State Power Unmasked: Striped of Its "Red Robes"

The Definition of Terrorism and the 

Culmination of Left-Wing Opportunism...

The true face of "left-wing" and "progressive" political practices—built over decades upon the blood, tears, and sacrifices of younger generations—is being exposed on the platform of state power.

The very political force that once stood in opposition, raising its voice against the repressive acts of past governments, advocating for trade union rights, and shutting down the entire country through strikes, is today exercising state power by providing legal cover to a state apparatus that crushes all democratic rights.

The Legal Folly and Danger of Defining Terrorism...

In the proposed Protection of the State from Terrorism Act (PSTA), "terrorism" is defined in an extremely flexible and broad manner that any government can interpret according to its own desires.

According to the Act, "causing severe disruption to essential services, supplies, or the economy" with the "intent to unlawfully influence the government" is included in the list of terrorist acts.

Even if it claims on paper to protect "fundamental rights in good faith," if a strike influences a government policy or disrupts an essential service, the legal loophole remains for the military and police to interpret and suppress it as a "terrorist act."

Strikers of the Past – Oppressors of Today!

A ruthless argument arises here. What did the party currently running the government and its trade unions do in the past?

Not only during the 1988–89 era, but throughout the last two decades, they were the ones who exerted pressure on governments by completely paralyzing the Ceylon Electricity Board, the Petroleum Corporation, the ports, health, and transport services—inflicting severe damage on the country's economy to win their political and trade union demands.

Back then, to them, it was a "democratic workers' right." However, once they came to power, if another trade union or the public protests for their rights by disrupting essential services, the groundwork is laid by this very Act to label that same action as "terrorism."

The Shameless Opportunism of Shedding "Left-Wing Attire"

Can there be behavior more opportunistic and unprincipled than this for a party or government that calls itself "left-wing"?

In Opposition: Making passionate promises on election platforms until their blood boiled, vowing to repeal the Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA) and oppressive laws.

In Power: The moment they take over the state apparatus, forgetting the path they came through in the name of "state security" and "economic stability," struggling to justify and maintain repressive acts under new names, just like previous governments.

According to traditional left-wing principles, the working class's right to strike is the ultimate weapon against state oppression. Placing the worker under the legal shadow that this very weapon could be deemed "terrorism"—what is it other than completely stripping off left-wing attire and becoming a cog in the existing capitalist state-oppression machinery?

The Shape of Power and the Ruler's Discretion...

This brings to light one undeniable truth: regardless of political ideology, once in power, "the survival of their power" and "state control" become the rulers' top priorities. They are driven by the fear that the very methods of struggle they used in the past will be turned against them.

Falling into such legal and policy-wise decay—to the extent that looking back, their own past could be defined as "terrorism"—is the ultimate political and ideological defeat for the rulers currently clad in left-wing attire.

Jayalathge Sunil Gamini ✍️