nghd;dhd khh;f;fj;Jf;fhfTk; khw;W Clfj;jpd; Njitf;fhfTk;……..!

- rjh. [P.

‘nfhhbath;fs; ,iof;Fk; jPq;FfspYk; ghh;f;f> mtw;iw ey;y kdpjh;fs; vd;Nghh; mjph;r;rpa+l;Lkstpw;F nksdkha; rfpj;Jf;nfhz;bUg;gJ gw;wpNa ehk; ,e;jj; jiyKiwapy; tUe;jKwNtz;Lk;’ – khh;bd; Y}jh; fpq;.

[dhjpgjp kfpe;j uh[gf;\ mNkhfntw;wp ngw;wpUf;fpwhh;. ,ij M&lk; $wpaJ khw;W ,izaj;jsq;fSk; mNjNghy rpy khw;W rpq;fs Clfq;fSk;jhd;. ngUk;ghd;ikahd jkpo; Clfq;fSk; mNjNghy rpq;fs Clfq;fSk; tpUg;G ntWg;GfSf;F mg;ghy; nraw;gl kWj;jpUe;jd.

‘mwpahj Fjpiuiatpl mwpe;j foij Nky;’ vd;gij rpy nkj;jg; gbj;jth;fs; mwpe;jpUe;jpUe;Jk;; ‘Coy;’ murhq;fj;ij mfw;wNtz;Lk; vd;W fq;fzk; fl;bf;nfhz;bUe;jhh;fs;. vy;yhtw;Wf;Fk; Nkyhf [dhjpgjp kfpe;jTf;F vjpuhd gpujhd Nghl;bahsh;fs; Nkw;Fyfpd; nry;yg;gps;isfs; vd;gijAk; ed;whfNt mwpe;jpUe;jhh;fs;. ,Ue;jhYk; ,th;fspd; Kaw;rp Raeyj;Jf;fhdjhfNt mike;jpUe;jJ.

‘,d;iwa kdpjd; Raeyj;jpd; iffspy; xU nghk;kyhl;lg; gJikahf khwpg; NghapUf;fpwhd;. vijf; NfhhpdhYk; mJ jdJ Raeyj;Jf;fhfNt vd kdpjd; tho;fpwhd;’ vd;gJ $j;jikg;gpd; gpujhd ghLnghUshfNt ,d;Wtiu jpfo;fpwJ.

th;f;fk; th;f;fj;NjhL NrUk; vd;gjw;fpzq;f ele;JKbe;j Njh;jypy; ruj;nghd;Nrfhit $j;jikg;G Mjhpj;jJ. ,J ntWk; ‘mtUld; (ruj;nghd;Nrfh) elj;jpa Ngr;Rthh;j;ijapy; Vw;gl;l jpUg;jp’ay;y. ruj;jug;G toq;fpa ed;nfhilfSf;fhfTk; toq;fg;gltpUe;j nfhilfSf;fhfTk;jhd;.

,Nj ed;nfhilia kfpe;j jug;Gk; toq;Fk; vd;gJ xd;Wk; nghpa tplaky;y. Mdhy; mJ tho;ehs; ed;nfhilahf ,Uf;fhJ. Mdhy; ruj;jug;gpdhy; toq;fg;gltpUe;j ed;nfhil mjhtJ gjtpapy; ruj; ,Uf;Fk; tiu mDgtpf;ff;$baJ. vJ vg;gbNah gpyhf;nfhl;il eOtp neUg;Gf;Fs;s tpOe;j fijahfptpl;lJ.

Mdhy; ‘Fuq;Fk; g+idAk; gpyhf;nfhl;il Rl;l’ fijahf $j;jikg;G tutpUf;Fk; ghuhSkd;wj; Njh;jypy; jkpo; kf;fspd; iffisr; Rl;Lnfhz;L gpyhf;nfhl;ilia vLj;Jr; Ritf;fj;jhd; Nghfpwhh;fs;. ,ijape;j khw;W jkpo; murpay; nfhk;gh;fshy; jLj;JepWj;jptpl KbahJ.

