{"id":119606,"date":"2021-10-26T23:50:55","date_gmt":"2021-10-27T05:50:55","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=119606"},"modified":"2021-10-26T16:37:32","modified_gmt":"2021-10-26T23:37:32","slug":"erasing-the-eelam-victory-pt-19f","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2021\/10\/26\/erasing-the-eelam-victory-pt-19f\/","title":{"rendered":"ERASING THE EELAM VICTORY PT 19F."},"content":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS<\/span><\/em><\/h2>\n\n\n

The army took\ncare to remove all possible LTTE monuments once the Eelam war was over. They knew\nthat otherwise these monuments would become shrines. The only LTTE \u2018monuments\u2019\nat the time were the LTTE cemeteries such as the cemetery at Chaaty Beach near\nJaffna. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The army bulldozed\nall of them. The Tamil Separatist Movement watched with dismay. They alleged\nthat Thuyilum Illam7, a graveyard in honor of slain LTTE soldiers was destroyed\nand an army camp set up over it. I\nthink this is most unlikely.  Thereafter\ncourt orders were obtained in 2014, banning events of remembrance and mourning\nin Jaffna.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, the\nYahapalana government which came to power in 2015 was very pro-Eelam and the\nTamil Separatist Movement took the opportunity to erect memorials to the LTTE.   If JVP\nwas free to remember its dead leaders, so should the Tamils, said TNA. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ten years\nafter the war, around 2019 the Tamil Separatist Movement started to put up\nmemorials. The motive was political. Tamil Separatist Movement was planning to\nuse Memorialisation as a political tool. One memorial was, predictably, put up\nat Mullivaikkal where the LTTE was defeated. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In September\n2021 three persons including Jaffna District MP Sevarasa Gajendran were\narrested for organizing a ceremony to commemorate former LTTE political wing\nleader Thileepan, in contravention of quarantine regulations.<\/strong> They were\narrested when they were preparing for the commemoration at Thileepan\u2019s statue\nin Nallur. They were told htat court had issued an order barring commemorations\nin the place. As they continued regardless, police arrested them. British\nAll-Party Parliamentary Group for Tamils (APPGT) have expressed deep concern about\nthis arrest, and urged the Foreign Secretary to raise it with her counterpart\nin Sri Lanka. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Three memorials\nto the Eelam war have been set up in the University of Jaffna premises. The Pongu Thamilmonument in the\nArts Faculty,  Thileepan memorial in the\nscience faculty  and a memorial to those\nwho died at Mullavaikkal,  known as Mullavaikkal\nmemorial\u201d  on the grounds of the\nUniversity. The Mullavaikkal monument was for those civilians who lost their\nlives in the last battle as they were trapped on the battlefield. These people\nneeded a memorial and students believed that one set up within the university\nwould be safer than one put up anywhere else.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2021, the Mullavaikkal memorial\u201d came to public attention. Tamil\npeople\u2019s right to commemorate came under sharp focus when authorities at the\nUniversity of Jaffna recently demolished a memorial on campus, built to\nremember those who died in the final phase of the war in 2009, announced the\nmedia. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The memorial\nhad been approved by the previous Vice Chancellor.  Construction had begun in April 2018 and\ncompleted by February 2019, a decade after the LTTE\u2008was militarily defeated. Parts\nof the memorial had been pre-cast outside, brought into the campus and\nassembled. University Grants Commission   had issued a directive to halt the construction.\nThis had been ignored. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In October 2020 Deputy Inspector General of Police (Jaffna) had sent\nVice Chancellor Srisatkunarajah a \u2018secret\u2019 report, originating from the army, containing\ninformation from intelligence agencies. One in particular from the Directorate\nof Military Intelligence (DMI) spoke about links between \u2018pro LTTE\u2019 students\nand activities related to the memorial. Also that the memorial was becoming the\ncentre for different ceremonies linked to the LTTE during anniversaries and\nother events. The army had wanted the memorial demolished.Also\nthe VC was told that no construction could take place in a university without\nthe express permission of the University Grants Commission.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Whenever Vice Chancellor Srisatkunarajah interacted with military\nor Police seniors during conferences, the first issue to be raised was the Mullavaikkal\nmemorial.\u201d When would it be demolished? \nVice Chancellor was under heavy pressure to do so and this reached a\npeak in January 2021.  The VC had told the\nHindu\u201d newspaper later that that his demolition order was based on instructions\nfrom defence, intelligence, Education Ministry, everyone\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Vice Chancellor decided to demolish the monument. After\nconsultations with engineers and others he decided that the demolition should\ntake place after 10 p.m. on Friday January 8, 2021. Students were asked to\nleave the premises that night. The VC and his Registrar Viswanathan Kandeepan\nwere on the premises.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

