Kumar Gunaratnam says people should check the balance sheet of 66 years
The Leader and Central Committee Member of the Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) Kumar Gunaratnam stated that people should look at the balance sheet of the last 66 years to come to a conclusion about the main sides in the capitalist camp. One does not need knowledge of Marxism or Leninism to understand the decline, he added.
Speaking at a press conference at Rajagiriya several hours after his arrival in the country, Gunaratnam said that the capitalist camp was divided to two sides and are asking people to pick one. Although one side says that the current government should be defeated, the policy statements of both sides are roughly the same, he added.
Gunaratnam also said that in 1994, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) arrived at a stance where they boldly said both sides were the same. The FSP came out of the JVP because that party changed its stance. There is nothing to speak of on the traditional Left and the same has happened to the JVP, he argued adding that there was a need for a Left movement to take the struggle forward.
He also said that the balance sheet of the country’s history of exchanging one party for the other is the best evidence of the argument that both sides are the same. Democratic rights have been suppressed, respect for human life and dignity has been lost, children have lost their childhood, people are more self-centred and do not think of the community and there are other signs of decline in the society. The aim of socialism is to end this and make people’s lives happy, he added.
Gunaratnam also said that the question for the two camps was basically about power. Since the old Left parties are also divided among these capitalist camps, there was no platform to discuss the real questions of the people. He argued that the FSP was attempting to create such a space. He added that he returned following the rules and regulations currently in place and his intention is to stay as long as possible and be involved in the political movement.
Chamara Sumanapala
In the event of polls win FSP to revive socialism
The two main presidential candidates, incumbent President Mahinda Rajapaksa and Common Opposition Candidate Maithripala Sirisena have not incorporated anything relating to the national issue in their manifestos, Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) Leader Premakumar Gunaratnam said yesterday.
Gunaratnam, an Australian citizen, who returned to Sri Lanka on December 31st, made this statement at a media briefing convened by the FSP. He is purportedly canvassing for his colleague, “Party activist” Duminda Nagamuwa, who is contesting the forthcoming presidential election as the “Left’s” common candidate in the January 8th poll.
Gunaratnam, referring to Sirisena and Rajapaksa, said, “They are conducting themselves as though there is no national question in the country. Yet, it was because of this issue that many thousands of people died in a 30-year-old war. We are only being told to choose one of the two ’divisions’ of the same camp at the upcoming Presidential elections.”
“We are therefore, telling the people not to be deceived by this temporary solution. It is akin to our getting a recess in hell. Besides, the government is going in for a snap presidential election because it is harbouring doubts about Rajapaksa’s victory in the event the incumbent President serves his full term. If the country is to surmount the crises faced by it, we are against spurious constitutional amendments. Instead, we are compelled to summon a people’s constitutional committee. This new liberal social system has impaired the whole fabric of Sri Lankan society. Therefore, without providing stop gap solutions, the whole social system should be overhauled.”
Gunaratnam was deported from the country in April 2012 for “overstaying”. Prior to his deportation, he was abducted by an armed group. The blame for this abduction was placed on the incumbent UPFA Government.
Previously, Gunaratnam had been a powerful leader of the armed wing of the JVP before he formed the FSP, due to a difference in opinion. It is said that during the 1988-89 insurgency, Gunaratnam was in charge of the JVP’s military wing.
Meanwhile, Nagamuwa said that if in the event he’s elected to power, he would revive socialism in the country.
Among the others who present were FSP General Secretary Senadheera Gunasinghe, National Organizer Pubudhu Jagoda and Central Committee Member Chameera Koswatte.
Niranjala Ariyawansha
Gunaratnam: JVP shaken to core by its support for Maithripala Sirisena
Leader of the JVP splinter Frontline Socialist Party Kumar Gunaratnam alias Kumar Mahattaya yesterday said the JVP had dug its political grave by entering into an agreement with common opposition candidate Maithripala Sirisena.
Gunaratnam, who arrived here yesterday morning in an exlusive interview with The Island, which he described as his first ever face to face meeting with a local paper, said that he had information of increasingly growing displeasure and dissension within the ranks of the JVP against its present day leaders’ move to support Sirisena. “We are aware of the criticism within JVP against entering into a secret deal with Sirisena reached by its highest levels. There is widespread criticism against JVP allowing another capitalist party candidate to ride piggyback. This will cause a severe erosion of the JVP’s support base,” Gunaratnam said.
