LANKA GUARDIAN Vol. 19 No. July 1, 1996 Price Rs. 10.00 Registered at the GPO, Sri Lanka P. A’s TRADE UNION TROUBLES — MERVYN DE SILVA INDIA: THE BURDEN OF DEFENCE — NEERAJ KAUSHAL BANGLADESH POLLS DOOR-TO- DOOR CAMPAIGNS — NEELAN TIRUCHELVAM RIVER WATERS AND INDIAN ISSUES — NIKHIL CHAKRAVARTTY FEDERALISM: ISTHE SWISS MODEL RELEVANT? —KAMALIKA PIERIS SRI LANKA AND AMERICAN IMAGES — JEANNE THWAITES i)NEW FROM ICES IDEOLOGY AND THE CONSTITUTION: ESSAYS ON CONSTITUTIONAL JURISPRUDENCE by Radhika Coomaraswamy The collection of essays on Constitutional Jurisprudence is an attempt to understand the process of constitutional decision-making and political action from a framework of human rights, democracy and social justice. Contents The Uses and Usurpation of Constitutional Ideology The Constitution and Constitutional Reform The Civil Liberties and Human Rights Perspective Legitimacy and the Sri Lankan Constitution To Bellow Like a Cow — Women, Ethnicity and the Discourse of Rights Civil and Political Rights — Some Regional Issues Devolution, The Law and Judicial Construction Let Fools Contest — Parliamentary Democracy vs. Presidential System (ICES, May 1996, 178 pp.) Hardcover: Rs. 300 Paperback: Rs. 200 U.S. $20.00 (Hardcover) for SAARC countries (Airshipment) U.S. $25.00 (Hardcover) for other countries (Airshipment) U.S. $15.00 (Paperback) for SAARC countries (Airshipment) U.S. $20.00 (Paperback) for other countries (Airshipment) All orders to ICES, 2, Kynsey Terrace, Colombo 8, Sri Lanka Telephone 685085/698048. Fax 696618NEWS BACKGROUND THE UNIONS ARE RESTLESS Mervyn de Silva In the new postCold War world, neither miltary power nor economic resources nor democratic practice ic taken a5 the surest index of a nation’s health, The Stock Exchange ie the new oracle, ‘Tho downward movement of the indi- ces at the Colombo Exchange inlo the fith successive week, says the FORBES RESEARCH weekly review, was “far mare signilicant” in the past few weeks than at any time in the past month or Tore. The Heview underlined (a) the continued absence of many investors (b) low wading volumes. end turnover levels were the main features. And why? In the idiom of the market anelyst, this trend was largely the result of “negative sentiment created by the economic and political unceriainty in the county”. This algo oxplainod tho low tracing volumes and tumover levels. The All-share index was down by 168 pons, a 29% drop while tie Blue Chip Index redsieved @ decina of 85, 2 points, a 378% drop from the week before. Neanubile Trade Chamber President Patiick Amerasinghe has warmed of a new danger — unemployment. So many ‘companios have closed down that thou- sands have lost their cbs. And the effect of this has been quite severe bocauso many private firms, alammed about the PA's 'Workers' Charter”, have adopted policy oi retrenchment. The Workers’ Charter, a P.A polls plecga and a strong personal commitment of Minister Mat da_Fiaapakse, -has caused mounting ‘concern in the P.A, leadership. As 2 result, President Kumaralunga told a party rally in Mrigama: “The time has come to say NO to strikes. First tho war must be won, Second we have to develop the country and third we must accelerate tho drive to create ‘employment. RESTLESS UNIONS But the unions ara restive, And the best organised unions are sill controled of afillaled to the Lefis! partes, like the LS.S.P., a mejor S.LFP. pavtner. The LS.S.P. leader, Mr. Berard Soysa is a Cabinet minister. Thus the trade union unrest affects the P.A. just as ery TUG. action disturbs a Labour admin stration in Britain. Alroady, Mr. Vasudeva Nanayakara M.P. would like Mr. Soysa to quit the Cabinet. ‘The main demand of some of the unions is @ Rs. 100 pay hike —a step that viould promote inilationary trends, already a cause of concen for the Finance Minsiry. Bal President Kumaratunga’s counter strategy is to remind the majority Sinhale- se, the UN.P. supporters included, of the amys solandid victory in the North against the LT-T.E. “We have mado vast stides in diminishing the strength of the Tigers. Since the government is hot weging @ wat against the Tamil people, we have to redress their genuine grievarices". Since Mr. Vasudeva Nanayakare MP hes already raised the question of the LSSP%s role as a consiiient mamber of the PA, this issue has now led to a serious debate in the P.A. hierarchy, ard in tho consituensice dominated by he Left. President Ghanarka. has thought if neceseary to instruct Deputy Finance Minister Prot, Pieris to inform Bank employees that the government wil NOT pivatse the tree State benks. So PA. policy, under pressure by the SLFP5 Lettst partners end the unions, moves forward, backwards and. side” ways — to the dismay of the World Berk and the IMF, the private sector ard forsign invesiors RANIL'S LINE Qppostion Leacer Ranil Wickremasin= ghe summad it up in a recent speech in Patliament: "We have had a blackcut due to an electricity sttke. The Cabinel was nct summoned. The Cabinet was not cor- suiled. The Minister of Foreign Attairs Wanted the agreement with the Tawekial Brothers set aside. The Cabinet agreed. ‘Suddenly there was @ meeting between the Tawakkal Co. the officials of the Treasury and PERC and al of a sudden that decision wes charge : What has happened today? There is a tolal loss of confidence in the gove- mment. The business community” has lost confidence..... Investors big and mall have lost éonfidanea in the govo- iment... 1 do not think all these concessions you have given, will got one more ship fo Sri Lanka or create any more employment. Wihout inve- siment how are you going le creaie obs? Prof. Piais, Deputy Financa Minister, meanwtile asoured the Si Lanka Ince: Dencent Bank Employees Union thal the Bank of Coyion, Peoples Bank and the National Savings Bank wil NOT be privatised, Policy moves forward, backwards and sideways. GUARDIAN Vol. 19 No.5. July 1, 1996 Price Rs. 10.00 Published fortnightly by Lanka Guardian Publishing Co, Ltd. ‘No. 246, Union Place Colombo - 2. Egitor Mervyn de Silva Telephone: 447584 Printed by Ananda Pros 82/5, Sir Ratnajothi Saravenamutu Mawatha, Colombo 13, Telephone, 435975 CONTENTS Ethnic Goomiet and tts vicar Dimensions 2 nda ‘The Gorsredetons 0! Corzoreue 6 Bangladesh Peles end Elecions 9 Ethnic Corfet'and Devolution 4) 2 Books 14 Carrespendonco 10 © A proposal to raise bus fares by 15% is likely to be implemented this week @Ethnic conflict and its wider dimensions Tracing the genesis of the prevailing ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka and reasons for its exacerbation, the author feels that tackling the issues involved in their wider perspective would help in providing a solution to the contlict, Rajiva Wijesinha he Ethnic Confit. in Sri Lanka has roused considerable aitention internationally. it has boon seen as arising primarly from repres- sion and resentments based on ethnic differences. While not Gaiming these to be of minimal importance, one can also trace other contributery factors based onthe denial of individual froadoms in the pursuit of callective ‘goals that were so fashicnable a feature of the preceding half-century ‘and which still orm the rhetoric of most patties to the conflict. In. short,_| [propose to examine the ethnic conflict to show that it also encompasses other areas of dissension involving econo- mie, educational and deographical fac- lors. Besides, il is apparent that the absence of practical mechanisms as well as motives for regional co-opera- tion nave also contributed considerably towards the exaceibation of the con- fic. A Comparison with Southeast Asia In examining the situation in Si Lanka it may be useful to glance at somo other countries in the region who ‘set about nation-building in the afte- math of colonialism, In this respect ‘a sharp distinction botwoen the nations of South Asia and those of Southeast Asa Is noticeable: whereas on the one hand Pakistan aplit apart and ic stil racked by conflict; whereas India has had problens with minorties as well as verious conflicis between states Pave Wieshra © Acacemt Co-rdaor at the Universty Grants Commissian of Srl Lanka; Presiaent of the Si Lankan Uborat Party and lca Popresariative cf the Human Fights Commitee of “Liberal lntematona 2 and the central govemment; whereas Sikkim vanished as a nation after shifts in its demographic composition and whereas both Nepal and Bhutan are in diferent weys facing similer. pro- blems; Thailand, Malaysia, Singapore and even Indonesia on the cther hand have managed io evolve national identities that by and large transcend racial end religious civersities amongst their citizens. For instance, very few People are even aware now that the concept of ¢ Thai identity s a Post-war creation, and that earlier, most of the People who now describe themselves {a3 Thai were more conscious of being Lao or Muslim or belonging to particular tribes. ‘Tho same is true with regard to other Countries in the region; and the ditfe- rence struck me forcefully when recen- tly a Tamil in Malaysia romarkod that even though his Grendparents were from Jaffna, he could not understand the rationale for a Tamil independence movement. “I am a Malaysian’, he said. “That is my country. Of course 'm also Tamil, but that 'S not so important.” Integration does net involve abandoning a culteral identity which is especi- ally important with regard to business and marital relations. But the absorp- tion of say the Sino-Thais or those of Chinese descent in to the counties they inhabit, even in counties like Malaysia and inconesia. despite earlier racial tensions, testifies to the possibi- ty of creating nation on defiance Of what sometimes seem to be the absolutes. of nationalism based on racal or religious differences. And equally importantly, the minimisation of tensions between the Southeast Asian nations, has contributed towards the dwindling into insignificance of sources of conflict based on distin= lions between communities. Further, the development of contacts between individuals in the various Southeast Asian nations has nuliied the netiona- listic ethos that had contributed so much to the exacerbation of tensions creas and within national boundaries. ‘This is unlike South Asia where gove- minents continue to be suspicious of each other. Exacerbation of the Ethnic Conflict The 197 elections sew severe! Tamil parties coming together as the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) campaigning for a separate Tami state. The United National Party {UNP) that won that election, defeating the incumbent Sri Lanka Freedom Party (GLFP), had in its own manifesto noted four areas of Tamil giievances that it promised to seitlo through an all party. conferonco. Many Tamils volod fori but, instead of holding the pledged conlererice the UNP contibuted by its own actions to the increasing violonce that has now dominated Sri Larka poliics for over a decade, Educational Discrimination Ono area whore the UNP. gove- mment indeed acted switly enough (though within @ couple of years it hulified its own action under chawvini- stic pressures) was with regard to tuniversity admissions, where the pre- ‘ceding government had introduced a policy of positive discrimination. to increase admissions from underprivie- ged areas. The major araa to lose Out as consequence, apart from the copitel Colombo, was Jafina, the main Tamil ty in the north, where education and academic qualificaions had longbeen a cherished goal. But whereas the denizens of Colombo had other cutlets, in terms of employment as well @S education abroad for those who could afford it, such avenues were nct open to the: youngsters of Jaffna, This became a potent cause of disaffection. Later when the UNP- government reimoosed a system of quotas, resent- ‘ment was particularly bitter, It was not surprising thereiore, that a number of educated young peonle moved ‘o the terrorist movements since nothing else seemed capable of resolving. thoir provers, Language Conflict In some other areas of grievances that the 1977 UNP manifesto had identified, the problems were clearly intensified by the stam. which tho SLFP socialist regime had practised end which the ostensib'y more right- wing UNP did nothing to change, One area was that of language rghts. An eailier SLFP_govemment had made Sinhalese the sole official languege of the country. Though Tamil was subse- ‘quenily permitted for official communi- ‘cations in some areas, the fact was that the vast majority of officials knew no Tamil, So even when Tamil was finally recognised as an official langua- 92 in. 1987, though it did help in assuaging the feeling, ne people were Rot benefited in their dealings with goverment. The fact romained that the county consisted of two sets of people who spoke dlvfemt languages, ‘and stato educational policy and practi- ce ensured that they could have no language in. common, t-may be useful in this regard to compare the situation in Southeast Asia, where @ common language has In fact been imposed. on those of different linguistic backgrounds. This hhas surprisingly caused Iitle resent- ‘ment. indeed, even in South Asia, wo do not find otter instances of linguistic dichotomy. In India. for. instan- ce, after the initial abortive attempt 10 impose Hindi, Siales have developed their own linguistic policies so as not to leave sizeatle minorttios in general tunable to. deal with officials, In. Sri Lankan the other hand, covernments ‘and policy makers, confusing language with Identity, have maintained rigid policy of apartheid. Perhans it vas a ‘scrupulous desire to respect ethnic and therefore linguiste idontities, seen against all historical evidence as indis- tinguishatle, that led {0 the. insis- tence that Sinhelese children leer in Sinhalese and Tamil children in Tamil (and that this take place in almost entirely segregated schools). No Tamil politician challenged this insistence, permaps becalse It became a matter ‘of pride to uphold at least the educatio- nal status of a