{"id":115354,"date":"2021-06-18T16:39:56","date_gmt":"2021-06-18T23:39:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=115354"},"modified":"2021-06-18T16:40:36","modified_gmt":"2021-06-18T23:40:36","slug":"the-united-state-of-america-the-land-of-hypocrisy-lies-and-conspiracies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2021\/06\/18\/the-united-state-of-america-the-land-of-hypocrisy-lies-and-conspiracies\/","title":{"rendered":"The United State of America \u2013 The land of hypocrisy, lies, and conspiracies."},"content":{"rendered":"<h2><span style=\"color: #0000ff;\"><em><strong data-rich-text-format-boundary=\"true\">By Jaliya Wickremarachchi Ontario, Canada.<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n\n\n<h4 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Part I<\/h4>\n\n\n\n<p>It was six months ago that American insurrection took place in Washington DC.\u00a0 January 6<sup>th<\/sup> 2021, will undoubtedly go down in history as the darkest day of American democracy.\u00a0 The world watched with horror as the most powerful beacon of democracy was coming apart by angry White mobs.\u00a0 They were politically and racially motivated, fuelled by their supreme leader Donald Trump and his Republican enablers. \u00a0He had been shamelessly and cleverly manipulating his followers for four years with lies and conspiracies, like never seen before.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Many\npundits and commentators on mainstream and social media described how shocking\nand horrifying these attacks on Capitol Hill were. It was the temple of the\nAmerican democracy, boasted as the epitome of the democracy since the inception\nof democracy in Greece centuries ago. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>America\nhad been telling the world how great its democracy, rule of law, and freedom\nwere. &nbsp;All the while they were turning a\nblind eye to their own racism, social injustice, violence, and income inequality,\nincluding lack of basic social services to millions of low-income Americans,\nmost of whom are Black, Latino, and Indigenous Americans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Every\nAmerican administration in the past, be it Republican or Democrat, had been boasting\nand preaching to the world &#8211; especially to developing countries like Sri Lanka &#8211;\nto follow those American values they hold so dear to their hearts. They told us\nin the developing world that we should follow the rule of law and democracy,\nrespect human rights, and treat minorities with respect and dignity. Yet, they\nnever follow their own rules in treating American minorities with respect and\ndignity. &nbsp;Human Rights? &nbsp;America is the biggest violator of human\nrights in the world. They have killed, maimed, and caused unprecedented human\nmiseries around the world, in the name of preserving their version of democracy,\nrule of law, and freedom, by invading other nations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/davidswanson.org\/warlist\/\">U.S. Wars and Hostile Actions: A List\n\u2013 Let&#8217;s Try Democracy (davidswanson.org)<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-wordpress wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-consortiumnews\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"McQ0Uf2ddE\"><a href=\"https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/2018\/04\/25\/how-many-millions-have-been-killed-in-americas-post-9-11-wars-part-3-libya-syria-somalia-and-yemen\/\">How Many Millions Have Been Killed in America\u2019s Post-9\/11 Wars? Part 3: Libya, Syria, Somalia and Yemen<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"&#8220;How Many Millions Have Been Killed in America\u2019s Post-9\/11 Wars? Part 3: Libya, Syria, Somalia and Yemen&#8221; &#8212; Consortium News\" src=\"https:\/\/consortiumnews.com\/2018\/04\/25\/how-many-millions-have-been-killed-in-americas-post-9-11-wars-part-3-libya-syria-somalia-and-yemen\/embed\/#?secret=gzPWmLiSat#?secret=McQ0Uf2ddE\" data-secret=\"McQ0Uf2ddE\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>Yet,\ndespite the rhetoric and hypocrisy, the rest of the world, including us in Sri Lanka,\nbelieved America for decades for its version of democracy, rule of law,\ninnovations in science, technology, and their so-called exceptionalism &#8211; the\ntheory that they were inherently better than other nations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Like\nmany in my generation, I clearly remember the day in July 1969 when the first man\nlanded on the moon, which was an unprecedented milestone in the history of the\nmankind. &nbsp;As a teenager interested in\nscience and technology, I became a great admirer of America and what it had to\noffer to the rest of the world. I was not alone in this respect. Millions of young\nbaby boomers around the globe admired USA for many reasons.&nbsp; Among them rock and roll music, cowboy\nmovies, luxury automobiles, open and vast landscape, not to mention the\nHollywood &#8211; a portal to the unique American culture and its glamorous lifestyles,\nlike no other. Like many teens at the time, I was in awe and mesmerized by this\nglorified culture that was exposed to the world through its mainstream media.