“The vacuum created by the LTTE in Lankan Tamil culture enabled them to creep into it unnoticed and fill the void. Today LTTE front organisations carryout ‘Ponku Thamizh’ events throughout the world which are seen as the residue Lankan Tamil culture! Unsurprisingly these ‘cultural shows’ also collect money for the LTTE. Thousands of years old Tamil culture based on non-violence and collectivism has been replaced by a cannibalistic ritual. What a crime?”
by Thomas Johnpulle
(September 27, London, Sri Lanka Guardian) The word “genocide” is a heavily abused term in the Sri Lankan context. It is also the most popular oxymoron used with regard to the conflict. On the outward over 70,000 people have died in the twenty-five-years long conflict. During the same time period over two and a half a million people have died of all causes mainly of old age, heart disease and cancer. This makes war deaths a meagre 2.8% of the total number of deaths. In other words war results in 2.8% of deaths in Sri Lanka which is definitely not a significant cause of death. However, the underlying picture is gruelling and cruel. The tiny third world country is cursed with the world’s most ruthless terrorist organisation (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam – LTTE, commonly known as Tamil Tigers) in the world. LTTE’s suicide bombers far outnumber their Iraqi and Afghanistan counterparts. LTTE is openly committing genocide against people of all races in Sri Lanka in every manner imaginable to a satanic mind.
Genocide of the Tamil race by the LTTE – Decimating the Tamil leadership
Just as Adolf Hitler started his hysterical war claiming that he was the liberator of Germans, the LTTE started its armed ‘liberation’ struggle claiming same. Its first targets were Tamils themselves! Mayor of Jaffna, Alfred Doraiappa, a Tamil, was gunned down at a Hindu temple in 1976 by the LTTE! This was their first target. Since then hundreds of Tamil political activists have been killed including a former Opposition Leader (1989 – killed during a ceasefire), a foreign minister (2005 – killed during a ceasefire) and a gamut of political party leaders. The killing of an Indian Prime Minister was highly celebrated in LTTE circles which was carried out by a Tamil Tiger female suicide bomber. They killed a national leader and scores of Tamils with one bomb! Welcome to the world of the LTTE.
By decimating the Tamil leadership, LTTE managed to enforce their ‘sole’ representative claim. Owing to Tamil Tigers’ total genocide of Tamil democratic leaders, only one (1) alternative Tamil politician is represented in parliament from the Northern Province where the war is centred today.
Sri Lanka observed a number of ceasefires but none were honoured by the LTTE. Killing democratic Tamil political leaders got a new lease of life during those ceasefires!
Decimating the Tamil leadership and by creating a band of yes-men, LTTE exposed the Tamil people to outright danger.
Genocide of the Tamil race by the LTTE – wiping out generations upon generations
LTTE operates based on a very strict code of conduct. Its members are forbidden to marry or have children otherwise. This has created what Tamil Tigers call, total commitment to the ‘cause’. As a result since late 1970s until this date, tens of thousands of Tamils were recruited to the LTTE and most of them died. This is almost one and a half generations. In other words LTTE decimated one and a half generations of Tamils in their child bearing age. Obviously they didn’t die alone. They died with an unborn generation! LTTE cruelty didn’t end there. It has one of the largest child soldier brigades in the world. Children were used from early 1980s and continue until this date. Children of 1980s would have had their own children by today; but that was denied to the nation. They were killed; children of their contemporaries who managed to survive were also killed subsequently and still being killed in the name of ‘liberation’.
Interestingly most low level fighters and suicide bombers come from lower castes of the Tamil community. Heavy use of women in the child bearing age and young girls in combat and suicide missions is also commonplace in the LTTE.
Recruiting children saw a massive boom during the 2002-2005 ceasefire when LTTE operatives recruited children unhindered by law enforcement authorities.
Genocide of the Tamil race by the LTTE – very large scale civilian displacement
Pro-LTTE elements scream about the war displacing 200,000 people but they are silent about over two million Tamils displaced solely by the LTTE. Owing to LTTE’s very harsh conduct millions of Tamils have internally migrated to predominantly Sinhala (the majority community of Sri Lanka) areas despite LTTE claims that Sinhalese kill Tamils! Today most Tamils (over 54%) live in predominantly Sinhala areas totally rubbishing LTTE claims of genocide of Tamils by the Sinhalese! Why did they cross to the government controlled area amidst colossal lies spread by the LTTE? That’s because they feel much safer under the government than under the LTTE.
Over a million have sought refuge in rich foreign countries and about 100,000 are languishing in refugee camps in South India.
