Big words from people who practice philosophies taught by Indians....What a shame we had to send emissaries and missionaries to SL to teach philosophy, ethics and values. Looks like they fell short.
General Hamilton Wanasinghe A Soldier's story
General Hamilton Wanasinghe was the 11th Commander of Sri Lanka Army and held the position from August 1988 to November 1991. He was the only Sri Lankan to hold the positions as Commander of Combined Operations and the Secretary to the Ministry of Defence. Attorney Sumathi Dharmawardhana, who is married to Wanasinghe's second daughter, Darshi, helped us to obtain this interview with the veteran commander.
General Hamilton Wanasinghe A Soldier's story
by Kavindya Jayasekara
General Hamilton Wanasinghe was the 11th Commander of Sri Lanka Army and held the position from August 1988 to November 1991. He was the only Sri Lankan to hold the positions as Commander of Combined Operations and the Secretary to the Ministry of Defence. Attorney Sumathi Dharmawardhana, who is married to Wanasinghe's second daughter, Darshi, helped us to obtain this interview with the veteran commander.
Hamilton Wanasinghe was born on August 18, 1933 at Kalukondayawa, Malwana in the Gampaha District, as the second child of the family. His mother, Charlotte Chooty Kothalawala, passed away before he was three years old and the now 81-year-old Hamilton, cannot recall the memory of his mother. The sensitive old man's eyes filled with tears when he thought of his mother.
"I joined as a Second Lieutenant and was promoted as a Lieutenant, Major, Lieutenant Colonel, Colonel, Brigadier, Major General, Lieutenant and General. I was appointed as the Army Commander in 1988 as Lieutenant Colonel. In November 1991, I was promoted as the first Four Star General of the Sri Lanka Army and appointed as the Commander of the three armed forces. Sri Lanka had not so far created five-star generals."
The major challenges General Wanasinghe faced in his career, from 1954 to 1995 were the revolts of the JVP and LTTE. The country was like a torch lighted at two ends when he held the position of Army Commander. His elder brother, his nephew, Major Panduka Wanasinghe, son-in-law Brigadier Bhathiya Jayathilaka and his brother Nalin Jayathilaka sacrificed their lives for the country before his eyes.
"Defence Minister Lalith Athulathmudali understood that the cadre was insufficient to wage war and relaxed the procedure for recruitment to the Army. Allocations for the Army were also increased. He had confidence in me as a responsible officer. When I assumed duty as Army Commander, Jaffna remained an area that had not been liberated. It was under Prabhakaran. We were training 15,000 new cadres. In 1971, as a young officer, I received special training on radio and artillery, under Colonel Abraham."
General Wanasinghe had the service of the best of officers, in the Army's history, as Commander. Lieutenant General Denzil Kobbekaduwa, Major General Wijaya Wimalarathna, Major General Lucky Algama, Major General Janaka Perera, Lieutenant Colonel Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, General Lionel Balagalla, General Sarath Fonseka, Major General Lucky Wijerathna and Major General Angammana were among them.
Why couldn't the Army capture Jaffna despite all these talented officers? General Wanasinghe replied in a clear voice, but with tears filling his eyes, from time to time. He is a store of war secrets.
"The deaths of Kobbekaduwa and others were due to sheer carelessness. I was the Commander of the security forces in Jaffna, then. We planned to capture a part of Jaffna. People were unaware what a military operation was and the residents thought it was against them. We needed to be very tactful when waging a war in a peninsula. On the other hand, the terrorists were used to the ground. We were amidst a great danger.
"In 1992, Denzil and Wijaya Wimalarathna planned the operation to liberate a part of Jaffna. They planned it for three months, but I was not satisfied. I told Denzil that I was doubtful. The most serious part of the war was to take place between the lagoon and sea. We could not prevent the plans being implemented. The area was mined. The bomb exploded as they travelled several times in the area in vehicles. It is the truth but rumours were spread for political mileage. They hurt me. We had lost very talented generals. The entire strength in Jaffna was about 10,000 then. LTTE appeared to exceed us. We had to risk lives. Civilians could not understand the situation. Waging war is not as easy as fabricating rumours. We could not take decisions for political advantages."
