A politician-hoisted on his own petard

A politician has allegedly betrayed his country and his subordinates and the army he commanded just 8 months before. He has gone ballistic with accusations of his own troops under their erstwhile commanders killing white flag bearing LTTE cadres in the Sunday Leader on 13th December 2009.

This was not for local consumption as sadly few if any people in SL bothered about such nuances when similar rumours were spread by the opposition’s spineless and latterly frenzied leader at the end of the war in May. The alleged accusation was aimed intentionally, pointedly and crudely at the international (western) community who have still to understand the loathing felt by most citizens including Tamils for the bestial LTTE.

“Humility must be always a portion of any man who receives acclaim earned on the blood of his followers and the sacrifices of his friends” - (General Dwight Eisenhower)

This was not for local consumption as sadly few if any people in SL bothered about such nuances when similar rumours were spread by the opposition’s spineless and latterly frenzied leader at the end of the war in May. The alleged accusation was aimed intentionally, pointedly and crudely at the international (western) community who have still to understand the loathing felt by most citizens including Tamils for the bestial LTTE.

“The Moving Finger writes: and having writ,
Moves on: nor all thy Piety or Wit shall lure it back to cancel half a Line,
Nor all thy Tears wash out a word of It”.

Sinister objective

The objective had been to get an international arrest warrant served on his own troops, on one of the ablest strike Commanders in the Eelam 4 battles, if not all others and the very Secretary of Defence who picked Fonseka from impending oblivion and recommended his elevation to Commander of the army. Fonseka has now exposed all of them to international retribution by this alleged betrayal. When he realized the impact of his damning statements on his country, the army and the men that he says he “served” for 40 years, he attempted damage control by obfuscation which bewildered even his conniving supporters including the woman who published the accusation. No one believed him and this included those who went berserk trying to control the damage. That put paid to any vestiges left of his credibility together with any defence he may have had to deny treachery. The mark of Cain is indelible.

Is he an officer and gentleman?

“Why do you hate your friends more than your enemies?”
(Clementine Churchill to de Gaulle)

It appears that to this politician, honour, loyalty, comradeship, sacrifice, espirit de corps, integrity and sincerity meant little in order to gain his personal objectives.

Is this how much he cares for the country that bestowed so much wealth on him, the army he supposedly led even from China (!), and the troops he endangered and who sacrificed their lives and limbs unquestioningly, true to his orders? This is after the oft repeated boast of 40 years of disciplined military service which has been blown to smithereens.

What were his intentions and what did he seek to achieve? Knowing he had shot himself in the foot, the army in the stomach and the country in the head he tried to do the impossible – to wash away betrayal by recanting - to save as usual not the affected but himself and his evil sponsors.

First recorded betrayal by an army commander

There is no other known betrayal by an army commander of his subordinates in history, even in defeat. What he has done is unpardonable, unforgivable and unforgettable. Does it give an indication also of both his motives and that of the forces that back him and what he would do in the future and who would be his target then?

Was this another failed conspiracy to inveigle the international (western) community to interfere in the governance of SL? The people of SL and its armed forces with 26,000 dead, will not forgive him. As before when he claimed that ‘SL was for the Sinhalese but others could also live there’ (as Huckhim quoted so fluently not much long ago but appears now to have definitely stowed for a more propitious time), has fallen back on his oft repeated lame excuse that he was wrongly quoted. He must know he is talking to himself. Can he ever be believed after this? By his own admission he is not a man of his word even in betrayal.

LTTE wiped out by formidable divisional commanders and their men

“My fighting has been in the open, and not treacherous, and against men, not women” (Arminius)

Gen Fonseka regularly predicted to the media during the war the common and conventional wisdom that the LTTE would resort to insurgency after its conventional forces were defeated.

However the troops on the ground under formidable and intrepid commanders like Generals Shavendra de Silva, Jagath Dias, Chagi Gallage, Kamal Gunaratne and Prassana de Silva from the spearhead infantry regiments, the Commandos and the Special Forces especially considered that old hat and effected a change. Leaving nothing to chance while Fonseka was allegedly in China and out of the way on an ‘earned’ family holiday (!), they encircled and wiped out the LTTE lock stock and barrel and rescued 300,000 Tamil hostages. It was a truly amazing feat absolutely without parallel in anti terrorist warfare. The credit is solely theirs. Is this why Fonseka reacted as he did to betray the very people he says he led to victory even before 6 months had elapsed? Or was it because he was not allowed to increase the size of the army by 100,000 troops and/or purchase a ship load of arms and ammunition or was it plain hatred towards the successful formation commanders and the Defence Secretary for not allowing the war to become a bleeding sore after the LTTE conventional forces were defeated? He has not offered an explanation.

