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    LANKA GUARDIAN

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    LANKA GUARDIAN

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Flag for inappropriate content
    36 views32 pages

    September 1 1996

    Uploaded by

    Sri Lanka Guardian
    LANKA GUARDIAN

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Flag for inappropriate content
    of 32
    TT 9 TeWNml da GUARDIAN No. eC Ce OR SWRD, AUTONOMY, FEDERALISM Lane (mesh WARS WITHOUT RULES tiaras todo are Lacy Bi ey cla pele Vi ie) i332 le H. L. Seneviratne re UU Ra eed 8 Mervyn de Silva NU 2 tie a Pe serene Ve ed OT A LATIN AMERICAN VOICE Alejandro Bendana INDIA'S ECONOMIC BOOM : Lessons and Limits Neeraj Kaushal L. G : THE TRANSITIONAL PROGRAMME PENNE Sebel (Lc-) bie CMa PMN Be Negotiating A Ceasefire Tisaranee Gunasekara Now Available Second Enlarged Edition “SRI LANKA: THE DEVOLUTION DEBATE" ICES, 1996, 2565p. Articles: * Introduction by Regi Siriwardena * Towards Effective Devolution, by G. L. Peiris ¢ Some Thoughts on the Devolution Package, by Lakshman Marasinghe * Devolution and Power Sharing, The Means to Peace and Development. by Bertram Bastiampillai * Devolution of Power, The Problems and Challenges by Neclan Tiruchelvam Towards A Compromise Solution, by Sumanasiri Liyanage Breakihrough in Sri Lanka, by S. Guhan Control of State Land — The Devolution Debate, by Sunil Bastian * The Structure and Content of Education: Policy Choices and Problems of Implementation in the Context of Devolution Proposals, by Sasanka Perera Appendices: * President Chandrika Kumaratunga’s Address to the Nation, August 3, 1995 * Text of Government's Devolution Proposals of August 3, 1995 Text of Government's Devolution Proposals of January 16, 1996 * A Commentary on the Devolution Proposals Government January 16, 1996, by G. L. Peli The Bandaranaike-Chelvanayakam Pact The Senanayake-Chelvanayakam Pact Annexure C Text of the Indo-Sri Lanka Agreement of July 29, 1987 The Interim Report of the Mangala Moonesinghe Parliamentary Select Committee, 1992 + Excerpts from Gamini Dissanayake's "Vision for the 21st Century” * Thirteenth Amendment to the Constitution (1987) Price: Rs. 250 U.S. $ 15.00 for SAARC countries (Airshipment) U.S. $20.00 for other countries (Airshipment) f the is All orders to: ICES, 2 Kynsey Terrace, Colombo 8, Sri Lanka. Telephone 685085 /698048; Fax 696618 ‘TheLanks Guardian was fret published in 1978 and has been in uninterrupted existence for it 18 years. Tt has come ont asa fortnightly trom its inception, andhas remained so thronghoat. In fact the most noteworthy single feature of the LG has heen continuity ofexistence fotlowedby its frequency and regularity. Sri Lanka in the last 18 years has been characterised by discontinuity; by tumultuous, turbulentand violent change. Many institutions and entitios have gane ut of existence. The continued presence of the Lanka Guardian in a context of ‘iscoatinuity, rapture and rapid change is in and of itself an astonishing and utstanding achievement. ‘The magazine's durability and frequency of publication is bost attributed to the person of it's Editor, Sri Lanka's seniormest and internationally _bost known professional journalist, Mervyn de Silva (who was clocted the first Presidontofthe Editors’ Guild of Sri Lanka). ‘The second moststriking feature of the Guardian has bea its perapective and outlook, Throughcut 1 1/2 decades or more of crisis, with it’s attendant passions, the LG has maintained a steady drumboat as it were, of rational commentary anderiticiem of the unfolding political conflicts. ‘Therefore the Guardian's ability to speak out in a voice that ‘was critical yet rational, progressive yet moderate, grapplingwith tholecal but always informedby a lmowlodge ‘of the global, has been a remarkable victory ~ a victory for certain values, for a cortain sensibility. ‘While emphasising these two main achievements and indeed contributions madeby the Lanka Guardian, itis alco necessary to address squarely the crisis