Sri Lanka: An identity in crisis?

Fortunately, we have a country  called Sri Lanka.
What are our dreams for and about the future of Sri Lanka as Sri Lankans? These dreams, or the need to have such dreams, essentially binds all of us as a nation despite whatever differences we have. Just like an American nation or an Indian nation, which are powerful nations despite differences in skin colour or language.
* Let us dream together.
* Let us talk to each other.
* Let us listen to all opinions.
That is if we want a better Sri Lanka - and let us continue to make Sri Lanka a better country each day while we take pride in its children.
A few observations recently dampened my ability to dream. Alas, some of them are not really just recent happenings but they were brought to my consciousness by other observations.





1.     I interacted with a group of adolescents and none of them had heard the term තිඹිරි ෙගදර (birthing room, which also means ‘origin’). All of them were native Sinhala speakers.
2.    I asked a few young and not so young  native Tamil speakers what music radio stations they listen to. I also asked them what percentage of original Sri Lankan Tamil songs were played by these stations. They replied 0%.
3.    Recently a group of young boys were reported to be supporting Pakistan cricket team in a cricket match played in Colombo who were Muslims living in Sri Lanka.
4.    A friend told me that nine out of 10 young people working with him want to leave Sri Lanka as early as they can get away, and live in another country.




What is it that has led to a situation that our Sinhala children have never heard such a beautiful term like තිඹිරි ෙගදර?
Who made our own Tamil children enjoy exclusively Indian songs and not a single Sri Lankan Tamil song?
How have our Muslim youth learnt to support Pakistan when they play against our own country in a cricket match?
Why do they want to leave this country en masse?
What has gone wrong?
Probably the answer lies in the very basic concept of self. Where has our identity gone?
Who are we?
What makes us Sri Lankans?
What binds us to the Motherland?
What is our identity?
When two strangers meet in the Western world they ask each others’ names to get to know each other. And then the introduction is complete. In Sri Lanka, the first question we ask each other is not the name, but where one is from!
It goes something like this -
“ I guess, it will be another ten minutes before the session starts.”
- “Yes, yes. We might have to wait.”
“Well, So where are you from?”
- “Kalutara, station road.”
“Ah, really? I have a friend there. Actually a distant relative. A former Grama Niladhari?”
- “I am not sure… Do they live in an old house with big gate posts?”
“Yes! That is the house!”
- “Oh, I know them. Well, they are our relatives, too!”
“Really?”
So,  it goes on and on.





We make multiple connections with other people through one’s ‘village’. Also, through the people one knows or we are related to because our self-concept is so complicated. It is not just your body and name as in the Western world. It is our whole being, including our village and where we are born.
In the Western World, asking where one was born, what one’s ‘village is, is considered impolite. It’s considered an intrusion of one’s privacy. I am not making a judgement that one is superior to another. What I am saying is that it is just the difference we need to look at.
The self-concept is fundamental to one’s identity, and there are fundamental differences in the identity of us, Sri Lankans.Let us look at another story. The story of Abdul Majeed, which I learnt from former Ampara GA, Sunil Kannangara.
Abdul Majeed lived in Potuvil, in the Eastern coast of Sri Lanka. His house was on the land which is now currently occupied by Muhudu Maha Vihara. There was no temple or any ruins at that time. When Abdul Majeed was digging in his front yard to build a temporary hut for a family occasion, in the1960s, he found the head of a Buddha statue. He could have just covered that hole and dug another hole and continued with his life as usual.
Abdul Majeed was a Sri Lankan and was proud to be a Sri Lankan, so  he decided to inform the authorities, knowing very well he would soon have to disown his own house and land. And, he did just that.The Department of Archaeology uncovered many ancient ruins in the area and demarcated a designated archaeological site. Abdul Majeed and many other Muslims lost their lands to this site. Many were compensated financially. But not Abdul Majeed.
The amazing thing was that he refused to take money. His attitude was “I am handing back this important piece of land to my motherland. So how can I take money?”





The Archaeological Department Officers couldn’t figure out how to react to this great Sri Lankan’s magnanimous decision.Eventually, they did react. What they did was to offer the newly created post of ‘Keeper of the Muhudu Maha Vihara’ archaeological site to Abdul Majeed. He accepted and carefully guarded this ancient piece of his motherland till his death. Then the post was passed on to his son, A. M. Wahab. That is how Muhudu Maha Vihara happened to be guarded by a Muslim. Son of a great Sri Lankan. It is time to find more Abdul Majeeds. Where have all the Sri Lankans who love their motherland gone? Are they right here? Go and look in the mirror!
The challenge right in front of us at the moment is to create more and more real Sri Lankans like Abdul Majeed. We can do this from the next generation who feel nice little nuances of their mother tongue, like තිඹිරි ෙගදර, foreign.
The challenge is to re-root our next generation to support and cheer Sri Lanka, while rejoicing her true victories beyond cricket match victories. The challenge is to create and enrich a truly Sri Lankan Tamil culture (and a Muslim culture), so there would be great Sri Lankan Tamil songs for people to enjoy. The challenge is to get our young and old citizens to realize what a great country we have compared to most other countries in the world.
Who will face these challenges?
Again, we only need to look in the mirror.