No crisis in the UNP
Dayasiri Jayasekara is not the senior but I can't tell about him to the media
(November 03, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) SLG: Dr. Jayalath Jayawardhana, you were a former Minister under the United National Party and today you are a Member of Parliament as well. Welcome to the Straight Talk forum of the Sri Lanka Guardian. We would like to talk present political developments in this discussion.
How are you?
Yeah I'm good as usual with busy work in politics as well as in personal life.
SLG: Is Jayalath Jayawardhana an agent of the LTTE, Agent of the Church, the man who has contracted to divide the country while tarnishing her image?
SLG: So what do you think present situation in the country?
Absolutely grim
SLG: Why is that? Especially as the Government is claiming that they crushed the most ruthless terrorist outfit in the World. I feel you must happy about that instead of saying the situation is an absolutely grim.
Of course we are happy and proud about the victory against the LTTE which was team work where many people helped including General Sarath Fonseka who is now imprisoned. But the Government cannot always use this to cover their weaknesses and ruthless acts against the people and the norms of democracy. Now we are heading towards family governance and in the future we will see a monarchy if there is not a political change. Today we lost freedom for any things, which will all ultimately be controlled by one family.
SLG: However the system was created by your party when it was in power. The late President J.R. Jayewardene is the person who created the position called "Executive President" which is above the law. So don't you think that you must blame yourselves before faulting others as well?
Well, the United National Part never did anything wrong for the people in Sri Lanka. Talking about the Executive Presidency is not wrong if you compare it to the situation which we faced in the past. President Jayewardene wanted to solve the essential problems in the Country; he even introduced an open economy which started BIO and other huge economic projects which are still enjoyed by the people of Sri Lanka.
SLG: I am asking something very fundamental: it is, you accepted the position that the "Executive Presidency" being above the law is good for this Country?
Yes, it was, but now we are thinking that it must be abolished.
SLG: Why is that? Is it because you are now in the opposition?
Don't think that way. The executive presidency was good earlier because there was a situation where we needed very strong leadership. Even the earlier Presidents never used their position to control the opposition in the way that Rajapakse is doing now. No family before gained so much through politics. Even look at the 18th amendment that destroyed all independence commissions and centralized more power. It is a joke that the man who supported the independent commissions later destroyed them after he came to Power and converted the system to his own political tools.
SLG: You talk about how the Government has controlled the opposition, if I'm talking about Sinhalese people instead of Tamils when more than 60, 0000 Sinhalese youth were killed with the claim that they were planning to overthrow the regime?
You can't ask all the time what the UNP did. You can raised the point but it should be independent.
SLG: There is no point to ask if the United National Party is less faultless than the SLPF. You are one of their senior politicians who have answers rather than sideline the facts.
Then you should have asked what happened before the J.R. Jayewardene era, and after the United National Party; and how they controlled the opposition. How they were raped women and assassinated people. As you highlighted, 60,000 youths were killed and during their period the same thing happened but no one talks about it. If you can write I can give you the details not only about victimized people but the politicians who were involved it.
SLG: Well... please go Ahead, give me at least few names?
I won't give you the details in term of their personalities. Some of them are still alive and I won't make them uneasy.
SLG: Meanwhile the Government claimed that your complaint against it was refused by the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. So what exactly happened?
It is not true at all. The Minister who was involved with the case from the Government's side conned the whole country for the moment but a few days later everybody knew that it is not true. It's very clear that the UN is still considering the General's case. I'm very sad that a person like Mahinda Samarasinghe who had a high reputation as a politician locally as well as internationally is involved in this. But the people are ashamed of him after this bitter lie which he spread among the people on behalf of the government.
SLG: Let's talk bit more about General Sarath Fonseka. The government is saying that he was involved with politics while in uniform and that is why they decided put him to jail.
It's so clear that even a child can understand that the Government is taking revenge on General Sarath Fonseka for contesting the election against Mahinda Rajapakse; there is no other reason.
SLG: Meanwhile the Supreme Court has refused General Fonseka's petition against the result of presidential election.
We have to accept the Court's decision but today people even have doubts about the Court.
SLG: Do you have doubt?
We have to accept what the court decided.
SLG: Well, the UNP has launched a new programme: the "Grama Charika" for winning the hearts of the people, but another senior member of you party, Mr. Sajith Premadasa organised another programme instead of involving himself with this programme which was organised by the leader of the Party, Mr. Ranil Wikramasinghe. Some of media personnel and members of the ruling party are asking if there is a cold war between these two politicians?
There are no any problems or crises within the party but the Government wanted to create problems.
SLG: But why did he abstained?
He is doing his political work which does not mean he is against the Leadership.
SLG: You were personal doctor to the late president Ranasinghe Premadasa and his family. Sajith is his son. So do you want to see Mr. Sajith Premadasa as a leader of the UNP?
He has enough intelligence to become leader but not now. Time will allow him to take leadership of the Party. He is a flower bud which needs to blossom by time and space. We deliberately cannot blossom it.
SLG: You say that there is no crisis in the party but another senior member of the UNP, Dayasisri Jayasekara claimed that Sajith Premadasa must join the Grama Charaika without doing his own work.
Who says that Dayasiri Jayaseka is senior. He is not. He started his politics in 2000. There are many respected seniors in the UNP before him.
SLG: What do you think about his comment then?
I cannot disclose anything but I discussed with the central committee about his comment and his attitude.
SLG: You were former minister of the Minister of Rehabilitation, Resettlement and Refugees. What do you think the Government policy on rehabilitation more than one and half years after the crushed the Tamil Tigers?
There are no improvements but the Government, especially the Rajapakse family are doing somethings by which they can earn lots of money. But most of people have essential needs. They haven't enough food there no progress of education, health, foods facilities in the Area where the war effected. Even this so called Sinahla Buddhist government failed on resettlement of the Sinhalese who already went to Jaffna recently.
Clarification: In our last interview with Dr. Vikrmabahu Karunarthane
Bahu says later: I find the interview with me has reported with many errors. I said the LTTE is a national liberation organization though not socialist. The attempt to crush it lead to a genocidal war on Tamils and it is a not a solution to the Tamil national problem. When peace was declared LTTE gave a document for an interim government appointed by the government as a step towards a united solution. The government did not bother to translate the document to Sinhala and disregarded the LTTE attempt. In this manner Lankan governments failed to come to a just solution. I accepted that the LTTE made mistakes as any capitalist organization. But it is committed national liberation movement. There are many other mistakes.
Author's Note: We both agreed to talk in Sinhala. Also I asked you three times if you thought the LTTE is a foolish organisation and you clearly replied, yes. I have not added one single point other that what you expressed as your opinion. No mistake was made by me and we cannot take responsibility if you (Dr. Bahu) made any mistakes in the interview.
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