US embassy cable - 03COLOMBO646

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 COLOMBO 000646 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPARTMENT FOR SA, SA/INS, SA/PD, DRL, PM, H, INR, L, 
INL 
 
LONDON FOR POL/RIEDEL 
 
E.O. 12958:  DECL:  04-15-13 
TAGS: PREL, PHUM, PGOV, MOPS, KPAO, CE 
SUBJECT:  Leahy Amendment:  Mission reviews human rights 
record of army commander in light of recent court ruling 
 
Refs:  (A) Colombo 536;  (B) State 34981 
 
(U) Classified by Lewis Amselem, Deputy Chief of 
Mission.  Reasons 1.5 (b,d) 
 
1.  (C) SUMMARY:  This cable reviews the human rights 
record of Army Commander Balagalle in light of a recent 
adverse court ruling involving the December 2001 
election.  Balagalle's human rights record, heretofore, 
has been excellent and we do not think the ruling rises 
to the level of a "gross violation" per the Leahy 
Amendment.  Given this assessment, we recommend that 
Balagalle still be considered for USG-sponsored 
programs.  Suggested press guidance is contained in Para 
5.  END SUMMARY. 
 
2. (SBU) COURT RULING:  Per Ref A, in a March 25, 2003, 
ruling, Sri Lanka's Supreme Court found Army Commander 
Lt. General L.P. Balagalle guilty of violating the 
fundamental rights of Tamil voters.  The facts of the 
case follow:  During the December 5, 2001, parliamentary 
election, a number of checkpoints leading from areas 
controlled by the Liberation Tiger of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) 
into government-controlled areas were closed.  In 
explaining this action, the military maintained that it 
had credible information that the Tigers planned to 
infiltrate cadre into government-controlled areas in 
order to launch terrorist attacks on election day.  The 
military also argued that it was acting per the orders 
of the People's Alliance/JVP government then in power. 
The closing of the checkpoints, however, effectively 
disenfranchised thousands of Tamils living in LTTE- 
controlled areas.  Rejecting the military's claims that 
its action was prompted by security concerns, the 
Supreme Court ruled that there had been a violation of 
citizens' fundamental right to vote.  The Supreme Court 
fined Balagalle a total of 90,000 Sri Lanka Rupees 
(approximately USD 950) for his involvement in the 
incident.  No other action was taken against Balagalle. 
(Note:  Per Ref A, D. Dissanayake, the then- 
Commissioner of Elections, was assessed a fine for his 
role in the matter, as was the GSL.) 
 
3. (C) BALAGALLE'S HUMAN RIGHTS RECORD:  Other than this 
adverse court ruling, Mission does not have additional 
negative human rights-related information regarding 
Gen. Balagalle in its possession.  Balagalle, in fact, 
has been recognized as an important figure in improving 
the military's human rights record over the past six 
years.  Beginning in January 1997, for example, when he 
became commander of military forces in Jaffna, he took 
steps to improve his command's awful human rights 
record.  In doing this, Balagalle mandated that human 
rights cases involving military personnel be pursued to 
their full extent.  He was also a key figure in 
establishing human rights units and instituting training 
on human rights matters within army ranks in Jaffna. 
Since the time Balagalle assumed leadership of the army 
in 2000, in fact, human rights training has quickly 
spread through all the military branches.  Due in large 
part to Balagalle's efforts, the military's overall 
human rights record has improved dramatically in the 
past several years (as is borne out in the annual human 
rights reports re Sri Lanka). 
 
4. (C) ASSESSMENT RE LEAHY AMENDMENT:  Mission has 
carefully reviewed the Supreme Court's ruling and 
determined that Balagalle's actions do not constitute a 
"gross violation of human rights" per the Leahy 
Amendment (see Ref B, Para 13).  While the infraction 
was serious, we do not think it can be defined as a 
"gross violation" given that Balagalle was only assessed 
a small administrative fine.  Moreover, given the 
totality of his human rights record, we think Balagalle 
did not set out intentionally to prevent Tamils from 
voting.  In light of this assessment and unless 
otherwise instructed, Mission plans to clear Balagalle 
during Leahy Amendment vetting should he be nominated 
for USG-sponsored programs in the future.  (Note: 
Balagalle has attended USG-sponsored programs in the 
past.  He is currently slated to take part in the 
Pacific Army Chiefs Conference taking place later this 
year in South Korea.  As in the past, Balagalle is also 
likely to be invited to attend the annual Chiefs of 
Defense Conference in late 2003.) 
 
5.  (SBU) SUGGESTED PRESS GUIDANCE:  If Balagalle is 
selected to participate in USG-sponsored program in the 
future and if asked, we suggest the following press 
guidance: 
 
Begin text: 
 
The March 2003 ruling by Sri Lanka's Supreme Court 
indicated that a serious infraction had taken place and 
we regret that Sri Lankan citizens were unable to vote 
in the December 2001 election.  The U.S. Embassy, 
however, has reviewed the matter and determined that 
applicable U.S. laws, including the Leahy Amendment, do 
not preclude Lt. General Balagalle's participation in 
USG-sponsored programs. 
 
End text. 
 
6. (U) Minimize considered. 
 
WILLS