His Excellency Mahinda Rajapaksa 12.8.

2010

President of the Democratic Socialist

Republic of Sri Lanka,

Presidential Secretariat

Colombo1

Dear Your Excellency

Request to provide an opportunity to Minister Wimal Weerawansa

to participate at the next United Nations Sessions along with you

I am writing this letter to you as the Assistant Secretary of the UNP

in charge of Relief and Human Rights and also as a senior

Parliamentarian of the Opposition. According to the media reports, that

you as the Executive President of Sri Lanka, is scheduled to address and

participate at the next United Nations Sessions.

Minister Wimal Weerawansa who is a member of your Cabinet and

also a partner of your Government as the leader of the National Freedom

Front, recently carried out a hunger strike in front of the United Nations

Office complex in Colombo causing great

-2-

inconvenience to both the local and overseas staff of the Colombo United

Nations Office. In fact, the Foreign Secretary of the Sri Lankan

Government had to intervene personally to make sure that the staff of

the UN Colombo Office were not being harmed or harassed.

Minister Wimal Weerawansa started this hunger protest, forcing the

Secretary General of the United Nations to withdraw the 3-member

committee appointed by him to look into the human rights affairs of the

country. It is because of your intervention, Mr Wimal Weerawansa had to

stop his hunger strike. But the UN Secretary General did not withdraw

his decision. In fact, he has increased the number of members of the

committee to 11.

Thereby, I strongly feel that Mr Wimal Weerawansa’s undiplomatic,

immoral and silly action has caused more damage to our country. He has

become a laughing stock before the local and international communities.

Now it has been known that Mr Weerawansa has acted in a stage drama

to fool the people of Sri Lanka and to bring disrepute and discredit to our

motherland.

You made it a point to introduce Mr Wimal Weerawansa to Mr Ban-

ki Moon, Secretary General of the United Nations when you met him on

the last occasion. Similarly, I request you to make arrangements to give

an opportunity for Mr Wimal Weerawansa to

-3-

meet Mr Ban-ki Moon , the UN Secretary General during your forthcoming

visit to the UN. This will undoubtedly provide a golden opportunity for Mr
Weerawansa to show his protest to the UN Secretary General, or even to

have another street drama protest before the Secretary General, or

otherwise, Mr Weerawansa could tender an apology to the Secretary

General of the UN for his undiplomatic, immoral and silly behavior.

Kindly note that the UNP will always stand for the sovereignty,

territorial integrity and independence of Sri Lanka.

As you are fully aware, the Government of Sri Lanka has been a

signatory to several UN conventions including the international covenant

on civil and political rights. I was able to get a judgement from the UN

Human Rights Committee against President Chandrika Bandaranaike

Kumaratunga for making false, malicious and baseless allegations

against me under cover of Presidential immunity. This is the first time in

the history of Sri Lanka that the UN Human Rights Committee issued a

declaration that the Executive President of Sri Lanka has violated my

human rights.

During the tenure of Hon Ranil Wickremesinghe’s Government from

2002 to 2004, I was able to bring a proposal to the Government

-4-

0as the Minister of Rehabilitation, Resettlement & Refugees to get the

services of a UN Human Rights Advisor to our country.

I trust that you will draw a very serious attention to this letter.

Thanking you,
Yours sincerely

Dr Jayalath Jayawardane, M P

Assistant Secretary of the UNP for Relief & Human Rights