By Darmitha

Interesting developments are taking place around the world in western & Christian circles in the name of humanitarianism in relation post-LTTE war in Sri Lanka which reveals how much they are still licking the wounds of defeat at the hands of Sri Lankan Combined Armed Forces. Now the biggest issue that all of them are fighting for is the release of all held in the IDP camps in Sri Lanka, it is not too difficult to see the ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-double-tonguedƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ slogans that are being doled out to justify their agitations.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ For thirty years Sri Lanka as a country and Sri Lankans living in this country have been subject to the most brutal and inhumane treatment at the hands of LTTE terrorists; Tamil civilians living in the North and East never for a moment had an opportunity to live a normal life; children were not permitted to lead normal lives by gaining an uninterrupted education; university education in the North and East were constantly disrupted due to the brutality of these terrorists against students and the academia; Tamil parents were living in constant fear not knowing whether their children who left for school in the mornings would ever return home or end up as members of the ChildrenƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s Brigade of the LTTE; civilians who traveled by public transport never knew whether they would reach their destinations or end up as fragmented pieces of flesh due to land mines or bombs-which ever the terrorists opted to use to terrorize the citizens of this country- during all this, not one western country or humanitarian organization or Christian Church ever thought it fit to demand from the LTTE that all atrocities must stop for people to return to normalcy! The UNICEF, The UN, UNDP, Pastors of Evangelical Christian Cults, Reverend Fathers of the Catholic Church even went to the extent of aiding and abetting with the terrorists by transporting landmines, suicide kits, turned a blind eye while terrorists buried the entire backyards of the Church of Our Lady of Madhu with landmines and sane minded people in this country wonder whether this was done in the name of sanity and humanitarianism for the welfare of Sri Lanka?

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Thanks to the excellent coordination of our Combined Forces this brutal outfit was annihilated & people would expect the entire world to rejoice at this unparalleled victory. However, we now see these most humanitarian organizations and religious organizations making a frantic effort to stand in the way of the Government of Sri Lanka by coming out with various demands on the speed with which inmates of IDP camps must be released (with the hope ofcourse, that hidden LTTE terrorists would also escape) and are hoping against hope, that the systematic programme being implemented to scrutinize the inmates while releasing the innocent could be toppled to reach their own agendas of pampering the remaining LTTE sympathizers around the world.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ According to Radhika Coomaraswamy, the Special Representative of The Secretary General for Children and Armed Conflict statingƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-It has been a terrible year for children living in situations of armed conflict around the world. Ferocious conflicts in Gaza, Sri Lanka, Pakistan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Iraq and Afghanistan have led to high casualty rates and the displacement of a large number of people especially children.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ How true? Has Radhika Coomaraswamy in her desperate concern for the victims of armed conflict ever deemed it fit to question the arms manufacturing countries in the western world why they manufacture weapons of mass destructions to cause such suffering in the countries she herself has mentioned above? If not for these weapons, there would be no conflict- isnƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t it so? Has she ever raised the question with UN Secretary-General as to why he is still procrastinating without uniting the two KoreasƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  (North and South) and enabling families which are divided for over 40 years over one land mass to be united with their blood relations? One race of Koreans are separated by a barrier some families have not seen their brethren or communicated with them for 3-4 decades & may we ask whether this is humanitarian? Who is keeping them apart? For what earthly reason, are they prevented from uniting? It is hilarious to read the concluding statement of Radhika Coomaraswamy when she states ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-The nature of conflict is changing and civilians are increasingly on the frontline. The toll on children is more brutal than ever. All parties to conflict should make every effort to better protect children and to make protection of civilians an integral part of military planningƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” how wonderfully philosophical! We do wish that she could have had the guts to ask this from Velupillai Prabhakaran before he met his waterloo because that would certainly have helped the children who are now in refugee camps thanks to him. The Sri Lankan Armed Forces never used children to sandwich them in between armed conflict but Prabhakaran thought it fit to deprive children of their childhood by forcing them to join ChildrenƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s Brigades while his own children enjoyed grand living in safer havens to complete their education.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ As reported by Reuters on 15^th September 2009(reported by Patrick Worsnip and edited by Philip Barbara) where it is stated ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Lynn Pascoe, head of the UN political affairs department, told reporters he would set off on Tuesday, at the request of Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon, who himself visited Sri Lanka in May, days after the separatist rebels (more appropriate would be to call them ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-terroristsƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚) were crushed.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ According to Pascoe ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…- a whole range of human rights issues need to be discussed.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ No international organization or country can be more concerned than Sri Lanka about the welfare of her own citizens and there is no country in the world that would not want to lead a normal life with peace for all but this is not possible due to the interference of vested interests of various western governments who fell that it is their God given right to throttle poorer countries with various demands until the conflicts built into ravaging wars. There is no mighty hurry for the Sri Lankan Government to listen to the dictates of other countries- countries who never helped to stop the war or made any attempt to dictate to the LTTE to stop their brutalities. Our problem must be solved by us, in a manner which is suitable to our country and all citizens living here. So it might be more decent for the UN to listen to our Government and help as and when help is sought, if the intention is truly to help our citizens.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The Catholic Press weekly tabloid ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…- MessengerƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ of 13^th September 2009 carries on the front page a picture and short caption ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…- President receives an honorary degree from Emeritus Archbishop Oswild GomisƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ in which it states ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…- The university of Colombo conferred honorary degrees on President Mahinda Rajapakse and Defense Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapakse at the postgraduate convocation held this week at the BMICH. The recipients received their honorary degrees, Doctor of Laws and Doctor of Letters respectively from Emeritus Archbishop Most Rev.Dr. Oswild Gomis who is Chancellor o the University of Colombo(courtesy of Daily Mirror).ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ A scanned picture of the ceremony is attached.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The hypocrisy and timing is interesting indeed. This same Archbishop published page long advertisement messages together with Lalith Kothelawela ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Christians Awake!ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ warning Christians against voting for Mahinda Rajapakse at the Presidential Elections of 2005 and now he is conferring honorary degrees on that very same man now that he is President of Sri Lanka!ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  In the same breath as it were there is a media release titled ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Sri Lanka: Bishops Say All Must Be Allowed HomeƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ in which two Catholic Bishops John Rawsthorne of Sheffield and John Arnold of Westminister having returned from Sri Lanka are together with CAFOD making a demand of the Sri Lankan Government to release all refugees held in IDP camps to return to their homes! The above Bishops do not understand that thanks to the LTTE terrorists, these people do not have homes to return to and it is the duty of the Sri Lankan Government first and foremost, to build these homes before people can return home. Without making the homes, what is the big rush to release people to the elements after having suffered untold misery for nearly three decades at the hands of terrorists!

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Sri Lanka is capable of looking after the inmates at the camps irrespective of monsoons as Bishop John Rawsthorne seems to be so humanly concerned about. Let Sri Lanka handle her own affairs without Church Fathers attempting to put pressure on the Government of Sri Lanka. Families who come forward as well as the inmates who will be released, is up to us to decide & not for some foreigners to dictate-we hope they will understand where their limits lie.