Helping the Police arrest brutish “monks” in Sri Lanka

Helping the Police arrest brutish “monks” in Sri Lanka

31 Mar, 2013

Apparently the infamous Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) has condemned the attack on Fashion Bug warehouse a few days ago and asked the Police to arrest those involved in it, even if they are monks. A Daily Mirror news report suggests BBS thinks the individuals captured on film destroyed private property were actually impostors.

Prima facie, this then begs the question as to why dozens of Police failed to arrest any of these “impostors” on the scene. This is not the first time Police have stood idly by as militant and racist “monks” have gone on the rampage. As we noted on Twitter,

Groundviews @groundviews

So response of BBS suggests that mob was really in fancy dress http://www.dailymirror.lk/news/27442-bbs-condemns-the-attack.html … Does anyone believe them? #lka #SriLanka

3:51 PM - 29 Mar 13

Groundviews @groundviews

No arrests had been made, says Police. No arrests will EVER be made http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/afp/130329/sri-lanka-boosts-security-after-anti-muslim-attack … #lka#srilanka

7:11 AM - 29 Mar 13

Here are two images to help the Sri Lankan Police in their ostensible investigations into the incident, since it is quite clear that four policemen, no more than 3 feet away from and staring directly into the face of the Buddhist “monk” who is engaged in destroying private property isn’t quite enough these days for an arrest to be made.

See larger image here. And this is a “monk” who emerges from the midst of the crowd and asks brutishly why the mob attack is being filmed.

See larger image here.

Who are these individuals? Where are they from, and if they are men of cloth, which Temple do they belong to? Why haven’t the Police made any progress in their investigations, given so many of them saw – in close proximity and for a long time – the Buddhist “monks” who were part of the violent mob? Why did the Gotabaya Rajapaksa, Secretary of Defence (openly and unashamedly associated with the BBS) visit the Temple near Fashion Bug on the same night of the attack, after it was conducted, to hold discussions with the Chief Prelate, as reported in the media (see @NavamaniLK tweets here and here)?

The still frame grabs above are from a video shot by Isuru Udayanga of Hiru TV, who got 3 stitches on his head as he was targeted for filming the attack and stoned by the “Buddhist” mob. The full video is embedded below.

As noted by journalist DBS Jeyaraj on his blog,

When the media heard of the attack and rushed to the spot they were obstructed by the hooligans who did not want them to video or photograph the attack. Some tried to grab the cameras from the media personnel and tried to manhandle them. When the media persons broke free after a struggle and went forward they were subjected to a barrage of stones by the mob. At least seven members of the fourth estate were injured in the ensuing struggle and in the stone throwing. “Hiru TV”s Isuru Udayanga had three stitches to his head.

Condoned by the Rajapaksa regime, supported by Police inaction and strengthened by the Defence Secretary’s open association with and support of the BBS, Islamophonia in Sri Lanka shows no signs of abating. 30 years on, we seem, inexorably, to be heading into another July ’83.

Update, 5.10pm: Groundviews was sent the following three images of “monks” in the mob. Note that they are part of a violent mob, with Police present around them.

