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Switzerland has summoned Sri Lanka’s ambassador and asked to see the “purported evidence” that Colombo says casts doubt on claims by a Swiss embassy staff member that she was abducted.

Envoy Karunasena Hettiarachchi, who is based in Berlin, met with Switzerland’s State Secretary Pascale Baeriswyl in Bern on Monday, a statement said.

The diplomat flap began after a top Sri Lanka police officer sought asylum in Switzerland.

The next day a local staffer at the Swiss embassy in Colombo claimed she was abducted and forced to hand over sensitive information.

According to the Swiss foreign ministry, the woman was “threatened by unidentified men” and forced “to disclose embassy-related information”.

On Sunday, Sri Lanka sought to raise doubts about that narrative, claiming it had provided Swiss ambassador Hanspeter Mock with “clear evidence” that the staff member’s account did not add up.

But in a statement issued late Monday the Swiss foreign ministry indicated that such proof had not been shared.

The state secretary “asked Ambassador Hettiarachchi to explain the purported evidence against the events described by the embassy, which the Sri Lankan Ministry of Foreign Affairs had alluded to,” the statement said.

The Swiss repeated that it supported Sri Lanka’s desire to investigate the matter but reiterated that “the employee concerned still cannot be questioned on health grounds”.

The staffer was reportedly forced to open her mobile phone and reveal the names of Sri Lankans who had sought asylum in Switzerland.

The police officer who fled to Switzerland had been investigating several cases involving members of the Rajapaksa family who regained power after Gotabaya Rajapaksa won a November 16 election.

The government this week alerted airport immigration authorities to stop any police officer leaving the country without permission.

Announcing its preliminary findings, the Commonwealth Observer Group (COG), has noted that the private media in Sri Lanka was largely unregulated in the days leading up to the presidential polls.

“We note that for this election, the Election Commission was empowered to regulate public media through a set of media guidelines. However, it appeared that private media was largely unregulated,” the Group has stated.

The Commonwealth Observers have recommended that ahead of the next election, both private and public media are independently regulated through a legal framework.

According to the Group, another issue of concern was the use and promotion of hate speech through private media, as well as on social media platforms to conduct campaigns including well after the 48 hours deadline.

The COG has also noted the need for mechanisms to regulate campaign finance in order to ensure transparency, accountability and an even playing field.

“We further noted ethnic and religious tensions that characterized aspects of the pre-election environment. We observed that some groups experienced fear and intimidation,” the Group has stated.

The group has also called on all citizens and political and community leaders to prioritise unity and demonstrate the values of respect and tolerance in political life.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) in a statement said that they share the concerns of Sri Lanka’s journalists about the searches, interrogations and acts of intimidation to which they have been subjected to since Gotabaya Rajapaksa was sworn in as president just two weeks ago. "The authorities must put a stop to all forms of intimidation," RSF said.

It took little more than a week after his installation on 18 November for Rajapaksa, also known as the “Terminator,” to start having an impact of press freedom in Sri Lanka. The initial targets included Newshub.lk, a Colombo-based news website that police raided on 26 November, searching the contents of its servers, desktops and laptops.

The warrant produced by the police had expired on 12 December 2018, nearly a year ago, but the police brushed that aside, blaming a typing error, and continued to use the searchword “Gota” on all of the website’s computers to find and examine references to Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

“This full-blown police raid on an independent news portal, compounded by a crude breach of criminal procedure, sends a very disturbing signal about respect for press freedom under Gotabaya Rajapaksa,” said Daniel Bastard, the head of RSF’s Asia-Pacific desk. “We urge the new government to issue clear directives to the police to let journalists do their work without subjecting them to intimidation.”

Questioned for several hours

Sakthivelpillai Prakash, the editor of the Tamil-language newspaper Thinnapuyal was questioned by plainclothes police in the northern city of Vavuniya on 25 November. After interrogating him about the newspaper’s coverage (in articles and photos) of the former Tamil Tiger rebellion, they asked him to provide the contact details of all of its reporters, which he refused to do.

Sanjay Dhanushka, a journalist who manages the video channel at TheLeader.lk news website, was summoned and questioned by the Criminal Investigation Department for several hours on 26 November.

Then Thushara Vitharana, the editor of the Voicetube.lk website, was summoned for questioning by the CID two days later, on 28 November. She told RSF she was interrogated for two hours about her former activities at TheLeader.lk, for which she no longer works.
Thushara Vitharana, Editor of voicetube.lk speaking to media outside the CID headquarters in Colombo - November 28, 2019

When she asked why she was being questioned, the police said it was in connection with a complaint by the Sinhalese National Organization, a group that promotes Sinhalese and Buddhist supremacy – a theme that was also at the heart of Rajapaksa’s successful election campaign.

Dark decade

As RSF noted shortly before the election,  Rajapaksa was nicknamed the “white van commando boss” while secretary of defence during the “dark decade” from 2005 to 2015 because of the white vans that were reportedly used to abduct and murder journalists.

