Features
Biden’s Presidency is somewhat different
Mike Pence escorted out of the Chamber to safety Trump instigated mobs attacked the Capitol building
by Kumar David
Indications are that the Biden Presidency does not resemble any other post-war American presidency. Though he was Obama’s Vice President, thankfully he is not imitating that failed model. Post-war Democratic presidents (Truman, Kennedy, Johnson, Carter, Clinton and Obama) followed a different agenda. FDR however comes to mind when searching for something similar; maybe because the crises now and during the Great Depression were both so daunting. Look at the parlous predicament now – a covid catastrophe, an economic slump, decline in global power, foreign policy setbacks, and Trump incited domestic terrorism. Except for the Great Depression there is no other period since the Civil War when conditions were so perilous. Maybe this is the reason why Biden’s actions so far are reminiscent of the FDR model.
At the same time duplicity is apparent; on Iran he refuses to lift sanctions until the latter comes into full compliance with a treaty that his predecessor Trump ripped up. The US as a superpower thinks it can eat its words and have them. Foreign policy hawks may be regaining ground they lost during the election campaign. When China, as expected, blocked a Security Council resolution to condemn the Burmese coup calling it “an internal affair” (no doubt akin to the incarceration of hundreds of thousands of Uyghur Muslims in Xinjiang!), US condemnation of Chinese duplicity was muted. But with protests spreading across Burma and against the backdrop of a US decision to renew links with the UN Human Rights Council, Biden finally made the right call and imposed tough sanctions on Burma’s military. This will hearten local and international observers of the upcoming UNHRC debate on Sri Lanka. Fifteen months ago I explicitly told my readers that the road to dictatorship in this country will be through the transformation of institutions (courts, constitution, state administration and the military).The Gotabaya Executive, now snarled in internal disarray and a Sino-Quad logjam is uncertain which way to turn. Weeks ago I said in this column (everyone says it now) that tension was rising between the Executive and the Parliamentary arms of government. The Wimal-Kariyawasam clash is symptomatic.
To return to my topic, what is distinctive about the Biden Administration so far is that it is not treading the beholden-to-Wall-Street path that the Obama Administration did from day one. He is also holding firm to a climate-change, racial equality and poor relief agenda despite hostility of powerful lobbies. There is a tussle right now about Biden’s refusal to back-down on his $1.9 trillion covid control, cum economic stimulus, cum income relief for low and middle earner, package, which has run into determined Republican opposition. In FDR style, Team Biden is using stimulus not to shower handouts to big business, as Obama did, but to target infrastructure development and job creation. I am in no hurry to hand out a good-conduct certificate yet, it’s too early for that, but it is necessary to take note of trends. This huge $1.9 trillion package scripts his presidency as an FDR-style New Deal initiative. He seems to be exploring new ground, but caution for a while more before any hagiography is wise.
The $15 per hour minimum wage is a contentious issue. Is it too expensive? Even its most vociferous champion curmudgeonly Bernie Sanders admits “It was never my intention to increase the minimum wage to $15 immediately and during the pandemic. My legislation gradually increases it to $15 an hour over a five-year period; that is what we have got to do.” This minimum wage would reduce poverty but cost jobs, the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office says. Doing so by 2025 would boost pay for 17 million people but cut 1.4 million jobs. Biden cannot backtrack on his oath to implement minimum wage legislation and Democrats will be able include the wage hike in a bill to be passed by Reconciliation (a complicated short-cut process in the Senate that can be used a few times a year without a super-majority, 60 votes). It would have a positive effect of $64.5 billion per year on the federal budget, the boost coming in part from increased payroll tax revenue.
Sri Lankan readers may find a few comments on some members of Biden’s Cabinet helpful – it is overall an able team. Some are known to be competent intellectuals, a few quite distinguished; Yellen (Treasury), Binken (State), Garland (AG, that is Justice) and Granholm (Energy). There are four other appointments which are interesting; Gen. Lloyd Austin the first black Defence Secretary, Alejandro Mayorkas a Hispanic in charge of sensitive Homeland Security, Deb Haaland (Interior) the first native American to hold cabinet position, and Pete Buttigieg (Transport) of unconventional sexual orientation. Biden has made good on his promise that his choices would reflect America’s diversity.