He said despite many wrongdoings by present day JVP leaders, there was still good-hearted members in that party. “These cadres are misled, for they still like to believe and accept the decisions of the top leadership as strategic moves to achieve their socialist goals. It is not so and we know that well; that was why we left them and formed the FSP. It is our intention to address those disheartened elements in that party. We invite them to take a long, hard look at what their leaders are doing now. We call upon them to study the practices of their present day leaders. For those revolutionaries who can realise that their present day leaders are nothing but traitors to the cause of revolution, we offer an alternative path. If they have any hopes of socialism, they could join the Frontline Socialist Party.”
Gunaratnam, who was deported from the country two and half years ago arrived at Colombo airport from Australia via Singapore. He entered the country using the name Noel Mudalige and passport No 1016123. He has been granted a tourist visa to stay in the country till Jan 28. Addressing the first ever press conference in Sri Lanka at the Lions Club Hall in Rajagiriya, Gunaratnam said that it was his intention to stay in the country and engage in politics to further the cause of socialism.
Asked whether it was owing to any sort of understanding with the government that he had been granted a visa by the very government he accused of abducting and trying to kill him once, Gunaratnam said that there was a political opportunity and he had grabbed it as a leftist. “It is the practice of leftists to grab any such political opportunities. We do not create them but it is our modus operandi to make use of them. Former JVP leader Somawansa Amarasinghe did likewise and came back to the country after 12 years of exile in 2001.”
Gunaratnam asked people not to fall prey to those who promised change. “There is a deep rooted tendency in us human beings to listen to those who promise change. We tend to think that change would be the panacea for all ills around us. It is not so. Those who promise change only fool you to get your vote. The manifestos of both leading candidates are hopeless. For example, those who are trying to muster the support of voters first promised to abolish executive presidency. Sirisena in his manifesto says there will be no change of provisions of executive presidency with regards to provincial councils. It is their intention of fooling the voters. We call upon people to vote for the candidate of the common Left front Duminda Nagamuwa and help forward march of socialism.”
Saman Indrajith
JVP struck deal with Sirisena to defeat Rajapaksa – Gunaratnam
Controversial leader of the JVP splinter group, the Frontline Socialist Party (FSP), Kumar Gunaratnam alias Noel Mudalige, popularly known as Kumar Mahattaya, returned from Australia yesterday. Speaking to The Island within hours of his return, he said it was the first face-to-face interview he had given to a Sri Lankan media organisation.
Excerpts from the interview:
Q: What made your return to Sri Lanka at this juncture?
A: Political opportunities present themselves not when we expect or as we wish for. They are products of various political processes. Political opportunities crop up as a result of the needs of rulers, various political parties, their competitiveness and their crisis situations. It is the duty of those who engage in Left politics to make use of such opportunities in a way that benefits the people. Accordingly, my party, its well-wishers and I saw an opportunity for me to engage in Sri Lankan politics again. Our party has been campaigning for my return since the day I was deported two and a half years ago. My return is the result of all those factors. Somawansa Amarasinghe, too, did likewise. He too grabbed a political opportunity to return.
Q: Has your return been facilitated by the ruling party or have you received its blessings to enter into Sri Lankan politics again. Have you struck a deal with the government?
A: No! We don’t believe in deals unlike the JVP. We never entered into deals with anyone and do not hope to do so in the future. In our political practice there is no room for deals. That was why we left the JVP. One of the criticisms against the JVP leaders was that they entered into political deals with other parties. We have inherited certain traditions and policies since the day Rohana Wijeweera founded the JVP. We have been upholding them to the best of our ability. Entering into political deals for convenience is unbecoming of leftists. We may share some political aims and objectives with other parties. We may even share platforms to fight for common causes. That is different from striking deals with other parties. Let me repeat that we have not struck any deal with the government or any other political organisation.
Q: Are we to believe that you are here to back FSP candidate, Duminda Nagamuwa, in the presidential race?
A: All leftists support him. But, my return was not something accidental. It was the outcome of a long struggle by our party members. My intention is to further the cause of Left politics and eliminate the distorted perceptions of socialism in our society. On the other hand, my return should not be used to claim that there is democracy in Sri Lanka. The country is gripped by a political crisis which paradoxically facilitated my return. Our intention is to make the FSP a leading political force representing a wider section of society. Our desire is to strengthen the Left movement in Sri Lanka.
Q: How can you talk about a long term political project when you have only been granted a visa until January 28th?
A: True, I have only been granted a visa up to January 28th. But you have to take cognizance of the fact there is political process. We will take certain action hoping that there will be more political opportunities which could be grabbed by us so that I could stay here longer. As for the political process I have referred to there are no formulas and equations. To achieve our objectives we have to make political interventions. The FSP together with other Left parties will do so in the future.
