SRI LANKA: SUPREME COURT STAYS ORDER EXPELLING

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 03 COLOMBO 000820 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/INS MCC FOR S GROFF, D TETER, D NASSIRY AND E BURKE E.O. 12958: DECL: 06/08/2017 TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER PHUM MOPS CE SUBJECT: SRI LANKA: SUPREME COURT STAYS ORDER EXPELLING TAMILS FROM COLOMBO LODGES REF: A. COLOMBO 809 ¶B. COLOMBO 805 Classified By: A/DCM ROBERT GABOR, FOR REASONS 1.4 (B) AND (D) ¶1. (S) SUMMARY: On June 8 the Sri Lanka Supreme Court stayed the removal of non-Colombo based Tamils temporarily residing in Colombo lodges and hostels (ref A). The Court ruled in favor of a Fundamental Rights Application filed by the NGO Center for Policy Alternatives (CPA). Military spokesman Brigadier Prasad Samarasinghe (strictly protect) told us that the idea for the forced removals came from the police. Although the Army was not in favor, Defense Secretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa gave the order to proceed. SIPDIS Samarasinghe said the original plan was to suspend the roundups on Friday, June 8, but pursue them with renewed vigor over the weekend. It is not clear what impact the Supreme Court's stay will have on plans to continue the removals on Saturday and Sunday. In the meantime, at least a couple of hundred Tamils are being housed inside a school in Vavuniya without adequate water or sanitation. The Red Cross is helping to care for them. There were unconfirmed reports the GSL planned to move many Tamils across the Forward Defense Line through the Omanthai checkpoint into the Tiger-controlled Vanni. Although the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) stated that the people would be welcomed in the Vanni, they denied that there have been contacts with the GSL on this subject. Numerous members of Parliament, including several moderate members of the governing coalition, have objected to the Government's actions. Embassy issued a press release calling for an immediate halt to further deportations. END SUMMARY. SUPREME COURT STAYS THE MINISTRY OF DEFENSE ORDER -------------- -------------- ¶2. (C) On June 8 the Sri Lanka Supreme Court stayed the Ministry of Defense (MoD) verbal directive to round up and remove non-Colombo based Tamils staying in Colombo lodges and hostels. The text of the Supreme Court order has not been released, but Attorney Mohan Balendra told us that the order does not affect those Tamils already removed, except that they may possibly be allowed to return to Colombo. It is unclear whether the Supreme Court's stay is a permanent order or a temporary stay pending further hearing. In any case, the Supreme Court has made an initial finding that that the forced removal of Tamils from Colombo violates Sri Lanka's Constitution. ¶3. (C) Supreme Court Chief Justice Sarah Nanda Silva, appointed by former President Chandra Kumaratunga in 1999, also has political ties to the Sinhalese chauvinist, Marxist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP, or People's Liberation Front). As Chief Justice, Silva has the power to decide which three of the five Supreme Court Justices will hear any particular matter before the Court. The JVP has consistently argued that Tamils in the Tiger-held Vanni were prisoners of the LTTE, and that it was the duty of the Sri Lankan government to liberate them. The JVP joined opposition parties such as the United National Party and the Tamil National Alliance to condemn the government's forced removal of Tamils. In this case, it appears that Chief Justice Silva has aligned himself with the JVP political ideology, rather than with President Rajapaksa. MILITARY NOT ENTHUSIASTIC ABOUT ENFORCING THE ORDER -------------- -------------- ¶4. (S) Military spokesman Brigadier Prasad Samarasinghe (strictly protect) told us that the idea for the forced COLOMBO 00000820 002 OF 003 removals came from the police, not the Army, which was not in favor of the plan. However, Defense Secretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa gave the orders to proceed with the police plan. On June 6 and 7, the Army helped police round up Tamils from approximately 20 hostels in Colombo. Speaking before the Supreme Court stayed the Ministry of Defense's order, Samarasinghe told us confidentially that the original plan was to suspend the action on Friday, June 8, while Parliament is in session, but pursue the removals with renewed vigor over the weekend. It is not clear what impact the Supreme Court's stay will have on plans to continue the removals on Saturday and Sunday. HUNDREDS OF TAMILS' LIVES IN LIMBO -------------- ¶5. (C) In the meantime, about six buses containing at least a couple of hundred Tamils arrived in Vavuniya, near the de facto border with the LTTE-controlled Vanni. The Tamils found temporary shelter in a school. According to Vijayakanth (strictly protect),a Colombo Tamil