THE MONITOR'S REPORT AND THE BILLION
Who is running this country? There are some who think that the answer to that question is the SLMM. It is clear that nobody is governing the country anymore. Running the country is not very much different from running a NGO. The NGOs get money mainly from the Scandinavian countries and conduct their affairs, in general, in accordance with the aims and objectives of the donor countries and the donor institutions. As a country we are no better. The country or the state or the government or whatever, as all these terms are meaningless with respect to the present situation, has become a non governmental organisation , NGO for short, getting funds from America either directly or indirectly through various so called donor countries. There is no government as such and the cabinet is not different from the board of directors of a NGO. The President Chandrika Kumaratunga doesn't know whether she is coming or going, whether she is the President or the leader of the opposition, and continues to make contradictory statements every two days. She doesn't know whether she is the President or the leader of the opposition, simply because those posts are not to be found in a NGO. She is yet to find or define her position in this big NGO and as the NGOs do not face situations such as so called cohabitation she is lost in the unfamiliar surroundings. In the case of NGOs a dissenting person very often breaks away from the NGO and sets up his or her own NGO but in the present situation Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunga is unable to do so as the so called donor countries would not support her if she decides to establish her own NGO.
The other alternative for her is to replace the present board of directors with her board of directors and make an attempt to run the NGO. Perhaps the agreement or the MoU between the SLFP and the JVP has this replacement as its objective but the donor countries would have their agenda for the new board of directors as well. How would we able to set up a government instead of the big NGO that is dependant on the so called donor countries? This is the question to which the children of fifty six, in both the SLFP and the JVP should address their minds in the coming months.
The directors of the big NGO, who pretend to be cabinet ministers, have been reduced to aid seekers. How many times have they come back from meetings of the so called donor countries or aid consortia boasting that they were able to raise funds extending to millions of Ruppes to "develop" the country. There are beggars who are better at appealing to the public and obtaining "aid" and they could be classified as successful beggars. However, in the case of those who attend various aid meetings, they do not have to have even the talents of successful beggars, for the quantum of aid is decided by the donor countries without any appeal from the beggars, sorry the minsters. The aid is however decided subject to the condition that the big NGO directors should work according to the agenda prepared by the donor countries. The beggars on the streets at least have some independence. The public do not impose conditions on how the beggars should spend their money. However, in the case of well dressed directors who are well versed with all the quotations, they can only quote as they do not have any original ideas, there are conditions on how the funds should be distributed. More than that no aid will be given unless the directors agree to certain conditions in advance.
During the last hundred years or so we have produced only beggars. The beggars are found everywhere. They are not only on the streets but in the ministries, departments. corporations, other institutions such as the universities, schools. We beg for funds, materials, food, buildings, computers, dresses, prizes, recognition, knowledge, interviews, photo sessions with the donors and even for quotations. The most successful beggars are honored by the society and we have become a nation of "yachaka puthras and of course of duhithrus". The so called education has been successful in producing the "yachaka puthras and duhithrus" and the demand for switching back to English as the medium of instruction in schools and universities is reasonable in more than one way as the donors mainly understand that language and not Sinhala or Tamil or even Hindi or Chinese for that matter. English is the language of the so called third world well dressed beggars and it would continue to be so for some time.
Two significant news items were reported in the media during the last ten days or so. One was the success of the "minister" Milinda Moragoda and the others in the USA. Not only that we saw many photographs of Milinda Moragoda with some dignitaries in Washington and other places, aren't we all except GL proud for young Milinda on his photo sessions with these international "yuga purushayas" (sorry I did not see any "yuga sthree"), we were told by the media that the Sri Lanka NGO has been promised three billion US dollars during the next three years. This is a significant amount though it is not a significant achievement by any one of those who went to America from Sri Lanka. It is not a significant achievement as there was nothing to be achieved. Everything had been decided in advance. As some directors of the Sri Lanka NGO were quick to point out, during the previous "regime" the donors had taken a decision to suspend aid to Sri Lanka. The question is why the donors are giving so much of money now and why they decided to suspend aid when the PA was in "power".
