US embassy cable - 04COLOMBO770

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 COLOMBO 000770 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR SA, SA/INS, INR/NESA 
 
NSC FOR E. MILLARD 
 
E.O. 12958:      DECL: 05-12-14 
TAGS: PGOV, PINR, PREL, CE, Political Parties 
SUBJECT:  After recent election defeat, UNP leader 
Wickremesinghe under fire from within his party 
 
Refs:  Colombo 760, and previous 
 
(U) Classified by Ambassador Jeffrey J. Lunstead. 
Reasons 1.5 (b,d). 
 
1.  (C) SUMMARY:  UNP leader and former prime minister 
Ranil Wickremesinghe is under fire from members of his 
own party who are seeking to clip his wings and/or 
remove him as party leader.  The discontent stems from 
the view of many party members that Wickremesinghe led 
the party poorly in the April election in which the UNP 
was defeated.  Despite the heat, Wickremesinghe seems 
set to hang on as party leader, as there are no clear 
challengers to his rule at this time.  In the mid- to 
longer term, if the party is to improve its standing, it 
will have to open up to a new generation of leaders. 
END SUMMARY. 
 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 
Dissension in the UNP 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 
 
2.  (C) The United National Party (UNP) has been roiled 
by internal dissension since the party lost the April 
parliamentary election.  The dissent is a bit unfocused, 
but its main aim is to clip the wings of Ranil 
Wickremesinghe, the UNP and Opposition Leader, and/or 
remove him as party leader.  (Wickremesinghe was prime 
minister from December 2001 until the UNP's defeat in 
the April election.)  Two main challenges to 
Wickremesinghe's leadership of the party have emerged 
recently: 
 
-- In the first challenge, Sajith Premadasa, a UNP MP 
from Hambantota District in the south, has proposed 
changes to how the UNP selects its party officers. 
Premadasa, who is the son of former President Premadasa 
and a former deputy minister, told poloff on May 12 that 
he had introduced a proposal in a May 10 UNP 
parliamentary group meeting that all party officers be 
elected.  (Some press reports state that Premadasa wants 
a "secret" ballot, but he did not confirm this. 
Currently, the party leader appoints all the party's 
officers.)  Premadasa also proposed that a committee 
structure be set up to make policy decisions.  Premadasa 
told poloff he had made these proposals out of "a 
genuine need for reform within the UNP on several 
levels," and because he felt the UNP needed "more 
internal democracy."  Although he stressed to poloff 
that his proposal was not anti-Wickremesinghe in thrust, 
Premadasa has been known to have had a tense 
relationship with the former PM for some time. 
Premadasa said his proposal had been well-received by 
many party members, though the party leadership had not 
yet formally weighed in on them as of yet.  The UNP was 
scheduled to have further meetings later this week to 
review Premadasa's proposals as well as other issues. 
(In a May 12 meeting with the Ambassador, G.L. Peiris, a 
former minister, derided Premadasa's proposals, 
asserting that the party leader had to have authority to 
make decisions and should not be constrained in doing so 
by a committee structure.) 
 
-- In the second challenge, UNP party member and Sri 
Lanka Telecom (SLT) chairman Thilanga Sumithapala 
spearheaded an effort to replace Wickremesinghe as party 
leader last week.  Sumithapala, in making this move, 
claimed that Wickremesinghe had failed the party and 
needed to be removed.  Nimal Weeraratne, a UNP official, 
confirmed to Pol FSN on May 12 that Sumithapala had 
tried to oust Wickremesinghe and asserted that 
Sumithapala had also attempted to convince several UNP 
members to cross over and support the United People's 
Freedom Alliance (UPFA) government.  According to 
Weeraratne, members loyal to Wickremesinghe had told the 
former PM of these machinations and the effort was 
quashed. (Contacts have told Mission that Sumithapala, 
currently on bail for his alleged involvement in an 
immigration scandal, may be forced to resign from his 
position as SLT chairman shortly.)  In fending off 
Sumithapala's effort, there are unconfirmed reports that 
Wickremesinghe had to promise that he would undertake 
large-scale reform and "restructuring" of the UNP. 
(Indeed, at the UNP's May 10 meeting, Wickremesinghe had 
reportedly placed some reform proposals on the table, 
including the idea of developing "a UNP code of 
conduct."  This latter idea is aimed at stopping 
corruption and ethical improprieties.  Charges of 
corruption dogged a number of ministers and UNP MPs 
during the recent election campaign.) 
 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 
Party Leader Under Fire 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 
 
