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Evidence against
Dr Brian Senewiratne
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30.3.2018
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BS on CT
MARCH 16, 201 8
AUTHOR: BRIAN SENEW IRATNE
52 COMMENTS

Sri Lanka: The Human Rights Crisis In The Tamil North & East – An Appeal
For International Intervention

I am a Sinhalese from the majority community in Sri Lanka. I have campaigned for
the past 70 years for the Tamil people to live with equality, dignity, safety and
without discrimination. I cannot think of any time in the past seven decades that the
outlook for the Tamil people has been more disastrous than it is today.
Sri Lankan (Sinhalese) politicians are simply incapable of addressing the major
human rights problems faced by the Tamil people. They do not have the ability,
integrity or honesty to see that what has been done to the Tamil people in the North
and East is unacceptable.
This publication is being written for circulation at the 37th Sessions of the Human
Rights Council in Geneva (27 February – 23 March 2018) so that those who attend
the Sessions will be apprised of the major abuse of human rights in the Tamil North
and East, and the absolute need for international intervention.

Tamil Eelam
This leads me to the de facto Tamil State run by the LTTE for a decade. I
have not been to this place but I know someone who has and has written
extensively on his experience. Professor Kristian Stokke, Professor of
Sociology and Human Geography, University of Oslo, Norway, who spent
some time in the area wrote an outstanding account “Building the Tamil
Eelam State – Emerging State Institutions and Forms of Governance in
LTTE controlled areas of Sri Lanka”. It is on the net and also in the 3rd
World Quarterly 2006.
The most striking feature was a well-organised legal system and an
excellent police service, as a result of which serious criminal activity was
rare and rape virtually unknown.
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The judicial system included several District Courts, two High Courts, a
Court of Appeal and an apex Supreme Court. Particular care was taken to
ensure that the Courts were just.
Despite their relative youth, the ‘Judges’ were perceived by the public as
professional. The entire Judicial system carried substantial legitimacy
and public confidence.
Penalties were generally more severe than those imposed by the Sri
Lankan government Courts which also functioned in the same area.
Despite this, the people had so much confidence in the efficiency and
fairness of the de facto Courts that they opted to take their legal
problems to these rather than those run by the Government.
I spoke with a former Supreme Court judge who had visited the de facto
State and he said that he was most impressed by what he saw. Although
the ‘judges’ were young, he said that they knew the law and applied it
without fear or favour – which is more than what he could say for the
legal system in the South.
The Police (Tamil Eelam Police) was the other key institution for
maintaining law and order. Police stations were established throughout
the LTTE-controlled areas, and assigned duties to prevent crime,
regulate traffic and disseminate information about crime prevention.
The community involvement with the Police was a key feature
responsible for the low crime rate in the de facto State.
There is not the slightest doubt that where law and order and serious
offences are concerned, the civilian population in the North and East are
far worse off now, after the area was overrun and handed over to the
thoroughly corrupt and undisciplined Sri Lankan (Sinhalese) Armed
Forces and Police, and the highly dubious judicial system.
The most impressive thing the Tamil Tigers did was to show that an
outstanding State, the de facto State of Tamil Eelam, could be run –
something that has never happened in the rest of the country under
Sinhalese politicians.

The centralisation of power in Colombo must end


Sri Lanka is a British colonial construct that has failed – as have so many
colonial constructs.
For hundreds of years there were three separate Kingdoms – a Tamil
Kingdom in the North and East, a Kandyan Kingdom in the centre
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(Kandyan Sinhalese) and a Kotte Kingdom in the South (Low country


Sinhalese).
It was the British who in 1833, the Colebrook-Cameron ‘reforms’, unified
that which was divided with no consent from the people, and worse still,
centralised power in Colombo. This has had a disastrous effect on the
country. To make things even worse, when the British left Ceylon in 1948,
they handed over the country to the Sinhalese despite serious protests
from the Tamils that they feared discrimination at the hands of the
Sinhalese. The very least the British could have done was to have left a
Federal State for the Tamils.
If what the colonial British did was wrong, what followed after the
British left was worse. From Independence (1948), the Sinhalese
governments totally isolated the Tamil homelands from all economic
development programs undertaken with massive foreign aid from donor
countries. As a result, over the past seven decades, while the Sinhalese
people and their homelands have prospered and flourished, the Tamil
people and their homelands in the North and East have suffered and
become the backyard colony of the Sinhalese.
It is essential that all of this is reversed and power to govern is returned
to where it was, if there is ever going to be peace and justice in Sri Lanka.
This will simply not happen unless there is massive pressure from the
international community, especially the aid-givers.

Fear and Insecurity in the Tamil North and East


The overwhelming problem facing the people in the North and East is
fear and insecurity. They are justifiably afraid of the Armed Forces,
Police, Sinhalese who have been settled there and are supported by the
Armed Forces and Police, Tamil paramilitaries working with the
government, and, alarmingly, fear of each other. No one is confident that
what is told to someone might not be conveyed to someone else for
monetary gain.
One such case is described in my book “Sri Lanka: Sexual Violence of
Tamils by the Armed Forces”. A prospective asylum seeker who wanted
to flee Sri Lanka found that just before he left, the Armed Forces got all
the details. This happened over and over again. He then realised that the
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information was being passed to the Armed Forces by a member of his


family for financial gain.
Living in insecure homes is another major problem. Armed Forces and
Police can kick the door down (if there is one) and sexually assault those
inside – including children. A photograph of one such case is in my book
on Sexual Violence.
Until the Armed Forces are removed from the North and East, this fear
and uncertainty will remain.

Taraki / March 18, 2018

I like the way he never criticizes the LTTE, he is silent on their crimes. No wonder he
is ignored by all except the Tamil diaspora.

Brian Senewiratne / March 17, 2018

24

I do not normally comment on my articles (or criticism of them). i lave


[sic] that to others to do.
However, the suggestion made above that this be translated to Sinhala is
a very important one. My Sinhalese is not good enough to do this. I wish
someone else with a better command of the language will do this.
i am aware that it is being translated to Tamil.. That is fine but the
Tamils know the problem. there is no need for me to point it out to them.
That said, it is important for the Tamils in the Sri Lankan North and East
to know that they and their problems have not been forgotten.
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My section on the “International community” (which has yet to be


published) is not well written. It should have been much more
comprehensive. I should certainly [sic] mentioned the countries
currently attending the UN HRC meeting and the aid-givers. I should
also have mentioned that it s crucial for ordinary decent people across
the world, to see their MPs and ask what their government is doing to
address this human rights crisis. As for the country I live in (Australia),
nothing is being done except sending back asylum seekers from Sri
Lanka – a gross violation of the Refuge [sic] Convention, signed and
ratified by Australia. Australia has a major case to answer.
Frankly, I do not have an answer, which is why I asked the question so
that others can focus on this crucial problem(s) which is destroying the
country – certainly the North and the East
Brian Senewiratne

What question?

He doesn’t ask questions, he just makes allegations – wild allegations like:

Drugs and alcohol


Drugs are being brought by the Navy from Kerala in South India and
sold in Jaffna. Illicit drugs are freely available and sold even to school-
going teenagers, some as young as 11 years. The increased use of drugs
has increased the crime rate massively. Drug users commit murder,
rape and all sorts of crimes. Drug dealers are openly selling them. They
are also being sold in villages, creating huge issues for the community.
There is only one hospital that offers alcohol and drug rehabilitation
services. There clearly needs to be more drug and alcohol rehabilitation
services. Without them they cause many social issues in society.
Domestic violence
There has been a marked increase in domestic violence after the end of
the armed conflict. Drugs, alcohol, the husband being unemployed and
not earning any money, the husband believing that his wife is having an
affair (largely untrue), are some of the causes. There are even more
serious issues which I will not deal with until I am able to verify them.

It is an embarrassment to Uvindu Kurukulasuriya and Colombo Telegraph that


they publish this drivel.
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Ranil Abeyasinghe / March 19, 2018

11

I wonder when Dr. Brian Senevirtne visited Jaffna last. I did only a
couple months ago. I am not going to comment on what he says about
constitutional and political issues. I have known Dr.Seneviratne as a
medical student and I recall his colourful and larger than life personality.
To him, everything he said was the absolute truth and other people’s
opinions were rubbish. This article he has written reflects his old
personality that I knew. He makes claims that have not been verified and
bends the truth to suit his needs. True that alcohol and drugs have
become a problem in the North. It is not because Navy brings it down
but because there are so many unemployed youths who have money in
their hands. It is true that there is a crying need for psychological
services. It is not because state neglects them but because of myriad of
reasons such as shortage Tamil speaking psychiatrists and reluctance of
affected people to seek in help. The few psychiatrists who are there, are
overworked but they are doing a wonderful service in the North. I have
no intention of comment on his claims that armed services have acquired
lands and commercial operations.
What I wish to ask Colombo Telegraph is why would you give such
coverage to a person who is known to have extremely biased views on
nationally important matters?
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Dr Romesh Arya Chakravarti / March 19, 2018

The best solution to the “drugs problem” would be for Sri Lanka to follow
the lead of Uruguay and California (and other US states) and legalise
Cannabis. It could be a valuable cash crop for Sri Lanka.

Brian Senewiratne is still trying to


destroy Sri Lanka’s economy:
The Economy in crisis
Inheriting large budget deficits and dangerously high debt, the Sri Lankan
government has been unable to deliver election promises of jobs and improved
standards of living. Money borrowed from the International Monetary Fund always
comes with conditions which adversely affect those at the bottom of the economic
ladder. Raised food prices and cutting down on subsidies (always insisted on by the
IMF), have serious social and economic effects on the people. Facing a balance of
payments crisis, the Government has been forced to do a U-turn on its campaign
pledges and cancel what it calls “wasteful Chinese-funded infrastructure projects”.
The Government plans to lease the new port and much land for a Chinese-controlled
industrial zone in former President Rajapaksa’s home area in Hambantota. However,
this was met with violent protests in January 2017. Finalising the long-term lease
would have paid off US$ 1.1 billion of the 8 billion owed to China.
Sri Lanka’s debt has risen from Rs 120 billion in 1981 to Rs 10,500 billion (US $ 685
billion) in November 2016. Export earnings are declining. There has also been a
collapse of the States income from 23% of GDP in 1996 to 11.3% in 2014.
There has also been a sharp fall in Sri Lankan production and widening inequality of
income distribution.
Given this economic crisis, a well-planned economic boycott of goods and services
going in and out of Sri Lanka till the Tamil people get their rights is very important.
To be continued…
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Consider the first paragraph:


I am a Sinhalese from the majority community in Sri Lanka. I have campaigned for
the past 70 years for the Tamil people to live with equality, dignity, safety and
without discrimination. I cannot think of any time in the past seven decades that the
outlook for the Tamil people has been more disastrous than it is today.

