Easter Sunday Attacks: Just What the Doctor Ordered for Gota

Last week's Easter Sunday attacks which claimed lives of over 360 and over 500 casualties is no doubt one of the deadliest terrorist attacks Sri Lanka ever had to face. Now its revealed that Islamic extremist group National Thowheed Jamaath is behind the serial blasts that were carried out within Catholic churches and five star hotels.

Why the national intelligence's warning to the high authorities was ignored and no action was taken to address the matter before the catastrophe, is still a mystery. The failure to address matters related to national security would definitely be the prelude to the imminent ouster of the incumbent government in a future election. The terrorist attacks would be a major hit to the nations' booming tourism industry which is probably the only positive in the economic front that Sri Lanka was feeling upbeat about. 

On he other hand this has given fresh impetus to the likely SLPP candidate Gotabaya Rajapakse's case as the Presidential candidate, suddenly the national security has become the need of the hour, Gota who was instrumental in ending the 30 year old war against the LTTE, with the reputation he has earned as a exemplary administrator has made him the obvious favorite to win the presidential election in the aftermath of the terrorist attacks.

The run up to the presidential election so far saw a probable dark horse in Nagananda Kodituwakku a public interest litigation activist who's main focus was on eradicating corruption and establishing rule of law, however has become less of a threat as the priorities of the masses have again shifted to national security. It appears its the nail in the coffin for UNP led by PM Wickremasinge who failed their promise to end corruption and put the economy on track have now failed on national security. If they are to bring forth a common candidate to the fray they will have to think of someone in the caliber of Gota with strong credentials with regard to national security; with Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka being an unlikely candidate for 2020, it could be a walk in the park for Gota.

Racist Tactics in Sri Lankan Politics

Mahinda Rajapakse who has created himself a cult-like image especially among the Sinhala Buddhist majority in the aftermath of the war victory of 2009 still commands a significant influence within the aforementioned vote base. Six years on after the defeat of the LTTE, Rajapaksa who was the only incumbent president to lose a presidential election in the history of SL when he was defeated by president Maithripala Sirisena in January 2015 elections is back in the limelight, this time running for the post of Prime Minister from the UPFA in the upcoming elections which is to be held in August 2015.

The UPFA are yet to put together a manifesto for the upcoming election, and the only salient message that we can derive from 'Rajapaksa For PM' campaign is that people should reinstate MR in power to solidify the war victory. Their propaganda machine seems to rely heavily on the personality of Rajapaksa than attempting to address the issue which led to their downfall in the January elections. The main accusation against the Rajapaksa government was the wide-spread corruptions that were being carried out under the pretext of infrastructure development. MR went to the extent of making a public statement that he protected certain corrupt MPs during his tenure as president but most of the members who are accused of corruption are back in the fray running for parliamentary seats from their respective districts.

Interestingly literally nothing is being spoken by the UPFA camp on the racial reconciliation front, while they continue to harp on an imminent awakening of the Tamil diaspora and Sri Lankan Muslim extremists. It is blatantly obvious that UPFA is employing racist tactics to win this election with hook or crook. Racial reconciliation is the need of the hour, it is quite sad the way they are trying to appease the Sinhala majority by spreading racist sentiments while inciting fear and distrust against the minority communities,threatening the ethnic harmony of the country. Political leaders should be more careful of the consequences of fueling racial tensions in a country like  Sri Lanka who has enough and more lessons to learn from such instigations like the Black July of 1983. It is no secret that Sri Lanka got a massive advantage by the events that unfolded post 2001 which resulted with LTTE being banned in many western countries and SL being able to get recognized as a nation engaged in a war against terrorism. With all these instigations by UPFA propagandists, Will Sri Lanka get a second chance should there be another incident akin to 1983?

If you are to solidify the war victory this country needs a lasting solution to the ethnic problem, rather than stoking the dying flames of racism. Sri Lankan voter, especially the Sinhalese voter will have to decide wisely in the upcoming election, now that the war is over we need leaders who can pave the way for a free and fair society and create lasting ethnic harmony. Sri Lankan citizenry wouldn't want to be embroiled in another civil war for a few more decades and squander this golden opportunity to put our country back on the right track.