Gory details of torture

By Ranga Jayasuriya-2013-03-31 The report of Judicial Medical Officer (JMO), Dr. Ajith Jayasena, on the mass grave in Matale reveals in gory detail the extensive torture the hapless victims had been subjected to before their mass burial. “The skeletons bore extensive marks of torture. We have discovered a major crime scene,” said Dr. Jayasena. “Nails have been inserted into the fingers in some skeletons. In some others, nails have been inserted into the legs of the victims as well. “Some skeletons had their heads severed from the body by a saw. We also found a wire with a loop, which had been used repeatedly. According to our knowledge, its main use could have been to electrocute prisoners,” he explained. The JMO’s report was submitted to Matale Additional District Judge and Magistrate, Chathurika Silva, last week. Dr. Jayasena and Professor Raj Somadeva who is an expert of Forensic Archaeology attached to the University of Kelaniya produced two reports on the mass grave, findings of which have revealed the mass grave was dating back to the period 1986-1990. Their findings have now led to the former inmates of a military-run detention facility located in the vicinity of the mass grave site, in 1989-90, to come forward to claim the detention centre was, in fact, a torture chamber. (See Box) Soon after the mass grave was unearthed in November last year, theories were afloat about its origin. It was initially believed to be dating back to the Wellassa revolution in 1848. Others suggested the skeletons belonged to the victims of the small fox epidemic in the 1940s. Some others said the skeletons were of the victims of the 1971 JVP uprising. The condition of the earth in the crime site had led to some of those assumptions. “There are termites in the soil in the area, which generally result in corpses decomposing much faster. So the skeletons looked much older than it should be,” the professor added. The age of the mass grave was determined on the basis of bone colouration and typological analysis of the personal items. According to Prof Somadeva, among the items found in the grave were two metal rings, a plaster, which was determined as been manufactured by a British company in 1986 and an empty bottle of pharmaceutical product, which the investigators found was dating back to 1989. Based on his findings, Prof Somadeva determined, “The grave could not be older than 1986 and newer than 1990.” Dr. Jayasena said the main objective of the preliminary report was to establish the time period during which the victims had been buried. “Without that, it is impossible to identify the victims. Now the time period of the mass grave is determined, we can proceed to identify the victims,” he said. Dr. Jayasena said the determination of the age of the skeletons is important as it would help the relatives of the victims to come forward. “If it was a grave belonging to the 1848 period no one would have come forward to seek justice. But, this is a recent crime scene. It is important in the search for justice,” said Dr. Jayasena. The next step of the investigation would be to identify the victims. Dr Jayasena said he expects the relatives of the victims to come forward to identify the victims. “The victims can provide important details on physical attributes of the victims. Two forensic dentists would be coming here from Colombo to assist the identification process,” he added. After the preliminary identification, samples will be sent for DNA testing. The gory discovery has its toll on Dr. Jayasena. He said his only wish is that “we would not go through another dark period like 86-90 again,” while others demand justice for the victims who were unceremoniously dumped in the mass grave, after being tortured, in some 25 years back. Survivors would soon come out – FSP On Friday, this newspaper revealed, citing survivors of a military detention centre located in a government school in Matale, in the vicinity of the current mass grave, that a unit of Army’s Gajaba Regiment operated a torture chamber in the school, Vijaya Vidyalaya. Pubudu Jagoda, Propaganda Secretary of the Frontline Socialist Party (FSP) said the survivors of the torture chamber would come out to reveal the gory details of their ordeal. “There are survivors of that torture chamber, who survived their ordeal and continue to serve as the active members of our party. They have narrated their ordeal to the party members,” Jagoda said. Meanwhile, families of the youth who had been detained in the military facility and later disappeared are planning to petition the Human Rights Commission of Sri Lanka demanding justice to the dead. Jagoda on Thursday filed a complaint with the Commission demanding an investigation.

2013-03-31

Uniformed men in havoc after an accident in Kopay

 Sunday , 31 March 2013

A vehicle accident occurred yesterday at the Kopay junction, and three women including four members from the same family was severely wounded and admitted to the hospital. They were travelling in a three wheeler states reports.

 

The vehicle driver involved with the accident is a native of southern part of Sri Lanka, and he attempted to ride off, hence the public assembled at the locality opposed it.

 

The uniformed men came to the spot have severely assaulted the people opposed, is according to reports.

 

Police took one of the people who were assaulted to the police station to take his statement.

 

Thangaraja Dayabaran aged 45 years, Dayabaran Kugarani aged 45 years, Dayabaran Dayanika aged 20, Dayabaran Suwanika aged 18, from the same family was injured in this accident and was admitted to Jaffna Teaching hospital. Dayabaran Kugarani, out of them, was admitted to emergency ward.

 

Dayabaran from Neerweli with his wife and daughters were travelling in his three wheeler from Jaffna was proceeding towards Neerweli.  An intercooler vehicle came in the direction of Kaithadi through Kaithadi Manipay road, crossed from the main road at the junction and attempted to speed up, this accident had occurred.

 

Driver of  the Intercooler vehicle is from South of Sri Lanka. Chinese citizens were travelling in the vehicle was said.

 

Three wheeler toppled due to the accident. Four persons traveling in the vehicle were injured.

