Thursday, May 9, 2019

Anatomy of an Islamist Infamy (II)

The nation’s Government is in a state of paralysis, which has deteriorated so badly that neither the President, nor the Prime Minister and not even the Opposition had any clue about the growing terror menace in their backyard. Not only was there an intelligence failure, but also a determined indifference towards information received from local as well as foreign sources. Why was this indifference? Or was it also a deliberate neglect? The Easter Sunday infamy was the product of this paralysis and negligence – Pic by Shehan Gunasekara

Wednesday, 8 May 2019

It takes two hands to clap and make a noise, and what a deadly noise did Sri Lankans hear during that fatal Easter Sunday? In the first part of this analysis, the Muslim leadership’s hand was identified and discussed. The second part looks at the hand of governments that governed this country since Independence, and how they laid the remainder of the bricks that paved the bloody road.
Politicisation of Buddhism
Long before Ashraff and his SLMC allowed Islamism creep into Muslim politics, Bandaranaike (SWRD) politicised Buddhism to win his electoral battle against the UNP. His landslide victory at the 1956 General Elections, to which he harnessed the support of Buddhist monks, Ayurvedic physicians, and village school teachers, demonstrated the political potential of Buddhism in changing governments in Sri Lanka, which even led the American CIA to politicise Buddhism in South East Asia to fight against the rise of communism (Eugene Ford, “Cold War Monks”, 2017). While SWRD won the elections and lost his life at the hands of a Buddhist monk, the Americans harnessed Buddhism and lost the fight against communism in Vietnam and Cambodia.

In Sri Lanka, although Buddhism continued to play its role in mobilising support to different political parties, because of the looming Sinhalese-Tamil ethno-nationalist confrontation from the mid-1950s, it was ethnicity rather than religion that dominated the political stage, although in the 1960s Buddhism once again joined the political campaign against Roman Catholicism, when the SLFP Government decided to nationalise all denominational educational institutions. Even today, there is one Buddhist monk in Parliament. What is there to stop more entering? The question is, is that the legitimate place for Buddhist monks? Only the Sangha can answer this question.
Politics of pragmatism
However, to all governments after independence, and for that matter, to the Sinhalese people as a whole, Muslims and Islam were never a problem. By aligning with the governments in power and in supporting the Sinhalese against Tamils, Muslim leaders until late 1980s showed an incredible talent in pragmatic politics, through which their community was rewarded handsomely.

There was another reason why governments were particularly keen to keep Muslims on their side. This was the Muslim connection to the outside world. Theoretically, Sri Lankan Muslims are part of the universal Muslim Ummah, or community. Therefore, any anti-Muslim policy or open discrimination against that community would provoke adverse reaction from the Muslim world, whose economic assistance and support in the international fora were badly needed to an emerging Sri Lanka. When the civil war broke out in the 1980s, these considerations became paramount.

Politics of pragmatism enabled the Muslim community to live peacefully and thrive economically, socially, culturally, and educationally, from the day they set foot in the country. The 1915 Sinhalese-Muslim riots was an aberration, caused by an alien element that was soon forgotten by both communities. From the 1980s to 2009, all communities, including the Tamils, suffered from an unnecessary but expensive civil war. When the LTTE was defeated in 2009, and when a victorious President Rajapaksa declared that there would be no more Sinhalese, Tamils, or Muslims in the future, but only Sri Lankans, everyone who heard him felt a sigh of relief. Everyone thought that democracy, with its principles of equality, freedom, and justice had returned with vengeance. Alas! The nation was greatly disappointed when the same President allowed a vociferous minority of far-right Buddhists to overrule him, and declare that Sri Lanka is a Buddhist country, and that minorities are allowed to live here only at the behest of Buddhists. No Buddhist politician or leader challenged this assertion.
Rise of the far-right
Encouraged by the military victory against Tamils, the larger minority, far-right Buddhist elements now focused their attention on the smaller minority, Muslims. Thus, instead of popular democracy, the country entered into an era of ethno-religious majoritarian democracy.

Far-right politics is a twenty-first century phenomenon that arose out the failure of a much-touted neoliberal economic globalisation, and is now destabilising several Western democracies, including the USA. The open economy of Sri Lanka, which embraced the neoliberal philosophy since 1978, also began to feel the effects of that failure. Economic cleavages were widening, national debt was increasing, cost of living was rising, and corruption reigned supreme in government management. Without understanding or refusing to understand the unfolding of this major drama, the far-right, like in the West, began to scape-goat the Muslim minority for all the evils.

The growing Islamism, an emerging commercial rivalry, and a deliberately provoked fear among the Sinhalese of a looming Muslim population explosion, fuelled an anti-Muslim fire lit by the far-right elements. The issue of Islamism has already been dealt with in Part One. In an open economy that encourages free enterprise and competition, not everyone can succeed. Competition can be cruel as well as rewarding, depending on one’s innovative, hardworking and marketing ability, and talent.

Historically, Sri Lankan Muslims were best known for their commercial and business acumen. They did well under the capitalist economy after independence, but suffered under the socialist regime of Srimavo’s leftist coalition, between 1970 and 1977. When Jayawardene enunciated the end of dirigisme and reintroduced capitalism, Muslims once again took advantage of it, and a few did extremely well. A couple of leading retail fashion establishments in the country for, example, are Muslim owned, and so are a few leading restaurants in Colombo and other big cities. These, in particular, became an eyesore to the far-right nationalists. Several Muslim businesses were burnt, looted, and ransacked under false pretences. Security for these businesses were pathetically lacking. There was and still is a vicious campaign unleashed by anti-Muslim groups to boycott Muslim shops and businesses. There is evidence that certain Sinhalese businesses were funding this anti-Muslim campaign. A government’s inaction or delayed action against these hoodlums naturally angered the business community. Justice delayed is justice denied.

Some smart but pseudo-experts in demography within the far-right deliberately twisted the census statistics, and presented a phantasmagorical picture about a looming Muslim population explosion, to make the Sinhalese a minority in Sri Lanka. Without any understanding of, or deliberately ignoring, factors that determine population growth in the short and long runs, these pseudo-experts showed that the 9% of Muslims in this country will soon become the majority, and create an Islamic state, because of Muslim women’s unusual fecundity. That the Government Department of Census and Statistics denied their conclusions did not discourage them. To strengthen their argument, they even claimed, without any concrete proof, that Muslim businessmen and restaurateurs were distributing contraceptives to Sinhalese female customers, to reduce the birth rate among them.

