Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) introduced the new policy on Tamils who seek political asylum in Canada on the grounds that although the refugee board adjudicators are not forced to follow the new guidelines, for the IRB such notes “are offered to members as models of sound reasoning that may be adopted in appropriate circumstances.”  This is really a frightening decision of the IRB as it demonstrates that the Canadian government led by Stephen Harper has made such a hasty decision without knowing what is really happening on the ground in the Tamils areas in Sri Lanka.

The new policy, no doubt, could affect refugee claimants who arrived in Vancouver in 2009 and 2010 aboard the Ocean Lady and MV Sun Sea.  The 76 Tamils who arrived in 2009 applied for refugee status, but the refugee board has not taken any action on their files.  The 492 Tamil refugees who arrived last year have applied for political asylum, but their cases are also pending.  It is worth mentioning that one-fourth of the refugees who arrived last year have been detained in detention centres in British Columbia and two of the asylum seekers have been branded as being affiliated to the militant LTTE.

Canada wants precedence to reject Tamils’ claims for refugee status

In this context, the case cited in the new IRB policy involved a 25-year-old Tamil male from Sri Lanka. It is worth mentioning that this youth arrived in Canada by air.  This particular claimant had told the refugee board that he had been, and would be, persecuted by the Sri Lankan army, government officials, and paramilitary agents associated with the Sri Lankan government if he returned to Sri Lanka.

The claimant also told the board that he was arrested by Sri Lankan forces in 2006, interrogated, hit in the stomach and pushed against a wall. He moved to a different location with a friend soon afterwards, but was detected by government forces the next year. He said his friend was eventually executed. The claimant fled to Malaysia in 2007 before arriving in Canada in 2009.

The IRB tribunal rejected his refugee claim in November. It was cited in the persuasive decision four weeks later on December 17, 2010.  The ruling said: “The claimant is not a person in need of protection in that his removal to Sri Lanka would not subject him personally to a risk to his life.”

The IRB said: “The reasons cite the documentary evidence which relates to changes that took place in Sri Lanka recently and conclude with a finding that the changes are meaningful and durable and that the claimant’s fear of persecution based on his particular social group, perceived political opinion and nationality is not well founded.”

How does Canada not know what is happening?

It is unfortunate that Canada employs dozens of diplomats in Sri Lanka at the Canadian High Commission in Colombo who do not know the ground reality in the North and East of Sri Lanka, which are the traditional homeland of Tamils where over 150,000 Sri Lankan armed forces have been deployed despite that the government claiming that it has crushed the Tamil Tigers in May 2009.  The situation worsens by the day. The Sri Lankan government has been deploying more and more armed forces into Tamil villages to build new military residences with China’s assistance.

Another shocking story is that the Sri Lankan army is going to be deployed on the islets off the shores of Jaffna where already the Sri Lankan naval bases and the paramilitaries supporting the government have been put up.  The Canadian High Commissioner, along with senior officials, paid several visits to the Tamil areas after the LTTE silenced their guns in 2009.  It is shocking evidence that the Canadian High Commissioner and senior officials who are being paid from Canadian tax-payers money have not updated the ground reality in the North and East of Sri Lanka where human rights abuses are on the rise daily.

Kidnapping for ransom, murder, rape, robbery, and disappearances are increasing in various places in the North and East, especially Jaffna, in spite of it being a military garrison. There is not a day that passes without a report on crime. Many events can be cited to demonstrate the current situation in Tamil areas.  There are many untold stories taking place despite the fact that many people fail to report to the police or any other officials due to the fear that they will be prosecuted by the armed forces who are wandering around the streets of Tamil villages, towns, and cities with military uniform and arms. Even President Rajapaksa, whose agents commit these crimes, has stated publicly, while in Jaffna, that these criminals underground would not show their heads anymore.

A few of the shocking events are: A Hindu priest was shot dead, using a gun owned by the military, for performing rites for tsunami victims. A government education officer was shot dead because he objected to the national anthem being sung in Sinhala only in Jaffna. An environmentalist was murdered for exposing a Sri Lankan minister and India’s favourite, Douglas Devananda, for making millions of rupees by removing sand and causing environmental damage. So the list goes on.  It is indeed frustrating that Canada falls victim to the Sri Lankan government’s false propaganda.

Senior government officials acknowledge law and order worsen

The Government Agent of Jaffna, Ms Imelda Sukumar, the principal civil representative of the government in Jaffna, spoke to media personnel when they raised questions about the law and order in Jaffna, suggesting the police should be replaced by the military, as if Jaffna is not militarized enough.  It is surprising that over 150,000 Sri Lankan armed forces are wandering in the streets of North and East, but the irresponsible statement of Sukumar demonstrates that the law and order cannot be returned soon.  She claims that more armed forces should be deployed to return the areas to normalcy.

Sukumar, for reasons well known to her, shifted the blame on to another government agency instead of holding the government wholly responsible for the complete breakdown of the justice system and the collapse of law and order in Jaffna.  Jaffna is a veritable jungle, a mini police State where State terrorism remains.

The residents in northern Jaffna and Vavuniya were advised by two senior Police superintendents in leaflets, widely distributed, to wear only imitation jewellery and take extra steps to protect their homes. They were advised not to leave their door keys hidden under door rugs or flower pots, but to have a spare key if another family member needed one. When leaving home, lock the doors properly and inform the neighbours about their departure. They were told not to travel alone when wearing gold jewellery, as criminals may trick and rob their jewellery.

The people were told to beware of strangers or strange vehicles coming to their areas and to note down the numbers and other details. This is just a usual story to hoodwink them to show that robbery is the motive for such crimes and to sidetrack the issue from the real situation and the political and racist undertones.

Unnumbered white van kidnapping is a common occurrence. Once they come in a group armed with guns, there is nothing anyone can do about it.  No unnumbered vehicle is permitted to move around in any civilized country, let alone a militarized area, such as Jaffna. So it is the security forces that have to do the prevention and not unarmed civilians.

Parents were advised not to send children out of their homes alone. The question is how do the parents go about their work if they have to follow their children to school?

The police also advised people to number the valuable goods at home or label them and to do the same for electric equipment, motor bikes, and so forth.

The police have also advised the residents to keep their doors and windows closed, even during the day time if there is only one person in the house. At night, they are advised to make sure the doors and windows are closed and to keep a bulb switched on.

The public was told that if any member of the defence force comes for inspection, they should ask for their official identity cards before opening the door and ensure they are accompanied by a police officer from the area. This is a guaranteed recipe for violence and death, as most of the uniformed personal are thugs and they themselves commit the robbery. Moreover they carry false identity cards with government patronage.

Shop owners have been advised to leave a light on outside their shops after their closure and to keep someone inside the shop. The police say the people have a right to protect their lives and property in such instances. If the criminals attempt to flee, they have a right to take them into custody and then inform the village officer or the police.

What logic!  How do unarmed civilians arrest fully-armed criminals? All the above recommendations can be carried out only by the police as they are the only ones empowered by the law to do so. They are also paid to do their job.

This is Sri Lanka’s version of maintaining ‘law and order’.  One of Wikileak’s revelations was that the American Ambassador, Patricia A. Butenis, was of the view that the para-military groups were given the liberty to raise their own funds by whatever means — kidnapping, robbery, prostitution, and child-trafficking — as the government was no longer able to finance their maintenance. The military has also joined in this multi-million rupee business, so how could the police act?

Crime is a money making business for the armed forces. Moreover, the best means of silencing people who oppose government policies is to eliminate them. Only the international community can get the Tamils of Sri Lanka out of this culture of impunity by imposing sanctions.  The US and EU, who have awoken to the realities of the situation, may be willing to do so, but India and China will continue to support Rajapaksa and Company of brothers and close relatives.

The current situation in the Tamil homeland shows that there is no protection for the Tamils whatsoever. They are exposed to the worst of crimes. The human rights situation has gotten worse.  When the LTTE was in action militarily, the enemies thought a second before conducting any violation against the Tamils, but after the LTTE entered into ceasefire agreement with the Sri Lankan government in 2002 with the facilitation of Norwegian government, the atrocities of Sri Lankan armed forces ran rampant against Tamils.  With the complete silence of the LTTE guns, human rights abuses have worsened.

Canada’s Immigration and Refugee Board’s (IRB) new policy is dangerous and violates its own Charter and the international convention.  Unless the Tamil Canadians wake up and rise to the level where they can exert pressure upon the Canadian government to intervene in altering the new policy introduced by the IRB, many other countries will follow suit with the Canadian policy not to acknowledge the Tamils who are lacking protection in Sri Lanka and will help to deteriorate the efforts of countries which are taking steps to bring the perpetrators of the war crimes to book.

