Light travels faster than sound

How true.............

Patriotism

Nationality.

What does it signify?

Literally it means a person has been born in a particular country. But is that all that is there to a persons nationality. Whenever we hear a person say that he is Indian, American or British it seems to represent much more than their nationality. If someone says he is American, first thing that our mind concludes is that he has been born in America. Secondly we tend to think of the American culture and society. We also tend to think about the political and economic power, natural riches, scientific and technological breakthroughs and quality of life prevalent in America. Recent events that captured the worlds eye like the 9/11 attacks or the election of first black president in Barack Obama tend to cross our minds as well. Simply put, in the eyes of the listener nationality of someone else represents a holistic view the listener has of the political, social and economical conditions that were and are prevalent in the country of interest. However all of that is the perception of the listener. More importantly however, when someone says he is Indian or American you can feel the amount of honour and pride that is radiating out from that statement. It is as if being an American or an Indian has been the greatest single achievement in their whole lives. For them their nationality is something they are extremely proud of, something they cherish very dearly and something they intend to honour and protect with their very lives.

Sri Lankan.

What does it signify? What does it mean to be Sri Lankan?

Until very recently whenever somebody said I’m Sri Lankan, the first response anybody listening gave was to ask ‘You are in the middle of a war isn’t it?’ Their immediate conclusion was that Sri Lanka was amidst a bitter war. However they were also quick to acknowledge the beautiful beaches and other natural marvels mother lanka has been blessed with. That was the perception of the listener. More importantly whenever someone says I’m Sri Lankan what does it signify for the person who is making that statement (us)? Do we represent the same kind of pride, honour and respect towards our motherland when we are saying I’m Sri Lankan? The answer is NO. On the contrary many who are living abroad don’t like to say they are Sri Lankan. If they are in England they try to behave as British and if they are in America they try to be die hard Americans. If they fail in this quest they will be more than happy to pretend they are Indians. The same is with most people in living in Sri Lanka. They don’t give the honour and respect our motherland duly deserves. For them ‘Sri Lankan’ is merely their nationality. It represents the geographical location they were born in. It is nothing but a point in the world map for them.

The perception others have on our country is their own mind set. With the three decade long war finally coming to an end with the eradication of terrorism this is definitely going to change. People will associate our country with the natural beauties it posses and other positive aspects. But what about the perception we have on our own country. Why do many of us equate ‘being Sri Lankan’ as ‘being born in Sri Lanka’ and nothing else. What are the reasons for this general perception among Sri Lankan citizens?

The answer is lack of Patriotism.

A country that has a written history dating back almost 2500 years and archeological evidence that proves of thriving civilizations dating back much further should be an ideal cradle for people who are extremely proud of their heritage and respect the same. Especially considering the fact that marvels such as reservoirs (Parakrama Samudraya), Stupas ( Ruwanvalimahaseya) and ancient constructions like Sigiriya still stand proudly on this soil unhindered by the passage of time. Folklore of ancestors who time and time again fought valiantly to protect the independence of their motherland and legendary kings and leaders who’s bravery and unquenched thirst to serve their country and people (may it be via constructing dams, reservoirs, temples or preserving knowledge) was unmatched is surely more than enough to fuel patriotism. But alas, given all of this, Sri Lankans today fall way behind when it comes to patriotism towards their motherland.

So why do we still lack Patriotism.