\nWe did not realize at the time that there was a dark side to its glory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>However,\nafter living nearly five decades in Canada, America\u2019s friendly neighbour to the\nnorth, I see now how we have been misled and lied to by this self-proclaimed\nprotector of the world. Not only to the world, but to a generation of its own\ncitizens, American governments (like many governments around the world) have\nnot been exactly honest. In my opinion, every US administration (Republican\/Democrat\nalike), had been misleading the American people for decades. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\nmost obvious deception is how America fabricated facts to invade other nations.\nThere are many examples, such as the Vietnam and Iraq wars. These are some of the\nmost obvious wars that America got involved in to fulfil its own imperialist agenda.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For\nexample, in August 1964, the US claimed that one of their naval vessels was\nattacked by the North Vietnamese (Communist) forces at Gulf of Tonkin, to\njustify the invasion. It was admitted later by US naval officials that such an\nincident never happened. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.usni.org\/magazines\/naval-history-magazine\/2008\/february\/truth-about-tonkin\">The\nTruth About Tonkin | Naval History Magazine &#8211; February 2008 Volume 22, Number 1\n(usni.org<\/a> <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\nresult of this lie was the massacre of thousands of innocent Vietnamese by the\nAmerican war machine, and loss of over 50,000 US soldiers, who were mislead by\ntheir own government into thinking that they were fighting to save their\ncountry from evil Communism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>There\nwas no other war that has created such social, cultural, and political upheaval\nin America the way Vietnam War did. Yet America has never learned from its past\nmistakes, perhaps due to their ongoing perception of American exceptionalism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\ninvasion of Iraq was another debacle that the US fabricated, accusing Sadam\nHussein to have weapons of mass destruction. This turned out to be one of America\u2019s\nbiggest propaganda lies, causing wide-spread destruction and atrocities for\nyears to come. This also led to the destabilization of Middle East, giving rise\nto Jihadist terrorism.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/theintercept.com\/2018\/02\/06\/lie-after-lie-what-colin-powell-knew-about-iraq-fifteen-years-ago-and-what-he-told-the-un\/\">https:\/\/theintercept.com\/2018\/02\/06\/lie-after-lie-what-colin-powell-knew-about-iraq-fifteen-years-ago-and-what-he-told-the-un\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>All\nthis destruction and mayhem was caused by America and its Western alliance in\nthe name of preserving democracy, rule of law, and the biggest lie of all is to\nprotect human rights, while killing thousands of innocent people in the process.\nThe biggest crime of all is that America has never been held accountable for\nthe war crimes committed in other countries. The United Nation Human Right\nCommission (UNHRC), Human Right Watch (HRW), had failed to raise concerns\nagainst these heinous war crimes. It clearly shows how biased, and who these organizations\nare working for. &nbsp;It was obvious as none\nof these human right crusaders uttered a word when an innocent Black man \u2013\nGeorge Floyd, was murdered (lynched) by White police officers in public. If\nthat was not blatant violations of human rights, then I do not know what it is?\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Yet\nthese same human right champions are quick to accuse and shame other countries\n(like Sri Lanka), for alleged war crimes and human right violations. &nbsp;America talks a good game on human rights and\ninternational law, yet refuses to sign most human right treaties, or to be part\nof the International Criminal Court (ICC). &nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/thehumanist.com\/news\/international\/the-international-criminal-court-why-is-the-united-states-not-a-member\/\">https:\/\/thehumanist.com\/news\/international\/the-international-criminal-court-why-is-the-united-states-not-a-member\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>America\ncalls itself a moral leader and protector of freedom and rule of law, yet cozies\nup to some of the worst dictatorships, such as the one in Saudi Arabia, as well\nas other well-documented human right violators like Israel, Brazil, etc. There\nis no end to American hypocrisy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What\nwe have witnessed on the January 6<sup>th<\/sup>, 2021, could well be the\nbeginning of the end of a superpower, thanks to its own arrogance, ignorance,\nand exceptionalism. &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/foreignpolicy.com\/2011\/10\/11\/the-myth-of-american-exceptionalism\/\">The\nMyth of American Exceptionalism \u2013 Foreign Policy<\/a>&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Confidence is an asset for any