JAYASIKURU CALLED OFF (98 Dec 09)
The operation "Jayasikuru" was called off last week. However the commander of the Army was quick to point out that they had started another operation "Rivibala" which will be in the Vanni region. There were many who felt that the "Jayasikuru" had to be called off as it was not proceeding as scheduled. Many were of the opinion that it was more a political operation than an army operation.
The governments, both the UNP and the PA do not seem to understand the difference between giving political leadership to the armed forces and using the army to gain political advantages. The operations have to be planned by the armed forces and not by the politicians. The politicians are not supposed to visit the front on a regular basis with a fleet of cameramen surrounding them. The moral encouragement to the soldiers could be given by other means.
Last week Mr. Anuruddha Ratwatte and the army commander Major General Daluwatte narrowly escaped a mortar attack while he was coming out of a Hindu kovil in Oddusudan in Vanni area. Four people died as a result of the attack. It is not necessary for the minister to risk his life and the lives of the others including the army commander by attending to political and social activities in the front however important these activities may be.