W. Pathirana.

I am referring to the above titled article in Daily Mirror, p A9 of 6/1/2020 (kksperera1@gmail.com) and the article titled ‘Tamils Want to Sing National Anthem in Their Mother Tongue” on Daily Mirror, p A9 of 11/1/2020 (dbsjeyaraj@yahoo.com).

Material presented here without inhibitions is essentially directed at pathologically broad minded Sinhalese whose ideas in reality give a wrong message to the minorities. There are many articles that poorly reflect the 20 centuries old magnificent Sinhalese heritage and ownership to this island. This is in sharp contrast to the voicing for piling up rights incessantly demanded by the minorities. The issues raised here must be viewed with the back ground that Sri Lankan minorities assume for themselves a majoritarian mind set in that there is a larger Tamil population of 75 million in Tamil Nadu and that the Muslim world extend from Morocco in Atlantic ocean to Indonesia in Pacific ocean with an arch of Muslim countries over India and Sri Lanka (SL).

There is all the time news items for one to see as to how people stand up to protect and uphold their countries. The latest is how Swiss embassy staff and their government went all out to protect a staff member, despite her being a Sri Lankan citizen. One wonders if it has become a fashion to appease the Tamils in this country by many of our eminent journalist.

Not a word was said about a Tamil anthem by the journalists until Sirisena-Ranil government sang it as a vote catching ploy. None of the election manifestoes or even a cursory mention made before the event. There wasn’t any notable demand even by the Tamil leaders on the Tamil anthem issue.

The dire predicament of the Sinhalese are not realized by these journalists and the cocoon dwelling Sinhalese in general. The Sinhalese occupying just a small island and limited to a part of it, increasingly loosing the 20 centuries old territory, in the north by descendants of invading Tamil armies and labor force brought from Tamil Nadu by the Dutch for the tobacco cultivation, in the central hills by labor force brought by the English for tea cultivation, Tamil mercantile class establishing in Colombo area (Sinhalese now a minority in capital?), destroying and erasing Sinhalese cultural heritage in the north and east by the minorities, yet our able journalists split hair to paint a racial picture about the Sinhalese.

Despite using Tamil as their mother tongue, 60,000 Muslims in the north were chased out within 48 hours. Over the years 25,000 Sinhalese had been evicted from the north. Recently due to harassment as many as 80 undergraduates from the University of Jaffna had to be transferred to other universities. About two weeks back few Buddhist murals painted by Jaffna prisoners were prevented from displaying by Tamil politicians. There were minority protests about the burial of a Buddhist monk in the east. The idea is to set up a tribal Tamil racist state to their own peril and to everyone around them. This idea is probably based on the epic Ramayana where thirteen headed mythical Ravana of Lanka is viewed as a Dravidian and hence Tamil rights predate those of Sinhalese. However 20 centuries of recorded Sinhalese history with connections stretching from Rome to China meaning the whole world at that time, together with extensive literature, network of tanks and canals and over 100,000 ruins ever visible reflect the Sinhalese heritage of the island.

One must be concerned about the progressively restricting premise of the Sinhalese from every angle, one of the most accommodative people on earth. In the whole world only the Sinhalese are encouraged and driven to learn Tamil spoken by a very limited population, one more wasteful misguided exercise for Sinhalese in place of learning any one of the international languages. Tamil language had not evolved and refined stagnating for last so many centuries. Incidentally Tamil language too in a global scale is essentially confined to the very south-eastern tip of India at about 5% of Indian population. All the critics of Sinhalese including those Sinhalese themselves are sitting on the lap of Sinhalese and carry on Sinhalese bashing.

