long walk to freedom

Over  the last couple of months I have become increasingly frustrated with the state of affairs in Sri Lanka. 

As a humanitarian worker, it has definitely been frustrating not to be able to respond properly to the emerging humanitarian crisis in the north.  The deteriorating security conditions and the government’s reluctance to allow access into those areas have meant that response has been patchy, mainly through the government channels or through local partners.  There is of course concern about the plights of the civilians who are not only trapped within the slowly decreasing area held by the Tigers but also concern for those who have made it into government areas particularly with regards their future state.  It is not clear to anyone what the future plans are.  The speculations and rumours though mount.

However even more frustrating has been the attitude of several of my colleagues and associates who seem to take a ‘moral high ground’ by dictating terms and conditions to the government for responding to the crisis and thereby not really responding at all. There are of course two sides to the argument.  NGOs want unrestricted access and no interference.  With most of the national media questioning the impact of the work that some of these agencies have been doing in the areas controlled by the LTTE post tsunami and similar rhetoric from across the world in Sudan, it is no surprise that the government is being less than cooperative.  This does not however justify the stalemate that seems to have arisen vis-a-vis humanitarian response.  More than once, I have had frustrated government officials  and others ask me ‘what is the agenda of NGOs  apart from working against the interests of the country?  Why are they refusing to respond and creating problems?’

 I find myself at times also beginning to question the mandate and the interest of people of my industry.  Just what does it mean to be Non Governmental?  Is this an automatic assumption that we have to be anti government?  Is the NGO presence in a country somewhat symbolic of a bad and corrupt government who is not interested in its people and hence the NGOs are there as the saviours?  Or is it because we are there to complement the work  and bureaucracy of the government and getting into areas much more quickly than the government, pulling them up when things go wrong, but also working with them to ensure that things go right?

The rules and regulations and security coupled with the anti NGOs perception makes it a difficult cocktail to swallow in Sri Lanka.    It is a difficult yet not insurmountable challenge (Just ask those who are working in Myanmar about the difficulties of access and cooperation).  Yet I have been amazed by the resolve of some of the government officials and army officers who have set themselves the task of sorting out the current humanitarian situation.  Talk to them and you will find a commitment voiced to helping these displaced.  ‘We need to look after them and ensure they return.  After all these are our people’ has been a common statement that i have consistently heard.  Yet i know the cynics will claim that this is all rhetoric and one only  has to look at the extremist elements shouting here and there to know the real intentions of the government. 

This is the other frustrating thing about the situation.  There is no objective voice being heard.  Tune into the media and you will hear the pro government media waxing lyrical about the achievements and accomplishments against ‘the enemy’ and on the other side, you will hear the anti government propaganda, often led by arm chair exiles sitting comfortably in their cosy seats in the west, proclaiming the ‘genocide’.  No chance is being given to actually find out what is going on and no opportunity is being given to launch into any debate and discussion on the matter.  It seems that this public relations exercise is being conducted oblivious of the civilians who are caught up in this are being held to ransom and they are suffering for something that is not of their own doing.

I have also been frustrated by the public response or seeming lack of it.  There has been some muted support from individuals and organisations donating money and items but nothing along the lines of what we have seen before in times of crisis.  It seems that in the midst of the hustle and bustle of daily life, this is just one incident.  People can blame the current economic crisis or the security or the government, but what is striking is the apathy of people.   The humanitarian condition has not struck the hearts of people in Colombo, regardless of what affliation they are.   There seems to be no appetite to respond.  This is the saddest part of the whole situation.  There is instead resignation that once the major conflict ends, there will be guerrilla warfare and more suicide attacks taking place at public gatherings such as what happened this past week.  ‘Goes to show that we should not have public events with ministers’ was one comment i heard from people.  Not the type of response i perhaps would have been looking for.  This is not the attitude or the reaction needed  for change.  Tamils, Sinhalese and Muslim alike are reluctant, hesitant or indifferent to respond.  Blame is so easily shifted onto the government but this is not the answer.   The people have to will this change.   This last week, we have seen by the incidents of the Viva Palestine convoy that entered Gaza, that where there is a will, there is most certainly a way. 

Unless we individually as citizens of this country and collectively as a society realise that a suicide bomb outside a mosque is not just against the Muslims but against Sri Lankans; that harassment and infringement of the rights of tamils is an infringement of the rights of Sri Lankans; that an attack on Sinhalese farmers is an attack on Sri Lankan farmers; that the ‘country truly belongs to all’, no matter how many wars are won, this will continue.  This current war will end but what happens beyond the conflict?  What are we as individuals going to do within our circle of influence to ensure that nothing like this is ever repeated again?  The responsibility is ours collectively, citizens of this country; members of parliament and lawmakers; members of civil society and NGOs;  as a majority to ensure the minority are looked after and as a minority to ensure our voices are heard.  We can not afford to rest on our laurels  for as Nelson Mandela once said ‘ I have walked that long road to freedom. I have tried not to falter; I have made missteps along the way. But I have discovered the secret that after climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb. I have taken a moment here to rest, to steal a view of the glorious vista that surrounds me, to look back on the distance I have come. But I can only rest for a moment, for with freedom comes responsibilities, and I dare not linger, for my long walk is not ended’