Pawns of an Un-heroic War: UTHR (J) Special Report

University Teachers for Human Rights (Jaffna)
Sri Lanka
UTHR(J)

Special Report No. 31 has been released

follow this link for report:

http://uthr.org/SpecialReports/spreport31.htm

What we need? | Why we cannot wait?

by Tanuja Thurairajah

‘We shall overcome’
Martin Luther King Jr.


The times are inseparable from our past and we reap what we have sowed both consciously and unconsciously. The present generation consist of those who exacerbate ignorance blinded by development and forward thinking while others, the voices that shout for justice and peace are drowned effortlessly in this obscene din.

Façade

“The terrorist asserts that he loves only the socially redeeming qualities of his murderous act, not the act itself.” Rationalization of guilt, D. Guttman (1979:525)

Civil rights movements have come and gone and will continue to be born but a movement such as Dr. Martin Luther King’s in his historical struggle against racial segregation and racism, is yet to come. A passion we have witnessed as unrelenting and almost as unselfish. As Dr. King explained, it is essential to understand ‘Why we cannot wait’. We cannot wait another day, we cannot lose another life, but what futility are we struggling against. Is it futility? or is it merely indifference?. Military methods, Satyagraha nor peace talks have made any progress in finding solutions to the Sri Lankan problem. The Tiger’s have always held that their liberation struggle is for the emancipation of the Tamils while the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) is spawning a beast that is now systematically strangling the little hope for peace that we thought we had. In reality the hero worship of terrorists and terrorism has become a fanatic culture in the world today. This same fanaticism drives the ‘popularity’ of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) controlling the psyche of the thousands and thousands of Tamils using what is popularly known as ‘dead body politics’ (a term resulting from Katherine Verdery’s work) making them blind or forcing them not to see through the clever façade, ending in a situation so desperately hopeless. It is quite clear that Tamils are discriminated and marginalised, that they are also tortured merely because they are Tamils; they are killed, raped and mutilated in mind and soul. But it is not merely the Sinhalese racists and nationalists that are responsible for this, it is their very own ‘emancipators’ that they so steadfastly believe in, that are responsible for crushing their identity in the pretext of fighting for their freedom. It is time to stop blaming people around us and look into our own conscience. How can one ignore the undeniable fact that terrorism and violence can never emancipate us.

The Link

We are living in a vortex of violence, bloodshed and impunity. Our country is losing its people every minute and every second. The mass exodus of refugees, of migrants, of desperate people seeking desperate measures to stay alive and the numbers are staggering. It is stated that 125,000 Sri Lankans have been registered as refugees abroad as of January 1, 2006 (1) in relation to the current context of conflict in Sri Lanka. People leave to start new lives, to forget the trauma of the war, as Diaspora, amidst the strangeness of another land, to lose their identities over and over again. But what undermines the power of the people? is it their own indifference and lack of confidence in their potential.

We need a citizens’ movement to stimulate debates on democratic means to end the war, to find means of ‘combating’ and reforming this Government which has clearly lost all control and balance, to re-commence discussion on federalism through the All Party Representative Committee (APRC) process and the establishment of processes which legitimise the rights of the Tamils and the Muslims. Each in itself a daunting task and the urgency has already come. We cannot wait anymore. This essay will try to focus mainly on one important aspect, the change needed in the minds of the Tamils for a balanced political consciousness. We need to talk more openly of the fact that the Tamils are really prisoners of their own conscience, since there will be no emancipation until they break away from the shackles of ignorance. The ignorance that their ‘emancipators’ are really their enslavers. It is obvious that the Tamil’s are divided as ‘liberators’, ‘supporters of the liberators/ ardent followers of Tamil nationalism’, ‘sympathisers of the liberators’ and ‘traitors’. Whilst the ‘liberators’ and their supporters strive towards breaking down the dignity of the Tamil people the feeble voices of the ‘traitors’ or voices of dissent are silenced and maimed while the indifference of the sympathisers permeates the situation with hopelessness. We need a force to break down these so-called ‘liberators’ and their ‘supporters’. To put an end to the mind-frame that enables the fundraising, the arms deals and most of all, the killing, maiming and torturing of innocent children in the name of the freedom struggle. We need to analyse the psyche behind this lust for violence and find solutions to deal with it.

