Features
TRUMP – IF YOU GO FOR ME, I’M COMING AFTER YOU
by Vijaya Chandrasoma
On Tuesday, August 3, 2023 Donald Trump was indicted, arrested and released on conditional bail on four felony counts for his role in inciting the January 6 insurrection, in an attempt to unconstitutionally and violently overturn the results of the 2020 election. Trump pleaded not guilty on all counts.
During the indictment, Washington D.C. Magistrate Judge Moxilla Upadhyaya, who presided over Trump’s arraignment, directed the prosecution and defense to file proposed trial dates. Trump’s counsel John Lauro, in response to the Judge’s directive, asked for an extended period of time before the first trial date, saying, “In a case of this magnitude, we expect to vigorously address every issue in this matter on behalf of Trump and the American people”.
That’s strange. The American People are the plaintiffs in this case, whose interests are being vigorously addressed by Special Counsel, Jack Smith.
Lauro is merely trying to mislead the public right from the start, parroting Trump’s oft-repeated lie: “They’re not coming after me, they are coming after you”, implying that the defendant is really the American people, when the American People, represented by Special Counsel Jack Smith, are prosecuting criminal defendant Donald Trump.
Lauro has already failed spectacularly in his first and basic role of a defense counsel, that of controlling his client. Trump had ranted at a campaign rally in New Hampshire that Special Counsel, Jack Smith, is deranged. When Chuck Todd of Meet the Press asked Lauro if he also thought that Smith was deranged, Lauro was speechless. He is too afraid to control defendant Trump, who keeps on spewing hateful, racist and pornographic lies against judges, prosecutors and witnesses.
District Court Judge Tanya Chutkan, a most experienced and accomplished judge, known as a consummate, no-nonsense, professional, has been randomly assigned to preside over this case. She is most unlikely to be fooled by these tactics. She is also unlikely to be intimidated by the filth that Trump spews.
Magistrate Judge Upadhyaya imposed conditions of his release, the most important of which were: Trump must not violate federal, state or local law while on release; he shall not communicate facts of the case with any individual known to be a witness, except in the presence of counsel; he cannot influence a juror or try to threaten or bribe a witness or retaliate against anyone. Any contravention of these conditions of release could lead to more severe conditions, even detention for the duration of the trial.
As expected, it did not take the demented Trump long to violate the conditions of his release. Within 24 hours, Trump ranted and raved personal insults against Special Counsel Smith and Judge Chutkan. He posted on his Truth Social media, in block capitals, the chilling threat, IF YOU GO FOR ME, I’M COMING FOR YOU. A Mafia style threat, probably aimed at both the Judge, the Special Counsel and any witnesses he may perceive to be against him. Both Jack Smith and Judge Chutkan have already had numerous death threats. Their security details have been enhanced.
Immediately after this threat of retaliation and witness tampering, prosecutors requested Judge Chutkan to issue a protective order. The prosecution was concerned that Trump and his counsel may violate the conditions of his release, by sharing evidence with the public the prosecution would be obliged to give to the defense during the trial. Such revelations of confidential evidence to the public may cause the trial to be conducted in the court of public opinion, instead of a trial of justice in the courts. Judge Chutkan gave the defense counsel time till 5 p.m. on Monday, August 7 to respond to the protective order. She indicated she plans on hearing competing proposals before the end of the week, and expects to schedule a trial date by August 28.
Trump will be served with a fourth indictment next week, when Fulton County, Georgia, District Attorney, Fani Willis is likely to go before a Grand Jury to present her case against Trump for interference and witness tampering in the 2020 Georgia State election.
Willis has a pretty good case, with a recorded telephone call from Trump to Georgia District Attorney Brad Raffensperger, threatening him with criminal action unless he “finds” 11,780 votes, that would win him the state of Georgia. Raffensperger refused, and made public the damning telephone call. Trump has a sound defense, though. At a campaign event in New Hampshire last Tuesday, he leveled a baseless accusation against D.A. Fani Willis of being a “reverse racist who, while investigating a gang member, ended up sleeping with him”! Willis would be well advised to immediately dismiss the case in the face of such a bulletproof defense.