Let me provide some clarification.

Brian Senewiratne is of Singhalese ethnicity, but cannot read or write Sinhala.


He can understand a bit of the language, but cannot speak it. Moreover, he
hates the language, blaming the Sinhala Only Act for his not getting into
Medicine in Sri Lanka. However, the Sinhala Only Act was introduced in 1956,
when he had already started his medical studies in Cambridge, UK. His failure
to get into Medicine in Sri Lanka was due to the previous law that you needed
at least O’Levels (Grade 10 qualification) in Sinhala or Tamil, which he was
unable to achieve.

He is not from the “majority community in Sri Lanka”. He has lived in Australia,
of which nation he is a citizen, since 1976, when in his own words he “quit Sri
Lanka”. He has always been an outsider in Singhalese society and the
Singhalese community, because he has never spoken the language fluently.
Language is an important determinant of what can reasonably be called the
“Singhalese community”. It means he cannot understand their books and
media, and cannot communicate with them in their own language.

His claim that he has been “campaigning for the past 70 years for the Tamil
people to live with equality, dignity, safety and without discrimination” is a
blatant, self-serving lie. This is evidenced most starkly in his treatment of his
Tamil wife (my mother) who he has described publicly as a his “personal slave”.
She is also the butt of his public jokes about “sleeping Tamils” and private
jokes about “Colombo 7 Tamils”. He has also said, and this is true, that she has
been a moderating influence on his views, but rather than welcoming this, he
continued that “were it not for my Tamil wife I would have been much
stronger”. To an audience of several thousand Tamil Tiger supporters in
Canada, in 2008, my father shouted that he was married to a Tamil and had
been married to this Tamil for 51 years, for which he was applauded. He then
continued to say:
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“Today, it is difficult to be married to anyone for 51 years and to be married to


a Tamil for 51 years is very, very difficult.”

Strangely, and reflecting the crowd’s lack of comprehension of what he said,


he was applauded again.

From 2003 (Brian Senewiratne pages):


Action
In January 2008, I was invited to New Zealand to address a special prayer session in
the Elim Church, Auckland. Rev Prince Devanathan, a soft-spoken Tamil priest
conducting the service said, “We have been praying and praying for Peace for more
than 20 years. But the more we pray, the further we get distanced from Peace. That
is the reality”. He then came out with the finest words I have heard for years –
“Prayer without action is dead”
I’d say the same about an apology. An apology without action is dead. It is this
‘action’ that I have been trying to deliver in the past two and a half decades.
The same holds for protests. To protest, to hold a vigil, to remember the July 1983
massacre is fine. But protests without action is dead.

I urge you to act. To free the Tamil people to live with dignity, and safety in their
area of historical habitation – the North and East. I urge you to act; to act to save
the Tamil people from the Genocide, started in July 1983, and now progressing at an
alarming rate. Like the Welikada prison massacre, it is ¾ done. Act now. Tomorrow
may be too late for the Tamils in the North and East of the ‘Democratic Socialist
Republic of Sri Lanka’, as it likes to call itself.

The Human Rights Crisis In The Tamil North & East: An Appeal For
International Intervention – Part IV
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By Brian Senewiratne –
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Dr. Brian Senewiratne

The Human Rights Crisis In The Tamil North & East: An


Appeal For International Intervention – Part IV – [Part III of
this series was published on 19 March, 2018]
China

China has a stranglehold on Sri Lanka. 4 years ago Sri Lanka built
Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport (MRIA) in Hambantota
(Rajapaksa’s home area) with Chinese assistance of $190 million. Today
MRIA is running at a huge loss and Sri Lanka is unable to pay back dues
to China’s EXIM bank.

China will lend money to countries at high interest rates which the
recipient country is unable to repay. This leads to China getting a
permanent footprint in the country.

Not far from the loss-making airport is the sea port of Hambantota also
built by China. China has recently got a 99-year lease for running the
Hambantota port.

For the Hambantota port project, Sri Lanka borrowed US $ 300 million
from China at interest rates of 6.3%. Interest rates for loans from India
to neighbouring countries is as low as 1%, and even lower.

Sri Lanka is currently unable to pay its debt to China because of its slow
economic growth. To resolve its debt crisis, the Sri Lankan government
has agreed to convert the debt into equity. This will probably lead to
Chinese ownership of the project finally.

Sri Lanka’s decision to hand over the loss-making airport to India is a


move against China’s tightening noose of debt.

China’s “One Belt One Road” (OBOR) project is a global partnership of


China. Touted as a global partnership by China, OBOR is really an
exploitative, colonial stratagem to gain vital assets in smaller countries.

Responsibility to Protect (R2P)

Responsibility to Protect is a global political commitment which was


endorsed by all the members of the UN at the 2005 World Summit, to
prevent genocide, war crimes and crimes against humanity.
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R2P is based on the premise that sovereignty is a responsibility to


protect all its population from mass atrocities and human rights
violations. It is based on a respect for the norms and international law
relating to sovereignty, peace and security, human rights and armed
conflict.

Clearly this is applicable to the North and East of Sri Lanka where the
Tamil people are in need of protection.

Anne-Marie Slaughter from Princeton University called R2P “the most


important shift in our conception of sovereignty since the Treaty of
Westphalia in 1648”.

Louise Arbour from International Crisis Group said that “The


responsibility to protect is the most important and imaginative doctrine
to emerge on the international scene for decades”.

Professor Damien Kingsbury, Deakins University, Australia, has written


an entire book. Sri Lanka and the Responsibility to Protect: politics,
ethnicity and genocide.

I will leave it to lawyers to decide where we go from here. As for me,


knowing the talk-shop that the UN is, I will not be surprised if the
Responsibility to Protect are just three words with no meaning.

Problems in the South

Maithripala Sirisena was elected as President in 2015 almost entirely


because of the votes he received from the Tamil people in the North and
East. In his ‘100-day’ program after he was elected as to what he would
do, the word ‘Tamil’ was not even mentioned.

There is an outstanding recent article “Sri Lanka’s Transition to


Nowhere” published by the International Crisis Group on 16 May 2017.
It spells out what is going on in Sri Lanka, including and especially the
Sinhalese South. It is on the net.

Sirisena is the weakest and most insecure President that Sri Lanka has
ever had. Ranil Wickremasinghe, head of the UNP and Prime Minister, is
in effect the de facto President, Sirisena ( a breakaway from the SLFP)
being the elected President.
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It was Wickremasinghe who prevented Gotabaya Rajapaksa from being


prosecuted (which he should have been on several charges of fraud and
even murder). I am told that there was a specific order from
Wickremasinghe that no action should be taken against Rajapaksa. The
reason for this extraordinary situation is that if the Rajapaksas are wiped
out,(which they will be if the necessary action is taken), Sirisena will lead
the SLFP. By keeping the SLFP divided (between Rajapaksa and Sirisena)
Wickremasinghe has less of a problem.

Wickremasinghe’s past political record is such that this is entirely


credible.

One way or the other, at the next Presidential election I will be most
surprised if Sirisena is re-elected. Into the vacant shoes will step in the
Rajapaksas who are waiting in the wings. Sri Lanka could end up with
Gotabaya Rajapaksa as President and Mahinda Rajapaksa as Prime
Minister. That will be the end of Sri Lanka in general, the Tamils in
particular. I will get back to this dreadful possibility later.

The Sirisena bombshell

On 12 October 2016 in a speech before the military, Sirisena angrily


denounced his own government’s investigations into corruption, saying
that those undertaken by the police and the Commission to Investigate
Alleged Bribery or Corruption (CIABOC) were politically motivated. This
was met with shock and anger by civil society activists and sections of the
public that had backed his government.

By criticising CIABOC and the Financial Crimes Investigation of the


Police, demanding that they inform him in advance of filing charges in
major cases and appearing to protect military suspects, he was seen as
undermining the independence of the investigations.

Four days later, CIABOC Director General, Dilrukshi Dias


Wickremasinghe humiliatingly resigned. In subsequent weeks, Courts
released on bail all remaining military intelligence personnel held on
suspicion of involvement in murder and abduction cases- including the
January 2009 murder of Sunday Leader editor Lasantha Wickrematunge
and the 2010 abduction of cartoonist Prageeth Ekneligoda. The speech
and the releases cast a cloud over ongoing investigations and deepen
doubts about the government’s willingness to pursue cases against the
Armed Forces and the associates of the former regime in the face of
military resistance.
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Politically active Buddhist monks


Politically active Buddhist monks have been the curse in Sri Lanka for
decades. It was one of them who assassinated Prime Minister S.W.R.D.
Bandaranaike in the first political assassination in Sri Lanka. Venerable
Somarama Thero who shot the Prime Minister was convicted of murder
and hanged. Buddharakhitha Thero who was the master mind behind
the assassination was also convicted of murder and sentenced to death.
However, he was reprieved and sentenced to life imprisonment.

The power of these monks is enormous. Buddharakkitha Thero, a


whiskey-drinking monk saw to it that Bandaranaike appointed his
mistress Wimala Wijewardena as the Health Minister. I know all this
because my mother was a devout Buddhist and worshipped in the temple
where Buddharakhitha was the chief priest.

These Buddhist monks have blocked every attempt by every Government


to devolve any power to the Tamils claiming that it is a sell-out of a
Sinhala-Buddhist country to the Tamils.

They are now getting even more violent. The Bodu Bala Sena (Buddhist
Power Force) led by a very violent man in yellow robes who should have
been arrested for threatening the Police and even Ministers in the
Government, remains at large.

As this report is being written, on 6 March 2018, President Sirisena


declared a state of emergency after violent Buddhist monks attacked
Muslim temples, homes and businesses in Kandy. This type of anti-
Muslim violence by extremist Buddhist monks will continue.

