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Chandrasekaran's Tiger (cat) is out of the bag. Nip it in the bud before it escalates to another monstrous Tiger

Dr Sudath Gunasekara (SLAS) President, Kandy Senior Citizens Movement
15.11.208

As a patriotic citizen of this country I was deeply concerned and disturbed to read the news item attributed to the Up-country People's Front that appeared in the Island of 13 regarding the UPF's fresh proposals submitted to the All Party Representatives Committee which now demands a separate Tamil Provincial Council for he Central, UVA and Sabaragamuwa Provinces, exclusively for the Upcountry Tamils and also development Councils for all Tamil settlements in other parts of the country, thus leading to the creation of exclusively Tamil enclaves dotted all over this little Island that belonged to the Sinhala people for the past 2500 years or more. It would be a virtual 'Kore pitata mare' situation in addition to the already existing Tiger demand for an independent Eelam in the north and the east. This new move reminded me of the following popular saying often quoted by the American people."When the pole cat is thrown out of the widow the skunk is trying to crawl in through the front door".

Thanks to the Rajapaksa government and the Armed Forces, at a time when the final throwing away of the Tiger (pole cat) is almost imminent, it is disturbing and alarming too to see a new skunk that is, perhaps more foul smelling than even the pole cat is trying to creep in to the heart of the country to ruin this little Island.

I reproduce below the relevant news item reported in the Island of 13th Nov 2008 for the serious attention of every one who is concerned about the future of this Island nation

"Now govt ally demands power sharing pact on hill country The Up-country People's Front in its fresh proposal submitted to the All Party Representative Committee (APRC) on Tuesday, called for a power sharing unit for Up-country Tamils by amalgamating the areas where they are in large numbers namely the Central, Uva and Sabaragamuwa provinces.

It said that if necessary, the district boundaries could be re-demarcated to carve out the proposed power sharing unit. As an example the UPF cited the Belgium model of power sharing which has both characteristics, the territorial and non-territorial based power sharing. It further said the territorial based power sharing unit could be carved out non-contiguously like Pondicheri Union territory in South India and also by any other suitable non-contiguous territorial power sharing methods prevailing in other parts of the world could also be considered.

For their security and development of Tamils scattered in other parts of the country, the UPF suggested the establishments of development councils similar to the community councils in Belgium.

It further suggested that the proposed power sharing unit should be vested with legislative power, a Chief Minister and a Council of Ministers, Governor, control over land and Police and right to have assistance from foreign countries and other agencies for development work.

The UPF also said that to ensure political representation at all levels according to ethnic ratio, the electoral system should be reformed and a Delimitation Committee with up-country Tamil representation should be appointed."

This in short is a threatening demand for the creation of another separate Tamil State right at the centre of the country for estate Tamils of Sri Lanka. They want this to be governed by a Tamil Governor, a Tamil Chief Minister and a Tamil Council of Ministers with wide police and land powers. In other words this is the establishment of the Malayaanadu that these communal extremists have been dreaming and hatching for the past few decades. Going further the UPF also demands the creation of separate development councils similar to the community Councils in Belgium for Tamils settlement all over the country. This means they should have hundreds of pure Tamil enclaves established all over the country, like neo-Tiger cells all over. This is perhaps what they mean by power sharing, power to each communal group all over the Island, independent of the government of Sri Lanka, to govern by themselves. No body should be surprised if this is followed by a similar demand by Hakeem and his communal outfit as well tomorrow.

Now after giving 1/3 rd of the country and 2/3 of the Islands coastal belt for 5% of Sri Lankan Tamils in the north and the east (who always consider India as their Mother land) as Pirapaharan and his proxies TNA MPP demand under Eelam and establish hundreds of Tamil and Muslim enclaves all over the country as Chandrasekaran proposes, I don't think there will be an inch of land left over for the Sinhalese who have lived here for 25 centuries and who constitute 75% of the country's population even at present. Obviously then they will have to generously donate their mother land to these Tamils and jump in to the Indian ocean and commit suicide as they will have no land left to live.

