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The Rajapaksa Creed And The Medamulana Nikaya

| by Tisaranee Gunasekara The tune the head of the household begins is what everyone in the house sings. Rwandan maxim ( April !" #$!" %olombo" &ri 'anka Guardian( )ihin Air is a metaphor for Ra*apaksa e+onomi+s. A budget airline was neither a national deed nor a popular demand. )ihin Air" the first state entity to be named after ,resident Ra*apaksa" never made a profit in its existen+e. -t loses billions of rupees annually" and yet its +ontinued existen+e is not in doubt.

)ihin Air was the first of a kind" an e+onomi+ pro*e+t with a single raison d./tre 0 pandering to Ra*apaksa megalomania. Today development has be+ome +oeval with su+h pro*e+ts" from the )attala Airport and the %olombo ,ort %ity to the 1ambantota ,ort and the 'otus Tower. The 1ambantota atta+k on 23, parliamentarians too is a trendsetter. That wanton and daylight assault was ne+essitated not by governmental or &'4, interests but by Ra*apaksa interests. The Ra*apaksas need to ensure that the opposition (and espe+ially the 23,( remains forever in a supine position. Any sign of oppositional re*uvenation" however infinitesimal" is thus met with hysteri+al rhetori+ and disproportionate for+e. The 1ambantota atta+k indi+ates" again" that if the opposition manages to produ+e an effe+tive leader" the Ra*apaksas may not hesitate to do a )ar+os (vis565vis 7enigno A8uino( or a &omo9a (vis565vis ,edro %hamorro(. 3ow that the Tiger has been resurre+ted" the &iblings have a readymade s+apegoat.

:ust as ;ellupillai ,irapaharan +ould not afford a lasting pea+e" the Ra*apaksas +annot afford to lose power. -magine Gotabhaya Ra*apaksa returning to ordinary life or Ra*apaksa progeny managing without the power and the wealth of the state. The Ra*apaksas need to keep the opposition debilitated and divided. The survival of their familial pro*e+t depends on that. The anar+hi+ +ondu+t of the 77& et al too is indi+ative of emerging trends. The Ra*apaksas +an beat ba+k a &inhala opposition" a Tamil opposition and a )uslim opposition. 7ut a 'ankan opposition" united a+ross ethno5religious divides" +an mount an effe+tive +hallenge to the 4amily. Therefore the Ra*apaksas need to keep the +ountry ghettoised" politi+ally and psy+hologi+ally. The ,TA will be used to dis+ourage unity at the grassroots level< a+tivists who promote ethno5religious sympathy=+ooperation will be arrested on terrorism +harges< or they will be a++used of +ausing inter5+ommunal disharmony. 7ut state repression will not be enough< this is where the 77& +omes in. The 77& et al have adopted the stri+t +ommunalisation of politi+s as their +urrent battle5+ry. They demand that 7uddhists should talk about 7uddhist5grievan+es" Tamils fo+us on Tamil5 problems" )uslims sti+k to )uslims5issues and %hristians +on+entrate on %hristian5matters. 1uman sympathy and politi+al solidarity a+ross primordial and ideologi+al divides are represented as betrayal of nation=religion. >hen the 23, organised an exhibition about human rights violations a+ross the +ountry" the 77& made a not very su++essful attempt to invade &irikotha" a++using 23, leaders of betraying the &inhalese by mentioning Tamil vi+tims (that" a++ording to 77&5logi+" is T3A.s responsibility(. >ith a presidential ele+tion reportedly in the offing" the 77& seems to be shifting fully to the new mode. 1alal and slaughter issues are forgotten. The saffron5thugs are demanding that politi+al and religious +orre+tness be e8uated with ethno5religious ghettoisation. -f the opposition manages to field a presidential +andidate who +an unite the +ommunities" the Ra*apaksas will use the 77& to atta+k opposition meetings" while poli+e looks on. The 77& et al have another very useful purpose 0 terrify minority politi+ians into submission. The drubbing the &')% re+eived at the )ar+h ,% polls is indi+ative of the minority mood. The &iblings would know that ele+toral5logi+ might +ompel even the most ab*e+t minority politi+ians to re+onsider their options and allegian+es. -n that +ontext venality may not suffi+e to keep Tamil=)uslim=2p+ountry5Tamil politi+ians under Ra*apaksa thumbs. The 77&" with its anar+hi+ +ondu+t" is filling the gaps with violen+e. The 77& invasion of Rishard 7athiudeen.s ministry is an ex+ellent +ase in point. A handful of monks invaded the ministry in the minister.s absen+e and were allowed a free run. The poli+e whi+h hammered inno+ent +ommuters in the 4ort Railway &tation" the previous day" did nothing to stop the saffron5lawbreakers. A senior +op is on re+ord" assuring )r. 7athiudeen that the monks will not be allowed into the ministry" so long as the minister is inside? @&ir" you are a +abinet minister. - have +ome to prote+t you as a +abinet minister. - will not allow anything to happen to you. The unsaid message will not be lost on su+h an ar+h opportunist as )r. 7athiudeen 0 he is prote+ted by Alaw. only so long as he remains a +abinet minister< if he leaves" he will be left vulnerable to the marauding monks. &in+e )r. 7athiudeen is as +on+erned about )uslims as the Ra*apaksas are about &inhala57uddhists" he will betray his +onstituents with ala+rity in return for Ra*apaksa prote+tion. (-n+identally" )inister 7athiudeen.s +urrent plight is partly self5infli+ted< he took the law into his hands and atta+ked a *udge" in #$ . Today he is a vi+tim of the +limate of lawlessness he helped to +reate(. %asino 7ala &ena

