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| Sunday, 25 January 2004 |
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Features |  |
| News Business Features Editorial
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The lady is looking good by H.L.D. Mahindapala
The local media is doing just that in whipping up hysteria on the United Peoples Freedom Alliance (UPFA) signed by the two constituent parties of SLFP and JVP. The pundits ranging from the Marxist left to the right-wing NGOs are reacting like conditioned Pavlovian dogs frothing in the mouth at the sight of something they did not expect to happen. The English media, in particular, is reflecting the nervousness of the alienated, Westernised, English-speaking establishment that recoil in horror each time the grassroots forces raise their heads bleeding with wounds inflicted by centuries of colonial and brown sahibs injustices. Onslaught in media The massive onslaught on the majority in the media is based on the unsustainable assumption that every group has the privilege of claiming their rights except the majority. If these pundits had paused to read the signs of the times (as indicated in the opinion polls and surge of sympathy that swept the nation with the death of Soma Thera) they would realize that the majority is simply reacting to the extremism of the minorities dictating humiliating terms to them. The leaderless majority had sullenly taken all the pummelling they could get from every foreign (Solheims, Chris Pattens, Armitages) and local (NGO, big business, latter day evangelist, terrorist) actors that, in the end, the only public means of expressing their frustration was to shed tears for the leader who gave voice to their hopes. Their non-violent tears said 'enough is enough'. This is the simple meaning of Soma Theras death. This unexpected burst of grassroots energy together with the JVP-SLFP alliance is sending shivers down the spine of the band of NGO manipulators and their allied pundits who have been complacently waiting for their fabricated version of history to triumph. They thought that millions of dollars poured into seminars, publications, and politically driven research centres had won the day. Suddenly they are confronted with a new phenomenon that contradicts their smug theories and conceited triumphalism. They are totally confounded by the new rallying point and the consolidated leadership of the majority that is not likely to toe their line. Their knee-jerk reaction to this is to demonize the JVP in particular and the UPFA in general as the evil axis. Rise of grassroots force With the rise of the grassroots force the ideologues find that their pet theories and manoeuvres to weaken the centre, weaken the majority so that the minorities could rule, mostly with the gun, are coming apart. They have so far managed to create a climate of opinion which denied the majority the right to reclaim their heritage, their rights and their identity. The majority that said that this land must be shared equally by all without surrendering to the extremist demands of only one minority group was denounced as chauvinistic, jingoistic, racist, hegemonistic, not to mention all the other pejorative clich,s of Western political jargon bandied around in foreign-funded NGO seminars. The rights of the historical founders, builders, protectors and preservers of the tolerant, democratic, pluralistic and inclusive culture are denounced as majoritarianism whereas the spurious claims of a mono-ethnic, fascistic, intolerant, undemocratic minority, based on fabricated history concocted in the fifties, are elevated to the level of unquestionable, sovereign minority rights that must be granted at the expense of all other communities. Majoritarianism is applied derogatorily only to Sri Lanka but not to the theistic WASPish (Western Anglo-Saxon Protestant) majorities ruling arrogantly with a few tokenistic concessions to ethnic and religious minorities. Twisted ideology It is this twisted ideology that has come up against the new realities. Baffled by the new realities these ideologues are now wringing their hands raising the bogey of the Western donors the vaunted champions of the free world refusing to shake with the indigenous forces that do not conform to their ideals. Is this true? If so why are all the Western foreign ministers (Chris Patten), the special envoys (Yashushi Akashi) falling at the feet of Velupillai Prabhakaran? The West, of course, has a long history of having intercourse with any political pervert as long as it can get satisfaction by indulging in a mutually satisfactory partnership in or out of bed. In fact, the West likes the sado-masochistic types that kicks and whips them. The more Prabhakaran kicks them the more they fall at his feet pleading to be kicked again and again. Obviously, they must be getting a kick out of it. It didn't take long for the President to learn a lesson or two from Prabhakaran. She resisted all pressures from the West to give in to Ranil and she won. If she caved in it is the West and the UNF that would have kicked her out of office. Doom-sayers The doom-sayers now raise the bogey of the West recognizing Prabhakarans elusive Eelam as a psy-war tactic to