LIEUTENANT GENERAL Jagath Jayasuriya, Commander of the Army with a view to taking stock of the current progress at Batalanda Defence Services Command and Staff College (DSCSC) visited it this morning (11) where he spoke to senior tri-service officers under training.
Lieutenant General Jayasuriya was welcomed by Major General N.A. Ranasinghe, Commandant, DSCSC on arrival and invited to visit different sections in the college, as the first part of the day’s itinerary. Lt. Gen. Jayasuriya met senior officers reading for degree courses at DSCSC under different curricula and inquired into their academic attainments and progress.
Later on he addressed tri-service and Police undergraduates at the DSCSC. Several military undergraduates from Pakistan, India, Nepal and Bangladesh in SAARC countries also joined to listen to the visiting Commander.
Lieutenant General Jayasuriya in his address on the occasion reminded that loyalty of Army personnel should be to the organization and not individuals since everybody should work with the interest of the organization and the country first.
Here is the full text of the Commander’s address;
“With humble beginnings after the Second World War in 1939 the Ceylon Defence Force was mobilized and with the dawn of independence the decision to raise an Army was made and accordingly the government of the day took steps to establish a regular and professional forces on 10th October 1949. From then to now the Army has expanded to a well-equipped Army of 24 professional Regiments with a proud history of 60 years.
Out of these 60 years we have been fighting a war for almost 3 decades and today we have been able to wipe out the military and political arms of the LTTE that had been operating openly and secretly within these hallowed boundaries of our country. Today this is history, and I am proud to have been a part of this chapter in our history as the Security Forces Commander Wanni and to have been able to actively be part of the front line operations. I am sure all you too would have contributed your part and would share the same sentiments as me. With the defeat of terrorism that plagued the country for over 3 decades we have established that the Sri Lanka Army is a professional organization.
In our 3 decade fight against the LTTE the Army have lost a total of 842 officers and another 19,044 men and women. We also have a total of 124 officers and 3362 other ranks missing in action. In addition, the number of officers and men that have been wounded in action is 81199. Further, out of these casualties we have a total of 302 disabled officers and men who need to be cared for the rest of their lives.
However, the current trend in certain quarters is to talk about only the past 3 years of the war, forgetting that this war has been going on for the past 30 years and by this, undermining and belittling the sacrifices made by all those brave men and women. There are other officers and other ranks that had been wounded and killed in action prior to these 3 years. There are also officers and other ranks that had been injured still serving with us and in hospitals needing permanent care. It is my duty as the commander of the Army to remind you that we cannot forget these individuals and must remember that each and every one of them too, like you, had contributed to this victory.
I must mention that through these years the Sri Lanka Army, Navy and the Air Force have fought valiantly side by side. I must mention that the Sri Lanka Army greatly values the professional and personal ties with our sister services and with the Armies of friendly foreign countries. We also greatly appreciate the support and assistance given by our sister services and friendly foreign countries in our fight against terrorism. These excellent relationships and strong ties have been nurtured through a good understanding over both triumphant and trying times in our countries. This I am sure will continue in the future too.
Talking about the present, firstly, I need to brief you on the current political situation and put things in the correct point of view. I am sure you will agree that we live in very interesting and decisive time. For my foreign friends Sri Lanka is truly a land like no other!
Gentleman, we are a disciplined Army. It is my duty to honour it, and ensure that this is maintained. The future and core foundation of the Army is laid on this.
As you know there has been various allegations leveled against the Army at various forums and in the press. I believe that as the Commander of the Army it is my duty to correct any charges leveled against my organization and my men and to put a cross the correct perspective. Most importantly to you and the general public. Therefore our counter actions are seen in the press. Some individuals sometimes interpret this as the army being politicized. These political speculations will in no means effects the functioning of the Army and I will ensure that the Army will always maintain discipline and work within the parameters of discipline. Please remember that each and every action of yours reflects badly on the Army, whether you are in uniform or out of it. It reflects badly on the image of the Army, and that image is you and I. This been said, I will now address you on a few points that I think is important to all of us at this juncture.
Even though we have defeated the LTTE, the threat upon a nation does not cease to exits. We will continue to be vulnerable to attack upon information; attack upon material and most crucially at this juncture attack upon loyalty. This can come in any form militarily or politically from interested parties within us and or from foreign powers outside.
Remember that your loyalty should be to the organization and not individuals. In an institute as the Army and the services you cannot have different loyalties but you must always work with the interest of the organization and the country first. There is no choosing your faithfulness between an individual and an organization. Individuals will come and go but the organization needs to function with equality and without a conflict in loyalties. This can make or break an organization and is very detrimental to a fighting Army and to the services. This is something that we have to guard against, as advocating disloyalty to the organization amounts to subversion.
Further, I am sure as with the Army the other two services and the Police must have been neglecting many norms and traditions practiced to nurture and mould the character and identity of each regiment in your respective service. This lack of regimentation had resulted in many lapses in discipline within the rank and file of the Army and as a whole in the services.
I believe that self-discipline is much more productive than enforced discipline. We as Officers should know to separate right from wrong and ensure that each and every other rank, sailor and airmen under you is also made to understand and educated on this. Officers should work on their own initiative and not by compulsion or comparison.
Considering the working environment it is true that we have been fighting very professionally but have failed to achieve that desired levels of proficiency in other areas. It is true that good staff work and excellent operation orders alone will not win battles but is something that cannot be ignored.
We need to strive to achieve excellence. Once you go back to your regiments and various postings do not be afraid to make use of the knowledge gained here burning mid nigh oil for almost 11 months to demand for excellence, as that is what staff college prepares you for. Demand for excellence even if it is marking of a line in the football field demand that it be straight. The necessity to complete work and not leave anything pending is also a part of this.
I know that administration was given lesser priority during the height of operations though we have met most of the operational logistics requirements. So all these aspects need more attention and streamlining. Putting into practice all operational, logistics and administrative procedures and process will be an important step in this direction. Especially with the task in hand.
Looking back to the past and the period during the peace process our security forces have acted with utmost restraint in the face of countless atrocities and provocative acts by the LTTE. This is a very good sign of a disciplined Army.
With the current resettlement of IDP and the development-taking place you will be stepping into an environment totally different to what you had experienced prior to 19 May this year. You will have to once again act with utmost patience, restraint and respect towards the displaced Tamil community in the North. You will have to follow and enforce very strictly rules of engagement, you will have to be more involved in operations pertaining to and fulfilling requirements of Military Aid to Civil Authorities and assisting in establishing the government writ to its fullest. You will have to maintain the highest degree of discipline in the rank and file whilst preserving human right and enforcing international conventions that we are a party to.
As you know our Army has expanded rapidly during last few years and now we have a very young army, which had proven its mettle to the hilt. However, we cannot rest on our laurels. We need to analyse and plan our future and reorganize the army to suit the new and future requirements.
Today, our nation is at crossroads to a new beginning, Gentlemen, the Sri Lanka Army has now come of age. The war was difficult but as we all know. The last phase in war is the most difficult of them all and therein lies the challenge for the Army of today with the transition to peace.
War was difficult but the next phase-transition to peace, the involvement of the Army in the three R’s – Reconstruction, rehabilitation and reconciliation may well be a major challenge. Hence, we need to take stock and spearhead the Government’s efforts to achieve a total peace and through that prosperity and development for the country. Therefore, our main concentration should be on training motivation or re-motivation, equipping and most of all discipline,” the Commander concluded.
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