Civilian displacement has been so enormous that LTTE which uses civilians as human shields to protect senior terrorist leaders are now panicking. They call those who now leave their areas traitors and have mechanisms in place to track them down and kill them.
During the Norwegian brokered ceasefire of 2002 and in previous ceasefires, LTTE continued to displace civilians. The fate of Eastern villages of Muttur, Manirasakulam and Valchchenai during the time of the last ceasefire is a case in point. Even Scandinavian ceasefire monitors were forced to turn a blind eye to these atrocities.
Genocide of the Tamil race by the LTTE – cultural genocide and ethnocide
If anyone finds the Cultural Revolution disturbing take a look at the cultural genocide committed by the LTTE on Tamils. The North and the East of Sri Lanka were bustling with Tamil cultural activities until mid 1980s when the LTTE willingly dismantled all Tamil Hindu cultural infrastructures. Hindu devotional songs, dances, rituals and other cultural practices were scrapped and replaced by what the LTTE called ‘Tamil liberation’ culture. This was all about instigating violence, racial hatred, racism, isolation and sheer brainwashing. People were bombarded with LTTE songs, etc. in place of their thousand year old culture.
The vacuum created by the LTTE in Lankan Tamil culture enabled them to creep into it unnoticed and fill the void. Today LTTE front organisations carryout ‘Ponku Thamizh’ events throughout the world which are seen as the residue Lankan Tamil culture! Unsurprisingly these ‘cultural shows’ also collect money for the LTTE. Thousands of years old Tamil culture based on non-violence and collectivism has been replaced by a cannibalistic ritual. What a crime?
LTTE’s latest cultural genocide project is about splitting Sri Lankan Tamils from their roots in Tamil Nadu in an evil attempt to further isolate and dominate them. Towards this end, pro-LTTE elements have started a ridiculous campaign of renaming. What was known as Tamil for centuries has been changed to Thamizh; Elam to Eezham! Though they look subtle and hilarious, the underlying attempt to further cut off Tamils from their larger community in India is despicable.
War, no-war or ceasefire, the de-civilisation process of the community by the LTTE in favour of suicide bombers and the like continued unabated.
Genocide of the Tamil race by the LTTE – economic destruction
LTTE has completed the economic destruction project in Tamil majority areas. Factories were bombed, disrupted, robbed and eventually dismantled. The island nation’s largest cement factory, paper mill and chemical factory were thus completely and deliberately destroyed by the LTTE. Sri Lanka’s largest development project – the Mahaweli Multipurpose Irrigation Scheme – was disabled by the LTTE to a very great extent. Severe disruptions to faming, fishing and even schooling were caused by the LTTE. Farms are seen by the LTTE as safe artillery launching places; fishing boats have been converted to fast attack gun boats while schools are seen by the LTTE as recruiting grounds of its cadres!
During the short space of time when government troops abandoned all military operations despite LTTE’s continued terrorism, Tamil Tigers imposed heavy unofficial taxes and levies on economic activities. The road from Vavuniya to Jaffna which was opened during that time was notoriously known as the extortion highway!
Still the government send fertilizer, food and medicine to LTTE controlled areas but LTTE misuses them for their own good depriving the people of their essentials.
LTTE succeeded in the complete genocide of the Sinhala community in the North
Since the early 1980s Tamil Tigers started one of the most notoriously successful ethnic cleansing campaigns this world has seen. It succeeded. Today there is not a single Sinhala person living in the North. Tens of thousands were chased away, murdered and eventually ethnically cleansed by the LTTE. Notably a former Speaker of the parliament and the longest served politician of the Sri Lanka parliament were two Sinhalese hailed from the North. There will not be any more as the LTTE has wiped out this very unique community from the face of the earth. Still old Tamil people in Jaffna and Vanni talk about the Jaffna Sinhala community, the Point Padro Sinhala community and their customs that were an integral part of the Jaffna community decades ago.
Apart from the north, mainly in the Eastern province and the Western Province LTTE has carried out large scale massacres, bomb attacks, suicide attacks, attacks on economic nerve centres and attacks on religious sites targeting mainly the Sinhala community and generally targeting all communities.
LTTE succeeded in the complete genocide of the Muslim community in the North
Hundreds of thousands of Muslims were chased out of the North in 1990 at gun point by the LTTE. Today there are no Muslims in the North and the evil project has succeeded. Northern Muslims had their very own customs, practices and cuisine. Along with the people a very unique subculture that thrived for thousands of years vanished forever.
Displaced people have been living hundred of miles away in refugee camps under trying conditions for 18 miserable years thanks to the LTTE and their Tamil-only mythical state.
