The Hon. Arjuna Sujeewa Senasinghe, Attorney-at-Law

¶ 01 Hon. Presiding Member, today we discuss institutions under Defence including Police. I draw the Minister’s attention to the Trincomalee matter. From the footage, I believe there was no professional approach. The SSP told monks they would remove the statue the next day, asking about court orders and the role of the Coast Conservation and Coastal Resource Management Department. A temple safeguarded by Sinhala Buddhists even during the war has no court order against it; yet Police said they would remove the statue and then reinstalled it the next day. Monks were mishandled; this created unnecessary tension. Local authorities and agencies should have discussed and resolved it calmly; the Police are for preventing public disorder, not causing it. This is a Sinhala Buddhist country, and our Buddhism teaches respect and compassion towards all religions; mishandling shows disregard.

¶ 02 Deputy Minister Watagala, you have knowledge—yet you are not given space to speak; you yourself have said your party allocates speaking slots sparingly. Good counsel should have been sought.

¶ 03 The Minister’s actions are inconsistent—one day he says one thing, the next day another. This mishandling is now provoking communal rhetoric. There were deeds, grants, and even an appeal filed in the Court of Appeal by the monks—so proceed calmly. The failure reflects disregard for religion by leaders.

¶ 04 On narcotics: initially you attacked politicians in general, then failed to name any; eventually when six politically linked persons (from the ruling party) were implicated, the IGP issued a circular reportedly to withhold information from media; later the Minister contradicted it. Governance by Facebook trends is no way to run narcotics policy. Remember, Sri Lanka is used as a transit; even with DEA/FBI in major countries, only around 5–8% is intercepted. Focus also on rehabilitation.

¶ 05 An audio was played earlier of the now-President, then in Opposition, calling it an “ice drama.” Now the same playbook is used: when lacking substance, you weaponize Police, CID, and CIABOC to distract. Government-linked wrongdoers get leniency; what about the large-scale wrongdoing?

¶ 06 Consider the recent massive seizure trends and the 300-plus containers that arrived—do we know their contents? Allegations include arms among them. Where are the inquiries? Do not block CID or CIABOC. We see selective targeting of Opposition with expensive, baseless cases while government-side allegations languish. Some officers tell us they are instructed to harass selectively. Do not turn this into a Gestapo government.

¶ 07 On national security: modernize the tri-forces; since 2009 there has been insufficient modernization. At UN forums, we failed even to muster votes or advocacy; now the forces face constraints due to resolutions.

¶ 08 On specific cases: the removal of a senior medical officer (Dr. Maheshi) at Sri Jayewardenepura Hospital; public criticism of naval arrests; CID officers flown to the UK to verify a letter in a case involving Ranil Wickremesinghe—why not use established channels? A Major General reportedly remanded over an alleged treasure killing without a body or missing person—what is this? Selective zeal erodes credibility. Ministries are not delivering development; do not hide behind Police and commissions.

¶ 09 Please cease using Police and CID as political tools; let them serve the law impartially. Thank you.