Are Sri Lankans really peace loving? - (updated)

A friend of mine raised a question at a discussion yesterday. He said that there are two statements we commonly hear:

1. We have bad politicians who appeal to nationalist sentiments/play the race card to win elections.
2. All ordinary Sri Lankans are very peace loving and do not share in the racist sentiments expressed by politicians.

His questions were:

1. Can both of these statements hold true at the same time?
2. What if the Election Commissioner had a moment of real insight when he said that most Sinhalese welcomed the attacks on the Muslims?
3. Assuming politicians are elected on the basis of statements made then either one of these statements must be false. Both may be partly true.
3. Given the violence against Muslims in 2013 and 2018, the long conflict with the Tamils, riots and insurgencies (1987-89, 1983, 1971, 1958) are we really as peace loving as we like to think?

On November 6, 1959, ten years after returning to West Germany in the wake of the Nazi period and Holocaust, the philosopher Theodor W. Adorno addressed teachers from the Society for Christian-Jewish Cooperation with a lecture whose central question continues to echo more than a half-century later: “What does working through the past mean?” Underlining the need to confront the persistence of fascist structures within postwar democracy, Adorno argued powerfully against the desire in the German society of the 1950s to “close the books on the past and, if possible, even remove it from memory.” The potential for a relapse into catastrophe was all too real, according to Adorno.

After 1945 antisemitism In West Germany did not die out. Studies carried out between 1946-52 showed a third of the population to be strongly antisemitic while another third was antisemitic. The defacing of a synagogue in 1959 lead to a public repudiation of antisemitism by the media, political parties, trade unions and the church.

From that point on, openly antisemitic attitudes encountered more vehement criticism. The Nazi past and the extermination of the Jews became topics that were given increasing importance in the media, schools, historical research and cultural activities. By the end of the 1980s, only 5% of the West German population was blatantly, and over 15% considerably, antisemitic. Attitudes in Germany were thus statistically in line with average West European populations. From now on, the younger generations proved to be the least antisemitic.

After the most recent violence should Sri Lankans also start questioning themselves as to why this seems to keep happening? It is uncomfortable to think about it, we prefer to do something to salve our conscience, perhaps help a few Muslim friends or charities and then move on. To forget painful incidents seems preferable to dwelling on them.

Should we start by trying understanding the story of these conflicts? What happened in 2013 and 2015? What were the chain of events that lead to 1983 and the war in earnest after that? Can a team of historians with sufficient independence and distance set out a broad common narrative, at least as a starting point. There is a fog of disinformation and misinformation, would trying to dispel this be a start? Different groups hear different stories. They don't interact or understand.

I remember some classmates discussing the habits of Tamils, perfectly harmlessly but in utter ignorance- referring to them in the same terms as we would to Chinese, Indians or other foreigners. They had never had any interaction and only knew of them through fables.

If we are even arguing over history, refusing to acknowledge one-another's mistakes, how do we move forward?

Any one of the events above (and many smaller ones besides) could be dismissed as an aberration. If it was really so, why does the cycle of violence keep returning?

 Adorno’s argument about the need to confront the persistence of the past in the present seems relevant to Sri Lanka today. What do you think?

My friend was interested in hearing the responses from Sri Lankans on these questions. Please put in your views as comments?

I am not trying to debate the issue, just trying to see what people think, just put your thoughts down in the comments section.

-Updated-

Muslim owned shop attacked for allegedly selling food adulterated with birth control medication

A Muslim-owned shop and a mosque in Ampara were attacked yesterday after the shop was accused, on social media, of mixing birth control medication in the food being served.

According to news reports, a video was posted on social media by a Buddhist organisation where a man is forced to confess to mixing the pills in the food.

The allegation can easily be proved wrong. All one needs to understand is how birth control pills work. Taking a birth control pill is not like popping a tablet of Panadol, something that will provide quick relief within a couple of hours.

Birth control pills work by regulating a women's hormonal system, to work you need to take a full course over a month. There are number of different formulations and depending on the type, need to be taken daily over the course 28 days, 21 or 91 days. Just to be clear, if it is alleged that the pill is one that makes males sterile, it does nor exist. 

If anyone in the restaurant was mixing birth control pills in the food then it would simply not be effective, people would need to eat every day from the same place (and stop eating on prescribed days).  If they do not follow the exact instructions it simply does not work. 

Rumour and myth will proliferate amongst ignorant minds. People need to learn to ask questions, not blindly believe what people tell them. The Internet is easy to access, a simple search would have revealed the truth.

Property has been damaged and racial tensions inflamed, all because people seem unable to think.

 

    

Abortion in Sri Lanka : 27 February at 17:00–19:30 at Centre for Society & Religion

 A discussion on abortion in Sri Lanka will be held on the 27th of February (Tuesday). Details below. Link to Facebook event page. All are welcome.

Date: Tuesday 27th February 2018
Time: 5pm to 7.30pm
Venue: Centre for Society and Religion (within Fatima Church Maradana premises)
Description:


What do you know about abortion in Sri Lanka? Is it completely illegal in Sri Lanka or legal under certain circumstances? Do women actually become sterile after undergoing the procedure? Are rape-related pregnancies significant enough to justify aborting?

There is a lot of misinformation and and confusion about the truths and realities in Sri Lanka. Join us for this discussion with three distinguished speakers to address the legal background of this conversation on abortion, medical realities, and history and context of women's reproductive health in Sri Lanka and around the world. We will also reflect on Catholic theology really teaches us about a woman's right to choose.

SPEAKERS:
Ermiza Tegal is an attorney at law, practicing mainly in the areas of fundamental rights, family law and domestic violence. Her advocacy work focuses on legal and social exclusion in areas of women rights, civil and political rights and urban eviction.

Dr. Lakshmen Senanayake is an obstetrician-gynecologist. He was the National Coordinator of the FIGO/IPPF Initiative on Reducing Unsafe Abortions in Sri Lanka from 2005-2011 and was the co-consultant for the UNCP/Ministry of Women initiative to develop Sri Lanka's National Plan of Action ot address gender-based violence. He currently serves as a member of the Expert Committee on Women's Health of the Sri Lanka Medical Association.

Anupama Ranawana researches religious political thought and the global political economy, focussing on Buddhism, Catholicism, and feminist theology.. She is a Senior Researcher for the Centre for Poverty Analysis.

DISCUSSION - 5.00PM - 7.00PM FOLLOWED BY FELLOWSHIP UNTIL 7.30PM

Organized by the Feminist Catholic Network

The Feminist Catholic Network are an independent collective of Sri Lankan Catholics who seek to amplify the voices of the laity in social justice debates. We are guided by the principles of Catholic Social Thought, and by Catholic feminist theology. Using community learning and collaborative discussion, we endeavor to provide an alternative voice for Sri Lanka's Catholics.