working at the Ideal Guest Lodge who was mistakenly forced onto one of the police buses and transported to Vavuniya, the school lacks adequate water or sanitation facilities. The Red Cross is helping to care for people being held in the school, but has been careful to avoid any statements about whether the movements were voluntary. Vijayakanth reported that senior military officials arrived at the school early on the morning of June 8 and told the people that those Tamils who were waiting for Canadian immigrant visas would be allowed to return to Colombo. Vijayakanth was assured that he would also be allowed to return, although no time table has been set. ¶6. (S) The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) stated that the people would be welcomed in the Vanni should they wish to cross the Forward Defense Line (FDL) through the Omanthai checkpoint. The LTTE denied, however, that they have been asked by the GSL to take the Tamils into Tiger-controlled territory. Military spokesman Samarasinghe told us that there has been no decision yet on whether to transport the Tamils across the FDL into the Vanni. Any such crossing would have to be facilitated by the Red Cross, which presumably would refuse to cooperate in non-voluntary returns. GOVERNMENT MAINTAINS THAT TAMILS VOLUNTEERED TO GO -------------- -------------- ¶7. (SBU) On June 7, Rohan Abeywardena, Inspector General for Police in Colombo, was quoted by Reuters saying concerning the Tamils transported to the North: "It is for their own good. You all have been complaining about people being abducted and arrested and detained." He also alleged that those taken were all supporters of the LTTE. Defense spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella stated in the Government-controlled Daily News that all of the Tamils "volunteered" to return and that the Government had generously agreed to "provide them with all transportation facilities." MODERATE PARLIAMENTARIANS CONDEMN GSL ACTIONS -------------- ¶8. (C) The Sri Lankan Muslim Congress, currently part of the ruling coalition, has condemned the government's action. United National Party (UNP) crossovers serving as ministers and SLFP moderates have been instructed by the Government not to comment. Leader of the Up-Country People's Front Radhakrishnan reportedly told the government he will leave COLOMBO 00000820 003 OF 003 the coalition if the removals continue. Justice Minister Dilan Perera (protect),an SLFP moderate close to former President Kumaratunga, told us he had refused a request to defend the government action in Parliament. Human rights organizations also strongly criticized the Government's deportation actions and called for an immediate halt to further efforts to remove Tamils staying in Colombo. EMBASSY STATEMENT CONDEMNS FORCED REMOVALS -------------- ¶9. (U) On June 8, the Embassy issued the following press release: "The United States condemns the forced removal of Tamils Colombo, June 8, 2007: The United States condemns the forced removal of Tamils from Colombo. Such measures violate the Sri Lankan Constitution's guarantee that every citizen has the right to freedom of movement and choice of residence within Sri Lanka. The United States understands and supports Sri Lanka's obligation to defend itself against terrorism. But this action can only widen the ethnic divide at a time when important efforts are underway to reach a national consensus to end Sri Lanka's nearly quarter-century old conflict. We call upon the Government of Sri Lanka to stop the forcible removal of its citizens from Colombo, to make public the destinations of those already removed, and to ensure their safety and well-being." ¶10. (C) COMMENT: Chief Justice Silva has generally been viewed as a reliable supporter of the Rajapaksa government. His decision to stay the removal of the Tamils is a welcome demonstration of judicial independence. President Rajapaksa's expressed concern that the killing of two Tamil Red Cross employees was designed to discredit him before his speech to the International Labor Organization (ILO) in Geneva on June 15 (ref B) now appears misplaced. The decision of his brother, Defense Secretary Gothabaya Rajapaksa, to proceed with the internal deportations has likely done far more damage to Sri Lanka's image. Government claims that the movements were voluntary are inaccurate based on numerous eyewitness accounts. Inspector General Abeywardena's comments suggesting that Tamils were removed in response to criticism against the Government for failing to control abductions seemed particularly tone-deaf just a day after opposition leader Ranil Wickremesinghe accused him, Gothabaya Rajapaksa, and former Air Force squadron leader Nishantha Gajanayake of direct responsibility for numerous disappearances in Colombo (septel). Embassy will monitor closely over the coming weekend whether the GSL complies with the Supreme Court's stay order. BLAKE