Unity is under threat – The MR regime is totally to blame

As if this statement needs any clarification, it is just too obvious! We cannot have an administration that daily says one thing and does something completely different. If one considers the utterances, especially of the Leader, one could be forgiven for believing that he speaks sense. However to make such statements and act in contravention of them is the order of the day, and it gets very little press time pointing this shame to the people.

When there were so many expectations that once the hostilities ceased, we would have JRJ style Magnanimity, where the vanquished Japanese were helped and assisted by many assistance programs funded by the victor, in Sri Lanka’s case the experience has been the opposite. Here again the veneer of supposedly doing and really doing nothing persists. One just has to visit Jaffna to see reality for oneself, with half the dwellings still pockmarked with war memories as if the war just ended, when they have not seen fighting for decades and a long time prior to the fighting ceased.

The recent elections are a further reminder of the desire of the people to vote their own people, be it under religious lines in the case of Muslims or ethnic line in the case of Tamils.

The Govt. believes by just getting rid of camps, retraining past combatants and rehabilitating them, they have done their bit for unity. I disagree. We must empower the people to take back their lives, not necessarily go back to the same lifestyle they had, especially if that is not what they want. In order that they are able to do that there has to be commitment on the Govt. part to to help them, help themselves. We have not seen that, and the election results show this in no uncertain terms. Even the Eastern Province where on the surface there have been massive development of infrastructure, it is obvious you cannot buy them with these until you put the demons behind them. These demons still persist with little freedom for these people.

The nation first concept has not been adopted, it is me first, and then my race and then religion and nation only relegated after that. How about putting it at the top of the to do list. Then we may be able to instill a sense of nationhood amongst our youth. It has to be restarted from the lowest class, and MUST work itself to the top. If it is done in an orderly manner, then I do believe we have a chance at it. The political will which currently does not exist for it is the other important area, we must try and ensure amongst our greedy pols.