Rain or shine, our Armed Forces are there

by L. W. Gamini Chaminda Kumara

At a time when the national security of the country is at stake, it must be said that the service being rendered by the security forces is nothing, if not commendable. In the face of attacks by ruthless, bloodthirsty terrorists who have been fighting for a separate state for over two decades, we see the Security Forces are engaged in an arduous task of safeguarding the territorial integrity of the country.

As a matter of fact, these soldiers have to mount guard in all weather conditions such as in the rain, hot sun so as to assure security.

It is clear on all counts that LTTE is a terrorist outfit whose only ulterior motive is to establish a self-interim administration within the Jaffna peninsula taking the Tamil community for a ride.

The terrorists go through the motions of posing as the sole representative of minority Tamil community and their targets are to make attempts on military chiefs, politicians including national leadership.

By now, the Security Forces have been able to flush the enemies out of their strongholds and achieved victories against Tiger outfit. In the midst of continuous Tiger offensives, the only course of action left to the government is to retaliate or to wage an undeclared war on terrorists to annihilate terrorism.

Here, we are reminded of a certain statement by the breakaway Karuna faction, which says that first off, terrorism should be defeated unilaterally and next the issue of the Tamil community should be resolved politically.

It seems that by now, a large number of civilians are displaced as a result of brutal Tiger attacks.

It is to be regretted that there is only a handful of individuals among us who are attempting to supply oxygen to the dying terrorism. These are the people who betray the country and underestimate the victories so far achieved by the Armed Forces.

Also, it has to be accepted the fact that there would be no peace in the country as long as terrorism exists. What is needed to be done is to defeat terrorism.

That may be why the government has to answer terrorists in the language they understand. Terrorism has also become a major threat to the development efforts to a country as no development is possible as long as a war exists. However, it is commendable that despite the threat of terrorism, the government is giving priority to development process too.

Since the signing of memorandum of understanding between the two sides, many's the time the LTTE has violated the ceasefire agreement, which resulted in a military action, and beyond doubt, it is the LTTE who is now in a weak position has paved the way for an undeclared war.

To my way of thinking, in the peace move, what needs to be done is to strengthen the country's Army, and their morale has to be raised to win the victory. At the moment, we are well aware that the security forces members are playing a vital role in the protection of nation and their great service should be highly appreciated.

We all owe a debt of gratitude to all the servicemen for their dedication. Likewise, we must salute the courage of all those who had fought for the country's security.

It is up to all of us to assist in the government's peace effort, having put aside party differences.