The New Zealand Supreme Court decision came after a Tamil respondent, whose name is being kept confidential (born in 1956 in Velvettiturai of northern Sri Lanka), responded to the Attorney-General who was the appellant challenging the Appeal Court decision, which stated that the respondent had the right to seek refugee status in New Zealand, but the Crown was contending that the respondent was a member of the LTTE and he carried weapons and ammunition for the LTTE to fight against the Sri Lankan armed forces.

Earlier, two other cases were rejected and they were deported. However, the Tamil respondent challenged in the Appeal Court and later the Supreme Court, and in fact, this case is now seen as a test case where the New Zealand Supreme Court sees the LTTE as a political organization and that they had the right to fight for right of self-determination. In essence, the LTTE had the right to defend themselves from the majority as that majority launched genocidal war against Tamil minority on the island.

The respondent is an innocent Tamil

The respondent gave details as to how he left Sri Lanka in 1981 to go to sea. He was initially based in the Middle East, working in engine rooms first as an oiler and then as a third assistant engineer in the Persian Gulf. He spent brief periods in Sri Lanka in 1986 for personal reasons and returned in 1989 for his marriage where he remained for six months. At the end of 1989, he took up a position as fourth engineer on a container ship sailing between Singapore, Malaysia, and Indonesia. He returned to Velvettiturai in April 1990 to be with his wife for the birth of their first child and remained in Sri Lanka for two years.

The respondent said that in June 1992, he was contacted by an employment agent about an opportunity to work as Chief Engineer on a vessel owned by a Thai company. He was not told its name. He travelled to Trang where he met the ship’s agent, and then to Phuket where, on 5 July 1992, he boarded the Yahata, a cargo vessel with a total crew of nine. For the next six months the vessel worked routes in South Asia travelling to ports in Thailand and Singapore.

The respondent told the Authority that he did not know the nature of the cargo during these voyages. He said he had little interaction with other crew members and knew nothing about them other than that most came from Velvettiturai, which is a fishing port, and at that time, a centre of commercial and maritime contacts for the LTTE. He also said he did not know that, as is established to have been the case, most of the vessel’s crew were members of or sympathetic to the LTTE.

On 4 January 1993, the Yahata departed Phuket with the respondent on board. He said he had no knowledge of the cargo, which he had observed, comprised of packets and barrels when it was loaded from a trawler. During loading, 10 extra people joined the ship. Soon afterwards, the respondent said, he was advised that the Yahata was an LTTE ship. He wanted to leave but was told he could not do so until the vessel reached Sri Lanka. He learned that the 10 persons who had boarded were from the LTTE, one of whom was Krishnakumar Sathasivam, alias Kittu, who had been the LTTE’s second-in-command until being injured during hostilities in Sri Lanka. The respondent acknowledged that at the time he knew who Kittu was.

India’s drama exposed

During the Yahata’s voyage to Sri Lanka, when the vessel was some 440 nautical miles off Chennai, the Master told the respondent that the vessel had reached its destination. The engines were stopped. The vessel drifted for about 10 hours without displaying its national flag and while displaying “not under command” lights. An Indian coastguard vessel approached and sought to board the Yahata for verification purposes. The Master warned the coastguard that the Yahata was carrying 110 tonnes of explosives and dire consequences would follow if any attempt were made to board her. The Yahata then tried to flee and was chased for two and a half hours, when the Master agreed to proceed to Chennai. Near that port, the Yahata was surrounded by vessels of the Indian navy and dropped its anchors.

The respondent said that Kittu informed the crew members that the Indian navy had agreed that they would be repatriated to Sri Lanka. On January 16, 1993, the LTTE members who were on board bombed the vessel, killing ten of them including Kittu. Nine crew jumped into the sea. The Indian navy captured and placed them in custody.

The case was heard for 37 days, and dragged on for three years. Thirty-four witnesses for the prosecution, mostly navy personnel, were interrogated. On the court’s directive, the navy salvaged the remains of the ship and claimed to have retrieved rocket-propelling guns and other arms, but the navy did not submit the gunnery records or communication tapes of the ship to the court, even during in camera sessions. Fearing that the case against the accused was not proceeding in favour of the prosecution, the Additional Solicitor General of India, T.S. Tulsi, was specially requisitioned to marshal additional points in defense of the prosecution in the case. The Indian government, having itself instituted proceedings under the TADA, invoked the jurisdiction of the court, then contended that the court had no jurisdiction to inquire into what happened on the high seas.

Tulsi submitted that, though the vessel was registered under the name MV Yahata, it was changed in the high seas, because the vessel was engaged in clandestine activities. He contended that the moment the vessel changed its name, it had lost its nationality. Also, the crew did not hoist the flag of its nationality and did not have necessary papers. When the Indian navy wanted to know its call-sign, the crew gave a wrong call-signal and it was clear that the vessel was stateless, he said. Such a vessel had no rights under the international law, he contended.

Quoting international law on piracy, Tulsi said the master of the vessel was not in control of the vessel, but it was Kittu and he was communicating with the other vessels in the vicinity. A pirate ship could be seized and the Indian navy had the right to seize this vessel, and contended that, if hostile boarding was resisted, they had the right to capture the vessel. But the Indian navy personnel did not board the vessel, because of humanitarian considerations and they feared that the men on board might consume cyanide capsules. But later, they had no alternative but to resort to hostile boarding as a logical conclusion, he submitted.

The TADA court judge, P. Lakshman Reddy, rejected the submissions of the Prosecution as well as the charge of carrying explosives against the crew, and held that the Navy and the investigating agencies, including the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Special Investigating Team, had failed to prove their charges against the crew of the MV Ahat (Yahata).

The Judge said there was no case under the TADA Act against the accused, as they were brought forcibly into the Indian waters and also, there was no evidence of any offence. He agreed with the defence argument that the Coast Guard ship was not justified in intercepting MV Ahat, when it was in international waters and when the accused had revealed that the ship was registered in Singapore and was flying the Honduran flag. Dissatisfied with the judgment of the Trial Court, the Prosecution appealed to the Indian Supreme Court. But the Supreme Court upheld the Trial Court’s finding and ordered the release of the accused.

The judge directed the Commissioner of Police of Visakhapatnam to hand all the nine crew, including its captain, Jayachandran. Other crew members– Satkunalingham, V. Krishnamoorthy, K Nayakam, S. Sivarasa, S. Indralingham, S. Balakrishnan and T. Mohan– were handed over to the appropriate government, and the crew managed to reach their South-east Asian destination.

New Zealand Supreme Court decision a historic one

After the respondent was released from custody and permitted to leave India for Singapore in August 2001, he obtained a New Zealand visitor’s visa and arrived in New Zealand on 13 September 2001, where he was issued with a visitor’s permit. His wife and children also secured visitors’ visas and arrived in New Zealand on 24 December 2001. On that day, the respondent filed his refugee status application. His wife also made an application on 18 January 2002.

The respondent application was rejected and the case went on for years. The hearing in front of the Supreme Court came in front of Elias C.J., Blanchard, Tipping, McGrath and JJ. Anderson on June 24, 2010, and the verdict was given on August 27 in favour of the respondent. The court delivered the judgment while dismissing the government’s appeal seeking rejection of the refugee status of the respondent.

The court said in its judgment: “At all relevant times the Tamil Tigers was an organisation having the goals of self-determination for Tamils and securing an independent Tamil state in northeast Sri Lanka. The principal objective was to induce the government of Sri Lanka to concede such political change. These characteristics made the Tamil Tigers a political organisation notwithstanding its use, at times, of proscribed methods of advancing its cause. That much is not in dispute.”

It further said: “The appeal is dismissed. The respondent’s application for recognition of refugee status is remitted to the Refugee Status Appeals Authority for consideration in accordance with the Court of Appeal’s order. Costs are reserved and counsel may submit memoranda if necessary.”

The Crown argued in the Supreme Court that the respondent’s involvement in the voyage made him complicit in the atrocities committed by the Tamil Tigers, so that he had committed crimes against humanity as an accomplice. As well, his involvement in the sinking of the vessel was a serious non-political crime. The Crown’s submission was that each aspect of his conduct disqualified him from being recognised as a refugee under the Refugee Convention and New Zealand law.

The Supreme Court has decided that it was not shown that the respondent’s supportive activities were actually linked to any atrocities committed by the LTTE. This was because the armaments which he helped transport did not reach the LTTE as they went down with the ship. Accordingly, it was not established that any crime against humanity had been committed to which the respondent was an accomplice. Furthermore, any crime committed in relation to the sinking of the vessel was of a political nature which did not disqualify the respondent from holding refugee status under the Convention.
The Supreme Court referred the respondent’s application for refugee status back to the Appeals Authority for consideration of whether he meets the general requirements of the Convention and New Zealand law to be recognised as a refugee.

The decision by the Court is really fascinating, and is a precedent for other countries to follow suit because many countries are unjustly concluding that all militants are together with citizens and bystanders or coworkers. There are some movements by minorities which are fighting to safeguard their peoples from genocide and crimes against humanity by oppressive regimes, so these movements should be considered freedom fighters. These fighters do not get any benefits, but they sacrifice their lives for the liberation of their nation, and these fighters should not be branded as terrorists. All sections that fight for self determination for their people and against oppression for liberation should not be regarded terrorists.

