MP Amarakeerthi murder sentencing sends out strong message  

Twelve individuals, who were found guilty of the murder of former Polonnaruwa District SLPP MP  Amarakeerthi Athukorala and his security officer in 2022, were sentenced to death recently by the Gampaha High Court Trial-at-Bar after a lengthy hearing.

Another four individuals were handed six-month sentences suspended for five years. Furthermore, 23 other accused were acquitted by the Gampaha High Court Trial-at-Bar.

The Polonnaruwa District parliamentarian and his security officer, a Police Constable, were found murdered amidst the unrest in the Nittambuwa area during the nationwide incidents of violence on 9 May 2022. Since the conviction there have been calls from some quarters for the convicts to be given a presidential pardon. The calls have come particularly from those who were in the forefront of the 2022 Aragalaya that led to the ouster of Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Along with the killing of Athukorala, a large number of houses  belonging to MPs of the then ruling Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) too were burnt and destroyed. SLPP General Secretary Sagara Kariyawasam, who reacted to the sentencing, has called for punishment of those involved in the arson attacks.

The Aragalaya has been held up by some as the great turning point in the country’s post-independence journey but after the initial public protests against the Gotabaya Rajapaksa Government at the worsening economic woes, the movement was hijacked by those with vested interests. These were agenda driven groups that were trying to settle different scores  by  latching onto a genuine people uprising. The end result was the murders of the MP and his security officer , overshadowing and undermining a genuine public effort  to bring about radical change in the country’s political structure.

There’s no doubt that the Rajapaksa administration was to blame for bringing the country’s economy to its knees with ilI-advised polices such as moving to organic fertiliser for farming overnight which led to the initial charge against the Government by the farmers. Soon the shortages and massive price hikes led to the build-up of a genuine people’s movement but it was  hijacked by a few groups resulting in  undermining the people’s efforts. Some of them are now calling for the court ruling to be overturned .

Whatever political corner one may be in, there should be severe action against murder and destruction to  property and hence the court decision is welcome. Those convicted have the right to appeal and there is a chance some may be released if there is no evidence to prove they were party to the crime but that has to be seen in the days and months ahead. For now, the sentencing  stands and those acting prematurely and asking President Anura Kumara Dissanayake to pardon the convicts are acting hastily and in folly.

Sri Lanka is a country where successive governments have acted with impunity and there are many murders, disappearances that remain unresolved. Hence the long arm of the law needs to also seek out and punish others who have been engaged in crimes, particularly those that have been state sanctioned.

In the same way there should be no room for anyone to take the law into their own hands and act with impunity. There have been many instances where Members of Parliament being killed for exercising their democratic rights. Elected officials should be allowed to work without fear whatever political leaning they may have. If they are murdered  by mobs because they hold a  different political opinion,  no expense should be spared in seeking out and punishing the culprits. This judgment has to some extent sent out a strong message. Getting caught up in the heat of the moment and committing serious crime will not go unpunished. The law will, sooner or later, catch up with such miscreants.