January 11, 2015
Newly elected President Maithripala Sirisena waving at people in Colombo
By Dileep Chandralal
Professor in International Communication and Deputy Vice-Chancellor of Okinawa University, Japan
Please accept our sincere congratulations on the impressive victory you as the common opposition candidate have achieved in the recent Presidential elections. I have been watching Sri Lanka’s politics and society for decades and repeatedly noticed how the people’s hopes for change shatter into pieces within a short period. This time we are looking forward to seeing how the will of the people expressed in the vote is respected by the new administration.
If the new government fails to produce tangible results after raising voice against corruption and for good governance, it will be targeted from many sides including the people who become disappointed as well as some forces who expect the new administration to fail. All the leaders should rally behind the President and the top leader’s unshakable determination will be paramount in planning a clear vision for the nation and translating government policies into action.
We often see in Sri Lanka politicians travelling in convoy, using public roads as their private roads. This unpleasant habit which reminds us of behaviour of aristocrats in the feudal era should be ended. Sri Lanka people seem to think this is the normal way of politicians anywhere in the world. I have never seen this kind of breaking road rules in any other country. I felt happy when Dr. Wickrema Weerasooriya had voiced the concern recently. Politicians should be made to travel in the same way as ordinary public and obey traffic rules. This is one small thing the new president has to address soon.
In the economic sphere, it is brutally true that our people’s spending for basic needs, including childhood education, health care and food, let alone cultural needs, remains very low. Therefore, we need to change key policies by highlighting crucial social issues, including the widening economic disparities within society. Has the new administration charted out a long-term vision for economic vitalization that aims at rectifying the misguided policies, reducing excessive dependence on foreign loans, identifying the priorities and expanding the country’s manufacturing base? Unless the administration presents bolder reform measures in unambiguous and concrete terms in such areas as creating jobs and improving the levels of wages, the people will be compelled to eke out a meager living or in worst case to earn a living through unscrupulous methods. While raising the standard of living, we have to consider how to enrich our lives further, paying attention to higher human needs. Only then would dignity percolate into the people’s minds.
We must place greater emphasis on investing in people. It is necessary to allocate a greater portion of our nation’s financial resources to education, health care development and disaster management. Such expenditures can be regarded as a form of investment in our country’s future. The last year witnessed the occurrence of many natural disasters in many parts of the world, devastating human lives and natural landscapes. It is children and women that suffer greatly in these disasters all over the world. Sri Lanka is no exception. Last year floods and landslides wiped out some villages and residential areas in rural regions. We should be more prepared for natural disasters that may occur at any time of the year due to climatic changes of the world and develop disaster management strategies.
We talk about corruption and good governance. But, are we teaching our children about the importance of good practices in a practical way? Most children who are entering prestigious schools know in practice that they got this opportunity by their parents’ giving bribes to the school principals. Overwhelming evidence has surfaced of widespread and deeply ingrained practice of accepting bribes and corruption as part of everyday life. Politicians, bureaucrats and clerks unethically and shamefully use taxpayer’s money without any hesitation. These unacceptable practices seep into the minds of our children, who will grow up to do the same in the future.
Certainly, tougher anti-corruption laws and stricter law enforcement are necessary to prevent people of upper ranks from helping themselves to public funds. However, we must place great focus on instilling civic ethics, values and sense of duty and responsibility in our children’s minds. Unless we strengthen values education and teach children from formative years why bribery and abusing power are unacceptable personally and socially, the social cancer of corruption and exploiting public wealth for the personal benefit will continue, being reproduced generation after generation.
The UNESCO report 1996 "Learning: The treasure within" explicates and advocates the teaching of the core values and related values and how to teach them. For instance, Core Values of Peace and Justice and Sustainable human development include active non-violence, social responsibility, equality, stewardship of resources and work ethic, among others. The report offers guidelines usable in teacher training workshops. How far have we adopted these practical methods in our primary and secondary education in order to alleviate corruption, abuse of power and other malpractices? We must foster our next generation to be good citizens, not plunderers, treasure hunters or blind consumers, for that matter.
Our future vision should include the coexistence of economic growth and good governance along with well-balanced fiscal policies. It is not that the people rejected economic growth and political stability. Their vote was for achieving positive growth, striking a balance between economic recovery and cultural nourishment. It was a demand for a happy mixture of materiality and morality. The path taken during the recent past is marked with heavy focus on economic and physical infrastructure development. The foreign-funded infrastructure development strategy is not a viable option for a small country like ours. The people’s vote for the new administration reflected a will for morality-based politics and sustainable growth.
We have to deliberate and come to a consensus on what should be preserved as the soul of the country and be passed over to the future generations and also to the world. It is far-sighted to set great value on natural resources and cultural assets. This will never prevent a country from achieving its economic and material potential. Instead, it will allow us to get the best use of our limited natural and cultural resources. Let me give some examples from other countries.
Traditional Japanese food was recognized as an intangible cultural asset by the United Nations. It paved the way for Japanese food to be well known all over the world. Last year the U.N. proclaimed June 21 to be International Day of Yoga, following a proposal from Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The U.N. adopted this resolution inviting governments worldwide to seize the opportunity of that day to raise awareness about the benefits of practicing yoga.
Malaysian government has proclaimed the first Sunday of every month as Kuala Lumpur Car Free Morning. Car Free Morning not only bars vehicles entering the city but also allows everyone to enjoy a leisurely stroll or ride bicycles through the city, breathing fresh air. According to a recent news item, Uruguay, a small country with a population of 3.3 million, has already been successful in producing enough food for 28 million people. With its big plans for smart agriculture, it has set a target of feeding 50 million people, 15 times of its population! Don’t we have something to offer to the world in this way? It is time for planning and action.
What happens in Sri Lanka today and what we hear about it does not indicate the existence of any plans toward a healthy future. The stringent situation facing the nation is symbolized by the fact that acts of violence and injustice are so rampant, and moreover, we are encouraged to overlook them even by some erudite scholars. Sri Lanka could face a gloomy future unless it curbs this decline. Now is the time for our nation to make a sober assessment of the situation and make a radical change in consciousness necessary for creating a compassionate society so that the people can maintain peaceful and stable lives.
Continuing efforts for the resolution of the ethnic problems will not only bring peace and stability to the country but also enhance Sri Lanka’s international reputation which has been largely damaged during the past decade. Rather than crying over ‘International conspiracies’, now we can get into action to do something meaningful and solid to defeat ‘enemies within’ and to explore ‘treasures within’! Then international cooperation, in the form of advice, voice, aids, investment and tourism, will flow into our country. Let us turn to consensual politics and draw up an agreement to accumulate ‘Social Capital’ such as protecting natural environment, preserving cultural assets, building social infrastructure, and developing a healthy social system.
I sincerely hope that the new President will successfully navigate the nation towards the said goal, being humble enough to listen to people with an open mind and judging the matters with impartiality.
Views expressed in this article are author own 
( January 12, 2015, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) The outcome of the Sri Lankan election last Thursday, with Maithripala Sirisena ousting Mahinda Rajapakse as president, has ominous implications for the working class, not only in Sri Lanka and South Asia but throughout the world.
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