“May be the LTTE leader was dreaming of addressing the UN for the first time in Tamil after his group had managed to carve out a separate nation. He must be saddened beyond consolation. Coupled with intense military defeats with the possibility of a total wipe out of the LTTE looming large and ugly right in front of his eyes, he and his sympathisers must be deeply perturbed.”
by Thomas Raj Johnpulle
(October 07, London, Sri Lanka Guardian) Scant little has been said about what the President said in Tamil at the UN, but loads have been said about the appropriateness of his goodwill gesture. There are Tamils in almost every country of the world but Tamils don’t have a country of their own. May be this is how Tamils are supposed to be and they have flourished in all climatic, geographic and cultural conditions. The Tamil community was never a tribal community in wide contrast to what the LTTE and most Tamil politicians try to project.
The degree of allegiance good spirited Tamils have shown to their respective motherlands around the world is exemplary. A very senior Singaporean politician who contributed enormously to that country left us recently and he is one but many patriots this community has produced. In other words Tamils always showed their capacity to be patriotic to their motherlands irrespective of who the majority is.
However, Sri Lanka has a dwindling Tamil population. May be it is the only country in the whole world to have a diminishing Tamil population in terms of its percentage. Coincidently it is only in Sri Lanka that a section of Tamils demand a nation of their own unable to or prevented from integrating with their motherland - Sri Lanka. Also Sri Lanka is the only place where thousands of Tamil Hindus have graveyards which was never a Tamil Hindu tradition. Further, it is the only country that houses a Tamil terrorist group. When I see Tamils speaking fluently in English, French, Spanish, Russian, Japanese, Cantonese and Flemish, I wonder what’s the big deal about learning Sinhala. But unfortunately by 1956 when they were forced to learn Sinhala, Tamil racism had reached maturity which was born in 1918 with the racial representation demand. Consecutive community-based politics from ACTC to TNA has been the curse that befell this community. Although Sri Lankan Tamils have been much more prosperous than their Indian cousins, they failed to contribute to the Tamil culture as much as they do in Tamil Nadu.
Those who criticise the President for introducing Tamil to the UN General Assembly are highly disappointed that he did so without the approval of what they believe to be the ‘sole representative’ and guardian of everything that is Tamil – the LTTE. The fact that LTTE is battered by none other than the President himself adds insult to their wounds. Furthermore, there is a symbolic statement in his address to the UN in Tamil. That is, Tamil will not reach the UN unless a Sri Lankan leader (or anyone else) opts to use it! If anyone gets hurt by such feelings, he is not a proud Tamil but a tribal minded individual. The Tamil culture and language date back to over 5,000 years and surely it is much older than Sinhala and many other Indian languages. It nourished most regional cultures and languages like Mother Nature. Innumerable are the giveaways but few are the receipts.
May be the LTTE leader was dreaming of addressing the UN for the first time in Tamil after his group had managed to carve out a separate nation. He must be saddened beyond consolation. Coupled with intense military defeats with the possibility of a total wipe out of the LTTE looming large and ugly right in front of his eyes, he and his sympathisers must be deeply perturbed. Each and every village that falls into the hands of the army will remind them the harsh reality that awaits them; there will never be Tamil Elam. How close did they come to turning the de facto state that was recognised in 2002 to a de jure one, and how it all disappeared under the leadership of the present president, they must be wondering. How dare he talk in Tamil at the UN, they must be demanding. The Tamil culture and language need not suffer even a dent trying to save the LTTE and its clannish campaign which is totally contrary to the Tamil spirit of coexistence.
Sri Lankan president need not have anybody’s tick of approval to talk in Tamil anywhere he pleases and the LTTE is in no way the guardian of the Tamil people. In fact it was responsible for totally destroying everything that was Tamil, from people to culture, from economy to coexistence. At no time did Tamil kings hide 30 feet underground claiming that they are the liberators of the community; no Tamil warrior sought refuge behind civilians and no Tamil ruler treaded the path of self-destruction. Tamil emperors tolerated alternative Tamil empires although a certain amount of animosity did exist between them. The Chola, Chera and Pandyan kingdoms provide ample proof of this. However, the modern day self-proclaimed liberators want to be sole custodians of Tamils!
The president has a big task ahead of him; he should save Tamils and Tamil from the ‘liberators’ of Tamils. In order to do that he should destroy Tamil aspirations as demanded by the LTTE and its sympathisers. How can he save Tamils by destroying Tamil aspirations? Simple; it is these misguided tribal aspirations that ruined the Tamil community of this country that lived happily with the rest of the population for 2,000 or more years. What the president must do is to trash the snowball that was put in motion in 1918. If he can do that he will truly liberate the Tamils in Sri Lanka. He has already salvaged a Tamil jungle fighter and elevated him from a dungeon to the parliament in direct contrast to what the LTTE leader has done.
It was someone named Mahinda who brought Buddhism to Sri Lanka and it was Mahinda who took Tamil to the UN. May he live long and prosper.
