SRI LANKA:EX-FOREIGN MINISTER COMPLAINS OF

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 03 COLOMBO 000337 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/INS MCC FOR S GROFF, D NASSIRY, E BURKE AND F REID E.O. 12958: DECL: 02/28/2017 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER PHUM MOPS CE SUBJECT: SRI LANKA:EX-FOREIGN MINISTER COMPLAINS OF HARASSMENT BY GOVERNMENT REF: A) COLOMBO 324 B) COLOMBO 292 C) COLOMBO 264 D) COLOMBO 263 E) COLOMBO 230 F) COLOMBO 186 G) COLOMBO 170 Classified By: Ambassador Robert O. Blake, Jr., for reasons 1.4(b, d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Ambassador called on Ex-Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera at his residence on February 26, at Samaraweera's request. Samaraweera reported that following his petition to the Human Rights Commission on Friday regarding his personal security, a senior official from the Ministerial Security Detail (MSD) contacted him. However, he is still relying on just two constables from his home district of Matara. Samaraweera complained of harassment against his closest associates, especially former Aviation Chairman Tiran Alles. Samaraweera believed the President's Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) might soon vote to expel him from Parliament. He thought the President would seek to deny him the party's nomination for his Matara seat if new elections are called. Samaraweera said rumors of him conspiring with former President Chandrika Kumaratunga are baseless. Samaraweera confirmed for the first time that special cells have been established within military intelligence to abduct LTTE sympathizers. On February 24, Samaraweera organized a well-attended public rally in Matara to reassure supporters that his political journey is not over. He said the President has no real long-term strategy for peace, but the time has come for the President to prove that he has emerged stronger from the recent cabinet reshuffle and use his improved position to press for a political solution. Ambassador agreed, saying he also is trying to convince the President that a political solution is in his own interest. End Summary. ¶2. (C) Ambassador Blake called on Member of Parliament and Ex-Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera at his residence on February 26. Samaraweera requested the meeting to update the Ambassador on the "unprecedented" level of harassment he's been experiencing. He commended the Ambassador on his recent press interviews, commenting that some in the Government of Sri Lanka (GSL) may see the Ambassador's comments against the war as "aggressive." Personal Security Still Inadequate -------------- 
¶3. (C) Samaraweera reported that following his petition to the Human Rights Commission on Friday regarding his personal security, a senior official from the Ministerial Security Detail (MSD) contacted him. MSD offered him one senior officer and five junior officers (he had 39 before he was sacked). Samaraweera, however, refused the officers MSD sent over because they were not from his previous security detail, insisting on having guards that he knows and trusts. In the meantime, he is continues to rely on just two constables from his home district of Matara. Witch Hunt Against His Associates -------------- ¶4. (C) Samaraweera complained of harassment against his closest associates, especially former Aviation Chairman Tiran Alles (ref c). Samaraweera confirmed that Alles and Basil Rajapaksa, the President's brother and advisor, had been in close and frequent contact regarding the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) since 2004. (Note: Alles has LTTE contacts through his business activities in the North and East.) According to Samaraweera, the President also became good friends with Alles. The relationship between the two turned sour after the newspaper "Maudima," financed by Alles, began to criticize the President. Samaraweera insisted that the paper's criticism was mild, but noted the President is very COLOMBO 00000337 002 OF 003 sensitive to the slings and arrows of the media. As the animosity grew, the Government began raiding Alles offices. On February 22, the Attorney General canceled Alles's passport. The Terrorist Investigations Division, on orders from Defense Secretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa, arrested Maudima Publisher Dushyantha Basnayake on February 26. What's Next for Samaraweera? -------------- ¶5. (C) Samaraweera said that the SLFP soon could vote to expel him from Parliament, in which case he would appeal the expulsion to the Supreme Court. Currently, he is still the SLFP Treasurer and Leader and District Organizer of Matara District. He suspects that the party would certainly try to get rid of him before the next election, and that the President would refuse to give him the party's nomination from Matara if new elections are called. Samaraweera anticipates that the President will keep the Ports and Aviation Ministry for himself. This will enable him to push ahead on the Weerawila airport and Hambantota port projects in his home district, as well as the launch of the budget airline "Mihin Air." ¶6. (C) Samaraweera said that rumors of him conspiring with former President Chandrika Kumaratunga are baseless. He said he talks to her as a friend, and noted that the President is so paranoid about Kumaratunga that "he probably looks under his bed at night to make sure she's not there." According to Samaraweera, Kumaratunga says she is out of politics and means it. He noted that there remains a great deal of sympathy for her within the SLFP, saying that he has encouraged her to take on a "Sonia Gandhi-like" role in advising the party. ¶7. (C) On February 24, Samaraweera and fellow ex-Minister Sripathy Suriyarachchi held a public rally in Matara after they were denied the opportunity to speak in Parliament the previous week. Samaraweera, before an impressive crowd, criticized the recent cabinet reshuffle and reassured supporters that his political journey is not yet over. No Long Term Strategy for Peace -------------- ¶8. (C) Samaraweera expressed concern that current Government policies are pushing "respectable Tamils" toward the LTTE. The SLFP had no problems with devolution before Rajapaksa took over the leadership, he said. In fact, there have been a multitude of political proposals on the table in the past. The real problem now is political will. In his view, if the Government "has a machine gun in one hand, there should be a political proposal in the other." He said the time has come for the President to prove that he has emerged stronger from the cabinet reshuffle and use his improved position to press for a political solution. Ambassador agreed, saying he also was trying to convince the President that a political solution was in his own interest. Samaraweera argued that the President and his advisors appear to have no real long-term strategy for peace. ¶9. (S) Ambassador commented that the President and the Defense Secretary reportedly believe that their military strategy, including abductions and harassment of suspected LTTE sympathizers, is working to make Colombo more secure and to degrade LTTE networks. Samaraweera confirmed that the Government uses a group called the "Lion Cubs" to engage in these extrajudicial activities. It is widely rumored in Sri Lanka that Army Commander Fonseka, with the knowledge and approval of Defense Secretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa, has set up special cells within military intelligence to go after suspected LTTE cadres and sympathizers in Colombo, Jaffna and COLOMBO 00000337 003 OF 003 other places. We have also heard reports of a similar shadowy group called the "Hambantota Cats." The recently-appointed Cabinet Minister for Environment has publicly called for the use of extralegal means to root out LTTE sympathizers. Samaraweera lent credibility to these reports by relating grisly details about the methods these groups use to dispose of the bodies of their victims at sea. ¶10. (C) COMMENT: Samaraweera gave no indication that he is considering reconciling with the President. In fact, he seemed convinced that he does not have much of a future in the SLFP as long as the Rajapaksas remain in control. Nonetheless, the level of support he retains within the party, not limited to his home district, suggests that his may again become an important political player in the future. BLAKE