Q: You say that political opportunities present themselves and leftists should grab them. You can be accused of having struck a deal with the government on the pretext of availing yourself of opportunities created by it. What would you say to this?
A: We resumed doing politics in 1994 after UNP had wiped out our party by killing around 60,000 members. That was the moment of truth for us and that challenge required a great deal of courage. But, some of those holding decision making positions in the JVP at present did not want to revive the party at that time.
Q: Are you referring to Anura Kumara Dissanayake?
A: No! What I am telling you is that certain people who are leading the party today did not want to revive the JVP then. I refrain from naming them. But, we had the courage to take that decision. I have to mention that Somawansa Amarasinghe, too, favoured and fought for the revival of the party. He backed us though he was hesitant to return. After sometime, he came back but not when we wanted him to return.
Political situations are like that. I was abducted and was about to be killed but owing to some other political developments I was set free. Official and unofficial forces joined together to create one single force working for my release. Now, after two and a half years, I have come back. A person who was abducted to be killed has returned and is addressing the media in Colombo! This is how politics works. That is why I told you that we should grab political opportunities as and when they present themselves. There is absolutely no need for going for deals with anyone. Everything pertaining to my return has been released to the media by our party except the time of my arrival. Right from the beginning we have maintained transparency about our activities.
Q: What do you think really caused the JVP to suffer a debilitating split a few years ago? Some JVP members broke ranks with the party leadership and formed the FSP, which you are leading now. How would you explain what happened?
A: In politics such situations are not uncommon. We left the party on policy issues. But, what you see today is different. Politicians jump from one party to another every single day. I agree with what our presidential candidate Duminda says; only Mahinda Rajapaksa and Maithripala Sirisena could be trusted when it comes to crossovers these days.
People have forgotten their problems and are acting as cheerleaders for politicians. The JVP suffered a split due to political issues. However, there is an unfortunate culture in Left politics there; once somebody defects his former colleagues become his enemies. This is the situation with regard to everybody in the Left movement. That was why some of our comrades pasting posters have been attacked by their erstwhile comrades. The present-day JVP leaders did not want me to come. They planted stories in some websites sympathetic to them so that the authorities would not grant me a visa. We have information about their secret plans to prevent me from coming home. I do not know whether it is true but there were rumours that it was some of the JVP leaders who revealed the place where I had been staying to my abductors.
Somawansa Amarasinghe and some prominent members of the JVP have given up leftist politics. That is the end of the journey for them in politics. Of course, they could remain as a party like others but they are a spent force without a political future. There are still true socialist cadres in the JVP. Our mission is to liberate them.
Q: What have you got to say about the JVP’s support for Maithripala Sirisena?
A: Well, it is just an extension of what the non-revolutionary leaders have been doing all these years. They supported the so-called Probationary Government in 2001. Then they formed an alliance government in 2004 with the SLFP, helped Mahinda Rajapaksa become President in 2005 and backed Sarath Fonseka in 2010. Their attempt to form a government with the UNP in 2010 came a cropper. Now, they are supporting Sirisena! On earlier occasions they could come out and state openly what they stood for. But, now, they know that party members detest such action. That is why they could not openly pledge their support to Sirisena. They entered into a secret agreement with him to campaign for him by asking voters to defeat Mahinda Rajapaksa. This strategy is bound to backfire.
Q: What have you been doing during the last two and a half years in exile?
A: I have been studying the political situation in Sri Lanka and making use of ICT to work closely with other party members. Besides, I have visited many other countries strengthening our foreign network and raising funds.
Q: What do you have to say about the allegation that FSP receives funds from the Tamil Diaspora?
A: The term Diaspora has been misconstrued. The Diaspora comprises everybody who lives in exile including Tamils and Sinhalese. I stress that we have not received any funds from the LTTE or anyone connected with it. The allegation that we have been getting funds from the Tamil Diaspora has been levelled against me because of my Tamil descent.
Saman Indrajith and Kumar Gunaratnam
Gunaratnam calls TNA biggest political fraudster for supporting Sirisena
Of all those rogue elements supporting common opposition presidential candidate Maithripala Sirisena, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) was the biggest fraud, leader of the Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) Kumar Gunaratnam said yesterday.
“The TNA has been duping the Tamil people for decades and that could be seen from its decision to support Sirisena,” Gunaratnam told The Island yesterday.
He said the TNA posed as the guardian of the Tamil people championing their cause by continuously demanding the full implementation of the 13th amendment to the Constitution.
Neither of the two main candidates had uttered a word about the national problem but the TNA had decided to back one of them, Gunaratnam said.
