The National Peace Council (NPC)

One year after the end of the war, Jaffna gives the impression of being a bustling town and on the mend in the new post-war era.  The shops are open till late at night and people can move about freely if they wish, although residents said that practices from the days of war die hard, and so the people prefer to retire to their homes with the fall of dusk.  The hotels are full, many with pilgrims from the rest of the country, and new hotels are sprouting through the conversion of bigger houses, and the rates are higher than comparable facilities elsewhere in the country.  But a continuing massive presence of soldiers and massive war time destruction are a reminder that the wounds of war have to be healed.

The Vietnamese Buddhist monk Venerable Thich Nhat Hanh became world known as a peace activist during the years of the Vietnam War.  It was a war fought with the world’s media attention focused upon it and was one of the topmost priorities of the United Nations, as it involved the world’s three most powerful countries.  The United States lost over 50,000 of its soldiers in that war which was the costliest since the end of the Second World War.  The United States also dropped more tons of bombs in that region than done during the entirety of the World War.  More than a million Vietnamese died in that war.

The government appears to have made a hard headed assessment about the need to address local and international concerns about the human rights situation and the ethnic conflict by taking steps to form a Commission on Reconciliation.  In its statement regarding the appointment of this Commission the government stated that it was due to the overriding interest in the need for restorative justice by the Sri Lankan people. Its findings it said will seek to take the Sri Lankan nation towards the common goals of a multi-ethnic polity, in a spirit of cooperation, partnership and friendship, learning the lessons from recent history to ensure that there will be no recurrence of such tragic conflict in the future.

There is general agreement that the situation in the country today is much better for most people than it was a year ago.  A year ago the country was in the midst of a brutal and costly war.  There were thousands of casualties and hundreds of thousands of affected civilians in the northern theatre of war.  Outside of the north there was the ever present fear of terrorist attack.  A year after the end of the war, the objective indicators of improvement are evident in the sense of safety that people enjoy when they go into crowded shopping centres or travel by public transport.  The absence of even one act of terrorism by anti-government forces can be counted as one of the most significant achievements of the government over the past year.

The situating of the Urban Development Authority under the Defence Ministry is one of the many unexpected outcomes of the re-arrangement of government ministries after the General Elections.  One explanation has been the existence of several military installations in the heart of Colombo that are occupying prime lands.  The government may be hoping to shift them out of Colombo and utilise these lands for commercial purposes.  The relevance of the Defence Ministry where urban planning is concerned may also come from the need to incorporate anti-terrorist considerations into the planning process.  Various intelligence agencies are reported to have warned the Indian government about the vulnerability of New Delhi to terrorist attacks.  No country appears to be risk-free. New York City recently had a narrow escape from a terrorist bomb attack.

The decisive election victories achieved by the government have set the stage for political stability. The most important question is whether this will lead to problem solving as well.  National elections are not due for another six years.  With the government having both the Presidency and a near 2/3 majority in Parliament there is no legitimate or likely means by which this stability can be threatened.  This would be good news to economic planners who have long term horizons in which economic investments can bear fruit without being placed in jeopardy by sudden policy changes or by violence.  This sentiment has already been reflected in the stock market, which has boomed to its highest levels ever.

The enthusiastic participation of the electorate in the electoral process is one indication of a country governed by democratic norms.  Another indication is the presence of strong institutions, such as an independent Election Commission, police and public service, which are able to inspire confidence in the electorate that the elections will take place freely and fairly.  On both these counts Sri Lanka has been reflecting a deteriorating trend.  An effectively functioning democracy requires a strong opposition with the capacity to be a check and a balance on the power of the government. With every electoral defeat suffered by the opposition, its campaign has got weaker which has enabled the government to obtain majorities hitherto not thought possible.

The final results of the General Election are still awaited, although the outcome is known.  The government has won an overwhelming majority, but the satisfaction of knowing the exact figures will have to wait until after April 20, when the re-poll in two electorates will be done.  The steamroller of the election machinery of government candidates overshot their mark in at least the electorates of Nawalapitiya and Trincomalee.  Election observers have reported that polling agents of the opposition parties had to flee their posts on the day of the election.  The Election Commissioner annulled the polls in those two electorates in a display of his authority that regrettably came too late to ensure a free and fair election.

The outcome of the forthcoming General Election is generally taken to be a foregone one.  Where victory is concerned the only issue is how close the government will get to the elusive one of a 2/3 majority.  This would enable the government to defy the intention of framers of the Constitution and permit the present rulers to amend the Constitution on their own.  The government is vested with power that it has shown itself prepared to use with not much concern for niceties.  The government has attracted great clumps of opposition parliamentarians into its fold with the offer of position and privilege, making possible the largest number of ministers in the world.  At the present election, the use of state resources and media for the government’s propaganda purposes has been without restraint.  If the government achieves its 2/3 majority constitutional change without restraint is the likely outcome.

The “Great Game” was the name given to the contest for power and territory in Central Asia in the 19th century between two of the most powerful world powers at that time, the British and Russian empires.  They moved their armies and entered into treaties with rulers of those areas, like on a chessboard, to safeguard their interests and weaken their rival.  It was also in those times that the British Foreign Minister, Lord Parlmeston, made the oft quoted statement that “it is a narrow policy to suppose that this country or that is to be marked out as the eternal ally or the perpetual enemy of England. We have no eternal allies, and we have no perpetual enemies. Our interests are eternal and perpetual, and those interests it is our duty to follow.” The analogy of the Great Game has been recalled at this time in the attempt of the most powerful country of the present time, the United States, to pacify the Central Asian territories, which include Afghanistan, in the face of the competing interests of other world powers that include Russia, China and India.