The link between the Diasporic Tamil community and the existing Tamil communities in Sri Lanka is a strong and potent link. According to the Jane’s Intelligence Review of 2007 the LTTE obtains income of around US$ 200 to 300 million per year from various front organisations run by the Diaspora both legally and illegally, including credit card fraud and narcotics trafficking. Fundraising methods vary from collections at Hindu temples, door to door, for public events such as celebration of ‘Martyrs Day’ etc. The lobbying and propaganda machine of the LTTE consists of front organsiations formed as societies or groups of which the most prominent ones are the World Tamil Movement recently blacklisted as a terrorist organisation after investigations were concluded to deduce its relationship with the LTTE, and the Tamil Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO). Even though funds collected through these front organisations are sent for the rehabilitation of war victims, a significant part of it feeds into the war operations of the LTTE.

Apart from the remittances, the Tamil Diaspora constantly feed the popular opinion that sustains the ‘liberation struggle’ of the LTTE, and most importantly uphold the LTTE as the sole representatives of the Sri Lankan Tamil community and that a military victory is the only way towards emancipation of Tamil rights through the ultimate creation of Tamil Eelam. The sole representative of the Tamil community claim has been upheld by both the LTTE in its peace negotiations and masses of Tamil diaspora through public rallies and protests.

In June 2006 after unilaterally aborting the Oslo Meeting on scheduled for June 8 & 9, the LTTE issued a statement on June 9 in which it also talks about the ‘de facto state of Tamil Eelam’, the LTTE reiterates its identification as the "authentic representative of the Tamil Nation and its sole interlocutor in the current peace process" as well as the "sole defender and protector of the Tamil Nation, its People and the State institutions with its modern defence forces" (2) almost two years after, Prabakaran, in his Heroes Day speech in November 2004, stated that ‘While the verdict of the general election helped to reinforce Sinhala-Buddhist hegemonism in the Sinhala south, Tamil nationalism arose as a unified collective force in the northeastern Tamil homeland. The political ideals of our liberation organisation received the overwhelming support of the Tamil people. Our organisation received the popular endorsement as the sole representative of our people.’ (3) Here Prabakaran refers to the General Election of 2 April 2004 and the supposedly overwhelming support the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) received from the peoples of the North and East given the LTTE’s clear and ominous threat that ‘no other rival Tamil party (or Tamil candidate from the mainstream political alliances) to the TNA would be able to claim to represent Tamil interests. A chilling message to this effect was sent early in the campaign when a UNP candidate and an EPDP activist were murdered. Incidents such as this seriously restricted the right of parties other than the TNA to campaign freely in the North and East.’ (4)

The Tamil diaspora and various diaspora supported front organisations have very vociferously supported in strengthening LTTE’s claim of sole representatorship. In Sydney Australia on 6 July 2008 a mass of Tamil diaspora celebrated Pongu Thamizh with placards stating ‘the LTTE is the only Sole and Authentic Representatives of the Tamil People’. Also in many other parts of the world like United Kingdom, Canada, Switzerland, Germany, Italy, France, Denmark, Finland, Norway, New Zealand, South Africa etc. Pongu Thamizh was celebrated in grand scale holding high placards of the LTTE leader while also concentrating on the commercial side of the celebrations through the sale of T-Shirts, umbrellas and other propoganda material bearing symbols of the LTTE and Tamil Eelam. The phenomenon of bringing together the diaspora as a mass propaganda and fundraising tool has been rapidly growing, with the inclusion of children in the cultural shows staged at these events. It lends a sense of desperation to see children being used to further the political agendas of the older generation. A recent fundraising event (5) in Thurgau, Switzerland in which the main highlight was a presentation of LTTE cadres in action using children around the age of 10 or younger. The photographs currently circulating in the web sphere show these children with various fake weaponry with visages emoting a sense of innocent preoccupation with the task at hand, an absolutely disgusting situation to be put into, and here we have many organisations and groups fighting for the rights of these young children in terms of the atrocities of child labour, recruitment, prostitution and sexual abuse while the parents themselves do not realise the absolute despicability of their actions.

The direct influence or involvement of ‘diaspora nationalism’ has clearly become a phenomenon with its far-reaching implications on the conflict, the sustenance of the popularity of the LTTE by projecting the ‘opinion of the masses’ which in the end creates a false belief that all Tamils are for the ‘cause’ through military means and separate statehood.

