Self government for Tamil-dominated areas?
Posted on February 8th, 2012
Gamini Premadasa
The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) survives on its never-ending call of self government for Tamils and autonomy for ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Tamil-dominated Northern and Eastern ProvincesƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚. What the TNA leader and his deputies, who claim to represent the Tamilians in Sri Lanka, should do instead, at least for a change, is to attempt doing something that will bring some form of tangible benefit to those who sent them as their representatives to Parliament under the jackboot dictates of the LTTE leader.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The media habitually label the TNA as the major Tamil party, which gives the erroneous impression to the outside world that this group represents a large proportion of Tamils, if not the majority of Sri Lankan nationals.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ According to the World Factbook of CIA, the proportion of Tamils, on whose behalf the TNA claims to fight and are projected as living in Sri LankaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s North and East, is approximately 3.9% of the population. There are other Tamil groups in Sri Lanka, such as the so-called Indian Tamils in the plantation areas, that constitute 4.6%, but whom the TNA is unlikely to touch even with the proverbial barge pole except when it wants to present them as their brethren with the aim of denigrating the Sinhala majority. Furthermore, the East is not Tamil-dominated: it has roughly equal proportions of people who belong to the Sinhala, Moor or Tamil ethnic groups, making the non-Tamils nearly two thirds of the inhabitants there.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ It is time that the TNA stopped, or was told in language that they comprehend to stop, dictating terms to the Sri Lankan government and accusing the President of double talk. His Excellency quite rightly has said that solutions for Sri LankaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s problems will be those home-grown and not any forced on it by various outside groups, the 13th amendment to the constitution ranking highest among such ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”solutionsƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢. He has added that there will be no ethnicity-based divisions of the country. Instead of laying preconditions and demanding the moon and stars, the TNA leader and its spokesmen should show that they are genuinely Sri Lankan and are ready to contribute whatever they can to the development and prosperity of the country to which they owe a great deal, instead of collecting air miles travelling the world to complain to the gullible and those with hidden agendas how the Tamils in Sri Lanka are discriminated by the voracious Sinhala.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The government has invested a disproportionate amount of its funds in restoring the infrastructure and initiating many development projects in the North and the East ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢¢”š¬…” there was no region called the North-Eastern Province until India forced it on the then President in its failed attempt to ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”¹…”bring peace to Sri LankaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢. There should be concrete moves by the government to settle the members of the Sinhala and Moor communities in the North and the East, if Sri Lanka is to ever have any chance of moving forward as a multi-ethnic multi-religious nation.
ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Gamini Premadasa
February 9th, 2012 at 7:08 am
I do not think it is correct to blame the Tamils or the TNA for our apathy. The Sinhalese need to stand up and be counted and learn the skills needed to survive and win in a war zone, rather than give up desires to escape ‘Dukke’. Even Indians do not belive in such things any more.
February 9th, 2012 at 7:33 am
All of our people need to be more pragmatic to survive. In the Globalised world of today, Lankans need to wake up and put the proper Laws in place and govern the country properly.
To get rid of the separatist menace, we should :
* Get rid of the 13-A.
* Get rid of Illegal Migrants.
* Oath of Allegiance to Lanka must be mandatory.
* Separatist activities punishable by life imprisonment with hard labor, confiscation of all property.
etc.
* Corruption not tolerated. Prison terms with confiscation of property in proportions suited to crime.
etc.
February 9th, 2012 at 2:37 pm
**The Sinhalese need to stand up and be counted and learn the skills needed to survive and win in a war zone, **
Well Ben Silva, looks like the LTTE were defeated by Martians after all :D
**Even Indians do not belive in such things any more.**
Thats because they believe in drinking cow urine.
February 9th, 2012 at 4:37 pm
“I do not think it is correct to blame the Tamils or the TNA for our apathy.”
TNA is certainly to be blamed and to that extent Tamils who voted for it.
February 10th, 2012 at 5:04 am
Dear Ben,
The Tamils who vote for the TNA plus ex-colonists, post Cold War politics, a Globalised economy, flawed globalised fiscal systems, etc. are all part of the collective ‘Dukka’ for Lankans.
February 10th, 2012 at 7:16 am
There are no different breeds of Tamils. Tamils are Tamils and they happened to go to other countries on the back of British guns.
So there are no Jaffna Tamils, Plantaion tamils, Tamil Nadu tamils. Malaysian tamils, Singapore Tamils, South African Tamils, Fijian Tamils. they are all Tamils and forms part of the Indian colonial parasites.