1600 political prisoners are languishing in Sri Lanka for many years without trial
1600 political prisoners arrested on suspicion under Emergency Regulations (ER) and Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), languishing in various prisons in Sri Lanka for many years without being produced in the courts.
They launched a hunger strike as their requests placed in previous hunger strikes had not been taken into consideration despite promises by legal authorities that their cases will be taken for trial in two months time, sources in Colombo said.
The protesting prisoners further said that they believe that all are equal before the law and that they request the Sri Lanka President to at least allow them on bail as persons under normal court procedure
The political prisoners who had earlier staged hunger strikes 2 to 3 times in the period between 27th to 31st July 2009 had given up the strike on assurances given by legal authorities that their cases will be taken to trial within two months but they had not kept their word and this has forced them to go on hunger strike, they said.
They further pointed out that it is an outright violation of human rights to keep them in the prison, who had been arrested merely on suspicion under ER and PTA, without legal action against them for many years.
6,000 IDPs promised release last week , but only 580 arrived in the area and all of them were immediately sent to another camp, where they continue to be detained.
There is no resettlement. They are being sent from one prison to another.
“There is no way it can happen. We select the people carefully for resettlement, and these people were sent nowhere else,” Media Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said.
But a government official in Ampara confirmed about 130 people who had been released from a camp in the north were being held until they received security clearances and their homes were repaired. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to journalists.
It’s a bit confusing … basically IDPs pushed from one camp to another.. Strange ???? The IDPs were check and recheck for nearly 5 months in concentration camps… now they are freed and imprisoned again until yet another security clearance ???? or better yet … to be imprisoned until their homes repaired ???? Last week , it was the mines
Flimsy tents filled with the torrential rain downpour in Sri Lanka Concentration camps http://warwithoutwitness.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=254:flooding-of-sri-lankan-idp-camps-detaining-300000-tamils-possible-outbreak-of-epidemics&catid=39:by-war-without-witness&Itemid=62
The monsoon season is approaching, which will inevitably contribute even more devastating effect on the Tamil people’s way of life.
Already they are living in squalor, mud pits, dirty drinking water, unsanitary lavatories and sewerage.
With the addition of the torrential rain, there will be no clear definition between the ‘clean ‘and dirty water. In fact, it has been reported that many thousands have had to stand in their own waste for days at a time as their flimsy tents filled with this downpour.
We need to double our efforts to free the Tamil from the concentration camps. We can start by persuading the donor organizations, including the UN (who have paid 188 million pounds not to continue to shower the Sri Lankan government with money or else they will keep the 300,000 innocent civilians imprisoned indefinitely.
We need to boycott Sri Lankan products, tea, and tourism and write many emails to all of the relevant organizations campaigning against this action, and it should be done soon
ஒரு சிறிய இடைவெளிக்குப்பின், ஒரு பெரிய பின்னடைவுக்குப்பின் நாம் இங்கு சந்திக்கிறோம். நம்ப முடியாத பல சம்பவங்கள் நடந்து விட்டன. முன்பைவிட நாம் ஒருங்கிணைந்து செய்ய வேண்டிய பணிகள் இப்போது உள்ளது. பைரவ் மீண்டும் இந்த வலை தளத்தை துவங்கி இருப்பது நல்லதொரு முயற்சி. வாழ்த்துக்கள்
Badri is away on leave, so i manage this blog for the time being. If you have any good articles that highlight the plight of Tamils back home, please feel free to share with me. I can post it here.
We all expect Badri soon since he has done a great job of uniting all here with his one of kind analyzing skills.
We're entering into a very bad phase of Eelam struggle now, but the results of killing 30,000+ innocent Tamils are on the way. Lets say once the last IDP person is released from the internment camps, we may enter into different form of struggle.
The Daily Mirror: 1)Indian Prime Minister’s defense advisor M.K. Narayanan had declared at the Indian DGP – IGP Police conference last week that there are signs that the Tamil Tigers are re-grouping themselves. He said, “Chances are yet for the Tamil Tigers to regroup and rearm.’ He went on to add,‘…the funding lines of the LTTE are still intact, and there is always a possibility that disgruntled elements in the Tamil Diaspora across the Globe could get together to help the terror outfit , re group and re arm. With the Tamil Diaspora which was the main source of funding for LTTE spread far and wide, the threat of the outfit raising its head once again could not be ruled out …” Narayanan could have made these enunciations on the basis of the information he has received. He is a Senior Official having experience and specialized knowledge about Tamil Tigers. Hence, his statements cannot be simply dismissed.
A month after K.P. was arrested, Narayanan had stated the LTTE funding line is still intact. In other words, the LTTE funding line could not be disrupted or dismantled by K.P.’s arrest. This also implies that, after Prabahakaran’s death the LTTE administration was not in the hands of K.P.
In that case, in whose hands is the LTTE administration? No matter who he is ; who can say for sure that this deep rooted hatred of his and the Tamil Diaspora against the Indian Govt. cannot be exploited by another foreign country.
Recently, a columnist who contributes articles to the Tamil net website had asked a very intriguing question. What would have been the result, if the Tamil population during the final phase of the war gone after China and Pakistan instead of depending on India? India must seriously ponder this question. May be Narayanan’s inordinate fear of Tamil Tiger revival stems from this. India is haunted by Prabhakaran’s ghost is clear going by Narayanan’s fear.
2)Rebuilding Sri Lanka after 25 years of civil war will, among other things, require preventing a resurgence of the LTTE, Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake said at the Asia Society headquarters in New York last night.
3)Madurai, Sep 24 (PTI): The Tamil Nadu Police was relieved after the end of the conflict between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan forces, but was not complacent, as the terror threat persisted, state Director General of Police KP Jain said.
4)தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகள் அமைப்பின் சர்வதேச வலையமைப்பை குறைத்து மதிப்பீடு செய்யக் கூடாது என இலங்கையின் ஏற்றுமதி மேம்பாட்டு அமைச்சர் பேராசிரியர் ஜீ.எல்.பீரிஸ் குறிப்பிட்டுள்ளார். புலிகளிடம் காணப்படும் பெருந் தொகைப் பணம் மற்றும் தொடர்பாடல் கட்டமைப்பு தொடர்பில் கவனம் செலுத்தப்பட வேண்டும் என அவர் தெரிவித்துள்ளார்.
தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகளின் சர்வதேச வலையமைப்பு இலங்கைக்கு எதிராக மேற்கொண்டு வரும் சூழ்ச்சித் திட்டங்கள் குறித்து உன்னிப்பாக அவதானிக்கப்பட வேண்டும் என அவர் குறிப்பிட்டுள்ளார்.
ஐக்கிய மக்கள் சுதந்திரக் கூட்டமைப்பின் தேர்தல் பிரச்சாரம் தொடர்பான ஊடகவியலாளர் மாநாட்டில் கலந்து கொண்ட போது அவர் இதனைக் குறிப்பிட்டுள்ளார்.
அமெரிக்க காங்கிரஸில் இலங்கை முப்படைத் தளபதிகளுக்கு எதிராக யுத்தக் குற்றச் சாட்டுக்களை சுமத்த மேற்கொள்ளப்படும் முயற்சியும் புலிகளின் சூழ்ச்சித் திட்டமே என அவர் தெரிவித்துள்ளார்.
The AIADMK(India) threatened to launch a mass agitation along with like-minded parties if the Union ( Indian) government failed to press the international community to force the Sri Lankan government to put an end to the (Human) rights violations against Tamils on its land.
In a statement here, party general secretary J Jayalalithaa said that the AIADMK and people of Tamil Nadu expect the Centre to raise its voice against the human rights violations in the refugee camps in Sri Lanka.
If the Centre does not act immediately, “the AIADMK, along with like-minded political parties, will be forced to launch a mass agitation to focus world vision on the brutal civil liberties violations in Sri Lanka.”
The former chief minister said “The gruesome footage, reportedly filmed by a soldier on a mobile phone camera, reinforces my earlier claim that civil liberties are non-existent in Sri Lanka and that the Tamil population there is subject to barbaric atrocities at the hands of the Sri Lankan Army.”
“Sri Lanka claims to be a democratic country, where the rule of law prevails. No democracy sanctions this sort of summary mass execution, where human dignity is wantonly trampled upon,” she added.
“Even assuming that the persons being shot dead in the footage telecast were LTTE activists, executing them summarily without a trial is barbaric, inhuman and contrary to civilized norms. It also violates international law relating to treatment of prisoners of war.”
Slamming the DMK government, she said “As such, the AIADMK does not expect the DMK government to even make a whimper of protest against the atrocities being perpetrated upon the Tamil people.”
The visa application of the Sri Lanka Minister Keheliya Rambukwella was rejected by the Canadian High Commission.
The British High Commission in Colombo also refused visa recently to top SL diplomat and former Sri Lanka Foreign Secretary Palitha Kohona
UK introduces war crime clause in visa applications of Sri Lankans. In future, all SL visa applicants to UK have to fill a column on war crime involvements.
This means that the applicant has to declare his involvements, if any, in war crimes. This is a sequel to allegations of human rights violations leveled against the Sri Lanka Armed Forces and Sri Lanka Government.
Sources also pointed out that it was significant to note that in the recent past, visa applications of many Sri Lankan government politicos, including their family members.
The new UN Permanent Representative to Sri Lanka, Dr. Palitha Kohona, had submitted his passport to the British High Commission for a visa to London but to his surprise the passport was returned without any valid reason for turning down his visa application. He later sought an explanation from the British High Commission on the incident.
The SL diplomat Palitha Kohona had later again sought a visa to London, UK, but the second attempt too was rejected with the UK High Commission.
An angry UN Permanent Representative to Sri Lanka Dr. Palitha Kohona had made several attempts to contact the British High Commissioner and his Deputy to seek their intervention but they could not be contacted over the telephone.
The Sri Lankan government is of the view that the British High Commission had violated diplomatic protocols by rejecting a visa for the former Foreign Secretary and felt this had further strained relations between Britain and Sri Lanka. Also, Ireland embassy in New Delhi in India has refused visas to 13 competitors from Sri Lanka Armed Forces for the cycling event at the World Military Games 2009 in Ireland.
The ruthless Sri Lankan regime slaughtered thousands of the innocents.
Now International community (IC) is letting the Tamils to languish in the concentration camps is another example that IC has become real hypocrite who has corrupt souls.
Playing cricket for an example, with a country that is flowing with the blood of the innocent men, women and children, shows that IC no longer has any moral principles to guide our lives.
IC is now even quite comfortable to sit and has tea with a Hannibal while it’s hands are still stained with the blood and its room is filled with the stink of rotting human flesh.
About 30 to 40 persons are abducted on a daily basis from IDP camps in the North, SLFP (M) Leader Mangala Samaraweera charged in Parliament yesterday.
“Certain reports indicate that 30 to 40 persons are abducted or disappear on a daily basis from IDP camps,” Mr. Samaraweera charged.
However, Chief Government Whip Dinesh Gunawardane denied this allegation and asked where such statistics of abducted persons were found.
In response Mr. Samaraweera said that if such reports are to be denied the government must be transparent to the manner it deals with the IDP issue.
“If the government allows Opposition MPs to form a committee and visit the camps then such claims can be verified. The government should act in a transparent manner,” Mr. Samaraweera said.
Mr. Samaraweera said that in Orwellian terms the so called ‘welfare’ camps were virtual prisons for the IDPs.
“In George Orwells 1984, the Ministry of Peace dealt with war, and the Ministry of Love with torture. Likewise we witnessed in Sri Lanka how the Peace Secretariat justified excesses carried out in the name of war against terrorism. And the so-called welfare camps are virtual prisons,” Mr. Samaraweera said.
He added that most of the 280,000 IDPs had kith and kin around the country who are willing to have them until the de-mining process to the Vanni was complete.
“They are not economic refugees. They have opened 21,000 bank accounts and deposited Rs. 500 million in banks after coming out of LTTE areas. They are government servants, teachers and farmers. All they want is to go home,” Mr. Samaraweera said.
The MP also charged that the IDPs were being resettled from one camp into another. “The government is denying these people the right to speech, choice, movement and livelihood,” Mr. Samaraweera said.
The Sri Lankan GSP+ trade concession was based on the ratification and effective implementation many international human rights principles. Some of them are the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the Convention against Torture (CAT) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).
Media reports indicate that the EU Trade Concessions will be negative and that the crux of the issue is human rights. They are stubborn ones. They will not go away. They cannot be dealt with by denial, bravado, defiance, conspiracy theories or neglect. Moreover they are indubitably in the national interest and to the detriment of no one other than the perpetrators of violations.
The Good governance cannot be served or sustained by conflict and conspiracy, fear, paranoia and insecurity. Sri Lanka is a part of an international community. Human rights and the international community have to be dealt with maturely, responsibly, constructively.
Kathiravel Thayapararaja, a 28-year old Tamil Electrical Engineer, is feared to have been extra-judically executed by Sri Lanka intelligent services, after being forcefully abducted sometime second week of September, informed sources in Colombo said. Thayapararaja’s wife, Uthayakala, and the two children of her diseased sister who were under Uthayakala’s care, have now been taken under the protection and care of a Church Organization in Colombo, after being left helpless with the disappearance of her husband, unconfirmed reports said.
Massive ethnic cleansing is occurring; the Human Rights Council should act for the Tamils - KAREN PARKER
UN Human Rights Council at its12th session (14 September – 2 October 2009) in Geneva has concluded general debate on human rights situations that require the council’s attention. Representatives from several countries and NGOs participating in the debate expressed concern about the situation in camps for internally displaced persons in the north of Sri Lanka.
KAREN PARKER, of International Educational Development, said in her statement that there should be institutional reform and study of the root causes of conflicts as essential to transitional justice. In Sri Lanka, the Government resisted any purview of accountability, and was still prosecuting the war against the Tamil people. The only remedy for the latter was to submit to ever-harsher oppression and abuse. The international community had not looked into the underlying causes of the Sinala-Tamil war for many years. The people were in detention camps because they were Tamil, not because they were civilians. The whole issue of this war was because the Tamil people had sought their right to self-determination, among other rights, and the Government had refused them. Massive ethnic cleansing was occurring, and the Council should act for the Tamils.
Excerpts from some of their statements are as follows:
CHRISTIAN STROHAL (Austria) said that no country had a perfect human rights record and all needed to work constantly and self-critically to address their shortcomings and do better for the promotion and protection of human rights. This fact obliged countries to openly address situations that were of particularly concern to them in order to enter into a dialogue on how to improve the implementation of international standards on the ground. Austria pointed to the human rights situations in Iran, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Sudan, which were all situations where Austria failed to see the necessary political will and determination to improve the protection of human rights effectively.
