Economic diplomacy: Reconnecting the missing link in our foreign policy

November 6, 2013

Each country has its own strategies for improving society’s economic conditions.
Economic development cannot be achieved overnight through attractive slogans, media blitz and propaganda. It requires a long-term strategy complemented by an attractive political system where all actions of the government and its stakeholders are carried on with transparency and in accordance with the rule of law. It is therefore imperative that good governance practices should be in place so that the country can be marketed overseas in political and economic arena. 

Economic Diplomacy Reconnecting the Missing Link in Our Foreign Policy by nelvely

China cashing on India’s Sri Lanka woes

by Col. R.Hariharan (retd.)-Dated 07-Nov-2013

Even as the Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh was finding it hard to make up his mind over attending the CHOGM (Commonwealth Heads of Governments Meeting) to be held in Colombo in two weeks from now, China is making the best use of the situation to strengthen its presence in Sri Lanka.

China’s intention is obvious: profit from India’s discomfiture in Sri Lanka to occupy India’s strategic space in the island nation.

On October 24 when the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Ms Jayalalithaa was moving a resolution asking the Centre to ‘totally boycott’ the CHOGM “in deference to the overwhelming feeling and sentiments of Tamils,” Sri Lanka President Mahinda Rajapaksa was praising China's generosity, while opening of the renovated venue for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) at the Bandaranaike Memorial International Convention Hall (BMICH). When President Rajapaksa wanted to renovate the BMICH, China chipped in to meet the cost of about $15.3 million (Sri Lankan Rs 2 billion). In fact China had donated the BMICH, Colombo’s prestigious conference centre nearly a decade ago. It now stands as a visible reminder of China’s “enduring generosity” to Sri Lanka.

Even as Ms Jayalalithaa castigated the Centre for failing to act upon another “historic resolution” passed by the Tamil Nadu Assembly on July 8, 2011 which sought an economic embargo on Sri Lanka until Tamils were fully resettled and rehabilitated, Sri Lanka was negotiating with China to finalise a Free Trade Agreement (FTA). The government-owned Sunday Observer described the China-Sri Lanka FTA as the biggest development in Sino-Lanka cooperation since the 1952 Rubber-Rice Pact.

Two months ago, Sri Lanka’s minister for industry and commerce Rishad Bathiudeen was hopeful of finalising the FTA before the CHOGM in November 2013. However, the Deputy International Trade Representative of the Commerce Ministry of China, Yu Jianhua who visited Sri Lanka last month was more realistic. He expected “the preparatory process of the FTA to be completed by December this year.” He was keen to see the groundwork on this FTA completed by December this year.

The Chinese representative added “Sri Lanka is a priority country for the Ministry of Commerce, China (MOFCOM). The FTA will not only upgrade trade levels between Sri Lanka and China but will also enhance trade skills of both countries as well. We will work diligently in our joint efforts.” Yu said before visiting Colombo, he had looked carefully at China’s trade links with Sri Lanka on issues like tariffs, market access in China, diversifying Sri Lanka’s exports, and overall enhancement of Sri Lanka’s export potential to China.”  

In his view, the FTA was not only for trade “but something beyond, to institutionalise our strategic cooperation partnership as mandated by the leaders of both countries. We encourage Chinese firms to become involved in Sri Lanka’s economic development.”

The Chinese efforts to enhance its trading opportunities on the sidelines of CHOGM are interesting. According to Xinhua, 42 Chinese companies were among the 83 foreign companies participating in the trade exhibition “Reflections of Sri Lanka” being held on the sidelines of the CHOGM. In contrast, despite being Sri Lanka’s largest trading partner, India will be represented by only 21 companies at the exhibition.  

Sri Lanka has been wooing Chinese business to invest in Sri Lanka saying it could reap the benefits of the island nation’s FTA with India and Pakistan (and the proposed SAFA –South Asian Free Trade Agreement when it becomes a reality). India has a flourishing FTA with Sri Lanka since 1996. It has helped India-Sri Lanka trade to grow from $600 million in 2000 to $5 billion in 2012. As against this, China-Sri Lanka trade even without an FTA has grown from $658.4 million in 2005 to $2676.13 million by 2012. Obviously, China-Sri Lanka trade aided by an FTA would retard the growth of India’s trade with Sri Lanka.