All this created an environment of Islamophobia that led to sporadic anti-Muslim riots. Aluthgama, Ampara, Gintota, and Digana were the prominent ones. That a few Buddhist monks participated in these riots while police was looking the other way is further evidence of the politicisation of Buddhism. These riots took place both under the Rajapaksa Presidency as well as the Sirisena Presidency. Both presidencies and governments under them failed to take stern action to bring the perpetrators to books. The main reason for this failure was the need to protect the Buddhist vote bank. If the first bloody brick towards the Easter infamy was laid by Wahhabists in Kattankudy, more were laid by the far-right in Aluthgama, Ampara, Gintota and Digana.
Vote bank
In the ethno-religious democracy of Sri Lanka, the primary objective of every politician and every political party is not to work for the prosperity of the country and its people or its economy, but to capture the ethnic or religiously divided vote bank to remain in or capture power. It is this political strategy of present and past regimes that has weakened the rule of law in Sri Lanka. Recent governments have all been coalitions. One important component in these coalitions had been the SLMC and its splinter ACMC. In such a coalition, if the government shows tolerance towards lawlessness of the supporters of one segment of the coalition, how can it deny the same tolerance towards the lawlessness of the supporters of another segment?

It was this dilemma and the powerlessness of Muslim coalition partners in the government to deliver justice to Muslim victims that made a militant section of Wahhabi activists to seek revenge. To put it bluntly, while the Sinhalese politicians were tolerating unruly far-right Buddhists and their anti-Muslim rampaging, Muslim politicians had no choice but to tolerate Wahhabi extremists, who were becoming militant in front of their eyes. Let us illustrate this point with two instances.

One of the monks closely associated with anti-Muslim violence is Galagoda Aththe Gnanasara. There is ample evidence to prove this monk’s un-Buddhist behaviour. He is no doubt in prison now, but not for his involvement in violence, but for contempt of court in relation to an unrelated case. However, how does one explain the attempt by some prominent Buddhists, including one Mahanayake, to get him released from prison through Presidential pardon on the eve of this year’s independent day celebrations? Although the move failed because of widespread protests, this episode demonstrates clearly the prevailing attitude within certain influential groups, which seem to believe that justice, law, and order must serve the interests of them more favourably than those of others.

The second instance is related to the Mawanella bigotry in December last year. This bigotry was a clear signal to the government that something far more sinister and serious was brewing within the Muslim community. Although the police took some action and made a few arrests, no one bothered to go to the bottom of that incident and dig out what motivated those bigots to do what they did. Was that a deliberate neglect? Had that been done, there would not have been a Bloody Easter. However, after that, there was one shooting incident in which the victim was a minister’s secretary. Police made an arrest, but according to that minister, the person arrested was released because of pressure from a powerful politician. Doesn’t this show that politicians and political groups are protecting even criminals among their supporters in order to safeguard their respective vote banks? This is the tragedy in Sri Lanka.

Sri Lanka does not need an Anti-terrorism Act to maintain law and order. All that it needs is to apply the existing law without fear or favour and allow the judiciary to act independently.
Government in paralysis
The situation deteriorated and became almost comical after October last year, when the President, acting on dubious advice, unconstitutionally dismissed the elected Prime Minister and prorogued Parliament. It took three months until the Judiciary put the Prime Minister back on his seat and restored his Government.

Since that restoration, and in light of the forthcoming Presidential election, which is to be preceded or followed by a General Election, the nation’s Government is in a state of paralysis. A President who wants to sabotage the Prime Minister and the Government, a Government surviving on life support from minority parties, and an Opposition which will not shy away from whipping up ethno-nationalism to capture Government, is a recipe for uncertainty and disharmony.

The paralysis deteriorated so badly that neither the President, nor the Prime Minister and not even the Opposition had any clue about the growing terror menace in their backyard. Not only was there an intelligence failure, but also a determined indifference towards information received from local as well as foreign sources.

Why was this indifference? Or was it also a deliberate neglect? The Easter Sunday infamy was the product of this paralysis and negligence. What should be done now and how to move forward? That will be answered in the concluding part of this analysis.

10 years today - Final ‘No Fire Zone’ declared

Marking 10 years since the Sri Lankan military onslaught that massacred tens of thousands of Tamils, we revisit the final days leading up to the 18th of May 2009 – a date remembered around the world as ‘Tamil Genocide Day’. The total number of Tamil civilians killed during the final months is widely contested. After providing an initial death toll of 40,000, the UN found evidence suggesting that 70,000 were killed. Local census records indicate that at least 146,679 people are unaccounted for and presumed to have been killed during the Sri Lankan military offensive.

8th May 2009

Photograph above: Shells land inside the No Fire Zone on May 8th 2009.

With GPS co-ordinates, Sri Lanka attacks hospitals

The Sri Lankan military stepped up its barrage of the No Fire Zone with heavy shelling reported, including with cluster munitions.

The US State Department quotes a HRW source in the NFZ who “witnessed an SLA drone conduct reconnaissance above the Valayanmadam hospital”.

“Shortly thereafter the hospital was attacked, killing four or five people including a doctor and wounding more than 30. Several sources informed HRW that each time a hospital was established in a new location, GPS coordinates of the facility were transmitted to the Sri Lankan government to ensure that the facility would be protected from military attack. Witnesses said that on several occasions, attacks occurred on the day after the coordinates had been transmitted.”

Final ‘No Fire Zone’ declared

The Sri Lankan government declared the third and final No Fire Zone.

The OISL reports “tens of thousands of civilians were squeezed into this tiny area”.

“The SLA force now confronting the LTTE was probably in excess of 50,000 soldiers, with significant heavy weapons capability and air supremacy… The SLA was on one side of a large lagoon, the LTTE on the other, the civilians being at some distance behind the LTTE.

However, witnesses, described to the OISL “continuous shelling and devastation as the shells hit the ground”. One source told the OISL,

“Firing from the SLA would pass over the LTTE front line “and impact on the civilians behind it”.”

“He said that everyone was squeezed into a small piece of land and practically each time a shell fell, people would be injured and killed. Another witness said he saw nine people being killed when a shell hit a mango tree by a well where they had gathered. One saw a woman killed when a shell hit her bunker… she had a sewing machine and used to make cloth bags to fill with sand for the bunker. “

Often, people fled when family members were killed – they had no time to mourn or bury the dead…” Another witness described seeing more than a 100 dead bodies, including children, near his bunker.”

Meanwhile General Shavendra Silva, the Commander of the 58th Division, stated,

“At the last stages of the operation we just did not go blind, everything was planned through UAV pictures and where we exactly knew where the civilians and the LTTE were and where we found that at least a little bit of confusion whether the civilians are too close to the LTTE cadres we had to resort to other means and buy time to separate the two parties.”

No food, no medicine

The US State Department reported said that “local sources in the NFZ reported that a supply ship had arrived but was forced by the GSL to return to Trincomalee with its cargo of food and medicine still on board. The sources reported that the SLN had refused to allow them to offload the cargo, and then began firing on the beach.”