The 77& et al are given the same free hand a++orded to the likes of )ervyn &ilva and Bra* 4ernando" be+ause they are primarily and mainly Ra*apaksa pawns. They may o++asionally +riti+ise the ruling family but they will never a+t against familial interests 0 as is evident from their +onsistent refusal to take up the +asino issue. Two delegations +onsisting of several &inhala57uddhist organisations met the )alwatu %hief ,relate on >ednesday. The 3ational &angha %oun+il delegation fo+used on the +asino issue. The 77&=Ravana 7alaya delegation ignored the +asino issue and fo+used on the Athreat to 7uddhism from unbelievers.. At the +on+lusion" 77& head5hon+ho" Galagoda5Atte Gnanasara Thero said" @4undamentalist +li8ues belonging to other religions are operating in 'ankaC. &ome priests of these non57uddhist religions betrayed the +ountry by sneaking to the 2& and GenevaC. >e will be+ome very agitated in a +ouple of daysC.. The regime is planning to ram through the &trategi+ Development A+t" +reating a wide ba+kdoor to mega5+asinos. This is an issue whi+h reveals Ra*apaksa hypo+risy. -t is also an issue on whi+h the Epposition is +learly in syn+h with the &inhala57uddhist ma*ority and a ma*ority of monks. The Ra*apaksas therefore need to prevent an anti5+asino agitation from getting off the ground" bringing representatives of all ethno5religious +ommunities onto a single platform. >hat better way to do that than to unleash the 77& marauders s+reaming about )uslim" Tamil and %hristian threatsF During times of extreme so+io5e+onomi+ distress" suffering multitudes turn to religion for sola+e" parti+ularly when systemi+ for+es fail to offer any hope. The other fun+tion of the 77& is to step into the brea+h" and blame &inhala57uddhist e+onomi+ distress on ATamil=)uslim=%hristian exploitation.. This is why both the 77& and the Ra*apaksas are trying to maintain the myth about an independent and un+ontrollable 77&. 'ike in the +ase of 'ankan militari9ation" the Ra*apaksa5&angha nexus will not be a relationship of e8uals< the &angha will be pawns rather than partners" 7uddhism merely a weapon and a shield. The Ra*apaksas" in the interests of their familial pro*e+t" will do to 7uddhism and the &angha what they have already done to every other 'ankan institution" from the :udi+iary to the %entral 7ank. -t.ll be 7uddhism devalued and debased. Referen+es
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