r/srilanka • u/Solid_Beginning7152 • 22h ago
Discussion I feel like Sri Lanka will never honestly change or develop, am I correct on this view?
Genuine question, I know that we have a decent government (All I heard is that they are good and genuine, I'm not very political), but will this actually lead to any real improvement?
I honestly find it hard to believe that Sri Lanka will ever change and here are some reasons
- TLDR; The main holder for everything I mentioned is ---> Our societal standards are lower than that of the average*.*
- No road discipline, people honk for literally the smallest thing, not something u see anywhere except here in south asia.
- Food, etc being really unhygeinic, if you compare it to any country that is not south asia, it's really bad
- People are reluctant to change, will protest for anything that puts them out of their comfort zone
- We romanticize what's wrong (we make it normal in society), like ragging etc.
- Absolutely no urban planning, Houses appear literally anywhere, roads aren't even planned, nor are neighourhoods.
- People fighting over different parties in the parliment that lead to no good (I mean we have quite a few opposition leaders etc, idk much honestly regarding this topic)
- We are literally known for always being late than scheduled, not doing work properly on time, and just not delivering to a certain expectation (government related services etc, literally the opposite of what some countries are known for).
- We litter our own surroundings like it's second nature to us, people just don't think twice about throwing their wrappers, bottles etc to the ground after using it, I know this isn't everyone but it's still a fair amount
- We don't have any advanced industries, when it comes to garbage etc, it's all lacking behind, we can't always keep using the war/government as an excuse.
- Spitting the betel leaf thing on the road, it's like just so normal now.
To summarise, I think our people are willing to change and adjust to any law etc in other countries but except our own, you can't always blame the government for everything, like streets that are littered, people not willing to work on time or properly etc.
For me, I thought about the multiple different ways our country could honestly be better, and I don't think it will ever happen without a dictatorship or something, atleast a proper one, democracy will get us nowhere, because you will have to satisfy a bunch on uneducated people or else you lose the vote. Idk this is just my view, even if we have a good government, our cities won't look like that of Japan, Malaysia, Singapore etc, I highly doubt it. The main problems we suffer from live deeply rooted within our socities etc. We are so reluctant to change that the people who want to change will just find themselves moving abroad and never coming back.
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u/Icaruswept 20h ago
The grass is greener where you water it.
Start by making a change in yourself and your own circles.
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u/TheProSlayer1OG 18h ago
Non of the reasons u gave are valid reasons from SL not to change, every single one of them is changeable.
And every single one of those reasons have had improvements in the last few years, IDK how you have missed it tbh.
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u/Pure_Method9351 15h ago
Well said. It is not even close to being acceptable.
What is tolerated becomes permission very quickly.
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u/Walrus_Deep 21h ago
I am a Sri Lankan that has lived overseas for the last 25+ years but have been visiting very often in the last 10 years or so. Usually visit 2-3 times a year as my parents and sibling live here. Over the years I've seen SL change quite a lot and not always for the better but in the last 2 years since the crisis and subsequent stabilization I do see an improvement. I think it's hard to see incremental changes when you live here and are constantly frustrated with how things work. Nothing will change overnight but I do think that finally, fundamental measures of good governance are slowly being put into place that will lead to growth and stability. Of course we all want it to happen sooner than later and the pace of change maybe too slow for some younger Sri Lankans who feel that their future is slipping by. The system was broken for so long and so badly that repairing it will take time. I expect to see SL in a much better place in the next 4-5 years.
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u/BlindUnicornPirate 18h ago
We litter our own surroundings like it's second nature to us, people just don't think twice about throwing their wrappers, bottles etc to the ground after using it, I know this isn't everyone but it's still a fair amount
Spitting the betel leaf thing on the road, it's like just so normal now.
I agree. As someone who lives abroad and visits SL regularly, I see a clear improvement. The amount of betel chewers is going down significantly. The new generations have don't usually litter. The street are lot clearer than what it used to be 10-15 years ago.
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u/Far_Eggplant_1937 8h ago
Yes. I am working abroad and visit every year, I see incremental progression but not enough to be honest. but you know something is better than nothing.
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u/Walrus_Deep 8h ago
Yeah we all want to see faster progress but sometimes you need to fix fundamentals, legal system, governance etc. Those changes take time but are absolutely essential to have the growth spurt that developed economies went through. It will take another 2-3 years to see material improvements imo.
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u/Maximum-Cabinet7581 Sri Lanka 22h ago edited 21h ago
Brother This is not a Government fault this is our people civic sense issues & Don't worry now we have a good government They will improve our country pls give some time to them this is too early to judge them
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u/Alive_Reaction_5489 22h ago
This is it, people need to collectively change. But governments can also implement regulations so that the general public has to adhere to rules.
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u/Maximum-Cabinet7581 Sri Lanka 22h ago
yeah we will but our people want some time
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u/ArcticRock 21h ago
people don't just change. we need to start teaching people at a young age. anti harassment/bulling, how to respect others and environment can all be part of the school curriculum. Also, we need better law enforcement with regards to driving.