JANICE MCGANN (Ireland) said that the situation in Sri Lanka was over but the peace there remained to be won as serious breaches of humanitarian and human rights law had taken place during that war.
PETER HERTEL RASMUSSEN (Denmark) said the Government of Sri Lanka should fully respect all human rights.
CHRISTINE GOY (Luxembourg) said that Luxembourg was equally concerned for the grave situation in Sri Lanka with regards to the freedom of expression. The situation of internally displaced persons and the allegations of violations of international law during the armed conflict had not yet been the subject of an independent international enquiry, and therefore required particular attention from the Council.
MURIEL BERSET (Switzerland) said that the evolution of the situation in Sri Lanka remained of concern to Switzerland which reiterated its appeal. The humanitarian actors needed to be able to conduct their work without constraints. The holding of hundreds of thousands of internally displaced peoples must end and their safe and voluntary prompt return enabled.
CAROLINE MILLAR (Australia) said Australia remained concerned that over 300,000 civilians remained displaced in camps in northern Sri Lanka.
REINHARD SCHWEPPE (Germany) said as for the situation in Sri Lanka, Germany stressed that reconciliation was strongly based on the full respect of human rights and urged the Sri Lanka Government to create conditions which ensured the safe and dignified return of all internally displaced persons.
WENDY HINTON (New Zealand) said In Sri Lanka, New Zealand remained concerned about the situation for those in camps for internally displaced persons. The Government should engage in a reconciliation process taking into account the legitimate aspirations of all minority groups.
GOTZON ONANDIA ZARRABE, of Franciscans International, said in Sri Lanka, internally displaced persons were not being resettled as promptly nor as safely as the Government promised to the Council, and they continued to suffer within the camps. Human rights defenders, journalists and anyone voicing a differing opinion on the Government’s current policies continued to be the target of violent attacks and harassment by both State and non-State actors.
LUKAS MACHON, of International Commission of Jurists, said in Sri Lanka, humanitarian aid had been continuously obstructed by Government limitations on access to internally displaced persons and the maintenance of internment camps through unjustifiable restrictions on freedom of movement.
MICHAEL ANTONY, of Asian Legal Resource Centre, said the Universal Periodic Review was clearly not a sufficient mechanism to address the worst human rights situations in an effective or timely manner. The Council was currently failing to effectively address situations of human rights crisis, such as those in Sri Lanka and Myanmar; this was not simply a failing of political will, but also one of approach. In Sri Lanka, the continuing grave situation of internally displaced persons was testimony to this.
KAREN PARKER, of International Educational Development, said there should be institutional reform and study of the root causes of conflicts as essential to transitional justice. In Sri Lanka, the Government resisted any purview of accountability, and was still prosecuting the war against the Tamil people. The only remedy for the latter was to submit to ever-harsher oppression and abuse. The international community had not looked into the underlying causes of the Sinala-Tamil war for many years. The people were in detention camps because they were Tamil, not because they were civilians. The whole issue of this war was because the Tamil people had sought their right to self-determination, among other rights, and the Government had refused them. Massive ethnic cleansing was occurring, and the Council should act for the Tamils. There should be a protective presence in Camp Ashraf as soon as possible. The Council should reflect its decision on Honduras in taking a new decision on Myanmar, where a similar situation prevailed.
SATHLYASANGARY ANANDASANGAREE of Lawyer’s Rights Watch Canada, said so far the Sri Lankan Government had failed to live up to its commitments to the international community. Over 300,000 Tamil civilians were still being held against their will in open prisons and their freedom of movement restricted; clean water, sanitation, food, medicine and the basic necessities of life were in dire need. The Government had also failed to allow independent observers access to the camps. The deteriorating situation in Sri Lanka desperately required the attention of the Council - the international community must demand the unconditional release of the civilians within the 180-day timeline proposed by the Government of Sri Lanka and supported by a majority of Council members.
NIMALKA FERNAND, of International Movement against all Forms of Discrimination and Racism (IMADR), in a joint statement with Asian Forum for Human Rights; and Asian Legal Resource Centre, said with regard to the human rights situation in Sri Lanka, although the war had arguably ended, the threats to democracy as well as the human rights violations had not diminished. Further, over 250,000 people were living in camps as internally displaced persons and a leading human rights defender had received a death threat for his advocacy with the European Union. Against this backdrop, the International Movement Against all Forms of Discrimination and Racism wished to remind the members of the Council, the concerned Member States, the United Nations Secretary-General and other international institutions, of the various commitments and pledges given by the Government of Sri Lanka. It also called on the Sri Lankan Government to facilitate investigations of all allegations that had been revealed by various media institutions regarding extra-judicial killings. Finally, the International Movement Against all Forms of Discrimination and Racism wished to point out that the implementation of the 13th and 17th amendment was still outstanding and national legislation had not come into effect.
Every one knows about DBS Jeyaraj and what he stands for. Comments column in his website is being extensively used for anti LTTE propaganda. The Hindu quotes him extensively and even many of the comments of his website are reproduced in length:
The Hindu:
''Responses on the site
The response of Sri Lankans of all hues on the DBS Jeyaraj website are illuminating and give room to hope that a change in mindsets of both the majority and minority communities in Sri Lanka could happen.
Commenting on a response by DBS Jeyaraj, a reader named Kumar wrote on July 30 at 3:52 am (GMT):...''
The point is that now serious attempts are being made to degrade the entire Eezham movement and put the entire blame on Tigers and Prabhakaran. This the ripe moment to wean away people from Eezham goal!
Why is it that everyone you disagree with is automatically on some nefarious payroll? You guys here are just as silly as the fools at Ellalan Force and DefenceWire who see conspiracies everywhere.
Also, perhaps the Diaspora need to wake up and smell the coffee of defeat. Praba and his band of thugs were soundly beaten by MR and his band of thugs and the time has come to take a new approach that does not start and end in separatism.
The GoSL are clearly turning the country into a fascist state and the Diaspora would do well to pursue this angle in the search for sympathetic ears in the IC.
Pining for a dream that died violently on the beaches of Mulliatheevu is a waste of epic proportion and only serves to reinforce Sinhalese extremists who seek any reason to justify continued trampling of human rights in Sri Lanka under the guise of anti-terrorism.
Oh... one last point... the comment earlier about Badri's "one of a kind analysing skills" only further shows that you prefer blatant lies and propaganda to verifiable and factual information.
The displaced Tamils being held captive against their will in these sickening internment camps could use some honest, intelligent help and do not need the nonsense and tripe usually served up here.
At least three people, including an eight-year-old child, were wounded when soldiers opened fire at a group of internally displaced people from the Menik Farm at Chettikulam
The Sri Lankan soldiers open fire when the IDPs pelted stones. They (SLA) also claimed that one (IDP) of them tried to lob a grenade. The wounded were admitted to hospital. However, TNA parliamentarian Shivashakthi Anandan claimed that the IDPs were moving from one zone to another to collect firewood as they had to cook their own meals after the Sri Lankan authorities stopped supplying cooked meals.
There is no longer any reason for the Prevention of Terrorism Act in Sri Lanka; on the contrary, there are many compelling reasons as to why it should immediately be repealed. It was the existence of the LTTE that the government used to justify the promulgation and maintenance of the PTA.
Now, by the very admission of the government this threat has ceased to exist. Even at a time of grave danger the PTA was too draconian and many of the provisions in the act could not have been justified. This has been pointed out by local legal opinion, local human rights groups and governments around the world, as well as international human rights agencies and several United Nations agencies and experts.
After the defeat of the LTTE the government said that elements associated with it could remain, and that some new elements may emerge; yet every country faces this possibility all the time. If this reasoning is used to suspend the operation of a normal legal system then this would need to apply everywhere, forever. Terrorism – even war – is always possible, but if people are willing to abandon their freedoms and their normal legal rights to preempt these possibilities, draconian law will reign indefinitely.
As long as the PTA remains in operation there is reason to suspect that it is being used by the government for political advantage, as an instrument to perpetuate its own power. Complaints of oppression by the opposition and other dissenting voices will have legitimate weight.
The Act has effectively aided the destruction of the normal rule of law within Sri Lanka and undermined the independence of its judiciary; indeed litigants, lawyers and even the judges may have started to forget what a strong, functioning legal system is like. To maintain the PTA is to continue destroying what is left. The disadvantages far outweigh the advantage that the government spokesperson may claim that it has.
An enduring PTA will continue to place the Criminal Investigation Division and the Terrorism Investigation Division beyond the control of the law, with no checks or balances against its abuse of power. Tales of torture being used, charges being fabricated and deaths occurring in places of detention are heard constantly, yet while the PTA exists there is no way to even investigate such allegations, let alone avoid them.
Sri Lanka’s policing system has collapsed; this is now a fact acknowledged by all. Yet no reform process can be set in motion, and under the protection of the PTA Sri Lanka’s police force will continue to degenerate, its people given no option but to live under its oppression, corruption and arbitrary violence. What this means is that literally hundreds of thousands of people will suffer without any legal recourse, and large numbers will continue to live outside the protection of the law. The entire population will be affected.
It is time for everyone in Sri Lanka and beyond to earnestly request the immediate repeal of the Prevention of Terrorism Act by the Sri Lankan government. The judiciary must no longer be undermined by those with extraordinary power, the rule of law must be revived and all people must be given its protection.
after the IDPs are settled, are Tamils opting for a Iraqi-style terrorist campaign?
I am afraid Diaspora will once again lead the local Tamils towards the path of destruction by their need for revenge.Another tragedy would be to try to resurrect the Tigers by name or imagery--all current well deserved sympathy by IC would be lost then. Already the Tamil population has been decimated in SL both in combat, and through low-key but constant Govt butchery.I suggest the Tamils build up their numbers and concentrate on democratic means.The shortest route for this would be to bring back the numerous Tamils held in refugee camps in India. At a later stage even Diaspora Tamils can return( if SL allows).Of course this is under presumption that the Govt of Sri Lanka will tone down their violent repression with time. But its a given that, given so much butchery of innocents in the last stages by GoSL, some form of insurgency will remain.I suppose it would be led by Ram from East? I am sure plenty of trained ex-Tigers are with the IDPs, and poor handling by GoSL will leave their expertise for this future insurgency.
A crucial report on Sri Lanka’s alleged war crimes is scheduled to be released soon by the US Department. It prepared by Stephen Rapp, who served as Senior Trial Attorney and Chief of Prosecutions at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.
The report, which could determine United State’s future financial assistance to the island, will be handed over to the US Congress for evaluation.
US Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues, Stephen Rapp in an interview with Time magazine on disclosed that his office was now primarily focusing on Sri Lanka and a report from the Department of State on the war in Sri Lanka is due in US Congress.
The Office of War Crimes Issues, together with the Secretary for Global Affairs and the Secretary of State, has the responsibility to collect information on ongoing atrocities, and it is then the responsibility of the President (Barak Obama) to determine what steps might be taken towards justice.
In the Amendment 1169 to H.R. 2346, an Act making supplemental appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, US Senators had earlier proposed to “prohibit certain forms of financial support to Sri Lanka,” unless certification is made by the Secretary of State that “Sri Lanka has taken certain steps to address the humanitarian situation in areas affected by the conflict in Sri Lanka.”
Thus, the forthcoming war crimes report by the Department of State is mandated by the above Act.
Meanwhile, a source in the US told that State Department officials have already contacted and obtained eye witness accounts from a number of persons who have given details on alleged war crimes committed in Sri Lanka.
The Office of War Crimes Issues helps formulate US policy responding to atrocities in areas of conflict around the globe.
Mid this year, President Obama appointed Rapp, as his Ambassador at Large for War Crimes Issues. As head of the Office of War Crimes Issues, Rapp directly reports to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton regarding a wide range of war crimes issues — from Darfur to Burma to Sri Lanka.
[But its a given that, given so much butchery of innocents in the last stages by GoSL, some form of insurgency will remain.]
STD,
After 30,000+ of innocent Tamils were massacred in cold blooded in less than 4 months span, no Tamil will think about reconciliation with barbaric Sinhalese. They've already started to colonize the Tamil lands in North and East, it's matter of time before North becomes Sinhala majority.
Tamils never will get any decent political solutions from the current regime of Rajpaksa thugs or any future moderate Sinhala politicians. Insurgency is very important for the survival of Tamil race in SL until it gives some time for Tamilnadu to wake up from its own struggle that will transform Eelam in the long run.
you are thinking like the native American Indians once did -- for people with small numbers and small resources accepting the status quo is often better than fighting for a lost(but just) cause.Closer home you remind me of the Palestinians--by forcing them to take to terrorism Israel is conveniently hogging the moral high ground and killing Arabs in their own lands at will.So if Tamils want a 'nation' of some sort, then they have to show they deserve it. Revenge attacks wont show that they deserve it.OTOH ocassional well crafted attacks on the military, ONLY in the occupied areas,while concentrating mainly on the democratic struggle, will bear more fruit in the long run.Under present world order Tamils cannot defeat the Sinhalese.period.One suicide bomb post-LTTE and the whole Tamil case would be consigned to the dustbin.
Whether one likes it or not, the sinhala chavunism will never allow Eelam Tamils to live with peace and dignity in a united srilanka.
And srilankans have never understood or respected whenever Tamils democratically voiced their grievences following Gandhian principles, nor it will happen in the future.
There is no other way but to retaliate in defence of our people and the present setback doesn't mean that armed resistance will always going to fail. We have had spectacular victories in the past.
The present situation is because of the interference of India and other countries in the name of protecting their geo political interests. This can be countered only when Tamilnadu people awaken and put their might backing Eelam cause, as Bhairav said.
Anything else will only lead to subjugation of ourselves further at the feet of sinhala chauvunists. Such a situation will not and cannot prevail for long.
"The great Alexander, Brits, Russians then with all the sophisticated weapons and 500k elite forces and,now, US all tried to conquer Afghanistan, and you all knew what happened. Tamils should see Sinhalese as their invaders, and constantly put the pressure on South regardless of the manpower of chauvinist Sinhalese" have you seen the size & population of Afghanistan & Tamil areas in SL? Have you seen the terrain there? Have you seen its borders and neighbours? Have you seen their suppliers & supporters? 28million vs 1million.There is no way you guys will win through armed struggle.But you may well end up as an extinct or has-been race if you continue with war.
"As i said before, once the last IDP is released from the camp, we should start our arm struggle." the day the Diaspora are made to actually fight on the ground will be the day when the armed option will die a natural death:)
"The war criminals of Eelam war IV:
1) Karunanidhi 2) Sonia Ghandi 3) MR,GR, and SF." instead of cribbing after defeat, have you ever contemplated why nobody wanted to take up your cause?Above statements 1&2 has same credibility as Sinhalese blaming Human Rights workers as ltte stooges! And you are dreaming of Tamilnadu/India help in future lol! Dream on. But let the Tamils in SL make their own choice.I am sure they want peace above all.