Ignatieff highlights this phenomenon very succinctly;

…Diaspora nationalism is a dangerous phenomenon because it is easier to hate from a distance: You don’t have to live with the consequences – or the reprisals … Canadians, new and old, need to think about what role diasporas play in fanning and financing the hatreds of the outside world. The disturbing possibility is that Canada is not an asylum from hatred but an incubator of hatred……(Michael Ignatieff, The Globe and Mail, 25 October 2001) (6)

Cheran in his paper argues that such an opinion has its problems since it ‘homogenizes Diaspora nationalism and new immigrants’. Nevertheless, Ignatief’s comment on the Diaspora phenomenon throws an alarming and real insight into the blind fanaticism of Tamil Diasporic nationalism. But what drives this fanaticism?

The irony behind those who propagate ‘popular opinion’ is that even though they feed the liberation struggle with their monthly contributions of dollars, pounds, francs and euros they will not dare to brave the front lines in any given instance. The Tamil Diaspora have their regular dose of liberation propaganda ensconced in the comfort of their western lifestyle and in turn preach this doctrine to their kith and kin, who are the real victims, mainly through means of economic coercion. They fail to realise that these starving people back in Sri Lanka are blinded by poverty and deafened by the constant sound of mortars and gunshots. The rest who know that violence is futile are in a state of rigor mortis brought about by fear and become the suicide bombers and the child soldiers, dead but not yet dead. But how do we stimulate a positive, pro peace political consciousness within the Tamils? I believe that the ‘hope’ or the link lies within the Tamil Diaspora itself.

The birth of independence in 1948 did not herald ‘freedom’ but another phase of violence, bloodshed and dominance. From the Citizenship Act and the Ceylon Amendment Act– 1948/ 49 to the commencement of the peace talks brokered by Norway and the ultimate breakdown of the agreement in January, 2008 we have seen nothing but false promises, manipulation and the destruction of human dignity. The current symbiosis between the GoSL and the Karuna faction now known as the TMVP led by Pillayan currently confused further by the re-entry of Karuna popularly known as the ‘abusive ex-commander’ adds a sense of increased terror in an unbelievable twist of the impunity game.

The ‘freedom struggle’, LTTE’s ‘politics’ and the aspirations of the masses

Lets now take a brief look at the politics behind the LTTE’s so called ‘freedom struggle’.

In an interview for War Zones, Anton Balasingam deceased theoretician and advisor to the LTTE stated, “Our organization was formed in 1972 to fight back the ever-mounting state repression against our people. From the beginning, the Tigers were an armed organization.” (7) This clearly defines the framework within which the LTTE operates. The LTTE also justifies the creation of their organisation with a military agenda stating that ‘the Tamil people began their armed struggle after the Ahimsa form of struggle was crushed by racial violence.’ (8) Furthermore, Balasingam articulated in several instances that the acceptance of the Thimpu principles would provide the basis of a negotiated settlement to the ethnic conflict, keeping the option of a political settlement as a contingency plan.

"...The Thimpu principles are totally misconstrued. Right to self determination means we might choose to associate with the Sinhala government or accept a federal autonomy. Sri Lanka should not see self-determination as a right to separation. It only means that the Tamil people have the right to decide their own political destiny. Accept the principles first and let us negotiate...’ (9)

The LTTE also claimed that they needed the support of India and kept stressing the need for it to lift the ban on their organisation after apologising for the assassination of Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, 15 years later, stating it as a ‘monumental historic tragedy’. This statement was immediately contradicted by S.P Thamilchelvan, then the LTTE Political Wing Head, who made a press statement stating that the LTTE was not responsible for the assassination of Gandhi again throwing an insight into the ‘violence’ driven mind-set of the organisation and a clear division of opinion within their key players. The Indo-Lanka Accord (ILA), to the LTTE, opened up the possibility of securing a separate homeland and as Balasingham states ‘It recognised the north and east as Tamil homeland by declaring they were areas of historical habitation. It temporarily merged the north and east.’ (10) Balasingam states that given the positive features of the ILA the LTTE’s efforts had been on pressing for a permanent merger despite the requirement of a referendum as per the ILA. The potential support from India for this was lost after the Gandhi assassination and now the LTTE is attempting to ‘convince’ India and invite their involvement to negotiate a solution to this quandary.

