Sri Lanka – The Way Forward

By: Nesan Shankar Raji

(November, 14, Toronto, Sri Lanka Guardian)First let me thank the organisers of this meeting for inviting me to say a few words on behalf of an organisation that exists everywhere but has no nominal leader but only members who are active everywhere and still looked upon by the Tamil people with reverence entrusting a peculiar sense of duty in us to show them the way out of the predicament they have been thrust upon by their so called liberators. EROS has not shun away from the responsibility and will respond to that call of the people dutifully and conscientiously.

I come from something that exists everywhere but invisible to the ordinary eyes.
The name of EROS has always been a riddle and the name has been the name of Greek God of love and compassion it also refers to collective instinct for self preservation of people. This also symbolises that the struggle of the Tamil people for the reinstatement of civilizational foundations of Tamil society and in that respect we have stood for principle and values within the Eelam struggle. This is one of the reasons why my late farther Shanker Rajee when given the opportunity by President Premadasa to choose between the support to the Sinhala government or the LTTE he chose neither and declared EROS dysfunctional and made it invisible to everyone.

The importance of understanding the internal dynamics of the Eelam struggle For those interested in bringing peace to Sri Lanka it is important to comprehend the internal dynamics of the problem. A surface based emotional self interest vanity ride will have hardly any bearing on the situation except to raise unnecessary hope and eventual disappointment to everyone and more suffering and the last of this experience has been Norway. The situation has only become worse than earlier. The understanding of the complexities and internal dynamics of both sides in terms of their interaction and captivity will help to untangle the riddle and help to bring peace to Sri Lanka. Within this short time I will try and bring some issues to the spot-light issues that will help to piece together issues to evolve a holistic picture of what is the
Sri Lankan conflict.

The name of EROS
EROS has been referred to as the Eelam Revolutionary Organisation of Students. This is a slight misrepresentation of EROS as EROS had its own student wing called GUES or General Union of Eelam students that subsequently emerged as the EELAM PEOPLES REVOLUTIONARY LIBERATION FRONT (EPRLF). EROS is an abbreviation form of the Eelam Revolutionary Organisers and it still remains that way. For the last thirty years the name EROS has remained a beacon in the Eelam struggle. EROS has stood by its duty for its people and will continue to perform its role within the Eelam struggle from that same stand point.

The ideological dimension of EROS in the Eelam movement
The beginning of EROS can be traced to 1974 when Arular one of the founder members of EROS moved to Ratnasabathy’s house as a tenant in London. Subsequently my father also joined them and it was launched in Sri Lanka in May 1976 with the arrival of Arular in Sri Lanka as the first trained fighter of the Eelam struggle launching the EROS armed struggle for national liberation. The LTTE was then called TNT and it was a terrorist group and what it would have been today if not for this early relationship it had with EROS. The LTTE relationship with EROS dates back to 1976. It in this relationship one should seek the reasons why LTTE has successfully defied all accusations that it is a terrorist outfit and maintained its support base among Tamil people.

Arular & Lanka Rani
EROS identified the terrorist foundation of the LTTE and the destructive nature of its strategy very early and it was brought to the knowledge of the Tamil people through the fascinating novel "Lanka Rani" written by Arular way back in 1980. Lanka Rani was the name of the ship that carried the Tamil refugees from Colombo to Jaffna after the 1977 riots. The core of the dialogue of the book was the merits and demerits of the two strategies for liberation, one that of EROS and the other that of the LTTE. Every thing that was needed to be told to the Tamil people about the LTTE’s strategy was told in that book. It was said in that book if you pursue the LTTE’s strategy it will be an endless war and destruction of everything in the end. The book still remains the most important book of the Eelam struggle and appreciated by everyone for its ideological precision.