SL Sheds Anti-Western Dogma: Nail in the Coffin for Separatists

The US secretary of state John Kerry's visit to Sri Lanka this week sent the message that US-SL relations which reached an all-time low during the last nine years or so is back on track. As much as President Mahinda Rajapakse should be commended for resisting pressure exerted by the west to stop the war during the final stages of the war, President Sirisena and PM Wickemasinghe should win kudos for finally putting Sri Lanka's foreign policy on the right track.

Anti-Western sentiments were very much in fashion during the course of the Rajapakse regime, not only did it won him a lot of votes locally, it also gave a plausible justification for dealing almost exclusively with China when it came to development projects carried out in the country. SL had to put a lot of time and effort trying to deal with the UN resolution against SL which was engineered by the western powers who were sulking after the way they were snubbed during the latter stages of the war in 2009. Although it was woefully ineffective, this 'taking the bull by the horns' kind of approach made waves in the local political arena, President Rajapaksa was unstoppable winning election after election. Only real beneficiary of this exercise of  continued distancing from the west was the Tamil Diaspora who are hellbent on creating a separate state for Tamils within Sri Lankan soil. What the ultra-nationalists did not understand was the fact that if SL is to put and end to separatism it had to fight its battle at the right front which is in the west, but all they did was harping on anti-western rhetoric to reinforce local vote base.

It appears that this new approach to dealing with the west will alleviate some of the difficulties faced by SL in the international arena related to war crimes, one can also speculate that SL will win over significant economic and military assistance from the west. Another remarkable aspect of Sri Lanka's refreshed foreign policy is that it acknowledges the importance of keeping good relations with key players in the region like India, China and the rest, in keeping with the non-aligned policy which brought significant benefits to the country in the past.

There will no doubt be harsh criticism by ultra-nationalist political forces within the country regarding the new policy, but it is of profound importance for SL to engage with the west so that they can negate any threat of separatist forces rising its head and concentrate on economic development that was hindered by a three decade long civil war. It is however important that Sri Lanka make sure they do not over compensate in the process of mending fences with the west, like the previous regime did with China, bending over backwards for the military assistance they gained during the civil war.

Presidential Election | A Clear Mandate from People with a Strong Message.

The common candidate of the opposition Mr. Maithreepala Sirisena has secured a resounding victory in the presidential election held yesterday (8th). Apart from winning traditional UNP strongholds the president elect has managed to edge out his opponent by huge margins within the majority of the urban electorates in the south plus the north and the east. The large scale efforts by the government to woo the Sinhalese rural voters by means of propaganda designed to spread fears of another Ealam war in the event the opposition wins seems to have resonated well within these voters. Government media upon which the rural population place a higher credibility, kept harping on the importance of the executive presidency in ending the war and maintaining the country's status quo as a unitary state. In spite of the grave violations of the election laws related to the use of state media and state resources by the government MS backed by the newly formed alliance managed to secure victory by a reasonable margin.

Some of the ultra-nationalists have already started uttering racist sentiments, pointing out that given the amount of support MS has got from the minority voters, the majority Sinhalese will be sidelined and he will have to act according to the whims of separatist forces. However considering the fact that the joint opposition's decision to keep the provincial councils under the purview of the President and the fact that the main architects of the War victory (JHU, Gen. Fonseka) are key partners of the joint opposition, we can assume that such developments are highly unlikely. On the other hand government has only themselves to blame for failing to secure the support of the Muslims who had to face a series of attacks by BBS backed by the government in a bid to get cheap political mileage among their rural Sinhala Buddhist vote base. As far as the Tamil voters are concerned the government failed to address their issues related to resettlement and reconciliation, they were ignored simply because of the sense of complacency that was created within the government ranks that they can win any election by reinforcing the rural Sinhala vote base by spreading racial disharmony and mistrust.

One remarkable factor which helped the joint opposition victory was the widespread use of social media to undermine the government propaganda that was channeled through state media. Credit should go to Janatha Vmukthi Peramuna (JVP) led by Mr. Anura Kumara Dissanayake for keeping the masses informed through social media with his simple but sharp rhetoric. Mr. Dissanayake's efforts gave fresh impetus to the somewhat lukewarm efforts from the main opposition UNP (barring a handful of active individuals) which eventually found its way back on track during the latter half of the presidential campaign. It is a very positive sign for the democracy of this country that the people power prevailed over the might of state media propaganda.

