Is the Jaffna Tamil leadership fit to handle increased powers?
Posted on January 29th, 2012
H. L. D. Mahindapala
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ In April 2008 when the Security Forces were inching their way up the western coast and advancing towards the Madhu Church –ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ a sanctuaryƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ of the Catholic Church for the Tiger “boys” — Bishop Joseph Ryappah, the prominent LTTE agent in the Catholic Church, did the unthinkable: he hijacked the statue of Holy Mary at Madhu and took it to Theavanpiddi, 70 miles away from Madhu into Tiger territory. He committed this anti-Christian act because the power devolved to the bishopric of Mannar allowed him to violate the fundamental rights of all Catholics to share the holy image of Mother Mary. It was a blatant political act. It had nothing to do with spirituality or any other Catholic doctrine.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Besides, there was no need for him to hijack the Holy Statue because there was no threat either to the image of Holy Mary, despite shells fired from both sides.
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ In hindsight, Bishop Ryappah’s sacrilegious act demonstrates that the power devolved to even a Tamil Catholic priest can be abused and used against his fellow-Catholics. He was also thumbing his nose at its entire hierarchy of Catholic Church, running up to even the Pope, challenging them to take away, if they can, the powers devolved to him which he had abused by hijacking the sacred image. If a Tamil Bishop can abuse the spiritual powers devolved to him by arbitrarily taking sides with the Tamil Tiger fascists what are the chances of Jaffna Tamil politicians using their temporal powers fairly and democratically without oppressing and persecuting their fellow-Tamils as they have done under the Vellahla and Tamil Tiger regimes?
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The complicit role of the Church in aiding and abetting Tamil Tiger crimes against their own people is symbolisedƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ in the tragic story related to me by Dr. Noel Nadesan , Editor of UTHAYAM, a novelist and Tamil activist. The failure of the Tamil Churchmen (also known as the spiritual fathers) and politicians (also described as “liberators) to protect the Tamil civiliansƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ comes out unambiguously in this tale.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Dr. NadesanƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ said that the Tamil parents, frightened by the threat of Tamil Tigers in Mullativu forcibly abducting their children, handed over their teenage daughters to the local Catholic Church in Valayar Maddam, near the Mullativu coast, trusting them to protect their young ones. The next morning when the parents came to look for them they had all disappeared. In the night the Catholic priests had rung the LTTE office in Mullativu and tipped them about the Tamil girls in their care. The spiritual fathers had no compunction whatsoever in handing over the children of trusting Tamil parents to fill the depleted cadres of brutal Tamil Tigers.
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ In Europe the Catholic priests were exposed for sexually abusing the innocent choir boys. In Christianized Rwanda the Hutu Catholics nuns and priests massacred the Tutsis (800,000 in 100 days)ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ some of whomƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ took refuge inside their Churches. In Sri Lanka the Tamil Catholic priests, most of whom are acolytes of Fr. S. J. Emmanuel’s school of Catholics, handed over teenage Tamil virgins to the Tamil Tiger terrorists.
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ This crime of sending innocent girls to slaughter has been covered up by the Tamil leadership who pretend to be the guardians of Tamils and by the moral guardians in Rome. Will the TNA, the Churchmen and the NGOs that back them on national and international fronts seeking justice for Tamils establish a commission of inquiry to investigate the crimes committed by the Tamils against the Tamils? Will Cardinal Malcolm Ranjith initiate an internal inquiry within the Church to find out the truth about the hijacking ofƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the Holy Mary statue from Madhu andƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ crimes of handing overƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Tamil virgins andƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the forcible abduction of teenage boysƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ by Tamil Tigers? At least the Catholics should be informed of what mechanisms have been set in place to prevent any future politicization of the sacred images by perverse booru-crats in the Church hierarchy? As the good Cardinal knows accountability should apply evenly to all sides, including the Church aiding and abetting the political criminals in the LTTE.
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Besides, how can the Catholic Church accuse other religionists of undermining its image and authority when its own hierarchy is behaving like mindless thugs of the underworld attacking its own flock? Or is the morality of Tamil Churchmen and NGOs confined only to look at what happened in the last days of a 33-year-old war which, of course, is a convenient way of pointing a finger only at the Sri Lankan forces, excluding all other actors in the longest war in Asia? If this is the highest standard of the moral and the spiritual values of the Tamil Catholics should not Rome take the next step of setting up a Tamil Transnational Catholic Church ( TTCC) and appoint Bishop Ryappah or Fr. Emmanuel as their Pope with “Paki” Saravanamuttu as the Papal nuncio to the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam in cuckoo land?
