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Thursday, 25 August 2011

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Government Gazette

Upholding the law, prime among priorities

Inasmuch as the state is duty bound to enforce the law, the public of this country is obliged to uphold the law and to act in complete conformity to it. The government is on record that it would not flinch from discharging its responsibilities and we have ample proof of this in the speed with which it restored calm in Puttalam and other areas recently. Accordingly, it is left to the public to deliver on its civic duties.

The past 30 years of bloodshed and conflict in this country should have had a sobering impact on the local polity but this does seem to be the case entirely. This is most unfortunate because those who do not learn the lessons of history are bound to repeat past blunders. However, the state seems to have learnt the need to act fast and decisively in the face of threats to law and order and this is something much relief could be derived from.

If governments need to learn one lesson from our past woes and worries, it is the advisability of acting fast to defuse threats to law and order. Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa's assurances that the law would come down heavily on wrong doers, smack of this alacrity and readiness on the state's part to act responsibly and promptly when confronted with lawlessness.

Particularly significant was his assurance that communities could freely go about their religious duties. All this is a far cry from July 1983, for instance, when the government of the day seemed to freeze into inactivity when lawlessness exploded over the length and breadth of Sri Lanka. However, by saying this we do not intend to imply that the civil strife of 1983 and the public unrest of a few days back in Puttalam, share any significant commonalities. The point we want to drive home is that the state cannot dodge its duties in the face of threats to public order.

The Lankan public and other significant sections cannot be faulted for being somewhat befuddled by these recent bouts of lawlessness in some areas of the country. Right now, hypotheses abound on these bizarre disruptions of normalcy but a coherent and intelligible account of the happenings and what has accounted for them are yet to be put together. For most observers, these unsettling happenings are very much beyond their comprehension and this sense of bafflement is quite understandable.

Until more is brought to light about these developments, all that we could say is that law and order must prevail and that the state should not stray from its responsibility of bringing all wrong-doers to justice. Besides, it is best that all concerned bear in mind that happenings of this kind are exploited to the fullest by a range of miscreants and evil-doers whose agendas are usually at cross-purposes with the aims of a democratic, liberally-oriented and secular state, which is comfortable with the numerous pluralisms that usually make up this world.

The fact that some of this unrest has been witnessed in ethnically heterogeneous areas of Sri Lanka points to the presence of some communal elements in these disturbances. We may be wrong in framing this hypothesis but it is an explanation which needs to be closely looked at.

Nevertheless, nothing could be left to chance. Besides the law being stringently enforced and no quarter being given to violators of the peace, every effort must be made to strengthen the multicultural and pluralistic identity of this country. Such aims do not run contrary to the unquestionable principle that all citizens of this land owe their allegiance to Mother Lanka or the 'Maathru Bhoomiya', which is a mother of all.

The urgency is great to make every Lankan feel at ease in this country and the state needs to undertake to do this. Besides, of course, ensuring the security of all, the state must redouble its efforts to strengthen the bonds of understanding among the numerous communities of this country. It must be proactively engaged in this undertaking and in a very productive and dynamic manner too.

‘National policy to address the unemployment problem’

The Channel 4 videos and the Darusman Report are a combined effort and a product of the LTTE diaspora, and also a reaction of certain Western countries. These documents are totally fabricated and created on imaginary incidents, statistics etc. These documents are aimed at destabilizing Sri Lanka, as the government did not give into pressures during the final days of the humanitarian operation,

Full Story

The Morning Inspection

It’s all about who is your kind of tyrant and who is not

Dissatisfaction with the Libyan leadership is no doubt a part of the story, but impoverishment was not. Libya, post-1969 not only cleared the nation of all foreign military presence, but put in place processes that resulted in a remarkable improvement in living standards. The most pertinent fact is that Libyans are certainly not in charge of script-writing the rebellion nor will they be masters of the outcome. It’s now months since anyone spoke of the Security Council resolution regarding the use and abuse of Libyan air space,

Full Story

Zakath in reality eliminates poverty

The distribution of Zakath and charity is authentically performed during the month of Ramadhan (Fasting Month). The Holy Quran expressly enjoins that wealth should not be permitted to accumulate and it ought to be kept constantly in circulation. It does not permit any person to leave the whole of his property to one out of several heirs and even to augment the share of one heir at the expense of another. It seeks to bring about equitable adjustments in distribution of wealth, through Zakath, alms and charity,

Full Story

 

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