Opposition Is Loyalty
A woman cries during a rally by the Democratic National Alliance against the arrest of Sarath Fonseka. (Dinidu de Alwis/Perambara)
If you lie long enough does it become the truth? Or do people just fall asleep? The new charge (like the old charge) is that opposition is treason. Well, it’s not. Loyal opposition is a vital service to the country. The lie is conflating opposition to Mahinda with opposition to Sri Lanka. The two are not the same. The slanders being thrown against the opposition are based on a lie, but there is so much that it acquires a weight of its own.
Democracy Is Opposition
Democracy is actually based on some unlikely notions. Older governance is based on preserving and glorifying itself. Democracy is based on criticizing and periodically tearing itself down. The old assumption was that the king was always right. In democracy the assumption is that the government is often wrong. One’s loyalty is to laws and a system, not men and their families.
This looks like an unruly system, but it somehow more stable than the one which insists that everything is fine. Because governments often are wrong. By denying it authoritarian governments allowed tensions to build up and explode. Democracies look chaotic, but those tensions are less likely to boil over and make a mess. The governance or entire government can change without too many people being killed.
Opposition Is Not Treason
Opposition within this system is not treason, it’s part of the system. The only treason is going against the system – the constitution and laws. The other parts are all interchangeable. Indeed, you’re supposed to change them. The government allows itself to be criticized and campaigned against on the condition that you don’t overturn the whole applecart with violence and force.
Hence you get a system where opposition is built in and the whole thing is less likely to periodically explode. This means that you get an adaptive, stable government which is the foundation for long-term growth and prosperity. It does however, depend on a certain amount of trust. The government is trusted to have a bit of decency and shame, and the people are trusted to care. No one tested the system against decades of terror, and it doesn’t seem to hold up that well.
Opposition Is Not Separatism
In Sri Lanka, people did try to overturn the applecart with violence. This gave the government a hair-trigger for any opposition, which really did used to threaten its very existence. We moved from a system built for long-term growth to one based on short-term survival. But one thought that underneath, that democracy still lived. That though we gave power to ‘strong’ leaders, those leaders would be just custodians and give the power back to us. But they haven’t. Mahinda Rajapakse has not.
Mahinda is taking the language and powers he used against violent resistance to crush legitimate opposition. So you get a police unit devoted to monitoring criticism of him and his family. You get opponents regularly branded as traitors and political activity being ground to throw people in jail. Worst of all, you see the trauma of a battle-scarred population being exploited to enthrone one man and build one dynasty.
Lies For What Cause?
For the longest time our governments have asked us to accept little injustices to fight a greater cause. To accept the deaths of thousands of Sinhala youth to prevent an insurrection. To accept the deaths of thousands of Tamil civilians to end a war. Now we are being asked to make the same sacrifice to preserve one man and one family. It is a bridge too far.
Mahinda’s supporters have conflated opposition and treason for so long that perhaps they even believe it to be true. It’s gone to being a tool of war to an actual belief. And this devolution has already begun to eat its children, starting with Sarath Fonseka. People have told so many small lies that they’ve forgotten where they started, and which way was up. Perhaps it was all worth it to defeat the LTTE. But now? Why are will killing and throwing each other into jail now? All this fear we’ve drummed up, who does it serve?
We have this paradise, yet we spend all of our time trying to kick other people out, to say that they’re treasonous when they’re really just different. That is the truth. That we’re not always right, they’re not always right, and we need to agree on a system that allows us to live together and focus on the stuff that really matters. Democracy is a system that works, but that requires the equanimity to accept opposition. We should not let it be hijacked by the insecurities of one man.
Today on the 
Janith has updated 
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Sri Lankan domestics never say anything, they just stop coming. My maid just stopped coming and when I finally pressed her she said I needed to get a washing machine. I was hoping to ride this one out, but I’ve run out of underwear and I have no choice. I finally caved and bought a washing machine, from 
Well man, you know how the old saying goes – “power corrupts and absolute power…”. And then there’s the other one about “those whom the gods want to destroy….”
Just who are these “Mahinda’s supporters”?