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The dominance of the partisan priests in the Catholic Church point to the fact that there were no redeeming features in the Jaffna political culture at any level — spiritual or temporal — when Prabhakaran was reigning supreme in theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ north and the east. The total collapse of the moral order in Jaffna was in accepting on bended knees the subhuman political agenda dictated by Prabhakaran. What is also significant about the Jaffna political culture is that it was hardly inclined towards embracing democraticƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ and liberal ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ practices, institutions andƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ norms. To begin with, there was no tolerant space within the rigid, narrow and self-serving Hndu-Vellahla culture for democratic politics and personalities to put down their roots and gain some ground either under Vellahla hegemonists or their “boys” like Prabhakaran. Both abused the powers they had to oppress and suppress the Tamils. Both demanded total obedience to their regimes. The Jaffna Tamils found their liberal space only in the south and despite sporadic aberrations the majority of the Tamils continue to live with the Sinhalese whom they vilify at the drop of panamkottay in Jaffna.
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The systemic oppressive Tamil culture began with the Vellahlas who ruled the peninsula with an iron fist to keep the low-castes in their immoveable place. The logical outcome of the ruling oppressive Vellahla culture in the peninsula culminated in abandoning the non-violent democratic mainstream and committing themselves brazenly and arrogantly to the Vadukoddai agenda which endorsed the military solution, urging the youth to take up arms. Fascist Vellahla violence gathered momentum in the post-Vadukoddai period with the entire Tamil political class endorsing the Vadukoddai violence which wasƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ embracedƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ and pursued with military precision by Prabhakaran. The highest upholders of morality in Jaffna (UTHR excepted) did not have the courage to speak up for basic human rights of their own people when the fundamental rights of the Tamils were violated by their own political leaders.
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Besides, political rights of the Jaffna Tamils touted at the highest political level were not the rights of the oppressed low-caste Tamils. No. EveryƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ “ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ rightƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ “ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ — ranging from Tamil language to self-determination — related exclusively to the economic and political needs of the Vellahla elite to prop up and perpetuate their anachronistic casteƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ and colonial privileges, power and positions. The horrors of the over-determining Vellahala culture which morphed into Prabhakaranism underscore the danger of devolving excessive powers to political entities in the north and east, particularly to TNA which is ideologically and politically committed to Vadukoddai agenda and Prabhakaran. To this day they have not publicly decried the violations committed by their political master, Prabhakaran. Nor have they asked for an inquiry into the abominable crimes committed by Prabhakaran against his own people. They exploit every incident only to point the finger at the Sinhalese. The Tamil crimes against the Tamils are brushed under the carpet because it does not make them smell like roses. Reason: If all the TamilƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ crimesƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ against Tamils ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ are put together they know that they would smell like their nightsoil carried on the heads of the low-castes in JaffnaƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ for centuries.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The known historical record of the Tamil leadership abusing and oppressing Tamils does not reveal any innate or inveterate moral capacity to protect or care for the Tamils. They have excelled at all times in using fascist force to keep the low-caste Tamils under their jackboots but never to elevate them from their depressed casteist depths to give them their due rights and human dignity. When I went to Jaffna to investigate the boiling issue of the Vellahla feudal overlords refusing to let the low-caste Tamils enter the Maviddipuram Temple the poosari told me that if a polluted low-caste “sakkiliya” dares to step into the outermost court (there are seven courts) he will be dealt with severely and special poojas will be held to purify the kovil once again. S. J. V, Chelvanayakam, the father of Vadukoddai violence, backed away cowardly from taking a stand against the Vellahlas obstructing the entry of Tamils to worship their common God. He “tip-toed out of it”, said Prof. Bryan Pffafenberger of Syracuse University, who is an authority on the Tamil caste system in Jaffna. The Catholic ChurchƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ consistently took the side of the ruling caste orƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the fascist TigerƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ elite of Jaffna. They even had separate pews for the low and upper castes. Needless to say that the low-caste were allotted the pews right at the back.
