Financial Times

Silence of Sri Lanka’s business leaders
The Indian business summit organized by FICCI (the Indian Federation of Chambers) with the visionary Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh as the chief guest ended its inaugural session, recognizing that India of tomorrow belongs to and will be shaped by young Indians.

The high level of education, competency in the global language of communication, knowledge bank of technology and science, the large working age population, the well endowed infrastructure, the power house of talent, capability, wealth and decision making influence of the supportive Diaspora, the non violence led approach to governance, peace and stability in all Indian states and the visionary leadership were recognized as the fundamentals of the future. Endowed with these competitive advantages India will be the destination for foreign investment, return of Diaspora talent and global trade and travel focus. India is well on the way to realize the dream of the leadership, to become the third largest industrial nation in the world by 2035.

Sri Lanka’s private sector should assess whether their very own leadership, (leaving aside the political and administrative leaderships), is taking cognizance of and placing priorities on the enlightened path of Indian business leaders.

The country is now perilously close to the resumption of war that ceased fire nearly four years ago with violence originated by the protagonists as well as the forces, engulfing the north and east in the past few weeks. Education in the northern and eastern parts has been disrupted. The teenage talent, mainly belonging to the minority community, is flying out. The nation is amongst the fastest aging in the region. Infrastructure capability is at rock bottom whilst valuable resources that could improve it is likely to be diverted to strengthen the military, naval and air force combat readiness infrastructure.

The talented leaving the shores will add their numbers to the Diaspora of knowledge workers. Amber lights are flashing in front of those with interests in foreign investment, travel and trade. Violence against women and children are at a peak. The extremists are against power sharing and independent development of regions. The visionary see dark clouds in the distant dawn, with the land belonging to the aged and feeble.

The nation’s media regularly broadcast views of extremists in politics and religion, sowing the seeds of religious, ethnic and language hatred, disharmony and enmity.

Caring citizens write “sermons given by Buddhist priests cause much disharmony among our people. In a recent sermon, the priest said that it is not necessary to learn to speak English and if anyone is to complain about the loud speakers from temples, it can only be a Sinhalese Buddhist. I have experienced more recently, changes in the thinking among many Sinhalese people towards diversity. We really need to do something about it ” and “ a reference to the numbers killed in ethnic violence in Sri Lanka over the years is quoted by foreign journalists in almost every piece of coverage. But in Sri Lanka we do not have this uppermost in our minds.

I think folks should be reminded of the numbers all the time, though it might be difficult (indeed dangerous) to attribute each individual killing to ethnic violence. People hold memorial services to those killed in violence in other places, but our religious rituals do not habitually remember those dead in ethnic violence. This distance between us and those dead and gone is not a Buddhist practice. But I think there is an unwritten rule to not mention them in everyday rituals”.

Closer home, within the private sector camp itself, a head of a big business house with a major communications reach is alleged to be amongst the hit list targeted by political peddlers and pushers of violence, drugs and all that is evil. Jail birds and army deserters are assigned the task of the “eliminator” in exchange for millions of ill gotten money. The silence of big business in the face of this situation despite the failure of the police to investigate promptly and impartially is ominous, especially when others in society are speaking out loud.

The business leaders and their supreme representatives are in hibernation like ostriches with the head buried in the sand, compared sometimes to one legged pelicans in a meditation pose. Where are those business leaders who travelled to South Africa and Ireland in search of peace and non violent solutions, held hands and hosted and toasted conferences on peace and non violence, leveraging funds secured from embassies and NGO’s?

To speak for peace and violence usually bring no profit and is even likely to upset the political masters. Unless there is a direct profit or a personal gain or there is urgency with the backyard on fire, complacency and silence are golden rules of business leaders.

No wonder a close supporter of the present leadership described the private sector as “boot lickers, who venerate at the feet of the political masters only for profit and never act caring for civil society”. Sherlock Holmes would say to these business leaders, “simple my dear Watson, go back to first principles.

Plan strategies, actions, priorities and communications placing the nation and its people first, the private sector second and sector interests third and member interests last, with personal interests never ever.”

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