Language, race and religion occupy a central place in Sri Lankan politics. Though evolved over the years of historical development at particular stages, they are considered to be eternal categories by those who claim hegemony for their language, race or religion. This gives rise to claims by diverse races to ancestral precedency. As regards its significance for contemporary practice, the diverse claims remind one of the famous question - “Which came first -the egg or the hen?” The latter has no significance to the nutrition of the egg.
Both Sinhala and Tamil politicians have based their claims to exclusive rights in the North East on claims of being the first to populate the area. This is irrelevant to the resolution of the claims of contemporary residents of the area who are citizens of our country.
The controversies are not only about precedency but also on superiority. Like Hitler who plunged the world into the inferno of the Second World War to seek an empire for the Germans, considered to be the chosen people there are claims by unenlightened sections of Buddhists among the Sinhala population that Sinhala Buddhists are the chosen people and Sri Lanka is the chosen land of the Buddha. Some of them even go to the extreme of demanding that others, including Sinhala Christians acknowledge their privileged status.
Mankind has evolved from primitive communal society to the present bourgeois social system and with every stage in this development man has become more civilized. Cannibalism is almost extinct. Tribal identities are getting superseded by national identities like the caste identities in our society. All men are equal and are enjoying equal human rights today. To deny this status on account of racial, religious, class or any other divisions is regressive, uncultured and barbaric?
This is not to say that the present social system is perfect or fault-less. It has its own sophisticated system of exploitation and repression. It has demonstrated its ugly face repeatedly in the form of despotism and fascism slaughtering millions of people. It is destroying the ecological balance of the planet and is threatening the human race with extinction just like the Dinosaurs. That is why there is a growing word wide movement for its replacement by a more humane social system.
It must be recalled here that aforementioned racial and religious divisions were more or less dormant during the struggle for independence, especially during its early stages. On the other hand, they were cultivated and fostered by the colonialists according to their policy of “divide and rule”.
Divisive structures and administrative systems that originated during the colonial days were further strengthened, consolidated and advanced since independence, some in the name of anti-colonialism. The Sinhala only Act is a fine example. In doing so it not only undermined the utility of a world language English but also downgraded the national language Tamil to a subordinate status. Though it was later corrected de jure there is much to be done de facto to consummate the correction process.
The education system which should foster religious and communal harmony is so structured that the opposite results. Classification and division of schools based on language and religion prevents inter-communal and inter-religious understanding and friendship among the students and youth. On the contrary, it is segregation and separate identities that are promoted as against national unity. This system of classifying schools should be replaced by a secular and non-linguistic system. It should apply to all state schools.
A serious drawback is the emergence and strengthening of mono-racial or mono-religious political parties. Religion and politics should not compete with each other but should coexist in parallel in harmony. The State should be secular. It should facilitate all religions to thrive peacefully among the faithful and receive State aid in case of necessity. Religious bodies could make representations to the State on issues affecting them but should not take the law into their own hands usurping political power. Long past is the age of theocracy.
It is true that religion and culture face new challenges with the context of cultural imperialism and associated hegemony of decadent Western standards. However, advocating hegemony of one’s own faith or culture is not the way to meet that challenge. Prohibitions and destructions a la Taliban are also counter-productive.
Sri Lanka is a multi-religious and multi-racial land. It has an exemplary culture of co-existence of four major religions throughout history. Instances in which it was challenged are few and was always a result of struggle for political power by external or internal enemies. Long years of colonial subjugation even failed to disrupt the relative peace among communities despite their provocations and oppression.
Unity in diversity is strength and harmony. Philosophers underline the unity of the individual, the particular and the Universal. Man is an individual but he lives in a particular group -racial, religious, class or otherwise. The individual has not only a unique identity of his own but as a member of a group he has a group identity too. He should cherish both for peace and harmony. Similarly, the particular or the group with unique individuals live within a larger Universal (or a national) environment. Once again for cohesion and unity, universal identity has to be identified and respected. Otherwise contradictions will destroy the entire system.
Individuals have human rights. You must understand that others too have the same right and respect it. That is the only basis of cohesion and unity. In the same way, groups also should understand and respect the rights of other groups. Then only could universal cohesion and unity prevail. This is the recipe for development.
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