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The Vellahla Hindus and Catholics believe that God is not only on their side but he belongs exclusively to them. By his disgraceful act Bishop Ryappah asserted that even Holy Mary belongs exclusively to the Tamil Catholics — and that too only to the Catholics who live in Evil-laam. In the traditional Jaffna culture the low-castes were not even allowed to drink water from Vellahla wells. V. Anandasangaree said that he had the right to protest against Mrs. Sirimavao Bandaranaike when she opened the first Tamil University in Jaffna. But under the political master of Sampanthan and Sumanthiram he could not even step into Killinochchi, his electorate. So what protection did the Tamil political leaders give the TamilsƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ of Jaffna? Have they ever shown a capacity to use power to protect their own people? Didn’t they glorify the powers of Prabhakaran who in the name of Ponguthamil liquidated, persecuted, tortured and incarcerated Tamil dissidents?
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ If the TNA joined hands with the Tamil Tigers and turned a blind eye to all the war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by Prabhakaran how can they be trusted with police powers when they are still in cahoots with the agents of the Tigers both abroad and at home? Handing over police powers to them will be like the Tamil parents handing over their daughters to the Tamil Catholic priests in Valayar Maddam Church in Mullativu. What is more, when the Vellahlas persecuted the low-castes for centuries why did the Tamil community fail to produce one single leader who dared to take on the Vellahlas? Some Tamil leaders paid lip service but which one acted decisively to protect the low-castes from the iron fist of the Vellahlas? So what benefits will there be for the Tamils if power is devolved to the TNA stooges of Prabhakaran?
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Devolution, incidentally, has beenƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ by and large, a demand confined to the Jaffna Tamils. The dangers of devolution were demonstrated in the two historical experiments. Virtual state powers, including that of the police and land, were devolved to the Jaffna Tamil leadership under (1) the Indo-Sri Lanka Agreement and (2) the Ceasefire Agreement. In the CFA Ranil Wickremesinghe not only handed on a plate police, military, naval and air force powers but also treated the LTTE as a partner on par with the state. Even after granting all these powers what protection did the Tamils of Vanni receive in the post-CFA phase? Both experiments ended not only as political disasters but also as threats to the fundamental rights, freedoms and security of the Tamil people in the north and the east, India and Sri Lanka.
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ TheƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ past informs of theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ dangers to the Tamils arising from handing over power to Tamil leaders: the more the Jaffna Tamil political class were armed with devolved powers the more they turned against the Tamil people. The theory was that the Tamils will be liberated only if they are given more powers, preferably self-determination. But each time their powers were increased the Tamil leaders grabbed those powers with both hands turned against their own people and the other communities. It was with these increased powers that the Tamil Tigers “killed more Tamils than all the other forces put together” (V. Anandasangaree and S. C. Chandrahasan). Besides, the prevailing pop theory also argues that peace and reconciliation can come only when the powers are devolved to the Jaffna Tamils. The reality is that the increased powers were used to destroy all chances of peace and reconciliation. Not even the regional and international guarantees of quasi-state powers resulted in peace or reconciliation. In Wickremsinghe’s CFA the Tamils got more than police and land powers. Did the disastrous CFA bring any benefits either to the Tamils or to the rest of the nation?
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ In fact, it can be argued that the Jaffna Tamils faced the most disastrous and persecuted period of their history under the increased powers devolved to the political masters of the Tamils. The arbitrary and authoritarian manner in which the shadowy state of Velupillai Prabhakaran used power to commit war crimes and crimes against humanity stand out as proof of the dangers of devolving any excessive law enforcement power to any political entity in the north. Take the example of the TNA MPs when their “Sooriya Devan” was running Evil-laam. They cannot deny that they were unaware of what was happening to the Tamil people under their “Sooriya Devan”. Why is it that they never uttered a word in defence of the Tamil people and spoke only in defence of Prabhakaran — the worst political criminal known to the Tamils?
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Besides, who was it who protected the TNA MPs when Prabhakaran was ruling the Tamils? Was it Prabhkaran’s cadres or the Sri Lankan forces? If the centralized forces were not there who would have given protection to Sampanthan & Co? Even when Sampanthan & Co went on bended knees, virtually worshipping Prabhakaran, they were more comfortable and secure with the Sinhala police force than with the Tamil Tigers. What dignity and self-confidence did they have when they were crawling on their knees to Prabhakaran? In which of the two regimes do they feel that they areƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ free membersƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ofƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the civilized human race and not some dispensable factotums of a fascist dictator?