The New Zealand Supreme Court decision is a historic one, and it should be taken as a precedent in all countries practising Common Law. If the New Zealand Tamils, numbering less than 10,000 people, can educate the New Zealand judges about the sufferings of Tamils in Sri Lanka, then why not the hundreds of thousands living in other western countries such as in England, Canada, Australia and the U.S and others. The decision in New Zealand should be taken as a test case in all other countries which practice Common Law in order to seek justice for the Tamils in Sri Lanka.

Twenty-six years ago, the state-sponsored pogrom against Tamils in Sri Lanka resulted in the deaths of 3000 people, and property damages of over $300 million U.S.

The days between July 24 and July 30, 1983, were tragic, and unforgettable, for the Tamils. The May 2009 war, which killed nearly 40,000 Tamil civilians, was record high, beating the July ‘83 holocaust. For the Sri Lankan government, it is victory, but for Tamils, it is the month to reflect and remember. Now May is, to Tamils, like February is to Black people around the world. Tamils the world over observe this occasion with rallies, vigils, and prayers.

Tamils around the world have been organizing peaceful rallies, and other events, to reflect and remember the massacred Tamils. The Tamils were killed by the Sri Lankan armed forces, with no mercy whatsoever, even when they were given promise that they would not be killed if they sought refuge in the designated zone which was recognized as ‘safety zone’.

Within five months, Tamils were killed day and night, up until May 19th, of 2009. After the Sri Lankan president, Mahinda Rajapaksa, came to power in 2005, he said he would crush the Tamil Tigers (LTTE), and pledged that he would set out the ‘Mahinda Chinthana,’ which would outline how his government would rule the country. After he came to power, he became wild, and ordered his armed forces to eliminate the LTTE in the eastern part of the island.

East remains dangerous for people to live

Mahinda’s armed forces went on a rampage in the East in 2006 with the guise of fighting the LTTE in order to gain full control of the sluice gates of the reservoir in Mavilaru. The use of ‘Operation Watershed’ to gain the control of the sluice gates of the reservoir, was successful, after the LTTE fighters denounced the war saying that they lifted the ban for access to the reservoir.

The Mahinda administration even annulled the cease fire agreement signed by the former Prime Minister, Ranil Wickremesinghe, and the LTTE leader, V. Pirapaharan, which came into effect in 2002. The Sri Lankan armed forces even took the lives of employees of INGOs (International Non-Governmental Organizations), as well as local employees of NGOs, academics, businessmen, journalists, etc.

The government took decisive action against the foreign agencies, which were working in the Tamil areas, and ordered them to vacate. The government opened up a confrontation with the aid of agencies and media outlets. But the LTTE leadership kept saying that they were sticking to the 2002 ceasefire agreement. They even announced that the Sri Lankan government was the one which unilaterally breached the agreement, but the LTTE was respecting it.

The LTTE even took control of Sampur, in the Trincomalee district, but after mounting pressure from the international community, the LTTE had to return to their original barracks, after bringing the areas under their full control. When the Sri Lankan armed forces were launching massive military operations, the LTTE was maintaining silence and retreating from the Sri Lankan armed forces.

The Tamils around the world were hoping that the LTTE leadership was tactically withdrawing for a day to come. But, the eastern military operation, instigated by the Sri Lankan armed forces, drove over 300,000 people to seek refuge. Many of them are still alive, under pathetic conditions, even after the government announced that they brought the eastern province from the LTTE.

Nearly four years have passed after capturing the East, but the economic and security situations remain a grave concern. Unidentified men, as usual, kidnap people and they are taken to secret locations. Women are still facing difficulties, but the reports of these abuses have been kept silent. The eastern province has been given control of the pro-government paramilitary, the Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal (TMVP).

The Sinhala colonization is on the rise in the aftermath of the so-called liberation of the East from the LTTE. This has predominantly taken place after chasing the inhabitants off the land to refugee camps, making them displaced people who wander around without the right to own their own lands. Another event that is taking place is that the government is sponsoring to build Buddhist temples in the liberated areas. Other than that, there are no prospects for the people who inhabited the land.

Eastern victory led to Northern military overtures

Upon completion of the so-called liberation of the Eastern military operation, the Mahinda administration immediately turned their guns toward capturing the North, especially the Vanni, which was the headquarters of the LTTE. There, the LTTE was having a de facto government with police, the judicial system, custom offices, etc., similar to a parallel government, resembling the way Colombo was ruling the rest of the island.

Tamils were hoping that the Vanni would be the graveyard for the advancing Sinhala armed forces. But the LTTE was still maintaining the policy of retreating, except against defensive attacks. The LTTE never launched offensive attacks, even though they did have the military prowess to launch such military offences against the advanced armed forces. This shocked the Tamils. One by one, the Sri Lankan armed forces captured the areas of Vanni.

Within the five months of military offensives, especially from January 2009, the Sri Lankan armed forces gained control of over 10,000 square kilometres of landmass of the North. Over 350,000 Tamils, who were the residents in the control of the LTTE, had no choice but to go with the flow. They were butchered like animals being hunted for meat, despite the continuous call from the international community, to put a halt to the fighting, in order to secure the release of the civilians.

The Sri Lankan government even offered to declare a ‘safe zone’ and asked the people to move in to the region, but, the government did not respect it, saying that they had to launch shelling and aerial bombardment since the LTTE fighters too sought refuge in the area, in the cover of civilians. Upon considering the massive sufferings of civilians, the LTTE leadership formally announced that they silenced their guns to safeguard the lives of hundreds of thousands of people.

Even after the LTTE silenced their guns, the Sri Lankan armed forces crushed to death thousands of Tamils, as well as LTTE fighters, who meant to surrender to the Sri Lankan armed forces with white flags. Even the LTTE’s senior political leaders were shot to death at gunpoint, after they were given promise that they could surrender with a white flag.

The military operation came to a complete stop by May 19, 2009. On this day, the Sri Lankan armed forces announced that they found the dead body of the LTTE leader, Pirapaharan from the Nanthikadal lagoon in Mullaitheevu. With the end of this military operation, the Mahinda administration announced a great victory and said they defeated the LTTE, which was a calling on a military outfit in the island with conventional military power with naval, air, and land forces, as well as the ferocious ‘Black Tigers’ who sacrificed their lives for the cause of Tamil Eelam by detonating bombs in their bodies.

Victory for Sinhalese and Grief for the Tamils

In the final phase of Eelam War IV, the Sri Lankan government announced victory, but the war wounded the Tamils, leaving 40,000 of their beloved ones dead. Mahinda won both presidential and parliamentary elections for the second consecutive term. The Mahinda administration, so far, has not offered a political solution to the Tamils’ grievances. Rather, the government is making anti-Tamil activates, such as deploying Sinhala families, to occupy the residences and properties belonging to the Tamils in the North as how they do it in the East. They are building Buddhist shrines, establishing military camps, and deploying more troops in the Tamil areas. All these are taking place in the time the government is celebrating the victory over the LTTE.

As their future becomes futile, Tamils feel that they are insecure in their traditional homeland. Anti-Tamil cultural events are on the rise in the Tamil homeland. Young people have been given drugs in order to ruin their future, and many other anti-social events have taken place with the support of the Sri Lankan armed forces. The Tamil paramilitaries, which are supporting the government, help these anti-social activities. Kidnappings, raping, and killings are back to normal in the Tamil areas. In the recent past that was common during the war time. This is the ground reality, in the Tamil areas, and Tamils are still facing a security threat in Colombo and other Sinhala areas.

During this grave environment, the Mahinda administration is planning widespread celebrations to mark the first anniversary of the end of the Eelam War IV. The government announced a week of celebrations to honour soldiers, starting May 12, including a victory parade in Colombo, the capital, on May 20. The government said that during war heroes’ week the army also planned to hold religious ceremonies and raise funds to help disabled soldiers.

In the meantime, Tamils, who fell victims to the State-sponsored terrorism, have already started peaceful rallies and prayers to reflect and remember the people who died. Tamils around the world have started rallies and other forms of gatherings from May 1st. Many Tamil organizations are announcing and holding week-long rallies, vigils, and prayers for the dead people, and they will continue until May 19th.

Tamils who live around the world, including Australia, Great Britain, Canada, Germany, France, India, Norway and the U.S., are wearing black clothes to mourn the people killed by the Sri Lankan army, as a remembrance. They are also seen wearing red ribbons to symbolize the innocent blood spilled in the war crimes against Tamil people.

The protesting Tamils urge that the international community should not maintain silence. As the first anniversary of the war comes to an end, Tamils around the world are united in their grief for those innocents who became victims of war crimes, and they urge the international community not to forget the war crimes committed by Sri Lanka, and to bring the perpetrators to justice.