language that lacked an official status. Ironically, the poli cians who codified these positions commuricaied with each other in English. With that too downgraded, the stage was sel thiry years later for {we distinct groups unable to commuri- cate and bound to feel alionated in a tenttory dominated by the other, and it was the Tamils who suffered the most, in that there were fow rolos to which they could aspire to, not only in the state sector but since that sector dominated the eccnomy, in the nation at large. Employment in State Sector Given thetr disabilty in the language in which most stale business. wes conducted, fewer Tamils found gove- mment employment than their num- bers warranted, Yet, no. goverment thought it necessary in the interest of nation-building to take action about this, Whereas successive regimes de- veloped quota syctems to beneft Sinhalese who complained about dic- eriies with regard. to university admissions, no government even thought of a quote system for Temils with regard to state employment. State-Aided Colonisation And the same applied to the griava- ‘nee of state-aided colonisation, which in tima came to assume parhaps the greatest practical significance. The ‘complaint wes that since independence this had contributed towards the chan- ‘ging of the demographic composition of whet were termed the traditional homelands. of the Tami spseking People. It was unquestionably true that in the fities and the shies, a great many Sinhelese had been setled in the Eastern Province through irigation ‘schemes. However, this was in areas not previously populated. The Sinhale- se had been targeted because there were far greater numbers of landless Sinhalese than Tarnils in overpopuie- ted areas. In addition, while the eastern coastal areas had long been inhabited by Tamil speaking people, nat the jungle beyond it was part of the same provinces was a matter of istcrical contingency rater tan demographic rationale. Nevertheless, the fact that mainly Sinhalese had benafited. from ese schemes became an. emotive issue in the seventies. And certainly the composition of the Eastern. pro- vvinos had changed, in that the Tamils were no longer in en absolute majority thers. ‘Strong Arm Tactics It was these issues’ then that the UNP hightighted in its 1977 manifesto, boul then proceeded to iancre orexacer- tate the conflict while in government Instead of the promised allparty conio rence, ls leader J. R. Jayewardene, introduced District Development Coun- Gils. Apart From the fact that these Councils had. rinimal powers, the ‘government alienated the Tamils of Jaifna oven further during the elections by intimidation that involved the bur. ning of the Jatina Pubic Library. As © consequence the most. extreme Tamil terrorist group, The Liberation Tigers of Tami Eelam (LTTE), whose demand that the election be boycotted the TULF was able to ignore, was immeasurably. strengthened. A few years later when the LTTE ordered the TULF to boycott the local elections, the TULF promptly withdrew ite candi dates. By then it was dear why Jayewarde- ne had been so cavalier about the 3Tamils whose voles had helped him get the massive pariementary malonty that had allowed tim to emend the Constitution: In 1980, he removed the civic rights of the SLFP leader Mrs. Bandarenaike, so that he precticaly had a froo run at tho Presidency the fcllowing year. After that he announced a relerendum to extend the term of the existing parliament for another six years. He wen that referendum by an incredible amount of violence and intimidation, amply detailed even in the Election Commissioners report on the referencum, What is even more shock- ing is the manner in. which many govemmants which claimed to uphold democracy continued not only to coun- tenance Jayawardene’s regime, but ‘even to support it actively. Even though Jayawardiene had taken more of the economy into siale control than his socialist predecesser, his opering up of the eccnomy in’ some respects allowed him to enjoy unertical favour from the West. it cannot be too strongly Stressed that itis euch responsos that have led Human Rights Groups, and in partiadar those associated with govemments, being suspect in coun- tries such as Sri Lanka. The inevitabie result of Jayawardene’s polices within the country was the merginclization of democratic opposition and the amerge- Nee of terrorist groups as the dominant force amongst the young who felt disenfranchised. Having thus got away with perpetua- ting his power, in mid-1989, Jayewar- dene attempted to hold the all-narty conference he had originally promised six years cartier. No one came. He fixed another date; and inspired per- haps by the success of his strong arm tactics in cther areas, he permitted an assault on the Tamils in Colombo and elsewhere in July 1983, which he claimed on television was the understa- ndable response of ordinary Sinhalese 10 Tamil separatism: There wes little doubt then, and none now, thal the attacks were organised by goverment supporters. However, Jayawardene had not perhaps anticipated the levels ‘of violence that occurred, which may 4 explain why, aftor his firet indulgent feference to the perpetrators of the mayhem, he announced that it was the communists who were responsible. ‘tis doubtful, howaver, whather even his most fervent supporters in the West were taken in. Certainly it was {oo late as far as the Tamils were con- cemed. Accord with India The number of Tamils accepted infemationally as refugees increased apace, and thoy and othor Tamil Tesidents abroad began to contribute more concertedly to the cause. They now were represented more prominen- ity by the various terrorist groups, and in paitioular by tha LTTE. India too, ‘already alienated by Jayawerdene's atiempls to baltle its positon in ho region whie he sought alliances with the West, began to involve ilsell more ‘openly with the terrorist groups. ‘Though the govemment lurched be- tween miliary action and attempts at negotiation, it became clear that in the end it would have to concede far mara than it had intially ever contemplated, Ih part this was because vayawerdene ‘wes determined to ignore the SLFP, so that at no point did he try to present generally acceptable package cf reforms. Instead it was clear that he Would only yield to force: and India inevitably proved most forceful so that hho signed an Accord in 1987, oste bly desicned to settle the confict in Sri Lanka but in fact designed more to afm Indian supremacy in the region, Cortairly the Tigers wors of the view that the Accord served India rather than the Tamils. Other terrorists groups zocepted the proposals and tried to contest elections, but the Tigers held tat they. should be put drectly in charge of en interim administration. ‘When agresment could not be reachod ‘on this, hostlties erupted again, with Jagians this time marching on Jatfna; and though thoy wore able to fake Control of the area, the result of the Violence for which they were conside= red responsible was thal the Tiers emerged as the unquestioned favour {es of the peop of the North. Negotiations with SLFP There is no point going into details about the development of the contct ince then, and the steady increase in vidlence. For the present what should be Noted is that the current SLFP4ed Sri Lankan goverment de- ends for its parliamentary majority on minority partes, and despite renewed hostiities by the LTTE, the general Impression amongst both minorities and the international community is that the President, Mrs. Kumaratunga, Is genuine in seeking a fair settlement. The negotiations that she intlated howovar broke down in April 1995, when the LTTE withdrew unilaterally and launched a series of military attacks. The excuse offered was that the President had reneged on various commitments whte falling to put for- ward any concrete. proposals. Cer- twinly it is true that she had been restrained from granting many of the LITE demands by an amy witich was convinced that the LTTE was using the cease-fire to build up its striking power. That this was happening was ‘unquestionable, though the LTTE posi- tion was that his was unavoidable, given that it could not rely on the ‘government. In the context of mistrust devetoped ‘over tho precoding decade, euch suspi- ions on elthar side are eminently understandable. At the same time, It le generally acknowledced that Mrs. Kumaratunga has always upheld a pluralistic approach, and it is more likely than most politicians to prepose measures that would address the grievances of the Tamits. This indeed was subsianiiated when in the midst ‘of hostilities cho unveiled epackage that in principle salistied the require- ments of the olher Tamil perties. Equolly it was recognised by observers of all communities that the LTTE was unlikely to accept any measure thatdid not leave it in overall charge of the combined North Easiem Province which tt claims is the tracitional home- land of the Tamils, even though Sin- ghalse and Muslims, who now consider themselves distinct ftom the Tamils despite sharing a common language, comprise 2/8rds of the population of the East Contlict Resolution Intra-Regional Co-operation {n seeking solutions to the present conflict, it: would make sense 10 look at the wider dimensions as woll. Tho deteriorating relations between India and Sri Lanka in the eighties cleary contributed to its escalation. The ab- sence in this respect of institutional mechanisms to resolve regional. pro- blems before they reach cilsis point is very much regretted. Yet, given the damaga caused to all countries by lingering suspicions as well as actual hostilities, It is clear that forceful efforts to ensure co-operation is an urgent necessity. In this respect the region ‘can_leam from the examcle of the ASEAN Counties who have succee- dod in building up by end largo coherent ration states that work toge- thet in promoting their mutual interests, The importance of economic co-opera- tion, particularly between to private sector organisations, can be seen to have contributed signficantly to the awareness that security and mutual confidence provide the best guarantoos Of prospenty. Need for Constitutional Safeguards With regard to the actual conilict within Si Lanka, clearly the principal conser should be the testoration of ‘confidence between the commurities. Thore is lite doubt in my mind that the primary responsiblity for the con- lot les with successive Sinhala domi- nated governments who have displa- yed a callousness towards minorities, and a tendancy to assert power on ‘he basis of parliamentary: majorities without @ due process of consultation, Yet it should also be recognised that such governments have boon destruc- tive towards Sinhalese too, andi would be absurd to. subject Sinhala and Muslim. minorities to similar abuse under Tami dominated regions as ‘compensation for previous sutfering on the part of Tamils. Rether, what is ‘essential is the development of const tutional safeguards against the abuse cf power by ary government, central ‘or regional, and the expansion of individual choico in aroas whore ros- ‘rictive policies have encouraged the alienation of comuntias and regions from each other. English as Medium of instruction The extensive damage caused by tho prosont education system has prevented the integration of the races. When children, and. indeed adults, cannot communicate with each other, it is obviously impossibie to build up confidence. In the present context, it would be insensitive to exoect Tami children to leam Sinhelese (besides they would have no incentive to. do 0) and Sinhalese children to leam Tamil. Engish as the medium. of instruction would be the obvious answer, but that at present is confinad to the extremely rica, who attend so-called Inleinational Schools which though technically illegal will never be closed for tha simple reason thal most leading polticians send their own children 10 such schools, This shows tho callousnoss of thece politicians wno have made no attemat to extend such ‘opportunities to poorer Sinhalesa and Tamil children heid now in divisive straijackets by governmental fet. International Pressure Mearwhile in tho short term there are steps that the international corruni- ty can take to expedite the peace process. While international condem- ration has been vial in ensuring that ‘government forces reftain from action against civilans, itis equelly important that ebuse of civiians by the LTTE be condemned. In ackition, renewal Of terrorist activity by the LTTE should be discouraged through constraints applied internationally,~ unless . the LTTE is prepared to retumn immediately to the negotiating process. Such aciions must of course be ‘dependent upon tre government pur- suing not only the package it has proposed but also ensuring that the ‘constitutional changes finally decided upon are based on dleatly recognisable ‘and generally justifiable principles ra- ther than mere responses to the excesses and abuses of previous governments. This it has. suggested itwill do, by announcing a compreben- sive revision of the constitution that will also ful ts pledge to aboish the executive presidency; but proposals with ragard to. electoral. roform for tance stil suggest a hankering after the messive majorities of the seventies and eighties that nulified any tendency towards socking consensus. Efforts by Human Rights Organisations Etiors made by intemational human rights organisations in this regard ‘would help in cfspeling the nofion often Propagated in Sii Lanka that such ‘organisations concern themselves with minorities alone and ignore the abuses suffered by a majority. community. | have ergued above that there Is some trath in uch an allegation, given the international support extended to the Jayawardene goverment despite tts subvarsion of ll democratic norms; and | should stress again my view that it was precisely because of that subversion thet the ethnic conflict in Si Lanka developed so horrendously. 