Indian MPs led by Sushma Swaraj on Sri Lanka visit
Posted on April 17th, 2012
By Walter Jayawardhana
A multi-party MPs delegation embarked on a six-day visit to Sri Lanka during which they will oversee developmental projects by India and handing over of houses in the areas worst affected by the decades-old civil war, reported the Times of India.
Once in Sri Lanka theywil press for political reforms that wouold benefit Tamils,the newspaper said.
ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-The delegation led by leader of opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj left for Colombo this evening and will visit northern and eastern Sri Lanka, which bore the brunt of three decades of bloodshed, besides making a visit to central and southern parts of the island.
ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-The delegation, that has members from Congress, Bharatiya Janata Party,Communist Party Marxist,Socialist Party, Bharatitya Janata Dal and Janata Dal, would be in Sri Lanka for six days from today and will meet presidentMahinda Rajapaksa and other leaders to press for a political solution to the Tamil question.
ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-The MPs, five of whom are from Tamil Nadu where the Sri Lankan Tamils issue is emotive, will also hold talks with leaders of the Tamil National Alliance, which has emerged as a credible political force of the minority community, and the Sri Lankan Muslim Congressto get their views.
ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-Two major political parties in Tamil Nadu — AIADMK and DMK — pulled out of the visit at the last minute.
ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ…-During its visit to Mullaitivu, once the nerve-centre of LTTE’s military operations, the delegation will hand over medical equipment to hospitals, newly-built houses to beneficiaries and distribute bicycles to needy Tamils.
“The primary focus of the delegation will, however, be in the areas recovering from thirty years of conflict in the North and East of Sri Lanka where development assistance projects for the resettlement and rehabilitation of IDPs and reconstruction of areas affected by the conflict are being undertaken by India,” the ministry of external affairs said.ƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ”š‚
April 17th, 2012 at 3:20 pm
Tamil Eelam in Sri Lanka today, and Tamil Nadu Eelam in India tommorrow … Eh, Karuna-nidi?
This unrepentant Tamil Racist Demagogue who wrote poems praising the late unlamented SunGod, URGENTLY needs some WITCHES BREW to RETURN him to power.
For Tamil Nadu politicians, the RISK-FREE PATH to Voter Popularity has ALWAYS BEEN espousal of a Tamil Eelam in Sri Lanka. Whenever they need to buy votes, beat up on Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka needs to take a FIRM STAND on REJECTING not only these TAMIL NADU Racists, but ALL Indian INTERFERENCE in Sri Lanka’s INTERNAL ISSUES. Just say BUTT OUT!
In that sense, the “All Party” Parliamentary Delegation is OPENING THE DOOR WIDER to Indian Interference in Sri Lanka. These guys should NEVER HAVE BEEN allowed to set foot in Sri Lanka. THEY HAVE NO BUSINESS trying to SUPERVISE Sri Lanka in ANYTHING!.
We won’t tell India how to PROTECT its own SOVEREIGNTY, by offering unwelcome advice on how to handle Kashmir separatists, the Naxalites, the Pakistanis, China or WHOMEVER, if India AGREES to STAY OUT of Sri Lanka’s Internal Matters. That is the ESSENCE of GOOD NEIGHBOURLINESS.
If India REFUSES to understand how to be a GOOD NEIGHBOUR, then perhaps, Sri Lanka should become involved in assuring the rights of disaffected groups of people in India as well, by taking these issues up at the UN.
The CURRENT POSTURE of Good Neighborliness is NOT SERVING Sri Lanka well.
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India should support referendum for Tamil Eelam: Karunanidhi
ColomboPage News Desk, Sri Lanka.
Apr 17 (IANS) Chennai- DMK president and former Tamil Nadu chief minister M.Karunanidhi Tuesday said India should take up efforts in the United Nations for holding a referendum in Sri Lanka for creation of a separate Tamil Eelam.
Welcoming the idea of a referendum for the creation of Tamil Eelam,Karunanidhi, writing for the party mouthpiece Murasoli, said: “The demand for holding referendum amongst Tamils for the creation of Tamil Eelam is welcome.”
“At the intervention of United Nations, some countries have been formed and got recognition. Similarly a referendum should be conducted amongst Tamils for the creation of Tamil Eelam and United Nations should take steps for that.”
He said India should given necessary support and pressure for the measure.
April 17th, 2012 at 3:26 pm
What the HELL are these Jokers doing in Sri Lanka BUTTING their noses into Sri Lanka’s Internal Matters?
Should Sri Lanka send a delegation on a INVESTIGATIVE TOUR to inspect political issues in Kashmir as well?
What is good for the goose should be equally good for the gander!
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Parliamentary delegation reaffirms India’s commitment to Sri Lanka’s unity, calls for a political settlement
ColomboPage News Desk, Sri Lanka.
Apr 17, Colombo: The visiting Indian parliamentary delegation to Sri Lanka has reaffirmed India’s commitment to Sri Lanka’s unity and prosperity and called for progress in the dialogue for a political settlement on the ethnic issues with the minority Tamils.
The 12-member Indian parliamentary delegation, headed by the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Mrs. Sushma Swaraj, and comprising representatives of several prominent political parties from both houses of Parliament, arrived in Colombo on the evening of 16 April 2012, the High Commission of India in Colombo said in a statement.
The delegation called on the Sri Lankan Minister of Economic Development Basil Rajapaksa Tuesday and they were briefed on the reconstruction work undertaken by the Sri Lankan government in the North.
