The Sri Lanka Army has clarified its position on the alleged removal of the military camps in the North.
Issuing a press release, the Army states that the rightsizing process of the Army will not allow any Army camp to be closed, but instead enables the troops in those camps to be deployed for emergency disaster needs and nation-building tasks.
Following is the full statement issued by the Army Head Quarters:
Sri Lanka Army is prepared round the clock to respond to all security requirements in the country. During the war, the Army adopting its own structural reforms succeeded in winning the war at that time. In similar vein, the Army while performing a gigantic role in development has thrown its full weight behind the government’s ongoing nation-building projects as the prime mover. However, some opportunistic politicians and mass media organizations, envious of the Army’s commitment to the country’s future are in the practice of spreading malicious and false propaganda in order to inculcate the public with untruth and distortion regarding the ongoing rightsizing process of the Army.
Rightsizing process has always been happening in the Army and had even taken place during the war and also in the post-war period before this one. Through that, the troops mainly deployed for administrative duties are relieved and mobilized for field duties to gain better productivity, thereby doubling their efficiency. This process does not allow any Army camp to be closed, but it instead enables the majority of troops in those camps be deployed for emergency disaster needs and nation-building tasks in an effective manner. Nevertheless, some false media reports try to claim that this process has led to a large let-up in the security arrangements in the North and East. It certainly is not a disbanding of battalions, but is only a restructuring with the intention of distributing human and material resources equally among other battalions.
Sri Lanka Army under any circumstances will not resort to any decisions that would pose a threat to national security, and it always prioritizes national security concerns. It is therefore emphasized that the Sri Lanka Army as a responsible one will not close down any Army camp as alleged in those misleading reports.
Some of those media organizations, operating as cat’s paws of disgruntled politicians are malicious towards various development projects, being undertaken by the majority of Army troops island-wide under the guidance of HE the President. The peace-loving public in the country are therefore urged with respect, not to be misled by those unfounded and false media reports, but continue to repose the full confidence in the Army, considering its past services as well as the roles and tasks, now being performed across the country.
N. U. M. M. W. Senanayake RWP RSP VSV USP USACGSC
Lieutenant General
Commander of the Army
