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Sri Lanka once again is at the crossroads. In this regard, the message that is coming from the political platforms is loud and clear; the country is broadly divided into two opposing camps, one advocating the perpetuation of the status quo, the other arguing for a radical departure from the present political practice. While those who argue for a radical shift point out that there is a need to restore good governance and rule of law and everything that follows, those who advocate the continuation of the present political culture do not see any need for such a change.
Sri Lanka was once hailed as a model democracy in Asia. Post-colonial political elites who took over power from the British rulers adopted the principles, values and practices of modern democratic government. Politics came to be guided mostly by political ideologies. A broad consensus regarding the purpose of politics emerged and this was widely shared by the political community irrespective of ideological divisions. The main objective of a popularly elected government was to bring about social and economic change through public policies. In a country characterised by wide social and economic disparities, public policies were regarded as the primary means of achieving economic development and distributive justice. Political leaders mostly coming from privileged social backgrounds at the time did not perceive politics as a way of enriching themselves and their retinue. Instead, most of them wished to create opportunities for the disadvantaged groups to have a better standard of living. As a consequence, most of the public policies adopted after independence were of an egalitarian nature. Free education, free healthcare, re-distribution of land among the landless, social security benefits for wage earners, food subsidies and subsidised public transport were clear cases in point.
" Many gullible people in the country do not seem to understand the cynicism of political leaders and therefore, actively support their anti-social behaviour that involves gross violations of the law and a total disregard for democratic norms"
Universal free education emerged in post-independence Sri Lanka as the most pervasive means of upward social mobility benefiting an increasing proportion of the under-privileged population, particularly in rural areas. Hundreds of thousands of youngsters from ordinary families moved into positions of influence and privilege in many state institutions in such areas as education, health, industry, public administration, judiciary and even foreign service. Yet, the situation today in the sphere of education as well as in other areas is quite different. There are not only serious problems but also unprecedented inequities in education, health, transport, land ownership, justice, etc. and these adversely affect the life chances of disadvantaged groups. But, there are no serious state interventions to address the issues involved. This is partly due to the changes that have taken place in the sphere of politics.
As is well known, democratisation of politics that followed political independence enabled many people from humble backgrounds to become active politicians. Though political positions did not carry many privileges and perquisites in the first few decades after independence, the situation changed dramatically in the late 1970’s when enhanced privileges were offered to politicians elected to public office, making political office highly attractive to aspiring political activists. With the introduction of the open economic policy in 1977 and consequent development of a vibrant consumer culture in the country, the urge to earn more and more money and even amass wealth became quite strong.
The spread of exclusive consumerist lifestyles lured many people into conspicuous consumption involving luxury housing, expensive motor cars, overseas travel, private and overseas education for children, private healthcare, etc. Many politicians, and their close associates, could not resist the temptation. While their regular incomes were grossly inadequate to adopt and maintain such a consumerist lifestyle, abuse of their positions to amass wealth became the obvious way out for many of them. This possibility also made political office so attractive to some people that their main reason for getting into politics today is the possibility of using political office to attain their personal goals. In this context, how one gains political power is immaterial as it has largely become an instrumental activity devoid of any intrinsic value or a larger public purpose.
So, politics today is an arena where many people pursue their naked self- interests. For them, public interest is largely irrelevant, though they would naturally talk about people and their interests in public. Since many of them perceive political office as the only means available to them to secure and retain undue privileges at public expense, they cannot care less about how they get there. This is the reason why many politicians have virtually no regard for rule of law or any long established rules of the game.
In countries where the rule of law and democratic principles are undermined by various forces such as self-seeking politicians, vested interests, terrorist groups, etc. , social justice, equity and peace become the first casualties. The pursuit of power at any cost leaves little room for any norms, standards and long established traditions . This naturally makes the democratic process rather hollow and meaningless. While some hapless citizens would accept such a situation in a fatalistic manner, others might actively search for alternative paths. It is in this context that the undermining of democracy can prepare the ground for violent resistance movements.
In multi-party democracies, political parties representing different ideologies, diverse interest groups and classes provide relatively stable building blocks of the political system. Such a situation prevailed in this country too at least until the late 1990’s. The situation has changed dramatically since then. Many politicians do no longer seem to worry about the wider public interest or even the future prospects of the country. All that seems to matter to them is their present and future prospects. The self- seeking individuals who have rallied round them for their own benefit would also do everything to justify the actions of their political patrons. Yet, what is tragic is that the actions of selfish politicians adversely affect not only the life chances of many citizens today but also the future prospects of the country itself. Meanwhile, many politicians have become so cynical about their role in politics. Yet, many gullible people in the country do not seem to understand the cynicism of political leaders and therefore, actively support their anti-social behaviour that involves gross violations of the law and a total disregard for democratic norms. The question that the right thinking citizens in this country need to ponder over is whether they could liberate themselves from the grip of cynical and scheming politicians who pursue their naked self- interest at any cost under the guise of protecting the interests of the nation.