“An organization reported that shipments of food and medicine to the NFZ were grossly insufficient over the prior month and that the GSL reportedly delayed or denied timely shipment of life-saving medicines as well as chlorine tablets. A source in the NFZ reported that patients were brought to the hospital for fainting attacks attributed to their lack of food.”

“Mothers were crying at the hospital and asking for milk powder. They had not eaten and were unable to feed their children, but the hospital did not have milk powder in stock.”

Photographs: The aftermath of attacks inside the No Fire Zone on May 8th 2009.

Heavy rains at internment camps

Rains in Vavuniya, where hundreds of thousands of Tamils were being interned, cause mass flooding.

Looking Beyond: Muslim ‘Accountability’, Govt’s Culpability & Geopolitics

By Mohamed Harees –MAY 7, 2019

Lukman Harees

Among the most positive developments, worthy of admiration, in the aftermath of this despicable tragedy, are the level of maturity of our people, timely interventions by the authorities to maintain peace, as well as the exemplary leadership provided by Rev. Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith. They contributed significantly towards averting a major bloodbath as well as maintaining law and order. However, what is most disconcerting has been the sensationalism by some sections of the Media, as well as hate peddling promoted by political and social media warriors, to rekindle racist fires designed to re-create communal tensions and disturbances targeting the Muslims. This is a time where those affected by this unspeakable catastrophe needs consolation and support to overcome this unbearable trauma and therefore adding fuel to fire by these irresponsible elements will have explosive consequences. It is also a fact that the whole Muslim community too, has been going through the most stressful and the most challenging period in their known history, feeling ashamed, enraged and bewildered due to the vile actions of this fringe radical extremist terror group arising from among their ranks. It is therefore imperative that Muslims should not be seen as part of the problem; rather as part of the solution to overcome this national tragedy. Taking them into confidence is a sine-qua-non in this context.

Even the fiercest of critics admit that the fringe group is only a minuscule decimal percentage among the Muslim community and already the community has realized the need to eliminate this cancer in the best interests of both theirs as well as the nation. To the Muslims, this radicalized group have brought shame on them and their religion and have polluted their credible track record of over 1000 years. No one therefore feel much more compelled to root out this menace than the mainstream Muslims themselves- hitherto a blind spot for them. Already they have started their mission which is well reflected in the level of roundups and detections. Even the bodies of those involved in this gravest crimes were not allowed into their graveyard. Further, the community also fell in line with any national imperatives including the ban on full face cover. What beggars belief however is, how the many leads and prior information given to the government and its’ intelligence agencies by some sections of the Muslim community and the ACJU about this violence prone NTJ group from time to time, were not taken seriously, which ultimately led to this avoidable tragedy.

In this context, the Muslims of Sri Lanka should not be made to fall into the same fate as their co-religionists in the US as it happened after 09/11.There are some clear concerns. Firstly, there is media terrorism where many conspiracy theories about Muslims are being published without any verification, specially Sinhala media outlets such as Hiru and Derana, and even newspapers too. There is also no rationale for TV media teams to accompany the security forces on their combing out operations. There are many instances where TV outlets have been showing, the privacy of homes without any restrictions including those taken in and later released without charges, portraying them as culprits. Secondly, there seems to be lack of religious and cultural sensitivity on the part of the Police and armed forces when they were seen to enter places of worship for example not removing the shoes when entering the mosques, and dealing with the holy books, as well as for privacy when entering houses. Besides, there have been several reported arbitrary arrests too and lawyers are refusing to appear out of fear. Thirdly, it was a fact, that the Muslims during earlier communal violence in Aluthgama and Digana, were initially disarmed and under the cover of curfew, goons were allowed to attack the un-armed Muslims at will when the armed forces were watching. They perceive that this ‘disarming operation of individuals possessing minor weapons of self defence’ being only limited to Muslims ( I am not referring to large hauls of weapons found) has a similar devious plan in mind. Poratota incident is a case in point. Security forces should have this perception cleared and all individuals irrespective of nationality should be disarmed. Thus, failure to exercise caution and reassure Muslims or adopt double standards, will result in innocent Muslims becoming losing faith in the system who may then be targets of radical recruiters. These challenges were seen during Tiger time too, in winning the confidence of the community and it is foolhardy to ignore those lessons learnt.

There are also calls for the Muslim community to assume collective guilt. These type of calls are usually heard, even in other parts of the world, whenever a racist, terror group or a terrorist with a Muslim name commits mass murder or a massacre. On the contrary, it is not the case, when a white supremacist commits a similar crime, most likely he will be called a psychopath or a lone wolfer. If an entire group is asked to assume collective blame for the actions of individuals, it makes it totally reasonable to exact revenge from any person from that group, and thus it will put all of them at risk . Further, calling for Muslims to assume collective guilt or shaming them will provoke defensiveness, not understanding. What is important for the people and the security forces to realize is that the mainstream Muslims are on the same page as the rest of the population when it comes to fighting this common evil of radicalism and terrorism. They should be viewed as equal partners in fighting this menace without the whole community being shown the red card. In fact, Muslims have been the biggest victims of the menace of Al Qaida and ISIS inspired terrorism. To them, religion of their victims is immaterial.

I WEEP FOR MY BELOVED COUNTRY

8 May 2019

As I ponder sadly on the Easter Sunday disaster still wiping my tears, our hearts go out to the hundreds killed, and those injured and most of all, to those who lost their nearest and dearest ones in the blasts. The murderers have left in their wake shattered dreams, lives of children blasted to death before they lived life to the full, sole wage earners in homes, wives lost their husbands, husbands their wives, parents lost their beloved children, there couldn’t possibly be a worse loss than those.

Where do we go from here? Extremism in any form, in any race or religion must be condemned by all those who put our beloved nation first. We have suffered far too much from this calamity, which devours the mindset of those who carry out these bomb attacks , who seem to have lost their hearts and minds, in the process of developing into fanatics. As a start,children should be taught all religions, this should be made compulsory in the school curriculum. It is only then that they will respect other religions, learn tolerance of other religions and races and be able to live side by side with all ethnic groups in peaceful co-existence. No race or religion is superior to another, they all have the same aim, are guided by similar values and principles. Ever since the attacks in Aluthgama and Beruwala mosques and in Digana and Teldeniya, I feared retaliation, although I never dreamt it would come so soon in this way and form.

I never dreamt it would come so soon in this way and form
Christians have set an example in not hitting back in acts of revenge

There may well be a link between drugs and these attacks as has been said, as I think one would have to be under the influence of drugs to do what they did, in blatant disregard for human life and suffering. I still fail to comprehend why the attack was on Christians. There are different theories, I am no expert on these but some think the link with drugs and high ranking Catholic clergy taking part in protests against drugs, figured in the thinking behind the attacks on Churches. But we must realize that it’s not only Muslims who are involved in the drug trade, which is yet another killer, also that all Muslims are not terrorists or in sympathy with the extremists. The earlier attack on a Church in Anuradhapura was also done by extremists of another sort, again no action was taken by the Police, till the Prime Minister was informed and ordered quick action. In the case of the Easter blasts too, the Defence authorities and the Police were blamed for not passing on the information to the Prime Minister in the absence of the President who is the Minister of Defence and Law and Order.