Presidential candidate’s political preferences

When Eelam IV ended Sarath Fonseka was the Army Commander. Within 6 months he came forward as a presidential candidate to contest his own Commander in Chief by cashing in on the victory of the nation’s armed forces. Earlier he said he knew the pit falls and would not go into politics.

He in a convoluted if not deadly interpretation of the demise of late Gen Janaka Perera for whom he had no love, mentioned his fate as a reason for what was to be a temporary decision. Gen Perera and other Generals of the Army would however never have even contemplated such a course of action.

Fonseka not unduly concerned with the slime associated with politicians dived into it head first. Visiting USA whilst being Commander, Fonseka had to decide whether he should spill the ‘beans’ he himself had cultivated if not baked. Without any sense of shame or remorse he unhesitatingly picked on Tilvin de Silva of the JVP as his conducting officer. He fished out this accursed war crimes allegation which had clearly gestated for 6 months in politically inspired manure. He then attempted a premature delivery which resulted in still berth. The abortionists have been unmasked. The coroner has work to do. The people have a verdict to deliver.

Reasons for taking to politics

“A general must not fight a battle out of resentment” (Sun Tzu)

Fonseka gave many reasons for taking to politics, a knapsack of half truths, hates, raw greed and fancies deftly camouflaging a burning ambition, which had been manifest for some years and mostly a desire for revenge. He has already reaped a harvest of prime land grants, luxury vehicles and even inflated security requirements over the bodies of 26,000 dead soldiers and 80,000 wounded in 25 years of war, not counting 60,000 civilians. He asks for still more.

The price

Fonseka has paid the price of his candidature by joining Salvation Mangala and the now silent Ravi Madawachchiya and Thoppigala Ranil in addition to Joseph Michael Perera who accused him (quoted in the BBC) of being behind the killing of a journalist(s), Huckhim who accused him of being a racist and committing ‘crime’ and Sambandan the ‘touchable’ Tamil who supported the untouchable LTTE to insure his own skin. They had for years opposed the country’s mission, him and the forces directly and by innuendo.

His main sponsors however are the bloody red pitiless murderers of 60,000 Sinhalese only in 1988/9 that waged bestial war on the country and attempted to destroy its entire infra structure twice in 18 years. They had planned to exploit the astronomical casualties (6000 soldiers killed and 25,000 wounded in just over 3 years) in 2008 and cause a mutiny in the forces to take power. When this attempt failed with the taking of the Mannar rice bowl area, the JVP opposed the 2008 budget hoping to defeat the government and preempt a mutiny.

JVP Collaborators

The JVP had the cunning to wax eloquent on their version of democracy which they exhibited clearly in 1988/9. It is personified by their man armed in the night with a sword, axe, saw, knife, club or gun. For their opponents be they students, their parents or state officials the democracy they delivered meant excruciating torture and death. Fonseka is willing to sleep with these conspiratorial devils to achieve his personal fulfillment. Knowing he firmly believed that shooting with weapons and shooting off his mouth are similar, they lured him into an ambush that no junior officer or NCO would ever be led into. His handlers knew his proclivity for ruthlessness towards his own subordinates and encouraged him. He is today despised by every right thinking officer, soldier and citizen of SL even though in holy white. He has been seen for what he is truly.

Arms dealer son in law

While the demands he made on the state appeared to be self centered if not plainly avaricious, his avowed aim of combating corruption took a mighty fall with the alleged exploits of his son in law, an arms dealer of no mean repute, the alleged manner in which army tender boards for weapons were manipulated by his domineering influence and his own all expenses paid (by a weapons supplier) pleasure trip to China with his extended family in the climactic closing stages of the war. This is another negative first for any army commander in war.

Little concern for those who made the sacrifice

“If I were fierce and bald and short of breath,
I’d live with scarlet majors at the Base
And speed glum heroes up the line of death.
(Siegfried Sassoon)

Fonseka did not express the same concern, responsibility, sympathy or regret for the astronomically high casualty rate which he, after hiding it from the public for the duration of the war, admitted was a staggering 6,000 dead in 2 years and 9 months, being 25% of the military deaths in 25 years of war, and 26,000 wounded. He did his best to anaesthetize the public to this horrendous cost of victory.

