The new Tamil Alliance

Four Tamil political parties - TULF, ACTC, TELO and the PLOTE - have come together to form a new alliance and declared their guiding light to be the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. TamilNet, which is considered to be the website of the LTTE, has quoted TULF leader Mr. R. Sampanthan as saying that the alliance has been formed to muster support of the Tamil people and their political forces for the freedom struggle of the Liberation Tigers in and out of parliament and not aimed at elections.

Mr. Sampanthan is quoted further: ‘Without the wholehearted participation of the Liberation Tigers, no firm and lasting solution can be found for the Tamil national question. A political solution found in talks with Liberation Tigers can only be implemented under the supervision of the international community. Therefore the government should first declare a cease-fire and initiate talks with the Liberation Tigers without hesitation’. One of the main demands of the Tamil parties’ alliance is that no talks should be held by the government with any other group when negotiating with the Liberation Tigers, Mr Sampanthan had stressed.

On October 15, another pro-LTTE website Eelamnation reported that a ‘well known clandestine movement among the Tamil community’ the Ellalan Force has been distributing leaflets in the eastern region of the country urging all Tamil parties to come under one umbrella. This ‘Ellalan Force’ is a pseudonym for the LTTE and it will be recalled that documents signed by the Ellalan Force had been distributed in Colombo before LTTE attacks such as that on the Central Bank.

Tamil parties, even though some of them have sworn off terrorism and joined mainstream politics, declaring the LTTE to be their philosopher, guide and saviour is not news. Even the TULF, despite having the cream of their leadership brutally killed by the LTTE, has continued to kneel down before their terror masters. To refuse to do so meant departure to another world. Thus a new alliance of Tamil parties being formed and acknowledging that the LTTE are ‘the sole representatives of the Tamils’ can be seen to be the handiwork of the Master of Terror, in the Wanni. A cohesive alliance being formed would enable easy guidance of the herd and prevent any straying away during and after elections when a collective Tamil vote could be decisive in forming a government.

The formation of this alliance and its acknowledgement of the LTTE being the sole representative of the Tamils by members of parliament will be of even greater importance than keeping the herd together to Velupillai Prabhakaran. With world opinion turning against terrorism in a very positive way and the LTTE having acquired the dubious distinction of being a leading international terrorist organisation, Prabhakaran will love to wear this badge of the sole representative of Tamils pinned on him by elected members of parliament.

The outside world, however, must examine intensively this dubious medal pinned on the LTTE by helpless Tamil politicians under the gun of terrorists. The recent report of the UTHR (J)-University Teachers for Human Rights Jaffna (published on October 20, 22 and 23 issues of The Island) conveys the abject plight of the Tamil people living in LTTE controlled areas, where children as young as 10 years are forcibly recruited into battle.

Even personalities such as the Bishop of Batticaloa dare not cross swords with LTTE terrorist leaders. After describing a meeting between the Bishop and a terrorist leader the Uthr’ (J) report says: ‘What this report indicates is the alarming fact of leading members of the of Tamil society having lost all their influence with their acclaimed leaders.

They were even unable to make the most humanitarian demands from them. Through their extreme caution even Tamil religious leaders have allowed their authority and initiative to be usurped’.

If a Bishop who is far more influential and powerful among the people is rendered impotent in this manner, could politicians be trusted to truly stand up to protect the rights of the people and speak on behalf of them?’

The TULF claims to be ‘moderates’ who follow the Gandhian principles of non-violence. They have watched with true Gandhian tolerance the cream of their leadership from Appapillai Amirthalingam, Neelan Tiruchelvam to lesser local government politicians being brutally killed by these sole representatives of the Tamils.

What chance have they in making these marauding Tigers turn into decent human beings? In the forthcoming elections will they truly project the will of the Tamil people or as lackeys mouth the dictates of those holding guns at the heads? If they do speak on behalf of the Tamil people will they give a pledge that Tamil children will not be permitted to be recruited forcibly as child soldiers?

This Tamil alliance, is a transparent ploy of the LTTE for greater manoeuvrability of Tamil politicians in the next parliament and more importantly the claim that they can make to the outside world that they are the true representatives of the Tamils backed by democratically elected MPs.