PRESIDENT TELLS THE INDEPENDENCE DAY CELEBRATIONS THAT GOVERNMENT MUST AGREE WITH SANGAREE AND DOUGLAS IN SHARING POWER WITH THE TAMILS

By Walter Jayawardhana

President Mahinda Rajapaksa addressing the 59th Independence day celebrations indicated that he was ready to share power with the Tamils by stating that the government must at the minimum be reasonable and honest enough to agree with two well known moderate Tamil politicians who have adopted the democratic path for the Tamils of Sri Lanka.

Naming the two by name the President said, “We are not ready to give into the blood-thirsty demands of the LTTE. However, at the minimum we should be reasonable and honest enough to agree with Mr. Anandasangaree or the Hon. Douglas Devananda.”

Ananda Sangaree is the President of the Tamil United Liberation Front, the major political party of the Tamils of the Northern and Eastern Provinces before many of their parliamentarians were coerced by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to toe their line. Douglas Devananda is the Leader of the Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) who is currently part of the Rajapaksa administration and who has given up his former militant politics of an armed struggle. Both prefer some kind of quasi federal system similar to that of India.

He also appealed to the Tamil National Alliance, the proxy party of the LTTE , who are also known as Tamil Tigers, to enter into a dialogue with the government. Many of those Members of Parliament are believed to have been coerced to toe the line of the LTTE. There is also a belief in the government that recent assassinations of two of their parliamentarians were done by the LTTE for exhibiting slightly independent stances like criticizing the Tiger leadership.

The President said,“ From this platform, I also wish to make this appeal to the Tamil National Alliance represented in Parliament, who have so far not entered into dialogue or understanding with us. It is only by joining with us that the innocent Tamil people of the North can be liberated from terrorist intimidation and the misdeeds of violence; and the North could be emancipated. If you are anguished in fear and anxiety; and lack in human freedom, however much democratic the political ideology you claim to follow, I must state in all honesty that none of you are free men.”

The following is the full text of the President’s speech:
Ven. Members of the Maha Sangha, Members of the Clergy of all religions,Hon. Prime Minister,Hon. Speaker ,Hon. Chief Justice Hon. Minister of Public Administration and all Hon. Ministers ,Distinguished Members of the Diplomatic Corps ,Members of the Judiciary Secretaries ,Commanders of the Armed Forces and the IGP ,Officers of the Police and Public Service, Dear

Mothers, Fathers and Children, Friends ;
On this proud day of our independence I stand before you as the Head of State with a great feeling of contentment. I derive this contentment through the belief that I have given you leadership for over a period of one year, to safeguard our national dignity, from a time it had reached the lowest ebb. It is the trumpet call of conscience that I have fulfilled my duties true to my heart and with loyalty to my motherland, which gives me the contentment and courage necessary to face all challenges on behalf of my country.

My address to you on this proud occasion is not in the traditional mode of an Independence Day speech. I state with great humility that this address has a sense of determination and strong resolve.
You will recall a very special appeal I made to you to you on the last Independence Celebrations. It was that we should stand united to achieve the noble objectives of the Sri Lankan nation.
Our Government took all efforts to arrive at a common understanding among all political parties and other forces. We strived to establish a political order that would work towards the common good of the country, shedding all differences. If you look around with honesty, you will observe the good omens of the new political order that is emerging.

On this historic occasion, I again appeal to all democratic forces to place the motherland before one's family, race, religion or political party in the national agenda. From this platform, I also wish to make this appeal to the Tamil National Alliance represented in Parliament, who have so far not entered into dialogue or understanding with us. It is only by joining with us that the innocent Tamil people of the North can be liberated from terrorist intimidation and the misdeeds of violence; and the North could be emancipated. If you are anguished in fear and anxiety; and lack in human freedom, however much democratic the political ideology you claim to follow, I must state in all honesty that none of you are free men.

I request you to look back for a moment at the journey we have traversed to this day, from the time when the honour and dignity of Sri Lanka had declined to the extreme depths, and the western world pointed to Sri Lankan society as the epitome of disgrace.

In the period between the 58th anniversary of independence and today as we celebrate its 59th anniversary, we have sacrificed much for peace, which is the foremost national need. You are aware that we did not give into any provocation until the closure of the Mavil Aru anicut, violating the fundamental rights of more than 50,000 people. Even when the terrorists left the negotiation table we remained there with humility. Was this through cowardice? No! Venerable Sirs. That is how we demonstrated our commitment to peace.

It is this massive commitment to peace that led our Security Forces to liberate the innocent Tamil people who were taken hostage and used as a human shield by the terrorists, to win their savage demands. For this valiant effort our heroic security forces deserve the salute of the Sri Lankan people on this honoured day.