If this is not genocide, there cannot be any case of genocide and all acts of genocide in Sri Lanka have been committed by the LTTE; their attempts are not over yet.
How to stop the LTTE and its business of genocide in Sri Lanka?
Having committed all these evils, it is futile to expect the LTTE will have it any other way. Dozens of times LTTE has fooled the people, the state and the international community with peace talks, ceasefires and other similar nonsense. Ceasefires were very effectively used by the LTTE to wipe out its opposition and strengthen its fighting capabilities. The latest surprise following the 2002 ceasefire was the Tiger Air Force which has already attacked many military, civilian and economic targets. This is world’s only operating terrorist air force sustained by the second richest terrorist group in the world with estimated annual revenue of US$300 million.
The only way to stop these acts of terrorism is to completely wipe out the LTTE by military means. Sri Lanka with a crippled economy is fighting a nastier terror group than the Al Qaeda. If anyone desires long term stability, peace, democracy and a complete genuine end to crimes against humanity, he/she must support the efforts by the Sri Lankan government to eradicate the terrorism menace.
Pampering the world’s most ruthless terrorists with the false hope of bringing them to the right path is both futile and highly dangerous. It must be put down like an epidemic. There has never been a better time to do so than now where the LTTE is cornered into a small landmass. As usual LTTE terrorists have resorted to the oldest terrorist tactic – holding civilians to ransom – hoping that it will provide them an escape route and safety. If the international community pressures Sri Lanka to make the LTTE ransom project a success, it will repeat its successful hijack operation elsewhere as well.
On the other hand if the LTTE is left to die, it will not be able to commit acts of terrorism ever again and Tamil democratic forces can take charge of the destiny of Tamils without getting bumped-off. It can also create a conducive environment to find a political solution to underlying causes of the conflict through negotiations.
The sudden hype about false allegations of genocide against the government and its security forces is a diversionary tactic to divert attention away from real criminals (and terrorists) towards their adversaries so that Tamil Tigers can leisurely carry on their genocidal acts. All LTTE leaders have been in the Wanted List of the Interpol for many years while the LTTE is a banned terrorist organisation in most countries of the developed world. These attempts of the international community to make the world a better place will only work if the LTTE is physically uprooted. The international community should convince LTTE leaders that civilians are no human shields by supporting the Sri Lankan government crush the terror group for good.
( The Writer can be reached at trjohnpulle@yahoo.co.uk) - Sri Lanka Guardian
by Thomas Johnpulle
(September 27, London, Sri Lanka Guardian) The word “genocide” is a heavily abused term in the Sri Lankan context. It is also the most popular oxymoron used with regard to the conflict. On the outward over 70,000 people have died in the twenty-five-years long conflict. During the same time period over two and a half a million people have died of all causes mainly of old age, heart disease and cancer. This makes war deaths a meagre 2.8% of the total number of deaths. In other words war results in 2.8% of deaths in Sri Lanka which is definitely not a significant cause of death. However, the underlying picture is gruelling and cruel. The tiny third world country is cursed with the world’s most ruthless terrorist organisation (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Elam – LTTE, commonly known as Tamil Tigers) in the world. LTTE’s suicide bombers far outnumber their Iraqi and Afghanistan counterparts. LTTE is openly committing genocide against people of all races in Sri Lanka in every manner imaginable to a satanic mind.
Genocide of the Tamil race by the LTTE – Decimating the Tamil leadership
Just as Adolf Hitler started his hysterical war claiming that he was the liberator of Germans, the LTTE started its armed ‘liberation’ struggle claiming same. Its first targets were Tamils themselves! Mayor of Jaffna, Alfred Doraiappa, a Tamil, was gunned down at a Hindu temple in 1976 by the LTTE! This was their first target. Since then hundreds of Tamil political activists have been killed including a former Opposition Leader (1989 – killed during a ceasefire), a foreign minister (2005 – killed during a ceasefire) and a gamut of political party leaders. The killing of an Indian Prime Minister was highly celebrated in LTTE circles which was carried out by a Tamil Tiger female suicide bomber. They killed a national leader and scores of Tamils with one bomb! Welcome to the world of the LTTE.
By decimating the Tamil leadership, LTTE managed to enforce their ‘sole’ representative claim. Owing to Tamil Tigers’ total genocide of Tamil democratic leaders, only one (1) alternative Tamil politician is represented in parliament from the Northern Province where the war is centred today.
Sri Lanka observed a number of ceasefires but none were honoured by the LTTE. Killing democratic Tamil political leaders got a new lease of life during those ceasefires!
