The creation of ethnic divisions was the weapon of choice of the British to keep the natives quarrelling among themselves rather than with them, who for all intents and purposes were the real enemy. It was the smart and convenient thing to do on the part of the British and the strategy worked like magic with our leaders falling for the bait time and again. It is to the eternal discredit of our politicians from then until the present, that they have failed to see the bigger picture and we as a nation have been destined to remain in the same dark hole unwilling and unable to climb out of it. Yesterday, 25 July, marked the 37th anniversary of what is now known as Black July, when violent mobs instigated by racist politicians ran amok, killing Tamils and destroying their property. Of course, the trigger for the carnage was the killing of 13 Sinhalese army soldiers who were ambushed during a routine patrol in Jaffna the previous day by a nascent terror outfit that later became the LTTE. When the bodies of the 13 soldiers were brought to the General Cemetery in Borella, news spread like wildfire and soon all hell broke loose with mobs taking to the streets and taking the law into their own hands. For days, JR turned a blind eye in order to appease the majority community and failed to see the consequences of his inaction, which then bled the country for the next 26 years. The events that began on that fateful day endured for three decades where Sri Lanka, as a nation, was pulled back to the Stone Age with death and destruction the order of the day. Today, even though the war has ended, the reasons that led to it have only been partially addressed while the North and East continue to lag in economic development compared to the rest of the country, making it fertile ground for dissention just as it was decades ago. Today, Sri Lanka is on the threshold of yet another election and rather ironically, the same people and personalities that presided over the carnage that began in Black July of 1983 are still the ones in the driving seat seeking yet another mandate from the people. Mahinda Rajapaksa first entered Parliament in 1970, making him the most senior Member of Parliament today even though he failed to be re-elected in 1977, which is when Ranil Wickremesinghe won his first election. These two figures, among others, have played a key role in shaping the destiny of this country over the past few decades in numerous roles for better or for worse and one is at a loss to understand what more they have to offer the electorate considering their combined contribution of 93-plus years of parliamentary life. It is a given that our politicians, including those representing the minority communities, have consistently failed to look beyond their nose, primarily due to political insecurities. They have failed to be the statesmen they were supposed to be and the result has been the country losing an entire generation of youth and years of progress and prosperity to a futile and destructive war. If the conduct of the main political parties today is anything to go by, it seems that lessons are yet to be learnt and reconciliation in an acceptable form is still a long way off. So, where to from here? Do we lean on the same people who have been instrumental in creating the issues on our plate today to continue their political blundering, or has the time finally come for a change in the political landscape? Just as much as we would like to hedge our bets on the latter, an immature and emotional electorate known to vote with their hearts rather than their minds, could result in things staying the same. However, the silver lining is that there seems to be a general consensus this time around that the time has come for transition of power to a new generation that is more in touch with ground realities. If the southern politicians have failed, their north-eastern counterparts have been no better. Governance issues are more pronounced in the North and East where even after 11 years of peace following the war, economic development has been slow in coming in comparison to the rest of the country. More than any systemic failure, this lack of progress can be attributed to the quality of Tamil politicians representing these areas. Their lack of vision, foresight, and tendency to quarrel among themselves over petty issues have not helped the cause of the marginalised people of the North and East whose contribution to the country’s Gross Domestic Product remains at the bottom among the nine provinces. If that were not bad enough, the Covid-19 pandemic has added fuel to the fire with tourism, which has been the main driver of the northern and eastern economies in the post-war era, grinding to a halt. As a result, not only are hundreds of youth without jobs but also farmers, fishermen, meat producers, vendors, retailers, etc. who have all been hit in some way or the other. Given the not-so-positive economic outlook in the short to mid-term, it would no doubt be a challenge to get the unemployed youth back to work. To make matters worse, the country’s unemployment rate hit a 10-year high in the first quarter of 2020. According to data from the Department of Statistics, unemployment for the first three months of the year rose to 5.7%, a level not seen since 2009. The worst however, is yet to come. The full impact of Covid-19 is expected to hit the second quarter, meaning the already high unemployment rate is likely to shoot higher due to the contraction of economic output. Despite political turmoil at regular intervals, Sri Lanka’s unemployment rate has hovered in the 4% range over the last decade. According to a leading rating agency forecast, the country’s corporate sector is expected to see a revenue decline of around Rs. 40 billion in the first quarter compared to last year. The revenue drop has been led by the hotel sector which is expected to experience a near 75% decline in revenue across the board for the rest of the year. Therefore, managing the emerging situation over the next few months, especially in the more marginalised areas like the North and East, will pose a huge challenge not only for the Tamil politicians representing these areas but also for the government that is to be elected on 5 August. One must keep in mind the fact that every rebellion this country has experienced in its post-Independence history has essentially been rooted in economic factors concerning the youth. Therefore, instead of the pie in the sky politics, it would be good if politicians recognise the challenges ahead and tackle the ballooning unemployment issue which, as history has shown us, has the potential to snowball into other issues if not handled with care.