 When a backhoe fixed with\nspotlights on the roof, began to demolish the memorial, residents at nearby\nRamanathan Road and Parameshwara junction heard what they suspected was unusual\nactivity within the campus. Soon the people, including students, turned up at\nthe entrance and watched what was going on. The backhoe was loading the destroyed\ndebris of the memorial and was later unloading it in a corner area. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the night went on, there was hectic activity. Nine university\nstudents launched a hunger strike. By Saturday morning crowds had swelled. That\nincluded V. Mannivannan, a lawyer and Mayor of Jaffna. He hurriedly appeared\nfor two persons taken into custody and obtained bail.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Police from Jaffna, Kopay, Manipay, and Atchuveli Police stations were\ndeployed around the campus.  Army troops\nfrom the 521 Brigade in Kondavil and Special Task Force (STF) personnel of the Police\nwere stationed at strategic points. They dispersed the crowds but more began\ncoming in. the Army and the Police prevented damage being caused.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Vice Chancellor initially had taken a firm stance. He told students\nthat the Mullaivaikal memorial\u201d had been built without obtaining approval. But\naround 3 a.m. the Vice Chancellor changed his position. He turned up before the\nfasting students with a bowl of rice porridge and declared let us lay a new\nfoundation stone in the morning for a new memorial.\u201d He accompanied the\nstudents to the demolished site where they laid flowers. The Vice Chancellor\nthen recited a stanza from Tiruvasagam, a song for Lord Shiva.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

On Monday morning VC announced I have received orders from the\nGovernment to resolve this issue amicably. Authorities\nwanted him to diffuse the situation\u201d. This has caused some issues in Tamil\nNadu as well.  I have written to the UGC.\nWe are going to put some stones as a symbolic ceremony. The construction of the\nmonument will commence with proper approval.  UGC Chairman and Jaffna\nUniversity Vice Chancellor had been in touch with each other till the wee hours\nof Monday, said the media.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

VC told the students that they would be allowed to re-erect the\nmemorial.  A symbolic foundation stone was laid that Monday morning, using\nstones from the demolished memorial. Students\ndemanded that the VC himself lay the foundation stone. As the rains were\ncontinuing the VC wanted to put it off, but the students demanded that he do as\nthey said despite rain. The VC bowed to pressure and laid a foundation stone\namidst rain and the students ended their agitation.   <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The media pointed out that placing stones to resemble a\nfoundation, also raised an issue. It could be argued that this act, to diffuse\na situation,\u201d has been carried out without any formal approval.Minister\nWimal Weerawansa condemned the Vice Chancellor for allowing the laying of a\nfoundation stone for a new memorial. On\nthe following Friday, holes were dug to lay concrete to begin erection of a new\nmonument.  <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Presidential Secretariat had not known of the event. Officials\nhad hurriedly telephoned Vice Chancellor to ask who gave instructions\u201d for the\ndemolition I explained the situation in detail to an official of the\nPresident\u2019s office,\u201d Prof. Srisatkunarajah told the Sunday Times<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

