Tamil people’s right to Self-determination and Sri Lanka’s denials

First of all, I would like to thank everyone for responding to my post. By reading all the replies, it seems that some here do not understand the painful political struggle the Tamil people had to endure and believe that Tamils just picked up the weapons and went straight to the battle field against the Sri Lankan state. The reason the Canadian community has a lack of knowledge of the Tamil struggle is because the Tamil community has been always within its own circle and is also due to the lack of information that the Tamil community has passed on to the Canadian community. I have learned that it is important for us to work with the Canadian community to help bring awareness about the Tamil side's story.

Therefore, I would like to help you understand the Tamil struggle by directing everyone to the to the political struggle before the creation of the LTTE and the mandate on which LTTE functions and represents the Tamil people of the island of Ceylon (the people of Tamil Eelam):

There are 24 in electorates in the Tamil homeland (Tamil Eelam) and TULF put this resolution as their election mandate and contested 22 electorates in the Tamil homeland. Out of that 22 they won 18 of them; all 14 in the Northern Province and 4 out of 8 in the Eastern Province. Out of the 24 electorates they did not contest 2 electorates (Amparai and Seruwila in the Eastern Province) because it was once a district with overwhelming majority of Tamils but that changed because of the state sponsored colonization, brutality of the Sri Lankan Armed Forces, Sinhalese mobs success in chasing the Tamils out to create Sinhalese villages.

Also there were Independent candidates and other Tamil political organization that ran on a mandate of "A Separate Tamil State" and collected votes.

In all the Tamil people overwhelmingly voted for Tamil Eelam; a political aspiration that the Tamils expected to be recognized by Sri Lankan and the rest of the world. That was brushed under the carpet and violent acts on Tamil dramatically increased and they continued their peaceful protests and the Tamil youths were getting tired. The Tamil politicians started to crumble and were trying to compromise the Tamil people's democratic aspirations which would ignite the Tamil youths to do things that their parents couldn't have even imagined. Tamil youths started picking up arms and forming around 30 Tamil armed organizations, to which the Tamil people started to nurture and gave support in various forms. Sri Lanka using the Tamil armed groups as a pretext unleashed even greater violence on the Tamil people.

Here is a quote from one of the leaders of the armed group who was captured and given what I would consider an unfair trial:

"When the British government entrusted the fate of the Tamils to a group of Sinhala politicians, the Tamil people did not clamour for freedom for themselves. They did not suspect that they would in course of time be made second class citizens of this country. But some Tamil leaders did perceptively ask for bigger representation for the Tamils in the legislature. This was justified by later events when the plantation Tamils were deprived of their franchise. What the next 25 years saw was not only the erosion of Tamil rights but also the erosion of the Tamil homeland. For 25 years, the Tamil leaders expressed their protest in Parliament and outside, adopting the principles of ahimsa and satyagraha. But what happened?

In 1956 the Tamil leaders sat down to a peaceful protest on Galle Face Green. Sinhala thugs were unleashed on them. Later, in 1961, when the Tamil leaders and the Tamil people sat in peaceful satyagraha in front of the Jaffna Kacheri, the Sri Lanka army did not fail to react with inhumane violence.

In which chapter of your long history of democracy are you going to incorporate these events? Not one, not two, but there have been a continuing series of thuggery and violence inflicted on the Tamil people over a period of 25 years. How many chapters will you need to record this 25 year villainy? How many Tamils have been robbed of both their lives and their material wealth? There have been Tamil women whose chastity has been offended in the very presence of their family members.

Tamil cultural wealth preserved for generations has been put to flames. What a mockery to think that these could be compensated by a few lakhs of rupees! Have all these acts of hurt and humiliation made the Tamil people lose their determination? Have they gone back on their ideals? These acts of hurt and humiliation have only strengthened their resolve. We have never missed an opportunity to make the Sri Lanka government conscious of our mind. Twice in two elections the Tamil people have recently re stated their aspirations......"

"...Allegations are made that we are asking for separation, that we are trying to divide the country. When were we undivided after all? Our traditional land captured by the European invaders has never been restored to us. We have not even mortgaged our land at any time to anyone in the name of one country. Our land has changed hands off and on under various regimes, and that is what has happened. We have yet to reach a stage when we can have our land for ourselves.

