{"id":112709,"date":"2021-03-16T16:18:42","date_gmt":"2021-03-16T23:18:42","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=112709"},"modified":"2021-03-16T16:18:42","modified_gmt":"2021-03-16T23:18:42","slug":"good-office-of-sri-lanka-to-resolve-myanmar-issue-using-bmistic-cultural-and-religious-bonds-as-a-vehicle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2021\/03\/16\/good-office-of-sri-lanka-to-resolve-myanmar-issue-using-bmistic-cultural-and-religious-bonds-as-a-vehicle\/","title":{"rendered":"GOOD OFFICE OF SRI LANKA TO RESOLVE MYANMAR ISSUE USING BMISTIC CULTURAL AND RELIGIOUS BONDS AS A VEHICLE"},"content":{"rendered":"

Sarath Wijesinghe President\u2019s Counsel, former Ambassador to UAE and Israel and the President Ambassador\u2019s forum<\/em><\/strong><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n

Friendship with Sri Lanka and Myanmar<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Friendship with Sri Lanka and Myanmar goes back to generations with\nfriendly and cultural bonds on religion culture and long lasting friendships we\nhad for generations. The cultural religious and political prelateship between\nMyanmar and Sri Lanka spans a period of around thousand years. The relationship\nhas been mutually beneficial for both countries on many fronts. It serves as a\ngood foundation, to strengthen the friendship between the two countries. With\nthe rise of Asia as the central political and economic forces of the world we\ncan make together Buddhism again the unifying force in Asia as well as the new\nglobalized world at a time when Buddhism is widely spread in the western world.\nWe can together make Buddhist thought and Buddhist way of life a collective\nreality so that the world at large could gain long lasting solutions. Sinhala\n\u2018\u2019Bikkues\u2019\u2019 resolved conflicts between Sri Lanka and Myanmar on trade during\nKing Parakramabahu (1153-1186) and Alanungsitha (1113-1165) and it was Sinhala\nBikkues who came to rescue the relations, according to \u2018Chulawansa\u2019. A\nsettlement was thus brought about through the mediations of Sinhala Bikkues.-\nsee Sirisena 1978pp33- Myanmer Sanjaraja seeks Refuge in Sri Lanka in 1167,\nwhen king Narathu  left Myanmar in\ndisgust  and sought refuge in Sri Lanka(\n1167-1170)- The Sanjaraja stayed in Sri Lanka for six years. Sanjaraja\nUttarajiva after return to Myanmar was hailed the first Pilgrim of Sri Lanka\nand was indicates that Sri Lanka was considered as the foundation head of\nTharavad Buddhism. Chapata returned to Myanmar along with four other minks so\nthat they could perform ecclesiastical acts separately. According to the\nBurmese chronicle Hmanan Yasawinkly (1112-1167CE) King of Burma visited Sri\nLanka married a daughter of the Sinhalese King and returned with the image of\nMaha Kassapa tether who as highly venerated at the time in Sri Lanka.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Tradition and cultural ties<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

These are the traditional religious and cultural ties apart from trade\nand business thriving then in the friendly nations bonded together in many ways\nwith excellent relations with kings and the people to people contacts that\ncontinues to date with diplomatic relations as members of the United Nations.\nIn the field international relations Myanmar is a member of BIMSTIC and ASIAN\nboth of which are sub regional international organizations which are powerful\nwith 1.5 billion people and 3.5 trillion dollars in BMISTEC and 640 million\npeople and 86%world population in ASIAN when Myanmar is a nation with normal\npotential situated in a naval strategic route with so many natural resources\nwhich attracts world powers to make friendship with.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Difficult Patch<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Currently Myanmar is going through a difficult patch again with the Army\nrule which is not attractive to the west mainly on the human rights front. She\nhad a series of breaks on democratic governments with the most recent break on\nafter the democratic rule of \u2018Aung San Kyi\u2019 the leader of National League of\ndemocracy that commenced on 1990and ended on 2011 with an army coup again by\narmy leader \u2018Min Aung Hlaing\u2019 which is running with a great resistance form the\npeople and the world as before. Army rule has not been alien to Myanmar and the\ndemocracy have her rejuvenation and a recognition and past glory of the time of\nNa win and U Tang one time UN secretary General who brought Burma to fame in\nthe international arena. Myanmar was popular and liked by all members of\nBMISTIC, ASIAN, SAARC and most UN member nations and international\norganizations except for the diminishing process of democratization due to army\nrule reactivating intermittently. She has enormous wealth on the ground and\nhidden the world is aware and awaiting to explore and cannot rule out discreet\ninvolvements with hidden agendas. She needs genuine and good friends and the\nbest friend to use the good office may be Sri Lanka with historic, religious\nand cultural bonds running back to thousands of years. We have a proud history\nof negotiating on our behalf and others previously on many crisis situations in\nthe world. When India and China had issues Madam Bandaraneike offered her good\noffice as leader of the NAM and Sri Lanka and a respected leader respected by\nothers. She used her personal goodwill and charm with Indira Gandhi in the\nresolution of the \u2018Kaththive\u2019 issue and the Indian labour which was brewing for\ngenerations unresolved. On the other hand Army rule is not alien to our region\nBangladesh, and Pakistan had iron fist army rules but gradually reverted back\nto functioning democracy. Army rule I Myanmar is pressurized by the world and\nit may be difficult to sustain with corona and the downtown on the economy\nworldwide with great strain to the world economy, making negotiations easier\nnow. Though there were precedents in Commonwealth on undemocratic countries\nsuch as Pakistan then, Asian attitude is different from that of the western\npatterns of steps on such issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