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Another telling example is that of Mrs.Mangayakarasy Amirthalingam who returned home after 21 years. One of her missions was to make a special trip to Kegalle to personally thank the Sinhala bodyguard, Nissanka Thibbotumunna, who risked his life in serving her husband, Appapillai Amirthalingam, the leader of the TULF. She and her son, Dr. Bahirathan, hugged and thanked the police officer for shooting three of the Tiger killers in attempting to save her husband’s life. In between tears, she asked: “If they (Tigers) were fighting for the Tamils why did they kill my husband?” Why indeed? Where was the security for the Tamils under the Tiger “liberators”? And weren’t the Tamils secure more under “the Sinhala Government s ” than when they were under Prabhakaran’s Evil-laam?
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Besides, would the killing of the Tamil husbands, wives. mothers, fathers, girls and boys have occurred if the Vadukoddai Resolution did not legalize and authorize the excessive powers granted to the Tamil youth to take up arms? The total political experience of the Jaffna Tamils indicates that arming the Tamils under Tamil leadership is inimical to Tamil security and peace. It is worse than handing razor blades to monkeys.
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ With all its infirmities and with all the political violence that erupted in the south and the north, it is possible to conclude that all communities has had the best available (please note, not the maximum) protection under the centralized forces. Under the immense pressures of the trying conditions, with the fascist violence of the south and the north attacking the state simultaneously at times, the political and military forces at the centre maintained a commendable balance to retain (1) the democratic framework, however defective it may have been, and (2) to restrain the law enforcement authorities (i.e., the military and the police) toƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ act within legal limits, however flawed they were.
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Despite all its lapses, it was the overriding powers of the centre which served the security needs of all communities. When, for instance, V. Navaratnam, MP, took the image of Arumuka Navalar, the father of fascist Vellahlaism, around Jaffna the low-caste protestors stoned the image and threatened the procession. The centre had to quickly send police reinforcements from the south to restore law and order. Then again, when C. Suntherlingam was tried in Jaffna courts for slapping a low-caste man for daring to enter a Hindu temple a Muslim judge had to be sent from the south to preside over the proceedings fearing that the Vellahla judges would take the side “the caste fanatic” (Prof. Bryan Pffafenberger). Last but not the leastƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ,ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ when the 300,000 Tamils were forcibly dragged by Prabhakaran to serve as his human shield it was the forces of the centre that liberated the helpless Tamils fleeing the fascist grip.
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ But the Tamil propagandists remember only “1956” and “1983” because these dates are politically advantageous to perpetuate their anti-“Sinhala government” myths. All in all, it must be conceded that both sides committed excesses against the Tamils. On top of that the IPKF too committed excesses against the Jaffna Tamils. But the finger is pointed only at the “Sinhala governments”. On balance, it can be argued that the protection given by the centralized forces has served the welfare and security of the Jaffna Tamils more than that of the Tamil leaders who abandoned them when Jaffna was under the hegemony of the all-mighty Vellahlas and the Tamil Tigers, both of whom persecuted, tortured and decimated the Tamils more than any other force in Sri Lanka. No other community or state has committed violent crimes against the Jaffna Tamils than their Tamil politicalƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ leaders. The Jaffna Tamils, both at home and abroad, intransigently refuse to accept this historical reality because they fear that their anti-Sinhala myths on which they survive will be vitiated and, consequently, they will have no leg to stand on to the face the public.
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The history of Jaffna is the history of violence perpetrated against the Tamils by the Vellahlas from feudal times to 1976 and the Tamil Tigers who took over from the Vellahlas in the post-Vadukoddai phase (1976 – 2008). It was not the Tamils but S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike who had the political will and the courage to challenge the entrenched caste system and to break up the cast-iron hierarchy of the Vellahalas by passing the Prevention of Social Disabilities Act of 1959. It was the central government of Bandaranaike that first elevated and enshrined Tamil in the statue books of Sri Lanka. It was the “Sinhala government” that rescued the Jaffna Tamils from the fascist grip of Prabhakaran and restored normalcy to the north and the east. It was the Sri Lankan Police that protected the Tamils challenging the Vellahlas blocking the Tamils from entering their sacred site to worship their God. It was the diplomatic thrust and the arming of the Tamil Tigers by President Ranasinghe Premadasa that clinched the drive to get rid of the hated IPKF which was the primary goal of the LTTE and the people of Jaffna at that time. Besides, if the “idiotic” Tamil leadership (Prof. Kumar David) did not mislead the Tamils into the path of violence would not Jaffna be sharing the peace and prosperity of another Singapore in the north? What have the Tamils gained by their excessive demands and the brutal violence used to achieve what Bandaranaike called “the outrageous” demands?