It is not the time for passing the buck or the blame, all political parties must take a firm stand against fanatics and extremism in any form, whatever the religion, the race or whether the people involved are their political supporters or friends. We must ensure that there is no backlash against Muslims. In this respect, Christians have set an example in not hitting back in acts of revenge. Jesus Christ’s words on the cross have been followed to the letter through which perhaps, we will see a ray of light at the end of the dark tunnel, with this example being followed by others in similar situations.

Defence authorities and the Police were blamed for not passing on the information to the PM in the absence of the President who is the Minister of Defence and Law and Order

It was a disaster that this had happened just as we were getting back on our feet and on the right road to recovery after the 51-day illegal government. The economy was stabilized as inflation was brought down by March this year, the trade deficit was at its lowest level in over five years in February, the rupee had appreciated - the third best performing currency in the world in 2019.

Our foreign reserves stand at US$ 7.7. billion covering over four months of import requirements. Interest rates have declined by over 100 basic points this year as fiscal consolidation delivered results with a 0.6% primary budget surplus in 2018. We were chosen as the best destination for 2019 by Lonely Planet. So it seems as if this was an attempt to stall all that as well and throw us back into the economic chaos the government inherited in 2015, whose rulers, to use a Churchillian phrase were ‘happy warriors of squandermania’. Who knows, what was behind it? Power hungry politicians trying to grab power are stating that there was law and order in their time. How can that be? Murders of journalists, disappearances, white vans,attacks on mosques and in Alutgama all happened then.

Of course this time there were more bomb blasts of much bigger proportions. But they did happen,besides those instances of those who broke the law, in one way or another who got away because they were their friends. Chaos, it has been said is sometimes used as a ladder, for those whose greed for power, is greater than their love for their nation. But it is in the worst possible taste to try to gain power in such situations. But one cannot expect better from such individuals with their track records.

In this scenario of death, destruction and terrorism at its worst, I appeal to MP’s and Ministers of the government to stop in fighting and making statements against each other. This is bad for the party and for our beloved nation. It is only unity at all levels which can be the most powerful weapon against terrorism. People are also asking why no action has been taken against those who destroyed chairs, threw chilly powder and bibles in Parliament and behaved worse than street hooligans, while their Leader stood watching with a smirk on his face. This is the worst possible example for youth when they see that law makers are law breakers at a high level, and no action is taken against them.

This is not the time for political intrigue, back stabbing and attempts to gain points. It was heartening that Indian Prime Minister Modi, US President Trump, British PM Theresa May and Pakistan’s Imran Khan called Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe personally to offer help and condolences, All these countries have faced terrorist attacks, some of their people were killed in the attacks on hotels. A family of tourists who lost family have stated that they intend to start a memorial fund to help other victims, while other regular tourists have stated that this would not stop them coming here.

A family of tourists who lost family have stated that they intend to start a memorial fund to help other victims, while other regular tourists have stated that this would not stop them coming here

This is indeed a silver lining and gives us a ray of hope in our sorrow, in spite of unkind, unfair remarks about him, it is obvious that PM Ranil is the only Sri Lankan Leader who commands wide international respect. Disunity is not his fault, he has never slandered back when attacked trying hard to keep unity going for the sake of the country. He never lies to gain political advantage, but there are those who continue to slander him even accusing him of prior knowledge of the bomb blasts which is a blatant lie. It looks as if he was purposely kept in the dark for some hidden agenda, reasons still unknown.

I close with words from Rev. W.S. Senior. ‘But most shall we think of Lanka, in the brave new days that come. When the races all have blended and the voice of strife is dumb. When we leap to a single bugle, march to a single drum.’

Leadership lessons from the Easter attack

Wednesday, 8 May 2019

After a brutal 30 year civil war, LTTE was finally crushed by the military in May 2009. Since then, Sri Lankans were enjoying the peace dividends for the last 10 years despite multiple challenges on different fronts. The Easter attacks have revived the painful memories and thrown the citizens into new fears of insecurity, while the leaders grapple with the apparent intelligence failure. Let me first express my strong condemnation over these brutal attacks and my thoughts and prayers are with the victims, their families and all those affected by the explosions.

The true leadership capacity of a person is tested during times of crisis. Performance under stress can show how quick-witted or level-headed a person is. On the other hand it can also show where their weaknesses lie. There seems to be more attention on the words and deeds of certain political leaders and responsible officials, than the attack itself. Some are passing the ball with a blame game while the opportunists are trying to take political mileage.

Amidst the chaos, Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith emerged as the ‘uncontested man-of-the-match’ for his timely intervention and wise words in the circumstances that prevented a possible outrage and spreading of violence among communities. The most disappointing part of the attack is the perception being built among the masses based on the evidence that came into light, that the disaster could have been avoided, had the leaders at different levels been more vigilant and proactive. Some label the disaster as an outburst of a leadership crisis rather than an unavoidable terrorist attack.

The phenomenon itself is a rich case study with many lessons, where a few hundreds of innocent civilians paid the price. Let me discuss a few leadership lessons stemming from this catastrophe, especially in handling a crisis, considering how different leaders have responded to the same.

A good leader takes responsibility and acts with maturity

Rather than panicking or losing their cool, strong leaders remain calm and poised. It’s natural for the people to look for the leaders when there is a crisis and it’s vital that the leaders take responsibility for what’s happening and take control of the situation, playing a fatherly role. Someone who is too proud to admit his own mistake is not likely to be someone that others will follow. Taking responsibility for any actions that could have contributed to the crisis helps the leader to get people into working on the situation wholeheartedly, instead of just because they have to.

Unfortunately, what we saw was a blame game by the top leaders which only exposed their collective failure to prevent the disaster. This has not only elevated the sense of insecurity among general public but also added to their disappointment. When people lose their confidence in the leaders, there is a tendency for people to take control over things and act on their own will, which can invoke further issues.

The maturity of a leader is also about knowing what not to talk during a crisis. There will be more attention from multiple stakeholders including media with baseless allegations and confrontations. The leaders should have the patience in responding to these stakeholders as certain information shared by the leader to manage the situation may have unwarranted consequences, especially when sensitive internal information and weaknesses are divulged.

A good leader sees the big picture

This, in my view, is the most important competency for a leader which distinguishes him from the rest of the crowd. This is not only about the ability to see the forest when the people see the trees, but also the ability to connect the dots and the capability to predict the future. Instead of the short-term, opportunistic, populous political game playing, the leaders are expected to focus on the vital issues and long term perspective of matters.