of the magazine, ‘which was perhaps ne less than a crisis of survival. OURSELVES ‘The crisis of the Guardian was, in part, a spin off of i's moral - ethical success. This may sound paradoxical, but in.a country and a time in which political altgnments have rapidly shifted, in which political positions end standshave been in eonstent flux, in:which blocs and coalitions have decomposed in what “Mervyn de Silva hes called a Kaleidoscopic fashion, the readership of journals and newspapers has also displayed enormous fluidity. Sinco this Journal has chosen not to take the easy way aut of being “addish', or following this oc that political Gr scademicintallectial) trend in an opportunistic or market driven fashion, ithas also meant thatitssteady, petmanent ‘readership has tundergone a process of shrinkage. In other. ‘wards, those who have remained faithful to the cational, critical commentary. that the Lanka Guardian has specialised in, have undergoné a natural process of ageing. » IN A TIME OF TRANSITION Dayan Jayatilloka ‘Apart from these two reasons of politieal scciolozy, the crisis of the LG was also sourced in material, eosnomic factors, not unrelated to the overall context of crisis. The repeated eruptions of large scale war in the Northern and Eastern part of the country have effectively closed off an important segment of the LG's original market — in the towns and the University campuses of the largely Tamil North-Eastern part of Soi Lanka, The phenomenon of inflation which affected the price of newsprint also affected the Lanka Guardian badly. The availability of fairly high ‘paid jobs in the corporate sector, resulted in the Guardian ‘being unable to offer competitive salaries to its staff. This Jed to a shrinkage of the permanent staff of the journal. Over thoysar, the Guardian, because ofits inability to pay salaries comparable with those in the booming eorporate sector, was fercod to downsize its ata drastialy. Consequently the finetioning of the _ magazine (particularly. its distribution, the auumbor of sales outletsand.capa- sity for reve- fue callecion) suffered disa- strously. We fully reco | yol 18. No:8 -Seotomtor 1, 1908 guise that if che Cana Guardian Price Rs. 15.00 is to curvive, it cannot go on a5, before, Survival is inextricably inked with the Published fortnightly by Lanka Guardian Publishing Co. Lid. ‘No. 248, Union Place: Celembo «2, Editor in Chiot: Morvyn do Silva teak of enaer. | SECT Mena aes "ele: 474 which retaine all Printed by Ananda Press: TSAI ons ae aeer emer detains nears ae while going bey- Telephone: 435075 fond it to reach ft to new auc. ae sneeh o whle | Dayan date 1 new strata ~ tally, regionally |. Merryade sitive = and invernatio. |. de stiva 5 ally, ‘Cumar Rupesiaghe n aty we seek | Heb Semeviratan 17 to Gialtanees | Tisaranee Gunesekara 13 slyachievethree | Alejandro Bendana 2 tread oecives: | gore ee : all of-which are | Neeral Kaushal 2 peste 2° aera 5 ee eer a) The survival of the Guardian ; b). ‘The rejuvenation ofthe LG and therestoration ofthe ‘capacities the magazine hadiin its early years; ©) ‘The tratisformation, re-designing and in a sense the re-invention of the Lanka Guardian for the ‘New ‘Times’; for the 21st century end the 3rd Millenium, An ideclogical re-orientation of the contants of the Lanka Guardian will also be effected. The Guardian wasoriginally journal with a Radical-Left emphasis, which after its first 10 years shifted to a Contre Left orientation, But the run up to. the 21st Century requires a transeending of traditional Right-Left dichotomies, and indeed a search for anew synthesis, ‘The broad goals and objectives of the new look Lanka Guardian are as follows 1). To use the unique moment of the turn of the century and the end of the millennium to stimulate an important, Janus faced diseussion in the ranks of the Sri Lankan, South Asian and Third World intelligentsias. This discussion would involve critical, retrospective look at the history of Sri Lanke, South Asia and the world, certainly in the 20th Century and Possibly