Continuing craziness!

The above captioned, interesting piece of Dr. Upul Wijayawardhana, makes mention of the LTTE war, and says: “At the helm of our country, we have two Rajapaksa brothers who defeated one of the most ruthless terrorist groups the world has ever seen. Their determination was not shaken by the gloomy predictions of experts who predicted the invincibility of the Tigers. They snubbed the western politicians who rushed to save the terrorist leader on the cusp of defeat”

Giving credit to Rajapaksa brothers alone for crushing the terrorists is to be unfair by those valiant soldiers, headed by the then Army Commander Sarath Fonseka. If he had said that the war was won under the Rajapaksa regime it would have been more appropriate, as that would include the entire armed forces. This is a mistake made by many when referring to the war.

To clarify further, I have read in the newspapers and heard Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka over the electronic media, when Mahinda Rajapaksa was President, along with his brother Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the then Secretary for Defense, interviewed the then heads of the armed forces to discuss the war situation. It was the then Army commander Sarath Fonseka who stepped forward and said that he could finish the war within three years, provided he was given what he needed. – recruitment of additional soldiers, arms and ammunition, etc. The Rajapaksa brothers agreed and the rest is well known.

Hence, would it not be fair to say the government, under Mahinda Rajapaksa, won the war, which would include all Ranaviruvas and also every citizen who supported the Army in allowing body checks and other security measures?

G. A. D. SIRIMAL

Boralesgamuwa