Naxalbari movement started in the late sixties and inspite of several setbacks, now, they have bounced back. They have become a force to reckon with in almost five states of India. Manmohan Singh is now openly stating that they are one of the major threats to India.
The reason is that tribal and downtrodden people are behind them and supporting.
When a movement truly represent the aspirations of the people, it cannot be wiped out; Irrespective of the might of its opponent.
Tell me more about Naxalbari movement. There was a 42nd anniversary of the movement just after the VP’s martyrdom. In 1967 peasants of Naxalbari, a remote village of North Bengal started their struggle for the agrarian revolution. Inspired by Naxalbari, people of India have been waging their struggle to build new India free from all imperialist and feudal exploitation. I think, the Great Naxalbari Movement, is the real alternate to this semi-feudal and semi-colonial brutal India.
Ashok Kumar, please visit my blog http://mawathasilva.blogspot.com/ How to post on my blog ——————— Below the “post a comment “window you will see “comment as: select profile”. Click on drop down menu and choose an “Anonymous” option. By using “Anonymous” option from the drop down menu will not prohibit you to use your pen name, any links or any text in the comment itself
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STD
You’ve lost me. Who made the spokesman for Thamils of Sri Lanka?
but let the Tamils in SL make their own choice. I am sure they want peace above all.
Do you mean slavery?
You mention the fact that you are for a unified Sri Lanka with peaceful coexistence.
But what about the 300,000 people who are still suffering within the confines of the concentration camp?
I don’t think they appreciate your understanding of a peaceful life.
They are still living in a slave -like reality.
Why are you choosing to ignore these facts?
Please don’t forget the Sri Lankan government is also robbing the Tamil people of their own land and belongings- how is this peaceful?
I hope you can open your eyes and see that the government is fueling the situation with propaganda and lies.
Human trafficking at the Sri Lankan internment camps is shocking. The Government started to look at IDPs as the ducks laying golden eggs.
Up to 20,000 IDPs have been ransomed by desperate relatives who are able and willing to pay thousands of rupees to secure their release, and have left the camps
Many, many reports have now emerged that money is being demanded in Sri Lanka for IDPs to be released and the soldiers are in the thick and thin of it.
This exposes so-called ‘screening’ of IDPs for what it is: a cover for a lucrative flesh trade, carried out with the collusion of elements in the government and armed forces that get a cut out of it.
It also explains why the camp authorities refused to release a one-year-old child to leave with its grandmother: since an infant could hardly be suspected of being a dreaded LTTE terrorist or suicide bomber, the reason was surely that a payoff had not been paid.
In my opinion, that since a one year child cannot pay such money, then it has to be helplessly and hopelessly consigned to the concentration camps.
"When a movement truly represent the aspirations of the people, it cannot be wiped out; Irrespective of the might of its opponent."
now imagine the Sinhalese thinking in same lines--and 28million Sinhalese to 1 million Tamils. They are as determined as you to not let go...who is going to be extinct then?
Aspiration of the people would be strong and lasting one if it is rational and genuine necessity.
Tamils do not want sinhalese to live under their rule. They just want to be let live.
But sinhala hardliners say that the entire island belongs to them and Tamils have no other choice but to live as per their terms.
What was srilanka before British rule?
Tomorrow few crore Tamils across the palk straits may understand what Eelam Tamils stand for and start supporting them more actively...
M S,
Communist Party of India (CPI)split in 1962 due to ideological differences including on the question of participation in parlimentary democracy. CPI- Marxists (CPM)was formed and it was considered to be closer to Beijing at that time.
More militant sections in CPI-M, gradually got disenchanted with the party and started accusing it of going back on the same path.
Late sixties, they split from CPI-M and formed CPI- ML( Marxist- Leninist). They were led by Charu Mazumdar.
Their first uprising against land lords' oppresssion and the state took place at a place called Naxalbari and the movement got the popular name 'Naxalites'.
They weild considerable influence in the states of Chattisgarh, Orissa, Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal and Telengana region of Andhra Pradesh.
In Chattisgarh, considerable area is under their control and inaccessible to the security forces till now.
There were many splinter groups of Naxalites or Maoists but many of them have got united.
I will try to send detailed account of the movement later.
[28million vs 1million.There is no way you guys will win through armed struggle.But you may well end up as an extinct or has-been race if you continue with war.]
The way they used the extensive forces and any available weapons- chemical weapons, napalm bombs, heavy artillery, around the clock bombing campaign of its fighter jets - tell one thing that they wanted to win the war against Tamils at any cost. Have you seen the horrific images of war-site from the final days of the war? The 100s of bodies were scattered everywhere on the road sites, and for the family members who holed up in the no-fire-zone had no idea what to do except sit back and watch their loved ones die in front of them - it was hard for any human being to think anything in that moment whether help his dieing toddler from the wounds or husband or wife or parents. The Tamils around the world took into streets begged literally begged everyone to stop the madness of killing innocent civilians in the NFZ, NO ONE listened to them.
It surely opened the land of opportunities for any Tamil, i'm sure, there would be one mad one among Tamils will come and look for revenge in extreme way that is not limited to any deadly form of weapons. We can surely make the Sinhalese into manageable numbers, if that happens, i would say, the history will repeat itself as one form or other through another victim of this war.
Being said that, i also put the the blame on VP whose series of amature decisions for past two years put the Tamils on the brink. The lack of out of box thinking in his side clearly brought the harm to him and his people in a way no one can imagine it. Whatever positive things he did for Tamils can be easily negated by the actions he took in the last few months of the war.
[28million vs 1million.There is no way you guys will win through armed struggle.But you may well end up as an extinct or has-been race if you continue with war.]
STD,
I'm not sure where you got the figure of 28M Sinhalese. They are around at 17M.
Petition against the granting of GSP+ by the European Union to Sri Lanka.
http://www.tamilsforum.com/petition/
We, the undersigned, write to you to petition against the granting of GSP+ by the European Union to the Government of Sri Lanka.
Due to non-compliance of Sri Lanka on 18th October 2008 the European Commission adopted a decision providing for the initiation of an investigation on the GSP+ concession arrangement.
Government of Sri Lanka does not satisfy the three core qualifying conditions for GSP+ as detailed below;
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights - Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court ruled in 2006 that ‘the rights under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) are not rights under the Constitution of Sri Lanka. Convention Against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment – In light of the recent broadcasting of footage by Channel 4 showing Tamils being executed by the Sri Lankan armed forces and other emerging post war evidences clearly demonstrate that Sri Lanka is in violation of this condition
Widespread police torture, abductions of journalists, politicised courts and uninvestigated disappearances have all played a part in creating a state of ‘complete or virtually complete impunity in Sri Lanka’. – The Economist, 3 Sept 09
“Just three months after the Sri Lankan government declared the country liberated from the Tamil Tigers, video footage has emerged apparently showing government troops summarily executing Tamils.” – Channel 4, 25 Aug 09
Convention on the Rights of the Child – Thousands of children are being held in the interment camps in Sri Lanka with appalling conditions where there is no access to clean water, health care and educational facilities.
“The displaced people, including at least 50,000 children, are being accommodated in 41 camps spread over four districts” – Amnesty International, 7 Aug 2009
As evidenced by the disproportional defence budget allocated to the Sri Lankan armed forces from 2007 - 2009 and the confirmation of the end of the conflict, Sri Lanka cannot currently be classified as “vulnerable” under the qualifying criteria for the GSP+. The quitting of the International Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP) – the international panel set up to monitor a Sri Lankan probe into human rights abuses, the persistent refusal to accept an independent monitoring body on human rights and the ongoing restricted access to aid agencies stand witness to the level of respect for human rights. “Any government has a clear obligation to have a very thorough investigation in response to an allegation of this type,” - Philip Alston, UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Reuters, 1 Sept 09 “One day I was inside the [operating] theatre and the next room was bombed. We had a lot of the treated people left in the room for the doctors to go and monitor and they all died in that shell bomb.” - Damilvany Gnanakumar, British Tamil medic witness to the conflict, The Guardian, 15 Sept 09 We, the undersigned, strongly feel that Sri Lanka has fallen far short of meeting any of the criteria and conditions stipulated by the EU Commission and we urge you to raise the case for the withdrawal of GSP+ to Sri Lanka. Unless a clear message is sent for being in breach of qualifying conditions, like the decision taken by the Council on Belarus, Sri Lanka and other States that enjoy such privileges will continue with human rights violations, lack of systems and governance and maintain status quo.
1st transnational government (TNG) for Eezham Tamils.
Norwegian (TNG) for Eezham Tamils is the first of many and will become a proud member of the Global Tamil Forum GTF
Melting pot of Eezham-Tamil democratic politics
While the idea of transnational government (TNG) is captivating the minds of Eezham Tamils, their public opinion should be watchful for political moves not slipping in concepts and terminologies and the organisation process maintaining absolute financial independence.
Democratically elected country councils widen, strengthen and secure the democratic structure of TNG and help it to evolve from bottom to top. The nation needs to explore models of structurally integrating country councils and bodies such as GTF in the apex body of TNG. Conducive atmosphere has to be created for wider participation of the society, youth and women. The trauma Eezham Tamils undergo, can be conquered by them only by innovatively engaging in action – this time democratic action – and by demonstrating their spirit unconquered.
It is heartening to notice how the paradigm of democratic politics and transnational governance has captivated the minds of Eezham Tamils especially in the diaspora, where the much-needed space deprived in Sri Lanka is available for innovation and rejuvenation.
Quite typical of any democratic exercise, as ideas pour in, debates take place and moves originate in a short span of hard-pressed time, it is not only common folk but even keen activists are confused. The widely felt concern is that such confusion should not pave way for manipulation and hijack of the cause by motley of forces tacitly united in nullifying identity, independence, sovereignty and national liberation of Eezham Tamils.
It is of paramount importance that the various global moves originating from the Eezham Tamil diaspora in political organization, economy, society and culture need to be perceived, orientated and coordinated coherently to produce desired results.
The following are put forward to the consideration of especially the diaspora, the public opinion of which is actually the guardian in setting the course of its current global process of democratic politics.
1. Not slipping in terminologies outlining the cause: Independence, sovereignty, nation state, nation, homeland, self-determination, autonomy, federal, confederation, self-rule etc are terms of specific meaning in the international system. They cannot be replaced by one another. Mere phrases such as Tamil Eelam or government cannot be taken for their face value, unless specified with appropriate technical terms.
Eezham Tamil public needs to carefully scrutinize the terminologies and their Tamil equivalents used by various political moves approaching them.
‘Independence and sovereignty’ can be translated into Tamil either as ‘suthanthiramum I’raimaiyum’ or as ’thannaathikkamum i’raimaiyum.’
What negotiation could achieve is another matter. But the democratic freedom of a nation to tell what it deservingly aspires is of supreme importance and it is for the diaspora public opinion to take care if there is any slip.
2. Financial independence in political organization: Political organization is absolutely a matter of concerned people. They have to conceive and do it on their own, from their own resources and through their own will power, if they want their political organization to be true to them.
‘Democratisation’ of politics of a people may be a ‘development’ agenda for others and they may treat it a matter for funding. But for a people struggling for liberation it is not so. Diaspora needs to be watchful that evolving its political organization is done by motivating the masses and never through getting outside funds.
3. Widening the democratic structure: In the given circumstances, when independent political organisation of Eezham Tamils is threatened by Sri Lanka and is likely to be sabotaged by forces abetting the ‘unity’ of Sri Lanka, the more the democratic structures are widened and integrated, the more the political organisation is secured. Otherwise, just by handling a few at the top, the entire politics could be crippled.
Needless to say that Eezham Tamils should have well-knitted multiplicity of grass root organisations and their politics have to be built form bottom to top and not vice versa.
The constitution announced by the move for Norwegian Council of Eelam Tamils has touched some of these aspects by proposing to conduct elections regionally and nationally in Norway; by having a second chamber and by accommodating elected representatives from institutions of Eezham Tamils in the second chamber.
More attention need to be paid in this respect in the diaspora in encouraging more elected bodies, co-operative bodies and in integrating and orientating them and other grass root organisations such as village associations, alumni associations etc towards democratic transnational polity.
4. GTF and other such bodies: The impression one gets from the draft constitution of the Global Tamil Forum is that it will be functioning as a global body of professionals and something like a multinational corporation of Eezham Tamils. This is a welcome move and Eezham Tamils will need such bodies to run banks, universities etc.
Such bodies should be integrated in the second chamber of the apex transnational government. However, it is important that GTF and other such bodies have to make clear themselves in specific terms of their commitment to independence and sovereignty of Eezham Tamils.
5. Importance of country councils: Elected councils of Eezham Tamils in various countries are the real roots of transnational government. They make transnational government secure, widen the democratic structure by acting as federal units, make the implementation of the mandates of transnational government in a particular country much easier and help negotiating local situations arising from differing political systems of the various countries, as these councils are ‘national councils’ of those countries.
The move in Norway is a pioneering major step and the entire diaspora watches it with much expectation.
6. Transnational government as apex body: Transnational government as conceived by Eezham Tamils is a novel and hitherto unseen experiment of human civilisation. Only a nation like that of Eezham Tamils that was brutally and unjustly crushed by entire establishments of the world joining together could conceive such alternative governance for them. This is sure to serve an inspiration to future world polity and to many oppressed peoples of the world.
In the exercise of evolving a democratic transnational government, whether the Eezham Tamils are fully aware of the importance of what they are doing is a crucial matter.
While the alternative world will welcome the challenging concept, the establishments will obviously try to either blunt it or hijack it.
Therefore, the apex body has to be formed with tremendous will power of people, with a strong foundation and with structural security.
It is perhaps advisable to structure transnational government after securely forming democratically elected councils at least in countries having bulk of the diaspora.
Country councils and transnational government should be structurally integrated so that they don't operate concurrently within a country.
It is of utmost importance that the apex body operating in the diaspora should not abandon independence and sovereignty of Tamil Eelam, even though that should not preclude it from engaging in negotiations, development etc.
TNG is a body of the diaspora and it has to continue for the identity, culture and development of the diaspora, even after Tamil Eelam is achieved.
7. Probable models of forming transnational government: While direct election among the diaspora held across the world is a model, probably a feasible model at this juncture is holding elections for country councils, and either electing representatives from them, or making them as electoral colleges to elect members from a global list of candidates, or a combination of both. A second chamber could be having elected representatives from defined diaspora institutions.