‘grpj;jpUg;gtDf;F kPidf; nfhLg;gjpYk; ghh;f;f kPidg; gpbf;f fw;Wf;nfhLg;gJ kpfr; rpwe;jJ’ vd;gJ [g;ghdpa gonkhop. vdNt ciog;gjw;Fk; czit ngw;Wf;nfhs;tjw;Fk; topnrhy;yNtz;Lk;. Mdhy; $j;jikg;G mtdplk; nrd;W cdf;F jd;khdk; ,Uf;Fjh? ekf;F Njit Rje;jpuk;> ek;ik ehNk Ml;rpnra;Ak; mjpfhuk; mJ ,J vd;W nrhy;yp Vw;fdNt gyehs; gl;bdpfple;jtid rhfbg;gNj $j;jikg;gpd; gzp. ,jw;F Gyd; ngah;e;j tprpybr;rhd; FQ;RfSk; ngUk;ghyhd jkpo; Clfq;fSk; gf;fgykhf ,Ue;jpUf;fpd;wd. ,dpAk; mJ njhlUk;.

ele;JKbe;j ghuhSkd;wj; Njh;jypy; jkpo; kf;fs; ahiu Mjhpf;fNtz;Lk; vd;gij Jzpe;J nrhy;yp mjw;fhd rg;Gf;fl;Lf;fis jkpo; kf;fs; jiyfspy; fl;Ltjw;F $j;jikg;gpdhy; kl;LNk Kbe;jpUf;fpwJ. mNjNghy ,e;j E}w;whz;bYk; cyfpd; NtW ve;j r%fj;jpYk; Ntfhj ‘gUg;G’ jkpo; r%fj;jpy; kl;LNk NtfpapUf;fpwJ vd;gij ehk; kWg;gjw;fpy;iy. kwg;gjw;Fk; ,y;iy.

‘Njrpathjk; vd;gJ KO kf;fisAk; FWfpa Kd;Djhuzq;fSf;fhfg; gapw;Wtpg;gjhFk;. Njrpathjj;jhy; kf;fspd; kdk; ftug;gl;lhy;> khdplg; gz;Gfspd; rPuopitAk; mwpTkl;lj;jpy; FUl;Lj; jd;ikiaAk; Nehf;fp mth;fs; js;sg;gLthh;fs;. vJtpjj; jilAkpd;wp ,dthjk; tsh;r;rpAw;why; kdpj ehfhpfj;jpd; ew;gz;Gfspd; mbg;gil vk;ik mwpahkNyNa khw;wkilAk;. r%f cWg;gpddhd kdpjdpd; Kd;Djhuzk; Raeykw;w nghJey Nehf;NfahFk;. Mdhy; Njrpa thjj;jpd; Fwpf;Nfhs; xU th;f;fj;jpd; Fwpf;Nfhisg;Nghd;Nw Raeyk; nfhz;ljhFk;’ vd nrd;w E}w;whz;by; tho;e;j kfhftp utPe;jpuehj; jh$h; $wpdhh;. ,e;j E}w;whz;bYk; ,e;jg; Ghpjy; rpy kukz;ilfSf;Fg; gpbgltpy;iy vd;gij vd;dntd;W nrhy;tJ?

kWGwj;Nj khw;W murpay; jiyikfspd; Ke;jpr; nry;tjw;fhd Xl;lk;. $l tUgth;fspd; $l tuf;$bath;fspd; ,Uj;jiy cije;Jjs;spa Xl;lk;. ,th;fSila mh;g;gzpg;Gk; nraw;ghLk; tuyhw;wpy; Fwpg;gplf;$bajhf ,Ue;Jk; mJ gjpag;gLtjw;fhd ve;j mwpFwpAk; njd;gltpy;iy. fl;rpiaf; fl;bf;fhg;gjpYk; tsh;j;njLg;gjpYk; ,th;fs;fhl;Lk; Kk;kuk; kf;fis gFj;jwpthsh;fshfthtJ tsh;j;njLg;gjpy; jtwptpl;ld.