1 should ond therefore by reiterating that there can be no question of Classifying some rights as important and others as less so. While trying to undorstand clearly the situations that have caused the confict, those con- ‘Cemed with the resolution of conflicts have fo be constantly on the alert to nots and object to violations of funda- mental rights and liberties in all ‘contexts,INDIA The Contradictions of Consensus Neeraj Kaushal concensus of sorts appears (to have emerged among Indian political parties regarding economic policies. The minimum economic pro- gramme of the United Front gove- tment, which is a congiomeration of 14 poltcal partios, and is supported by the Congress ()) from tha outside, promises to proceed with whet shoud be called ‘altemate reforms’. The pro- gramme, most of which is unlikely to be oppesed by even the Bharatiya Janata Party, the main opposition party, has done away with politically Unpalatable reforms. These are re- forms with a human face. However, there is one basic contraci- ction in the minimum economic progra~ mme: while Finance minister, P Chida- mbaram has promised to increase the food subsidy and government expenci- ture on education, he has also promi- ‘sed to rectuce the fiscal dofcit to four per cent of the GDP-from 5 per cent promised by his predecessor, Manmo- han Singh moraly thro months ago. No one believes Mr Chidambaram. ‘At tho moment, he must be tightening his girdles to scrounge around for at least Rs 15,000 crore of additonal funds 10 perform this heroic task in a few weaks when he presents the Union Bucgat for 1996-97. (Around Fis 10,000 crore to bring the fiscal deficit down by one por cont of the GDP and at least Rs 5000 crore to cover the additonal food subsidy bill_ and additional educational expenditure) How wil he do this? By slapping additional texes?. He can try but. will find that higher tax rates do not often lead to increased tax collections. By cutting down oxpenses? Good idea. But Dr Singh has not loft Mr Chidambaram with much of a choice. In the past five years, the Congress () government had boriowed 80 hea- vily, that several future govemments will have to cough half or more of thelr annual revenue in repaying this debt. Mr Chidambaram will find that out ‘of every one rupee of government revenue, 60 paise will be used in repaying past debt. With the remaining 50 paise, Mr Chidambaram will have {0 run the affairs of this huge gove- mment. Plus, pay for the increased food subsidy and the additional edues- tion expenses proposed in the mink mum economic programme. So what should he do? At least four things. One, slash defence expenditure. The timing is perfect with defence hawks lying low after Benazir Bhutto's announcement to improve trado ties with india. Man- mahan Singh proposed a Rs 2319 crore hike in defence expenditure for 1906.07. But al that time, Ms Bhutto was engaged ina strong rhetoric ‘against India and the detence hawks ‘on both sides of the berder were pitching high. But things have changed now. Mr Chidambaram should freeze the defence capital expenditure at last years level, Thus, he will cave Re 1590 crore. Apart from saving this precicus money, such signals will go @ long way in improving friendly ties between the two countries. In the meantime, tha present gove- mment should initiate the process of mocemnisng the army. india, should have a small, moder and young any, in place of tho presont over ono milion strong army, which is not qualified to Use modern war machinery. Besides, orcnance factories should be trimmed and asked to operate on commercial lines. Defence forces often have to purchase from ordnance factories dur- fies, Jackets, caps and several other things et double or three times their market price. Two, Mr Chidambaram should put the ‘ith pay commission's report on hhold, The commission has proposed fanoy salaries for government emplo- yes. Mr Chicambaram should insist that his govemment wil review the entire report. He may not save much money in the process, as he will find that although the Congress (I) nad promised to accept the commission's rerott, its govemment did not provide for any funds forit in this year's budget But this step will check any sudden sharp increases in government expen- sses on this account He should also take steps to prune the size of the government. Several departments have become recuncant alter reforms. Workers in these depat- ments should be retrained and reloca- ted to other departments of the gove- mment. Three, introduce a minimum tax on the net worth: of companies. The 1995-86 corporate results show that while profits have continued to boom for the third consecutive year, a large umber of privete companies, which include corporate giants like Reliance, TISCO, do not pay eny comorate tax as they avail of tax concessions for new investmorte. Tho franco minister should introduce a. minimum tax, of ‘round one per cent on the net worth of comparies. This. will ensure. armirimum contribution by corporates in tho countrys tax kitty. Four, the government should enact ‘a law to make presumplive tax com- pulcory, At prosent, the presumptive tax is voluntary, and a large number f small businesses simply do not pay this tax. ‘These four steps will not take Mr Chidambaram clos to the magic number of Rs 15,000 crore. But it will send the message that he ts serious In bringing the fiscal deficit dowry that the government cannot be profiigate with im as the chief controller of its finances. However, if he has to bring the fiscal deficit down to tour per cent of GDP, Mr Chidambaram may cut the gove- mment’s capital outlay. His predeces- 0%, Dr Singh often used this option But Mr Chidambaram may not repeat all the mistakes that Dr Singh made. With private investment in infrastructur re sectors like povrer, roads not coming forth, public sector investment in these areas will have to be raised 10 ensure a sustained growth in the medium to Jong run, Cutting down pian outlay may take the economy off the high growth teejeciory on which itis at the moment, That may not b2 acceptable 10 nis politcal bosses, who have prorised the best of everything to everybody. So what should Mr Chidambaram do? 1 suggest, he should wriggle out of this promise. The minimum eccnomio programme has been vague about tha fime over which the ‘iscal deficit would be reduced. Mr Chidambaram should claim that the progemme will be implemented graduelly over the next threo to five years. In the present, however, he will merely try to honour his predecessor's promise. He can be sure that he may never have to face the embarrassment of not fulfilling his govemmont’s promise. Me Chidambaram wil, infact realise very soon that even keeping up Man- mohan Singhis promise may not be an easy task. His staff wll soon inform him that Dr Singh dd not provide for several small expenses. And with the additional subsidies that his gove- ment has proposed, it may be dificult to honour even Singh's promise. Mr Chidambaram has one last option: go beck on some of the promises he made to his leftist bossas, like reducing the PDS price of food grains. However, this may bring his goverment untimely derrise, And Mr Chidambaram certainly does net want that. Besides, despite what his team of offidals in the finance ministry may claim, this may not be a desirabie option. ‘Thare is enough evidence to suggest that fiscal bankruptcy and economic eforms have not tealed the poor kindly. High economic ‘growth of the past four years has not been able to mitigate poverty. Some estmetes even Claim that poverty worsened in the first three years of reforms. Prices of focdgrains undor the PDS have risen by over 120 par cent in the past five years, Attempts made by Mr Chidam- baram’s previous boss, Narasimha Fao to put his human face on reforms by tinkering with a few anti-poverty programmes did not make reforms politically acceptable. Il the present goverment wishes to give reforms human face it should see 10 it that the upward spiral in foodgrains prices is restrained. A revamp of the existing public distribution system Is very much on the cards. A study by Prof Kirt Parekh shows that not more than two per cent Cf the poor in the rural areas of some of the poorest states lke Bitier, Utar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh get any foodgrains from the PDS. Tharafore, proper targeting of PDS is required. In other words, the human touch the minimum economic progremme (f the United Front goverment ie ‘essential to bring the poor out of their ppenury existenca, But the means to Teach this end is not merely to allocete more funds. But to use them in such ‘@ manner that their bonofte actually reach the poor. SUBSCRIPTION RATES Air Mail Canada/US.A. ‘USS 65/ for 1 year USS 45/ for 6 months U.K., Germany, New Zealand, Australia, Netherlands, France, Japan, Holland, Phillippines, Austria, Norway, ‘Sweden, China, Ireland, ‘Switzerland, Nigeria, Belgium, Denmark, Paris, London, US$ 55/ for 1 year US$ 35/ for 6 months Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia. Dubaf, Baharin, Arabian Gulf, Syria, Singapore. USS 45/ for 1 year USS 25/ for 6 months India, Pakistan. USS 40/ for 1 year USS 22/ for 6 months Local Rs. 250/- for 1 year Rs. 150/- for 6 monthsElectoral Politics in Bangladesh Neelan Tiruchelvam inno other part of the [sub-continent has the question of free and fair lection is so central to the political ciscourse as in Bangladesh. Controversy relating to integrity and faimess of the electoral process nas taumatised the nation and deeply divided the Bangladesh polly. brought the parliemeniary process to a standstill and severely disrupted the social and economic life of ordinary people. The role of Civil society in bringing bout tho national consoncus which resulted in June elections wes critical, Bangladesh has distinguished itself in the innovation and success of its nov-governmental crgenisations in ma- raging developmental projects. Two of these orgarisations BRAC and the Grammeen Bank have gained interia- tional recognition. In addition, there Were meny important human rights ‘groups which continued to document human rights abuses and engage in legal teracy programs. Tha Free Election Monitering Alliance (FEMA) is ono of tho largast and probably the most effectively organised domestic loction observation group in any part of the sub-continent. Pubic outrage over the lac< of moral. ond. legal legitmacy of the February 16 elections galvanised these civil society instit- fons. They formed. a broad ccaiition (of noni-goverrment organisations, bus ness house and professional organise- tion to. support the dissclution of the government and of the Parliament installed by the February 15 election. The assertion by civil society of its political ight to a free and fair election Culminated in civil discbedience by the bureaueracy which almost brought the entire civil administation to a standstill, ‘Those forces played an important part in faciitating 13th amendment to the Bangladesh consitution which defined the institutional framework within which a new Parliamentary elections would be conducted The writer 2 TULF. MP, was 4 member ofthe SARE. “Cnsoner Group”. ‘The 13th amendmentto the constitu- tion estabished a non-party careiaker govommant tobe headed the former Chiat Justice Mohammad Habibur Ra- hman with a mande to render to the Chiat Election Commission all posse assistance tor holding a general eleo- tion to the Parliament, ‘poacctully, facly and impatialy. The caretaker gove- irment was further directed to carry ‘out routine functions but no! take any policy decisions. The establishment ot ‘a non-party goverment was decisive in croating condliions tavourebie to free and fair elections. it was novrever important to note that there were significant differences in the legal context wthin which interim edrinistra- tion headsd by Justice Shahabuddn operation in 1891. The constitution provided that the Supreme Command ‘f tho dofence services shal. vest in the President and the exercise thereot shall be regulated by lav. The 13th amendment further added that “such taw shall during the period where there is a ronparty ceretaker government under article 88 be admiristered by the President". This provision has been intorprotod to exclude the armed forces from the executive aulhorty of the carelaker govemment ard to place them under the President This rasuited in creating form of dyarchy where the conduct of the elections end the routine: functions of the government were entrusted to the caretaker gove- roment while the President retained responsibilty for. defence and the contol of the anned. forces. This distinction was of more than academic significance. A constitutional crisis was almost preciptated by the dismissal cf two serior ganorals and the Chief of Staft_ almost on the eve of the elections. The President continue to assert his authority over the defence forces even affer the elections had been concluded on the 12th June by further dismissing 8 other senior army ‘officers. thereby further contributing to intiguo and uncertainty which accom- anied the electoral process. Another gap in the constitutional arrangement ‘was that it was the President who ‘would decide to choose the next Prime Minister and in the exercise of this discretion, he was not required to seek the advice of the Board of Advisors. In 199%, Chief Justice Shahabbudin was not only the Head of siale but also the Head of Government and was entrusted with the power to choose the Prime Minister. Another factor which contibuted significantly towards creating cond- tions favourable to free and falt elec- fions wes the reconsiitution of the Elections Commission. The Elections Commission in Bangladesh was by convention heeded by-a member of the High Court and th Commission enjoyed security of tenure. But the February 15 elections had so deenly eroded public comidence: in the Com mission that the poltical parties were adamant that a new Commission should