nation. But when a\nnation perceives itself as above the law and convinced of invincibility or that\nit cannot fail, then reality is likely to deliver a wakeup call &#8211; which came\nfor US on the 6<sup>th<\/sup> of January, at the Capitol Hill. &nbsp;Ancient Greece, Napoleonic France, imperial\nJapan, and colonial Britain have demonstrated this sort of arrogance, and all with\ndisastrous results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\nconspiracy theories (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.factcheck.org\/2020\/10\/trumps-long-history-with-conspiracy-theories\/\">https:\/\/www.factcheck.org\/2020\/10\/trumps-long-history-with-conspiracy-theories\/<\/a>),\nand pathological lies of Donald Trump and his Republican enablers had managed\nto convince almost 70% of the Republican voters that Trump would have won\nlandslide if the election was not rigged by the Democrats.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.latimes.com\/opinion\/story\/2020-12-06\/donald-trump-election-fraud-lies-psychology\">https:\/\/www.latimes.com\/opinion\/story\/2020-12-06\/donald-trump-election-fraud-lies-psychology<\/a>\nThis is despite any evidence to prove it. That is an astounding number of Americans\nwho no longer have faith in their electoral process of democratic institutions.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>For\nfour years, Donald Trump conditioned his supporters to distrust democratic\ninstitutions such as the government. &nbsp;At\nevery political rally, he drove his supporters into frenzy with lies and\nconspiracy theories. &nbsp;Like those ancient\nViking and Anglo-Saxon warriors, they love to bang their chests chanting <em>USA! USA! USA<\/em>!\u201d and carry the flag,\nincluding the Confederation flag \u2013 a clear symbol of White Supremacy and\nsystemic racism. His supporters call themselves patriots, willing to die for\ntheir cause. This cause is the preservation of White supremacy and White privilege.\n&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Of\ncourse, Donald Trump did not invent White Supremacy or racism.&nbsp; He just gave oxygen to those under currents that\nwere always there already.&nbsp; They never\nwent away.&nbsp; If they did, Black leaders\nlike Martin Luther King, John Lewis, Malcolm X, and their ancestors would not have\nhad to fight for civil rights for decades. The Black Lives Matter movement is the\nresult of ongoing injustice and systemic racism in America and its\ninstitutions, including in the media. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To\nunderstand what happened on the 6<sup>th<\/sup> of January, one must understand America\u2019s\nviolent history, which led to the creation of the US constitution after the\ncivil war, nearly 245 years ago. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.battlefields.org\/learn\/articles\/10-facts-what-everyone-should-know-about-civil-war\">10\nFacts: What Everyone Should Know About the Civil War | American Battlefield\nTrust (battlefields.org)<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>White\nentitlement, racism, and slavery were the undeniable factors that shaped the\nAmerican political and cultural landscape for centuries. Times may have changed\nbut the American (White) mentality may have not. The brutal violence and racist\nsentiment that led to the first civil war and subsequent insurrections were\nclearly on display on the 6<sup>th<\/sup> of January, when a White mob attacked\nCapitol Hill. In some ways it may be a precursor to what to expect in the future\nif the US leaders and law makers ignore this reality.&nbsp; The White Supremacy in America is not a new\nphenomenon. It has always been there.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>In\n1877, the southern Democrats passed the Jim Crow law to maintain White\nSupremacy, segregating and denying civil rights to Black people. These policies\ncontinued for generations and were worse in some southern states as late as the\n1960s. &nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/onlinellm.usc.edu\/a-brief-history-of-jim-crow-laws\/\">https:\/\/onlinellm.usc.edu\/a-brief-history-of-jim-crow-laws\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\nis a prime example of how White lawmakers embedded systemic racism to\nmarginalise Black people and other minorities to maintain White privilege and\nentitlement intact for generations.&nbsp;\nUnfortunately, many Black people are still treated like third class\ncitizens in their own country, especially by the law enforcement agencies and\nmany other institutions. &nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>White\nsupremacy is not limited to America. It thrives in many European countries\nincluding the United Kingdom, France, Germany, and in regions of Scandinavia,\nand Eastern Europe. Even in countries perceived as progressive, like Canada and\nAustralia, there are some groups who still believe in White supremacy and Nazi ideology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Despite\ngenerations of injustice, systemic racism, and oppression, the history shows the\nAmerican Blacks have never stormed US institutions like Capitol Hill. &nbsp;Yet it was the most privileged, well-protected,\ngroup of White Supremists who done the most damage to their own institution that\nprotected them for generations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>It\nwas often the Black community, with leaders like Martin Luther King Jr. and\nJohn Lewis, who have upheld peaceful and non-violent principles to demand basic\ncivil rights. &nbsp;Perhaps it is time for the\nWhite America and its leaders to learn and understand from Black community how\nhard it has been in their life-long struggle in America.