Am I wrong to assume they are the same people who support other politicians in Sri Lanka?
If so, why do these Mahinda supporters attract the most hatred from the Colombo crowd?
I think it is ironic for Indi (and many others) to complain ‘Mahinda supporters’ are demonizing the opposition.
They are doing exactly the same thing, and complaining about it as well.
I don’t understand this either. I may have voted UNP yesterday and then changed my mind today, it’s my democratic right to do so, but suddenly, in these peoples eyes, I’ve become a “fool that is playing right into the hands of the devil”. Hypocrites.
@i witness… But we don’t call Mahinda supporters traitors. They should acknowledge that we love this country as much as, if not more than, they do. Instead they call anyone who doesn’t agree with them a traitor, a slave of the west, a NGO parasite and so on (read some of sittingnut’s articles).
@Lefroy,
“But we don’t call Mahinda supporters traitors.”
Ok, let’s read Indi’s post:
“Mahinda is taking the language and powers he used against violent resistance to crush legitimate opposition.”
Sorry, it is the same blurr-the-lines tactic everyone uses to demonize their enemy.
??? “violent resistance” to “crush” “legitimate opposition”.
Did you guys land in Sri Lanka like in December?
Why this siege mentality?
I’m not calling them traitors. I think that Mahinda supporters love their country. The Mahinda campaign doesn’t extend the same courtesy back. People’s life, limb and freedom are on the line for simply opposing this government.
You’ve parsed the sentence wrong btw. The worst I’ve accused Mahinda of is using ‘language and powers’ to crush opposition.
@Indi,
Everyone wants to be treated fairly. But we wait for the other side to start. This is a universal human problem.
Consider this. Mahinda R has been demonized by a section of the opposition beyond anyone in Sri Lankan politics. For what? It is highly irrational. Prabhakaran got kid glove treatment in comparison, even from the Sinhala public who always respected his guts.
What I see you guys doing is engaging in a race to the bottom by attacking Mahinda as a proxy for what you don’t like about politics and Sri Lankan society in general.
Mahinda is neither as evil as you guys claim, or not as saintly as some of this supporters would believe. I am sorry but I expect you guys to know better than those fickle Mahinda supporters who can and will change their opinions on a whim. In contrast, you are stuck in a very deep place unable to accomodate the reality that average people in Sri Lanka are comfortable with. What a pity.
I just saw this article on Island. Read what you will in to it, but this is what Basil R. says he hid after being accused of corruption. It helps to know they are human too.
“When people began to say that I owned such and such hotel, and such and such property, I didn’t know what hotel or property they were referring to. Many people wanted me to come forward and explain things. But I didn’t know where to even start. I went to a certain leading Buddhist monk and sought his advice on what I should do. He suggested that I should keep quiet, meditate and wait for the truth to prevail. I am very pleased at the trust reposed in us by the people and our intention is not to betray this trust in any way. I was very hurt about these allegations at that time”.
http://www.island.lk/2010/03/14/politics1.html
The disappointing thing here is, the name calling and derogatory stances the MR supporters and the opposition are taking up against each other.
You’re both doing the same thing and are in the wrong, and are accusing each other.
Looks like there’s not much difference between politics inside the parliament and outside, amongst regular janes and joes.
Still divided over trivial things. When will us Lankans learn?
Here’s some advice: blog about something you both can agree on and then work towards that, together, at least, that way, something will get done.
@jtl… Being derogatory is one thing. Accusing another of treason simply because he doesn’t agree with you and has different plans for this country is another thing. Here’s the thing. If you call me a sex maniac, fine. Now we can discuss about what’s best for the country. But if you call me a traitor, how can we discuss anything?
A small glimpse at your blog tells me it looks like the pot is calling the kettle black.
@Jtl… Really? I’ve called sittingnut a paedophile. Have I also seriously accused him of treason?
No, but clearly you two have some personal squabble, which has more to do with my initial comment to which you replied, than you would like to admit to yourself and take responsibility for, I suppose the same goes to this sittingnut.