Ever since the Eelam War excesses started to haunt Sri Lanka, Tamil Nadu has become the focal point of hate campaign against Sri Lanka in India affecting the excellent relations between the two countries. Of late, a beleaguered Sri Lanka has started using trade as a pressure point to express its concern over India’s “Sri Lanka politics.” The CHOGM which should have been an inconsequential international event turning into a political contest in India is a case in point.  

So how should India respond to Sri Lanka-China FTA? In fact, Tamil Nadu should be debating this issue because the state had benefitted most from the FTA with Sri Lanka. But in the polemics of partisan politics, the issue seems to have been wished away. The anachronism is even the few Sri Lankan business and cultural establishments in Chennai are under police protection lest pro-Eelam fringe elements attack them just as they carried out petrol bombs attacks on two post offices in Chennai, in protest against India’s participation in the CHOGM. The pity is it is happening as indecisive national leadership looks on helplessly. At least it seems so.

(The author, a retired MI officer, served as the head of intelligence of the Indian Peace Keeping Force in Sri Lanka from 1987 to 90. He can be contacted at colhari@yahoo.com)

Reconciliation on the rocks  in wake of drone destabilization 

Pakistani Taliban commander Hakimullah Mehsud

November 6, 2013, 

Accordingly, reconciliation among once adversaries is not possible until there is a owning-up of wrong-doing against each other by the parties to a conflict. In other words, they need to say, ‘I am sorry’ to each other. Nothing could bring about reconciliation and healing more effectively than these uniting and soul-stirring words.

While Sri Lanka could take some credit for making the term ‘reconciliation’ something of a buzzword in the South Asian region, on account of the country’s post-conflict challenges, it is pleasantly surprising to find the US speaking in terms of missed opportunities for reconciliation in the Afghan theatre.

Reconciliation on the rocks  in wake of drone destabilization by nelvely

OMG ! This Obama Is Taller Than Bush Jnr. Ain’t He ?

By Kusal Perera -November 7, 2013

Kusal Perera

This evening in a Colombo Telegraph post, I watched Julian Assange appearing on Skype to address the crowd that had packed the NY City Terminal 5 to grace the opening performance of the rebel UK artiste Maya Arulpragasam born to Sri Lankan Tamil parents and better known as M.I.A. Calling her the most courageous woman working in Western music, locked in London’s Ecuadorian Embassy, Assange told New Yorkers he can only appear via Skype because, “Your government sucks.”

This triggered a thought process that took me to Barrack Obama, the second time elect US President still incumbent, first elected in November 2008 and sworn in January 2009. Nine months later he became a Nobel Peace prize laureate, just for his rhetoric and nothing else. Then I thought, isn’t this a shame that a person who wages a cruel war in Afghanistan, one who sanctioned Drone attacks in Afghanistan where innocent civilians are killed and vows to continue waging that war, is made a peace prize laureate ? Iwrote then, “The fact is, no US president could do otherwise, with or without a Nobel Peace prize. Obama as all other US Presidents has to continue SOUTHCOM operations, with a 600 million dollar administrative budget, to service Latin American military assistance, that annually tops over USS $ 120 million. That is not what is more important in Obama being awarded the Peace Prize. It’s the US economy and its heavy dependence on military hardware and armaments. This US economy is an economy that is heavily dependent on waging war, to sustain their heavy armament industry.” Imagine Obama standing next to Mandela ?

During that time I heard him tell the world, “Today we are engaged in a deadly global struggle for those who would intimidate, torture, and murder people for exercising the most basic freedoms. If we are to win this struggle and spread those freedoms, we must keep our own moral compass pointed in a true direction.” He had been saying plenty of similar things, that means nothing to the people in the US and outside US. So, Assange tells New Yorkers, “Your government sucks.”

Obvious ! Assange is locked in the Ecuadorian embassy in London, because the US under Obama may want him extradited to the US for engineering the massive leak of sensitive, security and intelligence related secret documents from US safe boxes. All what gave the world a chance to see the true and sordid picture of the US administration, compromising not only Bush Jnr as president, but Obama as well.

