Ira de Silva Ontario, Canada

Mr. Robert O. Blake
Assistant Secretary for South & Central Asia
State Department
Washington D.C.,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ U.S.A.
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Dear Sir:
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Reference your opinions on the just concluded parliamentary election in Sri Lanka I am sure that President Rajapakse must be heartened at your pronouncement that his party will probably get a two-third majority. However, based on your track record of support to the LTTE terrorists, your opposition to his government andƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ efforts at regime change with the remnants of the LTTE,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ I feel sure thatƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ President Rajapakse will temper his happiness and the importance of your views knowing that you remain a supporter of the division of Sri Lanka as envisioned by the LTTE.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
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The news report states that you said “the Sri Lankan government now has an important opportunity to make progress on the issues of reconciliation, power sharing, and accountability”. If you had made any effort to follow the president’s statements during the presidential election and the parliamentary elections you would have noted that reconciliation was his theme. As for power sharing, that is when your views and those of the people of Sri Lanka may differ. What you seem not to understand is that whatever “sharing” takes place will be asƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ indicated by the people of Sri Lanka and that the demands of Tamil terrorists supported by foreign governments and individuals in the State Department in the U.S. are not the “basis” for sharing anything much less power. Democracy is that the people decide. In case you think otherwise, the same applies in Sri Lanka. The President has received a mandate based on his election manifesto and that is what he has to implement regardless of what your views are because your views were not what the people of Sri Lanka voted for.
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As for “accountability”, have you just added that requirement to make it sound good because in the Sri Lankan context the only accountability lies in what the government has promised to the people of Sri Lanka.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The word “accountability” has been bandied about by foreign governments and the U.N. after the defeat of the LTTE by the very people who were openly pressuring the Government of Sri Lanka to save the LTTE hierarchy so that they could live to terrorise the country for years to come to achieve their goalƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ of dividing Sri Lanka. You were one of the key players in that move.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Sri Lankans know that this “accountability” you have referred to it is being driven by the LTTE diaspora through spokespersons such as you. ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Since you are also responsible for Afghanistan, would you spell out what “accountability”ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  the U.S. shows as your government continues it’s war of terror onƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  the haplessƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Afghan population killing them by the thousands and displacing millions.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
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You have notedƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ that “the hard-line Sinhalese nationalist parties, Democratic National Alliance (DNA) and the monk party Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) experienced a significant loss in the elections. The DNA will be pleased to note your comment particularly when it’s leaderƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ accepted the demandsƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ of the TNA atƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the presidential election and got a large number of Tamil votes because of it. “I think that’s a quite telling and important result because these particular parties had opposed any kind of power sharing with the Tamils and with the Muslims”. If the Tamils voted for the DNA could it not be argued that they do not want power sharing? Just a thought. What you seem to have NOT noted is that your partner the Tamil National Alliance, who were the spokespersons of the LTTE terrorists have also experienced “significant loss”. For Sri Lankans that is the most “telling and important result” not theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ parties you mention. The TNA not only would not accept any power sharing, they stood for nothing short of dividing Sri Lanka by terrorist violence. It appears that you are selective in your notes of the election results again indicating where your sympathies lieƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  and should be a warning to President Rajapakse. Most Sri Lankans hope that he will NOT proceed with a lot of the stepsƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ you haveƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ described given that they know of your alliance with the LTTE in Sri Lanka before May 2009 and your close alliance with the remnants of the LTTE in the U.S. after May 2009.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
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The final insult to the people of Sri Lanka is is your contention that “the Tamils in particular have suffered a great deal from some of the human rights abuses of the last few years, so we believe it’s very important for that to be part of the reconciliation process that will occur”.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  That statement exposes your thinking and aligns you with the thinking of the remnants of the LTTE overseas who are re-organizing toƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ achieve Eelam. The LTTE unleashed their violence on all the people of Sri Lanka indiscriminately. The “human rights abuses of the last few years” were part of theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ LTTE attempt to terrorise the population everywhere in Sri Lanka so it is not only the Tamils who suffered a great deal but all the people of Sri Lanka. Any process of reconciliation has to be for everyone who has suffered through the LTTE’s reign of terror not just the Tamils. Contrary to your ideas, it is necessary that communal based politics be eradicatedƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ in Sri Lanka and that all policies are for the betterment ofƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Sri Lankans as a whole.
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Finally, it would be appropriate to remind the people of Sri Lanka that your comments are from the person under whose guidance the U.S.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ policy on Sri Lanka was:
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1. Align with the LTTE and push for recognition of the LTTE demands.
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2. Make the claim that there are good terrorists and bad terrorists. TheƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ LTTE being “good terrorists” to the U.S. had theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ support of theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ U.S. government.
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3.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Make every attempt to coerce the Government of Sri Lanka to save the LTTE hirearchy in May 2009.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
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4. After theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ elimination of the LTTE hierarchy, openly attempting to “punish” Sri Lanka by objecting to the loan from the IMF.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
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5. Referring to Rudrakumaran,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the leader of the LTTE in the U.S. for over twenty years,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  who after May 2009 stated that the LTTE would continue their campaign,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ as a “peace activist” during your lastƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ visit to Sri Lanka.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
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Since you regardƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Rudrakumaran who is a recognized leader of the LTTEƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ as a peace activist, continue to engage with him in his plans for Eelam in Sri Lanka and based on your selective notes on the election, the president and people of Sri Lanka shouldƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ evaluateƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  your advise and comments knowingƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ your mindsetƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ and the fact that you are still carrying the LTTE flag.
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Yours truly,
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Ira de Silva
Ontario, Canada