What is even more remarkable is the fact that this phenomenon of emerging people power sends out a strong message along with their mandate to the opposition; that is the consequences that even someone like Mahinda Rajapakse who created himself a cult-like image after war victory will have to face if they go off track. One would think that Ranil, Chandrika and Maithreepala being astute and seasoned politicians would take this message seriously and start working towards the promises given to the people from day one, instead of learning the lesson the hard way.

Common Candidate Unveiled: Whither future of this country?

Soon after the proclamation of the presidential election the joint opposition has unveiled the long-awaited common candidate, Former UPFA Minister and Chairman of the SLFP Maithripala Sirirsena was declared as the opposition 'common candidate' yesterday evening at a press conference held at New Town Hall, UNP has pledged their unanimous support to the former minister at the presidential election to be held on the 8th of January 2015 . It has to be said that it is quite an audacious decision on the part of Mr. Sirisena considering the plight of his predecessor General Sarath Fonseka who contested the presidential election as the common candidate in 2010. The latter who was the principal architect of the 2009 war victory was court marshaled and sent to prison, his civic rights remain withdrawn to this date.

It appears to be a prudent move by the UNP to field minister Sirisena for the presidency as he is the type of personality who could easily win the Sinhalese rural vote base (which the UNP have been continuing to distance itself from), this will be a crucial factor which will determine the outcome of this election. This arrangement also becomes handy with regard to winning the support of all parties of the joint opposition as JVP and JHU may have certain ideological issues in backing a candidate from the UNP. The Abolition of executive presidency and reinstating the independent commissions being the main agenda behind Mr. Sirisena's campaign one would expect the JVP would pledge their support to the common candidate in due course, however there may be some resistance by the JVP for the proposition of UNP leader becoming the Prime Minister in the event MS secures victory.

As far as the SLFP voter base is concerned one cannot expect MS to trigger a major shake up since it would be seen as an effort to make UNP leader the executive PM in the eyes of the typical SLFP voter. Lot will depend on how far the joint opposition is successful in luring UPFA defectors in to the coalition, president will no doubt try to take counter measures to make sure no more MPs cross over. Where UNP voter base is concerned it is critical that they are kept reinforced as they might become apathetic to this proposition evoking bad memories of what happened to the UNF government in 2004.

If a president Sirisena in 2015 honors his election pledge to abolish executive presidency, reinstate the independent commissions, introduce reforms to the electoral system it would no doubt be a crucial turning point in Sri Lanka's political history, at a time when there exists a virtual dictatorship with unlimited powers vested in the hands of the executive where rule of law has flown out the window.


  

Uva Provincial Council Elections: Will the Opposition Make History?

Voting in the Uva provincial council commenced today with a healthy voter turnout. The high voter turnout can be attributed to the increased enthusiasm aroused by the opposition in the Badulla and Moneragala districts leading up to the elections and the growing unpopularity of the Government who have been riding the wave of the war victory of 2009. The widespread apathy in the electorate which caused high number of 'no shows' in the previous elections could translate to more votes for the opposition.

From the main opposition UNP's perspective, it all will depend on how strongly the oppositions' pitch resonates with the Sinhala Buddhist vote. Looking at the ethnic composition, Badulla district with a higher minority votes has to be won convincingly by the UNP (without the help of Upcountry Tamil Parties) to have a realistic chance of coming out victorious. It will be interesting to see how Moneragala district will vote with a significant percentage of Sinhala Buddhist voters. the JVP and the Democratic party too are expected to boost their vote base looking at their respective campaigns in the lead up to the election.

It is high time all these opposition parties come on board the 'common opposition platform' that never really materialized largely owing to JVP's sidestepping. If they do manage to work together it will no doubt will be a formidable force and it will be in best interest of the general public. Having said that the main opposition party the UNP has to get their act together going forward, if this is to become a reality, not only they will have to take the initiative but also they will have to make sure they maintain their intra-party unity which has been their holy grail of late. If the opposition manages to edge out the government in this election it will no doubt gather momentum, a good example would be the People's Alliance victory in the 1994 Southern Provincial Election (against a hugely unpopular UNP government once deemed unassailable) which was the prelude to landslide victories in the General Election and the presidential Election that followed.

