Sri Lanka: Poor information cannot be offset by good intentions alone We are writing this after being alarmed

to find that some British parliamentarians are taking part in debates on Sri Lanka with good intentions but with poor information.: http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/ld201213/ldhansrd/text/130108gc0001.htm#13010837000189 As the UK is an important partner in Trade and other activities in Sri Lanka, we wish to remember: Aid must support systemic change toward justice rather than simply keep people alive to continue to live in situations of injustice Do-No-Harm Policy Thus we urgently wish to comment on some sections of Lord Bates contribution to a debate on implementation of the recommendations of Sri Lanka in Grand Committee on 08.01.2013: 1.conflict went on for 26 yrs: ''When the war ended in May 2009, it was the worst that was over, but the ethnic conflict that spans more than five decades is not yet over - National Peace Council of Sri Lanka, 14 November 2011 Each and every Government which held office from 1948 till the present bear culpability for the failure to achieve good governance, national unity and a framework of peace, stability and economic development in which all ethnic, religious and other groups could live in security and equality. Our inability to manage our affairs has led to the taking of arms by a desperate group of our citizens. We need to rectify this bad governance - Jayantha Dhanapalas submission to Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC), 25 August 2010 (Dhanapala is a Buddhist Sinhalese and was formerly UN Under-Secretary General for Disarmament) 2. the peace treaty was signed two or three years ago: Which treaty please? No treaty was signed 2/3 yrs ago. A Ceasefire Agreement was signed in 2002 and was abrogated unilaterally by the govt in 2008. There were Banda-Chelva Pact of 1957 (SLFP in power) and Dudley-Chelva Pact of 1966 (UNP in power) abrogated unilaterally by the thengovernments when there was opposition from the party out of power and the Buddhist clergy (SLFP and UNP are the two major Sinhalese parties coming to power alternately by ethnic outbidding). Non-violent sit-in protests by Tamils in 1956 and 1961 were attacked by Sinhalese mobs (watched passively by the Police) in Colombo in 1956 and by the armed forces sent by the government in Colombo to Jaffna in 1961. Because Tamils demanded federalism, a state-aided pogrom was unleashed on them in 1958. After the failure of 28 yrs of peaceful struggle for federalism, Tamils began to seek separation in 1976, a state-aided pogrom was unleashed on them in **1977. But state-aided violence of varying quality and quantity has been going on unabated till today : ''But that truth cannot excuse human rights violations that currently afflict the nation as a whole; or for that matter obscure the looming threat of the cultural and political colonisation of the north by the Sinhala Buddhist majority'' - Economic & Political Weekly, VOL 47 No. 04, *Gananath Obeyesekera, 28 January-03 February 2012 (*a Sinhalese Buddhist and Emeritus Professor of Anthropology, Princeton University), Sri Lankan conflict is one of the most researched conflicts: Paradise Poisoned: Learning about Conflict, Terrorism and Development from Sri Lanka 's Civil Wars(2005), John Richardson, Professor of International development, American University: Paradise Poisoned is the principal product of a seventeen year project, devoted to understanding linkages between deadly conflict, terrorism and development, by viewing them through the lens of Sri Lanka's post-independence history, from 1948 through 1988..My vision is of a day when no citizens in today's developing nations will have to ask 'how did we come to this?' Paradise Poisoned will have achieved its purpose when that day comes.''