&nbsp; Perhaps it is also time for the rest of the\nworld to stop stereotyping Black people as violent, lazy, drug addicts, and\ncriminals \u2013 the ugly picture that America and its White media portrayed to the\nworld for generations. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>We\nare living in turbulent times, with a global pandemic like none we have\nwitnessed almost in a century. Last year (2020) the world\u2019s most powerful\ncountry was out of control in their handling of the pandemic. This is mostly due\nto the ignorance and impotence of the former Trump administration, also due to the\nAmerican public\u2019s distrust of authorities, and refusal to follow rules like\nwearing a mask or follow social distancing. &nbsp;No country in the world has politicized COVID-19\nthe way America had done under Trump \u2013 making them the number one nation of COVID-19\ndeaths and cases so far. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/interactive\/2020\/health\/coronavirus-maps-and-cases\/\">https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/interactive\/2020\/health\/coronavirus-maps-and-cases\/<\/a>&nbsp; It was truly a tragedy and a shame,\nespecially for a country that used to lead the world in many areas, including\nmedical and health field.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\nrest of the world may be having serious doubts if the US can face its\nchallenges, unless the new administration manages to stop the proverbial bleeding\ninitiated by Trump four years ago. It will be a monumental task to unite a\ncountry that is deeply divided racially, politically, and economically. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>No\nmatter how painful it is, America must come to terms with the new reality of a\nfragmented country. American leaders must stop misleading the people with their\npolitical rhetoric and hollow slogans of American exceptionalism and past\nglory. They must look inward to their own problems, rather than lecturing the\nother nations and trying to police the world.&nbsp;\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>America\nis not in a position to dictate its terms on democracy, rule of law and human\nrights to other countries, especially when its own citizens are refusing to\nobey those rules and values. It has lost its credibility and moral values. Then\nagain, America has a habit of interfering in other nations, ignoring all their\nown problems that happen in their own backyard. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>President\nBiden, recognising the dire state of the Union, gave a passionate and emotional\nspeech at his inauguration (January 20, 2021), reminding Americans of the\nuphill battle that America is facing.&nbsp; Biden\u2019s\nspeech was a sombre reminder to all Americans that they cannot take democracy,\nliberty, or freedom for granted, which White America (majority) had enjoyed for\ngenerations. These values are under attack not from a foreign enemy, but rather\nby made-in-America White terrorists. It was a rude awakening for America to see\ntheir symbol of democracy &#8211; Capitol Hill- surrounded by heavily armed military,\nmore like what we have seen in Bagdad or Kabul. &nbsp;Ironically, those were the images the world\nsaw in Iraq, Libya, Afghanistan, etc., after the US military invaded and\ndestabilized these nations. Now, the chickens have come home to roost to remind\nAmericans that pain and mayhem that they had caused in those countries may\neasily come back to haunt them. It remains to be seen how America will overcome\nthese self-inflicted wounds, which will have ramifications not only for US but\nfor the entire world.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>America is not the dominant power it once was. There\nare new and upcoming nations in the world. Once a powerhouse of economic,\nmilitary, technological, and industrial strength, the country now has a\nformidable challenger. China will surpass US in these areas soon if it has not already.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>(<a href=\"https:\/\/m.theindependentbd.com\/post\/256350\">China \u2013 the rise of next\nsuperpower | theindependentbd.com<\/a>)<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>America\nand Europe led the world in the 20<sup>th<\/sup> century, as they have benefited\nand prospered, especially US.