President’s duty to visit all houses of the murder victims

"But if the people see the President in a funeral of one murder and then do not see him at others the partisan spirit will deepen among the people and the President himself will be seen as an instigator of violence. While a visit to one funeral would encourage the spirit of hatred and revenge in one quarter, the same kind of spirit will be ignited in another quarter by his absence."
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By Citizen Somapala

(January 19, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) Photographs in the newspapers show President Mahinda Rajapakse visiting the funeral of one of the victims of the electoral violence at Mundalama. It is quite understandable that the President as the candidate for the election would go to the funeral of a person who is one of his supporters. However, in this election campaign four people have been killed already. It would have been the duty of the President as he is the President of all the people of Sri Lanka to visit all these funeral houses. Such a visit would have passed the message that he is a man committed to his entire people on the one hand and that he is totally opposed to any kind of violence being used in an election.

To be the President and at the same time the candidate for the election is not an easy task. However, it is on such occasions that the people of the country can get the idea of a united nation or an impression of a nation divided by politics to such an extent that even in the face of murder people maintains their partisan interests.

The function of the leader is to get across the message of peace and the unity of the nation, particularly in the times of unrest when violence manifests itself in society. If the President shows his position as one standing against all that violence and one where he would show his sympathy for anyone who is slain in violence then at that point he can nip violence in the bud and keep the country on a footing of peace and stability all the time.

But if the people see the President in a funeral of one murder and then do not see him at others the partisan spirit will deepen among the people and the President himself will be seen as an instigator of violence. While a visit to one funeral would encourage the spirit of hatred and revenge in one quarter, the same kind of spirit will be ignited in another quarter by his absence. Political leaders have obligations which far exceed his limited ambitions at particular times like those of elections. They can either keep or destroy peace. If at least, from this point on, if the President indicates that he will attend any funeral where persons have been killed in an electoral campaign he could, by passing that message stop any further murders taking place.

Someone may argue as to whether this is not the obligation of all the candidates. It certainly is the duty of all the candidates to pass the message that they do not condone any kind of violence done on their behalf. That they will not take any pleasure in seeing any of their opponents slain is the duty of every candidate.

It is however, quite understandable under the present circumstances that some candidates may not feel that they will be tolerated in the funeral house of a slain supporter of their opponent. However the President of the country cannot take that position. He has the resources of the nation, the security of the armed forces and the police to enable his visits with security. Besides that he, as the elected representative the responsibility of maintaining peace and if the peace is broken he bears the responsibility for it.