Colonialism of Sri Lanka dates back to 1505 with the arrival of the Portuguese. Then it was the Dutch and finally the British. Initial rule of these invaders were confined to the coastal area but gradually spread inwards. Finally in 1818 with the signing of the ‘Kanda uda rata givisuma’ the entire country became under the rule of the British (It should be noted that no foreign power ever completely conquered Sri Lanka. Even in 1818 it was a in a signed treaty that the country was handed over to the British mainly to avoid the ruthless reign of the then King). One fundamental strategy followed by colonialists was to spread their way of life. They were the most ruthless virus ever to tread on this planet. Viruses infect a living organism and multiply making exact copies of themselves. Sooner or later the original organism loses its identity and becomes a virus itself. Having achieved its objective virus moves on to another organism. Colonialists were no more different. Once they settled in Sri Lanka their strategy was to spread their way of life. Any locals who supported them were promptly rewarded with money, designations and acceptance to their elite society. Any locals who opposed them were quickly suppressed. Initially the entire population of Sri Lanka were suppressed by the invaders in the way of heavy duties, taxes, restrictions to the then known way of life (e.g. Following of Buddhism). The few who worked for the colonialists were looked after very well. They were awarded new designations, their kith and kin sent to schools and universities in more affluent countries. The only thing expected of them was to serve the colonialists and follow their way of life. Slowly but surely with the advent of churches, school systems and missionaries the way of life of the colonialists crept in to Sri Lanka. The virus was spreading at full speed

This strategy of the colonialists prompted a change in the mind set of people which is much evident today as well. As theory of evolution suggests it’s the survival of the fittest and the level of fitness is defined by how well a given organism adapts to its surrounding environment. Organisms that are most adapted will continue to evolve and multiply. In this scenario the environment had been set up by the British. Anybody who supported them looked down on the Sri Lankan heritage and promptly followed the way of the British survived and thrived. Others were expelled. To survive people had to adapt to the way of the colonialists and follow their way of life. However we are supposed to be humans who are able to exercise a sound level of wisdom and judgment in making decisions rather than be driven by the animal instincts of survival. Such wisdom and judgments formed the basis of many a rebellion against the colonial rule. One such rebellion surfaced immediately after the signing of the treaty in 1821. But all of these were ruthlessly neutralized by the colonialists. Entire villages were destroyed. Not only those who took part in the rebellions but their entire families were murdered. This included women, children as well. Most notably in the 1848 uprising famously known as ‘uva wellassa kerralla’ the entire south eastern part of Sri Lanka was burned to ground. No living thing was spared. To this day the undeveloped nature of that part in Sri Lanka bears testimony to that. Likewise anyone who opposed were promptly eradicated and anyone who supported were nourished. Repetition of this process left the country with a set of people who were more British than British themselves. Of course there were many leaders who identified this and worked tirelessly towards protecting the Sri Lankan identity. ‘Anagarika Dharmapala’ stands as a prime example in this regard

A high percentage of people during the colonialisation period became self centric. What mattered to them was their own survival and well being. As long as their families were fed and the future was secured they were content. Not for them did the independence or freedom matter. Not for them did it ever occur that all the sacrifices made by their ancestors to protect this land have gone a waste. This was the mindset of the people during colonialisation. It is true that there were movements towards gaining independence of Sri Lanka post 1848. But if you really look at it the driving force behind these movements was the craving for power by the people belonging to local high society. By now a new set of people who had been nurtured by the colonialists themselves had appeared. These people who formed the local high society mainly comprising of lawyers and other professionals now believed that they are capable of ruling ‘like the British’. Moreover they wanted to rule Sri Lanka themselves so they could enjoy more power. This was the driving force behind movement towards independence in the 1900’s. The purpose of gaining independence ideally should have been to rebuild the lost ‘Sri Lankan’ identity. The colonialisation virus had achieved its ulterior motive. It had been successful in generating a replica of itself in the form of these so called local leaders (there were many exceptions to this breed of leaders. Some of them worked alongside the British in masquerade always striving to rebuild and resurrect the true ‘Sri Lankan’ identity. E.g. First Prime Minister Mr. D.S Senanayake). In the end Sri Lanka gained its independence without much hassle. The skin color of the rulers might have changed but the policies and strategies that were employed continued without much difference. Regaining of independence marked a clear juncture in our history where we could have made a clear difference to the future of our country. If the right policies were drawn up and the correct decisions were made Sri Lanka could have avoided many a crisis it had to face during the latter years. Moreover we could have changed the mindset of people and bring them out of their self centric mind sets. However this was not the case. It took us another 24 years to truly declare ourselves as independent by stating that we no longer serve the Queen of England

