Tuesday, 25 June 2013 10:11
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The ICC Champions Trophy represented an opportunity. For most Sri Lankans it was the chance to re-write the unfortunate World Cup final where Sri Lanka lost to India and cement its supremacy in the cradle of cricket. For others it was the chance to draw international attention to the inadequately answered allegations of war crimes and demand for the international community to address human rights issues.
Many would question whether this was the right venue for such displays and whether it was done in the right way. Scenes showed the Eelam flag flying high and many slogans targeting cricket, which has always stood as a unifying force in this torn island. Tales of the LTTE Leader ordering cessation of hostilities during the 1996 World Cup have taken on folklore proportions and cricket has been the one thing that has always united the north and south.
During the matches extra security had to be afforded to the cricket team after they were accosted repeatedly by protestors who disrupted play and often had to be tackled to the ground. A concerned Government made special requests for surveillance and investigations against those who were detained. This was indeed not an ideal image for Sri Lanka and while the Government is content to label them LTTE sympathisers and dismiss their grievances, actual reconciliation cannot be achieved in that way.
Sri Lanka’s Ambassador to the UN in Geneva Ravinatha Aryasinha has said politically mobilised LTTE front organisations abroad act to sustain hatred and prevent reconciliation in Sri Lanka and that with groups having such a pre-disposition to meaningful engagement was not possible. Noting that the transnational political opportunity structures prevalent in host states help shape and sustain such diaspora activism, he observed that countries which continue to condone the hostility and disruptive tendencies shown by such pro-LTTE elements are giving a wrong signal.
In short the Government does not see any responsibility on its side of the fence. In particular the Government’s silence on the important aspect of power devolution, demilitarisation, human rights, investigations on disappearances and abductions or even a broad pledge of security for the Tamil people of the north are all having a deeply negative impact on the diaspora. Free and fair elections or how minorities would be able to govern themselves in this ever-changing political landscape are all aspects that have a deep effect on Sri Lanka’s ability to interact with these people.
Implementation of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC), high security zones and even resolving the sensitive land grabbing issues ahead of the elections continue to be blithely ignored. It was as if the problems faded into the palmyrah shadows before the effervescent spin of the Government. But it is unlikely they will stay that way.
The 13th Amendment is at the front and centre of this confidence building. The Government’s attempts to roll back provincial councils, increase executive powers still further and push Tamil representation into the sidelines through a referendum are all viewed with deep disillusionment. The fact that the Sri Lankan Government is willing to walk away from pledges made to the United Nations and India are also indicative of the fact that they cannot be trusted to provide equal rights to the Tamil community. Therefore, while incidents at the Oval are in extreme bad taste, they are also a reflection of desperation that has been brought about, at least in part, by the decisions of this Government. They are a reflection of Sri Lanka – a shallow but ugly reality.
