Military Presence in Sri Lanka’s North is Worrisome Wigneswaran

8/12/2019 Military Presence in Sri Lanka’s North is Worrisome Wigneswaran

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Military presence in Sri Lanka’snorth is worrisome: WigneswaranFile photo of Chief Minister of Sri Lanka's Northern Provincial Council C.V. Wigneswaran.

MEERA SRINIVASAN- June 12, 2014

The Chief Minister of Sri Lanka s Northern !ro"in#ia$ Coun#i$ te$$s The %in&u that hehas not 'een a'$e to &o (u#h e"en after si) (onths after the histori# e$e#tions

More than si) (onths after the histori# e$e#tions to Sri Lanka s Northern !ro"in#ia$Coun#i$, its first Chief Minister C*V* +i nes aran sa.s has not 'een a'$e to &o (u#h, for his han&s are tie&* /ro( a re$u#tant entrant to Sri Lankan o$iti#s to Chief Minister ho on a (assi"e (an&ate in the e$e#tions, it has 'een uite a ourne. forthe for(er u& e of the Su re(e Court of Sri Lanka*

Ref$e#tin on &e"e$o (ents ost e$e#tions, he sa.s hea". (i$itarisation a#ross has(a&e e"en 'asi# a&(inistration a &auntin task in the re ion that #ontinues to 'earthe s#ars of a 'ruta$ ar* The Ta(i$ Nationa$ A$$ian#e 3TNA , hi#h he is no artof, as a are of the $i(itations of the 15th A(en&(ent, an& e) e#te& so(einterferen#e fro( Co$o('o* %o e"er, the s#a$e of interferen#e fro( the (i$itar.,

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&es ite 'ein in the s ot$i ht of the or$&, is orriso(e for hat it orten&s, noton$. for the North-East 'ut for the rest of the #ountr., he te$$s Meera Srini"asan inthis inter"ie *

Seven months after the newly-elected Northern Provincial Council firstmet, what are your impressions as Chief Minister of the province?

The shift we expected after the popular mandate was made known by the people at theElection, from a Central oriented administration to a provincial administration has notcome to pass. The stark fact is that we are attempting to establish democraticgovernance in a province that is overwhelmed by an occupying military force, whichsystematically seeks to subjugate the populace, change the demography, destabilise theeconomy, impose an alien culture and stultify legitimate democratic aspirations, whilstcontinuing with grave human rights abuses.

In the above context establishing a new provincial council where everything has to be

started from scratch, in a war torn area, drained of the best brains, bereft ofestablished structures, is understandably a monumental task. !dd to this thedeliberate attempts to stultify the functioning of the "#C and it becomes virtuallyimpossible. $espite numerous promises we still have a Chief %ecretary, appointed incontravention of the law, functioning in collaboration with the &overnor, who was theformer !rmy Commander of the "orthern #rovince, to establish a paralleladministrative structure. !part from the legality of the structure, from a practicalperspective how can one expect to carry out governance democratically, effectively orefficiently, when you have a parallel structure in place, backed by an ominous andomnipresent military' To make matters still worse, we have the bogey of the Tiger being resurrected to justify further militarisation. (owever, this was not unexpected. )e knew the inade*uacy of the + th!mendment and did expect some interference,though the scale of interference from the military despite being in the spotlight of the world is worrisome for what it portends, not only for the "orth East but for the rest ofthe country.

!s much as I am disappointed and frustrated by these conditions, I have not lost hope.The main reason for this is the resilience of our people. They have been ama-ing andthey can inspire you to face overwhelming odds. %everal individuals and organisationshave also heeded our call and agreed to help, re establishing faith in humanity. orexample those displaced by the !rmy taking over /,000 odd acres in 1ali "orth have been left uncared for, living in other people2s lands sans means of livelihood andsuccour. It is rumoured that merely because they had gone to Courts to get back theirlands they have been left high and dry3 The responsibility to look after them is that ofthe &overnment. 4ut they are uninterested. (ence we have started rallying round various public voluntary organisations to give them dry rations.

