And Then What?
Emil van der Poorten
This is a piece that I wrote for the December 15th, 2007 – January 15th, 2008 issue of the now-defunct Montage Magazine. I’m leaving it with no effort at editing or updating for readers to decide what, if anything, has changed in Sri Lanka in very nearly six years.
And Then What?
With the Sri Lankan armed forces’ juggernaut seemingly on an unstoppable march and the prospect of the LTTE being vanquished (read Tamils of the North and East being reduced to abject fear and misery), what is in store for the country as a whole?
There have already been ominous signals of the emergence of robber gangs armed with sophisticated light arms running loose, it has been suggested, with the connivance of the local security personnel. In fact, in one small town in the North Western Province, there was a symbolic shop closure and protest by local merchants who had seen about two dozen break and enter thefts of their premises within a very short period of time. Their contention was that there was no way that this could have happened without the local constabulary, at the very least, turning a blind eye. What emerged from this attempt to obtain redress is anybody’s guess, because the climate of fear prevailing in the area has prevented the discussion of the issue any further, a general consensus appearing to be that to exceed the one symbolic gesture would be tempting the fates in a country where the law of the jungle enforced by white-van-driving Sri Lankan Ton Ton Macoutes prevails.
If the prospect of armed gangs running rampant wasn’t enough, the lack of discipline of elements of the security forces should give us pause. The better-than-a-hundred troops sent back from the UN Peace Keeping Force in Haiti for what one paper called “being naughty” should make us sit up and pay attention. The alleged sexual misconduct, inclusive of sexual assault of minors by members of an army that the President very recently proclaimed as being the most disciplined armed force in the world hardly merits additional comment.
A recent newspaper defined Sri Lanka’s response to anything resembling question, criticism or censure from sources outside the country as simply, “Deny” and “Defy.” Whether within the triumphalism that will be reinforced in spades after the subjugation of the LTTE (read Tamil people) even this response would be felt necessary, is anybody’s guess. After all, once you have established absolute power, it would hardly be necessary to fall back on Richard M. Nixon’s exhortation to his troops when the chickens came home to roost: “Deny, deny, deny.” In such a situation the ability of external forces to influence events in Sri Lanka is not something to wager on. Read More
More Balanced Foreign Policy & Capable Diplomats Needed, Allowing Casino Is Not Bad – Dr. Saman Kelegama
October 13, 2013 |
“It is very important to have capable and eloquent diplomats in Sri Lanka’s embassies, in order to be able to canvass issues and economic interests more successfully. It is important to bear in mind that the West is an important market, and have a balanced foreign policy towards Western countries, in Sri Lanka’s best interests” says Dr. Saman Kelegama.October 13, 2013
“It is very important to have capable and eloquent diplomats in Sri Lanka’s embassies, in order to be able to canvass issues and economic interests more successfully. It is important to bear in mind that the West is an important market, and have a balanced foreign policy towards Western countries, in Sri Lanka’s best interests” says Dr. Saman Kelegama.October 13, 2013
Dr. Saman Kelegama
Delivering a lecture on the topic “Economic Dimensions of Sri Lanka’s Foreign Policy”, last evening at the BCIS (Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies) in Colombo, today (Oct 12, 2013), the Executive Director of the Institute of Policy Studies and a well-known economist in Sri Lanka said; “ allowing of casinos is not a bad thing, because gambling is a matter of choice, in the world casino rankings, Macau is number 1, Las Vegas is at number 2 and Singapore is now at number 3, the present government policy of letting in casinos is not a bad thing for Sri Lanka overall.
Dr. Kelegama spoke of how economic policy agendas of Sri Lanka have influenced its foreign policy under various countries, at multilateral, regional and bilateral levels.
He said that from 1948 to 1955, the foreign policy was influenced by the market economic models that were inherited from the colonial regime that existrd before. The market for key exports (more than 90% plantation items) was the West. Thus, foreign policy was dictated by a tilt towards the West. Commonwealth membership and the initiation of the Colombo Plan (1951) were with Western support for the economy. Read More