Operation Balawegaya
When recalling the memory of Operation Eagle, which was for rescuing the soldiers who were besieged in the Jaffna Fort, General Wanasinghe still appeared a very responsible officer. We launched Operation Balawegaya to rescue the soldiers and proceeded towards the Jaffna Fort from the Veththalikenai beach, attacking the LTTE. Generals Kobbekaduwa and Wijaya Wimalarathna were in the front. We rescued the soldiers after 28 days. The LTTE fired at us and we narrowly escaped death. I wished General Sanath Karunarathna for his wife delivering a son. He did not visit his wife and the new born son but fought the war. Recently, at my 80th birthday, Sanath's son brought the picture, in which I posed with Sanath after wishing him.
"I too was beseiged once in the Jaffna Fort. It is an area difficult to land. The LTTE fired. The vehicle I travelled in was shot at and stuck. I fired back. We were luckily saved. The gap between luck and misfortune is hair's width on the battlefield. Luck is not dying.
"Meanwhile, the situation in the South worsened. Once General Attygala of Panagoda camp called me and said that about 1,000 cadres of the JVP were proceeding near Habarakada, with rifles, aiming to attack the camp. I helped him to disperse them.
"War analysts too misled people. Many did not know the Army was ill-equipped and transport was difficult. My brother's son, Major Panduka Wanasinghe, died at Pooneryn. Two of the 26 killed were officers. Major Hempala of Gajaba Regiment was also killed. Panduka sustained injuries in battlefield three times before that. Once, when an LTTE explosives truck exploded at the Central Telecommunication Tower in Jaffna, Panduka came out to fire a RPG. He was burnt and only the eyes were spared. He was injured several times like that. As Army Commander, I could bring him to safety but I did not. He was always at the battlefront. We came to know that he lost life during Pooneryn battle. The present Mayor of Trincomalee, Colonel T. T. R. de Silva informed me about the death over the phone. He said the body was with him. I asked if all the 26 bodies could be sent home. He said there were no transport facilities. We had only two helicopters. He said he could send only Panduka's body.
How can I agree to that as a responsible officer? All soldiers are my children. I called them my boys. I knew the pain the kith and kin of the soldiers felt and therefore, I could not ask them to send only the body of my nephew. Finally, I asked them to bury all 26 bodies in Pooneryn. Only a picture was spared. All our relations had gathered in the house. They argued that they had never asked to transfer Panduka to Colombo. They demanded the body be delivered. I could not do that. My brother was in the Army. He did not believe his son was dead. He finally admitted to reality only after Colonel Lanerolle explained to him. My brother was a very good fighter. He was tough. We paid our last respect finally to Panduka's cap. Panduka was about 27 or 28 years at the time of his death. Almost all of my relations were against me then, but I could not change my decision. My priority was to save the life of the survived soldiers and not the bringing in of the bodies of the fallen. I wept in my heart before my relations.
"Panduka visited my home when he had leave. My wife, Ira, is his aunt and he considered my kids as his brothers and sisters. But I could not cry only for him. All the armed forces members of my family were in the operational areas then. Therefore, nobody could accuse me and no one came to influence me to withdraw their relations from the operational areas. Brigadier Bhathiya Jayathilaka is my son-in-law. He and his brother Captain Nalin Jayathilaka were killed on the battlefield. I still cry for them and not only for them but all who died in war.
"By the time the Army won the war over the LTTE, General Hamilton Wanasinghe's son Colonel Sanjaya Wanasinghe was the Commanding Officer of the Sniper Unit of the Army. That unit and the Special Forces Unit of the Army were established when General Wanasinghe was the Commander of Army. One of his sons, Sanjaya joined the Army in 1987 and passed out in 1988, after training. When he said he wanted to join the Army, General Wanasinghe told him to submit an application. When the recruitment officer received the application, he phoned me and asked why he was not informed by me about that. I could not do so. Although he was my son he should be recruited under the normal procedure. I am a disciplined man who grew up in a disciplined environment. My son commissioned when I was the Army Commander and it was a rare occasion. I gave Sanjaya the sword I was given after the training as an officer at Sanders Military Academy in England. They were rare incidents. I have heard that Army Commander's sons had commissioned their sons on two occasions in military history. In one incident General MacArthur commissioned his adopted son. I am very fortunate to commission my own son. I never promoted my relations and gave them transfers away from the battlefront manipulating my powers as Army Commander.