There had been numerous incidents over the last few years and the leaders seem to have failed to connect the dots until it was too late. It is also questionable that the leadership has given the due priority in resource allocation and policy framework towards the national security. This was further evident from the statements made by a few leaders that they were aware of possible attacks but didn’t expect it to be of this magnitude.

The risk of underestimating the risk is much bigger than the absolute risk itself as it prevents activating the mitigating measures to suit the risk. While paying attention to big things, a leader should never underestimate the effect of taking action on small things before they become too big to tackle.

A good leader manages emotions and expectations well

Whenever there is a crisis, emotions can run high, which can lead to further issues if it isn’t managed well initially. The key here is to let people know that the leaders are fully aware of their situation and willing to discuss how they are currently feeling. Although, some politicians were criticised for showing up at the places where explosions took place, they did a great job to let people feel better and provided some sense of protection. When people throw out their emotions, the leaders should use their brains with emotional intelligence, without fuelling any outrage. The role played by Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith and religious leaders is commendable by talking to the hearts of the people.

When trouble strikes, people want things to be over instantly. However, these kinds of quick resolutions are not possible at all times. Showing people that tangible measures are being taken to seize the situation will help to manage these expectations. The enactment of certain regulations and quick responses by police and armed forces to arrest suspects gave positive signals to the masses. Yet the lethargic approach in prosecuting the political suspects dilutes the people’s confidence in the political leadership.

A good leader gets the facts right and acts bright

Instead of jumping to conclusions and making rash decisions, great leaders reserve their judgment until they gather all vital facts. In order to get right information at the right time, the leader must possess an efficient information system. Having evidence to back up a decision is extremely important when so much is at stake.

Although, our leaders seem to possess good resources (strong intelligence), there seems to be disconnects in the information flow, which was evident when some leaders reveal that they didn’t get the vital information on time, although the same was being circulated among few officials. The most horrifying thing is the head of the state, who is also the minister in charge of defence, claiming he was not aware of likely bomb attacks in the country and even after the attacks he has got certain vital information from the social media.

On the other hand, the terrorists seem to have got a better communication system to execute such a coordinated attack. From the very little I know about the war against LTTE, one of the key strategies of the military had been to destroy their strong communication network.

Leaders also have a challenging task of taking quick decisions at the right time to prevent or minimise the damage during a crisis. There is a view, had the curfew been declared immediately after the first attack, a few more lives could have been saved. The leaders were also blamed for taking unreasonable time to ban the extremist groups and delaying certain security measures.

A good leader puts the people first

There is a saying that the captain is the last off the ship. It’s the utmost responsibility of the leaders to make sure that the people depending on them are taken care of. The evidence that came into light from many sources post the disaster reveals that the people of the country had been neglected in responding to the warnings received by the officials. The political leaders and high profiles are being blamed for looking after themselves without giving at least a warning to the public to be vigilant.

Those who you remember the first when in danger are the ones who live in your heart and for a true leader, it’s his people. Ignoring the general public was a grave mistake by the leaders that will have serious repercussions in the days to come, with the elections around the corner.

A good leader creates the context and acts proactively

The leader’s role is not necessarily executing or micro managing things. He creates the context and gives direction for his people to execute the strategy. This includes putting the right person in the right job, empowering the individuals, giving policy direction, providing resources and more importantly managing the external pressures that distract the context. This is exactly, in my view, how the then-leadership managed to defeat LTTE.

The leaders are expected to go beyond the call of duty to act proactively in the best interest of the people who are dependent on them. At times, the circumstances might demand to act beyond the routine or the protocol. Instead, we witnessed certain leaders giving lame excuses for their ignorance.

Final thoughts

After all, what has happened has happened; it’s in the past and no amount of ruminating will take us back to change those events, but we can certainly change how they affect us in the present and future, if we capitalise on the lessons we learnt in the hard way.

We are a nation that has withstood greater catastrophes and shown solidarity when the circumstances demanded so. We as patriotic citizens, expect the leadership to take their coloured glasses off, stop the blame game, take ownership and act in the best interest of the country. It is the responsibility of the leadership to create the desired context to bounce back and regain the growth momentum. Let this also be an eye opener for the citizens to re-think their role in ensuring a better country for the future generations and act with greater responsibility.

(The writer is a Chartered Accountant, Management Consultant and a Leadership Coach/Trainer. He can be reached via ceo@thehcap.com or ck@hcpc.biz.)

Easter Sunday Serial Terror Bombings in Sri Lanka: Stop the blame game and take effective measures to end recurrence -Eastham Forum

For the attention of the Civil Societies and progressive Media:

(Lanka-e-News -07.May.2019, 7.30PM) The Eastham Forum organized by the Independent Civil Society for Unity, attended by researchers, activists and representatives of all Sri Lankan communities in the United Kingdom, held at Trinity Centre, Eastham, London, on 04th May 2019 decided to issue this statement encompassing the summary of the discussion and the appeals made to the communities, civil societies and the Government.

1) Condemnation alone will not heal the wounds; meaningful actions needed.

The Forum unanimously resolved to condemn the heinous and barbaric act of terrorism unequivocally, launched at three churches and three tourist hotels targeting a peace-loving religious group on the Easter day; to wish a speedy recovery of those injured in the horrific suicide bombings; to extend condolences to the bereaving families, friends and all those close to the victims; and to express complete solidarity with the brave people and sensible religious and community leaders of the country for standing firm in the hour of grief in averting another blood bath in the country.

However, the Forum believes that condemnation alone would not heal the wounds. All church leaders have displayed maturity, courage and statesmanship in dealing with the provocative attack and set an example for the extremist elements within the political and religious establishments to follow. The forgiveness of the tolerant Christian community should not be taken for granted to forget the societal and governmental responsibilities towards them opportunistically.

The Forum categorically urges that the Sri Lankan Government cannot relinquish its responsibility for the security lapses and calls to provide immediate and long term relief, compensation and rehabilitation to the kin of persons killed and affected and to address the cumulative psychosocial impact of the trauma not only on the individuals but also on the families, community and society.

The Forum considers all communities, especially the Muslim community, have an obligation by the victims’ families to involve directly to show their solidarity in practice by sharing their sorrows and burdens and by lending hands in need, to set precedence towards building meaningful reconciliation in the country.

2) Demonizing the entire Muslim community will create another demon.

The Forum, in one voice, states that the entire Muslim community cannot be condemned for the identified perpetrators who planned and executed. Accusing the entire Muslim community for the barbarianism of one single terrorist group, the NTJ, is an extreme form of ethno-nationalist prejudice of Islamophobia. Muslims in Sri Lanka should not have to be blamed for the terrorist attack. They should not have to go apologetic either. An overwhelming majority of the Muslims were and are not only eschew terrorism within their community but also explicitly demonstrated their opposition to it. They are spread across the country and there is little chance of Muslims living in other parts of the country knowing the insidious activities of a handful of ultra-extremists in a remote village when the entire security services and the Government had taken the threat lightly and floundered in handling the local and foreign alerts.

