A Quiet Resilience

My recent visit to Jaffna has enabled me to understand the new hope and consciousness of the people about their future. Everyone was affected for a long time due to ethnic conflict and ethnic war. After the insurrection of a mass movement to oust the regime chocked in luxury and corruption, a new regime is in place in Sri Lanka. The new regime has several challenges to face to bring peace and development to the whole island. When I was invited by my friends in Sri Lanka, the Sri Lanka Gandhi Seva Sangh, I agreed to visit Sri Lanka, especially Jaffna, because it was severely affected by the war. When I visited, I interacted with a range of people from the students of Jaffna University to an ordinary person working in the hotel where I stayed. Whatever I have written here is based on my conversation with the people whom I met in different places. While going around Jaffna, I felt that the reconstruction work was done quickly by the government and the people. While interacting with students, they unequivocally reiterated that no way digging into the past will help us move further to restore dignified human life in Sri Lanka on a sustainable basis. Our politicians have not shown the right path, and as a result, our lives have been made miserable. People in their own country have been made orphans. A country (Singapore) that modelled itself on Sri Lanka becomes a model, and Sri Lanka is not. It is the leadership that matters much in shaping a nation. We have seen in the past and even now that our political leaders are masters in building narratives on their past glory, not on the issues confronted by the people at present. It helped only in creating conflict and confrontation, not in synergy among the people to work for development. While listening to the educated youth, I could feel the agony and the pain they felt. I also narrated in a chat with them the impact of a 100-year religious war in Europe. Europe developed its economy only after the war. One could see the psychology of the ordinary citizens who faced all kinds of challenges during ethnic conflict and war. In this context, what they need is hope for a bright future. It could be created by the leaders of the people and the government.

Now the new regime in Sri Lanka wanted to begin a new chapter by changing the narratives and fixing the responsibility for the transformation on the part of the people through changing the mindset of the people. It is very difficult, yet we have to do it. One should not expect the transformative activities to be the sole responsibility of the Government alone, but it rests on the people’s participation, as observed by the students.

Some positive actions of the new government create hope and confidence in the government among the people. It has to be strengthened. The creation of the passport office in Jaffna and the language policy of making the students learn Tamil in the Sinhala region and Sinhalese in the Tamil region as compulsory from 6th to 10th standard are the two major achievements, as indicated by the people. Many informed that the luxury enjoyed by the Ministers has been curtailed and ask everyone in public office to lead a simple life. Even while inaugurating the passport office, the president instructed that his name should not be inscribed on the tablet fixed on the wall of the building. People indicate these small steps taken by the government under the new leadership.

This kind of hope-raising is good, yet delivering the poor-needed assistance in the context of rising prices of essential commodities is the need of the hour. The determination shown by the president to book the corrupt politicians and officials brings confidence in the people in the government. These are all positive actions indicated by an ordinary person. But where are employment opportunities and economic development activity in the rural areas, is yet another question raised by a few while interacting with them.

The new government has to make use of the new opportunity to engage the people in development activities through innovative rural development and agri-based schemes, for which the local government’s involvement is essential. Local governments have to be activated to move in a different direction to engage people in economic development activities. Allocation of huge amounts of money for coconut form development is one such scheme that is valuable. But this scheme is not known to the ordinary people. People have to be mobilised for development action in every village, and a village planning exercise has to be done with the active participation of people and the involvement of the officials working in the planning department of the district secretariat.

Enough party politics has been done in the island nation, but what people want now is the development mobilisation of people for participation in the village development plan. By doing so within a short period of time, every village will have a perspective development plan for all the households. In the same way, every district will have a district development plan. In the process of preparing the plan through the active involvement of the most marginalised and the poor, creative leadership can be created at the grassroots. When the poor start participating in the development activities in their villages, their participation will change their attitude, behaviour, and activities. People will move closer to the government, and the government will move closer to people. Through this process, alienation of the people from the government can be tackled. Now, the economic development activities with the active involvement of the people are the need of the hour. From India, Kerala’s experience will be of much use for Sri Lanka’s local development, local democracy, and local government activities. In human history, we have seen opportunities passing through humanity, and they have to be used appropriately for the household through an organised way as a community. Now, a new opportunity is before the people and the government, and it is to be used efficiently and effectively by creating appropriate structures and schemes for development in Sri Lanka. It is the need of the hour.

Views expressed are personal. The writer is a former Professor and Rajiv Gandhi Chair for Panchayati Raj Studies, Gandhigram Rural Institute