The Political Emancipation Of Sri Lanka
The current parliamentary election presents a clear division between democratic forces and anti-democratic forces. A victory for democracy would offer a generational chance of resolving some of the fault lines in Sri Lankan society. The Rajapaksa regime won the war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) but they used this victory to defeat the legitimate democratic aspirations of the Tamil people. When the Muslim community was attacked the law was not applied and the perpetrators got away scott-free. The war victory was also used to plunder state resources, cover up frauds and corruption and augment personal wealth. Their authoritarian rule maintaining the white van culture brazenly violated the right to life and ’disappeared’
journalists as well as political opponents. Their shrewd use of intimidation and violence against innocent people was unprecedented in perpetuating their dominance in the democratic political history of this country despite decades of war and emergencies. Members of the traditional left parties ended up being implicated in these misdeeds.
Prior to the announcement of the Presidential election last year the United National Party (UNP) looked a deeply divided party over with various factions fighting on the streets in the South. With the decision to backMaithripala Sirisena, they suddenly appeared to regroup with an almost steely determination. The UNP and the civil organizations that supported him looked the antithesis of the Rajapaksa regime – and gave civil society a genuine choice. That is how the long night of the Rajapaksa regime ended and the democratic will of all those who suffered and millions and millions of people were awoken to their democratic rights. The Rajapaksa regime is reluctant take any responsibility for the grave mistakes they have committed and have used the divisive rhetoric of religion and language to arouse the anxieties and fears of the Sinhalese Buddhistpeople in an attempt to return to power in the current parliamentary election.
