The Friday forum comprising some intellectuals from disparate backgrounds issues statements from time to mainly about policy directions we must think about and related governance issues to enable Sri Lanka to regain its rightful place in the community of nations it has most definitely lost especially since the end of the hostilities. It is galling to see Burma race ahead in the international status race, only to be replaced by Sri Lanka at their previous pariah status.
No doubt whatever jingoistic utterances of the State about their patriotism to the local gallery, in the international sphere, and there I do not mean the Western nations, we have lost out, tragically.
The paper is titled “The Wise give up the Idea of Victory and Defeat -a statement by the Friday Forum” which is widely available. Its concluding paragraph is telling and I quote
“Much of the aggressiveness that we have seen in relation to the events of the past few weeks indicates that despite the end of the armed conflict there is a constant obsession with achieving victory and a dominant concern with not being defeated. This is manifested in many of the statements even in the media on the adoption of the resolution, such as “we have achieved victory in defeat” and “we have only lost the resolution by one vote.” This is hardly the path to achieving peace and reconciliation. The words of the Dhammapada that “victory breeds hatred, the defeated live in pain, happily the wise live giving up the idea of victory and defeat” have special relevance for all Sri Lankans at this time.”
This in short is our foreign policy, jingoistic hogwash, traitorous to the core, fooling the masses to the depths of stolen artifacts and holding a nation hostage to anyone who dares to challenge.
I have maintained that this Govt. while professing to be Buddhist is one of the least capable of even understanding what the Philosophy is all about, pity those who believe otherwise.
The whole political philosophy is to stay in power by fear, by exclusion, by pretence and by sheer might. Freedoms as they say for the feint hearted! The rapid polarization of the country into those led by our “Pied Piper” and those who are not, does not bode well for a pride in the nation, as one nation, where all its citizens enjoy equal rights. It is ironic that a Government that ostensibly unified a nation has really divided it and those who are culpable are incapable of seeing what they have done to this country. We are proud Sri Lankans as no doubt the Friday Forum signatories are, and we do not want to see it destroyed by the stolen wealth munificence of a few, who have fooled too many already.
These are merely the views of those defeated by the ballot at elections over the last few years and have no hope of gaining control of State power for the next 25 years. Frustrated they resort to bashing the democratically elected governing persons & parties.
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