Eastern PC election, another step in Sinhalasisation of East - TNA

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 02 April 2008, 05:32 GMT]
The Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa, who has projected himself as an "ultra Sinhala nationalist leader" in all his decisions since taking office in 2005, was going ahead with his agenda of Sinhalasising the Eastern sector of the North-East, the historical habitation of Tamil speaking people, in the guise of development, splitting it into High Security Zones, Industrial Zones and Environmental Zones, after de-merging the North-East, in violation of the Indo-Lanka International Treaty, said R. Sampanthan, the leader of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Parliamentary Group, who issued a statement of principles on Wednesday, clarifying the reasons for boycotting the Eastern PC elections.

The Government which needs funds to fulfil this objective of Sinhalasising the Eastern sector needs a "Tamil lackey as a front" to raise funds for "development", the statement charged.

"The Tamil speaking people should not fall into the dangerous trap that is being laid to bring about their downfall in their areas of historical habitation."

"No other Government since independence has inflicted such immense harm on the Tamil people as this Government has done in the past two years."

Full text of the statement, issued by Ilangkaith Thamizh Arasuk Kadchi (I.T.A.K) Tamil National Alliance (T.N.A), regarding the Eastern Elections, follows:

1. President Mahinda Rajapakse who was elected to office in November 2005 by a wafer thin majority with the support of the Jathika Hela Urumaya, (J.H.U) the Mahajana Eksath Peramuna, (M.E.P) and Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna, (J.V.P) has adopted an ultra Sinhala nationalist role and every decision that he has made whether it be political military or humanitarian has had as it’s objective the fostering of ultra Sinhala nationalism. He has projected himself too, as an ultra Sinhala nationalist leader.
   
   
2. So called efforts, to evolve a political solution to the national conflict, have been merely a charade, as has been clearly demonstrated with the proposal after eighteen months of deliberations, to implement provisions which have existed in the Sri Lankan Constitution for more than 19 years. What is proposed to be implemented is less than what the existing provisions provided for; a bifurcated North - East as opposed to the original merged North - East - with no police nor land powers, and even the original provisions vastly diluted by judicial interpretation.
   
   
3. The preponderantly Tamil linguistic contiguous Northern and Eastern Provinces were merged following the 1987 International treaty between India and Sri Lanka. The merged territory existed for eighteen years and was accepted by four successive Presidents of Sri Lanka. The J.V.P was able to obtain in a fundamental rights application, a judicial declaration, after a period of eighteen years, that there was a procedural flaw in effecting the merger. The historical Tamil inhabitants of the East who sought to intervene were denied the right to intervene and fully and effectively state their case. President Mahinda Rajapakse was offered the required support to legislatively remedy the alleged procedural flaw, and thereby uphold an international treaty, which had been upheld by all four of his predecessors. He was cautioned by the International Community that the existing territorial arrangement pertaining to the merged North - East was the corner stone of the peace process, and that it should not be disturbed. President Rajapakse chose to follow the ultra Sinhala nationalist path, and protect his image as an ultra Sinhala nationalist leader. He thereby denied the historical Tamil speaking inhabitants, the benefits of the Indo – Sri Lanka international treaty.
   
   
4. The Mahinda Rajapakse Government commenced intense Military attacks in the preponderantly Tamil linguistic contiguous North – East accompanied by severe aerial bombardment of and the firing of multi barrel rocket launchers into civilian populated villages. Though it was claimed that the Military attacks were aimed at the L.T.T.E, the victims were largely Tamil and also in some instances Muslim civilians. Very many hundreds of civilians were killed. Several hundreds of civilians were maimed and seriously injured. Civilian property inclusive of houses, plantations, crops, livestock, farming and fishing equipment, were destroyed. Over 500,000 Tamil Civilians have been displaced, rendered destitute and impoverished. Public buildings such as places of worship and school buildings have been destroyed. Meanwhile, extra judicial killings and enforced disappearances of individual Tamils, particularly in the North – East and also in other parts of the country, by sections of the Sri Lankan armed forces and para military groups collaborating with the Sri Lankan armed forces is a regular occurrence. This is done to terrorise the Tamils and compel them to flee the country.
   
   
5. The military attacks of the Rajapakse Government are continuing and the ultimate objective of the Rajapakse Government is to militarily subdue and subjugate the Tamil speaking civilian population. Not being willing nor able to evolve an acceptable political solution, the Rajapakse Government would attempt to impose on the Tamil Speaking people in the North East some worthless political arrangement.
   
   
6. Hurriedly holding an election in the bifurcated East is a diabolical step in this direction.
   
   
7. As a smokescreen for all its misdeeds against the Tamil People, the Rajapakse Government has entered into an alliance with a Tamil para military group the T.M.V.P, and is using the said group to achieve it’s ulterior objectives.
   
   
8. The Rajapakse Government’s clear aim is to rebut the legitimate political goals of the Tamil speaking people, for the right to substantial self rule based upon the principle of internal self determination in the areas that they have historically inhabited, and to reverse whatever progress has been made in that direction. It is also the objective of the Rajapakse Government to Sinhalasise the Eastern sector of the North Eastern region, in the guise of development, and to achieve this purpose, have declared certain parts of the Eastern sector as High Security Zones, Industrial Zones, Environmental Zones and so on. The Government which needs funds to fulfil this objective of Sinhalasising the Eastern sector needs a Tamil lackey as a front to raise funds for development.
   
   
9. The T.M.V.P which is at the mercy of the Rajapakse Government is prepared to follow the directives of the Rajapakse Government. The Rajapakse Government is also using the T.M.V.P to compel and coerce the Tamil people to vote for the T.M.V.P, which the Rajapakse Government would claim as support by the Tamil people for the policies of his Government. The Government expects the Tamil people who have suffered immensely by reason of the military attacks and who live in a military environment, to be submissive to the demands of the armed T.M.V.P. The T.M.V.P is a Para-military group well armed and with the license to punish the Tamil people defying their demands after the elections. The law enforcement machinery has never taken any action against the T.M.V.P despite their frequent transgressions of the law. Both the T.M.V.P and the Tamil people are aware of this.
   
   
10. No other Government since independence has inflicted such immense harm on the Tamil people as this Government has done in the past two years. The Tamil speaking people should not fall into the dangerous trap that is being laid to bring about their downfall in their areas of historical habitation. This is an election at which through the visible or invisible fire and muscle power of the T.M.V.P and Government armed forces, President Rajapakse hopes to implement his insidious political agenda.
    
    
11. The Illankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi (I.T.A.K) after very careful consideration has taken the decision that it should not compromise on its fundamental political principles and be seen as being a participant in an electoral process the objective of which is diametrically opposed to such fundamental principles and a reversal of what the Tamil people have stood for, during more than the past half a century. For these reasons the I.T.A.K will not contest the Eastern Elections.

Mavai S.Senathirajah
General Secretary
Illankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi

R.Sampanthan
Parliamentary Group Leader
Illankai Tamil Arasu Kadchi
(Tamil National Alliance)

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