The Tamil National Alliance, which is the largest Tamil political party, urged the Tamil people to mourn and hold silent prayers, on May 17, to mark what it called a day of “catastrophe.” The TNA said: “During the height of the war several thousand Tamil people were killed and hundreds of thousand others suffered heavy losses and were forced to flee their homes…This catastrophe is one of the worst in world history.”

Tamils were describing the July ‘83 holocaust as the worst they had seen in their history, but the Tamils came up with no words to describe the war of 2009, and tens of thousands of people were butchered all alone in the month of May, 2009, which broke the previous record catastrophe of July ’83. Sri Lanka is celebrating the death of Tamils, with a large Sinhala crowd, as a military victory, but for Tamils it is the month to reflect and remember. This is the month for them to unite and foster their support in obtaining their freedom. It is the time to make a vow to put pressure upon the international community to investigate the genocide of the war, conducted by Sri Lanka, and to punish the perpetrators, in the same way Slobodan Milosevic was punished by the International Court of Justice.

While the Tamils were being butchered by the Sri Lankan State, global Tamils protested peacefully. Despite that, the UN and many other powerful countries failed to support the victims of State terrorism other than issuing statements condemning the Sri Lankan State and the LTTE. And finally, the world demanded the Tamils’ defensive cadres, the LTTE, to silence their guns. But they failed to demand the Sri Lankan armed forces to follow suit. Furthermore, the Sri Lankan State punished civilians by keeping them in the Nazi-style camps tightly guarded by the armed forces in the militarized barbed-wire camps in Vavuniya without providing any basic facilities.

Australia was one of the countries that cried foul when thousands of Tamils were butchered by the Sri Lankan Sate. Despite all the hardships the Tamils endured–poor health, sanitation, lack of food and water, not to mention the further hardship the Tamils will face in the coming monsoon season–Australia extended their warmest greetings to Sri Lanka and consolidated their trade between the two countries. Thanks to Australia and others who continue to extend friendly relations with the terrorist States who have killed tens of thousands with abysmal records of human rights abuses. Sri Lanka’s intention to treat Tamils as human beings has vanished forever and for them, Tamils are history. Sri Lanka still fails to recognise the aspirations of the Tamil people as a nation.

Tamils’ claims validated

Although many countries did not hear the pleas of the global Tamils, the video shown on Channel 4, and thereafter the images circulating on the internet, reveal the mutilated, naked bodies of Tamil captives, both men and women. Many bodies in the pictures lacked torsos, limbs, and hands. While one image showed just the skeletal remains of the upper part of a body, another showed badly eaten away portions of the head of a slain man.

The video is more than written evidence to prove and to bring the Sri Lankan State to justice for unleashing the ethnic cleansing, especially targeted upon the Tamils. The Sinhala soldiers who speak in the Sinhala language did everything possible as vultures in the background of the dead waiting to prey on the dead bodies. These images are nauseating, reflecting the extreme chauvinistic and morbid tendencies of the Sinhala chauvinism perpetuated on the Tamils.

The UN wants the Sri Lankan government to set up an independent probe into the authenticity of a video clip aired on the BBC Channel, allegedly showing Sri Lankan troops executing prisoners. If the Sri Lankan government’s denial is validated as a result of an inquiry, the international community can rest easy and the government will have been vindicated according to them. They will use any excuse to absolve the Sri Lankan government of their crimes against humanity and enhance their impunity. Confident of the Sri Lankan government again cheating on this investigation which he describing the images as “horrendous,” the official said that it indicated a serious violation of international law if found to be authentic. The influence of the triple gem bestowed on Ban ki Moon and other UN officials visiting Sri Lanka prevails. The UN is as corrupt as the Sri Lankan government. They can do business together. It is indeed a disgrace that the UN has descended to this base level.

Now, the UN and the world community who speak of crimes against humanity in the civilized world have the right to speak out and bring the perpetrators of such crimes to book. Although Sri Lanka is not a signatory to the International Criminal Court (ICC), ICC can book Sri Lanka as they did to other countries, especially of East European and African countries in the past. There are a few options, such as judges of the court. Also, several member states of the ICC can also formally file the case against Sri Lanka, and many other viable options are available to book Sri Lanka. But, the question is whether the UN and the ICC will do it.

Norway has already sounded out that they will support the move to charge Sri Lanka because Sri Lanka has unleashed violence on Tamils. Based on the video footage by the British broadcasting Channel 4 that depicted the cruel killings of Tamils, international peacemaker and Norwegian External Affairs Minister Erik Solheim has suggested that the global community investigate the war crimes committed by Sri Lanka.

Earlier, Erik Solheim led the peace keeping time on behalf of UN to settle the dispute between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan government which resulted in futility. Further, he said he would urge for the UN and the International Community to commence an investigation. He said: “The Channel 4 video is more than solid evidence to accuse the government and those who committed the crime is punishable under law. Thousands of Tamils went missing during the bloody war and no one has questioned the government regarding this violation of Human Rights. The ruling government has wilfully ignored human rights and laid rules of their own. Without evidences, the UN was unable to proceed, but now we have the necessary docs to bring them under custody. Moreover, they have committed the punishable crime of kidnapping international journalists with their white van and I will urge the envoy to put an end to this atrocity.”

Sri Lanka condemns Norway and Britain

Upon bringing to light the video, the Sri Lankan President’s Media Unit released a statement saying the government “will make a strong protest to Channel 4 with regard to the contents of this video and also bring the matter to the notice of the relevant authorities…” It described the footage as “false and doctored.” It promised to “pursue remedies available with regard to the distortion of truth.”

Further, Sri Lankan leaders issued statements condemning Britain for permitting the Channel 4 broadcast without investigations. Little do they realise that in Britain, the mother of Parliamentary democracy, freedom of expression, even by the media, is sacred. Channel 4 representative Mr. Jonathan Miller commented on the Sri Lanka Government denial, saying: “I think Steven Spielberg would have had a hard job staging this grim scene. We were unable to verify the authenticity of the footage, but we did our level best to do so and we would not have broadcast our report had we not been confident with the expert analysis we received. Before we went to air, I watched the video with a leading Sri Lankan human rights investigator – a Sinhalese himself – who provided forensic insights into its authenticity. This investigator has many years of experience looking into abuses and impunity in his homeland, but he’d never seen anything like this.”

A column under the heading ‘Heil Solheim’ written by Gomin Dayasri on August 31 appearing in the Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Defence website, badly condemned the Norwegian Minister, Erik Solheim, and Channel 4. It further says that such periodic releases through friendly media sources are a part of LTTE false propaganda to discredit the Sri Lankan Forces, which have been duly exposed previously. There is not an iota of substance to relate it to Sri Lankan forces except for representations made in the voice cast of the narrator from the studio.

The writer claims, “For the record, previously too, Channel Four journalists were deported from the country for disseminating falsified pictorials, which they did not challenge. Channel Four has a history of desiring to discredit Sri Lanka and has fallen foul of the authorities and harbours a grievance; which does not make it a reliable objective media presenter.”

The statements from Sri Lankan leaders and the articles by well known Sinhala chauvinists appearing in the government websites clearly show that Sri Lanka will not respond cordially with the countries coming against the violations committed by the Sri Lankan State. Even powerful regional associations such as the European Union and NATO have done nothing to disapprove of Sri Lankan atrocities.

It is an irony that the descendant members of one of the most ancient civilizations in the world, such as the Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa in Asia, cannot stand up, speak and join with the civilized world in condemning such barbarities. It is also because those who claim to be champions of such a civilization have disgracefully and unashamedly traded and capitulated its reputation for positions, wealth and power. Take the case of Karunanidhi asking the Indian Central government to verify the authenticity of the Channel 4 exposition as if it would ever happen.

And the global community remains a mute spectator; the Tamil people, who make up nearly 80 million world-wide, have not yet lost faith in the global governments completely.

As a civilized nation, Tamils gratefully extend their sincere thanks to BBC Channel 4 and JDSL for having the courage and the unrelenting efforts in revealing the truth which we believe they will continue to do. It is very important that, in the interests of justice against crimes against humanity, the veracity of the tapes in question be independently investigated once again and the world be told of their authenticity.

The Sri Lankan President Rajapaksa, who was to attend the UN sessions in New York with the usual entourage of 150 persons to prop him up, we are informed, has now chosen to attend the 40th anniversary of the founding of an international terrorist State of Libya under Gaddhafi. He will, we are sure, be more at home there, than in the company of some UN representatives. Ban ki Moon will undoubtedly miss him.

Sri Lanka, considered a banana republic and economically far worse than its prosperous but tiny neighbour Singapore, has chosen to challenge a country listed on the top of the lists of the Human Development Index by the United Nations. Canadians armed with Canadian passports sail through any immigration desk around the world with ease and respect. Even the Cubans who hate Americans love Canadian passports.