He did not accept, acknowledge or have the humility to recognize the leadership of the battlefield commanders and the troops who actually faced death every minute while fighting non stop for nearly 3 years and defeating the LTTE. His erstwhile sponsors, confirmed traitors all, constantly pointed out the cost of war in lives lost, shedding crocodile tears then. They also said anyone could win with such massive fire support and sacrifice of life. The LTTE called the loss of soldiers life as its ‘harvesting’ as given in the Tamil web.

The KIA, MIA and wounded figures were hidden from the public with an iron fist by the man who now wants to ensure press freedom. Having forsaken his military colleagues and friends who stood by him in the days of strife, he has new friends including that naughty lady who gave him what turned out to be a veritable dead rope.

Victory has many fathers

Fonseka, ridiculously, arrogantly, diabolically and hypocritically claims that the victory over the LTTE was his alone now but when it happened he sang moving hosannas to the C in C of a triumvirate he was a part of and recognized. At his HQ on Sunday (13th December 09) unmoved after betraying his army colleagues and soldiers he said that ‘Indira Gandhi did not go around India with her sari tucked up saying she won the (1971) war’.

How true. Even if she tried it would have been quite a feat. But then Gandhi’s Generals being recognized internationally as officers and gentlemen of the highest caliber like most of the SL Army Commanders before Fonseka, did not go around the country congratulating themselves that it was they who had won the war. They did not even demand land, several vehicles and a regiment of troops for security in retirement even if for them the threat was from a formidable Pakistan and not a decimated LTTE. Certainly they did not demean their professional calling by contesting Gandhi at elections.

Defeat has none-abortive withdrawal from Jaffna -2000

Fonseka is now willing to sleep with the very conspirators including ‘Leading’ media who did every thing up to the last moment to impede the victory of the country over the LTTE. In doing so they not only accused him of many questionable acts from awarding himself a medal for which none of his predecessors recommended him, to personal attacks on his character and his past performances? This includes the siege of Jaffna (2000) when the LTTE were pressing home their advantage after the debacle at Elephant Pass. Taking counsel of fear it had been decided by Security Force HQ Jaffna to cravenly ask the C in C (CBK) to bug out (withdraw) completely instead of fighting back if need be to the last man. It took a politician to volunteer to fly into the cauldron that was going to b Jaffna, cancel the withdrawal order and with the 40,000 officers and troops there, hold it.

So much for Fonseka’s patriotism, prowess, stomach for a fight when cornered, judgment and command ability. A military disaster of epic proportions was prevented, no thanks to Fonseka.

Alliance- A long term plot

“A general must not fight a battle out of resentment” (Sun Tzu)

This ‘alliance’ was hatched even before Eelam IV. First Thoppigala Ranil (Thoppi) made inquiries about Fonseka’s suitability to command the army in a meeting with an army officer in Minneriya. That officer warned Thoppi that Fonseka was impossible to handle. Fonseka was known to visit the Defence Ministry during Thoppi’s time to get his seniors moved out and to give him their place.

The UNP then decided to make abortive overtures to a now retired Major General, a former army chief of staff from the NCP, through a former party Secretary General. Their plans went awry with the victory of MR at the 2005 Presidential elections. Gen Kottegoda was to be axed by either side without compunction or any sense of guilt. The litany of Fonseka’s woes shows that victory over the LTTE was insufficient for him. When he could not get everything else he wanted, the plot was nurtured in hate. That is where the blood thirsty JVP came in. It thrives on hate, revenge and vengeance even while it makes mock obeisance to various symbols of democracy and religion. The more Fonseka without being asked confided to the press that his decision to go into politics was taken only when he was about to shed his uniform, the less he was believed.

Who flung dung discipline?

Was the nation to believe that Fonseka who said that everything the Army did was what he ordered, then made out that in the climactic battles it was actually being run by some one else probably the Defence Secretary? But the man who talked about the discipline of the army must answer why he did not take action on the alleged serious incident immediately it was reported to him.

Finis- Honourable way out

There were 2 other army commanders (one was Attygalle who is dead) and another spare General who betrayed the army and the nation but did not atone for it. What will Fonseka do?

All Commanders who come after him will have much to do to live this particular betrayal down.

Prabakaran at least died a warrior, fighting to the last with his men. He would not have betrayed his battle commanders and his troops either to save or glorify himself.

It is for Fonseka to decide how he will be remembered in history.

“There is one certain means I can be sure never to see my country’s ruin: I will die in the last ditch”
(William of Orange)

- Asian Tribune -