With some 20,000 Buddhist monks in Sri Lanka the possibility of an


acceptable solution to the problems facing the Tamil people is not good.

The 2018 Provincial Council elections

On 10 February 2018, elections were held in 340 local authorities


(divisional, urban and municipal councils). The results were a serious
blow to the current government, in particular the President. The
previous President, Mahinda Rajapaksa, launched a new party – the
Podujana Peramuna- which virtually swept the board. Here are the
results:
Party Local authorities
elected
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Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (Mahinda Rajapaksa) 231


United national Party (Ranil Wickremasinghe) 34
Sri Lanka Freedom Party (Maithripala Sirisena) 7
Illankai Tamil Arasa Kachchu (Tamil party) 41

Presidential elections are not due till January 2020. If they are held now,
it is very likely thet President Sirisena will be defeated and the
Rajapaksas will be back in power. Mahinda Rajapaksa cannot contest the
Presidency because he has already held the maximum number of terms.
However, his brother, Gotabaya, a US citizen, can contest provided he
renounces his American citizenship.

In a recent interview, Gotabaya Rajapaksa said that if he is ‘called upon’


to do so (contest the Presidency), he will do so. So, in January 2020,
there is the possibility of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa and Prime
Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa.

Here is what the ICG publication, “Sri Lanka’s Transition to


Nowhere” said about a return to the Rajapaksas “Sri Lanka’s
international partners should send a clear message to President
Sirisena and his wing of the SLFP that reunifying the party around
either Gotabaya or Mahinda Rajapaksa will not only damage Sri
Lanka’s long-term prospects for sustainable peace but also endanger
the international backing it has recently regained”.

Sri Lanka’s Coalition government is falling apart

In January 2015, Maithripala Sirisena, the Health Minister in the


Mahinda Rajapaksa government and the General Secretary of his party,
the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), decided to contest Rajapaksa at the
Presidential election, and won.

The presidential election was followed in August 2015 by the


parliamentary election which was won by the United National Party
(UNP)-led coalition over a group led by former President Rajapaksa and
most of Sirisena’s own SLFP.

That allowed Sirisena to convince the fractured SLFP to form an


unprecedented national unity government with its bitter UNP rival, led
by Ranil Wickremasinghe who was elected Prime Minister.
Most of the SLFP politicians who quit the SLFP with Sirisena never
accepted the SLFP-UNP coalition, especially since they were treated as
the ‘junior partners’ rather than equals.
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This has now come to a head especially because of Prime Minister


Wickremesinghe’s arrogance and unilateral policy making.

There has been increasing tensions between President Sirisena and


Prime Minister Wickremasinghe, with Sirisena asking Wickremasinghe
to step down as Prime Minister – which, of course, Wickremasinghe
flatly refused to do.

Much of the current chaos has been set out in the publication already
referred to by the International Crisis Group (Brussels) titled “Sri
Lanka’s Transition to Nowhere”. For the current publication what is
important are the “Recommendations”

 Restore civilian authority and build confidence in the north and east by:-
1. expediting and making more transparent the return of military occupied land
to its owners;
2. ending military involvement in farms and shops that harm local businesses;
3. ending military involvement of Buddha statues in Tamil and Muslim areas; and
4. ceasing intimidation and surveillance of lawful political activities.
5.
This very important paper was published on 30/01/17 and updated on
16/05/17 – well before the recent (March 2018) provincial council
elections in which Sirisena’s party was routed by the new party formed
by the previous President Mahinda Rajapaksa.
A follow-up publication by ICG will be worth reading.

International pressure

The need for international pressure on the Sri Lankan government has
been mentioned several times in this publication.

The ICG publication “Sri Lanka’s Transition to Nowhere” states


that ”Internationals have been too quick to celebrate a Sri Lanka
success story and failed to maximise their leverage…….Without
significant external pressure, the government is unlikely to pursue
reforms seriously enough”.

There is no straightforward answer to this. What is important is that


people should focus on this critically important issue which is the only
answer to the continuing human rights problems in Sri Lanka.

Can anything be done?


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Something will have to be done to save Sri Lanka, in general, the Tamils
in particular. Here I will only deal with the latter.

In Sri Lanka

On 14 September 2016, there was a massive protest in Jaffna. Some


15,000 Tamils took part in the largest protest since the end of the armed
conflict. Called ‘Ezhuki Thamizh (Let Tamils rise) thousands of Tamils
from all eight provinces in the North and East came to protest in Jaffna
which was ground down to a halt. Despite thousands of members of the
Armed Forces, the crowd could not care less. It was ‘people power’ on
show.

They were protesting against the military occupation of the North and
East and the chauvinistic policies of the Sri Lankan government
including Sinhalisation of the Tamil areas. A long list of problems faced
by the Tamil people was displayed. I wrote a piece about this which is on
the net (Colombo Telegraph, 4 October 2016).

On 10 February 2017, there was another massive rally in Batticaloa in the


east denouncing the unitary state and genocide being envisaged in the
Constitutional proposals.

On 12 October 2017, there was another complete work stoppage in Jaffna,


a showdown against the Government which continues to practice
inaction, duplicity and political chicanery.

These protests must be supported because they are crucial.

Outside Sri Lanka

With more than 1 million Tamils living in all the important countries in
the world, these expatriate Tamils are the strongest force that those in
the Sri Lankan North and East have got. Unfortunately, this massive
force is divided for petty reasons or, more recently, have become
apathetic and have not appreciated the gravity of the situation facing the
Tamil people. Here is what they can do:

1. Get the message to the world of what is going on in the North and East –
especially the fact that the area is a military/police state.
2. People cannot exist if their lands are taken over and their occupation,
agriculture and fishing, are prevented.
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HUB Forensics

3. The Tamil people in this area do not live, they merely exist. Even that is
becoming increasingly difficult.
4. Jaffna is awash with drugs and alcohol brought by the Sri Lankan Navy from
India. Those who disbelieve this must go to Jaffna and talk to the people. To go
there and live in a 5-star hotel or with family and then say that all is well is
adding to the problem, in addition to being untrue.
5. Torture is taking place in at least 40 sites – mainly Police stations and Army
Camps. The Joseph camp in the middle of Vavuniya and the CID 4th Floor in
Colombo must be visited even if they are told that they are not a ‘tourist
attraction.’
6. Do what was done to Apartheid South Africa – isolate Sri Lanka.
7. Say ‘No’ to Sri Lanka is worth supporting.
8. Goods and services in and out of Sri Lanka, especially tourism, must stop.
There are many places with golden beaches and sea such as Bali in Indonesia
and Phuket in Thailand where the beaches are not blood stained.
9. This publication and the dozen dvds I have recorded on the Tamil struggle must
be distributed.
10.The fact that unless the international community, especially the aid-donors act,
the Tamils will cease to exist as a people. That is genocide.
11.The best way to find out what is going on in Sri Lanka is by going there. Get
your MP and others in positions of power to go there and see what is going
on.
12.Time is crucial. You must act now. Tomorrow may be too late for the Tamils.
13.If you cannot go to Sri Lanka, let ‘Sri Lanka’ (asylum seekers) come to you.
Listen to what they tell you. They know full well the ground situation in the
Tamil areas.
14.Check the outstanding publications of Yasmin Sooka – ITJP.
15.Read what international human rights organisations such as AI, HRW and ICG
publish.
16.More important than all of these, get involved. The future of an entire nation –
the Tamil Nation of Sri Lanka – is at stake.
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HUB Forensics

Latest Comments


Ad / March 22, 2018

16

“Sirisena is the weakest and most insecure President that Sri Lanka has ever had.” Obviously the clumsiest.
People should be educated to elect a new person to be next president who should wipe out corruption
completely. Non from the existing rotting consignment.
REPLY


Spring Koha / March 22, 2018

The show goes on, our Brian is attempting our own War and Peace.
Still, as long Sri Lanka keeps on giving him ammunition, he will write.
If nothing else, what he writes should remind us how not to the next time around.
REPLY


Dr Romesh Senewiratne-Alagaratnam / March 22, 2018

42

Brian, you have written, as a suggestion for what the expatriate Tamils
can do: “This publication and the dozen dvds I have recorded on the
Tamil struggle must be distributed.”
I don’t like being the one to tell you this, but the “dozen DVDs” you have
made are clumsy home-made propaganda that has been freely available
on YouTube for many years. They are inaccurate regarding the facts you
have provided and you expect your audience to accept your wild claims
without evidence, on the basis of your uninformed assertions. Your most
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recent publication completely fails to acknowledge the manifold crimes


of the LTTE, and your propaganda DVDs consistently minimise them.
Far from having a positive effect and comments, there have been few
views of your DVDs despite being on the Internet for many years, and a
generally negative appraisal from viewers. This is despite your making
the videos as gory as possible to try and shock your audiences. You need
to come to terms with the fact that your side lost the war, and accept this
with good grace and dignity.
REPLY

o
Anpu / March 22, 2018

18

11

You are a horrible and an ignorant man. I am not surprised.


REPLY

o
Burning Issue / March 22, 2018

31

Romesh,
“You need to come to terms with the fact that your side lost the war, and
accept this with good grace and dignity.”
The war is lost and it should not have started in the first place! Both
“grace and dignity” should be espoused by both parties. Brian will not be
penning such articles, if the victors showed magnanimity will he?
“This is despite your making the videos as gory as possible to try and
shock your audiences.”
Brian does not need to make the videos “as gory as possible” because the
events were gory as they came. If you dispute, please show us in deeds
that Brian is wrong.
We Tamils know that we messed up but you on the other hand is in
denial that the Sinhala are incapable of governing justly; the likes of you
ever prepared to find excuses and show is going on.
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What excuse have you for the Sinhala Buddhists to attack the Muslims?
REPLY


Jim softy / March 23, 2018

11

BURNING ISSUE: WE TAMILS KNOW WE MESHED UP. A fight between 15 million sinhala people some
of hwom were for the Fake struggle. !00 million Tamils including those 65 million in Tamilnadu could
Orumiththa nadu. How is Sinhala Janapada Kalyani from Katubedda area, Are you going to marry her or
do you love her ? diooes she kno that you are Tribalist..I heard you do not lie VELONA instead you buy
cloths from Tamilnadu imports. How do you feel about muslims girls ? did you find a place to move in for
both. Any jungle parties, you were drunk and talking, remember.
REPLY


Eagle Eye / March 23, 2018

14

Burning Issue,
At Aluthgama and Kandy Muslims attacked Sinhala Buddhists first. Some people who have followed what
happened at Aluthgama and Kandy say they have video evidences to prove that Muslims attacked first.
Then there was a backlash. International media blame Sinhala Buddhists as the culprits. Who was really
behind these incidences? Tamil Diaspora; Norway; Evangelical Church; See Eye A; Hindia??? Ampara and
Kandy incidences were well planned to coincide with UNHRC meeting to discredit Sri Lanka.
REPLY


Burning Issue / March 23, 2018

Jim and Eagle,


Sorry I do not debate with idiots!
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REPLY


Native Vedda / March 23, 2018

Burning Issue

“Jim and Eagle, Sorry I do not debate with idiots!”

