Who are these two leading candidates? Both are Sinhala Buddhist extremists who believe that the Island belongs only to Sinhala Buddhists.
by S. V. Kirubaharan
Sri Lanka's 8th Presidential election will take place on 16th November. Thirty-seven candidates are contesting. Out of these, two are in the lead. Who are they? and What are they up to? are the questions being asked by the international community. Unlike earlier Presidential elections, this one will certainly have serious repercussions on the local as well as on the international community. Whoever wins, there is no shadow of a doubt that the next Executive President of Sri Lanka will be a tyrant or authoritarian.
Who are these two leading candidates? Both are Sinhala Buddhist extremists who believe that the Island belongs only to Sinhala Buddhists.
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| On our way for seven more meetings after launching the manifesto in Kandy, Sajith Premadasa and his wife |
One is Sajith Premadasa - SP, son of former President Premadasa who terrorised the whole country in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s. I mean he was responsible for the mass killings in the South as well as in the North and East. He had no respect for human rights.
The other is Gotabaya Rajapaksa – GR. He was an ex-soldier who ran away from the theatre of war in 1992 and moved to the US. While he was in the military, there were many mass killings under his command in Weli Oya in Mulaithivu district in the North, as well as in Matala district. However, he returned to Sri Lanka in 2005 and was appointed as Defence Secretary by his brother Mahinda Rajapaksa - MR who was then the Executive President of Sri Lanka. He and his brother MR murdered many across the country, from members of parliament, journalists, and lawyers to others in civil society.
During their period, Sri Lanka’s image in the international arena earned shame with wide-spread mass disappearances, killings, detentions, torture, etc. GR was well known as the ‘Man of the white vans’, who kidnapped and eliminated without trace whoever opposed his family politics.
It is to be noted that one time good pals General Sarath Fonseka - SF and GR made bogus claims that they won the war. It is a laughable matter that they are both known as ‘war heroes’ in the South. If the international community and neighbouring India hadn’t supported their war efforts, by now either the Eelam Tamils would have achieved their external right to self-determination or the war would have been prolonged even until today. The truth must prevail in the end! Today GR and SF are attacking each other with different realities and facts.
Now SP and GR are waiting to make Sri Lanka a solely Sinhala Buddhist country. Neither has genuinely appealed for the support of Tamils, who are another ethnic community in the island. When I say Tamils, I refer to Muslims in the island as well.
Members of paramilitary
Of course there are so-called Tamil politicians in the North and East, as well as in other parts of the island who are supportive of GR as well as SP. These so-called Tamil politicians are well known to be members of the paramilitary and are people of duplicity. It’s not clear who the people in the North and East will vote for.
Those paramilitaries who are in support of GR are waiting to take revenge on a section of the Tamil people, some Tamil political parties and politicians. These stooges are not intelligent enough to understand Rajapaksa’s political dilemma.
If members of the paramilitary are serious about the people in the North and East, they need to ask themselves what they have achieved for the people since ‘the end of the war’, using the political influence of Mahinda Rajapaksa? It is to be noted that MR was in power after the war for nearly six years, with executive powers and a two thirds majority in parliament.
These two candidates are not in favour of either India or the West. They both think that their vision of a purely Sinhala Buddhist country will have the full support of China. Long before Mahinda Rajapasa became the President, SP’s father President R Premadasa was hostile to India and sought the help of China.
In the late ‘80s and early ‘90s when the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam were fighting against the IPKF – Indian Peace Keeping Forces in Sri Lanka, Sajeeth praised the LTTE for fighting against the fourth largest army in the world. He took photos with LTTE cadres, when they were in Colombo for negotiations with his father Premadasa. When he got involved in politics he twisted his tongue and spoke against the LTTE.
Copying Israel
These days Sri Lanka is copying most of the things practiced by Israeli patriots. Apart from ex-military personnel being in politics, they are finding all possibilities to become rulers, exactly like in Israel. In Sri Lanka, when it comes to the ethnic conflict, the Sinhala Buddhist rulers have the same approach as Israelis do, on the Palestinian question – Militarisation, Colonisation, and furthermore Signalisation and Buddhisation. Since the end of the war, good progress has been made on these four pillars in the Tamil hereditary land.
Let us analyse the reality of this election. Both candidates are openly and indirectly saying they want to win purely with Sinhala Buddhist votes. Why? Generally the voters in the North, East and Up-country have a lot to say in a Presidential election. As these two candidates are not bothered about, in their term ‘minority votes’, what are they up to?
The current President won the last Presidential election with, in his term ‘minority votes’. He was compelled to say at least for a few years, that he would sort out the ethnic conflict, because those people had voted for him. Later, like other Sinhala Buddhist leaders, he also twisted his tongue. It was no wonder to the Tamils.
These two leading candidates are not saying anything about reconciliation or accountability. As far as reconciliation is concerned, both directly or indirectly maintain that ‘there is no ethnic conflict as such’. With regard to accountability, they give importance only to the security personnel who are in detention and prison. The ex-LTTE cadres who have been in detention without trial for years and years don’t come to their mind. Even if they utter something, it doesn’t come from their hearts. It’s just a tactic to fool the world.
When such a mind wins the election, unlike before, the North and East will become Sinhala Buddhist territory overnight. Those who are working and voting for them will have to ‘shut their mouth’ and keep silent.
Challenges with the West
If GR wins the election, he will face many challenges with the West and the UN. People living in the North will be silenced immediately. I was told by a Singhalese friend that the Rajapaksa family has a hidden plan that, if once again they get a two third majority in Parliament, they want to rename Sri Lanka: ‘Republic of Rajapaksas’.
If SP wins, this will mean a slow death for the people in the North and East. Also Sri Lanka will have another five years interval in the international arena. During that time artful dodgers like Managala Samaraweera and others will fool the international community once more.
In other words either candidate would bring disaster to the people in the North, East and Upcountry. The new Executive President whoever is elected, will create another dark period for the Tamils in Sri Lanka.
Even though I’m disclosing the reality and predicting what will be the future for the Tamils in Sri Lanka, I’m not suggesting anyone should boycott this Presidential election. That move will antagonise the international community. However, be wise, act like people such as the late Kumar Ponnambalam did in every election in Colombo. He went to the polling stations and cast his vote, exercising his democratic rights, but his vote was always null and void.
Kumar Ponnambalam’s followers are not clever or intelligent enough to advise the people in a diplomatic manner. They are only good at further dividing and creating turmoil among the Tamils. Also they are good at gossiping in every nook and corner in the UN building in Geneva.
These days Tamils do not have many politicians who think about the people’s sufferings and their interests. Some Tamil politicians think of their name, fame and also how they can enter parliament to glorify themselves. Many of them seem to not consider the history, language, culture and the future of the people. This narrow attitude is one of the factors permitting ultra Sinhala nationalism to progress well in the island.
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