“ With the disengagement of the Indian intervention, came the terrible shock of the murder of Rajiv Gandhi by the LTTE. Rajiv Gandhi must have felt that he had a duty to respect his mother’s views on Sri Lanka and took a firm stand to practically engage to resolve the conflict there. If India was allowed to continue with its mission, Sri Lanka would have progressed without Pirabakaran to dictate the terror politics in Sri Lanka.” [Image: India's Congress Party President Sonia Gandhi (L) and Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh offer prayers during a memorial ceremony for Gandhi's late husband and former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi, on the 17th anniversary of his death, in New Delhi on May 21, 2008.]
by Our Bureau Editor in London
(October 19, London, Sri Lanka Guardian) The encouraging political developments following uproar in the Southern State of Tamil Nadu on the tragedy facing the Tamils in Sri Lanka is welcome sign. Elements within Tamil Nadu state may have ulterior motives to come to the rescue of the LTTE, when it is on the receiving end on all the fronts.
The upbeat Sri Lanka has forgotten all the external factors contributing and causing the defeat of the LTTE terrorism and until the expression of concerns by India, it was in a hyped up mood to drumbeat its achievements as its singular efforts. The army chief Lt Gen Fonseka’s recent obsessive comments amply surmise the government’s agenda and his mission to keep the Tamils on the tab.
If not for the heavy external contributory factors, Sri Lanka would not have achieved these victories against the LTTE. It is habitual practice of the successive governments to claim and celebrate the victories against the LTTE as a victory against the entire Tamil population. Subjugation of the Tamils never ends and will continue as an established politics of Sri Lanka.
The so-called democratisation of the eastern province is a typical example to confirm the mindset of the government. Instead of empowering the people there, the government is systematically engaged to undermine the very process. State sponsored colonisations, peddling with the newly elected Eastern Provincial Council administration and heavily engaging to divide and rule to undermine the very purpose of the implementation of the 13th amendment to the constitution are painful experience that cannot be allowed to be continued indefinitely.
Any post- victory process against the LTTE in the north by the government forces will be watched with dumbfounded silence by the large section of the peace loving Tamils. The government is not keeping its hidden mission secret. All the indications are the replica of Velupillai Pirabakaran and the long standing government crusader Douglas Devananda is expected to be put in the throne for the already sick and tired Tamils to swallow the terror pills to be dished out by the government.
Douglas Devananda has already stated his mission. He wants to rehabilitate the people in the north. What makes him to take this role before finding ways to rehabilitate him personally is not something that is difficult to understand. He too has hurt the very fabric of the Tamil society in very many ways. His white missions, ransom demands and murders of his own brothers and sisters cannot be erased from the collective memory of the Tamil people.
Without international support and co-operation, Sri Lanka would not have achieved its victories in its hipped up claims. It has forgotten that the effective steps taken by the United States, Britain, EU, Australia, India, and other countries to prevent the LTTE raise funds amongst the diaspora Tamils had crippling effects on the LTTE’s activities. Sri Lanka is heavily indebted to these counties and the International NGO’s like the Human Rights Watch too played a laudable role to expose the fund raising activities of the LTTE in these counties. To forget their contributions and to glorify as if its own efforts is down right deception. It is progressively becoming clear if Sri Lanka is allowed to handle matters alone the minorities will not be empowered following its military victories.
Indian intervention in 1987 gave birth to the 13th amendment to the constitution, which devolved powers to the provinces. Both the LTTE and the government of Late Ranasinghe Premadasa did everything to sabotage the implementation devolvement of power to the North and East.
‘Enemy’s enemy is my friend’ and ‘today’s enemy is my friend tomorrow’ is the established politics of Sri Lanka. Both the government of Premadasa and Pirabakaran established their new found love towards each other and decided to dilly dally dance to expel the Indian intervention in the early 1990’s. JVP played its abhorring terror campaign in the South to prop up anti-Indian feelings and this was well tolerated by the government and was also supported by the LTTE to fulfil their own agendas. Once India left, friends became enemies and the JVP’rs paid the ultimate price for their part in the terror campaign in the south.
