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SIXTY YEARS AGO: THE ASSASSINATION OF PRESIDENT KENNEDY
SIX SECONDS IN DALLAS – I
By Jayantha Somasundaram
It was 12:30pm 22nd November 1963 at Dealey Plaza in Dallas Texas. President Kennedy’s Motorcade was on Elm Street, moving at 18 kmph. The Presidential Limousine was number two in the Motorcade, following the lead police car. In the limousine next to the driver sat Roy Kellerman, ranking Secret Service Agent (the presidential protective detail) behind them in the jump seats were Texas Governor John and Nellie Connally, and behind them were President John and Jackie Kennedy. Then came six seconds of gunfire; Kennedy and Connally were hit, the President fatally. Forty five minutes later at Parkland Memorial Hospital President Kennedy was pronounced dead.
A week later Kenndy’s successor President Lyndon Johnson appointed a six-member commission chaired by Chief Justice Earle Warren, and including future President Gerald Ford and former Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) Director Allen Dulles, to investigate the assassination. In September 1964 they presented their findings in what has come to be called the Warren Commission Report.
The Warren Commission concluded that 24-year old Lee Harvey Oswald assassinated Kennedy without the aid or instigation of a third party. That using a Mannlicher-Carcano Carbine he fired from the sixth floor window of the Texas School Book Depository building in Dealey Plaza where he worked. He then took a bus and a taxi, arriving at his home at 1:00pm, leaving shortly thereafter armed with a pistol. When confronted by police officer Tippit at 1:15 Oswald shot and killed him. After he was arrested that afternoon in a cinema he was held in a Dallas jail until the 24th when nightclub owner Jack L. Ruby, also acting alone, shot and killed him.
All the doctors who treated Kennedy at Parkland Memorial were explicit: The cause of death was a massive head injury from a gunshot wound at the left temple. Besides the head injuries there were other wounds, a back wound nearly six inches below the collar alongside Kennedy’s spine and a throat wound in front.
If the wound at his left temple and throat were entry wounds, they could not have originated from the Book Depository because at the time of the shooting that building was positioned almost directly behind the Motorcade. Moreover nearly two-thirds of the witnesses questioned as to the origin of the gun shots, identified a grassy knoll located in front of the Motorcade as their source.
Magic Bullet
The Commission claimed that Oswald’s rifle could fire a bullet every 2.3 seconds. On the basis of cine films taken by spectators in Dealey Plaza it was established that the firing had lasted six seconds. Hence a maximum of three bullets could have been fired by Oswald’s weapon in the given time. One bullet missed the Motorcade and embedded itself in the pavement. If another was responsible for the head wounds then the third bullet had to have inflicted all the other wounds. So it would have had to enter Kennedy’s back torso and in the words of the Warren Report: ‘pierced the President’s throat and also caused Governor Connally’s wounds.’
The Warren Commission therefore created the ‘magic bullet’ which was fired from the Book Depository into Kennedy’s back, then turned through 120º and travelled up the body, turned through another 120º at his neck where it exited and then went on to inflict the wounds in Connally’s back, wrist and leg.
Oswald
At 12:44 by which time all other police patrol cars were ordered to converge on Dealey Plaza, Police Officer J.D.Tippit was detailed to Central Oak Cliff – the location of his death – ‘so that you will be at large for any emergency that comes in.’ Witnesses said that Tippit’s killer placed his elbows on the car window and appeared to be chatting with the officer. Had Tippit accosted his killer suspicious that he was the President’s assassin, the least he would have done was draw his gun and step out of the Police Car.
The only witness who claims that he saw Oswald fire at the President was Howard Brennan. He provided a description of Oswald to Secret Service Agent Sorrel after one pm. Tippit was shot at 1:15. At 12:45 however the Dallas Police had broadcast a description of Oswald. Moreover when Oswald was arrested that afternoon he was charged with Tippit’s killing; only twenty four hours later would Oswald be told that he would be charged with the assassination of the President. So why was Tippit’s killer wanted by the Dallas Police half an hour before Tippit was shot?
How reliable in any case was Brennan as a witness. Though he provided an accurate description of Oswald minutes after the assassination, just hours later that day he failed to pick Oswald out of a police line up! Brennan also told police that through the sixth floor window of the Book Depository he could see Oswald walking about. But the upper portion of that window was shut. So the Oswald that Brennan saw must have been walking about on his knees!
