Tamils needs only leadership - Dr. Wickramabahu Karunarathna

Monday, 25 February 2013

There was a commotion during the Sathyagraha launched by the IDPs near Durga kovil, Telipallai, in Jaffna 15 Feb. 2013, when few of people started to hoot soon after Opposition Leader Ranil Wickremesinghe had left the place after giving a speech.

The IDPs were on a hunger strike – sathyagraha-- urging the government that they be resettled in the original home lands owned by them. They claimed that thousands of acres of fertile land are occupied by the army and the latter is making permanent constructions, while the owners are not allowed to visit their property. TNA MPs supported by Tamil congress leader Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam have organised this event and Protest of the Opposition- VV –parties were invited to participate. From TNA MPs Senadirajah, Sumanthiran, Suresh Premachandra and several others participated. Dr Vickramabahu, Mano Ganesan, Azath Sally and several others arrived with the leader of the opposition Ranil Wickremesinghe.

Eyewitnesses said that the incident began as soon as Mr. Wickremesinghe ended his speech. They said that Dr Vickramabahu and several NSSP men started shouting slogans demanding that land should be handed over to the owners. Many others who were there supported their demonstration. They shouted “give back our land! Down with land grabbing government! Release political prisoners! where are the disappeared! And down with Mahinda regime!” Few pro- government people hiding among the IDPs started hooting. When large crowds gathered there started attacking them, they started running towards the near by army camp and several disappeared into the camp. But two were captured by the angry protesters, one green shirted and other with a red cap and yellow shirt. They were handed over to the police. Police identified them as army intelligence activists and handed over to the army officers who rushed to the place. Immediately Army officers had taken these men away.

TNA MP M A Sumanthiran confirmed that Mr. Wickremesinghe had completed his speech and had left the location of the hunger strike when the disturbance began. Apparently this group of men had subsequently started assaulting the people gathered at the site and tried to disperse the crowd. However the crowd that totally out numbered these men, fearlessly began to hit back at them when the army had arrived. Several organizers said the army took four suspects away. Asked for a comment, the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) said the government itself had amply demonstrated how law and order was suppressed in the north. TNA MP M.A. Sumanthiran said his party would support the leader of opposition in his effort to conduct a proper investigation into this failed attack by the army.

“The government has done the country good by demonstrating to every body what was going on in the north. The Opposition Leader was witness to this attack on the fast organised by the opposition in Jaffna. Now, we can take a back seat. The government itself demonstrated how the military rule is conducted,” he said. Dr Vickramabahu said “fascist styled army rule could not frighten the people and the resistance shows that Tamil people are asserting themselves. It is the duty of the VV to bring people out in to demonstrations and mass actions to win freedom and democracy.”