Lions begging from pariah states

Sri Lanka’s development record might not be as impressive as those of its South East Asian neighbours, but ever since independence we managed to maintain balanced and meaningful foreign relationships. We were poor, but we still had respectable friends; not the outcasts desperately looking for international friends. In other words, Country’s honour at international level was never compromised just for few millions of Dollars.

Certainly this is not something we can except from the cash-strapped and shameless present regime. The norm of the day is to accept money no matter from where.

From whom we beg now? At what cost?

We kneel down and beg from China. In return we join denying the rights of Tibetans, whose land the Chinese dictators forcibly occupies since 1950s. We just ignore that it is another Buddhist country. When the Buddhist monks invite Dalai Lama, the greatest Buddhist religious leader alive today, the state prevents his visit.

We also lick its boots and beg from Burma. It is the Burmese Christian junta military leaders now come to rescue the present government from rise crisis. At what price? Buddhists in Sri Lanka take sides with the junta leadership - not with the Theravada Buddhist monks of Burma who lead a non violent struggle for independence. When the junta government kills Buddhist monks, Sri Lanka, which is supposed to be a Buddhist state – a Theravada Buddhist state – does not even issue a statement condemning that atrocious act. Scared, the Buddhist monks belong to Burmese ‘Ramanna’ nikaya keep their mouths shut.

Entire world loathes the military dictatorship in Pakistan. Current regime in Sri Lanka embraces and begs from Pervez Musharraf too. Our leaders have absolutely no shame.

Now we invite Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, another international political outcast, who wants to wipe off Israel from the face of earth by military means, who does not accept the holocaust and Hitler’s atrocities and whose only interest is his atomic bomb.
 
Why we invite him? Because the current government is concerned about maintaining relationships with Muslims countries? My foot! It does not give two hoots to Muslims. (A key partner of the current government JHU wants all Sri Lankan Muslims to move to Arab, because JHU does not believe any Muslim heritage in Sri Lanka)

Let us be frank. Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad comes here not to bless us in war, but because he desperately needs friends to maintain his international status. He hardly has any friends so he wants to nurture at least few. So he throws some money at our leaders for becoming his buddies – at least till he finds that arrangement useful.
 
On the other hand, our current leaders do not mind him here because they think he offers enough money for them to sustain this already bankrupt regime for few more months, if not weeks.

We are lucky Adolf Hitler, Benito Mussolini, Idi Amin dada and Ferdinand Marcos and dead. Otherwise current Sri Lankan leaders would have licked their boots too and begged for cash.

By the way, Mr Ahmadinejad, we wish you a pleasent stay. We hope you will save at least your clothes.