be chosen by the carelaker goverment through a process. of consultation with politcal parties. The contiro Commission including its Secre- tary were called upon to submt their resignations and a new Commission and a Secretary appointed. The careta- ker government took further legal steps fo amend the People Representation Orcer to cisquality bank defatiters This was ostensibly cone to minimise the use of such funds ‘o distort the electoral process. The Gommissicn also framed a code of conduct for candidates which was made legally binding. An electoral inguiry commitee was established to inquire into pre-poll Inegulanties and even leaders o! major poltical parties such es Sheish Hasina and Khalida Zia ware made accounta- bile to such a commitee, The caretaker government also took visible measures to disarm and cetain potential iaw breakers and to clarfy that the role of the army would be limited to assising civil forces in the mainten- ance of order.Impressions of Bangladesh Poll Nikhil Chakravarty "ne general election in Bangla desh has many lessons to impart to its neighbouring democracies in the South Asian region, This is laroely because the problems and responses {fo them are similar, as also because Bangladeshis have @ tremendous aita- chmentto their mother tongue, Bengal, which has been the bedrock of thelr freedom struggle and their fidelity to domoctacy, ‘The week spent around the poll day fon June 12 as a member of. the nonroffcial observers’ team from four ‘SAARC countries — Pakistan, Nepal, ii Lanka and india — was extremely rewarding as it gave one the oprorturi- ty 10 leam about the cross-currents of Bangladesh polties, while at the same time witness the massive upsur= ge for the election al the level of the ‘commen citizen, in which the wemen not only spontaneously came in large numbers but in a mood of assertion, ‘One has seen large politcal tum-ou's at the pols in India, but the dltference between those and the one just wit- essed in Bangladesh lies in the fact that such mass mobilsations in India aro largely the culoome of the elforis of political parties, but in Bangladesh ithas been an overwhelmingly sponta- neous movement. which went far beyond what the accredited political pariies could do, The long and patient queues that one could see siretching ut for hours while women with babes in arms patiently waited outside the polling centres provided a memorable sight. And this assertion of people's will was dominated by the emergence of only two giant parties — the BNP (Ganglacesh Nationalist Perty) and the ‘Awami League. Inthe 1991 general election atthough the Awami League which was virtualy the national platform in the fight for liberation, came second to the BNP largely swinging round the personality of the former Prime Minister Khaleda 10 Zia, this time the BNP hes come a lose second, despite the discredit its party President has had. to. sutior ‘because of the flasco of the February ppoll which was boycotted by the entire ‘Opposition and had to be cancelled. In reality, these two parties dominate ‘the Bangladesh politcal scene, with {he Imorisoned General Ershad's Jatiya erty, much smaller than both of them, holding the balanco. A cignificant development this time nas been the Virtual elimination of the Jamaat-evisia- mi, gaining only two seats in a House (of 300, with most of the other rarties doing no better. In other words, the politics: of Bangladeshis today faced with the polarisation between the Awa- mi League and the BNP. The people ‘overwhelmingly meade their choice be- tween these two parties. Despite brisk campaign, there was comparatively litle violence. Except for the pockets in Chittagong and Comila, there was no violence. The casualty toll was low — five dead and a few scores injured in a general election in the country with the highest population density in the world. Repoll was ordered in 27 ‘constituencies, and their outcome is yet lobe known when these lines were welten, What is sirking is that despite ‘occasional outbreak of military inter- ‘vention Into poiltes, Banglades has demonstrated through two. general elections of 1991 and 1996, that the democratic urge ofthe common people has proved to be irresistible and this Urge is Inked to the basic needs of an ecutaly impoverished and underpri- vileged people. This is a point which the leaders of these two major parties hhave to keep in mind — what Incira Gandhi had sloganised as Gari Haiao and what Zulfikar Bhutto had articular ted in the demand for rol, kepra, makan. The poor showing of the Jamaat is no doubt a sion of the times, though the siruggie against religious bigotry end obscurentism is realised as an urgent task by.a large seciion of the inteligentsia es could be sensed by meeting the community of enlighto- ‘ned Intellectuals who place theit prime attachment to the mother tongue Ben- ‘gal, than on religion as gleamed from thet culure and retecua ects During the election campaign there were reports of deshes in areas where there is a high concentration of minor- ties — Hindus, Beudhyas and Chi- sliens — but these were very few es against the huge number of over 26 thousand poling centres in the country. Such tensions are mosily the outcome of the suspicion by rival parties that the minorities might vote enbloc for one parly and not for the other. The e’ection machinery facec stain as the huge tumout vies cbviously not expe- led, come places as high as 72 por ‘cent, and on the average of over 60 per cent. This debunked the anxiety ‘of some political pundits that the fear of clash between the two giants, the ‘Awami League end the BIP, might keep a large section of peace-loving voters away from both; actually, the very opposite had happened, and the large concentration of voters in front of every poling centre seemed tohave scared away the miscreants, and the Election Commission, despite all the hhancicaps it had to face, managed to kop the election process under olfect- va conttol. One could see that as a result of many of the new restrictions — paricularly against ostentatious, lavishly money-spencing campaign — the candidates hed to depend largely ‘on door-to-door campaigning. Although the rules acainst ostentatious spending ‘wore publicised, there was no monito- ring on this score during the election campeign as in india, An interesting feature of the Bangladosh Poople's Representation Order is thatit cisqvali- fies bank defaullers. tom becoming candidates, while the code of conductfor candidates is legally binding, The Army has played a compiex role in Bangladesh poltics from the very beginning. The BNP was founded by Generel Zieur Rahman who had taken over power aficr the turbulence that followed Sheich Mujbur Rahman's killing in 1975. General Ershad when he later seized power formod his own party, the Jatva Party. The fact thet Begum Khaleda Zia, the leader of the BNP, resides in the cantonment is ‘often the subject of polemics against her by her political opponents, Against this background, one has to take note of the fact that after tho flop of the February election. he BNP Government had to concede the setting up of the caretaker goverment. Unlike as in 1991 when the caretaker adinini- stration (under the thon — Chief Justice-tumed-President) was born out of a politcal agreement among parties that had brought down Genoral Ershad's rule, this time the Gonsttution itsell was amended — the Thirteenth ‘Amendment — which set up a careta- Ker administration under a Chief Advi sor (a former Chiof Justice) but the portfolio of Defence was held by the President, who is known as an ardent BNP sialwart. Since the Opposition parties had won: their point in the setting up of the careteker government to concuct the election, they did net wait for the removal of the anomaly of the President controling Defence. Obviously. the Opposition did not bargain for President Biswas’ move ‘who soon alter removed the Chief of ‘Amy Staff, Nasim, viich crew stiong Protests from the Opnositon. Some other changes in ths Army structure were also announced, All this was strongly resented by tie Awami Lea- gue. it was soon obvious. that the President had virtually forfeited the confidence of the biggest Cpposttion party which has tumed out to have ‘scored higher in the election than the BNP. Towards the end of the election ‘campaign, the BNP lodged a complaint with the Election Commission. tat in 85 many as 111. constituencies the election had not been fairly conducted. ‘This seamed 2s a move to reopen the entire election issue, though it is unlikely that this could. nullify: the @ecton 2s @ whole, which all foreign ‘observers commended: as being free and fair One of the Important features of the Bangladash olection has been the high ‘voter tum-out which to a large measure could be ascribed to the steadiast work f a broad ccailtion of non-government organisations, businoss houses and professional groups and orcanisations which came out in support of the demand for the dissolution of the government and the Parliament efter the farcical election of February 15. Out of this movement of what may be called citizen's activism was born the FEMA (Froo Election Monitoring Alliance) which could rope in a lerge number of local observers in about 25 thousand polling stations throughout the country, in fact, the FEMA expor- ment can be regarded as a significant contribution by Bangladesh to. the liturgy of paillamentary election in South Asia, As at home. And the lilt of song Usk river and the hills Waiting - 25 Letter from Grasmere Making do, as home from home Wales was beautiful and not quite wild ‘There was the breath of old Kingdoms ‘Talked. hushed, of Camelot To you, there was no mystery In iegend, much like ours Only the grace of faith in ancient truths ‘And quests not of this world. But in this wild Northward borderland of lakes ‘The afternoons darken for Thunder In the strange half light and stiliness before strm Unredeemed by human voices Cattle scatter troubled from the pasture. Within Dove Cottage and Rydall Water Made prim and victorian by Museum men ‘There is no echo of prattle and laughter. But through the windows the high cregs In the daylong night of ravine ‘And on the lake awaiting the gnash of wind ‘The hymn from the heaving, purple water Leads you, to the Lake Poets altar, Cid india figure in Bangladesh ele- ‘tons this ‘time? One of the points ‘of the BNP polemics against the ‘Awami League was that it wes under its rule the Indo-Bangladesh Treaty had been signed in 1972. This point was, however, punctured on the television When two of the topmost Bangladeshi joumalists asked the BNP spokesman ‘what his party had done whan in power {o repudiate the Treaty —a point which is actually more etoquent. then the charge. It would, however, be a mista- ke to think that the Bangladeshi partos have no complaint against Inca. All pertios in Bangladesh and an ‘overmhelming majority of the public cry ‘out about the shortage of river water, aS a seqiel to the Farakka project Over the years, the governments of both the countries have been unable to settle this vital demend_ of the cilizens of Bangladesh. It is time that ‘our present government in New Delhi took this up a6 a mattor of urgont priority cancem for the future ot Incia- ‘Bangladesh amity U. Karunatilake "1ETHNIC CONFLICT & DEVOLUTION (4) The violent tendencies of the Sinhalese Kamalika Pieris he violent tendencies of the Sinhalese is presented through Toferences to the several attacks on minoviles, notably the Tamils and Muslims, These are presented as taking place without provocation. How- ever, the 1958 riots were prefaced by considerable amount of overt Tamil resistance, including a Hartal in 1955, the Anti-Sri Campaign, and the def cing of buses. In the Eastem province there was some violence against the Sinhalese at the start. (This does not mean that | condone these riots) It appears thet the Sansoni Commission found that the main cause for tho 1977 disturbances was the Eelam ory. This report gave a celalled account of ‘aggression on the Tami side. (Vittachi, "Si Lanka what went wrong, p 63) Michael Roberts has looked at the Muslim sido of this. He has found 14 Sinhala-Muslim confrontations be- tween 1899-1915. He suggests that the 1915 riots were a chauvinisic operation, not merely a protest against British rule. ("Exploring confronta- tions") The Intemational Centre for Ethnic Studies, Colombo has had a projest to systematically monitor and study Cases of ethnic violence. t was at an ICES conference on ethric violence, Kathmadu, 1987, that Roberts was ‘encouraged to tum his attention to the 1915 riots, (‘Exploring conirontations 53) wihen Tamils were altacked in Galle in June 1955, ICES sent a team and issued a report. Cleatly, in the publicity given to ethnic violence, there is relatively tla emphasis on the death and displacement of Sinhala and Mu- slim villages from the east, or the doparture of the Sinhala bakers from Jatina, However itis only fair to report 2 that the IES project does covar some of these areas as wel. The violent tendencies of the Sinhalese is presented through references to the several attacks ‘on minorities, notably the Tamils and Mustims. thas published reports on the LTTE massacres at Weiikada (1992), Also at Mecirgirya (1992) where the Mu: slins reiaiated by attacking a nei ghbouring Tami vilage. The report on tho Bovatte village (1995) noted that the LTTE had targetted the Sinhalese and avoided the Tamils. ICES hes also held a Fletrospective on tho 1983 ricts, and some of its conclusions deserve mention. The participants at the sem- nar agreed that thore hed been a measure of stale complicty which had not been there in the earier rots, and that parcchial cisputes such as shop- keeping rivalries wore also played out at this time, This seminar also noted the assistance rendered by the Sinha lose in roscuing Tamils who were affected. Finally it noted thet there had been no repetition of the rots, despite continuing othric