)e have also realised that the world is not blind to what is happening in %ri 5anka.$espite the attempts at camouflage and subterfuge, our problems have reached the



eyes and ears of the world. ! recent report highlighted for instance the instances oftorture and rape of both men and women from the "orth East, with the last case study being in respect of an unfortunate soul early this year.

In essence, there are immense challenges but there is also hope.

You have been observing that as the Northern Province Chief Minister youhave rather limited powers !hat, in your opinion, are the successes ofthe NPC -- given the said limitations -- and what do you thin" could have

been done better?

The foremost achievement of our coming into office has been the corresponding selfconfidence that has dawned on our people. They were battered and bruised and living with no hope. (owever powerless administratively we may be, we have still been ableto usher in a sense of purpose and confidence among our people.

That is a tremendous achievement. #eople no longer fear the !rmy. They have startedprotesting against the !rmy taking over their lands and houses. The protests have beenpeaceful and with no personal animosity shown towards the !rmy. It was said recentlythat some of the soldiers who came to deal with such protests had told our protestorsprivately that they would themselves have protested if their lands in the %outh had been taken over in the manner it is being done now in the "orth3

)e are able to galvanise the support of our people to deal with situations. or example, we recently provided dry rations to the I$#s who have been deliberately left to sufferin makeshift welfare centres on private lands. )e have also been able to ensure thatthe world has not allowed the &overnment to draw attention away from what is beingdone in the "orth. )e have remained engaged and demonstrated our good faith timeand again.

)e have also established mechanisms and processes for the functioning of the Counciland are in the process of finalising several key statutes that will help us with ourfinances and in obtaining the co operation and support of well wishers and friends. )e recently carried out a six month review of what we have done and each ministryhas indicated what it has been able to achieve. The progress is no doubt slow, but notinsignificant, given the nascent nature of the organisation and the asphyxiatingcircumstances I discussed earlier.

!s to what could have been done, well, if we had a favourable Chief %ecretary and acivilian &overnor well versed in (uman 6ights considerations we could have led ouradministration on a proper planned course leading to economic recovery. If we had theco operation of the &overnment we could have completed a comprehensive needsassessment and charted a master plan for recovery.

Soon after you assumed charge, you spo"e of carrying out a needs





will be done very soon. ;ur progress may be slow but deliberate and sure.

You are now part of the #istrict Coordination Committee, and have beenattending meetings )ow does that e+ercise align with the NPC sgovernance?

)e discuss at length many matters coming under the purview of the "orthern#rovincial Council, some deliberately kept within the control of the &overnment andothers attended to, by us. There is healthy discussion and we make decisions. )henareas which are controversial come up there are heated arguments. )e have made itclear that we are not there to put into effect the 8ahinda Chintanaya, regardless of itsamorphous nature, since our people have totally rejected the #arty which stood forsuch Chintanaya. )e went into the deliberations only after making our position clearand that it is our duty to deliver on our election pledges as that is the mandate given tous. It is reflected in the minutes of our first meeting.

$he $N and you have welcomed the new regime in .ndia !hat are youre+pectations of the Modi government, given that $amil Nadu is not acoalition partner at the Centre?

%hri 8odi seems to have identified the priorities as far as our immediate needs areconcerned. (e seems to have impressed same upon our 5eaders. It is for our&overnment to take the cue and act fast. Tamil "adu is intricately intertwined in thepolitical complexity in India. I am confident that the 8odi &overnment and Tamil"adu will not be at variance with regard to the political needs of our people.

$he second round of tal"s between fishermen of S/ and .ndia failed andNorthern fishermen are a really worried lot now !hy has the NPC notta"en up the fisheries conflict in any significant way?

)e did take it up in our initial stages. 4ut it was pointed out to us that inland waterways were our prerogative, while seashore problems come under the Centre.%ince the &overnment isheries2 8inister was showing interest in the problems of ourfishermen folk we have taken a back seat. If our input is needed we shall certainlycome in. rom a democratic perspective and a pragmatic perspective, it is strange thatthe elected representatives of the affected region are not being asked to take a leadrole.

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Military Presence in Sri Lanka’s North is Worrisome Wigneswaran