&nbsp; All the\nwhile the developing countries were struggling to survive the brutal European\ncolonialism, and the mess it had left behind. &nbsp;After the Second World War, the Western\nnations led by US &#8211; dominated the world\u2019s finances, industry, trade,\nmanufacturing, etc. They established global institutions like International\nMonetary Fund (IMF), World Bank (WB), and the World Trade Organization (WTO),\nwhich greatly benefited a limited number of countries and is used to control developing\nand less developed nations. Thanks to these organizations and their pro-Western\npolicies, the West has prospered tremendously, especially US becoming the most\npowerful nation on earth, economically and militarily. &nbsp;Global wars and conflicts have been extremely\nprofitable for the US economy, and its war machine. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>At\nthe beginning of the 21<sup>st<\/sup> century, the shifting of economic power from\nWest to East had started, as China and India begun to develop their economies\nrapidly. This is especially true of China, which has become an economic powerhouse.\nWith economic dominance comes the financial and military power. &nbsp;The West cannot afford to ignore or treat\nChina as an enemy, the way they had treated Soviet Union during the cold war.\nThe rise of China is a remarkable story itself, and the West did not expect\nChina will be their biggest rival economically and militarily in such a short\ntime. Today world\u2019s economy, especially US, depends on China, as majority of\nconsumer, industrial and medical products are manufactured in China. While the\nrest of the world is facing a negative growth in economy due to COVID-19, China\nis the only country showing a significant growth of its GDP this year,\nsurpassing all the other major economies. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.bbc.com\/news\/business-56768663\">China&#8217;s economy grows 18.3%\nin post-Covid comeback &#8211; BBC News<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>America\nhas a new President, who has made promises to be a healer of the deep divisions\nof inequality and systemic racism. &nbsp;Nearly\nhalf of the country <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/election\/2020\/results\/president\">https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/election\/2020\/results\/president<\/a>\nvoted for Donald Trump, who literally set fire to American democracy, and its\ninstitutions on his way out. Yet almost seventy percent of Republican voters still\nbelieve in Trumpism, including many Republican law makers. Whether President\nBiden can safely navigate the landmines laid by Trump and his supporters and bring\nback the country to its normality, remains to be seen. &nbsp;<strong><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Part II: Lessons for\nSri Lanka<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Like\nUSA, Sri Lanka has been a divided nation politically and socially for many\ndecades. &nbsp;Sri Lanka had its share of corrupted\nleaders &#8211; be they Sinhalese, Tamil or Muslim &#8211; who were hypocrites, liars, and conspirators.\nThey have been misleading Sri Lankans for generations for their own benefits\nand gains.&nbsp; We have seen how our\npolitical and community leaders manipulate their own communities with lies and\nconspiracies, fuelling racial and social disharmony. &nbsp;Such unscrupulous activities led to 35 years\nof terrorism and a war, killing innocent Tamils, Sinhalese, and Muslims, while\nsinking the country economically, socially, and politically.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Just\nlike the US must learn from its ugly past, Sri Lanka must also learn from its\npast if the country is to move forward as a unified nation. &nbsp;It is always the politicians (not the\ncitizens) who exploit and create division and mayhem. &nbsp;There are many lessons Sri Lanka can learn\nfrom America and its mistakes of racial, divisive, and entitlement politics. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Whether\nwe like it or not, a change of government in America will affect Sri Lanka in\none way or the other. The Biden administration will not be favourable towards Sri\nLanka when it comes to HRs and reconciliation efforts. There is no reason to\nbelieve they will be any different this time around, especially at the UNHRC session\nin Geneva. &nbsp;If anything, America will\ncontinue to harass and bully developing nations like Sri Lanka with their\nhypocrisy of HRs, democracy, freedom, etc, with the help of their biased\nagencies like UNHRC, ICC, HRW, AI, and other NGOs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\nunderlined motive of America (and its Western alliance) towards Sri Lanka is\nnot necessarily democracy, HRs or rule of law, or the ethnic issues, but the\nimportance of strategic geo-political location of Sri Lanka in relation to\nChina &#8211; the nation considered to be the single biggest threat to Western\neconomy and security today. The US dominance of Indian and Pacific oceans is threatened\nby the rising navel and military power of China. Whoever controls the Indian\nOcean will greatly benefit from having Sri Lanka on their side, since it is\nonly 10 nautical miles north of the world\u2019s busiest navel traffic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed-wordpress wp-block-embed is-type-wp-embed