Opinion:

LTTE was never interested in negotiations

by K.M.H.C.B. Kulatunga

Be it the UNHRC chief Navi Pillay, the US, UK, Canada or even the LTTE rump or the Tamil Diaspora, they speak a common language - they are only interested in the final few weeks of the battle against terrorism.

Victims of LTTE terror: Some of the people who died in the Aranthalawa massacre.

The LTTE terrorism has devastated Sri Lanka and the lives of hundreds of thousands of civilians for almost three decades. But none of them even utter a word on that. They even don't talk about the sufferings Sri Lanka and its people underwent even during the 2006-2009 humanitarian operations due to terrorism.

If they can't talk about the entire three decades of terror, they must at least talk about the three-and-a-half year period since 2006 during which the LTTE amply demonstrated its faith in the bullet. When President Mahinda Rajapaksa first assumed office in November 2005, he repeatedly urged the LTTE terrorists to come to negotiating table.

Bombs and guns

But how did they respond to the President's call for a peaceful dialogue with the world's most ruthless terrorist outfit? They exploded a series of bombs in buses, trains and other public places to show that they are not interested in holding any negotiations with the legitimate Government of Sri Lanka.

That too is understandable because LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran knew only about bombs and guns. Hence, he reposed faith in bullet than the ballot. He prevented the Government conducting elections in the North and the East because he did not believe in democracy. Moreover, he thought that the Tamils in the two provinces with repose more faith in the democratic framework than his organisation if regular elections were held.

What baffles us is the undue interest of the West only on the final phase of the humanitarian operation. If they are sincerely interested in human rights and investigating the sufferings underwent by civilians in the North and the East, they must at least take the entire three-and-a-half-year period.

When the advancing Security Forces were liberating Tamil civilians who had been forcibly held by the Tigers as a human shield, Prabhakaran ordered his goons to fire at Tamil civilians fleeing LTTE-held areas and running towards the Security Forces for safety. That shows the trust and faith Tamils reposed on the Security Forces and how Prabhakaran treated his own community, to whom he had preached on liberation for Tamils.

Crude weapons

The National Christian Alliance last week questioned as to what legitimate right UN Human Rights Commissioner Pillay, or anybody else for that matter, has to focus only the final stage of the humanitarian operation in Sri Lanka without investigating the role of those among the international community who built up the terrorist outfit from a rag tag band of youth in the 1970s, to an outfit that was capable of challenging any army.

Bishop of Kurunegala Rev. Shantha Francis said last week that the LTTE in the 1970s was so weak, its members were surrendering to the Sri Lanka Army with petrol bombs and a few crude weapons in hand.

They did not have any military training at that time. However, they were transformed into a group of terrorists with training, massive funding and sophisticated weapons even unknown to the Sri Lanka's Security Forces, within a few years, due to the support of sections of the international community. It was the forces outside Sri Lanka territory and international elements that fostered the LTTE.

The Tiger terrorists, thereafter, advanced to a position that they could unleash a series of brutal killings on unarmed civilians, religious figures and villagers.

Hence, the Bishop of Kurunegala questioned why Pillay and others at the UNHRC did not pay any attention on the initial terror acts of the LTTE campaign rather than directing human rights allegations against Sri Lanka based only on the last stages of terrorism.

The Bishop has quite rightly pointed out that the LTTE which started with only a few youth was later transformed to become the world's most ruthless terrorist outfit which was equipped with submarines, merchant ships, aircraft and other sophisticated weapons with the funds of the Tamil diaspora in the West and the international community. Thus, a section of the international community supported the LTTE to wage war against Sri Lanka.

The Buddhists acted with patience when the LTTE massacred unarmed devotees at the Sacred Sri Maha Bodhi, bombed the most Sacred Temple of the Tooth Relic in Kandy and massacred Buddhist samanera monks in Aranthalawa and tens of thousands of innocent people during its three decades of terror.