Jack Ruby
Once Oswald was identified as the President’s assassin it would be assumed that he was securely guarded and protected. Then how did Ruby get close enough to him in the Dallas Police garage to be able to kill him? Ruby who ran a couple of nightclubs in Dallas was said to be on speaking terms with about “700 of the 1,200 men on the police force.” There were standing orders that policemen and their guests be served anything on the house. In addition he also “made women available to officers.”
When Ruby appeared before the Warren Commission he was warned by both the Police and the Secret Service not to disclose certain matters. So he requested a transfer to Washington so that they “might get a fair shake out of him… Gentlemen,” he said “my life is in danger here.” He also said “someone in the Police Department is guilty of giving the information as to when Oswald was coming down (to the garage where he was killed).”
On November 14th a meeting took place in Ruby’s night club. The participants were Ruby, Tippit and Bernard Weisman, one of the leaders of the political right in Dallas. A crude but signed defamatory advertisement attacking the President was taken out by Weisman in the 22nd Dallas Morning News.
Ruby was identified hours before the assassination on the grassy knoll sporting a gun case and he was at Parkland Memorial after the assassination. Ruby was associated with elements of the US Armed Forces who were running guns to anti-Castro forces in Cuba. In a letter to the then Director of the CIA Richard Helms, Warren Commission Lawyers remarked that Ruby “was involved with members of the underworld…A Government informant in Chicago has reported that such Cubans (involved in gun-running to Cuba) were behind the Kennedy assassin.”
Fate of Witnesses
Interestingly witnesses like Mrs Tice who had identified Ruby at Parkland were harassed and threatened. Other witnesses suffered worse. One witness was shot through the head. Another hanged herself to death in the Dallas jail. After another witness was interviewed by independent investigators her son was arrested and injured when he fell out of a window in an alleged attempt to escape from the Dallas Police.
Two reporters visited Ruby’s apartment just after he had killed Oswald. One, a writer for the Dallas Times Herald was found dead in his Dallas apartment, the victim of a karate attack; the Dallas Police were unable to find his killer. The other a former Dallas resident and a prize-winning reporter for a California newspaper was shot to death in a California police station; the police were able to locate his killer – he was a local police officer. An eyewitness to the Tippit murder Mrs Acquilla Clemons stated that she was implicitly threatened with harm by a Dallas police officer if she disclosed what she had seen.
Abraham Bolden the first Black to serve on the White House Secret Service detail announced that he wanted to testify before the Warren Commission, because he was aware of the failure of the Service to take adequate precautions. Bolden was indicted by the Federal Government and charged with trying to sell government files.
Marina Oswald, Lee’s Russian widow had from the outset insisted on her husband’s innocence. But after she was threatened with deportation by Agents of the FBI her testimony changed. Jean Hill who had seen Ruby in Dealey Plaza soon after the assassination said that “the FBI was here for days. They practically lived here. They just didn’t like what I told them I had seen and heard when the President was assassinated. For years I have told the truth, but I have two children to support. I am a public school teacher. My Principal said that it would be best not to talk about the assassination, and I just can’t go through it all again. I can’t believe the Warren Report. I know it’s all a lie, because I was there when it happened!”
“To believe the Warren Commission” writes Robert Anson in They’ve Killed the President, “you have to believe that bullets pause in midair and make ninety degree right hand turns; that a poor marksman can do what experts cannot; that Newtonian laws of motion were not operating on November 22, that a man can be in two places at once; that atoms are able to change their structure; that everything in life is mere chance.”
The Hell Hole
What was the political climate in Dallas that November day in 1963? “God made big people like Kennedy. And God made little people like me, “drawled one Dallas resident. “But Colt made the .45 to even things out. “
Dallas residents sported ‘KO the Kennedys’ car stickers. There were lewd jokes about the hotline to the Vatican that ended in a Rome Sewer. On the eve of the assassination Protestant intolerance reached its zenith. A Baptist Convention was told “one of the greatest blunders in history was the election of a Roman Catholic President.” And that in future one should not vote Democrat or Republican but Protestant.
A Dallas newspaper accused Kennedy of being a follower of ‘the communist line, which is atheistic and godless.’ That Kennedy would ‘take a man’s income tax and without his permission spend it abroad as foreign aid in countries that deny a supreme creator!’
When the President landed in Dallas he faced placards which read ‘Kennedy Khrushchev and (Martin Luther) King’ and ‘Kennedy the Communist Party wants you re-elected.’
As the Presidential party embarked at Forth Worth Airport one of the local drivers asked Kennedy’s Special Assistant Larry O’Brian: Flying to Dallas? And when the latter nodded the man said “That’s the hell hole of the world!”
(To be continued)
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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