Military presence in Sri Lankas

north is worrisome: Wigneswaran

File photo of Chief Minister of Sri Lanka's Northern Provincial Council C.V. Wigneswaran.
MEERA SRINIVASAN-June 12, 2014
The Chief Minister of Sri Lankas Northern !ro"in#ia$ Coun#i$ te$$s The %in&u that he
has not 'een a'$e to &o (u#h e"en after si) (onths after the histori# e$e#tions
More than si) (onths after the histori# e$e#tions to Sri Lankas Northern !ro"in#ia$
Coun#i$, its first Chief Minister C*V* +i,nes-aran sa.s has not 'een a'$e to &o (u#h,
for his han&s are tie&* /ro( a re$u#tant entrant to Sri Lankan 0o$iti#s to Chief
Minister -ho -on a (assi"e (an&ate in the e$e#tions, it has 'een 1uite a 2ourne. for
the for(er 2u&,e of the Su0re(e Court of Sri Lanka*
Ref$e#tin, on &e"e$o0(ents 0ost e$e#tions, he sa.s hea". (i$itarisation a#ross has
(a&e e"en 'asi# a&(inistration a &auntin, task in the re,ion that #ontinues to 'ear
the s#ars of a 'ruta$ -ar* The Ta(i$ Nationa$ A$$ian#e 3TNA4, -hi#h he is no- 0art
of, -as a-are of the $i(itations of the 15th A(en&(ent, an& e)0e#te& so(e
interferen#e fro( Co$o('o* %o-e"er, the s#a$e of interferen#e fro( the (i$itar.,
&es0ite 'ein, in the s0ot$i,ht of the -or$&, is -orriso(e for -hat it 0orten&s, not
on$. for the North-East 'ut for the rest of the #ountr., he te$$s Meera Srini"asan in
this inter"ie-*
Seven months after the newly-elected Northern Provincial Council first
met, what are your impressions as Chief Minister of the province?
The shift we expected after the popular mandate was made known by the people at the
Election, from a Central oriented administration to a provincial administration has not
come to pass. The stark fact is that we are attempting to establish democratic
governance in a province that is overwhelmed by an occupying military force, which
systematically seeks to subjugate the populace, change the demography, destabilise the
economy, impose an alien culture and stultify legitimate democratic aspirations, whilst
continuing with grave human rights abuses.
In the above context establishing a new provincial council where everything has to be
started from scratch, in a wartorn area, drained of the best brains, bereft of
established structures, is understandably a monumental task. !dd to this the
deliberate attempts to stultify the functioning of the "#C and it becomes virtually
impossible. $espite numerous promises we still have a Chief %ecretary, appointed in
contravention of the law, functioning in collaboration with the &overnor, who was the
former !rmy Commander of the "orthern #rovince, to establish a parallel
administrative structure. !part from the legality of the structure, from a practical
perspective how can one expect to carry out governance democratically, effectively or
efficiently, when you have a parallel structure in place, backed by an ominous and
omnipresent military' To make matters still worse, we have the bogey of the Tiger
being resurrected to justify further militarisation. (owever, this was not unexpected.
)e knew the inade*uacy of the +,th!mendment and did expect some interference,
though the scale of interference from the military despite being in the spotlight of the
world is worrisome for what it portends, not only for the "orthEast but for the rest of
the country.
!s much as I am disappointed and frustrated by these conditions, I have not lost hope.
The main reason for this is the resilience of our people. They have been ama-ing and
they can inspire you to face overwhelming odds. %everal individuals and organisations
have also heeded our call and agreed to help, reestablishing faith in humanity. .or
example those displaced by the !rmy taking over /,000odd acres in 1ali "orth have
been left uncared for, living in other people2s lands sans means of livelihood and
succour. It is rumoured that merely because they had gone to Courts to get back their
lands they have been left high and dry3 The responsibility to look after them is that of
the &overnment. 4ut they are uninterested. (ence we have started rallying round
various public voluntary organisations to give them dry rations.
)e have also realised that the world is not blind to what is happening in %ri 5anka.
$espite the attempts at camouflage and subterfuge, our problems have reached the
eyes and ears of the world. ! recent report highlighted for instance the instances of
torture and rape of both men and women from the "orthEast, with the last case study
being in respect of an unfortunate soul early this year.
In essence, there are immense challenges but there is also hope.
You have been observing that as the Northern Province Chief Minister you
have rather limited powers !hat, in your opinion, are the successes of
the NPC -- given the said limitations -- and what do you thin" could have
been done better?
The foremost achievement of our coming into office has been the corresponding self
confidence that has dawned on our people. They were battered and bruised and living
with no hope. (owever powerless administratively we may be, we have still been able
to usher in a sense of purpose and confidence among our people.
That is a tremendous achievement. #eople no longer fear the !rmy. They have started
protesting against the !rmy taking over their lands and houses. The protests have been
peaceful and with no personal animosity shown towards the !rmy. It was said recently
that some of the soldiers who came to deal with such protests had told our protestors
privately that they would themselves have protested if their lands in the %outh had
been taken over in the manner it is being done now in the "orth3
)e are able to galvanise the support of our people to deal with situations. .or example,
we recently provided dry rations to the I$#s who have been deliberately left to suffer
in makeshift welfare centres on private lands. )e have also been able to ensure that
the world has not allowed the &overnment to draw attention away from what is being
done in the "orth. )e have remained engaged and demonstrated our good faith time
and again.
