Independence of 1948 resurrected and revived

By Dr. Telli Rajaratnam

President Mahinda Rajapaksa hoists the National Flag to launch Independence Day celebrations

Dancers participate in a parade marking Sri Lanka's 65th Independence Day in the north-eastern town of Trincomalee last year Pic: AFP

We remember that the Independence of Ceylon (as Sri Lanka was then known) was gained on February 4, 1948. We obtained independence from British rule through smooth transition after India gained its independence.

The civil standard of the last king of Sri Lanka, Sri Wickrama Rajasinha

Patriots declared that we are a people created equal, free to think and worship as we feel. We were no longer colonists. We obtained our own identity and our destiny would not be determined for us, but our destiny would be determined by us.

We honour our patriots who contributed towards that endeavour. However, the crucial factor is the independence gained by defeating terror and granting freedom to the entire nation under the leadership of President Mahinda Rajapaksa in the midst of so much interference from developed countries with vested interests. This is a far greater achievement than any in the history of this country.

There shall be one law for all. The territorial law of Sri Lanka shall be the same for the entire country. Every citizen has a right to choose his residence. Every citizen has a right to live in any part of Sri Lanka. The Tamils must cease to talk of the North and the East as their homeland. There shall be only one race - the human race. One nation - the nation of Sri Lanka... One sovereign - the Executive President... One leader - President Mahinda Rajapaksa, elected by the people for the people.

National Flag

The National Flag of Sri Lanka represents the country and her heritage as a rallying symbol that integrates the minorities with the majority race. Sri Lanka's National Flag is an improvisation of the civil standard of the last king of Sri Lanka, Sri Wickrama Rajasinha. The civil standard had a passant royal lion with a sword in its right forepaw at the centre, and a Bo leaf on each of the four corners on a plain border. When Sri Lanka gained independence from Great Britain on February 4, 1948, it was the Lion Flag of the last king of Sri Lanka which was hoisted once again. The first Prime Minister of independent Sri Lanka, D.S. Senanayake, appointed a committee to advise the government on the design of a new national flag. The design approved by the committee in February1950 retained the symbol of the lion with the sword and the Bo leaves from the civil standard of the last king of Sri Lanka, with the inclusion of two vertical stripes in green and orange.

The significance of each symbol of the national flag is as follows:

The lion in the flag represents the Sinhala race.
The sword of the lion represents the sovereignty of the country.
Curly hair on the lion's head indicates religious observance, wisdom and meditation.
The beard denotes purity of words.
The handle of the sword highlights the elements of water, fire, air and earth.
The nose indicates intelligence.
The two front paws purport to purity in handling wealth.

Students sing the National Anthem at Independence Day celebrations

The vertical stripe of orange represents the minority Tamils and the green vertical stripe, the minority Muslims.

The border around the flag, which is yellow, represents other minor races.

The Bo leaves at the four corners of the flag represent Buddhism and its influence on the nation. They also stand for the four virtues - kindness, friendliness, happiness and equanimity.

The maroon portion of the flag manifests the other religions.

The National Flag was hoisted for the first time on March 3, 1950.

National Anthem

A national anthem should be sung in its original version in the original language it was composed. All citizens should learn the meaning, whatever race they may belong to. The National Anthem of Sri Lanka should be sung in Sinhala: One national anthem, one nation.

Article 7 of the Constitution of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka states, “The National Anthem of the Republic of Sri Lanka shall be Sri Lanka Matha, the words and music of which are set out in the Third Schedule”.

The third schedule contains only the words in Sinhala. As such, the only valid and legal version of the National Anthem is the official Sinhala version. Sri Lanka's literacy rate is very high, all citizens can learn the meaning of the National Anthem and to sing it within an hour.

A national anthem (national hymn or song) is a patriotic musical composition that evokes and eulogises the history and traditions of its people, and is recognised either by a nation's government as the official national song, or by convention through use by the public.

Certain etiquette may be involved in the playing of a country's anthem. These usually involve elements such as military honours, standing up and removing headwear. In diplomatic situations, the rules may be very formal.

Sri Lanka Matha is the National Anthem of Sri Lanka. The words and music were written by Ananda Samarakoon in 1940 in Sinhala, and was officially adopted as the National Anthem on November 22, 1951 by a committee headed by Sir Edwin Wijeyeratne.

Freedom in Sri Lanka

Through the experience he gained through many political tidal waves and his survival to become the leader of the nation, President Rajapaksa knows no fear.

He has no doubts. He thinks hard before he makes decisions; once the decision has been made, he will justify his cause with his skills of advocacy which has won over many of his opponents. Never in the political history of any country has so many Opposition members joined and supported the President whom they once opposed.

“There go my people, I must follow them, for I am their Leader” were the words of Mahatma Gandhi, practised to the very syllable by President Rajapaksa.

That is the secret of his success. Amidst the turbulent waves of politics and the intricacies of conspiracies by vested interests, he was re-elected as the President of Sri Lanka for a second term. His victory was inevitable due to his patriotic deeds and the victorious were the nation as a whole. Liberation by the saviour of the nation resulted in thousands of men, women and children driven from their lands returning home.

The demands of an outraged community have been met. We have achieved a victory for a safer world, for our democratic values, and for a stronger Sri Lanka.