3. I guarantee as a fact that the people of Sri Lanka will still be wrestling with this issue in not five years' time but in 50 or 100 years' time: Probably so becaause: i.Textbooks prepared by the Dept of Education of previous governments and programs prepared by the present Defence Secretary instigate, in the minds of children of ethnic majority, hatred for the ethnic minorities: attachment ii.Conflict-insensitive aid has been exacerbating the conflict: Disaster Response, Peace and Conflict in Post-Tsunami Sri Lanka, Simon Harris, February 2006(University of Bradford, UK):'' Had international humanitarian interventions understood the dynamics of conflict and the role of assistance in informing such relationships, they might actually have helped contribute to peace building by tackling the underlying structures and root causes, or more minimally, by at least not making situations worse.'' The Culture, Politics and Economics of Peace in Sri Lanka(2004), Jonathan Spencer (University of Edinburgh, UK): ''On the whole aid was given in a politically or ethnically blind way. In the 1980s the major donors grew itchy about the country's appalling reputation for human rights' violations, but never so itchy as to cut off the funding that kept the regimes going.'' Making Ethnic Conflict: The Civil War in Sri Lanka, Ronald J Herring in Carrots, Sticks and Ethnic Conflict(2003): Civil war in Sri Lanka cannot be understood without the attention to external development flows. Donors repeatedly expressed concern about human rights abuses but were unable to act in concert, continuing instead to support the regime at critical junctures. iii.Recommendations in scores of reports over 4/5 decades by UN Human Rights Committee (not to be confused with UNHumanRightsC ouncilor its predecessor UNCommission forHumanRights) and very many organisations and groups of eminent persons have all been ignored by successive Sri Lankan governments and by the international community. Paradise Poisoned: Learning about Conflict, Terrorism and Development from Sri Lanka 's Civil Wars(2005): ''How could we have come to this? What could we have done to prevent the conflict that has killed our family members and friends, devastated our lives, destroyed what was being so painstakingly developed? What can we learn and share from our experiences that may help others to avoid following a similar path? How can we share what we have learned most powerfully and effectively? The 'we' of these questions are, principally, political leaders and citizens of the nations, from Angola to Zaire , that have been victimised by civil war. There is another group of individuals, too, who must continue to pose questions about the causes and prevention of civil wars. Foreign political leaders, multilateral and non-governmental organisation leaders, leaders in the private sector and development practitioners share in the responsibility for causing civil wars, though they bear few of the costs.'' 4.South Africa would be much better placed: Thats exactly what the President of International Crisis Group suggested: What South Africa can do to help with reconciliation in Sri Lanka, 24 July 2011. When Ministers in South Africa government offered help, the Sri Lankan government quickly declined it. Sri Lankan Minister of Foreign Affairs was even criticised (mid-2012) for letting the South African officials in the Dept of Foreign Relations talk about offering Sri Lanka their experience in Reconciliation. Every peace talks (by successive Sri Lankan governments to keep getting foreign aid) brought Buddhist clergy to the streets protesting the talks. In the Late 1990s when Nelson Mandela offered help at UN General Assembly, the thenpresident of Sri Lanka instantly declined it. Research shows that intrastate ethnic conflicts are very vicious and have been only resolved by a third party. 5.I am disappointed all other parties did not take part in it (LLRC): LLRC was appointed by the President and no political parties were expected/invited to join it. That is the usual procedure of a Commission of Inquiry any government appoints.

But Sri Lankan National civil societies are critical of the government for appointing a series of 15 commissions and committees in the last 6/7 years and for not publishing their reports: http://www.scribd.com/doc/85007346/A-List-of-Commissions-of-Inquiry-and-CommitteesAppointed-by-the-Government-of-Sri-Lanka-2006-%E2%80%93-2012 Successive Sri Lankan governments have been doing the same for decades: Sri Lanka: Twenty years of make-believe. Sri Lankas Commissions of Inquiry, Amnesty International, 11 June 2009, https://www.amnesty.org/en/library/info/ASA37/005/2009/en Sri Lankans are disappointed too, but they expected it judging by the post-independence history of commissions: What this preliminary assessment of the action plan reveals is that the government is less interested in meeting the challenges of political transformation within Sri Lanka than in meeting the challenge of the international community in Geneva - National Peace Council, 30 July 2012 The governments Action Plan to implement the LLRC report with its large gaps can only be taken as a preliminary document that needs a second look and much review National Peace Council, 8 October 2012 Colombo Telegraph: Even one year after the LLRC report was published, the Government continues to prevaricate on implementing the proposals in the LLRC report, 11 Dec 2012 and the almost non existent implementation of an LLRC Action Plan, 13 January 2013, 6.they(LLRC) have been working at conflict prevention rather than intervention and the Conflict Pool is an essential part of it: Whatever the government has been doing in the last seven years has been only exacerbating the conflict: Though the people of Northern Province have voted in Presidential and General elections, they are not yet given the chance of electing their own Provincial Council though the other eight provinces have: The governments delay in restoring full civil administration to the north means that there will be a vicious cycle. So long as the government is mistrustful of the Tamil people of the north, and the Northern Province remains the one province in the country in which provincial council elections are not held, the government will continue to alienate the people of the north and keep communal discord alive National Peace Council of Sri Lanka, 16 July 2012 The government formed a Presidential Task Force for Northern Development funded by foreign donors: The macro-economic decisions that the government makes in terms of developments in the north are not made with the participation of the people or their representatives. This is a major problem and cause for resentment. An example would be the Presidential Task Force for Northern Development. This governmental regulatory body is located in Colombo and is virtually all Sinhalese in its ethnic composition, even though most of the people in the north are Tamil. Several of its members are retired military officers. This money comes from international donors for the rehabilitation of the people of the north. But decision makers in Colombo decide what should be done without reference to the wishes of the people of the area - DISPELLING PERCEPTIONS OF UNCARING GOVERNMENT IN THE NORTH, National Peace Council of Sri Lanka, 26 July 2012 7.the Conflict Pool is an essential part of it(LLRC): We dont know anything about the Conflict Pool you are talking about. When the Cesaefire Agreement was signed in early 2012 and peace talks (with active participation of Norway) started there was the usual street protest from a section of the Sinhalese and the Buddhist clergy with the burning of Norwegian flag. Thus the British govt Global Conflict Prevention Pool : In December 2002, the Pool brought five senior members of the Sri Lankan Buddhist clergy to London, Belfast and Edinburgh to study devolved administrations. They met a wide range of politicians, senior officials, religious groups and community leaders. The delegates found the visit extremely valuable, and took back positive messages about the devolution process http://www.cic.nyu.edu/peacekeeping/conflict/docs/global-conflict-prevention-pool.pdf

