Master Sir …

Renton de Alwis

Written in late April 2011, this column was a reminder of the nature of the neo-colonialism that nations the like us are subjected to in the annals of global power. I also was reminded of it, when I heard musician Nimal Mendis in a rare interview on television recently. He was the creator of the song, the title of which I borrowed herein.

I present it for your own critical evaluation of then, now and possible future scenarios …   

 

My title today is also the title of a song; an all time favourite of Sri Lankans from all walks of life. It depicts an appeal of a ‘subject’ to his/her colonial style ‘master’, for respect and dignity. I guess the song’s wide popularity can be, for it touched a chord on both sides of the fence; oppressed and the oppressor alike. Over the years I have heard this song being sung with equal gusto at political rallies, gatherings of university students, picnic sing-alongs and charged-up drinking sessions of the elite.

Most everyone, even cutting across language and racial barriers, appreciate this song and some even attempted to understand its meaning. Yet, others chose to ignore what those words meant and focused only on the song’s tantalising melody. Any which way, the song remains a favourite of mine and the yearning and hope it represents often help me better understand events unfolding around me.

 

Trojan-horses

That very much includes the treatment meted to us, while being touted as an independent member nation of the ‘unity’ of nations. I reflect on the manner in which the ‘dominant west’ is not allowing us to make our own choices for managing our affairs. They seem to ignore the many voices of ordinary Sri Lankans in preference to the voices, of those who have left our shores to become citizens of other lands, some of whom have even formed anti-Sri Lankan lobbies, still seeking a separate state of ‘Elam’.  

In the guise of protecting ‘democratic ideals’ and ‘human rights’ they profess to uphold, we often see moves to protect their own interests and a continuation of treating us as ‘subjects’ in a ‘master – subject’ relationship of a sort. Playing global policemen, for protecting pure economic and business interests, have dominated the agenda of policy-makers of the West. Donor funds and support often come in the form of Trojan-horses. The greater good of human-kind is placed in the back-burners and issues that impact all are weighed on a scale tilting to ‘what’s in it for us’. The likes of UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon are but mere actors in side-drama that unfolds in lab-theatres of the mega global theatre.

Business as usual

Research studies carried out at their own universities, have often being ignored, if they pointed to the greater good of humans as against those of the ‘masters’ of dominance. The recent expectations of the ‘Change one can believe in’ have fizzled to be ‘business as usual’ protecting self-interest and attempts at maintaining continued dominance. 

My objective is to demonstrate that what we see is no isolated phenomenon. It does not relate only to attempts at protecting interests of ‘freedom fighters’ who indeed were proven terrorists as in the case of Sri Lanka, to seeking ‘weapons of mass destruction’ where there were none, as was the case in the Iraqi invasion or the instigation of ‘democratic movements’ in other ‘naughty’ oil rich states. They are indeed about protecting short-term interests of money politics and of big business and the long-term objective of exercising dominance over ownership of and access to, what is left of the limited resource base of the world.

Remarkable individual

From 1973 - 76, I was on a scholarship to read for my post-graduate degree in resource economics at the University of Hawaii at Manoa, USA. Mine was an East West Centre (EWC) Open Grant. It included the added bonus of participation at the programmes offered by the EWC, in addition to my preparations for the Masters programme at the University. It is here that I had the opportunity to meet and interact with a most remarkable individual, Dr. Kenneth E. F. Watt, ecologist, futurist and research fellow, now professor emeritus in retirement.

He was spending time with us intermittently from his work at University of California at Davis, when he was conducting a one and half year workshop, where I was a participant. Its title was “Unsteady State: Problems of Growth, Culture and Environment”. Having authored an earlier work titled “The Titanic Effect: Planning for the Unthinkable”, predicting a possible future failing of the US economy, he had by then conducted over a decade of research on developing simulation models of how societies will behave in the future, in relation to nature, climate change, and operational socio-cultural and economic systems.

Challenging dogma

Second to my background in being taught the Buddhist teaching of ‘questioning all’, it was Prof. Watt, who introduced me to the need to challenge dogma, which he, within our workshop work, called “dominant cultural beliefs”. His explorations of dominance in beliefs stretched beyond limits of measurable dogmatic positions to simulations of what can be. To him ecology was a boundless science and sociology was very much a part of it. It was all about what human beings did and how harmful some of it could be to the very survival of the species and societies and nations they formed.

Challenging or taking to task dominant beliefs is indeed not easy. Even after spending US $ 2 million on funds allocated for such research by the Ford Foundation and its publication in the form of a book with the same title, Professor Watt wrote a guest editorial in the scientific journal ‘Simulation’ in its May 1976 issue, titled “Why won’t anyone believe us?”. He wrote about the project and its intended objective in getting changes caused to public policy to ensure that the world’s ecological, economic and social health will be in sound shape in the future. He almost lamented that it was all being ignored and the world was moving as if it was ‘business as usual’.

 

Dominant beliefs

In the work that was done by him, dominant cultural beliefs such as ‘growth is good’, ‘chemical fertilizer increases production’, ‘big is better’ and several others were tested with empirical evidence to observe how each withstood the test of time defined as the short, medium and long-terms. Interestingly, in all cases of tested dominant beliefs of the time, none held to be true in the long-term. Only some of it held in the medium-term, while almost all held true in the short term.

His contention was that public policy ought to look at the long-term and not focus on the short. The short-term was driven by business and commercial interests and the role of government and other global organisations was to look after the long-term health of Mother Earth and the living organisms within its spheres.      

The issue at hand in Sri Lanka is no different. What drivers of public policy the world over and leaders of global organisations ought to do, is to focus on the long-term efforts that Sri Lanka is undertaking to ensure reconciliation and repairing of the damage done to our wounded souls. They must indeed assist and support efforts of the government in helping affected people, ensuring that they will have equal and ample opportunities to rebuild their lives with dignity and honour.

Help rebuild

Within this context, I am at a loss to understand how a band of terrorists, who used manifold tactics for causing attacks on innocent civilians, with suicide bombings and indiscriminate use of weapons over several decades, were called ‘freedom fighters’ by some influential people and institutions. I also fail to understand how they can be considered to be representing the Tamil citizens of Sri Lanka, who indeed need to have their honour, dignity and ways of life restored after so many years of suffering they underwent, as a result of bad policies of opportunistic politicians on all sides.

Indecent hurry

I also fail to understand how any UN committee can forget the continued suffering the LTTE caused this nation and its people - Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims, Burghers and all other races alike - when they unleashed indiscriminate terror on them for nearly three decades. I fail to understand where the proponents of these committees were on the many occasions such indiscriminate killings took place, like the 9/11 type Central Bank bombing in 1996. I also fail to understand the sense of urgency with which the UN Secretary General has resolved to release a report of his ‘advisory panel’, beating the report of Sri Lanka’s  own ‘Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Committee’ due in mid May, just three weeks away. 

Master Sir … the days when we took it all in, as ‘our Karma’ are long gone. When wronged, we get hurt and assert ourselves to do the right thing. For we need to have our opportunity to rebuild, learn from our past follies; not only of our own and but also those imposed on us. We know we have many failings and that all is still not well with us. Yet we know the way and need to have our space to build a sustainable future with our resources, be kind and caring towards Mother Nature and ensure that those to be born on this land, regardless of cast, creed or race will have what it takes to stay united, be in peace with each other and optimise on the many opportunities this wonderful Motherland of ours, offer us.