Gunaratnam said had the TNA been really concerned about Tamils, it could have extended its support to a candidate promising more for Tamil people. “According to us the national problem and democracy are interconnected. It is pathetic the TNA shelved its main demand overlooking the plight of Tamils only for their political convenience. It shows that TNA, too, is nothing but another political entity greedy for power,” Gunaratnam said.
He said the TNA would never work for the emancipation of Tamils. “TNA, too, is one of the parties that protect only the interests of Tamil elite. Their decision to support Sirisena is similar to what G.G. Ponnambalam and his cohorts did in 1948. When the Ceylon Citizenship Act was taken up 1948 in a bid to deprive the estate Tamil workers their citizenship Ponnambalam and his supporters who posed as guardians of Tamils abstained from voting against it while some of the Sinhala MPs voted against it on behalf of estate Tamils. The TNA’s decision to support Sirisena was proof of how the Tamil elites duped the ordinary people.”
Saman Indrajith
We don’t want to split the vote
Leader of Frontline Socialist Party (FSP), Kumar Gunaratnam, says he has no underhanded dealings with the government and that he will stay in the country to engage in politics.
Following are excerpts from his interview with Ceylon Today:
Q: Are you a pawn of the government?
A: We have fielded Duminda Nagamuwa as the presidential candidate of the Left Front. Our aim is to revive socialism. The two main parties in the presidential contest have forgotten the people’s real problems and they use this election for political gain. People can have various opinions about it and they may make different analysis. But, they are not relevant to us. Our aim is to build a better social system which will bring a better social stand for the people.
Q: Does the Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) have any secret deal with the government?
A: Our relationship is with the downtrodden people of this country. We don’t have any agreement with the Rajapaksa regime or any other body which does not answer to the people and manipulates terrorism and anti-democratic means to suppress people.
Q: What is your real name?
A: Kumar Gunaratnam.
Q: Why don’t you use your real name?
A: I use my real name now. Everybody refers to me as Kumar Gunaratnam. Therefore, I don’t have an identity crisis. But, Sri Lanka has an illegal political history. Rulers such as J.R. Jayewardene, who came to power in 1977, have shed blood from time to time. Political parties and activists who work to revive socialism were suppressed and that is the reality we have to face now and in future as well.
Q: Is anyone forcing you to appear as a Sinhalese, although you are born a Tamil?
A: No. I was born a Tamil. But, I don’t represent Sinhala, Tamil or Muslim identities now. I represent a political movement of the downtrodden class. I don’t want to be recognized based on an ethnic identity. Also, I have no need to represent a national identity while I work as an internationalist. Secondly, Sri Lanka has an ethnic issue. As a result, the Tamil and Muslim people are made to feel isolated. I too have experienced this. In such instances, they tend to hide their ethnic identity. Minority communities have to face enormous difficulties during times of anti-democratic rule. Although your question is not relevant to me, there are sections in society that are sensitive to that problem.
Q: Although you say you like to be referred to as Kumar Gunaratnam, you have arrived in Sri Lanka this time under the name, Noel Mudalige?
A: I had to change my name due to the need to continue leftist politics. There are lots of such people in the world. We invite them also to join this struggle. On the other hand, my engagement in the struggle is more important than my travelling arrangements. I would have preferred it if I could appear in my real name throughout my political history. But this change was not made according to my wishes. It was due to political reasons that we had to appear in various identities. In numerous areas in the world, political activists have acted according to the ground realities of where they live. The strategy for Jaffna may not be suitable for Colombo or Hambantota.
Q: How active were you in politics in the 1988-89 era?
A: I joined the party in 1981, when I was a student in Kegalle. I first joined the Socialist Students’ Union and then the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP). My elder brother, Ranjithan Gunaratnam also had joined the JVP then. The JVP was in democratic politics from 1978 to 1983, after the 1971 revolt. The UNP banned the JVP in 1983. The JVP leaders had been in wanted lists. The so-called Just Society of J.R. Jayewardene was suppressing the students’ struggles and the rule of law had been undermined. The ethnic problem has developed into a civil war. The 1988-89 struggle was the response to that situation.
Q: You contributed to rebuild the JVP after 1989. The JVP was in a coalition government in 2004. Why didn’t you come to mainstream politics then?
A: In 1994, the slogan was to send home the 17-year rule. But, today’s struggle is to send home the most corrupt Rajapaksa regime. Today’s theme is defeating the family rule. After assassinating 60,000 young men of this country, Ranjan Wijeratna claimed that the war was over. He said that all flies were hunted down, one by one. Chandrika came to power in this context, with the support of the Left forces. We had a random chance to survive and we shouldered the responsibility of rebuilding the Left, which had deteriorated. But, by 2000, we were moving towards right-wing politics, instead of building up the Left. There was division of responsibilities in the party and I was engaged in organizing the party. I was not in underground politics. I was a member of the JVP politburo from 1994 to 2006.