Canadian passport holders can enter anywhere in the world while the majority of the countries around the world need visas from Canadian consular offices in their home countries and those, too, are not easy to get because the Canadian immigration system is very strict. But, Canadians do not face such hardships in getting visas to any other country.

Canada reaps

Recently Canadian Minister for Immigration denied entry to the maverick British parliamentarian George Galloway. His application for a Canadian visa was rejected in March 2009. Canada claimed that he was a threat to national security as he was an advocate for stopping the war in Afghanistan and Iraq and donated money to the Hamas-led government of the Palestinian territories.

Canadian Immigration Minister Jason Kenney, justifying Canada’s decision, said “I don’t see why we should make exceptions and override the decision of our professional border security agents in making a judgment about the inadmissibility of someone who provides funding and resources to an illegal terrorist organization.”

There is a saying in Tamil – “Vithai Vithaithavan Aruvadai Seivaan” (One who sowed the seed will reap the harvest). So it is poetic justice for Canada which labels even a British parliamentarian with terrorist tag to see one of her top parliamentarians booted out for the same reason! Unlike Canada, Sri Lanka is world’s most politically unstable and financially bankrupt Third World country begging for loans from IMF.

Sri Lanka tagged Canada’s much respected politician as a threat to national security. He has more than three-decades of public service experience and was the premier of Canada’s largest populated province, Ontario. Currently, he is Canada’s main Opposition Liberal Party’s foreign affairs critic. Sri Lanka has simply thumbed its nose at Canada and that too in the most uncivilized way. Canadians consider this as a great insult to their country, but the million dollar question is whether Canada will take sweet diplomatic revenge or just remain mute?

Rae’s testimony

Soon after Bob Rae spent 12 hours at the Bandaranaike International Airport in Katunayake, he was bundled out on a plane to England where he issued a statement. He said: “In the evening of Tuesday, June 9, 2009, I arrived on a flight from Delhi to Colombo, Sri Lanka. I had successfully applied to the Sri Lankan High Commission for a visa and had discussed my visit with the Sri Lankan Commissioner, the Canadian High Commissioner to Sri Lanka, and with officials from DFAIT.”

He stated: When I arrived at immigration in the company of two Canadian High Commission officials, I was, after some delay, told that I was being refused entry on the grounds of national intelligence. Since that time I have spent over twelve hours at the airport trying to find a reason for this decision. I have had the full support of officials here and in Ottawa. The Government of Sri Lanka is sticking to its position, and I am being put on a plane to London at 1:15 p.m. Sri Lankan time.

Further, he said: “The Sri Lankan government has made this decision because they have apparently reached some ill-conceived and defamatory conclusions about me. But, after thirty years of public service at home and abroad, I have to say this decision reflects on them, and not on me. I have fought against violence and extremism all my life. Everyone knows that, and the record of my actions, speeches and reports is there for all to see. What they now also know is that the government of Sri Lanka is afraid of dialogue, afraid of discussion, afraid of engagement. All I can say is shame on them. If this is how they treat me, imagine how they treat people who can’t speak out and who can’t make public statements.”

The personal statement released by Bob Rae leads us to believe that he is really fed up with the Sri Lankan government’s decision and he, too, indicates that the decision made by Sri Lanka was actually a shameful act inflicted upon Canadians, not personally against him. Sri Lanka’s stance is quite understandable when it has ignored respect for humanitarian law and calls for a political process. Instead, Sri Lanka lambasted western political and diplomatic representatives as “White Tigers” on the payroll of the LTTE. We have seen similar tendencies elsewhere—Sudan, Zimbabwe, Burma—but possibly nowhere as systematic and blatant as in Sri Lanka.

Canadian Tamils don’t trust Rae

Though Tamils in Canada think Bob Rae is an opportunistic and a wily politician. When he contested the election in Toronto Centre, where a sizeable number were ethnic Tamils, he promised that he would speak in support of right to self-determination for Tamils in Sri Lanka and he would support Eelam Tamils in Canadian parliament. However, after he got elected, his promises turned out to be empty rhetoric.

He often described Sri Lanka as a “Model Democracy” and decried LTTE’s terrorism. He was quick to decry LTTE’s “extremism and violence” but was slow to condemn state terrorism unleashed against Tamils. Bob Rae will, at least now, realize the real face of Sri Lanka.

During his frequent visits to Sri Lanka since 1999, as Chairman of Ottawa-based Forum of Federations, he met the leaders of Sri Lankan political, religious, and community organizations. He took part in the peace talks held in Oslo, Geneva, Tokyo and other cities. He dined with the LTTE leadership during his visits to the LTTE’s former strong-hold and its political headquarters, Kilinochchi. He participated in all the seminars and meetings organized by anti-LTTE movements in Sri Lanka, Canada, and England.

When this writer asked Bob Rae to comment on the present plight of Internally displaced persons in Sri Lanka and other questions about Sri Lanka, he said he would not be able to answer any questions yet, except to say, “I really do believe that they are less important than ensuring better conditions in camps and a better future for all the people living in Sri Lanka.”

Another liberal party parliamentarian from Scarborough, Agincourt Jim Karygiannis, said he, too, applied for a visa at the Sri Lanka’s High Commission in Ottawa to travel to Sri Lanka. The officials told him that they would not have any problem issuing the visa, but they are not responsible once he arrived at the airport because the Sri Lankan defense ministry may or may not permit him to enter the country. He then decided not to travel to Sri Lanka.

Upon assuming power, the right wing conservative government led by Stephen Harper banned the LTTE as a terrorist organization and followed two years later placing the community based World Tamil Movement (WTM) on the terrorist list. However, the Sri Lankan government did not show gratitude to the Conservatives. When Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Conservative MP Deepak Obhrai applied for visa to Sri Lankan High Commission in Ottawa, the High Commissioner denied him a visa. Obhrai said he wanted to visit Sri Lanka in early June 2009 to see conditions in the internment camps. The time is now ripe for Liberals and Conservatives to become cognizant of the ultra-chauvinist Sri Lankan state and its oppression of the Tamil people. For behind Colombo’s public parade of bodies of dead rebels and tasteless celebrations of ‘victory’ over the Tamil Tigers, there hides today a horror list of unspeakable war crimes committed by the Mahinda Rajapaksa’s regime.

The time is ripe for Canada to review its diplomatic and political relationship vis-à-vis the failed state of Sri Lanka.

This is one of the most unprincipled and shameless resolutions ever adopted by anybody of the United Nations in the history of that now benighted Organization. It would be as if the U.N. Human Rights Council had congratulated the Nazi government for the ‘liberation’ of the Jews in Poland after its illegal and genocidal invasion of that country in 1939.

– Francis Boyle, professor of International Law at the University of Illinois College of Law, referring to the resolution passed at the United Nations Human Rights Council on the Sri Lanka war

The peoples of the world are now witnesses to the disappointing actions of the United Nations (UN) in their duty to stop hostilities, prevent human rights abuses and to bring peace to any member states. The most recent events in Sri Lanka are the latest example of the UN’s inability to intercede and require member nations to follow the international law which they have to safeguard. In Sri Lanka over 30,000 Tamils were killed while over 280,000 Tamils are currently contained in camps similar to the ones set up by the Nazi Germany against the Jews. But the most global face of the UN, the Secretary General Ban Ki Moon, visited Sri Lanka and witnessed the evidence of atrocities, and instead of chastising Sri Lanka, he spoke in favour of those who committed them rather than the victims. The UN failed in the 30-year battle between Sri Lanka and the Tamils. Before more atrocities occur the world over and more people suffer, the UN must be revamped into a true global authority. Considering the fact that Ban was part of a government headed by Roh Moo-hyun the former president of South Korea who recently took his own life when accused of corruption while heading a government tainted with corruption, Ban Ki Moon’s behaviour comes as no surprise. It is, however, a tragedy to the future of the UN.

League of Nations failed

For the failure of the League of Nations, many reasons were attributed including that it did not have a socio-economic plan, it represented radical and conservatives, it did not intend to unite or build a genuine society, etc. Many countries were then controlled by European countries. The League of Nations did not achieve anything positive for the prosperity of people, but it served for the high powers in particular governments, and more importantly, it helped the great economic depression in the 1930s. It also stated that all countries should disarm, but it is impossible to disarm as the armoury is fundamental for the security of a state in order to protect itself from foreign occupation. The League of Nations had three organs: The Assembly, The Council (permanent 5 and non permanent 6) and The Secretariat. All these bodies had done nothing to empower the people around the world or help to end the conflicts. So, the failure of the League of Nations was inevitable; however, the necessity for an effective international body arose. As a result, leadings powers played a major role in forming the UN.

