-By External Affairs Correspondent
(Lanka-e-News -15.Feb.2025, 5.15 PM) Muscat, Oman – The 8th Indian Ocean Conference, set to take place on February 16-17, 2025, boasts an ambitious theme: “Voyage to the New Horizon of Maritime Partnership.” But the real showstopper? The keynote speaker – none other than former Sri Lankan President Ranil Wickremesinghe, infamously nicknamed the “Butcher of Batalanda.”
Now, one might ask: what exactly is Ranil’s expertise in maritime security? Is he a retired admiral? A naval strategist? A maritime economist? No, but he does hold shares in a few shipping companies – which, in the grand scheme of things, is about as relevant as calling a frequent flyer an aviation expert.
The India Foundation, the conference’s organizer, seems to have made an interesting choice. Perhaps they were looking for an expert on foreign policy? Well, Ranil’s foreign policy track record reads like a slapstick comedy – chaotic, ineffective, and culminating in an electoral defeat so crushing that he managed to secure less than 2% of the national vote.
Or maybe they were hoping for economic insights? If so, they’ve picked the perfect disaster artist – the man who steered Sri Lanka into bankruptcy. If anything, his presence should serve as a cautionary tale rather than a beacon of financial wisdom.
But wait – could it be security and strategy? After all, he was the executive Prime Minister when the Easter Sunday attacks happened. His brilliance in security matters was so profound that terrorists had a free pass. Perhaps India Foundation wants to hear about how not to handle national security.
And let’s not forget religion and society! Ranil does enjoy a good historical monologue, usually consisting of long-winded, archive-sourced trivia. But when it comes to practical governance, he presided over some of the worst religious and societal upheavals in recent Sri Lankan history – not to mention his alleged role in orchestrating Batalanda’s infamous torture chambers.
So, what exactly is India Foundation thinking? Did they pick Ranil for his constitutional expertise? A man who, when faced with an uneducated president (Maithripala Sirisena) shutting down Parliament for 52 days, could do nothing until real experts took the matter to the Supreme Court?
Maybe Ram Madhav, the head of the India Foundation, is simply wasting resources on a losing horse – and not just any horse, but one with a history of human rights abuses, economic blunders, and political irrelevance.
If the conference’s goal is to chart a course toward a “New Horizon,” perhaps they should start by inviting speakers who aren’t navigating straight toward an iceberg.
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by (2025-02-15 11:57:52)
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