More evidence of US involvement in Sri Lankan regime-change

Saturday, 21 February 2015 00:20 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

http://www.wsws.org: Sri Lanka’s presidential election on 8 January resulted in the ousting of Mahinda Rajapaksa and the installation of Maithripala Sirisena as President. While the new Government’s leaders and their pseudo-left backers claim this outcome was the result of an “uprising of the people” against Rajapaksa’s autocratic rule, it was in reality a regime-change operation, as the Socialist Equality Party (SEP) alone has explained. Right from the outset, it was clear that Sirisena’s sudden emergence as the “common Opposition candidate” was the result of carefully-orchestrated, behind-the-scenes intrigues. On 20 November, one day after Rajapaksa announced the election date, Health Minister Sirisena quit the Government and declared that he would be standing in the election backed by the opposition United National Party (UNP) and other parties. The WSWS has already detailed the involvement of Washington, acting through former President Chandrika Kumaratunga and UNP Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe. The Obama administration was deeply hostile to Rajapaksa’s ties with Beijing and determined to ensure that Sri Lanka is fully integrated into the US “pivot to Asia” and military build-up against China. Washington’s hand in Rajapaksa’s removal More evidence has now come to light on Washington’s hand in Rajapaksa’s removal. On 6 February, the Sri Lankan Government’s Information Department website published a report on the visit of Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera to Washington. It highlighted “the revival of the cordial relationship between the two countries” and explained that this was the “result of the fruitful discussions the Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, as the Opposition Leader, had with the US State Department officials, including [US Assistant Secretary of State] Biswal and former Ambassador to Colombo Michelle Sison.” The report provided further details of Wickremesinghe’s top-level meetings in Washington. “During his one-month stay in the US last April, Wickremesinghe had met and held discussions on Sri Lanka’s political future with the senior officials at the State Department, and White House, and the members of the Senate and the House of Representatives.” On his return to Sri Lanka, Wickremesinghe met with US Ambassador Sison on 22 May at the UNP headquarters. A media report at the time noted that the focus of the discussion “was regarding the current political situation of Sri Lanka.” When the UNP announced Wickremesinghe’s extended trip to the US last year, it was billed as a study tour at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University. Clearly that was just a cover for lengthy discussions with top State Department and White House officials over “Sri Lanka’s political future”—that is, how to advance their common objective of removing Rajapaksa from office. US Ambassador Sison coordinated the meetings. The US has been putting pressure on Rajapaksa to break ties with Beijing since 2009 when the Sri Lankan military defeated the separatist Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the island’s long-running communal war. Having fully backed the war, Washington has cynically exploited the military’s war crimes and the threat of charges to try to force Rajapaksa to distance his Government from China. Rajapaksa sought to balance between Washington and Beijing but the US made clear that was untenable. In March last year, Washington flagged its impatience by pushing a resolution through the UN Human Rights Council calling for an international inquiry into human rights abuses in Sri Lanka. Wickremesinghe’s visit and discussions in the US followed in April. Kumaratunga, the main architect The other key figure in the intrigues was former President Kumaratunga, who as a former leader and a senior figure within Rajapaksa’s Sri Lanka Freedom Party, was able to broker the deal for Sirisena to defect and run as Opposition candidate with the UNP’s support. She also has close connections in Washington and to the White House via her association with the Clinton Foundation. As Obama’s previous Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton was the architect of the “pivot to Asia” and was deeply involved in all of its intrigues, including in Sri Lanka. In a lengthy interview with Sirasa TV on 3 February, Kumaratunga acknowledged her role, saying she had been the main architect in bringing Sirisena forward as the common opposition candidate. Kumaratunga said that many people had urged her to intervene against Rajapaksa, adding: “Foreign countries strongly brought proposals [to me] on this.” She refused to name the countries or to elaborate, but the US was clearly one of the countries. The Opposition plans for the election were shown to top US and UK diplomats by UNP leaders, Karu Jayasuriya, Mangala Samaraweera and Ravi Karunanayake. The Sunday Times Editorial on 8 February noted: “It is an open secret that the former US Ambassador in Colombo reached out to the Opposition, especially the then Leader of the Opposition [Wickremesinghe]” and moved away from engagement with former President Rajapaksa. Pro-US campaign In carrying out this regime-change operation, the Opposition parties exploited the deep hostility among workers, young people and the poor towards the Rajapaksa Government over its anti-democratic methods and austerity policies. Sirisena declared that he was fighting against the “dictatorship and family nepotism of Rajapaksa” and promised economic relief for the people. This pro-US campaign was immensely helped by pseudo-left organisations such as the Nava Sama Samaja Party who falsely painted Sirisena and Wickremesinghe as democrats. As a Senior Minister in the Rajapaksa Government, Sirisena bears responsibility for all of its anti-working class policies. Likewise, Wickremesinghe’s UNP has a long history of attacks on the democratic and social rights of workers and youth. Having helped install Sirisena, the US is now seeking to rapidly transform its relations with Sri Lanka. During his recent visit to India, Obama said: “In this region, India can play a positive role in helping countries forge a better future, from Burma to Sri Lanka, where today there’s new hope for democracy.” Similarly, in a speech to Brooklyn Institute on National Security Strategy, Obama’s National Security Advisor Susana Rice declared: “We’ll help countries in transition—like Burma, Tunisia, and Sri Lanka—become more open, more democratic, and more inclusive societies. We’ll support established democracies that are in danger of backsliding.” Washington’s machinations Washington’s machinations have nothing to do with fostering democracy in Sri Lanka or anywhere else in the world. Rather, the US is seeking to ensure its dominance throughout the globe, particularly in Asia over China. Sri Lanka, which is strategically located across Indian Ocean sea lanes, is a critical element of the Pentagon’s war plans against China. The new Sri Lanka Government has wasted no time in showing its readiness to align with US interests. Sri Lankan Foreign Minister Samaraweera is visiting Washington this week to meet with US Secretary of State John Kerry to discuss closer relations. US imperialism has brought Europe to the brink of war with its reckless confrontation with Russia over Ukraine. Washington’s aggressive policies in Asia against China carry the same dangers. Workers in Sri Lanka, Asia and around the world must draw the necessary conclusions lessons and build an anti-war movement of the international working class to put an end to capitalism and its outmoded nation-state system which is the root cause of war.

