FOREIGN MINISTER STICKS UP FOR HIS SISTER, SLAMS

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 COLOMBO 001868 SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/31/2015 TAGS: PGOV PREL KIRF CE MV SUBJECT: FOREIGN MINISTER STICKS UP FOR HIS SISTER, SLAMS PRIME MINISTER AND PLEDGES COOPERATION WITH THE UNITED STATES REF: (A) COLOMBO 1864 (B) COLOMBO 1858 Classified By: Ambassador Jeffrey J. Lunstead for reasons 1.4 (d). ¶1. (C) Summary. Sri Lankan Foreign Minister (and brother of President Kumaratunga) Anura Bandaranaike told the Ambassador he is contemptuous of SLFP Presidential candidate Mahinda Rajapakse's alliance with the Marxist JVP, will not campaign very hard on Rajapakse's behalf and is not at all sure he would want to be Prime Minister in such a government ("a carnival of fools"). He fears religious freedom would suffer under a Rajapakse presidency. Bandaranaike said he looked forward to working with the U.S. on international issues given the shared democratic tradition between the two countries. In particular, he echoed U.S. concerns re Maldives and reiterated Sri Lankan support for Afghan SAARC membership. Engaging and intelligent despite his lightweight reputation, the new FM is clearly someone with whom we can work. End Summary Campaign Off to Good Start -------------- ¶2. (C) The Ambassador, accompanied by DCM (notetaker),called on Sri Lanka Foreign Minister (and Presidential sibling) Anura Bandaranaike October 28. Turning first to the ongoing Presidential election campaign, the FM noted that preparations seemed to be going well and that the Election Commissioner was doing a very good job, especially on difficult issues like making preparations for voters to come out of LTTE- controlled territory to vote. He commented that the low level of election-related violence so far is "too good to be true" and stated that his sister is briefed daily on the security situation and is "committed to peaceful elections." The FM praised the recent announcement by the Election Commissioner that in the event of polling irregularities in a given district, there will be repolling as opposed to just a recount. Contempt for Rajapakse's JVP Alliance -------------- ¶3. (C) Turning to the substance of the campaign, Bandaranaike characterized the alliance of his Sri Lanka Freedom Party's (SLFP) candidate, current Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse, with the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) as "disturbing" and "totally contradictory to stated (SLFP) policy." Bandaranaike claimed he had gone to the signing ceremony of the joint SLFP/JVP pact without knowing exactly what the occasion was and thus "I had to sit through an attack on my sister." The FM said that he had tried to "reform" the JVP by sending them on international trips to broaden their horizons. "It had no impact whatsoever," he said. Bandaranaike chuckled about the JVP admiration of North Korea and Cuba. Laughing about the party's adulation of Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez, the FM commented: "Chavez sits on a sea of oil. What does the JVP sit on, a sea of tea?" The JVP "understanding of policy is zero," Bandaranaike concluded. Hard to Campaign for "Carnival of Fools" -------------- ¶4. (C) This means that Rajapakse's dependence on the JVP will, if he wins, make for "a hell of a government to run," the FM assered. The Ambassador asked the FM about the general assumption that he would be Prime Minister (while keeping the Foreign Minister portfolio) if Rajapakse wins. Bandaranaike confirmed that could well happen but said he was not sure if he wanted to be "part of a ridiculous carnival of fools." Asked about his sister's recent meeting with opposition leader and United National Party (UNP) leader Ranil Wickremasinghe, Bandaranaike said that Ranil "has been making encouraging sounds of a national consensus" and that the meeting had been a "useful one-on-one session." Picking up on the Ambassador's observation that there is a significant congruence of position between the two major Sinhalese parties, Bandaranaike agreed and said he personally had always favored a Sinhalese political consensus since otherwise "there will never be a political solution that Tamils can accept." He pointed out that his father, SWRD Bandaranaike, had called for a federal system for the country in 1936, making him by far the first Sinhalese politician to do so. ¶5. (C) Asked the extent to which he will campaign for Rajapakse, Bandaranaike said he is a loyal SLFP member but it is very difficult for him to restrain himself on the subject of Rajapakse and the JVP. Thus, he will not share the stage with the JVP and will only appear at rallies with his sister. Bandaranaike said there will only be two more such