Nearly six years after the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka, victims of the tragedy continued to be trifled with by some lawmakers. Many of the survivors of that fateful Sunday, of six years ago, remain resolute, await accountability and justice for the terrorist attack that took so much from them, and left many, changed, in unimaginable circumstances. 

The attack, which was Sri Lanka’s worst, single coordinated terrorist attack on ‘soft targets’ is widely viewed as its biggest security failure since the end of the conflict in 2009.  The failures of Sri Lanka’s intelligence community, defence apparatus and law enforcement authorities, in relation to the attack have helped the many conspiracy theories which surround the reasons behind the attack to grow and gain acceptance. The colossal national security failure, and the ensuing finger pointing and denial of accountability from the intelligence, defence and law enforcement establishment, only went to highlight the lack of independence and the culture of political servitude, which have long plagued Sri Lanka’s national security, and made the island nation vulnerable to threats from within and beyond.      

Sri Lankan politicians are known to exploit grievances of communities, and victims of tragedy, for their benefit. It is how the political culture in Sri Lanka has worked for generations. Few of our lawmakers have mastered the art of deploying smokescreens, and muddying waters, and high on that list is former President Mithirpala Sirisena, who up to date, has not accepted any amount of accountability for gross negligence and mismanagement, when the 2019 terror attack happened, under his watch, as the President, Commander-in-Chief, and the Minister of Defence. In terms of credibility and leadership, Sirisena is at the bottom of the barrel, with many citizens considering his theatrics to be akin to that of a comedian. His action during the ‘Yahapalanaya’ Government, and his on-and-off relationship with the Rajapaksa political family, makes the allegations thrown by the former President, unreliable. Over the years Sirisena has made numerous claims about the Easter Sunday bombings, and has often backtracked or said something more controversial, to confuse the public. His latest caper came last Friday (22) while he was in Kandy, when he alleged that he knew “who the masterminds of the attack were”. Characteristically, the former President has declined to name individuals, and cited fears of reprisals against him and his family as to why he can’t divulge the information. He has stated that he was prepared to disclose the information to the Judiciary if such was inquired from him, or if an order is issued regarding the matter. Yesterday (24), he fronted the Police Department’s ‘jack of all trade’ investigations unit, the Criminal Investigation Division (CID), to record a ‘statement’ regarding his latest ‘revelation’. After a characteristically lengthy statement provided to the CID, the former President left the well known fourth floor of the CID headquarters last afternoon.

This latest episode in Sirisena’s allegations may well be another smokescreen which the seasoned politician is deploying ahead of election season, to distract the collective anguish and disdain that many Sri Lankans hold against him. Is the former President creating a ‘Goni-Billah’ that he might make jabs at in the coming months, to keep the spotlight off his lack of accountability? Could it be a ploy to extend the ongoing investigations into the six-year old incident? Let’s not forget the former President was significantly impacted by last year’s Supreme Court order in response to fundamental rights cases filed against him and others. If Sirisena is going to campaign for the upcoming election, then surely he can find the funds to make the compensation payments to the victims in accordance with the landmark Supreme Court Judgment of 2023.   

Playing on the heart-strings of victims' desire to see justice and accountability while not acknowledging one's shortcomings in relation to the 2019 attack, must be seen for what it is. A red herring. Sirisena has played this card before, and will likely do so again. This is part of the despicable political culture in Sri Lanka, which needs changing.