Sri Lankan Issue

A respected Lankan religious leader (of a religion representing both the Tamil and Sinhalese community) recently made a telling statement. He said “to our utter shame and despite the rhetoric to the contrary, the Sri Lankan Nation has collectively signaled that the well being of the majority towers above the rights, dignity and safety of the Tamils” (ie the minority)…
What he meant in laymen’s terms is that the country’s leaders (spurred on by the majority community) view the Majority Sinhalese opinion more important than the minority opinion.

I wish this was wrong, but sadly, this statement has hit the nail on the head. Look at the proof.

a) Mahinda Rajapakse’s Presidential Campaign centered on a unitary state (which a Majority of the Sinhalese wants, while a majority of the moderate Tamils yearn for fair devolution) and he (MR) won.
b) Now even the UNP has shifted stance in order to garner more Sinhala votes and grab power, thereby taking away another option from the already limited options of the minority Tamils, who largely comprise of moderates.
c) The JVP and the JHU are trying to force a solution down the throat of the Tamils which the Sinhalese will be happy with, but the Tamils don’t find digestible.
d) Eelam War IV has begun. While this war is against the LTTE and not against the Tamils, it is the Tamil community that suffers the most from it. The Governments stated ultimate goal of Eelam War IV? To force a unitary solution on the country unopposed.

Also, despite screaming to the contrary, nobody (neither the government nor the LTTE) are coming up with a proposal of fair power devolution. Both sides are just avoiding the actual solution by blaming each other. (The LTTE is not even trying to come up with some sort of proposal!!) If you look at the situation in a detached manner, the LTTE has once again reiterated it’s commitment for a separate Eelam, while the Tissa Witarana led APRC is stumbling and falling in the dark in its search for a proposal on Devolution. And besides, even if the APRC does finally come up with some form of proposals, we can expect it to lose credibility because -

a) The UNP (which is one of the main political parties in the island) has not given its’ input to these proposals. And seeing the politics the UNP plays, the Green party would probably oppose those proposals (even if they were any good) just to gain some political mileage.
b) Likewise, the JVP, the TNA and the JHU which are third forces in parliament have not contributed to it.
c) More importantly, these proposals will more or less reflect the majority Sinhala opinion, and basically try to appease the majority Sinhalese than to offer a dignified and just solution to the minority Tamils. (Who, by the way, no leader seems to want to offer dignity and justice to)

This religious leader put it in a nutshell when he also said “From the side of the South there seems to be a frustrating game of double standards of flaunting power sharing as the democratic face to good governance and then shooting down any and all constructive proposals by imposing impossible pre-conditions. It is now obvious that this is a feet dragging exercise so that more extreme agendas could fall into place”.

Which leaves the minority with no (or limited) options for a noble solution. So what do they do? It seems to me the only alternate option the minority Tamils have is to support Prabhakaran until the Sinhala majority is forced to offer a fair and just solution. (Which all the intellectuals say is devolution of power close to, if not is - Federal) This (funnily) sounds similar to the policy meted out by Mahinda Rajapakse - who keeps declaring that the government’s military action is to force the Tigers to accept a political solution and give up the call for a separate state. In other words both sides are militarily trying to force a solution down each others throat.

So the government (which as President Rajapakse rightly stated has been given a unitary mandate by the majority Sinhalese and not the Tamils) and the LTTE (whose priority is the uncompromising retention of its own power base) will engage in a war until either one of these entities succeeds.

Which basically leaves the conflict riddled Tamil community on the lurch.

Meanwhile, in the day to day existence of Lankan lives, Tamils have to undergo more hardships than the Sinhala community. (Which the Sinhala community doesn’t seem to accept) In the case of abductions, killings and detentions, statistics show that it is a vast majority of Tamils who undergo this shame, while the Government is choosing to declare that there are no such indignities occurring. While this writer agrees that the LTTE and its propaganda minions are exaggerating the actual situation, it is unfair (on the Tamils especially) for the Government to turn a blind eye on these abuses on Tamil dignity and say that all is good and just at home. Up to date, nobody has been bought to book on the spate of abductions and killings. (Of course a former Air Force officer called Nishantha Gajanayake was allegedly arrested, but this was done after the opposition UNP exposed him. Which does not say much for the investigative powers of the police. Maybe the UNP – which has been a largely unsuccessful opposition - should give up their role in politics and replace the Islands defunct police force!)

Meanwhile, whenever a person is stopped at a checkpoint and his/her identity card states that he/she is Tamil, they are instantly looked upon with suspicion. To prove this, look at the recent statement made by the police when giving reasons to the Mt. Lavinia Chief Magistrate to detain a tabloid journalist (one Arthur Wamanan). When giving reasons for the arrest and detention of this reporter, the CID had put forward one reason that this individual is a Tamil! (This is apart from the fact that he was arrested on hearsay). So this example clearly shows that the Islands police and security forces are instantly suspicious when a Tamil name comes into the equation.

Therefore, Tamils will be detained merely on their ethnicity. Ridiculous! (Thankfully, the chief magistrate had reprimanded the cops for this line of thinking. This is another example of the Judiciary stepping in and acting proactively in the absence of fair, just and humble politikkas)
While a military victory here and a military victory there will garner a few drops of lifeblood for the political survival of the rulers (the Government and the LTTE), these are just short term respites. What about a long term solution which is just and dignified (dignity being the key word here) for all communities? The way things are going right now, it seems that whatever solution the country seems to be approaching is going to be just and dignified for the Majority. Not for the minority.

Plea to Mahinda Rajapakse – The fate of the Tamils lie in your hands. Not Prabhakaran’s. Yours is a responsibility which is greater than pleasing the Majority. You have created a unique opportunity to defeat the LTTE militarily and give the Tamils justice and dignity. Do not isolate the Tamils by scuttling a dignified proposal of Devolution. Because if you do so, something similar to the LTTE will once again raise its head from the ranks of the young and war affected Tamils - Even if you defeat the Tigers. The majority of the Tamils already live in peace and harmony amongst the Sinhalese. However, it is dignity that they lack in Sri Lanka. They want the same rights and privileges that the Sinhalese have. They want to be able to show their ID card at a checkpoint and proudly say that they are Sri Lankan Tamils and not be looked upon with suspicion. They don’t want to be called ‘Para Demalu’ by racists. If you deny them this right, they have no option but to fight for their dignity. You would do the same if you were in their shoes. Do not push them towards this state of affairs. After all, it was you who promised a dignified peace. Make sure it’s a dignified peace for all, and not just dignity for the majority of the people who voted for you.

Plea to the Tamil Community – Embrace the largely democratic system which is in place in the South, because only through Democracy will a just and dignified solution be born. In this regard, please bring forth a strong and democratic Tamil leader from your moderate ranks to the fore and give him/her unstinted support to fight for a just and dignified peace through the Democratic mainstream. Bring forth a fair and just leader with a voice and a brain (brains are what the Tamils have been historically famous for) that will match and parry (Democratically and peacefully) the larger than life Sinhala leaders into conceding justice and dignity for the Tamils. This is the only way for our beautiful country to get out of this mess.

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