Time to focus on foreign front

Wasantha PRIYA RAMANAYAKE-Translated by A. A. M. Nizam

The United Nations Organization was created to ensure justice to all nations. To prevent eruption of another cruel war like the Second World War. To help the under-developed countries. In short, to perform justice to all countries that becomes member nations of it. It was popular as an organization that could perform justice in an unjust world.

This is how we learnt about the United Nations Organization when we studied Civics in the lower grade classes. Unlike the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, no nation has a majority share in the UN Organization.

As per its conventions its rules are equally applicable to America, the newly joined South Sudan and to the Libyan Transitional Government that joined a few days ago.

The 66th United Nation’s General Assembly. AFP

To implement the noble objectives of its convention, various organizations affiliated to it have been established. These organizations include the United Nations Food Programme, Human Rights Council and the World Health Organization. The responsibility of these affiliated organizations is to assist the developing countries. The responsibility of these affiliated organizations includes upliftment of human rights, economic and health facilities of these countries.

Sovereign country

Sri Lanka is also a powerful member of the United Nations Organization since it achieved independence. Our friendship with the UNO is very powerful. Upon joining the United Nations the freedom of any country gets limited to some extent. It is applicable to us as well. Since then we cannot say that we are a free and sovereign country. Therefore, we cannot tell Ban ki Moon to look after his own affairs. It is good for the solace of our people. But it does not become valid. What they do now is poking their finger into our affairs. It can be legitimate because that we are in their membership. But morally it is questionable.

But if the UNO is a pure and chaste institution there is no fault in implementing their conventions. However, as long as we hold membership in it we need to respect their conventions. At the same time, we get assistance from the programmes of the United Nations. It has helped to raise the economic and social status of our people. Therefore, we are unable to leave the UNO. Also today we do not have a possibility of leaving it and living on our own.

The UNO factor is common not only to us but also to other developing countries. Any country tries to obtain UNO membership by whatever means, to enter the UN process. Other than that no country today can talk about the impractical freedom and behave like a kite torn apart from its connecting cord. We are inter-connected to such an extent in the global circle.

Developing countries

Whatever is included in the conventions, today the United Nations Organization is functioning not in a just world. It functions today in a world order of whale and sprat theory. Or else, it is functioning today in a sphere of implementing the agenda of the imperialist world order. The current United Nations Organization has not been successful to make it subjected to a clear transformation. Solely because of this, we cannot say that it has become an obsolete organization. However, the inability of the United Nations Organization to take constructive action against the pressure being imposed on developing countries by the powerful nations becomes questionable. It has become a disputable matter. The United Nations which subdue in the face of the high-handedness of the powerful nations are raising sticks against us.

It is under such a background that the United States Assistant Secretary for South Asia who visited our country recently and questioned on matters pertaining to our internal affairs. It is in the midst of this that Ban ki-Moon forwarded to the UN Human Rights Council the report of the Darusman Panel which was appointed by him to give advice to him. Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe objected to this move at Geneva. He pointed out that it is contrary to the morals and conventions. But Ban ki-Moon has not taken into consideration these objections. Now it has become an official document of the UN Human Rights Council.

UN officials

In the meantime, he has also appointed a special representative to look into whether the UN officials who were in Colombo performed their duties correctly during the last stages of the war in Sri Lanka. The representative is to look into the activities of the UN officials. By this move, what he is attempting is to dig into our affairs in the guise of looking into the activities of his officials. He is impatient even to wait until the report of the Lesson Learnt and Reconciliation Commission report is out.

International arena

Several countries have objected to this move. They include the Maldives and Pakistan. But, India is silent. They do not say anything. Meanwhile, Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe says that the action of Bank ki- Moon has strengthened Sambandhan to describe it as a fictitious move.

Generally, when presenting opinions about the country to the international arena, even the Opposition will not say so even if they have whatever internal problems. In this regard the United National Party observed its silence. That was in thinking about the country. But Sambandhan expressed his voice to the international arena. India observed silence. This environment has also become advantageous to Bank ki-Moon. Now a force supporting Ban ki-Moon is being formed within the country itself. Whether we agree or not, Sambandhan is the head of the largest political party representing the Tamil people of this country.

Vote base

When the United Nations rise against us, the government’s power gets strengthened domestically. The vote base gets further strengthened. This strength gets concentrated around President Mahinda Rajapaksa. The government’s vote base also increased around him. Institutions like Kaduwela were won in the last LG elections by obtaining more votes than what were obtained in the General Election. Similar examples can be shown about several other similar cases. At present the international factor is getting marketed in the domestic political sphere in a manner advantageous to the government. In the governance of a country looking into this factor alone is not prudent for a government.

Western powers

The future of a government is protected not only on the basis of the domestic strength of a country. It is also necessary to wisely manage the international arena. Especially at a time like this it is very important to focus attention on the international arena. It is being reported that our foreign missions are issuing various messages at present. But in reality it seems that the messenger arrives without a message. And the messenger goes without a message.

It is India that is closer to us than China. India’s international strength is advantageous to us. Neither the Western powers nor the United Nations will go against India to take any action against Sri Lanka.

It seems that it is because of India’s desire that the question of debating about Sri Lanka has been postponed by another six months. Although they observed silence, it seems that they were in the position that it should be allowed for us to solve our own problems.

It is because of India that the devil is not that dark and that matter is not that much disadvantageous. By managing the Indian factor prudently we can overcome the shadow of the dark clouds and find the silver lines in the international skies.