The dynamical nature of ideological evolution of EROS
Though very often people refer to EROS as a Marxist organisation, this is true only to a limited extent, as people are referred to as Marxists when they are concerned with the collective interest and collective emancipation of people. But revolutions have been around long before Marx appeared on the scene and our agenda of the Eelam Revolution is concerned mainly with the freedom and prosperity of the Tamil people and how to achieve it and EROS prescription to achieve this has been evolved from the study of our own society. The transformation of the Tamil society was not the concern of neither Marx, Lenin or Mao. The nature of this ancient civilisation has, by and large, remained beyond the comprehension of Marx, Lenin or Mao as the societies with which they were concerned were fundamentally differed from the Tamil society.

Our understanding of Tamil society.
From its inception EROS has engaged itself with the problem of transformation of Tamil society. There was very little help for this in Marxist literature. The Soviet Encyclopaedia described the Tamils as a "Petty Bourgeoisie Nation". Generalizing it that way was all the time they had for understanding the Tamil society. Tamil society is an ancient society and an ancient civilisation with its own values rooted in ancient traditions spanning over three millennium in religion, philosophy, medicine, art, literature and culture and we identified normative structuralism as the ideological foundation of Tamil society. In a reduced way this referred to as the cast society but cast is only one aspect. This structural foundation is political, social and economic in nature and there lies the self preserving character of Tamil society.

The objective of EROS
Our objective as EROS is to make the Tamil society free and prosperous and govern itself and provide for its security and prosperity without being dependent on others. Our people are a peace loving and hard working people. We can afford to be part of Sri Lanka only if any idea of a united Sri Lanka will assure and guarantee these basic objectives within the frame work of a united Sri Lanka. But unfortunately the experience of the Tamil people within a united Sri Lanka has not given hope to the Tamil people and there is little hope that these objectives can be achieved within the framework of a united Sri Lanka.

The nature of the Sri Lankan conflict today
The important factor of the Sri Lankan conflict is its historical dimension. The irreconcilable positions of Sinhalese and Tamils originates fronm their differing perception of historical rights which have formed the foundation of the aspirational mindset of the two people. The democratic process and the constitutional process are captive of this aspirational mindset. Here one is making a territorial claim for the whole of Sri Lanka as their birth right and the other is claiming two provinces as their homeland based on historical facts.

The dishonest relationship of the Sinhala race to the idea of a united Sri Lanka.
The united Sri Lanka is a colonial proposition. Its history starts from 1833 when the British made their first proclamation of a united Sri Lanka constituted out of five provinces as a colony of the British crown. Until 1948 it remained as a British colony. However, when the British left, through the clever manoeuvring the Sinhalese shrouded their dishonest relationship to the plural, democratic, unitary Sri Lanka which the constitution stipulated. The Sinhalese undermining with all safeguards instituted to prevent the tyranny of the majority, set about on course of usurpation and abuse and turned all instruments of state into a tool to achieve a sinister objective of Sinhala only Buddhist country bringing great disappointment to the Tamil people and totally alienating them from the governmental process.

What the Sinhala race has not demonstrated yet.
The ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka is about hundred years old. The idea of Federalism has been proposed as a solution to the ethnic problem about 80 years ago. To this day the Sinhalese have not engaged in an honest way in resolving the ethnic conflict. Even today none of the Sinhalese political parties are able to engage in any honest discussion about a federal constitution though it has remained the only solution to the problem. The international community has failed to comprehend the nature of Sinhalese disability and its aspirational possessiveness as the reason for why it cannot engage in federal restructuring of the polity. We believe that this disability has risen due to the fact the very idea of Sinhala nation and Sinhala race is intensely linked to the illegal territorial claim for the whole island and the aspiration of Sinhala Buddhist state that has to usher on the whole island is an ideological mission of the Sinhala race and any roll back from this will bring about the disintegration of the Sinhala race.

The Tamil heritage within Sri Lanka and outside
The Tamil heritage within Sri Lanka spans for many millenniums and the Sinhala language did not exist before the 12th century. The Sinhala race idea was bone only in the 19th century. Tamil Buddhist heritage in Sri Lanka is as formidable as the Singhalese Buddhist heritage. There was no single kingdom in Sri Lanka. There were few independent kingdoms an there were always many Tamil principalities and a dominant Tamil kingdom in Sri Lanka and this was the situation even after the arrival of the Portuguese to Sri Lanka in 1515.

