• All that haunts us today was planted during that decade

By Shenali D. Waduge Sri Lanka gained nominal independence in 1948. Nominal, because the Queen remained Head of State and the UK Privy Council was the highest court despite the country being regarded as “independent”.  Barely 10 years post-Independence, a Prime Minister was assassinated, after the first Prime Minister accidentally fell to his death, but we also produced the world’s first female Prime Minister, whose reign continues to be regarded as the best, post-Independence. She gained acclaim globally and embarked on a nationalist programme of self-sustenance. However, these achievements were apparently only surface-level, as she met her waterloo with the creation of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and the Tamil New Tigers on the same day of her Republican Constitution. These were no coincidences. The geopolitical shift came in 1977 – a year after Tamil leaders declared a quest for a separate Tamil State, where South Asia began to dabble with Western economic liberalisation in both goods and thought.  The 1980s came, bringing bloodshed, and the foundation for more bloodshed. The JVP movement was seemingly created drawing Sinhala Buddhist youth to rebel and vanquish their heritage, traditional customs, and nationalism, and embrace an ideology of hate, jealousy, and vengeance, motivated by the belief that what they deemed true had to be accepted by all.  How far the JVP was packaged together with the Tamil New Tigers in 1972 is important, for both came to be when Sri Lanka adopted the first Republican Constitution ending the Queen’s reign as Head of State, putting an end to UK military bases in Sri Lanka and the UK Privy Council as our highest court. While the JVP insurgency was quelled, it resulted in the killing of Sinhala Buddhist youth. Ironically, not many called for human rights investigations into their deaths; it was not fashionable or newsworthy enough. The aim would have been to eliminate these energised youth.  The Tamil New Tigers created in 1972 became the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) after the Vaddukoddai Resolution of 1976, which called for a separate Tamil State and resulted in the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) becoming the country’s main Opposition in 1977.  Then came the 1977 elections and the start of Sri Lanka’s collapse.  The United National Party (UNP) reversed its 1956 setback, winning the elections. Then-UNP Leader J.R. Jayewardene (JRJ) soon converted his premiership to create an Executive Presidency.  Championing democracy by deceit became the hallmark of rule. Violating democracy in the name of democracy became the norm. Elections were replaced with a referendum. Judges that questioned had their houses stoned. Thugs, goon squads from the underworld, and armed security became the body armour of politicians. Politicians of pre-1977 were people who served the people. They used their own funds to serve their electorates. Post-1977, the scenario changed. J.R. ushered in a luxurious lifestyle for politicians, giving them perks, privileges, cars, foreign trips, and even State land for tuppence.  If you wondered how ballot box stuffing, ballot box stealing, impersonations, voter intimidation, and voter threats started – it was during J.R.’s time as President and under UNP rule. Of course, the credit for stealing national identity cards (NICs) goes to the JVP.  In case one wonders how the distinguished and respected public service descended to such pitiful depths, look no further – post-1977 sealed the damage there too. Respected civil servants and secretaries were soon to become “yes-men” to a bunch of thugs who started entering Parliament after voter intimidation and ballot-rigging. The public sector became a den for employing their stooges and voters inflating the public service with a mob of people who were not qualified to do anything, and who seemed to merely pass time reading newspapers, gossiping, and sipping tea – each election meant more people were given political jobs as favours for canvassing.  It was only natural that this would trickle to the armed forces and Police as well. This eventually created a politicised Police, despite the public sector supposed to be apolitical and required to serve the nation, not the government in power, to carry out the orders of the government so long as it is in keeping with their code of ethics. Erosion of the public sector commenced when they were demanded to do what they were not supposed to do. Erosion of the public sector turned into corruption in the public sector. With this erosion, a plethora of associated vices took place, where resources and assets of the nation became victims and resulted in blatant wastage, theft, siphoning sales, and bargaining. The assets and resources came to be the treasures that were siphoned off by politicians, their cronies, and the public sector, and with every year, with every government, it only got worse. This was the source and root of the corruption. Lest people forget, it was J.R. who introduced all of these vices and dished them out to politicians to enjoy, allowing him to rule as he pleased.  