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Announcement by the All Ceylon Executive Council of the Sri Lanka

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Announcement by the All Ceylon Executive Council of the Sri Lanka Announcement by the All Ceylon Executive Council of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party on the Content and Recommendations of the Report of the Presidential Commission appointed to Investigate the Easter Sunday Terrorist Attack First of all let us express our deepest condolences to all Catholics and their loved ones who were killed and injured in the perpetual bombing of Sri Lanka on April 21, 2019 targeting Catholics and foreign tourists in Sri Lanka, as well as those who were killed and injured in the attack on several major hotels in Colombo and those who mourned for them. We also strongly emphasize that justice and fairness must be done for all of them. The Executive Council of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) today drew its attention to the recommendations of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry appointed by former President Maithripala Sirisena on the Easter Sunday attack, especially the report and recommendations on former President Maithripala Sirisena. The Presidential Commission to Investigate and Report on the aforementioned attack was appointed on September 22, 2019 by our party leader, former President Maithripala Sirisena, with a few basic expectations in mind. The following were the main ones: Identify the local and foreign forces behind this attack. Understanding the core aims and aspirations of those forces Make recommendations to bring to justice the individuals or groups who directly or indirectly contributed to the planning and execution of this attack. However, the report was not finalized before the end of President Maithripala Sirisena's term, and the commission continued to function under the incumbent President Gotabhaya Rajapaksa. The first interim report was submitted by the Commission on December 20, 2019, the second interim report was submitted on March 2, 2020 and the final report was submitted on February 1, 2021. The report consists of 472 pages, 215 appendices and 06 volumes. To date, however, this report is not open to the public. This work is taking place at a time when there is a great deal of social debate about the Parliamentary Committee appointed to look into the implementation of the recommendations made in this report. Already the United People's Freedom Alliance (UPFA) and the esteemed Maha Sangha of this country have declared that the report of the Easter Commission is incomplete and that the commission has not fulfilled its expectations. The Central Committee and the Executive Committee of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party are having a heated discussion on the contents and recommendations of the report and we note the following. It is the general opinion of our party that this report does not contain positive answers, conclusions and recommendations for the achievement of the objectives established by this Commission. In establishing this Commission, their conclusions and recommendations have been submitted beyond the scope of the subject assigned to it. Recommendations have been made after investigating matters which are not relevant to the scope at all. o Examples Recommendations of the Leader of the Bodu Bala Sena Most Ven. Galaboda Aththe Gnanasara Thero who made decisive revelations about Muslim extremist organizations Page 309 of the Commission's report states: "The Commission of Inquiry is of the view that Ranil Wickremesinghe's lax attitude towards Islamic extremism as Prime Minister in considering the evidence was a major factor in the failure of the then government to take active action." However, it is clear that the Commission has adopted a lax policy towards Ranil Wickremesinghe and that pursuing a strict policy only against President Maithripala Sirisena is a double standard. Former President Maithripala Sirisena will take over the Ministry of Law and Order on October 30, 2018. In fact, he has taken charge of this ministry for only five months and 20 days until the day of the attack. This Commission has not assigned any responsibility for this incident to any of the Ministers who were previously in charge of this Ministry. The report does not comment on the value or accuracy of the information which was allegedly leaked to the media. There are reports that weapons found during inspections by mosque security forces after the Easter attack were imported by ships, but the report does not seek its depth. Sarah aka Pulasthini Rajendran, the wife of one of the suicide bombers' grandmother, Mohammad Mohammad Hastun, had fled to India from Batticaloa for a long time and the investigation is not paying any attention to it and therefore ignores any information that could have been uncovered. On the eve of Easter, a man named Namal Kumara came to the fore and exposed the plot to assassinate then President and our leader Maithripala Sirisena and Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, who was named as a candidate in the forthcoming presidential election. He was later released on strong intervention, although the name of a foreign national involved was later read. The report does not address this issue. Considering the scope of the said Commission appointed by Hon. Maithripala Sirisena, it is clear that the said Commission has directed to investigate and report whether the public servants were or are currently directly or indirectly involved in this chain of events. It is clear from the powers vested in the Commission that the actions of political leaders, including the Head of State or Ministers, have not been delegated to any inquiry into the implementation or omission of the responsibilities of the Constitution vested in them. Therefore, the Executive Council of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party strongly states that the statements made about Maithripala Sirisena are an action that does not fall within the purview of the Commission. It is also clear that many of the statements made about President Maithripala Sirisena are based on assumptions. According to page 292 of the commission's report, President Maithripala Sirisena had strongly instructed the police to arrest Saharan immediately at the National Security Council meeting. (Pages 292 and 293). In spite of this, the Commission of Inquiry has stated that President Maithripala Sirisena has neglected his duties and responsibilities and that it goes beyond mere civil negligence. It is questionable how someone's negligence goes beyond his civil negligence. On page 296 of the commission's report, it was stated that President Maithripala Sirisena's non-appointment of an acting Minister of Defense during his visits to India and Singapore was a violation of the Constitution. On the same page, it has been stated that it is only a matter of choice for the President to make an acting appointment under the Constitution. The report of the PCoI on Easter Attacks page 487 also includes the following: “If he or she goes abroad, constitutional provisions should be made to make it mandatory for the president to appoint an acting defense minister. The Acting Minister should have all the powers of the President as the Minister of Defense. The acting minister should have the power to convene and advise the National Security Council.” This clearly shows that we do not have in the Constitution the legal provisions authorizing the appointment of an Acting Minister of Defense. How can the President be held criminally responsible for not making such an appointment? The error in the failure to exercise discretionary power under the Penal Code is a matter of intense uncertainty. The Executive Council of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party strongly points out that the failure of a President to exercise the powers and responsibilities vested in him by the Constitution is not a reason to file a criminal case against him. It is clear from this report that Maithripala Sirisena has clearly fulfilled his responsibilities and the Executive Council of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party has unanimously decided that there is no legal or factual basis for filing any criminal case against him. The decision to prosecute an executive president for any misconduct is an unfavorable precedent and an undermining of the powers conferred on a head of state by the Constitution. It has been confirmed that the American government agencies had received prior information about the terrorist attack on the Pentagon on September 11 in the United States. However, the commission did not approve the allegations against the US president or members of the intelligence services. Investigations into the terrorist attacks in New Zealand also confirmed that the country's security forces had received prior information, but no criminal charges were filed against them. There is no legal tradition of making criminal charges against heads of state or political authorities in accordance with the traditionally accepted worldwide responsibility for terrorist acts committed by terrorists. The Executive Council of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) points out that such actions targeting Maithripala Sirisena will set a precedent for bringing criminal charges against any head of state in the future and that it is a very dangerous and short-sighted process. The Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) will conduct an in-depth study of this report in the future and make a special statement in this regard. We strongly reject the recommendations of President Maithripala Sirisena, the first rural, agrarian and non-aristocratic leader to introduce democracy to Sri Lankan society and establish a better free society, and in addition reject the majority of the Commission's recommendations. We hereby announce that the Executive Committee of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party has unanimously decided that it has no choice but to reject the report of the Easter Commission, which is incomplete and unprepared. .
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