Government at Odds with Itself

In what appears to be an instance that shows policy incoherence and administrative disarray, the government found itself entangled in controversy over its handling of an LGBTQ+ project.

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What began as an official endorsement of a tourism project based on LGBTQ+ rights turns into a hasty denial, with President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and others making counter remarks after meeting with the members of the clergy, who protested the move over its impact on the cultural ethos of the country. The issue is no longer about the project itself, but about how the government conducts its business.

According to reports, an official letter had been issued indicating the Sri Lanka Tourism Development Authority’s support or collaboration with a project related to LGBTQ+. The letter bore official insignia, carried signatures of senior officers, and was even circulated among stakeholders. But within days, higher authorities moved to disown it, claiming that no such approval had been granted and that the correspondence had been issued without proper authorisation.

This backtracking has raised several questions. Was the initial letter a case of bureaucratic overreach? Or was it an instance where lower-level officials acted on what they believed was the policy direction, only to be reprimanded when political sensitivities came into play? Either way, the episode reveals a serious lack of coordination within the administration.