Under this Obama regime, the second whistle blower is trying to avoid his extradition to the US, having a temporary stay in Moscow. Edward Snowden cracked open another sinister project by the US National Security Agency that had been eavesdropping into phone conversations of its own friendly heads of States. This president who said he is in a global struggle to stop intimidation, torture and murder of people for exercising the most basic freedoms and wants to win this struggle and spread those freedoms, has two people fighting for their freedom, they seriously fear, will be burnt out by the US under President Obama. Read More

The Energy Trap

By Ranil Senanayake -November 7, 2013

Ranil Senanayake

In Sri Lanka, in December 1979, an official communiqué was issued by the Government and displayed in the nation’s newspapers stating,  “No oil means no development, and less oil, less development. It is oil that keeps the wheels of development moving”. This defines with clarity what is to be considered development by the policy makers of that Nation. Here was a fundamental and fateful decision that cast a deadly policy framework for the nation. The energy source that was to drive the national economy would be fossil.  Our addiction to fossil fuels (Coal, Oil, Gas ) is clearly seen in the growth of oil and gas imports. Even today, that same policy framework and its adherents continue. The public discussions on the irrationality of clinging to coal, oil and gas for the development of our power needs in the face of the modern technologies, clearly demonstrate serious flaws in the current energy policy.

After the heat energy of biomass used for the hearth and local industry, electrical energy is the fundamental force that drives modern civilization. Human ingenuity has developed technologies that have moved our reliance on fossil fuels as source of energy to generate electricity.   Today there is a choice of from a multitude of other sources, hydro, solar, wind, bio, tidal etc.  All of them being ultimately driven by the power of the Sun.

With such developments the old arguments that   ‘economies need to industrialize in order to reduce poverty, but industrialization leads to emissions’   rings hollow.  Industrialization, if so desired, need not lead to emissions, if modern technologies are used and a caring government is in place.  A vision of development based on the profligate use of fossil fuel, may never be attainable.  However a vision of power for our homes and industry based on ‘renewable’ sources of energy is attainable .  Indeed one indicator of ‘development’ could be ‘the per capita consumption of power’ if that consumption of power is non fossil in generation, sustainable development goals could be reached .                                              Read More

லண்டனில் பொறியியலாளராக மகன்; பார்க்க துடிக்கும் முதியோர் இல்லத்திலுள்ள தாய்

-செல்வநாயகம் கபிலன்

யாழ்ப்பாணம், கைதடி முதியோர் இல்லத்திலுள்ள தாயொருவர் லண்டனில் பொறியியலாளராக கடமையாற்றும் தன் மகனை பார்க்க வேண்டுமென்று முதியோர் இல்ல அதிகாரிகள் மற்றும் உறவினர்களிடம் கோரிக்கையொன்றையும் முன்வைத்துள்ளார். கைதடி முதியோர் இல்லத்தில் கடந்த பத்து வருடங்கலாக வசித்து வரும் வயோதிபத் தாயான பூவேந்திரம் தவபோசனம் (வயது 61) என்பவரே இவ்வாறு கோரிக்கை முன்வைத்துள்ளார். இவர் நெல்லியடி, வதிரியைச் சேர்ந்தவராவார். 

இவர் தொடர்பில் தகவலளித்த கைதடி முதியோர் இல்ல அத்தியட்சகர் த.கிருபாகரன் கூறியதாவது, 'குறித்த பெண் திருமணமான ஒரு மாத காலத்தில் கணவனை இழந்ததாகவும் இவருக்கு ஒரே ஒரு மகன் இருப்பதாகவும் எமக்கு தெரிவிக்கப்பட்டது. 

கணவனின் இழப்பு காரணமாக இவர் மனநலம் பாதிக்கப்பட்டதால் கடந்த 10 வருடங்களக்கு முன்னர் கைதடி முதியோர் இல்லத்தில் அவரது உறவினர்களால் அனுமதிக்கப்பட்டார். 

குறித்த பெண்ணின் மகன் உறவினர்களால் வளர்க்கப்பட்டு தற்போது அவர் லண்டனில் பொறியியலாளராக கடமை புரிகின்றார். இந்நிலையில், இவர் ஓரளவு மனநலம் தேறி பழைய நினைவுகளுக்கு திரும்பி தனது மகனின் பெயர் மற்றும் உறவினர்களின் பெயர்களை கூறி வருகின்றார். 