Biden’s seven person science team (Office of Science and Technology Policy – OSTP), which the media describes as “Among the brightest, most dedicated people not only in the country but the world” is headed by a world-renowned biologist Eric Lander (Princeton Bachelors, Rhodes Scholar and Oxford DPhil) and includes America’s first woman Nobel Laureate (Frances Arnold). The other five too are world-class scientists. Gina McCarthy of environmental fame has been named Presidential Climate Advisor (“Climate Tsar” they call her, an appellation she will have to share with John Kerry named Climate Ambassador). One thing for sure, people of this calibre speak out and speak their minds; no dumb-cluck politician can intimidate them because they aren’t obliged to anybody for anything. A very refreshing thought, my scientist and engineer friends are sure to agree.
Having said so many nice things about Biden I am sure you are expecting a few stings in the tail and I am loath to disappoint you. The obvious one is to repeat that it is early days and while voicing approval it is necessary to express caution as well – how many politicians started off as everyone’s darling and wound up failures and miscarriages. The principal challenges facing the new administration are also a hurdles at which it may stumble; the uncertainty of Covid, class conflict over the economy, the large disgruntled mass which opted for Trump and will remain knotty for years more, race which won’t change colour and the complexity of international relations. I will speak of each in future columns, but let me say something upfront now. Because America is a country of top technological (still the leader I guess), scientific (a bigger concentration of the world’s best), economic (soon to be overtaken by China) and social potential (I will explore this carefully some other time), what happens in America in the next few decades is one of the cardinal matters that will shape the Twenty-first Century.
Rome did not decline to nothing in a day; from the start of the decline to eventual fall many moons elapsed. Gibbon begins his account of decline from the accession of Commodus (180 AD) and the fall of the Western Roman Empire is conventionally dated to 476 AD, when Flavius Odoacer a “barbarian” deposed Emperor Romulus Augustulus and proclaimed himself ruler. Other historians prefer different chronologies and dating, but the point I am making is that when global powers metamorphose, it is a prolonged process. More important is that their influences persist long afterwards. The impact and influences of Rome persist to this day. Someone said that if you go on a journey in philosophy on any theme, soon you will meet an ancient Greek returning from the same voyage. Likewise with Roman physical infrastructure, Roman law and governance. This getting lyrical so let’s return to earth. What I am pointing to is that the impact of American mores and culture will persist for longer than its superpower status. The language, artifices and political practices of the blithering English are still around nearly a century after the blooming empire was laid to rest. The traditions of some empires persist for long others do not – where is Ozymandias king of kings? Persia’s eight-century Achaemenid Empire or the Mayas have evaporated without trace so far as latter-day cultures notice. Why some go one way and others the other is too long and complex to pursue here.
My case is that the influence of American society will persist for long after the American Empire. What will persist above all else is the robustness of its unique social comportment and its roughshod democracy. A socialist America will have to be a democratic America, nothing less can put down roots in this soil and clime. Last week I was glued to the Trump impeachment trial in the Senate. A lesson I took away is recognition of the boldness of its democracy – bourgeois liberal-democracy, if you want theoretical purity. Democracy survived but it was a close call; at certain moments the threat was deadly. One mishap in a court, one truant State refusing to certify results, one bunch of electoral officials cowed by Trump’s bullying, one bullet in Nancy Pelosi’s head, or one misstep by Mike Pence, and who knows, history may have had to be rewritten.