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ In short, the Sinhala sun must shine for the minority buds to blossom in Sri Lanka. I write this not to boast. Nor to strike a note of triumphalism. I write this to focus on the symbiotic relationship that is vital for the security and the progress of all communities. I write this also to emphasize the need to develop and maintain a realistic majority-minority relationship at all times for competing communities to find their place in each other’s domain and the nation as a whole. If one community tries to pull down the other then it is inevitable forƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ all communities to go down as seen in the futile VadukoddaiƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ War. On the contrary, look at the joint efforts in cricket. It was the tireless efforts of Robert Senanayake and Gamini Dissanayake that paved the way for all communities to get together and beat the world. We thrive in each others success. The minorities blossomed in the space opened up by the majority. No one won in the Vadukoddai War, least of the Vadukoddai Tamils who launched it.
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One of the failures of the Jaffna psyche is their tendency to withdraw into abysmal denial. This endow them with the delusion of being indispensable geniuses of the world. But what is the reality? Take, for instance, the mentality of the TNA or the TGTE which pose as if they are the God-given Einsteins to the problems of mankind. With each move they have made so far they have only sunk deeper into Nandikdal.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ So where is their genius?
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ In practical terms the issue of police powers raised by TNA boils down to one simple question: how can the TNA MPs, who lived and thrived under the police protection of “the Sinhala governments” and never dared to raise a finger to protect the Tamil people from the fascist tyranny of Prabhakaran, ask for decentralizing of police powers knowing that they lacked the moral and the political will to handle law enforcement powers to protect the Tamils? Before raising the ghosts of “1983” the Jaffna Tamils should look inward and ask on what rational grounds can the TNA and other allied agents explain the barbaric violence of Tamil Prabhakaran against the Tamils in the “post-1983” period. The Tamils who tryƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ to score points on “1983” lose theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ argumentƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ hands down because their leaders have committed war crimesƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ and crimes againstƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ their own peopleƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ on a scaleƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ that reduces them to genocidal beasts. If Prabhakaran and his gang were living today they would, for sure, be sitting in Hague facing an international tribunal.
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ By any standards, the systemic and perpetual crimes committed by the Tamil leadership against the Tamil civilians throughout the feudal andƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the post-independenceƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ periods far exceed the sporadic violence of the lunatic fringe of the Sinhala community? If the violence of both are put on scale to measure whose crimes would weigh heavier on which side will the scales come down — the Tamils or Sinhalese?
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Even after conceding the sporadic lapses and excesses of the forces of the central governments it is apparent that the Tamils had a better deal in all respects under the “Sinhala governments” than under their self-proclaimed liberator. It was the power of the centralized — not powers grabbed by Prabhakaran — that finally rescued the Jaffna Tamils herded as a human shield to protect Prabhakaran. Even when the Vellahlas passed the infamous Vadukoddai Resolution it was not to save the Tamils of Jaffna. They did it to ride on the backs of the Tamil youth for the Vellahalas to gain power and rule the peninsular forever. The Vellahlas and Prabhakaran manoeuvred and manipulated the Tamils to consolidate their positions, privileges and powers. Their politics was based on the assumption that the average Tamil is there to slave for them.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
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Prabhakaran is the unmistakeable example of Tamil crimes against Tamils. He began his career by shooting at point blank range an unarmed Tamil civilian in 1995 and he ended his career by shooting the unarmed Tamil civilians running away from him to find a new life under the Sri Lankan forces. Can the TamilƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ political cultureƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ descend to any depth lower than this? Is this the highest symbol of Tamil culture that is advertised in Tamil stamps?
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ In any case, where did the Tamils turn to as a last resort?ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Who was it who gave a helping hand to the Tamils of Jaffna when they were fighting the IPKF? Above all who rescued the Jaffna Tamils when Prabhakaran was shooting at them in his last days?ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ When the tsunami hit the easternƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ coast wasn’t it the Buddhist monks and the Sinhala villagers who rushed to the aid of the Tamil victims?ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ UTHR reports paid the highest tribute to the Sri Lanka forces for going out of their way to treat the Tamil IDPs humanely. So did other INGOs like ICG.
