Sri Lanka’s Truth will be known by Sri Lankans only and they are the only ones independent of lower influences – including from the West. They will lead Sri Lanka to Peace by their mere presence on this earth.
l by Gaja Lakshmi Paramasivam
(November 13, Melbourne, Sri Lanka Guardian) The Sri Lankan issue has become a global issue. With it, we are seeing many Lankan leaders being ‘demoted’ in the eyes of the International Community. That reminds me of an experience, when our son went from primary school to secondary school which accommodated students from other primary schools. The principal of the secondary school – Waverley College of Our Lady’s Mount at the Sydney suburb of Waverley, said to our son to expect many outstanding students from various schools. The message was - at the higher level – all were important and no one was particularly important. Sri Lankan leaders need to also learn that at the Global level – all are important but no one is particularly important. If they treat other global players as being particularly important – then they are compromising on their Equal status and thus reduce their Opportunity to be ‘seen’ as Global.
As per the news received yesterday from the UK, Wije Dias of World Socialist Website says about TNA’s recent visit to the USA and the UN ‘No official statements were released either by the TNA, the US State Department or the UN. However, a revealing reference was made last Friday by State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland. In the course of a routine media briefing, she reported that Wendy Sherman had met with the TNA delegates in order to emphasise that the US had “high expectations for the Lessons Learned and Reconciliation Commission report which is due later in the month—not only that the report will be of highest quality, but that the Sri Lankan Government will take steps to implement it.”
Sherman’s comments would have made immediately clear to the TNA delegation that Washington had not the slightest intention of providing any, even nominal, assistance. The Lessons Learned and Reconciliation Commission is a crude attempt by the Sri Lankan government to cover up the atrocities carried out by the military in the course of its war against the LTTE. The fact that the US is treating such a sham as legitimate signals a shift away from its previous calls for an international inquiry into Sri Lankan war crimes.’
True as per my experience also. I said in this regard, in my article ‘Terrorism Charges – Judging Ourselves’, published by Sri Lanka Guardian :
As per the Sunday Times, our Minister for Foreign Affairs, the Hon Kevin Rudd, says in this regard:
Question: How important is it to have a human rights watch? Do you think and then also are you concerned about Sri Lanka's human rights record…?
Kevin Rudd: ‘On the particular question of Sri Lanka that you raise the Australian national position. When it comes to human rights problems in Sri Lanka, it is well documented. We simply say very clearly to our friends in Sri Lanka that it is of fundamental importance that the upcoming reconciliation commission report deal with the various questions which have now been raised in the UN report on allegations of human rights abuses within Sri Lanka. Furthermore the Australian national position is that the UN Human Rights Council needs to revisit its earlier deliberations on this matter. These are generally the position of many governments across the world. When it comes to the Commonwealth agenda itself the Commonwealth Foreign Ministers' Meeting, Heads of Government Meeting provide opportunities also to raise these matters. ‘
I receive the above by our Minister, Mr. Rudd, on the basis of our Common Belief as Australians and also as per his Department’s inclusion of me in Community meetings – which I believe happened due to my belief in the issue at the ‘National level’. It happened naturally - without any calculations on my part. When we ‘believe’ – whatever we witness with this belief in our hearts – is ‘good’ for us. Those observed facts confirm our inner Truth. Facts witnessed without belief go towards structuring the problem and therefore the solution. They do not go to the root of the solution.
I believe/d in the Australian Government and despite the ‘defeats’ through the legal system the resulting and loss of status – I was able to preserve that belief because I worked genuinely and independently to invest in the Administrative part of the Government. Some of that investment at the Prime Ministerial level happened by sacrificing the benefits and opportunities I had earned at the lower levels, to raise my work to the National and International levels. If we ‘take’ the benefits at the lower levels, we limit ourselves to those levels. We would then not have ‘vision’ beyond those levels. This seems to have happened to the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) – the Political Party that is associated more than any other party, with the LTTE.
If TNA had gone to those Tamils who believed in the American Government – they would have saved themselves the drop in status as highlighted above. A genuine investor in the American Government - including through its Administrative arms, would have known that the concessions being allowed by the American Government to parts of the Tamil Community in Sri Lanka are largely due to the American Tamils in whom they would have invested at various levels. TNA needs to consider whether by going Global publicly and Separately – it was losing status at home prematurely.
