Sri Lanka, first to make Yesterday's Terrorists, to-day's model citizens

by Charles.S.Perera

(October 07, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) UNP, and JVP are Democratic Political Parties responsible to the Parliament holding allegiance to their Oath as the representatives of the people. TNA, unfortunately has a double allegiance first to the Terrorist leader Parabhakaran, and then to the Sri Lanka Parliament.

TNA's allegiance to Sri Lanka is put into doubt in its presence with politicians of DMK, South India, to make manifestations against Sri Lanka. The Government of Sri Lanka being a government of the elected representative of the people, the Members of the Parliament of Sri Lanka have no right to make manifestations against the government along with the Parliamentarians of a Foreign State. That must be imbedded in the Constitution, or a matter for interpretation by Constitutional Lawyers. The TNA therefore in its errant comportment forfeits the right of being a "democratic" political party.

But UNP and JVP being democratic parties, their boycotting the Parliament when Mr.Vinayagamurthi Muralidaran was sworn in as a Member of the Sri Lanka Parliament is a shameless show of political "meanness"- an ignoble lack of honour or morality, a disrespect towards democratic institution, and an open insult to the people who elected them..

It is a unique Opportunity Sri Lanka Government had in changing a yesterday's terrorist to a today's democrat, and make him sit as a respectable representative of his people in the country's Parliament.

The World's great democracies, with all the economic power, political know how, the technological development, and who even send people to the moon, hunt terrorists outside its home country. But they cannot boast of what a small country like Sri Lanka had been able to do with people, and terrorists. It is really a contradiction that a country that is being accused by the International Community, and our Great nearest neighbour India, for violation of human rights of its own people, is swearing in a person who was a terrorist a few years back, as a Parliamentarian and a model citizen.

That itself belies the contention of the International Community, and it various agents such as the Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, the UNCHR, that Sri Lanka is a failed state with a record of violation of Human Rights of its citizens.

Of course TMVP is accused of carrying arms, and having child soldiers. Though the International Community and the Government's opposition fail to understand that TMVP was greatly responsible for the defeat of the, once claimed to be the "invincible" forces of the terrorists, and they are under death threat, and therefore they keep their guns for their own protection. That would be understood only by those who know of the ruthlessness, and the capability of the terrorists to kill who they want, when they want, and where they want.

As to child soldiers, the TMVP leader explained that they have some children who had been recruited earlier when they were still with the LTTE terrorists, but preferred to remain with Karuna Amman even when he disbanded his dissident army, and they were released by him, as they had no where to go, not knowing their parents, or not knowing where they had come from.

Sri Lanka small as it is, is the only country that had been fighting the most ruthless terrorist group in the world and is almost winning it. Unfortunately, Sri Lanka's nearest neighbour India, fearing a defeat at the next general election, is standing as a barrier to the Government of Sri Lanka for its Army's final assault against the terrorists.

The Government Forces of Sri Lanka have done yeoman service in its battle against terrorism despite continuous difficulties it had to face with the interfering International Crowd of Governments, Ambassadors, Associations, Human Rights activists, mercenaries, and the local anti war lobby.

It is a great credit to our Government Forces that, when the world's powerful nations with more sophisticated arms and artillery had lost in all their wars conducted against every sort of terrorists, from Vietnam, to Iraq, they over powered the terrorists that controlled every aspect of the people's lives in the north and east for over a quarter of a century. The man Vinayagamurthi Muralidaran, who is sworn in today as a Parliamentarian, helped the Government Forces to a great extent in its battle against terrorism. It is just that he has been rewarded with high office, which would also be a lesson for the terrorists.

We have not only won our war against terrorism, but also we have been able to make yesterday's terrorists today's model citizens. What we lack is unity among the political parties who vying for power disassociate from all great achievements of our little motherland Sri Lanka.

Thanks to a Great President, we are also the only country that has built friendly relation with every nation in the World, including Iran, Brazil, Cyprus, and Morocco . Ours is the country that has accepted all its communities without differentiating between a majority or a minority status, attempting a unique experience of associating a multi ethnic nation in to a United Nation of all Communities.

That is possible with a little more effort on the part of its associates here and abroad, provided we are left alone by the International Community and our next door neighbour India.- Sri Lanka Guardian