Nationally and Internationally the Sinhalese are taken to task by many as they have identified the mindless nature of the Sinhalese. There is a severe drought of ideas even when it is a matter of life and death. More often than not whenever there is a reaction it is misplaced and out of proportion complicating the issue. The international pogroms include: some sections of the Sinhalese themselves, certain SL political parties, by the SL Tamils, Tamil Nadu Tamils, Tamil diaspora with a government in exile, International Non-governmental Organizations who are actually governmental in providing funds and policy directions at the other end, India with the historical blunder in sponsoring Tamil terrorists, Ms. Suka of South Africa’s, Darusman of Indonesia (brought out a strange UN repot available to the accused SL only after 30 years, none had the presence of mind to say we shall respond after studying it at the end of 30 years”). British ruling and Opposition parties where their leaders selectively congratulated Tamils during new year and Thai Pongal without uttering once SL or Sinhalese, Norway, Canada, USA- Co-sponsoring a suicide pact and Hillary receiving Tamil election funds, later returned, France involved during last phase of civil war, Switzerland- courts releasing LTTE terrorists from prison saying they have the right to terror, Australia with a woman in charge of LTTE child soldiers putting on cyanide capsules necklaces, Argentina- for SL siding with UK during Folkland war, Hong Kong and Taiwan on Sri Lanka’s one China policy and by Germany as a pastime. However to their credit a former LTTEr for having indicated movements of late Mr Kadiragamer to the assassins was sentenced to 10.5 years imprisonment. Withstanding such an onslaught, no wonder that Sinhalese are the longest surviving culture in the world (Roman, Greek, Mesopotamian, Ottoman, Persian, possibly Indus all disappeared), that too with a smile despite such powerful adversaries.

On the face value of it and on good intentions in the tradition of Sinhalese, the article ‘Let’s Sing a 50:50’ appear acceptable. The reference to few countries that sing national anthem in 2-3 languages hides the horrendous facts about extreme racist nature of Tamils in SL and for that matter most Tamils as listed above. Those shared singing of anthems in the said countries are not with races who forever are aiming at the throat of the other party. The backwardness of dual/multi language anthems are reflected in the fact that majority of these are in backwrd African countries. Please see listing below on extremely anti SL racial nature of Tamils.

• Prior to racist Vaddukoddai Resolution there was the famous Tamil Conference in San Francisco, US attended by eminent Tamils from all over the world in which SL was identified as the soft target to set up a Tamil state.
• Then came the Vaddukoddai Resolution with the working idea of setting up a Tamil country in SL, All these were before Sinhala Only Act, which had been duly amended but racial slogans continue. Sinhala Only Act was not a demand by the Sinhalese but was a political ploy.
• Tamil population of 15% wanted 50:50 representation in the legislature, the world’s most warped political demand.
• Tamil Nadu has an enactment that all sign boards must have Tamil on top and there is a Tamil language day when only Tamil is used in government institutes including air ports.
• All north east based SL political parties have the word Tamil in their party name but none accuse them of being racial.
• Varadaraja Perumal declared a separate Tamil country in the east.
• Crude and rude mind set is symbolized in the LTTE flag with an angry tiger face surrounded by a string of bullets, number one brutal symbol for a flag.
• Drawing up a map of a separate country covering north-east not realizing how anybody could defend a ‘horse shoe shaped enclave’ with disproportionately long border in proportion to the land area. However upcountry Tamils may join them under ‘little now and more later on’ scheme.
• LTTE attacked all the major vital points in SL- Joint Central Command, Army Headquarters, Central Bank, Central Bus Stand, Central Telegraph Office, Bandaranayake Int. Airport, Fort and Maradana major Railway Stations, Yal Devi express train, Kollonnawa oil tank farm, air raids on Kelani-Tissa Power Generation Plant and Inland Revenue Building, the flight path of which suggest it was an attempted suicidal attack on prime minister’s residence 1-2 Km away, 35 story World Trade Center, Sri Maha Bodhi, Temple of Tooth, sword attacks killing 33 novice hungry Buddhist monks on their way to alms, many mosques attacked last being Akuressa area mosque following which terrorism was wiped out, 550 surrendered policemen massacred (all the mad men are inquiring armed forces for a made up story of killing surrendered LTTE carders. It was LTTE that shot carders of other militant Tamils while pleading on knees), killed 26,000 SL armed forces personnel and 1200 Indian soldiers total killings account for more than all the deaths on either side of Indo-Pak post- independence wars and these numbers are reflective of African ethnic warfare, Massacred countless people in passenger buses, trains, planes, one fell in to sea off Mannar that included a friend of mine Dr Paramasivam, men in agricultural farms, diplomats visiting north injuring Italian ambassador, otherwise vociferous diplomats mute on this occasion, stripped and pulled out fetuses from pregnant mothers, thrashed toddlers held by legs on tree trunks, split head in four from top with swords, drew blood from captured soldiers until collapsed to death, shut Mavil Aru aniquet depriving water , burst a dam causing floods to drown soldiers, extensively used banned Claymore bombs, used hundred of thousands anti- personnel mines, now make international efforts to dig them out without any contribution by Tamils.
• Blasted Chennai airport killing 45, blasted a Tamil Nadu bridge plunging a train load in to river, invaded Maldives islands.
• Killed two heads of states, SL and India and a third in SL escaped but with a lost eye.
• Thrive on smuggling, drugs and every kind of illicit deals. Dug tunnel under US-Canada border to smuggle drugs, Raj Rajaratnum in a 17 yr. prison sentence in US for money laundering.
• During natural disasters it is the Sinhalese who volunteer for action. During Tsunami Colombo Medical Faculty students were there in Trincomalee within 48 hours. These actions are not reciprocated by Tamils perhaps reflecting an inherent deficit in feeling the ownership to the island. Now and then Tamils are driven out of Bombay, Kerala and Andra Pradesh, a similar event took place in Malaysia around 1973.
• Suicidal nature is symbolized with suicide vests and cyanide capsule wearing carders.

