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| Sunday, 28 March 2004 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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JHU leader Ven. Ellawala Medhananda Thera says.... We have no petty political agenda
The Venerable Bhikkhu stresses that the JHU mission is to fulfil the people's call for a change in the present day politics of the country which is shameful and degrading. by E. Weerapperuma Question: Now that you have entered the Election campaign how is the response of the public? Answer: We do not use the words election campaign. What we hold are "Bodhu Samulu"- Buddhists' meetings. We are very happy that there is unprecedented support from the people. Present day politics is rude, uncivilised and brusque. It is shameful and degrading. They are fed up with the politicians and political parties in this country. People who look for gentlemanly politics look to us, with the trust that we could bring about a change. Our mission is to do that. Q: According to your assessment of the people's support what is the percentage you expect to achieve? A: It is the political parties with political agenda that look for a percentage. We have no petty political agenda. We have no party politics. We have a noble aim. Our aim and aspiration is to make this country a place for all to live in brotherhood, in peace and harmony. We strive to serve the country, the nation and the Buddha Sasana. Hence, we do not look for percentages. Q: If any candidate of Jathika Hela Urumaya were to win a seat, will that member sit in Parliament.? A: If you want to plough the field, you have to go to the field. We have engaged in the general election to be elected by the people. If we get elected, there is no second word about it. We will definitely sit in Parliament. We are not a political party and we have no underhand contracts to send some members of a political party on our behalf. This is a big lie. This is spread to deceive the people. Q: Why did you select a political party? Why not contest as an independent group or from Dharma Vijaya Foundation formed by late Gangodawila Soma Thera? A: We are compelled to contest under a banner of a political party as that is the accepted form. The Dharma Vijaya Foundation is not registered as a political party. If we contest as an independent group, people will not vote for what we aspire, but to persons of their choice. That will not serve our purpose. Q: How about the coverage you get in the media. Has it been fair by you? A: We do not get the support we expected from the media specially that of the electronic media. It is biased. I will give one example. We paid money to one of the state electronic media institutions to relay an advertisement number of times at intervals. They carried that advertisement only four times. Later we came to know they had stopped carrying our advertisement on the directives of the higher authorities. This is after paying money for publicity through this particular TV channel. Then another TV channel which comes under State control taking some statement (out of context) from a speech I have made, relay it often to tarnish our image. I have requested that I be given the opportunity to reply. But I was refused that right to reply. Q: Did you make a formal complaint to the Elections Commissioner? A: We did not bother the Elections Commissioner. He has more things to do. We want to show compassion and mercy to those who behave in this irresponsible way. We hope those who do wrong will realise that they have to act responsibly even at this stage. Q: Media reported attacks carried out against your organisation. We also read in the media that at least on one occasion your organisation has attacked a particular TV group gone to Kandy to cover an event organised by Jathika Hela Urumaya. Is that true? A: No. This is what happened. The Jathika Hela Urumaya had gone to Kandy to launch the JHU manifesto. We are not opposed to any media organisation legally instituted, covering our events. In case of the others, we are of the view, that they should inform us if they wanted to do a news coverage. They should have obtained our permission. That is courtesy. In this instance,the particular TV crew according to our information was not representing any media institution. It was a TV crew from a business institution. So the JHU organisers have questioned them. They had not physically harassed them. There is no truth in the saying that JHU had harassed them. If some others have done that, we cannot be held responsible. We will not take any responsibility for such incidents. There is a very big reason for us to have taken this precaution. If you remember in the past before the assassination of Minister Lalith Athulathmudali, President Ranasinghe Premadasa and many others including Ven. Gangodawila Soma Thera, there had been this kind of video taping. So we have a justifiable fear when people come and video events related to our campaign. So we questioned them and we have not done any physical harassment or damage to them. Q: How do you see the election campaign? A: Today elections are a battle ground. When the British introduced a Democratic way of electing our own rulers, it was seen as something useful and an interesting way of choosing our rulers. But today it has become a killing field. There is a poster campaign, mud slinging, slogans, character assassination, physical hurt, burning and destroying of national and personal properties, buildings and houses. This is not a fair and just way to conduct elections. It is destroying people both physically and mentally. This is a " Yama yuddayak" a face to face war. Ours is a different type of campaign. We hear that some find fault with our use of the word "Paramitha". What does it mean?. It means to go about doing good to the people. Q: But the poor Buddhist laymen are in two minds today. They do not know whether they are doing the right thing (kusala) or wrong (akusala) in supporting you, for there is an apparent division within the Sanga..... A: This is one way of creating fear in the minds of the laity. By casting your vote you do not expect to do harm. You do not expect something bad to turn out.Your intentions are pure. It is your freedom to choose what is right and wrong. You have to look at the intention. Do you cast your vote for the well-being of the country or for the destruction of the country ? That is what you have to decide. .....Then talking about 'Sanga-Bedaya'. Laymen cannot do that. Our entering into active politics in no way creates that division in the Sanga. Lord Buddha did the highest form of politics. Politics became something bad when greed for power entered into it. Politics is for the development of man and society. Q: Do you think you really have to come into politics to do all that ? Any example from any country to support your thinking? A: Looking at the way we are treated here being the majority of this country we have come to a point that we have to actively engage in politics. Look at the Tamil and Muslim politicians. They are not the majority. But they get things done from the Sinhala government. They exercise their peoples' power. We have come to a stage that we have to show them the power of our people. The best way to do that is to enter Parliament. The Dalai Lama in Tibet is the Head of that country. People gave him the powers. In Iran Ayatollah Khomeini... these are examples we can cite to support our stand. Our effort is to build a 'Dharma Rajya' and we are committed to do that. We trust our people are with us. |
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News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security Produced by Lake House |
Eminent scholar in Archaeology Ven. Ellawala Medhananda Thera,
President National Sangha Federation, Member Supreme Sangha Council,
President Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) and National List candidate of the
JHU in this interview with 'Sunday Observer' squashes all rumours that JHU
candidates who win will not sit in Parliament.