The gradual change in the strategy of LTTE becomes clear with the peace talks in Thailand, September 16, 2002 and in Oslo, November 25, 2002. Balasingam in an interview states that ‘..we are not operating with the concept of a separate state or Eelam. We operate with the concept of self-determination. Self-determination as exemplified in the UN Charter and other instruments clearly says there are two elements. One is internal self-determination and the other one is external self-determination. Internal self-determination means that a nation of people have a right to regional autonomy or self-government in the areas where they live.’ (11) Increased pressure from the international community and the tightening of anti-terrorism laws which in turn restricted fundraising activities, the growing hesitance from Tamils in Sri Lanka to join the LTTE’s military wing could very well have been some of the reasons behind this change in strategy.

In 2003 the LTTE temporarily suspends peace talks and claims that it is making way for the GoSL to address their grievances and that this move cannot be construed as a termination of the peace talks. They also claim that there were no ceasefire violations whatsoever on their part and state that maintenance of military formations was merely to protect their land and their peoples. In May 2006, the EU bans the LTTE as a terrorist organisation. This places increased pressure on the LTTE in terms of its fundraising activities.

Looking at these aspects of the LTTE’s political ideology it is quite clear that there is a gradual change of strategy in the process towards identifying the solutions to their ‘freedom struggle’. But what this essay tries to analyse is not the LTTE’s change in ideology or whether in reality its ‘modus operandi’ conforms to this, but to assess how the Tamil people understand the ideology of the organisation they so steadfastly stand by. The Tamils living in Sri Lanka and those who form part of the Diaspora have been strong voices that fuel the ‘freedom struggle’ of the LTTE. The strong nationalistic fervour expressed in their protests to the international community against the human rights violations of the GoSL and the passion that drives them to financially support the LTTE is interesting to examine vis-à-vis the political ideology that is presented by the LTTE as an organisation. Furthermore, an analysis into whether the LTTE is using the Tamil Diaspora as a tool to push for separation, as the ‘true voice of the masses’, while they themselves pretend in proposing a more ‘reasonable’ solution to the ethnic conflict in order to appease the international community, is worthwhile. Also, an equal amount of focus has not been given to the role that the Tamil Diaspora play on forming and influencing the popular politics amongst the Tamil populous as opposed to their role in fundraising and financing activities.

In order to gain a fair understanding of what these ‘supporters of the LTTE’ claim that their organisation believes in we must study some methods used by these Diaspora in publicising their support for the LTTE mainly by using attacks on the Sri Lankan government for its atrocious human rights abuses, as a tool. Another interesting aspect to take note of is what types of international support they obtain in order to further legitimise their claims for separation.

The most popular methods used by these ‘supporters’ are through public protests with international support and propaganda through the electronic media, particularly the wide usage of the Internet. As stated above, foreign guest speakers, usually natives of the country where the protests are staged have supported these public protests by putting forward their own viewpoints.

On April 2, 2001 at a protest in Geneva, Switzerland, held to coincide with the 57th Sessions of the UN Commission on Human Rights, to an audience of around ten thousand Tamils, Karen Parker of the International Educational Development and quoted as being a world renowned Human Rights lawyer from the United States stated that "Neither the false propaganda of the Sri Lankan government to mislabel the 50 years long Tamil struggle for their rights as mere terrorism, nor the banning of the LTTE as a terrorist organisation in countries like the US and Britain, can take away the Right of Self-determination and other Rights of the Tamils of Tamil Eelam. It is the Tamils who have to decide about their nationhood and homeland." (12)

Karen Roberts has been widely outspoken on issues related to self-determination and has submitted a Memorandum to the US State Department in 1997 stating that the ‘LTTE are a combat force’ and thereby cannot be classified as terrorists. She states in an interview, ‘I think there needs to be a real serious questioning by the international community as a whole, and certainly by the Tamil people, in the face of ethnic cleansing, murders left and right, forced eviction, starvation, bombing of children and other civilians, and absolutely racist comments against the Tamil people in the Diaspora, against the Tamils in Sri Lanka and certainly against the LTTE’ (13), which clearly highlight her views on the issues of Tamil Eelam and the LTTE and her appalling lack in providing an unbiased view into the atrocities committed towards the citizenry of Sri Lanka.

