Indian Ocean ‘pearl’ seen shining again

• Source: Global Times
• [07:32 July 17 2009]
• Comments

Some students of a high school in Colombo display national flags June 12 to celebrate the victory of the Sri Lankan Army over the LTTE. Photo: Ren Yan

By Ren Yan in Colombo

A Sea of lion flags

One thing that has accompanied me during my visit to Sri Lanka is the national lion flag. It is actually a sea of flags, filling Colombo’s wide streets and narrow lanes, flying on flagpoles in front of every hotel and hanging on government offices and humble dwellings. From downtown to the countryside, the lion flags flutter on rooftops, vehicles and dominate the landscape.

But this is apparently nothing compared with the scenes in the first days after President Mahinda Rajapakse declared victory in the 30-year civil war.

A driver named Rata Silva told me that there were cheering crowds waving lion flags, singing and dancing on the streets. It seems their long-time repressed rejoicing and passion cannot be released without waving flags, singing hoarsely and dancing, losing themselves in the celebrations.

No doubt celebrations have been the main activity in recent months across the country.

Three-story billboard

Besides national flags, another symbol of victory is the giant cutouts of President Rajapakse. The hoarding of his smiling face with a “V” sign on Colombo’s streets are even three stories high.

Rajapakse has realized the dream his four predecessors couldn’t. Rajapakse defeated the “invincible” Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), with the military victory putting an end to the decades-old civil war and paving the way for prosperity in the country.

When the Tamil admitted defeat on May 17, Rajapaksa was on his way back to Sri Lanka and received a hero’s welcome. Visibly moved, he knelt down and kissed the ground, the motherland of Sri Lanka freed from the scourge of terrorism.

Tight security

However, police vigilance indicates that total peace has not arrived. My taxi was checked five times during the one-hour trip from the airport to the hotel. There are armed soldiers patrolling the main streets of Colombo every day, similar to what I saw in August.

The tightest security is in the president’s residency district, where everyone entering is checked several times. The arrangements for my interview were verified five times.

Mullaitivu district, the last place controlled by the LTTE, is under military control. Nobody is allowed in unless approved by the Defense Department.

Japanese peace envoy Yasushi Akashi commended the efforts taken by the Sri Lankan government to improve the facilities for the internally displaced, but urged the government to expedite the process of resettlement and improve health conditions.