That was however short-lived, as, in J.R.’s shadow was a man who had other objectives. He was to put an end to dynastic family rule that had been a cornerstone of politics since Independence.  The year 1983 saw government-sponsored mob riots once again choreographed to chastise the Sinhalese. Then came the period of bloodshed – brute force, if ever, prevailed by a state was seen at no other period in time than under UNP rule. The liberals who were the backers of the UNP are now mum when it comes to this period. They all refer to State oppression, but flinch to say it was by the UNP.  It was also during this period that the “puthano’s piyano”, under advice or otherwise went on a rampage, killing opponents. This was the bheeshana period, where all types of “cats” roamed the streets and an alogosuwa, a man with a hood, who merely had to nod his head to decide the fate of people. Kidnapped lawyers, students, clergy, and academics had their eyes treated with chilli powder and hands nailed to the ground – types of horrendous physical abuse that may not even be second to the waterboarding techniques used by the US in their secret prisons.  People were burning on tyres or naked, tied to lampposts courtesy of the JVP – anyone who dared to come forward to count the kidnapped or disappeared, leave alone the dead.  The JVP was used to bump off the cream of Sinhala Buddhists in Sri Lanka, both from within and by virtue of their victims. What did people like Premakeerthi de Alwis do to deserve to be shot in front of his own children by the JVP? How many more talented artists were similarly killed by the JVP?  Thus, we watched the JVP being used to destroy Sinhala Buddhists by drawing them to join the JVP, and we watched as these brainwashed youth ran berserk resulting in the UNP Government, shooting or torturing Sinhala Buddhists to death. In the end, this period targeted Sinhala Buddhists and was aimed at terminating talented individuals who would have served the nation and posed a challenge to the game plan being rolled out.  While Sinhala Buddhists were being eliminated by both the JVP and UNP, Sri Lanka was to be the recipient of terrorism that came in the form of Tamil militancy trained by India and packed off to rebel against the State. This was to combine with an Indian Army presence that turned sour, creating a fire-at-all killing spree. No one knew who was killing who, but in the end, scores of people were getting killed.  Where were these “heroic” liberals of the present day?  Most of those that eloquently speak in the halls of the suddas were very much present during those times, cowering in fear, no doubt. That was the time they were in exile or had to hide their pen, not presently. How many of these were actually troublemakers themselves? How many of those that write about Richard de Zoysa care to mention the name of the UNP leaders who ruled during his disappearance?  They are very careful to selectively say “State oppression” but never the party or individuals involved. However, when the whole world likes to hate one group of people, they are all united in writing books, galvanising groups and proudly displaying “I was there” slogans because such stands come with international awards, scholarships, and even exile status. What a ticket to live in the West at the expense of the West and then be invited to panels or the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) from time to time to play the same broken record!  People who lived during the 1980s and 1990s and even early 2000 will know the life Sri Lankans had to deal with. Those who were less than 10 years old at the time and are now in their 40s may not know what their parents had to go through to protect them from being kidnapped by the JVP or LTTE or killed by the UNP, claiming they were either JVP or LTTE.  This was the period of fear we had to live in, not the glorified lies of fear that are being floated. The JVP joined the Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga (CBK) Government. The LTTE was eliminated in 2009 and the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) was packed off in 1990.  The JVP remains to ruin the lives of youth and brainwash people while the LTTE diaspora wishes to only make hay while the sun shines and plug geopolitical objectives to their advantage.  As for Sri Lanka, we are in an economic mess as a result of an unplanned open economy and the system of corruption that was unleashed under the then-Executive President and followed by every successive government since. It is a system that benefitted all those who today are on anti-corruption drives. Many of those who became rich after the 1980s were the recipients of corrupt practices that prevailed then. Only a handful of uncorrupt people can call both the pot and the kettle, black! (The writer is an independent political analyst who writes on a broad range of topics, and was previously the International Human Rights Commission’s Goodwill Ambassador for Sri Lanka) …………………. The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect those of this publication.