CLASSIFIED | POLITICS | TERRORISM | OPINION | VIEWS

Hosting of Vaiko by APPG for Tamils in British Parliament

Ira de Silva London, Ontario, Canada

To: Hon. K. Vaz & Members of All Party Parliamentary Group for Tamils in U.K.

I have just read a news item regarding an address by Mr. Vaiko from Tamil Nadu, India to the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for Tamils in the British Parliament on Wednesday November 26,2008. Permit me to provide you with some information regarding some of the statements by Vaiko who is a well known Tamil Tiger terrorist supporter in Tamil Nadu, India. He belongs to the Indian Tamils who believe in promoting a Tamil racist state for Tamils only in Sri Lanka but NOT in India where sixty million Tamils live in their own state (not country) and is the motherland/homeland for Tamils all over the world who look on Tamil Nadu as their source of origin and therefore their true homeland. He has addressed like minded supporters of the Tamil terrorists in the British parliament who believe in intervention to carve out countries by violence in the true tradition of the British since the 19th century. Today Britain believes in continuing their policy of drawing lines on the map of the world to create countries to suit their own political agenda the only difference being that today Britain does so under the pretext of freedom, democracy and the missionary fervour of promoting human rights all the while destroying the lives of those they invade. Whether it was in the 19th century or the 21st century the motivation is to subjugate, kill, destroy and otherwise terrorise countries and populations for the glory of Britain. I will address a few of the statements Vaiko made which supposedly were accepted by your group.

Vaiko claims that when the British left in 1948 they passed power to the Sinhala majoritarian rulers. Before the British came in 1796 and when the British left in 1948, the Sinhalese were the majority in Sri Lanka. It has been so for thousands of years during which Sri Lanka was invaded by south Indian rulers who all attempted to take over the country. It was through these invasions that the Tamils came to Sri Lanka destroying the Sinhalese civilisations and driving the population southwards. It was only in the 13th century that the Tamils succeeded in settling in large numbers in the Jaffna region and become the majority. History provides the basis for this statement. Even before the British left, based on one person one vote, because the Sinhalese were the majority, the Tamils being only 12%, it was only natural that more Sinhalese would be elected. Let us not forget that even before the British left, the 12% of Tamils were demanding 50% of representation. As such Tamil claims have always been disproportionate, racist, not historical but hysterical. To state that the British passed power to the Sinhala majoritirian rule is such an example and now Vaiko is asking the British to revert to it's role of violating international law, intervening by force, destroying democracy not promoting it and meddling in the internal affairs of another country. That British parliamentarians approve of these statements indicate that they too are racist, undemocratic, believe in violence and support terrorism so long as the terrorism in not in Britain. It is a sad indictment of the members of the British parliament.

I noted that Vaiko refers to the role of " Buddhist extremism in determining the affairs in the island". In this context I would like to bring to your attention that even in the Convention of 1815 the British undertook that " the Religion of Boodho professed by Chiefs and Incumbents of these Provinces is declared inviolable, and its Rites, Ministers, and Places of Worship are to be maintained and protected". Of course the British did not keep to their promises but that is the history of British colonialism. I would also like to point out that throughout Sri Lanka's history there had been no religious intolerance because Buddhism is a non-violent religion. It was with the advent of the Portuguese, Dutch and British that history records intolerance and massacres in the name of religion as the religions of the foreigners was "forced" on the population and the indigenous religion suppressed. In Sri Lanka today all religions are protected, there are ministries for religions and freedom of worship which is more than can be said for Sri Lanka under the British.

As for Vaiko's statements regarding the Prime Minister of India, the late Mrs. Indira Gandhi, it is a historical fact, not rumour, that it was India under Mrs. Gandhi that developed the Tamil Tigers into a terrorist force by giving them military training, bases in Tamil Nadu, South India, moral, financial and diplomatic support and created the killing machine that the Tigers are today because it suited her to destabilise Sri Lanka, to win elections in India with the Tamil vote of Tamil Nadu. Mr. Vaiko who is a politician from Tamil Nadu, India wants to create a Tamil only state. What better place than the homeland of the Tamils, Tamil Nadu. Why must he try to divide the small island of Sri Lanka rather than build on the state of Tamil Nadu? Why does he not ask you to help him to create this Tamil only country in India where over sixty million Tamils live rather than divide another sovereign country for Tamils only. Given the events unfolding in Mumbai this week, India says that it "believes" that the "terrorists" are from Pakistan. It is a historical fact that the Tamil Tiger terrorists operate out of Tamil Nadu, India with support from the likes of Vaiko. Do British parliamentarians subscribe to the support of terrorism from India but not terrorism against India?