This mindset still continues today in our society. People are content as long as their families are fed and the future is secured. They are so self centered that to them what matters is the well being of themselves. On one hand this is the human nature! Survival is the most basic of necessities of any living being. It takes absolute priority over everything. This mind set was pretty evident during the past years where we were in the middle of a raging war. Some sections of the society (the most elite) believed that it is OK to give L.T.T.E a separate state within Sri Lanka. Their justification was ‘so that we could live our lives peacefully’. Some even said that this war could not be won. Some even argued why we should fight with the L.T.T.E in the first place, for them these terrorists were freedom fighters and it was the SL government which was doing the wrong thing. Given a choice between their own well being and the freedom of the country these people would unquestionably choose the former. This epitomizes the mindset of some Sri Lankans very Cleary. So much for being ‘Sri Lankan’!

On top of being self centered a lot of people have been trained through generations to look down upon their own heritage. To them anything foreign is supreme and anything local is something to think twice of. In the eyes of some locals, Sri Lankans are a race that isn’t capable of achieving anything. When Tsunami hit Sri Lanka in 2004 the southern railway system was badly damaged. Since it was the British who built the railways some pundits lamented that local engineers might never be able to re-build it and we should seek foreign consultancy. It is these very pundits who mocked inventions by local engineers so much so that many of them left Sri Lanka or sold their innovations to foreign countries. Such scenarios provide ample evidence into the mindset of many a Sri Lankan with regards to the perception they have on Sri Lanka. Although most Sri Lankans fall into this category we have been blessed with people who thought otherwise. This is the very reason why we are still able to call our island nation Sri Lanka

It is true that survival and physical well being is a fundamental necessity. However as aforesaid we are supposed to be humans who are considered the most intelligent of all species. When making decisions or choices we should not only care about ourselves but our country as well. We should respect our country and be proud of it. This might have been the thinking of some Sri Lankans throughout their lives. We salute you! But it’s time to spread the thinking and vision across every citizen. We should remember that it is such thinking that has bought us where we are and it is the very reason we are able to freely breathe and live in a country called Sri Lanka. Our ancestors have toiled hard and fought to protect this island. They have contributed towards making lives of everyone more prosperous by working tirelessly towards giving free education, maintaining free health care, constructing reservoirs, dams etc. Recent victory of the armed forces against L.T.T.E is a prime example of the people who continue to honor this tradition. Our country is blessed with natural resources that many other countries put together don’t have. It’s time we appreciate all of this and start thinking like true ‘Sri Lankans’

This is the time to take this message to each and every Sri Lankan. The war is over. This provides an environment where we can force a mindset change of the people. There is no longer a need to fear for ones lives. Everybody can live happily and pursue their dreams. We have a reached a critical milestone where the actions we take now can have profound implications on the future of motherlanka. Steps should be taken make it clear to everyone that they are able lead a life without fear because of the many sacrifices made by patriotic people who risked their lives to guard the sovereignty of this country. Many of them made the supreme sacrifice. The many benefits and natural resources utilized by everyone has been made possible because of ‘true Sri Lankans’ who dedicated their entire lives towards betterment of society and betterment of Sri Lanka as a whole.

So next time we say we are ‘Sri Lankan’; we should take pride in making that statement and honour our motherland. We should appreciate the sacrifices made by ‘true Sri Lankans’ both present and past in protecting and working towards the betterment of motherlanka. We should be proud of the rich heritage and natural marvels we are blessed with and above all we should represent the ‘Sri Lankan Identity’. Most importantly we should move away from being so self centered and being only bothered about how to feed ourselves and protect ourselves to thinking how to move forward as a country and as a nation.

Long live mother Sri Lanka!!

Last mile matters …..!!!!