mNjNghy khw;W murpay; rf;jpfSk; Kw;Nghf;F rf;jpfSf;Fk; kf;fis murpay; kag;gLj;Jtjw;fhd re;jh;g;gk; fdpe;jpUf;fpwJ. epj;jk; epj;jk; nfhiyfs; tpOe;j g+kpapy; ,d;W ed;tpij tpijf;fg;glNtz;bapUf;fpwJ. MdhYk; ,jw;fhd jahh;g;gLj;jy;fs; vJTk; eilngWtjhf mwpaKbatpy;iy. ,J kPz;Lk; Njrpaj;ij nfhz;lhLgth;fs; ‘,J Kw;Nghf;F Njrpak;’ vd;W nfhl;lkbg;gjw;F toprikj;JtpLk;. ,J kPz;Lk; khdplg; gz;Gfspd; rPuopitAk;> mwpTkl;lj;jpy; FUl;Lj; jd;ikiaAk; Nehf;fp kf;fis topelj;jpr; nry;Yk;. ,jw;fhd Maj;j epiyfspNyNa ,d;Wk; ‘Kw;Nghf;fhzth;fs;’ vd;W fhl;bf;nfhs;Sk; rpyh; vd;[pXf;fspd; JizAld; fhj;jpUf;fpd;wdh;.

vkJ njhpT ,yl;rj;jpd; njhpTfsy;y. ,yl;rpaj;jpd; njhpT. (thpj;Jf;nfhz;l nfhs;iff;fhf ehk; ,oe;jJ caph;fSk; clikfSk; kl;Lk;jhdh?) mJ xt;nthUthpd; nfhs;if Nfhl;ghLfSld; nghUe;jpg;Nghff;$bajy;y. rpy NtWghLfs; rpy Vw;wj;jho;Tfs; ,Uf;fj;jhd; nra;Ak;. Mdhy; xNu Neh;Nfhl;Lf;F tuf;$bath;fs;. xUtiu xUth; mutizj;J kf;fis Kd;Nehf;fpj; js;sf;$bath;fs;. Kd;ndhU fhyj;jpy; kf;fis murpay; kag;gLj;j Ntz;Lk; vd;W Jbj;jth;fs;jhNd? ,d;W Vd; MSf;nfhU jpirapy; gazpf;fpd;wdh;? xUNtis murpaiy jdJ [PtNdhghakhf (Professional) nfhs;tjpdhNyh vd;dNth?;

‘kdpjDila kjpg;gpl Kbahj ,dpa clikfspy; rpwe;jJ mtdJ tho;thFk;. mtd; xU jlitjhd; tho KbAk;. fhyk; KotijAk; Fwpf;Nfhs; ,y;yhky; ghohfptpl;NlNd vd;w Jauk; tijg;gjw;F ,lkspf;fhj tifapy; mtd; rPuhf thoNtz;Lk;. mw;gdhf tho;e;J ,opT NjbNdd; vd;w mtkhd czh;r;rp cs;sj;ij vhpg;gjw;F ,lk; nfhLf;fhj tifapy; mtd; Neuhf thoNtz;Lk;. cyfj;jpd; jiyrpwe;j ,yl;rpaj;Jf;fhf – kdpj Fyj;jpd; tpLjiyg; Nghuhl;lk; xd;wpd; nghd;dhd khh;f;fj;Jf;fhf ehd; vd; tho;T KOtijAk; mh;g;gzpj;Njd; vd;W ,wf;Fk; nghOJ chpik NfhUk; tifapy; mtd; tho Ntz;Lk;. jpBh; NehNah – Nrhftpgj;Njh tho;Tf;F ntbitf;ff;$Lkhjyhy; kdpjd; jd; tho;tpd; xt;nthU fzg;nghOijAk; ed;F gad;gLj;jpf;nfhs;s Ntz;Lk;’ – M];j;Nuht;];fp.

khdplg; gz;Gfspd; rPuopitj; jLf;fTk;> mwpT kl;lj;jpy; FUl;Lj; jd;ikia ePf;fTk; ekf;F Clfk; Njit. mJ fl;rp rhh;e;jjhfNth jdpegh; rhh;e;jjhfNth ,y;yhky; ehkidtiuAk; rhh;e;jjhf Clfj;jpd; Njit mtrpakhfpwJ. nra;jpfis nra;jpfshfTk; gFj;jwpTs;s Mf;fq;fisAk; kf;fs; kj;jpapy; nfhz;L nry;tjw;F ek;kplk; ve;j njhlh;GrhjdKk; ,y;iy.

Vnddpy; mz;ikapy; ele;JKbe;j Njh;jy; gpur;rhuj;jpy; ngUk;ghyhd jkpo; Clfq;fs; ‘Raey’j;ij J}f;fpg;gpbj;j $j;jikg;ig ‘Njrpak;’ vd;w Nfhjhtpy; J}f;fpg;gpbj;jd. mJNt tlfpof;Fg; gFjpfspYs;s Ff;fpukq;fs;tiu nrd;wile;jd.

