Vesak thoughts

Vesak has returned, bringing all its faith, fun and chaos. But religion in Sri Lanka regrettably continues to have a hardline edge, which will need to be tempered with tolerance and understanding to bring the true message of the ‘Themagula’ to a troubled land.

It cannot be denied that with the advent of the Bodu Bala Sena and other hardline organisations in Sri Lanka, the intensity of bigoted actions has increased. The number of derogatory racist remarks and tokenisation of religions and individuals, the warping of the diverse history inherited by Sri Lanka and spread of virulent and often inaccurate information to whip up racial hatred are on the rise.

The Government has disappointingly failed to arrest these trends. Instead it has attempted to frame the situation in a misguiding way by establishing a separate Police Unit to deal with religious tensions. This is insinuating the Buddhist and Muslim communities have problems with each other when the reality is that unchecked extremist organisations are behind most tensions. What is even more worrying is that the legitimate and once-tolerant hierarchy organisations within the Maha Sanga themselves are increasingly seen to be giving legitimacy to these hardliners.

In Myanmar, where a similar situation exists, hardline monks are lobbying for legislation demanding Buddhist women be prohibited by law from marrying a non-Buddhist men. In a country with over 100 minorities, this would be deeply divisive but these extreme organisations insist such men, once they have converted, be registered and banned from changing religions ever again. A disturbing sign of how wrong things can go once a country has started down this path.

Illegally detaining and deporting a tourist for sporting a tattoo of the Buddha is another recent instance when tolerance and acceptance of different practices failed in Sri Lanka. It is noteworthy that this tourist had visited many other Buddhist countries such as Thailand and Cambodia without fear of being treated like a criminal.

Last year during the much-publicised Halal controversy, social media was used to malign certain products and urge users to boycott shopping at popular Muslim shops. These posts are accompanied by insulting remarks that make reasoned argument or discussion impossible. They are also anonymous so holding people accountable is difficult.

The BBS, Ravana Balaya and others lobbied for a ban on casinos, but there are early hints this was ineffectual, with Media Minister Keheliya Rambukwella insisting existing casino licenses could be transferred to new establishments. In a country where rule of law and common decency is under threat every single day, one would think the considerable resources these organisations have can be spent on things that actually matter. Making the sacrifice to maintain peace, the Muslim community already ended the Halal certification process for local companies and agreed to give it free of charge for exporters. Events came to such a pass due to the increase in hardline factions and the inability or reluctance by the Government to quell them. Vesak takes on even more poignancy in this backdrop. During this blessed time, all Sri Lankans must make an effort to return to the true Dhamma preached by Lord Buddha, to end hatred, foster peace and forge understanding. If this ultimate message is lost, then Vesak will have no meaning left.