Sri Lankan Male: The Honorable

Sri Lanka's Armed Forces

Men of Valor

Are they the good, the bad or the...

One may question the claim to righteousness of the gun-toting soldier, but there should be no question of the honor of the man who volunteers to take up arms and put his life on the line.

The dark handsome features of the young Sri Lankan man in uniform does not mask the integrity of a well-disciplined soldier.

The foot soldiers of the Sri Lankan armed forces, in appearance if not in substance, are like shining black knights adorning a lush green canvas landscape.

The war is over but conflict, regrettably, still plays a role in the politics of Sri Lanka.

<< The disciplined soldier--man of honor or pawn in the game of political one-upmanship?

However they are viewed, these are the infantrymen, along with other uniformed men who patrol the streets and put their lives in harms way.

They appear at their noble best when on parade--freshly groomed, crisply attired and glazed in sweat under a warm tropical sun.

The images shown here come from Reuters, AP and Getty services, which regularly portray in images the goings-on in Sri Lanka, largely in terms of its civil unrest. Is it really fair to characterize Sri Lanka in such a way?

No one can say they don't put on a good show.

Who saw this coming? Did the population of Sri Lanka, weary of war, expect a new internecine battle? Perhaps the answer is Yes.

Was it not the case that the long battle with the Tamil Tigers was punctuated mid-way through its long course by an even more ravaging conflict, pitting one side among the Sinhalese majority against another?

Is a show of force enough to quell the rising tensions?

My perusal of history tells me that the country was in chaos and the telltale signs were tyre-ringed, burned bodies of young men at roadside or their bloated corpses found floating in rivers.

Then, it was the government against the JVP and the JVP against the government in a Maoist style rebellion. Let us hope history does not repeat itself in whatever new guise the acrimony might take.

Post conflict Sri Lanka's fighting men have been kept in uniform.
Perhaps only now it is becoming clear why.

There is a certain irony in all of the discipline and orderliness of the parade. The battles actually fought are often anything but controlled and orderly. The presumption, of course, is that discipline can be trained into the soldier in advance--the better to function with in the midst of the chaos of war. But does this not leave the soldier less prepared to improvise?

Is not the soldier, having been trained to follow orders and move in lock-step with his comrades, just a bit perplexed when surrounded by nothing but disorder in the midst of a fight? Are not guerrilla tactics more likely to win? Just a thought.

Long live the armed forces!

Spectacles of Color

Whether it is military pageantry, cultural or sporting events, political rallies or just daily life, Sri Lanka is a land of vibrant color.

That is surely in large part due to being in the tropics where nature bestows its beautiful greens and blues, punctuated with reds, yellows and other vivid colors found in flora and fauna.

The handsome shades of beige and brown in the complexions of people seem to contribute to the choice of vibrant colors in clothing and the other things people surround themselves with. The most attractive Sri Lankan homes are the more colorful ones in bold contrasts like orange, purple, green and brown.

The country's Special Forces are always one for a good display of prowess and the beauty of the spectacle is also not lost on those lucky enough to attend their public displays

The Sri Lankan Special Forces, by the way, may have just the right combination of discipline and agility, enabling its men to make good use of guerrilla-style tactics.

GETTY IMAGES

Sri Lanka Police Special Task Force (STF) commandos perform a demonstration during a passing out parade at Katukurunda, some 40 kms south of Colombo, on October 30, 2009. Sri Lanka is recruiting more people to the police and the armed forces despite the end of the fighting with Tamil Tiger rebels in mid-May. The new recruits are to be deployed in vast tracks of land that were wrested from rebel control after nearly four decades of fighting.


Those Special Forces guys are pretty amazing!
	"Sri Lanka’s military spent years in the 1980s and 1990s being trained by the world’s elite special forces in counterinsurgency tactics. Now it is being asked to return the favour..."

“In terms of their experience, the special forces, commandos and the special infantry operations trained units [of the Sri Lankan military] that participated in the final phase [of the battle] are considered the best of the best,” said Dr Rohan Gunaratne, the head of the International Centre for Political Violence and Terrorism Research, and also a professor at the S Rajaratnam School of International Studies at Nanayang Technological University in Singapore. The National, UAE
Who would have thought camouflage could look so chic?

The now defamed Sri Lankan military leader, Gen. Sarath Fonseka, is quoted in The National as saying,

“The army began fighting like guerrillas while the terrorists reacted like a conventional army with conventional weapons. The army’s strategy this time was to go for the kill instead of holding on to the land. The terrorists were put off balance.”

More color from the cultural side...

Pageantry is not limited to the military but a feature also in popular festivals. The Esala Perahera in Sri Lanka's historic city of Kandy is especially striking for its nighttime pageantry.

Drummers, dancers, fire acrobats and elephants make the Kandy Esala Perahera one of the most amazing spectacles of culture and pageantry in the world! >>

Kandy is not alone in presenting Sri Lankan culture in its richest, most colorful light. Cultural events can be found at temples, churches and mosques around the country and in civic venues, including on the streets of Colombo.

Costumes and dress worn by dancers and other performers vary by region. One common element is richness of color. Another is elaborate headpieces. And like the peacock it is usually the male performer who sports the more elaborate and attractive attire.

Many would consider the costumes of the Kandian dancers and drummers
the most regal and refined.

REUTERS PICTURES

Traditional dancers perform during a parade celebrating Sri Lanka's 62nd Independence Day, in Kandy, 72 miles (116 km) from Colombo, February 4, 2010. The country achieved independence from the British in 1948 and officially became the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka.

The "Devil Dances" are an attempt to respond to the common belief that certain ailments are caused by unseen hands and that they should be chased away for the patient to get cured.
Wikipedia

Honor Guard

The military parade is now mostly ceremonial, though soldiers from time immemorial up until the late 19th century fought in formation.

Wikipedia

Though largely ceremonial today, the military parade no doubt serves the function of inspiring a new generation of young recruits. The discipline of the parade may also play a useful role to those who train so well to execute it in other aspects of life, whether in or out of service.

To watch these soldiers in parade formation is to witness art in motion.

“In terms of their experience, the special forces, commandos and the special infantry operations trained units [of the Sri Lankan military] that participated in the final phase [of the battle] are considered the best of the best,” said Dr Rohan Gunaratne.

Whether special are regular forces, the servicemen of Sri Lanka are still the ones to be admired.

Read about the Special Forces in The National report, Foreign Forces Look to Sri Lanka for Plan.

See more Sri Lankan Military pageantry:
Sri Lankan Victory Celebration.

Last take... classic Sri Lankan military style. ↓

The images in this post were obtained from a variety of sources and no claims of ownership are being made by this author. Many of the images have, however, been digitally modified for artistic purposes in accordance with the theme of this post.

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Labels: colors, military parade, soldiers