The foundations of Tamil homeland demand
Tamil homeland demand is based on the integration of territories of Tamil principalities, Kinglets and Kingdoms that existed in Sri Lanka from ancient times. These areas were peopled by Tamils, ruled by Tamils and surrendered to foreign powers by Tamils. They have remained recognised Tamil territories where Tamil authority structures have remained intact even under colonial rule. The Sinhalese have managed to annex substantial Tamil areas as Sinhalese areas under the British rule through historical misrepresentation. Nevertheless, the Tamil people are willing to settle for the North-East as their homeland today. Every square inch of the merged North-East was and always has been Tamil territory.

The Muslim rights within the Tamil homeland
The Muslims whose mother tongue is Tamil have come into the North-East under different contexts and pretexts and settled as a peace loving minority within the Tamil homeland. They came from the East and West. Substantial numbers had also come into the Tamil areas as refugees when the Portuguese and Dutch banished them from the West and South of Sri Lanka after taking control of their cinnamon trade. Though the Muslims of North-East belong to many tribes and nations, what is common to them is their religion which is Islam and their mother tongue which is Tamil. Though it is the hospitality of Tamil principalities what gave them their livelihood, they have lost substantial goodwill of the Tamil people by their collusionary behaviour. In recent times, the Muslim political demand has become a major obstacle to the resolution of the ethnic conflict. The Muslim leadership has been making all sorts of confusing demands.

What the Muslims do not have within the Tamil homeland
What the Muslims do not have but the Tamil people have within the North-East is the historical title to territory and self rule within the Tamil homeland. The Muslims have no recognised territory which they can claim as Muslim territory which was under Muslim rule, peopled by Muslims as all the areas of the North-East were and have always been Tamil territories. Muslims have lived as minorities within Tamil areas. Their gradual spread throughout the North-East dwelling in isolated villages also proves this. Knowing the diverse ethnic composition of the North-East Muslims, EROS still preferred to call, them Tamil Muslims (Eelavar’s). This was an expression of our desire that there shall be no discrimination on religious grounds and they will have the same rights as Tamil Hindus and Tamil Christians within the Tamil homeland. By rejecting this identity, the Muslims have left the only option of a status of minorities within the Tamil homeland. Though there has been no end to Muslim demands, their open connivance with Sinhala chauvinism and international forces will lead to total breakdown of trust between the two communities. However for Tamil people to address the Muslim demands they should first have the political power. Until then Muslims must see they do not lose the goodwill of the Tamil people and end up as "Bihari Muslims of Bangladesh".

The Mahavamsa mindset of the Sinhala Race.
The Sinhalese aspirational mindset and their illegal territorial claims are based on the so called ancient chronicle of Mahavamsa. Modern research shows Mahavamsa is not a chronicle but a tradition of writing history and it is rewritten time to time and every time it is rewritten it is changed and manipulated form the very beginning. However the latest version of the Mahavamsa was written in the 18th century Kandy but it was successfully sold to the British as an ancient document who had their own scheme to turn the Sinhalese into an Aryan Race. All these combined, laid the foundation for today’s Sinhalese claims and perceptions. The Sinhala Buddhist state idea was a new idea revived by the Siamese Buddhist sects who were brought to Sri Lanka in the 18th century as Buddhism has declined and died in Sri Lanka at this time and the sovereign of Sri Lanka was a Hindu.

There is no consent of the people of Sri Lanka for the establishment
of a Sinhala Buddhist State.
While the Sinhalese were fighting the Tamil terrorism in recent times, they were also busy consolidating the Sinhala Buddhist State for which they never had a constitutional sanction, an illegal proposition. The project of turning Sri Lanka into a Sinhala Buddhist state has now matured into a stage from which the Sinhala race will never retract. The constitution does not have the sanction of the Tamil people and the result of this conflict is Sri Lanka does not have a constitution that has the endorsement and consent of the people of the country. The search for a constitution acceptable to all the communities, though nicely said, will remain a mirage and never emerge in Sri Lanka as long as the Sinhalese want to persist with their illegal territorial claim for the whole island based on a "cooked up chronicle" and persist with the agenda of a Sinhala Buddhist State for which there was no constitutional sanction.