Willis has received death threats after Trump’s scurrilous lies, and her security detail has also been enhanced. One of these days, Trump’s inflammatory, racist, sexist lies against judges, prosecutors, political rivals and witnesses will get someone killed. The sooner this maniac is gagged by the courts from making veiled death threats against his enemies, the better. This type of vituperation is not Free Speech, it is criminal intimidation, inciting his goons to violence, in direct contravention of the conditions of his release.
Judge Tanya Chutkan, who is presiding over Trump’s case.
In fact, just last Wednesday, FBI special agents, armed with a search warrant, attempted to arrest a Utah man, Craig Robertson, who was facing federal charges for making death threats against President Biden. He pulled a gun on the agents during the arrest, and was shot dead. The incident occurred on the eve of a visit to Utah by President Biden.
Trump counsel, John Lauro, lost no time in making the Sunday morning television rounds, presenting the main argument behind Trump’s defense – Free Speech. He stated that whatever Trump said at political rallies and campaign meetings, true or false, were covered by the First Amendment. When Trump said that the election was rigged, that the Justice Department was weaponized by President Biden, who had initiated all cases against him, these statements, true or false, were all within his First Amendment rights.
Page 2, paragraph 3 of the indictment agrees with the defense. “The defendant has a right, like every American, to speak publicly about the election, and even to claim, even falsely, that there had been outcome-determinative fraud in the election that he had won”.
The criminal charges in the indictment, however, are not based on speech. They are based on criminal conduct.
Trump spoke at a rally before thousands of his supporters at the Ellipse, minutes away from the Capitol, on the day Congress had convened to certify the constitutional election of President Biden. He ranted, “We must fight, We must fight like hell or we won’t have a country. I will be right there with you”. This speech, inflammatory as it was, was covered by Free Speech.
What is not covered by the First Amendment are his actions after he made this speech. He did not accompany the mob to the Capitol. Instead, he went back to the White House and enjoyed his favorite bucket of KFC and Ketchup, gleefully watching on TV the violence at the Capitol as it was unfolding. He did nothing for 187 minutes, while people were being killed and maimed, while members of Congress were being rushed to safe places, their lives and those of his own Vice-President and his family under threat, with his supporters shouting “Hang Mike Pence”. A gallows had already been constructed on Capitol grounds. He watched TV for over three hours, twiddling his thumbs, when only he could have stopped the violence.
On January 4, Trump held a meeting with Trump attorney John Eastman, Vice-President Pence, his Chief of Staff and Counsel. Trump stated, based on his (false) knowledge that the election was rigged, the Vice-President should reject the legitimate Electoral College votes certified by Congress and send them back to the state legislatures, rather than count them on January 6, as was his constitutional duty.
When Pence refused this request on the grounds that such an action was not constitutional, Trump paid him the worst insult in his vocabulary – that Pence was “too honest”.
Eastman then gave Pence another alternative, to pause the voting for 10 days, allow state legislatures to have one last look and make a determination as to whether the elections were handled fairly. Eastman lied that “this was constitutional law, this wasn’t criminal activity”. This wasn’t and this was. Pence wisely rejected this illegal advice.
These attempts by Trump and his counsel at “persuading” and “asking” Pence to commit an action in direct contravention of the Constitution, are covered under the First Amendment. If it stopped at that. But it didn’t. Their words resulted directly in an insurrection which had Pence and his family nearly hanged, the lives of members of Congress threatened, and hundreds of police officers and insurrectionists wounded and killed. That was not Free Speech, that was sedition.
When Hitler ranted against the Jews in Germany in the 1930s, with the false allegation, his Big Lie, that Germany lost World War I because they were betrayed by the Jews, that was Free Speech. But when this Big Lie resulted directly in the holocaust, where six million Jews and those of “impure blood” were murdered, that was not Free Speech, that was genocide.
