Sri Lanka Diary — A Paradise lost

Fear is the key. There is no denying that. The Lankans have seen, endured and learnt to live with it. But, for most foreigners, the sight o...

Fear is the key. There is no denying that. The Lankans have seen, endured and learnt to live with it. But, for most foreigners, the sight of gun-totting security personnel at every nook and corner, can be pretty unnerving. It’s a dead giveaway of the omnipresent threat that the vast multitude of innocents are exposed to.

There is little one can do against human bombs. One possible way to minimise the risk factor is to treat everybody as suspects — men and women, young and old, rich and poor — without distinction or discrimination.

Even a short drive on the road can be a stop-start affair as security machinery have placed strategic barricades to stop vehicles and check both man and machine.

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Such frequent stoppages can be irksome for some foreigners, but the average Sri Lankan is lot more practical and patient about the situation that is primarily aimed at saving human lives.

The body frisking can, at times, be a cause of intense irritation. But, one thing is unmistakable and undeniable. These security personnel have a human face. Their resplendent smiles glow against their ebony-hued faces, which is a reassuring sight. They are firm but polite, duty conscious, but not throwing their weight around.

Police and military checkposts abound everywhere, but more so in sensitive areas and key government and military installations — principal targets of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE).

The security for the Asia Cup participants is taken care by the Minister’s Security Division (MSD) and the grade of protective cover being what is provided to foreign VVIPs on official visits to the Island Nation.

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The players have been billeted in one floor of the opulent Taj Samudra to facilitate security measures. Even foreign scribes staying in the same hotel cannot have easy access to the players.

No one is taking any chances. Just a week ago, despite the red alert in Trincomalee, a politician and few others lost their lives in a grenade attack on a school building. The threat perception of the LTTE is particularly high in July — a month when the Tamil rebels commemorate the `martyrdom’ of their first suicide bomber a decade back. A day that has come to be known and dreaded as the Black Tiger Day.

Against this backdrop, the tear-drop shape of the island seems symbolic. For a country that was once a tourists’ delight with its magnificent sea and scenic splendour, the absence of serenity has destroyed it all. One cannot help but think of Sri Lanka as a paradise lost.