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| Sunday, 7 August 2005 |
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Trinco issue calls on political leaders by Deepal Warnakulasuriya A Buddha statue which was erected at the centre of Trincomalee town changed the usual lifestyle of people there and some predicted that it would be an uninvited signal for a war again in the Eastern part of the country. However, the tension which was created with the additional security forces, checkpoints and barriers is still there and the situation has disrupted the normal routine of the Trincomalee city and the suburbs. On May 16 early morning, the people who came to the bus stand were surprised to see a large Buddha statue which was not there the previous day evening. According to the Threewheel Drivers Association, the Buddha statue was erected at an auspicious time at midnight on May 15. They also claimed that it was a small ceremony and monks from ten surrounding temples had been invited to preach Pirith when the statue was erected. However, the erection of the statue at the centre of the Trinco town is only the latest incident to drum up tension in the city. An opinion poll conducted by an NGO recently says that only 21.2 per cent say that the statue is the cause for tension. But, the report reveals that it is the provocation by some Tamil extremists backed by the LTTE standing at 36.9 per cent as the cause for the uneasy situation. According to Sunil Dayawansa Trincomalee is a city with a Buddhist heritage. He represents the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) and North East People's Association. "Now where they have the Koneshwaran Kovil, earlier it was Gokanna Buddhist Temple. My parents told me that after several foreign invasions the present kovil had been erected there. We have also heard of rumours that six bo trees were also cut down with those invasions." He is completely against the removal of the Buddha statue from its venue and says that to safeguard their traditional culture it should be where it is. However, he or his party has not made any significant effort to solve the problem but keeps popularising the issue. I also noted that Sunil personally has no clear vision about the issue. However, Trincomalee is a multi ethnic and multi religious district comprising of communities of Sinhalese, Tamils, Muslims, Burghers and Chinese too. In 1827, 98.45 per cent of the population was speaking Sinhala while only 1.53 spoke Tamil. In 1946 it was 75 per cent and 20 per cent. However, by 1981 it had been changed as Sinhala speaking people in Trincomalee district were 65.38 per cent and Tamil speaking people 33.62 per cent. According to the Trincomalee Electorate Organiser for the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP) Gamini Hewawitharana it is not the issue of the sudden erection of a Buddha statue which is the problem. "We have lost confidence and understanding among communities. That is the cause for this controversial situation." He believes that the lack of proper communication is the main hindrance in this matter. He himself had learnt Tamil because he has to go to all the communities as a political activist in the district. But, as a strong JVP supporter Dayawansha, Hewawitarana also does not have an idea on how to politically handle the issue except doing what he was ordered to by Colombo high rankers. Although the United National Party (UNP) Organiser in Trincomalee is a vibrant individual, Ariyawathie Galappaththy, she has also failed to take up the issue with a real need of solving the problem. However, she had commenced awareness programs for her party members and supporters with the intention of attacking Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna introducing them as the cause of the issue. Her involvement in the issue is considerably minimal but, she believes that the statue should be removed. I also wanted to meet the Trincomalee district EPDP Leadership but no one was available to comment on the issue. However, the staffer who had a chat with us did not show any offence with the erection of the statue. However, he implied that the question was somebody's efforts to make it politicised. His allegation directly targets the LTTE. Anyhow, I learnt that they were not in a position to be involved in the issue and they were also not serious about the issue either. Head of Trincomalee Mosques and Peace Committee Vice President M. Jainulabdeen had played a positive and momentous role as a mediator to solve the problem. His efforts to solve the problem in a peaceful way was in vain according to him and he now refuses to participate in any event regarding the issue. However, the most important thing is he was dauntless to say that all the Muslim leaders went for bureaucratic posts, privileges and money. "It was a matter for shame that all of them forgot their voters and go for posts and privileges", he added. He also said that Muslim politicians cannot refrain from this issue just saying that the problem is in Trincomalee town. "They should not forget the Muslims live in areas like Kinnia and throughout the district. An LTTE stalwart Thayalan who is the Kattamarichchan area leader says that a Buddha statue is not needed for a place flanked by a fish market on one side and a vegetable market on the other. Then, is it true that the Tamil agitation comes only because the place is not suitable for a Buddha statue? Finally, political involvement in the issue is not enough. No active party in the city has ever thought of beyond the voter base. There are some who agitate that Sinhala colonies were set up there. Was it the cause for this situation? Some say that the third generation of those families unlike their parents speak only one language and communication gap has created this. At the same time they suffer with the unrest of seeking for a livelihood. The next is prestige of the Sinhalese and the Tamils. The time has come
for the politicians to positively involve themselves and solve the problem,
before it blows up out of proportion. |
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