Government's Apathy Towards Bodu Bala Sena's Antics

In the light of the looming threat of sanctions against Sri Lanka, implications could be quite detrimental if government continues to turn a blind eye towards the blatant acts of persecutions on both racial and religious grounds carried out by a group of corrupt monks who call themselves 'Bodu Bala Sena'. The defense secretary of the country was seen attending as chief guest at several ceremonies held by this group, hence hinting the public of the government's overt support towards such acts of racial and religious persecutions as an obvious attempt to garner support of the sinhala buddhist sections, with the understanding that harping on the 'War Victory of 2009' alone will not assure them of continued support of the ultra-nationalists.

What this government fail to understand is that these dirty tactics will have much more detrimental impact on an international front when it comes to countering a resolution against SL at the UNHRC like they did in March 2014. It is no secret that if not for the support of the 'Muslim Nations' led by Pakistan, Sri Lanka would have been facing a much severe repercussions. Therefore by supporting (overtly or covertly) these organisations who spread racism, the government of SL is going to make itself hugely unpopular among these Muslim nations who came to our rescue in the need of the hour.

Ethnic reconciliation should be the order of the day, employing cheap tactics of this nature to garner votes locally will have a knock-on effect on the country at large on an international front. From a religious point of view the damage this group of unscrupulous monks has done to Buddhism and the country's image as a Buddhist nation is monumental. The sooner we put an end to Bodu Bala Sena's antics the better for the country's racial harmony and its Human Rights record.

Implications of the 'Weliveriya Incident'

The Human Rights record of Sri Lanka was marred by another ugly incident last Thursday when residents of the Weliweriya town in the Gampaha District who protested demanding clean drinking water were fired live bullets by Army personnel killing three. The villagers thronged the streets of Weliveriya in protest against a factory in Rathupaswala (thought to have strong links with the government) that discharged chemical waste that contaminated the ground water in and around the area.

The government mouthpieces that keep harping on the military victory of 2009, glorifying commander-in-chief the president who gave the political leadership and the Defense Secretary who gave the military leadership as the main architects of it have gone mute. But we don't see the political and military leadership taking responsibility for the lives that were lost due to excessive use of force to suppress a group of unarmed civilians. 

This can obviously have serious international implications on the country at a time when its Human Rights record is under scrutiny. In the eyes of the international community this can be particularly disadvantageous since the pro LTTE elements can leverage this incident to carry their message forward labeling the Sri Lankan Army as an army of genocide. It makes the Diaspora's accusations that much more plausible when the international community see how the military is using their force against the people of the south. With the Commonwealth Conference and the sessions with the Human Rights Council around the corner, our External Affairs minister does not seem to be helping our course either in reportedly playing it down saying incidents of this nature are part and parcel of life.

Apparently the message that the government is trying to get across to the people is that they are prepared to suppress any uprising against it using full force of the military. It appears that recent developments related to racial disharmony like the emergence of Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) are propaganda campaigns by elements connected to the government to shift the focus away from an imminent uprising against the government. But sooner the people of the south are disillusioned with these elements distracting them we can be sure that a major uprising akin to the 'Arab Spring' is not too far away.

US Backed Resolution Against Sri Lanka

Yesterday the UN Human Rights council adopted the US backed resolution seeking Sri Lanka to investigate alleged war crimes against civilians. It is blatantly obvious that this is another concerted effort by the Tamil diaspora backed by the western powers to seek vengeance from Sri Lanka. It is ironical how US is selectively targeting Sri Lanka over the alleged human rights violations pertaining to an internal crisis, whilst condoning their persistent violations of human rights carried out in the Middle East and Afghanistan. This particular resolution is going to be a very unhealthy precedent where the UN Human Rights Council has adopted the resolution acting solely on political considerations.

That being said it has to be said that the SL government’s approach to this issue has being lamentably undiplomatic. The government has missed a trick by not giving emphasis to addressing the issue with the US when they were given the opportunity to negotiate, rather than the futile effort of trying to lobby the member states to defeat the resolution. Knowing so well how the UNHRC has historically acted according to the whims of the US, they should have realized that only Russia and China have the audacity to go against such a resolution. Had they taken a more diplomatic approach by being involved with the US before the resolution was taken up, they could have been able to control the damage caused considerably. The country’s minster of external affairs is set to meet the US secretary of state in the coming months, and the US is in a better position to browbeat Sri Lanka to act according to their orders.

