Recommendation to deprive sitting and former MPs of civic rights: Gevindu strikes discordant note

… receives backing of Sabry, Wimal

By Shamindra Ferdinando

SLPP National List MP Gevindu Cumaratunga has strongly opposed an alleged move to deprive lawmakers of civic rights on the basis of recommendation made by a Presidential Commission of Inquiry into political victimization.

Political sources said that lawmaker Cumaratunga emphasised the government shouldn’t resort to such a course of action at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa at Temple Trees early this week.  Sources said that the leader of the civil society group Yuthukama Cumaratunga pointed out that parliamentary power shouldn’t be used to deprive Opposition members of civic rights.

The MP recalled how the UNP admitted that deprival of SLFP leader Mrs. Sirimavo Bandaranaike of her civic rights was wrong.

The Chairman of the Committee, retired Supreme Court Judge Upali Abeyratne presented the report to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the Presidential Secretariat on Dec 8, 2020. President Gotabaya Rajapaksa appointed a three-member Presidential Commission of Inquiry on January 20, 2020 to determine whether politicians and public servants implicated by the Abeyratne Commission should lose their civic rights.

Cumaratunga has explained that the denial of civic rights of Opposition members was detrimental to the government. Sources said that when Premier Mahinda Rajapaksa inquired from President’s Counsel Justice Minister Ali Sabry’s views on the matter, he, too, said that members shouldn’t be denied civic rights on the basis of the committee report.

Sources said that the National Freedom Front (NFF) leader Wimal Weerawansa, too, opposed the move. Sources said that MP Cumaratunga requested the government parliamentary group to assure the parliament on Thursday (22) that members wouldn’t be denied their civic rights regardless of the recommendation.

However, MP Cumaratunga’s stand hadn’t received the backing of the vast majority of the SLPP grouping, sources said, adding that MP Cumaratunga was left sort of isolated with the party pursuing the matter.

Having received Abeyratne’s report, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa on January 31, appointed a Special Presidential Commission of Inquiry to determine whether politicians and public servants implicated by his Political Victimization Commission should lose their civic rights. The commission consists of Supreme Court Justice Dhammika Samarakoon, SC Justice Kumuduni Wickremasinghe and Court of Appeal Judge Ratnapriya Gurusinghe.

The Justice Abeyratne Commission has recommended that the following be deprived of civic rights: Rajitha Senaratne, Patali Champika Ranawaka, R. Sampanthan, M.A. Sumanthiran, Anura Kumara Dissanayake, Mangala Samaraweera, Ravi Karunanayake, Ajith P Perera, Arjuna Ranatunga, Ranjan Ramanayake, Ranil Wickremesinghe, Sarath Fonseka, Rauff Hakeem and Malik Samarawickrema. Some of them are no longer in parliament.

In addition to them, the Abeyratne Commission recommended the following too be denied civic rights: J.C. Weliamuna – PC, ex-MP Jayampathi Wickremaratne, PC, Wasantha Navaratne Bandara, PC, Thusith Mudalige – Additional Solicitor General, AG’s Department, Upul Jayasuriya, PC, Dilrukshi Dias Wickramasinghe – PC, former Solicitor General, Janaka Bandara – Senior State Counsel AG’s Department, Shani Abeysekera – SSP, Former CID Director, B.S. Tissera – ASP, Former CID, Ravi Waidyalankara – SDIG FCID, Nishantha Silva – IP, Former CID OIC, Ravi Seneviratne – SDIG, formerly of CID, Ravindra Wijeguneratne – Admiral, Former Navy Commander, J.J. Ranasinghe – Rear Admiral SLN, Prasad Kariyawasam, Ravinatha Aryasinha, Saman Ekanayake, S.A. Khan – Former Ambassador to the UAE and C.A.H.M. Wijeratne – Former Director General Legal, MFA and Ambassador for Sri Lanka to Poland.

Some of them, including Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka in early March moved court against the recommendations of the commission appointed to probe the alleged incidents of political victimisation.

SJB lawmaker Mujibur Rahman told The Island that the government struggling to cope up with growing political crisis and dissent within its parliamentary group seemed to be bent on silencing the Opposition. Pointing out that in spite of having an overwhelming majority in parliament, the SLPP was in the back foot, MP Rahman opined that the Commission on political victimisation was nothing but a fiasco that certainly eroded the confidence the public had in the SLPP as was shown in 2019 presidential and 2020 parliamentary elections, both of which it won overwhelmingly.