Dilemma of Sri Lankans

Should you send your son or daughter abroad, should they remain here? Does the conflict bother you as an individual and/or as a citizen of the country? Do you dread going in the bus or train worrying that a Tiger bomb will strike?

Do you want to destroy the Tigers; do you want peace; do you want the war to end at whatever cost? Do you hate the politicians?
Choices, hard choices that Sri Lankans are called upon to make all the time – now that the flurry of bomb blasts in buses and trains and the discovery of many more parcel bombs has triggered new-found concern amongst city dwellers and travellers into the city, many of whom are bus and train passengers who commute from far-away distances.

In a way, Sri Lanka is at an interesting juncture in its history and its anybody’s guess whether we’ll recover fully from the many complex and somewhat contradictory issues that the nation and its people are facing.

War, the economy, politics, crises in tourism, fuel, cost of living, trying times for the apparel industry, good earnings from tea and rubber, and an ill-conceived proposal to reduce the number of school days to four instead of five to reduce fuel consumption which was thankfully shot down by the cabinet, are what makes Sri Lanka unique.

We are – what we call - a complain and comply society. We complain about the President, the government and his aides and we comply with their decisions. We cheer when the opposition launches bullock cart protests against the fuel hike but don’t complain when they have their Pajeros trailing behind wasting fuel.

We are fighting a war but the economy is nevertheless growing, albeit slow, but yet growing. Where in the world has an economy grown at an average five percent during a bloody conflict? The shopping malls are full; investors continue to come; the stock market is alive and kicking.

This week a top British tour operator said British travellers are continuing to visit Sri Lanka in large numbers and find this a unique place to visit. Investments on the other hand are also flowing in from countries like Malaysia and India. Some foreigners are positive about Sri Lanka despite the problems.

We grumble about the cost of living but are willing to pack our bags and take the first flight to Bangkok or Singapore on an exciting package tour. No qualms about high costs there. On the other hand, has the average middle class Sri Lankan cut costs? The other day a couple, among many who grumble about the cost of living said their costs have increased by at least Rs 15,000 a month on a year-over-year basis. “So have you trimmed your costs, reduced the number of trips or cut on any expenditure?” I asked. “Not really, it’s difficult to cut … you need to keep the status too, you know,” the wife said.

Comparatively in most other cities, citizens would find ways of cutting their spending. Here resort hotels are filled with middle and upper class Sri Lankans during the weekend. New poverty indicators show poverty is coming down. How can this happen in a country where everything is going up, not down? Unthinkable ah! What’s going on in this state of ours? Are we the problem or is it the politician?

Despite all the shouting about rising costs, lifestyles haven’t changed. More and more people are eating out, picking up food at take-away joints on the way home, shopping at supermarkets and malls, and travelling abroad. There is little or no cost-cutting, bar the shouting.

City workers at the lower end of the employment chain are the worst off. Yet despite the mounting costs or rising personal debt, they won’t give up their mobiles or flashy clothes. Prorities are changing. The other day, a city executive quoted a French travel agent as saying that the latter admired the “Sri Lankan spirit”. “The human spirit that keeps you going despite all that is happening around you is very admirable,” the French agent said.

That ‘spirit’ is what makes Sri Lanka and its people chug along oblivious or sensitised to what happens around you. That’s why we grumble about the cost of living but do anything about it like for example stitching the ‘coat to fit the cloth’. That’s what makes us party all the time while a bomb goes of, here and there – except of course for a few hours of shock, concern.

That’s what makes us unique and why tourists still love this ‘beautiful country’ and want to come here or why some investors still believe this is one of the best places to invest. No doubt the Sri Lankan spirit keeps us going but how productive we are amidst all this uncertain buzz must be a constant source of worry to government and private sector planners.