TNA shuns TPF meetings - TULF Leader

by P. Krishnaswamy

The Tamil National Alliance (TNA) came under fire from Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) leader V. Anandasangaree for evading participation in the Tamil Parties Forum (TPF) that had already held five meetings in an effort to evolve a common political stance on power devolution to resolve the Tamil issue.

The TNA led by R. Sampanthan MP told election meetings in the run up to the April 9, 2010 parliamentary election that they would work in coordination with all other Tamil political parties on reaching a consensus on the issue but are now working on their own agenda ignoring repeated invitations from the TPF saying they were not invited, Sangaree said.

He said that he would, at this juncture, extend an open invitation to the TNA to join the forum to express its position on an unanimous resolution adopted by the Forum on the Tamil issue at its last meeting held in Batticaloa on August 14, Sangaree said.

People’s Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE) leader D. Sitharthan told the Sunday Observer that Tamil National Liberation Front (TNLF) leader M. Sivajilingam and he met TNA leader R. Sampanthan and invited the party to join the deliberations of the forum to evolve a uniform stand on the issue with also a suggestion that if the TNA so desired they could convene their own meeting which the other Tamil parties would attend.

There was no response to this invitation and later invitations signed by all nine parties were posted to party leader Sampanthan and General Secretary Mavai Senadhirajah MP. A statement to the media by Senadhirajah saying they were not invited is not correct, Sitharthan said.

The TPF at its last meeting in Batticaloa adopted a resolution to call upon the Government to consider power devolution to the North and the East by fully implementing the 13th Amendment to the Constitution. This resolution would be further discussed at the next meeting of the Forum on September 11 in Vavuniya before presenting it to the Government, Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP) Parliamentarian M. Chandrakumar said. It was also decided at their last meeting to invite political parties representing the Muslim community and the

UpCountry Tamils to their next meeting.

The EPDP, TULF, TNLF, EROS, PLOTE, Sri TELO, EPRLF (Naba), TMVP and ENDP participated in the TPF meetings.