"Bhathiya Jayathilaka was my wife's elder brother's son, before he married my daughter. He and his brother Nalin Jayathilaka died at the battlefront. When they died the LTTE said my son was killed," General Wanasinghe recalled the past while tears flowed from his eyes. How painful was it for a commander to see his sons die like this.
Son-in-law killed
"Nalin was an officer in the Artillery Brigade. Although he was shot in his leg at about 10 a.m. he removed his boot, dressed his wound with a bed sheet and proceeded 600 metres as forward observation officer. We knew it when we studied the places where his body and the boot were. Panduka was killed two months after Nalin's death. As a father, I had to see my daughter's husband Bhathiya killed on the battlefield. He was the Brigade Commander of Elephant Pass. My relations were upset with me, since as Army Commander, I did not transfer my kith and kin out of the battlefield. But I am proud as a commander who was not partial. I have not brought disrespect to my children.
"LTTE killed Mahaththaya, since we demoralized him during the peace talks and took him to support us. I once met him during peace talks. LTTE was blocking food supplies to the Army in the Eastern Province. I told him that if he continued the blockade, we also could block their supplies beyond Elephant Pass. He understood and withdrew the blockade. Before that, we had to airdrop dry rations. We had two Bell Jets for that. We tried our best to maintain the ceasefire but LTTE tried to quit. They began hostilities. In Batticaloa, we could not prevent the foolish decision of asking the 700 police officers to surrender. I think the senior police officer who ordered them to surrender must take the responsibility for their deaths."
When I inquired about the operation to save Mahaththaya from the LTTE, General Wanasinghe said that it might be the work of General Lionel Balagalla, who was the Commander in the Eastern Province. He said he had never met Prabhakaran.
"Prime Minister Premadasa, as well as Defence Minister Lalith Athulathmudali, opposed bringing in the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF). But President J.R. Jayewardene wanted to strengthen the Army through the IPKF. But we understood that IPKF served only their country. That was a time there were two armies in Sri Lanka and we needed to balance discipline. The problems between the two armies could be bilateral issues between the two nations. I tried to minimize conflicts. A Pakistani commander later commended it. I was aware that President Premadasa's decision, to arm LTTE, was dangerous but I could not object to his view of stopping the deaths of the Army soldiers. But the result was not the one we expected.
"Prabhakaran wanted Karuna Amman questioned regarding a financial affair. We manipulated this and made a split in the LTTE. General Lionel Balagalla is better known for these affairs."
When I inquired about the orders from President Premadasa, who had wanted to send back the IPKF, General Wanasinghe said that he was never under pressure. "But one day I received an invitation from IPKF Commander General Calcut for a dinner at Taj Hotel in Colombo. When I went there with my wife, I noticed that General Calcut was restless. He asked me if I had known that IPKF was to be sent home. He was worried about it. There were about 100,000 IPKF personnel in Sri Lanka then."
No IPKF support
I inquired why the ill equipped Sri Lankan Army could not win the war with the support of the IPKF. His answer was that IPKF had not supported such a crucial decision. He said that he had never thought of attacking the LTTE in combination with the IPKF. His view was that both IPKF and the LTTE seemed to be of one mind.
During the JVP insurrection of 1987 to '89, paramilitary activities also spread throughout the country. I asked how the then Army Commander faced the situation.
"We were studying both developments carefully. The LTTE was an enemy of Army but we had to consider that Tamil people were also Sri Lankans. We knew that JVP members were also our people. But the Army had measures to suppress the subversive elements and the terrorists. Once, when I was returning from Akuressa, I came to know that the wife and children of Wijeweera had surrendered. I took the responsibility of taking care of them.
