Actions speak mightier than words

Since terrorism was eradicated and the LTTE leadership vanquished in May 2009, Sri Lanka has been making a sincere effort in national reconciliation.

Towards this end, President Mahinda Rajapaksa appointed the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) no sooner the humanitarian operation ended. After the LLRC Report was presented in Parliament, the views of all political, social and religious leaders were sought to make a concerted effort for national reconciliation.

The Government has spared no pains to implement the recommendations in the LLRC Report, while giving top priority to matters of national importance so that there could be a greater dialogue and understanding among all communities.

However, those with vested interests, true to form, both here and abroad did their damnedest to foist their agendas in the guise of national reconciliation, even before the LLRC Report was released.

Moreover, interlopers made numerous attempts to pontificate to us on national reconciliation and the manner in which we should set about it, akin to what they preached to us during the humanitarian operation. Had Sri Lanka fallen for it, the country would never have won the 2006-2009 battle against terrorism.

The extraneous forces are again attempting to poke their fingers in Sri Lanka's internal matters on the pretext of assisting in the reconciliation process.

Regrettably, a handful of Opposition politicians, mainly from the Tiger-proxy TNA and a few INGO agents who thrive on international funding have joined the bandwagon.

It is an open secret how the TNA danced to the tune of the LTTE in the past. When LTTE terror was at its peak, the TNA leaders were remote-controlled by the Tiger leadership from their Vanni jungle hideouts. Neither the LTTE nor the TNA cared two hoots for the Tamil community in Sri Lanka, especially those in the North and the East.

Their sole interest was to meet the aspirations of the Tamils living outside Sri Lanka, who had been funding the terror outfit from its inception. The LTTE right along brainwashed the Tamil Diaspora into believing about a separate State - the illusion of a so-called Eelam State.

Hence, the Tamil Diaspora pumped large sums of money into LTTE coffers, either willingly or under duress. Nevertheless, the aspirations of the Tamils in the North were poles apart from those of the Tamil Diaspora.

Former Indian Cabinet Minister and Member of the NDA Coalition, Dr. Subramanian Swamy had told the Defence Seminar 2012, that Tamils in the North and the East are now relieved that their children would no longer be forcibly recruited by the LTTE.

Tamil boys and girls could now continue their studies as they do not fear being taken forcibly to the battlefront by the LTTE. Tamils in the North and the East have breathed a sigh of relief that they are not subjected to extortion and that their pay cheque is not 'sliced' by extortion. In other words, today there is no uncertainty.

The people in these two provinces are deeply cognizant of the untold misery unleashed during LTTE terror. They do not seek a separate State, but only peace of mind to carry out their day-to-day life sans intimidation or harassment. The most active members of the Tamil Diaspora are those who had been born abroad or left Sri Lanka prior to 1983. They had been brainwashed by the LTTE and understandably do not feel the pulse of the Tamils in the North and the East.

Apart from the brutal assassination of former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi, the LTTE indulged in illegal activities in India such as drug peddling, gun running, and at times as contract killers in the State of Tamil Nadu. Hence, Sri Lanka's unique victory against the LTTE was a turning point not only for stability here, but also in the South Asian region.

The skewed logic is that those who vociferously campaign for a separate State in Sri Lanka are not willing to have a State of Eelam in their home country.

The objectives of the Vadukkodai Resolution some 40 years ago and the recent TESO Symposium are intertwined. The aim of the LTTE cohorts is to destroy national unity so that they could capitalise on it to fulfil their cherished goals.

The masses should weigh the pros and cons and decide which era is better - three decades of agonising terror or the three years of peace after terrorism was eradicated. The forthcoming elections to the North Central, Sabaragamuwa and Eastern Provincial Councils would be an ideal opportunity for the people in these areas to exercise their franchise and democratic right in a free and fair environment and demonstrate to the world that we are a united nation.

Voters in the Eastern Province no doubt would send a strong signal to the international community. LTTE sympathisers and the Tamil Diaspora, even at this late stage, should try to understand the aspirations of their own community in the North and the East.

The Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) thrust on Sri Lanka and the controversial Norway-brokered Ceasefire Agreement (CFA), have proved beyond a shadow of doubt that third-party mediation cannot find any solution to the grievances of those living in the North and the East.

These grievances were not only confined to the Tamils, but also to Muslims and Sinhalese, who had been chased out of their original settlements by the LTTE.

Hence, the million-dollar question is whether there is any need for external intervention in a matter that is purely internal. The TNA should renounce its separatist agenda, if it is still living in a world of fantasy created by the LTTE. Is there any need for them to run to South Africa or any other country for that matter?

South Africa eschewed foreign mediation or facilitation on the basis that it was the principal political force in the country itself and that it had the deepest interest in arriving at a durable solution, which had necessarily to be in keeping with local sentiments and aspirations.

In this scenario, it is crystal clear that the problems faced by Tamils and other communities in the North are entirely an internal matter for which a home-grown solution is necessary.

Going round the world playing the crybaby role is by no means the answer when the solution lies solely with the President and the Government.

Sri Lanka is doing its utmost in its reconciliation efforts but it needs time as there are no instant solutions to a vexed problem that existed for almost three decades.