The Myth of Tamil Political Leaders

Every time I come across the phrase "Tamil Political Leaders" I laugh. They just don't exists!. If you are Tamil and if you want to survive in Sri Lankan politics there are certain requirements. Let me list them.

The first one is that you should be a crook with no sense of principles. But then this one is a generic requirement that applies to almost everyone in Sri Lankan politics irrespective of their ethnicity. But there are a few others that are specific to Tamil politicians. So let's skip this one and go to the next.

To put it simply they have a choice to make. They can suck up to the LTTE or Suck up to the government.

LTTE really feels it knows what is good for the Tamils in Sri Lanka. So it doesn't want other Tamils to bother thinking for themselves. The LTTE has done all the thinking and taken all the decisions. So all the Tamil people need to do is just support it. If you are a Tamil and if you want to think for yourself LTTE doesn't stop you. But you better keep your thoughts to yourself.Even if you start talking about it still it is fine with the LTTE as long as your views match 100% with those of the LTTE. If that is not the case, then talking about your views would shorten your lifespan dramatically. This has happened to lots of Tamil people who committed the crime of daring to disagree with the views of the LTTE while refusing to suck up to the government. That will be a long list that includes great people like Rajini Thiranagama (I have to write a seperate post on her someday)

So if you speak out against the LTTE they will kill you. If you are Tamil and if you want to get into Sri Lankan politics and if you prefer to get old before you die there are two options.

a) Be an LTTE supporter. I mean not just a supporter. Your definition of Right and Wrong has to change a bit. Right is what the LTTE does. And Wrong is what their enemies do. If you can stick to this simple principle then you can be sure the LTTE won't kill you. If you can't support the LTTE at least refrain from opposing them. That is the golden rule. Just keeping your mouth shut when it comes to LTTE will be enough to save you. But you will still face the risk of getting killed by the government. That risk used to be low in the good old days but now it is increased significantly. Some of people who chose this option and got killed recently include people like MP Maheshwaran,MP Joseph Pararajasingham ,MP MP Sivanesan , MP Raviraj etc Raviraj) So this is no longer a good option. But all the TNA members are sticking with this option now. No wonder they are getting killed every now and then.

b) Be a government supporter. Just stick to the definition of what is right and wrong that I gave you above. But this time you have to replace the word "LTTE" with "government". That's it. But now the LTTE will try to kill you. But the government will protect you as long as you suck up to them and turn a blind eye to all the gruesome murders they commit. So many are sticking to this option. (Ananda Sangari,Douglas Devananda etc)

So where are the independent Tamils who are not afraid to voice their views? Ha Ha Ha! Naturally they are all dead my dear friend! they are all dead!.

No not all of them are dead yet. There are a still a few that are alive. They are damned brave! They try to tell the truth all the time. No wonder they are pissing off both the Government and LTTE.

And then there's me of course! I know I don't have to be that brave because it is just a blog without my real name on it. But still... :)

Liberated East!

It is a tiny mud house in Kalmunai. It is night time. Men armed with pistols knock on the door. A woman answers. They force their way in. Walk in to a bedroom.Take turns to rape two young girls aged 18 and 16. The terrified girls cry but there is no one to protect them. Their mother watches helplessly as her daughters get tortured by thugs sponsored by the government of the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka,tears pouring down her eyes. Later that night the armed men returned to this house and after assaulting the father and mother they abducted the 18 year old girl. They forced her into their white van and drove off while the rest of the family watched helplessly.

Sometimes I feel so depressed. I feel this mixture of anger, frustration and sheer helplessness. It is not a nice feeling. But that's how I feel after I read this story in the daily mirror.

Of course the mother tried reporting this to the police. You would expect them to take the details,put it in a file and forget about it right? Surprise! They are even more advanced now. They even refused to lodge her complaint.

This happened on the 10th of May the day of the Eastern Provincial Council Elections which President Mahinda Rajapakse's party won.

Pillayan and his gang know they can do whatever they want in the Tamil areas in the East. The government has given them a free hand there. They just have to stuff the ballot boxes whenever there is an election as they have done this time.

"..The results of the elections to the first Eastern Provincial Council show the people’s endorsement of the government’s policies of restoring democracy and normalcy to areas hitherto controlled by terrorists and the overall development programme already initiated in the Eastern Province..", said President Mahinda Rajapaksa in a statement following the successful conclusion of elections to the EPC.