I’m sick of seeing it happen over and over and over again. Sri Lankan cricket team coming so close to the finishing line but being unable to take that extra step and go the last mile. It happened in 2003 world cup semi-final, 2007 world cup final , 2009 T20 world championship final and now in 2010 T20 world championship semi-final. In all of these events Sri Lankan team had done all the hard work (been lucky in some circumstances) reached an important milestone and just failed miserably to be counted when it really mattered. I can understand them putting up a good fight and being worthy loosers. But in each of these situations (may be apart from 2003 semi- final loss to Australia) our cricketers have simply failed to be counted. They have failed even to pose a threat to the opposition.

Why ?

More importantly why is it becoming a bad habit ?

Have they lost that spark, that extra bit of flare, that extra bit of thirst to show up and perform under presurre and deliver the goods when the stakes are high. It seems like at these key events all life and energy of our cricketers is just lost !!!. May be they are too overwhelmed by the situation that they try to be different. They try to deviate from the normal behaviour, normal way of playing and in doing so perish. It’s such a heart breaking scene. To see a Sri Lankan cricket team which in the past has been famed for taking risks, introducing novel way of playing cricket, perish so sheepishly as they have done in recent times at world stage. Do they lack their self belief ? Do they expect (or more correctly pray or hope) that just things would go their way and they would be handed a win on a silver platter instead of trying to make things happen ?

I firmly believe that as a cricketer one should have a fair idea and a good self assesment of what he can do. Then he should be able a asses a particular game situation (irrespective of whether it’s a final or a semi final) so that he can do the best to take his team in to a better position. I mean if you have never hit a six in your carrier to a a ball pitched just outside of good length chances are that you would not be able to do the same in a final or semi-final. In the same manner if you are suseptible to giving slip catches early in your innings the chances are that in a final or a semi-final you will have the same weakness. However if you have hit sixes with your eyes closed to a full toss just outside the legstump then you should not have thoughts crossing your mind ‘oh my god.. this is the final what if I mistime it..?’. It is such self doubt that will fail you when it most matters.

I think the best thing for Sri Lankan cricket team is to take each game as a final when going into a tournament and give it their absolute best. If this approach is a bit extreme then they should treat each of the last several games as a final (from the super six stage or quarter final stage). They will win some games very easily and loose some along the way. But it is important to treat each and every game as a final. In this way their mentality will not change when the actual big moment comes and they would at least have mentally gone through ‘few’ final matches. So any hickups or self doubts will not hinder them.

They should remember that ‘failure will destory you, but fear of failure will kill you’.

People have spoken.........!!!!

People of Sri Lanka have spoken and they have spoken very clearly by making Mahinda Rajapakse the next president with a clear majority over Sarath Fonseka. They have proven all political pundits who predicted a very close race wrong !!!(on the assumption these pundits would not refer to a 58% over 40% as a close race). It was Abraham Lincoln who said ‘to sin by silence when they should protest makes cowards of men’. People of Sri Lanka realizing the magnitude of importance of this particular presidential election flocked to polling stations in their numbers on 26th January. The high voter turn around almost 75 % stands as the highest in recent times. Apart from Jaffna where the voter turnaround was 25% in all other areas it was between 75 – 80 %. This is a clear indication that the voters are becoming more and more alert as to what is happening around them and are starting to exercise sound judgment in making a decision as to whom to vote for. Moreover they are putting aside petty differences and personal agendas secondary and realizing the fact that as a Sri Lankan citizen their utmost duty and responsibility is to safeguard the longevity and the security of the country. Simply put ‘there has to be a country that you could breathe easily for anything else to bear fruit’ seems to be the common belief of all.

It is interesting to analyze the results.