tension, (Thatshed Patio Vol 6(4) 1993) Writers of English language fietion ‘ard poetry have also been very helpful in this respect, They have writen a lot on July "@3. Jean Arasanayagam in her work ‘Al is buming’ refers to the Diay of Anne Frank inher description of July ‘82. There is a relerence to the persecution of Jows in an account of ilictimmigraton into Germany. This Is of course a suggest- ve linking of the Tamil separalist cause and the Nazi persecutions. This wil probably be effective with a western audience. Arasanayagam writes in an ‘ethnic mode’ but many of her writngs lack action, character or resolution, so the ethnic references sound artilidel. And now let us look at the lighter side of the modus. operanci related to Tamil ethncnationalism. Any ethno- nationalist group is eniilled to take steps to keep the ethnic issue ‘high’, bbut some of the actives in the cultural fiold are ariffcal. In my review of ‘Framework 37, which provided an excellent coverage of contemporary Sit Lankan cinema, 1 quetied the need to devote so much space to Tami Gnema when there were hardly any Sti Lankan Tamil films. (Daily News 817.92 p15) Regi Siriwardene uses 2 ‘eilique of post modem literary enticism to draw attention to ‘Sinhala Budchist ‘chauvinism’. Roferonce is made alse to 1958, 1977, 1981 and 1983! (sic) The existence of “Swabhesnas’ in the plural is questioned, while in fact, there Were two language streams in seco. gary school at the time. The idea 9f pleasure generated from good wit ting was discussed with reference to death and starvation. Spectic rete- rence wes made lo tre pleasure o! ‘ebserving the writers craft using exa- mmples trom ethnic violence, They were ‘Anne Ranasinghe’s Holocaust postry and Arasanayagam's poems of July "63, (Pravada, Nov 1995 p 23, 26) The literature on the etnnic issue in S1i Lenka contains some interesting Mmanoevres intended to influonca theteader. One meihod of bolstering up tha Tamil separatists cause. was mystify i. This was attempted largey through the pronouncements of intelle- ctuals. Durand Appuhamy has called ths ‘argument from authority’ (Daly News 29.1.96 p 14) in order to achieve this, groups. of professionals were ‘marshalled into what wes fondly imagi- ned to be a monopoly of the academic areas relaling to ethnic relations, Ths Group Included some of the best social scieniists in the country, certainiy several whom | greatly respect, Also many very able lawyers. However the ideas put foward were so shaky that professionals and intellectuals outside this dele had iitle difficulty in conte- sting them. In addition, stetemen's by professionals supporting the Devolu- tion proposals were promptly counte- rediby statements from other professio- nals opposing the Proposals. A state- ment Supporting, | belleva, Tambiahs “Buddhism Betrayed” was so bediy worded that it merely evoked emuse- ment. In eddtion, there is also pienty ‘of empty thetoric. Lucian Rejakaruna- nayake observed that poople sill had the audacity to ask what probes the Tamil people have' (Sunday Leader 4.2.96) He does net enlighten us on what these problems are. There s dismissal. ‘Our precious colonial hei- ttoom, the unitary state’ (Sunday Lea- der 28.1.96 p 9) elsewhere’ the sacred cow of @ unitary stete’. Next we come to uniortunate ex- amples and unlikely bedfellows. S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike ard Leonard Woolf as advocates of federalism for Sti Lanka (Thaiched Patio Vol 5(4) 1962 6) Sir Ponnablam Arunachalam and Handy Perimpanayagam as freedom fighters (Daily Nows 3.2.95 p 19). In addition to S. W. R. 0. Bandaranaike, the propaganda alsa presents Coin R de Silva es a champion of the Tamil cause. Colvin R de Silva's statement ‘one language, two countries, two languages, one country has nat bocn supporied by events. We now have two languages and are about 10 get nine countries. It is scarcely possible to consider him as @ supporter of minorities. The’ 1872 Constitution, for Which be was chielly responsible took away Provison 29(0) 0! the previous Constitution, though this provision sa- feguarded the minorities. Further, in ‘the 1972 Constitution, the Tami len- guage was to be considered under subordinate legislation. Tamil separatist propaganda no Jonger refers to various federal Constitutions from all over the world, but the example of ‘Switzerland remains. Tamil separatist propaganca no lon gor refers to various federal Constitu- tions from all over the world, but the example of Switzeriand remains, Swit- zerland wes selected as an example because of certain superficial simlari- ties, particularly the similanty of etinic Proportions. The Swiss cenion system was sustained by the country's moun- lancus topography, but this fact is generally ignored. The Swiss embassy in Sri Lanka has more than once indicated thet Switzerland is. no model for Sri Lanka, It has been pointed out that the Swiss system was very compl cated, not always rational nor efficent and that it wes not a transferable mocel, It cid not solve a minority problem so much as prevent one. (Gwise Day: Supplement of 1.8.91) Lastly let us lock at the impact of the ethnic issuo on the devolopment of the Social sciences in Si Lanka Some vety good studies have resulted. Michale Roberts stucy tilled ‘Ethnic contlict in Si Lanka and: Sinhala perspectives: barrlers to accomodation’ publishod in “Modom Sri Lenka Siur dies", 1978 vividly describes the deve- lopment of @ Sinhala Buddhist. con- sciousness and ite fears, This is an excellent starting point for anybody wishing 10 paractiute into the topic. ‘There is elso Kumari Jayawardene’s excellent and greally underrated work on the relaionship between etmicty and clase in Si Lanka, Lastly, there is Newton Gunesinghe's study of the 1969 rio's. He suggests thet the riots ‘could be looked at in economic torms. ‘The open economy had created ceriain tensions. People were now forced 10 ‘compete with each other for economic survival, the rules of competition broke down and this resulted in open violen- ce. Both these studies could be found In the Committee for Rational Develo- pment’s ‘Sri Lenka the etic confi. However not all the work dealing withthe ethnic issue could be commen- ded. Susentha Goonetileke looked at this area some years back and conciu- ded that there wes an ‘ethnic studies industry’ in Sri Lanka (Lanka Guercian Vol 10 (11) 1987) Some aspects of this are not healthy. Researchers are attacking “the inhibitions of the midcte Glass" and the ‘Jathika Chintanaya’ when they should be studying them. Some researchers are now. getting Marginaised. This material may eventualy come Up on charges related to the uses and abuses of social sciences. But such charges will have to be made by a person totally devoid of a sense of humour. These writings are full of blunders end howlers. Michael Roberts says that the word for ‘reli’ and for ‘semen’ is the samein Sinhala, ‘dhatu’. This Is a natural mistake for a person not familiar with Sinhala, but inthis case it is @ serious error. ("Exploting Confrontaton” p 51, 67) Lock at the notes to Kapferers ‘Rlemythotogizations ‘of power and indantity: Sri Lanka’ in the book. ‘Culture of violence’ edited by Pupesinghe and Rubio. The notes ean be read indepondant of the’ text and they are very enteriaining. Michael Floberts says that one of his essays 0 the 1916 riots was rejected by the feferee for the Journal of Asian Studies (0n the: grounds of jargon and incche- rence. Referse obsoning that ‘night was not ‘space’ but ‘time’. ( Exploring Confrontations" p 24) (Conctuded) 13The Colonial Aspects of “Images of Sri Lanka through American Eyes” Jeanne Thwaites [282 oy ec, glaria Tous [American Eyes is a colection of wri- tings by United States ciizens all of whom visited the island of Ceylon over 1 period of 150 years - from 1819 to 1968. The ‘ist travelers arrived before electicity, before trains, before motor transport, when America was breaking away from British colonization. The last ‘came when the United States was an industrial gant and-had decome the umber-one world miilary power. The entre British Empire was coming apart fat that timo and Coylon had boon declared a dominion, that 's, R was no longer a mara Brtish colony. Four years later the Island was to become the Repubic of Sri Lanka, HALL. Gooneilleke the edtor of images is the Island's best known librarian besides being the world authority on its lierature. At the request of the US. Ambassador to S1i Lanka, Christopher ‘van Holen, ne put this book together in 1972 a6 a U.S. 200th anniversary Issue (i). The librarian nad already compiled a Ii of wores written by vistors from many different countries and he selected from his American collection 41 writings from a long Ist of 227. These are Iisied in the book's Bibliography. Images can be readon diferent levels. ind it particulary interesting as a study of colorial and post-clonial wilting. tt Ges us. an opportunity to. examine ‘whathor the Americans caw thomsolves Mote tke the Brilshi colonize's oF the colonized Ceylonose they were encoun- tering oF a5 separate to both groups. Wha! was the extant of theiridentiication ‘with: their own country (@ once-Biilish colony) when brought facestorace wih those. samo colonizere in total contral Gf another people? | particularly wonde- fed i! tho Amaricans would express pity forthe Ceylonese as the underdogs hey themselves had once been, or whether they would disassociate from their own colonization and show racial bias - for they came from a county riddled with racial bigs. Would they fee! contempt for the Sf Lankans inabity to break their shackles, or would they see the Brlich as oppressors who had token ‘Jeanne Thwates & a clizen ofboth Si Lanka 2nd the Unted Stas. 14 advantage of the isiand people because they were unable to hit back? It was also possible they would acre Britain {or ts fine, if sel-serving, administration. One of the most insidious affects of colonzation is tat i aways leaves behind wide-spread permanent crippling that takes @ couple of generations 19 recover from. A ones-colonized peopl often look back nosiageally on those days when the very lack of equality and freedom enforced order - as in a penal insttution. inmates become unable to ‘copa outside is confines because in jail they have not imposed any moral or social ciscisine on themeaives but mere- ly folowed orders or enjoyed breaking them, The United States Today Its not well understood outside the United States that the Amorican who has been educated in his own country ‘grows up wih a strong sense of what ‘@ young independent county it is. ‘Americans are ferociously protective of what they eeo as their so recently gained freedom. You can see this sell-protecti- Vonase when they porcict in voting against gun contiol showing their para- oia' about a possible military take-over. One hears, “If every household is armed ‘van cur government cannct taka us over,” as the speaker lists some millariy dictatorships and army rule all over the world. “That couldn't happen to us,” he will continue happily, “That's way our founding fathers protacted us and gave Us the tight to bear arms”. The ‘act that this right is used by heodlums 10 gun down innecert peope 1s seen as Eritain was ihe enemy in the American. Revolution and, even if hat country has lostits world cout tocay ands obviously no threat, Americans have rot yet got ver their love-hate relationship wilh it, Behind American arregance is this sensa of a victory aiter 2 batile won. The atttide to those who enticze the states je: "Tough! If you dont like us what ate you going 10 do about it? You want Us to prove again that we're strongor than you?" This althude is paniculary directed al once-enemies and counties ile ave shown teritoial designs on others: ‘There fs however much cultural heria- ‘02 and a language shared between the US. end England, besides a desire to keep in touch and be proud of one's foreign ancestors. The U.S. fs a couniry ct immigrants: people who came seeking a better and fairer ile. Today Britain has been delegaled to the tole of @ ‘once-tyranrical old grandfather who has become fun to visit during the summer Vacation. If he tries his old ‘ticks you an pack your duffel bag and go somewhere else. Visting Grandpa has become ko a trp to Disneyland. - a place of mere entenanment, he Royal Family's dilemmas are soap opera ser: pled ‘or American tv. once family entertainment now Rated because the players came up with the Tampax-iapes, nuisance phone calls and various revela: tions of infdeliy. The American atitude to other coun- tries is not the same es to England, Canada Is a deeply respected and trusted brother; Australia a cousin some- what in the wid west tadiion. The ontnent of Arica wih so many coun- tries Lying to. work thamsolvas out of their Third World blues and colonial ‘opptessions ‘s applauded. Russia altar. ‘ales between being a powerful aly and respected enemy. With regard to colonization, this then is te United States today: t has disrespect. It also has wide-spread con- fusion for it remains an adolescent who hhas never quite matured. What was it liko in 1819, 1878 or 1910? The enewer 1s less in history books than in wiriings such as those which fil Images of Si Lanka in American Eyes, The Editing of Images In 1984, whle on a Futeright scholar- ship to Sti Landa, I wes able to find ‘out mote about the collection from lan Gooneliexe himselt. As always, wih a book you want to oxamina closely, tere idn't-seem enough of i 1 wanted it longer. {had questions as to the choice ‘of material - thet is, the orrissions. He had made tne final setaction himselt, he told me, but had only four months {o delver tie book to the printers and would have liked more tme. He talked of a sequel to come but more recently has vntien, to me mat te Idea nas become a “fugitive dream.Inthe book's introduction, Gocnetieks describes the first American travelers to ‘Asia: “They were brought up on the ‘nostalgic European image of the paocant and savage nature of a composite Asian man, waking to be Iberaied by God's untiing and unerring compassion... the ‘American missionary view" (xvi), “Then came educated Americans who visited Geyion because of their fascination with Hindu and Budchist philosophy. Letters and commentaries from mavericks provi- dea refreshingly individual approach. ‘Thare were also doctors, clerics, sailors, diplomats, businessmen, writers, artists and students emong the travelers. Fach seems bursting with excitement al the business of acjusting to a culture which is drastically diferent from his own. The book has gone to several printings. Racism, Bigotry and Orientaligm Tha Coylonese, during the yoars ‘covered in Images, vere the victims of both racism and orientalism, “Racism” is nol the same as bigotry. Racism is the declaration by one raca wilh the miliary power to make it stick that another race is lesser. A potent ‘example of raciem is tho pattom of behavier In a male-dominated society fh which the puting down of women by men is automatic rather tan rational (as f they are an inferior rece). Because almost any man has superior physical strength to almost any woman the female is poworleas to protest effectively. A Woman may know she can out-hink her husband, for example, but she stil has to bow to bis superior wisdom and clean his shoas if he requires that. Once the ‘concept ofthe inferior-wornan isin place, any womanly quality becomes a subject for derision: har breasts, her tears, hor higher voice and so on. Even il a Powerful woman claws her way past same of the prejudices and by sheer briliance and aggressively establishes herself as equal or better than men in her fleld - she Is explained avay es "maseuline”.