@jtl… Well then why did you say “pot is calling the kettle back?” If I accuse others being derogatory while myself being derogatory you can say that. But I didn’t do that. My beef with them is that them calling us (the opposition) traitors. How can a democracy run if the government accuses others of treason? My comment had more to with the title of indi’s article than your comment I guess. Look at America. People are being derogatory all the time. But republicans usually don’t say liberals are traitors… Sure, we two have some personal squabble. Sittingnut has hots for me. I take responsibility for it.
You won’t be a traitor (or anything else) just because somebody calls you one on the internet. I assumed you knew that ;-)
Could it be that you are taking things out of context?
What makes you so sure ‘they’ are calling ‘you’ a traitor?
What if there are real ‘traitors’ running around inside your opposition camp, just like they are hiding inside the patriot camp?
Btw, I wouldn’t be so sure about America.
@i witness… Are you saying there’s no violent resistence to crush legitimate opposition?
@i witness… I wonder whether you consider killing, beating and kidnapping journalists, arbitrarily arresting astrologers and releasing them after a week without charges, Gotabhaya openly threatening Chevan Daniels on TV are non-violent. These are the kind of techniques they used to crush the tiger terrorists.
Some words are missing in the my comment above the above comment. It should be “…are you saying there’s no use of language and power that were used against violent resistence to crush…”
@i witness… I’m talking about branding the whole opposition as traitors. There could be traitors among us, just like there could be traitors among you. Does that justify branding the whole opposition as traitors? … Everyone knows what does a man have to do to be a traitor in this country: going against Mahinda or being a UNPer or a NGO worker. Take Sarath Fonseka. Fonseka had done more for this country than any of those people like Wimal and Patali. Yet they branded him as a “traitor.” If Milinda Moragoda goes back to the UNP, he’ll be a traitor again… The government is branding the whole opposition as traitors. That includes me… In america, ha ha ha. Look what they did to Palin.
@i witness… Since you haven’t said anything about it, I take it that you agree Mahinda is using what he used against terrorists against us.
@i witness… Of course calling someone a traitor doesn’t make the one called a traitor a traitor. But it isn’t about that is it? If Ranil was truly a traitor, now he’d be in a prison. But the ignorant people will not vote him because they think he’s a traitor. I don’t have any problem with anyone who doesn’t vote for him. But it’s unfortunate if they don’t vote him because they believe a lie… One more thing about america. Notice that even a right-wing-nut like Sean Hannity doesn’t directly call Obama a traitor. There are few who do. But then there are those who think Elvis didn’t die.
Oh no the unthinkable has happened! In order to get Sittingnut more hits, people are now talking about him on other blogs.
Sarath Fonseka is a war criminal. He could possibly be worse off when judged by a human rights tribunal. Soldiers committed the torture against Tamils (and Sinhalese).
What’s sick is to read so called educated Sinhalese young people supposedly debating the whole thing as if they were talking about the weather.
Indi is a hypocrite but I don’t think he wrote the above. The above is a political statement. I think he’s just a vehicle and I don’t think he’s coming back to Sri Lanka. Which is a good thing because people like him play the war criminals off each other and have perpetuated the hatred, mistrust and murder in Sri Lanka.
The question is, it’s these same sicko’s that got a Buddhist monk to murder Solomon Bandaranike in front of his daughter. Who are they going to get to kill Fonseka … or who is Fonseka going to get to kill Mahinda.
The best thing about the two options above will be that they won’t be able to say whomever kills either, that it was the LTTE.
People should be worried about the levels of killing. About trying to stop the killing. No, not these dumbos, they’re worried about Sittingnut. What a bloody joke and that’s what Sri Lanka and Sri Lankans are.
As the Tigers disappear in to legend, arrogant young Sinhalese will find someone else to hate and kill and will get killed and no-one will care and no-one will try and stop it.
“What’s sick is to read so called educated Sinhalese young people supposedly debating the whole thing as if they were talking about the weather.”
Why so selective? Ever met an LTTE supporter?