I am certain Trump’s trial will not gather the requisite majority in the Senate for conviction though the Constitution says he is commander-in-chief of the military but from the summer 2020 he has been commander-in-chief of mobs. He goaded the lawless to insurrection and prepared the way for rioters to storm the Capitol. In a desperate effort to cling to power he allowed his rowdies to go after his own Vice President Pence chanting “Hang Mike Pence”. It is an enigma that the citadel of American democracy was stormed by American neo-fascists, egged on by the nation’s sitting president. Yes, democracy prevailed this time, but is unrest just beginning? A surreal plague of illiberalism has infected a portion of the body politic? It can and must be defeated but how will future historians make sense of this bizarre episode? I have to leave that too for another time and sign off with a celebrated paradox: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness”.
by Dr Gotabhya Ranasinghe
Senior Consultant Cardiologist
National Hospital Sri Lanka
When we sought a meeting with Hon Dr. Ramesh Pathirana, Minister of Health, he graciously cleared his busy schedule to accommodate us. Renowned for his attentive listening and deep understanding, Minister Pathirana is dedicated to advancing the health sector. His openness and transparency exemplify the qualities of an exemplary politician and minister.
Dr. Palitha Mahipala, the current Health Secretary, demonstrates both commendable enthusiasm and unwavering support. This combination of attributes makes him a highly compatible colleague for the esteemed Minister of Health.
Our discussion centered on a project that has been in the works for the past 30 years, one that no other minister had managed to advance.
Minister Pathirana, however, recognized the project’s significance and its potential to revolutionize care for heart patients.
The project involves the construction of a state-of-the-art facility at the premises of the National Hospital Colombo. The project’s location within the premises of the National Hospital underscores its importance and relevance to the healthcare infrastructure of the nation.
This facility will include a cardiology building and a tertiary care center, equipped with the latest technology to handle and treat all types of heart-related conditions and surgeries.
Securing funding was a major milestone for this initiative. Minister Pathirana successfully obtained approval for a $40 billion loan from the Asian Development Bank. With the funding in place, the foundation stone is scheduled to be laid in September this year, and construction will begin in January 2025.
This project guarantees a consistent and uninterrupted supply of stents and related medications for heart patients. As a result, patients will have timely access to essential medical supplies during their treatment and recovery. By securing these critical resources, the project aims to enhance patient outcomes, minimize treatment delays, and maintain the highest standards of cardiac care.
Upon its fruition, this monumental building will serve as a beacon of hope and healing, symbolizing the unwavering dedication to improving patient outcomes and fostering a healthier society.We anticipate a future marked by significant progress and positive outcomes in Sri Lanka’s cardiovascular treatment landscape within the foreseeable timeframe.
by Fr. Emmanuel Fernando, OMI
Jesuit Fr. Aloysius Pieris (affectionately called Fr. Aloy) celebrated his 90th birthday on April 9, 2024 and I, as the editor of our Oblate Journal, THE MISSIONARY OBLATE had gone to press by that time. Immediately I decided to publish an article, appreciating the untiring selfless services he continues to offer for inter-Faith dialogue, the renewal of the Catholic Church, his concern for the poor and the suffering Sri Lankan masses and to me, the present writer.
It was in 1988, when I was appointed Director of the Oblate Scholastics at Ampitiya by the then Oblate Provincial Fr. Anselm Silva, that I came to know Fr. Aloy more closely. Knowing well his expertise in matters spiritual, theological, Indological and pastoral, and with the collaborative spirit of my companion-formators, our Oblate Scholastics were sent to Tulana, the Research and Encounter Centre, Kelaniya, of which he is the Founder-Director, for ‘exposure-programmes’ on matters spiritual, biblical, theological and pastoral. Some of these dimensions according to my view and that of my companion-formators, were not available at the National Seminary, Ampitiya.
Ever since that time, our Oblate formators/ accompaniers at the Oblate Scholasticate, Ampitiya , have continued to send our Oblate Scholastics to Tulana Centre for deepening their insights and convictions regarding matters needed to serve the people in today’s context. Fr. Aloy also had tried very enthusiastically with the Oblate team headed by Frs. Oswald Firth and Clement Waidyasekara to begin a Theologate, directed by the Religious Congregations in Sri Lanka, for the contextual formation/ accompaniment of their members. It should very well be a desired goal of the Leaders / Provincials of the Religious Congregations.
