- Time To Be Carefully Buried
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“Whatever may be our grievances in Sri Lanka, especially with regard to the manner in which we were governed in the past and are dealt with in the present, at this juncture, we have to be thankful to President Rajapakse and the Sri Lankan armed forces for trying to put an end to the LTTE menace. It is a historical congruence of necessity, uniting us as peoples. This war has to be fought to a finish, to end all such wars in the future.”
by: Dr. Rajasingham Narendran
(October 15, London, Sri Lanka Guardian) The on-going onslaught by the Sri Lankan armed forces on the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the Vanni and its continuing success has brought forth reactions from a multitude of players. The die-hard LTTE supporters are no doubt shell-shocked, but yet not sufficiently to withdraw into their lairs. These die-hards are hoping for miracles to restore the LTTE to its former glory as the deluded ‘Naked Emperor’. Among these die-hards are many, who sincerely believe the LTTE holds the key to resolving the problems of the Tamils in Sri Lanka and the establishment of an independent Tamil Eelam would be the only solution. They have a right to believe in what they do, although we may disagree with them. It is for us to convince them otherwise. The Sri Lankan government and the Sinhala polity are duty bound to convince all Tamils there can be better alternatives to Tamil Eelam and the deep blue sea. This is also a moral imperative.
There are however a fewer, but a significant number of die-hards among the Tamils- largely of the lumpen- type, who have thrived on the power bestowed on them by the LTTE to harass, torment, kidnap, brutalize, kill and fleece ordinary Tamils to fill not only the LTTE ranks and coffers, but their wallets as well. These are the elements who are orchestrating various events, particularly in Europe, to collectively shed crocodile tears for the innocent Tamil civilians caught –up in the ongoing war. These elements have a vested interest in the success of the LTTE and care for the LTTE more than they do the Tamils. The suffering Tamils are the ‘Beggar’s wound’ they display, when required, to promote the interests of the LTTE and their own. Such die-hards are the scum churned in the wake of the tragedy that engulfed the Tamils over the past three decades. They should be treated with disdain and utter contempt by everyone interested in the welfare of the Tamils in Sri Lanka and the nation at large.
There are of course the various Dravidian political parties in Tamil Nadu, who are ever ready to voice their sympathies for the Tamils in Sri Lanka, when the going gets tough for the LTTE. These political parties have scant understanding of the plight of the Tamils in Sri Lanka and do not comprehend the LTTE and other Tamil militant groups have become a bigger problem for the Tamils, than the Sri Lankan governments ever were. Some of these political parties may be genuine in their ignorance or confusion, while others are either in the LTTE pay or are using the LTTE and the travails of the Tamils in Sri Lanka as a cats paw for other gains. I wonder where their concerns were when the LTTE deliberately, calculatingly, cunningly and quite cynically messed-up every God-given opportunity, including the Indian intervention in 1987, to resolve the problems of the Tamils in Sri Lanka in a pragmatic manner and schemed to instigate war and heap more miseries on them.
Let me beg these Tamil Nadu politicians and political parties not to sacrifice the Tamils in Sri Lanka at the alter of their ambitions, ignorance or venality. Please understand our problems and help us resolve them peacefully, if you can. However, do not think the demise of the LTTE is the end of the Tamils in Sri Lanka. The LTTE is not the Tamils and it never did truly represent us. It does not represent us at all now. This may sound a cop-out and an opportunistic stance at this juncture. But it is true. The LTTE and other militant groups rode the grievances of the Tamils to become over time their main tormentors. The LTTE has been the curse bestowed on us by God, for whatever sins we may have committed as a people! The current war was brought on by the LTTE, because it did not empathize with the plight of the Tamils and their pleas for peace at any cost. The LTTE and the other surviving Tamil militant groups are a cancer that has to be excised immediately from the affairs of the Tamils in Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan government is doing us Tamils a favour by trying to destroy the LTTE. We will not be able to do this without the help of the Sri Lankan government. Whatever may be our grievances in Sri Lanka, especially with regard to the manner in which we were governed in the past and are dealt with in the present, at this juncture, we have to be thankful to President Rajapakse and the Sri Lankan armed forces for trying to put an end to the LTTE menace. It is a historical congruence of necessity, uniting us as peoples. This war has to be fought to a finish, to end all such wars in the future.
