By Veeragathy Thanabalasingham

Colombo, March 6 – The maiden budget of the National People’s Power (NPP) government headed by President Anura Kumara Dissanayake is currently at the committee stage.

But opposition members have been talking about the politics of the budget rather than its economics. Many opposition members said that the budget s out of sync with the NPP’s core group, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP). The economy, they charged, is being run in accordance with the  agreement negotiated by former President Ranil Wickremasinghe with the International Monetary Fund(IMF). Members point out that the NPP has abandoned the socialist economic policies of its core group, the JVP. One wonders if the opposition wants the NPP government to adhere to the JVP’s economic policies.

On the contrary, President Dissanayake seems to be proud that his government enjoys the support of the IMF. His comments show that he is satisfied that his government has belied the fears of the opposition that the NPP government will not continue to receive IMF support.

Dissanayake clearly understands that renegotiating the agreement with the IMF, as he promised to the people at the time of the elections, is not an easy task. Meanwhile, United National Party (UNP) politicians are boasting that Dissanayake is pursuing the economic policies of their leader Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Apart from the question as to whether Sri Lanka can achieve full economic recovery if it continues to act in accordance with the guidance of the IMF, the grim reality is that the economy risks further deterioration if the government does not meet the global lender’s  conditions at the current juncture.

Nevertheless, the question arises as to when the NPP  government is going to implement its core policies. Government leaders are not in a position to give a clear answer to this question.

Resurgence of Gangsters

The budget debate has been largely eclipsed by underworld killings that have intensified in recent days. The people’s attention has turned to gun violence. Instead of talking about issues related to the budget in the budget debate , MPs are talking about the killing spree. They accuse the government of failing to control it. Statements made by ministers in response to the killings expose the government’s ambivalence towards the security situation.

Not a single day passes without at least two killings.  An underworld gangster Ganemulla Sanjeewa, was shot dead inside the Colombo Magistrate’s Court on February 19. The man who shot him had entered the courtroom disguised as a lawyer. Bu this was not the first time an underworld figure was shot dead inside the Colombo court complex. In January 2004, Dhammika Amarasinghe, an underworld gangster, was similarly shot dead inside the Colombo Magistrate’s Court. The man who killed him came to the court posing as a law student.

In November 2004, High Court Judge Sarath Ambepitiya was shot dead in front of his Colombo residence by members of the underworld. There were several instances where underworld gangs have proved their mettle in challenging the law enforcement agencies. But governments and the police do not appear to have learnt any lessons from past incidents.

It is easy to be wise after the incidents. After each underworld killing, governments have vowed to take tough security measures and completely eradicate underworld groups. But these pledges are forgotten till another incident take place.

In 2023, during the tenure of President Wickremesinghe, the then Minister of Public Security, Tiran Alles, and the Acting Inspector General of Police (now a fugitive) Deshabandu Tennakoon, launched an operation called ‘Yuktiya’ with great fanfare to wipe out the underworld. The minister declared that as a result of the several month-long operations (amid allegations of serious violations) underworld violence and drug trafficking were largely suppressed. But the spate of killings in different parts of the country, particularly in the Western and Southern provinces over the past few months, is a clear indication that ‘ Yuktiya’ was a failure.

NPP leaders had claimed that their government will be able to eradicate underworld gangs and drug trafficking within two Poya days. After the recent events, President Dissanayake and his ministers, like previous government leaders, swore that underworld gangs will be completely wiped out. Having failed, the government has come under intense pressure.

Conspiracy Theories

As before, government is using conspiracy theories to evade responsibility. Former Senior Deputy Inspector General of Police Ravi Seneviratne, who is now Secretary to the Ministry of Public Security, has said that there was a conspiracy behind the intensification in gun violence.  He told the media that he had received intelligence reports that an attempt was being made to derail the investigations into the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings. Those involved in the conspiracy have  been identified, he added.

It may be recalled that the former President Maithripala Sirisena had said that the 2019 Easter Sunday bombings were aimed at disrupting his war against the underworld gangs and the drug mafia. It is interesting that Ravi Seneviratne, who was then in charge of the Criminal Investigation Department, now finds that underworld gangs have intensified attacks with the aim of disrupting investigations into the Easter Sunday bombings.

President Dissanayake has also said that the government has launched an investigation to determine whether the current violence is simply the result of clashes between rival underworld groups or if there is a conspiracy against the government. He said that a number political leaders, legal officers, security officers and police are in cahoots with organised criminal groups.  All governments in the past had given in to this network controlled by underworld figures, the President added.

What is National Security?

In the context of current gun violence, we see government leaders giving different interpretations to national security. Speaking to reporters after meeting the Mahanayake Theras in Kandy recently , the President said that although there were clashes between the underworld groups, the recent incidents “did not” pose a threat to national security or the public security. Does the President not view the current killing spree is extreme enough to be considered a threat to national security?

National security does not only mean controlling the activities of terrorist and extremist groups and preventing threats from outside the country. Government must understand that the intensification of gun violence is also a threat to national security, which can lead to a dangerous situation in which the people cannot move freely and safely.

The crimes and violence associated with underworld gangs did not appear suddenly. It has a long history. A blend of illicit drug trade,  proliferation of dangerous weapons and political patronage is responsible for today’s terrible situation.

Over the past several decades, governments have used underworld groups for political purposes. Money power and muscle power have combined to criminalise politics and politicise crime. It will not be easy to free Sri Lanka from this vicious circle.

When Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga was President, she once told a group of students at a school function that “persons  addicted to alcohol and drugs have over time turned to manufacturing them as a profession, amassing huge wealth and eventually entering parliament.”

Under her rule also, underworld gangs had political patronage. In fact, underworld gangs operated with political patronage under all Presidents who came to power after J.R. Jayewardene. Sri Lankan  Presidents have a history of pardoning and releasing underworld figures and even making them Justices of the Peace.

It is noteworthy that a Colombo English daily, in a recent editorial, reminded us about what the award-winning author Humphrey Hawksley and BBC correspondent said after his deportation from Sri Lanka by the Jayewardene government. He prophesied that Sri Lanka Sri Lanka would have to suffer from the proliferation of arms due to the prolongation of the ethnic conflict.

Three decades of the armed ethnic conflict in the North and the two armed insurgency in the South are the main reasons for the widespread prevalence of lethal weapons in society. Sri Lanka today is suffering the consequences of a political culture that incited and condoned violence.

(The writer is a senior journalist based in Colombo)