The government has got carried away with the efforts to garner support locally, where the members of the government indulged in singing anti US slogans further distancing themselves from a possible negotiation with the relevant parties, while some cabinet ministers going as far as calling on the people to boycott US products. The sooner the government puts an end to these type antics the better for the cause of Sri Lanka. It is crucial that government focus on fighting ‘the battle’ on the right front and take a cohesive stance with regard to the issue.

Phantom of Muammar Gaddafi Haunting Sri Lanka

Yesterday (20^th October 2011) saw the end of a 4 decade long despotic rule of Muammar Gadaffi who ruled Libya with an Iron fist. So called revolutions which are instigated by western imperialists are threatening to spread out of Arab world once the ‘Big Fish’ have been dealt with.

Meanwhile Sri Lankan government has been quite successful in branding itself as a pariah state akin to Gadaffi’s Libya, undermining democratic institutions and rule of law, stifling dissent and freedom of speech, weakening the opposition, and with its widespread corruption, cronyism and nepotism. This will further exacerbate the situation for Sri Lanka, giving mileage to the course of the LTTE remnants backed by the west, making it possible for them to make a more plausible justification of the war crimes allegations.

The war against the LTTE was not a war against the Tamil minority, it was a humanitarian operation carried out with the able military leadership of General Sarath Fonseka the country’s only four-star general (who is now in jail for challenging the incumbent president in the presidential election 2010). There is a huge difference in US led NATO operations from the humanitarian operation in Sri Lanka where the objective was to liberate innocent Tamil civilians from the clutches of the most dangerous terrorist organization in the world.

Sri Lanka has been regularly consorting with well known tyrants, the president posing for pictures with his arms around despots like Muammar Gaddaffi and Thein Sein to name but a few. The government is deliberately distancing themselves from the west at a time when a more diplomatic approach would be the need of the hour. The anti-western stance that has been maintained so far has resulted in more missed opportunities, aligning themselves more closely with the undesirables, drifting away from the historic non-aligned foreign policy. Exclusively dealing with china in their development efforts of late may have bloated the politicians’ purse but it’s ultimately the masses that will have to carry the burden for the massive the wastage and corruption.

The recent shootings that resulted in the death of a presidential advisor in a intra-party feud in the run up to the local government elections is testament to the state thuggery  that is prevalent in the country. It was only after the demise of their fellow politician that the government politicians uttered a word against such crooks whose actions were continued to be condoned.

The longer this system continues harder it will be for Sri Lanka to avoid falling prey the enemies who are lurking out there to crush this paradise island.  

UN SG Ban Ki Moon's report on alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka.

UN secretary general Ban Ki Moon has called for a probe on alleged war crimes perpetrated by the government of Sri Lanka during the latter stages of the war which culminated with the killing of LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran.

Now that the report that was compiled by the three member advisory panel appointed by the UN SG is published, Sri Lankan government is facing a serious threat of been summoned before a UN security council or the UN Human Rights council.

It is no secret that UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon is acting under the instigation of the western forces and it is obvious that his re-election as the secretary general of the UN is at stake if he fails to appease them, who are ironically responsible for massive violations of human rights and perpetrators of war crimes of unimaginable scales, specially in Afghanistan and the middle east.

Initially we were told that the so called advisory panel's task was not to investigate but to advise the secretary general, but the report which was published recently did not correspond to that. Instead it seems to be a report full of speculative allegations. However the allegations have not been proven and one would think that they never will be. Therefore this particular report cannot be a grounds for any further action.

However the way things are being handled by the Sri Lankan government is lamentable, there seems to be no clear strategy when it comes to the implementation of the foreign policy. Lot seems to be done at the local front than the international front where the real battle needs to be fought. One feels that the international community was not briefed accurately and regularly enough to start with. Also the conduct of some of the cabinet ministers soon after the panel of experts was appointed was laughable, where one of the cabinet ministers who initially threatened to surround the UN office in Colombo and hold its employees hostage, later staged a fast-unto-death protest in front of the UN office. He decided to end the protest when the president intervened.

The foreign minister himself has become a laughing stock, by making a plethora of contradictory statements and causing much embarrassment to the country. When the UN SG's panel of experts were appointed, the Foreign ministry initially questioned its legality and refused to grant visas to them, then released statement saying the panel was welcome to come to Sri Lanka to make representations to LLRC(Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission) and later went on to officially recognize the panel of experts and their report by secretly meeting the panel in US in his capacity as minister of external affairs.