even in the 2nd millennium. The other aspoct of the discussion would be futuristic ~ the direction in whieh Sri Lanka, South Asia and the Third World may and should move in the 21st Century. What are the likely trends of evolution based on what has happened bofore; and what are the desircble directions. and models for Sti Lanka, South Asia and the Third World inthenew century? Thoro has ta bea permanent forum in whiei these two macro (or rather, mega) prblems ‘can-be-subject to informed, rational and continuous iseussion and debate, rectification and refinement, ‘The Lanka Guardian shall funetion as one such space inwhich thisimperative intellectual process can unfold, 2) To address the question of a viable model. of socio-economic development for Sri Lanlka, the South Asian region and the Third World. Today, the crisis of humanity is a crisis of alternatives, Tho collapse of thie socialist model has tended ta obscure the failures of the so-called free market model, which are at it's most stark in the Third World ay aiested ta by world leaders at the 1995 Copenhagen Social Summit. Unless a viable developmental alternative which addresses the question of ‘growth with equity” is found, the tremendous disparities generated by the free market mode! are bound to result in serious social isequilibria and political violonco, propelled in many instances by, or finally feeding into, various forms of fanaticism and fundamentalism Sri Lanka withitsown continuing saga of violence, isin dire need of a detailed Giscussion of viable models of balanced sccio-eeanomie evelopment if the transition to the 21et Century is to be relatively free of massive, bloody dislocations. Such an exorcise is nosessary not only for Sri Lanka ‘but for many other eountries in the South Asian reyi and the Third World, and probably evenforpost socialist Russia and Central and Eastern Europe — which ere all in the throes of open ended transiticnts), The Lanka Guardian shall constitute a forum for the chalking out overtime, of such a blueprint of @ viahle alternative model which combines increasing prosperity with a ‘Breater measure of sotial justice, 3) To act aga dissaminator of the Sri Lankan experience throughou: South Asia and globally. Sri Lanka hesbeen aa laboratory of sorts in thai it has experimented with ‘4. statist-social wellarist model, a _ pioneering free-market open door model (the first of its kind ina plaralist demccratic setting in the Third World), aiid, in the late ‘80s and ezrly '90s, an important attempt ata synthesis of growth with equity. The balance sheet needs to be drawn up and its lessons, both positive and negative, offered for discussion, specially in the Third World but also in other parts of the world (not least the parts of Contral and Eastern in which new Social Demiocratic-type forces are now groping their way towards such a synthesis) Bag accian ba aval va for its survivals the. lon li) pespectiven ana al ew ave talon place again rop of and bave sought 8 of struggles: those of | crats in Sci Lanka dnd the van lence, social justice, eee | ataltemative Sri Lanka has also been the cockpit of numerous conflicts, some thnically driven, others socie-politically driven — sonfliets which have resulted in high intensity armed ‘strvggles end terzorism in various parts of the Island, This country, therefore, is an experience rich environment from ‘which lessons ~ again, both positive and negative~ can be derived for conflict prevention, crisis manegemenUconict ‘management and conllict resdlution/seconeiliation. These lessons may prove of enormous value in parts of the world Where such erises and con{licts are either ongoing or latent. The Lanka Guardian shall function as a space for the discussion ofthe Larikan experience and a Yehicle by which these lessons ean be mado available to the reading put and policymaking strata globally. 