“People should be worried about the levels of killing. About trying to stop the killing. No, not these dumbos, they’re worried about Sittingnut. What a bloody joke and that’s what Sri Lanka and Sri Lankans are.”
True. But what’s with you and Sri Lankans?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_ongoing_conflicts
I found this bit particularly amusing.
“People have told so many small lies that they’ve forgotten where they started, and which way was up. ”
I am wondering whether this applies more the opposition or the government? Hehe…
All this violently crushing the opposition talk is bull. The bottom line is election violence has gone down since 2001, that is a statistical truth. Just compare the number of election related homicides between the two elections. The rhetoric that Mahinda uses is nothing new. it’s been around in this country at least since the ceasefire agreement was signed in 2002. Besides, it’s not as if the opposition never uses the traitor card.
And americans do use similar rhetorical devices. It’s just that they’re far more subtle about it.
@Morqui: what fuck are you going on about man?
Oh please, I’m being asked by a Dodo what I’m going on about! You morons keep talking amongst yourselves when you’re 50 and you finally realise you’ve had enough, you’ll be on the streets protesting about a relative (famous journalist called Indi perhaps) who has disappeared with gaffer tape across your big fat mouths.
And you know what, the world will say “Oh Sri Lanka, used to be a great place to go for a few years after the Tsunami” but now it’s a hell hole and they have only themselves to blame.
Sri Lanka will still have the highest levels of ever category of human rights abuses and war crimes. You dummies do know that rape is a war crime, don’t you.
Keep crapping on about the “LTTE” as if they even exist anymore “I witness” (obviously another genius about to take the reins of power in Colombo 7) but truly, this article was about two murdering arseholes. Why not stick to the point eh? You just can’t can you though because every single thing that has ever gone wrong in your life, is because of the “LTTE”.
Both these clowns are already entrenched into the political and violent corruption of Sri Lankan society. Kill or be killed. Arrest or be arrested. Losers who cant rise above their racist indoctrination and deal with reality.
^^ Now if we could only get you to make a coherent point.
Agreed.
@morqui… Some brain damages can make people incoherent. There’s no need to reply to any of the things you said except to this: “as tigers disappear into legend.” Yeah those C.suckers will be remembered as those bastards who go f**ked by not letting the Tamils vote in 2005… @the way of the Dodo. Yeah americans do that. But it’s not the same as directly calling someone a traitor now is it? .. “all this violently crushing the opposition talk is bull.” yeah sure. Be an astrologer and predict that Mahinda will lose… @i witness. ???
Giving me anecdotal references is not going to prove anything. Why don’t you present some evidence of an increase in violence.
One more thing, are you insinuating that had the Tamils voted in 2005 the LTTE would still be alive and kicking.
What’s wrong with the language MR uses… he’s doing it in a democratic manner. he has not taken absolute control. He went for a presidential election and people voted for him… IE DEMOCRACY
Now the term of parliament is over and people can vote for MPs. IE DEMOCRACY.
So DEMOCRACY is live and kicking in Sri Lanka.. as opposed to lets say a country such as UK (who’s PM was not elected to be a PM, but got power because of the “old boys club” backhand political deals.. ) Sri Lanka is much more democractic.
SF did actually commit crimes.. he did say “gota did it”. He repeatedly said he’s testify against Sri Lanka for war crimes. So tht’s the definition of a traitor. So he should fry in hell. According to the laws in this country he was arrested and now he’ll be put on trial. So the rule of law prevails in Sri Lanka, as opposed to UNP governments where they destroyed democracy and created a mafia culture the SLFP has actually made democracy blossom in Sri Lanka.
The problem wih INDI is that he’s of the Colombo elite corwd, who’s losing privileges. It happened to the Tamil’s who were running the country when the Brits left. The power went in the the White arse licking Sinhalese in Colombo because there was no alternative. Now 50 years later there’s an alternative to Colombo elites, and soon people in Colombo will ask for seperation/devolution of powers. …Oh wait.. they already do…rofl
“He went for a presidential election and people voted for him… IE DEMOCRACY”
People didn’t vote for MR, people voted for SF, 58% according to an internal source. The entire result was rigged. At one point Basil Rajapaksha was supposedly holding the elections commissioner at gun point. Election results were not released through the Elections Commission, but through temple trees. The results skillfully manipulated electronically to invert the result.
