Whither Sri Lankan Democracy?

by N.S.Venkataraman

(December 13, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) After the momentous Presidential election and much controversies, Sri Lanka appears to have now settled down with President Rajapaksa firmly in the saddle. Does this mean that the democracy in Sri Lanka has won ?

We need to keep in mind that President Rajapaksa was criticized on several counts including ushering in a family rule and introducing measures to perpetuate himself in power for long time. None of these
criticisms have been answered but have been largely ignored . To this extent, there have been no healthy national debate on these vital issues.

The ex army chief who dared to quit the post and contest the Presidential elections is now in prison and nobody really knows how long he would be behind the bars. Though some sort of investigations have been carried out about his deeds and court martial proceedings have been initiated , many people are not sure as to
whether the trial have been full and fair. In any case, General
Fonseka is in jail now .

Possibly, such actions against him would not have been taken if he
were not to contest the Presidential election. Putting the opponent
candidate in prison by the winning candidate is certainly a blemish on
the democratic procedures and traditions. If the army chief was
guilty perhaps, he could have been dealt with suitably even before the
election took place.

There is still considerable criticism in Sri Lanka and outside about
the press freedom in Sri Lanka and treatment meted out to the
journalists.

Now, the question is where does the Sri Lankan democracy go from here .

It is true that in every country claiming to be a democracy , there
have been bitterness amongst the political opponents and even
vindictive behaviour on the part of the government. In India too, at
one time, there was a national emergency when several political
opponents were jailed. Therefore, one can argue that the happenings
in Sri Lankan democracy is not unusual or unheard of .

But, those interested in seeing a healthy and vibrant democracy in
Sri Lanka would certainly feel concerned about the present state of
affairs, when the political opponents have gone to the extreme level
in treating each other.

In any democratic society for the democracy to survive, healthy
traditions have to be built , that will act as a guideline for future
generation. In Sri Lanka , such healthy practices are not being built
and the future generation will have no role models to emulate.

Senior politicians in any democratic country should be able to see
beyond the present time and beyond themselves. They should be
conscious of the fact that they can make or mar the democratic
conditions. They cannot behave like street urchins and they need to
show lot more maturity in their utterances and actions. Obviously,
the political leaders in Sri Lanka still have a lot to learn.

Given this scenario, those citizens interested in safe guarding the
democracy in Sri Lanka should assert themselves and create a strong
public opinion that cannot be ignored by the politicians and the
government. After all, politics and politicians are not the be all
and end all of any country and there are many many other stake
holders. Such other stake holders have to assert themselves and this
is a pre condition for a democracy to survive and grow.