Much has been said and reported this week about three Sri Lankans who were killed in Ukraine, fighting against the Russians. Many have sought to glorify their actions, and call them warriors for democracy, the fact remains that the Sri Lankan Government does not have a tangible policy on dealing with Sri Lankan nationals fighting overseas. And given Sri Lanka’s long-standing relations with Russia, the deaths are likely to pose a diplomatic issue. The presence of Sri Lankan citizens fighting in foreign conflicts under foreign flags creates unnecessary complications for Sri Lanka’s already strained foreign policy. Reports indicate, the Ukrainian Government is preparing to perform the final rites of Captain Hewage with full military honours.
Recently, Sri Lankan print and broadcast media was awash with reports of the death of an ex-Sri Lankan Army officer who was apparently fighting in the “international legion”( Ukraine’s version of the foreign legion) during combat with Russian troops. It was reported that the body of one of the three Sri Lankans who were killed on the battlefield in a Russian artillery attack on Ukraine, has been recovered. An official of the “International Legion for the Defence” of Ukraine has confirmed that the body of Captain Ranish Hewage, a former Sri Lankan Army officer, was recovered on Wednesday (6). Hewage had joined the Ukrainian Foreign Legion as a volunteer and was serving as a Commanding Officer in one of its special force formations. According to reports, the body had been retrieved by another former Sri Lankan Army officer, who was Hewage’s second in command. Meanwhile, two other Sri Lankan mercenaries are also said to have died in Russian attacks on Ukraine. However, the remains of M.M. Priyantha, a former petty officer of the Sri Lanka Navy, and Rodney Jayasinghe, allegedly a former member of the Sinha Regiment of the Sri Lanka Army, are yet to be recovered.
Regardless of how Sri Lankans feel about the deaths and them being involved in the conflict, it does little to help Sri Lanka’s policy stance on the issue. Sri Lanka has stated that they do not wish to be affected by geopolitical competition or any defence alliance. While not officially sanctioned by the State, the presence of Sri Lankan combatants in foreign warzones does not bode well for Sri Lanka, irrespective of one's views on the conflicts. Sri Lanka cannot afford to be mired in foreign conflicts, nor proxy wars of superpowers, be it as mercenaries or as “freedom loving” volunteers who wish to defend “democracy”.
Sri Lanka has a long history of its citizens fighting in foreign warzones. However, many of them were under colonial rule, and as such were engaged in combat as subjects of the British Empire. Sri Lankan soldiers contributed to the Boer war in South Africa at the turn of the 19th century and have subsequently served in British and colonial units in both world wars. However, such action had legitimacy and was expected. It fell within the scope of acceptable international law. Sri Lankan armed forces also serve overseas under United Nations mandate carrying out peacekeeping duties.
Today the Ministry of Foreign Affairs remains mum over the deaths and any attempts made to repatriate the remains of the deceased to Sri Lanka. Further, thousands of Sri Lankan citizens, mostly ex-military personnel work for many Private Military Contractors (PMC’s) in the Middle East and North Africa. While they bring valuable foreign revenue to Sri Lanka, it lacks a monitoring mechanism, or a regulatory process to ensure that they do not breach international laws, or drag Sri Lanka into complicated diplomatic situations.
Similarly, the Foreign Ministry has been mum about the dozens of Sri Lankan families who travelled to ISIS-controlled parts of occupied Syria and Iraq, to join the self-proclaimed and short lived “Islamic state caliphate”. The legality of the ISIS combatants, and their families remain unclear and the Government of Sri Lanka seems to be content as long as the issue is “out of sight-out of mind”. However, such an approach is dangerous and invites troubles. What happens if a Sri Lankan combatant is linked to what one state classifies as an “act of terror” or is involved in an international cross border battle. It will invariably draw the troubled island nation into more international disrepute. Shouldn’t the Government act now to establish some rules, norms and a compliance mechanism to ensure Sri Lankans are not involved in matters which needlessly drag the country into more trouble?