The election results map bears remarkable resemblance to the map of ‘Elam’. Nor thern and Eastern provinces were entirely won by Fonseka whilst all other districts (apart from NuwaraEliya) were won by Mahinda Rajapakse. Fonseka won the Northern Province by a very huge margin and the Eastern Province by a considerable margin as well. Mahinda Rajapakse won by a heavy margin in down south areas and he did relatively better in Colombo, Kandy, Badulla districts as well. In general terms in all districts Mahinda Rajapakse has bettered his position compared to that of 2005 and even managed to win several districts he lost in 2005. People have responded in generosity towards a man who stood firm and never backed away from the decision of eliminating terrorism from this country. They have put their faith in a man who has confidence in himself as much as he has confidence in the common man of this country.

General belief in Sri Lanka prior to this election was that without the support of parties that represent minorities a president can’t be elected. These parties such as Muslim Congress, TNA have been baptized as ‘King Makers’. It was believed that the majority Sinhalese vote will be divided among the two main candidates making the vote of the minorities the deciding factor. However placing his trust whole heartedly in his people, Mahinda Rajapakse went into this election without the support of almost all minority parties. Results show that the common man has obliged. For the first time ever this election shows that the majority Sinhalese can elect a President for this country. It is no secret why the majority Sinhalese voted for Mahinda Rajapkse. They sought the sovereignty of Sri Lanka !!!.

But why did the Northern and Eastern people voted for Sarath Fonseka. The government has initiated many development projects in Northern and Eastern Provinces. But in spite of these efforts people have voted against the current regime. May be after ending the war people expected a more rapid development drive from the government. Especially those in Jaffna expected security constraints to be relaxed and development initiatives to be driven at a faster rate. But this reason alone would not swing such a high percentage of votes (almost 80%) towards Sarath Fonseka. The true reason seems to be the so called agreement between TNA and Sarath Fonseka. For 30 years these people have been brain washed by the likes of L.T.T.E and TNA that Sinhalese people have invaded the land that is rightfully theirs and are brutal savages. They have promised these people that they will be granted the ‘Promised Land’ in due time after defeating the Sri Lankan Army. For generations this was the belief that these people have been bought up in. The fact that TNA has managed to deliver this ‘Promised Land’ through a political agreement seems to be the most motivating factor for them. Moreover many of them would have casted vote because they were told to do so by their so called community leaders who are still chasing mirages of dividing this country.

However as they begin enjoy their new found freedom and as they begin to interact with the surrounding world and most importantly as proper education commences in these areas, the minds of these people will seek self control. They will understand that their own kith and kin have been living peacefully with Sinhalese people in areas like Colombo without any problem and they are enjoying a very healthy and prosperous life style. They will understand that organizations like L.T.T.E and TNA have betrayed them. It is the responsibility of the new government and the new president to see to this. Northern and Eastern provinces should not be deprived of development and other basic facilities. These should be provided as soon as possible and the environment setup to facilitate living a normal life style for everybody. It is only then that true democracy will prevail as people would exercise their vote according to their wish rather than to the tune of somebody else. The low voter turnaround of 25% is not that alarming considering the fact that a proper population count has not been conducted in the Northern Province for so many years. Many people in voting lists might have migrated to foreign countries or to other parts of the island.

People of Sri Lanka have responded. Now it’s the time of the newly elected president and the new government which would be elected in due time to respond back by laying the foundation for a better Sri Lanka. There is no more terrorism to deal with. Sure there will be unseen forces working tirelessly behind the scenes to divide this country and spread separatism and discrimination among the people. The government and the president should keep a close eye on these forces. However the very fact that the war is over would provide limitless opportunities, resources and new avenues that were blocked for almost 30 years. This is an opportunity that can’t be wasted. This is an opportunity that is before our very own eyes and is real. We should use this opportunity to lay the foundations to a better and more prosperous Sri Lanka. President and the Government should take immediate steps towards this not wasting any time.

Opportunities like this are very rare in history. You don’t get chances to shape the future of a country every day. Sri Lanka has the resources, the man power to go the journey to a better tomorrow. People have made the correct decision in choosing a President to take them there. It’s up to the President and the Government to take the initiative.