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The inhuman indifferenceƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ of the Tamil leadershipƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ to the suffering of the Tamils not only question their morality but also their capacity to govern or enforce law and order among their own people. The cruelties inflicted on the Tamils by the Tamils make them inexcusably guilty in the eyes of the world. They stand as one of the most barbaric breeds known among the civilized communities. Since this is the known record can the Jaffna Tamil leadership be trusted with increased powers to protect the Tamils? Besides, who is going to give the TNA activists protection if at a future date (Absit omen!) the rag-tag Tigers win the northern provincial council and grab all the Police powers? The abuse of the powers of law enforcement by Prabhakaran and his ilk is the most compelling argument not to trust the Jaffna Tamils with greater devolution of power. For instance, which sensible Tamil would agree to hand over police powers to Pillaiyan, a former child soldier in Prabhkaran’s cadres now presiding as the Chief Minister of the Eastern Province?
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ However, in the main, it is the demographic composition that negates their argument for 13 +. There are more Tamils outside the northern province than inside Jaffna. If the argument is that Tamils need a Tamil force to police the Tamils who is going to police the majority of the Tamils outside Jaffna? According to Sampanthan Tamils will be satisfied only if they have their own police unit. No other substitute will be acceptable. So how is this arrangement going to satisfy the majority of the Tamils outside his province? Is his next demand going to be a separate police station for every Tamil outside Jaffna for them to obtain justice ? Or is he going to demand that the Tamils in Matara should go to Point Pedro to lodge their complaints? Besides, what special benefits can the Tamils of Jaffna derive from having a Tamil police unit under Sampanthan whichƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ a police unit in the Central Province can’t deliverƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ to a Tamil in their jurisdiction? Since there is only one law to be enforced from Dondra to Point Pedro what is the necessity to have two kinds of police units — one for Sampanthan and another for the rest?
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ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Or is Sampanthan going to write special laws in Tamils which only his handpicked policemen will be able to read and implement? ThisƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ wouldƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ be another version of Fr. Emmanuel threatening to write a special theology for the Jaffna Tamils as if God has granted exclusive divine laws for the Jaffna Tamils. A separate Tamil unit could only add some pomp andƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ceremonial glory to Sampanthan & Co but not to the Tamil people. It will also help to manipulate and boost their power bases. Worst of all, they could use this devolved power to get even with their Tamil rivals and suppress and oppress them as they have done in the past. In short, there is no special benefit that devolved powers can bring to the Tamil people by establishing a police unit under a Tamil Chief Minister in Jaffna.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Giving additional powers to Sampanthan & Co is not going to solve the problems of the Tamils, or the Tamil-speaking people. Problems of Tamils are inextricably linked with that of the Sinhalese, Muslims and Indian Tamils. It is the collective effort of communities under one law that can lift us all up. The TNA would never have dared to demand any powers to protect or strengthenƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ the security of Tamil people from Prabhakaran. All powers were vested in him and no one could demand any devolution of power either to democratise his regime or to bring the Tamil administration closer to the people. They also know that if they demanded increased powers to run, for instance, the east they would be pushing daisies underground by now rather than shouting from political platforms. All powers were concentrated in the hands of Prabhakaran and they justified it as a symbol of Tamil strength. They also glorified the dictatorial powers he wielded to decimate and oppress the Tamil people.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Today the manacled TNA MPsƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ stand asƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ liberatedƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ people. All the rights that were taken from the Tamils — including the right to travel freely the length and breadth of the nation — in the Vadukoddai War period have been restored. Nevertheless, if they had the power to keep Prabhakaran alive they would have done itƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ just to make them feel more important than what theyƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ are.ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ They would have been joined by NGO pundits like “Paki” Saravanamuttu who, incidentally, was flying desperately, from one Western capital to another, in the last days of the war to save Prabhkaran, all in the name, of course, of peace and human rights. His argument, in essence, was that peace canƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ be restoredƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ only if the West moved in with all their power to stop the war — a move aimed directly to save Prabhakaran and his forces from extinction. In the last days he was so busy flying in and out of transatlantic capitals that in the end he would have accumulated enough frequent flyer points to fly at least ten times round the world. And yet he has the gall to ask in his last sermon from the Mount of his Groundviews whether pigs can fly!
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January 28th, 2012 at 4:35 pm
A very interesting and a penetrative analysis that every Parliamentarian and the members of the civil society must read and try to understand the truth behind all this fuss that is going on “devolution”.
