This ‘Marching’ syndrome; and why pick on Murali?

The most famous march of all times and totally admirable is the Salt March or Dandi March led by Mahatma Gandhi as a non-violent act of civil disobedience against British rule in India.

Gandhi, biding his time to launch civil disobedience got his excuse: the British with a salt monopoly in India imposed a tax. In his simple way – actually extremely intelligent, pragmatic and cunning – Gandhi with 78 people left his Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmadabad on March 12, 1930 and marched for 24 days to reach the sea where the crowd that had swelled, made salt from sea water.

From that march there was no let up on civil disobedience, satyagraha and Gandhi’s imprisonments until India gained independence from the yoke of the British Raj in 1947.

More infamous than admirable as indicated much later was Mao Tse-tung’s (Mao Zedong) Long March of the Red Army of the Communist Party of China from October 1934 to October 1935. It was in defiance of the Koumintang government of Chiang Kai-shek.

This government had to retreat to Formosa, but what was revealed later was that Mao rode all the way in his car, while marchers died by the thousand en route from fatigue and starvation.

Local protest marches

We in tiny Sri Lanka have made an art, a craft and a comedy of marches in protest of this, that and the other. This feline says that now lads and gals will get on the street and protest for the slightest of reasons, the issues of which could so easily be peacefully negotiated.

The first local march following Gandhi’s example was the UNP ‘Pilgrims March’ led by J. R. Jayawardena accompanied by Dudley Senanayake, clad in white cloths and shirts. This was against SWRD Bandaranaike’s government precipitated by the signing of the Bandaranaike-Chelvanayagam Pact in 1957. The marchers set off on October 3 to Kandy but they were disrupted by the ‘Imbulgoda Weeraya’ – S. D. Bandaranaike, just ten miles out of Colombo.

A much younger Mahinda Rajapaksa led the Pada Yatra and Jana Gosha - a white flag campaign - from Colombo to Kataragama leaving on March 16, 1992 and reaching Kataragama on April 2. It was against the Premadasa government and privatization and all that.

President Premadasa was a strong leader and ruthless too, but he did not permit the police or even public to disrupt the march. That was magnanimous of him and he being a great tactician and politician was wise, since allowing them to march along did not attract too much attention nor followers, whereas if the police had pounced on them the sympathy of the masses would have been with the protesters.

Now it’s the turn of the Joint Opposition to march. Controversial. Full of question marks. The chief Jana Gosha of March 1992 is very quiet this time around, when the march is mostly for his benefit, to get him back as leader of the country.

The newspapers reported: “The Kurunegala District Parliamentarian, Mahinda Rajapaksa, advised the JO regards inviting people to join – small time businessmen and intellectuals burdened with the government’s oppressive policies to join the march in their tens of thousands to carry a message to the government.”

That in this feline’s opinion needs comment, certainly not catty but sensible. Why should the organisers of the march go inviting people? If people are so burdened by the policies of the government they will join, uninvited.

Does the common man making up the majority of the people of the land find the government oppressing them with its policies? OK! VAT rather oppressed but why was extra taxing necessary? To pay off debts incurred by the previous regime on many useless white elephants costing billions of borrowed money.

Is freedom of expression and elimination of abducting white vans oppressive? Is reducing the price of a household cylinder of gas from nearly Rs. 3,000 to half that amount oppressive?

The ex Prez wants tens of thousands to join the march. Of course you can round up the multitude with a packet of rice, actually packets of rice and places to stay and alcoholic drink flowing. No problem at all increasing numbers with generous gifts.

They are used to giving dansal expecting returns. Also the idea that they are marching for the benefit of the people is tosh. They are marching in an attempt to topple the government. They will surely fail in this. We DO NOT want trouble.

Dear, much admired Murali

This cat was rather stumped over the Murali matter, only because she is clueless about cricket, laws pertaining to it, unwritten protocol and all that. So she could not really decide whether Murali in accepting to coach the Aussie spinners was being immoral. Everyone she asked said a loud No – he is well within his rights to do as he pleases, coach where coaching is requested.

They also added that if our own Cricket Board could not and would not enlist such expertise locally available, this expertise could and should accept outside requests. The people asked by this cat were all sure Murali was not doing it merely for the purse he would receive.

He has the ability to coach, so why not use his expertise? Also this cat coming from Kandy, sides with a person who also hails from the hills and learnt his ABC, additions and subtractions and cricket in a school close to Kandy.

Now those who critiqued Murali and even threw mud at him have received it smack on their faces. The International Cricket Council is to induct Muralitharan into the ICC Cricket Hall of Fame.

He is the first Sri Lankan to be thus honoured and the further delight is that he beat Shane Warne. Three cheers and more strength to Murali’s coaching and more charity work in this country of ours. We applaud him for helping those in the northern areas devastated by war and kept under the LTTE terrorist thumb to regain some joy and hope in life by taking cricket to them.

On that note and the determination to watch the progress of the pada yatra and hope no trouble erupts, this feline rests her word processing wrists.

- Menika