block the legitimate aspirations of the majority denied to them by the gun-toting tyranny of the minorities. In real political terms recognizing Prabhakaran is a non-starter because it would be the biggest blow to India's union. It would be the first signal to India that the West will do to them what they had done to Sri Lanka. The West which is wary of India's growing might would be yearning to do just that. Breaking up India into fragments as they are most likely to do to Iraq would provide ample room for the West to play their destructive games of divide and rule. If that is their hidden agenda then their first move would be to break up Sri Lanka and grab a power base in the southern flank to inflame divisive forces in the subcontinent. Will the West do to India what Hanuman did to Sri Lanka? Any sensible think tank will tell the West that setting fire to India is not in the long and the short-term political or economic interests of the West. India signals Besides, India is once again signalling in concrete terms that Sri Lanka comes within the periphery of its strategic interests. This intention is expressed clearly in the Defence Agreement. It focuses partly on India's need to protect its southern flank, particularly after the LTTE began to plough the waters of the Indian Ocean as the third force, side by side with India and Sri Lanka. It also means that India is willing to commit their troops if the need arises to protect its southern flank and the adjacent sea. The West is most unlikely to commit their troops in defence of a separate state in Sri Lanka unless they want to confront India. But India, out of sheer necessity, will have to commit its forces to prevent the birth of a separate state. Besides, the emerging trends are that SAARC is likely to take off if the Indo-Pakistan talks arrive at a satisfactory conclusion. The West cannot afford to recognize Prabhakaran without taking into consideration the overall impact it will have on the region. Prabhakaran stands out as a threat not only to Sri Lanka but to the whole region and, of course, the professed Western political values. So can the West recognize him without threatening the entire SAARC region? Cock-eyed theory Another cock-eyed theory of the anti-majority ideologues predict apocalyptic scenarios to come out of the SLFP cohabiting with the JVP a political entity that has gathered momentum after it entered the democratic process. But the NGO mob has had no qualms about letting the UNF cohabit with a banned terrorist organization which has violated, and continues to violate, every known canon of human rights, rule of law, pluralism and democracy with no positive sign of peace in sight. They are raising the bogey of the JVPs past to scare the voters. But the argument of the city-based UNF and NGOs in supporting the crumbling MoU has been that handing over power to the LTTE would reform the terrorists and turn them into another JVP playing a constructive role in the democratic mainstream. So if the JVP is the model of a reformed political party why worry about it? Shouldn't it be given a chance to prove itself in office? In any case, as things stand right now, JVP and the SLFP are two forces than can balance each other and must remain so if they are to achieve their goals. While the evolving events prove that the JVP has been slowly but surely to democratic centre the LTTE has been veering into violent extremism thumbing their noses at the international community. So should the international community understand and support the JVP or the LTTE? New turn of events In this new turn of events, if the UNF looks as if it is on the verge of being flushed down the toilet then must take full responsibility for its premature end. Chandrika Kumaratunga has more in common with Ranil Wickremesinghe than with Somawansa Amerasinghe. Instead of grabbing her hand Ranil Wickremesinghe went on safaris in the West. But Somawansa Amerasinghe tactfully tended the grassroots. Ranil underestimated the JVP and overestimated the powers of Bush and Blair. Besides, his other ally, the LTTE, knows that they have gone as far as they could with him and they cant wait for Ranil any longer. Nor can the LTTE take to terrorism again. At least not yet! If they are to go anywhere they must get moving with the lady. They have openly declared that they are willing to negotiate with anyone who wins. This leaves Ranil out in the cold. And this leaves the lady looking good; pretty good indeed! There is a clear message in all this for the UNP i.e., those who fly away neglecting the grassroots cannot expect the political field to turn green when they return to reap the harvest. |
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| Editorial | Security Produced by Lake House |
An American visiting England was stunned by the morning papers which
screamed: England going down, Britain on the brink, Collapse imminent. The
evening newspaper summed up the prevailing scenario by saying: England
crashes! Alarmed by the headlines he asked the hotel manager what was
happening to England because everything around him seemed normal. Nothing
to be alarmed, Sir replied the Manager. It's just that we have been beaten
by Australia in the latest test match!
