The curriculum fiasco and the political fallout

Opinion
By Editor_1
Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya of Sri Lanka at her office in Colombo in December in 2024 -Gabriela Bhaskar for The New York Times

By Kassapa 

The hot topic of discussion, both in mainstream and social media these days, is the muddle the government and Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya find themselves in, over what would have otherwise been an innocuous line in a textbook. Instead, it has now led to calls for Amarasuriya’s resignation.

The facts of the controversy are straightforward enough: the new Grade Six English Language textbook contains a section on ‘Finding Friends’. It describes how students could have ‘e-buddies’ or electronic buddies, the present-day equivalent of pen pals in the past. The module then identifies ‘e-buddy’ as a person with whom someone communicates through e-mail and other electronic platforms. Unfortunately for the government, in providing a link to find ‘e-buddies’, the module has provided a link that directs students to an adult website for homosexual men. This is what the uproar is all about.

This is priceless ammunition for the opposition. Even prior to this issue emerging, the government had been accused of ‘promoting’ Sri Lanka as a tourist destination for homosexuals when, in fact, that was not the case. All that was said was that same sex couples should not fear visiting the country.

The fuss about the offending line in the textbook was far, far greater. Leading the call against Amarasuriya were the Buddhist clergy and several opposition political parties. They accuse the government of sexualizing education. Those from the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) were in the forefront, but even the Samagi Jana Balavegaya (SJB) couldn’t resist the temptation: previously respected parliamentarians such as Rohini Kavirathna adopted a similar line.

That their criticism is not about the issue at hand becomes clear when listening to the rhetoric that has emerged. Some of the language used by the Buddhist clergy to vilify Amarasuriya is unbecoming of their calling. The invective is vicious, highly personal and targets Amarasuriya’s status as a single lady.

The opposition was also trying to humiliate Amarasuriya, attempting to project her not only as incompetent but also as not being supported by her party, the National Peoples’ Power (NPP). Hence, the media briefing, where Amarasuriya faced a barrage of questions from the media over the issue, being flanked by ministers Vijitha Herath and Nalinda Jayatissa, the former and present Cabinet spokesmen of this government. This is the government’s way of indicating that they stand with Amarasuriya on this issue. Jayatissa went on record saying there was no need for the Premier to resign due to a single line in a textbook.

To the credit of Amarasuriya and the government, they have acknowledged that a mistake has been made by including the link to an adult site in a textbook meant for sixth grade school children. The education ministry has launched its own inquiry into the issue. While that is ongoing, the head of the National Institute of Education, which is responsible for publishing the textbook, has been asked to step down to ensure a free and fair inquiry.        

Amarasuriya also revealed that a police investigation is underway to ascertain whether there was a ‘conspiracy’ to have the offending line inserted into the textbook to embarrass the government. This was necessary, she said, because the error appears to match the narrative from certain quarters that the government was promoting homosexuality. Many believe this is only a faint possibility, the more likely reason being the carelessness of officials overseeing the publishing of textbooks.

Nevertheless, the government cannot absolve itself of all responsibility in this incident. The question that needs an answer is how an error of this magnitude, even if it was inadvertently inserted into the textbook, passed unnoticed? Obviously, the oversight processes are not diligent enough, and for that, both high officials as well as the political authority must own up.

As Amarasuriya pointed out at the media briefing, however, educational reforms and government policy regarding same sex unions are two separate issues. What the opposition is trying to do is to confuse the average citizen by trying to equate them, claiming that the government is trying to impose same sex unions on children. Even those who make this claim from the opposition must surely know that this is not true, but they also know there is some political advantage to be gained from making this allegation, so they do so anyway.

Amarasuriya can and will survive this political storm. The composure she showed at the media briefing in the face of hostile questioning was commendable. Already, while she is being blamed for not being an efficient enough education minister, she is being equally commended for her remarkable resilience.

The events of last week also demonstrate that the opposition, particularly the SLPP, has not given up on their ‘save the country from something’ mindset in order to appeal to the base instincts of voters and grab a few votes. It is sad to see the SJB, supposedly a more enlightened party with a modern liberal outlook, singing the same sad tune.

That said, there are many deficits in the education reform process. Experts claim they were rushed through without a proper consultation process. The government has also been accused of rehashing reforms proposed by previous regimes in a hurry. There are claims that this indecent urgency was because of the need to secure a loan that would enable the implementation of the reforms. These are the real questions that Amarasuriya, as Education Minister and the government should answer.

At the time of writing, a no-confidence motion against the Prime Minister was being prepared. If anything, it will give the government and the Premier an opportunity to explain to the public what they had done and did not do. As for the opposition, it is hard to imagine that their stock would rise as a result of such actions.   

If the opposition hopes that they can ‘split’ the NPP and force President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s hand into seeking Amarasuriya’s resignation with a no-confidence motion, they are mistaken. They are bound to be disappointed, just as they were disappointed with the eventual outcome from the second vote on the budget of the Colombo Municipal Council last week.

– counterpoint.lk

Editor_1
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