What brings support to the LTTE within the Tamil people
The sinister motivation and the total abuse of power accompanied by cruel and inhuman experience meted out by the Sinhala State that empowers the LTTE and its agenda for separation. The exhibition of the perverted patriotism of the Sinhala race is a shroud for their illegal territorial claim for the whole island and their war of annexation of Tamil areas as Sinhalese areas. With this background of experience the LTTE has carried the day with its own agenda of cruelty and abuses and eventually succeeding to the keep the Tamil people on its side.
Misinterpretation of opposition to LTTE as support to to Sinhala chauvinism
Tamil people never endorsed the sole representative demand of the LTTE. But Sinhalese intransigence and disability to give up their territorial claim for the whole of island has reduced all those who supported a democratic solution with the Sinhalese reduced as traitors to the Tamil people. The considerable opposition of the Tamil people to the LTTE was interpreted as a support to Sinhala chauvinism discouraging Tamil people from opposing the LTTE. Tamil people know by experience supporting the Sinhalese government undermines their very existence. In spite of this, there has been Tamil politician’s who could work with the Sinhalese leadership misrepresenting and misleading the Sinhalese leadership telling them their opposition to the LTTE is endorsement of their chauvinist agenda by the Tamil people.

EROS proposal for peace
EROS has remained a "unifying force" within the Tamil liberation struggle but tirelessly worked for peace. One of our founder members Arular was the first mediator between the government and the LTTE in 1990. It is with this background EROS has put forward its own proposal for peace that consists of two programmes.

The first is an "Agenda for Symmetrical Dismantling of Belligerence (ASDB)" and the second is the "Restructuring of Sri Lanka as Union of Two Nations", Tamileelam and Sinhala Ratta . The programmes can run cogently and if need be superimposed into one programme.

ASDB
The Agenda for Symmetrical Dismantling of Belligerence (ASDB) is a programme that will have to include all belligerent parties and the agenda has to be evolved through dialogue with all parties to the conflict. The purpose of the programme is the integration and transformation of belligerent parties as a federally restructured united polity and its structures. First the constitutional restructuring programme will be drawn. Secondly ASDB will be drawn. Thirdly constitutional enactment will be carried out. Then the actual dismantlement will be carried out with the new united Sri Lanka emerging from the rubble.

The importance of foreign involvement.
As of now the two main protagonists, the Government of Sri Lanka and the LTTE are far away from each other in terms of their ability to engage in any serious peace process. Only foreign involvement can bring both sides to constructively engage in a dismantling process. On their own both sides have hardly any ability to sustain a peaceful solution to the conflict. Separation of the two political entities like Cyprus will create an atmosphere for serious engagement for peace. It is the duty of the international community to effect this separation.

Foreign involvement
Foreign involvement in the Sri Lankan conflict has lasted for nearly twenty five years. Overall the failure of foreign powers to bring about a durable solution has brought about the present situation. Foreign powers including the UN have accumulated enough experience to put in place jointly a durable programme for peace in Sri Lanka.

EROS support for the peace process.
EROS will always support a tangible solution to the programme and will do its part in bringing lasting peace in Sri Lanka. But any successful solution to the problem will start with the Sinhala race coming forward to hand over the Tamil homeland to Tamil majority rule. It is the responsibility of any emerging government within the Tamil homeland to assure the rights of minorities within their territory. This is the solution to the "so called ethnic problem". The international community should get together and address this and persuade the Sinhala race to come forward to hand over the Tamil homeland to Tamil majority rule in a dignified and honourable manner. Only such a situation will enable Tamil people to withdraw support to the LTTE and only such a situation will force the LTTE to roll back.

(Full text of the speech made by Nesan Shankar Raji ,for and on behalf of the EROS ,Canadians For Peace,Peace and Unity in Sri Lanka – with Bob Rae (Former Premier of Ottawa),Toronto Civic Centre,Toronto,Canada on 10 November 2007)