Models are inexhaustible and we have to be judicious in deciding what suits better under given conditions to serve the purpose.
The first elected TNG may have to function as constitutional assembly as well in bringing out a mandated constitution.
8. Social participation: A Tamil exppert recently sent a lengthy note on the importance of right personalities from various walks of life coming forward to take responsibilities in the polity of Eezham Tamils, when it is needed the most perhaps in the whole history of them.
It is our earnest hope that a right atmosphere will be created through public opinion for right personalities to come to politics.
An atmosphere has also to be created for people of various political shades and affiliations to develop whole-hearted belongingness in the new process and to contribute their best to the society.
The transnational governance of our context demands not merely politicians and negotiators, but economists, educationalists, culture personalities, people of letters and so on. Again, we need the right atmosphere for such personalities to come into politics.
9. Participation of youth and women: A healthy sign for the Eezham Tamil nation today is the diaspora youth coming forward to take ownership of the struggle. Young diaspora women taking part in the politics of various countries and getting elected to public bodies is another encouraging feature we see today. This generation should come forward in participating and leading the democratic process of Tamil politics too. The success of transnational governance in the long run lies in the youth participation in it.
10. Mindset: All liberation begins from mindset.
It is time Eezham Tamils come out of their mindset of colonial legacy to boldly look at themselves through their own eyes.
It is always suffering people who come out with innovations for them as well as for humanity.
The trauma Eezham Tamils undergo is understandable only by them.
As we see from what is happening, no one else will help us to overcome it. The trauma and depression can be conquered only by innovatively engaging in action – this time democratic action – and by demonstrating our spirit unconquered.
I'm not sure where you got the figure of 28M Sinhalese. They are around at 17M."
thank u bhairav..i think i just put the total popln of SL? but it does not change the equation in any way...while the Tamils did indeed outperform the Sinhalese in military acumen several-folds if measured per capita, but the effect of mass will ultimately overwhelm such equations(and it did).The only solution is a negotiated settlement maybe 10-15 years down the line when everybodys zeal has died down.I dont think anybody really believes that Tamils will altogether give up armed resistance.A wise leadership will realise that armed struggle should be an appendage to political process and not vice versa(which was the case with ltte).
Unlawful imprisonment of 300 000 innocent Tamil civilians in concentration camps is one of the reasons why i think that Sri Lanka is a gulag island The concept of the gulag ever since Alexander Solzhenitsyn used it in his book “Gulag Archipelago” (1918 – 1956), has come to mean a particular system of repression imposed within a whole country which has some definite characteristics. These characteristics may be described thus:
1.The loss of the meaning of legality within a particular country. 2.A predominant position played by a security apparatus which can virtually do whatever function relating to life and liberty of citizens without being bound by any rules. 3.The emergence of a propaganda apparatus which is not bound by any rules relating to truth or falsehood; in fact, the meaning of any distinction between truth and falsehood disappears. 4.The emergence of a superman controller who manipulates all the three elements mentioned above in any way that he wishes. 5.A doomed citizenry who keep on believing that nothing has really changed while, in fact, everything has changed and who are unable to control their own destinies in any significant manner. One particular section of citizens may by suffering the worst at a particular time, but, in fact, the entire population of the country is affected more or less with the same degree of intensity but at different times. The position on which this article is based is that Sri Lanka is now such a gulag. All the above mentioned characteristics are now quite prominently visible within Sri Lanka. However, a phantom limb complex still continues to exist. The people wish to believe that the old legal system and the social system are still intact despite of some unhappy new aspects that cannot be denied.
Recent decisions taken by its Politburo indicate that the CPI-Maoist is determined to expand its activities into newer areas, on the one hand, and intensify its ‘mass resistance’ in the existing areas, on the other. Violence, the most visible aspect of Naxal menace, has been consistently witnessed in about 400 Police station areas of around 90 districts in 13 of these states. Last year, a total of 1,591 incidents of Naxalite violence resulting in 721 killings, were reported from 399 Police station areas of 87 districts of 13 states. This year (2009) 1,405 incidents of Naxal violence resulting in 580 killings have already been reported (upto August 27) from 355 police stations in 78 districts in 11 states.
The home minister also noted that the CPI-Maoist had also "improved upon its military wares and operational tactics":
With increasing sophistication in fabrication and deployment of Improvised Explosive Devices, it has inflicted more casualties on the Security Forces (SFs). As many as 80 SF personnel were killed in 53 landmine-based attacks by the CPI-Maoist in 2008. 123 SF personnel have lost their lives so far in 61 landmine-based Maoist actions this year. Altogether, 231 SF personnel were killed in Naxal violence in 2008 while 250 SF personnel have lost their lives this year.
On September 16, the union home secretary G.K. Pillai, went further to inform the Parliament's Standing Committee on Home Affairs that the Naxalites were ‘calling the shots’ across nearly 40,000 square kilometres of Indian territory – mainly in parts of the dense forest area in Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Jharkhand – where the government had ‘virtually no control’.
The Naxalite movement of the 1967-73 phase was inspired by the Maoist notion that "a single spark can light a prairie fire." The leaders of the ‘spring thunder’ at Naxalbari believed that the ‘revolutionary situation’ was so ripe that it would require only a handful of incidents of demonstrative violence to inspire a massive uprising that would sweep aside the detritus of the collapsing ancien régime. In the event, however, the ancien regime proved far more robust than they imagined, and the ‘revolutionary situation’ somewhat unripe. The errors of the earlier movement have been closely studied by the new generation of Maoists, and its ‘Left adventurism’ has been explicitly rejected in favour of the ‘protracted war’ model, which relies on a gradual and deliberate process of political, military and cultural consolidation, that recognizes the superior power of the target systems, but seeks to gradually whittle it away at the peripheries, to slowly approach the core.
Even the most significant successes against the Maoists have been strategically incomplete, and replete with unintended consequences. It is useful to recall that, in the end-1990s and early 2000s, it was the squeeze in the Telengana heartland in Andhra Pradesh, without any corresponding strategy of containment, which resulted in a tremendous acceleration of Maoist mobilisation and expansion across Andhra Pradesh, and beyond its borders, into the neighbouring states, including the benighted Chhattisgarh. In the next and more successful phase after 2005, the Maoist power in Andhra has been utterly decimated – but has grown exponentially across India in what is, at least in part, a strategic response to the imperatives of survival.
A new realism is visible in political assessments and, while addressing the Directors General of Police (DGP) Conference on September 15, the Prime Minister not only reiterated his contention that LWE was the ‘gravest internal security threat’ confronting India, he went on to candidly admit, "We have not achieved as much success as we would have liked in containing this menace. It is a matter of concern that despite our efforts, the level of violence in the affected states continues to rise."
Thanks again for the article : India vs leftist insurgency
The Naxalite violence resulting in 721 killings last year and 580 this year-is shocking. This brutality should end. Directors General of Police (DGP) Conference and Indian Government should address the causes of the Naxalite hostility which will yield more favorable results and hopefully the end of the aggression *************** Sri Lanka is becoming a failed sate because at the moment there is not a single honest politician in SL who is capable of wresting control of Sri Lanka from the saintly thugs who are running riot now. All Sri Lankans are at the mercy of the set of thugs, Rajapakse and Co., who are in power now. MR., GR., BR., got the license to enjoy the riches and guide the country’s destiny. Sri Lankans have are now faced with a situation that they are forced to endure the good or the bad that they will be dished out to them by their heroes as Sri Lankans have no other choice. A few of the surviving old brigade are making feeble attempts to obstruct the chief of the robbers (King Mahinda) from ignoring all ethics and swindling the country but there are no apparent mass upheavals due to well organized repression. The opposition is in disarray and they are not capable of harnessing the support of the masses by exposing the massive corruption that is eating into every artery of the country .Thuggery and murder is the order of the day and the helpless citizens could only watch and wait. It will be massive task to eradicate the most inhuman, corrupt, greedy, murderous set of people who are running the Sri Lanka now, the President M.Rajapakse and brothers. After brutal imprisonment of 300,000 innocent civilians, Sri Lankans got what they deserve
I found lot of information about the torture in SL. We should expose it and forwarded to relevant Human Rights Groups and media outlets.
Below the small sample, a light snack for you to savor. GoSL modus operandi shines through There is worse to come ...
You know, the Sri Lankan Government is known to have extensively engaged in extreme forms of torture. Chamila Jayaratne,a school boy, was hung from a ceiling and beaten by the police, causing serious injury to his left arm. Police personnel attached to the Ankumbura police station (Kandy) took him out of his house and gave him several blows. The Officer hit him hard on the face and body about ten times, and then handcuffed him. He was then taken to the Police Station where he was told to remove his shirt and lie face down on the floor. There were several officers present. One person, who was not wearing a uniform, sat on Chamila’s back and hit the soles of Chamila’s feet. The police men hit him with a cricket stumps and with a cane. Then, petrol was put into a polythene bag and poured out, after which the polythene bag was tied onto Chamila’s face. He was threatened to be burned alive. "No one knows you have been arrested", and a policeman called out, "Let's kill him." He told the others to hang the victim from the ceiling beam. Chamila’s hands were swung behind his back and his thumbs tied together with a string, then they put a rope between his thumbs and hung him from a ceiling beam. One officer pulled the rope so that Chamila was lifted from the ground. When he was lifted, his hands were twisted at the elbow and they became numb. The policeman kept hitting him on his legs and soles with the cricket stumps. The police officer told Chamila not to tell anyone that they had tortured him. If a doctor asked him, he was to say that the handcuffs damaged his hands. He was told that if he mentioned anything about the torture, there would be trouble in the future.
The Tamil prisoners in Sri Lanka concentration camps are beaten brutally by Sri Lankan soldiers and the degree of brutality became worse and worse. The master-slave scenario is played out frequently when the inmates of one camp attempt to call out through the barbed wire to attract a family member’s attention e.g. a mother is calling out to her child or husband to his wife. In one such incident a father called out to his child through the barbed wire that angered the Sri Lankan Army soldiers. They hop on a motorbike and chase him through the narrow spaces between the tents. The concentration camp guards surrendered the victim shouting angrily something in Sinhalese. The Tamil prisoner who does not understand Sinhalese kept repeating “sorry… sorry in Tamil ”, (95 percent of the inmates all of whom are Tamils do not understand Sinhalese where as 99 percent of the SL military all of whom are Sinhalese do not know Tamil and give their orders as “masters” in Sinhalese which the “slaves” do not understand.) The enrage Sri Lanka military men kicked the helpless victim on his face and stomach 100 times with his boots which are soaked with Tamil’s prisoner’s blood. It was only after the Sri Lankan soldiers were too tired to deliver any more kicks that he stopped to look at his bloody boots. He became enraged again -- boots were dirty with the victim’s blood and in a need of cleaning. He continues to jump on the prisoner’s head until a mere pulp. The IDP was convulsing and clearly dying.. Several IDPs, who witnessed this, were frozen in fear.
With the end of the government’s military campaign, Crisis Group urges that: The Sri Lankan government should make public a list all those being held in camps for the displaced and in places of detentions, to reassure worried families about the fate of their loved ones, to facilitate the reunification of divided families, and to protect against the threat of abduction and forced disappearance. The ICRC and UNHCR must be given full and immediate access to every stage of the government’s “screening” for those suspected of involvement with the LTTE. The ICRC should be granted full access to all places of detention to ensure that surrendered and captured combatants and other terrorist suspects are treated in accordance with the Geneva Conventions and Sri Lankan law. The Sri Lankan government should make public its plans for the demobilisation and rehabilitation of former LTTE fighters. The Sri Lankan government should remove all restrictions on the access and effective work of the ICRC, UN agencies and humanitarian NGOs in government camps for the displaced in Vavuniya, Mannar and Jaffna and in government hospitals and medical centres. Punitive restrictions on visas and on travel within Sri Lanka for international staff of humanitarian agencies must also be removed. Lack of access and the consequent reduction in services only compounds the already severe physical suffering and psychological hardships the displaced are enduring. The Sri Lankan government should announce a clear and prompt timetable for the resettlement of all those recently displaced from the Vanni. The government should also establish an open and inclusive process of consultation with independent Tamil and Muslim leaders to devise a fair and sustainable plan for the resettlement of all those displaced from the Northern Province, including the nearly 100,000 Muslims forcibly evicted from Jaffna and Mannar in 1990. The Sri Lankan government should make tangible and meaningful steps to assure Tamils, Muslims and other minorities that their rights will be respected and their equal citizenship and physical safety will be assured. The government should initiate a new and inclusive process of dialogue between legitimate and independent representatives of all ethnic communities in pursuit of a lasting political settlement that addresses the grievances and insecurities of all communities through constitutional guarantees of power-sharing and individual rights.
89 comments:
Hi, come to visit to my blog
http://mawathasilva.blogspot.com/
1600 political prisoners are languishing in Sri Lanka for many years without trial
1600 political prisoners arrested on suspicion under Emergency Regulations (ER) and Prevention of Terrorism Act (PTA), languishing in various prisons in Sri Lanka for many years without being produced in the courts.
They launched a hunger strike as their requests placed in previous hunger strikes had not been taken into consideration despite promises by legal authorities that their cases will be taken for trial in two months time, sources in Colombo said.
The protesting prisoners further said that they believe that all are equal before the law and that they request the Sri Lanka President to at least allow them on bail as persons under normal court procedure
The political prisoners who had earlier staged hunger strikes 2 to 3 times in the period between 27th to 31st July 2009 had given up the strike on assurances given by legal authorities that their cases will be taken to trial within two months but they had not kept their word and this has forced them to go on hunger strike, they said.
They further pointed out that it is an outright violation of human rights to keep them in the prison, who had been arrested merely on suspicion under ER and PTA, without legal action against them for many years.
6,000 IDPs promised release last week , but only 580 arrived in the area and all of them were immediately sent to another camp, where they continue to be detained.
There is no resettlement. They are being sent from one prison to another.
“There is no way it can happen. We select the people carefully for
resettlement, and these people were sent nowhere else,” Media Minister Lakshman Yapa Abeywardena said.
But a government official in Ampara confirmed about 130 people who had been released from a camp in the north were being held until they received security clearances and their homes were repaired. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to journalists.
It’s a bit confusing …
basically IDPs pushed from one camp to another..
Strange ???? The IDPs were check and recheck for nearly 5 months in concentration camps…
now they are freed and imprisoned again until yet another security clearance ????
or better yet … to be imprisoned until their homes repaired ????
