OPEN LETTER TO THE PRESIDENT GOTABAYA RAJAPAKSA
Posted on October 5th, 2021
RANJITH SOYSA
Dear Mr President
I have been prompted to write this letter to you subsequent to your recent reported statement that you look forward to meeting some members of the expatriate Sri Lankan Tamil groups ( you had mentioned the term ‘diaspora’ which refers to the Jewish ethnic group which was driven away by force from their homeland whereas the overseas Sri Lankan Tamil groups have chosen to live overseas through legal migration or some seeking refugee status) who have expressed their total rejection of Sri Lanka’s war against the Tamil Tiger Terrorists and also endorsed the claims for a Tamil Eelam, in the North and the East of Sri Lanka.
To achieve both these objectives these groups have financed Tamil Tiger terrorism in Sri Lanka and had carried out anti-Sri Lanka campaigns in the international fora and within the countries in which they live. Their anti-Sri Lanka movement has caused death and injury to Sri Lankan citizens through the financed terrorist act and also created political issues for Sri Lankan governments in regard to so alleged violation of human rights.
In such a scenario, it is almost inconceivable how Sri Lanka can meet these anti-Sri Lanka pro-separatist groups for discussions for the purpose of ‘reconciliation’ or for any other purpose, unless without acceptable clarifications at least with regard to following.
1 unitary Sri Lanka,
2 The war against LTTE terrorism was conducted for the protection of territorial integrity and the liberation of Sri Lankan people from terrorism.
We are of the view that,if the Sri Lankan government proceeds ahead for discussions unconditionally, it will negate the mandate approved by Sri Lankan people when they elected you as the President, Besides, such a proposition will only lead to open the doors to ‘little now more later’ ethnic claims which had been the ploy followed by the former political leaders of these group.
We, therefore, kindly request you to tread carefully in the face of obvious danger.
RANJITH SOYSA