But I do.
REPLY


Dr Romesh Senewiratne-Alagaratnam / March 24, 2018

Hi BI.
This is called “The New Killing Fields of Asia” (2007) by Brian
Senewiratne
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ohU9UKXHexM&t=1s
It has had 64 views in 2 years, since it was uploaded to YouTube, with 3
dislikes and no likes.
The effort to link his ‘documentary’ with the successful movie about the
1970s Cambodian genocide by Pol Pot’s regime is obvious, and was later
repeated by the British Channel 4. It begins with a summary of the races
in Sri Lanka and their arrival to the country, but fails to mention
Veddhas (or the evidence of early man in Sri Lanka from Balangoda
30,000 years ago). The inaccuracies are too many to explain in a
comment on CT, but even you should be able to notice how little he says
about the crimes of the LTTE.
His later videos include atrocity photos that were taken from TamilNet,
and were also used by Vaiko and Bruce Fein in their video presentations.
These came from the LTTE propaganda department, and include some
killings that were probably done by the LTTE rather than the SL Armed
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Forces. Photos of the many atrocities perpetrated by the LTTE against


Singhalese civilians were not included.
I do not make excuses for Sinhalese attacking Muslims.
REPLY

o
Taraki / March 22, 2018

25

Well said Dr Romesh. It is hard for you to write this about your own, but
you have done so. Well done.
REPLY

o
Jim softy / March 23, 2018

12

Exactly, LTTE rump is still mourning their loss. So, they wrtie funny articles which make us Believe this
Tamil Doctor is losing his analytical ability.
REPLY

o
Susan Somalingam / March 23, 2018

18

Romesh,
You need to specify exactly which items in Brian’s DVDs are inaccurate. In my view,
you are making a false statement about the accuracy of these DVDs.
Brian has written the foreword to the book, which documents in great details the
human rights violations committed until around 1988, by the Indian army, SL
military, LTTE and other Tamil armed groups. Also, he condemned the LTTE’s
murder of one of the authors, Dr. Rajini Thiranagama.
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Brian did not make the DVDs as gory as possible! It is the murders, HR violations
and other incidents committed by the SL military which are gory!
Why do you pretend that you have not read human rights reports on Sri Lanka,
written, by HRW, ICG, AI and different UN orgs? According to these international
organizations, the GOSL and SL military committed much more murders and human
rights violations, than the LTTE.
REPLY


Susan Somalingam / March 23, 2018

15

This is the book, also available online:


The Broken Palmyra – The Tamil Crisis in Sri Lanka: An Inside Account By Rajan
Hoole, Daya Somasundaram, K.Sritharan and Rajani Thiranagama. Published by The
Sri Lanka Studies Institute, Claremont, CA; April 1990 , pages 481. Library of
Congress Catalog Card No. 90 – 61314
REPLY


Dr Romesh Senewiratne-Alagaratnam / March 24, 2018

Susan,
In the foreword to Broken Palmyrah, Brian Senewiratne says “we may
never know who killed Rajini Thirinagama” when he knew full well that
it was the LTTE. I personally attended a meeting in Brisbane in 1990,
shortly after her killing, where he tried to blame the Sri Lankan
government for the murder.
The inaccuracies in his DVDs are obvious to an unbiased viewer. They
are too many to explain in a single CT comment, and I won’t try. HRW,
ICG and AI have demonstrated their bias against several countries,
including Sri Lanka. I don’t read their reports any more.
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REPLY

o
Kumaraya / March 23, 2018

Now Sri Lanka’s agenda is exposed in the UN; The delaying tactics, impunity, Monks brutality etc. View the
links for more information
MOUNTING JUSTIFICATION FOR TAMILS TO RESORT TO SELF-DETERMINATION AND
RFERENDUM
https://www.academia.edu/35415017/MOUNTING_JUSTIFICATION_FOR_TAMILS_TO_RESORT_TO
_SELF-DETERMINATION_AND_RFERENDUM
https://www.academia.edu/34151481/SRI_LANKAS_CREDIBILITY_AND_UNS_RESPONSIBILITIES
https://www.academia.edu/34202740/SRI_LANKAS_GENOCIDE_OF_TAMILS
https://www.academia.edu/28419263/chemical_weapons_used_to_wipe_out_the_Tamils_in_Sri_Lanka
https://www.academia.edu/34826116/Frequent_visits_by_UN_special_Rapporteurs_and_Sri_Lankas_d
efiance_in_implementing_their_recommendations
REPLY

o
Native Vedda / March 23, 2018

11

Dr Romesh Senewiratne-Alagaratnam

When did your dad release you from captivity?
Hope you are alright now.
Why don’t you take your family quarrel/dispute to your dinning table?
REPLY


Dr Romesh Senewiratne-Alagaratnam / March 24, 2018

NV
https://www.facebook.com/HUBForensics
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What is a dinning table? It that where you create a din?


My father did not release me from captivity – the hospital did (though I
was locked up because of false reports by my parents that I was ‘deluded’
to believe that my father was a supporter of the LTTE). His most recent
self-published book praises and glorifies the LTTE and is dedicated to
them (as well as to the bosses of the TGTE).
REPLY

o
Native Vedda / March 23, 2018

12

Dr Romesh Senewiratne-Alagaratnam

Please do take Taraki with you when you meet your dad in order to arbitrate between
you and your dad.

Are you saying there has been zero Civilian causality in Sri lanka from 5th April 1971
and Jan 2015.
REPLY


Dr Romesh Senewiratne-Alagaratnam / March 24, 2018

Native Veddha
1. You can arbitrate yourself, if you want.
2. I don’t say silly things, but there is a difference between civilian
casualties and deliberately targeting civilians. The LTTE deliberately
targeted civilians on numerous occasions (including Tamil civilians). I
am not convinced that the Sri Lankan armed forces did. But there were
many civilians killed. I don’t know how many, and neither do you.
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REPLY


Jim softy / March 22, 2018

14

Brian Senevirathna: did Mahinda Rajapakse, when you met him, says that JEsudasan has written many
sinhala – nationalist songs ?
REPLY

o
Tamil from the north / March 23, 2018

13

Jimba Shitty, this is not a place for a simpleton like you. This is a place where people with intelligence
gather to write comments. Please find some nationalist garbage newspaper for you to write something. Bye
bye!!!!!!!!!!!!
REPLY


Jim softy / March 22, 2018

10

I heard, you met him in Jayakodi junction a man who is selling mustard oil, remember. he gve you some
news.
REPLY


Eagle Eye / March 22, 2018

8
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21

Of course there is a human rights crisis in the North and East. Yapanaya Wellala Demalu discriminate
against Yapanaya Daliths. Yapanaya Wellala Demalu discriminate against Tirikunamale Demalu. Yapanaya
Wellala Demalu and Tirikunamale Demalu discriminate against Madakalapuwa Demalu. Yapanaya Wellala
Demalu, Tirikunamale Demalu and Madakalapuwa Demalu discriminate against Wathu Demalu.
International community please do something about this.
REPLY


Jim softy / March 23, 2018

I heard Tamils live in the South are changing their names. Ambala Vaanar and thiruvanakarsu are two
difficult names to translate. but the govt does not have a policy to issue birth certificates in converted
sinhala names and had asked, instead , to take a sinhala name
REPLY


Jim softy / March 23, 2018

Brian Senaratahne: I heard Jesus is born in Sri lanka and he is still eating milk rice as rolled balls. That is
his Samsaric habit I heard. He likes to chase behind goats and the child (A female) is very beautiful just like
a porcelain statue. I heard you were told by Chintamani to meet at Isipathanaramaya in Magadha desha,
Hidia.
REPLY


Hela / March 23, 2018

18

Brian’s articles very well explains why there’s a need for majority Sinhala people to
have their organisations to protect themselves. The articles demonstrates how
external forces such as ICG interfere in Sri Lanka and determine the personalities
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who should govern the country! No amount of Sinhala bashing in websites like CT
can take away the threat Sinhalese and Sri Lanka face. This amply justifies Sinhalese
actions to defend the nation & the country.
REPLY

o
Native Vedda / March 23, 2018

11

Hela

“Brian’s articles very well explains why there’s a need for majority Sinhala people to have their
organisations to protect themselves.”

True Sinhala and Buddhist people need to protect themselves from Sinhala/Buddhist fascists, in other
words they need protection from you, somass, jimmy, sach, Shenali Waduge, Dayan, Gota, Wimal,
Basil, …………………….
REPLY


Percy / March 24, 2018

Romesh Seneviratne
Unfortunately you have an arsehole of a father, a man who has betrayed his
birthright, and is an unmitigated traitor. We can see the falsehoods, the fabrications,
and the blatant manouverings of your despicable father for whom an unimaginable
end is in store. What is his life worth? I was told that the local council is now trying
to evict him from his house for not paying his rates and that Tamil Sangam is
collecting funds to bail him out. A special place in hell should be reserved for him.
REPLY

o
Dr Romesh Senewiratne-Alagaratnam / March 24, 2018

1
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Percy, you are misinformed. The Brisbane City Council is not trying to
evict my father. They previously charged him (many years ago) with
damage to protected vegetation, for which he sought support from the
expatriate Tamils. This issue is now resolved (my parents paid a fine)
and they have since sold most of the rest of their land on which over 15
new houses are being built,. He has plenty of money to pay his rates.
REPLY


Hela / March 24, 2018

Don’t complain folks………you declare war on this nation………you would


be surprised at the determination of this nation to defend itself……………
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BS on ABC

Australian Tamil rights advocate


decries deportation from
Singapore
Updated 18 December 2012, 15:12 AEDT

An 81-year-old Australian doctor says he was locked in a small cell without food,
water or toilet access for more than five hours, before being deported back to
Australia from Singapore on Saturday.