 

The driver attempted to escape after the incident, but the people assembled at the spot opposed it. They notified, after police investigation, they would permit the vehicle to ride off. But suddenly military came to the spot had blindfold assaulted the public was said by people to “Udayan” press.

 

An elderly person, who came under the assault of the forces, was taken to the police station by the Kopay police.

 

Kopay police confirmed that the vehicle driver was arrested. The three wheeler had been taken to the police station.

 

 

 

 

Sunday , 31 March 2013

Three persons drown in Kattankudy

Four persons went missing while they were bathing with a group of people in the Navaladi river, in Kattankudy, the Police Media Unit told Ceylon Today Online. Three of the four bodies were found and the police are still in search of the other body. The police are conducting further investigations. (Ceylon Today Online)

2013-03-31 மட்டக்களப்புக்கு சுற்றுலா சென்ற மாணவர்கள் 3 பேரும், ஆசிரியர் ஒருவரும் கடலில் மூழ்கி பலி! [ ஞாயிற்றுக்கிழமை, 31 மார்ச் 2013, 10:16.50 AM GMT ] பதுளையில் இருந்து மட்டக்களப்புக்கு சுற்றுலா சென்ற பாடசாலை மாணவர்கள் 3 பேரும் ஆசிரியர் ஒருவரும் மட்டக்களப்பு கல்லடி முகத்துவாரக் கடலில் நீராடிக்கொண்டிருந்த போது நீரில் மூழ்கி மரணமாகியுள்ளனர். இச்சம்பவம் மட்டக்களப்பு காத்தான்குடி பொலிஸ் பிரிவுக்குப்பட்ட நாவலடி வாவியையும் கடலையும் இணைக்கும் முகத்துவாரம் ஆற்றுவாய் பகுதியில் இன்று காலை இடம்பெற்றது. பதுளை சரஸ்வதி கனிஸ்ட வித்தியாலய ஆசிரியர் கந்தசாமி பிரதாபன் வயது 40 நாற்பது, ஹாலிஎல ஊவா விஞ்ஞான கல்லூரியில் 2012ம் ஆண்டு க.பொ.த. சாதாண பரீட்சை எழுதிவிட்டு ஏப்ரல் 10ஆம் திகதி வெளிவரவுள்ள பெறுபெறுகளை எதிர்பார்த்திருந்த மாணவர்களான கனகசபை நிதர்சன் (வயது 17), போல்ராஜ் சாந்தன் (வயது 17), பாலசுப்பிரமணியம் அபிசாந்த் (வயது 17), ஆகியோரே நீரில் மூழ்கி மரணமாகியுள்ளனர். நீரில் மூழ்கியவர்களில் கணகசபை நிதர்சனை என்ற மாணவனை தவிர ஏனைய மூவரின் சடலங்கள் கடற்படையினராலும் அப்பகுதி மீனவர்களாலும் மீட்கப்பட்டுள்ளன. மொத்தமாக 9 பேர் கடலில் நீராடியுள்ளதுடன் இவர்களில் நால்வரே இவ்வாறு நீரில் மூழ்கியுள்ளனர். அண்மையில் இதே கடற்பரப்பில் 2012ம் ஆண்டு க.பொ.த. சாதாரண பரீட்சை எழுதிவிட்டு பெறுபேறுக்காக காத்திருந்த டிலுஸ்காந் எனும் மாணவன் நண்பனை காப்பாற்றச் சென்ற வேளையில் கடலில் மூழ்கி பலியானமை குறிப்பிடத்தக்கது. 2ம் இணைப்பு பதுளையைச் சேர்ந்த நான்குபேர் மட் நாவலடி கடலில் மூழ்கி மரணம் க.பொ.த சாதாரணதர பரீட்சைக்கு போற்றிய பதுளையில் கல்வி கற்கும் 8 மாணவர்களும் ஒரு ஆசிரியரும் பதுளையில் இருந்து சுற்றுலாவின் நிமித்தம் மட்டக்களப்பிற்கு வருகை தந்து மட். நாவலடி முகத்துவாரத்தை அண்டிய கடலில் குளித்துக் கொண்டிருந்த போது நீரில் மூழ்கி மரணமடைந்த நிலையில் சடலங்களாக மீட்கப்பட்டுள்ளனர். இறந்தவர்களின் விபரம் வரமாறு:- போல்ராஜ் போல்சாந்தன் - வயது 17 பாலசுப்ரமணியம் அபிசாந் - வயது 17 கனகசபை யுதர்சன் - வயது 16 கந்தசாமி பிரதாபன் (ஆசிரியர்) – வயது 40  மேலதிக விசாரணைகளை மேற்கொண்டு வருவதாக காத்தான்குடி பொலிஸ் நிலைய பொறுப்பதிகாரி அஜித் பிரசன்ன தெரிவித்தார்.