is-provider-south-asia-gateway-terminals-pvt-ltd\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"wp-embedded-content\" data-secret=\"qHIdJDTBSU\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sagt.com.lk\/port-of-colombo\/location.html\">Location<\/a><\/blockquote><iframe loading=\"lazy\" class=\"wp-embedded-content\" sandbox=\"allow-scripts\" security=\"restricted\" style=\"position: absolute; visibility: hidden;\" title=\"&#8220;Location&#8221; &#8212; South Asia Gateway Terminals (Pvt) Ltd\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sagt.com.lk\/port-of-colombo\/location.html\/embed#?secret=qHIdJDTBSU\" data-secret=\"qHIdJDTBSU\" width=\"500\" height=\"282\" frameborder=\"0\" marginwidth=\"0\" marginheight=\"0\" scrolling=\"no\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>The rise of China and its close relationship with Sri Lanka is the main\nreason why Sri Lanka has come under scrutiny of America and its allies.&nbsp; India has always been a political conundrum for\nSri Lanka due to its unwelcome political influence and proximity. For majority\nof Sri Lankans, especially for Sinhalese, India is like an obnoxious and\nannoying relative who is always poking fingers in their family affairs, mainly\ndue to historical, cultural, and religious bind between two countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sri\nLanka should be careful not to depend on India for its economic, political, and\nnational problems. &nbsp;India has its own agenda\nand own problems when dealing with Sri Lanka due to its domestic politics in\nTamil Nadu, and perceived threat to their security from emerging China, which is\ngaining a wide foothold in India\u2019s neighbours. Taking advantage of India\u2019s insecurity,\nAmerica is exploiting it heavily to make India their proxy to counter China. &nbsp;America is no different than the defunct\nBritish Empire which used divide and rule\u201d tactics to destabilize and colonize\ncountries.&nbsp; America is following the same\npath in a different manner using democracy, HRs, rule of law, as their weaponry\nto control or destabilize countries like Sri Lanka. The shameless manner of the\nformer US ambassador to Sri Lanka, Alaina B. Teplitz interfered in domestic\nissues is a classic example of how Western diplomats meddle in Sri Lanka well\nbeyond their diplomatic mandate.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\nQuadrilateral Security Dialogue (known as the Quad) is an example of how US is\ntrying to form a strategic partnership between the United States, Japan, Australia,\nand India to counter the emerging economic and military power of China.&nbsp; QUAD is called an Asian NATO led by USA. <a href=\"https:\/\/time.com\/5947674\/quad-biden-china\/\">Why the Quad Alliance Is\nAmbiguous and Contradictory | Time<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\nWest exploits local divisions of ethnic and religious minorities, and internationalizes\nthose issues through their institutions like UNHRC, HRW, AI, and other Western\nbased NGOs and think tanks, to show that the West is concerned about the freedom\nand human rights of global minorities. &nbsp;This is while turning a blind eye to systemic\nracism, and oppression of minorities in America &#8211; such as Black people, Latinos,\nand Native Americans, Indigenous communities in Canada and Australia, non-white\nimmigrants and Muslims in UK, and in the European Union. The list goes on, but\nthey conveniently turn a blind eye to their own biases and prejudices.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Yet\nthese hypocritical Western nations are eager to point fingers on developing\nnations, such as Sri Lanka for eliminating terrorism and bringing peace and\nstability, which benefited the war-ravaged North and East the most. Democracy,\nfreedom, equity, justice, and lasting peace are universal values shared by all of\nhumanity. The difference is that the West believes (arrogantly) that these values\nbelong only to them, and they can weaponize such values to crucify other nations\nthat do not buy into their hypocrisy.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sri\nLanka should tread cautiously. &nbsp;Certainly,\nSri Lanka needs global markets, investors, and expertise to further develop its\neconomy, manufacturing, and infrastructure. Due to its strategic geo-political location,\nSri Lanka must be careful in identifying its allies and enemies. The most strategic\nway to leverage geo-political importance is to be cautious about aligning with\nIndia, USA, or China. Sri Lanka must not give ownership of its natural resources\nor sell off national assets like harbours and airports. &nbsp;However, Sri Lanka desperately needs the\nsupport of reliable partners like China &#8211; not only to develop the country but\nto defend Sri Lanka at the international stage from hostile and bias\ninstitutions like UNHRC. &nbsp;It might be a high\nwire balancing act to stay non-aligned, especially when Sri Lanka is in significant\ndebt and its economy is perilous. &nbsp;But opportunities\nexist if the current leaders are politically and diplomatically savvy to\nunderstand that global politics is a chess game, which needs strategic, and out\nof the box thinking. The late Prime Minister of Singapore, Lee Quan, understood\nit early on. That is why Singapore is one of the countries with highest per\/capita\nincome in the world today, equally admired by the East and the West.