Thoughts from London

First let there be justice for all

When as middle school students we had our first lessons in civics and government it was drilled into us that all men are born equal. In later years when political science replaced those formative lessons in basic political theory and practice and good governance, it became clear that such aphorisms on the aforesaid equality of people was merely a pious platitude cunningly contrived by those who had presumed, grabbed or assumed power to keep the poor and down trodden even more trodden down.

So from Marx to Mao to Moragoda, thinkers and doers have tried to re-design the social fabric with theories on how to create a more egalitarian society. Some thought it could be achieved by chopping off the heads of the ruling class and so they invented the guillotine and laid aristocratic heads on not so aristocratic blocks and hired some passing butcher to practice his vocation.

Only after the guillotines had done their initial work did the rising rabble discover that they had chopped off the least used and useful part of the aristocratic body.

Such efforts were as futile and simplistic as those of our own Marxist leaders in the days of yore. The French revolutionaries cried liberty, equality and fraternity and all they got was Napoleon.

Our Marxists, poor souls, deluded into believing that the revolution was round the corner, taught the working class to break into song on every given occasion urging the poor chaps to rise and prepare for the last battle with the damned capitalists.

"Saadukin pelenawun" might have made the hit parade of the time, but as a revolutionary song it could hardly move a leg muscle.

Anyway with no revolution in sight and only the JVP ready to fight with sticks and stone like in the dark ages, the Marxists, some of whom were making more money than the capitalists, quietly changed from carmine red to other more publicly acceptable hues and joined the ranks of the SLFP blues and even the UNP greens.

I dare say there are still a few reds willing to come out from under the beds. But the likes of Vasudeva Nanayakkara and Wickramabahu Karunaratne will continue to provide periodic amusement until one day the breed is declared extinct.

The other day Minister Moragoda twirled the subject around and came up with the fascinating thought of compulsory conscription for all.

If they are instructed to shoot each other, then we might achieve some equality- at ground level. But the problem will be if the sons of ministers, politicians and other influential persons want their sons to wear the stars and stripes- no, no not the American flag though Minister Moragoda might love it- but the insignia of officers so that they can continue to throw their weight around while the ordinary soldiers carry the can.

If social equality is the aim, then one should try at levelling upwards not bringing society down to a lower level. In short we are not only trying to achieve social equality but trying to improve the quality of society by upward mobility.

One way of doing so is to create a respect for law and order. But can this be done as long as there are some in society who think that they are above the law and if those in power condone such thinking?

Just the other day Duminda Ariyasinghe, a journalist with whom I worked on the same newspaper in Hong Kong, emailed me to draw attention to a story. If the news report is correct, a 14-year old boy Dilshan Gunawardene had been taken seriously ill after drinking Coca Cola from a can that had apparently been contaminated somehow.

According to the news report authorities from Coca Cola had said that there had been a crack in the can that had caused the drink to be contaminated.

But what is infinitely worse is that the manufacturers reportedly found that the Singapore firm that makes the cans does not stamp the expiry dates.

This is a ridiculous state of affairs and had it not been for the suffering undergone by young Dilshan Gunawardene this serious lapse would not have become public notice.Who knows how many other such cans are on shop shelves?

Whether the probe ordered by Consumer Affairs Minister Ravi Karunanayake will result in punitive or other action is yet to be seen. But one thing is clear. Globalisation and free market policies have created situations where powerful multinationals wield so much influence that they get away without suffering the consequences of their lapses.

Today developing countries have become so subservient to multinationals and foreign investors that leaders are ready to kowtow to them and become their torchbearers.

If multinationals and the like are the privileged of the globalised world, the progeny of politicians and big business are their conveniently cocooned cousins in our society.

There is little point governments preaching about the rule of law if some are more equal than the others and yet others are above the law.

Only the other day news reports mentioned about the food stalls at Majestic City that are purported to have operated in violation of certain relevant municipal laws. Despite the law requiring local manufacturers to indicate expiry dates of their products and the ingredients used in manufacture, not everybody does it, particularly producers of food items.

This is one area where the authorities have been extremely lackadaisical and lethargic. With food outlets proliferating in Colombo and the outskirts, there is all the more reason why the laws and bylaws applicable to such concerns should be rigorously applied.

When bus transport was privatised politicians, policemen and their hangers-on started running services where the law of the jungle operated.

Those who tried to bring order were brought to book instead of the culprits and crooks. Political and official influence ruled the day. Poor policemen ended up in Jaffna or Batticaloa.

It is foolish to try to bring order to society by compulsorily conscripting half the population. Society must rest on the bedrock of the law. All must be made equal before the law. Those who have to ensure this should be free from interference. Mudalalis in Savile Row suits and sonna boys playing Billy the Kid must bow to the law as every other citizen. If they are made to respect the rule of law instead of being immune from it, we can do without this silly conscription.

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