Tamil Diaspora should lay down the ideology "eelam"

By Dr Raju Selva

(June 23, Melbourne, Sri Lanka Guardian) I am a Tamil living outside Sri Lanka hence by mere definition unfortunately I belong to Tamil Diaspora which I am ashamed of myself of being one of them and I am making this appeal again to the misled pro-LTTE Tamil Diaspora to lay down the ideology “Eelam”.

I have been very critical of the Tamil Diaspora (TD) for chasing an illusion and written articles to many websites criticizing the role played by the TD supporting LTTE terrorist outfit. Some of the letters I have written titled, “LTTE has brought nothing but misery to the Tamils”, “Tamil Diaspora your Money is in vain in supporting LTTE”; LTTE fund raisers vanish with millions of dollars”; “The Tamil Diaspora should stop financing demised LTTE and help our Tamil brothers and sisters in Sri Lanka”. Etc, In all these letters, I have pleaded to the Tamil Diaspora that they are chasing a mirage and to stop financing LTTE. We are here talking about not a couple of hundred dollars but hundreds of millions of dollars which you have contributed every year for a mythical Eelam or a “promised homeland for Tamils” by Prabhakaran. Your hard earned money contributed over the last 25 years brought nothing but misery to us Tamils and all those funds will vanish into thin air very soon.

You would have observed the melancholy and weary faces of the innocent Tamil civilians who were escaping from the clutches of LTTE with soiled clothes and few belongings. When they stepped into the Government controlled area, they were starving, suffering from malnutrition both old, young, kids and infants and with various illnesses. The images of these poor people epitomize thousands of words as to how LTTE has been treating the civilians under their control though the funds were raised by LTTE fronts like TRO on the pretext of helping the poor Tamils albeit the dead Prabhkaran and his family were living in luxury with swimming pools, spas etc. But despite all these, I am sad to find even the educated Tamils Diaspora still can’t get over the fact that LTTE is dead in Sri Lanka, its leader Prabhakaran and family are dead and LTTE all top rank carders are dead. Yet, the Tamil Diaspora in Canada, UK, EU countries and Australia with their siblings continue to agitate with rallies and demos in big cities trying in a vain attempt revive LTTE. For what? Earlier they were demonstrating to get a ceasefire for LTTE survival, failing that they were talking of genocide of Tamils by Sri Lankan forces. Both these strategies miserably failed even with the full backing of the western oriented international community led by UK, USA and EU countries. When LTTE was finally militarily defeated and all its leaders were killed, then the TD changed the tune to welfare centers of the IDPS complaining they are in appalling conditions contrary to what the UN Secretary General had seen and reported.

Suddenly the pro-LTTE Tamil Diaspora has become concerned of the Tamil IDPs in welfare camps; they are concerned about their health, food, clean water, sanitation, and everything. Where were these pro-LTTE Tamil Diaspora when the same IDPs were suffering under the jackboots of Prabhakaran without any of these basic things in life? This is the very reason that many moderate Tamils have got fed up with the TD’s careless attitude towards the suffering of Tamils under LTTE. As a moderate Tamil, I respect the armed forces for rescuing almost 280,000 innocent Tamil civilians who were held as human shield at the expense of deaths of many young soldiers and mind you that they were Sinhala Buddhist soldiers. These young Sinhale Buddhist soldiers sacrificed their lives to save and protect ordinary poor Tamil civilians who have been using as human shield by LTTE. The pro-LTTE Tamil Diaspora who living in luxury in affluent countries is totally responsible for the poor conditions of the Tamils in the once LTTE controlled area as it’s their financial and logistic support that helped Prabahakran to run his “one man show”.

Newest Attempt to hoodwink the gullible pro-LTTE Tamil Diaspora

The newly appointed LTTE chief - Interpol fugitive Kumaran Pathmanathan has teamed up with their LTTE lawyer Rudrakumar Viswanathan who lives in USA trying to give a new face to LTTE and to call it “ provisional transnational government' to work for the next phase of the struggle for a separate Tamil Eelam or Tamil homeland.”. They have not renounced terrorism however. One needs not to be a rocket scientist to fathom the ulterior motive behind this novel idea of “ provisional transnational government' which is nothing but to continue raise funds from the gullible and vulnerable Tamil Diaspora in USA, Canada, UK, Norway, Sweden, France, Switzerland, Germany, Italy, Malaysia and Australia for this new concept (which is not achievable just like the mythical Eelam). This a well schemed ploy by the pro-LTTE TD led by KP so that, they can circumvent any restrictions, prohibitions or monitoring by the law enforcement authorities of LTTE’s fund raising activities in the respective countries. The pro-LTTE Tamil Diaspora can always tell the respective governments in the international community that they are nor raising funds for LTTE but for a provisional transnational government' which is purported to be based on democratic values as they say.

Already KP is rich by $300,000 million and he is in clash with Thava Eliyathamby of Canada and Kathirkamathamby Arivazakan aka Castro for LTTE assets who disown KP as the legal custodian of LTTE assets. Tamil Diaspora has now been broken into many splinter groups and fight to get hold of the LTTE assets in bank balances, properties, lucrative business enterprises, shipping, share investments spread in many countries mostly earned thro illegal means. Very soon , these countries will experience mafia like gang wars between KP group, Thawa group, Castro group and other splinter groups to get a hold of LTTE assets.

Having tasted big MONEY, the present self appointed leader Kumaran Pathmanatha aka KP, Canadian guy Thava Eliyathambi responsible for collecting funds fro Tamil Canadians and another contender Kathirkamathamby Arivazakhan aka Castro are in clash with each other for the LTTE Assets. The reports coming from various sources say that the LTTE funds now are being distributed among the families of the of these three top rankers of the Tamil Diaspora spread in the western block. They have started owning shopping malls in Canada and UK, lucrative business enterprises and properties in UK, USA, Norway, Sweden Switzerland, France, Germany, Italy, Malaysia, Australia and Colombo, and share market investments etc. Whose money is that? It’s laundered money and Tamil Diaspora’s contributions and donations over the years.

The new facet of LTTE in the international arena led by KP or Thawa or Castro are targeting your dollar or pound again for a non existent conceptual entity. Stop being taken for another ride again. You have paid for 25 years for what? Nothing but for luxury lives of the LTTE hierarchy in Sri Lanka and the top hierarchy of the pro-LTTE Tamil Diaspora. Investigate the wealth of those leading pro-LTTE Tamil Diaspora and question as to how they came to possess with so much of wealth.

If you have an iota of concern to the Tamils living in the North and East, the Tamil Diaspora should stop funding pro-LTTE fronts any more but get involved with the current Sri Lankan government under the leadership of President Rajapaksa and help in their development programs in the East and North to bring a better tomorrow for those poor Tamils.

-Sri Lanka Guardian