Q: Did you leave the country due to suppression or was it the middle-class ambition for a better life?
A: I reject the insinuation that I have middle-class ambitions. I first left the country on the request and decision of the party. I was asked to leave the country in the 1988-89 period. But, when the issue was raised again in 2006, I accepted it.
Q: Why did you come back to the island at this moment?
A: Your statement insinuates that I have selected this specific time to return. I never intended to leave the country. I first left the country as a response to state terror. I came back to the country in 2011 amidst a serious situation. When the internal crisis in the party was brewing, a section of the cadre appealed me to come back. I returned as a response to that request. It was a time when I was hated personally. The government abducted me and plotted to assassinate me. Then they deported me illegally. I have seized the first chance to re-enter local politics.
At this moment, the same camp is divided due to the presidential election. We are asked to select one camp. The alleged injustices that Maithripala, Chandrika, Champika or Fonseka faced are their problems and not our issues. But, they ask us to accept them as our problems. It is the nature of politics. I have arrived in the country in this context.
Q: Do you aim to split Maithripala’s votes?
A: Do you think these are ready-made elections? Do you think these are Maithripala’s or Mahinda’s elections? No. People actually want to build up democracy, economic equality and resolve the ethnic problem. We want to collect votes for that need and we don’t want to split the vote. We are collecting courage and political trust for long-term objectives. We don’t care whose votes are split. But, there is no debate that the Rajapaksa regime must be defeated.
Q: Can you reach that long-term objective overnight? Can you oust this government without making the only viable alternative, the Opposition, win?
A: This is a noose which can re-appear. What are the connotations of defeating Mahinda? People were defeated each time this issue was raised. We must defeat family rule, autocracy, militarization, ethnic hatred, seeds act, water bill and all such misdeeds. We must defeat the suppression against the farmers and the students. This is the full story of defeating Mahinda. How can a section that has a corrupt and murderous past do this without making changes to core values? Therefore, we must defeat Mahinda and all rules of Mahinda types immediately. But, we would like to change the burden from one shoulder to the other shoulder. However, soon we will feel the burden again. Comrade Wijeweera called this the interval of hell. This occasion is that interval of hell.
Q: You will have to lose a lot of things in the short term in order to achieve that long-term objective. Are you ready for that?
A: There are two sides to that problem. We always see shortcuts. They lead us from crisis to crisis. We have experienced that there are no shortcuts to the long-term problems. Your second question is a popular one which still has no solution.
There are many reformist steps in the struggle of the Left. For example, when one worker of Katunayake Free Trade Zone was killed in the struggle against the Private Sector Pensions Bill, the government withdrew the Bill. It was a temporary victory. There are such temporary victories. We must win them, but we must not stop at that. We must continue the struggle.
Q: Isn’t this a transit moment?
A: No. This is very narrow political power crisis between two sections of the same political class.
Q: The JVP charges that you are manipulated by the government to attack them?
A: Different people can have different views. When I was abducted in 2012 by unofficial Army, various progressive elements of the country appeared for my rights. That is because of my politics. When I engage in politics again, they protest based on their political viewpoints. See the difference. See the poverty in the morals of this political ideology. The same elements that protested against my abduction have different analyses. We must not be panicked due to what they say and we do not need to reply them. You may see who we represent with the actions of our party. There are various analyses from our contesting of the presidential election to my return. Some say we must support Maithri at this juncture. Such sections cannot bear this political stand. We aim for only the people’s victory.
Q: According to the lead story in The Island newspaper of 1 January 2015, the FSP has said there is a secret pact between the JVP and Maithripala. Will you expose such secret agreement?
A: As far as I know, no one in our party spoke to the media about such an agreement. The news is wrong. But, your question opens another question. The JVP and Maithripala have a close political understanding. This is an extension of the 2001 probationary government, 2004 alliance with the UPFA, bringing Mahinda to power in 2005 and the failed attempt to bring Sarath Fonseka to power in 2010.
Q: You are the biggest strength of the FSP. In the same way you are the biggest risk also to the party. What is your comment?
A: You mean that my minority identity will attract the political forces against racism to our party and the racist suppressive force will repress us because of that? It is true. We have to face this reality only through a unified struggle of Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim communities. That struggle must start from the part of the Sinhala downtrodden masses. That is the political challenge ahead of us.
Q: Will you continue to stay in Sri Lanka and engage in politics?
A: Yes, sure.
Niranjala Ariyawansha and Kumar Gunaratnam