Sri Lanka: India losing patience with Rajapaksa

By Col R Hariharan 

President Mahinda Rajapaksa is well known for wrongly timing his foreign visits. In the past his India visits were more successful than his European sojourns because they were diplomatically ‘tenderized’ in advance to avoid any embarrassment to the President. His two-day ‘pilgrimage’ trip, with an entourage of 70, to Tirupati and Gaya after a stopover at Chennai that ended on February 8, 2013, ‘pilgrimate’ visit was also probably tenderized in advance. But this time, it completely failed for two reasons.

Quick take: Corruption in Westland helicopter deal

By Col R Hariharan
  
Some disturbing questions are raised as Westland helicopter deal hits the headlines once again.

The arrest of Giuseppe Orsi, the chief executive of Italy’s largest aerospace group Finmeccanica in Italy as part of an investigation into alleged corruption in international defence deals has once again put the focus back on yet another case of corruption in India’s defence procurement.  

According to media reports the arrested CEO is alleged to have paid $670 million crores) in bribes for the sale of 12 Augusta Westland helicopters to India. However, both the company and the arrested CEO have denied paying any bribes. Earlier reports had indicated the possible involvement of a Swiss-based consultant in this murky deal.

Gandhian values in participatory management

Col.  R. Hariharan retd.

[This article formed the basis of my speech on “Gandhian values in participatory management” at the Gandhi Peace Foundation (Chennai Chapter) on January 29, 2012.]

A retired army veteran from the Military Intelligence who participated in wars and dealt with traffickers, forgers, criminals etc for nearly three decades speaking about Gandhian values may sound like an oxymoron.  

I make no claim to be an expert either on Gandhi or on Gandhian values in participatory management the subject of my speech today. But I come from a family whose values were conditioned by Gandhian thoughts from 1930 to 1947 when my father actively participated in Gandhiji’s freedom struggle. These family values imbibed in childhood have guided me most of the times in my personal and professional life. I used these values to successfully cruise through some of the acid tests I had to face in the army - the biggest practitioner of participatory management.

Sri Lanka Perspectives - January 2013

By Col R Hariharan

Highlights

• Impeachment of Chief Justice: President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s action in replacing the Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake, after Sri Lanka parliament passed the controversial impeachment motion against with a two-thirds majority has come under severe national and international criticism. 
• Cabinet reshuffle: President Rajapaksa carries out cabinet reshuffle adding two new ministers to increase its strength to 67.
• India: The joint statement at the end of the 8^th India-Sri Lanka joint commission meeting in New Delhi avoids reference to controversial issues like the devolution of powers to Tamils and increasingly discriminative trade practices against India. 
• The U.S.: Sri Lanka is likely to face renewed flak at the forthcoming UN Human Rights Commission meeting commencing next month in Geneva. This was indicated by three senior U.S. officials visiting Colombo; they said the U.S. was not fully satisfied with Sri Lanka’s implementation of the recommendations of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliantion Commission (LLRC).

Media bytes on developments in India-Pakistan relation

Col R Hariharan

[Here is a summary of my comments to print and television media on the India-Pakistan standoff on specific issues raised by them on January 15 & 17.]

On Indian Prime Minister’s strong statement and later developments

Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh’s statement has relevance externally to India-Pakistan relations as well as internally to the people. His demand to Pakistan for bringing to book those responsible for killing and mutilating two Indian soldiers on January 8, 20012 is a break from the past. Despite strong opposition criticism Prime Minister had always made an effort, at time bending over backwards, to ensure that peace process with Pakistan is not derailed.  He did not react sufficiently strongly against Pakistan even to the 26/11 Mumbai terrorist attacks. Similarly, he also refrained from on reacting strongly two beheadings were carried out by Pakistani troops in 2011 (as stated by the Army Chief General Bikram Singh) to keep the peace process going. In fact this incident was never reported in public.

Comments on Pakistan army’s actions in J and K

By Col R Hariharan

[Here is a summary of my comments made to print media and on TV on the India-Pakistan standoff, after two Indian soldiers were killed by Pakistani troops on 8 January 2012.]

On the killing and mutilation of soldiers

This is not the first time Pakistan army has indulged in barbaric acts like beheading captured Indian soldiers, particularly in Jammu and Kashmir. Unfortunately, it has become a part of the Pak military culture while handling Indian soldiers taken prisoner. They had carried in such inhuman acts before. Captured soldiers were blinded and pushed back alive to the Indian lines during the 1971 War. The torture and mutilation of Lt Saurav Kalia before killing him in the Kargil War in 1999 is well documented. In 2009 they did this again; and now this is one more such gruesome incident.

Thoughts on Delhi's Public Protests

By Col. R. Hariharan

A few questions come to my mind on the way things were handled in the gang rape episode which has shaken the nation as no other crime has done:

1. What was so special about this crime that roused the nation?

2. Have the government and the Congress party learnt anything from the messy way they handled it? (This applies to other political parties as well, though what they thought did not really affect the public protest.)