Political Slogans In The Recent Past-Sri Lanka

Political Slogans in The Recent Past- Sri Lanka

'Good governance'; yahapalanaya (Sinhalese), could be heard in the common parlance of Sri Lanka today. With people understanding the proper meaning or not the slogan seems to have rooted into the community irrespective of class, creed, gender, age etc. The media played a bigger role in propagating this slogan which really was a novel idea for a nation battered by a decade long war and two uprisings. For some it is a subject for serious discussions and some others; on both political camps, good fodder for laughter and fun over a cup of tea, in office, on the street or in public transport. 

Creation of an attractive political slogan for power is sine-qua-non in the modern world. With more people turning towards education and information technology the attitudes of people towards politics have undergone a revolutionary change. In such a backdrop the creation of an attractive slogan for power has become an indispensable necessity. 

Sometime back it was the slogan 'suba anagatayak-samurdimath ratak' meaning 'a better future and a prosperous country' widely used by the former president Mahinda Rajapaksha that reverberated in the minds of people. However he was able to serve justice to his slogan by eradicating terrorism from Sri Lanka and bringing about a steady growth in the Sri Lankan economy as accepted by most analysts. It was the need of the hour and he did capitalized on it by creating an environment for the Sri Lankans to engage in politics as they wish in every nook and corner of the country without fear. Hence president Rajapaksha could rightly be credited as the father of modern Sri Lanka. 

Way back in 1977, J.R. Jayawardene of the United National Party, an extreme right wing politician, the  architect of the controversial executive presidency of Sri Lanka used the popular slogan of the time 'Darmista Samajayak' meaning 'a just society'. He changed the then SLFP regime by creating 'a world beyond imagination' for the people at that time. People who were suffering from scarcity of food due to the strong socialist policy they followed without properly preparing people for the change educationally grabbed JRJ's attractive slogan at once. However it took a long time for people to understand that they had been beguiled by an attractive slogan. It was during his governance that the country got the biggest black mark in 1982 July: the eruption of ethnic violence. This helped the Tamil separatist movement to launch its terrorist campaign with much vigour. The Sri Lankan society was pushed into deep turmoil as a result of the 'just society' created by JRJ . At the same time thousands of state sector workers who struck work for a mere pay hike of 10 rupees were sacked. It was reported that a large number of workers committed suicide being unable to make both ends meet. The civil society in the South showed their displeasure and anger in an uprising led by the People's Liberation Front (JVP) which was brutally crushed by the UNP regime led by late President R.Premadasa, father of Mr. Sajith Premadasa. Over 60,000 youth were killed or disappeared during a span of two years. Mutilated dead bodies were piled up along the roads. 

Then it was the Marxist party JVP; People's Liberation Front that came out with the slogan 'Unuth Ekai Munuth Ekai' meaning 'both are the same(that is the two main parties UNP and SLFP) in 1999. But they failed to attract the voter towards them as the terror unleashed by the JVP repression still haunted in their minds. People spurned their slogan and re-elected the then incumbent president Mrs. Chandrika Bandaranayake. 

However today political slogans have gone an extra mileage with the social media capturing especially the urban youth. They have developed to the extent of regime change. The young seems to trust the influx of politics related news tit bits with a fervant favour. This trend reached its zenith at the presidential election held recently in Sri Lanka. It is up to the sociologists to weigh the pros and cons of this newest trend and its influence on the future of a nation. They have to find out if a country's destiny is to be decided by an unseen power manipulated through technology. 

Sajendra