In a separate event in 2006 Julia Jean Marie, a French professor addresses a Tamil rally held in front of the Swiss Parliament in Bern and states that ‘The European Union (EU) move to ban Liberation Tigers, despite the continued killings of Tamil activists and civilians, is unjust. Tamil struggle has overcome many hurdles. The North East has matured into a state, and with its able leadership will succeed in overcoming all obstacles standing in their way to achieve their goal of right to self-rule." (14)

To mark Sri Lanka’s 60th Independence Day on February 4, 2008 the British Tamil Forum organised a photo exhibition with the aim of educating the second generation of Tamils in UK titled ‘Past 60 years of oppression, ethnic cleansing and discrimination that largely the Tamil community has faced at the hands of the sovereign state of Sri Lanka’. Also a demonstration of around 700 protesters at Downing Street demanded ‘real freedom’ and ‘real rights’. It was noticeable that most of the protesters were members of the LTTE branded by the GoSL and banned in the UK (15).

Tamils held a protest against the assassination of K. Sivanesan of Jaffna, TNA politician, again in Switzerland, on March 28, 2008. Fredi Alder, ex-parliamentarian from the Socialist Party of Switzerland, Verena Graf, General Secretary of the International League for the Rights and Liberation of Peoples and Charles Graves, the General Secretary of the Interfaith International made speeches amongst others. As with the others, this protest coincided with the ongoing sessions of the UN Human Rights Council meeting.

These Diaspora groups also seek the support from international practitioners such as Bruce Fein, a former Associate Attorney General of the Department of Justice in the United States and a specialist in constitutional and international law who has been retained by a group called ‘Tamils for Justice’ (16) to undertake a project which aims towards the de-proscription of the LTTE and Statehood for the Tamils in Sri Lanka amongst other activities.

One is forced to contemplate the reason for such support. Are these international actors well informed on the ground situation, do they fully comprehend the weight of their actions and words and have they understood the aspirations of all Sri Lankan Tamils? This can clearly not be the case. Their arguments are startlingly biased. They do not speak of the atrocities done by the LTTE not only to the Sinhalese and Muslim communities but moreover on the atrocities that are committed to Tamils. These international actors believe that all the Tamils in the world stand united for a separate state and consider the LTTE as their sole representatives. In reality there cannot be any Tamil who does not want the rights of the Tamils realised, but there is clearly a divide when it comes to supporting how this is to be achieved, the universal debate of democracy & unitary statehood vs. violence & separate statehood.

The other means of propaganda are mainly through the electronic media, and it is worthwhile to look closely at the Internet. Several websites similarly speak about ‘State Terrorism’ while justifying the terror tactics that are used by the LTTE in combating this in return. These Internet sites are run both in Tamil and English namely tamildailynews.com, eelampage.com, viduthalaipulikal.com, battieelanatham.com, pathivu.com, puthinam.com, sankathi.net, muzhakkam.com, orupaper.com, tamilnet.com, ltteps.org, uktamilnews.com, tamilaustralian.com, tamilguardian.com, eelamweb.com, torontotamil.com, eelamsports.com, annai.no, nithiththurai.com, eelamjudicial.org, erimalai.info, sooriyan.com, kuviyam.com, annai-poopathy.com, eelatamil.com, yarl.com, neruppu.org, nitharsanam.com, newlankasri.com, viduppu.com, tamilwin.tv, eelampage.com, puthuvai.com,appaal-tamil.com, TamilCanadian, TamilNet, Ilankai Tamil Sangam, TamilNation and the list is exhaustive. Some of these sites provide news items as well as articles while others merely concentrate on articles submitted by academics from the Tamil Diaspora and other international writers. Most articles provide critical insights into State terrorism and some suggest solutions to counteract, namely through economic embargoes, and increased pressure internationally, by the Diaspora.

It is reported that three satellite radio networks provide news about the island in conflict with the Sri Lankan government’s attempt to control the news including the ‘Voice of Tigers’ the clandestine LTTE radio network. Information from rebel areas in the north of the island, where there are no working telephone lines, comes out via word-of-mouth or ham radio and cater to large Tamil-speaking communities in the USA, Europe, Mauritius, Canada, Malaysia and Singapore. Even though these radio networks claim to be disseminating ‘news’ that is otherwise withheld to the Tamil communities the content of its programmes do not provide a neutral reportage of news and is tangibly biased. This provides a powerful propaganda tool in influencing the ideas and attitudes of the Tamil Diaspora.

