“13th Amendments meaningless†– TNA MP
Posted on November 18th, 2012
Asada M Erpini
ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian M.A. Sumanthiran admitted that the 13th Amendment to the Constitution is ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”meaninglessƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ and that the TNA had rejected it right from the startƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚, goes a report in the Sunday Observer on 18 November.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ This writer, as well as the large majority of the peace-loving in Sri Lanka ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” irrespective of their ethnic or religious affiliations ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” no doubt, will wholeheartedly agree with the view expressed by the TNA MP. They would all only hope that the statement is a genuine sentiment.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The 13th Amendment (13A) was a ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”solutionƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ that was forced on Sri Lanka by Rajiv Gandhi and his Foreign Office panjandrums in July 1987 to solve the problems, as they saw it, of the ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”innocentƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ Tamils of Sri Lanka, especially of those living in the North. The then Sri Lanka President had to accept the ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”manna from heavenƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ as Indian warships lay anchored of Colombo and IndiaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s fighter jets hovered over Jaffna, violating the airspace of the sovereign nation of Sri Lanka. The ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”agreementƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ was signed with the country placed under curfew, because the President knew that every Silva, Perera, Appuhamy or Kiribanda (there are no Toms, Dicks and Harrys) among Sri LankaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s 75% Sinhala population would welcome it with open arms! At least one man showed his open disagreement ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” a Naval rating named Vijitha Rohana de Silva struck a blow on Rajiv Gandhi with the rifle when the latter was inspecting an honour guard.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The 13th amendment to the constitution of Sri Lanka, and the additional bureaucracy of Provincial Councils that it spawned, did not solve any of the problems of the country, or of the Tamils for which it was hatched. Sri Lanka is saddled with a superfluous tier of administration, with Chief Ministers and Ministers for everything under the sun, in spite of the national government having a President, a Prime Minister and many Ministers, Deputy Ministers, non-Cabinet Ministers and Senior Ministers.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ A key provision in the so-called Indo Lanka Peace Accord was that the LTTE would hand over their weapons. What Pirabhaharan did was to surrender a puny pistol, while the media were busy recording the ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”greatƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢ event that would bring peace to Sri Lanka! The heavy weapons of the LTTE that comprised RPGs, anti-aircraft missiles, heavy artillery guns, etc. got quietly hidden, to surface later on for attacks on the Sri Lanka armed forces. Many lives of both civilians as well as of the soldiers would have been saved if the Peace Accord and the 13th amendment were capable of doing what they were expected to do as proclaimed.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The Eastern Provincial Council got its Chief Minister Perumal, and without wasting any time whatsoever, he announced a UDI (Unilateral Declaration of Independence). The Northern Province could not dream of even a namesake Provincial Council as the people there, willingly or unwillingly, were with the LTTE. The latter was only interested in Eelam ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” a mono-ethnic territory for the Tamils.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Although the TNA MP says today that 13A is meaningless, his alliance (TNA) said nothing critical of 13A when the LTTE held sway over a third of Sri LankaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s land mass and two thirds of its coastal belt. In fact, it gladly served as the mouthpiece of the terrorists, and by its silence implied that 13A would bring in peace and the land will flow in milk and honey.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ There are many individuals and groups that are now moving to initiate action to repeal 13A. The logical course of action for Sumanthiran to take is to join them and get rid of the ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-meaninglessƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚ 13th Amendment.
November 18th, 2012 at 5:48 pm
Happy birthday Mr President.
Happy anniversary of assuming office 7 years ago.
I still remember that day in 2005. I went to uni and didn’t have mobile internet. Had to wait to get home to check the results. Parents were not interested so they didn’t know.
But I saw no difference between the Mahinda-Mangala camp and Ranil-Karu camp. Both were man-fag camps or nationalist-traitor.
Then things changed. The new camps were Mahinda-Karu and Ranil-Mangala. The camps were man2man and fag2fag respectively or nationalist-nationalist and traitor-traitor. One destined to win the other destined to doom. Then I knew things will happen.
7 years have passed! Boy what eventful 7 years for the nation and for me! For prople born AFTER the war started, 2009 was a whole new planet!!
November 18th, 2012 at 5:57 pm
Just 2 people creating all the trouble for 20 million people.
If not for Sampanthan-Sumanthiran, people don’t have racism problems. Why?
