A group of psychiatrists expressing their serious concern on continuing events in Sri Lanka following the Easter Sunday attacks, said the atmosphere of mass hysteria where hatred, fear and paranoia are being perpetuated by various interested parties is disturbing.
In a statement to the media, they say that as psychiatrists, they share the shock and national grief following these incidents which shook the foundations of our nation. Psychiatrists have worked with the families and communities in the immediate aftermath and are continuing to provide services to all those affected.
Certain groups of people are being ostracized and discriminated without adequate evidence, based on race and religion. Social media and other propaganda have already passed judgement on certain alleged incidents and a large number of people are rushing to endorse and spread these stories which when looked at objectively are but mere fabrications and rumors, they said in their statement.
It is a situation fraught with much danger. It is common knowledge that in mass hysteria, only mob mentality and ‘group think’ can thrive, leading to mob violence. Many scholars including Sigmund Freud have written about this herd behaviour. What occurred in 1983 or even more recently in the North Western Province, cannot be repeated. Further, our behavior now will resonate for generations to come. Do we want our children to feed on fear and racism and perpetuate the cycle of violence for posterity and destroy our nation? We need to make wise choices now, the psychiatrists said.
We believe it is our responsibility to warn the public about the imminent danger of this situation and to urge them to patiently desist from precipitous acts. As a nation, we need to be strong and rational in the face of adversity. We invite the public to engage in some critical thinking and analysis in the name of those innocent lives that were lost on 21/4. We would also like our fellow professionals to come forward to express their learned opinions and advice the public in this dark hour, where emotion has triumphed over reason, they said in their statement.
The statement was issued by Prof. Thilini Rajapakse, Prof. Shehan Williams, Prof. Daya Somasundram, Dr. Neil Fernando, Dr. Ranil Abeysinghe, Dr. Gihan Abeywardena, Dr. Miyuru Chandradasa, Dr. Lalin Fernando, Dr. Nirosha Gunasinghe, Dr. Mohammed Juraij, Dr. Layani Ratnayake, Dr. Priyani Ratnayake, Dr. Kalyana Rodrigo, Dr. S. Sivayokan, Dr. Senaka Jayasundera, Dr. Anuradha Ellepola and Dr. Pushpa de Silva.
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