Mankind's history - a thirst for power

Probing into Sri Lanka's failure of a strong and vibrant civil society build up is interestingly saddening for its composition of economics and geography as well. Just in case you are beginning to see stars..... a little bit of patience before I get to post mortem stage.

Hardly an organisation exists that works towards a higher purpose. Each of these is tainted with politics and bears a discreet agenda. Individuals seek office more for personal gain and glory overlooking service. Even with enough money to live, man's pecuniary thirst remains unbounded.

The limited entity that Sri Lanka is geographically, one could observe moral dilution faster here than in other countries. Civil society itself is divided and fragmentation intensifies. All club fraternity religious, political, social whatever cannot trust its own herd.

Loyalty to the organisation is a thing of the past - the political cross overs of the past being outstanding reference. We've also seen religious cross overs as well. Money and power remain benchmark in such endeavour. As a result a strong consensual agreement among civil society membership is yet to be arrived at.

Notably we Sri Lankans are a very fragmented, disintegrated, disunited populace divided on all sides which characteristic favours high priests of varied sorts-political, economic, religious bureaucratic whatever. Truly then we are a top class pluralistic society and perhaps a matchless one at that. Insignificant as it may sound yet not without its reflection of the national psyche, lets take cue from what happens in a small way in our daily travel.

That small made, impoverished guy - all bones and no flesh yet not without his big gab - all he has to do is give one big yell 'Passata Yanda' - We the herd would sheepishly move backwards. Enough is enough when one fine day I asked the guy 'kavadada api issarahata giyay' - that sent ripples of laughter around the forty seater. Not to be missed out on was the weight thrower's cold, harsh eyes on me.

Zero level

Consumer resistance in Sri Lanka is always below even zero level. Be it for rising cost of butter, big onion, bread, bus fare, bombs or brinjals or even some piece of legislation hurriedly passed affecting the wider social audience is nobody's business.

No wonder then our past colonial political history tainted with deceit and damn lies with the liars themselves whose chosen abode are sky high citadels - both here and abroad dousing or rousing their inflamed or deflamed passions with world famous wines and a retinue of domestics each for a thorough Sunday massage of weary, fat laden body parts.

Also in those climes could be the Cambridge progeny of an Oxonian Sinhala only crier whose nuptial knot with an English healing hand could reveal the incompatibility of political earnestness and practice.

For lesser mortals is education at Guru Kula Vidyalaya or some remote Wellawaya Central and a wedding at Nawala Solis or Maligawatta Municipal Hall. Yet Sri Lankan civil society couldn't careless. We have that inert ability to accept deceit lies and hypocrisy and our unwillingness unlike in some other countries to march forward braving machine guns is widely known.

If the social construct of religions could impact behaviourial patterns could this be Buddhist Maithriya and Islamic jihad's workings?

Civil society

Talking of civil society, by the way what happened to those trade unions-torch bearers of the underclass, and marginalised. Its long past since trade union stalwart Bala Tampoe led protest marches that brought out hundreds of thousands of workers in a bid to get whatever rightful dues.

That once worker unity is no more what with union leaders being enticed into self rewards. Houses, cash gifts, children's education sponsorship and what not make union leadership credentials highly questionable. If money made the Mayor go round what wouldn't make a unionist turn around? The conflict of high rise economic wants and principles creates space for conscience compromise.

Trade union leadership integrity is no more with its respective membership as is characteristic of their mentors in the legislature that keep crossing the floor for the highest bidder. To hell with whatever is humour and principles. In the face of self gain, principles take back seat.

This however is nothing new as history would have it. For instance the 1889 second international comprising worker unions had members within its fold who later established themselves in high office in their respective countries. They thus used the labour movement into becoming even prime ministers and presidents - deserting the multitude in their following. Their well saddled seats were not to be sacrificed in risky endeavours.

Not only did they mellow down, what's worse they even threw a wet blanket on emerging revolutionaries within unions. In Germany social democrats following the war became that republic's chancellor and president. In France, Briand, the general strike preacher became prime minister eleven times and even crushed many strikes of his union membership. England's Ramsay McDonald deserting his labour party which moulded him became prime minister. Similar accounts emanate from Sweden, Denmark, Belgium and Austria.

Western Europe's dictators were also socialists and age crushed their zooming spirit. Italy's Mussolini and Poland's dictator Pilsudski were also socialists.All kinds of inducements from opposing sides have led to union membership defections. Strangely enough socialists that reached out beyond boundaries in their work became rabid nationalists after the war in 1914. These were they who vehemently opposed the war. Thus ended the 'second international' fraternity that even hated other countries. The minority that remained suffered imprisonment. All this speaks at length the thirst for power being the ulterior motive in any human organisation.

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