Blurred Line Between Mobs and Law Enforcers

The recent interview on with Rev. Fr. M. Sathivel, the Anglican priest and disappearances activist was so interesting because the Rev. Father has hit the nail on the head in stating that the “line between law enforcers and the mob was blurred that day”, obviously, a reference to the police inaction to up hold law and order and to allow the perfectly lawful meeting scheduled at CRS to proceed. Instead, Police too, were in unison with the mob in asking to stop the meeting.

This brings to mind similar scenarios at the Sri Lanka Press Institute’s workshop for journalists, the Transparency International Sri Lanka organized journalists’ workshop in Negombo and the human rights festival held at the UNP Headquarters during CHOGM last year. All these events were disrupted by intruding and trespassing mobs while the police personnel on duty were reduced to either frozen statues or grinning apes.

But in a way this has been the common mode of conduct of the police department in such situations. Police have been very shy to act whenever a proceeding or a meeting which seemed critical of the powers that be was disrupted and to disperse the mobs. We are yet to see how they would react if the roles were reversed and a pro-government proceeding was disrupted by some group but no one in his or her right mind would dare to be so brave in this democratic island.

When the opposition MPs who went on fact finding missions were chased by ‘toy pistol’ wielding thugs, Police were very shy to react. The whole issue boiled down to whether the ‘celebrated pistol’ was a real one or a toy. Then again was the incident where a demonstration was held by lawyers in Hulftsdorp against the impeachment of the former CJ where another mob of citizens, “who were indignant that the CJ has violated the honour of her position” and supported the impeachment were aggressively confronting the lawyers. TV footage showed how the police were actually protecting the mob while the lawyers, who one can assume to belong to Hulftsdorp, were regarded as intruders. On that occasion too, we wondered whether the police were also part and parcel of the mob. To make matters more hilarious, the police were in a state of paralysis when the mobs occupied the Front gate of the CJ’s official residence cooking and eating ‘kiribath’, right across the road. But when the journalists were there to cover the former CJ leaving her official residence for the last time, the Police were galvanized into action and quick to point out that they were blocking the roadway.

The bottom line is that when the line dividing the law enforcer and the law breaker is blurred and obscure, it is the law abiding citizen who is left in the cold.

And by all perceivable signs the line is getting thinner, if not disappeared already, isn’t it?

SANJEEWA FERNANDO