AFTER the euphoria of Mahinda Rajapaksa’s defeat in the presidential election of Jan 8, there is now a sense of being let down by the victors in Sri Lanka. As part of his successful electoral campaign, Maithripala Sirisena, had announced a “hundred-day programme” of action that included lower prices, accountability as well as electoral and constitutional reforms.

These promises have come back to haunt him and his prime minister, Ranil Wickremsinghe. Although a mini-budget did lower prices for a few items, this has not translated into a perceptible reduction in the cost of living. But for many, perhaps the most frustrating thing about the new government has been its inability or unwillingness to seriously pursue members of Rajapaksa’s government and family accused of massive corruption.

According to government supporters, the reason no charges have yet been framed is that the police are still digging for evidence that would stand up in court. And as we in Pakistan know only too well, those collecting bribes and commissions do not hand out receipts. In addition, both Sirisena and Wickremsinghe are decent people who do not seem to wish to pursue the politics of vengeance. In this, they are very different from the government that preceded them: over the last ten years, politics in Sri Lanka became increasingly corrupt and vindictive. Opposition journalists and politicians were bribed and bullied into submission. Some were kidnapped or killed.

The man accused of masterminding some of these criminal acts was none other than Gotabaya Rajapaksa, the president’s brother who was also the all-powerful defence secretary. One of the few people arrested from the previous cabinet is Mervyn de Silva, the thuggish media minister. He has accused Gotabaya of having Lasantha Wickramatunga, the crusading editor of The Sunday Leader, killed in 2009. Although that murder caused an uproar as the journalist had left a posthumous editorial accusing the president of being behind his killing, no serious investigation took place.

Now, a naval commander has come forward to allege that a unit under him was used to conduct such ‘white van operations’ without his knowledge. Despite all this, the ex-president’s brother has still not been arrested. Another charge laid at Gotabaya’s door is that he ran a couple of civilian security outfits armed with weapons from the Sri Lankan armed forces. Another Rajapaksa sibling who was also a minister fled to America a day after the election.

But an even bigger problem facing the Sirisena-Wickremsinghe government is the issue of electoral and constitutional reforms. They had first announced that Parliament would be dissolved in April, with general elections to follow in June. This would legitimise the government with its own mandate. However, this schedule is now in doubt.

Several reasons are being advanced for this possible change. Firstly, the earlier decision to reduce the powers of the ‘executive presidency’ is being questioned by the military which feels it important to retain the present unity of command, rather than have defence matters subjected to the compromises inevitable under a coalition government. Also, some members of the ruling Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) feel that if the president, who is now leader of the party, becomes a figurehead, then Wickremsinghe, leader of the United National Party, will become all-powerful, and the SLFP will be deprived of its clout.

Then there is the complex issue of electoral reforms. The proposal being considered is a mixture of proportional and first-past-the-post systems. But given the need to re-demarcate the constituencies, more time will be needed. Finally, an issue that is relevant but not much discussed is that if Parliament is dissolved in April, it will not have completed five years of its existence. This will deprive first-time members of their pensions that become due after five years of parliamentary duties.

All these issues have added to the sense of drift and indecision that is beginning to perturb this government’s supporters. Adding pressure is Rajapaksa’s continuing popularity among the majority Sinhalese population. In the immediate aftermath of his defeat, people tended to overlook that he did win over 47pc of the popular vote. Had it not been for the overwhelming number of minority votes that went to his rival, he would have won hands down.

The Rajapaksa factor complicates matters for this government as there are many SLFP supporters demanding that he should be the party’s candidate for prime minister in the general elections. Obviously, this does not suit Sirisena who now wears the mantle of party leader. Given these tensions between party leaders and its grass-roots support, there is a real danger the SLFP might split. At two rallies, thousands of Rajapaksa supporters have changed slogans for his return. The commonly held view is that while he personally was a clean leader who did much for the country, it was family members and sycophants who gave him a bad name.

Yet another headache for the government is the Colombo Port City Project, a commercial venture financed by a Chinese consortium and being built by Chinese contractors. This project, approved by Rajapaksa, is aimed at reclaiming 230 hectares of land from the sea, and includes shopping malls, a golf course and other facilities. 20 hectares will go to the Chinese developers as freehold, while the rest will be given on 99-year lease. Since its inception, the project has been opposed on environmental grounds.

But according to the president, 25pc of the reclamation work has been completed, and cancelling it now would entail several hundred million dollars in penalties. In addition, relations with China would suffer. The Chinese government has already asked Sri Lanka to honour the commitments entered into by the previous regime. India, of course, is delighted as it had strong reservations about an entity close to the Chinese government owning 20 hectares of land at a port used by its ships.

Clearly, then, there is no smooth sailing for the new Sri Lankan government.

Published in Dawn, March 9th, 2015

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