Rohana Wijeweera
"An officer under me told that the cat was in the bag. I met Wijeweera in Colombo at 11 p.m. I asked him why he did not surrender while many others did. He said he wanted to speak to President Premadasa. I asked why he waited so long for that. He had no answer. I asked him not to waste our time. He had changed. He had shaved and cut his hair short. I reported about him to the President. By then Wijeweera was held in a house adjacent to the house of Deputy Defence Minister Ranjan Wijeratna. I was mostly in Kalukondayawa. I did not travel with heavy security. I drove my jeep alone. I participated in Bodhi Poojas held to bless the country. On that day also I came from a Bodhi Pooja. I predicted the situation would change by the next day."
I asked if he could take the responsibility of paramilitary groups. He said that he had ordered to shoot at anybody who was wearing clothes similar to Army uniforms, after 7 o' clock when it was learnt that the actions of the paramilitary groups like the Black Cats and Yellow Cats were a threat to the country.
When asked about Batalanda and Boossa torture centres, he said that any camp could change according to the method of questioning but he emphasized that Army was not responsibile for Batalanda or Boossa.
General Wanasinghe remembered that the official residence of Army Commander too was damaged when Deputy Defence Minister Ranjan Wijeratna was killed in a bomb attack. "My wife and children feared for my life. All five of my children are married and have children now. My wife passed away. I am sad. She was always looking at the road until I came home in those times. But she will not come back even though I endlessly wait for that," he said in a sad voice.
"I started the Sniper Unit in 1990 in Diyathalawa. Colonel Rajasinghe was called from abroad to command it. By 2009, when the war ended, my son Sanjaya Wanasinghe was the commander of that unit. Today, Colonel Wanasinghe is the commander of the Puthukudirippu camp which is established in the former base of Prabhakaran. I have done my duty by the nation as a soldier and father.
''The life of a soldier is committed to the nation. There are secrets we can never reveal. That is the nature of this job. We sacrificed the best time of our lives for the country. But after all it seems we have been discarded now."
His looks and voice are still majestic although he is elderly. He is a perfect soldier, a role model.
General Hamilton Wanasinghe A Soldier's story
General Hamilton Wanasinghe was the 11th Commander of Sri Lanka Army and held the position from August 1988 to November 1991. He was the only Sri Lankan to hold the positions as Commander of Combined Operations and the Secretary to the Ministry of Defence. Attorney Sumathi Dharmawardhana, who is married to Wanasinghe's second daughter, Darshi, helped us to obtain this interview with the veteran commander.
General Hamilton Wanasinghe A Soldier's story
by Kavindya Jayasekara
General Hamilton Wanasinghe was the 11th Commander of Sri Lanka Army and held the position from August 1988 to November 1991. He was the only Sri Lankan to hold the positions as Commander of Combined Operations and the Secretary to the Ministry of Defence. Attorney Sumathi Dharmawardhana, who is married to Wanasinghe's second daughter, Darshi, helped us to obtain this interview with the veteran commander.
Hamilton Wanasinghe was born on August 18, 1933 at Kalukondayawa, Malwana in the Gampaha District, as the second child of the family. His mother, Charlotte Chooty Kothalawala, passed away before he was three years old and the now 81-year-old Hamilton, cannot recall the memory of his mother. The sensitive old man's eyes filled with tears when he thought of his mother.
"I joined as a Second Lieutenant and was promoted as a Lieutenant, Major, Lieutenant Colonel, Colonel, Brigadier, Major General, Lieutenant and General. I was appointed as the Army Commander in 1988 as Lieutenant Colonel. In November 1991, I was promoted as the first Four Star General of the Sri Lanka Army and appointed as the Commander of the three armed forces. Sri Lanka had not so far created five-star generals."
The major challenges General Wanasinghe faced in his career, from 1954 to 1995 were the revolts of the JVP and LTTE. The country was like a torch lighted at two ends when he held the position of Army Commander. His elder brother, his nephew, Major Panduka Wanasinghe, son-in-law Brigadier Bhathiya Jayathilaka and his brother Nalin Jayathilaka sacrificed their lives for the country before his eyes.