Whatever wrong doings of the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) against the Tamil civilian population, there came a point when LTTE was almost about to be wiped out and sudden love and honeymoon of Premadasa and Pirabakaran had a knock-on effect on the Indian intervention.
With the disengagement of the Indian intervention, came the terrible shock of the murder of Rajiv Gandhi by the LTTE. Rajiv Gandhi must have felt that he had a duty to respect his mother’s views on Sri Lanka and took a firm stand to practically engage to resolve the conflict there. If India was allowed to continue with its mission, Sri Lanka would have progressed without Pirabakaran to dictate the terror politics in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka crisis must be resolved and it can be resolved only by an honest broker. The politics of the Sinhalese and the Tamils have reached an unresolvable stage as deep rooted animosities and hatred are dictating the conduct of Sri Lankan politics. President Mahinda Rajajapakse is proving to be a leader who is a specialist in running the state with sheer manipulation and underhand work to hold on to his position.
On the other hand, the LTTE is reaching its irredeemable stage from its current impasse. It needs someone to come to its rescue. Just prior to Anton Balasingam’s death to now, it is trying various means to rope India on to its side to recover from its decline.
If somebody is said to be ‘once bitten twice shy’, it means that someone who has been hurt or who has had something go wrong will be far more careful the next time. India had shied away from its direct engagement for over two decades now and it is time that it engages again in a careful manner to fine thread and resolve the conflict in Sri Lanka in everyone’s interest.
India must set its terms clearly and must not allow the President and or the LTTE to play balls with its efforts. Sri Lanka is a seriously sick county and the way it is progressing, it will be retarded soon. Mere pain killers and antibiotics will not work for terribly sick Sri Lanka and it has to undergo a major surgery. The sickness of Sri Lanka has reached the semi-neurotic stage and is becoming so acute that it will violently resist any intervention for treatment. India must act like an able surgeon to remove all the symptoms of hatred infested in the body politics of Sri Lanka. Lethal germs must be treated with lethal medicine and this must be done in a determine manner without any retreat.
Curing the deep rooted sickness in Sri Lanka is the greatest homage mother India can give to the Late Prime Minister Rajv Gandhi. - Sri Lanka Guardian
by Our Bureau Editor in London
(October 19, London, Sri Lanka Guardian) The encouraging political developments following uproar in the Southern State of Tamil Nadu on the tragedy facing the Tamils in Sri Lanka is welcome sign. Elements within Tamil Nadu state may have ulterior motives to come to the rescue of the LTTE, when it is on the receiving end on all the fronts.
The upbeat Sri Lanka has forgotten all the external factors contributing and causing the defeat of the LTTE terrorism and until the expression of concerns by India, it was in a hyped up mood to drumbeat its achievements as its singular efforts. The army chief Lt Gen Fonseka’s recent obsessive comments amply surmise the government’s agenda and his mission to keep the Tamils on the tab.
If not for the heavy external contributory factors, Sri Lanka would not have achieved these victories against the LTTE. It is habitual practice of the successive governments to claim and celebrate the victories against the LTTE as a victory against the entire Tamil population. Subjugation of the Tamils never ends and will continue as an established politics of Sri Lanka.
The so-called democratisation of the eastern province is a typical example to confirm the mindset of the government. Instead of empowering the people there, the government is systematically engaged to undermine the very process. State sponsored colonisations, peddling with the newly elected Eastern Provincial Council administration and heavily engaging to divide and rule to undermine the very purpose of the implementation of the 13th amendment to the constitution are painful experience that cannot be allowed to be continued indefinitely.
Any post- victory process against the LTTE in the north by the government forces will be watched with dumbfounded silence by the large section of the peace loving Tamils. The government is not keeping its hidden mission secret. All the indications are the replica of Velupillai Pirabakaran and the long standing government crusader Douglas Devananda is expected to be put in the throne for the already sick and tired Tamils to swallow the terror pills to be dished out by the government.