The Forum appreciates that Muslims, who were suspicious of the hard-line groups such as NTJ and its leader Zahran Hashim, who presumed dead in the attack, have been warning the Government for years; held protests demanding authorities to arrest Zahran and ban NTJ; and Muslim religious leaders warned military intelligence officials and the Government about the group and its leaders giving their names and details.

Soon after the Easter carnage, the entire Muslim community cooperated with the authorities to apprehend or eliminate the remaining terrorists and disallowed the bombers to be buried in the grounds of any mosque. Unfortunately, the authorities that slept at the wheel now trying to divert the attention of the people putting the blame on burqas, beards, swords and even kitchen knives used by the Muslims.

The behaviour of mainstream print and visual media are morally reprehensible and deeply irresponsible. A TV is conducting a dog-and-pony show, humiliating a Muslim cabinet Minister with a vengeance symbolizing the entire Muslim community. The entire Muslim community is being unfairly blamed and targeted for the reprehensible violence committed by a few. There are instances where some members of the Police and armed forces have been unnecessarily hard and tough on Muslims and treated them as if they are the ones who committed the acts of terrorism. The Muslims are undergoing what the Sri Lankan Tamils experienced over the years.

The Forum appeals to the Government and the media not to create another breeding ground of terrorism. The Forum also appeals the Muslim community to be self-critical for allowing extreme conservatism to creep in and slip a few misguided youths towards the hate-filled ideology of Islamic State and to be vigilant and find ways to guide the followers of Islam towards peaceful co-existence.

3) Drastic times call for drastic measures.

The Forum appeals to the Government to maintain law and order and create an environment for everyone in the country to live in peace enjoying the equal right. There is no difference between the ideology of the IS and ethno-nationalist extremism that seeks a monopoly over others. The principle that everyone is equal before law should be upheld and no individual or community should be allowed to be above the law or treated as more-equal. The current situation should not be used to smuggle more draconian laws into existing stringent laws and hijack civil liberties.

The Forum considers the issue is not purely a matter related to law and order; there are much deeper dimensions to it. Although the pull factor behind the Easter Sunday carnage is the IS ideology one should not conveniently sweep the push factor, the majoritarian extreme -ethno-nationalism, under the carpet. Extremism breeds extremism and terrorism cannot be defeated by extremism.

The Forum appeals to civil societies:

to form multi-ethnic -Peace Corps in every police division, comprising the representatives of religious leaders and community leaders, drawing the experience of the Movement for Justice and Equality (MERGE) that played a positive role in the late 70s in the Northern part of Sri Lanka.
to form reconciliation committees in areas of tension to protect people from violence and help law enforcement authorities to maintain law and order by providing rapid response to resolve conflicts and tensions.

The Forum calls upon the Government:

to ban extreme ethno-nationalist organization like the NTJ, Bodu Bala Sena, Siva Sena, etc.
to take stern action against media that advocate extreme-ethno-nationalism.
to create a watchdog mechanism along the line of ‘Tell MAMMA’ of the UK to monitor extreme ethno-nationalist trends and organisations including media;
to end impunity for violations of human rights and fundamental freedoms of individuals and groups involving in spreading extreme ethno-nationalism and encouraging ethnic discrimination;
to ensure that no community is allowed to insist on the primacy of its religion, race or culture at the expense of racial harmony. We note that Sri Lanka has no specific legislation to achieve this purpose;
to incorporate and implement ICCPR Act as victim-centred legislation; to enact laws banning hate-speeches and hard-line religious organisations and other relevant laws to bring to book and levy damage-costs from perpetrators, instigators and sponsors;
to enact legislation, similar to that of the Maintenance of Religious Harmony Act of Singapore, to maintain and promote religious harmony in Sri Lanka;
to publicize the Durban Declaration and Programme of Action in Sinhala and Tamil as a component of activities towards the elimination of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance;
to Implement the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD);
to establish a Minority Commission to effectively investigate and take action on the intolerance of and discrimination against ethnic and religious minorities through minority rights education and specifically designed awareness-raising campaigns;
to revise school textbooks and curriculum to eliminate elements that may promote racism and racial discrimination or reinforce negative stereotypes of minorities;
to introduce Syllabus, in consultation with the religious leaders of each religion, for Madrasas, Privena’s and other institutions of teaching religions to develop respect for and sensitivity to others, in particular those whose faiths and beliefs are different from their own; and
to introduce teaching comparative religious education in the national curriculum for schools.

The Secretary

Independent Civil Society for Unity

07.05.2019

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by (2019-05-07 13:52:40)

Sri Lanka: National Security And National Reconciliatio

Partnership of Enmity or Intimacy?

by Chamindry Saparamadu-7 May 2019

Ten years after the end of the war, terror has struck Sri Lanka again. The Easter Sunday tragedy and the events and issues associated with it bring national security to the center stage. The past few days, I have observed several efforts to understand and theorize the new phenomenon of terrorand to find possible solutions and answers.

At a recently held conference of all political parties, important points were raised with regard to the relationship between national security and national reconciliation. It was highlighted that a country’s national security agenda and the national reconciliation agenda must not be seen and pursued as standing in contradiction to one another. This is critically important for Sri Lanka, at the current juncture that is striving to achieve both. An understanding of both is vital, not just in terms of discourse, but from a point of policy making and strategizing to deal with the current and future challenges. In this short article, I am sharing my immediate reactions on this issue.

For a number of reasons, rational or irrational, national security in Sri Lanka has come to be perceived as a project of the majority, the Sinhala Buddhist community. Linking of national security to one particular community is what makes security issues seem contrary to the objective of achieving national reconciliation. I believe there are many causative and explanatory factors to this unfortunate situation and if not dealt with now, would result in, us, as a country, losing a historic opportunity of making national security, a project of all communities.

The narratives in the mainstream liberal thinking and discourses, both locally and globally, have been consistent and continuous Sinhala Buddhist majority faulting game as well as fear of securitization as a concept. On both, the liberals, both in the island and outside, seem to converge.

While the perils of securitization is a reality, as a result of such simplified understanding, each incident of violence is automatically interpreted and explained as a project of the Sinhala Buddhists and therefore and inextricably linked to the state and its armed forces.As we experienced the recent bombings in Colombo, how the blame game commenced and evolved was interesting to observe. The first and most immediate reaction was either directlyor by insinuation implicating the Sinhala Buddhists in the attacks in most media and other platforms, explained as a historical and a continuous enmity between the Buddhists and the Catholic and or the Christian community. The conversations among elements injuriously infected with a Rajapakse phobia focused on former defense secretary and those who are connected as having staged the attacks to gain political mileage in the run up to the presidential elections. Shortly thereafter, when the Islamic States (ISIS) assumed responsibility for the attacks, the insinuations were that the Sinhala Buddhists are nevertheless culpable as a causative factor.

