BLACK MONTHS.

Recently I read an article on the Black History Month, also known as African-American History Month, which is described by Wikipedia as an annual observance in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom for remembrance of important people and events in the history of the African diaspora. It is celebrated annually in the United States and Canada in February and the United Kingdom in October.

Till then the only Black month I was aware of was Black July where the violence, political persecution and Anti- Tamil Pogrom pursued by the Sri Lankan state in July Eighty Three, was referred to as. There are other Black Months in the calendar with this distinctive prefix, but Black July in Sri Lanka was something I had experienced personally!

However; In the US historian Carter G. Woodson and the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History announced the second week of February to be "Negro History Week". This week was chosen because it marked the birthday of both Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. Woodson created the holiday with the hope that it eventually be eliminated when black history became fundamental to American history. (Wikipedia) In Sri Lanka the Black July of Eighty Three was a culmination of simmering ethnic tensions that resulted in terrible consequences.

The history of Sri Lanka has been one of conflict between the South Indian Dravidians and the Sinhala Kings. (The Europeans came much later) The outcomes of these battles like a pendulums swung from side to side. In spite of this, there had been long periods of stability in this Pearl of the Indian Ocean which resulted in magnificent human achievements and a rich cultural heritage. The problem which has besieged this otherwise tranquil paradise could be landed on the doorstep of the British when they conquered the Island and decided to impose their favorite doctrine of divide and rule. The minority Tamils, accept those imported from India who had nothing at all, had a bigger slice of the cake than the majority Sinhala. The Island started breaking up at the seam after Sinhala Nationalism swept the Sri Lankan Freedom Party into power and ignited a time bomb in the guise of a just representative Language Policy.

Leaders of both sides of the divide are to be blamed for the run up to a bloody civil war that lasted almost three decades and the irreparable damage it has had on the collective mind set of its people. The majority never saw a need to solve legitimate grievances of a minority or the necessity of a multi ethnic society as a way forward for the collective good of the Nation and fostering one identity in one Country. The minority didn’t do very much either! The cast system both in the minority and majority were supplemented with the racial component of ethnicity. A practice still prevalent as recent as in this month’s data collection for the Island wide Population Census presently underway!!! Language barriers added to alienation and no attempt was ever made to introduce a link language. Nepotism and connections as opposed to qualifications permeated the Institutes of Government and steadily human rights and justice were compromised in the interest of the powerful. Messing around with the Constitution and enhancing power was a favorite past time to ensure that a few had all the levers to control and subjugate the people.

It was not only the young of the minority but also that of the majority that never found expression for their concerns. The opportunity to seek better standards of living was always elusive and neither were they educated and skilled to find suitable employment to afford one. Both the majority and minority young took to arms. Both were eventually suppressed! Unfortunately the cost in human life and suffering is still not accurately assessed or known. The leaders have forgotten that they are only custodians of governance and must be prepared not only to pass the baton to the future generations but ensure that the young are a part of the process. They instead abuse their office to guarantee perpetuity.

The Tamil Tigers were effectively decimated almost two years ago. (It will be so in May this year). It had to be done there was no alternative. However the Country faces charges of human rights violations in the last phases of the battle. Incidentally so does the enemy. The call for action initiated by the UN has landed at the UNHRC. Sri Lanka has no economic value to prevent these agencies from pursuing their objectives however much the State questions their motives. In this context it is quite ironic that a blatant violator of Human Rights, Israel, has unconditional support of the US!!!

The Sri Lankan State has as usual failed to deal with these charges effectively long before it got to Geneva. International pressure will continue to mount and an effective counter attack would be if we learn from Eighty Three and not continue in self-denial. A golden opportunity to resolve this issue is being fritted away! Commemorating Black July as a month of reconciliation would be a start in tandem with genuine efforts to find a durable political solution. The state can muster the numbers in parliament and has the all-powerful executive if it desires to do so! Soon Black July will be obliterated from History books. I couldn’t find any mention of it in the local media last year, and I doubt any of the new generation is even aware of it. Unfortunately the problem is not likely to disappear nor can it be swept under the carpet.

Nothing in this world is permanent and our Leaders seem to forget that. The young are getting restless and mobilizing. There is a sense of urgency that it is time for freedom and they have to act now. The need for change and the events in the recent past are astonishing. The Arab Spring and the Occupy Wall Street movements are clear evidence of the real possibility of the establishments everywhere of the old guard being unceremoniously booted out. The forces that are replacing the old have an appeal that caters for the yearnings of the young. They seem to understand them better and have an empathy with the problems the future generation is facing. As one commentator in a talk show aptly articulated the young are concerned that there will be no tomorrow for them if they don’t take action now! They seem to be ready to do so even at the cost of their own lives!!! Let’s hope that steps to find that elusive peace in Sri Lanka dominates the national agenda. It’s still not too late! Indifference may cause this Nation and its people dearly.