“Reform process must expand and protect the right to free education”

A group of academics, professionals, and social activists yesterday issued a joint statement backing the government’s education reforms and condemning attacks on Prime Minister and Minister of Education Dr. Harini Amarasuriya by sections of the Opposition.

The statement described the attacks as hateful and indecent, warning that such conduct promotes misogyny, undermines women’s political leadership, and restricts space for constructive debate on urgently needed reforms.

Full text of the statement titled ‘Calling on the Government to Preserve the Credibility of Ongoing Education Reforms Amidst Vulgar and Hateful Propaganda’: We, the undersigned, are closely monitoring the educational reforms currently being rolled out by the government with the aim of designing a system of education to suit the future of the country, as well as the public discourse being created within society about those reforms by various parties. The attacks being directed at the Prime Minister and Minister of Education Dr. Harini Amarasuriya by certain opposition groups and individuals are not only hateful, indecent, and a disgrace to the moral values of any civilized society, they also normalise misogynistic attitudes that belittle progressive women’s political leadership and shrink the space needed for constructive engagement and a meaningful discourse on urgently needed education reforms.

It is widely acknowledged that our country requires an education system grounded in forward-looking principles, as articulated in the National People’s Power (NPP) Education Policy, which is now the government policy after the approval of an overwhelming majority of the people. As clearly established in the National People’s Power Education Policy, the new education system should view education not merely as a commodity but as a process for developing more advanced and civilized citizens through a progressive approach grounded in visionary leadership, ethics, integrity, social mobility, community participation, increased inclusion of diverse social groups, and effective communication.

We further emphasize that these reforms should aim at and be implemented in a manner that:

·   ensures equal access to education for all segments of society.

·   eliminates the severe disparities in the access to edutation among the privileged and underprivileged groups.

·   affirms the state’s responsibility to provide education to all

·   equips learners with the knowledge, skills, attitudes, practices, and values required to become mature and democratic citizens

·   contributes to employment generation that meets changing social needs and enhances productivity.

·   embraces cultural diversity and pluralism across all nationalities and communities.

·   eliminates discrimination against any social group.

·   promotes social, economic, and environmental well-being and quality of life.

·   responds effectively to both global and local conditions.

Moreover, this reform process must expand and protect the right to free education for both present and future generations.

There is no doubt that such a far-reaching, transformative, and positive reform initiative is a serious undertaking that demands a high level of responsibility from all institutions within the education system.

However, the conduct of the National Institute of Education (NIE)—one of the key institutions entrusted with this responsibility—has raised serious concerns about the credibility of this agenda for transformation. Allegations related to editorial errors and problematic textbook content warrant careful and serious consideration. However, the delays and lapses in responsibility on the part of the National Institute of Education is deeply problematic. In this context, we urge the government to take the following steps to restore public confidence in this critical reform process:

1. Review the the new textbooks for Grades 1 to 6 as well as future text books to correct tgeir editorial errors and mistakes in content through an independent mechanism, separate from the NIE officials responsible for the current process. This requires maintaining mutual understanding through effective coordination among all institutions and government agencies responsible to lead and implement the transformation of the education system.

2. Restructure the National Institute of Education through a specially appointed committee, commission, or mechanism, following a comprehensive review of its role and performance in overseeing school education content.

3. During this period, conduct a more formal and inclusive dialogue on education reforms with relevant stakeholders including Teachers’ unions, based on the principles of the NPP Education Policy, while ensuring transparency and public accountability.

4. Allocate a substantial portion of the national budget to ensure that public expenditure on education reaches the target of 6% of GDP.

At the same time, the government must intervene decisively and with confidence, in line with how civilised socieites deal with these issues, without yielding to propagations that dehumanize and degrade sexuality and identity. The crude and hateful rhetoric propagated by certain groups run counter to the fundamental objective of educational reform: the development of a progressive and mature citizenry that respects all social identities. We remind the government that this transformative vision for education continues to receive strong support not only from the majority of the academic and professional community, but also from the broader public. This support remains steadfast for an educational system grounded in the principles outlined above—one that refuses to be derailed by the hateful, immoral, and uncultured conduct of a small minority.

Signatories of the statement are: Prof. Emeritus Jayadeva Uyangoda, Prof. Emeritus Jagath Weerasinghe, Prof. Anbahan Ariyadurai, Prof. Uthpala Jayawardena, Prof. Rohan Fernando, Prof. Prince Jayadevan, Dr. S. Arivalzahan, Prof. Nirmal Ranjith Devasiri, Dr. N. Varathan, Sandun Thudugala (Law & Society Trust), Dr. Mariadas Alfred, Dr. Athulasiri Samarakoon, Senior Lecturer Saminathan Wimal, Dr. Dileepa Withrana, Dr. S. Selvaganesh, Vangeesa Sumanasekera (Colombo School of Philosophy), Eng. M. Sooriasegaram, Vidura Munasinghe (Attorney-at-Law), Dr. Amali Wedagedara, Senior Lecturer Janaha Selvaras, Dr. Thyagaraja Waradas, Sanjee Goonathilake (Social Activist), Dr. Visakesa Chandrasekaram, Senior Lecturer Sithumina Rathnamalala, Dr. Vivimarie Vander Poorten, Shreen Saroor (Social Activist), and Hiranyada Devasiri (Researcher)