This simplistic understanding of violence runs contrary to reasoning or logic and loses its historical and political dimensions and explanation of violence in its many forms, manifestations and interpretations. To cite few, the horrendous Aranthalawa massacre, the attack on the Temple of the Tooth etc bear evidence to the fact that Sinhala Buddhists have been as much a victim of violence in the island’s long history of ethnic and other forms of violence. Despite such glaring evidence, the victim-perpetrator narrative that is being repeated and reinforced by the liberals continue to polarize the communities, and also jeopardize any chances of reconciliation.

This singular and limited understanding of violence is what led to war against terror to be defined in terms of violence against the Tamil people instead of explaining military operations in terms of an attempt at ending violence and establishing security. Such false depiction seemingly also obscures the many aspects of military operations including stabilization and humanitarian relief.We have seen such multiple roles played by the armed forces, during and after military operations and during and after crisis situations of the kind we witnessed during military operations in the North and East and in the aftermath of outbreak of violence in Aluthgama. The recipients of those efforts have been mostly the island’s ethnic minorities.

However, few things, wittingly or unwittingly done,have led to construction of the national security agenda within a majoritarian ideology and practice. And one that I would like to emphasize is the symbolic representation of our security achievements linked to gigantic images of the lion (representing the island’s ethnic majority) and singing of songs of Sinhala nationalistic flavor at ceremonies and other public forums. These and other forms of representations of military achievements within a Sinhala Buddhist majoritarian ideology have tended to alienate other communities from these accomplishments.

Further and most unfortunately, the composition of the armed forces does not reflect islands demographics in as much as the armed forces are mostly constituted of persons from Sinhala ethnic origin. In addition, their operations are predominantly unilingual in blatant disregard of the official language policy of the country. Such practices, however, executed, in my view has contributed to the imagination of national security within Sinhala majoritarianism.

Given the importance of national security at this crucial moment in our history, Sri Lanka’s challenge would be to design and execute an ethnically neutral security policy and strategies, particularly given the important aims ofsimultaneously achieving national security and national reconciliation, both. It is important to keep in mind that certain security interventions might appear to be or perceived as discriminatory against one community or another, as they might run counter to beliefs and cultural practices of one community or another. Cultural practices are critical to define and preserve cultural identities.

There is a need to strike the right balance between national security and national reconciliation, in a way that both only enable but not undermine one another. This requires designing a well thought out security policy and strategies that meet contemporary national security challenges but also one that supports the unfinished business of national reconciliation. This is only possible with visionary leadership, strategic foresight and thinking, pragmatism but above all sincere commitment to both ends to be achieved.

(Chamindry Saparamadu is a lawyer and a political activist based in Colombo)

Sri Lanka: National Security And National Reconciliation

Photo courtesy Getty via The National

DR. KALANA SENARATNE-05/08/2019

The Easter-Sunday attacks have changed a lot of things in Sri Lanka. It proved, if proof was indeed required, the sheer inefficiency of the present government. Some of the responses provided by the President, the Prime Minister and state-officials, in the immediate aftermath, were preposterous. Though Sri Lanka is not a failed state, it has a deeply divided, weak and fragile government, which can embolden terrorist movements such as the Islamic State (IS). In a culture where politicians cannot be held accountable for their negligence, incompetence and arrogance, the only weapon for many appears to be the vote. Never the revolutionary type, the majority Sinhala community is waiting for the next major election.

The IS-inspired terrorist bombings of 21 April 2019 have re-ignited debates on a number of issues which are not novel for Sri Lankans. Two such issues which are set to have an enduring impact on our lives relate to: security and freedom, and peaceful co-existence. There have been many occasions in post-independent Sri Lanka when the people got an opportunity to reflect on these issues. The present moment, like many other moments in the past, provides yet another opportunity for such reflection. Sri Lanka is not a place which reforms itself very easily. It reforms, if at all, at a snail’s pace, and that too, when significant pressure is exerted on it by external forces. Thus there is no guarantee that anything positive would come out of the present crisis as well.

But there is, perhaps, a responsibility to reflect and respond, given the seriousness of the situation. And the reflections presented below are not of some neutral entity, claiming to adopt an ‘objective’ position. These reflections remain those of an individual who belongs to the majority community; and being so, they may be partly influenced by some of the varied interests and prejudices that a member of the majority Sinhala-Buddhist community may hold on security, freedom and co-existence.

One of the old and immediate questions that arise, given the nature of the terrorist attacks and the subsequent imposition of emergency rule in Sri Lanka, is the question about security and freedom. The popular question is: what should triumph – security or liberty of persons? When asked this question, there is often a tendency to choose one over the other. Where that’s not possible, there is another tendency to suggest, as if to strike a balance, that both security and freedom are not only required but can also be guaranteed. These answers, in turn, have an impact on our understanding about the nature and purposes of the state, with some desiring a strong state and others being highly critical and even dismissive of it.

To begin with, the question is a flawed one. This is because we demand and require both. The interests of humans are too great and varied that it is impossible to choose one over the other, especially in the long term. Security and freedom are values which have much to do with emotions and feelings; for example, quite often, we feel secure or free, without knowing or being able to know whether we actually are. And these feelings often intermingle, producing different demands and interests.

Another reason why the question is flawed is because both security and freedom, taken separately, are broad values which can encapsulate the other. We might demand one, not realizing that in most instances we are actually demanding both. And what is often forgotten is that in demanding security and freedom, we are also inevitably demanding a strong state. This was most evident when we rushed to critique the state for not preventing the Easter-Sunday attacks. It was natural and correct to demand security; but implicit in that critique was the demand for a strong state (and state-agencies) which can guarantee security.

This was also evident in the support the Tamil people (or a dominant segment of the Tamil community) showed for a separate state. In the face of threats to their liberty, the Tamil people demanded not just greater liberty but also security. And since the 1970s, this was expected to be guaranteed by a separate state. In practical terms, that separate state had to be an entity which not only protected the liberties of its citizens but was strong enough to guarantee their continued security.

People need both security and freedom, and this would need to be assured to them by an effective and strong state. Therefore, it is often meaningless to ask whether one is for security or freedom. Barring very specific issues, one naturally wants both. It is equally problematic to assume that security and freedom can be guaranteed by weak states.

However, the above does not mean that the state can guarantee both security and freedom to the satisfaction of all its citizens. To believe that there could be a neat balance struck between security and rights considerations, especially in the current global context, is not only a mistaken view. It is also a dangerous view, for it leads to greater frustration, when one begins to see the balance tilting in favour of security or freedom on given issues and circumstances. When a state attempts to guarantee both freedom and security (as it ought to), tensions arise due to a number of factors. It may be due to the numerous prejudices of the state and its officials (e.g. ethnic-bias); it could be due to the overwhelming character of the demands of citizens; it could be due to the lack of resources; and it may even be due to the relative efficiency or inefficiency of respective institutions (e.g. the police, judiciary, etc.). Thus, constant tension ensues.