The Indian delegation has thanked Minister Rajapaksa for enabling their visit to the Menik Farm IDP Camp and the resettled area in Puliyankulam. They have noted the efforts of the Sri Lankan government of in the field of rehabilitation and resettlement and underlined the need for progress towards a political settlement.
The team thereafter met the Leader of the House in the Sri Lankan Parliament Minister Nimal Siripala de Silva.
The Indian delegation had the opportunity for a wide-ranging interaction with representatives of all major political parties in Sri Lanka.
“They appreciated the frankness with which a wide array of views were expressed by the Sri Lankan Members of Parliament, which showed the vibrancy of the democratic process in Sri Lanka,” the statement said.
The members of the Indian delegation reaffirmed India’s commitment to Sri Lanka’ unity and prosperity and called for progress in the dialogue for a political settlement.
The delegation, which met Sri Lanka External Affairs Minister Prof. G.L. Peiris, has sought a briefing on the steps being taken to implement the LLRC report, the status of the resettlement and reconstruction process and the efforts towards arriving at a political settlement.
Prof. Peiris has underlined the range and depth of the India-Sri Lanka relationship and the need for close engagement on a continuing basis. He has briefed the delegation in detail on the action being taken by the government for implementation of the LLRC recommendations and the status of the dialogue process with the major Tamil political party Tamil National Alliance (TNA).
The delegation also has interacted with representatives of the TNA and the upcountry Tamil party, Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC), in addition to other Tamil and upcountry political parties, and learnt of their concerns.
The Indian delegation is scheduled to head for the North Wednesday to get a first hand look on the progress of the resettlement process.
April 17th, 2012 at 8:57 pm
When Indians go to vote in elections, 90% vote on the basis of caste or community, not the merits of the candidate.
90% Indians believe in astrology, which is pure superstition and humbug. Even a little common sense tells us that the movements of stars and planets have nothing to do with our lives. Yet, Indian TV channels showing astrology have high viewer ratings.
During the recent Anna Hazare agitation in Delhi, the media hyped the event as a solution to the problem of corruption. In reality it was, as Shakespeare said in Macbeth, “..a tale told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, signifying nothing.”
47 farmers in India were committing suicide on an average every day for the last 15 years. But cricket has been turned into a religion by Indian corporate media, and most people lap it up like opium. The real problems facing 80% of the people are socioeconomic — poverty, unemployment, malnourishment, price rise, lack of healthcare, education, housing etc.
90% of Indians can be cured of their foolishness by twin doses of scientific and modern thinking, by being logical and rational, that can rid their minds of “casteism, communalism and superstition.”
A large proportion of Indians are mentally backward. The problem with some educated Indians including Manmohan Singh is that they still suffering from colonial inferiority complex and therefore believe Indians are inferior to those who live in London or New York.
Unlike the West and China, India has never had a strategic culture. Perhaps the reason was that India has never been an entity as it exists today. Invader after invader kept coming and Indians were subjugated to hundreds of years of foreign rule. Indians are a status quo people. No one wants to rock the boat. So directionless India foreign policy has gone on for six decades without anyone questioning its rationale, causing immense harm to issues of national interest. The policy needs complete overhaul and not cosmetic changes. Whether it will happen or not remains to be seen. The chances are that status quo will prevail.
Nothing illustrates India’s muddle headed approach in foreign policy more than the festering store of the Jammu & Kashmir problem – entirely India’s creation. When Indain Army was poised to clear Jammu & Kashmir of Pakistan raiders and regular army, India took the issue to the UN, thereby turning a bilateral problem into a world problem. The problem gets compounded thereafter.
Has Indian foreign policy establishment ever paused to think as to why Bangladesh, which should be eternally grateful to India for its creation, has walked into Pakistani arms? Or why Nepal, which is landlocked and is crucially dependent on India for almost everything, is perpetually complaining?.
There has to be something wrong with Indian foreign policy that Indians have not been able to convince their neighbours that Indians are not poised to grab them at the first opportunity. The list of failures is long. India has failed to convince Bangladesh not to allow its territory to be used by the ISI, Chinese, ULFA and other terror groups. Bhutan is conducting border talks with China in contravention of the India-Bhutan Treaty of 1950.
India rush in to advise Sri Lanka on issues India has no business to. With Sri Lanka, India concluded the most puzzling Accord wherein India sat down with Sri Lankan leaders to decide Prabhakaran’s fate, but the Accord does not bear his signatures. How was he bound by this Accord? No wonder be denounced this Accord soon as he was allowed to go to Sri Lanka by India.
The other problem of India’s foreign policy in respect of its neighbours is that in India’s anxiety to be seen as a major power in the making, India only wants to hobnob with important countries in the world and tend to take its neighbours for granted. This is a case of Nero fiddling while Rome was burning. The neighbourhood is in turmoil but India is busy ingratiating with the sole super power USA and others.
Prosperity of the Indian people can go down the drain if the Indian state does not learn anything from Bhopal.
And Indian leaders also need to look at what happened to former allies and “poodles” of the USA.
See:
(1) Poland abandoned to the Soviets at the end of WWII,
(2) President Ngo Dinh Diem of South Vietnam
(3) President Nguyen Van Thieu of South Vietnam
(4) the last Shah of Iran
(5) President Ferdinand Marcos of the Phillipines,
(6) President Saddam Hussein of Iraq after he outlived his usefulness of the Iran-Iraq War
(7) President Ali Bhutto of Pakistan
(8) President Musharraf of Pakistan
(9) President Hosni Mubarak of Egypt
(10) and currently in process of abandonment, President Hamid Karzai of Afghanistan