Ceylon Today Editorial

LAST CHANCE FOR NATIONAL RECONCILIATION?

24 November 2016

The Constitutional Committees have formulated a slew of proposals to effect a breakthrough in the process of national/racial/religious reconciliation which go far beyond the proposals of past by any government which were mere dichotomies between reality and bogus posturing by that ugly section of the polity which deals in nothing short of populist politics aimed at extending its power.

The nation could well have been taken aback by the forthright manner in which these committees have said outright to all players in this sordid saga of racist supremacy versus the eternal underdog, that, in effect "Here's the solution. Let the people decide, let Parliament decide."

The problem said a sage, is not in how a people intelligently and humanely respond to major issues which assail a nation but in the manner in which opportunistic politicians stir up the ignorant masses with appeals to racist and religious supremacy, and prevent a rational examination of failed attempts of the past instead of agreeing on what's best for the nation as a whole, whether based on presumed historical facts or on differences interpreted in so-called historiography.

The proposals made might seem to suggest an attempt not so much to revise historical facts or deny majoritarian claims...but clearly is an attempt to revise the approach to a solution that has eluded us for more than a dozen decades. It's the same, virtually, in relation to Palestinian-Israeli stand-off, with each demanding supremacy – and thus making rapport as a single nation impossible, merely divided by religion and culture and the need for space for greater 'nationalist' freedom and expression within a united State whose territorial integrity must at all costs be preserved.

It's the threat to that territorial integrity by the killer squads led by Prabhakaran and his proxies in the TNA and other Tamil parties and political organizations – here and abroad – that led to the inevitable response. In three decades of a blood bath that only distanced the nation further away from any solution is now attempted by the Constitutional Subcommittees. But the lack of pejorative expletives from the Opposition in Parliament, one fears, is a time bomb primed for explosion at electoral level and one that will be used to devastating effect when the Local Government elections come around.

One hopes not, but it's been one too many times that the Opposition has exploited appeals to racial and religious majoritarianism to hinder any solution that could create an ambiance in which every Lankan can live in dignity and freedom, fully recognizing the fact that while together we make a multi-lingual, multi-religious society, we nevertheless do have the right for the fullest expression of a modicum of freedoms we individually and collectively enjoyed as our birthrights in the past.

It's time to tear up the chronicles on terrorist separatism, the hang-ups of the past and work out a formula that, however, leaves no room for the Tamil extremists to ever make an attempt to exploit and abuse the enormous quantum of power devolution the proposals of the Constitutional Committees (CCs) foresee.

Let's be clear: the proposals do not envisage or intend permitting any revision of the majority's stance on territorial claims. The CCs have made proposals which are entirely up to the masses and Parliament to ratify or reject, in part or in toto.

That is where the ugly influence of narcissists in our body politic who stir up sections of the Buddhist clergy and the ignorant masses to mount public demonstrations aimed at derailing governance and all attempts to solve the national crises via methods which are perceived to inherently detract from racial and religious supremacy. It's this very fact that drove extremist Tamils to pick up the sword in the first place by rousing a then massive groundswell of anti-Tamil sentiment which turned thousands of Tamils into human torches, triggering one of the most massive human refugee crises of recent decades in the world, with over a million Tamils fleeing the land of their birth with death dogging them at every step.

As a whole, we need to reevaluate our past feeble and totally inadequate attempts to solve this tragedy by any method short of frittering away our territorial and collective national integrity. On their part, the Tamil leadership, especially the TNA and the NPC Chief Minister, must put an end to their stupid attempts to hoodwink the Tamil as well as Sinhala masses and the global community, and back their public avowals of ending the demand for separatism by demanding what in effect is the laying of a groundwork that can serve as a precursor to that very separatism. To the Tamil leadership we say, "stop your brinkmanship and grandstanding and get real, not one single man or woman in the rest of the country is ever likely to forget your past as terrorists' proxies.

Daily News Editorial

A timely measure

24 November 2016

Ethnic and religious tensions have witnessed a surge in recent times. There is the Bodu Bala Sena who has cast itself as the storm troopers in the defence of the faith, its leader the Ven Glagoda Aththe Gnanasara making incendiary statements liable to arouse emotions. If that is not enough, we now see certain fundamentalist Muslim groups making their presence felt, with their leaders making provocative comments that assail the sentiments of Buddhists in this country. Hindus on the other hand have largely remained dormant but some of their practices, such as animal sacrifices, have not been to the liking of Buddhists. Most of the conflict, it has to be said, stems from misunderstanding.

It is in this light that the idea mooted by Justice and Buddhasasana Minister Wijeyadasa Rajapakshe for a dialogue between the various ethnic and religious groups to douse tensions, should receive the commendation of all. According to the Minister, the government has appointed a high-power ministerial group which will make interventions by way of meaningful and constructive dialogue towards ending communal and religious mistrust. The ministerial group, the minister said, would soon facilitate a meeting with the various religious groups to iron out their differences.

Ideally, the politicians on both sides of ethnic divide too should be drawn into the project. This is because, more than any radical religious fanatics, it is the politicians who should take the blame for inflaming communal and religious passions. We saw recently how a loquacious Joint Opposition politician, repeatedly referring to the alleged vandalism of Buddhist shrines in the North, in a manner that could rouse the emotions of the Buddhists. On the other hand, politicians like Northern Province Chief Minister C.V. Wigneswaran too often times make remarks that don’t go down well with the majority community. Hence it behoves on the Minister to appeal to these politicians too to act with circumspection. They (politicians) should desist from spicing their political speeches in a way that impinge on a particular community or religion.