Besides being a formator/accompanier at the Oblate Scholasticate, I was entrusted also with the task of editing and publishing our Oblate journal, ‘The Missionary Oblate’. To maintain the quality of the journal I continue to depend on Fr. Aloy for his thought-provoking and stimulating articles on Biblical Spirituality, Biblical Theology and Ecclesiology. I am very grateful to him for his generous assistance. Of late, his writings on renewal of the Church, initiated by Pope St. John XX111 and continued by Pope Francis through the Synodal path, published in our Oblate journal, enable our readers to focus their attention also on the needed renewal in the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka. Fr. Aloy appreciated very much the Synodal path adopted by the Jesuit Pope Francis for the renewal of the Church, rooted very much on prayerful discernment. In my Religious and presbyteral life, Fr.Aloy continues to be my spiritual animator / guide and ongoing formator / acccompanier.
Fr. Aloysius Pieris, BA Hons (Lond), LPh (SHC, India), STL (PFT, Naples), PhD (SLU/VC), ThD (Tilburg), D.Ltt (KU), has been one of the eminent Asian theologians well recognized internationally and one who has lectured and held visiting chairs in many universities both in the West and in the East. Many members of Religious Congregations from Asian countries have benefited from his lectures and guidance in the East Asian Pastoral Institute (EAPI) in Manila, Philippines. He had been a Theologian consulted by the Federation of Asian Bishops’ Conferences for many years. During his professorship at the Gregorian University in Rome, he was called to be a member of a special group of advisers on other religions consulted by Pope Paul VI.
Fr. Aloy is the author of more than 30 books and well over 500 Research Papers. Some of his books and articles have been translated and published in several countries. Among those books, one can find the following: 1) The Genesis of an Asian Theology of Liberation (An Autobiographical Excursus on the Art of Theologising in Asia, 2) An Asian Theology of Liberation, 3) Providential Timeliness of Vatican 11 (a long-overdue halt to a scandalous millennium, 4) Give Vatican 11 a chance, 5) Leadership in the Church, 6) Relishing our faith in working for justice (Themes for study and discussion), 7) A Message meant mainly, not exclusively for Jesuits (Background information necessary for helping Francis renew the Church), 8) Lent in Lanka (Reflections and Resolutions, 9) Love meets wisdom (A Christian Experience of Buddhism, 10) Fire and Water 11) God’s Reign for God’s poor, 12) Our Unhiddden Agenda (How we Jesuits work, pray and form our men). He is also the Editor of two journals, Vagdevi, Journal of Religious Reflection and Dialogue, New Series.
Fr. Aloy has a BA in Pali and Sanskrit from the University of London and a Ph.D in Buddhist Philosophy from the University of Sri Lankan, Vidyodaya Campus. On Nov. 23, 2019, he was awarded the prestigious honorary Doctorate of Literature (D.Litt) by the Chancellor of the University of Kelaniya, the Most Venerable Welamitiyawe Dharmakirthi Sri Kusala Dhamma Thera.
Fr. Aloy continues to be a promoter of Gospel values and virtues. Justice as a constitutive dimension of love and social concern for the downtrodden masses are very much noted in his life and work. He had very much appreciated the commitment of the late Fr. Joseph (Joe) Fernando, the National Director of the Social and Economic Centre (SEDEC) for the poor.
In Sri Lanka, a few religious Congregations – the Good Shepherd Sisters, the Christian Brothers, the Marist Brothers and the Oblates – have invited him to animate their members especially during their Provincial Congresses, Chapters and International Conferences. The mainline Christian Churches also have sought his advice and followed his seminars. I, for one, regret very much, that the Sri Lankan authorities of the Catholic Church –today’s Hierarchy—- have not sought Fr.