The LTTE also attacked churches and mosques and devotees at these religious places. The so-called international community that was fast asleep during those three decades against the atrocities of the LTTE against unarmed people has suddenly woken up. The now shout from the roof top on the so-called human rights violations allegations by Sri Lanka during the last stages of the battle against terrorism that defeated the LTTE and restored peace. Hence, it is unfair to accuse the Government or the country's valiant Security Forces of human rights violations after defeating the war.

Coexistence

As Rev. Francis has said, we in Sri Lanka, strongly believes in reconciliation and peace. In order to achieve this objective, two significant features should be adopted - unconditional forgiveness and forgetting and burying the past altogether.

It is then that the nation could bounce back and go back to those good old days during which Tamils and Sinhalese lived in peaceful coexistence. The country is heading towards that direction.

Pillay or anybody else should take these matters into consideration. This is not an ethnic issue. Be it the Tamils or Muslins, minorities have never been discriminated due to their ethnicity. If there had been a problem with the people in the North and the East, that was purely due to their geographical location. But that was applicable to Muslims and Sinhalese living in those two provinces as well.

The international community should help in reconciliation and not open old wounds by digging the bitter past.

wIf Tamils had been discriminated, they could never have become the majority in the commercial capital of Colombo.

Perhaps, Sri Lanka's Colombo could be the only capital of which the country's majority lives as a minority! Isn't this an ample testimony to demonstrate Sri Lanka's ethnic harmony and peaceful coexistence since terrorism was eradicated.

Construction, Engineering Services, Housing and Common Amenities Minister Wimal Weerawansa has warned the Government of a US move to hatch a conspiracy on the lines of what is happening in Venezuela to topple the government, by inciting public protests. He said the US made use of social media such as Facebook and Twitter to overthrow governments in the Middle East and similar attempts are being made for a regime change in Sri Lanka.

Spy equipment

The minister has added that the US Embassy in Colombo was holding awareness programs on the use of social media with this sinister motive in mind. "The US mission in Colombo has brought down sophisticated camera systems and other modern equipment which are normally used for spying, ahead of the Southern and Western Provincial Council election," the Minister has alleged.

It is an open secret that the US played a major role to destabilise Venezuela by inciting the public.

There were reports that US spies were deployed among the protestors against the Venezuelan government. These spies were tasked to shoot the protesters, according to the Minister.

The Bishop of Mannar Rayappu Joseph's letter to the United Nations seeking an interim government for the North is the first step by separatist elements to achieve what LTTE terrorists failed to achieve for 30 years through armed struggle. Those who failed to achieve their separatist agenda through military means are now trying to achieve the same through democratic means.

Their attempt is to set up an interim regime in the North under the close supervision of the Western elements. The letter sent by the Bishop of Mannar is an attempt to impress this opinion to the world.

Futile attempt

However, we are fortunate to have a leader who would never bow down to international pressure. President Mahinda Rajapaksa has amply demonstrated this during the humanitarian battle during which certain countries made a plethora of requests to abandon the battle prematurely.

The President, speaking at a mammoth public rally at the Ratmalana Railway grounds last week, said that no force can change the Government as long as the people of the country repose their faith and confidence in the UPFA.

The President said that attempts by some elements to change the government will be a futile attempt as far as the masses back the Government wholeheartedly.

Having won successive mandates from the masses, the Government is not prepared to act according to the whims an fancies of foreign forces.

Those who day dream of a regime change through undemocratic channels must bear in mind that the masses have given a mandate to the Government until 2016. Hence, the Government will not be dictated to by the whims and fancies of a handful of elements.

Some elements want to create bloodshed in the country again to try their dirty luck for a regime change in an undemocratic manner, and he will not allow such a situation to occur in the country again. The government has a responsibility to resettle the Muslims as well as Sinhalese people who had been forcibly thrown out of Jaffna peninsula by the LTTE through gunpoint.

Thousands of Sinhala and Muslim people who had been living in the Northern Province were chased out of the province by the LTTE terrorists two decades ago. They need to be resettled in the North to ensure their rights.

But none of the human rights prophets utter a word on this gross violation of the rights of displaced Muslims and Sinhalese. Hence, Pillay must show her sincerity while the UNHRC should not be leased to the US to achieve their global political goals.