8. If all the countries simply look at ways in which they can offer practical help and provide support for all the different parties in working through this tremendous difficulty, I think that there will be a chance of long-term stability: How can we thank you enough for such good intention, Lord Bates? You say you have read the whole LLRC report. What comes blaring out of it please? Consequences of a deadly conflict for decades ! So what do the people need most? Political solution ! NEITHER FISH NOR FISHING ROD BUT THE FREEDOM TO FISH. But nobody can help a government that enacted the 18th Amendment that put maximum power in the Executive Presidency annulling the checks and balances introduced by the 17th Amendment . Why was the Chief Justice sacked last week? Because she questioned the constitutionality of the Divineguma Bill which would remove the powers devolved to the Provincial Councils in the Constitution. The newly appointed Chief Justice will do anything the President asks him to do and his past government service is ugly(statements by Asian Human Rights Commission) Successive governments have not been implementing the 13th Amendment they cannot bring themselves to devolve power to the Tamils in united Sri Lanka: .The umpteenth Indian delegation (Foreign Secretary Nirupama Rao, National Security Advisor Shiva Shankar Menon and Defence Secretary Pradeep Kumar) went back empty handed: President Rajapakse handed them a flat Nyet and for once in a lifetime he spoke the truth. If I make any devolutionary concessions to the Tamils, 13A Plus, Minus, Divided or Subtracted, it will be curtains for me - Sri Lanka: Indian Delegates go Home Empty Handed, Kumar David, 15 June 2011, http://www.southasiaanalysis.org/%5Cpapers46%5Cpaper4558.html Ethirveerasingam: I like to share conversations I had with Lalith Athulathmudali and Ranil Wickremasinghe 12 years later. On Feb 4th 1985,.... Finally I asked him why not his party with more than two-thirds of majority in parliament propose a federal constitution. He said that SLFP will oppose it. I said that as they have only 7 or 8 MPs their vote will not make any difference, especially with the TULF and CWC votes to add to the UNP. He said proposing a federal constitution, "Will be political suicide." My older brother later said that, a majority of the UNP MPs will not support, let alone the majority Sinhala voters. On May 13, 1997, after an hour of discussion I asked him why not the UNP propose a federal consittuion. He said: "We are a political party. Like any other political party, we will not do anything that will not get us into power, nor would we do anything when we are in power to lose power" - Rajapaksrized Chauvinism in Flowery prose: Sri Lankan Diplomats outright humiliation of Sri Lankan Tamils, Maitree de Silva, 8 Feb 2009, http://groundviews.org/2009/02/08/rajapaksrized-chauvinism-in-flowery-prose-sri-lankandiplomat%E2%80%99s-outright-humiliation-of-sri-lankan-tamils/ 9. outstanding brief prepared by the House of Lords Library Library for it, I would have known a great deal less about the tragedy that has hit that country : It seems to have ignored the report by UK House of Commons Foreign Affairs Committee: We conclude that continuing evidence of serious human rights abuses in Sri Lanka shows that the Commonwealth's decision to hold the 2013 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Colombo was wrong. . Sir Malcolm Rifkind was among those who expressed concern at the actions of a number of countries that had opposed the idea of a Commissioner for Democracy, the Rule of Law and Human Rights. He said that Sri Lanka was "the obvious case in point Foreign Affairs Committee - Fourth Report: The role and future of the Commonwealth, 1 November 2012 10. NO foreign parliament should ignore this: My own set of immediate demands as a citizen are as followsroll back the Eighteenth Amendment; restore the Seventeenth Amendment and the Constitutional Council with improvements; guarantee judicial independence and independence of all oversight bodies; stop political interference in and politicization of public institutions; take strong measures to prevent

discrimination based on ethnicity, gender, language and religion; let law enforcement (meaning the ordinary lawnot exceptional laws) take its own course, do not provide protection to erring political favourites; respect and protect free expression, association and assembly adopt a policy of let a thousand flowers bloom; adopt a zero tolerance policy on torture, abductions and involuntary disappearances; permit free and fair elections and respect the peoples will - An Ideology of Reconciliation Cannot be Built Without Basic Ingredients of Democracy and Rule of Law, Dr. Deepika Udagama (Head, Department of Law, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka), 15 August 2012, http://dbsjeyaraj.com/dbsj/archives/9627#more-9627