What we ask for is not division but freedom. Why we ask this is not because of narrow thinking. What we hope to achieve is not only the emancipation of the Tamil people but the greater good of the Sinhalese people themselves. Why? Because, thereafter, the so-called Tamil problem will cease to be a livelihood for opportunist Sinhalese politicians. That will provide a chance for the Sinhalese people to free themselves from the political, social and economic shackles that bind them today and realize where their true slavery lies...."

"...To those noble souls who keep on prating "terrorism, terrorism" we have something to say. Did you not get frightened of terrorism when hundreds of Tamils were massacred in cold blood, when racist hate spread like fire in this country of yours? Did terrorism mean nothing to you when Tamil women were raped? When cultural treasures were set on fire? When hundreds and hundreds of Tamil homes were looted? Why in 1977 alone 400 Tamils lost their lives reddening the sky above with their splattered blood - did you not see any terrorism then? Did your thoughts and feelings become deadened when it concerned Tamil lives and Tamil property or are your minds unable to conceive the very idea of Tamil suffering?.."
- Nadarajah Thangathurai's Statement from the Dock, 1 March 1983

Him and other accused were convicted and sentenced to life imprisonment on 24 February 1983. In July 1983, whilst their appeal to the Supreme Court was pending, Nadarajah Thangathurai, Selvarajah Yogachandran, Devan, Sivapatham, and Nadesudasan were murdered in a high security prison in Welikade whilst in the custody of the Sri Lankan government. They will always be remembered as national heroes by the people of Tamil Eelam.

This is what the president of Sri Lanka had to say during the pogrom of Black July 1983:

"I am not worried about the opinion of the Jaffna people... now we cannot think of them, not about their lives or their opinion... the more you put pressure in the north, the happier the Sinhala people will be here... Really if I starve the Tamils out, the Sinhala people will be happy."
- President J.R.Jayawardene, Daily Telegraph, July 1983 (http://www.blackjuly.info/quotestext.html [3])

Violence continued on the Tamil people, the support for the youths and their numbers increased. Eventually LTTE would emerge to dominate because they proven themselves and were not willing to compromise the democratic aspiration of the Tamil people (that is why when they took out other Tamil armed groups and Tamil politicians, Tamil people turned around covering their eyes because they realized that they need one voice and political drama with Sinhalese politicians will eventually end up killing everyone).

The major problem that the international community has with the LTTE is the adopting of suicide bombing to target specific military targets and economic targets. Yes, I and other Tamils do see that as a problem but it was a necessary evil in order to challenge the might of the Sri Lankan state violence but the international community should realize that it was their fault in pushing the LTTE to such tactics. They would have not adopted it if someone else came and told Sri Lanka to respect the Tamil people and to find a solution, but no one did and LTTE were left to deal with the Sri Lankan state. Even now they would disarm their suicide unit if international community got together and manned the borders of Tamil Eelam and Sri Lanka.

Right now, more violence and inhumane treatment of the Tamil people still continues and the Tamil people's quest for freedom is unchanged.

This is the reason why I tell my friends not to call me Sri Lankan, just call me Tamil. The Sri Lankan identity is a forced identity upon me that I do not recognize and neither did my parents.

Comments

Submitted by It's Me D on January 9, 2009 - 9:38am.

Thanks for the great post kthiruna, I'm so happy to have you here. I've been supportive of the plight of Sri Lanka's Tamils since I was quite young; no personal connection for me but I strongly beleive in Tamil Eelam. In fact learning about Sri Lanka's history has helped me understand and support liberation struggles elsewhere. Therefore its great to meet you here!

kthiruna wrote:

The major problem that the international community has with the LTTE is the adopting of suicide bombing to target specific military targets and economic targets.

This is the major route of attack the international community can use against the LTTE; the major problem the international community has with a Tamil homeland is apathy and moral cowardice. If they wanted to support the self-determination of the Sri Lankan Tamils then suicide bombing or any other reprehensible means wouldn't stand in their way (see Kosovo)... in fact, if the international community truely wanted too support the Tamils then, as you say, the LTTE wouldn't need suicide bombing to achieve their goal.

kthiruna wrote:

They would have not adopted it if someone else came and told Sri Lanka to respect the Tamil people and to find a solution, but no one did and LTTE were left to deal with the Sri Lankan state.

Not only did the international communtiy not support the Tamils in Sri Lanka but they have enabled the genocidal Sinhalese government... those modern weapons that the government has used to make military gains against the LTTE this year certainly weren't designed or built by the Sinhalese. The "international community" is not only failling to support the Tamils, it is actively sponsoring their destruction by supporting the Sinhalese regime.

