‘Open letter from Kandy to the Defence Secretary’ – Some thoughts
Posted on May 27th, 2010

Dr.P.A.Samaraweera, Australia

Anne Abayasekara from Kandy in a letter titled, “Open letter to the Defence Secretary” to an English DailyƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ on 19th May,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  had brought up several current issues in her letter. There is of course no dispute by anyone in her saying, “…ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ that now is the time for genuine moves towards peace and reconciliation…”
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
She also raises a question and compares it to the war in the US during Abraham Lincolns era. She refers to “…the cemeteries in the North where the LTTE honoured their dead…”
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
These cemeteries in the NorthƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ were not meant for ordinary citizens but for LTTE terrorists who fought legitimate governments in Sri Lanka for three decades bringing terror to the whole country. During this period they wiped out villages where ordinary people lived and did not spare children, pregnantƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ women or monks.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
Looking at the arms and armaments unearthed by the army in the North and the East on a daily basis the country would have been under the gum-boots of the terrorists if they had been given breathing space for some more time. These terrorists may be martyrs for the LTTE or for their sympathisersƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ but not for peace loving people.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
The writer highlights Kandy and seems to shed tears for the LTTE terrorists who died fighting to carve out a separate state if not the whole country. Anne should thank her stars that she was not around the corner when the terrorists attacked Dalada Maligawa. In contrast, the Defence Secretary escaped death when he was directly targetted byƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  suicide bombers. So we believe ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ he need not be told how to separateƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the ‘chaff from the wheat’.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
Ironically, she compares theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ cemeteries of theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  terroristsƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ with the monuments of the Union Army and the Confederate Army lying side by side in Gettysburg, US. The world’s number one terrorists leashing terror to a countryƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ andƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ an army fighting a conventional war are poles apart.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 
By any chance, is Anne suggesting that the Defence Secretary should put up a monumentƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  of Prabhakaran on the banks of Nanthikadal Lagoon side by side with Rajiv Gandhi, Premadasa, Lakshman Kadirgamar, et al ? Or asking the people to lay wreaths in the cemeteries of suicide bombers when on the other side of the worldƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the Tamil Diaspora are drumming support from the UK, US, Canada and Australia, ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ for a Transitional Government?

One Response to “‘Open letter from Kandy to the Defence Secretary’ – Some thoughts”

  1. PRIYAN WIJEYERATNE Says:

    Who is this Anne? Ask her to keep quiet and think before getting into unnecessary debate.

Leave a Reply

You must be logged in to post a comment.

 

 


Copyright © 2024 LankaWeb.com. All Rights Reserved. Powered by Wordpress