Mandela in Jaffna: Statues without statutes
Erecting statues of prominent late leaders and noble personalities has become a norm in most countries but it is rare to see how many of such democracies adopt such wise ideas preached by those noble people in their governance and rule of law.
This week, it was decided by Northern Governor Reginald Cooray to erect a statue for the late South African President Nelson Mandela in the city of Jaffna as a symbolic mark of Sri Lanka’s ongoing peace and reconciliation process currently under way.
The proposal to erect the statue was put forward by South African High Commissioner Robina P. Marks during a meeting he had this week in Jaffna. Governor Cooray, who accepted the request immediately noted that Sri Lanka could learn many lessons from South Africa which ended racist apartheid regime and which is building reconciliation, peace and ethnic harmony among its various ethnic groups. Accordingly, the statue will be erected in the city of Jaffna but the location is yet to be decided.
Locals in Jaffna were sceptical asking whether it has become a 'fashion' to erect statues of noble persons alone rather than following the noble ideologies they preached on humanity, non-violence and peace while noting the statue of iconic Indian non- violence leader Mahatma Gandhi erected near Jaffna hospital commemorating his visit to Jaffna in 1927.
In India, the whole week saw statues of such world figures being pulled down and vandalised. In Nagaland where the BJP ousted the Communists after decades, the party started off its rule by pulling down the statue of Vladimir Lenin. This drew angry protests in West Bengal by leftist groups and in Chennai they vandalised a statue of no less an icon as Mahatma Gandhi and broke the spectacles on his face.
Hope the trend doesn’t spread here, where almost every street corner now seems to have someone’s statue or bust.