( The Writer can be reached at trjohnpulle@yahoo.co.uk ) - Sri Lanka Guardian
by Thomas Raj Johnpulle
(October 07, London, Sri Lanka Guardian) Scant little has been said about what the President said in Tamil at the UN, but loads have been said about the appropriateness of his goodwill gesture. There are Tamils in almost every country of the world but Tamils don’t have a country of their own. May be this is how Tamils are supposed to be and they have flourished in all climatic, geographic and cultural conditions. The Tamil community was never a tribal community in wide contrast to what the LTTE and most Tamil politicians try to project.
The degree of allegiance good spirited Tamils have shown to their respective motherlands around the world is exemplary. A very senior Singaporean politician who contributed enormously to that country left us recently and he is one but many patriots this community has produced. In other words Tamils always showed their capacity to be patriotic to their motherlands irrespective of who the majority is.
However, Sri Lanka has a dwindling Tamil population. May be it is the only country in the whole world to have a diminishing Tamil population in terms of its percentage. Coincidently it is only in Sri Lanka that a section of Tamils demand a nation of their own unable to or prevented from integrating with their motherland - Sri Lanka. Also Sri Lanka is the only place where thousands of Tamil Hindus have graveyards which was never a Tamil Hindu tradition. Further, it is the only country that houses a Tamil terrorist group. When I see Tamils speaking fluently in English, French, Spanish, Russian, Japanese, Cantonese and Flemish, I wonder what’s the big deal about learning Sinhala. But unfortunately by 1956 when they were forced to learn Sinhala, Tamil racism had reached maturity which was born in 1918 with the racial representation demand. Consecutive community-based politics from ACTC to TNA has been the curse that befell this community. Although Sri Lankan Tamils have been much more prosperous than their Indian cousins, they failed to contribute to the Tamil culture as much as they do in Tamil Nadu.
Those who criticise the President for introducing Tamil to the UN General Assembly are highly disappointed that he did so without the approval of what they believe to be the ‘sole representative’ and guardian of everything that is Tamil – the LTTE. The fact that LTTE is battered by none other than the President himself adds insult to their wounds. Furthermore, there is a symbolic statement in his address to the UN in Tamil. That is, Tamil will not reach the UN unless a Sri Lankan leader (or anyone else) opts to use it! If anyone gets hurt by such feelings, he is not a proud Tamil but a tribal minded individual. The Tamil culture and language date back to over 5,000 years and surely it is much older than Sinhala and many other Indian languages. It nourished most regional cultures and languages like Mother Nature. Innumerable are the giveaways but few are the receipts.
May be the LTTE leader was dreaming of addressing the UN for the first time in Tamil after his group had managed to carve out a separate nation. He must be saddened beyond consolation. Coupled with intense military defeats with the possibility of a total wipe out of the LTTE looming large and ugly right in front of his eyes, he and his sympathisers must be deeply perturbed. Each and every village that falls into the hands of the army will remind them the harsh reality that awaits them; there will never be Tamil Elam. How close did they come to turning the de facto state that was recognised in 2002 to a de jure one, and how it all disappeared under the leadership of the present president, they must be wondering. How dare he talk in Tamil at the UN, they must be demanding. The Tamil culture and language need not suffer even a dent trying to save the LTTE and its clannish campaign which is totally contrary to the Tamil spirit of coexistence.
Sri Lankan president need not have anybody’s tick of approval to talk in Tamil anywhere he pleases and the LTTE is in no way the guardian of the Tamil people. In fact it was responsible for totally destroying everything that was Tamil, from people to culture, from economy to coexistence. At no time did Tamil kings hide 30 feet underground claiming that they are the liberators of the community; no Tamil warrior sought refuge behind civilians and no Tamil ruler treaded the path of self-destruction. Tamil emperors tolerated alternative Tamil empires although a certain amount of animosity did exist between them. The Chola, Chera and Pandyan kingdoms provide ample proof of this. However, the modern day self-proclaimed liberators want to be sole custodians of Tamils!
The president has a big task ahead of him; he should save Tamils and Tamil from the ‘liberators’ of Tamils. In order to do that he should destroy Tamil aspirations as demanded by the LTTE and its sympathisers. How can he save Tamils by destroying Tamil aspirations? Simple; it is these misguided tribal aspirations that ruined the Tamil community of this country that lived happily with the rest of the population for 2,000 or more years. What the president must do is to trash the snowball that was put in motion in 1918. If he can do that he will truly liberate the Tamils in Sri Lanka. He has already salvaged a Tamil jungle fighter and elevated him from a dungeon to the parliament in direct contrast to what the LTTE leader has done.
It was someone named Mahinda who brought Buddhism to Sri Lanka and it was Mahinda who took Tamil to the UN. May he live long and prosper.
( The Writer can be reached at trjohnpulle@yahoo.co.uk ) - Sri Lanka Guardian
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