What is needed is mutual understanding between different religious and communal groups. As mentioned, today the tensions have erupted chiefly due to misunderstanding. This was amply seen during the halal issue sometime ago. Hopefully, the ministerial group, that is composed of individuals from the four major religions and ethnic origins, will be able to set matters right before tensions come to a boil. In fact, such a body should have been in existence from the very outset. Had it been so, the spate of attacks carried out on Christian churches, some time ago, would not have taken place. It is difficult to fathom how, when the Catholic and Buddhist hierarchy are often seen in convivial discourse, their minions have to clash with each other.

That the Ven Galagoda Aththe too had met the Minister and offered to participate in the dialogue indeed is a happy augury for religious peace. The Thera had been an embarrassment to Buddhists, all along, with his antics. He had thanked the Minister for providing them with this opportunity, hitherto denied. The Thera may be unorthodox in demonstrating his grievances, but there is nothing wrong in lending a ear to his protestations and remedy matters that need remedying. This will now be the task of the ministerial team.

The measure, taken by the Minister, is also timely in the context of the different views that are bound to surface with regard to the proposed new constitution. Already scaremongers are at work sowing the seeds of doubt in the minds of the public that Buddhism is to be accorded a diminished status in the new constitution. The dialogue mooted by the Minister could now help allay fears in this regard.

Be that as it may, racial and religious tensions will be the last thing the government wants at a time the reconciliation process is making positive advancements. Hence the government should be wary of interested parties, with political agendas, who may try to rock the boat, with or without the help of extremist monks.

JO hoist by own petard

A big hue and cry was made by the Joint Opposition when Health Minister Dr. Rajitha Senaratne sought treatment in a Singapore hospital for some ailment. The JO went onto draw a paradox, claiming that Sri Lankan doctors were not good enough for the country’s Health Minister. It was sought to portray the Minister as being unpatriotic.

Now comes the news that former Minister Basil Rajapaksa, whose brother Mahinda, is supposed to hold the patent rights for patriotism, has sought leave from the court, hearing one of the cases against him, to leave for the US, for a three month period, to seek treatment for the commonplace ailment of diabetes. Nary a word from the JO, on this score.

The Island Editorial

Battling corruption

24 November 2016

 

Leaders of all countries declare at every international forum that they are committed to eradicating corruption. Each and every one of them wears anti-corruption sentiments on his or her sleeve. But, corruption thrives!

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi does not seem to baulk at anything in his ‘war on corruption’. He has even adopted an unorthodox method to flush out black money as part of it. The demonetisation of bank notes of Rs. 500 and Rs. 1,000 denominations has reportedly plunged the Indian economy into chaos. The ordinary people including housewives and small-time traders who believe in the cash economy are said to be the worst hit. Some experts have even described the note ban as ‘poor economics’ in that it hurts the economy and the accumulation of black money could happen even in the new currency with the passage of time.

However, PM Modi is determined to steer the demonetisation programme to a finish.

The Modi government, in its campaign against black money, is reported to have made some headway on another front. Its efforts to pressure Switzerland to agree to automatic sharing of information with India on Indians’ Swiss bank accounts have reached fruition. The agreement, however, will take effect in 2018 and details of accounts opened in the past will not be shared. There’s the rub. No Indian crook in his proper senses will deposit his black money with Swiss banks hereafter; it will be stashed away elsewhere. There are many other places where ill-gotten wealth is welcome.

The need for a global effort to crack down on black money cannot be overemphasised. This is not a task that two or three countries can accomplish on their own however powerful they may be. It requires a global effort. But, as in the case of terrorism, the world powers are divided on the question of black money, which has unfortunately become the lifeblood of their banking systems. They are not averse to money belonging to corrupt politicians and criminals the world over flowing into their banking system so long as it helps sustain their economies. Their hypocrisy became manifestly evident at the much-advertised global anti-corruption summit in London in May this year.

The then British Prime Minister David Cameron, reeling from a damning Panama Papers revelation, undertook to do away with corporate secrecy as regards the ownership of companies in Britain, but he stopped short of ensuring that the British overseas territories and dependencies such as the Virgin Island would follow suit.

US Secretary of State John Kerry waxed eloquent at the anti-graft summit, on the need to battle corruption and terrorism, which he rightly described as dual threats to the world economy and security. Strangely, the US was one of the countries which did not agree to share the so-called ‘registers of beneficial ownership’ to reveal who really owns companies in their territories.

So much for the world leaders’ commitment to fighting corruption!

President Maithripala Sirisena, speaking at the London Summit, described corruption as one of the factors that promoted political violence and other forms of human rights abuses. He, true to form, inveighed against the Rajapaksa administration, which, he said, had been rejected by the people who ‘reacted strongly against corruption’. It may be recalled that his main election pledge was to rid the country of corruption.

Having talked the talk, now the time has come for President Sirisena to walk the walk. A committee appointed by his party, the SLFP, which is part of the government, to study the recently released COPE report on mega bond scams, has handed over its report to him. Unless he ensures that the bond thieves will be brought to justice and the losses the state coffers and the Employees’ Provident Fund have suffered due to their rackets recovered forthwith, he will not only make a mockery of his commitment to battling corruption but also run the risk of facing the same fate as his predecessor who had a grand pratfall as he tolerated crooks.