Steps to the formation of UN

The eight major steps in the process to form the UN are: The first step came with introducing the name ‘U.N.’ at the London Declaration in 1941; The second conference was called “Atlantic Character” to discuss on the following issues (a) Right of Self-Government (b) Sovereignty & Equality of the States (c) Oppose any kind of aggression (d) Fixed territorial boundary (e) Establish international economic cooperation (f) Arms control and (g) Peaceful settlement of disputes. Twenty nine countries agreed; In October 1943, the third conference was called “Moscow Declaration” held where operation plan was made and formally the name ‘United Nations’ was announced; The fourth meeting was called “Tehran Declaration” in November 1943 where the countries participated endorsed the plan of Moscow; The fifth conference was called “Bretton Woods Conference” which was held in New Hamspire in the U.S in July 1944 where parties decided to form three organizations — General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), International Monetary Fund (IMF), and World Bank (WB). Later, GATT was renamed World Trade Organization (WTO); The sixth conference was “Dumbarton Oaks Conference” held in Washington in the U.S in August and September of 1944. Two steps were taken, one of which was inviting all the countries for feedback, and the second was only for selected countries (U.K., France, U.S.S.R and U.S.A) in a closed door meeting where they came up with forming Security Council; the seventh conference was called “Yalta Conference” which was held in Yalta (capital city of Crimea); And a final meeting was held in San Francisco in April 1945 where 50 countries participated and decided to abolish the League of Nations. They also decided to form a social and economic council, and establishment of international court of justice. Finally, the Charter was signed on June 26, 1945. The UN officially came into existence on October 24, 1945, with the headquarters in New York City after the five permanent members ratified the Charter along with 46 other member states. It had faced many hurdles throughout its lifespan.

UN played little role

As of now, 192 member states are registered members of the U.N. Five permanent members of the U.N. Security Council, each of which has veto power, while 15 temporary members for the Security Council. From its headquarters, the UN and its agencies decide on administrative and other issues in regular meetings held throughout each year. The principal headquarters of the UN are in New York, but some leading other agencies of the U.N. including regional headquarters of the U.N. are located in Geneva, The Hague, Vienna, Montreal, Copenhagen, Bonn, and Thailand.

The Secretary General is the most recognized post throughout the world. The Trusteeship Council was included in the UN in order to inquire into the background information of any nation and make suggestions to the UN that would help decolonize the countries which were colonized by the European powers; as a result, many countries became sovereign states. However, the Trusteeship Council suspended all its operations in 1994 with the independence of Palau. Although it remains as one of the main bodies of the UN, it is no longer active. However, the UN has failed to realize that the Trusteeship Council is really needed in the post-colonial period because many nations were brought under one umbrella by the Europeans for their own administrative convenience, and those nations still feel that they should be liberated from the majority and returned to their initial independence.

For instance, Tamils and Sinhalese in Sri Lanka are two totally different cultural entities. They do not share common cultural, linguistic, religious, historical, political or economic ties. As a result, both ethnic groups have been in conflict since independence from Britain in 1948. At first, they fought through peaceful political agitations until, in 1983 when the Tamil militants rose to fight militarily for independence when talking proved futile. Were the Trusteeship Council effective, they could have sent monitors to study the situation before identifying Tamil aspirations. This would have avoided the deaths of over 100,000 Tamil civilians, in addition to over 20,000 LTTE cadres and over 20,000 Sri Lankan soldiers.

The only body that is effective is the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), who reach out to the people around the world through various programs through the WHO, UNICEF, UNHCR and others. However, these organizations were pulled out from the war zones in the case of Sri Lanka and other powerful hegemonic bodies of the UN failed to assist the ECOSOC. They failed to help the suffering civilians, which makes the entire UN system a failure.

Ban Ki Moon talks in platitudes and his statements are merely academic and irrelevant

When thousands of Tamils were dying in the hands of the Sri Lankan state through aerial and artillery shelling for more than six months without a break, Ban Ki Moon failed to stop the hostilities between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan armed forces. He issued statements and sent his aid to Colombo for talks, but the UN failed to stop the hostilities. As a result, there were more than 30,000 Tamil civilians killed since January 2009 to May 2009. Over 280,000 civilians have been put in internment camps established by the government in Vavuniya without allowing the international media or UN agencies or any other non-governmental agencies to help despite outcries that the government armed forces were torturing civilians. The Inner City Press reported on June 2, 2009 quoting UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs as its source: “Between the May 27 and May 30, over 13,000 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) simply disappeared from the internment camps in Vavuniya.”

Some of the horrendous injustices and abuses are carried out by the Sri Lankan armed forces and their sponsored paramilitaries: Children under the age of 18 are taken into camps, separating them from their families; another group of youngsters put in another set of camps; another set of camps allocated for young women; another set of camps for married women; another set for married men; separate the infants from mothers; separate the elders from their children. So, the relatives, although they may be living in the same region, cannot meet or find out where they are because the armed forces are guarding them behind barbed wire. Physical and mental tortures include: demanding women to bathe naked in front of the soldiers, kill them and take away their kidneys and other human organs, raping women in front of their close relatives, taking thousands of youths to undisclosed locations on the pretext that they were members of the LTTE or their supporters with their whereabouts still unknown. And many other unspeakable tortures and abuses.

However, Ban Ki Moon, after heavy criticisms from the EU and the U.S., went to see the ground situation in Sri Lanka. He visited Sri Lanka on the eve of Friday, May 22, and returned to Denmark on May 23. He was given a helicopter ride by the Sri Lankan government and he managed to see the areas devastated by the war after it had been scavenged of evidence of heavy artillery bombing in advance assisted by his despicable stooge, Vijay Nambiar, whose brother was in the pay of the Sri Lankan government. He was also taken to the internment camps in Vavuniya. Actually, the government showcased their better camps. Ban Ki Moon was never allowed to speak to the refugees alone. He was always accompanied by senior army commanders to ensure the refugees spoke favourably of the camps.

After the tour in the North of the island, he visited Kandy, which is the home of The Sri Dalada Maligawa or The Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic where Sri Lankan president and his brothers along with the military leaders provided a feast to the UN top diplomat and others at the President’s house. They told Moon about the LTTE attack on The Temple of the Sacred Tooth Relic in 1998. After seeing and hearing all these, Moon made statements. He said Sri Lanka should resettle 80 percent of the displaced people by end of this year. Also, the government should fulfill the political demands of Tamils. More importantly and surprisingly, he stated that he was overwhelmed by the devastated war zone where he saw the debris of the damaged buildings, but never mentioned a word about massive human debris. Over 30,000 people were killed on this stretch of land. Over 20,000 people died due to starvation and died in the roads from fatal injuries and many were shot and killed by the Sri Lankan army after capturing the areas because they thought these people were either members of the LTTE or their families. Above all, they were Tamils and that was what mattered.

The Times newspaper, in a shocking editorial on May 29, claimed that at least 20,000 Tamil people were killed on the Mullaitivu beach by Sri Lanka army shelling. It cited evidences of aerial photographs, official documents, witness accounts and expert testimony collected by the newspaper: “present clear evidence of an atrocity that comes close to matching Srebrenica, Darfur and other massacres of civilians.” The paper further said that the casualties would be high as when international monitors, international aid agencies and even the media are given access to enter the region. However, the government rejected access to anyone. But, Ban Ki Moon was lucky enough to fly over the region escorted by the Sri Lankan military.

More heartbreakingly Ban Ki Moon said he did not see any heavy armoury vehicles being used by the Sri Lankan armed forces during the fighting in the region. What a joke. He apparently needs to change his glasses. Moon visited the region almost a week after the government claimed that they won military victory by capturing the areas controlled by the LTTE after killing the LTTE leaders and fighters. No one needs to be a rocket scientist to realize that the Sri Lankan armed forces can easily remove all the heavy armoury vehicles before Moon’s visit. After all, Nambiar was there in advance to advise them on the clean up lest his boss should see them.

In any event, the UN can no longer act as a global organization for the betterment of humanity, thanks to Ban Ki Moon. Their officers are self-serving subservient to states that maintain them financially. Many international law and international relations experts argue that the UN should be completely reorganised, as all the administrative bodies, except the Social and Economic Council, are biased and lack the fortitude to bring global peace. Sri Lanka, a tiny island, in the Indian Ocean, is a classic example. Although not a major powerhouse for attracting the interest of global powers, with very little military power and receiver of military supplies from other countries, the corrupt behaviours of the UN’s top officials and their servile team could bring UN to its knees due. So, the question arises as to how could the UN put an end to a major global crisis if any major military and economic powers are involved? The global society needs to think that any single, powerful country can use nuclear weapons against one another, and even if the UN sends emissaries and the UN Secretary General visits, their support still goes to the violators in the end. Ban Ki Moon has made sure that there would be no justice to the oppressed even from the highest citadel of humanitarian justice.