Last week , it was the mines
500 persons are colonized without their consent in the small island areas of Jaffna.
http://www.lankasrinews.com/view.php?2bIOo6e0dxlYI0ecBB4I3a4T5AI4d3cYd3cc2AmT3d434OX3a030Mm3e
Flimsy tents filled with the torrential rain downpour in Sri Lanka Concentration camps
http://warwithoutwitness.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=254:flooding-of-sri-lankan-idp-camps-detaining-300000-tamils-possible-outbreak-of-epidemics&catid=39:by-war-without-witness&Itemid=62
The monsoon season is approaching, which will inevitably contribute even more devastating effect on the Tamil people’s way of life.
Already they are living in squalor, mud pits, dirty drinking water, unsanitary lavatories and sewerage.
With the addition of the torrential rain, there will be no clear definition between the ‘clean ‘and dirty water. In fact, it has been reported that many thousands have had to stand in their own waste for days at a time as their flimsy tents filled with this downpour.
We need to double our efforts to free the Tamil from the concentration camps. We can start by persuading the donor organizations, including the UN (who have paid 188 million pounds not to continue to shower the Sri Lankan government with money or else they will keep the 300,000 innocent civilians imprisoned indefinitely.
We need to boycott Sri Lankan products, tea, and tourism and write many emails to all of the relevant organizations campaigning against this action, and it should be done soon
A very good site for Thamils of Sri Lanka
http://blog.amnestyusa.org/?s=sri+lanka&x=27&y=14
hEY mAWATHA
there are still LTTE elments in he camps. All these need to be screened before release.
Hi
Hello Bhairav,
You have done the right thing in reviving Puligal Today. All the best. I will be in touch regularly.
ஒரு சிறிய இடைவெளிக்குப்பின், ஒரு பெரிய பின்னடைவுக்குப்பின் நாம் இங்கு சந்திக்கிறோம். நம்ப முடியாத பல சம்பவங்கள் நடந்து விட்டன. முன்பைவிட நாம் ஒருங்கிணைந்து செய்ய வேண்டிய பணிகள் இப்போது உள்ளது. பைரவ் மீண்டும் இந்த வலை தளத்தை துவங்கி இருப்பது நல்லதொரு முயற்சி. வாழ்த்துக்கள்
Guys,
Badri is away on leave, so i manage this blog for the time being. If you have any good articles that highlight the plight of Tamils back home, please feel free to share with me. I can post it here.
We all expect Badri soon since he has done a great job of uniting all here with his one of kind analyzing skills.
We're entering into a very bad phase of Eelam struggle now, but the results of killing 30,000+ innocent Tamils are on the way. Lets say once the last IDP person is released from the internment camps, we may enter into different form of struggle.
Stay tuned!
Thank You! MS and Ashok!
The Daily Mirror:
1)Indian Prime Minister’s defense advisor M.K. Narayanan had declared at the Indian DGP – IGP Police conference last week that there are signs that the Tamil Tigers are re-grouping themselves. He said, “Chances are yet for the Tamil Tigers to regroup and rearm.’ He went on to add,‘…the funding lines of the LTTE are still intact, and there is always a possibility that disgruntled elements in the Tamil Diaspora across the Globe could get together to help the terror outfit , re group and re arm. With the Tamil Diaspora which was the main source of funding for LTTE spread far and wide, the threat of the outfit raising its head once again could not be ruled out …”
Narayanan could have made these enunciations on the basis of the information he has received. He is a Senior Official having experience and specialized knowledge about Tamil Tigers. Hence, his statements cannot be simply dismissed.
A month after K.P. was arrested, Narayanan had stated the LTTE funding line is still intact. In other words, the LTTE funding line could not be disrupted or dismantled by K.P.’s arrest. This also implies that, after Prabahakaran’s death the LTTE administration was not in the hands of K.P.
In that case, in whose hands is the LTTE administration? No matter who he is ; who can say for sure that this deep rooted hatred of his and the Tamil Diaspora against the Indian Govt. cannot be exploited by another foreign country.
Recently, a columnist who contributes articles to the Tamil net website had asked a very intriguing question. What would have been the result, if the Tamil population during the final phase of the war gone after China and Pakistan instead of depending on India? India must seriously ponder this question. May be Narayanan’s inordinate fear of Tamil Tiger revival stems from this. India is haunted by Prabhakaran’s ghost is clear going by Narayanan’s fear.
2)Rebuilding Sri Lanka after 25 years of civil war will, among other things, require preventing a resurgence of the LTTE, Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremanayake said at the Asia Society headquarters in New York last night.
3)Madurai, Sep 24 (PTI): The Tamil Nadu Police was relieved after the end of the conflict between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan forces, but was not complacent, as the terror threat persisted, state Director General of Police KP Jain said.
4)தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகள் அமைப்பின் சர்வதேச வலையமைப்பை குறைத்து மதிப்பீடு செய்யக் கூடாது என இலங்கையின் ஏற்றுமதி மேம்பாட்டு அமைச்சர் பேராசிரியர் ஜீ.எல்.பீரிஸ் குறிப்பிட்டுள்ளார்.
புலிகளிடம் காணப்படும் பெருந் தொகைப் பணம் மற்றும் தொடர்பாடல் கட்டமைப்பு தொடர்பில் கவனம் செலுத்தப்பட வேண்டும் என அவர் தெரிவித்துள்ளார்.
தமிழீழ விடுதலைப் புலிகளின் சர்வதேச வலையமைப்பு இலங்கைக்கு எதிராக மேற்கொண்டு வரும் சூழ்ச்சித் திட்டங்கள் குறித்து உன்னிப்பாக அவதானிக்கப்பட வேண்டும் என அவர் குறிப்பிட்டுள்ளார்.
ஐக்கிய மக்கள் சுதந்திரக் கூட்டமைப்பின் தேர்தல் பிரச்சாரம் தொடர்பான ஊடகவியலாளர் மாநாட்டில் கலந்து கொண்ட போது அவர் இதனைக் குறிப்பிட்டுள்ளார்.
அமெரிக்க காங்கிரஸில் இலங்கை முப்படைத் தளபதிகளுக்கு எதிராக யுத்தக் குற்றச் சாட்டுக்களை சுமத்த மேற்கொள்ளப்படும் முயற்சியும் புலிகளின் சூழ்ச்சித் திட்டமே என அவர் தெரிவித்துள்ளார்.
England won the toss and followed up SA.
Sanath gone for nothing
Dilshan gone
Mahela gone too
Sanga gone.
Looks like SL gone.
These 2 are going well, put on the highest partnership of the match.
The AIADMK(India) threatened to launch a mass agitation along with like-minded parties if the Union ( Indian) government failed to press the international community to force the Sri Lankan government to put an end to the (Human) rights violations against Tamils on its land.
In a statement here, party general secretary J Jayalalithaa said that the AIADMK and people of Tamil Nadu expect the Centre to raise its voice against the human rights violations in the refugee camps in Sri Lanka.
If the Centre does not act immediately, “the AIADMK, along with like-minded political parties, will be forced to launch a mass agitation to focus world vision on the brutal civil liberties violations in Sri Lanka.”
The former chief minister said “The gruesome footage, reportedly filmed by a soldier on a mobile phone camera, reinforces my earlier claim that civil liberties are non-existent in Sri Lanka and that the Tamil population there is subject to barbaric atrocities at the hands of the Sri Lankan Army.”
“Sri Lanka claims to be a democratic country, where the rule of law prevails. No democracy sanctions this sort of summary mass execution, where human dignity is wantonly trampled upon,” she added.
“Even assuming that the persons being shot dead in the footage telecast were LTTE activists, executing them summarily without a trial is barbaric, inhuman and contrary to civilized norms. It also violates international law relating to treatment of prisoners of war.”
Slamming the DMK government, she said “As such, the AIADMK does not expect the DMK government to even make a whimper of protest against the atrocities being perpetrated upon the Tamil people.”
http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/story.aspx?Title=Jaya+threatens+massive+agitation&artid=ux2vdQtiHc4=&SectionID=lifojHIWDUU=&MainSectionID=wIcBMLGbUJI=&SectionName=EL7znOtxBM3qzgMyXZKtxw==&SEO=AIADMK+general+secretary+J+Jayalalithaa
The visa application of the Sri Lanka Minister Keheliya Rambukwella was
rejected by the Canadian High Commission.
The British High Commission in Colombo also refused visa recently to top SL diplomat and former Sri Lanka Foreign Secretary Palitha Kohona
UK introduces war crime clause in visa applications of Sri Lankans. In future, all SL visa applicants to UK have to fill a column on war crime involvements.
This means that the applicant has to declare his involvements, if any, in war crimes. This is a sequel to allegations of human rights violations leveled against the Sri Lanka Armed Forces and Sri Lanka Government.
Sources also pointed out that it was significant to note that in the recent past, visa applications of many Sri Lankan government politicos, including their family members.
The new UN Permanent Representative to Sri Lanka, Dr. Palitha Kohona, had submitted his passport to the British High Commission for a visa to London but to his surprise the passport was returned without any valid reason for turning down his visa application. He later sought an explanation from the British High Commission on the incident.
The SL diplomat Palitha Kohona had later again sought a visa to London, UK, but the second attempt too was rejected with the UK High Commission.
An angry UN Permanent Representative to Sri Lanka Dr. Palitha Kohona had made several attempts to contact the British High Commissioner and his Deputy to seek their intervention but they could not be contacted over the telephone.
The Sri Lankan government is of the view that the British High Commission had violated diplomatic protocols by rejecting a visa for the former Foreign Secretary and felt this had further strained relations between Britain and Sri Lanka.
Also, Ireland embassy in New Delhi in India has refused visas to 13 competitors from Sri Lanka Armed Forces for the cycling event at the World Military Games 2009 in Ireland.
The ruthless Sri Lankan regime slaughtered thousands of the innocents.
Now International community (IC) is letting the Tamils to languish in the concentration camps is another example that IC has become real hypocrite who has corrupt souls.
Playing cricket for an example, with a country that is flowing with the blood of the innocent men, women and children, shows that IC no longer has any moral principles to guide our lives.
IC is now even quite comfortable to sit and has tea with a Hannibal while it’s hands are still stained with the blood and its room is filled with the stink of rotting human flesh.
About 30 to 40 persons are abducted on a daily basis from IDP camps in the North, SLFP (M) Leader Mangala Samaraweera charged in Parliament yesterday.
“Certain reports indicate that 30 to 40 persons are abducted or disappear on a daily basis from IDP camps,” Mr. Samaraweera charged.
However, Chief Government Whip Dinesh Gunawardane denied this allegation and asked where such statistics of abducted persons were found.
In response Mr. Samaraweera said that if such reports are to be denied the government must be transparent to the manner it deals with the IDP issue.
“If the government allows Opposition MPs to form a committee and visit the camps then such claims can be verified. The government should act in a transparent manner,” Mr. Samaraweera said.
Mr. Samaraweera said that in Orwellian terms the so called ‘welfare’ camps were virtual prisons for the IDPs.
“In George Orwells 1984, the Ministry of Peace dealt with war, and the Ministry of Love with torture. Likewise we witnessed in Sri Lanka how the Peace Secretariat justified excesses carried out in the name of war against terrorism. And the so-called welfare camps are virtual prisons,” Mr. Samaraweera said.
He added that most of the 280,000 IDPs had kith and kin around the country who are willing to have them until the de-mining process to the Vanni was complete.
“They are not economic refugees. They have opened 21,000 bank accounts and deposited Rs. 500 million in banks after coming out of LTTE areas. They are government servants, teachers and farmers. All they want is to go home,” Mr. Samaraweera said.
The MP also charged that the IDPs were being resettled from one camp into another. “The government is denying these people the right to speech, choice, movement and livelihood,” Mr. Samaraweera said.
The Sri Lankan GSP+ trade concession was based on the ratification and effective implementation many international human rights principles. Some of them are the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the Convention against Torture (CAT) and the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC).
Media reports indicate that the EU Trade Concessions will be negative and that the crux of the issue is human rights. They are stubborn ones. They will not go away. They cannot be dealt with by denial, bravado, defiance, conspiracy theories or neglect. Moreover they are indubitably in the national interest and to the detriment of no one other than the perpetrators of violations.
The Good governance cannot be served or sustained by conflict and conspiracy, fear, paranoia and insecurity. Sri Lanka is a part of an international community. Human rights and the international community have to be dealt with maturely, responsibly, constructively.
Kathiravel Thayapararaja, a 28-year old Tamil Electrical Engineer, is feared to have been extra-judically executed by Sri Lanka intelligent services, after being forcefully abducted sometime second week of September, informed sources in Colombo said. Thayapararaja’s wife, Uthayakala, and the two children of her diseased sister who were under Uthayakala’s care, have now been taken under the protection and care of a Church Organization in Colombo, after being left helpless with the disappearance of her husband, unconfirmed reports said.
Massive ethnic cleansing is occurring; the Human Rights Council should act for the Tamils - KAREN PARKER
UN Human Rights Council at its12th session (14 September – 2 October 2009) in Geneva has concluded general debate on human rights situations that require the council’s attention. Representatives from several countries and NGOs participating in the debate expressed concern about the situation in camps for internally displaced persons in the north of Sri Lanka.
KAREN PARKER, of International Educational Development, said in her statement that there should be institutional reform and study of the root causes of conflicts as essential to transitional justice. In Sri Lanka, the Government resisted any purview of accountability, and was still prosecuting the war against the Tamil people. The only remedy for the latter was to submit to ever-harsher oppression and abuse. The international community had not looked into the underlying causes of the Sinala-Tamil war for many years. The people were in detention camps because they were Tamil, not because they were civilians. The whole issue of this war was because the Tamil people had sought their right to self-determination, among other rights, and the Government had refused them. Massive ethnic cleansing was occurring, and the Council should act for the Tamils.
Excerpts from some of their statements are as follows:
CHRISTIAN STROHAL (Austria) said that no country had a perfect human rights record and all needed to work constantly and self-critically to address their shortcomings and do better for the promotion and protection of human rights. This fact obliged countries to openly address situations that were of particularly concern to them in order to enter into a dialogue on how to improve the implementation of international standards on the ground. Austria pointed to the human rights situations in Iran, Sri Lanka, Afghanistan and Sudan, which were all situations where Austria failed to see the necessary political will and determination to improve the protection of human rights effectively.
JANICE MCGANN (Ireland) said that the situation in Sri Lanka was over but the peace there remained to be won as serious breaches of humanitarian and human rights law had taken place during that war.
PETER HERTEL RASMUSSEN (Denmark) said the Government of Sri Lanka should fully respect all human rights.
CHRISTINE GOY (Luxembourg) said that Luxembourg was equally concerned for the grave situation in Sri Lanka with regards to the freedom of expression. The situation of internally displaced persons and the allegations of violations of international law during the armed conflict had not yet been the subject of an independent international enquiry, and therefore required particular attention from the Council.
