A modern consciousness?

October 10, 2014

The Urban Wetland Park is hereby vested in the citizens of Sri Lanka by is
!"cellency #ahinda $a%a&aksa, President of the 'e(ocratic Socialist
$e&)blic of Sri Lanka, and *o)ld re(ain a lastin+ testa(ent to the +lorio)s
vision contained in the ,#ahinda -hinthanaya. of )sherin+ in (odernity to
the State, so)nd health to the nation and &ict)res/)eness to the
environ(ent, *hile brin+in+ (ore l)stre and +rande)r to the reno*ned city
of 0)+edoda 1 2otabaya $a%a&aksa, Secretary, #inistry of 'efence and
Urban 'evelo&(ent on this 12th day of 3an)ary 20145
6 visitor to this co)ntry can be for+iven for thinkin+ that the (a%ority of Sri
Lankans are a)to(atons, livin+ day7to7day in an )nthinkin+ ro)tine of
(otion and reaction5 The ca&acity to initiate a f)nda(ental feat)re of an
a)tono(o)s bein+ is only a &reserve of a select fe*5
Whichever &lace he *ere to +o to, the visitor *ill observe col)(ns,
banners, &la/)es and hoardin+s co((e(oratin+ the be+innin+, la)nchin+
or the o&enin+ of a &ro%ect, by the 2overn(ent5 The *ritin+ on the( *ill
invariably anno)nce that the *hole sche(e *as conce&t)alised by
President #ahinda $a%a&aksa, i(&le(ented (ainly by one of his brothers,
occasionally associated by a lesser &olitician5
The *ords )sed in Sinhala are so &redictable that even *itho)t readin+ it
one can &res)(e (ost of the (essa+e5 8t is essentially a $oyal edict of yore
1 9in+ so and so takin+ &ity on the s):erin+ (asses b)ilt this h)+e tank, or
that a certain Pharaoh b)ilt this Pyra(id so that all !+y&tians (ay (arvel
its en+ineerin+ in+en)ity5 What the !+y&tians, *hose ta"es, ideas, labo)r,
sacri;ces and even lives *ent into that endeavo)r tho)+ht, did not (atter
at all5 6s lon+ as the &haraoh *illed it, the Pyra(id *o)ld have ha&&ened
any*ay5
The a)to(atons have no ca&acity to observe and %)d+e5 So the *ritin+ tells
the( that the <o*in+ *ater and the s)rro)ndin+ +reenery in the cleared
(arsh are &ict)res/)e5 Walkin+ is reco((ended and therefore healthy5 6nd
they are re(inded that the s)b)rb they live in is endo*ed *ith l)stre and
+rande)r *hich is no* f)rther enhanced5 8f the visitor is fro( an evolved
de(ocracy, he (i+ht en%oy the /)aintness of a &ractice *hich is &re7
ind)strial revol)tion thinkin+5
North Korea
8n the (odern *orld, it is only
in a co)ntry like 0orth 9orea that &eo&le *ait docilely for the +reat leader
8ll73on+ to think, initiate and order5 8n their ti(es, his +randfather 9i(78ll7
S)n+ and later father 9i(73on+78ll, did all the conce&t)alisin+ and initiatin+
for the 0orth 9oreans5 0o* 8ll73on+, *ith the &retty and i((ac)lately
coi:)red *ife $i7Sol73) by his side, carries this heavy b)rden for an )tterly
=+ratef)l> 2? (illion 0orth 9oreans5
One ()st not think that in the ens)in+ (onolithic order the 0orth 9oreans
have no choices5 6&&arently *hen visitin+ their hairdresser, the 0orth
9orean *o(en have the choice of any one of the 1@ oAcially sanctioned
hairc)tsB The /)ality of the hair dressin+ salons ho*ever is for the reader to
i(a+ine, bearin+ in (ind that 0orth 9orea.s 2'P is only C 12 Dbillion, abo)t
one ;fth of that of Sri LankaB
Whatever the obsc)re char(s of s)ch a her(it State, it is clear that a
syste( *here only the boss (atters, does not &rod)ce econo(ic bene;ts,
leave alone other advance(ents5 0orth 9orea by all acco)nts is a &oor and
dis(al co)ntry5 8t is )nlikely that this (atters very ()ch to 8ll73on+5 6fter all,
he has decreed that 0orth 9oreans are indeed ha&&yB -once&ts s)ch as
h)(an ri+hts, an inde&endent %)diciary or a free (edia are %)st co)nter7
&ro&a+anda, havin+ no &lace in the &aradise created by his fa(ily5
Patronising declarations
We kno* that any lar+e &ro%ect is a collective e:ort, so(eti(es re/)irin+
the in&)ts of h)ndreds5 8n a &ro%ect s)ch as the *etlands &ark in a (arshy
area of the s)b)rban s&ra*l of 0)+e+oda, environ(entalists, )rban
&lanners, en+ineers, landsca&e s&ecialists, soil and *ater e"&erts and
n)(ero)s others *o)ld have had to &ool their talents and e"&ertise5
The all7i(&ortant f)nds for s)ch &ro%ects co(e fro( o)r ta"es, forei+n aid
or loans5 o*ever +la(oro)s, like all &)blic &ro%ects, this too is s)b%ect to
h)(an error, e"cesses and *aste5 The &ro%ect is of co)rse o&en to f)rther
i(&rove(ents and re/)ires constant (aintenance5
The i(&erio)s tone of the (essa+e not*ithstandin+, a (odern State is not
