Who is this man who now declares himself to be a “self-confident idealist, who is a unique fighter against fascism.”
Editorial
It is no secret that there are plenty of Tamil politicians who follow a double standard regarding the political and social rights of the Tamil people. Many of them do not even dream of serving the Tamil people. But they are born to oppress the Tamil people and use those persecutions to fulfil their desires. They have no hesitation in seeking ministerial posts in any government that comes to power and have turned the problems of the Tamil people into a treasure trove for themselves and their henchmen.
Such was the case with the strange politician who some time ago introduced himself as “General Douglas.” Who is this man who now declares himself to be a “self-confident idealist, who is a unique fighter against fascism.” According to recent news published on one of Tamil news websites, Douglas, who uses state resources at his will, has to pay close to Rs. 10 million for electricity bills to the Ceylon Electricity Board alone. Alas, no one is questioning his deliberate default on payments to state institutions. He is the master in the art of dealing. He knows how to handle whatever government comes to power.
Mohandas, who wrote a book about MGR, who was the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, described a peculiar incident that took place in Jaffna many years ago. There he unmasked the "General Douglas" as follows;
"Mention must be made of an extraneous episode, when the electioneering was in full swing, which attracted world attention. American nationals, Stanley Allen and his wife Mary Allen, who were working as water-resource experts under the UN Aid programme in Jaffna (Sri Lanka), were kidnapped by unidentified persons who sent a message to President Jayawardene, demanding a ransom of gold worth 50 million dollars and release of 20 of their colleagues who were under detention. The message also served an ultimatum that, if their demands were not met within three days, the couple would be shot dead.
It was the U.S. Consul General in Madras who first broke the news to me at about 11:00pm one night and appealed for my help. When I wondered what I could possibly do about an incident in Sri Lanka, he said that since I had been dealing with the Tamil militants’ problem, he thought that I could use my expertise. I told him that I would try to do what I could, but, in the meanwhile, the names of detainees (whose release the kidnappers had demanded) could be ascertained and passed on to me so that my officers might be able to identify the militant group involved. Hardly had he rung up, when a call came through from G.Parthasarathy, Chairman of the Foreign Policy Advisory Committee in New Delhi, repeating the story and asking me to help. I informed MGR who asked me to go all-out and get the hostages released.
It was a tall order, but, when some of the names of the detainees were furnished by the American Consul-General, my officers quickly ascertained from our files that they belonged to the PLA (People's
Liberation Army) which was the military wing of the EPRLF. A massive search operation was immediately ordered to get at any of the leaders of the PLA or the EPRLF present in Madras. Partly on information furnished by a reliable source and partly by luck, we raided a house in Madras city and – lo and behold! – the catch was beyond our wildest dreams. There were six men and two women found sleeping. Among the men were (1) Varadaraja Perumal, who later became Chief Minister of the North-Eastern Council; (2) Padmanabha, the Chief of EPRLF, who was killed, along with 13 others in Madras city in 1990, and (3) the self-styled ‘General' Douglas, the ‘Chief of Staff' of the PLA. The men were picked up for questioning, leaving the women behind.
They were taken to a big hotel and comfortably accommodated. Then the grilling began, with only 10 hourse left for the threatened execution of the Allen couple. They denied any knowledge but, when confronted with the names of the detainees whose release was demanded, they admitted that they belonged to the PLA. But they contended that their followers could have acted on their own. When the questioning did not yield any information beyond this, I myself went to the hotel and, in typical dramatic style, told them that whatever happened to the Allen couple in Jaffna would happen to them right in the hotel room. ‘If they are shot', I told them, ‘you will be shot right in this room. If they are released, you will be released.' With four hours to go for the threatened killing of the Allens, mine was purely a psychological bluff. It worked and ‘General' Douglas got in touch with his contact in Jaffna right from the hotel room and ordered the Allens' release in coded words.
Four hours and 68 cigarettes later (as I put it in a recent article), news trickled in through our special channels, that the Allens were left at the Jaffna Bishop's residence – blindfolded but without any physical harm. My sigh of relief could be heard a mile away. The President of the United States thanked and congratulated the Prime Minister of India and the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu. The latter had
a special word of praise for the team which worked round-the-clock and behind the scenes to bring off a well-deserved coup. MGR presented me with a wrist-watch with an in-built tape recorder. He did not say what was the provocation, but I surmised that it was for the good work done in the Allens' rescue – an intelligence operation which could not be officially recognized or rewarded. When I told MGR that I could not accept a gift valued more than Rs. 500 without the permission of the government, pat came the reply: ‘ So what, I’m the Government!’… [source: MGR – The Man and the Myth, 1992, pp.91-93]
Truth is that many people in the peninsula know that General Douglas is neither an idealist nor a “kind, humble, simple believer in humanism”, but a wolf in sheep's clothing. He has no dream or desire to serve the ordinary Tamil people but he has proven that he manipulates their sentiments and controls the opponents with guns. But, he is able to seduce any government that comes to power and become a minister. This is the true face of democracy in Sri Lanka, which has become a tool of the likes of General Douglas. This is why, at a time when the country is suffering from a severe economic crisis, he is waging every possible political scuffle to get a ministry.
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