Voices of dissent and a divided Diaspora: ‘The Hope’

The recent year or two has seen a slow but gradual increase in ‘voices of dissent’. There have been reports of public protests held by Sri Lankans, mainly lead by Sinhalese and Muslim expatriates as the rally by ‘Citizens initiative against Tamil Tiger Terrorism’ on June 19, 2006 in Canberra, Australia illustrates (17). As the recent Human Rights Watch (HRW) report, Paying for “The Final War”: LTTE Fundraising and Extortion within the Tamil Diaspora in late 2005 and early 2006 clearly outlines the Diaspora slowly emerging more confident in articulating what the reality is. The report’s opening quotation of a Toronto woman asked for funds by the LTTE, very succintly highlights the ‘fear factor’ that binds most of the Tamil Diaspora to the ‘freedom struggle’, ‘I have a brother there [Sri Lanka]. I don’t want him to get hurt. I’m going to do whatever they ask’ (18). Nevertheless, the fact that the Diaspora is increasingly willing to reveal the real reasons for this bind to a group perpetuating terrorism, throws some hope into these very desperate times.

But being part of a dissenting Diaspora is a daunting and discouraging task. As seen with the spate of criticism that were levied at the Human Rights Watch Report on LTTE fundraising and extortion, claiming that the testimonies used therein were either fake or from sources with criminal record. There have also been instances where Diaspora media has been targeted by LTTE supporters and sympathisers. June 8, 2006, it was reported that ‘Nadarajah Sethurupan, Anushriskumar Thamotherampillai and Kandiah Uthayakumar were involved in a violent attack at the Tamil Broadcasting Corporation (TBC); a Tamil language satellite radio station, located at Rayners Lane, Harrow, Middlesex. A court case in Harrow, London examined reports that Nadarajah Sethurupan came to the radio station and abused staff and issued threats in the name of the LTTE. TBC reports that it has also received threatening telephone calls from both the LTTE and the Karuna faction’ (19).

It is common knowledge that being part of the dissenting side as a Tamil in the festering politics of Sri Lanka has its price to pay. Many moderate voices have been stilled beginning from Kanthasamy of the Tamil Refugees Rehabilitation Organisation (TRRO) in 1988, Rajani Thiranagama in September 1989, Neelan Tiruchelvam in 1999 to Kethesh Loganathan in August 2006. Many more have been forced to live in exile but continue to articulate the atrocities of the LTTE and the need for an end to this mad illusion that we are living in. Nirmala Rajasingham, who was a member of the LTTE and the first woman to be imprisoned by the Government in 1982 under the Prevention of Terrorism Act succinctly describes the LTTE and speaks of a change in the attitudes of the Tamil Diaspora,

‘The LTTE has evolved into a very centralised authority and military outlet that doesn't give any importance to democratic forms of resistance. It is purely and simply a military organisation, organised very hierarchically, with one man on the top making all the decisions. They have the principle that they are the sole representatives of the Tamil people. If we accept them, then that means there's no room for any other alternate political opinion or political party. In the recent months there is a growing upsurge in the Tamil diaspora against the terrorist outfit. Newspapers, radio stations, websites and popular organisations have begun to sprout in the Western countries that daringly oppose and expose the atrocities of the Wanni Tigers. The Pan European Organisation Tamil Democratic Congress (TDC) and the U.K. based Tamil Broadcasting Corporation and Harrow Tamil Welfare Association in U.K. had taken the lead in this effort to "cage the inflated tiger monster"(20).

The need for a revolution, a people’s movement in a democratic and pluralistic manner is paramount. Despite the many obstacles these ‘voices of dissent’ have faced in the history of our times, we simply cannot give up. We need to continue to tirelessly feed the message of, peace through democratic political solutions, to the conscience of the Tamil Diaspora which is undoubtedly the most important link to the end of the ethnic conflict. The strength that such a Diaspora can give will undoubtedly make considerable changes in this protracted and violent ethnic conflict. The time has come to make a difference, the time has come to stop waiting, the time has come for us to act and wake up from this illusion in the hope that truly and wisely, ‘The Tamil people will determine their own destiny’ (21).

