A rosy picture but uncertain future

• We all share the anxiety of an economic miracle ever gracing us

I refer to your excellent editorial of July 3rd which exhibits courage and honesty in exposing the objective reality hanging over our country. Referring to the debt-restructuring agreement signed by the government with Paris Club, and India and China you refer to the dawn of some breathing space to pay our loans and a sigh of relief for the government in its ability now to provide essential services to the people as well as the opportunity to defer all bilateral loan instalment payments until 2028 and be able to repay all the loans on concessional terms until 2043. But then you raise the disturbing question as to what really is going to befall after 2028.

The next government for sure will have to face the music of having to make the repayments and to ensure never again an economic crisis crippling us. You rightly blame corruption in administration and the sordid phenomenon of bribes and commissions to be at the root of Sri Lanka missing the grace of becoming a booming international trading hub. How true and how sad! You have said that corruption within all spheres has been a plague killing this country for decades and not one leader has succeeded ending it.
The question of strengthening international markets still remains a challenge even in the sphere of exports and tourism. You observe that much is left unachieved due to lack of man-power even in the sectors of agriculture, fish, tea, rubber etc.. The marketing mechanisms leave much to be desired though some of our products as you say are of quality. Tourism could be improved if a free visa policy is implemented for several lucrative markets that are open.
Hence we all share the anxiety of an economic miracle ever gracing us. We have high doubts overshadowing the expected strengthening of the economy, keeping sincerely to our commitments and repaying our loans. It is very probable that, if  those in the echelons of the future governments continue to neglect and do not seriously reverse the destructive trends weakening our country and help us see a debt-free country devoid any loans to pay, we will plunge ourselves into a deeper national crisis and will have to cry over the dream of Sri Lanka ever becoming the “Miracle of Asia”.
Rev. Fr. Leopold Ratnasekra OMI
St. Anthony’s Church, Colombo 3.