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| Friday, 13 February 2004 |
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The perils of intransigence by Prof.Rajiva Wijesingha I am extremely sorry that Parliament has been dissolved, and that we are going to have another General Election. This is the third in just over 3 years. Both earlier elections were meant to be decisive and relieve us of the uncertainties we had suffered previously. I assume this election too is meant to be decisive. I am also quite sure that, however people vote on April 2nd, we will be left as confused as ever. Why do I say this? Quite simply, the present election system will not allow either party to get a decisive majority. Whoever forms the government will depend then on Members of Parliament demanding privileges or else threatening to cross over. This not only stymies a concerted programme of development, it also prevents the firm decisions necessary for constitutional change if the ethnic strife of the last 25 years is to be settled. Sadly neither of our leaders has been able in the past few years to resist the various pressures that prevented firm and fruitful decisions. Popular opinion has it that such pressures come largely from other parties in any coalition, and criticism is targeted at minority parties in this regard. This is absolute nonsense. The main Tamil parties have never asked for such positions and privileges. The CWC, though it has achieved much, for the people it represents as well as its leaders, has not - except recently on the Upper Kotmale issue - stood in the way of national development. Finally, the party that receives the largest share of such criticism, the Muslim Congress, may have its own financial and political agendas, but they have never asked for positions in excess of their numerical strength. In Chandrika's large cabinet they had only two portfolios, as was the case amongst Ranil's even larger conglomeration of Ministers. No, it is the so- called party faithful, particularly the more incompetent amongst them, who demand their pound of flesh and much more. How can this nonsense be stopped? I told the JVP way back in 2001, during the probationary government period, that they had missed a great opportunity in not insisting on a constitutional amendment to limit the Cabinet to 20. That may yet happen. But this time round it will be even more difficult to achieve consensus between the two major parties to pass the required amendment. That, it seems to me is the key to ensuring that the results of this election are not as unproductive as the last two. It is essential for the two major parties to work together. But the reason I believe this will not happen is that our leaders have proved singularly incapable in the past of the grace that will allow cohabitation. In August 2001 I was disappointed that Chandrika did not accept Ranil's offer of what would have amounted to a national government. I was told then that his demands had been excessive, but I did not credit this, which is one reason I felt three months later that he should be given a chance to run the government. However, when he failed immediately to be at all conciliatory, I wondered whether I had perhaps got it wrong, and the intransigence was as much his as hers. The last few months have unfortunately made clear that the poor man, whether for political or for psychological reasons, is quite incapable of compromise. With regard to the LTTE, instead of compromise, he was moving towards a total handover. As for Chandrika, as the 19th amendment and the illegal Defence gazetting made clear, he wanted total conquest. And unfortunately he could not take account of changing circumstances. In November, after she took over three Ministries, he should have realized she was eager for compromise - and willing to give up much, except for the Ministry of Defence. That would have made a mockery of what she had done, and he could not have expected it. But the willingness even to set up a Ministry of National Security meant that he would have dominated any cohabitation arrangement. Sadly, he proved unable to grasp this opportunity. And so we are back on the merry go round. I can only hope that, even before the election, sensible people on either side will recognize the need for consensus, and start working towards it. But this is Sri Lanka and past practice makes me pessimistic. |
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