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Editorial1st August 1999 |
Front Page | |
47, W. A. D. Ramanayake Mawatha Colombo 2. P.O. Box: 1136, Colombo 2.
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A deafening reportThe blaring announcement by the government last week that the pack age will come out of its period of hibernation seems to have been met by a deafening response. Neelan Tiruchelvam was not essentially cut out for the blood and grime of today's politics. But his demise on the back seat of his automobile last week, was a gruesome end for a man of genteel and polished intellectual aplomb. But, time and again, the enemy has shown that it's no respector of people's social or intellectual achievement. Tiruchelvam wore more than few hats, and one of them was as the head of a Non-Governmental Organization that had tremendous clout and appeal in the local intellectual circuit. Ironically, a good deal of the issues that his NGO presided over, dealt with the problems and concerns that troubled the ethnic minorities. In a curious way, he was the intellectual champion of many of the nation's marginalised ethnic groups and sub - cultures. All this may not have necessarily endeared him to the majority community, but yet it was from among the minority community that his death sentence originated. All of it shows the way in which the ethnic confrontation in this country has skewed people's legitimate expectations. In short, the fact that Tiruchelvam was a man who made an astute and measured contribution to the country's contemporary discourse was a nullity in the worldview of the LTTE, which succeeded yet again in rendering askew the comfortable accepted version of things. This should be troubling to the government which was just yesterday heralding the end of the war by the power of a regurgitated political package. It seems that the government that cannot protect its friends can hardly be expected to protect others, homily though that may sound. Tiruchelvam was not just another People's Alliance passenger who had jumped the wagon latterly — it was Tiruchelvam who authored the government's political package. By getting him, the LTTE, whether the government likes it or not, has sent the message that its demonic methods cannot be met by a few poli-tricks that are pulled now and then from the President's variegated political hat. Plea by mediaNeelan Tiruchelvam whom even the Government praised as a liberal democrat was instrumental in getting his party MPs to be signatories to a motion now before parliament on media law reforms. But this very Government appears to be getting highly legalistic if not morbidly fearful of the all-party motion calling for legislation to be introduced to implement vitally needed media law reforms. Ministers have filibusted an opposition move to debate the all-party motion on Friday, saying it cannot be debated without cabinet approval and indicating the government would prefer to put it to the parliamentary select committee which has been promising much but producing little for the past few years. In this context, Sri Lanka's media are appealing directly to MPs of all parties to support four specific media law reform proposals which could take Sri Lanka towards a more participatory and vibrant democracy in the new millennium. The first proposal is for the repeal of archaic colonial laws relating to criminal defamation. The second proposal is for the replacement of the ineffective Press Council. The codification of laws relating to sub-judice and contempt in a manner that would help both judges and journalists and the introduction of a freedom of information act, similar to ones that prevail in liberal democracies are the other proposals. Information is the oxygen of democracy. If the people are to be participatory members in government and take a meaningful part in its administration, they must have access to information. It is only bad governments that require secrecy to survive.
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