The Oxford dictionary defines a patriot as a ‘A person who vigorously supports their country and is prepared to defend it against enemies or detractors’.
The same dictionary defines a president as ‘ The person who has the highest political position in a country that is a republic and who, in some of these countries, is the leader of the government’.
Therefore it could be stated with a matter of simple observation that in a country such as ours the President should be the premier patriot. However, if a foreigner to this country asks one hundred good folk in this country if the President truly cares for his country and people would the general answer be one that portrays a strong faith in the leadership of the ‘premier patriot’? Or one that everyone reading this can imagine in all too well?
I’m not here to argue about the content of the constitution of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka.
Although, I believe that a sacred document as such should not have any loopholes or incorrect translations. I believe there is no point in blaming the individuals who made that blatant error nor the group of individuals who chose to exploit it.
We as humans sometimes confuse blame as justice and believe that ‘who shall shout loudest shall be the most correct’.
I do not need to describe the manner of which ministers, all of whom were elected by the patriots of our society, handled a delicate situation. A picture speaks a thousand words, a meme says so much more, but an edited out video by a YouTube star speaks volumes of the shame the very leaders of our country put us to, and not just in front of the local media but also for the world to see and get a giggle out of. The pearl of the Indian Ocean, we may be called, but one could also sarcastically announce our government as the curse of the Indian Ocean.
It was not too long ago that our very own president was considered for a Nobel Peace Prize for his unprecedented action of giving up executive power. An achievement that goes almost unnoticed. Similar to an individual dancing a ballroom cha-cha the progress of the country is sometimes two steps forward, then a step back, while during other times its two steps backwards and a step forward.
I clearly accept the fact that a country cannot be governed per the wishes of each and every individual, and the seat of presidency is an occupation whose accompanying stress would turn any individual’s hair gray. But, if a clear majority of the people believe that that individuals who were appointed are not doing what they were given the power to do, then why put them in power in the first place?
Is democracy truly a valid concept without the knowledge of foresight?
Let’s move on from the political aspects and agendas and ask ourselves a million dollar question- what is Sri Lanka? Remember when we were in our primary grades we use to get essays to write about ‘My Country’?
Can you recollect what you wrote? Apart from the basic details about the country and its beauty or historical landmarks was there anything that you noticed as an innocent school child? 
But now looking back as someone with a bit more experience and knowledge, I believe the million dollar question is not ‘what is Sri Lanka?’, rather ‘who is Sri Lanka?’ And the answer is very simple, it’s the Perera’s, the Silva’s, it’s Kumar Sangakkara, it’s Maithreepala Sirisena, it’s Mahinda, and it’s Ranil.
Sri Lanka is everyone that dissipates and circulates its culture.
I could speak volumes to our culture, but one thing I can clearly say is that we are people who endure. For over two millennia our people have endured. Whether it be the vast foreign invaders from all throughout history, the struggle to sustain the citizens of this country, the fight for independence and democracy. Whatever is was, we endured it and we have progressed.
A country is but a mere piece of real estate without its culture.
Therefore a patriot can also be justly defined as ‘A person who vigorously supports their culture and is prepared to defend it against enemies or detractors’. Our forefathers and fore mothers endured, and they endured so well and supported the same culture that it survived till date.
Our country survived because of patriots and the reality is our country needs to endure because of patriots. I can say with a lot of confidence that patriotism isn’t pledging ones vote to a political party, it is not going on marches to block town hall, it isn’t about shouting the loudest. It’s not about being loyal to a symbol, it’s about being loyal to the national flag. Simple things such as understanding the words in the national anthem, knowing what each component of the national flag represents, are things that build up patriotism. The fallacy is that these things are just simply taught to the children of tomorrow, not taught to be valued.
I have no clue to what the future holds for this country or the citizens of it. Will the patriots of this country become a dying breed, or will the patriotism built into our DNA from our enduring ancestors pull us through to better times?
Only time will tell.