Ten Republican candidates, including Trump, have now qualified for the first presidential debate to be held in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, on August 23. The debate, to be held under the aegis of the Republican National Committee (RNC), will be aired by Fox News, moderated by Fox news hosts, Brett Baier and Martha MacCallum. In addition to Trump, the field includes Ron DeSantis (Trump’s closest pursuer in the Republican polls), and eight other hopefuls who have met the qualifications to participate in the debate but are polling in single digits.
As Trump dominates the field, the debate may be an opportunity for his rivals to make their cases in front of a national audience. However, Trump and some of the qualified candidates have already indicated that they will not take the loyalty pledge the RNC insists they sign before participation: that the candidates affirm they will “honor the will of the primary voters and support the Republican nominee” elected in the Republican primaries. The debate could well be abandoned for this reason.
Republicans will be in a terrible bind if, as seems likely, Trump keeps on losing his popularity as his criminal, even treasonous behavior becomes public during the many trials he is currently facing. He may even be convicted of sedition and/or espionage long before November 2024. But on current polls, he is the likely Republican presidential nominee, by a large margin.
Republicans will then have no choice but to field a convicted felon as their flagbearer in 2024. Their opponent is likely to be incumbent President Biden. If, for any reason, Biden falters in the Democratic primaries, they have accomplished candidates like Kamala Harris, Gavin Newsom and Pete Buttigieg in the wings. Democrats will also have the advantage of running on the back of an extremely successful first term of progressive bipartisan legislation enacted by President Biden.
by Dr Gotabhya Ranasinghe
Senior Consultant Cardiologist
National Hospital Sri Lanka
When we sought a meeting with Hon Dr. Ramesh Pathirana, Minister of Health, he graciously cleared his busy schedule to accommodate us. Renowned for his attentive listening and deep understanding, Minister Pathirana is dedicated to advancing the health sector. His openness and transparency exemplify the qualities of an exemplary politician and minister.
Dr. Palitha Mahipala, the current Health Secretary, demonstrates both commendable enthusiasm and unwavering support. This combination of attributes makes him a highly compatible colleague for the esteemed Minister of Health.
Our discussion centered on a project that has been in the works for the past 30 years, one that no other minister had managed to advance.
Minister Pathirana, however, recognized the project’s significance and its potential to revolutionize care for heart patients.
The project involves the construction of a state-of-the-art facility at the premises of the National Hospital Colombo. The project’s location within the premises of the National Hospital underscores its importance and relevance to the healthcare infrastructure of the nation.
This facility will include a cardiology building and a tertiary care center, equipped with the latest technology to handle and treat all types of heart-related conditions and surgeries.
Securing funding was a major milestone for this initiative. Minister Pathirana successfully obtained approval for a $40 billion loan from the Asian Development Bank. With the funding in place, the foundation stone is scheduled to be laid in September this year, and construction will begin in January 2025.
This project guarantees a consistent and uninterrupted supply of stents and related medications for heart patients. As a result, patients will have timely access to essential medical supplies during their treatment and recovery. By securing these critical resources, the project aims to enhance patient outcomes, minimize treatment delays, and maintain the highest standards of cardiac care.
Upon its fruition, this monumental building will serve as a beacon of hope and healing, symbolizing the unwavering dedication to improving patient outcomes and fostering a healthier society.We anticipate a future marked by significant progress and positive outcomes in Sri Lanka’s cardiovascular treatment landscape within the foreseeable timeframe.
by Fr. Emmanuel Fernando, OMI
Jesuit Fr. Aloysius Pieris (affectionately called Fr. Aloy) celebrated his 90th birthday on April 9, 2024 and I, as the editor of our Oblate Journal, THE MISSIONARY OBLATE had gone to press by that time. Immediately I decided to publish an article, appreciating the untiring selfless services he continues to offer for inter-Faith dialogue, the renewal of the Catholic Church, his concern for the poor and the suffering Sri Lankan masses and to me, the present writer.
