Focus on Rights

Appoint the elections commission now
We live in a country where particular individuals, (regardless in this case, of gender), at the helm of affairs could, very eminently, teach Hitler's notoriously ill-famed propaganda chief Goebbels, a thing or two. In effect, in almost every aspect of the daily business of governance, whether in regard to conducting elections or maintaining law and order, the truth has become lies and the lies, truth.

This is a continuing reality. The manner in which it manifests itself in specific instances recently in regard to the public conduct of individuals in the public eye remains to be recorded at another time in retrospect when this age must pass, as does indeed, all things.

In effect, the Goebbelsian reminder that 'lies, repeated often enough, becomes the truth' has a most crippling effect on the collective resistance of a people. The German public felt this, a long time ago when the majority preferred to discount the horrors that were being perpetrated upon the Jewish community in their midst.

Even now, for that matter, historical denials persist regarding the gassing of so many millions of Jews during that time. In a different era altogether, the American public was treated to this same process by successive administrations, ironically enough allying themselves with an increasingly conscienceless Jewish state. Evidence of a long overdue counter reaction is however now emerging there unlike in this country where even that degree of limited enlightenment remains to be achieved despite our proudly touted religious traditions in defence of which legislation is now sought to be brought..

The immediate most dangerous impact of this subversion of basic truths therefore, is collective apathy, which we demonstrate most magnificently. Who among us, cares, for example, that the Elections Commissioner in this country had to be admitted to hospital this week amidst the arduous process of conducting Provincial Council elections due to the coming about of a situation with regard to his health that he himself predicted not so long ago if he is compelled to remain in his office?

Who cares that the non-appointment of the Elections Commission since December 2002 when recommendations regarding the appointments were first made to President Kumaratunga by the Constitutional Council is directly linked through use of the most basic common sense to the further deteriorating ill health of the key individual in charge of the business of elections in this country?

Have political groups in Sri Lanka raised this as the most vital issue confronting the polity? For that matter, has civil society or business groups, (given their loudly proclaimed commitment to good governance despite the fact that some of the most corrupt individuals in this country continue to hold sway in business circles with whatever government that comes to power with nary a critical murmer from others who prefer to pontificate on the corrupt nature of politicians), done what it should, to agitate this issue? Where indeed, have all the flowers gone?

While political parties in this country may be empathized with for taking on the appointment of an independent Media Commission, given the astonishing excesses indulged in by the state print and electronic media, (and this is not to say that the private media is lily white either), one may question this single handed commitment to only this question? The logic is obvious; so long as the opposition remains victimised by the state media, it will take on this issue with vim and vigour. The same cannot be said however, of issues that affect the collective decent functioning of this country as a whole. This is why there still remains essentially no difference between the clumsily destructive nature of the Kumaratunga administration and the self-blindedly chaotic nature of the combined opposition.

It must be remembered that the Elections Commission was brought into being through a constitutional amendment passed during the brief joining of the People's Alliance and the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) in late 2001, just prior to the elections that year. Recommendations regarding the appointment of its members were reportedly made in December 2002 and agreed upon by all members of the Council, including very importantly, the nominee of President Kumaratunga herself, sitting on the Council.

However, thereafter, we have had a deadlock between the appointing authority (President Chandrika Kumaratunga) and the recommendatory body (the Constitutional Council) over one nominee, Justice Ranjith Dheeraratne, the recommended Chairman of the Commission for over a year and a half. Objections raised by President Kumaratunga regarding this one recommendation were reportedly considered and rejected by the Council.

The rejection was not surprising given that the objections impugned the integrity of the nominee in dispute based on allegations that he had served on election monitoring committees partial to the current opposition UNF when, in actual fact, the committee on election violence which the nominee served as chairman, was appointed by the then Prime Minister with the consent of the Leader of the Opposition in Parliament at that time.

In any event, the moral validity of President Kumaratunga rejecting a recommendation agreed to by her representative stands by itself as a separate question. Unfortunately in this instance, as in many other instances, the 17th Amendment has proved to be full of lacunae in its brave aim to bring in a new political order into this country. Various legal challenges relating to the appointment of the Elections Commission in the Court of Appeal as well as in the Supreme Court in recent times have also failed. This is then, the most abysmally sorry situation that this country has to contend with.

It is perhaps, only in a country like Sri Lanka which is fundamentally in crisis as far as the reality of democratic governance, (as opposed to its theory), is concerned, that such a deadlock can continue with apparent unconcern for so long. One may well ask as to what lobbying the JVP has engaged in, in this regard, to ensure that the provisions of a constitutional amendment, (the ownership of which it has long made proud claims to), have been fulfilled? On the contrary, on this issue, as indeed, on other issues including most notably, (the hilariously intermittent), efforts to impeach Chief Justice Sarath Nanda Silva, it has not taken long to expose its drive for power at the expense of its professed commitment to provide an alternative to the two main political parties.

The disinterest that Sri Lankans seem to be displaying regarding the fate, (in more ways than one), of the Elections Commissioner and the appointment of the Elections Commission is a good reflection of the total collapse of our leadership across the line. This is eminently logical. What need for independent Commissions when all one wants is, obscenely enough, to capture - and keep power, (political or otherwise), the one objective common to all our 'leaders' in their respective spheres of working? In the meantime, who cares as to what happens to one honourable man?

Back to Columns