‘RLJ kbiag;gpb’ vd;gJNghy jpBnud gj;jphpifiaNah thndhypiaNah my;yJ njhiyf;fhl;rpiaNah njhlq;fp mLj;J eilngWk; nghJj; Njh;jYf;Fs; kf;fis XNu mzpapd; fPo; nfhz;Lte;Jtpl Ntz;Lk; vd;why; mJ Kbahj fhhpak;. mJ vjph;tpidiaNa Vw;gLj;Jk;. vdNt njhiyNehf;Fk;> ePz;l gazKk;> Nehpaghh;itAk; nfhz;L ehk; nraw;gLNthkhapd; me;j nghd;dhd khh;f;fj;ij ehk; milaKbAk;.

eilngwtpUf;Fk; ehlhSkd;wj; Njh;jypy; $j;jikg;G %d;wpy; ,uz;L ngUk;ghz;ikiag; ngw;Wf;nfhs;sj;jhd; NghfpwJ. ghuhSkd;wk; nrd;W vkJ vjph;g;igAk; ekJ chpikiaAk; gw;wpg; NgRNthk;> NghuhLNthk; vd;W fijasg;ghh;fs;. ,J fijay;y ep[k; vd;W ngUk;ghyhd jkpo; Clfq;fs; Cjj;jhd; Nghfpd;wd. ,th;fs; tapW fpopaf; fj;Jtnjy;yhk; ntWk; ‘fw;gpjk;’ vd;w GhpjNy ,y;yhky; jkpo; kf;fSk; thf;Ffis ms;spf;nfhLf;fj;jhd; Nghfpd;whh;fs;.

jw;Nghija ehlhSkd;w rghehafh; nyhf;Fgz;lhuhit md;W rghehafuhf;Ftjw;F $j;jikg;gpd; 22 cWg;gpdh;fSk; cWJizahf ,Ue;jhh;fs;. ,J njhlh;ghf Gul;rp ‘tz;b’f;fhud; RNu]; gpNukr;re;jpudplk; “,lJrhhpahd b. FzNrfuhittpl;Ltpl;L ,dthjpahd nyhf;Fgz;lhit Vd; Mjhpf;fpwPh;fs;?” vd;W Nfl;ljw;F> “murhq;fj;Jf;F fbthsk; Nghlj;jhd;” vd;whh;. Mdhy; murhq;fk; jq;Fjilapd;wp $j;jikg;G Fwpg;gpLfpd;w jkpoh;fSf;nfjpuhd rl;l%yq;fs; cl;gl rfy rl;l%yq;fisAk; epiwNtw;wpNa ,Jtiu te;jpUf;fpwJ. (,Njegh; jhd; jd;kfspd; kUj;Jt gbg;Gf;fhf ,e;jpahtpd; Kd;dhs; kj;jpa Rfhjhu mikr;rh; md;Gkzpapd; miog;G kzpia mbj;jhh;)

,Njegh;fs;jhd; tlfpof;fpYs;s xU jkpo; Fbkfd; mikr;rh; lf;fpsirNah fUzhitNah mZfp murhq;f Ntiynahd;iw ngw;Wtplf;$lhJ. ‘,J kdq;nfl;l gpiog;G. cdf;Fj; Njit Re;jpuk;> Ranfsutk; ,d;dgpw’ vd;W vhpatpl;L Fsph;fha;thh;fs;.

Kd;dhs; [dhjpgjp re;jphpfh Kd;itj;j ,dg;gpur;rpidf;fhd ‘jPh;Tg; nghjp’ia ,dthj murpay; fl;rpfshd I.Nj.fl;rp> N[.tp.gp> rpq;fs cWka Mfpatw;Wld; Neh;Nfhl;by; epd;W vjph;jJ vd;gJ tuyhW. mt;thW nra;Jk; mNj %Q;rpAld; jkpo; kf;fsplk; thf;Ff; Nfl;L ghuhSkd;wk; njhpthfpapUf;fpwhh;fs;. kdr;rhl;rpAs;s xU rhjhuz kdpjd;$l md;W nra;jJ jtW vd;whtJ xj;Jf;nfhs;thd;. Mdhy; ,th;fs;? mt;thwhd xU nghd;dhd re;jh;g;gj;ijNa ehj;jpabj;jth;fSf;F ,dptug;NghFk; tha;g;Gf;fis gpwq;fhyhy; cije;Jtpl;L tpsf;fk; nrhy;tnjy;yhk; ‘rg;g Nkl;lh;’

