Former president Chandrika Kumaratunga blames Rajapaksas for making Sri Lanka bankrupt

Interview
By Editor_1
By Meera Srinivasan

COLOMBO – For over 15 years now, former two-term President of Sri Lanka, Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, has stayed out of active politics. She re-emerged as a key player in the formation of the Yahapalanaya [good governance] coalition — of Maithripala Sirisena and Ranil Wickremesinghe — in 2015, only to witness the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) of the Bandaranaike clan collapse after the Rajapaksas carved out their own party from it. Speaking to The Hindu at her Colombo residence, the 77-year-old former president reflects on the staggering developments in Sri Lanka over the last few months, and the way forward for the country’s political and economic progress.

Edited excerpts:

QUESTION: As a senior political leader in Sri Lanka, what are your thoughts on the developments over the last few months?

ANSWER: To start with, I can say I am thrilled by the Aragalaya (struggle). Not the violence that was perpetrated by the extremist minority there, but the whole concept of the Aragalaya, the way it started, and the vision of the good people leading it. Because the country had reached the stage where, with two Rajapaksa regimes, everything that was bad and hateful was stabilized in power. Like corruption. Today we are bankrupt only because of the corruption of the [Rajapaksa] family and their acolytes.

When our systems have crashed and been destroyed consciously, how do you change things? Even if you go for elections, the same lot of crooks get elected. Then, the only way to change is through a socio-political upheaval, a revolution.

Q: What about the Aragalaya did you find striking?

A: What was really exciting and positive about the Aragalaya was that they had a vision. They were not just saying we want to chase out the Rajapaksas. They said this is not enough, we want an honest government, transparent governance, and that the robbers be brought to book. They had a vision, they were brilliantly well organized, and they were honest about contributions coming in.

Q: Has the election of President Ranil Wickremesinghe brought stability for Sri Lanka?

A: It has definitely brought in a certain amount of stability. Fuel is being distributed in a logical and better fashion. The way the Rajapaksas did it was totally anarchic.

Ranil seems to have understood, because he understands the economy and is an intelligent man, that the IMF program is an absolute must. Having worked with Ranil in two governments, I am waiting and watching. I wish him well, for the sake of the country, I really wish he can do it. However, I don’t know whether he can translate his thoughts into action.

Q: The Cabinet is being expanded and the President’s efforts to form an all-party government are yet to succeed. Do you think the opposition is justified in being sceptical?

A: He [Ranil Wickremesinghe] has convicted criminals and well-known thugs and robbers in his Cabinet. In such a situation, the younger politicians don’t want to sully their names.

Q: Now that the Rajapaksas are out of power, do you see the SLFP having a chance to regroup and revive itself?

A: Sri Lanka, like India, had two major parties. A left of centre party [SLFP], and a right of centre party [United National Party or UNP]. Both those forces have now been decimated. I have been asked if I would help the government. I will wait and watch. I have not been hooted at, stoned, nor spat upon [by protesters]. My good name is all I have earned in politics I don’t want to lose that.

Q: Did the President himself invite you to help him?

A: I have had messages sent.

Q: The political tumult here was triggered by an economic crisis. What economic model must Sri Lanka choose now?

A: I would say something like what I brought in between 1994 and 2005. We need a social welfarist approach with the liberal economic logic.

Q: You mentioned IMF support. There are foreign policy choices and geopolitical dynamics that come into play with external assistance. How should Sri Lanka navigate them?

A: Sri Lanka, I would say, has no other choice than a policy of non-alignment. Dynamic non-alignment, as was followed by all the Bandaranaike governments.

I am personally very thankful that India has come in, giving us all this aid when they could have stood back and waited because they were not very happy with the Rajapaksa government’s policies.

Q: When the government opted for import restrictions, many recalled the 1970s under PM Sirimavo Bandaranaike, when shortages and long queues were common. How do you view this comparison?

A: Of course, we must be self-sufficient in major products, major food products at least, and maybe small industrial products. But to say we must stop all imports and produce everything in Sri Lanka is not realistic. You know, we Sinhala Buddhists, who comprise 70% of the population, are a majority with a terrific minority complex. I suppose one reason is that we have a massive neighbour, and we have had a conflictual relationship with that country since ancient times. When a majority has a minority complex, you try to put down everybody around you to feel that you are important. That is a collective weakness of our nation.

Q: Do you think the game is over for the Rajapaksas, as some say, or can they make a comeback since the opposition is still weak?

A: All those possibilities are there. If a government led by Ranil and all other parties, an honest government, solves the country’s problems, history will put the Rajapaksas in their due place. The Rajapaksas have harassed me. They did that in cheap, horrible ways. Anyway, those are details that do not influence my political priorities. I dislike them for what they did to the country and our party.

So I am delighted that the Aragalaya was able to chase them out in a peaceful manner I think it is a great thing that happened, otherwise they would never have gone. I am also surprised by their [Rajapaksas’] shamelessness. I would have taken a straight dive into the Indian Ocean if the people had reacted one-tenth as badly against me.

Q: Do you see yourself returning to active politics?

A: No. Definitely not.

Q: Why?

A: I have done enough. Unlike most Sri Lankan politicians, I have a lot of other interests in life…like reading, cinema, theatre.

-The Hindu

 

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