","tag-rajapaksa-family-dynasty","tag-us-embassy-cables-on-sri-lanka"],"yoast_head":"\nVZCZCXRO5144\r\nOO RUEHBI RUEHLMC\r\nDE RUEHLM #0698\/01 1350532\r\nZNY CCCCC ZZH\r\nO 150532Z MAY 07\r\nFM AMEMBASSY COLOMBO\r\nTO RUEHC\/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 6029\r\nINFO RUEHRL\/AMEMBASSY BERLIN PRIORITY 0380\r\nRUEHKA\/AMEMBASSY DHAKA PRIORITY 0087\r\nRUEHIL\/AMEMBASSY ISLAMABAD PRIORITY 7068\r\nRUEHKT\/AMEMBASSY KATHMANDU PRIORITY 5157\r\nRUEHLO\/AMEMBASSY LONDON PRIORITY 3729\r\nRUEHNE\/AMEMBASSY NEW DELHI PRIORITY 0943\r\nRUEHNY\/AMEMBASSY OSLO PRIORITY 3800\r\nRUEHKO\/AMEMBASSY TOKYO PRIORITY 2880\r\nRUEHCG\/AMCONSUL CHENNAI PRIORITY 7654\r\nRUEHBI\/AMCONSUL MUMBAI PRIORITY 5335\r\nRUEHGV\/USMISSION GENEVA PRIORITY 2019\r\nRHHMUNA\/HQ USPACOM HONOLULU HI PRIORITY\r\nRHEFDIA\/DIA WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY\r\nRHEHAAA\/NATIONAL SECURITY COUNCIL WASHINGTON DC PRIORITY\r\nRUEHBS\/USEU BRUSSELS PRIORITY\r\nRUEHLMC\/MILLENNIUM CHALLENGE CORPORATION PRIORITY\r\nC O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 04 COLOMBO 000698\r\n\r\nSIPDIS\r\n\r\nSIPDIS\r\n\r\nDEPARTMENT FOR SCA\/INS\r\nMCC FOR D NASSIRY AND E BURKE\r\n\r\nE.O. 12958: DECL: 01\/12\/2017\r\nTAGS: PGOV<\/a> PREL<\/a> PTER<\/a> PHUM<\/a> MOPS<\/a> CE<\/a>SUBJECT: PRESIDENT RELIES ON BROTHERS FOR POLICY ADVICE AND\r\nPOLITICAL COVER\r\nBrothers Offer Advice on Security and Politics\r\n--------------------------------------------- --\r\n\r\n\u00b6<\/a>2. (C) President Rajapaksa relies on his brothers, Defense\r\nSecretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa and Senior Advisor to the\r\n\r\nSIPDIS\r\nPresident Basil Rajapaksa, for advice on security matters and\r\npolitical affairs respectively. Although he trusts them\r\nboth, our contacts say the President has more respect for\r\nGothabaya than for Basil. An embassy contact told Pol Off\r\nthat the President is insecure in his job because he knows\r\nthat Sri Lanka, as a \"semi-feudal\" society, still has great\r\nrespect for aristocracy. He fears that because he is not\r\nfrom an elite family, but rather from a village in the deep\r\nsouth, support for him within the SLFP is a thin veneer that\r\nwill last only as long as he is in power. This perception of\r\ndisloyalty within the SLFP has caused him to rely even more\r\nheavily on his brothers for support and advice. Many Embassy\r\ncontacts from both the ruling and opposition parties have\r\nexpressed frustration with the level of influence Basil and\r\nGothabaya have on policy.\r\n\u00b6<\/a>4. (C) According to Embassy contacts, the President, who\r\nholds the portfolio of Defense Minister, makes all defense\r\nand security decisions in consultation with Gothabaya. One\r\nEmbassy contact told Pol FSN that the President \"would not\r\nchange even a roadside checkpoint\" without first consulting\r\nGothabaya. Gothabaya has nearly full autonomy on military\r\n\r\nCOLOMBO 00000698 002 OF 004\r\n\r\ndecisions. He and Army Commander Fonseka have a close\r\nrelationship and work well together; Fonseka was one of\r\nGothabaya's commanding officers when he was in the Army. The\r\nother military commanders follow Gothabaya's instructions\r\nfaithfully for fear of being replaced. Key presidential\r\ndecisions that reflect Gothabaya's influence include\r\nappointing Sarath Fonseka as Army Commander, closing the A-9\r\nhighway to Jaffna, and appointing Victor Perera as the\r\nInspector General of Police.<\/pre>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"