Meeting monks and war criminals – Sri Lanka's new navy commander pays his dues

The newly appointed head of the Sri Lankan navy took up his post in recent weeks by paying visits to sacred Buddhist sites and giving offerings to monks, as well as meeting controversial military leaders, including an admiral wanted over involvement in the murder of 11 Tamil youths.

Vice Admiral Piyal De Silva, who has been appointed as the 23rd commander of the Sri Lankan navy, visited both the Temple of the Tooth in Kandy as well as several Buddhist sites in Anuradhapura, where he gave offerings to Buddhist monks to “receive blessings”.

The commander then went on to meet Sri Lanka’s Chief of Defence Staff, Admiral Ravindra Wijegunaratne, who is currently on bail after he was arrested over the cover up of the disappearance and murder of 11 Tamil youths. Wijegunaratne is accused of helping the main suspect accused of conducting the disappearances evade arrest and was held on remand last week.

De Silva also met with Sri Lankan president Maithripala Sirisena, as well as current prime minister Ranil Wickremesinghe.