Sri Lanka is ranked 126th out of 180 countries in RSF’s 2019 World Press Freedom Index.

The world’s leading political risk consultancy and forecasting firm, Eurasia Group, predicated that underdog Sajith Premadasa is now leading in Sri Lanka’s presidential poll. Eurasia Group also successfully predicated the 2015 election and is a key source of information for the foreign ministries of many countries.

The prediction is based on the analysis that minority parties have chosen to back Sajith Premadasa creating a very wide coalition. It also notes that the Premadasa campaign has run a strong and vigorous campaign in the last weeks, over-shadowing his opponent. Since the momentum is with him, the lead is expected to widen over the course of the cooling off period.

Following the publication of this report, sources suggest that some key diplomatic missions in Colombo have been instructed by their headquarters to shift their tacit support away from Gotabaya Rajapaksa to Sajith Premadasa.

Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s media team declined to comment on the report.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has appointed six new Governors today (21).

Accordingly, the following were sworn in before President Gotabaya Rajapaksa at the Presidential Secretariat.

• Raja Kollure -  Uva Province
• Seetha Arambepola - Western Province
• J. M. Muzammil - North Western Province
• Lalith U. Gamage - Central Province
• Willy Gamage - Southern Province
• Tikiri Kobbekaduwa - Sabaragamuwa Province

The Presidential Secretariat had called on the governors of the nine provinces to resign yesterday (20), which resulted in the governors appointed by former President Maithripala Sirisena tendering their resignation.

A few of them including the Sabaragamuwa Governor Dhamma Dissanayake immediately tenders their resignations.

President Gotabaya Rajapaksa is to appoint new Governors to the provinces.

The Centre for Policy Alternatives (CPA) and the Centre for Monitoring Election Violence (CMEV) have expressed deep concern over the anomalies with affidavits submitted by Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) presidential candidate Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

The CPA and the CMEV in a statement has said, they were deeply concerned with recent developments that may impact the presidential election due on 16th November.

"These stem from recent media reports that highlight to several anomalies with the affidavit submitted by Gotabaya Rajapaksa, candidate of the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna, on 7th October and a subsequent and different affidavit shown by his counsel, Ali Sabry PC," the statement states.

The statement further notes, “Apart from the basic question as to why two distinct affidavits were produced in support of Rajapksa’s candidacy, a question is also raised as to whether Rajapaksa meets the criteria provided in the Constitution as per Articles 91 and 92 of the Constitution in terms of whether he continues to be a citizen of the United States of America.

“The fact that two different certificates claiming loss of nationality were publicly shared contributed to the confusion and months of debate, with no credible answers provided by the candidate or his team to quell doubt.”

"In addition to the above, we are also alerted to a third affidavit shared by Sabry on his Facebook page which was attested by a Kularatne with no signature belonging to Rajapaksa," the CPA and CMEV observed.

"Whilst we are not able to comment on the authenticity of these documents, we note that all affidavits were produced by the candidate’s legal team and urges the authorities to immediately investigate the legality of these affidavits and take necessary action," the statement added.

According to the CPA and CMEV, this is essential in the presence of multiple documents that may mislead the voter and rob them of an informed choice as such conduct also begs the question whether an attempt is being made to subvert the electoral process and the rule of law in Sri Lanka.

"In a matter of days Sri Lanka will elect a new President and it is imperative that no doubt remains as to the eligibility of the person elected to the office of first citizen in Sri Lanka. It is also paramount that the Election Commission and other officials are independent and impartial and take all necessary steps to protect the integrity of elections," the statement noted.

The CPA and CEMV have therefore called for legislative reforms that provide the relevant authorities the power to verify documentation submitted by candidates and to take necessary action to prevent confusion and chaos in the future. 

Former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga has tendered her resignation from the post of Chairperson of the Office for National Unity and Reconciliation (ONUR) yesterday (20).

ONUR was set up with the commitment to achieve national unity and reconciliation and was a key feature of the January 2015 presidential campaign.

The Government of Sri Lanka established then established ONUR to give effect to its commitment to reconciliation.

The resolution was moved by the Prime Minister; approved by the Cabinet and established under President.

ONUR has been under the purview of the Ministry of National Integration and Reconciliation.

The Commissioner of Prisons has stated that President Maithripala Sirisena has approved the release of 267 prisoners under a presidential pardon.

Accordingly, this amnesty is to be granted to prisoners with no relation to 40 crimes listed including murder, mugging, child abuse, rape and exploitation of drugs.

The Commissioner of Prisons has told the media that the pardon was implemented for prisoners above the age of 65 years.

Non Cabinet Minister of Economic Reforms and Public Distribution Harsha de Silva while tendering his resignation from the portfolios has requested President Gotabaya Rajapaksa to take over the ‘1990 Suwaseriya Ambulance Service’ under his purview and further strengthen the service.

“I have one important request to make of you. That is to place 1990 Suwaseriya Foundation under your purview and strengthen the service,” De Silva has noted in the letter.