தற்போது அவர் தனது மகனை தேடுவதாகவும் மகன் தன்னை வந்து பார்ப்பாரா? என குறித்த தாய் பாசம் மேலிட்ட நிலையில் ஏங்கி அதற்கான சந்தர்ப்பத்தினை ஏற்படுத்தித் தருமாறும் எம்மிடம் கோருகின்றார். 

இதனால், கைதடி முதியோர் இல்லத்தில் வசிக்கும் தாயைப் பார்ப்பதற்காக அவரது மகன் எங்கு இருந்தாலும் இல்லத்துடன் தொடர்பு கொள்ளுமாறு கேட்டுக்கொள்கிறோம்' என்று முதியோர் இல்ல அத்தியட்சகர் மேலும் தெரிவித்தார்.

Now a street named after AR Rahman in Canada




Read more at: http://www.firstpost.com/bollywood/now-a-street-named-after-ar-rahman-in-canada-1214455.html?utm_source=ref_article
Oscar winning musician AR Rahman now has a street in Canada named after him. A street in Markham, Ontario has been christened “Allah-Rakha Rahman st” in honour of him. Rahman tweeted a picture of him posing on the street with a sign that says “Allah-Rakha Rahman st” on his Twitter page and wrote, ‘Welcome to my street.’ Courtesy: Twitter Rahman has received many international accolades which includes Academy Awards, Grammy Awards, a BAFTA Award and a Golden Globe. Rahman was also awarded the Padma Bhushan, India’s third highest civilian honour, in 2010. Often referred to as the Mozart of Madras, Rahman has also received several honorary degrees from universities across the globe.

கனடா மார்க்கம் தெருவுக்கு ஏ.ஆர்.ரஹ்மான் பெயர் சூட்டப்பட்டது

November 05, 2013

கனடா மார்க்கம் நகரில் உள்ள தெருவுக்கு இசைப்புயல் ஏ.ஆர்.ரஹ்மானின் பெயர் சூட்டப்பட்டுள்ளது.

இந்திய சினிமாவின் 100வது ஆண்டு விழாவை சிறப்பிக்கும் வகையில் கனடாவின் பிரதான நகரங்களுள் ஒன்றான டொரண்டோவின் மர்கம் நகரில் சர்வதேச இந்திய திரைப்பட விழா நடைபெற்று வருகிறது.

இவ்விழாவில் இசைப்புயல் ஏ.ஆர்.ரஹ்மானின் தமிழ், பாலிவுட் மற்றும் ஹாலிவுட் சாதனைகளை போற்றி புகழாரம் சூட்டப்பட்டது.

பின்னர், மர்கம் பகுதியில் உள்ள பிரதான தெரு ஒன்றுக்கு ஏ.ஆர்.ரஹ்மான்(அல்லாஹ் – ரக்ஹா ரஹ்மான்) தெரு என பெயர் சூட்டப்பட்டது.

அந்த பெருமைக்குரிய பெயர் பலகையுடன் அடக்கமே உருவாக இசைப்புயல் ‘போஸ்’ தரும் காட்சியை படத்தில் காணலாம்.

Please click here to join our campaign against sexual violence

We know William Hague cares deeply about sexual violence:

"Where there is no justice and accountability, the seeds of future violence are sown"

William Hague at the launch of the Foreign Office's Preventing Sexual Violence initiative.

Here is William Hague with Angelina Jolie launching his campaign on sexual violence.

Here are Hague and Jolie promoting that initiative once again while visiting a refugee camp in Congo.

We know sexual violence is rife in Sri Lanka:

This man told ITV news he was raped over 200 times in the course of the last year. Sri Lanka is the number one country for victims of rape and torture seeking help from Freedom from Torture

Here is a video supporting Human Rights Watch's report into 75 cases of rape by Sri Lankan security forces of detained Tamils. This is likely to be the tip of the iceberg.

This woman told the BBC she had been sexually assaulted because of her support for the Tamil Tigers. According to a report by the Minority Rights Group many minority women are subjected to sexual violence at the hands of the Sri Lankan army.

So why doesn't William Hague care about sexual violence in Sri Lanka?

"Timid and inconsistent"

The Foreign Affairs Select Committee's view of William Hague's policy towards Sri Lanka.

Here is William Hague on his way toquaff champagne at a taxpayer-funded event celebrating the President of Sri Lanka.

