Hansamali, Chandimal, Chamuditha & The State

By Ravi Perera –JUNE 10, 2021

Ravi Perera

“The State is a product of society at a certain stage of development…”  ~ Friedrich Engels

If the story of Sri Lanka’s battle with the Covid-19 pandemic is ever written, it is very possible that the Hansamali / Chandimal / Chamuditha episode would claim a few pages, if not a chapter. Not because any one of these three individuals has a direct bearing on the contagion, either as a victim or a healer. As far as we are aware, none of the three has contracted the disease, nor has any of them advocated a native concoction as a cure for the world-wide pandemic, as several of their countrymen have already done. Their link to the narrative of the pandemic, is only incidental, but as happens so often in this country, the insignificant was given significance, the ordinary was dressed in the clothes of the extraordinary.

We learn that Piyumi Hansamali is a model of some repute, while Chandimal is a well- known event organizer. To complete the trinity, we have Chamuditha, a media personality whose trenchant TV interviews capture attention; a people in lockdown mode have little to engage their minds and only a few outlets to relieve the tedium of their confinement.

The incident that triggered the drama was a birthday party held at a plush five-star hotel in the centre of Colombo. Usually a celebration of this nature is business as usual, hotels thrive on such events. However, these are not normal times. Apparently, there is a lockdown rule which prohibits a gathering in excess of a given number of participants (is it 25? lamentable is the  uncertainty about these things).

As for compliance, we are not certain on whom the onus rests primarily, the hotel, the party organizer or the guests? There is no information as to whether all hotels complied with this rule, and that this particular party was the only reported case of a breach. Arguably, even diners at a restaurant, users of public transport, the participants at a meeting, workers in an office and so on should not exceed this number. The restriction on the number, is an attempt to contain the spread of the pandemic and is in the interest of the public. For validity, the rule must be applied uniformly, without exceptions.

Apparently, in the minds of the partygoers they had broken no law. Either due to their ignorance or indifference, they went about it openly, themselves sending the event viral. Whatever the reason for their non-compliance, there was no attempt to conceal. Even while the party was going on, it had become news, opening the way to public criticism. Such disdain for health regulations, cannot be countenanced was the general attitude.

A few days later, TV news presenter Chamuditha had the main Police spokesman before the camera. He was grilled, were local celebrities treated differently? Soon the matter acquired a new momentum towards more viral activity, many unseemly, even vile, leading to panic reactions, impulsive and incoherent decisions. As of now, the news is that the partygoers have been detained and sent to quarantine centres in other provinces.

If anything, the country’s desperate struggles with the pandemic has once again only underlined its weak administration, underperforming workforce, lack of resources and the frailty of the overall economy: all factors that go to the brittleness of our so called State. In every comparable statistic, our ranking is among the mediocre nations, and invariably in the middle-order of the mediocre. Going side by side with this undeniable reality of a failed performance, is a deeply rooted need to talk up, “how remarkable are we, how well we perform outside of our shores; our brains, our skills, our past-only the superlatives can do justice!” It is as if without such an unction for the self, we cannot explain our being.

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