In a potentially far reaching slashing of peoples’ everyday freedoms, a council of state officials appointed the by President Maithripala Sirisena is to decide what food is ‘essential’ for people, and ban imports of foods that does not match their opinion.

According to a statement from the President’s office a National Economic Council “expects to take immediate steps to stop importing of all non-essential food items as well as unhealthy foods into the country.”

Sri Lanka has a Department of Customs and customs officers created by colonial European colonialists and also jails and police to take away the freedoms of ordinary citizens and punish those who do not live according to the wishes of the rulers.

There is no information yet on what criteria the Economic Council will decide what foods are ‘essential’ for the people or ‘healthy.’

Critics have said that since gaining self-determinations from the British Sri Lanka’s elected ruling class has deprived many freedoms of the people, including language and property rights, trade freedoms, from time to time, using the law-making powers of a legislature inherited from the British.

President Maithripala Sirisena had reportedly said that it is essential to produce all food consumed in the country in the country at the opening of an exhibition held at the Training Institute of Department of Agriculture in Bombuwala, Kalutara, earlier this week.

He was quoted as saying that ‘self-sufficiency’ in food was the identity and the culture of our country for past thousands of years and it should be protected.

Self-sufficiency was an Euopean nationalist idea that was widely practised in Eastern European countries like Germany. Sri Lanka’s on the other hand has history of thousands of years as a regional trading hub and exporter of spices and other items.

Self-sufficiency (autarky) in food was promoted by German historical economists, and expanded under Hitler. Hitler was motivated to seek ‘food security’ partly because Germany was blockaded by the Allies in the First World War.

Autarky was also promoted because Nazi Germany faced foreign currency shortages due to money printing with ‘Mefo-bills’ a type of note which expanded the money supply, generating balance of payments problems.

Senior National Socialist leader Herman Goering was put in place a four year plan to achieve autarky and made a Reich Plenipotentiary, wide ranging powers, to carry out the task.

Among the aims of the autarky plan was to produce synthetic oil.

Courtesy:ECONOMYNEXT