Sri Lankan Government Playing It into the hands of the Adversary.

20 months in to the military victory over the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Ealam(LTTE), the Sri Lanka government is facing serious accountability issues relating to war crimes.

Initial attempts by pro-LTTE elements and the West were scuttled but Ban Ki Moon’s three member panel to investigate alleged war crimes in Sri Lanka is very much in the limelight again.

In mid last year, Minister of External Affairs Prof. G.L. Peiris declared that the UN panel probing alleged ‘war crimes’ in Sri Lanka was “illegal” and no visas will be granted to the members of the panel. However, immediately after the infamous “Oxford Fiasco”, he said that the panel would be welcome to testify before the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC). He added that visas would be issued to the panel’s members for the visit.
Who is to blame for providing fresh impetus to the adversary’s cause? It is obvious that the hypocrisy of the Sri Lankan government and the imprudence of its foreign policy have led the country into a rather precarious situation. Why would the president need to address the Oxford University Union for a second time ignoring the warnings given by the diplomatic missions?
Weeks ahead of the visit to UK (for the non-address of the Oxford Union), the PR machine of the Sri Lankan government was already touting “what an honor has the president brought to the country in being invited to address the Oxford Union for a second time and the bravery he has shown in not bowing to the pressure exerted by the Tamil Diaspora in UK” and so on and so forth.
Then what happened? It gave much needed PR to the LTTE sympathizers' cause, their mass protests were covered by new agencies all around the world, and the embracement Sri Lanka had to face to go with it. UK government gave its reciprocal snub to president Rajapakse’s SOS call adding insult to injury. Imagine how naïve one has be to expect the UK (which the Sri Lankan government so merrily criticized and humiliated back at home) to intervene?
Sri Lankan government walked right into the trap which appears to be an orchestrated effort by the pro-LTTE elements and the West to humiliate Sri Lanka in front of the world.     

However there is only one way the government can mute the hue and cry for the investigation on alleged war crimes, that is to demonstrate genuine will to establish national reconciliation and re-establish the rule of law which seems to be deteriorating owing to increased authoritarianism of the executive.

Today an important Supreme Court ruling will be announced, which would be a litmus test for Sri Lanka’s Judiciary as far as its independence is concerned. General Sarath Fonseka has challenged the validity of the first General Courts Martial (GCM) that has stripped him of his rank, decorations and denied his pension. It is on the grounds that the General Court Martial (the first among two such GCMs) is not a judicial body.

This Supreme Court Ruling will make or mar the image of the Sri Lankan government where its accountability is concerned. It is up to them to portray Sri Lanka as yet another undemocratic state like Myanmar(which they have been consorting with of late) political dissent is not tolerated.

Unjust Incarceration of Sarath Fonseka

Imagine, three years’ rigorous imprisonment for a violation of guidelines relating to tender procedures?

He was cashiered from the first court-martial; hence technically he has never served in the armed forces and has nothing to do with the Army. So how can one enforce a second court-martial on such a person, if the common law was enforced it would have been appropriate. Imagine 3 years for the failure to reveal his son-in-law's interest in the tender in question. Even the cashiering of Fonseka for dabbling in politics while in uniform utter violation of one’s rights, what is wrong with a man whose about to retire, contemplating on entering politics as his future profession.
It is obvious that the president and the government are trying to politically destroy Sarath Fonseka.
The Rajapaksa apologists are trying to justify this unjust incarceration of the war hero that ended 30 year civil war almost sacrificing his life in the process. It is Sarath Fonseka that paved the way for the President and this government to be where they are right now.
Back in the day when the president came before the people with his Mahinda Chinthana, the salient topic was militarily defeating the LTTE. They were under tremendous pressure to deliver, the Defence secretary had been in the military long enough to realise it was General Fonseka who's the man for the job, as for the president he had been in politics long enough to realise that they desperately need someone like Fonseka who's well known for his ruthlessness in the battlefield, to help them effectively sell the war to the public. Fonseka thoroughly deserved the various feathers in his cap, he earned them, needn't pay tribute to any one for that. And he knows it, that's why he was able to bid goodbye to the military keeping his head straight.