4) To actas a bridge between the exponentially growing SriLankan oxpatriate community and Sri Lanka. The S:i Lankan expatriates have no: only grown numerically; there has been a significant change in ite composition in as much as it now comprises of large numbers of professionals and an upwardly mobile second generation of migrants. The skills that these people have learnt in their new environments have remained untappod for the country of their origin. The Lanka Guardian vill strive to act as a two-way bridge whereby Sri Lankans abroad ean bo kop: aware of the processes unfolding in their country of arigin while the new knowledgebases and theskils of these Sri Lankans can be rapidly channelled to the Lankan intelligentsia rresidentin the inland and through them to the citizenry ‘as whole, This is one micthod which, by acting 2s a (Conta on paga 10) NEWS BACKGROUND THE CRISIS AS CENTRIFUGE Mervyn de Silva 66 Far fiom being the hasis of the good society, the family, with ils narrow privacy ‘and tawdry seorels is the source af all our discontents. 4 y Sir Edmund Leach, BEC. Raith Lecture 1961 Nether universal franchise — nor pariamentary democracy ‘could destroy the power and Influence of the family. Ceylon was he_—_trend-sener. Postindependence poles. was dominated by the Senanayekes and tho Bandaranaikes. The fashion socn spread to India, the worlds most populous demeciacy end Si Lanka's. largest neighbour. The Nehrus and Gandhi of Incia were soon matched by the Bhuttos of Pakistan, Bangladesh, the newest of the region's slates, hasbeen receptive to the trond too. South Asia has proved the most fertle terrain for madem dynasties. Wemen's emergence has been a parallel force. Mrs. Sima Ratwate Bandaranaike was soon followed by Indra Gendhi, Benazir Bhutto and Khaleda Zia, Once again, SriLankaisthe fashion — leader... Mis. Sima Bandaranaike is Prime Minister while her daughter Chandrika -Bandara- naike Kumaratunga is the elected President, ‘Mr. Anura Bandaranalke, the son oftwo Prime Ministers, has quit the party (GLFP) his father SWROD. Bandaraneike founded and joined the ‘conservative U.N. his favier qui, when he suspected that Prime Minister D.S. ‘Senanayake was grecming his son Dudley for U.N.P. leadership. Enter another Ratwatle — Li, Colonel ‘Anuruddha Ratwatte, Ms. Bandaranaike's cousin, now President Chanorka —Kumaratunga’s deputy Defence Minister, and the hero of OPERATIONRIVIRESA (Sunrise), which climaxed with the heisting of the Lion (Sinha) flag cn the tallest bulding. In Jaffna, capital of the (Tamil) northem provinge, and the bastion of Volupillai Prabhakaren's. secessionist Liberation ‘Tigers of Tamil Eelam (L.7.TE). Forthe SriLankenarmy andiforGeneral Retwatta it was undoubtedly 2 famous victory — until the “Tigers* overran the heavily fortied Mullaliva camp, Kling at least 1,200 Sinhala soldiers, the largest casually fgurein a single batile since the ‘end of Word War I! T.U. WARS. But is @ host of other “Wars” and conflicts rather than the LT-T.E’s ‘separatist ravolt which now cause greater anxiety over the julure of the P.A and the prospects of law and order, peace and stabil. From family, we must turn to the ppcitical party, and the grand alfanco of partes (87 11?) known as the Peoples Alliance. The founder President of the CAN.G., the laige plantation union is Mr 8. Thordaman, a mombar of tho “Long Parliament” (1977-94) and a Cabinet Minister under Presidents Jayawardene, Premadasa and Wjetunge (all UN.P.), Tho C.WC’e agoomont- with the conservaive UNP. has NOT bean abrogated, bul he sis in the Peoples Alliance (P.A) front row in the House as Ministor of Livostock Dovolopmeent and Rural Industies. Since the P.A. did not wina Stable majorty at the partamentary Eunorin-Chiot polls in August 1994, it needs every vole it ean get — on whatever tans. kt was PA. candidate Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga who sviept the Presidential polls —enimpressive 63% vole. The P.A. viclory was —unimprossive. Mr. ‘Thondaman. the veteran of many wars’ will demand his price before the year is ut... probably a wage hke. ithe gets His way, President Kumaratunga will eurely ba confronted by other unions, and some ‘ate Cosely linked, inot contrcied, by the LS.8P.