Australian Tamil rights advocate decries deportation from Singapore (Credit: ABC)

Dr Brian Senewiratne is a Sri Lankan-born Australian who has been a long-time critic of the Sri Lankan
Government over its treatment of Tamils.

He was on his way to Malaysia and Indonesia to speak at forums on the Tamil refugee issue, when his
deportation took place.

Presenter: Liam Cochrane


Speaker: Dr Brian Senewiratne, Tamil rights advocate

SENEWIRATNE: There's one thing I might add to your introduction which I heard. I am actually a
Singhalese from the Majority community. I am not a member of the Tamil community and my cousin was
the previous president of Sri Lanka. So I've got nothing to gain personally from getting involved in all this
except the good name of Australia, because its handling of the asylum seeker problem is a violation of the
UN Refugee Convention, the UN Rights of the Child and Human Rights Convention. [he did have
something to gain – he was given trips around the world, money, applause and praise, and he wanted to be
made the first professor of medicine in the new country (Tamil Eelam) if the Tamil Tigers won the war]

COCHRANE: OK.

SENEWIRATNE: So I thought I would just add that to your introduction.


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COCHRANE: That is helpful to give us the context of where you're coming from and how you fit into the
political and ethnic background of this obviously highly charged issue. So tell us from what...

SENEWIRATNE: And I have been campaigning from 1948, when as a 16 year-old boy I protested at the
disenfranchisement of the plantation Tamils of Indian origin.

COCHRANE: Well, we might come up to recent times and talk about why you were heading to Malaysia in
the first place. What was the point of your trip?

SENEWIRATNE: The point of the trip was that I was invited to come to Malaysia by concerned Malaysians
who said, look, Malaysia is part of this refugee problem and to either allow them to sink in the ocean or to
lock them up in Malaysian so-called detention centres or whatever is unacceptable. Will you please come
and give us a run down of the situation regarding the push factors in Sri Lanka as well as the plight of the
refugees and I said yes, beside of the fact that I'm 81 and in heart failure. I will come.

COCHRANE: Were you planning on engaging in any protests or any potentially illegal activities?

SENEWIRATNE: No, I had two closed doors invited meetings of senior Malaysian human rights and
leading members of society. They were closed meetings. They were not advertised and there were two
meetings, one in Jahore, which is just adjoining Singapore and in Kuala Lumpur. They were not open
meetings. I was not there with a megaphone on the streets urging revolts or anything like that.

COCHRANE: OK. So those were your plans. You've left Australia, you've arrived in Singapore. What
happened to you in Singapore?

SENEWIRATNE: Right. I left Australia at 11.45 on Thursday 13th. December, arrived at Singapore Changi
Airport at 5 am. I filled up the immigration form that they give you. I took my passport and went to the
immigration, customs counter. The guy typed in my details and then looked at me and looked at the screen
and raised his eyebrows and this raising of the eyebrows went on three times and I realised that there
seemed to be some problem. And he said, a momento, I'll just get my boss. The boss came and led me to
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a room, maybe ten foot by ten foot, maybe a little bigger, with a couple of seats and I was asked to sit there
and there was no toilet, no food, no drink, no nothing. And I sat there 8.30, (word indistinct) 5.30, 6, 6.30, 7,
and in the meantime there were Tamil boys or boys coming in and out talking in Tamil which is the
language I don't understand, but nothing happened to me.

COCHRANE: Did you at any point request further facilities from the airport staff?

SENEWIRATNE: No, I didn't request security from anybody, because there was nothing to secure.

COCHRANE: Not security, any facilities. Did you ask for a drink, water, a toilet break?

SENEWIRATNE: Oh, well I said, look, I've not had food from 4 o'clock this morning. They said well, that's
tough luck.

COCHRANE: And what did they say. Why did they say they were keeping you detained in the airport?

SENEWIRATNE: The deportation order came, was handed to me later and if you want me to read it out
right now I can.

COCHRANE: Can you give us the overall gist of it. What's the main thrust of it?

SENEWIRATNE: It's one sentence. This is to inform you that you are being refused entry into Singapore for
1, 2, 3, 4. The fourth reason is tick, being ineligible for the issue of a pass under immigration policies. That
was handed to me by the armed guard with a revolver in his pocket who took me to the aeroplane.

COCHRANE: That's a fairly vague reason for denying you access and deporting you. Do you have any,
were you given any further ideas perhaps verbally about why you were being detained?
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SENEWIRATNE: Why I asked, what are these, what exactly do you mean by immigration policies? The
police officer with a gun said, well, I'm only a police officer. I said, well, ask the boss who sent you there to
explain to me what these immigration policies are? He said, look, you are going to the plane, right. So now
you come with me and that was it. And I said, what about my passport? He said, no, you're not going to get
your passport. I said can I go to Indonesia where I had a hotel booked. They said no, you're not going
anywhere. You're going straight back to this place and they opened the door of the plane, took me to the
last, one but the last row, told me to strap myself in and he said goodbye and left, that's it.

COCHRANE: Now, have you been in contact. Well first of all, let me ask you, have you been prevented
from travelling before, especially to Malaysia?

SENEWIRATNE: Yes, I was. In 2008, I had an international award awarded to me in recognition of my


contribution to human rights by 22 groups in Canada, these are NGOs in Canada and I was invited to
Canada to deliver my acceptance speech and receive the award, which I haven't, which I did.

On the way back, I was asked by Malaysia, can you please come to Malaysia. There are about 20,000
people here waiting to hear you and deliver the same address. I said, yep, if you've got police permission
and it's all above board. He said it's a dinner party for a start. [a rather big ‘dinner party’ if he expected
20,000 people – elsewhere he has said 5000 people where waiting to hear him in Malaysia] Can you come?
I said yep, of course I can. So I flew into Kuala Lumpur, I got exactly the same treatment. I was kept in a
room without food or drink or water or anything like that and then walked before a lady with a veil on her
head who said I am deporting you. I said on what grounds. She said because your presence in Malaysia is
a threat to Malaysian security. I said Madam, if an unarmed doctor on medicine, I was 78 at that time. If a
doctor of medicine who had never carried a weapon in his life [not true, he was a shooter] and never had
advocated violence [he supported the Tamil Tigers and called them freedom fighters rather than terrorists]
is a threat to Malaysian security, then your security can't be crash hot. He said I don't care what you think
of Malaysia, but you are being deported right now.

COCHRANE: OK. So let's return to the incident that happened on Saturday, your most recent detention in
Singapore. You've explained to us the official reasons that you were given fairly vague reasons relating to
immigration policy. Why do you believe you were detained and deported?
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SENEWIRATNE: I believe that the government of Sri Lanka is in cahoots with Malaysia certainly, possibly
Indonesia, certainly Australia, because I was harassed even on the arrival in Brisbane where I've been a
resident for 37 years and an Associate Professor of Medicine. I couldn't even get back to this country,
back ...

COCHRANE: What was the problem in the Brisbane airport?

SENEWIRATNE: At Brisbane airport, I was searched and detained for at the immigration people who went
through every single stitch of luggage that I was carrying for nearly three hours and then the immigration
officer who had been a patient of mine, I think, because he came to me and said Doctor, don't hold it
against us. We are not responsible. I said look, I know that, but I want to know who is responsible?

COCHRANE: Have you been able to get in contact with the Australian authorities since returning?

SENEWIRATNE: No, I didn't. Since returning this time, yesterday?

COCHRANE: Yes.

SENEWIRATNE: No, I haven't, because the Foreign Minister of Australia is currently distributing your
money and mine in Rajapaksa's regime 35 million dollars and he's actually in Colombo. I'm sending a letter
to the Department of Foreign Affairs right now and I'm carrying a letter, a copy of a letter, in another hour's
time to my member of Federal member of Parliament one, Kevin Rudd and asking him what he is going to
do about it.

COCHRANE: Who is, of course, Australia's former prime minister. What do you hope that Kevin Rudd will
do?
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SENEWIRATNE: I don't care what he does, but I am a member of his. I have voted for him. He has known
me for 20 years. He called me Brian introduces me to other people as a worker, both in health as well as in
human rights and he knows me very well. And I'm going to say, Kevin, you have to put your money where
your mouth is and tell me exactly what you're going to do about it. I'm sending a copy to Sarah Hanson-
Young and to Senator Lee Rhiannon and former senator Bob Brown to table this in parliament and I'm
going to send a copy to Bishop Desmond Tutu whom I have met a couple of years ago and whose very
well, who very well realises the situation and I'm asking him whether he can contact Justice Navanethem
Pillay in the UN Human Rights Council to table it.

NOTE: An Australian Foreign Affairs Department spokesperson says "We are aware of media
reports that an Australian man was deported from Singapore. The man did not approach Australian
consular officials for assistance before he was deported."

Provisional diagnosis – delusions of grandeur, grandiosity, narcissistic


personality disorder, grey propagandist.

What he didn’t say – the truth about his meetings in Canada and Malaysia and
who organized them, or his role as a ‘senator’ of the ‘Transnational
Government of Tamil Eelam’ (TGTE).
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UK Channel 4 Videos On Sri Lanka: Background Is Essential

By Brian Senewiratne

18 March, 2012
Countercurrents.org

The Channel 4 News videos on the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka are about the
most important contributions to apprise the world of what has gone on, and
is still going on, behind the closed and censored doors of Sri Lanka.

There are now two documentaries, Sri Lanka's Killing Fields released in
June 2011, and Sri Lanka 's killing Fields. War Crimes
Unpunished released in March 2012. They contain crucial evidence of war
crimes and crimes against humanity, if not Genocide of the Tamils.

The world needs to see these, since all that comes out of Sri Lanka is what
the Sri Lankan Government wants the world to believe. That is what a
Totalitarian does – to shut down the Media, among other repressive
measures. It is therefore essential that these dreadful atrocities be seen by
as many people as possible.

