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‘Regime change’ drive reinvigorated Sinhala extremism: Tamil trade unionist

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 07 January 2015, 19:26 GMT]
Sinhala extremist racist politics has again proved itself as being the driving force of the Sinhala politics in the South as demonstrated by the mainstream camps of Mahinda Rajapaksa and Maithiripala Sirisena in the run up to the presidential elections, said President of All Ceylon General Employees Union, S. Loganathan, a Tamil trade unionist who is based in Ampaa'rai in the Eastern Province. Explaining the problems of Tamils in the Ampaa'rai district in detail, the long-time trade unionist, now in the process of forming a new party, also blamed the Tamil National Alliance for its failure at the grassroots level in addressing the plight of oppressed Tamils.

“As trade unionists of the public sector workers, we have been voicing for the right to self-rule in the unified North-East. [...] Mahinda Rajapaksa didn't even allow the Tamils in Ampaa'rai to look after their own affairs. He out rightly refused to allow the Tamil villages to be organised under own civic units in the district. [...] The civil structures were not upgraded despite repeated requests. [...] Now, the Sinhala extremist forces that have rallied behind Maithiripala Sirisena have also gone on record that they would not allow the provincial councils to have land and police powers,” Mr Loganathan said.



As the TNA also failed to identify and promote candidates capable of addressing the affairs of the oppressed Tamils, a section among the Tamils in the district got disillusioned and fell victims to the deceptive politics of the Sinhala extremist forces such as the Bodu Bala Sena, Mr Loganathan said while explaining the problems faced by the Tamil people in the Ampaa'rai district.

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