BIMSTIC, ASIAN, SAARC AND EU<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

BIMSTIC has five members from South Asia and two from South East Asia\nwith 1.5 billion people, with 22% world population, and 1.5 billion income with\n2.8 trillion GDP being a powerful but a friendly group with no rifts or\ndifferences who will be meeting indifferences such as SAARC. India, Bangladesh,\nNepal, Bhutan Sri Lanka Myanmar and Thailand are like minded friends who will\nbe meeting in Sri Lanka to discuss the matters of mutual interest mainly on\neconomic front with no politics in agenda. The group is meeting in Sri Lanka\nunder a friendly atmosphere in order to discuss only the economic issues and\nthe best opportunity to discuss the mutual issues to be resolved amicably. It\nis also advisable to use the good office of the \u2018Bikkues\u2019 who are always in the\nforefront in advising the Kings and governance from time immoral. ASEAN and\nSAARC are regional organizations based in Asia where as defund EU has been once\nthe most developed regional organization SAARC was aspiring to follow to be. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ground Situation <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ground situation is different from the outward appearance in that the\nMilitary has substantial power from the 2008 constitution still in force with \u00bc\nof the parliament and powers over oil gas and sources of income and important\nportfolios with the military. Out of 476 MP\u2019s 396 belongs to the Democratic\nParty and has an overwhelming supper but 400 sitting MP\u2019s democratically\nelected are under house arrest. Protests are all over and 184 people have\nalready dead with 18000 in detention. There is resentment all over the country\nwith professionals and academies to have come to the forefront in support of\nthe pro-democracy movement with the result that the use of good office and a\nsettlement is now an easy matter.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Good office of the State and the \u2018Maha Sanga\u2019<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Maha Sanga in Sri Lanka has played a pivot role in matters of good\noffice and propagation and enhancement of Buddhism and are the best ambassadors\nto initiate actions better than the state intervention. This is something new\nexperience to both countries and if both parties use the historic bonds with\nthe religious and cultural bonds it may be a good start to have a working relationship.\nThere are leading businessmen who have started business in Myanmar with lot of\nhopes on the open and hidden potentials available untapped. One must think in\nterms of economic diplomacy and the other areas such as tourism with tremendous\npotentials to both countries. All these together will have a collective effort\nand a new bond trend and hopes with friendship that creates hopes and good\nwill. Media too will have a major part to play in these innovative propositions\nwhich may attract the Military government and the people of Myanmar<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Good Office of Professionals Academics and Business community – a way\nout <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

It is a good idea for the Bar Association to offer a new Constitution\nand the Organization of Professionals to communicate with the counterparts and\nthe two Ambassador in Sri Lanka and Myanmar with concrete proposals. Do it in\ngood faith and trust with the intention of helping our friendly nation and of\ncourse ourselves as if and when they do well we too will be benefited and the\ngood will we created  with go far and\nbeyond Geneva Process. May everybody be peaceful extend and we extend loving\nkindness to all Human and other beings. Sarath7@hotmail.co.uk<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Sarath Wijesinghe President\u2019s Counsel, former Ambassador to UAE and Israel and the President Ambassador\u2019s forum Friendship with Sri Lanka and Myanmar Friendship with Sri Lanka and Myanmar goes back to generations with friendly and cultural bonds on religion culture and long lasting friendships we had for generations. The cultural religious and political prelateship between Myanmar […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[77],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-112709","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sarath-wijesinghe"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112709","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=112709"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/112709\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=112709"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=112709"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=112709"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}