)e have also established mechanisms and processes for the functioning of the Council
and are in the process of finalising several key statutes that will help us with our
finances and in obtaining the cooperation and support of wellwishers and friends.
)e recently carried out a sixmonth review of what we have done and each ministry
has indicated what it has been able to achieve. The progress is no doubt slow, but not
insignificant, given the nascent nature of the organisation and the asphyxiating
circumstances I discussed earlier.
!s to what could have been done, well, if we had a favourable Chief %ecretary and a
civilian &overnor well versed in (uman 6ights considerations we could have led our
administration on a proper planned course leading to economic recovery. If we had the
cooperation of the &overnment we could have completed a comprehensive needs
assessment and charted a master plan for recovery.
Soon after you assumed charge, you spo"e of carrying out a needs
assessment in the province #id you do that? !hat are the primary needs
of the Northern Province people?
!s you are no doubt aware, a comprehensive needs assessment is a very involved
process that re*uires specialised manpower, resources, funds and time. I had several
discussions with the 7" with regard to the needs assessment that needs to be done
and highlighted the shortcomings of certain &overnment imposed measures. I also
brought to their attention several previous studies that have been done. $espite this
long process, much to my surprise and disappointment, they have now entered into an
agreement with the &overnment, completely shutting out the involvement of the
"orthern #rovincial Council. "evertheless, an assessment is soon to be made. )e will
monitor it to ensure that it is done properly.
The primary and urgent needs of our people are addressing their psychosocial issues
and livelihood issues stemming from their warravaged past, land security and
freedom from fear. ! collective effort to prevent 8ilitary intrusions into the civilian life
including illegal colonisations is an urgent need.
$here is a lot criticism -- within and outside the Council -- that a ma%ority
of the over &'( resolutions passed by it are not directly related to
governing the province )ow do you view the resolutions?
The resolutions reflect the feelings of our people. If the #resident kept his promise
made on the 9nd of :anuary this year to help us administer the #rovince we as a team
would have been interested in bringing solace to our people and resorting to creative
innovations together. )e would have directed planned action in the #rovince in
various $ivisions to ameliorate the conditions of our people. )hen all our efforts were
stifled and scuttled we could not control the feelings of our people. They need to say
what they want, what they dream, what they face, what they fear and so on. The
resolutions are pressure valves releasing the people2s frustrations with the
machinations of the oppressive military regime foisted on us by powers that be.
*ven within the limited powers that the provincial councils have, there
seems to be considerable scope for the NPC to wor" in areas such as
education and cooperatives !hat has it really done in these areas?
In the field of Education, we have had a successful %ymposium delving deep into the
type of education imparted, the changes if any needed, the newer and modern
techni*ues that need to be introduced and so on. The 6eport is expected at the end of
this month. )e are ensuring that teachers and other staff are not appointed or
transferred on the strength of their political affiliations but on merit. )e have recently
appointed the Cooperative Employees Commission with people who are experienced in
their fields. They will not only sit in Commission but also advise us on the processes to
be put in place. )e have also discussed with some "&;s the possibility of carrying out
an assessment of the cooperative sector with some donor funding, and expect that this
will be done very soon. ;ur progress may be slow but deliberate and sure.
You are now part of the #istrict Coordination Committee, and have been
attending meetings )ow does that e+ercise align with the NPC,s
governance?
)e discuss at length many matters coming under the purview of the "orthern
#rovincial Council, some deliberately kept within the control of the &overnment and
others attended to, by us. There is healthy discussion and we make decisions. )hen
areas which are controversial come up there are heated arguments. )e have made it
clear that we are not there to put into effect the 8ahinda Chintanaya, regardless of its
amorphous nature, since our people have totally rejected the #arty which stood for
such Chintanaya. )e went into the deliberations only after making our position clear
and that it is our duty to deliver on our election pledges as that is the mandate given to
us. It is reflected in the minutes of our first meeting.
$he $N- and you have welcomed the new regime in .ndia !hat are your
e+pectations of the Modi government, given that $amil Nadu is not a
coalition partner at the Centre?
%hri 8odi seems to have identified the priorities as far as our immediate needs are
concerned. (e seems to have impressed same upon our 5eaders. It is for our
&overnment to take the cue and act fast. Tamil "adu is intricately intertwined in the
political complexity in India. I am confident that the 8odi &overnment and Tamil
"adu will not be at variance with regard to the political needs of our people.
$he second round of tal"s between fishermen of S/ and .ndia failed and
Northern fishermen are a really worried lot now !hy has the NPC not
ta"en up the fisheries conflict in any significant way?
)e did take it up in our initial stages. 4ut it was pointed out to us that inland
waterways were our prerogative, while seashore problems come under the Centre.
%ince the &overnment .isheries2 8inister was showing interest in the problems of our
fishermen folk we have taken a back seat. If our input is needed we shall certainly
come in. .rom a democratic perspective and a pragmatic perspective, it is strange that
the elected representatives of the affected region are not being asked to take a lead
role.