We fought and liberated the people held hostage, what we achieved and what we have to do now to advance peace, and together with the people, forge a future of freedom, progress and harmony. This can be done only under the leadership of President Rajapaksa.

The terrorists were the cause for men of all ages to be separated from their loved ones, killed and forced to join the terrorists, children made to watch their parents die; a whole people forced to abandon, within hours, communities their families had spent generations building. When our diplomatic efforts to avert this horror with the LTTE were rebuffed, and violence mounted, the President took affirmative action. Now the people are free, the roads that were closed for years have opened, the people have been liberated.

Stability of leadership

Finally, we have averted the wider war terrorism may well have sparked. Now, we're entering a new phase - building peace - and there are formidable challenges, the foremost amongst them is the stability of leadership and the Government.

Development

We must build and develop our country. For that to happen, the European Union must plan for tomorrow, not just today. Our friends - the United States, China, India and the United Kingdom - must assist us in our endeavours. They must provide most of the resources for this effort, but it is in Sri Lanka's interest to do our part as well. We must pave a path to a prosperous shared future, a unifying magnet more powerful than the pull of hatred and destruction that has threatened to tear us apart.

Challenges

Sri Lanka still faces great challenges in this world, but we look forward to meeting them. We can successfully maintain the territorial integrity of Sri Lanka since we re-elected President Rajapaksa. We must stand united as patriots of Sri Lanka to support and defend him and support the 18th Amendment to the Constitution.

Patriotism

Patriotism is the ground norm of a civilised society. As citizens, we owe allegiance to the Constitution of Sri Lanka and we owe our loyalty and allegiance to the President. We must appreciate the fact that we would be the most blessed nation for easy development only if we can eradicate all the other Tamil terror groups who are terrorising us in the city of Colombo. The total eradication of terrorism is possible only if arms are seized from all militant groups who pay lip service to democracy whilst flirting with the major terrorist group. Civil allegiance is the duty of loyalty and obedience which a person owes to the State of which he is a citizen.

Terrorism, diaspora and vested interests

Due to conflicts which we could have long resolved, external forces with vested interests have all sought to intervene, some in the pretext of resolving the issue, but our experience has proved that the gap of resolution does not seem to be narrower now. Those who finance terror through some NGOs, those who launder their money, and those that cover their tracks are every bit as guilty as the fanatic who commits the final act. We look for diplomacy, but there is no diplomacy with some of those opposed to us. We do not consider them as opponents, but they oppose every conceivable move we make to develop the country. Sometimes, there is no compromise with such people, no meeting of minds - no point of understanding - so we would have a just choice - defeat it or be defeated by it. We learnt that however much we strive for peace, we need a strong defence capability where a peaceful approach fails. Whatever the dangers of the action we take, the dangers of inaction are far greater.

Laws will have to be changed, not to deny the basic liberties, but to prevent their abuse and protect the most basic liberty of all; freedom from terror. The people are terrorised by certain Tamils with vested interests in their vile pursuits for power committing crimes and targeting a reflex scenario as if the Government was responsible.

We must always be on guard for those who will exploit and manipulate for their own narrow political ends, who will distort the essence of pluralism and tolerance for their own extremist agendas. People are being tainted by the reckless media. It is a national catastrophe for the nation. We must enact new laws or amend the old.

We must work as a community to ensure that everyone, not just a privileged few, get the collective ability to further the individual's interests. The governing idea of modern social democracy is founded on the principles of social justice. That people should rise according to merit not birth; that the test of any decent society is not the contentment of the wealthy and strong, but the commitment to the poor and weak.

However, values aren't enough. The mantle of leadership comes at a price; the courage to learn and change; to show how values that stand for all ages can be applied in a way relevant to each age.

We learnt that equality is about equal worth and not equal outcomes. They demand more. The rising cost of living is because of terrorism - not only the amount we spent on the battle, but the consequences that follow the false allegation by terrorists and their henchmen in Parliament who travel on diplomatic passports, enjoy all the perks of the State, desecrate the sanctity of the House of Parliament and make false allegations to the world - these include all Tamil militants who wear a mask of democracy and continue to have the ideals of terrorists - these men and women will howl and cry through fear that they may not be elected to Parliament again. They neither love their own people nor the country.

We are not alone in this. All around the world, governments are struggling with the same problems. The program of reforms is huge. We must have co-operation, determination and consensus.

We are a community of people, whose self interests and mutual interest at crucial points merge and that it is through a sense of justice that a community is born and nurtured.

This is the moment to bring the faiths closer together, in understanding our common values and heritage as a source of unity and strength. By the strength of our common endeavours, we achieve more together than we can alone. We must reach beyond our fears and divisions to a new time of great and common purpose. Let us trace the roots of affirmative action.

Let us determine what it is and what it isn't. Let us see where it has worked and where it hasn't and ask ourselves what we need to do now. President Rajapaksa has been stoic in the face of adversity. He has earnestly endeavoured to unify the nation.

He is totally committed to serve the people. It is genuine, unwavering and selfless. President Rajapaksa represents tolerance and freedom, not repression and terror. As such, every individual or group which transgresses these ideals should be dealt with by the laws of the land.

The writer Dr. Telli C. Rajaratnam LL.B(SL), LL.M(Lond), Ph.D(Lond) is a Barrister and Solicitor who had served in Tasmania, Australia and the United Kingdom and has authored 14 books on law, philosophy and politics.