There is, however, a problem with these Channel 4 videos. There is no


background information which is so important to appreciate why these
atrocities occurred. If this is not provided, then these videos are nothing but
yet another ‘horror movie'. What has gone on in the war waged by the
Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) on the Tamil people (not just the Tamil
Tigers), is much more than a horror story.

The dozen dvds I have recorded on the plight of the Tamil people has
essential information on this. I do not expect people to wade through this
mass of information, but the last of these, “ Sri Lanka , Genocide, Crimes
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against Humanity, Violation of International Law”, contains all that is


needed.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gyiqtp4WVO4&index=13&list=PLEj8
di1CMqDv65cS8e6dnBMIduTSC9ME-&t=429s

For those who want more information, this will be found in my “ Sri Lanka .
Humanitarian Crisis in the Tamil areas. An Appeal to stop the slaughter
and ensure Peace with Justice” which is in two volumes, an hour each.
These are too long for the ‘average' viewer.

What I have done in Brisbane , Australia , when these Channel 4 dvds are
shown, is to start the meeting with a powerpoint presentation based on
information in my shorter dvd. This takes about 15-20 minutes. It provides
the basic information – the ethnoreligous and language set up, Sinhala
populist politics to get elected to power by discriminating against the
Tamils to get the votes of the Sinhala-Buddhist population (70% of the
population), peaceful protests by the Tamils for years at this discrimination,
and when they failed, a resort to an armed conflict, essentially a liberation
struggle to free the Tamil people from Sinhala domination. These
systematic and recurring pogroms against the Tamils and the ‘need' to wipe
out the Tamils, by committing Genocide of the Tamils if necessary, was
‘necessary' to make multiethnic, multilingual, multirelgious Sri Lanka, into
a Sinhala-Buddhist nation.

It is in this setting and with this agenda, that President Rajapaksa launched
his murderous assault, the closing stages of which are seen in the Channel 4
videos. My dvds are not as heinous as the Channel 4 videos, but cover a
much wider time-frame, and show that Rajapaksa only completed what a
succession of Sinhalese leaders, at least since 1956, have wanted to do but
were not barbaric enough attempt. The Rajapaksas had no such problems.
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If it was ‘necessary' to murder the entire Tamil population in the North and
East and/or make them ‘non-people', they were more than happy to do so.
All they needed was an Army commander with the same mind-set, and in
General Sarath Fonseka, they found the man and his interview with a
Canadian newspaper a couple of years ago.

I then go on to show the weapons that the GoSL unleashed on the Tamil
people and the human and structural damage done. “Now that you know
the background and the agenda of the Sri Lankan government, I will now
show you the end stages of this massacre of Tamils in the Channel 4 video
- Sri Lanka's Killing Fields - obtained from Sinhalese soldiers who
recorded these on their mobile phones as grisly ‘war trophies' I now have
the Channel 4 video screened.

I then return to the podium and ask whether there are any points which the
audience wants clarified. If so, I do.

I then throw the ball into their court, “ Now that you have seen what has
gone on and is still going on behind the closed and censored door of Sri
Lanka , what are you going to do about it? If it is simply to express horror
and go home, then the whole point of seeing these videos is lost. It is not
just a blood bath, it is more, much more. It is Genocide being committed
with international observers excluded from the area – Genocide without
witnesses, are you going to let that go uninvestigated and unpunished? ”.
To counter any ‘patriotic Sinhalese', and those who support the murderous
Rajapaksa regime and claim that the Tamil Tigers have been crushed
and “terrorism has been wiped out” , I ask the obvious question, “If that is
so, and there are happy smiling Tamil people in the Tamil North and East,
why is Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, International Crisis
Group and International Media still not allowed to enter the area and
speak with these happy people?”
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I point out that these are questions that must be raised with “your
parliamentarians” asking them what they intend to do about it. If they
intend to do nothing, then they will have to be prepared to admit thousands
of asylum seekers and refugees, fleeing a barbaric regime in Sri Lanka .

As for the size of the audience, I do not think it matters. I have addressed
and shown these videos to 10 or 300. The presentation is what matters, not
the number of recipients.

I have been to meetings organized by others where just the Channel 4 video
has been shown. After the meeting, non-Sri Lankans have come up to me
and asked, “ Are not the Tamils the terrorists?” I tell them that Tamils are
citizens of the country who have been in the country probably (on
archeological evidence) for many centuries before the Sinhalese ever got
there. I tell them that if after what they have seen they ask such questions,
it is clear that they have no idea of what has gone on (and is still going on),
in Sri Lanka. Since this is clearly the case from the question asked, they
should organize another meeting where I will set out the basic facts about
Sri Lanka and the complex ethnic problem in that country, which the Sri
Lankan government is happy to dismiss as ‘ nothing but Tamil terrorism '.
At most of the meetings I organize, I have a copy of the Channel 4 dvd (and
now both dvds), and my dvd on ‘ Sri Lanka : Genocide, Crimes against
Humanity, Violation of International Law' . These are handed around free,
with a request that instead of payment, I would appreciate it if it can be
passed on to others, who can contact me if they want me to organize a
meeting for them. This is obviously in Australia only. For other countries,
someone else (one or, hopefully, many) will have to do this.

I will be more than happy to send the dvds and even the powerpoint
presentation I have referred to – at no cost. All I need is a postal address.

To do so in Sri Lanka is a little more difficult with a murderous regime


running the country. However, it is crucially important that my people, the
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Sinhalese, know what their Government has done (and is still doing) in
their name.

I do not believe that the majority of Sinhalese are barbarians despite their
‘celebration' of Rajapaksa's 'victory'. I do believe that many, indeed most, of
them will be horrified if they see what their Government has done to the
Tamil civilians in the North and East. It must be remembered that in 1983
when the J.R.Jayawardene government organized and conducted the 1983
Tamil pogrom in Colombo and the South, it was my people, the Sinhalese,
who risked life and limb to save hundreds, if not thousands, of Tamils. Had
they not done so, far more than 3,000 Tamils would have been butchered
by Jayewardene's hoodlums and the thugs in yellow robes. Just for the
record, my mother was a staunch Buddhist and I have gone to Buddhist
temples with her for years.

It is also important to get the point across to the Sinhalese that yesterday it
was the Tamil people, tomorrow it will be the Sinhalese, since this is what
Totalitarian regimes have done for centuries – wipe out all who hold an
opposing point of view or protest at, say, the rising cost of living (as is
already happening in Sri Lanka. The blueprint is there.

My dvds will not be allowed into Sri Lanka . They will have to be smuggled
in – a risky operation. The best I can suggest is that they be uploaded on to
the internet. Someone in Sri Lanka might be able to download them. The
same hold for the Channel 4 videos. I doubt if these will be freely available
in Sri Lanka . However they are on the net – in a dedicated site thanks to
Channel 4, and will remain there. The GoSL could well block this access as
it has done to Tamilnet.

If we do not do this, the disinformation campaign that a succession of Sri


Lankan governments have carried out both abroad and even in the Sri
Lankan South, will ‘succeed' and the world will remain ignorant of what
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goes on in one of the most repressive and brutal countries in the world –
masquerading as a ‘Democracy'.

There is, of course, a price to pay. In Sri Lanka , it will be the arrival of a
“White Van”, and that is it.

In counties outside Sri Lanka it is intrusion by ‘patriotic' Sinhalese who


disrupt meetings (many of mine have been, but I now know how to handle
these – get the ‘Security people' to throw them out).

The other problem is telephone abuse. For at least three days after each of
my talks or articles, I can look forward to abusive phone calls – “You
mother f…..g Tamil Tiger c…t” etc. These come 15 minutes apart, day and
night, to disrupt my work, and to make sure that I do not sleep. I respond to
these using the Queens English rather than get into the verbal gutter with
the caller. I say, “Sir/Madam (some are), I have always treated my mother
with the utmost respect. If this is what you do to your mother, then you
have a problem. May I suggest that you call my Secretary for an
appointment to see me and I will point you in the right direction. I am
sorry to disappoint you, but I am not a Tamil, nor a Tiger. As a student of
human anatomy, may I also point out that your description of me is
anatomically impossible. The organ needed for one act is not present in
those who have the other. So you have to make up your mind as to what I
have – it cannot be both. Thank you for calling. Feel free to call again but
try and keep to the Queens English and not get into the gutter. It does not
help. Goodnight Sir/Madam, Thank you for sitting up all night to call
me”. Tthis usually works. To lose your cool never works.

Why not take the phone off the hook. I cannot, because I am ‘on-call' to
some hospitals, and in any case, must be available for my patients. My
letter box is vandalized on a regular basis.
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To get back to the Channel 4 videos, it is crucial that they are shown to as
many people as possible to counter the disinformation campaign of the
GoSL. These videos must be shown but only after the presentation of a
basic outline of the ethnic problem in Sri Lanka , emphasizing that what the
GoSL is trying to do is to settle a political problem by wiping out a section
of the population – the Tamils in the North and East.

Brian Senewiratne is an activist based in Brisbane , Australia

Tweet

Due to a recent spate of abusive, racist and xenophobic comments we are


forced to revise our comment policy and has put all comments on
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Brian Senewiratne’s Role in the Murder


of General Janaka Perera
Major General Janaka Perera was a senior Sri Lankan military officer who was
killed by an LTTE suicide bomber in Anuradhapura in 2008 at the age of 62, after
he returned to the island following terms as Australian High Commissioner and
Indonesian Ambassador for Sri Lanka. Brian Senewiratne ran a campaign against
his appointment in Australia, accusing him of having ‘about the worst record of
human rights violations of any Army officer in the Sri Lankan Armed Forces’:

posted May 26, 2001 03:45 AM


The Hon. Alexander Downer MP
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Canberra.

The Sri Lanka Ambassador-Designate to Australia


Major General JANAKA PERERA

Dear Mr.Downer
I am an Australian of Sri Lankan descent. I come from the majority (Sinhalese)
community. The current President of Sri Lanka, Chandrika Kumaratunga is my
cousin. This introduction is only to indicate that my concerns about the
appointment of Major General Janaka Perera are not intended to embarrass the Sri
Lankan government. On the contrary, it is to save the Sri Lankan government (and
ours, here in Australia) considerable embarrassment.

