Living as Muslims under Ranil

- By M. Asim Alavi, Editor, The Trend. Hon Ranil Wickremasinghe once again has become Prime Minister, this time most certainly with a sort of executive powers.  Ranil is a political gentleman with astuteness in abundance. The seasoned politician’s track records is the witness to his principled approaches.  Although he was not born with lofty public relations qualities his foresight and political vision for Sri Lanka’s development are far superior to most of the present day politicians.  His shrewdness too is distinctive from others, the man who outsmarted Velupillai Prabakaran to the extent of orchestrating the Karuna revolt, thus paving the way for the outfit’s ultimate doom, was berated by LTTE’s late theoretician, Anton Balasingham as “a cunning fox”.   Ranil is a firm advocate of neoliberalism, which is a set of ideals that promote less state control and more privatization of several aspects of life, including economy, education, culture, environment so on and so forth.  In a neoliberal setup economy of a country grows at the cost of indigenous culture and religion; religious rituals and symbols take only superficial value without any significant influences on social life of the people.  Furthermore, if a neoliberal state finds religion as a stumbling block on the path of materializing its ideals, it would put an elusive system in place to block religion without going for a direct confrontation with religionists.  Ranil is not a traitorous Sri Lankan as the pseudo-patriots portray out of their sheer political impotency, neither is he harmful to any religion. The best thing these pseuds under Arya Sinhala garb did was to loot public property. Ranil’s election manifesto talks about reinventing “Lichchevi model” governance that existed during the early periods of Buddhism in the Himalayas.  Provisions also have been given for supporting Islam, Hinduism and Christianity.  However, one should keep in mind that with neoliberal ideals being the benchmark, religion will not be allowed to raise its head above the level set by the state.   Prime Minister Ranil is said to be an associate of Mont Pelerine Society (MPS). MPS is seen outwardly as a forum of intellectuals and political pundits but in the depth of its structure it is a neoliberal Trojan horse for moving the world away from alternative political thoughts to neoliberalism. Its founding principles might have been different but MPS of the recent times has positioned itself as an operation room for state-interventionists and non-confrontational regime changers through soft power and manipulations.  According to The Australian Financial Review, Lynton Crosby, a top Australian political strategist, has aided in the campaign strategies of Ranil Wickramasinghe.  Although we are not here to guess about his background, Crosby has been behind the victory of many neoliberal politicians.  Islam can coexist with neoliberalism.  If Singapore is taken as a model neoliberal state, how does its Muslim population coexist is a point for ponder.  Singapore’s founding father, the late Lee Kwan once expressed his distress at Muslims’ strictness in their dress code and religious practices, and this goes against the common multi-cultural values he has built.  He imagined Muslims not to display Islamic symbols distinctively, flock to mosques with their kids and families, and celebrate feasts and festivals at the exclusion of others.  Lee Kwan would be happy to see Muslims dissolve in the common culture of Singapore leaving their own distinct cultural identity. As Islam possesses over a thousand years of history in Sri Lanka and deep-rooted in the society, the rulers will not foolishly descend to the counterproductive act of curbing Islam. Islamic revival is on solid upward trend in Sri Lanka and globally, so no neoliberalist assault can shake its foundation at least in the foreseeable future. Sri Lanka indeed needs a common Chinthana incorporating all religious values, yet without infringing the exclusive rights of those religions.  As the political dynamics of Sri Lanka has changed and Hon. Ranil has lost his vibrant years of life in the opposition there is little of his neoliberal desires that he can accomplish.  Nevertheless, he certainly can lay the foundation for such a project through his young followers.  Muslims, therefore, should engage with Prime Minister Ranil and his team and prove through action that Islam is not a stumbling block for the country’s progress, rather, it is a spiritual and moral force that is very constructive and meaningful for a prosperous Sri Lanka.