-By A Special Correspondent
(Lanka-e-News -24.July.2025, 11.30 PM) Mounting calls are being made for a full-scale investigation into a former Sri Lankan cabinet minister – a once-powerful legal advisor and presidential aspirant – over allegations that he sought to drastically downplay the compensation owed for the catastrophic MV X-Press Pearl maritime disaster, in what critics have branded a “national betrayal”.
The X-Press Pearl incident in May 2021 remains the worst maritime environmental disaster in Sri Lanka’s history. The Singapore-flagged container vessel caught fire off the coast of Colombo and sank, releasing tonnes of toxic chemicals, plastic pellets, and nitric acid into the sea. The impact was apocalyptic: marine ecosystems devastated, fishing livelihoods destroyed, and stretches of pristine coastline rendered unusable.
But now, nearly four years on, startling revelations suggest that a former minister – reportedly a Muslim Presidential Counsel with a well-documented history of political shapeshifting – attempted to privately negotiate a drastically reduced compensation package, allegedly pegged at just US$50 million, far short of the US$1 billion demanded by Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court and experts.
The individual in question, whose name remains conspicuously absent from official communiqués but is well known in Colombo’s legal and political circles, is said to have worn many hats: former Justice Minister, Foreign Minister, legal advisor to an ex-President, and – controversially – the person rumoured to have advised a Sri Lankan presidential candidate to relinquish U.S. citizenship in order to run for office.
Despite this chequered résumé, it is his alleged role in the Pearl Express scandal that is now under the harshest scrutiny.
Investigators close to the case claim that during the early stages of arbitration with the vessel’s owners and their London-based insurers, the former minister lobbied for a “quiet and quick” settlement of US$50 million – a figure many describe as “derisory” when set against the scale of environmental devastation and economic loss.
“There was a deliberate attempt to bypass transparency, to undercut the rightful claims of the Sri Lankan people,” said a senior legal source within the Attorney General’s Department, speaking on condition of anonymity. “It reeks of impropriety.”
Marine biologists and fisheries experts estimate that the full ecological recovery from the Pearl disaster may take over three generations, with lingering effects on coral reefs, endangered marine species, and the reproductive cycles of commercial fish stocks.
“The damage isn’t just environmental,” said Professor Abeywickrama, a marine ecologist at the University of Ruhuna. “It is economic, cultural, and existential. Fishing communities in Negombo and Chilaw have seen their entire livelihoods wiped out. No short-term compensation can fix that.”
The Supreme Court, in a landmark ruling last year, ordered the shipping company to pay a minimum of US$1 billion, though many environmental advocates argue even that figure is conservative. But what has shocked the public is the suggestion that behind the scenes, there were attempts to accept a paltry fraction of that sum – a move seen as bordering on treasonous.
Public anger has further intensified over reports that members of the former minister’s family were allegedly involved in negotiations with international parties, potentially positioning themselves as intermediaries in the settlement talks. One anti-corruption watchdog claimed that an offshore entity registered in Singapore, allegedly linked to the minister’s brother-in-law, was used in preliminary settlement dialogues.
“The whole affair stinks,” said Sarath Kuruppu, a former CID officer now working with Transparency Sri Lanka. “If proven true, this was an orchestrated attempt to sell out Sri Lanka’s future in exchange for kickbacks and legal favours. We must follow the money.”
The revelations have triggered bipartisan outrage. In Parliament this week, opposition MPs demanded the immediate appointment of a Presidential Commission of Inquiry, while civil society groups are preparing to submit a dossier of evidence to Sri Lanka’s Bribery and Corruption Commission (CIABOC).
“This isn’t just about corruption,” thundered NPP MP Harshana Perera. “This is about the attempted commodification of a national tragedy. We must find out who authorised the negotiation of such an insultingly low figure. And we must punish them – not just the individual, but the entire web of collaborators.”
The Pearl Express arbitration, currently under legal review in Singapore and London, is being closely monitored by environmental law experts and maritime insurers. Should it emerge that Sri Lankan officials acted in bad faith or interfered with due legal process, it could severely undermine future claims by developing nations seeking redress for environmental harm caused by international shipping lines.
“We are walking a tightrope,” warned legal academic Dr. Suren Pathirana, who specializes in international environmental litigation. “If it is proven that a former justice minister – a person sworn to uphold the law – attempted to truncate due compensation for personal or political reasons, it will be a diplomatic disaster.”
Activists are urging President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s administration to treat the matter with the gravity it deserves. There are growing calls for:
• A criminal investigation into the former minister’s role.
• An asset freeze on any individual or entity connected to the alleged secret settlement.
• Diplomatic engagement with Singapore and the UK to ensure transparency in all arbitration proceedings.
“This is not just a matter of legality,” said Janaki Thenuwara, a lawyer with OceanWatch Sri Lanka. “This is about national dignity. About ensuring that no individual, no matter how well connected, can cheat an entire nation out of its rightful compensation.”
In the absence of accountability, critics warn, the Pearl disaster risks being remembered not just as an ecological tragedy — but as yet another episode in Sri Lanka’s long and painful saga of elite impunity.
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by (2025-07-24 18:27:07)
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