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The protestors’ view on whether ‘aragalaya’ is the enemy of the State?

31 Aug 2022

BY Sumudu Chamara The movement known as the “aragalaya” (struggle) has been interpreted in many ways. While it has a strong political aspect to it, it is also a movement against the dire economic situations that the people are going through. After the Galle Face protests came to an end, it is now being alleged by various parties, especially politicians representing the Government, to be an anti-Government or an anti-State conspiracy. The arrest and detention of several prominent “aragalaya” activists under the Prevention of Terrorism (Temporary Provisions) Act as amended (PTA) has also intensified these concerns, as they too are alleged to be a part of an anti-Government conspiracy by the said parties.   Alleged conspiracy against the Government   Last week, at the weekly Cabinet of Ministers’ press briefing, Cabinet Spokesman Dr. Bandula Gunawardena spoke about these concerns, revealing that security forces have informed that they need to conduct lengthier investigations into certain arrested individuals and that suspicions about a conspiracy to violently overthrow a democratically elected Government will also be investigated.  He said: “On 22 August, the Defence Minister, President Ranil Wickremesinghe, explained this to the Cabinet of Ministers. He explained that within the country, according to the Constitution, holding rallies, picketing, and protesting peacefully can be done. But, in the current situation, in a move that has not been seen before in Sri Lankan history, there has been large-scale violence in the recent past.  “Security forces have said that they need to investigate this conspiracy to threaten public officials, Local Government officials, democratically elected leaders, and businessmen in order to overthrow a democratically elected Government through violence. They have said that they need more than 24 hours to question some individuals, and since lengthy investigations are needed with regard to some of them, they will be questioned for a longer period of time.” In a related incident, it was also reported last week that President Wickremesinghe, in his capacity as the Defence Minister, had granted approval to detain for a period of 90 days – Inter-University Students’ Federation Convenor Wasantha Mudalige, Kelaniya University student activist Hashan Jeewantha, and Inter-University Bhikkhu Federation Convenor Ven. Galwewa Siridhamma Thera under the PTA. Subsequently, a fundamental rights (FRs) petition was filed in the Supreme Court challenging the trio’s detention under the PTA.   Objectives of the ‘aragalaya’   While the above-mentioned detentions and the allegation that the “aragalaya” was part of a conspiracy against the Government or the State have been criticised in various contexts, activists stress that it is important that the Government understands that the “aragalaya”, being a movement against the Government, does not necessarily constitute an anti-Government conspiracy.   Speaking to The Morning, Committee for Protecting the Rights of Prisoners (CPRP) Chairman and Attorney-at-Law Senaka Perera who was involved with the “aragalaya”, noted that the Government is attempting to portray the “aragalaya” as an anti-Government or an anti-State movement without making a genuine effort to address the factors that actually led to the “aragalaya”, adding that such will only prolong the “aragalaya”. He added that only the Government is seeking to portray the “aragalaya” in the said manner and that the majority of the people do not share the same opinion. He explained that it was the economic issues that led to the “aragalaya”, not a conspiracy.  “The people took to the streets due to reasonable reasons. The traditional duty of a Government is to ensure the people’s wellbeing and security. The Government failed when it came to ensuring the people’s wellbeing, and the people had to be in queues for days and people died in queues, liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) cylinders exploded, hospitals ran out of medicines, and children could not attend schools among other issues.  “Due to this failure, the people came forward and started expressing opposition against the Government, which is not an illegal act. The Constitution has guaranteed the right to speech and association as FRs. The people started questioning the said issues within those limits.”  He opined that if the Government views this movement as an illegal act or an anti-Government conspiracy, what it implies is that the Government has not even understood the problem it is dealing with.  “If the Government labels these acts as illegal or anti-Government acts and continues to refrain from providing solutions to the issues that triggered the people’s movement, the people have no option but to protest. This struggle is a result of that behaviour and it came after the Government’s lack of response to the people’s requests for essentials. Labelling this movement as an anti-Government movement, in order to suppress it, is pointless. The institution called the Government was formed for the people,” he said.  Perera further said that if the people’s needs are not fulfilled, the struggle will continue and that it is the Government’s actions that decide it. In addition, he said that trying to suppress the people’s movement through various laws such as the PTA is unethical.   Use of the PTA against ‘aragalaya’ activists   Meanwhile, Frontline Socialist Party Education Secretary Pubudu Jayagoda also expressed similar opinions about the importance of the Government identifying and addressing what truly led to the “aragalaya”, without attempting to label it as an anti-Government or anti-State movement.  “If we look at what the people demanded, we can see that they did not demand anything new. They just wanted living conditions that would allow them to live like before with a proper supply of food, power and energy, education, and health. If the Government sees this as an act against the State, the impression it gives us is that the State is there not to fulfil the people’s needs, but for some other purpose.” He also criticised the use of the PTA against “aragalaya” activists and stressed that it has been used to oppress various groups since its enactment over four decades ago.  “It was first introduced in 1979 as a Temporary Act. When it was challenged in court, the Attorney General’s Department informed the court that this was a Temporary Act and that it would be repealed. But, it has been there for 43 years despite it being a Temporary law. During those 43 years, it was used to violate ordinary citizens’ democratic rights.  “When it was used against the Tamil people, it was said that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was an armed group that was going against the State and that the PTA was used because of that reason. After 2019, when it was used against the Muslim people, it was said that fundamentalist groups were against the State and that the PTA was being used because of that reason. Now, it is being used against the general public, against Sinhalese, Tamil, and Muslim people.”  Noting that the PTA is being used against the people for allegedly being anti-Government in a context where even the Constitution says “in the Republic of Sri Lanka, sovereignty is in the people and is inalienable”, and that in that sense, the people’s fight is an act recognised by the Constitution, he added: “We do not accept anti-State/Government conspiracy stories. In fact, we are concerned about the situation where people arrested under these types of Acts are being detained in various places without being produced in court. To go for legal reforms to change this situation, we believe that a huge movement is necessary.” While looking into any illegal activities within the “aragalaya” movement or what resulted from it is crucial in order to maintain the rule of law, it is the popular opinion that most legal action taken against “aragalaya” activists amounts to an act of a political witch-hunt by the Government. The use of the PTA against “aragalaya” activists, especially, has attracted criticism from both local and international activists, and it is seen as disproportionate to the offences allegedly committed by the arrested activists. In this context, as the activists who spoke with The Morning highlighted, it is important to pay more attention to the factors that led to the “aragalaya”, while taking legal actions in accordance with Constitutionally guaranteed rights and human rights laws.


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