3.  (C) Overall, the discontent within the UNP stems 
from the view of many party members (and outside 
observers) that Wickremesinghe led the party poorly in 
the April election campaign.  The sense that 
Wickremesinghe was a failure has taken various forms, 
including many press commentary pieces in English- and 
Sinhala-language newspapers grumbling about his 
leadership style, which is commonly seen as lackluster 
to put it mildly.  In one such article, which appeared 
in the English-language ISLAND on April 5, local 
political analyst Rohan Edirisinha said "the prime 
minister never really took people into confidence, 
whether he was dealing with the peace process or the 
rebels or dealing with the economy." 
 
4.  (C) Long-standing UNP members have also criticized 
Wickremesinghe's election strategy, though mostly in 
private.  In a May 10 meeting with the DCM, for example, 
former Interior and Christian Affairs Minister John 
Amaratunga said the UNP had lost the election due in 
part to a lack of charisma on Wickremesinghe's part. 
Amaratunga stated:  "You have to at least give the 
impression that you are willing to die for what you 
stand for."  During the May 10 UNP meeting, Amaratunga 
related that one party member had complained to 
Wickremesinghe's face that his constituents were unhappy 
that the former PM never smiles and they wonder why they 
should vote for the UNP.  Amaratunga said Wickremesinghe 
did not respond, remaining stonefaced.  In a 
conversation with Ambassador on April 8, former minister 
Milinda Moragoda remarked that Wickremesinghe "did not 
have the common touch."  Moragoda, who is a close 
adviser to Wickremesinghe, compared him unfavorably with 
former President J.R. Jayawardene, who ran a series of 
strong UNP campaigns in the 1960s, 1970s and 1980s. (One 
major exception to the mainly quiet nature of complaints 
about Wickremesinghe by UNP figures was former foreign 
minister Tyronne Fernando, who went public with his 
opposition to Wickremesinghe in late April.  Fernando's 
outburst appeared more linked with the UNP's decision 
not to give him a "national list" seat in Parliament, 
however, than actual animus toward Wickremesinghe. 
Fernando has since resigned from the UNP.) 
 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 
Despite criticism, no clear alternative 
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-= 
 
5.  (C) Despite the criticism, Wickremesinghe seems set 
to hang on as party leader, as there are no clear 
challengers to his rule at this time.  In the May 10 
conversation with the DCM noted above, for example, 
former minister John Amaratunga said that he had 
recently been in several UNP meetings at which there had 
been "frank discussions" as to whether Wickremesinghe 
should be replaced.  Amaratunga said the conclusion from 
the meetings was that Wickremesinghe should not be 
forced out right away.  He also said he felt that former 
Minister of Power and Energy Karu Jayasuriya -- who some 
interlocutors have recommended as a possible replacement 
for Wickremesinghe -- was "not a viable option." 
Amaratunga noted that he was not impressed with 
Jayasuriya's organizational and leadership abilities, 
for example.  Party dissidents themselves, such as 
Premadasa and others, have also failed to name a 
definitive alternative to Wickremesinghe.  In the 
meantime, in his meeting with the Ambassador, G.L. 
Peiris indicated that he did not think that efforts to 
remove Wickremesinghe would go anywhere.  He added that 
reported tensions in the party were "much exaggerated." 
(According to observers, aside from Jayasuriya, other 
possible replacements for Wickremesinghe include: 
Joseph Michael Perera, a senior UNP MP and former 
Speaker; K. Rambukwella, a senior MP and former 
minister; and Milinda Moragoda.) 
 
=-=-=-= 
COMMENT 
=-=-=-= 
 
6.  (C) Wickremesinghe's image has suffered serious 
damage in recent months.  Most particularly, he has 
suffered in comparison with longtime rival President 
Kumaratunga, who is widely seen as dynamic and 
passionate.  That said, Wickremesinghe should be able to 
weather the storm for now.  In the mid- to longer term, 
if the party is to improve its standing, however, it 
will have to open up to a new generation of leaders. 
There is a view that UNP leadership circles have become 
a bit stuffy and are not open to new blood.  Humbled by 
its recent defeat, the UNP is going to have to adjust to 
get out of its current political trough or face further 
defeats down the road.  END COMMENT. 
 
7.  (U) Minimize considered. 
 
LUNSTEAD