Voting is not only a right but a great responsibility

Sri Lanka will choose her next president on 26th January 2010. As fate may have it, just like in 2006 Sri Lanka will be facing another monumental historic moment in her illustrious journey almost 3000 years long. People of Sri Lanka cannot afford to make a mistake for the simple reason that repercussions of such a mistake would shatter the entire country and plunge the unborn generations in to suffering as we have witnessed before our very own eyes for the past 30 years. It is in this sense that we should remind ourselves that 'Voting is not only a right but a great responsibility'. We should not think lightly about this and force ourselves to make a decision for all the wrong reasons. This is not an election in a town council or a vote to choose a President for a club. We are selecting an Executive President and placing the fate of mother Lanka on his hands for the next coming years. We are effectively making a decision on what sort of an environment the next generations of Sri Lankans are going to be brought up in. So whatever petty personal agendas, likings or disliking we have should come secondary and we must emphasize the security and longevity of mother Lanka. Such is the gravity of the decision we will be making on the 26th. Don’t think of 26th as another election on a Tuesday !!!! Choose wrongly and every day after that for the coming years can become your nightmare.

If someone doesn't understand the gravity of the situation let’s turn back the clock to 2006.

There is no argument to the fact that L.T.T.E was destroying the country. Whatever the humble beginnings they might have had or whatever the 'ideals' they were pertaining to represent by 2006 L.T.T.E was a terrorist organization operating in Sri Lanka with a global presence. It could blow up a bomb anywhere it wanted or take a life of anybody it wished. Didn't matter if the person was Tamil, Muslim or Sinhalese you go against them or raise your voice against them and death would come knocking to your door step. Sri Lanka was deprived the services of great tamil politicians like Lakshman Kadirgamar, Nilan Theruchellwum. The number of sinhalese leaders that were taken from the hands of mother Lanka were countless. It is doubtful whether Sri Lank will ever see the likes of Lalith Athulathmudali, Dencil Kobbekaduwa again. Just imagine if all these people had their full life to live and could serve Sri Lanka as they wished, Wouldn't we be living in a better society right now. So great was the blood thirst of L.T.T.E, India lost one of her crowned jewels in Rajiv Gandhi !!!. To make matters worse by 2006 the previous leadership had identified the legitimacy of this ruthless organization. It was given 2/3 control over the beautiful blue seas of mother Lanka and 1/3 of her land. Never in the entire history has Sri Lanka being so disgraced. We were a country that fought to protect itself. A country that fought for the ideals we believed in. A country where people from all backgrounds, religions and races lived in harmony. But by 2006 the leadership of the government was acting like people without a backbone. Controlling Sri Lanka to the tunes of the western world, signing peace agreements that kept the Army, Navy and Air Force to it barracks but allowed gunmen of L.T.T.E to kill intelligence officers at their discretion. The exposing of soldiers who exhibited gallantry and bravery unheard of before by penetrating enemy lines deep within jungles of Mullaitive and bringing terror to 'Prabakaran' (so much so that he had no option but to sign a peace agreement) by the then government was the ultimate betrayal. Making the ultimate sacrifice in the battlefield is one thing but being gunned down in broad day light in your home or while travelling to work is something drastically different. Some officers had to leave the country for which they so selflessly put their lives on the line. The magnitude of support L.T.T.E was getting from the international Diaspora was overwhelming. This was clear by the stock of arms recovered by the soldiers in the recently concluded war. Such was the situation in 2006 and if people made a mistake then, not only north and east but the entire country would have been under the terror chief. Most probably if in 2006 Ranil Wickramasinghe won we wouldn't have a country called Sri Lanka to hold an election in 2010.

In 2006 majority of people realized this and voted for Mahinda Rajapakse.