MURIEL BERSET (Switzerland) said that the evolution of the situation in Sri Lanka remained of concern to Switzerland which reiterated its appeal. The humanitarian actors needed to be able to conduct their work without constraints. The holding of hundreds of thousands of internally displaced peoples must end and their safe and voluntary prompt return enabled.
CAROLINE MILLAR (Australia) said Australia remained concerned that over 300,000 civilians remained displaced in camps in northern Sri Lanka.
REINHARD SCHWEPPE (Germany) said as for the situation in Sri Lanka, Germany stressed that reconciliation was strongly based on the full respect of human rights and urged the Sri Lanka Government to create conditions which ensured the safe and dignified return of all internally displaced persons.
WENDY HINTON (New Zealand) said In Sri Lanka, New Zealand remained concerned about the situation for those in camps for internally displaced persons. The Government should engage in a reconciliation process taking into account the legitimate aspirations of all minority groups.
GOTZON ONANDIA ZARRABE, of Franciscans International, said in Sri Lanka, internally displaced persons were not being resettled as promptly nor as safely as the Government promised to the Council, and they continued to suffer within the camps. Human rights defenders, journalists and anyone voicing a differing opinion on the Government’s current policies continued to be the target of violent attacks and harassment by both State and non-State actors.
LUKAS MACHON, of International Commission of Jurists, said in Sri Lanka, humanitarian aid had been continuously obstructed by Government limitations on access to internally displaced persons and the maintenance of internment camps through unjustifiable restrictions on freedom of movement.
MICHAEL ANTONY, of Asian Legal Resource Centre, said the Universal Periodic Review was clearly not a sufficient mechanism to address the worst human rights situations in an effective or timely manner. The Council was currently failing to effectively address situations of human rights crisis, such as those in Sri Lanka and Myanmar; this was not simply a failing of political will, but also one of approach. In Sri Lanka, the continuing grave situation of internally displaced persons was testimony to this.
KAREN PARKER, of International Educational Development, said there should be institutional reform and study of the root causes of conflicts as essential to transitional justice. In Sri Lanka, the Government resisted any purview of accountability, and was still prosecuting the war against the Tamil people. The only remedy for the latter was to submit to ever-harsher oppression and abuse. The international community had not looked into the underlying causes of the Sinala-Tamil war for many years. The people were in detention camps because they were Tamil, not because they were civilians. The whole issue of this war was because the Tamil people had sought their right to self-determination, among other rights, and the Government had refused them. Massive ethnic cleansing was occurring, and the Council should act for the Tamils. There should be a protective presence in Camp Ashraf as soon as possible. The Council should reflect its decision on Honduras in taking a new decision on Myanmar, where a similar situation prevailed.
SATHLYASANGARY ANANDASANGAREE of Lawyer’s Rights Watch Canada, said so far the Sri Lankan Government had failed to live up to its commitments to the international community. Over 300,000 Tamil civilians were still being held against their will in open prisons and their freedom of movement restricted; clean water, sanitation, food, medicine and the basic necessities of life were in dire need. The Government had also failed to allow independent observers access to the camps. The deteriorating situation in Sri Lanka desperately required the attention of the Council - the international community must demand the unconditional release of the civilians within the 180-day timeline proposed by the Government of Sri Lanka and supported by a majority of Council members.
NIMALKA FERNAND, of International Movement against all Forms of Discrimination and Racism (IMADR), in a joint statement with Asian Forum for Human Rights; and Asian Legal Resource Centre, said with regard to the human rights situation in Sri Lanka, although the war had arguably ended, the threats to democracy as well as the human rights violations had not diminished. Further, over 250,000 people were living in camps as internally displaced persons and a leading human rights defender had received a death threat for his advocacy with the European Union. Against this backdrop, the International Movement Against all Forms of Discrimination and Racism wished to remind the members of the Council, the concerned Member States, the United Nations Secretary-General and other international institutions, of the various commitments and pledges given by the Government of Sri Lanka. It also called on the Sri Lankan Government to facilitate investigations of all allegations that had been revealed by various media institutions regarding extra-judicial killings. Finally, the International Movement Against all Forms of Discrimination and Racism wished to point out that the implementation of the 13th and 17th amendment was still outstanding and national legislation had not come into effect.
Every one knows about DBS Jeyaraj and what he stands for. Comments column in his website is being extensively used for anti LTTE propaganda. The Hindu quotes him extensively and even many of the comments of his website are reproduced in length:
The Hindu:
''Responses on the site
The response of Sri Lankans of all hues on the DBS Jeyaraj website are illuminating and give room to hope that a change in mindsets of both the majority and minority communities in Sri Lanka could happen.
Commenting on a response by DBS Jeyaraj, a reader named Kumar wrote on July 30 at 3:52 am (GMT):...''
It goes on reproducing many comments!
The point is that now serious attempts are being made to degrade the entire Eezham movement and put the entire blame on Tigers and Prabhakaran. This the ripe moment to wean away people from Eezham goal!
England beat Sri Lanka by 6 wickets in the Champions Trophy in Johannesburg !!!
DBSJ is proven sellout and he works for RAW.
Bhairav said...
DBSJ is proven sellout and he works for RAW.
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Really? If it is proven then where is the proof?
Why is it that everyone you disagree with is automatically on some nefarious payroll? You guys here are just as silly as the fools at Ellalan Force and DefenceWire who see conspiracies everywhere.
Also, perhaps the Diaspora need to wake up and smell the coffee of defeat. Praba and his band of thugs were soundly beaten by MR and his band of thugs and the time has come to take a new approach that does not start and end in separatism.
The GoSL are clearly turning the country into a fascist state and the Diaspora would do well to pursue this angle in the search for sympathetic ears in the IC.
Pining for a dream that died violently on the beaches of Mulliatheevu is a waste of epic proportion and only serves to reinforce Sinhalese extremists who seek any reason to justify continued trampling of human rights in Sri Lanka under the guise of anti-terrorism.
Oh... one last point... the comment earlier about Badri's "one of a kind analysing skills" only further shows that you prefer blatant lies and propaganda to verifiable and factual information.
The displaced Tamils being held captive against their will in these sickening internment camps could use some honest, intelligent help and do not need the nonsense and tripe usually served up here.
Miss Information
{[+]}
Come on Miss Information or shall I say Ms. Misinformation, who are you kidding?
Bhairav always put honest and reliable information here.
Do you disagree with Thamilvany Gnanakumar's eye witness account?
Bhairav is not responsible for the comments thereof.
BTW we all need honest, intelligent help for unlawfully incarcerated Tamils. Are you helping or only attacking ?
Dear Miss Information
There are many Sinhalese Propagandists on this link
http://www.groundviews.org/2009/09/25/sacrificing-essential-liberty-for-temporary-safety-in-sri-lanka/
Can we all help each other and stop bickering
NZ 230/6
It looks like another loss for SL.
MAWATHA SILVA
Are you doing an LTTE contract?
Lalith you are sore loser :)
At least three people, including an eight-year-old child, were wounded when soldiers opened fire at a group of internally displaced people from the Menik Farm at Chettikulam
The Sri Lankan soldiers open fire when the IDPs pelted stones. They (SLA) also claimed that one (IDP) of them tried to lob a grenade. The wounded were admitted to hospital. However, TNA parliamentarian Shivashakthi Anandan claimed that the IDPs were moving from one zone to another to collect firewood as they had to cook their own meals after the Sri Lankan authorities stopped supplying cooked meals.
Please see the online petition at:
http://campaigns.ahrchk.net/repealpta/
There is no longer any reason for the Prevention of Terrorism Act in Sri Lanka; on the contrary, there are many compelling reasons as to why it should immediately be repealed. It was the existence of the LTTE that the government used to justify the promulgation and maintenance of the PTA.
Now, by the very admission of the government this threat has ceased to exist.
Even at a time of grave danger the PTA was too draconian and many of the provisions in the act could not have been justified. This has been pointed out by local legal opinion, local human rights groups and governments around the world, as well as international human rights agencies and several United Nations agencies and experts.
After the defeat of the LTTE the government said that elements associated with it could remain, and that some new elements may emerge; yet every country faces this possibility all the time. If this reasoning is used to suspend the operation of a normal legal system then this would need to apply everywhere, forever. Terrorism – even war – is always possible, but if people are willing to abandon their freedoms and their normal legal rights to preempt these possibilities, draconian law will reign indefinitely.
As long as the PTA remains in operation there is reason to suspect that it is being used by the government for political advantage, as an instrument to perpetuate its own power. Complaints of oppression by the opposition and other dissenting voices will have legitimate weight.
The Act has effectively aided the destruction of the normal rule of law within Sri Lanka and undermined the independence of its judiciary; indeed litigants, lawyers and even the judges may have started to forget what a strong, functioning legal system is like. To maintain the PTA is to continue destroying what is left. The disadvantages far outweigh the advantage that the government spokesperson may claim that it has.
An enduring PTA will continue to place the Criminal Investigation Division and the Terrorism Investigation Division beyond the control of the law, with no checks or balances against its abuse of power. Tales of torture being used, charges being fabricated and deaths occurring in places of detention are heard constantly, yet while the PTA exists there is no way to even investigate such allegations, let alone avoid them.
Sri Lanka’s policing system has collapsed; this is now a fact acknowledged by all. Yet no reform process can be set in motion, and under the protection of the PTA Sri Lanka’s police force will continue to degenerate, its people given no option but to live under its oppression, corruption and arbitrary violence.
What this means is that literally hundreds of thousands of people will suffer without any legal recourse, and large numbers will continue to live outside the protection of the law. The entire population will be affected.
It is time for everyone in Sri Lanka and beyond to earnestly request the immediate repeal of the Prevention of Terrorism Act by the Sri Lankan government. The judiciary must no longer be undermined by those with extraordinary power, the rule of law must be revived and all people must be given its protection.
so bhairav,
after the IDPs are settled, are Tamils opting for a Iraqi-style terrorist campaign?
I am afraid Diaspora will once again lead the local Tamils towards the path of destruction by their need for revenge.Another tragedy would be to try to resurrect the Tigers by name or imagery--all current well deserved sympathy by IC would be lost then.
Already the Tamil population has been decimated in SL both in combat, and through low-key but constant Govt butchery.I suggest the Tamils build up their numbers and concentrate on democratic means.The shortest route for this would be to bring back the numerous Tamils held in refugee camps in India. At a later stage even Diaspora Tamils can return( if SL allows).Of course this is under presumption that the Govt of Sri Lanka will tone down their violent repression with time.
But its a given that, given so much butchery of innocents in the last stages by GoSL, some form of insurgency will remain.I suppose it would be led by Ram from East? I am sure plenty of trained ex-Tigers are with the IDPs, and poor handling by GoSL will leave their expertise for this future insurgency.
A crucial report on Sri Lanka’s alleged war crimes is scheduled to be released soon by the US Department. It prepared by Stephen Rapp, who served as Senior Trial Attorney and Chief of Prosecutions at the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda.
The report, which could determine United State’s future financial assistance to the island, will be handed over to the US Congress for evaluation.
US Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues, Stephen Rapp in an interview with Time magazine on disclosed that his office was now primarily focusing on Sri Lanka and a report from the Department of State on the war in Sri Lanka is due in US Congress.
The Office of War Crimes Issues, together with the Secretary for Global Affairs and the Secretary of State, has the responsibility to collect information on ongoing atrocities, and it is then the responsibility of the President (Barak Obama) to determine what steps might be taken towards justice.
In the Amendment 1169 to H.R. 2346, an Act making supplemental appropriations for the fiscal year ending September 30, US Senators had earlier proposed to “prohibit certain forms of financial support to Sri Lanka,” unless certification is made by the Secretary of State that “Sri Lanka has taken certain steps to address the humanitarian situation in areas affected by the conflict in Sri Lanka.”
Thus, the forthcoming war crimes report by the Department of State is mandated by the above Act.
Meanwhile, a source in the US told that State Department officials have already contacted and obtained eye witness accounts from a number of persons who have given details on alleged war crimes committed in Sri Lanka.
The Office of War Crimes Issues helps formulate US policy responding to atrocities in areas of conflict around the globe.
Mid this year, President Obama appointed Rapp, as his Ambassador at Large for War Crimes Issues. As head of the Office of War Crimes Issues, Rapp directly reports to Secretary of State Hillary Clinton regarding a wide range of war crimes issues — from Darfur to Burma to Sri Lanka.
[But its a given that, given so much butchery of innocents in the last stages by GoSL, some form of insurgency will remain.]
STD,
After 30,000+ of innocent Tamils were massacred in cold blooded in less than 4 months span, no Tamil will think about reconciliation with barbaric Sinhalese. They've already started to colonize the Tamil lands in North and East, it's matter of time before North becomes Sinhala majority.
Tamils never will get any decent political solutions from the current regime of Rajpaksa thugs or any future moderate Sinhala politicians. Insurgency is very important for the survival of Tamil race in SL until it gives some time for Tamilnadu to wake up from its own struggle that will transform Eelam in the long run.
bhairav,
you are thinking like the native American Indians once did -- for people with small numbers and small resources accepting the status quo is often better than fighting for a lost(but just) cause.Closer home you remind me of the Palestinians--by forcing them to take to terrorism Israel is conveniently hogging the moral high ground and killing Arabs in their own lands at will.So if Tamils want a 'nation' of some sort, then they have to show they deserve it. Revenge attacks wont show that they deserve it.OTOH ocassional well crafted attacks on the military, ONLY in the occupied areas,while concentrating mainly on the democratic struggle, will bear more fruit in the long run.Under present world order Tamils cannot defeat the Sinhalese.period.One suicide bomb post-LTTE and the whole Tamil case would be consigned to the dustbin.
Whether one likes it or not, the sinhala chavunism will never allow Eelam Tamils to live with peace and dignity in a united srilanka.
And srilankans have never understood or respected whenever Tamils democratically voiced their grievences following Gandhian principles, nor it will happen in the future.
There is no other way but to retaliate in defence of our people and the present setback doesn't mean that armed resistance will always going to fail. We have had spectacular victories in the past.
The present situation is because of the interference of India and other countries in the name of protecting their geo political interests. This can be countered only when Tamilnadu people awaken and put their might backing Eelam cause, as Bhairav said.
Anything else will only lead to subjugation of ourselves further at the feet of sinhala chauvunists. Such a situation will not and cannot prevail for long.
Puligalin Kural is now being updated regularly.
Hello Bhairav,
revenge is a dish best served cold :)
When the Indian Hindus are going to wake up and help out the Sri Lankan Hindus
The war criminals of Eelam war IV:
1) Karunanidhi
2) Sonia Ghandi
3) MR,GR, and SF.