,d;iwa #o;epiyapy; rpq;fs kf;fSf;F kl;Lky;y jkpo; K];yPk; kf;fSf;Fk; ek;gpf;iff;Fhpa ehafd; [dhjpgjp kfpe;j uh[gf;\jhd;. ‘[dhjpgjpj; Njh;jypy; tlf;F> fpof;F khfhzq;fspy; jkpo; kf;fs; ve;j Ntl;ghsUf;F $Ljyhd Mjuit mspj;jhh;fs; vd;gJ gpur;rpiday;y. Rkhh; 30 tUl fhy cs;ehl;L Nghhpd; KbTf;fg; gpwF Njhd;wpapUf;Fk; #o;epiyapy; [dehaf nrad;Kiwfspy; gq;Nfw;gjpy; Mh;tk; fhl;bapUf;fpd;wik vkf;F ngUk; cw;rhfk; jUtjhf mike;jpUf;fpwJ. mJTk; njd;dpyq;ifapd; murpay; fl;rpfspdhy; [dhjpgjp Ntl;ghsh;fshf epWj;jg;gl;lth;fSf;F me;j khfhzq;fspy; jkpo; kf;fs; thf;fspg;gjpy; mf;fiw fhl;bapUg;gJ kpfTk; ftdpf;fj;jf;fJ’ vd;W $Wk; [dhjpgjp kfpe;j uh[gf;rtpd; jiyikj;Jtg; gz;ig ghuhl;bNa MfNtz;Lk;.

‘jtpl;ilj; Njbg;Nghf rk;gh mhprpia eha; nfhz;LNghd fijahf ,Ue;j mw;g Rje;jpuKk; gwpNgha;tpLNkh?’ ,e;j $j;jikg;G $l;lq;fshy; vd;gNj vk;Ks;s kpfg;ngUk; rthy;.

‘xd;Nw Fyk; xUtNd Njtdy;y midtUk; Njt’ndd;W xNu Filapd; fPo; khw;W murpay; jiyikfSk; Kw;Nghf;F murpay; rf;jpfSk; xd;wpize;J> Kd;ndhU fhyj;jpy; tlfpof;fpy; epytpa ,lJrhhp murpay; rf;jpfspd; vOr;rpia kPz;Lk; Jsph;tpl xd;wpize;J ciof;Fk; fhykpJ.

யுத்தத்தை வைத்துப் பிழைப்பு நடத்தியவர்கள் படம் காட்டி பிழைக்க முயற்சி!

சதா. ஜீ.

தமிழ் மக்கள் மீண்டும் ஒரு வரலாற்றுத் தவறை இழைத்துவிடக்கூடாது என்று கூத்தமைப்பின் தலைவர் கூறியிருக்கிறார். அஃதானப்பட்டது தமிழ் மக்கள் ஜனரல் சரத்பொன்சேகாவுக்கு வாக்களிக்க வேண்டும் என்பதே அவருடைய வேண்டுகோள். வேலில போற ஓணானை பிடிச்சு சரத்துக்க கட்டின மாதிரியான ஒரு நிலையை தமிழ் மக்கள் ஏற்படுத்திக் கொள்ளப்போகிறார்களா? என்பது 27ம் திகதி அதிகாலை தெரிந்துவிடும்.

இந்த அவதியுறும் நிலைக்கு தமிழர்களையும் தள்ளிவிடுவதில் கூத்தமைப்பு மட்டும் ஈடுபட்டிருக்கவில்லை. செய்திகளை தருவதாகக் கூறிக்கொள்ளும் ஊடகங்களும் குறிப்பாக தமிழ் ஊடகங்களும் வரிந்துகட்டிக்கொண்டு நிற்கின்றன. இவை தருகின்ற செய்திகளின் தன்மையை வைத்துக்கொண்டு இந்த முடிவுக்கு வரமுடியும். பத்து செய்திகளில் ஜெனரல் பொன்சேகாவின் செய்தி எட்டு என்றால் மிகுதி இரண்டுதான் ஜனாதிபதி மகிந்தவின் செய்தியாக இருக்கும்.