Decimating the Tamil leadership and by creating a band of yes-men, LTTE exposed the Tamil people to outright danger.
Genocide of the Tamil race by the LTTE – wiping out generations upon generations
LTTE operates based on a very strict code of conduct. Its members are forbidden to marry or have children otherwise. This has created what Tamil Tigers call, total commitment to the ‘cause’. As a result since late 1970s until this date, tens of thousands of Tamils were recruited to the LTTE and most of them died. This is almost one and a half generations. In other words LTTE decimated one and a half generations of Tamils in their child bearing age. Obviously they didn’t die alone. They died with an unborn generation! LTTE cruelty didn’t end there. It has one of the largest child soldier brigades in the world. Children were used from early 1980s and continue until this date. Children of 1980s would have had their own children by today; but that was denied to the nation. They were killed; children of their contemporaries who managed to survive were also killed subsequently and still being killed in the name of ‘liberation’.
Interestingly most low level fighters and suicide bombers come from lower castes of the Tamil community. Heavy use of women in the child bearing age and young girls in combat and suicide missions is also commonplace in the LTTE.
Recruiting children saw a massive boom during the 2002-2005 ceasefire when LTTE operatives recruited children unhindered by law enforcement authorities.
Genocide of the Tamil race by the LTTE – very large scale civilian displacement
Pro-LTTE elements scream about the war displacing 200,000 people but they are silent about over two million Tamils displaced solely by the LTTE. Owing to LTTE’s very harsh conduct millions of Tamils have internally migrated to predominantly Sinhala (the majority community of Sri Lanka) areas despite LTTE claims that Sinhalese kill Tamils! Today most Tamils (over 54%) live in predominantly Sinhala areas totally rubbishing LTTE claims of genocide of Tamils by the Sinhalese! Why did they cross to the government controlled area amidst colossal lies spread by the LTTE? That’s because they feel much safer under the government than under the LTTE.
Over a million have sought refuge in rich foreign countries and about 100,000 are languishing in refugee camps in South India.
Civilian displacement has been so enormous that LTTE which uses civilians as human shields to protect senior terrorist leaders are now panicking. They call those who now leave their areas traitors and have mechanisms in place to track them down and kill them.
During the Norwegian brokered ceasefire of 2002 and in previous ceasefires, LTTE continued to displace civilians. The fate of Eastern villages of Muttur, Manirasakulam and Valchchenai during the time of the last ceasefire is a case in point. Even Scandinavian ceasefire monitors were forced to turn a blind eye to these atrocities.
Genocide of the Tamil race by the LTTE – cultural genocide and ethnocide
If anyone finds the Cultural Revolution disturbing take a look at the cultural genocide committed by the LTTE on Tamils. The North and the East of Sri Lanka were bustling with Tamil cultural activities until mid 1980s when the LTTE willingly dismantled all Tamil Hindu cultural infrastructures. Hindu devotional songs, dances, rituals and other cultural practices were scrapped and replaced by what the LTTE called ‘Tamil liberation’ culture. This was all about instigating violence, racial hatred, racism, isolation and sheer brainwashing. People were bombarded with LTTE songs, etc. in place of their thousand year old culture.
The vacuum created by the LTTE in Lankan Tamil culture enabled them to creep into it unnoticed and fill the void. Today LTTE front organisations carryout ‘Ponku Thamizh’ events throughout the world which are seen as the residue Lankan Tamil culture! Unsurprisingly these ‘cultural shows’ also collect money for the LTTE. Thousands of years old Tamil culture based on non-violence and collectivism has been replaced by a cannibalistic ritual. What a crime?
LTTE’s latest cultural genocide project is about splitting Sri Lankan Tamils from their roots in Tamil Nadu in an evil attempt to further isolate and dominate them. Towards this end, pro-LTTE elements have started a ridiculous campaign of renaming. What was known as Tamil for centuries has been changed to Thamizh; Elam to Eezham! Though they look subtle and hilarious, the underlying attempt to further cut off Tamils from their larger community in India is despicable.
War, no-war or ceasefire, the de-civilisation process of the community by the LTTE in favour of suicide bombers and the like continued unabated.
Genocide of the Tamil race by the LTTE – economic destruction
LTTE has completed the economic destruction project in Tamil majority areas. Factories were bombed, disrupted, robbed and eventually dismantled. The island nation’s largest cement factory, paper mill and chemical factory were thus completely and deliberately destroyed by the LTTE. Sri Lanka’s largest development project – the Mahaweli Multipurpose Irrigation Scheme – was disabled by the LTTE to a very great extent. Severe disruptions to faming, fishing and even schooling were caused by the LTTE. Farms are seen by the LTTE as safe artillery launching places; fishing boats have been converted to fast attack gun boats while schools are seen by the LTTE as recruiting grounds of its cadres!