"Defence Minister Lalith Athulathmudali understood that the cadre was insufficient to wage war and relaxed the procedure for recruitment to the Army. Allocations for the Army were also increased. He had confidence in me as a responsible officer. When I assumed duty as Army Commander, Jaffna remained an area that had not been liberated. It was under Prabhakaran. We were training 15,000 new cadres. In 1971, as a young officer, I received special training on radio and artillery, under Colonel Abraham."
General Wanasinghe had the service of the best of officers, in the Army's history, as Commander. Lieutenant General Denzil Kobbekaduwa, Major General Wijaya Wimalarathna, Major General Lucky Algama, Major General Janaka Perera, Lieutenant Colonel Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, General Lionel Balagalla, General Sarath Fonseka, Major General Lucky Wijerathna and Major General Angammana were among them.
Why couldn't the Army capture Jaffna despite all these talented officers? General Wanasinghe replied in a clear voice, but with tears filling his eyes, from time to time. He is a store of war secrets.
"The deaths of Kobbekaduwa and others were due to sheer carelessness. I was the Commander of the security forces in Jaffna, then. We planned to capture a part of Jaffna. People were unaware what a military operation was and the residents thought it was against them. We needed to be very tactful when waging a war in a peninsula. On the other hand, the terrorists were used to the ground. We were amidst a great danger.
"In 1992, Denzil and Wijaya Wimalarathna planned the operation to liberate a part of Jaffna. They planned it for three months, but I was not satisfied. I told Denzil that I was doubtful. The most serious part of the war was to take place between the lagoon and sea. We could not prevent the plans being implemented. The area was mined. The bomb exploded as they travelled several times in the area in vehicles. It is the truth but rumours were spread for political mileage. They hurt me. We had lost very talented generals. The entire strength in Jaffna was about 10,000 then. LTTE appeared to exceed us. We had to risk lives. Civilians could not understand the situation. Waging war is not as easy as fabricating rumours. We could not take decisions for political advantages."
Operation Balawegaya
When recalling the memory of Operation Eagle, which was for rescuing the soldiers who were besieged in the Jaffna Fort, General Wanasinghe still appeared a very responsible officer. We launched Operation Balawegaya to rescue the soldiers and proceeded towards the Jaffna Fort from the Veththalikenai beach, attacking the LTTE. Generals Kobbekaduwa and Wijaya Wimalarathna were in the front. We rescued the soldiers after 28 days. The LTTE fired at us and we narrowly escaped death. I wished General Sanath Karunarathna for his wife delivering a son. He did not visit his wife and the new born son but fought the war. Recently, at my 80th birthday, Sanath's son brought the picture, in which I posed with Sanath after wishing him.
"I too was beseiged once in the Jaffna Fort. It is an area difficult to land. The LTTE fired. The vehicle I travelled in was shot at and stuck. I fired back. We were luckily saved. The gap between luck and misfortune is hair's width on the battlefield. Luck is not dying.
"Meanwhile, the situation in the South worsened. Once General Attygala of Panagoda camp called me and said that about 1,000 cadres of the JVP were proceeding near Habarakada, with rifles, aiming to attack the camp. I helped him to disperse them.
"War analysts too misled people. Many did not know the Army was ill-equipped and transport was difficult. My brother's son, Major Panduka Wanasinghe, died at Pooneryn. Two of the 26 killed were officers. Major Hempala of Gajaba Regiment was also killed. Panduka sustained injuries in battlefield three times before that. Once, when an LTTE explosives truck exploded at the Central Telecommunication Tower in Jaffna, Panduka came out to fire a RPG. He was burnt and only the eyes were spared. He was injured several times like that. As Army Commander, I could bring him to safety but I did not. He was always at the battlefront. We came to know that he lost life during Pooneryn battle. The present Mayor of Trincomalee, Colonel T. T. R. de Silva informed me about the death over the phone. He said the body was with him. I asked if all the 26 bodies could be sent home. He said there were no transport facilities. We had only two helicopters. He said he could send only Panduka's body.