William Hague will go to the Commonwealth Summit in Sri Lanka on November 15th. At that meeting the President of Sri Lanka will become the Chair of the Commonwealth. Has William Hague forgotten about the victims of sexual violence?

Please use this form to tell William Hague that Sri Lanka's victims of sexual violence need him to speak out too:

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Please click here to join our campaign against sexual violence

Puththoor villagers blame SL police for shielding culprits of rape, murder

[TamilNet, Wednesday, 06 November 2013, 12:23 GMT]
Sinhala police officials of the occupying Sri Lankan State are protecting the culprits committing rape and murder of Tamil women, accuse the residents of Puththoor in Valikkaamam East in Jaffna at a protest held on Wednesday following the recent rape and murder of 27-year-old woman, Maithili Amirthalingam, who was recovered dead from a well near her house on 29 October. The SL Police officials was attempting to protect the culprits by stating that the death was caused by drowning and ignoring the medical report of the Judicial Medical Officer at Jaffna Hospital, the family of the victim told TamilNet on Wednesday. Maithili is the second victim subjected to brutal rape and murder within the last one month in Jaffna. 

Representatives of women rights group and village-level grassroots organizations also took part in the protest. Similar protests were held recently at Naachchimaar temple and in Ariyaalai, following the brutal murder of a mentally affected woman from Vanni, staying with her relatives in Ariyaalai and was being looked after by the Holy Family Convent in Jaffna. 

Maithili was recovered dead from a well, located 800 meters from her house, allegedly after 3 unidentified men took her into their custoday outside her house after making a phone call to her. 

The medical inspection by the JMO at Jaffna Hospital has established that the victim's injuries indicated sexual abuse and rape. The villagers also say that there were remains of blood outside the well, which is located near the SL military guarded Puththoor junction on Jaffna - Point Pedro Road. 

Rani's story

05/11/2013

Roma Tearne has kindly let us repost her true story from earlier this year - Rani's story. You can read the original here.
She has let us do this to draw attention to our campaign on sexual violence. Please give it a read, and if it makes you feel strongly then please support our campaign by clicking here.
Rani's story

Rani's Story by nelvely

The Tamil Homeland Question

By Rajan Hoole -November 6, 2013

Rajan Hoole

Sri Lanka: A Haunted Nation - The Social Underpinnings Of Communal Violence- Part 7

The political significance of the Tamil Homeland question has been similarly ob- scured by a spectrum of Southerners minutely dissecting Tamil nationalist claims and arguing that they are very unreasonable. The po- litical content of Tamil claims that was not ad- dressed was the demand for security and the right to preserve their identity. The history of state inspired communal attacks in 1956, 1981 and 1983 are ample demonstration of that need. Tamil nationalist claims are again a reaction to a very partial history sponsored by the State and taught through school textbooks. This official history makes claims to the effect that the Sin- halese were the first civilised inhabitants of this land having moreover an ‘Aryan’ origin. The ‘Dravidian’ Tamils are said to have come later as invaders and destroyers.

Any attempt to question this – and many Sin- halese scholars have done so (e.g. R.A.L.H. Gunawardene and more recently, Sudharshan Seneviratne) – would be met by a host of articles in the Press, often by established scholars, bordering on abuse. Once Sinhalese nationalism became the state ideology, counter ideologies and counter myths from those who felt threatened were inevitable and became the most powerful tools for mobilisation around a nationalist cause. It is pointless to treat this in isolation of the larger context of myth-making. We are always in dan- ger of chasing after red herrings.Read More

A Haunted Nation: India And The Legacy Of The Citizenship Act

By Rajan Hoole - Sri Lanka: A Haunted Nation - The Social Underpinnings Of Communal Violence- Part 6 India And Plantation Labour How Vittachi deals with the rights of Planta- tion Tamil labour of recent Indian origin who toiled many generations in semi-serfdom for the prosperity of others, too, has no doubt much ac- ceptance (p.5 of his book): [...]

Continue reading …

Obfuscation Of Tamil Grievances

By Rajan Hoole - Sri Lanka: A Haunted Nation - The Social Underpinnings Of Communal Violence- Part 5 A strong class interest in obfuscating the truth and shifting the blame for the July 1983 violence on the Left has persisted down the years. The following was written in 1988 by Sam Wijesingha, Parliamentary Commis- sioner for Administration (Ombudsman) and leading [...]