-CP,, parties which are partners ofthe not-sogrand “Alliance”. Aeadythe LSSP. leaders Mesers Bernard Scysa ‘and Batty Weerakoon are putting on neir “ede union caps quite often. The I.M-F. and World Bank would urge the Treasury to resist all wage demands. The PA's relations with these parties and the main trade unions wil be increasingly strained ‘as 1997 dawns, ‘The Nurses Union (PSUNU) has already issued what it has descriwed as “nal warning”. The Union wil faunch an slancwide strike and parelyse allmajor hospitalsifits wage demands are net met. ‘The union's Executive Committee meets on August 3tst Ihe PA. concedes the demands or compromises; it wil encourage other State sector union’ to flex muscles... belore demanding a pay hike, CENSORSHIP. P.A. poly on Consorchip fe another issue which has proved to be divisive while at te same time alienating the privately-owned meda. i was the DUNE. (Laith Front) member. Ravi Kanunanayake who took up the matterin Paullament, Sir, belore venturing on ancthar type cof war, |,on behalf cf the DUNLF sincerely, request’ tho immeciste iting of thie ‘senseless press censorship which only leads to the truth being reported in 2 ‘convoluted form and the untruth In any form... If we beliave by NOT reporting, ooplewillbeleve that t did NOThappen, we are only fooling ourselves..." ‘The diferences of opinion reflected in Mr. Karunanayake's speech are even clearer when the Trotskyist frobrand, Mr. Vasudeva Nenayakkara addresses the House — on almost every major issue. ‘A question thal seems (0 trouble many pparly leaders and MP's on beth sidas of the Houses "lelephione tapping’. Isthere tapping and if so is it now routine? Are MP's immune? TAMIL ISSUE From the stait, President. Kumara- tunge’s stategy was: to win ovar the anteL-T.T-£, patliameniarist Tamilg‘oups and isclate the miltarst "Tors". But she was clever enough to go through the motions of “peace negotations” with the “Eelarn-obsessed” Tigers, Uelore she Tetumed to the battlefield. in pert. t was anecessary gesture —the audience was the al Pro-minorily groups in those aid-giving SUBSCRIPTION RATES Air Mail Canada/US.A. US$ 65/ for 1 year | US$ 45/ for months UK, Germany, New: Zealand, ‘Australia._Netherlands, France. Japan, Holland, Philippines, ‘Austria, Norway, Sweden, China, Ireland, Switzeand, Nigeria Belgium, Denmark, Paria, London, ‘US$ 59/ for t year USS 35/ for 8 months Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia, Dubal, Baharin, Arabian Gi Singapore. USS 45/ for 1 year USS 25/ for 6 months India, Pakistan. USS 40/ for | year USS 29/ for 6 months Local Rs. 975/- for 1 year Rs, 200/- for 6 months countries insisted on a PA peace initiative soon after he August 1994 polls. Bosides, Prime Minister Kumaralunga Could hardy be happy over the Parliamentary election results. From 50%" in August’ and a. tiny Parliamentary majority candidate Chandrika K. swept the Presidential pols. Fight now, a disilusioned band of Tami MPs the respectable T.U.LF. led by vetaran arfamentarian Mr. M. Sivasithamparam included) is demanding a ceasaiire. Cnly @ ceasefire coud prevent further aggravation of the refucee problem, says Mr. Sivasthamparam the party leader. PLOTE, EPRLF, EPDP and cther ro-P.A. Tamil pertios are ineroesingly ilical, sometimes hostie, and ready to vote against the P.A. in the House. But ‘back tothe family, Anura, Anurudahaand Mrs. Bandaranaixe. The Prime Ministor, DON'T DEFAME MY FAMILY — PRIME MINISTER TELLS ANURUDDHA is the front page headline in the island, a paper ‘owned by Mrs. Bandaraniko's nioce. General Ratwatie, the hero, had cast doubts about the patomity’ of Anura Bandaranaike — a young MP who has been born with a siver torgue, not just asiver spoon. THE P.A.: TWO YEARS ON {Li atlas BANDARANAKE AND THE RATIONAL DEBATE ON DEVOLUTION - 1926-1957 K. M. de Silva’ Introduction 'SWRDBanderanaike'scomparatively biel period of office as Si Lanke's third Prime. Minister (195658) is. associated wih the genesis of the current national

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