Grit, honour and resilience; markers of a great leader

How should we remember and honour former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa?

By Dulath Wijetilleke

Many Sri Lankans likely feel that 9 July 2022 was one of the most unforgettable days in Sri Lanka’s modern history. We all remember it, some of us perhaps in greater detail than others. We all, in one way or another, watched former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa “flee” his then official residence in Colombo as thousands of protestors stormed his residence. This act by the protestors was commended by most as a demonstration of the people’s right to exercise their will in a democracy where its leader had failed its people. However, within this perfect storm there is another side, another perspective that perhaps we missed.

To say the least, the media was quite brutal in the angle used to capture the former President’s exit. Most headlines used words such as ousted, tainted, or even fugitive. While we are all entitled to our own opinions, perhaps what we failed to capture was that former President Rajapaksa, once regarded as our island nation’s hero, remained true to his heroic nature even in his departure. Despite the absolute power he had at his disposal, he agreed to the will of the people and stepped down voluntarily, exhibiting a true peaceful transition of power – a core democratic principle. He placed his affection for Sri Lanka and her people above all else, seemingly accepting any consequence that he may have to face not only in Sri Lanka’s public court of opinion but also the entire world’s. This is rare. This act to choose one’s country, one’s people above one’s self required grit, honour, and resilience – markers of a great leader.

I can only imagine what this sacrifice meant and the personal and professional repercussions it may have had for the former President. To be ousted from his homeland, a land that he helped save from a multi-decade long civil war, and a global pandemic was no longer willing to be his home. This, I imagine, would bring any leader to a point of great reflection and to a point of tremendous hurt. Having said this, I feel that Sri Lanka is now at a crossroads in deciphering and aligning on former President Rajapaksa’s legacy. How will he be remembered in Sri Lanka’s history? What role did he have in shaping Sri Lanka’s modern day socio-political landscape? What do we as a nation owe to this leader who carried the heavy burden of addressing two large-scale unprecedented events – the civil war, and the global COVID-19 pandemic?

If we go back to 16 May 2009, former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa was undoubtedly one of Sri Lanka’s most loved heroes. The island was rejoicing as the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) was finally vanquished and we as a nation were finally able to see the possibility of a more peaceful and prosperous Sri Lanka. For 26 years, with more than 100,000 lives lost, leaders both foreign and domestic made failed attempts to save Sri Lanka from continued bloodshed. One finally succeeded. 

Of all the emotions that came along with the end of the civil war, perhaps relief was the most potent one. Relief that streets could be a safe place again. Relief that our friends and family will arrive home safely without the threat of a bomb exploding on a train or bus. Relief that we may never have to see another day as devastating as the day of the Central Bank bombings. Needless to say, at this time former President Rajapaksa’s legacy was one of a saviour, a messiah, and nothing short of a king. The people celebrated him and his vigour far and wide, rightfully so.

The ending of the civil war was not only a security victory, it was also an economic victory. According to the OPEC Fund for International Development, between the periods of 2010-2012 Sri Lanka’s GDP grew by an average of 7.6%. In addition, from 2006 to 2010 Sri Lanka managed to halve the number of individuals living in absolute poverty. Slowly but surely annual per capita income continued to steadily increase. Sri Lanka was arguably becoming a model emerging market economy.

Fast-forward a decade, Sri Lanka was ready to recognise her hero and trust Gotabaya Rajapaksa with the highest office in the nation, the Presidency. We trusted that he would continue to hold Sri Lanka’s best interest in all his decisions, to protect the land from all domestic and foreign threats, and frankly to protect Sri Lanka’s reputation as an undeniable great nation. Then, at the start of former President Rajapaksa’s term the global pandemic happened.

Once again, Gotabaya Rajapaksa was asked to do the impossible – save his homeland and its people this time from a different type of threat. Unless our memory evades us, COVID-19 was devastating and no nation was an exception. Every day we heard countless stories of lives lost – mothers, fathers, sisters, brothers, children, who were taken as a result of this horrible disease. Though different, the same clouds that hung over us during the civil war once again loomed over our heads. Would this even end? Will my family and friends be safe? I remember the long days and nights as these thoughts crowded my mind. Uncertainty consumed us all.

Unlike each of us, then President Rajapaksa had to think beyond his immediate loved ones as he had the heavy burden of protecting an entire nation. However, as he had done before, he stepped up to the plate. He followed the science, enacted measures to protect the public and placed the safety of the people first. As we began to see light at the end of the tunnel with the COVID-19 vaccines, then President Rajapaksa and his Government did all that they could to secure vaccines for all Sri Lankans. In a news release from the World Health Organization dated 18 September, 2021, they stated, “H.E. President Rajapaksa’s ambitious vaccination effort that spearheads Sri Lanka’s COVID-19 response has long surpassed WHO’s targets. It is also likely to surpass its own target of vaccinating 60% of the population by 31 December”. Once again, he accomplished the impossible.

Not shortly after that, the world began to feel the repercussions of COVID-19 and the Ukraine-Russia war. Inflation rose to record levels in some parts of the world, supply chain shortages crippled businesses, unemployment soared and the world was barely hanging on. Sri Lanka was no different. Despite the significant post-war economic growth, Sri Lanka was now short on resources, partly as a result of COVID-19 related expenditures, including vaccine costs and costs associated with supporting people to meet their everyday needs. Once these resources depleted, Sri Lanka now faced a bleak economic outlook at least for the next few years.

While many leaders around the world struggled as they navigated their nations through uncertain times, Sri Lanka was perhaps less forgiving of her leader, former President Rajapaksa. While he had surmounted the seemingly impossible on numerous pivotal occasions in Sri Lanka’s modern history, he was after all human and handcuffed by difficult decisions, conceivably beyond his control. I believe the end to his presidential term was simply a result of ‘recency bias’ – a cognitive bias that favours recent events over historic ones. If that was not the case, I imagine it would be difficult to forget a leader, a hero who did so much for his country. In essence, saved Sri Lanka twice from cataclysmic events, to say the least. And despite all this, at the end when he was asked to leave, he left peacefully.

Nobly, humbly he accepted the verdict of the people and gave his presidency willingly. I imagine, the alternative of holding onto power by force would have been too difficult to face for someone who saved our island nation at a minimum from bloodshed (civil war) and sickness (global pandemic).

So, how should we remember and honour former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa? What do we owe a man who sacrificed unimaginable things to save his country and his people that he loved so much? I’m certain we all have varying opinions across a wide spectrum from hate to love, but I believe that Sri Lanka and its people owe much more to Gotabaya Rajapaksa than what recent events have shown. At a minimum, we owe him gratitude and utmost respect.