US cables on Sri Lanka: The mouse that roared

"Whether we like it or not Sri Lanka is heavily dependent on UK and US for its economy. Ticking off William Hague and Patricia Butenis is definitely not going to help relations with the two countries. Premadasa made the then British High Commissioner David Gladstone persona non grata and sent him packing for visiting poll stations as an observer and pointing out malpractices in 1991."

by Pearl Thevanayagam

(December 22, London, Sri Lanka Guardian) G.L.Peiris is at it again. While Wikileaks exposed secret documents relating to war crimes, extra-judicial killings and many state complicity in corruption and secret deals from Iraq to Afghanistan, China to India and of course Sri Lanka and proved beyond a shadow of doubt, our external affairs minister has beckoned US ambassador Patricia Butenis for a good ticking off for the wikileaking of her report which did not say nice things about his master, the President, and his government.

That it also revealed atrocities by the LTTE on the fleeing civilians did not appease the professor and if indeed he cared to scour the evidence so far given to the LLRC by war victims he would know the truth. Nothing is more dangerous than those who do not wish to see.

Both the US and UK conducted war in Iraq and Afghanistan for obvious self interests of both countries but leaders have been made to resign over these monumental war crimes against innocent civilians. But there is nothing of interest to the two countries in Sri Lanka. We have no oil, nuclear weapons or anything worthy of having ulterior motives in exposing human rights violations. Even tea exports do not count much for these countries since Kenya, India and China produce more than enough to cater to them.

In the absence of any productive vociferous objection among politicians and collective jubilation over wiping out the LTTE and a significant number of the Tamil population which clearly altered their demography it was left to the international NGOs and diplomatic community to reveal the government’s war crimes.

Whether we like it or not Sri Lanka is heavily dependent on UK and US for its economy. Ticking off William Hague and Patricia Butenis is definitely not going to help relations with the two countries. Premadasa made the then British High Commissioner David Gladstone persona non grata and sent him packing for visiting poll stations as an observer and pointing out malpractices in 1991.

Unlike our diplomats abroad who only preside over cultural festivals and entertain visiting VIP politicians and spend the rest of the time enjoying their diplomatic perks western diplomats keep a close watch on the governments’ track record on human rights, corruption, progress on economy etc so that their governments could decide how funds are disbursed to the betterment of these nations, shape their immigration policy and ensure regional security.

Editorials are spewing out venom against US and UK for the exposure of war crimes. It would be far better if they could substantiate their opinions with tangible proof that the government even tried to protect fleeing civilians. Burying a whole pumpkin in a plate of rice is not going down well with western nations.

There is enough proof of the professor’s lying ability as we saw in Nepal’s denial that Sri Lanka was consulted over its rebellion. He has lost all credibility in the eyes of the west. Statesmanship is definitely not his forte. He is seen more as a sycophant and a drum beater for the President.



All this hullabaloo is only a diversion from the real issues affecting the average citizen. The rising cost of living, the rapidly eroding democracy in the form of media suppression, extra-judicial killings, the government’s crass impunity in changing the constitution as we saw the 18th amendment passed without consultation and popular vote and generally the nation’s decline to oligarchy as Rajapakse’s rule as an extended family.

Sri Lanka is at the juncture where unless the government is overthrown it would become another Afghanistan; a crumbled nation brought to its knees by its own self-serving politicians and not the economic miracle of Asia. There is no miracle rice or eggs to feed the people. The North and South were not liberated. They are living in worse misery than ever before and they are under military control and para-military rule. Terrorists are ministers there and bribery and corruption is the norm and not the exception.

The government likes to call itself democracy. There is no law against calling oneself Vellaiammah (white mother) when she is very dark in complexion; is there?