The second news item was on a report by the retired major general Tryggve Teleffsen, who is the head monitor in Sri Lanka. He wants official recognition for "sea tigers". The Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission was established under the memorandum of understanding brokered by the Norwegians. The monitors have no powers even under the MoU rejected by the majority of the people in Sri Lanka, would the Sri Lanka NGO hold a referendum to find out whether the people approve the MoU or not, but the head monitor is now attempting to run the Sri Lanka NGO by himself. Would a past head prefect or a head girl of a school tell this head monitor that he doesn't have even the powers of a class monitor even under the MoU, though not recognised by the majority of Sri Lankans. However, as there is no government in Sri Lanka anything could happen. The so called Sinhala leaders could be deceived not once but any number of times. They have been born to be deceived and they are masters at being deceived. As we have only a Sri Lanka NGO (SLNGO), the head monitor could even manipulate and become the director of directors of the SLNGO.
The two news items may appear to be independent of each other. However, we should not forget that the head monitor reports only to the Royal Norwegian Government and the latter is in touch with the Armitages and the others in the American state department. It is very likely that "aid" is not stringless and is attached to the MoU. There are two string theories in the western knowledge system. One is in Physics, the other being in Political Economics. While the string theory in Physics is not relevant even to most of the Physicists in Sri Lanka the latter is relevant to each and every beggar in the country, well dressed or not.
The SLNGO is being dictated by the donors. The directors of the SLNGO, who are the funeral directors of the Sinhala nation, in the photo sessions don't they wear the same uniform as that of the funeral directors, have to do what the donors tell them. If they don't, then aid is suspended. The more they dance to the tune of the donors they get more aid. As we have said from the very beginning, the MoU was signed only for two purposes. Firstly it was to equate the "Government of Sri Lanka" with the LTTE and secondly to give the LTTE terrorists the same status enjoyed by the armed forces. Now the head monitor, though he has no legal or any other power wants to equate the so called sea tigers with the sailors in the Navy. Will the SLNGO agree to it, especially with the prospect of getting three billion US dollars as aid in the next three years.
We all know how the head monitor reacted when the LTTE attacked the Chinese trawler. Not even the SLNGO agreed with the report of the head monitor. The criticism in the Sri Lankan press is immaterial for the SLMM. It could be either that the monitors do not care for the opinion of the Sinhala and Muslim people in the country or that they (the monitors) have a thick skin. According to the Mallasekera English - Sinhala dictionary monitor could be sometimes translated as kabaragoya. In any event it is clear that the SLNGO is not strong enough to take any action against the monitors. The hidden hand behind the monitors may be busy in Iraq replacing Saddam Hussein with somebody acceptable to them and thus creating a civil war leading to Balkanisation of the country. However the hidden hand of the state department is keen to have acceptable boys and girls heading the so called third world countries rather than even whitish nationalists.
This is something that the other MoU,to be signed by the SLFP and the JVP, should take into consideration. Ms. Chandrika Kumaratunga who makes contradictory statements, may claim that she invited Norway to be the so called facilitator. However, I am inclined to believe that she was requested to invite Norway to be the facilitator, by the Anglo Americans. Now having come as facilitators on "invitation" Norway is dictating terms to the SLNGO. It is a case of either you carry out the agenda of the donors or do not get any aid from the "donor countries". When the PA government had problems with the package aid was suspended. However, the donors would never claim that aid was suspended because of the problems that the PA government had in carrying out the orders of the donors. They could always say that in the "third world countries" the economic management is inefficient whenever they want an excuse to suspend aid.
The SLFP and the JVP would have to think of these situations before they sign their MoU. They would have to make the people aware of what is happening behind the screen. The script is always written behind the screen and a SLFP - JVP - MEP government, probationary or otherwise, should not expect to continue to receive the three billion US dollars.
India that did not take any strong steps against the USA - UK invasion of Iraq supported by most of the media in the Anglo Saxon world, should be studying the head monitor's report on giving international status the rogue sea tigers. However studying is not enough, and unless with its expanding middle class that is propelled by the objectives of western modernity, India has taken a decision not to oppose the west, the Indian leaders would have to take stand on the head monitor's report. The LTTE with its abductions, killings of Muslims and the killings of members of the intelligence unit in the army is continuing the "war". There is no ceasefire and people are being killed and the LTTE is getting ready for the next major confrontation. However, the armed forces are being demoralised by the SLNGO and the other NGOs. This trend has to be reversed and it is hoped that the MoU to be signed by the SLFP and the JVP would take these matters into consideration.
Professor Nalin de Silva
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