US supports UNHRC decision to delay report on Sri Lanka

Geneva: The United States expressed support to the decision taken by the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) to postpone the presentation of the report on Sri Lanka at its upcoming session in March. US Representative to the UNHRC Ambassador Keith Harper in a statement released on Monday said the United States supports the consensus decision taken by the Human Rights Council on the OHCHR’s report on Sri Lanka. “We commend the pledges made – and initial steps taken – by the new Sri Lankan Government to revive Sri Lanka’s democracy, improve governance, support credible justice and accountability mechanisms, enhance the protection of human rights, and facilitate reconciliation after nearly 30 years of war,” Ambassador Harper said. He said the US encourages the Sri Lankan Government to use the time between now and the release of the report to work jointly with OHCHR(Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights) to achieve these shared goals, and – when the report is released – to duly consider the recommendations contained therein. The UNHRC Monday granted a request made by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein to delay the consideration of the report into alleged human rights violations during the conflict in Sri Lanka for six months until September 2015. The US Ambassador reaffirmed that his government is steadfast in its commitment to” ensuring accountability, justice, reconciliation, and respect for human rights for all the people of Sri Lanka.” Following is the full statement of US Ambassador Harper: Statement delivered by Ambassador Keith Harper, Representative of the United States to the United Nations Human Rights Council HRC Organisational Meeting, Geneva, 16 February 2015 Thank you Mr. President. The United States supports the consensus decision taken today by the Human Rights Council on the OHCHR’s report on Sri Lanka. We commend the pledges made – and initial steps taken – by the new Sri Lankan Government to revive Sri Lanka’s democracy, improve governance, support credible justice and accountability mechanisms, enhance the protection of human rights, and facilitate reconciliation after nearly 30 years of war. As Secretary Kerry said in Washington on 12 February, the people of Sri Lanka voted to move Sri Lanka in a new direction. We encourage the Sri Lankan Government to use the time between now and the release of the report to work jointly with OHCHR to achieve these shared goals, and – when the report is released – to duly consider the recommendations contained therein. As a main sponsor of resolution 25/1, the United States believes in the importance of the work that the High Commissioner and his team have undertaken. We very much look forward to the publication of OHCHR’s report later this year. When the Council provided this mandate to OHCHR, we entrusted the High Commissioner to discharge it faithfully. The United States continues to trust in the High Commissioner in this regard. We are willing to be guided by his judgment as to how to best fulfill this mandate. We joined this consensus decision to extend the time to release the OHCHR report based on the reasons that the High Commissioner offered. We hope that new information becomes available that will enable the report to provide the Council and the people of Sri Lanka a more complete picture of what occurred. Mr. President, procedurally, we are grateful for the manner in which you and your Bureau have discharged your duties, and for the notification you provided to states ahead of this decision. We believe that both you and the High Commissioner have conducted your work in a manner that will ensure preservation and respect for both the independence of OHCHR and the authority of the Human Rights Council and its member states. Finally, I would like to reaffirm that the United States Government is steadfast in our commitment to ensuring accountability, justice, reconciliation, and respect for human rights for all the people of Sri Lanka. We are confident that the efforts here in Geneva will enable the international community and the Government of Sri Lanka to work together to realise these shared objectives. Thank you Mr. President.