North Korea says it is in ‘a state of war’ with Seoul

March 30, 2013, 7:30 pm 

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — North Korea warned Seoul on Saturday that the Korean Peninsula was entering "a state of war" and threatened to shut down a factory complex that’s the last major symbol of inter-Korean cooperation.

Analysts say a full-scale conflict is extremely unlikely, noting that the Korean Peninsula has remained in a technical state of war for 60 years. But the North’s continued threats toward Seoul and Washington, including a vow to launch a nuclear strike, have raised worries that a misjudgment in how to address the warnings could lead to a clash.

The Kaesong industrial park, which is run with North Korean labor and South Korean know-how, has been operating normally, despite Pyongyang shutting down a communications channel typically used to coordinate travel by South Korean workers to and from the park just across the border in North Korea. The rivals are now coordinating the travel indirectly, through an office at Kaesong that has outside lines to South Korea.

But an identified spokesman for the North’s office controlling Kaesong said Saturday that it would close the factory park if South Korea continued to undermine its dignity. Pyongyang expressed anger over media reports that suggested the factory remained open because it was a source of hard currency for the impoverished North.

Dozens of South Korean firms run factories in the border town of Kaesong. Using North Korea’s cheap, efficient labor, the Kaesong complex produced $470 million worth of goods in 2012.North Korea has previously made such threats about Kaesong without acting on them, and recent weeks have seen a torrent of bellicose rhetoric from Pyongyang. North Korea is angry about annual South Korea-U.S. military drills and new U.N. sanctions over its nuclear test last month.

North Korea’s threats are seen as efforts to provoke the new government in Seoul, led by President Park Geun-hye, to change its policies toward Pyongyang, and to win diplomatic talks with Washington that could get it more aid. North Korea’s moves are also seen as ways to build domestic unity as young leader Kim Jong Un strengthens his military credentials.

On Thursday, U.S. military officials revealed that two B-2 stealth bombers dropped dummy munitions on front lines as part of drills with South Korean troops. Hours later, Kim ordered his generals to put rockets on standby and threatened to strike American targets if provoked.

North Korea said in a statement Saturday that it would deal with South Korea according to "wartime regulations" and would retaliate against any provocations by the United States and South Korea without notice.

"Now that the revolutionary armed forces of the DPRK have entered into an actual military action, the inter-Korean relations have naturally entered the state of war," said the statement, which was carried by Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency, referring to the North’s official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

Provocations "will not be limited to a local war, but develop into an all-out war, a nuclear war," the statement said.

South Korea’s military remains mindful of the possibility that North Korean drills could lead to an actual provocation, Defense Ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok said.

"The series of North Korean threats — announcing all-out war, scrapping the cease-fire agreement and the non-aggression agreement between the South and the North, cutting the military hotline, entering into combat posture No. 1 and entering a ‘state of war’ — are unacceptable and harm the peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula," Kim said.

"We are maintaining full military readiness in order to protect our people’s lives and security," he told reporters Saturday.

Naval skirmishes in the disputed waters off the Korean coast have led to bloody battles several times over the years.

However, on the streets of Seoul, South Koreans said they were not worried about an attack from North Korea.

"From other countries’ point of view, it may seem like an extremely urgent situation," said Kang Tae-hwan, a private tutor. "But South Koreans don’t seem to be that nervous because we’ve heard these threats from the North before."

