The truth as opposed to 'credible allegations'

Besides the international furore it has stoked, the controversial Darusman Report would probably be remembered in the years to come, for the part it has played in making the phrase 'credible allegations' overly well known among the English-speaking and reading public of Sri Lanka.

The phrase is used a countless number of times in the Report and by the time a reader approaches the end of the document, he could not be faulted if he begins to believe that the phrase is one of the most jaded expressions of the English Language - so overused is it.

This is a fundamental weakness in the document which needs to be exploited to the fullest. That is, the seeming validity of the central arguments of the crafters of the document hinges precariously on the 'credibility' of the 'allegations' levelled against Sri Lanka. This accounts for the monotonously repetitive use of the phrase 'credible allegations'.

In other words, there is no concrete or clinching evidence against Sri Lanka. The Report is just top-heavy with a multitude of allegations which are seemingly convincing; hence the term 'credible'. This is the aspect of the Report which needs thorough critiquing. 'Credible' or otherwise, these allegations are not backed by sound evidence although some sections have already not only pilloried Sri Lanka but resoundingly convicted it. Sections of the world community, that is, have taken it on themselves to 'try' Sri Lanka on the basis of a flimsy document and have found her 'guilty'.

Therefore, the task before Sri Lanka is to make the truth reign over allegations which have no basis to them. The Sri Lankan state has taken the principled decision of rejecting the Report in view of the fact that any effort to reply the document would amount to accepting its validity, but as decided by the government, developments on the ground in the direction of normalcy in the North would be the best means of quashing the contents of the Report. Meanwhile, expert opinion which has just emerged that even the new Channel-4 video is a fake, would go resoundingly in Sri Lanka's favour. Here is ammunition Sri Lanka should use in the days ahead to expose the hollowness of its critics' claims against it. Hopefully, it would be used in the Councils of the World which are attempting to sit in judgment over Sri Lanka.

As External Affairs Minister Professor G.L. Peiris has stated, the foreign policy sphere is currently proving to be of utmost importance. The majority of the country's citizenry is solidly behind the state, but not the entirety of the international community and the challenge currently is to win the hearts and minds of the majority of the world community.

As the government has pointed out, what needs to be done is to disabuse the world community of any misleading impressions it may entertain about Sri Lanka. It, of course, could do this by making concrete progress in the direction of internal normalization. Therefore, rapid progress in meeting the just needs of the Tamil community emerges as an imperative which cannot be avoided. The progress made on the ground in the direction of a political solution should be such that the Report's 'credible allegations' should be exposed as having absolutely no foundation. However, even on the foreign policy front, strenuous efforts need to be expended. It should be plain to see that the seemingly weak of the world should now come together and form a united front against those powers which are seeking to victimize the less powerful members of the international community.

This is a task for the long-dormant Non-aligned Movement and kindred Third World organizations which at one time carried the hopes of the weak of the world on their shoulders. The trials facing Sri Lanka at present should be a moment of truth for the developing world and other relatively weak sections of the international community. They have gladly embraced the growth paradigms and other prescriptions for progress made popular by the powerful of this world, but the truth is that the powerful would not allow the once-weak to pose a challenge to the positions of the powerful in the international political system. If they do so, the weak would be held in check and 'kept in their places' in the most ruthless fashion.

This is the moral the 'Lankan story' affords. The developing world cannot expect the powerful to act in an equitable fashion with regard to it when the interests of the powerful are seen to be threatened. They would always resort to underhand measures to keep the less powerful in check. It should be clear that the less powerful should unite and act in concert to achieve their interests.