SRI LANKA- Already entered the Dragon, Return of the Dragon a bit difficult

Sri Lanka- A pawn in the hands of China. India facing tough challenges ahead maintaining balance and peace in the region

In the interests of one and all ...

My dear countrymen!

Recently, Sri Lanka has been plunged into great turmoil due to quick political developments and power succession game, indeed, an unhealthy development.

There are three main players in the whole political drama ;

First - Maithripala Sirisena, President of Sri Lanka, (Former Health Minister in Rajapaksa Govts.)

Second - Mahinda Rajapaksa, who has recently been appointed PM by President Sirisena, (Mahinda Rajapaksa already in power before as premier and President for 10 years at a stretch) who has been a staunch supporter of China.

And, Third being - Ranil Wickremesinghe outgoing PM, inclined towards India.

Sirisena and Wickremesinghe tied up together and Sirisena got Rajapaksa defeated in the presidential election held on 8th January 2015.

In a surprise move, President Maithripala Sirisena, sacks his PM, Ranil Wickremesinghe on 26th Oct’2018, and in his place appointed Mahinda Rajapaksa, whom he defeated in recent past presidential election.

When Sirisena found Wickremesinghe more popular and acceptable among people and lawmakers than Mahinda Rajapaksa he immediately dissolved the Parliament but the Supreme Court overruled it as illegal. In spite of all this Sirisena still adamant and not inclined to call Parliament. Wickremesinghe was quite confident to win over his rival in the trust vote. Though Sirisena promised election in January 2019, however, Parliament was convened by the Speaker and inducted PM Mahinda Rajapaksa could not be able to prove majority in the house and lost confidence vote.

Now, who becomes the PM will be decided only after Supreme Court hears the matter on 5th to 7th Dec’18 in a petition against the President.

Sri Lanka’s politics have generally been more affected by outside forces than inner political developments. Since 2015 some political decisions of Sirisena and Wickremesinghe government seemed favourable to Indian Government that irked China much. They smell a rat that this government will create trouble and ultimately harm them to its future strategic, expansion and multifarious investments plans in Sri Lanka. So they decided to use their yes man Mahinda Rajapaksa to exploit the situations in its favour.

The recent political turmoil in Sri Lanka is the outcome of their (Chinese) dirty game of politics due to which rivals Mahinda Rajapaksa and Sirisena suddenly became friends and change of usurping power game took place which definitely hurts the Sri Lankan people and its democracy, but stuns the world also.

Exactly the same trick China applied in Nepal too by bringing two rival factions (Prachand and Oli) together in 2016. They made alliances, contested together, succeeded and formed the government. Since then China’s reach and participation in Nepal have been increasing day by day in jet neck speed in long-term mutual interests in almost all the fields. Of course, at the cost of India’s diminishing stature, overall interests and damaging centuries old long-established social, cultural, religious and political relationships.

The unprecedented scale at which Chinese Investments were continuing, and Wickremesinghe government was suspecting to be fallen into debt trap any day, they were afraid of many consequences in future against the country’s sovereignty and democratic values.
Recently a Chinese company has built in Sri Lanka a huge modern commercial district using the latest gadgets and state of art technology having all facilities and amenities, at about the cost of 150 million dollars.
Hambantota port is already leased to China for 100 years and although they have promised to use it in business related developmental activities only Lankans are suspicious of uneasy circumstances in future over defaults in loan repayments. In such awkward situations, there are very much chances of China to blackmail them and exploit the situations in its favour by utilising the Port in its strategic interests which in any case not good for India.

Mahinda Rajapaksa had been in power as President for 2005 to 2014. He has been the main architect of wiping out 30 years long drawn ethnic deadly clashes between Sinhala and Tamil. While getting the credit of bringing the war to end he has also been blamed for massacres and elimination of almost entire rebel Tamil minority groups with large-scale human rights violations. As per UN reports at least 40,000 Tamilians were brutally murdered in the name of weeding out the ethnic crisis.

It’s a great irony of human life when the world witnessed the Holocaust of such kind and that too in a Buddha worshipper country where Non-Violence has been prophesied. For such barbaric act, he (Mahinda Rajapaksa) will virtually be termed as a dictator and his reign will better be known as a dictatorial regime.

There have been a number of allegations against him. Misusing his power openly and widely he manipulated and demolished all the institutions and encouraged all around mass corruption and nepotism in the country. All political and government posts had been illegally allocated to family members, friends and yes men only. He and his accomplices earned wealth and fortune out of various Chinese Projects going on in his country.

Very much fed up with Rajapaksa unilaterally decision and dictatorial behaviour, Sirisena and Wickremesinghe came together, made alliances to oust him from power.
After defeating Rajapaksa in Election, a coalition government was formed under the leadership of Ranil Wickremesinghe and Maithripala Sirisena became its President.

But who thought that almost taking U-Turn dramatically, President Sirisena will shock the whole world by dismissing his own choice PM, Wickremesinghe and appoint his opponent, Rajapaksa in his place as PM without giving an opportunity to prove dismissed PM his majority in the parliament.

Now it’s a fact that President Sirisena action was unilateral, illegal and unconstitutional. Repercussions of such ugly developments definitely affect the nation and its people in future politics. Not only people of Sri Lanka but the people world over are worried for whose interest such unhealthy unholy developments took place so quickly and so secretly. There is documentary evidence available to the facts that the Chinese government had hugely funded and spent millions of dollars in Rajapaksa's favour in Election held in 2015 but in vain. 

It’s a routine for China to apply such ugly practices in most of the countries in the Asian region. Recently it has been exposed in the Maldives where its puppet government was removed from office and Indian supported government has taken charge.

In Nepal case too, Oli government later reverted to India too after deeply involved with Chinese and understanding a little of their trapping game plans to counterbalance. So every country attached with China will have to come to India fold sooner or later after burning their fingers and understanding their nefarious design.

The way China is targeting India by entering and encircling Indian friendly neighbouring countries in the whole of the Asian region, with its hostile, destabilising, and expansion policies, really a matter of great concern for India.

Needless to say that how important is Sri Lanka for India for business and strategic points of view. If any hostile government comes in power, it may affect our ongoing and likely future projects here. Recently, India has bagged a big Housing Project which was earlier with the Chinese company. Definitely, India has an eagle’s eyes on every development taking place in Sri Lanka.

Though upholding the constitutional norms and, rightly, timely and just decisions taken by Supreme Court, Parliament and its Speaker the present crisis was somehow averted, Let us hope optimistically that Ranil Wickremesinghe who has a soft corner for India gets reinstated office as PM. 

However, it is desirable of India to be always on alert mode for swift actions whenever and wherever necessary and secondly, must reorient it policies altogether inside out towards all its neighbours for their all-time support, cooperation and goodwill. It will work and pay in the long run.

Jai Hind.

Writer- Sinha.P.K. Views expressed are strictly personal. Feedback / Criticism welcome at Email -pkmsinha@gmail.com or follow @ pkmsinha.blogspot.in