It was in 1988, when I was appointed Director of the Oblate Scholastics at Ampitiya by the then Oblate Provincial Fr. Anselm Silva, that I came to know Fr. Aloy more closely. Knowing well his expertise in matters spiritual, theological, Indological and pastoral, and with the collaborative spirit of my companion-formators, our Oblate Scholastics were sent to Tulana, the Research and Encounter Centre, Kelaniya, of which he is the Founder-Director, for ‘exposure-programmes’ on matters spiritual, biblical, theological and pastoral. Some of these dimensions according to my view and that of my companion-formators, were not available at the National Seminary, Ampitiya.
Ever since that time, our Oblate formators/ accompaniers at the Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya , have continued to send our Oblate Scholastics to Tulana Centre for deepening their insights and convictions regarding matters needed to serve the people in today’s context. Fr. Aloy also had tried very enthusiastically with the Oblate team headed by Frs. Oswald Firth and Clement Waidyasekara to begin a Theologate, directed by the Religious Congregations in Sri Lanka, for the contextual formation/ accompaniment of their members. It should very well be a desired goal of the Leaders / Provincials of the Religious Congregations.
Besides being a formator/accompanier at the Oblate Scholasticate, I was entrusted also with the task of editing and publishing our Oblate journal, ‘The Missionary Oblate’. To maintain the quality of the journal I continue to depend on Fr. Aloy for his thought-provoking and stimulating articles on Biblical Spirituality, Biblical Theology and Ecclesiology. I am very grateful to him for his generous assistance. Of late, his writings on renewal of the Church, initiated by Pope St. John XX111 and continued by Pope Francis through the Synodal path, published in our Oblate journal, enable our readers to focus their attention also on the needed renewal in the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka. Fr. Aloy appreciated very much the Synodal path adopted by the Jesuit Pope Francis for the renewal of the Church, rooted very much on prayerful discernment. In my Religious and presbyteral life, Fr.Aloy continues to be my spiritual animator / guide and ongoing formator / acccompanier.
Fr. Aloysius Pieris, BA Hons (Lond), LPh (SHC, India), STL (PFT, Naples), PhD (SLU/VC), ThD (Tilburg), D.Ltt (KU), has been one of the eminent Asian theologians well recognized internationally and one who has lectured and held visiting chairs in many universities both in the West and in the East. Many members of Religious Congregations from Asian countries have benefited from his lectures and guidance in the East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) in Manila, Philippines. He had been a Theologian consulted by the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences for many years. During his professorship at the Gregorian University in Rome, he was called to be a member of a special group of advisers on other religions consulted by Pope Paul VI.
Fr. Aloy is the author of more than 30 books and well over 500 Research Papers. Some of his books and articles have been translated and published in several countries. Among those books, one can find the following: 1) The Genesis of an Asian Theology of Liberation (An Autobiographical Excursus on the Art of Theologising in Asia, 2) An Asian Theology of Liberation, 3) Providential Timeliness of Vatican 11 (a long-overdue halt to a scandalous millennium, 4) Give Vatican 11 a chance, 5) Leadership in the Church, 6) Relishing our faith in working for justice (Themes for study and discussion), 7) A Message meant mainly, not exclusively for Jesuits (Background information necessary for helping Francis renew the Church), 8) Lent in Lanka (Reflections and Resolutions, 9) Love meets wisdom (A Christian Experience of Buddhism, 10) Fire and Water 11) God’s Reign for God’s poor, 12) Our Unhiddden Agenda (How we Jesuits work, pray and form our men). He is also the Editor of two journals, Vagdevi, Journal of Religious Reflection and Dialogue, New Series.
Fr. Aloy has a BA in Pali and Sanskrit from the University of London and a Ph.D in Buddhist Philosophy from the University of Sri Lankan, Vidyodaya Campus. On Nov. 23, 2019, he was awarded the prestigious honorary Doctorate of Literature (D.Litt) by the Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, the Most Venerable Welamitiyawe Dharmakirthi Sri Kusala Dhamma Thera.
Fr. Aloy continues to be a promoter of Gospel values and virtues. Justice as a constitutive dimension of love and social concern for the downtrodden masses are very much noted in his life and work. He had very much appreciated the commitment of the late Fr. Joseph (Joe) Fernando, the National Director of the Social and Economic Centre (SEDEC) for the poor.