There are no known Administrative systems through which TNA which does not have official Opposition status, could Publicly associate with Western Governments. Culturally, TNA and other Tamil Political Parties have strong influence with India, through Tamil Nadu. Tamils living in Western countries committed to Equal Opportunity Values, have this influence with Western Governments. This influence has become stronger after 9/11. Had the TNA submitted its status to include itself with Tamil Community Groups beyond Sri Lanka, it would now not be seen to have lost status with the American Government and the UN.
Our actions happen due to a combination of the following three:
(1) Our physical body’s direct influence. The make up of the body is such that it needs the minimum the level of intake it has been used to habitually. Left on its own – it will indulge in intakes until it can take no more. That it is our commonness with animals.
(2) Our surface memory’s direct influence. Our memory registers information as we grow up in an environment. During our younger days, it is largely from outside – including from those who ‘give’ us or deny us what our gross body likes to have. When we are able to obtain/earn from zero base – these benefits - those whom we have registered as being important become buried under this new information – which could be new people or the benefits themselves. When add and deduct the costs and benefits as per level (1) – the net balance is registered in our memories. Intellectuals / Academics make further summaries of these net balances and keep them as theories and principles in their minds.
(3) Experience/Truth without any trace of the above two. At this level – our Truth controls our memory (2) which would have controlled our physical senses(1). Where there is no memory we would have the experience as part of the environment – without any particular identity for ourselves and our work.
In terms of food, when we eat tasty food with ‘good but not tasty’ food – the intake is complete and is healthy. If Government with status is tasty, Opposition that shows/highlights the ‘other’ side – the costs – of the benefits highlighted by the Government is healthy. Sri Lankan Government driven by votes in Sri Lanka – especially votes of those who do not invest directly outside Sri Lanka, is used to tasty food. This when continued with becomes addictive at the physical level and leaves the Government craving those votes. The level above which vitamins / opposition could be produced in their environment is excessive and hence becomes an addiction and craving beyond the control of the mind. This is an addiction suffered by those who come into the position of politically driven governments, including the Government in Sri Lanka. They usually enjoy benefits way above their earned levels and thus lose their balance.
Hence the alternative available is to do the merit based rights and wrongs through the Administrative system and register those outcomes in the mind of the Government. That would bring us the status needed to continue to be actively involved at the Global level. Political status would not be freely shared by leading Governments of the West, that derive status due to their investments in the Doctrine of Separation of powers between Politics and Administration – between Brawn and Brain – between Belief and Merit. The former would be ‘right’ only when we are in our local / biological habitats. Tamils of Colombo gave form to the lack of investment by the Sri Lankan Government in this Doctrine of Separation of Powers. The soldiers who were killed in 1983, by the LTTE, confirmed that Tamil leaders without their memory of the British were as local as the Sinhalese leaders in Colombo. Their minds were driven by their desire to hold on to the past – which to a degree was influenced by their British masters – the parallels of today’s western governments. Only the genuine work and sacrifices we made in Administration gives us the self-confidence to consider ourselves Equal to Sinhalese. Every citizen whose investment in rights and wrongs through common measures is greater than her/his investment in likes and dislikes as per the gross body and/or the surface memory – is progressing towards living in the wider world – outside the local biological environment. This wider world could be Colombo, Kandy or even Jaffna. But if they come without this higher investment they would end up contributing to the conflict by promoting politics above administration. We have all had a taste of what happens when we come into new environments with strong attachment to the past.
Many communities made up largely of refugees, need to form their own Community groups to represent them to mainstream society. This is not limited to Tamils or Asians alone. Even Europeans form such ghettoes in Australia and other countries they migrate to. Political migrants such as those from Britain to Australia – also form these ghettoes including at workplaces. They need that support to think they are Equal to the highest achiever from another culture. It’s this thought of Equality that helps us naturally and quietly share Common Facilities. But anything above that level needed to think equal becomes abusive when it is not covered by merit basis at the individual level. This is the value of Administration.
We may use our politics to feel Equal citizens but our actions showing superiority need to be measurable through merit, using common laws.
The ethnic issue was of importance to the West, until it felt safe of the threat of Terrorism from any coalition between LTTE and other rebel forces outside Sri Lanka. Their listing of the LTTE as a terrorists group, was taken as a move to discourage Tamil civilians from giving ‘free’ money and status to the LTTE. After the Battle of Vanni – they seem to have listed in their minds, Sri Lanka in the ‘low risk’ category. They, including the UN, seemed to switch alliances between the Government of Sri Lanka and the LTTE respectively towards achieving this objective for themselves – their own peace of mind. None of them was/is seen to be broad enough to ‘include’ the Common Sri Lankan as part of itself . The help they rendered as a group to help those who seemed to suffer below acceptable humanitarian level, was not deep enough to stay with us long enough. The length of time of stay after the event, confirms the depth of feelings in the investment/costs.