Continue reading …

A Haunted Nation: The CCNH Document-Part 4 

A Haunted Nation: Other Minority Groups And The July ViolencePart 3

Exorcising Reds And Eelamists- Part 2

Sri Lanka: A Haunted Nation – The Social Underpinnings Of Communal Violence

Commonwealth secretariat disturbed

November 5, 2013

The Commonwealth Secretariat says it is “disturbed” by scenes and testimonies in the ‘No Fire Zone’ video on Sri Lanka.

Commonwealth Secretariat spokesman Richard Uku tweeted saying the controversial video show the ugliness of war.

He said that learing lessons and reconciliation are key for Sri Lanka to go forward.

“According to international standards, truth, accountability and reconciliation all go together,” he added.

Commonwealth Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma had yesterday refused to agree to calls for an international investigation on Sri Lanka over alleged human rights abuses.

When asked in an interview on the BBC about UN calls for an international investigation, Sharma said the Commonwealth does not have a position on something which he says is “not practical”.

Despite concerns raised ahead of the Commonwealth summit in Sri Lanka this month, Sharma said that the level of participation expected this year is no different to past summits. (Colombo Gazette)

No Fire Zone – Full Documentary – Channel 4 ‘No Fire Zone’

Sending Hamlet to Lanka

Sanjeev Ahluwalia -06 November 2013,

India is caught in the quintessential indecisiveness of the fictional, Danish, Prince Hamlet, created by Shakespeare, who agonizes over “to be or not to be”, loosely applied here as “to go or not to go”, to the forthcoming Commonwealth meet in Sri Lanka.

Apparently, at issue is only how to deal with the outraged Tamil sentiment, should the government decide to participate, since this could undercut support for the Congress, amongst Tamil Nadu Members of Parliament, post the 2014 elections.

That the Sri Lankan army butchered their Tamils, both those heavily armed and the unarmed innocent, is clear. However, this is really no different from what is happening in Syria and what occurs in every place, where citizens decide to take up arms against the State.

The fundamental basis of the State, is its monopoly over violence. The manner in which violence is used, reflects the character of the State. In developed democracies, State violence is only permitted if aligned to the principles of the Rule of Law. For example, the State’s right to take away a citizens rights, liberty or life, is constrained by the legal requirement to follow the process of law. In pure forms of autocracy and monarchy, it is the ruler who has the power over life, death and taxes. Less developed democracies, like ours, fall somewhere in between. We allow the police and army to give the go-by to the rule of law, in areas of extreme civil unrest as in the North East in the 1970s to 1980s and Punjab, in the 1980s. Some, like Kashmir and the Maoist tribal belt in Eastern India continue to be endemic areas of conflict.

We are being hypocritical, if we are willing to suppress violent, domestic unrest, with a strong hand, but pretend to be squeamish about the manner in which Sri Lanka dealt with the Tamils.



No one can condone the killing of civilians by the State anywhere, but it does happen in poorly governed States. Once the personal, social and economic cost of taking up arms is lower for a citizen, than the benefits of remaining pliant to an oppressive regime, it becomes “rational” to revolt. Civilian deaths are collateral damage for the ensuing war to impose the supremacy of the State.

Mahatma Gandhi of course had the perfect, albeit difficult, strategy for citizens to deal with coercive regimes. Negotiate with the regime to make life incrementally better for citizens. Draw red lines, beyond which you will not be pushed. Oppose the regime thereafter, not by force, but through “Satyagraha” (passive resistance). By behaving thus, citizens retain the moral high ground. This moral high ground was not maintained by citizens in Sri Lanka, as it was not in Punjab and has not been in Syria, Kashmir and Maoist East India. By losing the moral high ground, citizens descend to the level of warriors and the rule of war replaces the rule of law.

Tamil Indians understandably feel compelled to highlight the ruthlessness of the conflict. But is it not better to focus on what India can do next, to mainstream the Sri Lanka Tamils, rather than merely lament the past.

India has itself wisely used an entire gambit of measures, including special financial support, positive discrimination and political consensus, to pull the Seven Sisters (seven Indian States in the North East) into the national mainstream. Of course, it also helps that we are a genuine democracy. Hospitality, high-end retail outlets and private nursing services in metropolitan India are invariably manned by in-migrants from the North East. Sikkim, the most recent entrant to the Republic (1975), is poised to become a global, organic, tourism hot spot.

