- Destruction of any sort is mindboggling and it is not unusual for people to become shocked, angry and sorrowful'
- During the last regime, people got used to making money easily, in kickbacks, commissions etc
- State Minister reiterated that US forces would not be permitted to come here or establish military camps on our soil
Many catastrophes have followed in the wake of the Easter Sunday blasts, resulting in some positive, some negative thinking. Most people with the right values, abhor the attacks on innocent people and boycott of their companies, shops and so on. It is up to each one of us to explain the unfairness and injustice of this attitude to as many people as we can; to influence their thinking and correct them if they think these are right.
The most important item on the agenda, which must be a priority, is to do what we can to reach out to those victims of the blasts, as post traumatic stress disorder usually occurs in victims and families of those who lost their lives in these extremist attacks. Destruction of any sort is mindboggling and it is not unusual for people to be shocked, angry and sorrowful after these brutal attacks. The impact of violence and destruction on the human psyche is overwhelming. Violence is ruthless and relentless in its evil, but one can also sense that counter balancing it is the power of peace which most of us want.There are countless people who have made efforts to show compassion, courage and great humanity in the circumstances, which is a tribute to their indomitability and the triumph of the human spirit against all odds.
The impact of violence and destruction on the human psyche is overwhelming. Violence is ruthless and relentless in its evil, but one can also sense that counter balancing it is the power of peace which most of us want
When reflecting in retrospect on our past history, one finds that there are lessons to be learnt. Part of the reasons for the negative reactions, lashing out in anger -- both physically and verbally stems I think from the fact, that we as Sri Lankans never had to fight or suffer for anything. All came easily, we got our Independence on a platter after India got hers, our demands for Independence by those greats of the past, The Senanayake brothers, Sir James Peiris, D. R.Wijewardene and others were granted without us battling for it, unlike in India. During the long drawn out war years, it was mostly the people in the North who suffered daily, we in the South, had only relatively sporadic bomb blasts. As a result, our laid back attitude is a desire to get everything easily.
Successive Sinhalese leaders hit the Sinhalese by nationalising buses, lands, newspapers, taking over printing of textbooks, all of which were owned by the Sinhalese. Our ethnic minorities went on with their businesses which were not affected and worked hard for success. They have also contributed greatly to our country by their generosity to community welfare, benefiting millions of people, all over the country, irrespective of the peripheries of race or religion. This has caused jealousy which led to violence against innocent people who were not involved in extremist activities, using the bomb blasts as an excuse for attack.Their shops and businesses stay open late, they are eager to please customers, and are often cheaper. During the last regime, people got used to making money easily, in kickbacks, commissions etc without actually having to work for it. Whether we like it or not, we have to hand it to our ethnic minority groups that they work much harder than we do, and have achieved all they have by their sweat and toil, working 24 hours, even burning the midnight oil to get
where they are today.
People grumble that security was insufficient, then grumble further when they are subject to security checks. It was disgusting to hear about a lady lawyer, who allegedly rebuked a policewoman merely doing her duty in checking her, insulted her verbally on her inferior education, stressing on her superiority and scratched her too. People who behave in this outrageous fashion should be ostracized. This kind of behaviour does little to boost our police and armed services who are doing a magnificent job to protect us and undermines their authority, when they are risking their lives standing in the sun or rain, just to ensure our security. Then there is the other problem of people who believe every lie put out by the opposition, do not bother to check the facts and talk rot about issues they fail to comprehend in public, spreading falsehoods which are not even happening.
A recent tale being spread around at gatherings by people who should know better in loud voices,was that the Prime Minister had sold the country to the Americans. They tend to pontificate about subjects they know little or nothing about and have opinions about everything, thus are crashing bores avoided by most people.When the Rajapaksa regime actually did this with the Chinese, people were too afraid of their lives to open their mouths in fear of being whisked away in a white van, never to see the light of life again.
In this respect, I was so glad to see a statement by State Minister of Defence Ruwan Wijewardene which explained the situation and gives the lie to the false propaganda propagated by the JO and spread by people who obviously have an IQ below zero, and enjoy the sound of their own voices even if no-one else does! The young Minister was quite clear when he stressed that the American forces would not be permitted to come here or establish military camps on our soil. He said the government would not enter into any agreements secret or otherwise which would be detrimental to the interests and sovereignty of our country.
Minister Ruwan Wijewardene like Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is known for speaking the truth. These are values that have been instilled in them from birth, which they have carried into their political lives, walking the straight path. It is also strange that another Minister who is said to have had discussions with the Americans on this issue, remains silent and lets the PM take the blame about selling the country without making a statement on the issues.
When the Rajapaksa regime actually did this with the Chinese, people were too afraid of their lives to open their mouths in fear of being whisked away in a white van, never to see the light of life again
Some of these Ministers and MP’s are making statements detrimental to party unity, before decisions have been taken by the working committee.
They are being used as puppets on a string, dancing to the tunes of media moguls trying to be kingmakers, to have leaders they can control to get their demands met in varying spheres. Most of these MP’s and ministers are taking advantage of the fact that the PM is a gentleman, they would only value and treasure him when they get another dictator as a leader when they would be treated with coarse abuse each time they defied party discipline.
‘So absolutely good is truth, truth never hurts the teller.’ - Robert Browning.