Aloy’s expertise for the renewal of the Catholic Church in Sri Lanka and thus have not benefited from the immense store of wisdom and insight that he can offer to our local Church while the Sri Lankan bishops who governed the Catholic church in the immediate aftermath of the Second Vatican Council (Edmund Fernando OMI, Anthony de Saram, Leo Nanayakkara OSB, Frank Marcus Fernando, Paul Perera,) visited him and consulted him on many matters. Among the Tamil Bishops, Bishop Rayappu Joseph was keeping close contact with him and Bishop J. Deogupillai hosted him and his team visiting him after the horrible Black July massacre of Tamils.
Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement
By Gomi Senadhira
senadhiragomi@gmail.com
“You might tell fairy tales, but the progress of a country cannot be achieved through such narratives. A country cannot be developed by making false promises. The country moved backward because of the electoral promises made by political parties throughout time. We have witnessed that the ultimate result of this is the country becoming bankrupt. Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet.” – President Ranil Wickremesinghe, 2024 Budget speech
Any Sri Lankan would agree with the above words of President Wickremesinghe on the false promises our politicians and officials make and the fairy tales they narrate which bankrupted this country. So, to understand this, let’s look at one such fairy tale with lots of false promises; Ranil Wickremesinghe’s greatest achievement in the area of international trade and investment promotion during the Yahapalana period, Sri Lanka-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (SLSFTA).
It is appropriate and timely to do it now as Finance Minister Wickremesinghe has just presented to parliament a bill on the National Policy on Economic Transformation which includes the establishment of an Office for International Trade and the Sri Lanka Institute of Economics and International Trade.
Was SLSFTA a “Cleverly negotiated Free Trade Agreement” as stated by the (former) Minister of Development Strategies and International Trade Malik Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate on the SLSFTA in July 2018, or a colossal blunder covered up with lies, false promises, and fairy tales? After SLSFTA was signed there were a number of fairy tales published on this agreement by the Ministry of Development Strategies and International, Institute of Policy Studies, and others.
However, for this article, I would like to limit my comments to the speech by Minister Samarawickrama during the Parliamentary Debate, and the two most important areas in the agreement which were covered up with lies, fairy tales, and false promises, namely: revenue loss for Sri Lanka and Investment from Singapore. On the other important area, “Waste products dumping” I do not want to comment here as I have written extensively on the issue.
1. The revenue loss
During the Parliamentary Debate in July 2018, Minister Samarawickrama stated “…. let me reiterate that this FTA with Singapore has been very cleverly negotiated by us…. The liberalisation programme under this FTA has been carefully designed to have the least impact on domestic industry and revenue collection. We have included all revenue sensitive items in the negative list of items which will not be subject to removal of tariff. Therefore, 97.8% revenue from Customs duty is protected. Our tariff liberalisation will take place over a period of 12-15 years! In fact, the revenue earned through tariffs on goods imported from Singapore last year was Rs. 35 billion.
The revenue loss for over the next 15 years due to the FTA is only Rs. 733 million– which when annualised, on average, is just Rs. 51 million. That is just 0.14% per year! So anyone who claims the Singapore FTA causes revenue loss to the Government cannot do basic arithmetic! Mr. Speaker, in conclusion, I call on my fellow members of this House – don’t mislead the public with baseless criticism that is not grounded in facts. Don’t look at petty politics and use these issues for your own political survival.”
I was surprised to read the minister’s speech because an article published in January 2018 in “The Straits Times“, based on information released by the Singaporean Negotiators stated, “…. With the FTA, tariff savings for Singapore exports are estimated to hit $10 million annually“.
As the annual tariff savings (that is the revenue loss for Sri Lanka) calculated by the Singaporean Negotiators, Singaporean $ 10 million (Sri Lankan rupees 1,200 million in 2018) was way above the rupees’ 733 million revenue loss for 15 years estimated by the Sri Lankan negotiators, it was clear to any observer that one of the parties to the agreement had not done the basic arithmetic!
Six years later, according to a report published by “The Morning” newspaper, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) on 7th May 2024, Mr Samarawickrama’s chief trade negotiator K.J. Weerasinghehad had admitted “…. that forecasted revenue loss for the Government of Sri Lanka through the Singapore FTA is Rs. 450 million in 2023 and Rs. 1.3 billion in 2024.”