How can I agree to that as a responsible officer? All soldiers are my children. I called them my boys. I knew the pain the kith and kin of the soldiers felt and therefore, I could not ask them to send only the body of my nephew. Finally, I asked them to bury all 26 bodies in Pooneryn. Only a picture was spared. All our relations had gathered in the house. They argued that they had never asked to transfer Panduka to Colombo. They demanded the body be delivered. I could not do that. My brother was in the Army. He did not believe his son was dead. He finally admitted to reality only after Colonel Lanerolle explained to him. My brother was a very good fighter. He was tough. We paid our last respect finally to Panduka's cap. Panduka was about 27 or 28 years at the time of his death. Almost all of my relations were against me then, but I could not change my decision. My priority was to save the life of the survived soldiers and not the bringing in of the bodies of the fallen. I wept in my heart before my relations.
"Panduka visited my home when he had leave. My wife, Ira, is his aunt and he considered my kids as his brothers and sisters. But I could not cry only for him. All the armed forces members of my family were in the operational areas then. Therefore, nobody could accuse me and no one came to influence me to withdraw their relations from the operational areas. Brigadier Bhathiya Jayathilaka is my son-in-law. He and his brother Captain Nalin Jayathilaka were killed on the battlefield. I still cry for them and not only for them but all who died in war.
"By the time the Army won the war over the LTTE, General Hamilton Wanasinghe's son Colonel Sanjaya Wanasinghe was the Commanding Officer of the Sniper Unit of the Army. That unit and the Special Forces Unit of the Army were established when General Wanasinghe was the Commander of Army. One of his sons, Sanjaya joined the Army in 1987 and passed out in 1988, after training. When he said he wanted to join the Army, General Wanasinghe told him to submit an application. When the recruitment officer received the application, he phoned me and asked why he was not informed by me about that. I could not do so. Although he was my son he should be recruited under the normal procedure. I am a disciplined man who grew up in a disciplined environment. My son commissioned when I was the Army Commander and it was a rare occasion. I gave Sanjaya the sword I was given after the training as an officer at Sanders Military Academy in England. They were rare incidents. I have heard that Army Commander's sons had commissioned their sons on two occasions in military history. In one incident General MacArthur commissioned his adopted son. I am very fortunate to commission my own son. I never promoted my relations and gave them transfers away from the battlefront manipulating my powers as Army Commander.
"Bhathiya Jayathilaka was my wife's elder brother's son, before he married my daughter. He and his brother Nalin Jayathilaka died at the battlefront. When they died the LTTE said my son was killed," General Wanasinghe recalled the past while tears flowed from his eyes. How painful was it for a commander to see his sons die like this.
Son-in-law killed
"Nalin was an officer in the Artillery Brigade. Although he was shot in his leg at about 10 a.m. he removed his boot, dressed his wound with a bed sheet and proceeded 600 metres as forward observation officer. We knew it when we studied the places where his body and the boot were. Panduka was killed two months after Nalin's death. As a father, I had to see my daughter's husband Bhathiya killed on the battlefield. He was the Brigade Commander of Elephant Pass. My relations were upset with me, since as Army Commander, I did not transfer my kith and kin out of the battlefield. But I am proud as a commander who was not partial. I have not brought disrespect to my children.
"LTTE killed Mahaththaya, since we demoralized him during the peace talks and took him to support us. I once met him during peace talks. LTTE was blocking food supplies to the Army in the Eastern Province. I told him that if he continued the blockade, we also could block their supplies beyond Elephant Pass. He understood and withdrew the blockade. Before that, we had to airdrop dry rations. We had two Bell Jets for that. We tried our best to maintain the ceasefire but LTTE tried to quit. They began hostilities. In Batticaloa, we could not prevent the foolish decision of asking the 700 police officers to surrender. I think the senior police officer who ordered them to surrender must take the responsibility for their deaths."
When I inquired about the operation to save Mahaththaya from the LTTE, General Wanasinghe said that it might be the work of General Lionel Balagalla, who was the Commander in the Eastern Province. He said he had never met Prabhakaran.
