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| Sunday, 1 September 2002 |
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Editorial |  |
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Editor, Sunday Observer. E-mail: [email protected] Snail mail : Sunday Observer, 35, D.R.Wijewardana Mawatha, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Telephone : 94 1 429239 / 331181 Fax : 94 1 429230 Preparing for Peace The 2002 Cease-fire Agreement has now enabled Sri Lankans to enjoy a respite from war for more than half a year. This is no mean achievement given the sheer savagery of the conflict these past two decades and more and, the complexity of the politics that has prevented, till now, the conclusion of a definitive settlement. The severity of the war and the failure of successive attempts at political negotiations had, for decades, removed the prospect of peace from the horizon of Sri Lankan society. Today, after the success of the Cease-fire and with the approach of the first formal political negotiations in seven years, the country can seriously anticipate the possibility of a permanent peace in the foreseeable future. The current post-hostilities situation now presents Sri Lankans with a most difficult challenge, the tackling of which the war has postponed all these years: the evolving of a new political arrangement for our island community that will enable all ethnic communities to co-exist in dignity, equality and with self-fulfilment. In other words, the task of re-structuring the Sri Lankan polity is now upon us. If the collapse of ethnic harmony and the gradual slide into the bloody depths of war and racism implied the failure of this country's first post-colonial State structure and its subsequent manifestations in 1972 and 1978, the return to peace then implies the need to fundamentally re-think our concept of Sri Lankan statehood. The Sri Lankan polity as envisaged since freedom from colonial domination has obviously not met with the needs of post-colonial nationhood. And it has been the persistent failure to address those needs these past fifty post-colonial years that has plunged us into the most devastating trauma this island society has suffered for centuries. Recent constitutional formulations for fundamental reform of the Sri Lankan polity must be regarded as valuable, if early, initiatives in the right direction. The country must, however, move beyond formulations, theories and proposals. There has to be, firstly, an acknowledgement by the people as a whole of the need for such a fundamental re-ordering of our polity. Unless the vast majority of Sri Lankans of all communities are in agreement of the need for political reform of a very fundamental nature, the process cannot go forward with any guarantee of success. The nature of our democracy is such that the political leaderships will not be free to proceed with radical constitutional reform without such a popular mandate. Successive public opinion polls have shown that the bulk of the people, while in agreement on the need for an end to resort to violence to resolve issues, are yet hesitant and confused about the future political structures that would enable a political resolution of the conflict. The political leaderships, therefore, now face the challenge of presenting to the people the options available in terms of political structures and ethnically harmonious democratic representation in governance and administration. Models of federal and con-federal state systems must be discussed in a manner that will enable the public at large to participate and begin to understand both the complexity of the issues as well as the creative possibilities. Given the profound nature of our crisis, this task cannot be left to the politicians, especially in the light of the persistent failures in the past. Pro-peace and pro-justice groups in society at large must also take up the task of advocacy of constitutional reform. Already numerous civic groups have begun this process of public discussion and they must be commended for their initiative sometimes taken in the face of hostile criticism. These groups are demonstrating a leadership in areas where political leaders have feared to tread. A huge collective effort is necessary at all levels if the country is to find its way to a permanent peace. |
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