The former Minister has said he fears the service maybe subject to unnecessary interference elsewhere.

He has added that he gave his best to all previous portfolios he had held and is satisfied that he was able to contribute towards the development of the country.

The Elections Commission (EC) has said it would seriously consider taking legal action against a number of state and private electronic and print media institutions after the presidential election for deliberately violating election laws and media guidelines issued by the Commission.

Chairman of the Commission, Mahinda Deshapriya has told a press conference that these media establishments have promoted a single presidential candidate of their choice and fully backed his election propaganda campaign without giving a fair space in their print material or air time during TV transmission to other candidates.

Deshapriya has shown a graphic prepared by the Information Department displaying the air time given to Presidential candidates by eight state and private TV stations.

He has noted that the two state-owned TV stations and two private TV stations were the biggest abusers of the media guidelines and media ethics.

“Out of the eight TV stations, the behaviour of two private and one state TV station was shameful and extremely heinous. Two others are trying to become fair and three others have shown the signs of fairness,” Deshapriya has said.

The graphic shown  by the EC Chairman has shown that one extremely bias private TV station had given 71% of air time to one single candidate during their prime time news bulletins, 26% to the main rival candidate and 3% to all other 33 candidates. Another private TV station had given 81% of air time to the same candidate and 19% airtime to the main rival candidate and nothing to any other candidate.

The state-owned TV station had allocated 64% air time to a particular candidate, 30% to rival candidates and 6% to others. Other TV stations were relatively fair in comparison to the rest.

“If these TV stations, social media platforms and FM stations continue to abuse the freedom they enjoy and violate the guidelines issued to them by the EC even during the grace period, we will not hesitate to de-link them from their frequencies through the Telecommunication Regulatory Commission (TRC). We also don’t issue official elections results to them,” Deshapriya has said.

The International Committee of Jurists (ICJ) has called on the new President of Sri Lanka, Gotabaya Rajapaksa and his government to uphold human rights and rule of law and ensure that Sri Lanka sustains its international obligations and commitments to justice and accountability.

“Gotabaya Rajapaksa faces credible allegations of involvement in war crimes and crimes against humanity that took place during the country’s armed conflict,” ICJ has noted in a statement.

“The election of Gotabaya Rajapaksa, after a highly polarizing campaign, has alarmed human rights defenders in Sri Lanka and abroad, who have little reason to believe that someone facing such serious allegations of perpetrating human rights violations can be relied upon to meet the country’s obligations under international law,” Frederick Rawski, ICJ Asia Pacific Director has said.

“Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who won the presidency with 52.25% of votes, served as Sri Lanka’s Secretary of the Ministry of Defence from 2005 to 2015 during the tenure of his brother Mahinda Rajapaksa, at the height of the armed conflict against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE),” ICJ has noted.

“Both the military and LTTE perpetrated war crimes and gross human rights violations during the conflict, and particularly during its bloody final stages. As Defence Secretary, Gotabaya was accused of ordering the killing of surrendering LTTE fighters, ordering strikes on civilians and hospitals, and authorizing attacks on human rights defenders,” ICJ has added.

An appeal was yesterday (13) filed with the Supreme Court (SC) seeking to overturn the decision last month by the Court of Appeal to dismiss a writ application that questioned the dual citizenship certificate of Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) presidential candidate Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

Civil activists Prof. Chandragupta Thenuwara and Gamini Viyangoda filed a writ application in the Court of Appeal challenging the authenticity of the dual citizenship certificate granted to the former Defence Secretary on 21 November 2005 by his brother, then President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

On Friday, 4 October, after several days of hearings, a three-judge bench comprising Court of Appeal President Yasantha Kodagoda and Justices Mahinda Samayawardhena as well as Arjuna Obeysekere dismissed the application.

A detailed written order was issued by the court a week later, in which the bench had stated that President Rajapaksa was the “repository” of executive power under the Constitution and was able to lawfully exercise the powers vested in a minister by law, even before the appointment of a Cabinet of Ministers.

The judges had also ruled that the two activists had no standing to file the application and should have filed it several years ago and had made the application for a collateral political purpose.

However, in the appeal filed yesterday before the Supreme Court, the petitioners have asked the apex court to consider whether the Court of Appeal erred in law by stating that the Constitution allowed a newly elected President to have exercised powers conferred on a minister by any written law before a Cabinet of Ministers is appointed.

The appeal has further requested the court to revise the Court of Appeal finding that the President alone was “the repository of the executive power of the people,” and to reconsider the way in which the Court of Appeal interpreted the Constitution in reaching their verdict.

The petitioners have also asked the Supreme Court to reconsider the Court of Appeal findings that they were guilty of unexplained delay, that they had filed the application for a collateral purpose and not as genuine public interest litigation, and that they had not disclosed a sufficient interest to have and maintain the application.

The appeal has also sought to have the dual citizenship certificate of Gotabaya Rajapaksa declared a nullity, and to nullify Rajapaksa’s ability to act as or represent himself as a citizen of Sri Lanka.