Wild allegations of the West debunked
The bogus claims, allegations and sinister
campaigns carried out by certain organisations with vested interests,
local and international, were debunked in toto with the release of the
Factual Analysis report by Defence Secretary, Gotabaya Rajapaksa in
Colombo last Monday.
The report was indeed an apposite reply with conclusive proof to
counter the concocted stories churned out by the West. Each and every
allegation levelled against Sri Lanka and its valiant Security Forces by
the controversial British television Channel 4, were factually countered
by the report ‘Humanitarian Operation Factual Analysis July 2006 - May
2009’ and its documentary video.
The convincing statements by the wives of former senior LTTE leaders
amply demonstrate the lofty standards maintained by the Security Forces
and the humaneness shown by the Sri Lanka Army in dealing with its worst
enemy. The wife of former LTTE ‘political wing’ leader S.P.
Thamilchelvan and wife of LTTE Sea Tiger leader Soosai candidly said
that the Security Forces treated all of them including their children
quite well. This runs contrary to the concocted stories which the Tamil
diaspora has been disseminating across the West.
As the Defence Secretary had explained, why should the Government,
which directly looked after the families of LTTE leaders, kill those who
surrendered to the military? The sole purpose of those instrumental in
spreading these concocted stories was to discredit Sri Lanka in the eyes
of the world and disrupt the prevailing peace in the country.
It now seems that the West is reluctant to come to terms with the
bitter fact that Sri Lanka was the only country to eradicate terrorism.
Moreover, Sri Lanka has resettled over half a million displaced persons
in next to no time, apart from developing these areas tremendously.
The people in the North and the East, who were plagued by untold
privations are now enjoying true freedom in its truest sense. They are
astonished at the massive infrastructure development activities taking
place in the North. Is the West blind altogether to see the preferential
treatment that the Government is proffering the North, compared to other
parts of the country? This is solely because President Mahinda Rajapaksa
is keen to develop the North and bring it on par with the other
provinces of the country.
Those who are attempting to level war crime charges against Sri Lanka
must take cognizance of how Sri Lanka looked after the LTTE cadre who
had surrendered and the Government’s sincere efforts to transform those
ex-terrorists to be worthy loyal citizens. Over 11,000 ex-LTTE cadre
have been rehabilitated and reintegrated into society. Nearly 600 child
soldiers who surrendered were reunited with their families within one
year, while over 6,100 adult cadre were rehabilitated and released in
June this year. Most of the remaining cadre are undergoing further
rehabilitation programs and will be reintegrated into society soon.
Will any country, particularly those in the West who shout from the
rooftops about Sri Lanka’s humanitarian operation, tolerate a deadly
terror outfit that had butchered thousands of innocent people, apart
from political and religious leaders including two Heads of State? The
Government was obliged to embark on that great humanitarian operation
when the LTTE held civilians as a human shield.
The closure of the Mavil Aru sluice gate by the LTTE in July 2006
posed a humanitarian disaster in the East, which affected hundreds of
thousands of Tamil, Muslim and Sinhalese civilians as the Tigers
prevented those hapless civilians from accessing the basic need of
water. It was at this point of time that the Government embarked on the
greatest human rescue mission in world history. The Government continued
to send medical supplies to the North and the East until the last day of
the battle against terror on May 18, 2009.
Successive governments offered the LTTE many solutions at the
negotiating table. Nevertheless, their sincere efforts to seek a
solution through negotiations were invariably sabotaged by the LTTE. It
so happened that whenever the LTTE was weakened militarily, they sought
refuge in the so-called peace talks to re-arm and consolidate its
military capabilities. It was crystal clear that the LTTE at no time had
any sincere desire for peace. The LTTE’s tactics were manifested by
their brazen acts of provocation during each ceasefire period,
especially when they walked out of the negotiating table in 2006.
Thanks to the noble sacrifices of the true sons of our soil, people
of Sri Lanka, irrespective of their ethnic and religious affiliations,
are now enjoying the dividends of peace as the country is being rebuilt
after 30 long years of terrorism. The Government, with an open mind, has
initiated a dialogue with all political parties representing the Tamils,
including the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) to find a solution to the
problems of people living in the North and the East.
In the event the West is sincerely interested in the well-being of
the Tamils in Sri Lanka and moreover, its development, they should
steadfastly support the nation’s reconciliation efforts. With democracy
restored in every nook and corner of the country, the Government would
certainly opt for an honourable solution that is acceptable to all
communities to live in peace and harmony.
Is it fair for any country or international organisation to browbeat
Sri Lanka by levelling war crimes charges against the country under the
guise of their so-called accountability process? When the Lessons Learnt
and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) report is released in the near
future, the Government would take every measure to implement those
recommendations. Whatever said and done, Sri Lanka and its
democratically elected Government would be responsible only to those who
elected them and the people of Sri Lanka and by no means dance the
fandango round certain organisations which appear to be holding a brief
to resurrect the now defunct LTTE.
The latest report released by the Ministry of Defence ‘Humanitarian
Operation Factual Analysis July 2006 - May 2009’ is indeed a good
eye-opener to one and all, especially those in the West wearing
blinkers. These organisations must study the Defence Ministry’s video in
depth, sans any presumptions, in the same manner they viewed Channel 4’s
controversial video titled “The Killing Fields” before jumping to
conclusions. The people in these organisations must visit Sri Lanka and
see for themselves the true picture. They are most welcome to visit the
North and the East and interact with the liberated Tamil civilians who
have opened a new chapter in their lives. What they see would be the
opposite of what a section of the Tamil diaspora and hirelings such as
Channel 4 had been projecting. |