Just imagine if Amirthalingam, Tamil Chelva, Pararajasingham, Raviraj, shirtless cabare dancer in parliament Maheswaran were alive! ****! Thank god they are not.
We have only 2 hurdles to peace now. Why oh why not!
November 18th, 2012 at 11:14 pm
Peace is just 2 hurdles away!
Jump over them or get rid of ’em.
November 19th, 2012 at 5:54 am
Open your eyes. Sumanthiram is setting a trap. His agenda is the same as Prabhakaran – Eelam.
This is their plan. Destabilize the “Sinhala government” by:
1. turning the “dumb Chingalum masses” against it the “dumb Chingalum government”.
2. demonstrate to his mother India (Tamil Nadu in particular) that the Sinhalese are ungrateful to India and incorrigibly chauvinistic.
3. Demonstrate to the “international community” (western powers) that the Sinhalese are incorrigibly chauvinistic and want to oppress the Tamils.
Like the 83 riots, this is a propaganda exercise. The LTTE diaspora think we are congenital fools. Don’t fall for the bait. Patience and discernment is necessary. Leave it to the experts. Sometimes you have to go with the stream in order to reach the Ocean. All those modeyas who claim ancestry/connection solely to North India/Pakistan can ask their relatives to help us now. Perhaps we should agree with our “relatives” and embrace their prescriptions for our own good? After such talk, what other region of the world would bother about us? Why would they?
November 19th, 2012 at 5:59 am
Instead of having nine provinces, Sambandan now says three or four regions is enough. I am sure what he has in his mind being the N & E as one.
.
November 19th, 2012 at 11:17 am
Yes, looks very much like Sampathan has the North and the East as one region. They still want their separation.
Looks like the best way is to devolve to the 25 districts as it is done now. This will certainly put a damper on Sampathan’s great plans.
November 19th, 2012 at 11:48 am
TNA is supposed to have said ” …13th Amendment to the Constitution is ‘meaningless’ and that the TNA had rejected it right from the start”. But that was because 13-A was not Eelam on a Platter, was it not ?
Now we ought to have DECENTRALISATION of powers to the Districts, and NOT DEVOLUTION. Decentralisation plus Govt. Agents is the way to go for a lasting peace and prosperity for all, including the Tamil people.
November 19th, 2012 at 1:13 pm
Crobe,
NO WAY!
Imagine there are district rule.
TNA ANYWAY wins Jaffna and Vanni districts!! That’s how they crept to parliament.
So they will have the area anyway!!
It is not the solution.
The solution is Thun Rata system. NO DEVOLUTION!
November 22nd, 2012 at 2:29 pm
Lorenzo,
NO, the SOLUTION is NOT Thun Rata …. just EKA RATA.
YES, the SOLUTION is NO Devolution …. NO Devolution = NO Dissolution !
EKA Rata = EKA Nation + EKA People + EKA Destiny.
November 22nd, 2012 at 2:37 pm
Leela is CORRECT.
Sampanthan’s “Five Regions” will make it EASIER for the TNA to SWALLOW an EVEN LARGER PART of Sri Lanka as an EXCLUSIVE RACIST APARTHEID Tamil Eelam.
Nah … we won’t BUY that proposal either. Let us stop slicing and dicing the Motherland into a Patchwork of Communal Bantustans.
Stand FIRM on the EKA RATA Concept.
EKA Rata = EKA Unitary Natiion + EKA United People + EKA National Destiny!
BE THOU ONE NATION FOREVER, MOTHER LANKA!
Patriots Young,
Patriots Old,
Patriots Staunch and True,
Rally around the Lion Flag,
The Red, and the Gold, in Hue!
To Your Mother Lanka Sing,
Patriots Near and Far!
Loudly Let the Echoes Ring,
For All We Have, and Are!
Esto Perpetua!
Esto Perpetua!
Esto Perpetua!
The Red and Gold Lion Flag, Forever!
November 22nd, 2012 at 3:33 pm
Ananda,
Eka rata (1 country) ABSOLUTELY!
But this decentralization nonsense is never ending. We have to do something about it. That is why the Thun Rata system.
SP + EP + UP = region 1
NP + NCP + NWP = region 2
WP + CP + Sabaragamuwa P = region 3
Thanks for Dr X (sorry I forgot his good name) for bringing this up in LW.
Sinhalese will be the majority in ALL these with more than 70%.
IF we can go WITHOUT ANY political solution, FANTASTIC. That is the IDEAL situation.