A commendable step

Unlike in the immediate post independence era when life cruised along at a leisurely pace today we have a situation where people live in tension and on the edge in the unfolding scenario of terrorist attacks.

Gone are the days when life was taken for granted when one could travel from point A to point B with absolute certainty of reaching one’s destination without risk and in one piece.

Not so today when danger lurks in our midst and one has to constantly be on the watch for bombs and other forms of terrorist attacks.

This has also necessarily changed the collective psyche of the general population from that which prevailed during those tranquil care free days, to one of constant alertness and eternal vigilance that has come to be a buzzword today.

By the same taken although the battle to defeat the LTTE has continued in all its intensity for over three decades the public by and large has lived with little appreciation of the sacrifices made by the soldiers on the battlefield.

It is in this context that one should view the Government’s move to introduce the subject of defence into the school curriculum. While serving the purpose of educating the public on measures of protecting themselves it would also inculcate a sense of belonging vis-a-vis our heroic soldiers who had been existing only in the fringes of the collective public consciousness all these years. Campaigns such as Api Wenuwen Api changed this picture to some extent.

According to a news story we carried in our inside pages yesterday the subject of Defence has been mooted for schools from Grade Nine upwards on a directive by President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

According to Education Minister Susil Premajayantha his Ministry jointly with the Defence Ministry will introduce this subject to students between the ages of 14 and 20 in tMaha Vidyalayas and Central Colleges.

By this it is intended to inculcate leadership qualities, discipline, patriotism and team spirit among these youth which may come in more than handy in the present environment.

We are not aware of the scope and contours the subject of defence would take but suffice to say that the move is a timely one which would generate many positives.

For one, it would help the students to appreciate the sacrifices made by the troops on the battlefield not to mention the growing public empathy this would have with the fighting forces.

It would also give a huge morale boost to our Forces knowing the public, hitherto distanced from the theatre of conflict, would now even though nominally be part and parcel of the effort to defeat the enemy.

More than anything it would result in a strong cohesion between the civilian population and the members of the Security Forces, something that has been found wanting in the past.

True, there are the usual Bodhi poojas and religious invocations by the public on behalf of the Security Forces. But the subject of defence in schools would bind our youth more with the Security Forces and instil in them a patriotic fervour in a more tangible form.

This would also obviate the need for compulsory military service for our youth who drilled in the subject of defence would tend to join the ranks of the Armed Forces although even now we do not have a dearth of military recruits.

These youth will no doubt be up to the task having gone through the rudiments of defence training.

It is hoped that the ‘defence’ subject would not be made an optional one. The so-called elite schools too should be drawn into the programme without confining this to the Mahavidyalayas and Central Colleges.

If not it would serve to buttress the claim that only the village youth make sacrifices on behalf of the nation while those in the cities live it up with nary a care of what goes on the war front.

Those who are pioneering this concept should draw up a well thought out programme that should also include minority students. It should be a programme where every student irrespective of race, religion and ethnicity would be proud to be part of the ultimate goal of protecting and defending the Motherland.