With Police on a “witch-hunt” does the Opposition have any choice but to boycott CHOGM?

The press both yesterday and today reported that with the totally unsubstantiated arrests of UNP Organizers just for attending the whip called in by Suranimala Rajapakse and Mangala Samaraweera to Matara, and then unwittingly been seen near where the commotion took place, UNP has no option but to make a stand against this injustice.

This is just another attempt, just one of many where there is a clear bias on the part of the law enforcement authorities where the law is broken. Unless enough publicity is given to this, the Govt. will act even more ferociously next time. To some it will be seen as sour grapes, where a prestigious event is being used by the opposition for petty political gain, but I do not believe so.

In fact quite the contrary, the Govt. is probably pleased that the Opposition is boycotting the events, as they will have more tickets to give their sycophants, and thus may even be seen to have purposely used the occasion to engineer the boycott. After all their uncanny ability to use all events and actions to their advantage, makes me feel there is a separate disinformation department working full time on such intrigues within the Presidential Secretariat.

This will not affect the local gallery to which the Govt. always wants to give a TV moment of glory, this time aided by 50 foreign heads of Government. In fact the UNP are likely to shoot themselves in the foot with the local gallery who want to see their leaders hobnobbing with international leaders.

It is a delicate game that is being played here, and unless the UNP have a strategy that will name and shame the MR Govt. for such audacious acts of aggression, so near to the opening of the CHOGM, against all principles of democracy, justice and good governance it will fail badly.

The leader of the opposition must write to all heads of Government due to arrive in Sri Lanka, of the present situation, not about the old canard of HR abuses arising from the end of hostilities, as it applies to both sides and only one side is implicated, but of the present acts of abuse of power, so they know what is behind the all white robe and red sash, hiding a myriad of ills. The letter must be forceful, factual, unpretentious, and unambiguous pointing clearly, of what has taken place in the past twelve months and most particularly this month, to show the acts of impunity with arrogance and without shame. I can draft the letter if he wants!!!