For a small ethnic population, confined to a small strip of land, in a small island, to commit such disproportionately horrendous crimes on another group of ethnic population generally recognized as most friendly and graceful, there must be some nasty design by an agency that is yet to be identified. This is a phenomenon that certainly goes far beyond any body’s language rights. No Tamil has ever expressed regret on beastly acts.

One must ask, if there was a Tamil migration over the years in to Sri Lanka whether naturally the opposite too had happened, migration of Sinhalese in to Tamil Nadu (TN). There probably may not be a single Sinhala family, for that matter even a single sign board in Sinhala in TN. Further unlike in SL, there is no Tamil migration in to three states adjoining Tamil Nadu being only less than 1-3% (as against 15% In SL) as they resist Tamil migration. Tamils should have easily walked across overland unlike sailing in to SL but they are not welcome. The introvert nature of Tamils is reflected in the fact that Chennai is the least cosmopolitan and dull city in India as confided by a Tamil friend. However they are much more forward looking compared to SL Tamils in that they elected a non- Tamil/Indian?  Mr Ramachandran as the Chief Minister and A R Rahman compose world beating Hindi songs. Though out of context, I am failing in my duty if no mention is made about great Indian Tamils: mathematician Ramanujam, five times world chess champion Anandan and most humble and respected former president of India Abdul Kalam, the father of India’a nuclear program from Rameshwaran so close to SL are an inspiration to SL, graced SL with a lecture at University of Moratuwa. Also remembered with gratitude are the school teachers in1960s Mr. Cherion and Mr.Venayagam Pillai.

In TN, Buddhist monk was attacked, Sri Lankan airline office stoned, school boy cricket team turned back and Sri Lanka- India cricket encounters take place all over India except in Chennai. A former president of SL was not allowed to pray at a Hindu temple in TN and he had to find an alternative temple in Karnataka and was most welcome by the political leaders there. It is not the Sinhalese but the TN fishermen who rob billions of rupees worth of fish from northern sea symbolic of what is in store. Worst of all, the Kudankulam Atomic Power Generation Plant in TN is staring on the face just across the Polk Straits, an ever presenting symbol of TN big brotherhood?

All this Tamil howling is despite the fact that they were holding eminent positions in the government, business and politics, too long to list here. The climax should have been the appointment of Mr. Lakshman Kadiragaman as the Prime Minister when almost unanimously people were looking forward to, given little more time but was assassinated not by Sinhalese but by Tamils. Only Tamil politician working at present on the spirit of Sinhalese is Mano Ganeshan and is sure to win any seat in Sinhala constituents provided he represent a popular political party. Muslims are a way ahead in this regard.

The Sinhalese do not make eye to eye kind of abrasive replies to Tamil aspirations very likely because they do not see any reason to argue out as to why they live in their own country. The problem is the insurmountable aspirations of the Tamils in SL like crying for the moon. Aspirations and equal rights are to hide their secessionist movement and to belittle Sinhalese nationhood. The talk about second class by the Tamils is to mislead and win sympathy of the Sinhalese. There are no class stratification in SL and whatever is there is only in the minds of the Tamils.

