The Luxury Of Democracy

This coming week will see an interesting occurrence. It will be recalled that shortly after dissolution of parliament on February 9 the security provided to MPs was withdrawn. This however only affected the opposition MPs as all the government MPs save two or three happen to be a minister of some sort and hence “entitled” to a security detail.

The opposition MPs cried foul alleging dirty tactics ahead of the April 8 polls to stifle their campaign activities. Some of them like SLMC Leader Rauf Hakeem petitioned court and had their security contingent restored. Caught on a bad wicket the IGP the following day issued a statement that party leaders and secretaries will be provided security.

However what is noteworthy in this whole episode is the excuse given by the government to withdraw security from the members. The government went on record stating there was no security threat anymore to MPs as the war was over and the security situation consolidated. The same excuse given to Sarath Fonseka.

Then, not a week later, we hear the very same government singing a different tune. That security needed to be strengthened and the extension of the emergency regulations was necessary to do this. So we now have the rather queer situation where the very same MPs who were stripped of security — having been told there was no longer a threat — being summoned to parliament to extend the period of emergency which lapses on March 9, since there still existed a threat to national security with suicide bombers still roaming the city.

What this clearly shows is that ‘national security’ is the bogey that is conveniently used by the government to retain the draconian emergency regulations, which is a handy tool especially at election time. The powerful emergency regulations, which override much of the constitutional provisions, post war, have primarily been used to crack down on the opposition and to silence any form of dissent. Having got used to the luxury of having it in operation ever since it was brought back following the assassination of Former Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar in August 2005, and with a crucial general election where the government is giving its best shot to come up with a two thirds majority, the Rajapaksa administration if for nothing else needs the emergency regulations to secure the edge at the polls.

The regulations as has been the case will be used to brow beat the opposition into submission on some pretext or the other citing national security. It will come in handy to ban rallies and arrest people.
So, as things stand sparks are bound to fly when parliament is reconvened this week for the purpose of extending the emergency regulations.

There was talk on Friday that the opposition might boycott the proceedings but that would be an exercise in self defeat as the opposition needs to take on the government at least on behalf of their constituents on this election eve to get the government to spell out as to exactly why emergency regulations need to be in place almost one year after the end of the war. It is a ready made platform for any opposition MP worth his salt and minus his security to exploit to boost his credentials at least in the eyes of his electorate which no multi million-rupee election poster campaign could ever do.

It has been the trend in recent years that when it comes to election time might is right and almost always this theory has delivered the goods for the government ever since the SB-inspired Wayamba provincial poll under Chandrika Kumaratunga. That is not to say that all was well and good before that, but this really set the tone for what we see today. The fact that one of the chief accused in the Udathalawinna election massacre of 2001, Lohan Ratwatte is now contesting in Kandy on the UPFA ticket endorses this contention. The emergency regulations play a crucial part in the implementation of the might is right theory.

Today the brand of ‘democracy’ we Sri Lankans apparently ‘enjoy’ is what the government of the day chooses to dish out and is almost never what it really ought to be or what the dictionaries of the world define. Yes, for all intents and purposes Sri Lanka is a “Democratic Socialist Republic” but if you ponder on this for a tick you will begin to question which part of Sri Lanka is ‘socialist’ and which part of it is actually democratic. With the capitalist robber barons of the world ruling the roost in this supposedly socialist country and we paththarakarayas if no one else being privy to the five star democracy that we Sri Lankans are supposed to be enjoying it is time that we realised something is radically wrong in the way that we are being governed.

With the war over it is time that people rose up against all the anti democratic legislation that have found their way into our statute books thanks largely to three decades of war. A good place to start will be the ending of emergency rule and the people’s representatives who constitute the opposition in the now dissolved parliament have their work cut out in this regard when they make their way to the house by the Diyawanna for the last time before the polls next week. Not that with the present composition they can hope to defeat the motion but to at least place on record why it should not be done.

When the new parliament convenes on April 22 the new set of legislators can start off where the last set left off and maybe progress on to ideally repeal such toxic pieces as the PTA or at least amend them to reflect the post war realities. Then again did someone say wishful thinking?
The bottom line is that whatever the government of the day may say, when emergency regulations in whatever form are in place, democracy lies in suspense. Democracy in its true form is a luxury that Sri Lankans have been yearning for well nigh three decades and their new set of representatives in parliament should be ones that are capable of delivering this.