The beastly effects of 21/4 in Sri Lanka, continues to maintain a public that is wary of everyday life. The government announced the re-opening of schools only to find that attendance figures were low in the extreme, indicating perhaps an overzealous anxiety to present a picture of normalcy. The announcement appeared to be far too early in the day.
Part of the problem may well have been the fact that there appeared to be divergent viewpoints on the reopening of schools. The Rt Reverend Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith, announced a date other than what the Minister had announced. For good measure the Cardinal maintained strongly that unless they were convinced of safety they were not prepared to risk the life of any one child in the current ambiance. For government, the problem was that the Cardinal currently enjoys unparalleled respect from across the communities for his widely acclaimed leadership. The Cardinal is enjoying a rarity in Sri Lanka: respect of the people from ‘Leaders’.
This important aspect alone served to highlight the glaring inability of the government of Sri Lanka to plan just about anything with a certain amount of cohesion. Initially the government indulged in a blame game – with the Prime Minister making oblique references of blame towards the Presidency and the President himself denying knowledge. The Defence Secretary was an early casualty and tendered his resignation. To many in Sri Lanka that was almost all too easy an option. The Defence Ministry now finds that it is unable to remove the Inspector General of Police for allegedly his inaction on the intelligence received from the Indian National Intelligence Agency.
Lack of leadership is not the exclusive preserve of Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister and President. Wannabe Muslim leaders including Rauff Hakeem, Rishard Bathiyudeen, MLAM Hizbullah, Faizer Mustafa, AHM Fowzie, and Azaath Salley have thus far failed to make public statements denying that members of their community are being victimised. Yet large numbers of items that could be deemed to be weapons have been found from houses and even places of worship from their community.
Excuses have almost predictably been one entered around ‘self defence. For a country led by a government intent on highlighting Sri Lanka’s independent judicial process that attitude does not fit comfortably.
The fact is that all communities in Sri Lanka have for the best part of nearly ten years enjoyed a peace and unity not seen during the ‘war years’. Many voted in Sirisena and later Wickremesinghe, on the premise that Sri Lanka would step down several notches away from authoritarianism and return to a life of equity for all.
In this context it is abhorrent for any one group to in essence sequester the law into their own hand and ignore the law of the land. Many including the leading political leaders from the Muslim community have been quick off the mark when claiming that there should be one law for everyone. The Law is the Law. Yet when it comes to the vast amount of make-shift weapons or the instruments of terror, there has been a significant collective silence from the leaders – or wannabe leaders – of the Muslim community.
One claim was that the machetes and other weapons and equipment discovered in widespread searches were for the protection of the womenfolk of the Muslim community. Yet not one so-called Muslim leader has come forth and denied any real threat to Muslim lives by anyone let alone the majority population.
This intransigence by the Muslim leaders can be viewed as a gross neglect of their duty towards not only members of their own community but also to the rest of the populace.
The silence of these leaders will lead to speculation that they too have some form of involvement – however subtle – or even kindred support for the deviant ‘ideology’ of a global nuisance in the form of the Daesh (IS). To add to matters there appeared to be evidence that some form of involvement from at least one leading member of the community had led to the emergence of ‘fake news’ in an attempt to tarnish the decades old news asset of the established News1st organization.
The sheer folly of this exercise alone is evidence that the efforts to restore equity and safety to Sri Lanka is as divergent as much of its other governance matters.
Nothing though shocks us. This government has four and one half years after the BONDGATE matter failed to bring any of the culprits to book despite the work of an exhaustive inquiry by a Presidential Commission. The attempt to introduce a newly formed company with zero history in the operation and financing of an Oil Refinery is ongoing with not one but three Cabinet Ministers (Rishard Bathiuddin, Kabeer Hashim and Malik Samarawikrama) visiting Oman and having discussion with Omani officials, ostensibly to drum up an agreement for Oman’s involvement in the USD 3,850 Million project. It must be the only time ever that any sovereign nation without equity participation in a project has sent Cabinet Ministers to negotiate in essence for a private beneficiary – in this case a newly formed company with all the trappings of a ‘shell’ corporate.
In the meantime the agreement with the MCC USA appears to have been slipped in during the crisis that is now known as “21/4”. It appears that nothing is sacred or sacrosanct in Sri Lanka anymore.
The Prime Minister and the President of Sri Lanka appear to be teaching a lesson not to each other but to the long and ever suffering people of Sri Lanka.
We doubt if there has ever been so much anticipation of parliamentary and presidential elections in Sri Lanka, as there is now. When it does come, as indeed it must, it will not be a day too late.
