Sri Lanka in 1973: A Test for Both the Rulers and the Ruled

Abstract

7he United Front (UF) Government devoted nearly two years to surmounting the disruption that accompanied the 1971 insurgency which put the clock back for the whole of 1971 and a good part of 1972.''1 The country had not recovered from this economic and social turmoil when economic forces beyond the control of Sri Lanka interfered with all plans and preparation for both economic and social change. The Government was forced to adjust its ambitious legislative program in keeping with world trends in prices and production. The upward spiralling of prices of all essential commodities demanded corresponding adjustments locally, and this, in effect, meant the introduction of unpopular economic measures. It was this atmosphere of economic crisis which provoked Prime Minister Mrs. Sirimavo Bandaranaike to say that free rice ensures political power but not economic growth, and the Minister of Finance, Dr. N. M. Perera, showing his awareness of the nature of the crisis, stated that is no royal easy road to socialism.2 In addition to this economic malaise, which has been used by the Opposition to mobilize support against the Government, there were political problems within the ranks of the Government, some of them centered around its policies and strategies. The successful management of these difficulties has been the remarkable record of the United Front regime composed of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP), the Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP), and the Communist Party (Moscow).