CLASSIFIED | POLITICS | TERRORISM | OPINION | VIEWS

The Political Immaturity of Muslim Politicians

Thiru Vaidyanathan

It has been very disappointing to see the ongoing acrimony over the appointment of the position of Chief Minister following elections in the Eastern Province. The behaviour of certain Muslim politicians has been quite unbecoming and it is a shame to see their supporters resort to communalism to further their own personal agendas. The vitriol they have aimed at Tamils has opened the eyes of many in the Singhalese community (including the hardliners) who view the Tamils as aggressors and the Muslims as innocent victims.

After having been ignored by successive Sri Lankan governments, scorned by Jaffna Tamils and oppressed by both the facism of the LTTE and the government's military machine, the Eastern Tamils finally have a chance to regain their pride and move fowards and leave behind more than two decades of conflict and violence. Having sacrificed life and limb, their homes and livelihoods, it is only fair that a Tamil from the region be appointed as the Chief Minister of the Eastern Province.

Throughout this conflict, while the Singhalese and Tamils have continued to kill each other, Muslims have stood on the sidelines watching in silence, only coming into the picture to demand their pound of flesh when things seem to have calmed down. The Muslims have contributed neither to the Sri Lankan security forces nor to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. Their politicians have shed no blood, sweat or tears. What they have done, however, is to gain maximum mileage from the suffering of both the Tamils and the Singhalese. Without sacrifice and hardwork, it is completely shameful to stamp one's feet, throw a tantrum and demand something for free.

The aim of the Muslim politicians is to further marginalie and oppress the long-suffering Tamil population of Eastern Sri Lanka. They want to control, dominate and reduce the Tamils to a minority. The behaviour of Muslim politicians in the past has been far from exemplary and one can only imagine a situation where total power lies in their hands. At least with the Singhalese hardliners what you see is what you get, but the Muslim leaders play a much more surreptitious game, trying to manipulate everything into their favour.

Instead of trying to demand all the cake, the Muslim politicians should learn the value of sharing and working together. The reality is that the east is composed of people belonging to the three communities; the Muslims are certainly not the majority. Peace can only be guaranteed if all three communities work together and not in opposition to each other.

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