Namal raises ‘National Security’ boogey as military camp in north is dismantled

Namal Rajapaksa who was rejected by the voters in the recently concluded Presidential election and secured a distant fourth place and is now a national list MP has opposed the dismantling of a small military camp and handing over the land to its rightful owners.

Even the release of a small piece of land just 3 acres, in which the military has been staying put for nearly three decades has become an eyesore for the Sri Lanka Podhujana Party locals say.

The Karkovalam military camp in Point Pedro, now being dismantled was forcefully occupied by the Sri Lankan army in 1995.

Two years ago (in 2022), local land survey officials confirmed the identity of the private land owners from whom the land was grabbed for setting up the said military camp. Following the confirmation efforts were taken to release the land.

The military camp was set up on the 3 acres of private land belonging to three brothers of a family. According to army headquarters, the camp will be dismantled within two weeks’ time starting November 18th, and handed over to the family.

Local journalists confirm the same and say the dismantling of the camp has begun.

However, the only Rajapaksa family member in the parliament now, Namal Rajapaksa who entered the House through the national list says such a move by the army will lead to the ‘release of large number of army camps in future’.

His ‘warning’ has been strongly condemned by the Tamils, who say the racist mindset among the Rajapaksa’s still exists. He cannot even digest the release of a small parcel of land after three decades. Even now thousands like those whose land is being returned now, are still struggling to meet their livelihood even after 15 years of the war coming to an end.

The military forcefully took over the three acres of land in Karkovalam in 1995 and a camp for the 4th Division of the Sinha Regiment was established.

Those who lost the lands were protesting continuously seeking the return of their ancestral land, following which the military camp authorities requested the Pradeshya Sabha authorities in 2022 to verify the claims of the land owners.

Subsequently, the local authorities identified three persons as the land owners and confirmed the same to the military authorities, reporters from the region say.

Following this, when the military was getting ready to dismantle the camp on the 14th of August 2023, the local public objected to it saying the camp needed to stop illegal activities such as sand mining and drug dealing in the area.

However, “based on an order from the Army Headquarters, action was already initiated to remove the camp from there,” says military spokesperson Major General KAN Rasika Kumara, who is also the Director General Media and Psychological Operations.

The land would be handed over back to the owners only after the camp is fully dismantled he added further.
“Work is going on in the camp to remove the electric poles and clean up the area. Based on the demands from the public, efforts are being taken to release the land. Once the military camp is completely removed, the land would be handed over to the owners”.

But Namal Rajapaksa says the government has planned to remove many military camps, and any such decision to dismantle army camps should be made only after discussion with the security agencies.

“Issues would not be there if such a process is followed and review is being done, before releasing the lands”.
Adding further the scion of the Rajapaksa family cautions release of lands should not compromise national security.

“Removal of army camps and release of lands should be done only after consultation with the state security agencies and a review. It should be done in a responsible manner. We are very particular it should not affect national security and strongly believe so” he wrote on the social media platform ‘X’.

Neither Namal Rajapaksa nor his party the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna had expressed any views or made any comments, when the government led by former President Ranil Wickremesinghe with the support of his party, took action to confirm the identity of the land owners to start the process of handing over the Karkovalam army camp in Point Pedro.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake, speaking at a rally organized by his party, National People’s Power in Vavuniya on the 10th of November this year said the government is looking into releasing the lands forcefully taken away from the Tamil people in the North to their rightful owners.