If these numbers are correct, as tariff liberalisation under the SLSFTA has just started, we will pass Rs 2 billion very soon. Then, the question is how Sri Lanka’s trade negotiators made such a colossal blunder. Didn’t they do their basic arithmetic? If they didn’t know how to do basic arithmetic they should have at least done their basic readings. For example, the headline of the article published in The Straits Times in January 2018 was “Singapore, Sri Lanka sign FTA, annual savings of $10m expected”.
Anyway, as Sri Lanka’s chief negotiator reiterated at the COPF meeting that “…. since 99% of the tariffs in Singapore have zero rates of duty, Sri Lanka has agreed on 80% tariff liberalisation over a period of 15 years while expecting Singapore investments to address the imbalance in trade,” let’s turn towards investment.
Investment from Singapore
In July 2018, speaking during the Parliamentary Debate on the FTA this is what Minister Malik Samarawickrama stated on investment from Singapore, “Already, thanks to this FTA, in just the past two-and-a-half months since the agreement came into effect we have received a proposal from Singapore for investment amounting to $ 14.8 billion in an oil refinery for export of petroleum products. In addition, we have proposals for a steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million), sugar refinery ($ 200 million). This adds up to more than $ 16.05 billion in the pipeline on these projects alone.
And all of these projects will create thousands of more jobs for our people. In principle approval has already been granted by the BOI and the investors are awaiting the release of land the environmental approvals to commence the project.
I request the Opposition and those with vested interests to change their narrow-minded thinking and join us to develop our country. We must always look at what is best for the whole community, not just the few who may oppose. We owe it to our people to courageously take decisions that will change their lives for the better.”
According to the media report I quoted earlier, speaking at the Committee on Public Finance (COPF) Chief Negotiator Weerasinghe has admitted that Sri Lanka was not happy with overall Singapore investments that have come in the past few years in return for the trade liberalisation under the Singapore-Sri Lanka Free Trade Agreement. He has added that between 2021 and 2023 the total investment from Singapore had been around $162 million!
What happened to those projects worth $16 billion negotiated, thanks to the SLSFTA, in just the two-and-a-half months after the agreement came into effect and approved by the BOI? I do not know about the steel manufacturing plant for exports ($ 1 billion investment), flour milling plant ($ 50 million) and sugar refinery ($ 200 million).
However, story of the multibillion-dollar investment in the Petroleum Refinery unfolded in a manner that would qualify it as the best fairy tale with false promises presented by our politicians and the officials, prior to 2019 elections.
Though many Sri Lankans got to know, through the media which repeatedly highlighted a plethora of issues surrounding the project and the questionable credentials of the Singaporean investor, the construction work on the Mirrijiwela Oil Refinery along with the cement factory began on the24th of March 2019 with a bang and Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and his ministers along with the foreign and local dignitaries laid the foundation stones.
That was few months before the 2019 Presidential elections. Inaugurating the construction work Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said the projects will create thousands of job opportunities in the area and surrounding districts.
The oil refinery, which was to be built over 200 acres of land, with the capacity to refine 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day, was to generate US$7 billion of exports and create 1,500 direct and 3,000 indirect jobs. The construction of the refinery was to be completed in 44 months. Four years later, in August 2023 the Cabinet of Ministers approved the proposal presented by President Ranil Wickremesinghe to cancel the agreement with the investors of the refinery as the project has not been implemented! Can they explain to the country how much money was wasted to produce that fairy tale?
It is obvious that the President, ministers, and officials had made huge blunders and had deliberately misled the public and the parliament on the revenue loss and potential investment from SLSFTA with fairy tales and false promises.
As the president himself said, a country cannot be developed by making false promises or with fairy tales and these false promises and fairy tales had bankrupted the country. “Unfortunately, many segments of the population have not come to realize this yet”.
(The writer, a specialist and an activist on trade and development issues . )
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