Indian newspaper The Tribune warns:
Capture Prabhakaran dead or alive
Walter JAYAWARDHANA
Reminding Sri Lanka in a strongly worded editorial that there cannot
be complacency, India’s Tribune newspaper said although it is claimed
the back of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) is broken until
its leader Prabhakaran is captured there can be no finality about it.
The Tribune said, “The Sri Lankan army may claim that it has broken
the back of the LTTE by wresting control of the north-eastern district
of Mullaitivu which it says was the Tamil militant outfit’s “last
bastion” but until its leader Prabhakaran is captured dead or alive,
there can be no finality about it.” The newspaper also reminded that the
youth of the terrorist group have to be weaned away from the path of
violence and it is a responsibility of the Mahinda Rajapaksa government.
The worst may be over in Sri Lanka, but there is still much to do, the
editorial reminded.
“True, the Tamil Tigers are battered and on the run,” said the
newspaper, “but Prabhakaran has the potential to re-build the
once-awesome force if he is not tracked down” Following are more
excerpts from it: “That despite the loss of thousands of cadres over the
last 26 years, the LTTE Supremo was able to motivate Tamil youth to
fight for “Eelam” or independence is a measure of his rabble-rousing
ability, his organising skills and the deeply embedded feeling among a
sizable section of Sri Lanka’s Tamil minority that they had been wronged
by the majority Sinhalese. It is reprehensible that he has chosen to use
innocent Tamils as human shields as reports by independent observers
indicate.
While President Rajapaksa has shown grit in dealing with the LTTE,
his regime’s responsibility does not end there.
The challenges before him are manifold. The thousands of erstwhile
LTTE sympathisers would need to be weaned away from the path of
violence. This would require fairness in dealing with them. The Tamils
who have lost their means of livelihood and their homes in the
fratricidal war between the army and the LTTE are sorely in need of
rehabilitation.
India has always stood for a united Sri Lanka. It must now ensure
that the Tamils are not left high and dry. We have seen in the past how
Lankan Tamils pour into South India when there is repression or
instability in Sri Lanka . India , therefore, has a stake in devolution
of powers to local authorities in the Tamil-dominated areas and ensuring
a better deal for them in their country.
The worst may be over in Sri Lanka, but there is still much to do. |