Compassionate Justice for the rehabilitated

The civilized world could derive some comfort from the fact that the concept of 'Compassionate Justice' is getting some airing currently in the public sphere. It is probably the most meaningful phrase to surface in the present electoral campaign in the North and one only hopes that more will be heard about the concept in the days and even years to come.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa did right to broach the concept because a crucial issue at present in regard to the treatment of ex-LTTE cadres is the degree to which justice must be tempered with mercy and compassion. Considering that quite a few of these former LTTErs were 'misguided youth', there is indeed a great need to dispense justice towards them with a measure of compassion and caring. It is true that they took the fatal step of taking-up arms against the state, and that some of them even soaked their hands in the most bestial fashion in the blood of the innocents, but the degree to which a society is civilized is gauged by the extent to which it forgives, and Sri Lanka is underscoring its eminent eligibility to be counted among the civilized and enlightened by treating these one-time combatants with compassion and caring.

The need to temper justice with compassion, we may note in passing, is no unfamiliar issue. It has engaged some of the best spirits over the centuries and was dramatized most forcefully by no less a creative genius than William Shakespeare in his celebrated Dark Comedy, 'Measure for Measure'. Justice may seem to demand that an 'eye be taken for an eye' and a 'tooth for a tooth', but we define our humanity best by showing compassion and forgiveness to the offender; that is, give him or her a second chance to put his or her life in order, provided the offender turns away from his degenerate ways and shows a readiness to abide by civilized norms.

The Sri Lankan state, moreover, is no stranger to this norm of extending to the one-time offender a measure of caring and compassion. This norm underlay the general pardon extended by the state to the rebellious youth of the first failed Southern uprising of 1971. Many of these youths were rehabilitated by the state and given every opportunity to reintegrate with the larger society. Many of these reintegrated youngsters went on to make great successes of their lives by ending- up as academics, engineers, doctors, lawyers, newspaper editors and the like. And many of them are still around to recount their success stories.

Therefore, there is profound wisdom in the policy of tempering justice with compassion. After all, the dispensing and administration of justice should not eliminate all of life's possibilities for the offender. Even if he is to be subjected to grave punitive measures, the offender must be enabled to entertain the hope that some day he would be in a position to pick up the pieces and put his life together.

Moreover, in the case of the Northern rebels, it could be argued with some justification that they were induced into entertaining unrealistic hopes of a Northern utopia, where all their ideals and aspirations would be easily fulfilled. Some elders in whom they had great faith were partly responsible for foisting on them the Eelam dream, for which some of them were even prepared to lay down their lives.

It now turns out that these elders were only playing on words with an eye to the popular vote. Come the notable TULF electoral triumph of 1977 in the North-East, and these elders settled for the relative comfort and security of Parliament. Feeble noises were made about the 'Promised Land' but no concrete steps were taken towards its realization. Perhaps, these elders saw right along that Eelam was unrealizable and only a pipe dream. However, by then, the cancer of separatism had spread and for many of the youthful followers of the TULF there was no turning back. What followed is now history and by hindsight we could say, that the more far-seeing of the North-East youth should have perceived that the Eelam dream was doomed to failure.

A great responsibility is cast on the state and society to ensure that our youth, wherever they may be, do not lose hope in the future ever again. They need to see that all their just aspirations and needs could be realized within the framework of democracy.

They need to see that the bullet will never be a substitute for the ballot. They need to see that they will be at home anywhere in this country and that they would win the warm acceptance of their countrymen. Crucially, they would also need to see that their trust in their elders is never betrayed.