The reamining outfit of the defunct LTTE- the TNA is now under the perview and control of the “CIVIL SOCIETY OF EEZHAM TAMILS” consisting of Relgious Leaders, Academics, Educationalishts, Professionals, Trade Unionists and Community Leaders. Recently this organization issued a policy directive to TNA in the form of a Memorandum to TNA, “condemning deception and deviatory polity of the leadership, while times demand well-defined solutions to a long struggle. The civil society members urged firmness of leadership in political stand in convincing INDIA and the US of the indispensability of addressing fundamentals of the aspriations of Eezham Tamils, i.e. nation and the right to self-determination” ( Taken from TamiNet date lined on Tuesday, 13 December 2011, 23.50 GMT).
One of the main points of the memorandum (signed by 75 signatories) handed over to the TNA Secretary General Mavai Senathirajah is, “When SL Government is not prepared to concede the unity of the North and the East, grant police and land powers, theres is no popint in engaging with it in any talk”. A prominent signatory to this document is none other than Bishop Ryappu – an associate of Dr. Jayalath Jayawardana of UNP.
The Political Leadership and the Parliamentarians in the unitary state of Sri Lanka, don’t you get the message? Are’nt you conducting these so called “discussions” jut the way that successive Governments of Sri Lanka did for 30 years with LTTE? This proxy TNA of LTTE comes for discussions and withdraws and then come again and again. Don’t you see some similarity in this process with that of LTTE?.
Please be awarea. There is something in the offing. Please be prepared.
January 28th, 2012 at 5:21 pm
Excellent Mahindapala!
A truly great analysis of the Catholic S.O.B-ers who ruined the Lanka and dragged it through the dirt, the last 50 years.
A must read if one is to be ‘in the know’.
Finally you are approaching the crux of the matter. Now it is time we look closely at the editors of English dailies who blocked true knowledge from reaching the Sri Lankan people by hoodwinking them the last half a century, thus working as paid Catholic actionists. If this situation is not corrected even now, believe me, there will be a re-run of our history!
Keep up the good fight, Mahinda. And a huge thanks from your friend.
Mhainda weerasinghe
January 28th, 2012 at 6:37 pm
Sri Lanka has lot to learn from Israel how to destroy Tamil expansionists.
“Israeli police arrest 2 more Palestinian parliament members
Jerusalem (CNN) — Two Palestinian parliament members suspected of involvement in Hamas activity were arrested in Jerusalem on Monday, Israeli police said.
Khaled abu Arafeh and Mohamed Totah were arrested at a Red Cross compound where they had been conducting a sit-in for the past year and a half.
“They are not immune from the law,” Rosenfeld said.
Last week, Israel arrested two other Palestinian Legislative Council members in the West Bank — Aziz Dweik and Khaled Tafesh Dweib — for what the Israeli military said was involvement in terrorist activity.
The latest round of arrests brings the number of Palestinian parliament members imprisoned by Israel to 27, according to Addameer, a Palestinian prisoner advocacy organization. Israeli authorities could not immediately provide a count.
Sabri Saidam, a senior adviser to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, told CNN, “It is impossible for the free world to see a state claiming to be wanting peace by attending talks in Amman, while kidnapping legitimate parliament representatives and elective members of the Palestinian society … . This act is a demonstration of the real wish of the Israeli government to cripple any efforts in the direction of achieving a lasting peace in the region.”
The ICRC said at the time the men sought refuge in the compound that it notified Israeli authorities of their presence. The ICRC said it informed the two that the organization held no diplomatic status in Israel and could not protect them from arrest.
On Friday, after the arrest of Dweik and Dweib, Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh called on Abbas to halt talks with Israel.
“There should be a stop to the ongoing negotiations. The negotiations are a failure and absurd. It is impossible for any Palestinian to shake the hands of the occupier and the enemy while they are arresting the symbols of legitimacy,” Haniyeh said.
Due to political divisions between Palestinian political factions, the Palestinian Legislative Council has not met since 2007.”
http://edition.cnn.com/2012/01/23/world/meast/israel-palestinian-lawmakers-arrested/index.html?hpt=hp_t2
January 28th, 2012 at 6:41 pm
Exactly the same problem; parties are different.
ICRC protecting terrorists everywhere! In Sri Lanka they protected tigers and in Israel they protect Hamas.
TNA parliamentary members should be all arrested and thrown behind bars.
“Kidnapping/abductions” nonsense is also same.
Worthless talks with TNA is also same with these terrorists.