The United National Party’s (UNP) call for talks with the LTTE at this juncture, is rather baffling. The UNP is either stupid, insane or is playing the often seen political game, as parties in opposition are wont to in Sri Lanka. The LTTE must be decimated now. This should be the principal demand of the Tamils at this juncture, if they are to have the chance to survive as a people in Sri Lanka. Yes, we are sorry for the plight of the innocent civilians caught in the midst of this war. Many of us knew and warned this would be the inevitable result of the path the LTTE chose to take during the much lamented ceasefire. However, the LTTE refused to pay heed to these concerns. If the LTTE is not eliminated or marginalized now, the agony of these hapless people will never end. Let the present agony of these people-however tragic this may be- be the last the Tamils in Sri Lanka will ever suffer on this scale. If the LTTE cares for these much abused people, it should let them move en-masse into government held areas, as already requested by the government, instead of holding them hostage to its designs. Let the United Nations agencies arrange for their safe passage. If the government harasses and refuses to care for these people once they move into government held areas, then it should be a matter of utmost concern to all human kind. The war became necessary and inevitable due to actions of the LTTE and they and they alone are to be blamed for the consequences being visited on the people in the Vanni. This war, whatever the yet to be identified long term intentions of the government may be, is a war being fought by the Sri Lankan armed forces on behalf of every Tamil, Muslim and Sinhalese, against what has become a national menace, transcending the communal divide. This war may be the turning point in the history of Sri Lanka, as it has transcended narrow parochial concerns and elevated itself to a national and all encompassing level. The UNP should look beyond this war and offer concrete solutions to the problems of the Tamils and act to bring about national reconciliation, even if the credit for ending the LTTE menace goes to President Rajapakse. He deserves it.
Finally, the noise from the extremist fringe among the Sinhala polity is becoming more shrill, strident and menacing. It is this fringe that created the conditions for the Tamil militancy and the birth of the likes of the LTTE. The impending demise of the LTTE, has inebriated this group sufficiently to proclaim all Tamils (and other minorities) imports, to be tolerated by the Sinhala- speaking natives of the land. This is fortunately an improvement on their earlier stance that all Tamils should become Sinhalese to be Sri Lankans or leave the Island! This is also despite the well known fact that a significant number of Sinhala speakers today are very recent imports (in terms of the long history of Sri Lanka) from South India and of Tamil origin, including the ancestors of Army Commander Sarath Fonseka! The Tamils can be proud that an army commander of Tamil origin is leading an all- Sinhala army successfully against the LTTE! The army commander may even be a distant kin of Prabaharan, if caste affiliations of old are considered! The irony in this turn of events makes me laugh, amidst all the gloom.
Speaking and working in English does not make me an Englishmen. I am yet a Tamil, literate in English. This applies to many Sinhalese too, even if they have forgotten their mother tongue-Tamil. The rabidly extremist fringe among the Sinhalese, have a right to voice their opinions, however undesirable and obnoxious these may be. However, it is unfortunate that their noise is disproportionate to their numbers and their concerns garner disproportionately greater attention than the opinion of their quieter, saner and reasonable compatriots. Amidst the cacophony of these noises, the more mature, saner and wiser voices such as those of Dushy Ranatunge (see article, ‘Sri Lanka is a Republic, not a Sinhala Country’- Sri Lanka Guardian of 9th Oct’2008) I hope would receive greater attention.
I remember hearing as a youngster a friend of my father proclaiming that someone should be ‘Carelessly shot and carefully buried’. This should apply to the LTTE too, for the heinous crimes it has committed against a people, it claimed it was leading towards liberation but instead force-marched to perdition.
“ Walli Noekkaan Waaipana Seiyaan Palli Noekkaan,
Panbillaan Pattraarku Inithu ‘- Thirukural (Tamil)
“It will be gratifying to consider someone who has not learnt the laws of righteousness, not acted righteously, been immune to condemnation of his despicable acts and is without culture, an enemy.”- Translation mine. - Sri Lanka Guardian
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