Sri Lanka It's Happening

January 11, 2005

For decades Sri Lankan politicians have been falling over each other trying to grab state lands. The tsunami has given them an ideal opportunity for them to get hold of a few more acres for their luxury bungalows.

We often hear stories of how large tracts of state land have been allocated to varius foundations headed by politicians. These foundations are nothing but front organizations.

Sometimes state land is sold for a song, with the off spring, spouses of relatives of politicians being the buyers. Often the price is only about 1/100 the price of the actual market value.

Now our beloved president has imposed a new rule that says no new buildings can be built upto a distance of 300m from the coastline. That obviously frees up thousands of acres of prime real estate for the politians to devour. No wonder the opposition hasn't even raised a whimper.

Sri Lanka is a small island with a high population density, the only way to relocate the displaced is to cut down a little bit more of our suriving forests, a process that would allow the politicians to profit once again (with kickbacks) by awarding lucrative contracts to timber merchants.

If the new land that is cleared up in this way is allocated fairly it whould be a great suprise. Thugs who carry out the dirty work (spell murder) of our beloved leaders will be given first preference, the displaced will be second.

Posted by raditha at January 11, 2005 6:02 AM