Bodhu Bala Sena leader Gnanasara is a drunken goon and a disgrace to the Sasana: we challenge him to prove otherwise (Lanka-e-News-31.March.2013,5.00PM) Galagoda atthe Gnanasara Thero , the monk who is the leader of Bodhu Bala Sena and pretends that his Sena is prepared to sacrifice their lives for the country and operated by Gotabaya Rajapakse , who has also earned a notoriety for ruthless unlawful killings of civilians , has truly no connections with the Sambuddha Sasana , and is a drunkard out and out according to reports with demonstrable proof reaching Lanka e news. This Galgoda Thero the monk who is so vociferous about saving the country was a hit and run vehicle ( 6 Sri 5444) culprit on 14th April 2000, that is, this inauspicious accident occurred on the auspicious Sinhala New year day at about 2.00 a.m. when priests must be in their temples and performing religious duties and devotions . On the contrary this scoundrel of a monk was excessively drunk and the vehicle in which he traveled did not have a valid license at the time of the accident when he knocked a three wheeler at Grandpass whereby its driver was seriously injured. The victim of the accident was Ravindra Kumar. When the police gave chase and apprehended the so called champion of the Buddhist cause and who is now parading as a great savior of the country , he was so drunk that he could not stand erect . When the police did a breathalyzer test it was found that only by his robe he was a so called monk of the highest caliber , but inside he was a drunk of the worst caliber and a scoundrel betraying Lord Buddha and all what the latter stood for so steadfastly. In other words this is a monk who had come forward to save the Buddha sasana, without knowing how to respect the Saffron robe let alone Lord Buddha . Later the Grandpass police had filed a case No. 6315/2000 based on 9 charges against Galgoda atthe Gnanasara Thero residing at 615 , Rajagiriya through the traffic court , Colombo 12. Among the charges filed were driving under the influence of liquor without a license and causing injuries to person ; and obstructing performance of official police duties. On the 20th of September 2000, the accused Galgoda the drunk monk had accepted all the charges and was fined Rs. 10000/-. We challenge this Bodhu Bala Sena leader , Galgodaatthe monk to disprove these facts if he can, and confirm he is not a drunk and a goon but a true monk and a boon for the sasana. The business establishment that was attacked by Bodhu Bala sena terrorists yesterday at the instigation of IRC monks like Galgoda Thero only went to demonstrate that they are not only villainous to the country and community but even to the noble Buddha sasana. Following this disgraceful and uncalled for violence specially because it is led by monks who should be preaching peace and practicing their religions within Temples , a number of questions have sprung up : • What is the punishment the Sangha leaders will mete out to this individual who acted flagrantly in breach of the Buddha sasana code of discipline? • Was his drunken state , reckless driving , near killing a three wheel driver and fining by the courts after finding him guilty made the criterion by Mahanayakes to give him an elevated ‘Royal’ position and to entrust with greater priestly responsibilities over others ? • Is there any religious or social worth in draping a saffron robe around these terrorist drunkard priests ? • Isn’t it because the Mahanayakes did not punish this drunkard priest who was enjoying himself on people’s wealth getting inebriated and disgracing the Buddha sasana , and Mahanayakes not nipping it in the bud then that this same priest who is now nurtured and nourished by these evil propensities has grown demonic so much so that he is himself resorting to and instigating others to commit the worst sins and evils in the name of Buddhism ? • Even after this amount of disgrace and disrepute is brought upon the noble Buddha dharma by these ignoble priests , is everyone still going to wait with the eyes and ears open until Buddhism is degraded and its precepts usurped further in the very name of religion ? • Is the most noble Buddha sasana going to be preserved and protected after chasing these drunkards and demons ? • If he was an ordinary individual the punishment meted by the Courts would be deemed as correct , but in this case he being a Buddhist priest the Sangha Nayakes ought to have reckoned the punishment meted out by the courts , and taken disciplinary action against him. On the other hand , if the Sangha disciplinary Council had not been aware of this, at least now , the Sangha must take action against him as the true Buddhists specially and the people in general are waiting and watching what disciplinary steps the Sangha is going to take. President asks Buddhists to set an example SUNDAY, 31 MARCH 2013  President Mahinda Rajapaksa said no room should be left for anyone to accuse Sri Lanka of being a country that promoted racial and religious hatred. Speaking at Werahena, Matara, President Rajapaksa stated that Sri Lanka was a democratic country in which every religion had the freedom to hold their religious beliefs “It should be the duty and responsibility of the Buddhists to protect their rights and live in way that would set an example to others. Since ancient times our revered generation of bhikkhus have stepped forward to protect our nation and they have always given the most valuable advice for the benefit of the country” he said. He made these remarks on 30 March, attending the ceremony organised to welcome Venerable Kegalle Rathanasara Thera who was honoured with the post of Chief Prelate. President Rajapaksa pointed out that the venerable bhikkhus had the responsibility of interceding if the country was heading in the wrong direction and to direct the country towards the correct path on its way to progress. “The Sasana will be protected only if the Dhamma is preserved. Similarly the race will survive only if the country is protected. Hence it is important to act with farsighted knowledge to protect the country” he added. Powerful sections of the Government seem to be actively encouraging the activities of these new extremist groups, the Bodhu Bala Sena in particular. Update, 5.10pm: Groundviews was sent the following three images of “monks” in the mob. Note that they are part of a violent mob, with Police present around them.