The very fact that he had the nerve to stay focused on eliminating terrorism until the very end and never deviated from this goal is exemplary. It should also be noted that there was a clear strategy in every aspect which enabled the security forces to pursue their mission. The military operations didn't start immediately. There was a recruitment drive to increase the man-power of the three forces. The necessary fire-power improvements were done. Mahinda Rajapakse did go into peace talks in the genuine hope that L.T.T.E would comply. But unlike his predecessors he was smart enough to develop the contingency plans if the talks broke up and L.T.T.E announced itself at war in the same breath it announced itself at the peace table. So when the Mavilaru situation broke through the forces had the man-power and ammunition not only to neutralize it but to evacuate the entire eastern section. Only under the regime of Mahinda Rajapakse did the entire population supported whole heartedly the ongoing war and the war heroes. Drives like 'Api Wenuwen Api' captured the hearts and souls of Sri Lankans as they began to appreciate the sacrifices made by the modern day heroes. The innovative media coverage inspired people and they began to help as much as they could. Previous governments didn't tap in to the power of the common man in winning the war. But drives like 'Arakshaka Esa' and constant media drives put the whole nation on alert. Many bomb threats were averted due to public diligence. A nation which was in synergy only when the Sri Lankan Cricket team played was now in synergy against the most ruthless terror organization. For the first time the younger generation was inspired to dedicate themselves to saving their motherland. Unlike during previous operations this time when one made the supreme sacrifice there were several behind him to take forward the national flag. The ones who made the supreme sacrifice did so knowing they didn't fight to accomplish some stupid political agenda or to swing some votes to the government. They knew their sacrifices were not in vein. They knew their kith and kin would be taken care of. Just take back your mind to the days of 2008 November, December and early part of 2009. Weren't you anxious to know what happened at the battle field every day?. How many times did you visit the http://www.defence.lk/ or look at the battle progress map. Do you remember how people were so eagerly discussing the status of the battle field and organizing among themselves to collect necessities to the forces or to donate blood? How closely they monitored the progress of the 58, 53, 59 divisions fighting in three fronts. How after 1818 they had national heroes on a battlefield. The fact of the matter is the government had out thought in every department every party that acted to prevent them from defeating the L.T.T.E. They out thought the terrorists by way of ingenious battle field tactics. They outthought negative media agents and agents like tamilnet through their own media publications. This time around the war was not treated as something that could not be won which was the case with previous governments. More importantly this government identified that in order to win the war in the battlefield there were many other aspects that needed to be addressed and everybody needed to work according to the master strategy. It was like a vehicle moving forward, you only see the wheels rotating but a whole lot of small and big things in the engine needs to work together to make it rotate. The ending of the war was truly a remarkable achievement. Sri Lanka had achieved its true independence and announced itself at the world stage. Sri Lanka was no more the ‘bomb country’ as some people identified it!!!.

There were attempts to stop the war.