 In Malaysia not a word is uttered about the official language Malay. In fact a Tamil cannot enter any university in Malaysia or outside if he has failed in Malay language as happened to brother of my Tamil roommate in India. Illogical attitude is seen in aspiration to separate and at the same time need to join northern and eastern provinces despite predominately heterogeneous origin of eastern population, a sizable Sinhalese and Muslim populations. Some time back Colombo Chettiyars requested not to classify them as Tamils.

The Sinhalese aspire to revive whole of its heritage in the entire country and live in all parts of the country. They are acutely aware of the fact that this island is the only patch of land on earth that they can claim ownership and live freely. Archaic Jaffna Thesawalamai land ownership rule must be rescinded. There is no purpose of Tamils pretending to umbilical connection to India because Sinhalese too are of north Indian origin, the first chapter of Sinhalese history is set in Vanga Desh (Bengal) from where King Wijaya Sing departed. Relationship to TN is well taken. Tamils are quite insignificant in India, 70 million in a population of 1300 million. You take any distance train or flight from Chennai there is hardly a Tamil to be found. In Kolkata, the next cosmopolitan city with a 10 million population not a single cinema shows any Tamil film, not a single Tamil word to be seen and fortunately there are about 4-5 Tamil restaurants for us to have a familiar meal. Vast majority of Indians cannot understand ondu, rendu, moolu. Pampered by the colonialists they continue to expect the same from others.

Three eminent gentlemen declared i) SL is the country that belongs to Sinhalese- Muththayya Muralidaran, ii) Sinhalese are the least racial people in the world- Lakshman Kadiragaman and iii) SL is a Buddhist country- Malcom Cardinal Ranjith. It may be mentioned here that the famous British prisoner Robert Knox in his treaty on SL not even once mention about a Tamil. It was Mahinda Rajapaksha who addressed the UN in Tamil language and during the recent Thai Pongal festival. Was there a reconciliatory response from the Tamils? None.

 Eternal fighting mood and demands by Tamils could be a result of influencing Tamils with the sickly habit in India to quarrel on every little issue often leading to separation of many states, Assam and Meghalaya, Punjab and Haryana, Andra Pradesh and Telengana. Language, religion, cast, economic disparity, Rama-Ravana are all firing quarrels in India. East of India except for Ache movement in Indonesia with over 600 ethnic groups and Islamists in Philippines all the countries live peacefully. Whatever the issues there are mostly political.

People with this kind of attitude surely cannot be a party to sing the national anthem 50:50. Considering the Tamil strategy of ‘little now and more later on’ it is not advisable to sing the national anthem in Tamil. You can see this craze in incessant demands for Tamil national anthem following singing it by Sirisena-Ranil government as a vote catching gimmick. National anthem in two languages is divisive not reconciliatory. In the ‘Sri Lanka Matha’ lyrics not once a mention of words Sinhala or Buddhist could be found. It is misleading to play down the hard realities and the predicament of Sinhalese or anybody else for that matter. There is an underlying truth in that LTTE heroics went on only until the southern politics patronized it with cash, arms, put them up in 5 star hotels, provided construction material and a wait and watch attitude. A Tamil confidant of President Premadasa blasted him to death.

Hope this article will bring some sanity to Sinhalese journalists and extreme Tamils. Tamil racism narrows down their own potential for larger engagements in the country and display of intellect to the fullest extent. One wonders from the time of King Elara until Tamil Conference in San Francisco in a span of 1500 years there were no issues between Tamils and the Sinhalese. When carefully analyzed it can be seen that it is the non- Hindu Tamils who are responsible for most of the issues. This realization prevented TN Tamils from extending large scale support to LTTE unlike the central government. If the Hindu religious culture of Tamils is revived there could be more peaceful times. The problem is not that of a minority but a minority wanting to rule like a majority. Thesawalamai law in Jaffna, their ability to chase away all other ethnic groups from Jaffna show that the Tamils have more rights than the Sinhalese in SL. Equal rights are already there and the talk of discrimination and multiculturalism is to deny the 20 centuries old rights of the Sinhalese. Sinhalese have every right to establish linguistically a parallel administration in line with Tamil Nadu for Tamils, Bangladesh for Bengalese, Russia for Russians, Malaysia for Malays. SWRD warned of the possibility of a tyranny of the minority which the majority has to guard against. Wish you share this article with the colleagues.

W. Pathirana.