Saturday’s protest by the JVP youth wing, the Socialist Youth Union (SYU), in Colombo, could be considered an attempt to trigger another wave of anti-government agitations, which seem to have let up during the past several weeks. The government has demonstrated a resolve to do everything in its power to neutralize protests unlike in the past, when under President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s presidency, it gave kid-glove treatment to agitators, unwittingly emboldening them to storm and occupy the President’s House, the Presidential Secretariat, Temple Trees, the Prime Minister’s Office and even try to march on the parliamentary complex. His successor Ranil Wickremesinghe has gone on the offensive.
On Saturday, the government resorted to what may be considered deterrent action in dealing with the protesters; the police used teargas, water cannon and batons liberally to crush the protest, and arrested 83 protesters including the leader of the SYU, Eranga Gunasekara. They obviously had orders to use maximum possible force to keep the demonstrators at bay; a ruthless baton charge left dozens of JVP activists injured. That could be considered a foretaste of what it is to be expected in case of an increase in the intensity of protests.
About 80 protesters taken into custody were granted bail on Sunday (25). This may be considered a comedown for the police, who may have expected all suspects to be remanded for two weeks.
Gazette as a warning shot
The government prepared the ground for Saturday’s police action well in advance. It declared several areas in Colombo and its suburbs as high security zones in keeping with its strategy to prevent protesters from invading nerve centres as they once did.
President Wickremesinghe, in his capacity as the Minister of Defence, issued a gazette notification designating the following areas as high security zones: the Parliament Complex and its adjacent areas, the Superior Court Complex, the High Court Complex- Colombo, the Magistrates’ Court Complex, Colombo, the Attorney General’s Department, the Presidential Secretariat, the President’s House, the Navy Headquarters, the Police Headquarters, Colombo, the Ministry of Defence and the Army Headquarters, Akuregoda, the Air Force Headquarters, Slave Island, the Prime Minister’s Office, Temple Trees and official residences of the Secretary to the Ministry of Defence and the Commanders of Tri Forces.
The special gazette notification says the Defence Secretary will be the competent authority for the implementation of the orders. He is also empowered to make provision for the regulation of certain activities within the zones, based on security situations or during special occasions. Without prior written permission from the IGP, or the Senior Deputy IGP in charge of the Western Province, no person shall conduct or hold public gatherings or processions whatsoever on a road, a ground, the seashore, or other open area situated within the high-security zones. “No person shall perform the construction of a building, a temporary or permanent construction or an excavation within the high-security zones unless a permit from the competent authority is obtained for the said purpose in addition to the legal requirements which should be fulfilled by the person who intends to perform the said construction of a building, a temporary or permanent construction or an excavation.”
It is now clear that the government is ready to go to any extent to prevent the launch of a protest campaign like the Go-Gotagama movement.
BASL censures govt.
The government has drawn heavy flak from the Bar Association of Sri Lanka (BASL) for suppressing the people’s right to protest. The BASL has said it is contemplating legal action against the designation of the high security zones in Colombo to prevent protests.
The BASL has said that ‘it is deeply concerned that under the cover of the purported order under Section 2 of the Official Secrets Act that there is the imposition of draconian provisions for the detention of persons who violate such orders thus violating the freedom of expression, the freedom of peaceful assembly and the freedom of movement all of which are important aspects of the right of the people to dissent in Sri Lanka’.
The BASL says it wishes to remind the authorities including President Ranil Wickremesinghe of the wisdom found in the judgment of the Supreme Court in the ‘Jana Ghosha’ case of Amaratunge v Sirimal and others (1993) 1 SLR 264, which states: “Stifling the peaceful expression of legitimate dissent today can only result inexorably in the catastrophic explosion of violence some other day.” It is doubtful whether the government will heed the BASL’s counsel.
Precautionary measures
The government seems to have taken adequate precautions to disperse protests before they spin out of control. The SLPP was very critical of President Gotabaya Rajapaksa for his leniency towards protesters, and allowing them to invade the President’s House, almost unresisted.
Some SLPP seniors have gone on record as saying that if the Go-Gotagama protesters had been chased out immediately after they set up camp at the Galle Face Green, in April, the uprisings that led to the resignation of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and the ouster of President Rajapaksa could have been averted. But the question is whether the methods adopted by President Wickremesinghe will be effective enough to help neutralize the anti-government demonstrations fueled by people’s suffering and the resultant anger.
The government may not be able to thwart efforts by the JVP, or any other political party or group, to revive Aragalaya as long as the people support it. Almost all those who took part in Saturday’s march were JVP activists unlike in the previous protests where there were many ordinary people. The ouster of President Rajapaksa and subsequent developments, and the steps the current administration has taken to contain the fuel shortage have had a calming effect on the people. But public resentment is on the rise again as the cost of living is soaring, and the SLPP has made a comeback to all intents and purposes, and its politicians stand accused of carrying out corrupt deals. The JVP is trying to capitalize on the situation and mobilize the people.
Copycat protests
The SJB, which is also trying to shore up its image, and expand its support base, certainly does not want to be overshadowed by the JVP. Not to be outdone, it as the main Opposition party is likely to resume its street protest campaign to boost the morale of its MPs and supporters. The government is bound to adopt coercive methods to crush them, the way it did on Saturday.
A cursory look at protests and police action to crush them in this country over the past several decades shows that coercion does not help intimidate the Opposition when public opinion turns against those in power. Attacks only strengthen the resolve of protesters and help them gain public sympathy. This is why governments do not succeed in holding on to power by disrupting protests with the help of the police and goons. The Mahinda Rajapaksa administration resorted to brutal force against its opponents, who also came under goon attacks, but it fell like a house of cards in January 2015.
The economic situation is expected to worsen in the coming months, and clashes between the Opposition and the police are bound to escalate with the government remaining determined to meet threats from its opponents head on.