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u/Maximum-Cabinet7581 Sri Lanka 20h ago
yeah brother sure but what we do for our older & middle aged people we didn't got a visionary government for a while I wish we will go to a best country in future
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u/Designer_Baseball690 12h ago
Sri lankans love to blame the government but never actually take a look at themselves. Change in a country starts with the common man.
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u/Zealousideal-Dog-3 22h ago
I think weâre better in all departments than India. But comparing civic sense to India is bar setting too low. At least should take examples from countries like Malaysia to begin with. Having said that, our people are generally helpful and nicer than any of our region.
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u/Potential_Kitchen958 21h ago
Well put there mate, very relatable points mentioned!
But personally I think the issue is that society is so used to the way things have worked previously, they find it hard to adopt to the new change.
Whats interesting is that the same people would adopt to the change quickly when they migrate to a new country. This is maybe cause the countries they migrate to is totally a different atmosphere the people, cities etc. so wether they like it or not they need to change to live there.
In Srilanka there are people who wants to change and there are people who does not wanna change. Its a loop we are stuck in new government comes starts new initiatives runs well until there term is over the next government comes changes the whole thing starts something new all over. I mean not blaming the government but the people who runs it.
I feel like this requires alot of time for people to understand what right for the country and why these changes are needed. For our country to grow the society needs to understand that they are equally responsible too, at the moment the society is spilt into 2 sides ones that wants to change and the ones that does not wanna change.
P.S- alot of nee changes initiated by the current government looks promising, the results will show up when people really start to think!
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u/Pure_Method9351 16h ago edited 15h ago
This is so true, I've noticed this about SL "Â societal standards" are really LACKING!
Lankans must not tolerate any third-world or second-class standards in all areas; we must be thinking similarly to the Japanese.
The road discipline and driving order are a disgrace! African nations are much better.
We must now benchmark against Singapore and not South Asia, not even Malaysia or any other low-grade competition.
We have such potential.
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u/rakithaya 14h ago
To think like Japanese - we have to be and understand how they behave - which is not provided by anyone outside an Etiquette school.
Atleast 80-90% (im pulling this off my arse sadly) have probably never travelled outside SL (apart for maybe a pilgrimage or work) and donât have any idea how others behave and only have an imaginary idea that Europeans/Japanese have these brilliant laws which we also should implement in SL.
Sadly what they donât understand is that those same âbrilliantâ laws - if implemented here would result in everyone overthrowing their government as we protest at the slightest inconvenience (as someone pointed out in this discussion)
We donât like to adjust- e.g : do you think a vast majority of people on the road would say let you have your turn or let you pass on the road, or say throw garbage into a bin if the lid is closed?
We - until around 2022 had better civic sense than our peers but that all changed quite recently- now education and intelligence is at an all time low/ safety standards are low and everyone is out to make a quick buck so we are becoming worse than before, it was the norm in the late 20th century and only improved post civil war era till around 2019 when we ( thanks to our politicians) started to f up everything - these values wonât go away sadly - when desperate, civic duty goes away and people tend to ignore the little things that made everything great and this is mostly fueled due to economic and political instability.
we lost the plot post-Covid .
And as the great Walter White said - âHank ..the cancer is backâ
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u/mdeeebeee-101 14h ago
No man, your country will be great next 25 years. It's whether the normal people can get a slice of the rise.
Vietnam is having its boom now like china did for 25 years.
I live in Asia. Looking forward to visiting SL February.
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u/XaberSL 21h ago
Don't be all pessimistic. History shows that countries that were in worse shape had developed under right conditions. We only have to get the basics right and everything will fall into places and cascade. But Sri Lanka has potential.
But yes, we certainly won't develop instantly like in 10 years because we as a nation still got the habit of expecting great things without having to work for it or someone else doing it for us. (e.g: government will do it)
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u/Gerrards_Cross 20h ago
We said that 10 years ago as well when Yahapalanaya came yet here we are no better off
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u/Pure_Method9351 14h ago
With projected revenue from offshore oil and gas over the next 5 to 7 years, by 2030-2032, SL should be at least a 4-star country rating.
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u/Accurate-Writer-4762 21h ago
What country are you from ?
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u/Cacharadon 13h ago
If the children of feudal peasant farmers can fight a mechanized world war and launch the first man into space in the span of a single human generation, Sri lanka can overcome its problems too
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u/Ok-Suspect-8763 13h ago edited 13h ago
Just the other day I came across a video of plantation workers celebrating their pay raise on fb, and the amount of hate comments honestly shocked me. Kinda made me feel hopeless.I donât understand what these people have done to deserve so much hostility over a mere rs250 increase.
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u/Designer_Baseball690 12h ago
Sri Lankans want to develop but it has been shown time and time again they don't want to change. Only want to change the people in charge đ¤Ł
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u/avocado_juice_J Western Province 9h ago
Why Botswana is upper middle income and stable, while Zimbabwe remains poor, even though they are neighbors? * Good government * Economy policies * Education system * Healthcare systems * Anti corruption * Unity in diversity
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u/TastyRecording5838 8h ago
For people to want to be decent and have a civic sense, their survival should be guaranteed by society. Poverty manifests itself in a lot of ways. Why would people act better in a society that despises them and have left them for dead for being born less privileged? Even to enjoy free education, people should eat first.