Whatever said the government didn't enjoy a clear majority in the parliament. Like under Chandrika Cumaratunga regime few people crossing over to the opposition could have ended the war then and there. But Mahinda Rajapakse was instrumental in ensuring governments stability during the four years. Ministers did leave the government but many came in their numbers to support the government which was in a genuine mission to end the war. Although many wouldn't know the banking sector could have broken down forcing the country into economic peril. If the Ceylan Bank issue was not handled investor confidence would have deteriorated resulting in people with drawing money from banks. In fact before Ceylan Bank was taken under government some agents were slowly spreading rumors telling Ceylan Account holders to with draw money as soon as they can. If this was allowed to happen panic could have spread across the entire population forcing people to with draw money resulting in the entire banking sector crashing and placing the entire economy in peril. Although it is not entirely clear whether this was a planned act to topple the government if mishandled the situation would have resulted in the humanitarian operation being halted. Then there was the attempt of creating friction between the executive and jurisdiction powers. The same was used in Pakistan to remove president Musharuff from power and induct the chief of justice as the new president. But the government was alert to these developments and tackled them masterfully. Toward the latter part of the war there were significant foreign interventions as well. India had to be well communicated over as to the plan of the government. How they were attempting to rescue 200.000 odd people hold hostage by the terrorists. UN was trying to interfere. U.S.A had one of their satelites hovering over the hostage camps. There were talks of a rescue operation from a foreign country to rescue Prabakaran. Norway agents were trying to save Prabakaran till the very last minute. But all of these obstacles were overcome by the government by outthinking their opponents and tackling the associated foreign parties in a very professional and diplomatic way. If the Nandikadal operation to save hostages got delayed by couple of days the humanitarian operation would have ended in a totally different way with the intervention of foreign powers. So the four years of Mahinda Rajapakse gave Sri Lanka it's true independence. But it was not in any way a ride in the park. The government was instrumental in handling all of the issues and possible attempts made by external forces to stop the war. Come 2010 the Presidential Election and those same forces are now trying to defeat the current government and deprive mother Lanka her recently gained peace and tranquility once again. We have no doubt that Sarath Fonseka contributed immensely towards defeating the terrorists in the battle field. He is no doubt a fine Army Commander as well. But by the things he is saying now and how he is behaving it's a marvel Mahinda Rajapakse was able to work with him for the past four years. And by no means did he win the war alone. For the simple reason by then L.T.T.E had grown and expanded over the years to such a huge organization which could not be defeated in the battle field alone. That is the sole reason why shadows of L.T.T.E like TNA are still working tirelessly in other fronts to achieve their sole aim of a separate country. Sarath Fonseka alone could no way take the full credit for the military defeat of L.T.T.E since Navy and Air Force played a major role as well. This is the very reason that 2010 elections has become a crucial juncture in Sri Lanka history. This time around elements that seek to divide this country has taken SF as bait to swing votes. As in 2006 people should think hard and be logical in making a decision as who should they vote for.

Some people are in the view that they only see Rajapakse's in TV every day and it's the Rajapakse family that is driving the country.

They are of course referring to Ghotabhaya and Basil. Then the question they should ask themselves is, 'Is Ghotabhaya unfit or unqualified to hold the position of defense secretary?' or 'Has he not done his duties correctly?’. They should then realize that he was not made the secretary of defense because he was the brother of Mahinda Rajapakse. He has battle field experience and the military knowledge to hold such a position. He has served Sri Lanka very well and deserves the same (if not more) accolades as Sarath Fonseka for wiping out terrorism. Furthermore in a situation where the country is facing a bloody war positions like secretary of defense should be given to a person who is faithful to the president. This is the case everywhere in the world. In U.S.A when a new president is elected all important positions are given to close associates of the president. This was the case with president Obama also. When he became the president he handpicked the people to hold important positions. All of them had worked with Obama previously. The point to note here is that in appointing people to such positions they should be qualified and accomplished enough to hold those positions on top being close associates. Being a close associate should not be the overriding criteria it should just be a complementary one. We should look at the Rajapakse's in this context also. Obviously Ghotabhaya is more than qualified to hold the post. Basil is a very good organizer and is doing bulk of the work in developing east and the north. He showed his ability by managing relationships with India during the latter part of the humanitarian operation. Bottom line being they are capable people in handling the responsibilities assigned to them and the only criteria used by Mahinda Rajapakse to give them posts has not been the fact that they are his brothers.

The true fact is people who level such allegations are blind to the real issue at hand.

They don’t realize the gravity of the situation facing the country and they don't realize the fact many external forces were trying to disrupt the government when the war was going on and are trying the same in the elections by making SF their bait. The very fact TNA is on that side stands as ample evidence to this. They are deciding against voting for Mahinda Rajapakse for all the wrong reasons. Some of the reasons being, they see too much of Rajapakse's on TV, they are hoping for some 'change' which they are unsure of, they think the government is the most corrupted in the world without seeing any hardcore evidence or because they can benefit via privatization under a different government. All such things are wrong reasons to vote against Mahinda. If someone is voting against Mahinda for such petty reasons not realizing by doing so that they might lose the very country they are living in then they are not using their voting rights in a responsible way.

Your vote is precious. You should use it in a very responsible way for the betterment of the country.

Remember that your vote is not only your right but most importantly a great responsibility.