‘Geopolitics and the Media in Asia and the Pacific’ Dr. Kalinga’s book gives an insight to current affairs in Sri Lanka’s region

Former Sri Lankan ambassador to the UN & China Dr. Palitha Kohona said on Monday (16) that his country placed in a strategic location in a geopolitical map has its own share of challenges and opportunities. 

He made these comments while delivering the keynote address at Dr. Kalinga Seneviratne’s book launch titled ‘Geopolitics and the Media in Asia and the Pacific’, and held at the Sri Lanka Press Council at Colombo 7. He said, “Our own country’s opportunities lie in our geographical location. Hambantota could become a major service port and point”.

“Over 35,000 ships sail past Hambantota every year. And Hambantota had the distinct potential to become a key service point for this massive volume of maritime traffic,” he said tapping Hambantota’s potential, speaking on his keynote, Media’s Role in Making War and Peace in Recent times. 

“For us in Sri Lanka, the churning rivalry between developed west and China, yearning to become a developed country creates challenges, and opportunities,” he said.

Switching to challenges he said, “The real challenge is to stay afloat, as the competing waves churn our shores. Our national interest must always remain dominant, not a desire to please others, whoever it could be posing a challenge for us. 

“What’re the opportunities – as we position ourselves to benefit from the geopolitical rivalry, challenge the resources to help us reach a higher level of development. The Belt & Road Initiative has been developed to create an era of shared prosperity. And the western India should not feel left aside and or left out. India, our giant neighbor, is also a rapidly-growing economy and a very lucrative market place. Our diplomatic skills will need to be put into best use in preserving our independence and sovereignty, while maintaining good neighbour relations with all parties concerned.  Ultimately, the goal should be to bring benefits to us and future generations,” the ex-secretary to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, explained. 

Dr. Kohona praises writer 

Dr. Kohona praising the writer and his product profusely went on, “What I’ve read gives me an insight to current affairs in our region. The volume that he has presented – Geopolitics and Media in the Asia Pacific – will I’m sure will be a major contribution to learning and research on the subject. The little bit of the book I read suggests that it delves deeper into unexplored details. It will be valuable research for students, academics and casual readers. Kalinga, whom I’ve known for some time, is an unassuming researcher, low-key, an academic and a prolific writer. He publishes mainly in international journals and is fast-becoming an expert in this region.

“The book explores in detail President Xi Jingping’s seminal Belt & Road Initiative (BRI), which was launched in 2013. This is an initiative as we know, that has aroused considerable interest, both positives and negative. Developing countries of this region, have by and large welcomed the BRI. Though it’s by and large, there are exceptions to this as well. This is expected to provide an opportunity for many countries to fast-track their road to development. As we’re aware, the road to development is full of obstruction. Developing countries are mainly confronted due to lack of resources in their aspiration to take to higher level of development. The BRI initiative will very well provide the resources they wish to achieve,” he gave a glimpse of the book. 

Dr. Kalinga Seneviratne, now an author and a journalist based in Australia listing out the dos and the don’ts of the media said, “Media needs to protect the citizens, hold the government accountable and needs to be privately-owned. That will work as long as media owners will have public interest consciousness. Mainstream media is today owned by conglomerates. Both in the west and elsewhere. And they’ve their business interest to protect, not the public interest. So this media clearly is a meat. True, China’s media doesn’t hold their government accountable as well and so is Singapore’s media”. 

Talking on his speech, Media’s Adversarial Culture Fuelling Geopolitical Conflict, he said,“But today, the west mainstream media is not any better. They’re in the pockets of big business, especially oil, arms and pharmaceutical industry”. 

Quoting Donald Trump, he asserted, America’s mainstream media is the enemy of the people. 

Dr. Seneviratne, a man of multiple features in his hat, gradually deep diving into the sections of his book revealed, “I’m deeply concerned that the Asian region, spanning from South-East Asia has seen a rapid economic growth within a generation. And it has happened through a very peaceful transition. But at the same time, the region is facing tension due to interference from many outside powers. I can remember in 2010, when I was working in Singapore, we were looking forward for a peaceful prosperous Asia, being at the centre of the global economy. Then it was called the Dawn of Asian Century. Then the then-US Secretary State came to Vietnam for the East Asia Summit and raised the issue of South Asia’s Sea and China’s claims to most of it”. 

Inspiration in inking the book 

Opening up on what inspired for him to take to a book, he narrated, “I was inspired to write this book to warn media practitioners in the region, not to get sucked into reporting the region as a tear-drop conflict. Through intense content surveys, discussions, interviews with media scholars and practitioners in the region, I wanted to bring out a perspective of the geopolitics in our region. And try to encourage the media in Asia to see positives of the economic developments and analyse critically the moves by western powers to destabilise the region”. 

Sri Lanka Debts 

Good example is the fake news that was spread around the world that Sri Lankas debt crisis was a Chinese debt trap, he said. 

“It is only now that the real story in unravelling. Sri Lanka’s media should now be questioning whether the so-called IMF bailout is really bailing out Sri Lanka or, these are ISB’s (International Sovereign Bond) are a huge racket,” said Dr Seneviratne, who was in Fiji during the authoring of the book.  

Another fake news campaign was the Hambantota harbour as a Chinese debt trap. 

“When Sri Lanka gave the harbour on a 99-year lease to a Chinese government linked company it was reported as a debt swap. What the Sirisena government did was to use that money top-uo Sri Lanka foreign reserves that running low. Not to pay off Chinese debts. 

“I visited the Chinese harbour in April this year and interviewed their COO Tissa Wickremesinghe. What I found was they were turning to a corner and is poised to become a major transshipment hub for Asia. With the Chinese Oil Company Sinopec planning to build US$ 4 billion oil refinery next to the harbour, in the near future Hambantota could compete with Singapore as an export base for refined oil products”, Dr Seneviratne, an international communication analyst, recalled.  

Dr Seneviratne concluded leaving the ball on Sri Lanka’s media court saying, “Where would Sri Lanka stand in all these competitions? It is left for the Sri Lankan media to analyse and discuss”.