“Due to political divisions between Palestinian political factions, the Palestinian Legislative Council has not met since 2007”
This is what we should be doing to Tamil leadership.
This takes the cake.
“Israeli authorities could not immediately provide a count.”
Why are we different in Sri Lanka?
Give them the same punishment. Same crime, same punishment.
January 28th, 2012 at 6:43 pm
Well written article by HLDM, as always.
Tamil homeland in Sri Lanka? Pigs will fly!
January 29th, 2012 at 2:00 am
That is why I always say, put low-caste pro-SL Tamil leaders to rule over Valla-alla-la Tamils.
At the moment it is happening to some extent.
e.g. EPDP, CWC hold NATIONAL ministerial portfolios. TNA has NOTHING!
January 29th, 2012 at 2:11 am
What if Tigers succeeded in killing the entire family of Amirthalingam who aroused racism and violence?
This particular woman vowed to kill Sinhalese and do really barbaric things only subhumans can think of.
Then that would have become a very good lesson for ALL TNA MPs and more importantly their family members.
If that was the case TNA would not have become LTTE stooges.
We could have used it to terrorise all pro-LTTE politicians not to befriend tigers as tigers will one day turn against you.
When your enemies are divided, let them fight! Don’t disturb them.
Sometimes what looks good on the surface is not very good in the long run. We have to approach them with an open mind.
January 29th, 2012 at 3:30 am
Whilst some Sinhalese aim for Nirvana and termination of birth/rebirth cycle (extinction) and give up desires, Tamil Nadu expansionists will develop desires to make the North and East part of Tamil Nadu and capture the rest of Lanka, whilst we seek a fools paradise.
January 29th, 2012 at 12:23 pm
We had our own enemies yesterday, today and there will be tomorrow too. All the enemies of our land were chased out or killed at the end by the mighty Sinhalese by the sword ,by the gun and most powerful by the Sinhala people. We had very inteligent good Tamil and Muslims who loved our Motherland and fought along with Sinhalese for decades against our enenmies within and outside and we called them heros of our nation. We salute them and remember them as days goes by.
We know the real enemies of our land. After we won the battle of all battles still our traitors of the land look in to ways to sabotage our forward march to prosperity and peace. My view is to make laws to bring tthese traitors in to books and put them behind bars for good for their trecherous acts against our Motherland. TNA should be banned completely and those who go and talk against our country in world forums and in foreign countries should be brought to justice for treason. When this Government has the two thirds majority why waste time.Get them out of the way for all to live peacefully as we enjoy now. HE the President must tell loudly and clearly to everyone to hear ” NO MORE SEPERATION TALKS, NO MORE 13 PLUS OR MINUS, NO MORE LAND OR POLICE POWERS To any ethnic group.All Sri Lankans must obey and respect the rule of law and it will be one law,One Government,one flag and one land for all SRI LANKANS. TNA GET LOST same like your Idol PRABAKARAN
January 29th, 2012 at 12:55 pm
Ranjith,
True.
Only now we have to talk to our enemies. Our swords are not allowed to talk.
January 29th, 2012 at 7:00 pm
Mahinda!
Your are degrading the value of your articles by quoting Noel Nadesan.
I heard a lot about about this guy from my Tamil community contacts in Australia. He is apparently a loathed/disgraced individual and has no community respect or support.
Why not establish links with mainstream Tamil leadership in Australia to defect the Pro-LTTE elements there?
January 29th, 2012 at 8:45 pm
“quoting Noel Nadesan.
I heard a lot about about this guy from my Tamil community contacts in Australia. He is apparently a loathed/disgraced individual and has no community respect or support.”
Whoever said this, it is true.
NN is not considered a representative Tamil. He is a very good man. He has more respect for SL than all other Tamils in his society. But he is considered a traitor in Jaffna, etc. too.
But he is a very good propaganda tool which we must not disregard.
January 30th, 2012 at 4:21 am
“:Is the Jaffna Tamil leadership fit to handle increased powers”
This writer has no objection to giving more powers to Tamil terrorists (the Indian colonial parasites in Ceylon).
His concern is the current leadership in Jaffna.
“You were a journalist. Did not you know these facts when you were dancing for the tunes of UNP sakkilies who are part of the Christian moronic activities in Sri lanka?
If the writer’s ……are the leaders of Jaffan,then I am sure they will be fit to handle increased powers with writers journalistic and other prowesses.