India\u2019s High Commissioner Gopal Baglay had told Prime Minister\nMahinda Rajapaksa that the demolition of Mullaivaikal memorial\u201d could lead to\nprotests erupting in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. Premier Rajapaksa\nwent into action promptly said the media. \nThe Vice Chancellor was informed that Tamil Nadu is boiling.\u201d  Media observed that hereafter the Vice\nChancellor of Jaffna University would have to be mindful of issues in Tamil\nNadu\u201d in the conduct of his official duties. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The demolition\nof this monument received much local attention.  Local television stations gave wide coverage\nand the entire peninsula was aroused\u201d.   Tamil newspapers ran banner headlines in\nblack about the incident. The Jaffna Municipal Council adopted a resolution\ncondemning the removal of the memorial. It called for the re-construction of it\nin the same place. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Tamil\nNational Alliance called for a hartal.  All\nshops, offices, and other establishments in Jaffna and in many key towns in the\neast, closed. Both Tamils and Muslims participated, a new feature, commented\nthe media. National Peace Council said this was the only public monument to\nthose Tamil civilians who perished in the last stages of the war. There is a\nneed to rebuilt this soon. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The\ndemolition also received international attention.          The destruction and desecration of the\nMullivaikal Memorial Monuments on the eve of the Annual Remembrance Day is one\nof the most barbaric acts any decent human being can contemplate, announced the\nGlobal Tamil Forum.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Tamil Nadu, Chief Minister Edappadi Palaniswami said he was\nshocked\u201d to hear about the demolition of a memorial that was dedicated to the\nwar dead. Viduthalai Chiruthai Pulikal\n(VCP) party leader Thol Thirumavalan declared in Chennai he would join\nVaiko Gopalsamy\u2019s Marumalartchi\nDravida Munnetra Kazhagam to protest outside the Sri Lanka Deputy High\nCommissioner\u2019s office in Chennai. We demand that the Sri Lankan government\nreconstruct the memorial inside the campus,\u201d he said. There were also other\ngroups planning protests in Tamil Nadu, he added. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Speaking in the UK House of Commons, Siobhan McDonaugh, Labour MP\nfor Mitcham, and Morden, called for the British government to move a resolution\nat the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) on the memorial demolition saying it was\na denial of religious freedom. She is known for espousing the cause of Tamils\nwho form a sizeable number in her constituency. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Canada, mayor\nof Brampton promised to build a monument to commemorate the lives lost in the\nSri Lankan civil war, since the Jaffna University memorial had been torn down.\nBrampton City Council unanimously voted to build their own memorial. Brampton\nTamil Association president Benat Mariyanayagam says this was a\nsignificant step not only for Tamil people in Canada, all Tamils abroad. The\nmonument will be funded by the local Tamil community. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

In February\n2021 the media reported that undergraduates of the Jaffna University had\nunveiled the new memorial. The monument is in memory of those who had been\nkilled at Mullaivaikkal, in 2009 during the final days of the war between the\nLTTE and the security forces. They were innocent civilians who got trapped on\nthe battlefield, they said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That is\nincorrect. These civilians were not residents of Mullavaikkal to start with, to\nget trapped there. And because of this, they were   not eligible for protection under\nInternational Humanitarian Law either. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u00a0This monument is celebrating a group of\u00a0\u00a0 persons who willingly left their homes and travelled miles into Mullavaikkal to help the LTTE win the war. They went there holding their land deeds, clearly hoping to return home. \u00a0The LTTE were engaged in high treason and these civilians were complicit. \u00a0Governments do not permit the memorialisation of high treason.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

KAMALIKA PIERIS The army took care to remove all possible LTTE monuments once the Eelam war was over. They knew that otherwise these monuments would become shrines. The only LTTE \u2018monuments\u2019 at the time were the LTTE cemeteries such as the cemetery at Chaaty Beach near Jaffna. The army bulldozed all of them. The Tamil […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[104],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-119606","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-kamalika-pieris"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119606","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=119606"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/119606\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=119606"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=119606"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=119606"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}