Wanted: A New Tamil Leader For Peace In Sri Lanka

by Dr. Noel Nadesan

Editorial in chief of the Uthayam, community paper based in Melbourne

(November 30, Melbourne, Sri Lanka Guardian) What no Tamil thought would happen in Jaffna is now shocking the world: the Tamils are carrying the Sri Lankan flag and hailing the victory of the Sri Lankan forces in Pooneryn.

We may not like it and say Sri Lankan Government propaganda. But even if one Tamil in Jaffna is voting with his/her feet, carrying the Sri Lankan flag, then who are we to say “NO”? This is a clear signal for the Tamils in the Diaspora to wake up and take notice of the responses of our desperate people. This new trend is not going to end here. World is moving forward and away from LTTE. Tamils also moving away from Prabaharan’s dream except some diehard Tamil expatriate and few self-seeking Tamilnadu politicians. It is going to gather momentum as the Tigers run abandoning the people. The people have nowhere to go except to embrace the Sri Lankan flag. They see hope in it more than in the Tiger flag. This is not surprising as the war-weary Tamils are yearning for peace – any sort of peace.

Over the years the Tamils have gone through enough suffering mainly due to blind stupidity of our leadership. Our people see no salvation in fighting any more. More fighting means more deaths, more widows, more hunger, more suffering. For how long are our people going to suffer for a political illusion that has wasted the best energies of our people?

Our Mahaveer heroes in the Tamil Diaspora have to seriously consider the future of the Tamils in Sri Lanka. Do they seriously believe that they can stop the Sri Lankan forces from advancing into Killinochchi? They are hanging around in Western capitals because they know that Prabhakaran cannot stop the advance. So they are running desperately behind their MPs and Churchmen to stop the forces. They have played all their cards and drawn a blank.

The Western capitals that were giving them a helping hand have now washed their hands off Prabhakaran. The last card was to activate Tamil Nadu. But what is the result? Chief Minister Karunanidhi double-crossed the Tamils and threw the resignation handed by his daughter into the wastepaper basket. It was big news when he threatened to pull out of the Manmohan Singh government .Is anybody talking about it now? How long are we going to deceive our own people?
Our people have being living on a diet of false promises. The misguided Tamils in the diaspora are financing these false promises which are leading to more deaths. Neither the Tamil people nor the Tiger cadres can live on false promises forever. Sooner or later the truth will dawn on them and then they will realize that they can find some hope only in the Sri Lankan flag.

After thirty odd years of failure everyone we are forced to admit that what is needed now is not war but peace. We missed all the chances that were given to us when the Tigers shot the Ceasefire Agreement to pieces. We should have used the offer given to us and consolidated our position with the backing of the international community. Now we have nothing. As a last resort our people are rushing to seek shelter behind the Sri Lankan flag. It is a slap in the face of the Velupillai Prabhakaran who promised everything and is now left with nothing. At least our people know that under the Sri Lankan flag no one would come knocking on their doors to drag our children to fight in a useless war which is heading towards a disastrous end.

At the moment everyone is waiting for the Heroes’ Day speech of Prabhakaran. He has lost the war. What can he offer now? He will blame everybody except himself? How does that help our people? Did he take the leadership blame others? Or is he there to save our people? If so when? And how? More importantly, how can he save the people when he trying to save himself?

He will have no answers when he delivers his speech this time in some hide-out in Mullativu. If he has no answers then isn’t it time that we Tamils found another new leader who can give us peace? Any mug can give excuses or blame the others. Leader who led the Tamils in to war has failed. What we need is a new leader to bring peace and save our people from extinction - Sri Lanka Guardian