During the short space of time when government troops abandoned all military operations despite LTTE’s continued terrorism, Tamil Tigers imposed heavy unofficial taxes and levies on economic activities. The road from Vavuniya to Jaffna which was opened during that time was notoriously known as the extortion highway!
Still the government send fertilizer, food and medicine to LTTE controlled areas but LTTE misuses them for their own good depriving the people of their essentials.
LTTE succeeded in the complete genocide of the Sinhala community in the North
Since the early 1980s Tamil Tigers started one of the most notoriously successful ethnic cleansing campaigns this world has seen. It succeeded. Today there is not a single Sinhala person living in the North. Tens of thousands were chased away, murdered and eventually ethnically cleansed by the LTTE. Notably a former Speaker of the parliament and the longest served politician of the Sri Lanka parliament were two Sinhalese hailed from the North. There will not be any more as the LTTE has wiped out this very unique community from the face of the earth. Still old Tamil people in Jaffna and Vanni talk about the Jaffna Sinhala community, the Point Padro Sinhala community and their customs that were an integral part of the Jaffna community decades ago.
Apart from the north, mainly in the Eastern province and the Western Province LTTE has carried out large scale massacres, bomb attacks, suicide attacks, attacks on economic nerve centres and attacks on religious sites targeting mainly the Sinhala community and generally targeting all communities.
LTTE succeeded in the complete genocide of the Muslim community in the North
Hundreds of thousands of Muslims were chased out of the North in 1990 at gun point by the LTTE. Today there are no Muslims in the North and the evil project has succeeded. Northern Muslims had their very own customs, practices and cuisine. Along with the people a very unique subculture that thrived for thousands of years vanished forever.
Displaced people have been living hundred of miles away in refugee camps under trying conditions for 18 miserable years thanks to the LTTE and their Tamil-only mythical state.
If this is not genocide, there cannot be any case of genocide and all acts of genocide in Sri Lanka have been committed by the LTTE; their attempts are not over yet.
How to stop the LTTE and its business of genocide in Sri Lanka?
Having committed all these evils, it is futile to expect the LTTE will have it any other way. Dozens of times LTTE has fooled the people, the state and the international community with peace talks, ceasefires and other similar nonsense. Ceasefires were very effectively used by the LTTE to wipe out its opposition and strengthen its fighting capabilities. The latest surprise following the 2002 ceasefire was the Tiger Air Force which has already attacked many military, civilian and economic targets. This is world’s only operating terrorist air force sustained by the second richest terrorist group in the world with estimated annual revenue of US$300 million.
The only way to stop these acts of terrorism is to completely wipe out the LTTE by military means. Sri Lanka with a crippled economy is fighting a nastier terror group than the Al Qaeda. If anyone desires long term stability, peace, democracy and a complete genuine end to crimes against humanity, he/she must support the efforts by the Sri Lankan government to eradicate the terrorism menace.
Pampering the world’s most ruthless terrorists with the false hope of bringing them to the right path is both futile and highly dangerous. It must be put down like an epidemic. There has never been a better time to do so than now where the LTTE is cornered into a small landmass. As usual LTTE terrorists have resorted to the oldest terrorist tactic – holding civilians to ransom – hoping that it will provide them an escape route and safety. If the international community pressures Sri Lanka to make the LTTE ransom project a success, it will repeat its successful hijack operation elsewhere as well.
On the other hand if the LTTE is left to die, it will not be able to commit acts of terrorism ever again and Tamil democratic forces can take charge of the destiny of Tamils without getting bumped-off. It can also create a conducive environment to find a political solution to underlying causes of the conflict through negotiations.
The sudden hype about false allegations of genocide against the government and its security forces is a diversionary tactic to divert attention away from real criminals (and terrorists) towards their adversaries so that Tamil Tigers can leisurely carry on their genocidal acts. All LTTE leaders have been in the Wanted List of the Interpol for many years while the LTTE is a banned terrorist organisation in most countries of the developed world. These attempts of the international community to make the world a better place will only work if the LTTE is physically uprooted. The international community should convince LTTE leaders that civilians are no human shields by supporting the Sri Lankan government crush the terror group for good.
( The Writer can be reached at trjohnpulle@yahoo.co.uk) - Sri Lanka Guardian
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