meetings before they both go to Dhaka for the November 10 SAARC summit. He would also tell voters in his constituency to vote for Rajapakse but, beyond that, "good luck to him." "I can't oppose my own party but my conscience will not permit me to do more." Asked to handicap the Presidential race, Bandaranaike said it will be very close with Rajapakse "having a tough time." Religious Freedom Concerns -------------- ¶6. (C) Bandaranaike said one of his many concerns with a Rajapakse presidency is that he fears Rajapakse would not be able to stop the reintroduction of anti-conversion legislation. "This worries us very much." The SLFP has already lost the Catholic vote due to this issue, Bandaranaike opined and he said there was no question that the JHU had been involved in church burnings. He noted that his father's side of the family is still Christian and emphasized that both he and his sister are firmly committed to a multi- religious Sri Lanka. The Ambassador reviewed U.S. concerns about anti-conversion legislation which he characterized as "detrimental" to Sri Lanka. "I agree," Bandaranaike responded. Shared Democratic Values as Basis for Cooperation -------------- -------------- ¶7. (C) Turning to the international arena (discussion of Iran reported Ref A),the Ambassador advised Bandaranaike that in Secretary Rice's Washington meeting with subsequently- assassinated Sri Lanka Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar, the two had had an extensive discussion of the democratic experience that the U.S. and Sri Lanka share. The U.S. hopes that those shared values will translate into practical action, for instance in Sri Lankan support for the U.S. in venues like the U.N. Human Rights Commission on tough issues like human rights in Cuba. Bandaranaike said he looked forward to working with the U.S. and that the Ambassador should never hesitate to bring up "tough issues" with him. Shared Concern on Maldives -------------- ¶8. (C) Asked about his recent official visit to Maldives, Bandaranaike said that a fundamental change is under way there and cited Gayoom's new, younger cabinet as evidence of this. But ("with a capital B"),the FM continued, the political system is still clearly controlled by a "handful of people" around Maldivian President Gayoom and this is untenable. "He (Gayoom) is on the right path but the pace is too slow. He needs to move faster and ease control. Resentment of Gayoom is growing." The Ambassador reviewed U.S. efforts to promote peaceful democratic growth in Maldives and U.S. concerns about the recent sentencing of Jennifer Latheef to ten years and the hastily- commenced trial of Mohamed Nasheed. Bandaranaike said he planned to discuss Maldives at the SAARC summit in Dhaka. Moreover, he continued, the Commonwealth needs to do more. He would make sure Maldives is on the agenda when he represents his sister at the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) November 22-23 in Malta. The Ambassador noted he was meeting with Maldivian FM Shaheed on October 31 in Colombo. Bandaranaike mused that perhaps he should as well. Afghanistan/SAARC -------------- ¶9. (C) Picking up on the Foreign Minister's references to the SAARC summit, the Ambassador said that the U.S. firmly supported Afghan membership in SAARC and understood that Sri Lanka shared that view. "Yes," Bandaranaike replied. Comment -------------- ¶10. (C) The Foreign Minister came across as a friendly and intelligent interlocutor if not always up to speed on the latest international developments (but quick to understand and respond appropriately once they were raised and explained). Indeed, the rap on Anura over the years has not been a lack of intelligence but rather his playboy lifestyle and questionable work ethic. It is debatable whether Bandaranaike could bring himself to turn down the Prime Ministership, if offered, but his contempt for Rajapakse and his at best tepid commitment to work for his party's presidential candidate were unmistakable. On Maldives, Bandaranaike could have been reading from the U.S. position paper. From the career diplomat perspective one cannot help but wonder how the FM relates to his bureaucracy. He ignored several attempts by Foreign Ministry staff in the meeting to draw his attention to a detailed list of talking points they had placed in front of him. Moreover, with a baleful glance at the Foreign Ministry notetaker, Bandaranaike told the Ambassador he would invite him soon for a "one-on-one" lunch "so we can talk freely." Bottom line: we can work with this guy- -he is intelligent and understands our positions. What we don't know is if he will be able to bend the MFA bureaucracy, which still tends to hold on to NAM solidarity and similar outdated ideas. End Comment LUNSTEAD