Ira de Silva London, Canada

DearƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Editors:
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
Since May 11,2009 the new “Eelam War” on Sri Lanka has gained momentum. In Canada the LTTE fronts staged a “remembrance” in the Canadian parliament building attended by about thirty parliamentarians from the four main parties and the most prominent were Bob Rae, once again calling for a war crimes inquiry, supported by Jack Layton, leader of the third largest political party, who is remembered by Sri Lankans in Canada for his famous/infamous speech;ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ when addressing a Tamil Tiger rally, he compared Prabhakaran to Nelson Mandela. I refer to this merely to impress on Sri Lankans the extent of the brainwashing done by the LTTE and the fact that parliamentarians overseas who are wooing the Tamil vote make no attempt to separate fact from fiction. This is true all over the world where the LTTE diaspora continue to raise funds and get parliamentarians toƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ make statements of support for theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ LTTE and are vociferous in their criticism of Sri Lanka and their goal of a war crimes trial at the ICC.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The LTTE diaspora’sƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ commitment to Eelam, their motivation and unrelenting drive against Sri Lanka is not matched in even a small degree byƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  representatives ofƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Sri Lanka overseas many of whomƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ are content to promote their personal agendas or sit on their hands.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
SinceƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the event on May 11th ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ there have been various other salvos fired at Sri Lanka. May 17th came theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  report from the International Crisis Group.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ TheƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ three prominent leaders, Louise Arbour, Gareth Evens of R2P fame and Chris Patten, all long time critics of Sri Lanka have once again issued a damning report to satisfy their paymasters who are theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ very western countries that have always supported the LTTE and pressured Sri Lanka to save the LTTE hierarchy in May 2009 so the LTTE could live to continue to terrorise Sri Lanka.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
In the U.S. the Transnational Government of the LTTE met from May 17 to May 19 in Philadelphia. The U.S. government that has listed the LTTE as a terrorist organization and has laws in place to arrest and charge people who support foreign terrorist organizations from the U.S. pays no attention to this gathering of known LTTE supporters who have raised funds for the last thirty years to help the LTTE terrorise Sri Lankans in their efforts to divide Sri Lanka. This can take placeƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ because the State Department’sƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ bureaucrat responsible for South Asia, the former U.S. ambassador to Sri Lanka and a prime mover in the effort to save the hierarchy of the LTTE inƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 2009 believes the LTTE leader in the U.S. namely Rudhrakumaran, is a “peace activist” – I refer to his answer at a press conference in Sri Lanka in December 2009. The media in Sri Lanka was silent. Were they not aware that RudhrakumaranƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ has been a long time leader of the LTTEƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ and represented the LTTE at the useless peace talks? Could none of them challenge Blake on his categorization of a top LTTEƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ leader as a “peace activist”?ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
On May 20th there was a news report that the Tamil Tigers were gathering in Venezuela. In the U.K. Chanel 4 aired another program which stated that regarding war crimes a senior army officer and a soldier had provided statements thatƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ these were orders from the top renewing the wound created by the statement that LTTE leaders were shot by orders from the Defense Secretary, the so-called white flag episode.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The programme then re-played the fake video of last year claiming that the UN had authenticated the video which the UN had not.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Louise Arbour appeared on the programme – her tune is that Sri Lanka must SUBMIT to a war crimes investigation, nothing else will do. The UN must impose the will of the west on Sri Lanka.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
The politicians in Tamil Nadu not to be outdone have stated that they haveƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ sought the assistance of the UN and the international community to initiate steps to provide autonomy to Sri LankaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s north and east regions on the lines of the special status that had been accorded to the Jammu and Kashmir state in India.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ According to Dr. S. Ramadoss,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  “European nations and Canada, which stood for the cause of the Sri Lankan Tamils, must take stern action to try Rajapaksa for war crimes”.

While all these forces are gathering against Sri Lanka to establish a war crimes trial against the political leaders andƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ high ranking commanders of the army regarding the prosecution of the war, it is alarming and extremely worrying that in Sri Lanka there seems to be a nonchalant attitude and that further statements are being made almost daily to add fuel to the fire of the foreign war crimes trial. ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ One news item reads “Marxist M.P. says Sri Lanka floods a curse for General Fonseka’s incarceration during war victory celebrations”, another says “Sri Lanka ex-Army Commander strongly rejects war crimes claims” although the General is adding to the confusion and helping the critics of Sri Lanka by making another statement that Prabhakaran was killed on May 19th and not May 18th one year after the event.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
All the above news reports are of the activities of the LTTE diaspora and their political supporters in the west while in Sri Lanka politicians are thinking that the rains are a signal of displeasure presumably from the gods! Until and unless the leaders in Sri Lanka realise the dangerƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ahead, get together and speak with one voice putting country first, setting aside their petty political differences and vendettas which are for local political gain andƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ realise that these statements are being used by the LTTE and the western governments who are leadingƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the new push for Eelam,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the so-called victory that Sri Lanka is attempting to celebrate will be short lived and it will not be the rains that will wash it away but the intemperate, indisciplined, ignorant faux pas that are being broadcast on a daily basis from Sri Lanka that will destroy the country once more.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
Rather than engaging in celebrations, would it not be better for Sri Lanka’s leaders and people to remember the horrors of the terrorism of the past thirty years, cherish theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ hard won freedom from fear in their daily lives, pray for those who have died, help those who got injured in the warƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ and make every effort to joinƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ together with the goal of establishingƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ a strong foundation for a united Sri Lanka which will defeat the internal and external threat of Eelam for all time.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
Yours truly,
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
Ira de Silva
London, Canada