Major General Janaka Perera has about the worst record of human rights violations
of any Army officer in the Sri Lankan Armed Forces in the two decades that I have
monitored the human rights situation in that country. I am not claiming that Major
General Perera killed anyone but that he was the Officer in Charge of areas where
major human rights violations have occurred and this is very well documented. He
is a most unsuitable person to be accepted by Australia as a High Commissioner
(or even a visitor).

Permit me to set out my concerns.

“Disappearances”
In 1999 and again in 2000, the UN stated that Sri Lanka had the second highest
incidence of unresolved “disappearances” in the world. Brigadier (later Major
General) Janaka Perera has been implicated in many of these. The worst, but
certainly not the only one, was the notorious Chemmani massacre (and mass
graves), which I will detail. There have been at least 6 others, the details of which
I will not bore you with but you could check in a series of Amnesty International
(AI) reports in November 1997, April 1998 and August 1998.

1. The Chemmani Massacre


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In 1996, the Sri Lankan Armed Forces moved to the Jaffna peninsula to regain
control of the area. The Peninsula was divided into two; one division was put under
Brigadier Janaka Perera.

Thousands of Tamil civilians were rounded up and taken for “questioning” in the
area under the Command of Perera. Most of them were released but about 1,000
“disappeared”. These were people who were taken into army custody, where
Perera was the Commanding Officer and, who have not been seen again.

With claims that some 1000 people had been killed and buried in mass graves in
this area, there was an investigation. AI confirmed in a series of reports in
November 1997, April 1998 and August 1998 that some 600 people taken into
custody had disappeared. The November 1997 report states that of the bodies
found “nearly all of them are likely to have died under torture or been deliberately
killed in Sri Lankan military custody.”

Lance Corporal Somaratne Rajapakse from Brigadier Perera’s own unit in the Sri
Lanka Army stated in Court under oath that, “There were 300 to 400 bodies in the
land (Chemmmani)” and that “almost every day dead bodies were brought there
and the soldiers were asked to bury them”. Two other soldiers have confirmed this.

Rajapakse went on to tell the Judge, “We only buried bodies. We can show you
where 300 or 400 bodies have been buried”. This enraged the senior echelons of
the Army. Their attempts to silence this crucial evidence were seen a few days
later.

Following the disclosure, there was a wave of protests, both in Sri Lanka and
Internationally. NGOs complained in writing to the National Human Rights
Commission (NHRC), a credible body of retired Judicial Officers and headed by a
retired High Court Judge. The NHRC asked that Rajapakse and his two fellow
soldiers be taken under escort to Chemmani in Jaffna to locate the graves. That
night the three soldiers were severely beaten up and nearly killed by the very
guards, who were supposed to guard them. Rajapakse had to be hospitalized.

Whether it is 600 people (as documented by AI) or 1000 (as claimed by the local
people) is irrelevant. What is important is that several hundred people taken into
custody by Brigadier Perera’s soldiers have been gone missing and bodies have
been found in mass graves in an area that was directly under Brigadier Perera. It
has been repeatedly pointed out that such large numbers of people could not have
been killed and buried in an area to which only the Army had access without the
knowledge of the Commanding Officer, Brigadier Perera. In fact, several soldiers
who participated in the burials said as much.

I do NOT say that Brigadier Janaka Perera physically killed every one but it is a fact
that at least 600 people have “disappeared” in an area under his direct command.

I would point out that there is no evidence that Adolf Eichmann or Kondrads Kalejs
physically killed a single Jew. Nonetheless, they were convicted as war criminals
because the areas (camps) were under their direct control. So also the former
Yugoslavian President Slobodan Milosevic. So also the Indonesian Generals who
were responsible for the slaughter in East Timor. They did not kill anyone but were
in charge and that is what matters. Janaka Perera cannot be the exception.

2. The Manal Aru (Weli Oya) massacre


Manal Aru is an area on the North Eastern seaboard, in the Tamil area. In the mid-
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1980s, Brigadier Perera was sent to the area to “clear” the area for resettlement by
Sinhalese from the South. There is well-documented evidence of mass murder in
this area. Hundreds of Tamil civilians were massacred and thousands fled the area.
Thousands of houses were bulldozed and entire Tamil villages were wiped out to
make room for Sinhalese “settlers”. Janaka Perera even had a village in the cleared
area named after him. Mankindimalai was renamed Janaka Pura (Janaka Town)
after this exercise, which amounted to ethnic cleansing.

There are several more atrocities in the Tamil area which Janaka Perera has to
explain. These include the bombing and shelling of densely populated areas in the
North, the deliberate destruction of Christian Churches, Hindu Temples, refugee
camps, schools and thousands of civilian homes, all of them in his area of
Command.

3. Sri Lanka South (Sinhalese area)


There was an insurgency of Sinhalese youths in the south of Sri Lanka in 1988/89.
More than 20,000 youths were massacred, and they included schoolchildren in
Embilipitiya. In the investigation that followed, Janaka Perera was called as a
witness, indicating his involvement in this outrage.

Chandrika Kumaratunga was so shocked by this outrage that she said that if
elected to the Presidency, she would investigate all the Army Officers who were
involved in this and other gross violation of human rights. When she was elected,
she attempted to cleanse the Defence Forces and had a list drawn up of Officers,
whose names were implicated in these atrocities. In a series of articles in the
Sunday Leader in Sri Lanka, it was claimed that President Kumaratunga’s uncle
Anuruddha Ratwatte, whom she appointed as Deputy Minister of Defence (she
being the Minister), prevailed on her not to proceed with the “clean-up” operation
claiming that this would seriously demoralise the Defence Forces. So, action was
not taken to bring those responsible to book because of a question of morale, not
because they were innocent!

High Commissioner/ Diplomats


It is not our business as to whom the Sri Lanka Government chooses to represent
their country abroad. It is, however, our business to see that people with a
questionable (indeed, in this case, a very questionable) track record of serious
violations of human rights and of being in-charge of areas where hundreds of
civilians have been killed and buried in mass graves, do not come to this country.

This is not an anti-Sri Lankan Government stance. On the contrary, it is action to


save the Sri Lankan Government the embarrassment of having its representative
here sent back or being charged with crimes against humanity.

The Australian Position


The Sri Lankan government can choose whoever they want as a High
Commissioner to Australia, but it is up to the Australian authorities i.e. the Foreign
Minister, Prime Minister and the Governor General to agree to accept them here. In
this case, whatever the diplomatic “problem” may be in refusing to accept a person
who is the nominee of a ‘friendly country’, when the person selected has such a
disastrous record of serious human rights violations and has even attempted ethnic
cleansing, the response must be that the appointee is not acceptable, either as a
High Commissioner or even as a visitor. This applies not only to Janaka Perera but
also to others such as General Wiranto and others with a similar record.

I might add that Canada was faced with a similar situation in the 1980s when
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President J.R.Jayawardene attempted to send Brigadier Weeratunge as the Sri


Lankan High Commissioner to Canada. The Canadian authorities rejected him
because of his human rights record (which was, incidentally, negligible when
compared to that of Major General Perera). If that was Canada’s position, it will be
difficult, if not impossible, to defend Australia’s position if we accept Perera.

My concerns
1. As an Australian, I am concerned about Australia’s image abroad if this is the
type of person admitted to this country as a diplomat.

2. I am concerned as to what sort of message this will send to some 60,000


Australians of Sri Lankan (Tamil) descent, many of whom have friends and
relatives in the Tamil areas in North/East Sri Lanka who have been the victims of
this barbarity. In a series of meetings in Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane,
hundreds of Tamils, now Australian citizens, have signed protests at Janaka
Perera’s appointment. These will be forwarded to you over the next week.

3. I am concerned about the embarrassment caused to Sri Lanka and the


Australian/Sri Lanka diplomatic relationship if the Sri Lankan High Commissioner to
Australia has to face charges with crimes against humanity/serious human rights
abuse

4. I am concerned about the reception the Sri Lankan President will get (I remind
you that she is a close relative of mine), when she attends the CHOGM conference
in October in my hometown of Brisbane. I am well aware that massive
demonstrations have been planned to draw international attention to what is going
on in Sri Lanka. I am trying to keep these (legitimate) protests at a reasonable
level. I am afraid that such restraint may not be possible if the Sri Lankan
Government sends someone with Major General Janaka Perera’s human rights
record as the High Commissioner. He will be there with the President.

Action to be taken
I hope that commonsense will prevail and that this appointment will be stopped. I
hope that we are not forced into a situation where we have to take some action to
have the new appointee charged with serious human rights abuse or to embarrass
the Sri Lankan President when she come here. If we are forced into this, it will be
the responsibility of those who are currently in government and who accept him as
High Commissioner.

The claim that action, such as indictment, will not be possible because of
“Diplomatic Immunity” may not hold water. I am, in fact, taking this up with the
Attorney General, the Hon. Darrell Williams who, I gather, has set up, or in the
process of setting up, an International Court in Australia (on the lines of the one in
the Hague) to try just this sort of person alleged to have committed crimes against
humanity or human rights abuse.

I am sending a copy of this letter to Sri Lankans in other countries (the US,
Canada, UK and New Zealand) to express their concerns to the Australian
authorities.

If Major General Perera comes to Australia as High Commissioner or even as a


visitor, the repercussions will be serious. I will most certainly have a question
raised in the Australian Parliament as soon as it reconvenes. I will also be seeking
the help of the Media, Human Rights groups, Pax Christi, Amnesty International
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and Mary Robinson, the UN Human Rights Commissioner. I hope all this will not be
necessary since it will bring a great deal of embarrassment both to Australia and to
Sri Lanka.

I was so concerned about this that I went to Canberra yesterday (7May 01) and
saw Graeme Lade, Director, India and South Asia Section of the Ministry of Foreign
Affairs and Trade to urge him to recommend to his Minister that Major General
Perera should not be accepted as a High Commissioner. Mr Lade told me that there
were “pros and cons” and that “Major General Perera is a highly decorated Ofiicer”.
I had to remind him that so were Konrads Kalejs, Adolf Eichmann, Slobodan
Milesovic, General Wiranto and numerous others. When I asked him to list out
some of the “pros”, I thought he had a problem in doing so.