a one (an or one fa(ily sho*5 8n societies *here de(ocratic sensibilities
are (ore evolved, it is not &ossible to co(e across s)ch self7&ro(otin+
(essa+es dis&layed at &)blic e"&ense5
8t is diAc)lt to conceive of the 6(erican &eo&le for instance &)ttin+ )& *ith
s)ch a condescendin+ (essa+e fro( President Darrack Oba(a5 The s&irit of
&)blic service and the (eanin+ of &)blic oAce, if )nderstood *ell, *ill not
allo* it5 S)ch service is (eant to be )nheralded and *herever &ossible
anony(o)s5
D)t in certain co)ntries in So)th 6sia and 6frica, s)ch &atronisin+
declarations have beco(e the standard5 8n Ta(il 0ad) their lon+7ter( -hief
#inister 3ayalalithaa (issed no o&&ort)nity to +lorify herself in every
&ossible *ay5 #any &ro%ects and &)blic instit)tions are na(ed after her and
other &oliticians there5 There is no visible (oral rev)lsion fro( the &eo&le
of Ta(il 0ad), (any even treatin+ her as a kind of divine &resence livin+
a(on+ the co((on folk5 0o* in a hall(ark %)dicial decision, a co)rt in
8ndia has convicted 3ayalalithaa for the o:ence of enrichin+ herself *hile
holdin+ &)blic oAce5
We do not kno* *hether the 0orth 9oreans have even a (oral conce&t
abo)t the &ersonal enrich(ent of 8ll73on+5 So co*ed do*n are they that
they do not dee( it &ossible to /)estion the bi+ brother5 They live in a
di:erent &lane5 6)to(atons *ill not /)estion the +lorio)s ins&iration that
8ll73on+ re&resents5 8t *as the sa(e *ith the ancient !+y&tians *ho co)ld
not conceive of a )niverse *here the r)led /)estioned the actions of a
Pharaoh5
Sri Lanka
Of co)rse Sri Lanka is not a 0orth 9orea5 D)t *e can see (any &arallels
*ith Ta(il 0ad)5 ere too, those in &o*er can easily ass)(e divine
&ro&ortions in the eyes of the led5 This ha&&ens not only in the 2overn(ent
b)t co)ld ha&&en in &olitical &arties, associations, cor&orations and even
cl)bs5 8t see(s that social and (oral di(ensions of &olitical and &)blic
oAce are vie*ed di:erently in o)r c)lt)re5
O)r +eneration *as fated to +ro* )& in the a)stere days of Siri(avo
Dandaranaike E1FG07GGH5 6 yo)n+ster of today *ill not believe the
diAc)lties and the denials of that era5 On certain days of the *eek it *as
&rohibited to serve rice in an eateryB 6ltho)+h #rs5 Dandaranaike *as
elected for a &eriod of ;ve years only, *hile ado&tin+ o)r ;rst $e&)blican
-onstit)tion, her ten)re beca(e an e:ective seven yearsB She see(ed to
have believed that her r)le *as a boon to the &eo&le *ho sho)ld have
re%oiced in the e"tensionB
')rin+ this &eriod the then7fashionable 0on76li+ned 0ations -onference
*as held in -olo(bo, and of co)rse *as &resided over by #rs5
Dandaranaike5 This *as s)Acient +ro)nd for the 2overn(ent (edia to refer
to her as the leader of t*o7thirds of the +lobal h)(an &o&)lationB
Then ca(e 1FGG and the 35$5 3aye*ardene 2overn(ent, *hich introd)ced
the second $e&)blican -onstit)tion, brin+in+ in the oAce of the !"ec)tive
Presidency5 3aye*ardene once /)i&&ed that Sri Lanka *as a ;ve7star
de(ocracy5 istory *ill record this &eriod as one of o)r bloodiest5
0o* *e have beco(e 6sia.s (iracle5 The *ord (iracle is de;ned by the
O"ford 'ictionary as a (arvello)s event d)e to so(e s)&ernat)ral a+encyI
re(arkable occ)rrence and so on5 These three +overn(ents 1 Dandaranaike
as leader of t*o7thirds of the *orld.s &o&)lation, 35$5 3aye*ardene *ith a
;ve7star de(ocracy and no* the $a%a&aksas *ith a (iracle 1 are in e:ect
ind)l+in+ in a co(&arative e"ercise *ith other co)ntries and leaders5 They
clai(ed in t)rn an international leadershi&, a ;ve7star de(ocracy and no*
a (iracle in 6sia5
Divinity and magic
8n the ;rst t*o decades after inde&endence Ea&& 1F4@7.J@H Sri Lanka.s &er
ca&ita 2'P *as co(&arable or even better than co)ntries like #alaysia,
So)th 9orea, Thailand and even Sin+a&ore5 6fter World War 88, both -hina
and Tai*an *ere left rava+ed and very &oor5 Today *e la+ far behind these
co)ntries5
6 lar+e &art of o)r forei+n e"chan+e is earned by e"&ortin+ labo)r, (ainly
for bl)e7collar *ork5 8t is hard to i(a+ine anyone o)tside of o)r national
bo)ndaries considerin+ )s a ;ve7star de(ocracy or a (iracle5 Only *e
clai( so5
Ulti(ately, *e hit the f)nda(ental /)estionK What is a (odern State or,
(ore i(&ortantly, a (odern conscio)snessL Where +ood sense and realis(
sho)ld &revail, *e see divinity and (a+ic5 6s so(eone once saidK =-hildren
see (a+ic beca)se they look for it5>
EThe *riter is an 6ttorney7at7La* and a freelance *riter5H
Posted by Thavam