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.gfmag.com\/global-data\/economic-data\/richest-countries-in-the-world\">Richest\nCountries in the World 2020 | Global Finance Magazine (gfmag.com)<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Unfortunately,\nwe have yet to see such a visionary leadership that can guide Sri Lanka, to\nmove forward with unity, prosperity, respecting the will of the people. &nbsp;Almost 73 years after independence, Sri Lanka\nis still struggling economically, socially, and politically. &nbsp;Many other countries in the region such as\nVietnam, South Korea, Taiwan, which have been ravaged by wars and other disasters\nhave moved on becoming economic miracles and social models that many countries\nlook up to. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Culture\nof corruptions, ego-centric politics with entitlement, with little or no respect\nfor the law and order are the primary reasons why Sri Lanka has been unable to move\nforward as a nation; making it dangerously vulnerable for the foreign, and\nother undesirable forces to interfere in domestic, and international affairs of\nthe nation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\nlatest developments in Canada and USA should be a great concern for the present\nregime in Sri Lanka. The passing of Ontario Bill-104 (Tamil Genocide and\nEducation Week Act &#8211;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.ola.org\/en\/legislative-business\/bills\/parliament-42\/session-1\/bill-104#:~:text=Bill%20104%20has%20been%20enacted,as%20Tamil%20Genocide%20Education%20Week\">Bill\n104, Tamil Genocide Education Week Act, 2021 &#8211; Legislative Assembly of Ontario\n(ola.org)<\/a>)\nsent shock waves among Sri Lankan communities around the world. Its\nramification on future generation of Sri-Lankan Canadians will be devastating\nas every school in Ontario will have to teach every year (in May), about an\nalleged genocide of Tamils in Sri Lanka.&nbsp;\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The\nother most disturbing development is the passing of a resolution by the US\nCongress recognizing North and East of Sri Lanka as the traditional homeland of\nTamils. This is a recipe for disaster if not met head on by the Sri Lankan\ngovernment. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.congress.gov\/bill\/117th-congress\/house-resolution\/413\/text?r=1\">H.\nRES. 413<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Both\nthese events are extremely damaging to Sri Lanka, and it might open a pandora\u2019s\nbox as many pro-LTTE associations and their supporters in many countries will\nbe encouraged to bring numerous bills and resolutions against Sri Lanka,\nespecially after the passing of Ontario Bill-104. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sri\nLanka may have won the terrorist war, but unfortunately it has failed the\npropaganda war miserably after the war. As a result, well-organized,\nwell-funded, well-connected LTTE organizations in the West are ramping up their\npropaganda war against Sri Lanka in the international arena with vengeance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Ignoring\nthese critical and dangerous issues is not an option for Sri Lanka any longer.\nThere will be a domino effect of these in the Western countries where powerful\npro-LTTE Diaspora is lobbying relentlessly with the help of their supporters\n(politicians) to make Sri Lanka a global pariah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>What\nwe are witnessing now is the results of 12 years (since the end of the war) of\nnegligence and inactions by the successive Sri Lankan governments to counter pro-LTTE\npropaganda in the Western nations like Canada, UK, USA, and Australia where\npro-LTTE Tamil Diaspora lobbying is powerful and effective.&nbsp; <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Sri\nLanka no longer can afford to ignore these highly critical issues, which will\nnot only affect the reputation of Sri Lanka severely, but more importantly its international\ntrade, tourism, etc. This will have a devastating effect on economy, which has\nsuffered badly already due to global pandemic.&nbsp;\n&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Jaliya Wickremarachchi Ontario, Canada. Part I It was six months ago that American insurrection took place in Washington DC.\u00a0 January 6th 2021, will undoubtedly go down in history as the darkest day of American democracy.\u00a0 The world watched with horror as the most powerful beacon of democracy was coming apart by angry White mobs.\u00a0 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":true,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-115354","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115354","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=115354"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/115354\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=115354"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=115354"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=115354"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}