Douglas Devananda has already stated his mission. He wants to rehabilitate the people in the north. What makes him to take this role before finding ways to rehabilitate him personally is not something that is difficult to understand. He too has hurt the very fabric of the Tamil society in very many ways. His white missions, ransom demands and murders of his own brothers and sisters cannot be erased from the collective memory of the Tamil people.
Without international support and co-operation, Sri Lanka would not have achieved its victories in its hipped up claims. It has forgotten that the effective steps taken by the United States, Britain, EU, Australia, India, and other countries to prevent the LTTE raise funds amongst the diaspora Tamils had crippling effects on the LTTE’s activities. Sri Lanka is heavily indebted to these counties and the International NGO’s like the Human Rights Watch too played a laudable role to expose the fund raising activities of the LTTE in these counties. To forget their contributions and to glorify as if its own efforts is down right deception. It is progressively becoming clear if Sri Lanka is allowed to handle matters alone the minorities will not be empowered following its military victories.
Indian intervention in 1987 gave birth to the 13th amendment to the constitution, which devolved powers to the provinces. Both the LTTE and the government of Late Ranasinghe Premadasa did everything to sabotage the implementation devolvement of power to the North and East.
‘Enemy’s enemy is my friend’ and ‘today’s enemy is my friend tomorrow’ is the established politics of Sri Lanka. Both the government of Premadasa and Pirabakaran established their new found love towards each other and decided to dilly dally dance to expel the Indian intervention in the early 1990’s. JVP played its abhorring terror campaign in the South to prop up anti-Indian feelings and this was well tolerated by the government and was also supported by the LTTE to fulfil their own agendas. Once India left, friends became enemies and the JVP’rs paid the ultimate price for their part in the terror campaign in the south.
Whatever wrong doings of the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) against the Tamil civilian population, there came a point when LTTE was almost about to be wiped out and sudden love and honeymoon of Premadasa and Pirabakaran had a knock-on effect on the Indian intervention.
With the disengagement of the Indian intervention, came the terrible shock of the murder of Rajiv Gandhi by the LTTE. Rajiv Gandhi must have felt that he had a duty to respect his mother’s views on Sri Lanka and took a firm stand to practically engage to resolve the conflict there. If India was allowed to continue with its mission, Sri Lanka would have progressed without Pirabakaran to dictate the terror politics in Sri Lanka.
Sri Lanka crisis must be resolved and it can be resolved only by an honest broker. The politics of the Sinhalese and the Tamils have reached an unresolvable stage as deep rooted animosities and hatred are dictating the conduct of Sri Lankan politics. President Mahinda Rajajapakse is proving to be a leader who is a specialist in running the state with sheer manipulation and underhand work to hold on to his position.
On the other hand, the LTTE is reaching its irredeemable stage from its current impasse. It needs someone to come to its rescue. Just prior to Anton Balasingam’s death to now, it is trying various means to rope India on to its side to recover from its decline.
If somebody is said to be ‘once bitten twice shy’, it means that someone who has been hurt or who has had something go wrong will be far more careful the next time. India had shied away from its direct engagement for over two decades now and it is time that it engages again in a careful manner to fine thread and resolve the conflict in Sri Lanka in everyone’s interest.
India must set its terms clearly and must not allow the President and or the LTTE to play balls with its efforts. Sri Lanka is a seriously sick county and the way it is progressing, it will be retarded soon. Mere pain killers and antibiotics will not work for terribly sick Sri Lanka and it has to undergo a major surgery. The sickness of Sri Lanka has reached the semi-neurotic stage and is becoming so acute that it will violently resist any intervention for treatment. India must act like an able surgeon to remove all the symptoms of hatred infested in the body politics of Sri Lanka. Lethal germs must be treated with lethal medicine and this must be done in a determine manner without any retreat.
Curing the deep rooted sickness in Sri Lanka is the greatest homage mother India can give to the Late Prime Minister Rajv Gandhi. - Sri Lanka Guardian
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