Long War, Lost Peace, And Late Reactions In Tamil Nadu

By Rajan Philips -March 30, 2013 

Rajan Philips

At the governmental level, the late reactions in Tamil Nadu are cheap street theatre that is right up the alley of the two DMKs. At the Tamil social level, the recent protests are a serious development. While the protests will not bring any direct or immediate benefit to the Sri Lankan Tamils, they are a new front of neighbourly detraction which the Rajapaksa government can ill afford to ignore or dismiss as Western aberration.

The ADMK and the DMK are competing to take ownership of the protests, but the protests could turn on them and take out the ageing, feuding and decadent leaderships of the two Dravidian creations that have outlived their purpose by several decades. That would be a Tamil spring of sorts. Far away, in Akbar’s Delhi the Congress-led government is watching the beginning of its end, drifting from one crisis to another. The beleaguered government’s only success in recent months has been the return of the two Italian marines to stand trial in India for the unfortunate incident in the Arabian sea that led to the killing of two Kerala fishermen.

New Delhi has to take much of the blame for the nasty turn of events in Tamil Nadu and for losing the plot in Sri Lanka. While one may not have expected anything better than competing chauvinistic opportunism from the two DMKs, it is necessary to acknowledge that completing the vicious triangle and contributing to the crisis is the Colombo government. The Rajapaksa government won the long war decisively, but equally decisively it turned its victory into cold peace, to borrow the idea from the title of a new book by a fallen-from-grace former plenipotentiary. The real worry for Sri Lanka is that it may not be just cold peace but lost peace.

The implication of the governments in Colombo, Chennai and New Delhi arises from the Tamil question in Sri Lanka and its implications for Tamil Nadu and New Delhi. The mutual implications did not become a political issue until 1977 and started aggravating after 1983. And the current situation is the result of all three governments coming up short in their respective areas of competence, their incompetence in adjusting to new and changing circumstances, and their failure to work cooperatively in areas of overlapping interests to avoid overstepping into areas where they do not belong on their own.

New Delhi’s ineffective interference

New Delhi has tried to have it both ways in trying to justify its interference in Sri Lanka by holding up its accountability to Tamil Nadu, and to explain its ineffectiveness in Sri Lanka by blaming patriotic Sinhalese intransigence. There is more than a modicum of truth on both scores, but there is nothing to explain or justify Delhi’s wild swings in its Sri Lankan policy. First, it fostered Tamil militant groups and then forsook them. It countermanded Sri Lankan military operations in late 1980s, sent its own troops to contain its creations, and twenty five years later secured international cover for the Sri Lankan government’s final war assault. In between, Delhi engineered in Sri Lanka the infamous 13th Amendment, and after twenty five years the Sri Lankan Defence Secretary would rather have it repealed than let the government implement it.

Until 1977, the government and people of Tamil Nadu were nothing more than concerned neighbours to the goings on in Sri Lanka involving the island’s indigenous Tamils and those of Indian origin. The disenfranchisement and repatriation of the latter and linguistic discrimination that mostly targeted the former did not provoke anything more than editorial comments and criticisms in Tamil Nadu. The 1958 riots produced a sharp reprimand by the great Madras Tamil Brahmin Rajaji (Chakravarty Rajagopalachari, one of India’s foremost intellectuals and independence leaders and its first Head of State after independence) that had a stinging effect at that time on Prime Minister Bandaranaike. Sri Lankan Tamils were never on DMK’s separatist agenda that was abandoned in 1962. The DMK that started governing Tamil Nadu in 1967 showed only a lukewarm interest in the Sri Lankan Tamil question. The first mass protest in Tamil Nadu on account of Sri Lanka was the hartal and rally after the 1977 riots. Nothing has been the same since, either in Sri Lanka or in Tamil Nadu concerning Sri Lanka.

