By Alok Bhatt
Impunity Watch Reporter, Asia
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka – After months of what General Fonseka has claimed to be unlawful detention, the former key organizer of Sri Lankan armed forces now demands freedom from captivity. General Fonseka’s unsuccessful run against Mahinda Rajapaksa in Sri Lanka’s presidential elections cost him his liberty, as Rajapaska, the remaining president, accused Fonseka of running with militant, anti-government designs. High tensions between Rajapaksa and Fonseka intensified when, following the end of the quarter-century civil war against the Tamil Tigers, Fonseka acted on political aspirations. Fonseka’s policies contravened Rajapaksa’s ethically questionable regime, further alarming the former president and resulting in his efforts to undermine Fonseka’s potential to ascend to office.
Among other allegations, Rajapaksa charged General Fonseka with interacting and supporting anti-government organizations. Rajapaksa also claimed that General Fonseka illegally procured arms to advance his purposes. Under the notion that General Fonseka was planning a forceful rule of the state, Rajapaksa ordered law enforcement to arrest and retrieve General Fonseka from his campaign offices and detain him. A pending trial will determine the validity of these suspect charges. The court marshal for Fonseka’s supposed effort to run for office while still serving under the Sri Lankan military was recently adjourned for two weeks for parliament’s inaugural session.
In his first public statement since his detainment on February 8th, General Fonseka expressed his hopes that the parliament would support the rights and liberties of the Sri Lankan people and unite in the interest of an honest nation. The Sri Lankan government has long been accused of myriad human rights violations and morally tenuous policies and practices. Fonseka’s remarks suggest his discontent with the state’s operations, despite his significant involvement in the military’s victory over the Tamil Tigers.
Although Fonseka’s attempt to rise to the presidency failed, his Democratic National Alliance party was able to occupy as total of seven seats in parliament. Afforded the opportunity to speak in the house, Fonseka described his detainment as “illegal detention” and an example of the multiple “injustices” perpetrated by the Sri Lankan government.
The ultimate fate of the general remains to be decided, and it seems uncertain how his minimal influence in parliament will effect the pending decision of his fate. However, Fonseka’s captivity appears to be an extension of Sri Lanka’s history of rights violations against its own people
For more information, please see:
Al-Jazeera – Sri Lanka’s Fonseka demands freedom -22 April 2010
BBC – Detained opposition leader in Sri Lankan parliament – 22 April 2010
Los Angeles Times – Sri Lanka defends arrest of candidate Sarath Fonseka – 10 Februar 2010
