{"id":73028,"date":"2017-12-23T00:36:16","date_gmt":"2017-12-23T06:36:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/?p=73028"},"modified":"2017-12-22T06:59:38","modified_gmt":"2017-12-22T13:59:38","slug":"racism-separatist-mentality-of-tamil-leaders-with-evidence","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.lankaweb.com\/news\/items\/2017\/12\/23\/racism-separatist-mentality-of-tamil-leaders-with-evidence\/","title":{"rendered":"Racism & Separatist mentality of Tamil leaders with evidence"},"content":{"rendered":"

Shenali D Waduge<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/h2>\n

Even to dance the tango the two have to dance to not only the same tune but to the same steps. What is clear from the very statements by Tamil leaders and their representative parties over the years is that their demands remain fixated while they expect the other party to be compromising and virtually giving in to their demands. What is equally shocking is that the so-called international community & the UN system well aware of these racist & separatist demands of the Tamil political players are very happy to play along as they see opportunities for their agendas in the demands made by these Tamils.<\/p>\n

On 20th\u00a0November 1947<\/strong> the President of the ACTC sent a telegram through the Governor\u2019s Office to the Secretary of State for the Colonies:<\/p>\n

The\u00a0Tamil people of Ceylon have rejected the Soulbury Constitution\u00a0in as much as at the general elections not one Tamil candidate of the U. N. P. was elected to Parliament and all but one of the Tamil Representatives who voted for the acceptance of the White Paper of 1945 in the defunct State Council were (sic) defeated. The\u00a0All Ceylon Tamil Congress demands a free constitution for Ceylon conferring sovereignty on its people with equal freedom for all communities and calls for a constituent assembly to frame a constitution acceptable to all sections of the people.\u00a0An Unitary Government with present composition of legislature and structure of executive totally unacceptable to the Tamils<\/strong>. In the absence of a satisfactory alternative\u00a0we demand the right of self-determination for the Tamil people.\u201d\u00a0<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n

It was only in 1951<\/strong> that, for the first time, Tamil politicians defined the Tamils as a distinct nation. The first annual convention of the Tamil Federal Party<\/strong> (ITAK)<\/strong> declared:<\/p>\n

“the Tamil speaking people in Ceylon constitute a nation distinct from that of the Sinhalese by every fundamental test of nationhood”<\/em><\/p>\n

The Federal Party<\/strong> summoned its national convention in the naval port of Trincomalee in the eastern province. That convention, held on 19 August 1956<\/strong> immediately after the passing of the June 1956 Official Language Act, passed the following resolutions:<\/p>\n

    \n
  1. the replacement of the present pernicious constitution by a rational and democratic constitution based on the federal principle and the establishment of one or more Tamil linguistic state or states incorporating all geographically contiguous areas in which the Tamil speaking people are numerically in a majority as federating unit or units enjoying the widest autonomous and residuary powers consistent with the unity and external security of Ceylon;<\/li>\n
  2. The restoration of the Tamil language to its rightful place enjoying the absolute parity of status with Sinhalese as an official language of the country;<\/li>\n
  3. The repeal of the present citizenship laws and the enactment in their place of laws recognizing the right to full citizenship on the basis of a simple test of residence for all persons who have made this country their home;<\/li>\n
  4. The immediate cessation of colonization of the traditional Tamil speaking areas with Sinhalese people.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Professor C. Suntharalingam<\/strong> – The man who fathered the Tamil Eelam concept and introduced the word EELAM into the Ceylonese political vocabulary. He created the Eela Thamil Ottrumai Munnani (Unity Front of Eelam Tamils) in 1959.<\/strong><\/p>\n

    “We have made up our minds, come what may, that we shall constitute a separate state of Eelam”<\/em><\/p>\n

    Statement by S. J. Chelvanayagam after winning the by-election for the Kankesanturai Parliamentary seat, held belatedly on 7 February 1975<\/strong><\/p>\n

    “I wish to announce to my people and to the country that I consider the verdict at this election as a mandate that the Tamil Eelam nation should exercise the sovereignty already vested in the Tamil people and become free<\/u>.”<\/p>\n

    In 1975<\/strong> its leader Chelvanayakam declared secession to be the goal of the Tamil people. In 1977, the Tamil United Front (TUF) was Reformed as the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF), and in the subsequent general election asked the Tamil people for a mandate to secede as the separate State of Tamil Eelam. The TULF stated in its election manifesto<\/p>\n

    The Tamil nation must take the decision to establish its sovereignty in its homeland on the basis of its right to self determination. The only way to announce this decision to the Sinhalese government and to the world is to vote for the Tamil United Liberation Front.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

    In 1972 combining the ACTC and ITAK (Federal Party) Tamil United Front was formed which later became TULF in 1976<\/strong>. Vaddukoddai Resolution<\/strong> emerged from the first National Convention of the Tamil United Liberation Front meeting at Pannakam (Vaddukoddai Constituency) on the 14th day of May, 1976 by Chairman S.J.V. Chelvanayakam.\u00a0www.sangam.org<\/a><\/p>\n

    5 objectives were declared<\/strong><\/p>\n

      \n
    1. State of Tamil Eelam to consist of North & Eastern provinces to all Tamil speaking people<\/li>\n
    2. Constitution of Tamil Eelam based on principles of decentralization. No foremost place to any religion or territorial community.<\/li>\n
    3. Tamil Eelam<\/strong>will assure equal status to all<\/li>\n
    4. Tamil Eelam will be a\u00a0secular state<\/strong>with equal protection to all religions<\/li>\n
    5. Tamil will be language of the State but Sinhala speaking minority can educate and transact in Sinhala subject to reciprocity of Tamil speaking minority in Sinhala state.\u00a0 (didn\u2019t they demand equal language rights \u2013 if so why make only Tamil language of the state?)<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

      26 March 1977<\/strong> Chelvanayagam said ,<\/p>\n

      My advice to the Sinhalese leaders is to allow us to go our way<\/em><\/strong> .. Let us avoid bitterness and agree to part peacefully. This will pave the way for greater cooperation between the two nations on a footing of equality. The Tamils are not with any other alternatives. Bitterness is growing in the midst of the younger generations. Without allowing it to grow any further, which may lead to inevitable confrontation leading to foreign intervention, therefore a method of peacefully working out this entanglement is necessary. We are confident that the truth will ultimately triumph and we will win in the war of endurance.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

      Tamil United Liberation Front <\/strong>\u2028<\/strong>General Election Manifesto, July 1977<\/strong><\/p>\n

      www.sangam.org<\/a><\/p>\n