The significant development in Sri Lankan Tamil politics after 1977 was its usurpation by militant groups with the LTTE eventually emerging as the exclusively dominant group. While the genesis of this development was entirely Sri Lankan, its subsequent flourishing had much to do with its receptions in Tamil Nadu and New Delhi even though the nature of the two receptions were quite different. For New Delhi’s mandarins the Sri Lankan Tamil groups were ideal guinea pigs for regional super power explorations. It was different in Tamil Nadu. Naturally, the state provided a culturally congenial camping ground to the militants, but they could not have survived beyond a week without clearance from Delhi and Chennai. There was also the unique phenomenon of MG Ramachandran (MGR), who had taken to politics on his popularity as an actor but was quite clueless about his formal duties as Chief Minister. The LTTE’s project gave Ramachandran a real life opportunity to experience the heroism of his movies. It was a deadly confluence of different motivations and circumstances – the militant groups were serious about their goal, but the Indians were in it for the ride and power.

Such a confluence would not have been possible in the decades soon after independence when political propriety and respect for territorial inviolability were paramount. New Delhi’s regional adventurism would have been unthinkable when Jawaharlal Nehru was Prime Minister. And Tamil militants who hobnobbed with MGR would not have obtained even an audience with Chief Ministers of the calibre of Rajaji, Kamaraj or Bhaktavatsalam of the Congress, or DMK’s Annadurai, and even Karunanidhi who in his first stint as Chief Minister was highly respected for his administrative abilities. It needed the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi to drive home the curse of machinating politics and to end the tiger honeymoon in Tamil Nadu. Equally, it took the scale of the Sri Lankan government’s final assault against the LTTE to reignite support in Tamil Nadu for the Tamils in Sri Lanka.

Rising discontent in Tamil Nadu

After the war, as the accredited interface between the Rajapaksa government and the international community, New Delhi managed to displease the former and disappoint the latter. Rather than facilitating goodwill and harnessing efforts to embark on a political solution in Sri Lanka, New Delhi is playing second fiddle in Geneva, in the UNHRC orchestra that now delivers an annual report card on Sri Lanka. New Delhi’s failure has dragged the Tamil Nadu government into unchartered waters and turned the two principal Tamil Nadu leaders Jayalalithaa and Karunanidhi into public spectacles. They are out of their depths in asking Delhi to bring about a UN Security Council resolution against the Sri Lankan government. But Jayalalithaa is true to form in banning Sri Lankan cricketers from playing in Chennai, betraying the same intolerant deadly streak that she had previously demonstrated in regard to religious conversion from Hinduism to Buddhism.

But there is more to the developments in Tamil Nadu vis-à-vis Sri Lanka than the antics of Jayalalithaa and Karunanidhi. As I noted at the outset, the social angst in Tamil Nadu is a serious development which is also unprecedented. Although over the top, the poetic outrage of Tamil Nadu’s Meena Kandasamy is symptomatic of the changing mood in Tamil Nadu. Admittedly, the angst and agitations in Tamil Nadu by themselves cannot bring about any change in Sri Lanka for better or for worse. On the other hand, they could be counterproductive in Sri Lanka, where the Defence Secretary did not lose any time in ratcheting up the rhetoric that the new developments in Tamil Nadu are the final argument in favour of repealing 13A rather than implementing it.

At the same time, the governments in Delhi and Colombo can ill afford to ignore the rising discontent in Tamil Nadu if Delhi wants regional peace and if the Sri Lankan government does not want to permanently kill the prospects for genuine and equitable peace in Sri Lanka among all her citizens. The trouble with the Rajapaksa government is its assumption that national sovereignty gives it the right to do anything it wants with its citizens either individually or collectively – be they Sinhalese who do not agree with the government, or Sri Lankans who are not Sinhalese. This may have been possible thirty years ago but not any longer when the Sri Lankan government like every other government is under a global scan, national sovereignty notwithstanding.