அதுவும் ஜெனரல் பொன்சேகாவின் வாக்குறுதிகள்தான் பிரதான செய்தியாகின்றன. ஜனாதிபதி மகிந்த பக்கத்து செய்தி என்பது தேர்தல் வன்முறையை பிரதானப்படுத்தியதாக இருக்கும்.

இதில் வேடிக்கை என்னவென்றால்: தமிழர்களைப் பொறுத்தவரை ஜெனரல் பொன்சேகா வழங்கிவரும் வாக்குறுதிகள் வாயுறவைப்பவை. இவற்றில் மிகப் பிரதானமானவற்றை ஜனாதிபதி மகிந்த தலைமையிலான அரசாங்கம் நிறைவேற்றிவருகின்றது.

உதாரணமாக வடபகுதியிலுள்ள உயர் பாதுகாப்பு வலையங்களுக்குள் மக்களை குடியமர அனுமதித்தது. மீன்பிடி தடை நீக்கப்பட்டது. யாழ்ப்பாணம் - கொழும்பு நெடுஞ்சாலை திறந்துவிடப்பட்டுள்ளது. மிகப் பிரதானமாக சரணடைந்த புலி உறுப்பினார்களில் பலர் புனர்வாழ்வு அளிக்கப்பட்டு மீண்டும் பெற்றோரிடம் ஒப்படைக்கப்பட்டிருக்கின்றார்கள்.
சிங்கள, முஸ்லீம் மற்றும் தமிழ் மக்கள் இயல்பு வாழ்வுக்குத் திரும்பிக்கொண்டிருக்கிறார்கள்.

ஆனால் கூத்தமைப்பு வகையறாக்களும் அதன் ஊதுகுழல்களும் இதை விரும்பவில்லை. யுத்தத்தை வைத்துப் பிழைப்பு நடத்திவந்தவர்கள், இப்போது 'படம்' காட்டி பிழைப்பு நடத்துவதற்கு துடிக்கிறார்கள். இயல்பான வாழ்நிலைக்கு மக்கள் திரும்பிவிட்டால் இவர்களுடைய 'பருப்பு' வேகாது, எனவே 'அவருடன் (ஜெனரல்) கதைத்தில் எங்களுக்கு திருப்தி ஏற்பட்டிருக்கிறது. அவர் வந்தால் அப்படிச் செய்வார், இப்படிச் செய்வார்' (ஈரடி இயல்பல்ல இந்த வாக்கியம்!) என்று கதையளந்துகொண்டிருக்கிறது. இவர்களுக்கு திரைமறைவில் படியளந்ததினால்தான் ஜெனரலுக்கு ஆதாரவாக வெளிக்கிட்டிருக்கிறார்கள். இவற்றையெல்லாம் இந்த தமிழ் ஊது குழல்கள் கண்டுகொள்ளாது!

'இயல்பு' என்பது இவர்களுக்கு ஜென்மத்துப் பகை. மக்களை இயல்பான நிலையில் வாழவிட்டால் பிழைப்பில மண்ணள்ளிப்போடுவதற்கு சமன். புலிகளும் அதனையே முள்ளிவாய்க்கால்வரை தொடர்ந்தார்கள். தொட்டகுறை விட்டகுறையை கூத்தமைப்பு தலைமைதாங்கி முன்செல்ல பெரும்பாலான தமிழ் ஊதுகுழல்கள் சங்கூதியபடியே பின்செல்கின்றது.

எனவே மக்கள் வரலாற்றை தவறவிடக்கூடாது. சரியான முடிவை பிழையான நேரத்திலும் பிழையான முடிவை சரியான நேரத்திலும் எடுத்து வருந்துவதிலும் பார்க்க சரியான முடிவை சரியான நேரத்தில் எடுத்தால்தான் நேர்மையான திசைவழி பயணிக்க முடியும்.

சாத்தியமே
வாழ்வதற்கு
பொருள் வேண்டும்
ஆனால்........
வாழ்வதிலும்
பொருள் வேண்டாமா?

தீய
குறிக்கோள்கள் எல்லாம்
கொள்கைகளாகிவிடாது
ஜனனமும்
மரணமும்
ஒரு முறை தான்
சோதனைகளே
கேள்விக்குறியாகி.......

வாழ்க்கையாகி
விட்டாலும் - நீங்கள்
முயற்சித்தால்
சாதனையும்
சாத்தியமே.......