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[1] UNHCR, Basic Facts (www.unhcr.lk)

[2] SCOPP Report, ‘LTTE’s Oslo Statement Lacks Clarity and is Misplaced’, 18 June 2006

[3] Media Communique by the LTTE Headquarters containing a translation of Prabakaran’s speech on Heroes Day, 27 November 2004

[4] Final Report on the Parliamentary Elections of 2 April 2004 by the European Union Election Observation Mission

[5] http://www.asiantribune.com/?q=node/13229

[6] Diaspora circulation and transnationalism as agents for change in the post-conflict zones of Sri Lanka, R. Cheran, Dept. of Sociology and Centre for Refugee Studies, York University, Canada. Policy Paper commissioned by Berghof Foundation for Conflict Management, Germany. September 2003.

[7] Interview with Jon Lee Anderson and Scot Anderson, War Zones, 1988

[8] Speech made by Anton Balasingam at Maveerar Naal Commemoration, London, 3 December 2000

[9] Anton Balasingham in interview with Deccan Herald, 6 July 2000

[10] Interview with Deccan Herald, 6 July 2000

[11] Negotiated settlement only choice, Sunday Observer, December 2002

[12] Quoted in the Tamil Canadian website, www.tamilcanadian.com.

[13] “Tamils have a De jure State’, Tamil Mirror, April 7, 2007

[14] TamilNet News Report, May 29, 2006 (www.tamilnet.com)

[15] Tamil Affairs website (www.tamilaffairs.com), February, 7, 2008

[16] See Tamils for Justice website, www.tamilsforjustice.org

[17] www.spur.asn.au

[18] “The Final War”: LTTE Fundraising and Extortion within the Tamil Diaspora in late 2005 and early 2006, March 2006, Human Rights Watch

[19] Silencing Dissent, Feb 7, 2008, Amnesty International USA

[20] ‘LTTE no liberator of Tamils’, Nirmala Rajasingham, Daily News, London, March 28, 2006

[21] Anton Balasingham, July, 2000, Interview with Tamil Guardian International

Political masala in South India

Drama unfolds in the heart of Tamil Nadu, with a string of protests led by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi condemning atrocities of the GoSL and the Sri Lankan army against the Tamils of Sri Lanka which they believe has reached levels of outright ‘genocide’. A protest is scheduled for October 19 in Rameswaram organised by the Producers’ Council and Directors’ Association and the Nadigar Sangam. To further cement the supposed ‘conviction’ of the Tamil Nadu State was the proposed resignations of DMK MPs which was initiated with the resignation of Kanimozhi daughter of Karunanidhi with several others following suit. The latest addition to these protests is the human chain protest in Chennai scheduled for October 21 which Karunanidhi announced after the All Party Meet of October 14. To add to this chaos pro-LTTE supporters and members of the Periyar Thravidar Kazhagam targeted the office of The Hindu in two separate incidents while another incident on October 16 near the Erode Bus Stand resulted in burning of 2400 copies of The Hindu and 390 copies of Business Line by pro-LTTE slogan shouting hooligans.

What is the real reason behind this reactive pressure by the Tamil Nadu government and other like minded parties? Karunanidhi has definitely created a stir in the dynamics of the Sri Lankan conflict especially in terms of adding strength to the renewed cry for intervention by India in accelerating a settlement to Sri Lanka’s protracted conflict. It definitely has provided enough pressure for the Central Government to intervene by pressurizing in return the Sri Lankan government to seek a negotiated settlement. Nevertheless, Karunanidhi’s ‘commitment’ towards the suffering of the Tamil people seems sadly lopsided as is the case with the politics of the Sinhala chauvinists and Tiger fascists. While demanding that the Central Government stop military aid and facilitate an immediate ceasefire, both quintessential in terms of ending the military offensive it will not create a palpable move towards a settlement to the conflict per se.