* The word somotimos usad is “dyke” = she Is presumed to be Unfeminine. But the whole point of racism 's that she must be compared to a man and there she wil always ba found lacking because she has no poris. The altitude of the Ku Klux Klan foward Afro-Americans is racist, No mater what the Afto-American does 10 prove ho is equal to a White - whatever +The words power stong. agressve, ar, In such a sociay, used as a compliment to-men and an insult to women. ha does proves him only “almost as goo" for he' does’ not have white ‘skin Unless he'has the resources of Michee! Jackson. He can never hide thet. ctry Is net as wide a concept as racism although it too embraces many people. Deciding a man is not es good 25 you Decauss he Is Nomo-sexual or of ilagitimate tir is bigoty, as is one deciding thet all members. of another are inlaior because the father thas a pericularjob, The person disci nated against is not seen a3 intrinsically lacking but guity. A racist must have the muscle to get away with his etand - bosause ho cannot back It wilh fact. One of the deplorable outcomes of racism is that otherwise pleasant people simpy swallow the Concept whole. ff your mother tells you ‘your birthright as made your better than your dark-skinned neighbor, you accept without question that you balong to a lucky sperm club. "Don't worry about her." your mother says when you notice this neighbor is ‘mourning her last chid, "To those people fe is cheap”, So you give that neighbor Rs. 200 instead of puting your erms around her. We always “us” and “ther. ‘We are not as awful as they are, We cannot be. We were bom that way. ‘The’e. Is no such thing as being a litle racist any mora than one can be 2 itl pregnant. All colonists are. The Portuguese, the Duich and the English all colonized Ceylon and wero racists when in power. Without power they could roi be. They were the mighty race of the moment. When these Europeans fought each other, however, they did 90 as orirary enerries. When the People fought each other they did so 9 real enemies. They honored their ‘opponents. They married thelr women. Henry V made Catherine the daughior of the defeated king of France his queen. When a colonial demolished a Ceylone- 0 he acted es il he had stepped on ally. ‘A form of racism is known as orienta lism a word coined by writer Edward Said, Orientalism ig thot form of racism applied by westeriers to all those wno livo east of tho Suez. The proof given Is that orentals are not as good as Cceidenials is that orientale gabble un- teligibly instead of speaking normal western languages. They write in scib- bies. They dress comicaly. ‘They look Peculiar. Their ekn color isnot fair ‘enough. Their facial features are un-Eu- fopean. They worship the devil Westem Iterature and movies have teintorced the ofiental male as. being aithar evil or obeequious. Oriental wo- men's best chance to escape their own ‘man even in quite racent Hollywood movies was in the arms of a white rman, preferably ona taller than an oriental and wih blue eyes. The Missionaries Equality in the eyes of God was ‘conspicuously absent in the early Ameri- ‘can missionaries who had been brought Uup in. the orientalist.tradiion. - their prejudices were tight when they arived. Deliritely, the first part of Images is the most engrossing as accounts from these several missionaries overlap and set up in juxteposition a powerful cross- work view of the eamesiness and often manie eagerness with which young Ciuisian men. and women risked thelr lives to save what they patcsived as hordes of fost souls - olny to appear most unChristike themselves. As there were few early 19th century writings 10 choose from almost all are included letters and. diarice. The msslonarios ever question the validity of what they are doing, They see the native Sinhalese and Tamils through a werp as wilhout culture as if their ancient atts, engines ave to be a Violation of the teaching of Jesus. In ne eary 1800s Britain closed Inga (but net Caylon) to American missiona- fies. Some came intoncing to retum to India: others were en route to Africa To their delight, they found thousands of nameless-faceless pagans to convert. Roy. Samual Newell exults: “What a fold isthere for missionary exertions” (2), The ‘eight missionary accounis confirm Franz Fanon's view that, “the sei isinessence different from the knight, but g re'erence to divine right is necessary to legiimize this stetutory diference” (40). ‘The missionaries are formidibie in their sincerity and willingness to die for god. Nineleen year old Hariet Newell (1813) wrote 1o a friend when she was about to depart for Asia with her missionnary husband: “+ Werks excluded are euch documents 08 “The Amescan Board of Commissioners ‘or Forign Nicciore’ Annual Rport 1611. 16Alli be dak, eventing willbe dreary, and rot a hope of world harpness wil be for a momort indulgod. The primo of Ife wil be spent in-an_unneatny county, a buring region, amongst pac- ple of strange language, of a retumiess stance trom my native land, where | shall never more behold the ftends of my youty (123). eis no sumrise that Mrs. Winsiow (1819), “approached with trombting the hideous figure called Boodhu” (33) in light of what she had ‘read and heard in Amatica” (83). She never did behold the friends er her youth gain for she became sick end- died shorly ater arrival The missionaries seem curiously careless about their healt both courting infection and_ not. sesking adequate ‘medical help, Probably, they wore euepi- cious of the native medicines offered ‘and ware, of course, wihout the ant-bo- dies to protect themselves fiom malaria end other tropical diseases which ‘abounded. Thoy had no metor traneport and offen ‘covered hundreds of mées in paianquins ‘and tonjons (chairs sot onto two bam- boos carved on the shoulders of two men) but commented only on their own discomfort and the relief al being set down from time to time. One does ‘wonder why, with so many bufialo and ‘aitla used as beasts of burden, they didn't move by car. Possibly huran caftiers were cheaper. Mrs, Hemiet Winslow, the greet granc- mother or John Fostor Dulloe, (Dwight Eisenhioner’s Secretary of Siete), cane to Ceylon with her husband Rev. W- nsiow end alone shows some compe- ssion for “the pocr bearers who waced with their burdens in deep water” (35) But the coupe observe, tel and do nothing © relieve the situatons they deplore. They shit the responsiity to their ereater: ‘Can those dy bones live Were it nat for tie promises of God?... Common laborers wil carry heavy bu: rdens in the sun, from moring to night ‘without teking nourishment in the mean lime. They look very thin, but see them after they have eaten their rice and you might think they nave swallowed a pumpkin” (32 and 39). There seems to be no feeling of “there but for the grace of God go I". The Protestant missionaries also de- plored the Catholics who were scooping- up. souks for their crucified Savior and hig motner with pagan abandon. Prote- 16 ssiant Rey. Wairen (1816) was repelled by a Catholic service altended by “six ‘of seven. thousand persons,” which lesied from 9 a.m. to 5 pm. Two large basins were placed to receivo tho flow Of offerings. in one rival, a statue of the’ Virgin with ‘soven swords: thrust through her heart was brought out and. Placed on ton of Jesus on the Cross '30 she could be mede to embrace her son. Then the sialue was removed for {an hour or two to whet the: excitement Of the crovid and after the suspense bocoma intolerable it was produced again and this somewhat incestuous tillation repeated (24). Theosophist Henry Olcott (1880- 1906) was to take a diferent view of Caiholics: “In tuth these protestant Missionaries aro a pestlent let. With the Catholics we never had a hare word” (148) ‘Otcot (1880-1806) puts the blame for oviantalism on the Christiane and thar image of the “pagan.” In. 1875 Olcott and Madame Blavatsky tounded the Theosophical. sociely. He came to Ceylon alone and is response far the revitalization of Buddhism which was sappearng raridy, His relgous tea- ching. was. enchantingly ant-colonial - he ever pretends any ‘oreioners are there to help the local people. He becomes furious when tie local Bude dhists begin to venerate him, Statues and obher tkenesses of Olcol are sill ‘on public display in Sri Lanka. He taught that Christaniy had made the Buddhists forget their finer philosophy. The eady Christians. provided schodling for the pagans, which brought them many con- Vorts. Olcott pared 206 Buddhist Theo- sop scools and complied a Budchist ‘eatachiem. His message was that all you had 10 do to get to Nivana wes to stop making negalive karma because you'd have to reincamate if you did. ‘The Later American Visitors As the years piogressed the choice ‘of materiel becomas wider so moro of the avalabie wetings nave had to be excluded. There are some texts in the biblegrapny list whicn manthave broken up 8 senze of sameness in some o! the material which soon becomes 2 weakness which mekes the words less ppolent, [feel as i his were a Si Lankan tea where love-cake is rot served - orly patties and sandwiches which | also ‘enjoy. Ordinarly, 1 would be merely Grateful for being invited at all but 11 someone were to say 10 me, “Was it a four-star tea?" | would have to reply, “it would. have been if there was love cake." On reading this: book in. my pertcular context, | ind the love cake ‘occasionally lacking. An omission | deplore is Duke Elling- fon. All other worldfamous Americans listed in the bibliography are included. \ was inielly surprised at the omission if only because the American jazz pianist ib Afto-Anerican and the other writers are all “while’. Why exclude the cnly avalible wriing by a Black American? Ellington's genial ascourt of his visi Geylen would also have been the only ‘one, besides Thomas Maiton's, with no mention of skin color. | wondered it Goonetieke, a once-colonized man, was being caretl to please the while Van Hollen: 0 (which i realy the same thing) had he detached hirsell from. the responsibilty 0 those darkskinnod Hko himsel? Had he been what Memmi cals ‘condemned to. losing hie memen” (103)? Had he been like the teacher Whe dossr't realizing he is favering one child over anther Jus: because of the way that chid looks? On meating Mr. Geonetieke | brought Up the subject and he seemed startled. Plainly he hac not realized that he had omitted the only Black American. He later wrote io me, ‘I am not in the least affected by rave, class, cesie, religious, colour or other biases” which was ry own conclusion after meeting hen. Hs omission of Elingion, he explained, was because the accouni was so “meagre” = itis only 2 couple of pegee long Elingion’s brief account of his visit 10 the Island, howaver, would aso have been the only one which showed how deeply interested the people of Ceylon are wit music-Here he azz of America, The Colombo racacaurcs is used as an outdoors arena and inovsands stood in itohesr “the Duko" who was astonished at thelr rumbers, There is also. an incident unlie any other which gives insight inio the acumen and werldiness of some Ceylonese. Etington wanted to buy a large number of precious siones but dd not have enough cash wih bin. The jeweler told him to take the stones and that when he hirsell was in New York next he would vist Ellington and pick up the money. NEXT: THOMAS MERTONA Selection of the Finest International Brands. ‘CHEESE DIAPERS: BREAKFAST CEREALS sult. Huccies Maxwell = THAFERS House ae res) Colgate DENTAL CARE Ardmona Palmolive un | PERSONAL CARE LU R PAK — ‘BUTTER BOURTY? SOUPS AND PASTA en i JOBLERONE ees EW ‘CHOCOLATES Ae INSTANT NOODLES ELLA HAIRCARE BERRI @ Sole Agents PURE FRUIT JUICE CANNED MEATS £833, Skimayo Bondaranolke Mawatha, P.O. Box 1970, Colombo 14. Tol: §22871-2, 522830, 522832, 522934, 522155, 522373. Tolex: 21418 Tassiea CE, 21991 Selpro CE, 23426 Saltea CE, Cable: Tosstoa. Telefax: (941) 522913. Quality and Variety within your reach.BOOKS US-Sri Lanka Relations in the 1980s By Dr. Ambalavanar Sivarajah, Kandy, Sri Lanka: institute of Higher Education, 1995, pp 1-150, As. 350 Reviewed by: Ananda Welihena Lecturer in Polical Science, epanment of Palteal Science, Unbersiy of Peradeniya. lations botween a small State id a