(தொகுப்பு:- மங்களம்)

எனவே தமிழ் மக்கள் தமக்குக் சொல்லப்படும் செய்திகளைவிட சொல்லப்படாத செய்திகளை, நாட்டு நடப்புக்களையும் அறிந்துகொண்டு சாதனையை சாத்தியமாக்க வேண்டும்.

There is a minority question with multiple configurations that plagues our existence in every way

by Sumathy Sivamohan

Recently, I was stopped at this checkpoint just outside Colombo. It was about 8 pm and I was in a three wheeler. Perusing my identity document, the security person queried in Sinhala: ‘Are you Tamil?’ Taken aback by this query, I paused a little before saying ‘yes.’

But what I actually wanted to say was ‘Hasn’t the President said there are no Tamils, Muslims or Sinhalese? That everybody is one?’ Yet, going against the President’s pronouncement, I said, ‘yes’. This is one of my check point stories. Many of us have a bag full of them.

What does this nondescript story reveal to us? It is telling in its very ordinariness. It is uncannily revealing of a predicament for many of us as we enter the new year and face a decisive election. Check points may come and go. High Security Zones may disappear tomorrow.

We welcome all this. But the question that I pose today is not just about checkpoints that are visibly there, but is about the check points that dot our path of struggle for a clear sense of belonging to this country.

Election Fevers: commissions and omissions

While the elections climax to a feverish pitch of frenzied activity with promises and counter promises, a question that we are confronted with again and again, in all its multiple configurations, is: Is there a minority question in the country?

For the security personnel, yes. If we observe and carefully follow the concerns and demands made by various political alliances of minority groups, the question seems ever present. If one consulted and worked with minority communities, one would see a more nuanced and yet forthright response to this in the affirmative. All in all, for many of us, who identify with the Muslims and Tamils of the country and with other marginal(ized) communities, there is a minority question that plagues our existence in every way.

Over the long 30 years of war and the even longer years of the ethnic conflict which has permeated and dominated the political scene in Sri Lanka, any attempt to address the politics and the political of the minorities has been stymied by the thorny issue of centralized control. Centralized control manifests in constitutional terms in both the executive presidency and the unitary structure. But the issue is fundamentally more complex than one of merely addressing and reforming the state at the top.

One has to look at the political dynamism of the last 30 years as well in this scenario. On the one hand, the state has entrenched itself as a unitary structure and is unwilling to move from that position, though the promise of the abolition of the Executive Presidency does raise people’s hopes. On the other hand, and in the tragic irony that accompanies all contestations, people’s lives, particularly those of the north and east, have been thrown completely out of joint in the intervening years of the conflict. People have lost control of the centre. The anger and clamour for change all round, in the north, east, south and west, speak of this urgency.

Here, I speak both concretely and metaphorically. While people on the whole feel more and more alienated from the centre, despite the increasing number of politicians and multiple elections that run all year round like super star contests, actual power is steeped in and entrenched in the centre and has become even more centralized in the hands of a few. The rise of the Rajapaksa family is only one manifestation of this.

One wonders why the Rajapaksa regime did not press forward with a political solution to the conflict, following on its triumph in the battlefield. It was hugely popular in the immediate aftermath of the war, but lacked both the courage and the political vision necessary for such a step. Intent on preserving its own control on the state, the regime made a calculated mistake. Their action of disregarding the concerns of the minorities, particularly with regard to the IDP situation, served to alienate a community that was eager to be drawn into the political process of nation(s)-building.

But the singular programme of regime building of the Rajapaksas lost sight of what would have in effect stabilized their position within the state at least to some extent. Also, displaced Muslims from the north, evicted by the LTTE in 1990 have been waiting for a clear response for a solution to their uncertain status in Sri Lanka. The government announces dismantling high security zones today. Why did it wait for so long to do this?

Maybe the answer has to be found somewhere else. Any devolution package leading to a solution and addressing the concerns of Muslim and Tamil minorities, would have been fundamentally detrimental to the centralized control that the Rajapaska regime relies on so heavily for its continued state of dominance.

At the same time, one would like to ask from those minority parties and persons rallying around the opposition today, namely Sarath Fonseka, what programme of action do they offer their constituencies?

