Boozing (or not!) in Sri Lanka

The renewed ban on alcohol made me mad. Oh, so mad!!! I know, it's been so many months already since this happened but I still cannot get over it.

It was bad enough in the past when very few people even knew about the fact that women didn't have the right to purchase alcohol, and was not enforced in most locations except in more rural areas, where the liquor stores are run by misogynistic old men who want to force their opinions on women in general. However, a faction of the government wanted to remove this extremely sexist and patriarchial law in January, and the president as our "culture police" decided to re-enforce it! 

What makes me so angry is not that I enjoy my tipple (which I do) but the connotation that, even though I do a "man's job" (Sri Lanka's higher echelons of management are still male-oriented and male-dominated) and have responsibility for over 140 people (men and women) in my office, and even though I earn a decent salary, I am still considered a lesser being who cannot make decisions for myself, and that my rupee doesn't spend like anyone else's.

Traditional Sri Lankan culture propagates the concept of men getting drunk together and coming home soused beyond belief, to hit the wife and children and rape the women of the household. The wife is expected to shush the children in case the man of the house gets mad for their noise, keep them out of his way, and ensure there's a good meal ready for him to eat before heading for the bedroom and being available for whatever he wants to do to her. So, domestic violence after alcohol is very very common. There are also many instances of gang rape, where men target any woman in their vicinity or maybe someone who has declined their suit and in an alcohol-fueled rage molest her. 

Although multiple programs against alcohol consumption have been carried out by different regimes, none of them made an actual impact on the availability of alcohol illicit or otherwise, nor did they attach any stigma to the men who are guilty of crimes under the influence. 

A majority of Sri Lankans also consider that the consumption of alcohol by women is mainly by the "Colombo crowd" who are considered westernized, licentious and of loose morals anyway (do all three words mean the same?). However, there is a high consumption of alcohol among hard-working women in Sri Lanka, such as manual laborers, estate workers and the like. And of course, alcohol making is considered a woman's job in different social strata, ranging from thambili wine in the households to kasippu-making and selling ra in the villages. Even completely teetotalling women very rarely object to a piece of Christmas cake made with a shot or more of booze.

So, all this ranting aside, in my opinion, the issue boils down to a very fundamental question, but a different one than what is asked by Sri Lankans in general.

From..
Should women be allowed to drink alcohol in Sri Lanka?

To...
Should women have equal rights and opportunities in Sri Lanka?

Unfortunately, so far, our culture police say no.