I WEEP FOR MY BELOVED COUNTRY
I never dreamt it would come so soon in this way and form Christians have set an example in not hitting back in acts of revenge
As I ponder sadly on the Easter Sunday disaster still wiping my tears, our hearts go out to the hundreds killed, and those injured and most of all, to those who lost their nearest and dearest ones in the blasts. The murderers have left in their wake shattered dreams, lives of children blasted to death before they lived life to the full, sole wage earners in homes, wives lost their husbands, husbands their wives, parents lost their beloved children, there couldn’t possibly be a worse loss than those.
Where do we go from here? Extremism in any form, in any race or religion must be condemned by all those who put our beloved nation first. We have suffered far too much from this calamity, which devours the mindset of those who carry out these bomb attacks , who seem to have lost their hearts and minds, in the process of developing into fanatics. As a start,children should be taught all religions, this should be made compulsory in the school curriculum. It is only then that they will respect other religions, learn tolerance of other religions and races and be able to live side by side with all ethnic groups in peaceful co-existence. No race or religion is superior to another, they all have the same aim, are guided by similar values and principles. Ever since the attacks in Aluthgama and Beruwala mosques and in Digana and Teldeniya, I feared retaliation, although I never dreamt it would come so soon in this way and form.
There may well be a link between drugs and these attacks as has been said, as I think one would have to be under the influence of drugs to do what they did, in blatant disregard for human life and suffering. I still fail to comprehend why the attack was on Christians. There are different theories, I am no expert on these but some think the link with drugs and high ranking Catholic clergy taking part in protests against drugs, figured in the thinking behind the attacks on Churches. But we must realize that it’s not only Muslims who are involved in the drug trade, which is yet another killer, also that all Muslims are not terrorists or in sympathy with the extremists. The earlier attack on a Church in Anuradhapura was also done by extremists of another sort, again no action was taken by the Police, till the Prime Minister was informed and ordered quick action. In the case of the Easter blasts too, the Defence authorities and the Police were blamed for not passing on the information to the Prime Minister in the absence of the President who is the Minister of Defence and Law and Order.
It is not the time for passing the buck or the blame, all political parties must take a firm stand against fanatics and extremism in any form, whatever the religion, the race or whether the people involved are their political supporters or friends. We must ensure that there is no backlash against Muslims. In this respect, Christians have set an example in not hitting back in acts of revenge. Jesus Christ’s words on the cross have been followed to the letter through which perhaps, we will see a ray of light at the end of the dark tunnel, with this example being followed by others in similar situations.
It was a disaster that this had happened just as we were getting back on our feet and on the right road to recovery after the 51-day illegal government. The economy was stabilized as inflation was brought down by March this year, the trade deficit was at its lowest level in over five years in February, the rupee had appreciated - the third best performing currency in the world in 2019.
Our foreign reserves stand at US$ 7.7. billion covering over four months of import requirements. Interest rates have declined by over 100 basic points this year as fiscal consolidation delivered results with a 0.6% primary budget surplus in 2018. We were chosen as the best destination for 2019 by Lonely Planet. So it seems as if this was an attempt to stall all that as well and throw us back into the economic chaos the government inherited in 2015, whose rulers, to use a Churchillian phrase were ‘happy warriors of squandermania’. Who knows, what was behind it? Power hungry politicians trying to grab power are stating that there was law and order in their time. How can that be? Murders of journalists, disappearances, white vans,attacks on mosques and in Alutgama all happened then.
Of course this time there were more bomb blasts of much bigger proportions. But they did happen,besides those instances of those who broke the law, in one way or another who got away because they were their friends. Chaos, it has been said is sometimes used as a ladder, for those whose greed for power, is greater than their love for their nation. But it is in the worst possible taste to try to gain power in such situations. But one cannot expect better from such individuals with their track records.
In this scenario of death, destruction and terrorism at its worst, I appeal to MP’S and Ministers of the government to stop in fighting and making statements against each other. This is bad for the party and for our beloved nation. It is only unity at all levels which can be the most powerful weapon against terrorism. People are also asking why no action has been taken against those who destroyed chairs, threw chilly powder and bibles in Parliament and behaved worse than street hooligans, while their Leader stood watching with a smirk on his face. This is the worst possible example for youth when they see that law makers are law breakers at a high level, and no action is taken against them.
This is not the time for political intrigue, back stabbing and attempts to gain points. It was heartening that Indian Prime Minister Modi, US President Trump, British PM Theresa May and Pakistan’s Imran Khan called Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe personally to offer help and condolences, All these countries have faced terrorist attacks, some of their people were killed in the attacks on hotels. A family of tourists who lost family have stated that they intend to start a memorial fund to help other victims, while other regular tourists have stated that this would not stop them coming here.
Defence authorities and the Police were blamed for not passing on the information to the PM in the absence of the President who is the Minister of Defence and Law and Order
A family of tourists who lost family have stated that they intend to start a memorial fund to help other victims, while other regular tourists have stated that this would not stop them coming here
This is indeed a silver lining and gives us a ray of hope in our sorrow, in spite of unkind, unfair remarks about him, it is obvious that PM Ranil is the only Sri Lankan Leader who commands wide international respect. Disunity is not his fault, he has never slandered back when attacked trying hard to keep unity going for the sake of the country. He never lies to gain political advantage, but there are those who continue to slander him even accusing him of prior knowledge of the bomb blasts which is a blatant lie. It looks as if he was purposely kept in the dark for some hidden agenda, reasons still unknown.
I close with words from Rev. W.S. Senior. ‘But most shall we think of Lanka, in the brave new days that come. When the races all have blended and the voice of strife is dumb. When we leap to a single bugle, march to a single drum.’