To my mind, the moment these Western Governments felt satisfied that there was very little risk of the violence in Sri Lanka reaching their shores, they started pulling their minds out of Sri Lanka and rightly so. To a degree, this also explains why they are now cutting down on refugee intakes from Sri Lanka and other countries torn by war. They enter the country through the weakest minds; influence to weaken the risk to themselves and then they exit unless the small country is otherwise attractive for regular life of Americans. It is an – ‘each country for itself’ practice.
Those who are however, by now addicted to the Western attention, are beginning to suffer from ‘withdrawal symptoms’. TNA in its turn is showing signs of ADD (Attention Deficiency Disorder). TNA needed to stay at ‘home’ and develop the Administrative and Judicial systems in Tamil areas as per the beliefs of Tamils all over the world.
In Politics, we show only one side of the whole at the physical level. Our belief is given form through One person. We need another to complete the physical picture.
In Merit Based Intellectual Administration, we have the opportunity to use both sides – one apparent and the other supporting the apparent from below. We need to use discriminative thinking and think for both sides. Hence Intellectual Administration is the power of minorities in a system of Democracy. To my mind, it was this strength of Tamils that threatened Sinhalese leaders who lacked belief in their British Administrative Elders. It is still a threat – but only if the Tamil Diaspora is included. Desire brings fear naturally with it. That is the law of Nature. The LTTE is a personification of these fears. The moment the Sri Lankan Government earns its status as a Government by paying the costs / discipline before receiving the benefits / pleasures – the LTTE menace would cease to exist in its minds. To that extent the belief of Tamils about the LTTE would also be the belief of the Government – and that would help them manage any excesses. Anything beyond the belief of Tamils and outside merit basis – is confirmation of the Government’s own desires for unearned benefits. Likewise about the Government of Sri Lanka in the minds of Tamils who support revenge through the LTTE method.
As with everything else, the above events would be interpreted differently by different parties – each as per their needs and desires. As a Tamil living in Australia, I see very little real value in such meeting, as TNA had with the Americans and the UN. Tamils living in America and the West, would naturally be of importance to these Governments of the West. But TNA on its own does not have an official mandate. If TNA had won the position of Opposition in Parliament – then certainly it would have been recognized strongly by Western Governments. It can and did in 1977. Like the support from Americans and the UN, this status as Equal Opposition to the Executive Government – was short-lived due to lack of belief in using the Administrative path. Politicians sought devolution and armed groups sought separation.
At the Global level, Tamils still have the opportunity to use the Administrative path to think equal and/or feel common with any other citizen in the country we live in. When this is shared with Tamils in Sri Lanka at the levels of our status when we left Sri Lanka and no more – we would be respected at the highest levels of our achievements as individuals which would also be as a Community. When I go to my grandmother’s home village of Arali/Sangarathai-Thunaivi in North – I do not take status above the level of my grandmother as known by me. In Colombo, I take my higher professional status as senior executive at Airlanka and no more. Then I share most naturally. Anything more would take additional work and anything less would need sacrifice. Both – additional sharing and sacrifice – need to be given ‘form’ from zero base and not be seen as a program continuing from the past.
There is real value in the pain and loss of every individual civilian. Tamils as a minority group, need to strengthen their forbearance and consciously rely on their own Truth, rather than on theory apparently common to all. TNA’s reality is that it could not prevent the pain and loss of Tamil civilians due to the events in 2009. Any political solution would therefore need to be within the limits of the TNA. By seeking the help of the West in the territory of the West, TNA is confessing to lacking in substance to attract the West to itself.
TNA could have worked to connect their people to the Tamil Diaspora who I believe have greater clout with Western Governments than local politicians in Sri Lanka. In turn, the Tamil as well as Sinhala Diasporas need to invest more strongly in Intellectual Administration, strengthen their minds through the broader investments by the West and then take themselves back to Sri Lanka to share this by merging with those at the level of status when they left Sri Lanka. Anything above is ‘NOT MADE IN SRI LANKA’ and therefore would be lost/taken over hastily.
Sri Lanka’s Truth will be known by Sri Lankans only and they are the only ones independent of lower influences – including from the West. They will lead Sri Lanka to Peace by their mere presence on this earth.
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