Dr. Singh, our Prime Minister, outlined his principles of “Panchsheel” yesterday, to include value based, enlightened self-interest, but usefully, left unclear, what our “values” are. But surely, we should apply the same value system to assess governance standards in foreign governments, as we use to rule our own citizens. By these standards, Sri Lanka is unexceptionally unfortunate in having treated its citizens shabbily, but they are no exception.

Perhaps our values are identity specific. Perhaps we view shabby treatment, by foreign governments, of their citizens of Indian origin, more severely. This is an entirely reasonable approach and consistent with our anti-apartheid stand in South Africa. But this is not a State visit by the Indian PM to Sri Lanka which could be interpreted to mean India condoning the killings. The choice of venue for the CHOGAM is incidental.

It is all very well for Tamil Nadu politicos to play to their gallery but that is about as much traction, as there is, for the “not to go” groupies in India. If we can shake hands with Pakistan, over the blood of our soldiers, in the larger interest of regional security, surely we can be one of the many Commonwealth members in Colombo, nudging Sri Lankan towards Tamil integration.

India has been extremely pragmatic and successful in dealing with internal rebellion, albeit at significant cost to the unfortunate individuals caught in the ensuing war. Rapid growth, with equity, along with the hope of transition to democratic governance, is our medium term solution for dealing with domestic disaffection. We should sell this model to Sri Lanka. It is time for the PM to fill-in his travel request for Lanka.

"Perfidious Albion cannot change its spots"

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 05 November 2013, 03:12 GMT]
Asserting that the Commonwealth is simply a reincarnation of the British Empire and the British Imperial system, Professor Boyle, an expert in international law, remarked that placing the alleged genocidaire Mahinda Rajapakse as the Commonwealth Chairperson-in-office for the next two years, "will expose the Commonwealth as a Sick Joke." Professor Boyle found Prince of Wales and British Prime Minister David Cameron's attendance to CHOGM despicable and drew similarity to the American Founding Father Thomas Paine's charaterization of the British as "Perfidious Albion cannot change its spots," after the massacres of American soldiers at Lexington by the British Hessian mercenaries. 

Professor Francis A. Boyle, University of Illinois

In a note sent to TamilNet commenting on the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting (CHOGM) in Colombo, Professor Boyle said: "The Commonwealth has never been anything more than the reincarnation of the British Empire and the British Imperial System. Rajapaksa as its Head for two years will expose the Commonwealth as a Sick Joke and a Demented Fraud to the entire World. Good riddance! Ditto for Prince Charlie! 

"To paraphrase one of America’s greatest Founding Fathers Tom Paine in his classic pamphlet Common Sense written right after what he correctly called the massacres of American citizen-soldier Minutemen at Lexington and Concord by British professional Hessian mercenaries: Who founded the British Monarchy? It was that Norman Bastard and his Gang of Bandits, William dubbed the Conqueror. Perfidious Albion cannot change its spots," Boyle added in his comment.

This will be the first time in 40 years that Queen Elizabeth II will not be present at the CHOGM. 

The Prime Minister of Canada, Stephen Harper, stated that he would not attend the meeting as a protest of Sri Lanka's failure to improve its human rights record, as he said he would at the previous CHOGM; 

Harper further elaborated that Canada may cease its contributions to the funding of the Commonwealth should no action be taken by the organisation against Sri Lanka. 

Senator Hugh Segal, Canada's envoy to the Commonwealth, exclaimed that the Commonwealth Secretariat was acting "as a 'shill'" for Sri Lanka's government. 

In October 2013, the legislature of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu passed an unanimous resolution demanding that the Indian government completely boycott the meeting and also sought the temporary suspension of Sri Lanka from the Commonwealth until Sri Lanka takes steps to grant Tamils all the same rights that the Sinhalese have.

In Malaysia, Lim Guan Eng, Chief Minister of the state of Penang, and the Secretary General of the Democratic Action Party called on the Malaysian government to boycott the summit as a protest against what the two clamed was human rights violations committed by the Sri Lankan government against Tamils.

The New Zealand Green Party also placed similar calls for a boycott.