"The great Alexander, Brits, Russians then with all the sophisticated weapons and 500k elite forces and,now, US all tried to conquer Afghanistan, and you all knew what happened. Tamils should see Sinhalese as their invaders, and constantly put the pressure on South regardless of the manpower of chauvinist Sinhalese"
have you seen the size & population of Afghanistan & Tamil areas in SL?
Have you seen the terrain there?
Have you seen its borders and neighbours?
Have you seen their suppliers & supporters?
28million vs 1million.There is no way you guys will win through armed struggle.But you may well end up as an extinct or has-been race if you continue with war.
"As i said before, once the last IDP is released from the camp, we should start our arm struggle."
the day the Diaspora are made to actually fight on the ground will be the day when the armed option will die a natural death:)
"The war criminals of Eelam war IV:
1) Karunanidhi
2) Sonia Ghandi
3) MR,GR, and SF."
instead of cribbing after defeat, have you ever contemplated why nobody wanted to take up your cause?Above statements 1&2 has same credibility as Sinhalese blaming Human Rights workers as ltte stooges! And you are dreaming of Tamilnadu/India help in future lol!
Dream on. But let the Tamils in SL make their own choice.I am sure they want peace above all.
"You mean Goddamn IC will put our Tamil cause into dustbin?"
yes. They already put LTTE in dustbin,did you not notice? If not for IC help to GoSL I suspect Tigers may have lasted a decade more..
Does STD stands for a venereal disease…
Yes, STD stands for Sexual Transmitted Disease :)
Naxalbari movement started in the late sixties and inspite of several setbacks, now, they have bounced back. They have become a force to reckon with in almost five states of India. Manmohan Singh is now openly stating that they are one of the major threats to India.
The reason is that tribal and downtrodden people are behind them and supporting.
When a movement truly represent the aspirations of the people, it cannot be wiped out; Irrespective of the might of its opponent.
Ashok Kumar
Tell me more about Naxalbari movement.
There was a 42nd anniversary of the movement just after the VP’s martyrdom. In 1967 peasants of Naxalbari, a remote village of North Bengal started their struggle for the agrarian revolution.
Inspired by Naxalbari, people of India have been waging their struggle to build new India free from all imperialist and feudal exploitation.
I think, the Great Naxalbari Movement, is the real alternate to this semi-feudal and semi-colonial brutal India.
Ashok Kumar, please visit my blog http://mawathasilva.blogspot.com/
How to post on my blog
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Click on drop down menu and choose an “Anonymous” option.
By using “Anonymous” option from the drop down menu will not prohibit you to use your pen name, any links or any text in the comment itself
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STD
You’ve lost me. Who made the spokesman for Thamils of Sri Lanka?
but let the Tamils in SL make their own choice. I am sure they want peace above all.
Do you mean slavery?
You mention the fact that you are for a unified Sri Lanka with peaceful coexistence.
But what about the 300,000 people who are still suffering within the confines of the concentration camp?
I don’t think they appreciate your understanding of a peaceful life.
They are still living in a slave -like reality.
Why are you choosing to ignore these facts?
Please don’t forget the Sri Lankan government is also robbing the Tamil people of their own land and belongings- how is this peaceful?
I hope you can open your eyes and see that the government is fueling the situation with propaganda and lies.
Human trafficking at the Sri Lankan internment camps is shocking. The Government started to look at IDPs as the ducks laying golden eggs.
Up to 20,000 IDPs have been ransomed by desperate relatives who are able and willing to pay thousands of rupees to secure their release, and have left the camps
Many, many reports have now emerged that money is being demanded in Sri Lanka for IDPs to be released and the soldiers are in the thick and thin of it.
This exposes so-called ‘screening’ of IDPs for what it is: a cover for a lucrative flesh trade, carried out with the collusion of elements in the government and armed forces that get a cut out of it.
It also explains why the camp authorities refused to release a one-year-old child to leave with its grandmother: since an infant could hardly be suspected of being a dreaded LTTE terrorist or suicide bomber, the reason was surely that a payoff had not been paid.
In my opinion, that since a one year child cannot pay such money, then it has to be helplessly and hopelessly consigned to the concentration camps.
STD, high morals in Sri Lanka it seems!?
That is the last thing ever present there.
"When a movement truly represent the aspirations of the people, it cannot be wiped out; Irrespective of the might of its opponent."
now imagine the Sinhalese thinking in same lines--and 28million Sinhalese to 1 million Tamils. They are as determined as you to not let go...who is going to be extinct then?
STD,
Aspiration of the people would be strong and lasting one if it is rational and genuine necessity.
Tamils do not want sinhalese to live under their rule. They just want to be let live.
But sinhala hardliners say that the entire island belongs to them and Tamils have no other choice but to live as per their terms.
What was srilanka before British rule?
Tomorrow few crore Tamils across the palk straits may understand what Eelam Tamils stand for and start supporting them more actively...
M S,
Communist Party of India (CPI)split in 1962 due to ideological differences including on the question of participation in parlimentary democracy. CPI- Marxists (CPM)was formed and it was considered to be closer to Beijing at that time.
More militant sections in CPI-M, gradually got disenchanted with the party and started accusing it of going back on the same path.
Late sixties, they split from CPI-M and formed CPI- ML( Marxist- Leninist). They were led by Charu Mazumdar.
Their first uprising against land lords' oppresssion and the state took place at a place called Naxalbari and the movement got the popular name 'Naxalites'.
They weild considerable influence in the states of Chattisgarh, Orissa, Jharkhand, Bihar, West Bengal and Telengana region of Andhra Pradesh.
In Chattisgarh, considerable area is under their control and inaccessible to the security forces till now.
There were many splinter groups of Naxalites or Maoists but many of them have got united.
I will try to send detailed account of the movement later.
[28million vs 1million.There is no way you guys will win through armed struggle.But you may well end up as an extinct or has-been race if you continue with war.]
The way they used the extensive forces and any available weapons- chemical weapons, napalm bombs, heavy artillery, around the clock bombing campaign of its fighter jets - tell one thing that they wanted to win the war against Tamils at any cost. Have you seen the horrific images of war-site from the final days of the war? The 100s of bodies were scattered everywhere on the road sites, and for the family members who holed up in the no-fire-zone had no idea what to do except sit back and watch their loved ones die in front of them - it was hard for any human being to think anything in that moment whether help his dieing toddler from the wounds or husband or wife or parents. The Tamils around the world took into streets begged literally begged everyone to stop the madness of killing innocent civilians in the NFZ, NO ONE listened to them.
It surely opened the land of opportunities for any Tamil, i'm sure, there would be one mad one among Tamils will come and look for revenge in extreme way that is not limited to any deadly form of weapons. We can surely make the Sinhalese into manageable numbers, if that happens, i would say, the history will repeat itself as one form or other through another victim of this war.
Being said that, i also put the the blame on VP whose series of amature decisions for past two years put the Tamils on the brink. The lack of out of box thinking in his side clearly brought the harm to him and his people in a way no one can imagine it. Whatever positive things he did for Tamils can be easily negated by the actions he took in the last few months of the war.
[28million vs 1million.There is no way you guys will win through armed struggle.But you may well end up as an extinct or has-been race if you continue with war.]
STD,
I'm not sure where you got the figure of 28M Sinhalese. They are around at 17M.
Petition against the granting of GSP+ by the European Union to Sri Lanka.
http://www.tamilsforum.com/petition/
We, the undersigned, write to you to petition against the granting of GSP+ by the European Union to the Government of Sri Lanka.
Due to non-compliance of Sri Lanka on 18th October 2008 the European Commission adopted a decision providing for the initiation of an investigation on the GSP+ concession arrangement.
Government of Sri Lanka does not satisfy the three core qualifying conditions for GSP+ as detailed below;
International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights - Sri Lanka’s Supreme Court ruled in 2006 that ‘the rights under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) are not rights under the Constitution of Sri Lanka.
Convention Against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment – In light of the recent broadcasting of footage by Channel 4 showing Tamils being executed by the Sri Lankan armed forces and other emerging post war evidences clearly demonstrate that Sri Lanka is in violation of this condition
Widespread police torture, abductions of journalists, politicised courts and uninvestigated disappearances have all played a part in creating a state of ‘complete or virtually complete impunity in Sri Lanka’. – The Economist, 3 Sept 09
“Just three months after the Sri Lankan government declared the country liberated from the Tamil Tigers, video footage has emerged apparently showing government troops summarily executing Tamils.” – Channel 4, 25 Aug 09
Convention on the Rights of the Child – Thousands of children are being held in the interment camps in Sri Lanka with appalling conditions where there is no access to clean water, health care and educational facilities.
“The displaced people, including at least 50,000 children, are being accommodated in 41 camps spread over four districts” – Amnesty International, 7 Aug 2009
As evidenced by the disproportional defence budget allocated to the Sri Lankan armed forces from 2007 - 2009 and the confirmation of the end of the conflict, Sri Lanka cannot currently be classified as “vulnerable” under the qualifying criteria for the GSP+.
The quitting of the International Independent Group of Eminent Persons (IIGEP) – the international panel set up to monitor a Sri Lankan probe into human rights abuses, the persistent refusal to accept an independent monitoring body on human rights and the ongoing restricted access to aid agencies stand witness to the level of respect for human rights.
“Any government has a clear obligation to have a very thorough investigation in response to an allegation of this type,” - Philip Alston, UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, Reuters, 1 Sept 09
“One day I was inside the [operating] theatre and the next room was bombed. We had a lot of the treated people left in the room for the doctors to go and monitor and they all died in that shell bomb.” - Damilvany Gnanakumar, British Tamil medic witness to the conflict, The Guardian, 15 Sept 09
We, the undersigned, strongly feel that Sri Lanka has fallen far short of meeting any of the criteria and conditions stipulated by the EU Commission and we urge you to raise the case for the withdrawal of GSP+ to Sri Lanka. Unless a clear message is sent for being in breach of qualifying conditions, like the decision taken by the Council on Belarus, Sri Lanka and other States that enjoy such privileges will continue with human rights violations, lack of systems and governance and maintain status quo.
1st transnational government (TNG) for Eezham Tamils.
Norwegian (TNG) for Eezham Tamils is the first of many and will become a proud member of the Global Tamil Forum
GTF
Melting pot of Eezham-Tamil democratic politics
While the idea of transnational government (TNG) is captivating the minds of Eezham Tamils, their public opinion should be watchful for political moves not slipping in concepts and terminologies and the organisation process maintaining absolute financial independence.
Democratically elected country councils widen, strengthen and secure the democratic structure of TNG and help it to evolve from bottom to top. The nation needs to explore models of structurally integrating country councils and bodies such as GTF in the apex body of TNG. Conducive atmosphere has to be created for wider participation of the society, youth and women. The trauma Eezham Tamils undergo, can be conquered by them only by innovatively engaging in action – this time democratic action – and by demonstrating their spirit unconquered.
It is heartening to notice how the paradigm of democratic politics and transnational governance has captivated the minds of Eezham Tamils especially in the diaspora, where the much-needed space deprived in Sri Lanka is available for innovation and rejuvenation.
Quite typical of any democratic exercise, as ideas pour in, debates take place and moves originate in a short span of hard-pressed time, it is not only common folk but even keen activists are confused. The widely felt concern is that such confusion should not pave way for manipulation and hijack of the cause by motley of forces tacitly united in nullifying identity, independence, sovereignty and national liberation of Eezham Tamils.
It is of paramount importance that the various global moves originating from the Eezham Tamil diaspora in political organization, economy, society and culture need to be perceived, orientated and coordinated coherently to produce desired results.
The following are put forward to the consideration of especially the diaspora, the public opinion of which is actually the guardian in setting the course of its current global process of democratic politics.
1. Not slipping in terminologies outlining the cause:
Independence, sovereignty, nation state, nation, homeland, self-determination, autonomy, federal, confederation, self-rule etc are terms of specific meaning in the international system. They cannot be replaced by one another. Mere phrases such as Tamil Eelam or government cannot be taken for their face value, unless specified with appropriate technical terms.
Eezham Tamil public needs to carefully scrutinize the terminologies and their Tamil equivalents used by various political moves approaching them.
‘Independence and sovereignty’ can be translated into Tamil either as ‘suthanthiramum I’raimaiyum’ or as ’thannaathikkamum i’raimaiyum.’
What negotiation could achieve is another matter. But the democratic freedom of a nation to tell what it deservingly aspires is of supreme importance and it is for the diaspora public opinion to take care if there is any slip.
2. Financial independence in political organization:
Political organization is absolutely a matter of concerned people. They have to conceive and do it on their own, from their own resources and through their own will power, if they want their political organization to be true to them.
‘Democratisation’ of politics of a people may be a ‘development’ agenda for others and they may treat it a matter for funding. But for a people struggling for liberation it is not so. Diaspora needs to be watchful that evolving its political organization is done by motivating the masses and never through getting outside funds.
cont.,
3. Widening the democratic structure:
In the given circumstances, when independent political organisation of Eezham Tamils is threatened by Sri Lanka and is likely to be sabotaged by forces abetting the ‘unity’ of Sri Lanka, the more the democratic structures are widened and integrated, the more the political organisation is secured. Otherwise, just by handling a few at the top, the entire politics could be crippled.
Needless to say that Eezham Tamils should have well-knitted multiplicity of grass root organisations and their politics have to be built form bottom to top and not vice versa.
The constitution announced by the move for Norwegian Council of Eelam Tamils has touched some of these aspects by proposing to conduct elections regionally and nationally in Norway; by having a second chamber and by accommodating elected representatives from institutions of Eezham Tamils in the second chamber.
More attention need to be paid in this respect in the diaspora in encouraging more elected bodies, co-operative bodies and in integrating and orientating them and other grass root organisations such as village associations, alumni associations etc towards democratic transnational polity.
4. GTF and other such bodies:
The impression one gets from the draft constitution of the Global Tamil Forum is that it will be functioning as a global body of professionals and something like a multinational corporation of Eezham Tamils. This is a welcome move and Eezham Tamils will need such bodies to run banks, universities etc.
Such bodies should be integrated in the second chamber of the apex transnational government. However, it is important that GTF and other such bodies have to make clear themselves in specific terms of their commitment to independence and sovereignty of Eezham Tamils.
5. Importance of country councils:
Elected councils of Eezham Tamils in various countries are the real roots of transnational government. They make transnational government secure, widen the democratic structure by acting as federal units, make the implementation of the mandates of transnational government in a particular country much easier and help negotiating local situations arising from differing political systems of the various countries, as these councils are ‘national councils’ of those countries.
The move in Norway is a pioneering major step and the entire diaspora watches it with much expectation.
