Communalism and parochialism!

– The Sudar Oli Editorial

(September 07, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) What is the political thinking in the South in respect of the ethnic issue? It reflects communalism and parochial thinking.

” Tamils are second rate citizens in the country. There should be no negotiated settlement to the Tamil problem. The unit of devolution must be the province or the district. There should be no federal solution. LTTE must be defeated and the areas under the LTTE must be taken over militarily.”

This in essence is the crux of the thinking among the majority of the people in the South. They are prepared to make any sacrifice to suppress the struggle of the Tamil people. The soaring price hike of essential commodities, economic burdens and even deprival of their rights, are no concern for them when it comes to communalism.

This message was conveyed in very categorical terms at the recent polls for two provincial councils. No party that recognizes Tamils’ rights have ever come to power. That is the history of this country.

With the adoption of Sinhala only policy by the SLFP, the UNP, too, gave up its policy of equality of status to Sinhala and Tamil languages. The leftist parties such as LSSP and the CP which stood for parity of status to both Tamil and Sinhala languages, gave up their stand and formed an alliance with the SLFP since they could not form a government.

Colvin, who once professed the famous dictum “ one language two nations, two languages, one nation” made the Tamil people second rate citizens through the 1972 constitution of which he was the architect. This has been the lesson of the political history of Sri Lanka for the last 5 years.

The UNP, which consented to consider federalism as a solution to the ethnic issue in the Oslo declaration, denied it publicly last year.

The UNP, which did not support the military approach of the present regime, is now compelled to support it. The racists in the UNP are gaining more strength within the party.

Therefore, it is explicit that all political parties of the South are alike in this issue and it is futile for Tamils to pen faith on them.

(An English translation of the Editorial in The Sudar OLi, a Tamil weekly, based in Colombo.) - Sri Lanka Guardian