Basil Fernando

On July 15, 2005, the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) announced the beginning of a street movement for justice in Sri Lanka. Here we explain the content of this movement.

This concept is based on the Argentinean model followed by the Mothers of the Disappeared. Perhaps the street movement is only one aspect of the Argentinean movement. In Argentina, several mothers or other relatives of the disappeared would come to a particular place on a regular basis - for example, once a week - with photographs of a disappeared person and stroll around the area during the day.

In this concept, there are several important components:

1. such visits must be regular;
2. they must be more or less within the same vicinity;
3. the message must be very clear;
4. it must be visible.

Regularity is the means by which public attention is drawn to a particular issue. In this way, people's attention is drawn to the same issue in such a manner that they are forced to take notice, and then, by means of the regularity, the public is not allowed to forget. Thus, this type of presence is not a one-time event as many protests are. The persons participating in these actions are aware that the issue they are raising has very far-reaching implications, and therefore, they will have to keep at it for a considerable period of time if they want to being about meaningful change. The desire for fundamental reform is the reason for regular visits.

The idea of having the visits in the same vicinity is to make it a mental reference for those who are watching it. There should be many people who will become constant observers of these demonstrations. The various forms of media can also routinely visit when such protests take place and give publicity to the event. If these protests are held at different times and places, this kind of regular concentration does not take place.

In the Argentinean case, the message was to end impunity regarding disappearance cases. Those who watch this type of regular protest will ask what it is for and what is expected. By the very manner of the protests, its purpose and objectives should become clear. The fact the message should be clear does not mean that the message should be narrow. In fact, the issues raised in the protests against disappearances in Argentina were very large in scope, profound and complex. However, they were linked to a single theme. In the proposed protest in Sri Lanka, the theme is that of justice. The expected reflections are about the defects of the justice system and the ways to correct them with the involvement of many people. To initiate the conversation on the issue that is regarded as a serious problem, all materials should be focused and should not shift from one issue to another.

However small the group may be is not the main issue; but through their dress and other symbols that they may carry, the public and media should be able to identify them immediately and say, yes, this is that group of people. Visibility is very important to get the attention of people so that the issue begins to be discussed from one person to another in mostly informal conversations. Visibility is also essential for media purposes.

The Overall Purpose

The overall purpose of this approach is to unleash the thought processes that are taking place in the minds of people in a particular society or community and to help develop a common conversation on these issues. The protesting group does not create the theme. In fact, the theme is in the back of the minds of the people due to the experiences that people of a particular society or community have had. Despite common experiences, a common conversation may not have emerged though because of various factors. Each person may be thinking of a common experience everyone has but is doing that thinking only as a separate individual or a small group. Many individuals may not want to delve too deeply into more painful experiences. For example, disappearances in Argentina were one such painful experience. The extent of the denial of justice in Sri Lanka is also a painful experience. The protesting group by their regular activity tries to evoke in the people their hidden thoughts and feelings and to develop these as a common issue in the whole society. Through this conversation, the feelings of dissatisfaction and resentment that may be already inside the people find a way to be expressed and create conversations among people. Through a gradual process, the conversations deepen, and many individual reflections of various types about the same issue are expressed. When progress occurs in this way, changes, both in people's minds and emotions, as well as in the practical environment, begin to take place.