|
|
 |
 |
| Sunday, 29 September 2002 |
 |
|
 |
Editorial |  |
| News Business Features Security
|
Please forward your comments to the
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 Economics of peace News that the Government Budget for 2003 is likely to have a defence allocation that is less than that of 2002 will be good news to all except those who still advocate war as a means of resolving the ethnic conflict. Defence spending is expected to be cut by as much as Rs. 1.5 billion for next year. Reduced defence spending is one of the gains of the peace initiative. Firstly, it is a sign of the Government's expectations of a future peace; its confidence that the ethnic conflict is unlikely to deteriorate into a war of any sort again. Secondly, it is a signal that the Sri Lankan State is not considering a military initiative of its own in this regard, just as much as the LTTE, too, has disavowed the unilateral use of military force. Thus, whatever the war-mongers may say, the contours of next year's Government financial plan are a concrete, positive, indication of Sri Lanka's prospects for peace; of the Government's general political.intentions; of the sincerity of its commitment to a non-military, non-violent resolution of the ethnic conflict. This 'peace dividend' is not the only one of its kind. The resurgence of tourism, the revival of petty trading in areas previously excluded for security reasons, the return of normal activity in education and health and a host of other aspects of human life, are all peace dividends. More profound dividends will come only with the dawn of a genuinely permanent peace. Security purists may argue that, in reducing defence expenditure, the Government runs the risk of diluting the country's defence preparedness. They warn that a reduced preparedness will only render the State as well social life vulnerable to attack. But peace can be won only by taking risks. The lowering of State defences may immediately cause worry about vulnerability but, the bold step taken in signalling long term peaceful intentions may encourage peace-making in a way that will only dampen the fires of ethnic hatred and suspicion. LTTE expression The newest newspaper to hit the stands is the 'Dedunna' or 'Rainbow', the Sinhala language official publication of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. It is part of the recent initiative by the LTTE to communicate its message to the Sinhala public. In a country where not only has decades of war widened the gulf between ethnic communities but, the mass media itself has helped create the socio-cultural divergence that has rendered futile all attempts to create a homogenous nation and polity, it is vital that the media takes on the task of re-orienting communicational structures, practices and content in a way that would provide for socio-cultural plurality. The publication of a newspaper by an organisation that was previously seen as remorselessly hostile to the ethnic community in whose language that newspaper had been published is surely a radical re-orientation of communications. A past enemy is reaching out across the ethnic divide in an attempt to bridge the vast gulf of suspicion, anger and fear. While welcoming this initiative, and wishing 'Dedunna' well, the Sunday Observer hopes that such exercises in communication are reciprocated between all communities in the country. |
|
News | Business | Features
| Editorial | Security Produced by Lake House |
