Instant reactions to Malini Parthasarathy’s Mirage of Eelam

A Sri Lankan Editorial Comment:

(April 25, Chennai, Sri Lnaka Guardian) Apart from our own Priya Ramakrishnan’s comment on Malini Parthasarathy’s “Mirage of Eelam” there have been instant reactions in the Indian press especially in Tamilnadu appreciative of how she had focused on the problems in Sri Lanka.

We were certainly not surprised and expected such an avalanche of favourable reactions giving a lie especially to the politicians of Tamilnadu who have apparently placed their political fortunes by whipping up the masses in the line of the LTTE. Their conduct is pathetic and they are even trying to blackmail the federal politicians to make it possible for the Tiger terror chief to have a new lease of life.

This is not the way people of India feel towards terrorists and certainly Prabhakaran in particular who could spell horrendous consequences to Sri Lanka. We publish below some of the reactions to the most welcome feature of Malini Parthasarathy, her observations, views and conclusions.

We hope Tamilnadu politicians will wake up not only to what is actually needed in Sri Lanka but also to the sense of service above self they evidently lack.

Mirage of Eelam
Courtesy: The Hindu

The article “The mirage of Eelam” by Malini Parthasarathy (April 24) was excellent. It nailed the myth that the LTTE is the sole protector of the Tamils in Sri Lanka; a myth created and fuelled by most of the political parties and the media in Tamil Nadu. It is clear that the LTTE, in order to safeguard its top leadership, is causing immense hardship to the Tamil civilians caught in the war between the Tigers and the security forces. It is also clear that the culture of committing suicide, by swallowing a cyanide capsule if caught, is meant only for the lower level LTTE cadres.

M. Sivakumar, Hyderabad

Ms Parthasarathy’s article has thoroughly exposed LTTE chief V. Prabakaran as the sole architect and destroyer of the Sri Lankan Tamils’ aspirations. What started as a genuine struggle to emancipate the minority Tamil population was soon hijacked by the LTTE, which resorted to a killing spree by eliminating the prominent leaders of all other Tamil groups. Prabakaran sabotaged all well-meaning overtures by India and successive Sri Lankan governments. One hopes he is eliminated soon so that moderate Tamil leaders can negotiate an honourable settlement.

Capt. T. Raju (retd.), Secunderabad

There are some who are not prepared to accept that the phase of achieving equality for the Tamils through war is over. They hope against hope that the LTTE will bounce back. But that is no longer possible. A prolongation of the end phase will only lead to more human suffering, not an amazing turnaround in the LTTE’s fortunes. In an ethnic conflict, there can be no unilaterally imposed solutions. The LTTE should lay down arms and allow the civilians to move out of the no-war zone.

Rajesh Padmanabhan, Queensland, Australia

Ms Parthasarathy’s article is an informed, insightful analysis of the present scenario in Sri Lanka. Prabakaran has lost control over the civilians who were hitherto being used as human shields by him. His obstinate stand on a separate Eelam has become his nemesis.

N. Hariharan, Coimbatore

The LTTE’s dictatorial approach, coupled with its ruthless and unwise elimination of the leaders of TELO, PLOTE and EPRLF, made it politically, militarily, and morally weak in the eyes of the international community. Its disgraceful collapse started when it assassinated Rajiv Gandhi. The LTTE’s fall is a lesson to all terrorist groups in the world. No organisation can survive by killing people.

J. Eden Alexander, Thanjavur

The author’s forceful indictment of the LTTE’s fascist ways should open the eyes of politicians in Tamil Nadu. It is clear that the LTTE has proved to be the major stumbling block in the resolution of the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka. Its resistance to peace offers over the years and its disdain for Indian mediation stood in the way of the resolution of the vexed conflict. It is heartening to note that the Tamils in Sri Lanka have now understood the LTTE’s game and are willing to go for a peaceful settlement.

J. Anantha Padmanabhan, Srirangam

The article has detailed the genesis of the Tamil upheaval in Sri Lanka. Sadly, it was the Indian government under Indira Gandhi that armed the Tamil militants ostensibly to create trouble for J.R. Jeyewardane. The “boys” were at best street-fighters with no formal training in modern warfare, which was provided by New Delhi. The sibling rivalry and the murder of moderates and rival militant outfits by the LTTE left the Tamils in the island nation with no alternative except buying the promised separate statehood through bloody means. The displaced Tamil diaspora continued to fund the terror organisation. The biggest challenge to the Rajapaksa government starts now — that of rehabilitating lakhs of Tamils who are internally displaced and require humanitarian assistance.

C.V. Venkateswaran, Coimbatore

Though armed struggle can provide the muscle for a movement, it cannot be sustained in the long term. Lasting peace can be achieved only through a peaceful process. War cannot lead to peace. The LTTE should agree to negotiate if it truly wants to address the Tamil cause.

Yugal Joshi, Mumbai

The article was well timed to expose the LTTE’s role in the Sri Lankan Tamils issue to the younger generation, which is misguided by the views of various political parties. The political class in Tamil Nadu has paid undue attention to the LTTE and its leader, while practically doing nothing for the actual cause.

Mathew T. Abraham, Chennai

The LTTE is a terrorist organisation that deserves no sympathy from anyone, including the people of Tamil Nadu. Once the Sri Lankan Tamils are freed from the LTTE’s clutches, answers to the ethnic conflict will be found.

Kannan Krishnamurthy, Bangalore

The article has omitted the fact that the Tamils were protesting peacefully for their rights before the 1980s. The Sri Lankan government did nothing to allay their fears. As for the argument that the crisis facing the Tamil community at best remains an ethnic crisis, I do not agree with it. The question of equality among all the people in a country is the most important national question. In Sri Lanka, only a Buddhist Sinhalese can become the President of the nation. How can such blatant inequality constitute an “ethnic crisis?”

Bala Paramasivam, Madurai

-Sri Lanka Guardian