This is perhaps best exemplified in the debate surrounding the role and relevance of laws aimed at preventing terrorism; more specifically, the polarized debate surrounding the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA). The idea of totally abolishing the PTA, as the critics would vehemently suggest, is problematic especially in contemporary times and in a country which has witnessed different forms of terrorism. Far from abolishing the PTA, there are two key tasks involved. One is to strive to reform the law to minimize the chances where personal liberties would be infringed. But an equally fundamental requirement is for state-agencies to develop an ethnically non-discriminatory approach when having to apprehend persons under the PTA. The dominant but flawed perspective of state-agencies at present is that it is largely members of minority communities who could perpetrate terrorism. The vital task is to expand this understanding to include members of the majority community as well. Terrorism can come wrapped in burkas, sarees, denim trousers and yellow robes.

In short, addressing concerns relating to security and freedom, especially in the context of terrorism, is never an easy task (except for academics like us). It is a matter that broadly demands considerations pertaining to rights and liberties, as well as duties, responsibilities, demanding further a certain degree of sacrifice. In the aftermath of the Easter-Sunday attacks, this is an essential truth we would be re-discovering. And without an effective state, there will be neither security nor freedom. But no effective state, in the modern age of global terrorism, can fully guarantee either the complete protection of our fundamental freedoms, or security, or both. Only part satisfaction of these two values can be realized. Destined to live under such tragic circumstances, we would only be able to critique specific policy measures, and suggest alternatives that we think could best guarantee our security and freedom to the most practical extent possible.

The other most important question, having both short and long term consequences, is that of ensuring ethnic and religious harmony and co-existence. This assumes heightened importance, especially because the mistrust which undergirded the Sinhala-Muslim relationship for quite sometime has escalated to unprecedented levels. If there are more bombings, mob attacks – organized but sporadic at present – are set to rise exponentially, leading to an unmanageable crisis, and a vast majority of the Muslim community which had no role to play in this mess would be left helpless.

At the outset, it is necessary to point fingers at certain actors (in addition to the state), belonging to both the Sinhala and Muslim communities, for the broader situation we are placed in. It is not correct to suggest that the inability to address minority political concerns within the country led to the development of Islamic extremist groups. Islamic extremism of the IS-variety, the project of creating a global caliphate, has very little or almost nothing to do with issues of constitutional governance in Sri Lanka. Rather, a more pointed accusation can indeed be levelled against groups such as the Bodu Bala Sena (BBS), the dark underside of Sinhala Buddhist nationalism, for its highly divisive rhetoric, including the hateful ideas they spread, especially by attempting to read and interpret the Quran in ways that hurt the Muslim community (when alternative readings were possible). Groups such as the BBS ought to have been far more aware of the possibility of further radicalization of members of the Muslim community when their religion and dignity were under constant attack. Violence, after all, can be both horrifying but also attractive. Even the BBS would know that.

There was also a serious problem with many of the Muslim politicians. Though their utterances these days sound more Sinhala Buddhist than those of the Sinhala Buddhists themselves, many of them were unwilling to acknowledge that there was a growing problem of radicalism within their own community; a problem which the BBS had correctly and confidently pointed out ever since its emergence. The Muslim politicians, by and large, turned a blind eye. A classic case in this regard is the statement made by Minister Rauf Hakeem just last year (March 2018). When asked by The Hindu newspaper about rising Islamic fundamentalism in Sri Lanka, Minister Hakeem was categorical in stating: “I don’t see that Muslims have been radicalized to that extent so as to resort to violence. Whatever radicalization has been happening it is in the cultural domain.” Apparently, the Minister knew what he was talking about: “We local politicians know. We have been monitoring, we keep our ears to the ground and we interact with all these people.” We now know that the Minister was being disingenuous, mainly because certain members and groups representing the Muslim community had already alerted the security agencies about Islamic radicalism.

While taking note of such serious lapses which can be attributed to both communities, the present crisis has created an opportunity for greater introspection, self-critique, and the creation of a more pluralistic political, religious and cultural ethos. And a fundamental task in this regard concerns the reformation of these respective communities, which involves the task of identifying and tackling those ideologies, thoughts and practices which lead to the development of an extremist mentality.

So far, it is the Muslim community that has been asked to reform. There are already calls to limit the operation of Madrasa schools, to reform or abolish personal laws, the banning of Halal products and certain forms of religious clothing. The latter involves the recent legislative measures aimed at banning the burqa and the niqab. While it would have been ideal had the ban been a self-imposed limitation (and that too, based upon the autonomous views of Muslim women), it is a policy that I welcome. The burqa/niqab amount to an extremist form of clothing, especially because they retard the possibility of basic human interaction in society, especially in educational institutions. It is largely for this reason, and not necessarily because of security concerns, that there ought to be a limitation imposed. The ban raises questions concerning the right to manifest one’s religion. Such freedoms pertaining to the manifestation of religion can be curtailed. But that curtailment ought to be prompted by the need to promote a more liberal, equal and secular society within Sri Lanka (which are some of the principles that the European Court of Human Rights used to justify the limitations placed on the the wearing of the Islamic veil and other religious symbols in Turkey and France).

However, all other communities, including especially the Sinhala Buddhist majority, have the responsibility to engage in this task of introspection and reform. What is particularly required in this reformist project is the need to critically confront all ideas and teachings which seek to promote theories of purity and perfection. Seeking purity and perfection, in matters concerning politics, religion and culture, almost inevitably ends up in disaster. All ideas and teachings which seek to promote the view that certain groups of people and their land were somehow ‘pure’ in a distant past and the challenge is to rediscover and reclaim that lost purity, or political notions which promise perfect equality and harmony, are always to be viewed with great caution and skepticism. Such ideas lie at the root of all forms of extremism, both locally and globally. If the Muslims are to revise their attitudes towards their personal laws, educational institutions and religious practices, the Sinhala Buddhists and the Tamils ought to engage in a similar exercise too.

Sri Lanka has entered another phase in its history where security, freedom and co-existence have been seriously threatened. They have always been under threat because of our own failings, but the threat appears more pronounced, more real, given the emergence of a more palpable and dastardly form of extremism and terror. Rather than seeking illusive comfort in theories which promise perfection, people will need to realize that in a polarized society as ours, harmonious co-existence often comes at a price. The best that’s possible is to seek ways of minimizing the tendencies that different actors have towards adopting extreme measures. It is a process that all ethnic and religious groups in the country would need to engage in; not with starry eyes, but with the resolve to acknowledge dark and uncomfortable truths about themselves.