big, poweltu, extre-tegional ‘State is an interesting area for investiga- tion because one can iden the special context of and the reasons. for the emergence and gronih. in Souih Asia, small and big State teations can spawn Guspicions and conficts itis pursuod catelessiy without an in depth analysis ‘The South Asian region constitutes the presence ofa giant State at the centre surrounded by six smal states. The actual inler-stale relations among these ‘States have progressed since the forma- tion of the SAARC; it hes become more cordial ard trendly. The South Asian association has enhanced recicnal co ‘Operation, but it does not necessanly fellow that these states must remain li f fsh ina water tank of neglect their extra-egional State relationships. National interest ‘The decision-making of small to pur- sue relations with extra-regional big powers is impacted or metivated by factors of national interest. Sri Lanka's cordial relations with a big, exira-regional siaie does not imply thai t is pursued to. jeopardise. the inira-regional. state folationships. In: principie it should rot ever be 50. I is fruiful to exarrine how the Intra-regional states of South Asia and in pertcular India perceive Sri Lanke’s decision-making to pursue frendly rela- tions with a big powerul, exica-regiona’ ‘State USA. Eut thes is not the intertion of Dr Sivarajah's book, ‘The author's endeavour iso examine US-Sti Lanka (SL) relations in the 1980s and discuss three aspects in particular; Fist, “how the intemal. poliical_ and economic changes in Si Lanka snce 1077 had affected its relations with the USA"; Secondy t “analyze how the poitical changes st regional lovol afio- Gied US teiaions wih Si Lanka" and 418. thirdly “to test the assumplicn that Sri Lanka folowed a p10-USA foreign policy In the 1980s" (6.4). The book is divided into five chaplers ard planned to help the reader to grasp the faciors that led to the purcut of ficndly US-SL relations since 1977. Each chapter, though d- stinct, is Inter-elated. System analysis The first chapter is on the theory of sysiems analysis and the US-SL rela- tions. This approach is a new addition to the discpline of poltical science. System analysis is common to mary disciplinas but polities! scientists have Used this tool of analysis to achieve thelr research aims. tt directs the mind to environmental factors which condiion both the acfions of nations and opera- tions of the system and the relalion between the dominant system and the subordinate system" (Ibid., 4). These envtronmental factors are principally poi- tical and economic, ard they impact upon the system, stimulating it 10 resort 10 decision-making to safeguard its ralicnal interest. The system approach to the study of polites and government hes enabled the students to understand the Nature and function of the state or the poliical eystem. It shows how the political sysiem maintains itself when faced with a crisis. It is usoful to know what S. P. Varma, a poilical theory scholar has to say on systems analyes: “The very designaion of a system as open, places belore us immense possibiliies of going deeper into the problems under study and trying to find out to what factors and influences the system ‘s open, what the bounda- ries between one system and another are, Now far the inuences that creep through this boundary line aro a caco of damage or destruction to ne sysiem and how far they are helpful in mainaining fi, and finally, what this concept of maintenance would involve, whether stability, equilrium or survi- val itself" (S. P. Varma, 1975, Modem Pollicel Theory: A Critical’ Survey. Dent Vikas, 187). Chapter two presents the essential features of US-SL relations since 1948- 1976. In tha preface the author adrrite that Ramprasad Sinha has already ‘examined this timerame. A brief over view, the author thinks, would be fruitful to delineate the contnuily and change in the proceeding period of 1987 - 1989. Chapler three analyzes the US-SL inter-siate relations from 1977 by addres- ‘sing the economic ard poitical faciors: Non-alignment The frst mejor pottical change was the UNPS 1977 election vicloy. Its foreign policy of non-alignment remained unchanged. but & did not experience "too much’ dynamism" as in the past rich the government purported would be harmful to the national irteres! (p. 38). USA endorsed the UNP foreign policy and prorrised to resusctiale the economy of Si Lanka, Second factor was the domestic con- straints of Tamil secessionist end Sin- hala youth uprisngs. They. encouragad the slate to volale the principle of Non-alonment by increasing its dyna- rmism towards tho West for help (p. 47). Mos states recognised the pre-emine- nee of India in South Asia, and dospit this fact Si Lanka pleased USA. by cfiicsing USSR's invasion of Afghani stan in 1978. Since then, Soulh Asia ‘Wes a priory region for USA. SriLanka’s response to clobal issues during the UNP regime dd not radically differ from the: Westem standpoin's, The iesus of vidatlon of nen-aignment principles Is ‘evident in the government's. approach 10 issues of Trincomallee harbour, Trin: comalles Cil Tanks, The VOA, and the Israeli Interest Section. The official Si Lanka visits 10 USA to sort out paltical ‘and economic issues were important for the strengthening of friencly ies between the two states. It is true that India’s relatons wth Sri Lanka in the 1980s ‘were net too cardial, becauso of Ite role In the ethnic confict of Swi Lanka, and it eeuld have been an impulse to shit toward USA. Chapler four is on econcmic relations since the 1980s, During the UNP era ‘market economic policies compelled S1i Lanka to acopt closer tles wih USA‘and the lalter was pleased with the economic altempt of Sil anka. Eneoura gement was granted io reve the e00- omy: the author indicates that GDP increased marginaly, unemployment de- clined, end private investment caliefoc tory. USA provided.aid to the accelerated Nahawell project, Free Trade Zone, Greaier Colombe Development ard the Housing programme. This chapter provi- das slatisical data on trade some of which ara annoxed in the appendices, But al this did not elicit poitical develop- ment and democracy ard it failed 10 address the issue of growth with equity ‘The final chapter is an assessment of US-SL relations since 1977. it notes that Sri Lanka's foreign policy was “greatly influenced by the internal poli cal develcpment 2s well as the row ‘economic policies introduced by the UNP- goverment” (p. £0). One can argue that India's role in the ethnic conflict of Sri Lanka stimulated US-SL. relations, part- culerly during regime of india Gandhi whose doctine was to drag the emall states of Scuh Asia under Indas influence. But the Indian ‘hegemonic! impact diminished with the chance of Indira's goverment. The poly ol Incia- toward its neighbours was more cordial and friendly. The non-congress govern- ments regarded neighbourly relations a6 more important than friendly tles with the Wesiom states. SAARC was stro: igthened, and it enabled the Westem owers to recognise the pre-eminent osttion of India ini South Asia, Indian factor Sit Lanka's relation wih USA must Net be perceived as a threat lo the Indian national interest. It is more. beneficial to Sri Lanka to pursue friendly relations with USA without antagonising Indian sensibilties, because national Issues of Sri Lanka can be addressed and reso. ved with the co-operation end support of both States of USA and India, Thia is how Sri Lanka's forelon policy would difer trom that of Pakistan. The students and readers must be pleased that they have aesees to infor. ‘mation on US-SL relations. Dr. Sivarajah has continued from whore Ramprasad Sinha has stopped and it is time that ‘one examines what has happened in this field since the 1990s, There is an on-going interest in SL-US Felations due to two principal domestic issues First the market-based and labour expanding development strategy of the PA govemment, attempting to execute with extra vigour than the previous UNP. rogime, demands an enhanced relations wilh the USA goverment of the Demo- cratic party of President Clinton. The PA government's market economy and the labour-expanding development stra tegy is centred on employment geneta- tion from foreign divoct invostment. Te chnolegy, skils, fmance and expertise are essential if Sri Lanka ie to altain the status of NICs Ike the States of East and South East Asia. Secondly, the promotion of SL-US relation. is escenfal because the PA government nas initated 2 peace pro: ass to dirirish the adverse mpact o! the vioent Tarn pottical strategy on the economy and polity by introducing @ Package of devclution of proposals. is aim is to incteate the scape for good governance end polltical modernization with democracy and justice for all, These two factors wil determing, stimulate and promote healthy ard cardial relations between USA and Si Lanka. But the ‘success of these relations would depond fon the healthy relations between Sri Lanka and the SAARC, particularly india. SL-US relations must not ever become a threet to india's pre-eminence in the Fegion nor act to the detriment of iis national interest. CORRESPONDENCE The Muslim Claim Your esteemed Lanka Guardian cf March 1st 1996 cared a heading under “News Background”, Muslime: No more le minority. Hon: Minister Ashraf, is reported 10 have said “we G0 stop further end say whether tie North and East is metged or not, the Muslims of the country need a soparate Unit for themselves as there Is general ‘agreement among all for the ¢evolution f power’. Ho was quoted in another newspaper, the Thinakaran of 28th of March 1996, under tha heading "North ‘and asi Rogion belongs to the rrustins” published an appeal by ne Hor: Mnister Ashraf, caling on all Musims in the lelend to suppor, his eifort to establish Noith and East as the homeland of the Muslims". We hava finiched with the claim that North and Eastis the vadtioral homeland of the Tamils. Now Ministor Ashraff is staking his claim to the Nofth and East as the traditonal homeland of the Muslims. Itis this typo of careless talks, thet has created problems to the ‘Mustims of the Jatfna Peninsula, Mannar, and the Muslims of ho Eastern Province. Let me enlighten Minister Ashraf, that We Mustis claim every inch of Sri Lanka as our homeland lust as every Singhal Se and Tamil is cnitled to claim. Portu- ‘quese record, when ther ships aporoa- Ched Colombo, they sew the white painted minarets and the while tuban- Ned Moors. The Portuguese who were Coming after the crusades againet the Moors as they called the Nusims of Motosco, decared their enmity to the luslims, The invasion by the Portuguese was met with opposition by the Snghalese. ‘The Muslims jcined the Singhalese in ‘thousands, in the amy of Mayadunne ‘and fought by ihe side of the Singhalese. Porlugliase have recorded, that in. one bate the Portuguese killed 5,000 Mu- slims. Under the Portuguese cccupation Muslims were the most persecuted. It was the Singhalese kings and the Sanga who protecied the Muslims. History ecards, that the Portiguase roundod up Muslims and killed them. ih Matera, when Muslims of od. cross the bridge, they recita the Koran in memory of over 2,000 Muslims, wiio were beheaded by the Portuguese on tha bank of the “vor. Even during the reign of the Dutch. Every cffort was made to make life impossible for the Muslims. This is the land for which Muslims ied along side the Singhalese, The kings of Kandy setied the Muslims in strategic places to defend the knadom, ‘The presence of Muslims in Ganeienne, Galagedera, Gamoola shows the trust the kings had in the Muslims. in the battle al Ganelanne, it is recorded that the blood of the Muslims flowad wth that of the fellow Singhalese. Minister Ashraf must know how the Mustims, came to be settled in the 19Eastam province, It was to prevent the Indian marauders invading the area. ‘Therefore Minster Ashraif mast snow that fis clzim to homeland in the Nother and Easter province Is ficiious and baseless, just as the claim of the Tamiss. We in the All Ceyion Musim League have considered this ethric quastion, as far back as 1999, We have discussed the Musiim view. with the Tanil leaders like lato &.G. Fonrambalam and late federal Pary leader, Mr. Chelvanaya- gam. Our late President Dr. TB. Jayah Addressing a Musiin polcal conference on protection of minorities, in 1839 had this to say "that does not mean, that we shoule have a Tami raj or Singhela fal, a minosty raj or a majonty raj. It ‘simpy means thal when a mapily of minorty is: spoken of, that term must ‘be undersicod not in religious sense or racial sense but in a poltical conso as understood in al_ democratic counties of tha orld’. He also warned, “but if you have a permanent racial or ralgous iminoiily invested wih plenary powers, you are only creating an organized iyramy of a kind which i caculated to subvert the politcal foundation of he country". Even Minister Ashraff wih his sevenizen Muslim Congress Provincial Counciors, was neipess when the Tami Nalicnal Army ef the E>RLF government massacred the Mustins |, as tho President of the All Ceylon Muslim League, appeal to the Musims throughout Sif Lanka, specially toss in the Eastem and the Nother Province, that every Muslim must consider every inch of Sti Lanka as his homeland, just as itis the homeland of the Singhalese ‘and the Tamils. Minister Ashvait intends to barter the Musims of Batticclca, Erevur, Trincomalee, Mutur, Kinriya’ Mannar, Vavniya, Mulaitivu ang jafina for a homeland arcund his house, ‘comprising nol even 10% of the Musims in Si Lanka, The rest of the Muslin ‘community will havo to face another Bosnia, Instead of making every effort to see that the Musims wha are refugees are settled back in thei homes in datina and Manrar, Minister Ashvait is trying to create more refugees out of Musime in the Easter Province as well, Please femember, that when the Tamils of Jafina_and Nannor joined forces with the LTTE, to crive the Mustis out of

