August 17th: Will We Ever Learn From History?

By Lukman Harees –August 2, 2015 

Lukman Harees

“In history, a great volume is unrolled for our instruction, drawing the materials of future wisdom from the past errors and infirmities of mankind.” – Edmund Burke

‘You can fool all the people some of the time and some of the people some of the time but you cannot fool all the people all of the time’; This has been said before and it still rings true today. As Sri Lanka prepares itself once again to choose its’ next parliament, political parties -mega and minor and of various hues are at their usual old game of presenting hastily fashioned manifestos to the electorate which look laudable in print but are mere fairy tales in action. However, it is expected that the voters will become wiser even this time and elect their representatives, keeping the interests of the country at heart and mind , thereby defeating the vested interests of those who seek their votes merely to boost their personal gain and glory. The world observes with much interest how the Sri Lankans will vote :To revert to the darker days of corruption and communalism- another Breakdown OR to continue their quest for good governance – Then a Breakthrough?

January 8th was a milestone in the history of our country not because of the fall of the dictator cum aristocratic Mahinda Rajapaksa from grace, but also it appeared to show positive signs of the people of Sri Lanka willing to take a decisive path to institute good governance in ‘corruption- prone’ Sri Lanka. The past few months in the Post-Election Maithri Era were certainly a gush of fresh air into the heavily polluted atmosphere particularly created by the racist, authoritarian MR regime which allowed Sri Lanka to virtually become a pariah state in the eyes of the international community. Whether good governance came about in the desired dose was another matter, but there were some progressive measures taken by the Maithri/Ranilregime which spelt hope for a positive change in the country’s political culture. People were certainly seen to experience relatively more freedom of expression, while constructive measures were taken to prune down some dictatorial powers of the Executive. Sri Lanka certainly needs this much needed change to effectively mould the behaviour and thinking of its’ future generations and leaders to create a united, peaceful and a progressive Sri Lanka.

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