Hello friends,
Can someone look over this and give an opinion.
Thanks
6. Transnational government as apex body:
Transnational government as conceived by Eezham Tamils is a novel and hitherto unseen experiment of human civilisation. Only a nation like that of Eezham Tamils that was brutally and unjustly crushed by entire establishments of the world joining together could conceive such alternative governance for them. This is sure to serve an inspiration to future world polity and to many oppressed peoples of the world.
In the exercise of evolving a democratic transnational government, whether the Eezham Tamils are fully aware of the importance of what they are doing is a crucial matter.
While the alternative world will welcome the challenging concept, the establishments will obviously try to either blunt it or hijack it.
Therefore, the apex body has to be formed with tremendous will power of people, with a strong foundation and with structural security.
It is perhaps advisable to structure transnational government after securely forming democratically elected councils at least in countries having bulk of the diaspora.
Country councils and transnational government should be structurally integrated so that they don't operate concurrently within a country.
It is of utmost importance that the apex body operating in the diaspora should not abandon independence and sovereignty of Tamil Eelam, even though that should not preclude it from engaging in negotiations, development etc.
TNG is a body of the diaspora and it has to continue for the identity, culture and development of the diaspora, even after Tamil Eelam is achieved.
7. Probable models of forming transnational government:
While direct election among the diaspora held across the world is a model, probably a feasible model at this juncture is holding elections for country councils, and either electing representatives from them, or making them as electoral colleges to elect members from a global list of candidates, or a combination of both. A second chamber could be having elected representatives from defined diaspora institutions.
Models are inexhaustible and we have to be judicious in deciding what suits better under given conditions to serve the purpose.
The first elected TNG may have to function as constitutional assembly as well in bringing out a mandated constitution.
8. Social participation:
A Tamil exppert recently sent a lengthy note on the importance of right personalities from various walks of life coming forward to take responsibilities in the polity of Eezham Tamils, when it is needed the most perhaps in the whole history of them.
It is our earnest hope that a right atmosphere will be created through public opinion for right personalities to come to politics.
An atmosphere has also to be created for people of various political shades and affiliations to develop whole-hearted belongingness in the new process and to contribute their best to the society.
The transnational governance of our context demands not merely politicians and negotiators, but economists, educationalists, culture personalities, people of letters and so on. Again, we need the right atmosphere for such personalities to come into politics.
cont.,
9. Participation of youth and women:
A healthy sign for the Eezham Tamil nation today is the diaspora youth coming forward to take ownership of the struggle. Young diaspora women taking part in the politics of various countries and getting elected to public bodies is another encouraging feature we see today. This generation should come forward in participating and leading the democratic process of Tamil politics too. The success of transnational governance in the long run lies in the youth participation in it.
10. Mindset:
All liberation begins from mindset.
It is time Eezham Tamils come out of their mindset of colonial legacy to boldly look at themselves through their own eyes.
It is always suffering people who come out with innovations for them as well as for humanity.
The trauma Eezham Tamils undergo is understandable only by them.
As we see from what is happening, no one else will help us to overcome it. The trauma and depression can be conquered only by innovatively engaging in action – this time democratic action – and by demonstrating our spirit unconquered.
"STD,
I'm not sure where you got the figure of 28M Sinhalese. They are around at 17M."
thank u bhairav..i think i just put the total popln of SL? but it does not change the equation in any way...while the Tamils did indeed outperform the Sinhalese in military acumen several-folds if measured per capita, but the effect of mass will ultimately overwhelm such equations(and it did).The only solution is a negotiated settlement maybe 10-15 years down the line when everybodys zeal has died down.I dont think anybody really believes that Tamils will altogether give up armed resistance.A wise leadership will realise that armed struggle should be an appendage to political process and not vice versa(which was the case with ltte).
Sri Lanka is a Gulag Island
Unlawful imprisonment of 300 000 innocent Tamil civilians in concentration camps is one of the reasons why i think that Sri Lanka is a gulag island
The concept of the gulag ever since Alexander Solzhenitsyn used it in his book “Gulag Archipelago” (1918 – 1956), has come to mean a particular system of repression imposed within a whole country which has some definite characteristics. These characteristics may be described thus:
1.The loss of the meaning of legality within a particular country.
2.A predominant position played by a security apparatus which can virtually do whatever function relating to life and liberty of citizens without being bound by any rules.
3.The emergence of a propaganda apparatus which is not bound by any rules relating to truth or falsehood; in fact, the meaning of any distinction between truth and falsehood disappears.
4.The emergence of a superman controller who manipulates all the three elements mentioned above in any way that he wishes.
5.A doomed citizenry who keep on believing that nothing has really changed while, in fact, everything has changed and who are unable to control their own destinies in any significant manner. One particular section of citizens may by suffering the worst at a particular time, but, in fact, the entire population of the country is affected more or less with the same degree of intensity but at different times.
The position on which this article is based is that Sri Lanka is now such a gulag. All the above mentioned characteristics are now quite prominently visible within Sri Lanka. However, a phantom limb complex still continues to exist. The people wish to believe that the old legal system and the social system are still intact despite of some unhappy new aspects that cannot be denied.
Hello, friends
I would like to have some input on my articles.
Thanks
India vs leftist insurgency:
Recent decisions taken by its Politburo indicate that the CPI-Maoist is determined to expand its activities into newer areas, on the one hand, and intensify its ‘mass resistance’ in the existing areas, on the other. Violence, the most visible aspect of Naxal menace, has been consistently witnessed in about 400 Police station areas of around 90 districts in 13 of these states. Last year, a total of 1,591 incidents of Naxalite violence resulting in 721 killings, were reported from 399 Police station areas of 87 districts of 13 states. This year (2009) 1,405 incidents of Naxal violence resulting in 580 killings have already been reported (upto August 27) from 355 police stations in 78 districts in 11 states.
The home minister also noted that the CPI-Maoist had also "improved upon its military wares and operational tactics":
With increasing sophistication in fabrication and deployment of Improvised Explosive Devices, it has inflicted more casualties on the Security Forces (SFs). As many as 80 SF personnel were killed in 53 landmine-based attacks by the CPI-Maoist in 2008. 123 SF personnel have lost their lives so far in 61 landmine-based Maoist actions this year. Altogether, 231 SF personnel were killed in Naxal violence in 2008 while 250 SF personnel have lost their lives this year.
On September 16, the union home secretary G.K. Pillai, went further to inform the Parliament's Standing Committee on Home Affairs that the Naxalites were ‘calling the shots’ across nearly 40,000 square kilometres of Indian territory – mainly in parts of the dense forest area in Chhattisgarh, Orissa and Jharkhand – where the government had ‘virtually no control’.
The Naxalite movement of the 1967-73 phase was inspired by the Maoist notion that "a single spark can light a prairie fire." The leaders of the ‘spring thunder’ at Naxalbari believed that the ‘revolutionary situation’ was so ripe that it would require only a handful of incidents of demonstrative violence to inspire a massive uprising that would sweep aside the detritus of the collapsing ancien régime. In the event, however, the ancien regime proved far more robust than they imagined, and the ‘revolutionary situation’ somewhat unripe. The errors of the earlier movement have been closely studied by the new generation of Maoists, and its ‘Left adventurism’ has been explicitly rejected in favour of the ‘protracted war’ model, which relies on a gradual and deliberate process of political, military and cultural consolidation, that recognizes the superior power of the target systems, but seeks to gradually whittle it away at the peripheries, to slowly approach the core.
Even the most significant successes against the Maoists have been strategically incomplete, and replete with unintended consequences. It is useful to recall that, in the end-1990s and early 2000s, it was the squeeze in the Telengana heartland in Andhra Pradesh, without any corresponding strategy of containment, which resulted in a tremendous acceleration of Maoist mobilisation and expansion across Andhra Pradesh, and beyond its borders, into the neighbouring states, including the benighted Chhattisgarh. In the next and more successful phase after 2005, the Maoist power in Andhra has been utterly decimated – but has grown exponentially across India in what is, at least in part, a strategic response to the imperatives of survival.
A new realism is visible in political assessments and, while addressing the Directors General of Police (DGP) Conference on September 15, the Prime Minister not only reiterated his contention that LWE was the ‘gravest internal security threat’ confronting India, he went on to candidly admit, "We have not achieved as much success as we would have liked in containing this menace. It is a matter of concern that despite our efforts, the level of violence in the affected states continues to rise."
MS,
If you do not mind, I will join you later. I was just getting out on some work. Thank you for your call. I am eager to visit your blog.
Ashok Kumar
Thanks again for the article :
India vs leftist insurgency
The Naxalite violence resulting in 721 killings last year and 580 this year-is shocking. This brutality should end. Directors General of Police (DGP) Conference and Indian Government should address the causes of the Naxalite hostility which will yield more favorable results and hopefully the end of the aggression
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Sri Lanka is becoming a failed sate because at the moment there is not a single honest politician in SL who is capable of wresting control of Sri Lanka from the saintly thugs who are running riot now. All Sri Lankans are at the mercy of the set of thugs, Rajapakse and Co., who are in power now. MR., GR., BR., got the license to enjoy the riches and guide the country’s destiny. Sri Lankans have are now faced with a situation that they are forced to endure the good or the bad that they will be dished out to them by their heroes as Sri Lankans have no other choice. A few of the surviving old brigade are making feeble attempts to obstruct the chief of the robbers (King Mahinda) from ignoring all ethics and swindling the country but there are no apparent mass upheavals due to well organized repression. The opposition is in disarray and they are not capable of harnessing the support of the masses by exposing the massive corruption that is eating into every artery of the country .Thuggery and murder is the order of the day and the helpless citizens could only watch and wait. It will be massive task to eradicate the most inhuman, corrupt, greedy, murderous set of people who are running the Sri Lanka now, the President M.Rajapakse and brothers. After brutal imprisonment of 300,000 innocent civilians, Sri Lankans got what they deserve
I found lot of information about the torture in SL. We should expose it and forwarded to relevant Human Rights Groups and media outlets.
Below the small sample, a light snack for you to savor.
GoSL modus operandi shines through
There is worse to come ...
You know, the Sri Lankan Government is known to have extensively engaged in extreme forms of torture. Chamila Jayaratne,a school boy, was hung from a ceiling and beaten by the police, causing serious injury to his left arm. Police personnel attached to the Ankumbura police station (Kandy) took him out of his house and gave him several blows. The Officer hit him hard on the face and body about ten times, and then handcuffed him. He was then taken to the Police Station where he was told to remove his shirt and lie face down on the floor. There were several officers present. One person, who was not wearing a uniform, sat on Chamila’s back and hit the soles of Chamila’s feet. The police men hit him with a cricket stumps and with a cane. Then, petrol was put into a polythene bag and poured out, after which the polythene bag was tied onto Chamila’s face. He was threatened to be burned alive. "No one knows you have been arrested", and a policeman called out, "Let's kill him." He told the others to hang the victim from the ceiling beam. Chamila’s hands were swung behind his back and his thumbs tied together with a string, then they put a rope between his thumbs and hung him from a ceiling beam. One officer pulled the rope so that Chamila was lifted from the ground. When he was lifted, his hands were twisted at the elbow and they became numb. The policeman kept hitting him on his legs and soles with the cricket stumps. The police officer told Chamila not to tell anyone that they had tortured him. If a doctor asked him, he was to say that the handcuffs damaged his hands. He was told that if he mentioned anything about the torture, there would be trouble in the future.
The Tamil prisoners in Sri Lanka concentration camps are beaten brutally by Sri Lankan soldiers and the degree of brutality became worse and worse. The master-slave scenario is played out frequently when the inmates of one camp attempt to call out through the barbed wire to attract a family member’s attention e.g. a mother is calling out to her child or husband to his wife. In one such incident a father called out to his child through the barbed wire that angered the Sri Lankan Army soldiers. They hop on a motorbike and chase him through the narrow spaces between the tents. The concentration camp guards surrendered the victim shouting angrily something in Sinhalese. The Tamil prisoner who does not understand Sinhalese kept repeating “sorry… sorry in Tamil ”, (95 percent of the inmates all of whom are Tamils do not understand Sinhalese where as 99 percent of the SL military all of whom are Sinhalese do not know Tamil and give their orders as “masters” in Sinhalese which the “slaves” do not understand.) The enrage Sri Lanka military men kicked the helpless victim on his face and stomach 100 times with his boots which are soaked with Tamil’s prisoner’s blood. It was only after the Sri Lankan soldiers were too tired to deliver any more kicks that he stopped to look at his bloody boots. He became enraged again -- boots were dirty with the victim’s blood and in a need of cleaning. He continues to jump on the prisoner’s head until a mere pulp. The IDP was convulsing and clearly dying.. Several IDPs, who witnessed this, were frozen in fear.
Sri Lanka should make public a list of all IDPs
With the end of the government’s military campaign, Crisis Group urges that:
The Sri Lankan government should make public a list all those being held in camps for the displaced and in places of detentions, to reassure worried families about the fate of their loved ones, to facilitate the reunification of divided families, and to protect against the threat of abduction and forced disappearance.
The ICRC and UNHCR must be given full and immediate access to every stage of the government’s “screening” for those suspected of involvement with the LTTE. The ICRC should be granted full access to all places of detention to ensure that surrendered and captured combatants and other terrorist suspects are treated in accordance with the Geneva Conventions and Sri Lankan law. The Sri Lankan government should make public its plans for the demobilisation and rehabilitation of former LTTE fighters.
The Sri Lankan government should remove all restrictions on the access and effective work of the ICRC, UN agencies and humanitarian NGOs in government camps for the displaced in Vavuniya, Mannar and Jaffna and in government hospitals and medical centres. Punitive restrictions on visas and on travel within Sri Lanka for international staff of humanitarian agencies must also be removed. Lack of access and the consequent reduction in services only compounds the already severe physical suffering and psychological hardships the displaced are enduring.
The Sri Lankan government should announce a clear and prompt timetable for the resettlement of all those recently displaced from the Vanni. The government should also establish an open and inclusive process of consultation with independent Tamil and Muslim leaders to devise a fair and sustainable plan for the resettlement of all those displaced from the Northern Province, including the nearly 100,000 Muslims forcibly evicted from Jaffna and Mannar in 1990.
The Sri Lankan government should make tangible and meaningful steps to assure Tamils, Muslims and other minorities that their rights will be respected and their equal citizenship and physical safety will be assured. The government should initiate a new and inclusive process of dialogue between legitimate and independent representatives of all ethnic communities in pursuit of a lasting political settlement that addresses the grievances and insecurities of all communities through constitutional guarantees of power-sharing and individual rights.
http://www.crisisgroup.org/home/index.cfm?id=6070&l=1
Not much news lately.
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