Kilinochchi's memorable moment

There are no less than nine banks already operative in Kilinochchi along with a clutch of financial institutions which are putting their best foot forward in sustaining the growth momentum of the Northern Province. This bit of valuable information we have on the authority of the Sri Lanka Central Bank Governor Ajith Nivard Cabraal. Hardly three years after the obliteration of the LTTE, whose final stronghold was Kilinochchi, this is indeed heartening news.

It is our hope that prospects will remain bright for the Northern Province, including, of course, Kilinochchi, where the Commercial Leasing and Finance Company opened its 50th branch. Concurrently, a joint venture between the Bank of Ceylon and Cargills Ceylon Ltd, Yalpanam Dairy Ltd, was also launched in this once war- ravaged district which formerly wilted amid the roar and thunder of heavy weaponry but which never died. In fact, it has now been rejuvenated, thanks to the bravery of our Security Forces ably guided by President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

In a sense, the challenges facing the Lankan polity in the North today are far more complex than those which confronted it in the field of battle. On the one hand, it has to begin in earnest with the nation-building process, which in itself presents a multi-faceted challenge. On the other, it has to persist with the process of economic development and this should be of country-wide scope, drawing heavily also on the growth momentum of the North.

The nation-building and economic development processes, as far as we could ascertain, are not entirely separate. It is to the degree to which the citizenry, including that of the North-East, is helped along and continuously empowered by the state in a multiplicity of spheres, including the political and economic, that nation-making in the true sense could be said to be occurring. For, through such empowerment, provided it is equal, the citizenry would be enabled to identify closely with the country.

On the other hand, it is development, correctly understood, which helps in the empowerment of the citizenry a great deal by promoting the material empowerment of the people. Therefore, development, understood as growth plus equity, plays a considerable role in nation-building, while the latter, understood as equal empowerment, enables a community to identify more closely with the country through its conviction that justice is being done. Accordingly, the conclusion is inescapable that nation-building and economic development are mutually-reinforcing processes.

It is against this backdrop that the state's efforts to take development to all areas of the North-East must be assessed. We are given to understand that the North has recorded 22 percent growth and this is a clear pointer to the economic vibrancy of the province. The authorities should now ensure that this economic dynamism is channeled to the overall development of the country.

Accordingly, it is entirely in the fitness of things that districts such as Kilinochchi are integrated steadily into the national economy through a sustained effort to increase the productivity of these areas. The launching of financial services in increasing numbers to enable the people of these districts to avail of capital to launch business enterprises is the right way to go, not only from a national development viewpoint but also from the nation-building perspective. Likewise, the Jaffna International Trade Fair, which is currently on, will prove more than a catalyst in integrating the North with the national economy. Increasingly, the North-East must be a stakeholder in national growth.

The tragic 30 year conflict had its roots in deprivations of numerous kinds. It is deprivation and discrimination that gave rise to the perception among some in the North-East that ethnicity matters very crucially. At bottom, identity-based conflicts are all about such perceptions. Therefore, it is vitally important that all sections of our people are empowered equally and economic development is a crucial factor in empowerment.