This is not just my position, but the position of certain pro democratic media. The supposed paragons of democracy, the opposition, also hold a similar position. however, they are still trying to figure out how the fraud took place. never the less we are certain that there was mass fraud, anything else is unfathomable. Oh, the pathos.
I’ll quote mine Indi sum it up.
“People have told so many small lies that they’ve forgotten where they started, and which way was up.”
HAHAHAHAH…. ROFLMAO
You obviously dont know how the vote is counted… There are agents appointed by the candidates at the election counting centers who have to sign and verify tht the result is accurate.. When they do they themselves get a copy of the result of tht station.
So all the western crowed has to do is produce and sum up those results sheets they have and they have proof…They dont do it because they know the election was free and fair.
Btw.. didnt they just put a petition against the results..where was the “electronic” charge again..
Hopefully after 7 years of MR ppl like Dodo will be “extinct”.. :D:D
Btw.. Pro democratic media?? there is no such thing.. there’s pro Sri Lankan media, and pro Terrorist media.. why dont u give independent unbiased reports about that instead of quoting opposition media sources.. rofl.. wht a joker..
^^Dude, I was being sarcastic. :)
@the way of the Dodo… “why don’t you present some evidence of an increase in violence.” Fine. How about this? According to the CMEV, by 31st January 2010, post election violence was much higher than in 2005. Number of incidents stood at 85. In 2005 it was 39. Tells a story right… @Acromantula. War crimes are crimes and the perpetrators should be punished. If Sarath Fonseka committed war crimes, he should be punished as well, but properly. Not only justice should be done, it should be seen done… In what democratic country are allegations of war crimes treated as treason? A true democracy can never tolerate war crimes.
@Lefroy
Yeah right… war crimes should be punished for brown people, while white people can explode nukes and kill civilians with drone strikes.
Last time i checked war crimes has nothing to do with democracy
you are wrong about democracy and war crimes, see how the greatest democracies in the world are committing the same to save democracy for Afghans. These makes UNHR’s efforts non issues. Not that it ever was
@Acromantula… So blame the white man for everything (while trying to get the white woman to spread her legs… War criminals should be punished, not because white men tell us to do so, but because it is the right thing to do… “last time I checked war crimes had nothing to do with democracy.” Really????? Well, I don’t think I have to reply to that.
“Opposition Is Loyalty” ? what an oxymoron.
Democracy is not opposition, but it could have an opposition. If Mahinda is what you say, there will not be a opposition but there are oppositions, even a coalition of it!
Opposition is not treason when people like SF is not The Opposition. Accept that he is incoherent man who rumbles utter BS and wants everything in his way, like he did in the army. Treason is when other opportunists use people like SF as a vehicle reach their own ends. How come you see many faults of Mahinda and not a single one of SF. Get this into your head, Mahinda is the elected president, period. and SF lost with a large margin.
“For the longest time our governments have asked us to accept little injustices to fight a greater cause.” When? it did not ask me, unless I missed some announcements, which is possible.
Indi, you want a different government? campaign better, go against the tide you talk so much about, win the election and make Mahinda a non issue. I don’t think you and 1000 SF could do that.
But all I see is you are just getting ready for an accepted defeat.
@Lefroy: The 2005 election was mild, people didn’t care as strongly about it as past elections. The election culture in this country has always been exceedingly violent. 2002 election saw in excess of 60 fatalities, are we seeing anything remotely comparable to that.
This war crimes farce has been discussed over and over again. As far as war crimes are concerned it is an internal matter and should be handled internally. If the UN has no fucking interest in investigating incidents perpetrated by its more prominent member, why the fuck should we offer ourselves to them.