"Prime Minister Premadasa, as well as Defence Minister Lalith Athulathmudali, opposed bringing in the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF). But President J.R. Jayewardene wanted to strengthen the Army through the IPKF. But we understood that IPKF served only their country. That was a time there were two armies in Sri Lanka and we needed to balance discipline. The problems between the two armies could be bilateral issues between the two nations. I tried to minimize conflicts. A Pakistani commander later commended it. I was aware that President Premadasa's decision, to arm LTTE, was dangerous but I could not object to his view of stopping the deaths of the Army soldiers. But the result was not the one we expected.
"Prabhakaran wanted Karuna Amman questioned regarding a financial affair. We manipulated this and made a split in the LTTE. General Lionel Balagalla is better known for these affairs."
When I inquired about the orders from President Premadasa, who had wanted to send back the IPKF, General Wanasinghe said that he was never under pressure. "But one day I received an invitation from IPKF Commander General Calcut for a dinner at Taj Hotel in Colombo. When I went there with my wife, I noticed that General Calcut was restless. He asked me if I had known that IPKF was to be sent home. He was worried about it. There were about 100,000 IPKF personnel in Sri Lanka then."
No IPKF support
I inquired why the ill equipped Sri Lankan Army could not win the war with the support of the IPKF. His answer was that IPKF had not supported such a crucial decision. He said that he had never thought of attacking the LTTE in combination with the IPKF. His view was that both IPKF and the LTTE seemed to be of one mind.
During the JVP insurrection of 1987 to '89, paramilitary activities also spread throughout the country. I asked how the then Army Commander faced the situation.
"We were studying both developments carefully. The LTTE was an enemy of Army but we had to consider that Tamil people were also Sri Lankans. We knew that JVP members were also our people. But the Army had measures to suppress the subversive elements and the terrorists. Once, when I was returning from Akuressa, I came to know that the wife and children of Wijeweera had surrendered. I took the responsibility of taking care of them.
Rohana Wijeweera
"An officer under me told that the cat was in the bag. I met Wijeweera in Colombo at 11 p.m. I asked him why he did not surrender while many others did. He said he wanted to speak to President Premadasa. I asked why he waited so long for that. He had no answer. I asked him not to waste our time. He had changed. He had shaved and cut his hair short. I reported about him to the President. By then Wijeweera was held in a house adjacent to the house of Deputy Defence Minister Ranjan Wijeratna. I was mostly in Kalukondayawa. I did not travel with heavy security. I drove my jeep alone. I participated in Bodhi Poojas held to bless the country. On that day also I came from a Bodhi Pooja. I predicted the situation would change by the next day."
I asked if he could take the responsibility of paramilitary groups. He said that he had ordered to shoot at anybody who was wearing clothes similar to Army uniforms, after 7 o' clock when it was learnt that the actions of the paramilitary groups like the Black Cats and Yellow Cats were a threat to the country.
When asked about Batalanda and Boossa torture centres, he said that any camp could change according to the method of questioning but he emphasized that Army was not responsibile for Batalanda or Boossa.
General Wanasinghe remembered that the official residence of Army Commander too was damaged when Deputy Defence Minister Ranjan Wijeratna was killed in a bomb attack. "My wife and children feared for my life. All five of my children are married and have children now. My wife passed away. I am sad. She was always looking at the road until I came home in those times. But she will not come back even though I endlessly wait for that," he said in a sad voice.
"I started the Sniper Unit in 1990 in Diyathalawa. Colonel Rajasinghe was called from abroad to command it. By 2009, when the war ended, my son Sanjaya Wanasinghe was the commander of that unit. Today, Colonel Wanasinghe is the commander of the Puthukudirippu camp which is established in the former base of Prabhakaran. I have done my duty by the nation as a soldier and father.
''The life of a soldier is committed to the nation. There are secrets we can never reveal. That is the nature of this job. We sacrificed the best time of our lives for the country. But after all it seems we have been discarded now."
His looks and voice are still majestic although he is elderly. He is a perfect soldier, a role model.
