Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

21 November 2018

Insider or Foreigner ?

How does one know whether or not one is an insider in a family, institution or nation? Are Sinhalese for example outsiders to Tamils? Are Christians outsiders to Muslims? Between India and China which one is the insider and which one is the outsider; or are both outsiders? When one marries – is the spouse outsider or insider to one’s siblings and parents? Is Mr Sirisena such a spouse in the Rajapaksa family? Am I an insider or outsider to the media group that Mr Ravi Ladduwahetty has been included by me? When Mr Ladduwahetty  writes to me ‘AS I THIS TOLD BEFORE, PLEASE UNSUBSCRIBE ME FROM  YOUR MAILING LIST !’ do I demote him in the democratic forum that I have contributed to by purpose and values – or do I ignore him and make him an outsider to my world?  Do I conclude that Mr Ladduwahetty  is not interested in the Tamil interpretation of what is going on in Sri Lankan politics? Do I then take solace in the Tamil only community that not only includes me but demonstrates much higher status than Mr Ladduwahetty has? Is this why the Tamil militants were empowered by the educated Tamils of Sri Lanka? Am I the insider by purpose or is he the insider by apparent status? Do I take Mr Ladduwahetty’s  individual status as published or do I take only the status of the group (Sinhalese) that he apparently belongs to? Is my purpose and conduct as per that purpose more democratic than Mr Ladduwahetty’s  ? Is Mr Ladduwahetty confirming that he is naturally autocratic and therefore sit in the last bench in a democratic forum?

On that basis - how am I to interpret the following message from Sunday Times – under the heading ‘Angry Sirisena breaks foundations of the pillars of democracy’:

[ In an extract that is circulating in social media, Chathurika Sirisena, daughter of President Maithripala Sirisena describes her father in her book Janaadhipathi Thaaththa (‘Presidential Father’) as a very innocent man who however doesn’t know what he is doing when he is angry. The younger Sirisena recalls an incident in Maithripala Sirisena’s childhood where he was admonished by his own father with a knock on his head (‘tokka’). In retaliation,Sirisena reportedly set fire to a lush paddy-field!]

Is/was  Ms Chathurika Sirisena, as the representative of the Sirisena family acting responsibly by revealing such insider details while her father is still active in politics? Is the lady acting in breach of the values of Separation of powers between family and society? Is that a good example for the average Sri Lankan to follow? As in the case of Mr Mahinda Rajapaksa – has Mr Sirisena’s family become selfishly attached to leadership position held by their father? Is that the example being set by Mr Sirisena about the citizen he has groomed?

The value of the answers to the above would help a seeker in assessing what her/his ranking  is in terms of democracy . Those with high distinction would send Mr Sirisena to the backbench  in the next election he participates in.

In the last one Mr Sirisena was the messenger of Madam Kumaratunga. So long as Mr Sirisena remained Madam Kumaratunga’s messenger he would have had the lady’s courage. In the recent swearing-in ceremony of the President of Maldives, it was Madam Kumaratunga who represented Sri Lanka. The sole purpose of Mr Sirisena in the 2015 Presidential elections was to weaken Mr Mahinda Rajapaksa’s  share of SLFP votes. Madam Kumaratunga was the Energy – the woman behind Mr Sirisena’s success. It is obvious that once in position, Mr Sirisena forgot to pay his respects to Madam Kumaratunga. The only other position he is used to is that as Mr Rajapaksa’s junior. He naturally reverted to this once he separated from Madam Kumaratunga’s Energy.

The root cause is Truth. The solution to a problem is with one who finds the root cause. At the other end are the fruits of the tree. In this instance  - the votes. The votes of desire would in turn invoke fear and anxiety. If on the other hand the votes are the fruits of ownership in Sri Lanka – even if that ownership is not made apparent through property – the vote would go direct to governance power of the leader. Similarly, in the case of the global community  the votes are the reviews by other Nations – each as per their experience or desire. One who votes as per their shared values with Sri Lanka – are the deepest investors. Those who provide reviews out of their desires – including to ‘tell’ Sri Lanka – are outsiders. In global democracy they have to take the seats on the last bench. They usually are the leftovers of autocracy profiting from Sri Lanka’s apparent weaknesses.