After independence, successive governments did what they wanted to do and got away with them. To wit, the violent suppression of worker protests, disenfranchisement of the Tamil plantation workers, internal colonization that altered ethnic electoral mapping, the chicanery of nationalizing and reprivatizing lands while looking after the private interests of those in power, the enactment of one language as the only official language and conferring on one religion the foremost place, the banishment of European and Indian Catholic nuns from national hospitals, the state takeover of schools as nationalization and media-wise standardization of examination scores, the violent suppression of the 1971 youth insurrection and politicization of the judicial process to punish political offenders which ultimately victimized the country’s and the world’s first female Prime Minister … the long list goes on.

The point is also that even though governments were able to execute these measures, every one of them became a matter of permanent political contention. The end of the war put an end to a particular manifestation of many of those contentions but it did not address their enduring substance. They remain to be addressed notwithstanding the war victory. Instead, the government is asking the rest of the world to forget the war and let the country move on, while keeping the country permanently hoisted to the memory of the war victory to keep its support base, and to the machinery of the war to perform day to day government functions. One cannot suck and blow at the same time.

Haunted by her Yesterdays

29/03/2013

As promised, here is the film "Haunted by her Yesterdays" by the Social Architects.

Please do watch it, and then share it with your friends.

Haunted by her yesterdays

This documentary tells a story of silent agony, trapped screams and repressed mourning. A story of women forced to deny their identity – who are trapped in between a government which sees them as “Tigers,” and a society whose norms they are no longer deemed worthy of.

These women fought bravely alongside men as members of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) during Sri Lanka’s bloody thirty-year civil war. From protectors and defenders of their families, villages and nation, thousands of female ex-combatants have now returned home to assume more traditional roles as mothers, wives, widows, and teachers – in communities where they are perpetually shunned. Through several powerful voices, “Haunted by Her Yesterdays” allows a few to share their pain and suffering – the wounds that remain unhealed, the scars that are impossible to ignore and the hearts that still burn with pain, passion and grief – for the world to hear. This film is a gripping tale of loss, betrayal and struggle, but –above all else – it is a search for inspiration and a call for action. As the country’s war-torn North and East struggles to rebuild itself, this documentary tells a deeply moving story that has been overlooked for far too long.

The Social Architects:

Created in 2012, The Social Architects (TSA) are composed of a diverse group of writers, intellectuals and working professionals. While most of TSA’s members hail from the country’s North and East, the group also includes other scholars and activists who have been working on Sri Lankan issues. TSA seeks to educate, to inform and to provide timely, thoughtful analysis on a range of topics.

TSA has written numerous reports and articles including: Salt on Old Wounds: The Sinhalization of Sri Lanka’s North, East and Hill Country and Giving Reconciliation in Sri Lanka a Better Chance: A Shadow Action Plan for the LLRC. The organization’s writing has appeared in a range of outlets such as Groundviews and International Policy Digest.

This March TSA will be releasing The Numbers Never Lie – a comprehensive report which assesses the Sri Lankan government’s implementation of the Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission (LLRC) recommendations.

Petition spreads into India and Canada

We said yesterday's petition in the UK would be the first of many. Now we are pleased to be able to tell you about petitions for Canada and India.

Prime Minister Steven Harper was courageous in setting an example and announcing that if the summit happens, then he will not go. However, it is still expected that a Canadian delegation will attend the Summit, and this will undermine the effect of the Prime Minister's personal boycott as Canada's attendance will still be visible in the Summit. If you are in Canada please sign the petition here to send that message.

The Indian petition is run by the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative. If you are in India please sign here.

Meanwhile the UK petition has reached well over a thousand signatures in under 24 hours. We soon hope local organisations will launch petitions in Malaysia, Kenya, Uganda, Botswana, Bangladesh, Australia and New Zealand. If we haven't reached you yet, we will soon. In the meantime please keep signing and sharing with your UK, Indian, and Canadian friends.

If you are in the UK click here to sign the petition

If you are in Canada click here to sign the petition

If you are in India click here to sign the petition,