Today, at this critical juncture, where we are trying to debate about our futures, it is important for those who speak for minority groups and peoples to have a clear assessment of the situation. Their rhetoric should match their strategies for political negotiation and engagement with the state and other parties/groups. I would like to ask them to work out a viable political programme and engage in dialogue at multiple levels with the people on the pressing issues of the day.

In order to do this, we perhaps have to move from a discussion of regime changes to a discussion on how to exploit the spaces for discussion that the conclusion to the war and the run up to the election has opened up: a discussion on democracy and the minority question at multiple levels, building links between different peoples and communities.

Crumbs from the table of the high? The politics of state patronage and the ethnicisation of state and civil society

Centralized control has enshrined and fine-tuned to the most disgusting level the politics of patronage, which in my view, takes on a dangerously ethnicised form, particularly in the east, where ethnic tensions had been steadily on the rise, from the very beginning of the postcolonial state, if not before. LTTE’s reign of terror in the north and the east, served to exacerbate these tensions, while the state and successive governments did nothing to alleviate rampant violence, even in the aftermath of the LTTE’s defeat in the east.

Centralized control and the politics of state patronage, merely served to fragmentize communities, pitting one against the other. On the other hand, the rising cost of living, hitting not only the poorer classes, but also the struggling middle class, brings all communities together.

The Rajapaksa regime’s only ‘positive’ response to insistent appeals by minority groups and alliances to address their grievances has been the grand idea of development and development projects in the east and the north. Development is touted as the panacea for all ills. But development projects, real or proposed, have increased the fears of the minorities. On the one hand they did not bring any relief to the people on the ground.

Development today is perceived as another form of corruption. At the same time, they increased ethnic tensions, leading to, in some cases, violence. ‘Development’ has further exacerbated the issue of displacement. While the country and the people grappled with the issue of there being large numbers of displaced persons, running into several hundreds of thousands, the government did not put forward or implement a thought-out, and, more importantly, collaborative plan of action to settle and resettle displaced persons, leaving them and us in a limbo, feeling more and more alienated from the centre and, as a consequence, powerless.

While the current government has made some headway with regard to the Official Language Policy by bringing in legislation regarding its implementation, in the absence of any sense of actual relief and in its sad isolation from all that is seen as important in the lives of the people, this remains a forgotten and minor achievement.

Do we belong? And how?: the memory of Lasantha Wickramatunge

As long as the minority question persists, the urgent question of democracy too will remain unattended to and unresolved to any satisfaction. Some of the most pressing concerns of minority groups, including plantation or Malaiyaha communities have been security. Security comes with a sense of belonging to the land, to the places in which one resides and the country at large.

The question of unlawful detention, the still existing PTA, and the still prevailing act of emergency raises questions concerning security, whatever the regime might be.

As we remember Lasantha Wickramatunge this month on his tragic death a year ago, who with unstinting courage challenged the ruling regime, we hope that the human and social rights of people become focal points of action of political activists and groups, regardless of ethnicity.

Speaking of courage and political action, I would like to bring up another crucial failure of our time. The minority question is hydra headed and can be posed in multiple ways. I, too, am multiple. I belong to another significant minority group in the country, and that is that of a left orientation. But today the left tradition of the country is in shambles and has caved in to, for the most part, majoritarian Sinhala nationalism. It is too late for the ‘traditional’ left to change direction.

They are a lost cause and have acted with a singular lack of courage. But it might be about time for a new generation of thinkers and actors to forge out on a path of critical thinking, and to forge a dialogue across ethnic communities to discuss issues of class and gender and importantly, the minority question itself.

The war economy has created multiple minority communities, including displaced Sinhalese and injured soldiers among others. Do they become a part of the minority question? Will there be other minority communities arising out of the post-war economy? These are questions that we need to seriously ponder.

In this spirit of reassessing the situation on the ground and as a way of pressing forward the advantages that any space for discussion opens up, I raise these questions that concern us as minorities in this country. For us it is a time of reflection, reevaluation and the plotting of a programme, both in the singular and the plural, which would be meaningful to everybody in this country in the short and the long term.

Official Secrets and Blind Justice

2^nd January 2010 – Fourth Anniversary of the Trinco Five Students’ Case

University Teachers for Human Rights (Jaffna)

Sri Lanka

UTHR(J)

Special Report No. 35

Date of Release: 2^nd January 2010

To down load the whole file in :

http://www.uthr.org/SpecialReports/spreport35.htm