Furthermore, Karunanidhi’s action has only infused a renewed agitation of pro-LTTE forces in Tamil Nadu which has been gradually gaining momentum, especially activities of Vaiko of MDMK, Director Seeman and other pro-LTTE film artistes. What is most absurd in terms of the demands made by these protests is the statement that the Tamils in Sri Lanka are being subject to genocide by the GoSL. There definitely is a humanitarian crisis but it cannot be exaggerated into unbelievable proportions by labeling it as genocide. Furthermore, one important aspect is that the LTTE is quite obviously, equally responsible for the humanitarian crisis in the Wanni. The LTTE has been using its own people as human shields and have been obstructing civilians from moving into safer areas. There have also been reports of forced recruitment. The LTTE has begun bombing parts of the A9 road obstructing the flow of supplies to civilians. This is not to say the GoSL is any better. The Security Forces have been harsh in their treatment of civilians that manage to move away from Wanni with reports of increased incidents of sexual and gender based violence caused by poor living conditions. According to Amnesty International ‘around a third of these families are living in the open air with no shelter. Many cannot receive food, tarpaulin for temporary shelters and fuel because of a lack of access into LTTE-controlled areas and restrictions on goods going through Omanthai - the crossing point between government-controlled territory and that held by the LTTE. Some families have been forced to move several times. Amnesty International has also received reports that the government is housing those who have been able to leave LTTE areas in temporary shelters that often operate as de facto detention centres. Witnesses from Kalimoddai camp in Mannar district told Amnesty International that more than 200 families who are held there cannot exit the camp for any reason (except to go to school) without obtaining a pass from the government’s security forces’.

In this context, what is sadly amiss in terms of Tamil Nadu’s demands of the Indian Government is the stress on applying equal amount of pressure on both the GoSL and the LTTE. This has been a common and disappointing trend in terms of most international protests spearheaded by groups in the Diaspora. It is important to place equal pressure on human rights abusers in terms of the conflict in Sri Lanka. All parties to the conflict have equal responsibility and have to be held accountable for the loss of life and the destruction of living conditions of civilians caught up in somebody else’s war. Karunanidhi with all his clout should concentrate in assisting the Tamils caught up in the humanitarian crisis in Sri Lanka by working with international organisations in the provision of relief items without passing the onus on to the Central Government. What about the plight of the Sri Lankan Tamil refugees in Tamil Nadu? Most living in camps such as the Mandapam camp live under terrible living conditions. Why doesn’t the Tamil Nadu State government channel their efforts into the provision of a better system in processing these refugees and providing them with appropriate arrangements?

Coming back to the issue of the Tamil Nadu protests, it is important to consider some important aspects raised by Opposition Party AIDMK leader Jayalalitha. The following are the salient points included in the statement issued by AIDMK:

*The Tamil people are also equal citizens of Sri Lanka as are all others.
*We respect their struggle for equal rights.
*We accept their earnestness in creating an independent homeland within the political and legal framework of Sri Lanka.
*We are pained to see the thousands of Tamils that have been killed as a result of a war that has lost direction. We are against this war that has been the reason for such loss of life.
*We cannot accept the assassination of India’s former Prime Minister and other leaders who had struggled for the emancipation of the Tamils.
*We support the Tamil people’s struggle towards self determination and oppose terrorisation by groups bearing arms.
*We cannot let armed conflicts destruct the law, order, peace and sovereignty of India.
*As a result of the current war in Sri Lanka many innocent Tamil civilians are without food, clothing, shelter and medication. The Central Government must take measures to get humanitarian relief across to these civilians.

In comparison to the claims made by Karunanidhi and his stooges, Jayalalitha has very succinctly put down the issues in concern. It is on this basis that India must work its intervention in the Sri Lankan conflict. This clearly outlines that armed groups such as the LTTE and the government supported TMVP must be held under serious check and that any international or regional pressure must revolve around these key players. Jayalalitha has reiterated the importance of understanding the true meaning of self-determination which has so far been treated as a taboo word by Sinhalese chauvinists while the LTTE has been insinuating the minds of Tamils to believe that self determination amounts to sole representatorship by the LTTE.

Despite the shortcomings and the lack of a balanced demand by Tamil Nadu, it has definitely provided the necessary opening for the Indian Government to intervene and accelerate a negotiated settlement to Sri Lanka’s conflict. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s response to the Tamil Nadu protests has been that India cannot intervene in the affairs of Sri Lanka as it is not an Indian State and that Sri Lanka’s sovereignty must be respected at all times. Singh continues to state that Sri Lanka must work towards a politically negotiated settlement. In this light, India should play a proactive role in accelerating the All Party Representative Committee (APRC) process in Sri Lanka. We can only hope that India will intervene as a regional power and help Sri Lanka find a political solution to its conflict soon and diplomatically use the drama Tamil Nadu is currently enacting to help take the leap forward.