Pirapaharan spoke more about peace outlining the need for a peaceful settlement to the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka. He outlined circumstances leading to Tamil youths taking up arms against the Sri Lankan government subsequent to the Sri Lankan state failing to address the grievances of Tamils through peaceful means since the country gained independence from Britain in 1948 and heaping oppressive terrorist measures upon the Tamil people: “In the beginning, it was a peaceful and democratic struggle by our people for justice. The racist Sinhala state resorted to armed and animal-like violence to suppress the peaceful struggle of the Tamil people for their political rights. It was when state oppression breached all norms and our people faced naked terrorism that our movement for freedom was born as a natural outcome in history. We were compelled to take up arms in order to protect our people from the armed terrorism of the racist Sinhala state. The armed violent path was not our choice. It was forced upon us by history.”

With this emphasis on peace, it seems that the LTTE leader has changed his strategy towards winning the rights of Tamils through peaceful means in stark contrast to his previous statements in which he gave much importance to dealing with the Sri Lankan state through military means. Although the LTTE has the potential to win the war in the long run, Pirapaharan’s speech with emphasis on peace rather than war shows that the LTTE wants peace. He realizes the need for a political solution to end the three-decade-old ethnic conflict, to prevent more civilian casualties and to buy time to win global support especially that of India.

This statement shows that the LTTE leader is handling the issue seriously through political and diplomatic thinking. The question is whether Sri Lanka would fall into the trap of the LTTE military, will it suffer political and diplomatic blows in the international arena or both? An answer to these questions will come to light before early next year.

In this context, it is important at this juncture to look at the perceptions of the LTTE leader and that of his opponents, as well as those of the global forces who hold the key to making an historic move in the months to come to help solve the Sri Lankan ethnic conflict.

LTTE leader outlining historical facts

“From the day that British colonialism was replaced with Sinhala oppression,” Pirapaharan said, “we have been struggling for our just rights – peacefully at first and with weapons thereafter. The political struggle for our right to self-determination has extended over the last sixty years. During this period our struggle has gone through different shapes, phases developments before advancing to maturity.”

Although these facts have been stated in the past, the weight of his latest statement is in the indirect accusation of the western world for creating the post-colonial conflicts. He quite rightly indicated that Britain should be held responsible for what is happening in Sri Lanka since it was Britain that brought the Tamil and Sinhala kingdoms together for their own administrative convenience.

The LTTE leader further stated that the LTTE had never stood in the way of national, geopolitical, or economic welfare of any other country, and added that the profound aspirations of the Tamil people were not harmful to the welfare of any other country or their people. He wanted neighbouring India to realize that the LTTE wouldn’t be a threat to their territorial integrity and sovereignty. The central government in New Delhi believes that the Dravidian race from the southern part of India could gain momentum for secession if the Dravidian race in other parts of the world gained power, and it is this perception that has cast New Delhi in a critical role against attaining independent Tamil Eelam from time to time. Southern Indian politicians, especially Tamil Nadu politicians and even Tamil Eelam leaders, have re-emphasized that New Delhi would never have to worry about it, but India still holds on to the belief.

He appealed to the countries that have banned the LTTE to remove this ban. With its greed for the land of the Tamil people Sinhalam has engaged on a militaristic path of destruction. It has sought to build the support of the world to confront us. It is living in a dreamland of military victory. It is a dream from which it will awake. That is certain. He said, “We have never been against adopting peaceful means and we have never hesitated to take part in peace talks.”

LTTE leader embraces India

Pirapaharan reiterated the past relationship between India and LTTE: “Great changes are taking place in India. The voices of support for our struggle that were stifled are again being heard loudly.”

Obviously the LTTE leader wants greater support from Tamil Nadu in order to win his struggle for an independent Tamil Eelam. Tamil Nadu is home to nearly 70 million Tamils and nearly 10 million more Tamils are living all around the world including India. The LTTE does not want to isolate the Tamils based on their birth place. They want unity among the Tamils. These are the aspirations of Tamil Nadu leaders. Hence, the political change in Tamil Nadu will be a boost for Pirapaharan.

Further, the LTTE wants India’s support which will in turn garner the support of the International Community. He expressed his gratitude to the people of India saying, “Not withstanding the dividing sea, Tamil Nadu, with its perfect understanding of our plight, has taken heart to rise on behalf of our people at this hour of need. This timely intervention has gratified the people of Tamil Eelam and our freedom movement and given us a sense of relief. I wish to express my love and gratitude at this juncture to the people and leaders of Tamil Nadu and the leaders of India for the voice of support and love they have extended.”

He also appealed to the Indian government to take constructive action to remove the ban which remains a stumbling block for the good relationship between India and the LTTE. It is obvious that the LTTE leader is a classic tactician with over three decades of military, political and diplomatic experience and manoeuvres. Once, India was his temporary home while his cadres fought in Eelam against Sri Lankan armed forces. He was the charismatic leader with the courage and the talents to force India to pull out the Indian armed forces from Eelam after three years of war between 1987 and 1990. All these show that Pirapaharan could do a lot in India on behalf of his homeland.

Slap on the face of International Community for helping Sri Lanka

Pirapaharan lambasted the International Community for helping the Sri Lankan state in the war against Tamils. He blamed the IC for playing a double game in the affairs of the Sri Lankan ethnic conflict saying that while they encouraged the LTTE and the Sri Lankan government in the peace process, they branded the LTTE a terrorist outfit giving the Sri Lankan government the upper hand in the peace talks.

He also posed the question of when the Sri Lankan state would grant autonomy for the Tamils. After cleansing the Tamils from Sri Lanka or after destroying the Tamils’ representatives, the LTTE? The IC has fallen into the political and diplomatic trap of the Sri Lankan government.

He said some countries identifying themselves as so-called “Peace Sponsors” rushed into activities which impaired negotiations. “They denigrated our freedom movement as a terrorist organisation. They put us on their black list and ostracized us as unwanted and untouchable. Our people living in many lands were intimidated into submission by oppressive limitations imposed on them to prevent their political activities supporting our freedom struggle.”

He further said: “Humanitarian activities pursued by our law-abiding people in many countries, well within the purview of the law of the land, have been belittled and curtailed. These activities were aimed at providing humanitarian aid to helpless victims of genocidal attacks by the Sinhala-run Sri Lanka state in Tamil areas. However, these humanitarian activities were branded as criminal activities in those countries. Representatives of the Tamil people, along with community leaders were arrested, jailed and insulted.

“The explicit bias shown by the activities of these countries affected the talks, in its balance and in its consideration of our status as an equal partner. This further aggravated the racist attitude of the Sinhala state. Sinhala chauvinism was encouraged to raise its head with impunity and inevitably push the Sinhala state further on its war path.”

The LTTE leader’s frustrations over the IC is reasonable because it was none other than the western world that wanted immediate peace talks in Sri Lanka because the LTTE was gaining the upper hand militarily. And, earlier in the last century, U.S.-led coalition forces intervened in Afghanistan and Iraq and wanted an immediate ceasefire in Sri Lanka allowing temporary peace in the Indian Ocean island nation. Even now these coalition partners want peace on the island for their own benefits with no heed to the grievances faced by the Tamils on the island.

Sri Lankan military continues its genocidal war

The LTTE leader described how the Tamils face military operations imposed upon them and how the LTTE has embarked on a historic journey, as hazardous and strenuous as never before as the Sri Lankan armed forces advance with the military aid of foreign governments with the aim to cleanse the Tamils from their traditional habitat.

“In this historic venture, we have encountered numerous turns, twists and confrontations. We have faced forces much mightier than ours. We have had direct confrontations even against superior powers, stronger than us. We have withstood wave after wave of our enemy attacks. Standing alone, we have blasted networks of innumerable intrigues, interwoven with betrayal and sabotage. We stood like a mountain and faced all dangers that loomed like storms. When compared to these happenings of the past, today’s challenges are neither novel nor huge. We will face these challenges with the united strength of our people.”

The LTTE leader rightly pointed out that the Tamils are not fighting to occupy Sinhalese areas. Rather they are fighting to save their own lands. Under the pretext of fighting terrorism or fighting to safeguard the sovereignty of Sri Lanka, it is indulging in violence causing heavy damages and casualties to the civilians.

When the Sri Lankan state realizes that the Tamils are living in their historical lands, the conflict on the island will end. The belief that entire areas of the island belong to Buddhist Sinhalese is fraught with danger and cannot hold water in empirical analysis. It could be argued that the Tamils were living in Sri Lanka for millennia well before the Sinhalese moved into Sri Lanka through Tamil Nadu from Orissa or via the Bay of Bengal. The Tamils have a solid claim for an independent Tamil Eelam as the Tamils have a great history, language, culture and religion. The claim for wiping out the Tamils or wiping out the LTTE is meant to weed out the Tamil race from their inhabited lands whose ancestors have lived on those lands for millennia.

Sri Lanka and India reject LTTE’s claims

Immediately after LTTE leader’s statement came out, the Sri Lankan high-portfolio ministers and military officials issued separate statements describing the LTTE leader’s speech as nothing but an acknowledgement that the LTTE could not continue war with the Sri Lankan state as before.