You might also like

• Her Body and Other Parties: Stories

  

  From Everand

  Her Body and Other Parties: Stories

  Carmen Maria Machado

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (822)
• A Heartbreaking Work Of Staggering Genius: A Memoir Based on a True Story

  

  From Everand

  A Heartbreaking Work Of Staggering Genius: A Memoir Based on a True Story

  Dave Eggers

  Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

  3.5/5 (231)
• Devil in the Grove: Thurgood Marshall, the Groveland Boys, and the Dawn of a New America

  

  From Everand

  Devil in the Grove: Thurgood Marshall, the Groveland Boys, and the Dawn of a New America

  Gilbert King

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (266)
• • Magazines
  • Podcasts
  • Sheet music
• Rise of ISIS: A Threat We Can't Ignore

  

  From Everand

  Rise of ISIS: A Threat We Can't Ignore

  Jay Sekulow

  Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

  3.5/5 (137)
• The Sympathizer: A Novel (Pulitzer Prize for Fiction)

  

  From Everand

  The Sympathizer: A Novel (Pulitzer Prize for Fiction)

  Viet Thanh Nguyen

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (122)
• The Perks of Being a Wallflower

  

  From Everand

  The Perks of Being a Wallflower

  Stephen Chbosky

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (2104)
• Sing, Unburied, Sing: A Novel

  

  From Everand

  Sing, Unburied, Sing: A Novel

  Jesmyn Ward

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (1104)
• The Little Book of Hygge: Danish Secrets to Happy Living

  

  From Everand

  The Little Book of Hygge: Danish Secrets to Happy Living

  Meik Wiking

  Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

  3.5/5 (401)
• A Man Called Ove: A Novel

  

  From Everand

  A Man Called Ove: A Novel

  Fredrik Backman

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (4610)
• Yes Please

  

  From Everand

  Yes Please

  Amy Poehler

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (1898)
• Fear: Trump in the White House

  

  From Everand

  Fear: Trump in the White House

  Bob Woodward

  Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

  3.5/5 (738)
• The Light Between Oceans: A Novel

  

  From Everand

  The Light Between Oceans: A Novel

  M.L. Stedman

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (789)
• On Fire: The (Burning) Case for a Green New Deal

  

  From Everand

  On Fire: The (Burning) Case for a Green New Deal

  Naomi Klein

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (74)
• Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln

  

  From Everand

  Team of Rivals: The Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln

  Doris Kearns Goodwin

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (234)
• A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

  

  From Everand

  A Tree Grows in Brooklyn

  Betty Smith

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (1929)
• Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future

  

  From Everand

  Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future

  Ashlee Vance

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (474)
• The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America

  

  From Everand

  The Unwinding: An Inner History of the New America

  George Packer

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (45)
• Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race

  

  From Everand

  Hidden Figures: The American Dream and the Untold Story of the Black Women Mathematicians Who Helped Win the Space Race

  Margot Lee Shetterly

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (897)
• The World Is Flat 3.0: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century

  

  From Everand

  The World Is Flat 3.0: A Brief History of the Twenty-first Century

  Thomas L. Friedman

  Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

  3.5/5 (2259)
• The Constant Gardener: A Novel

  

  From Everand

  The Constant Gardener: A Novel

  John le Carré

  Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

  3.5/5 (104)
• Bad Feminist: Essays

  

  From Everand

  Bad Feminist: Essays

  Roxane Gay

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (1018)
• The Woman in Cabin 10

  

  From Everand

  The Woman in Cabin 10

  Ruth Ware

  Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

  3.5/5 (2521)
• Brooklyn: A Novel

  

  From Everand

  Brooklyn: A Novel

  Colm Toibin

  Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

  3.5/5 (1947)
• The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer

  

  From Everand

  The Emperor of All Maladies: A Biography of Cancer

  Siddhartha Mukherjee

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (271)
• Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike

  

  From Everand

  Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike

  Phil Knight

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (540)
• John Adams

  

  From Everand

  John Adams

  David McCullough

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (2409)
• The Outsider: A Novel

  

  From Everand

  The Outsider: A Novel

  Stephen King

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (1850)
• Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance

  

  From Everand

  Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance

  Angela Duckworth

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (590)
• The Yellow House: A Memoir (2019 National Book Award Winner)

  

  From Everand

  The Yellow House: A Memoir (2019 National Book Award Winner)

  Sarah M. Broom

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (98)
• Wolf Hall: A Novel

  

  From Everand

  Wolf Hall: A Novel

  Hilary Mantel

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (3811)
• The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life

  

  From Everand

  The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck: A Counterintuitive Approach to Living a Good Life

  Mark Manson

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (5813)
• The Art of Racing in the Rain: A Novel

  

  From Everand

  The Art of Racing in the Rain: A Novel

  Garth Stein

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (4203)
• The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers

  

  From Everand

  The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers

  Ben Horowitz

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (348)
• Manhattan Beach: A Novel

  

  From Everand

  Manhattan Beach: A Novel

  Jennifer Egan

  Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

  3.5/5 (792)
• The Glass Castle: A Memoir

  

  From Everand

  The Glass Castle: A Memoir

  Jeannette Walls

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (1716)
• Little Women

  

  From Everand

  Little Women

  Louisa May Alcott

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (104)
• Principles: Life and Work

  

  From Everand

  Principles: Life and Work

  Ray Dalio

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (608)
• The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You're Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are

  

  From Everand

  The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You're Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are

  Brené Brown

  Rating: 4 out of 5 stars

  4/5 (1092)
• Angela's Ashes: A Memoir

  

  From Everand

  Angela's Ashes: A Memoir

  Frank McCourt

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (441)
• Never Split the Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It

  

  From Everand

  Never Split the Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It

  Chris Voss

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (844)
• Steve Jobs

  

  From Everand

  Steve Jobs

  Walter Isaacson

  Rating: 4.5 out of 5 stars

  4.5/5 (807)
• December 1 1978

  

  Document28 pages

  December 1 1978

  Sri Lanka Guardian

  No ratings yet
• August 1 1978

  

  Document32 pages

  August 1 1978

  Sri Lanka Guardian

  No ratings yet
• September 15 1995

  

  Document24 pages

  September 15 1995

  Sri Lanka Guardian

  No ratings yet
• January 15 1995

  

  Document24 pages

  January 15 1995

  Sri Lanka Guardian

  No ratings yet
• November 15 1995

  

  Document24 pages

  November 15 1995

  Sri Lanka Guardian

  No ratings yet
• September 15 1996

  

  Document28 pages

  September 15 1996

  Sri Lanka Guardian

  No ratings yet
• February 1 1995

  

  Document24 pages

  February 1 1995

  Sri Lanka Guardian

  No ratings yet
• April 1 1995

  

  Document24 pages

  April 1 1995

  Sri Lanka Guardian

  No ratings yet
• November 15 1996

  

  Document28 pages

  November 15 1996

  Sri Lanka Guardian

  No ratings yet
• March 15 1996

  

  Document24 pages

  March 15 1996

  Sri Lanka Guardian

  No ratings yet
• May 1 1996

  

  Document24 pages

  May 1 1996

  Sri Lanka Guardian

  No ratings yet
• February 15 1996

  

  Document24 pages

  February 15 1996

  Sri Lanka Guardian

  No ratings yet
• December 15 1996

  

  Document28 pages

  December 15 1996

  Sri Lanka Guardian

  No ratings yet
• January 15 1996

  

  Document24 pages

  January 15 1996

  Sri Lanka Guardian

  No ratings yet