And here I was, wondering why it was so difficult to maintain an open mind! The theme of the month is the anniversary of the war victory. As it draws closer the saviours are preparing for a suitably rousing celebration, with lots of sparkle and bang.
But what of the betrayers? Those who sold their souls (or other organs, where souls were lacking) for, in the words of Corporal Nobby Nobbs, a pot of massage?
For a change, should we not use the opportunity to denounce them? It would be good to maintain a list, just so that we know who they are and shudder appropriately when their dreadful names are mentioned.
So here we go:
The Tea Party must be promoting tea, which is a good thing for us tea exporters. In old England it was Guy Fawkes who tried to have a bit of a party, in the Paradise Isle there was a varied lot including:
1. Rauff Hakeem and seven others.
2. The six of the UNP (Abdul Cader, Lakshman Seneviratne, Earl Gunasekere, Manushya Nanayakkara, Upeksha Swaranamali, Nimal Wijesinghe).
3. The LSSP and CP.
4. P H Piyasena of the TNA
5. Citizen's Front MP, Sri Ranga
These are not very 'big' names politically, speaking. Rauff Hakeem is the most prominent, probably because of his habit of criss-crossing the political firmament like a comet.
What these non-entities did in this instance was to vote in favour of the 18th Amendment, the thing that scuttled the ship. These were all opposition MP's, had they not voted the bill would not have passed. To add insult; Hakeem was quoted as saying "My conscience is clear. I know I have not sought any opportunistic favours".
Perhaps what liberals should do is organise a Bonfire Night every 8th of September, to commemorate the passing of the 18th amendment, complete with fireworks, bonfires and the burning of the Guy. Why let the infamy pass, or pass up an excuse for a party?
ps. The Le Monde diplomatique has come good commentary on the 18th Amendment.
No comments:
Post a Comment