Its such a sad predicament; Kthiruna are you able to see hope this year? Or do things look bleaker than ever to you (as they do to me)?

Submitted by kthiruna on January 9, 2009 - 12:36pm.

It's Me D wrote:

Its such a sad predicament; Kthiruna are you able to see hope this year? Or do things look bleaker than ever to you (as they do to me)?

In terms of the LTTE losing land, I do not see any problem. Since, it’s only land that the LTTE has lost which can be recaptured anytime. It is determination of the LTTE and the Tamil people that the Sri Lankan government can never break.

This similar situation was pointed out in the 1996 Maveerar Naal (Tamil Remembrance Day Speech) in which the LTTE leader said:

"In the conduct of the war it becomes a necessary condition for a liberation movement practising the art of guerrilla warfare to make strategic withdrawals and to loose areas of control. This cannot be categorised as a military defeat but can be regarded as a temporary set-back. By preserving our military power and our determination, we could launch counter offensive operations at any place and at any time chosen by us when the right objective condition prevails. By such manoeuvres we could inflict heavy damage on the enemy's military power and even regain lost territories. This strategy is best exemplified at the battle of Mullaitivu where we inflicted heavy casualties on the army and recaptured the territory. This success was possible because we retained our military power." - Tamil National Leader's annual Speech – 1996

Therefore, we Tamils have not lost hope at all for this year in terms of Tamil Military achievements. Since, Truth and Justice will always prevail.

But, I have been concerned about the ignorance of the international community regarding the human rights violations and constant indiscriminate bombings by the Sri Lankan Government and Army.

On a daily basis, the death toll of civilians due to airstrikes is going up. Even on Christmas, while Mahinda Rajapaksa, the President of Sri Lanka was making a speech saying the following:

“The spirit of love and joy that Christmas brings has special relevance in Sri Lanka today as we come closer to bringing down the barriers of mistrust and overcoming the fear of terror that have torn our society apart for so long….”

While these were being said the Sri Lankan Air Force were busy bombing the Holy Cross Convent located on the Paranthan Mullaitivu road using cluster bombs and bringing bring down the statue of St Mary, turning those words into hypocrisy and blaspheme.

The Tamil People's perception on life has changed in Sri Lanka and they have learned to live around death. It is when the international community recognizes this problem and when they start supporting the truth, the Tamils will see more hope. The blessings of the international community is curcial in every liberation struggle.

Submitted by It's Me D on January 9, 2009 - 1:44pm.

Thanks for the excellent response and the informative quotes. A part of my worry came from the military situation, perhaps it is not as grim as it looks, but in my estimation the SLA has never been so capable as it is today. I also share your concern about the "international community's" willingness to ignore the plight of Sri Lanka's Tamils, although I am not certain I share your assessment on how important that international support is...

kthiruna wrote:

It is when the international community recognizes this problem and when they start supporting the truth, the Tamils will see more hope. The blessings of the international community is curcial in every liberation struggle.

In the past thread oldgoat gave a description of how important international funding is to the conflict (for the LTTE but the same is true for the SLA); international support (governmental anyway) won't be coming around to the Tamil's side any time soon I'm afraid... it just isn't in anyone's interest and thats how callously these things are decided. The "independance" of Kosovo and the continuing celebration of the massacre in Tamil Eelam couldn't make the international community's contempt for justice and for human suffering more clear. But while I don't think the Tamil liberation struggle will recieve western support I also do not beleive that such "blessings" as you mention are so "crucial"; I'd appreciate if you'd elaborate there, and again I thank you for sharing your insight on this subject!

Submitted by thirusuj on January 9, 2009 - 3:38pm.

As I was following this thread, LTTE's leadership is well aware of what makes international community tick; unfortunately the Tamil people are in a stage where they can only worry about freedom and not the economic or trade interests of other nations:

"We are fully aware that the world is not rotating on the axis of human justice. Every country in this world advances its own interests. It is the economic and trade interests that determine the order of the present world, not the moral law of justice nor the rights of people. International relations and diplomacy between countries are determined by such interests. Therefore we cannot expect an immediate recognition of the moral legitimacy of our cause by the international community." Maha Veera Naal Address (Velupillai Pirabaharan) - November 1993

As a Tamil I can tell you that International support is essential, there have been many times where LTTE has pushed the Sri Lankan state militarily and almost destroyed the Sri Lankan state economically. The International communities however were lured by the economic and trade perks offered by the Sri Lankan governments and have fallen ignoring the suffering of the Tamil people only to revitalize the Sri Lankan state.