Similarly, we should now take speedy action to establish democratic governance in areas liberated from the clutches of the terrorists in the East and the North. It is our duty to protect the lives and property of the Tamil and Muslim people, and bring sanctity to the future world of their children. As I stated at the inauguration of the Moragahakanda Maha Samudra, I wish to re-emphasize that the most reliable weapon against terrorism is to do justice to the innocent Tamil people. I know that the Sinhala people in the South are ready for this. We are not ready to give into the blood-thirsty demands of the LTTE. However, at the minimum we should be reasonable and honest enough to agree with Mr. Anandasangaree or the Hon. Douglas Devananda.

The uncompromising stand of our government is a firm commitment to a policy to safeguard national dignity, and not betray it. We have proved this over and over again. We wish to declare loud and clear on this occasion that national dignity means the non-betrayal of the democratic rights of the people of a country to whatever vicious forces - either local or foreign, whatever the circumstances.

Dear Friends,
Your strength is unlimited. All we can add to it is determination. When this strength and determination come together it is crystal clear that national prosperity will follow. History has proven this.

That is why we decided to adopt a policy of development that will safeguard the future of our children, while responding to terrorist power in the only language that they best understand. You are already aware that we have named the coming decade as the Decade of Development in this country. Towards that we have taken a large number of very important decisions in the past year. The Norochcholai and Upper Kotmale Power Plants, the Sampur Coal Power Plant, the Moragahakanda Maha Samudra, the New Airport at Weerawila, expanding the Port of Colombo to twice its capacity, new railways and expressways are among these decisions. All this will invariably change the future development profile of Sri Lanka .

That is not all. There is - Mathata Thitha - the War on Intoxicants, which is the firm foundation to secure the world of your children. The Treasury loses Rs. 6 billion annually due to the prohibition of smoking in public places and the War on Intoxicants. Yet, we decided it better to protect the environment, health and well being of our people than utilize this to bridge the budget deficit. This thinking is at the core of Mahinda Chintana. On the other hand you will recall that when certain media were posing a challenge to the good taste and values of the people, how we acted strongly against it. You will also recall how we changed our tax policies to save the arts from degrading foreign influences. We should remember with gratitude how our people on every such occasion observed all this from the viewpoint of democracy and appreciated what we did.

Similarly, I believe this is the most suitable day to recall the steps taken by us to strengthen the public service and welfare activities, when plans were afoot to weaken and destroy them; and the justice meted out by our Government to the lower ranks of the Police Department, the Public Service and State Corporations who had been harassed for a long time without at least confirming them in service.

On the one hand, at a time when we are engaged in an unconditional struggle against venomous terrorism, and on the other, when we are implementing the biggest schemes in history to take the country towards successful development; and when we are taking unwavering decisions to protect our cultural values, we have to understand that the familiar opportunist political tendencies will be seeking to raise their head. Therefore, I call on you with the greatest responsibility not to resort to any cause of action likely to challenge the stability of the country. Therefore, I believe this the most suitable platform to make a particular appeal to the working people of this country not to supply oxygen, consciously or not, to terrorism that is gasping for life. I also call on the media to also act with responsibility in this regard.

Yesterday, I went to Vaharai to offer my sincere thanks to all those brave soldiers whom liberated Vaharai from terrorists, without inflicting any casualties on civilians. Also, during the visit, I wanted to inspect the implementation of resettlement of my Tamil brethren. I went to Sampur as well. I declared open a Police Station in Vaharai to ensure that civil rule is firmly established and law and order maintained. Today, the people of that area live in a relaxed and free atmosphere. I think it is the people in those areas out of all Sri Lankans who maximally enjoy the 59th commemoration of our independence. Therefore, it is my heartfelt wish that the next independence will be colourfully commemorated together by the children of the south and those of the north.

It is with my firm belief in the strength, courage and boldness of my Government that I emphatically state before you of my total commitment to ensure the honour and prosperity of this blessed land, by decisively defeating separatism, and sending opportunist politics into retirement, without violating the confidence placed in me by you in the last Presidential Election.

Similarly, I call upon our friendly forces that worked with incomparable commitment for the success of the Mahinda Chintana, as well as the other forces, to join hands with us for the sake of the dignity and prosperity of the motherland: join with us who have brought to the fore a policy that is free of debt; not subservient; and is most suited to our country.

I also call upon those all forces and organizations that stand for social justice and transparency to offer your reasonable criticism to our Government. You will recall me saying in my inaugural speech as President that we respect our critics more than those who eulogize us. A fact that I have realized well during the three decades of my political career is that reasonableness is the foundation of public protest.

In conclusion, on this important event I am happy to express my gratitude to our foreign friends and governments for the fraternal assistance extended to us against separatism, and for peace and development of the motherland. We pay them the highest honour and appreciate their kindness and friendship.

Freedom is the path for the victories of a nation. Freedom is protecting and safeguarding the victories achieved. Therefore, let us act together on the path of freedom for the future victories of the nation. Let us be committed! Let us win! Let us with our own hands win for our motherland the dignity she deserves!

May you all be blessed by the Noble Triple Gem!
May all deities protect you! (EOM)