In Sri Lanka, a few religious Congregations – the Good Shepherd Sisters, the Christian Brothers, the Marist Brothers and the Oblates – have invited him to animate their members especially during their Provincial Congresses, Chapters and International Conferences. The mainline Christian Churches also have sought his advice and followed his seminars. I, for one, regret very much, that the Sri Lankan authorities of the Catholic Church –today’s Hierarchy—- have not sought Fr.
Aloy’s expertise for the renewal of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka and thus have not benefited from the immense store of wisdom and insight that he can offer to our local Church while the Sri Lankan bishops who governed the Catholic church in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vatican Council (Edmund Fernando OMI, Anthony de Saram, Leo Nanayakkara OSB, Frank Marcus Fernando, Paul Perera,) visited him and consulted him on many matters. Among the Tamil Bishops, Bishop Rayappu Joseph was keeping close contact with him and Bishop J. Deogupillai hosted him and his team visiting him after the horrible Black July massacre of Tamils.
Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement
By Gomi Senadhira
senadhiragomi@gmail.com
“You might tell fairy tales, but the progress of a country cannot be achieved through such narratives. A country cannot be developed by making false promises. The country moved backward because of the electoral promises made by political parties throughout time. We have witnessed that the ultimate result of this is the country becoming bankrupt. Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet.” – President Ranil Wickremesinghe, 2024 Budget speech
Any Sri Lankan would agree with the above words of President Wickremesinghe on the false promises our politicians and officials make and the fairy tales they narrate which bankrupted this country. So, to understand this, let’s look at one such fairy tale with lots of false promises; Ranil Wickremesinghe’s greatest achievement in the area of international trade and investment promotion during the Yahapalana period, Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA).
It is appropriate and timely to do it now as Finance Minister Wickremesinghe has just presented to parliament a bill on the National Policy on Economic Transformation which includes the establishment of an Office for International Trade and the Sri Lanka Institute of Economics and International Trade.
Was SLSFTA a “Cleverly negotiated Free Trade Agreement” as stated by the (former) Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Malik Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate on the SLSFTA in July 2018, or a colossal blunder covered up with lies, false promises, and fairy tales? After SLSFTA was signed there were a number of fairy tales published on this agreement by the Ministry of Development Strategies and International, Institute of Policy Studies, and others.
However, for this article, I would like to limit my comments to the speech by Minister Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate, and the two most important areas in the agreement which were covered up with lies, fairy tales, and false promises, namely: revenue loss for Sri Lanka and Investment from Singapore. On the other important area, “Waste products dumping” I do not want to comment here as I have written extensively on the issue.
1. The revenue loss
During the Parliamentary Debate in July 2018, Minister Samarawickrama stated “…. let me reiterate that this FTA with Singapore has been very cleverly negotiated by us…. The liberalisation programme under this FTA has been carefully designed to have the least impact on domestic industry and revenue collection. We have included all revenue sensitive items in the negative list of items which will not be subject to removal of tariff. Therefore, 97.8% revenue from Customs duty is protected. Our tariff liberalisation will take place over a period of 12-15 years! In fact, the revenue earned through tariffs on goods imported from Singapore last year was Rs. 35 billion.
The revenue loss for over the next 15 years due to the FTA is only Rs. 733 million– which when annualised, on average, is just Rs. 51 million. That is just 0.14% per year! So anyone who claims the Singapore FTA causes revenue loss to the Government cannot do basic arithmetic! Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I call on my fellow members of this House – don’t mislead the public with baseless criticism that is not grounded in facts. Don’t look at petty politics and use these issues for your own political survival.”
I was surprised to read the minister’s speech because an article published in January 2018 in “The Straits Times“, based on information released by the Singaporean Negotiators stated, “…. With the FTA, tariff savings for Singapore exports are estimated to hit $10 million annually“.
As the annual tariff savings (that is the revenue loss for Sri Lanka) calculated by the Singaporean Negotiators, Singaporean $ 10 million (Sri Lankan rupees 1,200 million in 2018) was way above the rupees’ 733 million revenue loss for 15 years estimated by the Sri Lankan negotiators, it was clear to any observer that one of the parties to the agreement had not done the basic arithmetic!