We need the International community to understand the legitimacy of our struggle for freedom, the international government knows what is happening but they don't bother as their people do not take up this issue with their respective governments and demand for results. South Africa would not be where it is if the International community did not intervene and indicate that there is no room for racism. One of the governments that supported the South African apartheid government was Sri Lanka as at that time it was receiving many shipments of arms from South Africa to continue its genocide on Tamils.

Even now there are more then 300,000 recently internally displaced persons in the conflict zone and they are subjected to many kind of violence. Sri Lanka has kicked out all the international NGO's giving it an open space to do what ever they please as nothing will go on to outside media; the people are subjected to various embargos and slow starvation. Anyone who speaks against it is quickly stamped with a terrorist label by the Sri Lankan government.

Another problem is the LTTE being on the terrorist list which is cleverly being used by the Sri Lankan diplomats and Sri Lankan Canadians in Canada to deal with the Tamil Canadians. When the LTTE was banned, the Tamils in Canada did not worry as we believed that we can win this freedom with out the support of the International community. We were so wrong to even think like that. We cannot even say anything about the suffering of the Tamil people in that island because the Sri Lankan propaganda machine is very quick in reminding the Canadian public that LTTE is listed as a terrorist organization and that it is a Tamil organization. So when the rest of the Canadian hear about this they quickly brush aside the suffering and believe that Sri Lanka is fighting a "War on Terror"; not even questioning the nature of the conflict.

The Bush Administration's "war on terror" has a great impact on us and I feel as if LTTE was just added to the list of terrorism just to say that they were not discriminating the Muslim people.

Submitted by It's Me D on January 9, 2009 - 4:52pm.

Good to meet you Thirusuj! An interesting response... the international support you appear to be seeking is the support of the people (such as the support recieved by the Palestinians); it is different from governmental support (as is again clearly evidenced by the Canadian government's position on Palestine). I agree with you about the importance of solidarity with the Sri Lankan Tamil liberation struggle... as I said I have no personal connect to this conflict and yet have been doing what I can to raise awareness of it here in rural Nova Scotia (where Sri Lanka sure seems a long way off) for years now.

thirusuj wrote:

Well put but as I said in the Gaza thread (V), I think we will have to change the government in order to change its perspective; an imperialist state like Canada cannot stand up and play a positive role in Sri Lanka. Raising awareness amongst the people is key, as you say, hopefully the complicity of our government in the crimes of the Sinhalese regime will be revealed.

thirusuj wrote:

We cannot even say anything about the suffering of the Tamil people in that island because the Sri Lankan propaganda machine is very quick in reminding the Canadian public that LTTE is listed as a terrorist organization and that it is a Tamil organization. So when the rest of the Canadian hear about this they quickly brush aside the suffering and believe that Sri Lanka is fighting a "War on Terror"; not even questioning the nature of the conflict.

This is true but the people can be convinced; look at me, I've never even met any Tamils in person! Other liberations struggles which have achieved broader public support (counter to the wishes of the government), such as the Palestinians, doubtless provide an example... but it is so much easier to get media access to that conflict, and even though the mainstream media won't present people with reality anyone who desires to do so can act as a counterpoint to the propoganda... perhaps Canadian leftists do not know how to access the tools needed to publicize the conflict in Sri Lanka (I know the material is out there)... one way or another its amazing how otherwise well informed leftists rarely have their heads above the MSM sand re: Sri Lanka. I wish I had better suggestions for bridging this divide... there must be lessons from other groups. I suppose this is where Kthiruna's comments about suicide bombing come in... does it really diminish peoples' support in the west? and why?

thirusuj wrote:

Anyone who speaks against it is quickly stamped with a terrorist label by the Sri Lankan government.

Amazingly this is also true (to a much lesser degree) here; I find that I'm often labeled a terrorist supporter when I talk about the crimes of the Sinhalese regime, and thats here in Canada!

thirusuj wrote:

The Bush Administration's "war on terror" has a great impact on us and I feel as if LTTE was just added to the list of terrorism just to say that they were not discriminating the Muslim people.

Sadly I sometimes feel this too; and that Kosovo was supported and recognized for the opposite reason, since they are Muslims. Why are the deserving causes never the ones that recieve support?