Moreover, there is no way to fight a clean and just war. Certain tactical decisions have to be made. sometimes you have to torture people. sometimes you have to shell areas where civilians are mixed with combatants. All of those are war crimes, and as I have said before, every war that has ever been fought has had such incidents from both sides. However, only a handful of countries have ever been tried of war crimes, and those were people who engaged in genocide. This is because most countries understand that if there is war there will be war crimes, only callous and unnecessary acts of mass murder get prosecuted as war crimes at an international level. Nobody has committed genocide here, if they had the dozens of spy satellites passing over sri lanka would have pick up the massive piles of bodies.
It’s also important to understand the consequences of a war crimes tribunal, both economic and political. The LTTE will become martyrs instead of terrorists, just to name one.
And what has war crimes got to do with democracy?
@the way of the Dodo… In 2005, people didn’t care about the election? 80% voter turnout tells otherwise. If Prabakaran let the Tamils vote, it could’ve been even more… Anyway, election violence isn’t the only thing here. I ask you, how did the government “tame” the Sirasa TV??? I mean Chandrika failed to do that… About war crimes. Who said anything about UN. I simply said we should punish the war criminals. UN is interfering only because we have failed to probe into those alleged war crimes and punish the war criminals if there are any… Now, imagine there’s a country that doesn’t punish rapists. UN tells forces them to punish the rapists. But they are a powerful country (like USA) and tells the UN to bug off. Now, imagine in our country also government begins to not punish rapists. UN tells us to punish the rapists. Now what do we do? Tell them to bugger off and that we love our rapists or that we don’t have rapists? Ridiculous… War crimes are called war CRIMES because they are unacceptable even during a war. Intentionally killing civilians, raping female fighters are war crimes. Do you want to have a man who raped few Tamil terrorist girls as your neighbour, where you live with your wife and daughter… I’m not saying any of those war crimes happened. I’m just saying we should investigate whether these crimes happened or not, and should punish the perpetrators if there are any. Criminals are criminals. Criminals cannot go unpunished in a democracy. That happens only in a tyranny. That’s what war crimes has to do with democracy… A question for you. What do you think about USA’s rendition programme? Don’t you think people who are involved in it should be punished?
“Criminals cannot go unpunished in a democracy. That happens only in a tyranny. That’s what war crimes has to do with democracy… ”
Meh. Then there are very few democracies in this world. Here’s a list of supposed war crimes by the allied forces during WWII. None of those were discussed at the Nuremberg trials. But I agree with you that there should be some form of internal investigation into incidents of abuse and rape, it’s just that there are other priorities for this country right now.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Allied_war_crimes_during_World_War_II
“What do you think about USA’s rendition programme?”
I really don’t care. As far as i’m concerned torturing people to win a war is fair game. It’s just that i have doubts about the effectiveness of torture.
Fair game. Ha.
@the way of the world… “Fair game”. If that’s what you believe, I have nothing else to say. You are okay with the rendition programme. Unless you’re a hypocrit, I guess you are okay with Tiger terrorists killing civilians. Fair game.
@the way of the world… “then there are very few democracies in the world.” In fact there’s no perfect democracy. The goal is to create one.
There is very little need for perfect democracy in Sri Lanka. What this country needs is economic development. Rights means very little if you are poor. Moreover, it is impossible to maintain civil society without economic emancipation.
@Lefroy: Let me put it this way. If I were in the same position as the LTTE, knowing full well that a conventional war would never be successful, I would consider alternatives.
Economic emancipation ha.
What’s the point of talking about democracy with people who don’t need democracy.
At times like this I wish this blog had ROFL smilies
No need for that. I see Mahinda’s face everyday.
was he rolling on the floor laughing at you. :)
Metaphorically yes.
“Beware the leader who bangs the drums of war in order to whip the citizenry into a patriotic fervor, for patriotism is indeed a double-edged sword. It both emboldens the blood, just as it narrows the mind.
And when the drums of war have reached a fever pitch and the blood boils with hate and the mind has closed, the leader will have no need in seizing the rights of the citizenry. Rather, the citizenry, infused with fear and blinded by patriotism, will offer up all of their rights unto the leader and gladly so.
How do I know? For this is what I have done. And I am Caesar.”
- Julius Caesar -