Victory Day, a Sad Day for Tamils

By Thomas Johnpulle

(May 16, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) Why do religious laws and national laws differ? That’s because the former follows what is naturally good and the latter follows what is nationally right. Sri Lanka can legitimately hold a victory day parade and other celebrations but it is inevitable North-East Tamils are going to get hurt. Those who feel hurt cannot be labelled as Tigers since all sections of the North-East Tamil community went through a very bad patch in March-May 2009.

There is nothing to celebrate in that. Celebrations open up old wounds. It is therefore advisable that the government cancels the planned celebrations and instead give priority to religious observations and campaigns to rebuild the lives of soldier families. Rapid resettlement of all displaced people is another good deed that can be done to commemorate the event. Not only Tamils, but also Muslims and Sinhalas were displaced by the war.

Soldiers Welfare Verses Politicians’ Fanfare

The hard won victory belongs to poor soldiers. Sadly, politicians fight over it. Ridiculously, this fight for war credit sent one to prison and the other to permanent loss of friendship with the former, whereas none of them own it! Although all Sri Lankans have a stake in the victory, soldiers deserve it more. Has anything improved in the lives of soldiers and their families, both living and dead, for the past 12 months? No is the answer.

The war killed 27,000 young men on each side permanently disabling around 40,000. On top of that a large number of civilians died or suffered injury. Their welfare, not politicians’ fanfare is what matters most. No Tamil would be hurt if government addresses the grievances of soldiers instead of holding celebrations. It is in favour of national security and rationality as well. Certainly soldiers would love it. It’s a rare case when both military and Tamil needs can be achieved in one event. So why not do it that way?

Appreciative of 3,600 Lives Saved

People are appreciative of ending the war. Over 3,600 lives were saved by not having war for the past 12 months. By any standard this is a great achievement. In other words, around 10 persons used to die on average everyday from 1983 to 2009 due to war no matter under what name it was fought. Most of these lives saved are Tamils because most victims of the war were Tamils. Although Tamil people are appreciative, sadly Tamil politicians are not. They function as if nothing good has come by the ending of the war. Value of these saved lives is felt by their families and friends, not by communal minded politicians.

In another two years, the number of saved lives will reach 10,800. That’s a staggering number of young lives. They would even not know that their lives are intact thanks to the ending of the war in 2009. Those who never felt the war, ridicule this noble achievement while grumbling about what they didn’t get. They lost nothing due to war and therefore don’t stand to gain any by its absence.

Allowing people to show their gratefulness for saving their life and limb to security forces is a better way of remembering May 2009.

Triumphalism Verses Defeatism

All ills caused by triumphalism have an equal contribution from defeatism. Triumphalism alone cannot be bad for anyone. Its defeatism that affects some that causes them to reject the May 2009 triumph. Only a few really feel defeated; most others feel the pain of war’s suffering. May 2009 is not all about triumph. Scores of civilians died, displaced, disabled and traumatized. Whenever remembered, all these thoughts flood the minds of Tamils. Government should handle this sensitive issue with care. Thoughts of suffering and displacement shared by the entire Tamil community should not be mistaken for defeatism.

While addressing the needs of both groups – those who suffered most due to war and those who sacrificed most to win the war – the government should embark on a process of building multi-ethnic harmony and communities in war ravaged areas. Only such a cosmopolitan society can nurture peace, not a racially demarcated country. However, communal elements will vehemently disagree to it sensing the multiethnic harmony it brings like in Colombo. Unable to keep people separated, demarcated and divided based on race they will feel powerless and miserable. That completes the peace process set in motion by war’s end. Threats to peace should be avoided and eliminated no matter how unpopular it is.