Dr. Sudath Gunasekara Mahanuwara

–TNA’s call for self-determination –TNA began singing its old theme-song calling for the merger of the North and East provinces into one provincial council; self-determination and made references to a ‘Tamil Homeland’ – with a proviso that it will be within an undivided Sri Lanka”.The alliance also calls for the merger of the North and East provinces, a pipe-dream when it couldn’t even run the Northern Provincial Council without in-fighting.It is nothing but pathetic that the TNA is continuing with its communal politics to chase behind votes at the upcoming elections. They may be trying to compete with other fringe political parties of the North espousing the same or even more radical views. Maybe they are even the lesser evil. But like the House of Bourbons of France all of them seem to have learned nothing, and forgotten nothing”, committing the same mistakes over and over again expecting different results. In this instance, they are playing to the age-old sentiments of their electorate, only helping fuel an equal and opposite reaction in the ‘south’ which will be greatly advantageous to parties that wish to ride to power in Colombo by playing their own ‘communal card’.These northern politicians will not be able to blame ‘southern’ coalitions for beating the communal drum if they are doing it themselves in the North – and the East. What they are trying to do is whip up a communal frenzy among a new generation of youth. If the LTTE used a previous generation to wade through slaughter to its impossible dream of a separate state, the TNA – and other northern regional parties, seemingly want to do the same for some seats in the National Parliament.

Why can’t the Government invoke the 6th Amendment to the Constitution passed on 8th August 1983 and Take action against this Party its members at least now and put an end to this nuisance without dragging on  as all governments have done since 1983 creating, continuous political instability in this country?

If it also can’t do it then why doesn’t we remove 6^th A from the Constitution without allowing article 157 A to be a big legal joke as it had been from there in the book from August 1983, the day it was passed in Parliament, never used for the purpose of which it was passed by its fathers.

 In brief this is what 157 A says.

(1) No person shall, directly or indirectly, in or outside Sri Lanka, support, espouse, promote, finance, encourage or advocate the establishment of a separate State within the territory of Sri Lanka.

(2) No political party or other association or organization shall have as one of its aims or objects the establishment of a separate State within the territory of Sri Lanka

The punishments for these offences are clearly stated as removal of civic disability, forfeiture of movable and immovable property ect

 As such it is very clear both in concept and law. Had they made use of this provision on the first occasion after it became effective, most of the separatist problems, both Tamil and Muslim would probably not have been there today.

But our politicians who never do anything properly have never used it to tame these extremist communal politicians. The sword is not meant to cut jak fruits as the Sinhala proverb says.

It is high time therefore at least now for the present government first to implement the 6th A and thereafter ban all political parties named after ethnicity Language, religion and who hold allegiance to other countries and conspire to destroy this 2500 year Sinhala Buddhist nation on this planet earth in order to bring back political stability and sanity to this country

As far as I know this the only country in the world where minorities descending from invaders ,illicit immigrants and traders, not only enjoy the highest privileges for any country but also where they enjoy more privileges than the native people who have found the civilization in that country and defended it against enemies.  For example Tamils have Thesavalamei and Muslims their own Muslim law an deen Kathi courts Moreover they also don’t hold allegiance to this country where they live and earn their  daily bread. They only live and earn their living here. For Tamils it is India and Muslims Arabia Even when they worship their god they turn to those countries. But unfortunately we don’t have a Putin or a Howard to put the minorities in their places. In 1815 when we handed over the country by Convention this country had only one nation. It was the British who divided them and conferred more privileges to minorities to weaken the native Sinhalese. This is why I say we want to go back to the native system of Constitution and Government we had in this country prior to 1815 that was time tested for more than 2500 years.

What the Government must tell the minorities Tamils and Muslims in this country

This was the historical Homeland of Sinhala nation as it had been for the past 2600 year. The traditional Home land of Tamils is Tamilnadu in South India and Muslims is Arabia. You both never had a Homeland on this Island. Therefore you cannot claim to have any Homeland here although after coming here over time under different circumstances such as remnants of invading forces,  remnants of people who have come on trade or as indentured coolies who were brought by the British firstly to work on their project in the north and East and  secondly highest number of South Indians as slaves/indentured labour to work on their newly opened up Tea plantations in the Central Hill Country who were British citizen then and left behind when the British left  in 194 as Stateless people. Unfortunately none of our politician who embraced the Pandora’s Box of so-called independence in 1948 as a Dhatu karanduwa  had the brain or the mouth to tell the British ‘Hey look none of these people were there when we handed over the country in 1815 we need you to take them back along with you in order to make Independence to this country to be meaningful and complete. But it never happened 

The minorities must clearly understand this and be prepared to live amicably realizing that they are only a part of another nation and society. If they are not prepared to concede with this reality they have only one option. That is to get back to their own mother lands without creating unnecessary problems for us.

The government or the leaders must openly tell this as Puttin ad Australiam Pm sometime back have told the minorities living in those countries. As much as Puttin and Austarliama Prime minister said we have never invited them to come here. They have come on their own and if any one of them wants to live here then they must think, behave and talk as the citizens of this country that is Sinhale (called Ceylon by the British meaning the land of the Sinhala people)

The people who are there having got elected to Parliament with the Sinhala majority votes who have formed the government must say this clearly to everybody or depart so that the Sinhala people of this country can elect a Government that is prepared to do that.