Six years later, according to a report published by “The Morning” newspaper, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) on 7th May 2024, Mr Samarawickrama’s chief trade negotiator K.J. Weerasinghehad had admitted “…. that forecasted revenue loss for the Government of Sri Lanka through the Singapore FTA is Rs. 450 million in 2023 and Rs. 1.3 billion in 2024.”
If these numbers are correct, as tariff liberalisation under the SLSFTA has just started, we will pass Rs 2 billion very soon. Then, the question is how Sri Lanka’s trade negotiators made such a colossal blunder. Didn’t they do their basic arithmetic? If they didn’t know how to do basic arithmetic they should have at least done their basic readings. For example, the headline of the article published in The Straits Times in January 2018 was “Singapore, Sri Lanka sign FTA, annual savings of $10m expected”.
Anyway, as Sri Lanka’s chief negotiator reiterated at the COPF meeting that “…. since 99% of the tariffs in Singapore have zero rates of duty, Sri Lanka has agreed on 80% tariff liberalisation over a period of 15 years while expecting Singapore investments to address the imbalance in trade,” let’s turn towards investment.
Investment from Singapore
In July 2018, speaking during the Parliamentary Debate on the FTA this is what Minister Malik Samarawickrama stated on investment from Singapore, “Already, thanks to this FTA, in just the past two-and-a-half months since the agreement came into effect we have received a proposal from Singapore for investment amounting to $ 14.8 billion in an oil refinery for export of petroleum products. In addition, we have proposals for a steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million), sugar refinery ($ 200 million). This adds up to more than $ 16.05 billion in the pipeline on these projects alone.
And all of these projects will create thousands of more jobs for our people. In principle approval has already been granted by the BOI and the investors are awaiting the release of land the environmental approvals to commence the project.
I request the Opposition and those with vested interests to change their narrow-minded thinking and join us to develop our country. We must always look at what is best for the whole community, not just the few who may oppose. We owe it to our people to courageously take decisions that will change their lives for the better.”
According to the media report I quoted earlier, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Chief Negotiator Weerasinghe has admitted that Sri Lanka was not happy with overall Singapore investments that have come in the past few years in return for the trade liberalisation under the Singapore-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement. He has added that between 2021 and 2023 the total investment from Singapore had been around $162 million!
What happened to those projects worth $16 billion negotiated, thanks to the SLSFTA, in just the two-and-a-half months after the agreement came into effect and approved by the BOI? I do not know about the steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million) and sugar refinery ($ 200 million).
However, story of the multibillion-dollar investment in the Petroleum Refinery unfolded in a manner that would qualify it as the best fairy tale with false promises presented by our politicians and the officials, prior to 2019 elections.
Though many Sri Lankans got to know, through the media which repeatedly highlighted a plethora of issues surrounding the project and the questionable credentials of the Singaporean investor, the construction work on the Mirrijiwela Oil Refinery along with the cement factory began on the24th of March 2019 with a bang and Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his ministers along with the foreign and local dignitaries laid the foundation stones.
That was few months before the 2019 Presidential elections. Inaugurating the construction work Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the projects will create thousands of job opportunities in the area and surrounding districts.
The oil refinery, which was to be built over 200 acres of land, with the capacity to refine 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day, was to generate US$7 billion of exports and create 1,500 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs. The construction of the refinery was to be completed in 44 months. Four years later, in August 2023 the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to cancel the agreement with the investors of the refinery as the project has not been implemented! Can they explain to the country how much money was wasted to produce that fairy tale?
It is obvious that the President, ministers, and officials had made huge blunders and had deliberately misled the public and the parliament on the revenue loss and potential investment from SLSFTA with fairy tales and false promises.
As the president himself said, a country cannot be developed by making false promises or with fairy tales and these false promises and fairy tales had bankrupted the country. “Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet”.
(The writer, a specialist and an activist on trade and development issues . )
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