Seeking closure

Designated days marked by the United Nations or other organisations for any number of things rotate around every year but perhaps the most relevant of those for Sri Lanka is the day to remember the thousands who have disappeared due to the war and finding them justice, even after many long years. 

There is special relevance to this day because for the first time the Government seems to be making progress in finding closure for the families and through this reconciliation for all of Sri Lanka. The Office of Missing Persons (OPM) Bill, which was muscled past the pro-Rajapaksa Joint Opposition’s unabashed fear-mongering, is undoubtedly a positive one, but comes with several challenges. 

One point is the makeup of the OMP, which should be inclusive and ideally time-bound so families already tired of waiting many years would not have much longer before answers are found. The allocation of resources and ensuring the OMP is conducted impartially and transparently will be a test to the Government’s dedication towards reconciliation.

But this road will obviously be very difficult. It is still unclear whether the Government will allow foreign expertise and if so in what capacity, there are still few concrete facts on how credible and swift the process will be. Since these are early days, the Government is proceeding carefully, aware of the only too real political fallout.  

Despite winning out against the Joint Opposition, the National Government has to deal with the fact that the particular brand of nationalism and chauvinism paraded by the JO is still alive and well, having taken root in the mindset of many ordinary Lankans, particularly in the south. Much awareness raising and grassroots communication needs to be done to win over those in the south and bring disparate communities together.

To that effect the JVP is extremely well positioned as the party knows better than most that enforced disappearances are categorically not an ‘ethnic’ or ‘Tamil’ issue though it is fair to assert that the more recent spate of abductions have heavily targeted minority communities. The JVP’s support of the Bill, combined with the stirring speech by Bimal Ratnayake articulating the JVP’s historic experience of mass abductions, has set the stage for solidarity between the north and south in combating the profound injustice of disappearances.

A National Government, the likes of which we have today, has never before been seen in Sri Lanka and the odds are that it may not reappear again in the near future. As we have seen, such a Government has serious teething pains in terms of handling policy on a number of issues pertaining to the economy. However, with the SLFP, UNP, JVP and TNA in unison there exists the potential to finally advance reconciliation and put to bed the pain and suffering of families who have lost loved ones to abductions over decades of war.

The OMP Act has now got the ball rolling in the right direction, but serious work needs to continue to ensure that the final goal is reached. We have seen countless times how public inquiries, committees and all manner of mechanisms have only led to frustration and middling results for victims. With around four years left for this Government, the time is now to unearth the truth about our missing.