Justice and closure

The week opened with much public outcry over controversial statements made by former LTTEer-turned politician Karuna Amman over his involvement in the death of thousands of soldiers at Elephant Pass. Many citizens have been outraged by his insensitive disregard and the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) has been ordered to conduct an investigation. But the entire incident is also symbolic of how politicisation has kept conflict-related narratives focused on creating divisions and away from justice or closure. 

As has already been pointed out by people on social media platforms, the incident that Karuna Amman is referring to is hardly a revelation. This terrible and tragic loss of life has been spoken about numerous times and is common knowledge. However, even though the war ended 11 years ago, no efforts were made to bring those responsible for these atrocities on either side to book and focus on individual and communal healing. It was instead politicised and those responsible were embraced by powerful politicians of the former Government and absorbed into the political system. Repeated efforts to address the wrongdoings doing the conflict and bring them before a Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) or some other mechanism that would promote healing rather than hate has been constantly disregarded by successive governments.

Despite several attempts, mostly due to external pressure, Sri Lanka’s efforts at reconciliation have been half-hearted at best. There has been no consistent, readily embraced and dedicated mechanism across all communities to look at the people who lost their lives during the war, disappeared or were otherwise affected. Hundreds of families still continue their search for their loved ones, some have even died after waiting pointlessly for many decades and deeply divisive race relations continue to be a dominant aspect in Sri Lanka’s social, cultural, political and economic landscape.

What should have happened instead is these issues should have been brought to light after the war and justice should have been dispensed without racial and ethnic overtones. This could have been a restorative rather than punitive judicial mechanism that could have enabled both sides to acknowledge, come to terms with and ultimately find healing from the ghosts of the past at least to some extent. Such an effort would have also built faith in an independent legal system, which was given the space and resources to function competently. It would have also opened up space to promote an ethical political culture inclusive of minorities, based on mutual understanding and direction for a united Sri Lanka. 

But this was not to be. The public is rightly outraged about Karuna Amman’s statements and the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) has scrambled to distance itself from him. But the damage done continues. Sri Lanka cannot persist in having selective outrages if it is to genuinely heal. It cannot be upset at Karuna Amman but approve of handing out controversial presidential pardons to people such as former Army Staff Sergeant R. M. Sunil Rathnayake. A proper reconciliation mechanism to address these long-drawn-out issues on both sides would be the best achievement of the next Parliament. But the public cannot be faulted for thinking that this will never come to be.