To talk of “pros and cons” is nonsense. The gentleman in question has been the
Commanding Officer in areas where serious human rights violations have occurred
and that is all there is to it. These atrocities have been well documented.

At least 3 Amnesty International Reports of November 1997, April 1998, August


1998.
The United States Department of State – Country Reports – 2000, released in
February 2001.
A series of reports from The University Teachers for Human Rights in Sri Lanka
President Kumaratunga’s own Task Force on Human Rights and the National
Human Rights Commission.

Yours faithfully

Brian Senewiratne
Consultant Physician
Clinical Associate Professor of Medicine,
University of Queensland,
Australia

Encl. My letter to President Kumaratunga, Sri Lanka

Copy.

The Hon. John Howard MP, Prime Minister, Australia


H.E President Chandrika Kumaratunge, Colombo, Sri Lanka
The Hon .Kim Beasley MP, Leader of the Federal Opposition, Australia
The Hon. Laurie Brereton MP, Shadow Foreign Minister, Australia
Archbishop Peter Hollingworth, Governor General Designate, Australia
Amnesty International, London, UK.

27 June 2001 Sri Lanka High Commission


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35,Empire Circuit

Forrest

ACT-2603

Dear Sir,

We categorically deny all allegations made against Sri Lanka's new High
Commissioner, His Excellency Major General Janaka Perera by Dr.Brian
Senewiratne.

Since we feel that the mere issuing of a denial would not suffice to clear up the
minds of your readers and would only insult their intelligence we would like to take
some pertinent points and answer them.

Firstly Dr. Senewiratne who claims to be a relation of the Sri Lankan President Her.
Excellency Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga states his aim is not to
embarrass his cousin or the Governments of Sri Lanka or Australia.

But then he goes on to make baseless allegations about human right violations
against the new Sri Lankan envoy whose appointment had been approved by not
only his relation and her government but also the Australian Government which
only gave the green light for the appointment after careful scrutiny of the envoy's
background. We quote the Australian foreign Minister Mr.Downer,"We have been
made aware of claims, and we have sought to indicate that the circumstances of
the High Commissioner's military service meant that he was likely to have served
in areas where human rights abuses were alleged to have occurred, but none of
these claims, my department advises me, has been backed by any direct evidence
of his involvement."

It is evident that the LTTE terrorists and their apologists made up these allegations
to discredit one of their most capable opponents, for Maj.Gen. Perera was
associated with some of the stronger military operations where only his able
leadership prevented the terrorists from achieving their aims.

Without mentioning dates or time periods this great `monitor' of the Sri Lanka
situation then accuses the envoy of being in charge of areas where major human
rights violations occurred. If they are well documented as stated, either in the
north or south of Sri Lanka, we challenge him to produce them without making
insinuations with the intention of maligning Maj.Gen.Perera and hoodwinking the
Australian public.

We wish to categorically state that there were no incidents of Human Rights


violations reported in the areas commanded by Maj.Gen.Perera. We would also like
to place on record that it was Maj.Gen.Perera who initiated investigations into the
rape and murder of schoolgirl Krishanthi Kumaraswamy and three others on 7th
September 1996 at Chemmani in Jaffna. It was this investigation that eventually
led to the uncovering of the so called `mass graves' at Chemmani. Only 17 bodies
were found, as mentioned by Mr. Kevin Lee the Australian Forensic Pathologist in a
recent one sided TV program, whereas the main accused Rajapakse had claimed
that there were 300-400 bodies buried in the area. What happened to the rest of
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the bodies?

Would one prefer to take the words of rapists and murderers who wanted to take
revenge on the man who made it a personal commitment to ensure that justice
was meted out to the brutal rapists and killers of a young girl who was only a few
years older than his eldest daughter? We leave it to your readers to decide.
Maj.Gen.Perera did what any right thinking law abiding person would have done
after hearing the rumours about the disappearance of Krishanthy Kumaraswamy.
He made the search for the truth a personal commitment and without any
assistance from the people of Jaffna to whom he appealed twice, without success
at meetings of the People's Council for Peace and Goodwill-and succeeded in his
task.

And true to his words of warning to his soldiers of dire consequences should they
be caught harassing or harming civilians, he pursued the matter until the guilty
were punished. All those involved in the rape and killing of Krishanthy
Kumaraswamy were sentenced to death.

We find it strange that the opponents of Maj.Gen.Perera do not mention a similar


rape and killing of another young girl named Velauthapillai Rajini of Urimpirai in
October 1996.The General who pursued the matter on a complaint made by the
victims father not only traced the body of the missing girl but brought the
perpetrators of the crime to justice. All six soldiers who committed the offence
were produced before the Jaffna magistrate and remanded without bail and are
awaiting trial.

We could go on about Maj.Gen.Perera and his actions in 1971, 1983,1989 and


whatever years his opponents would like to level allegations. We could also list
instances where the General's initiative led to the saving of civilian lives, both
Sinhalese and Tamils. Even an instance where a JVP cadre who attempted to kill
him by flinging a bomb, was rehabilitated and is now a happily married man could
be recounted. But, we feel it should be left to his biographer should Maj.Gen.Perera
decide to write it.

We would like to invite Dr.Senewiratne to produce his well documented research


about the `ethnic cleansing' in Weli Oya area. Since he left Sri Lanka in the 1970's
he had no idea where Manal Aru or Weli Oya was until this High Commission
provided him with a large scale map clearly marking the area as well as
Embilipitiya. Permit us to explain to him how Janaka Pura, where he claims `ethnic
cleansing' took place, came about. It was the name given to a village that sprang
up on the banks of an abandoned ancient tank that was renovated by the soldiers
under the General's command. The area was uninhabited at the time.

As was mentioned at the beginning, we deny all allegations made against


Maj.Gen.Perera and submit two documents from the University Teachers for
Human Rights (UTHR) Jaffna and the People's Council for Peace and Goodwill based
at Bishop's House Jaffna commending the General for his actions while in charge of
Jaffna. Unlike Dr.Brian Senewiratne or others of his like who have attempted to
maliciously brand the officer a violator of human rights or `War criminal', and are
living in comfort in Australia, the above organisations are based in the heart of
Jaffna and are doing their best for the emancipation of the people of Jaffna amidst
great difficulties.

Maj. Gen.Perera is denigrated only by one group of people, namely the terrorists of
the LTTE and their supporters who have been thwarted in every attempt at
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separating Sri Lanka by professional soldiers like him. They would be tough with
their enemies in battle and would ask for and give no quarter. But they would
always endevour to observe and uphold therights of the civilians in the tradition of
an officer and gentleman trained at the Royal Military Academy in Sandhurst.

We would like to digress here to clear one more lie. That Sri Lanka's envoy to
Canada Maj.General Tissa Weeratunga' was recalled to Sri Lanka after protests by
human rights group. He not only served his full term as Sri Lanka's High
Commissioner to Canada from June 1986 to July 1989 but requested for and
received a two months extension.

In conclusion, we would like to take this opportunity to extend the hand of


friendship to the Tamil people who have made Australia their home. The
Government of Her Excellency President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga has
acknowledged and is addressing the grievances of the Tamil people in Sri Lanka.
We urge you to assist us to stop further bloodshed and prevent more Sri Lankans
from being killed. Do not be misled by false propaganda propagated by persons
who have their own agendas.

P.N.Senanayake

Information Counsellor

Krishanti Kumaraswamy
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Krishanti Kumaraswamy

கககககககககக ககககககககககக

Krishanti Kumaraswamy

Born 1977

Jaffna, Sri Lanka

Died August 7, 1996 (aged 18–19)

Jaffna, Sri Lanka


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Occupation Student

Parent(s) Rassammah and Kumarswamy

Krishanti Kumaraswamy (Tamil: கிருஷாந் தி குமாரசுவாமி), also spelled Krishanthi


Kumaraswamy, was a Tamil girl in Sri Lanka who was raped and murdered on 7 August 1996
by 6 Sri Lankan Army soldiers; the effort to bring her assailants to justice became a cause
célèbre as a part of the protest against atrocities committed by the Sri Lankan Army during
the Sri Lanka civil war.

Contents
[hide]

 1Incident
 2Government investigation
 3Related to incident
 4See also
 5References
 6External links

Incident
On August 7, 1996 Krishanthy Kumaraswamy went missing on her way home after sitting
her GCE Advanced Level examination, equivalent to grade 12 in many countries, at Chundikuli
Girls High School. She was last seen alive at 11.30 am at Kaithady Army checkpoint in Jaffna.
Her mother Rassammah, brother Pranavan (Age 16), and family friend Mr. Kirupakaran (Age 35)
became concerned and went in search of Krishanthy. They were also murdered. [1]

According to pro-rebel Tamilnet Forty five days later, the bodies of the four were later found in
shallow graves within the army base. A three quarter width rope was found tied round the neck of
mother Rassammah’s corpse. Mr Kirupakaran too appeared to have been strangled in the same
manner since the rope was wound tightly round his body. The bodies of Krishanthy and her
brother Pranavan were cut in several pieces and haphazardly wrapped in black colored sheets. [2]

Later investigations revealed that she was abducted by five soldiers and another six gang
raped and killed her at the checkpoint. [3]

Government investigation
Amnesty International and other human rights organizations like Women for Peace launched a
[4]

sustained campaign to pressure the Sri Lankan government to arrest and prosecute the soldiers.
Six soldiers who were directly involved in the raping were sentenced to death by the court of the
government of Sri Lanka. [5]

In the court case about her rape and murder one of the accused informed the state about an
alleged mass grave known as Chemmani mass graves that was investigated to contain 15
bodies. [6]

There is a big difference between 15 bodies and 600-1000 as claimed by Brian


Senewiratne. It is also an inexcusable omission to fail to mention that Lance
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Corporal Somaratne Rajapakse was a convicted rapist and murderer, giving


evidence at his trial. To mention this would have detracted from his statement
that Rajapakse’s claim of a mass grave in Chemmani containing 2-300 corpses
was made in court “under oath”. He doesn’t mention that the man was in
court charged with 5 other soldiers with the rape and murder of Krishanthi
Kumaraswamy. Instead, he quotes the rapist as a credible source with which to
demonise Major General Janaka Perera, who was in command, as equivalent
to the notorious Nazis. Demonising him in this way set the war hero up for
subsequent assassination by the LTTE.

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