A unified Sri Lanka on the path to rapid progress

By Uditha Kumarasinghe

President Mahinda Rajapaksa is the only national leader who openly challenged the unwinnable war theory of the West and proved to the entire world that terrorism could be defeated through military means. The President by his strategy defeated the LTTE, the most ruthless terrorist outfit in the world by setting an example to the terror-stricken world.

This landmark victory achieved by Sri Lanka made the West think twice before intervening in the internal conflicts of other countries. Today the West is not in a position to advise any conflict-ridden country to adopt their theories any more. Therefore, Sri Lanka's defeat of terrorism is a wake up call to other countries fighting terrorism on a global scale.

President Rajapaksa's name is etched in history as the only leader who gave political leadership to defeat the world's most ruthless terrorist organisation and unite the country. He has embarked on an ambitious program to ensure democracy throughout the country, bringing a new political vision of development and reconciliation for a unified Sri Lankan nation.

Earlier, the Western countries had their own strategies of resolving internal problems and conflicts. They held the belief that an internal issue in a country cannot be settled through military means. Each university in the West while profounding this theory has introduced new subjects such as conflict resolution, conflict management and conflict transformation. The essence of this theory was that an internal problem of any country could be settled through negotiations and not by military means. In fact, they did not call those who had resorted to terrorist activities as terrorists but rebels. The Western countries did not use the word "terrorism" but they preferred 'conflict' or 'crisis'.

In this connection Sri Lanka is a case in point. Even the former leaders who ruled this country had acquiesced in. It is evident that all those countries which blindly followed this were finally divided.

Terrorist problem

However, President Rajapaksa, the first world leader who openly challenged this Western assertion categorically said that the terrorist problem in Sri Lanka could be solved only through military means. This is the unique feature of President Rajapaksa's political sagacity compared to other world leaders.

The Sri Lankan Security Forces' recapture of Mavilaru was the springboard to launch a major humanitarian operation to free the entire Northern Province from the grip of the LTTE. With the professionalism of the Security Forces being promoted under the President's political stewardship terrorism could be eradicated from the Sri Lankan soil on May 19, 2009.

Sri Lanka remained a technically divided country when President Rajapaksa took the reins of this country. Even those superpowers such as the US and UK concede that we were dealing with the most powerful terrorist organisation in the world. They pressurised the President not even to think of waging a war with the LTTE but to go for negotiations. The President did not hesitate to take a determined stand on behalf of the country. In consultation with Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa and the Security Forces, he made up his mind to launch a military campaign to liberate the country.

Despite mounting international pressure, the military operations were launched against terrorists in the form of a humanitarian operation. The President never bowed down to international pressure. The country is fortunate to have a dynamic leader such as President Rajapaksa.

Second term

President Rajapaksa was elected for a second term of office at the Presidential election on January 26, 2010. The vast majority of the people recognised him as the true national leader who liberated the country from the clutches of LTTE terrorism and led it on the path of peace and rapid economic development.

He had set a record in Sri Lankan political history being the first Executive President who led his party to a resounding victory in parliamentary elections held just over two months after his being elected for his second term of office. The President's farsighted vision and leadership have helped the UPFA to secure a two-third majority in Parliament. After the defeat of terrorism, a massive transformation has taken place in the entire country. The Sri Lankan economy has shown remarkable resilience to register a healthy increase in its GDP. It is acknowledged that the recent high growth has pushed Sri Lanka to the level of a lower middle income country. Therefore, the peace dividend has enabled Sri Lanka to become one of the fastest growing economies in the region. At present the entire country especially those in the North and the East are enjoying the dividends of peace. The country's per capita income has also shown a significant increase. All economic indicators too have shown a positive outlook.

The establishment of the Southern Expressway, Magampura Mahinda Rajapaksa Port and Mattala Rajapaksa International Airport bear testimony to the rapid development in the country after defeating terrorism. The government is committed to channel the equal socio-economic and development benefits to the North and the East.

The Government has introduced the Divineguma program to uplift the socio-economic standards of low-income groups. This has helped bring down the strength of the poorest of the poor to less than nine percent from around 15 to 20 percent in the past. Other sectors such as business and tourism are also moving ahead fast. The Government has laid the infrastructure to make Sri Lanka one of the key tourist destinations in the world. As a result, tourist arrivals have shown a dramatic improvement in recent times.