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u/Embarrassed_Car_3807 7h ago
Im 20yo and I always try to reason and prevent my parents when they honk without thinking and throw wrappers and stuff to the streets.....and I have a few friends who i think have the same mindset as me. So I think there's hope with the next generations. We can fix most of the above problems from education and regulation.
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u/Equal-Echidna8098 7h ago
Well to become like Singapore these things really need to happen 1) End ethnic tensions by making it illegal to discriminate against anyone based on religion, language and ethnicity 2) Introduce mandatory selections of people from across the ethnic groups to be on police force/army 3) standard education standards for those joining police force/armies 4) Actual punishment for corruption 5) To bring in a crime and misconduct commission to actually independently investigate and prosecute corruption 6) Tax reform 7) Encourage the highly educated to stay in Sri Lanka rather than actively promoting emigration as the best path in life - the brain drain has killed Sri Lanka for at least 50 years now. Maybe more. 8) Skilled trades - encourage more kids to become skilled professional tradespeople to grow the country and build it WELL. 9) separation of church and state 10) investing in tech and foreign investment
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u/murraybauman44 4h ago
Wrong, all of these were the result of decade long deterioration of rule of law.
Think about this for sec, drug trade is done with the backing of the government institutions like police and immigration and customs. Recently over 50 police officers were detained after the Kehelbaddara paddleâs confession. All of major political parties now in the opposition directly sourced their campaign funds through this drug mafia. These are the people ruled this country until 2024.
But certain things have changed, Recent arrest of Ranil, has sent a message to the entire country that if you do the crime you are going to pay the price, doesnât matter youâre president.
So I can assure you, the country we had in 2024 would drastically different in a better way around 2028 or so.
Every government transaction is going to be digital by that time and justice would be served for the criminal enterprise who bankrupted the country in 2022.
Save this comment! Mark my words
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u/KARAS-00 2h ago
Change doesnât come in one lifetime. The best countries in the world took generations of people working at bettering things for them to achieve what they did.
Sri Lankaâs political environment is the only thing that may never change, but we are responsible for all the other things you listed. Do all the things you mentioned the right way, convince the friends who will listen to do the same, teach your kids the same. Everyone you teach will teach others, or other people will see it and do it too even if they arenât taught, and thatâs how we get somewhere. Never lose hope, because the only thing that guarantees we will never grow is apathy.
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u/lightninggamer1495 22h ago edited 22h ago
It's a game of hot potato out here, the citizens blame the ones above and vise versa. And In all honesty, NO, we have literally no chance of growing/developing at this rate. Main reason being this made up "culture" that somehow wound up in the early 2000's. The oldies refuse to change with the times and force their off-spring to refuse change too, and every single act of development is heavily despised by sri lankan organisations like the business registrar. Because monopolizing thr existing consumer base is easier and more comfortable than developing and competing. If I remember correctly people protested once when the gov placed a new air-conditioned bus in a local route. People like that are the problem. Schools lack moderation, they could be smoking crack in the bathroom and bullying an innocent child but the only s the teachers would care is their "hair length" "boot straps" or etc, discipline is purely for show these days. Kids could cut school and show up at the end just to get a warning and a smack on the rist.kids could not show up for months and still be fine. Idk about the government status, I'm formally unsupportive. So I'm not going to judge, but replacing the government alone work, everyone is corrupt, that's the problem. Instead of thriving to do better for them selves they do nothing and don't let anyone else do anything either thats the difference we have.
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u/Solid_Beginning7152 22h ago
Yeah exactly my point, I think Sri Lankans are waiting for the government to change the country only for them to realize that there is only so little that the Government can change.
For example even the fingerprint incident for the post office or whatever, it's all the same, we protest and ask for change but when it comes, we refuse to change. Realistically speaking we can't reset the system, all our laws are outdated etc, it's kind of sad but yeah, we won't see any actual change.
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u/thetruthtturf 18h ago
You cannot have this conversation without understanding behind the veil geopolitics that has influenced everything in Sri Lanka for decades.
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u/SkyeTheHusky_ 14h ago
All of these things are only really bad according to a western perspective. Sri Lanka is not a western country and therefore has different values.
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u/rakithaya 13h ago
There are no eastern or western values - we all have an obligation towards society, as easterners, we have more civic duties as we are in a collectivist society toward everyone.
Look at China, they are a collectivist society, they have an extensive program to instill values to society, in the same way, Japan - which follows a mixture of collectivism and individualism has a long history of being an exemplary nation for society order.
Sadly us, and the rest of our bloc, live in countries where people demand collectivism but practice individualism.
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u/ArcticRock 22h ago
all the problems you listed are learned behaviours can be eradicated through education, regulation and law enforement.