Sri Lanka’s defence spokesman, Keheliya Rambukkwella, said that the Sri Lankan government viewed the LTTE’s speech not as a hero’s speech, but as a plea to the International Community in the face of the Tigers loosing control of areas hitherto held by them.

He further said: “The LTTE leader has proved in his speech that he is a criminal and that through his speech he is just making a plea for pardon.” Pirapaharan was begging the International Community to grant him a pardon for the earlier actions of the LTTE. He said: “Now the world has realized that terrorism cannot be tolerated anymore.” Further he said Pirapaharan had not mentioned even a single word about the government requiring the Tigers to lay down arms as a prerequisite for talks. “By remaining silent about laying down arms he has proved that he is not ready for talks,” Minister Rambukkwella said.

Never in the course of his speech did Pirapaharan ask for pardon nor did he in any anyway suggest that the LTTE was losing its military prowess, and for Rambukwella to rush make such a pathetic and desperate conclusion is absurd. Pirapaharan says that he wants justice from the International Community because the rights of Tamils are being rejected by Sri Lanka and the Tamils want International Community recognition for their right to self-determination. He also wants India to lift the ban on the LTTE as a terrorist outfit since they are fighting for Tamil liberation who have sacrificed enough lives for their freedom.

Another hardcore Sinhalese, Foreign Minister Rohitha Bogollagama, said Pirapaharan’s overtures to India will not find accommodation. He has called upon Pirapaharan to heed President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s call to lay down arms, renounce terrorism and enter the democratic path, in order to be part of the political process that is already underway, to evolve a sustainable solution that will bring lasting peace and stability to Sri Lanka. Bogollagama is now desperately trying to link or equate LTTE militancy to the most recent Islamic terrorist attack in Mumbai. Fortunately for the Tamils it is becoming increasingly evident that Pakistan a sovereign state and a close ally of Sri Lanka, closer than to India, and has links to this international terrorist attack. We hope the only surviving assailant, a godsend to the Tamils, will be allowed to live long enough to tell the whole story. In fact the Pakistani High Commissioner to the UK in a BBC interview on 29 November 2008 stated that photographs of the assailants show them as being dark skinned so they were LTTE Tamils – as if there were no dark skinned people in Pakistan. A preposterous way of taking the red herring across its trail. And the question is, why?

Bogollagama does not know the ground reality in India. He should know that over 20,000 students throughout India’s states took part in a rally in New Delhi recently urging the Indian government to put pressure upon Sri Lanka to declare a ceasefire and to grant autonomy for Eelam Tamils. The Indian central government would lose millions of dollars worth of tax money in a day if the Tamil Nadu state launched a state-wide strike. Tamil Nadu has already conducted such a protest. Sri Lanka’s conflict is boiling over externally and it will no doubt have a greater impact in the lives of Indian citizens on its soil, prompting India to take a leading role in solving Sri Lanka’s ethnic conflict and single-mindedly deal with the terrorism of Pakistan.

Sri Lankan officials claim, quoting Indian officials, that India would not lift the ban on the LTTE. Indian officials in New Delhi also confirmed this. They said the question of acceding to the request did not arise since the ban, first imposed in 1992, had been extended for another two years.

In any event, the LTTE leader’s speech was meant to draw the attention of India and the International Community to the conflict and the Eelam Tamils’ right to self-determination. This will only happen when the LTTE is internationally recognized as the freedom fighters of the Tamils and the terrorist brand is lifted. The claim that the LTTE leader is on his death bed and the LTTE is withdrawing from its controlled areas as a tactic to put the enemy in military and political defeat is groundless.

Peaceful words uttered by Colombo politicians are only meant ensure that their respective governments remain in power. There is no desire or intent to implement any means of establishing peaceful relations with Tamils. But, Tamil-speaking people are not the only population affected by the war. The majority Sinhalese are also paying a high price.

President demands LTTE to lay arms down

Sri Lanka’s President, Mahinda Rajapaksa, is patriotic towards his birth place Hambantota as evidenced by his attention towards developing his home district at the expense of fulfilling the role of a responsible leader working towards the development and betterment of the whole country – particularly when thousands of Sri Lanka’s citizens are suffering. Clearly, politicians are intent on ignoring the deaths of innocent Tamils and Sinhalese to avoid taking responsibility for their role in not finding a solution to the country’s national problem. Developing a village or a district, or providing funds to certain interest or religious groups won’t lead the country into prosperity. Previous leaders like J.R. Jeyawardene, Srimavo Bandaranaike, Ranasinghe Premadasa, Chandrika Kumaratunga or Ranil Wickremesinghe held talks with the LTTE directly or indirectly to demonstrate to the world that they were taking action to solve the Tamil national question. All their attempts failed.

Despite these lessons from the past, even though he was a leading MP and Prime Minister led by former President, Chandrika Kumaratunga, Mahinda Rajapaksa doesn’t seem to be paying attention. Soon after he came to power, he brought his brothers and relatives into his administration. He made history by creating a jumbo Cabinet with over 50 cabinet ministers and providing those ministers with cars, houses and security while the majority of the country lives well below poverty line.

Although the President’s brothers lived in the U.S and he, himself, has paid many visits to the U.S., he never saw fit to work towards converting his warring, fractious country into a modern prosperous country, matching the standards of neighbouring Maldives and India. The Sinhalese have no choice but to live according to what their leaders have to say. If neutral or anti-government media outlets highlight the sufferings of the common people at the hands of their Government, the Government threatens the media with harsh punishment.

On June 24th, President Rajapaksa met religious dignitaries at his house who told him that certain groups were engaging in propaganda against the Government and bringing disgrace to the country. The President’s Office described the meeting as cordial saying that the dignitaries came together as an inter-religious body to challenge these forces and depict the true picture of the country. The President told them that it was not his intention to go to war with the country’s people and that he would not hesitate to work with the LTTE if they laid down their arms, emphasising that he would not let parts of his country fall into the hands of a terrorist organization. He did not specify to whom he was referring as the terrorist organization on the island.

During the meeting, Ven. Prof. Bellanwila Wimalarathana Thero, a Buddhist monk, said religious leaders of all faiths were keen to work closely with the President while ensuring the religious freedom of every community. President Rajapaksa reiterated that the Government would only negotiate a political solution to the crisis if LTTE terrorists laid down their weapons.

Is it possible for the LTTE to lay down their arms?

Twenty years ago, the LTTE leader was escorted on an Indian plane to New Delhi and held at the Ashoka Hotel on the direction of former Indian Prime Minister, Rajiv Gandhi, and was coerced into signing a paper agreeing that the LTTE would lay down their arms in exchange for the presence and support of the Indian armed forces in Tamil areas. The Indian armed forces arrived in Sri Lanka, but they fought against the Tamils, leaving the LTTE no option but to take up arms again, this time against the people who’d sworn to protect and defend them.

The results of the conflict were bitter for both Tamils and India. India lost over 1500 soldiers in addition to Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi in 1991, and over 15,000 Tamils were killed while tens of thousands more were tortured and/or raped, or fled their homes as refugees. Even after all this, Sri Lanka’s President still thinks the LTTE will agree to put down their weapons.

Arguments abound in Tamil circles about how reasonable it is for the Government to demand the LTTE lay down arms while the LTTE still controls parts of the Tamil areas with its own judicial, police, customs and revenue administrations. The LTTE continues to hold some members of the Sri Lankan armed forces in custody for trespassing into Tamil areas. Further, the LTTE will not lay down their weapons so long as the Government allows the Pillayan group, EPDP, PLOTE of Siddarthan group, EPRLF of Varatharaja Perumal and other paramilitaries to patrol the streets fully armed. These groups only received voter support in the last election because the voters were threatened at gunpoint. The Tamils refused to accept these groups as their sole representative, instead, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) went out with the mandate in the 2004 elections that if the Tamil people recognized the LTTE as their sole representative they should vote for TNA. Tamils voted overwhelmingly for the TNA. The President knows about all these but, like a true politician, his only interest is to remain in power. It seems a political leader can only survive if it promises to fight against and not negotiate with the LTTE.

Past Sinhala leaderships, including the UNP and SLFP, demanded the LTTE to lay down their arms as a pre-condition, but the LTTE never accepted because the leadership-governed forces continued to fight using guerrilla warfare tactics. The most recent demand comes in the wake of the LTTE’s favourable position as a military victor using conventional armed forces and diplomacy, with the support of many global governments.

Unless the GoSL embraces the LTTE and engages in effective and meaningful peace talks, the LTTE will continue to defend the rights of the Tamils in Sri Lanka. The LTTE leader has shown that he is a better leader than the common politician, and has the experience of dealing with the country’s many leaders and military commanders who have continually threatened to kill or capture him. The LTTE leader leads his movement much more aggressively than before using modern weapons, and has the confidence and gratification that all those who have threatened him with his life have faded into Sri Lankan history.