TNA, SLMC must talk to President:

Positive stance vital to fulfil N-E aspirations

by Ananth PALAKIDNAR and P. Krishnaswamy

The minority parties, particularly the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) and the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) must talk to President Mahinda Rajapaksa and take a positive stance towards fulfilling the political aspirations of the people in the North and the East said People’s Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE) leader Dharmalingam Sitharthan. PLOTE is a constituent party in the Democratic Tamil National Alliance.

Commenting on the post-poll stance of the TNA and the SLMC, Sitharthan told the Sunday Observer that it was very clear that the extreme attitude towards dealing with the political and humanitarian issues of the North and the East would not help at all in settling the ethnic question.

“President Rajapaksa’s landslide victory at the presidential poll has highlighted that the majority of the people have accepted his leadership. Therefore, whatever issues with regard to the minorities should be discussed with the President.

The TNA should not make the mistakes it made prior to the end of LTTE anarchy. The opportunities, the Tamil and the Muslim parties had to solve the minority issues were shattered due to the LTTE’s belief in the war path.

The Democratic Tamil National Alliance comprising the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF), PLOTE and the EPRLF (Naba) are ready to join hands with other minority parties as long as a common stance is reached in dealing with the minority issues.

Indications are strong that even at the parliamentary polls the United People’s Freedom Alliance led by President Rajapaksa is expected to have a healthy outcome. Therefore, instead of going for wrong options the TNA and the SLMC must act sensibly in settling the minority issues by amicably dealing with the President,” Sitharthan said.

Meanwhile, a TNA parliamentarian told the Sunday Observer on the condition of anonymity that his personal view was that if his fellow parliamentarians of the TNA were genuinely interested in the welfare of the people of the North and the East, they should support President Rajapaksa who has been re-elected for a second term of seven years, instead of taking recourse to vain vociferations to appease the opposition UNA.

He wished that their party changed its political alliance and stance before filing nominations for the general election that is round the corner, he said.

President Rajapaksa is sincerely committed to the welfare of the Northern and Eastern Tamils and had pledged that the resettlement, rehabilitation and all development programs will be continued unhampered after his re-election. He has also pledged devolution of powers for them.

The TNA should join hands with the President in this process, he said.