In my opinion Chadrasekaran's demand is million times explosive and lethal than the Tigers demand. Because Tigers ask only for the north and the east where as Chandrasekaran is demanding the whole Sinhala land for his outfit of indentured estate labourers who have been here permanently only for the past half a century. This is he same man who wanted the government to stop the war against the Tigers few weeks ago while remaining within it and enjoying all benefits as a Minister of state. One cannot understand as to why the government is not taking him for task. In fact he should be put behind bars and charged for treason. If India could have arrested Viko and Nedumaran for supporting Tigers operating on a foreign land (Sri Lankan) why can't we arrest this man who is acting treacherously against the Sri Lankan state by openly supporting this brutal and murderous terrorist outfit who have waged a war to overthrow the democratically elected government of the country MR is trying to wipe out as a curse that has brought so much misery and destruction to both Sinhalese and Tamils and every body in this country?

By looking at his demands I don't think any sane man will take him seriously. But it is extremely dangerous to allow this kind of germs to get in to the body politics in this country any more as we have already learnt enough bitter lessons from the past. Therefore the need to nip such moves in the bud before growing in to unmanageable proportions like the Eelam movement.
Even Chanrasekaran may know it for pretty sure that his demands are insane and unrealistic. But he is trying a strategic move, I think, to create problems for the government. He may be timing them with a broader and long term purpose.

Firstly he must be timing this with the budget. Secondly he may also be having an eye on the Tamilnadu support. But more importantly I think he is trying to undercut Thondaman, who appears to be more reasonable and more democratic and eat in to his vote base by fanning the communal flame. At the next election, we reliably understand he has already decided to contest with the UNP. So this is a major and strategic move carefully deployed to ousted Thondaman from his commanding position as the leader of the CWC. In other words this is Chandrasekarans strategy to rob the throne from Thonda which he has miserably failed so far. So I think even more than the government Thonadaman will have to be careful and take serious notice of this UPF move, although the proposal itself looks utterly foolish at first sight. Even the majority estate Tamils prefer, the more pro-Sinhala and pro-Sri Lanka Thonda to Pro-LTTE and Pro South Indian and anti-Sinhala Chandarasekaran. Because the common man knows that it is a Leader who is prepared to work with the Sinhala Majority and not a man who draws daggers with them, who can sustain and who can deliver the goods. If Thonda fails to comprehend this situation and make hay while the sun shines then definitely a third leader who is closer to the Sinhala consensus will emerge as the future leader of the estate Tamils who might call himself Sri Lankan rather than Tamil just like in America..

The best thing what the government should do under the prevailing situation is to ignore Chandarasekaran's moves for the time being. After the budget sack him and nip this kind of disastrous moves in the bud. Thereafter clearly tell him where he stands and his legitimate position within Sri Lanka.

The tragedy with our political circles is no one wants to talk reality. Reality being the deprivation of the Kandyans of their mother land and pauperization there after, by transplanting an alien labour force on their land. But today there is no one to talk on their behalf. Apart from having national leaders they don't have even a single MP who is bold enough to stand up and call for justice on behalf them. Because, what we perceived as reality, historically or logically, is not politically healthy or real. All politicians work with an eye on the next election. Voters for them are like water for the fish. Therefore political survival supersedes all other considerations such as national or patriotic. The fact that the Sinhala electorate is divided in to aggressive and water tight camps on party lines has jacked up the critical value of the minority vote. Therefore all politicians keep wooing the minority to win the elections. That is why they don't talk on national issues. Mean while there is also another segment of the society, some people who pretend to be intellectuals and others Marxists or so-called liberal democrats, who label Sinhalese who talk of their language or religious rights as chauvinists and extremists while they try to justify communal and divisive agitations by the minorities. Some of them of cause act as the proxies of INGOO and NGOO for their dollars.

As far as I see I don't think the estate Tamils have a legitimate right to demand a separate state within this country as they have been here permanently resident only for the past 50 odd years and some of them due to persuasion and compulsion by politicians who have done so for their own survival. These poor people were brought and used and exploited like slaves to labour on their plantations by the British. It is the British who made money and therefore it is their responsibility to look after their interests. Like in America if they want to stay here then they must get absorbed in to the main stream, intermarry with the locals and become fully fledged Sri Lankans and transform in to the mould of Obamas. Unless and until that happens and they give up their allegiance to Tamilnadu there will be neither peace nor harmony on these hills. If they are not prepared to do that then what people like Chandarasekaran should do is to pack up and find permanent solace in Tamilnadu- their mother land which they worship and where they can get the type of self government and devolution of power they dream.

As for me I do not want all these people to go back and live in South Indian refugee camps. I pray for the day for a hill country plantation leader to stand up and declare 'like the black Africans in the United State of America, from today we are one with the native Sinhalese of this country and from today and here after we have nothing to do with South India and "This is our mother land".



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