War, abductions, killings, human rights violations and evictions
Repost This ArticleWar, Abductions, killings, human rights violations, and evictions are synonyms widely used to describe the current situation in Sri Lanka especially in the international area. Are we facing the gravest period of Sri Lanka history? One would say the accusations lodged against country are accurate and the situation demands immediate intervention and another would argue that the situation in Sri Lanka is over played by Diplomats, NGO’s and the so called civil society activists who fill their coffers with dollars and euros showcasing a dire situation in the county.
As a Sri Lankan, then a Sinhalese and a Buddhist what ideology should I represent is a question that has been tormenting me for a while. To clarify my stand I referred to the defence secretaries statement made few months ago
“Do you know of any one in your village who has been abducted or killed, can you name a person who has been abducted from the UNP, JVP or other main stream parties?â€Â
I’m adamant in saying that the answer to his question is NO, because no one of my immediate family or relatives or associates has undergone any incident that would make me think other wise. I represent the majority so if I’m not affected why should I bother about the situation in the country, this is a thought that has crossed my mind which is shared by many of my peers and ordinary common folk that I meet in my day to day activities. But my consciousness does not allow me to confine to a simple and practical but short term console which would serve my instantaneous existence, and which has been the way of existence for many Sri Lankans today.
Sri Lankans in general are not known to be activated by social injustices or harassments unless it affects their individual communities; this is proven accurate by lack of citizen movements throughout the Sri Lankan history. There has not been successful struggle initiated by civil society without political motivation, hence the struggle to cover come the culture of impunity would not spontaneously immerge from society derived from political motives, but unfortunately I do not see any inclination from any of the main stream parties to sphere head such a campaign.
Yet another blow to democracy was struck yesterday when the government for the first time in history banned an internet site Tamil Net in the dawn of the second year commemoration of its renowned editor Sivaram who was gunned down in 2005. The website was widely referred to by all key actors in Sri Lanka as vital sources of information from the North and East. Many would criticise that the site has supported voices of terrorists and another would say otherwise. This is yet another instance that has no significant barring on the ordinary folks, hence the protest and the outcry would be limited to few people who fight for media freedom in the country. I fear of greater restrictions and a gloomy tomorrow, the famous comment by Pastor Martin Niemoller’s on the Nazi regime in Germany came in to my mind, which made me think of my and our situation and which I have adopted to the local context.
“First they came for the terrorist and I did not speak out because I was not a terrorist
Then they come for journalists and I did not speak out because I was not a journalists
Then they came for the Tamils and I did not speak out because I was not a Tamil
Then they came for the Muslims and I did not speak out because I was not a Muslim
Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak for meâ€Â
So far over 121 Tamil and Muslim persons have been abducted from Colombo and other areas in demand of ransoms. At a media briefing held today the prime minister said that the government claims the responsibility of the abduction and killing of the SLRCS volunteers. But does the government claim responsibility for the abduction of these 121 persons who were abducted from Colombo and other areas.
[Editors note: paragraph deleted. Please avoid potentially libelous comments]
You are right. We are facing the gravest period of Sri Lanka history
You write “As a Sri Lankan, then a Sinhalese and a Buddhist what ideology should I represent is a question that has been tormenting me for a while”.I pose this question to you.What defines you? You I assume belong to the most intellectual group on this planet.A human being with an intellect , a soul and a heart. Why I may ask you that you have to represent an ideology that is bound by your race and your religion. Act like a human as you were created to be ,with love ,compassion and justice.Treat your fellow human beings as the same way you want to be treated.Does that sound as a foriegn concept to you and the rest of the Sri Lankan, Sinhalese and a Buddhist clan of yours????Is’nt this what you have to communicate to the rest of the the bloggers and rest of the country.Please dont waste your time and time of others when you can’t think like a human. Some one once said be the change that you want to see. Make a change by being the change.
dear rapunzel
Thank you for the comment, it is quite clear with your comment that you are unaware of ground realities; yes it would be great if we can think like human beings but really do you think people act and behave in such a humanistic manner, I don’t think so, If it was the case there wouldn’t be a reason for us to have this discussion in the first place.
Even individuals who scream about humanity can not avoid having biases on certain predetermine social affiliations. If your ideology and the profile of a blogger is practical every one who blogs should be called Christ, Buddha or Mohammad to have such a compassion on humanity.
I have written my personal opinion, I’m adamant about my definition of who I am, and for the sake of being politically correct I would not be hypocritical to say what other people want to hear, my back ground and the society I live in frames my ideology, I do not deny it neither would I apologise for it. However what I’m trying to say is we don’t have to be humanitarians or grate lateral thinkers to do our part as Sri Lankans .
“First they came for the terrorist and I did not speak out because I was not a terrorist
Then they come for journalists and I did not speak out because I was not a journalists
Then they came for the Tamils and I did not speak out because I was not a Tamil
Then they came for the Muslims and I did not speak out because I was not a Muslim
Then they came for me and there was no one left to speak for meâ€Â
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Dear Sasha Ekanayake,
To me, your article shows a human being brought up in a particular ideology and with a particular identity trying to question both and to step out of these frames and find your humanity – to stand with respect for and among other humans with different ideolgoy(s) and different identites while still honoring your own is the challenge I see you engaging in and that I think we all need to do… I applaud you for your courageous willingess to write about this struggle openly and share it with the rest of us. I believe this is the way you and all of us will find our way to true compassion and common humanity with the rest of the human race and I hope more people in Sri Lanka will join you. Thank you in particular for the adoptation of Niemoller’s famous passage for our context. I think of that one often myself and hope that the recognition of that truth will motivate more and more people in the majority to wake up before its really too late.
I agree that the adapted version of the poem is nice and thought-provoking but the ground reality is it takes a lot of courage to speak out in the first place.
In Sri Lanka, where an atmosphere of fear prevails, one has to think twice about “speaking out”. Alleged disappearances, abductions and murders are commonplace and rumours are that govt. officials are involved in it as well – this leads to uncertainty in the common man’s mind that the state will protect him and his constitutional rights should he speak out.
People who eventually do speak out must be admired (when they have no vested interests) but to tell you personally, I would not speak out or protest because of 02 main reasons:
- would it actually help the situation?
- would I be endangering my family members or myself in doing so?
I may sound like a coward and unpatriotic to some but that is my prerogative.