It was during British rule that the Tamils from Jaffna were given a pride of place in their administration and spread out through the country because of the well known foundation of British rule, namely divide and rule. The east of the country was a part of the Kandyan kingdom inhabited by the Sinhalese until 1815 when by the Kandyan Convention, Britain took over the administration of the whole island. It is important to point out that in 1815 the eastern part of the island which was under the rule of the Kandyan kingdom was not inhabited by Tamils. There is sufficient historical evidence to prove that the eastern part of the island was not inhabited by Tamils contrary to the claim of the Tamil terrorists. British records should be available to you to validate this.

I find it very interesting that Vaiko states that it is the moral responsibility of the British Parliament to rectify historic injustices in Sri Lanka. If you are intending any action on Vaiko's statements to you, I would bring a few facts to your attention so you can start calculating compensation. Ironically November 26th marked the 190th anniversary of the execution in Kandy of the Sinhalese patriot and national hero Monarawila Keppettipola who led the first anti-British rebellion in 1817-1818 in what had been a part of the Kandyan Kingdom. When the rebellion spread throughout the kingdom, it was the Sinhalese peasants who inhabited these areas who were subjected to horrible deaths at the hands of the British who laid waste to thousands of acres of cultivated land, beheaded the nobles and Buddhist monks, and terrorised the population. Almost the entire population were wiped out and the few who survived were driven from their land and homes in the scorched earth policy of British colonial rule. To this day these inhabitants have not been compensated. To quote the London Times of October 17, 1818 it states "the plan of destroying all the grain and fruit trees in the neighbourhood of Badulla seems to have been completely carried into effect, a dreadful measure". This is recorded history. If the British Parliament has any moral responsibility to rectify historic injustices in Sri Lanka it is the Sinhalese that have claims. Descendants of the few survivors still live in remote areas to which they fled. Compensate them. Also please note that there were NO Tamils in these areas.

Following the series of uprisings against the British by the Sinhalese, the British colonial government appropriated millions of acres of land belonging the the Sinhalese peasants and sold the land to British capitalists at the nominal price of one shilling per acre. Compensate the Sinhalese for this injustice.

Having appropriated the land from the Sinhalese peasants the British colonial government proceeded to import Indian Tamil labour into Sri Lanka. In this regard refer to the Public Records Office, Kew Gardens where in the Governors handwriting you will find the following statement - "my suggestion to your Excellency is to look to South Indian Labour.They come to us from a condition of poverty. They are often lowly in their caste system too, in a foreign land they will serve us well" March 14,1880, CO.55.11. Please note the terminology "IN A FOREIGN LAND" - namely that in Sri Lanka theseTamils were FOREIGNERS. When the British left they left behind these "foreigners" for the Sri Lankan state to deal with. How do you propose of rectify this historic injustice?

Should your group feel that you have to help the Tamil terrorists in Sri Lanka as Vaiko has asked you to do, please also note that you are merely adding to the historic injustices you have already perpetrated on the people of Sri Lanka. Just this week some of you attended the glorification of Tamil Tiger suicide bombers and terrorists at the ExCell Centre in London. Also this week terrorist incidents took place in Mumbai, India. Why is it that you do not support the terrorists who attacked in India but choose to support terrorists who have been doing the same in Sri Lanka for over 30 years? Is it because you are racist, ill-informed or just unprincipled and are willing to sacrifice lives in Sri Lanka for a few Tamil votes in your constituencies in Britain? Perhaps you believe that without the support of Tamil terrorist sympathisers you will not be a member of the British Parliament. It is a sad indictment on current British parliamentarians.

I have given you a few examples of what the British inflicted on the people of Sri Lanka. Should you decide to "rectify historic injustices" by the British in Sri Lanka, please advise Sri Lanka as I feel sure that the list of "historic injustices" will be lengthy and detailed. Until such time, it would be prudent to resist interfering in Sri Lanka because it is not a colony anymore, and not supporting Tamil Tiger terrorism from Britain as your country is supposed to be against terrorism. You would serve your constituents better by concentrating on improving their lives in Britain rather than meddling in the internal matters of distant countries.

Yours truly,

Ira de Silva
London, Ontario, Canada

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