SLFP – A PEOPLES’
PARTY BUILT BY FATHER, STRENGTHENED BY MOTHER AND
DESTROYED BY THE CHILDREN.
A.A.M.NIZAM MATARA.
The so-called independence of 1948 was only a tactical and formal handover
of power from the geri-suddas to a bunch of Kalu Suddas under the leadership
of the UNP, who were a bunch of compradore elite more alien than the
Britishers in their outlook, thinking, culture and even in religion.
Political analysts of that period classified this party as a party
of landed aristocracy, the bureaucracy and the big business with little
sense of mission or dedication to the pursuit of social or economic
goals.
Despite change of government the airforce and naval contingents continued
to be under the British Imperialists, and agency houses, monetary interests,
plantation ownership and other economic activities remained unchanged.
Clash of cousins for leadership preoccupied the agenda of this political
party and it was under these circumstances Mr. S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike
was forced to quit the UNP in 1951 and form the Sri Lanka Freedom Party
based on the political thinking of his original political grouping “the
Sinhala Mahajana Sabha”.
In forming the party in 1952 Mr. Bandaranaike said “the appearance
of our party did a great service to democracy by providing a democratic
alternative to UNP”. The Manifesto and Constitution of the party states
“The SLFP is a socialist, democratic party. Economically it believes
that a policy must be formed on the need of the common man.”
It was these real aspirations of the economically backward, socially
outcast, politically deprived majority of impoverished, rural peasantry,
the working class, the vernacular teachers, the Buddhist monks, the
indigenous physicians that made them rally round the new party and launch
the people’s revolution of 1956.
The government of Mr. Bandaranaike guided by the patriotic principles
of the SLFP liberated the country from the clutches of British imperialism
by ordering the Britishers to leave from our air-bases and harbours.
Then the foundation was laid to strengthen the economy of the country
based on people’s aspirations and liberating the masses from the serfdom
of the capitalist elites.
A major step taken by Mr. Bandaranaike to economically strengthen
the masses was nationalization of major services and divert its profit
to be enjoyed by the masses, and establishment of small and medium sized
industries creating employment avenues to the rural masses. The British
tailored foreign policy was changed and instead a pro Afro-Asian, pro
Socialist bloc foreign policy was evolved.
This policy was brilliantly and daringly expounded during the time
of Suez crisis in 1958. Without becoming a paw of the Western Imperialist
aggressors, Mr. Bandaranaike daringly supported the aggrieved Egyptians.
After his assassination by the reactionary forces, Mrs. Bandaranaike
was forced to take up the leadership of the infantile party. The reactionary
forces rejoiced that her ascension to the party leadership will end
the party but she took bold and daring steps to strengthen the party
and fortify the status of the impoverished masses and the rural economy.
Braving the threats of western nations she nationalized the oil companies
and the missionary schools.
To strengthen the rural masses economically, and to solve the grave
unemployment problem of the rural youth, and to make use of the natural
resources State-sector industries were established in the fields of
Steel, Tyre, Leather, Plywood, Fertilizer, Sugar and Textiles. University
education that was a luxury of the elite society was made available
to the rural children by establishing more Universities. Food production
was given prime importance and this not only helped rural peasantry
in the South but also in the Northern Jaffna peninsula.
It was due to the prime importance given by her to uplift the national
economy and free the country from the dependence on foreign supplies,
that the SLFP was able to get a Mayor elected from the Party to the
Tamil populated Jaffna Municipality.
She showed compassions to the youth in the 1971 despite J.R.Jayawardene
and UNP leadership’s advocacy to eliminate them and eradicate threats
to the government machinery by radical groups. She gave bold leadership
to the party on national questions and she was in the forefront against
moves that threatened the sovereignty and the national integrity of
the country.
She led the marches against the Indo-Lanka accord and showed the party
that it was the prime duty and responsibility of the party to oppose
all and every move that threaten the sovereignty and the unitary status
of the country.
When she was mustering the party membership against the terrorist
threat, her daughter the incumbent President, who deserted the party
with a servile reactionary group was feasting with the terrorist enemies
in the Vanni jungles and the South Indian capital.
In the early 1990s when it was apparent that the masses would rally
round Mrs. Bandaranaike and would re-install her in power, the frightened
reactionaries engaged the NGO groups to avert this possibility. The
solution the reactionaries mapped out was to parachute the black sheep
of the Bandaranaike clan, the incumbent President, veiled as an SLFPer
and gradually make her assume the leadership of the party.
This was effected meticulously and together with her the “purple-gang”
that was wandering in the political wilderness, and some other political
nonentities such as S.B.Dissanayake, G.L.Peiris too joined the SLFP
with the prime objective of destroying the party.
Gradually the “purple-gang” (the ex-Bahujana Nidahas Peramuna clique)
and other intruders marginalized the true party members who endured
great hardship and suffering to save and strengthen the party together
with Mrs. Bandaranaike despite threats and intimidation under the UNP
regime, and humiliation by the current “purple-gang” under various acronyms
such as SLMP, BNP and USA.
The incumbent President yielding to the pressures of the reactionary
forces that elevated her to political legitimacy from a status of non-
entity, changed the pro-national, patriotic policies of the SLFP and
embraced the reactionary policies of privatization, free market open-
economy, collaboration with the terrorist enemy, and liberal NGO operation
professed by pro-alien UNP thereby equating the party with that of the
UNP.
Now her brother who left the SLFP due to a personal problem and got
tutored by the reactionary forces while in UNP too had joined her in
the task of equating the party with the UNP. Both parties have now become
virtually two sides of the same coin offering safe havens for reactionary
elements, drug traffickers, money launderers, business tycoons, smugglers,
dollar greedy NGO puppets, rice millers, and anti-national rogues serving
the terrorist enemy. The drama enacted in the Western Provincial
Council in condemning the Chief Minister for corruption and praising
and accepting the same individual as the Chief Minister is one example.
Many such episodes could unfold in the near future to surprise the innocent
voters.
The misguided SLFPers who yet remain in the party with the wrong belief
that it is the same party established by Mr. S.W.R.D.Bandaranaike and
strengthened by Mrs. Bandaranaike may realize their folly if they observe
carefully and seriously about the political past and allegiances of
the persons who hold the posts of advisors to the President and the
Ministers, who hold the posts of Chairmen of major State Corporations
and other Institutions, who control party activities in the Provinces,
in the districts, in the electorates and even in local government levels.
How many of them were with the SLFP throughout in its thick and
thin years? The Bandaranaike children have buried a great national political
party built by their father and strengthened by their mother.
Mr. Bandaranaike and his companions did not remain glued to the UNP
when they found that they could not serve the majority masses by being
components of that party, and they could not change the course of that
party. The true SLFPers in the SLFP today are also faced with the same
predicament.
The duty and responsibility of the patriotic masses should be to
give first and foremost priority to the interest of the country and
join as a single and unified force to save the nation from the destructive
course it had been subjected to by the power hungry politicians
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