Renounce ethnic discrimination on Sri lanka’s 57th independence day

Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, the Tamil rebel outfit has one more time urged the Tamils living in Sri Lanka to adopt today – 4th February as the Black Day for Tamils and declared that commemorating Independence Day is a mockery.

Earlier, Tamils, Muslims and Sinhalese of Sri Lanka (Ceylon), jointly clamored for the independence of the country from the British colonial yoke. And on the momentous 4th February 1948, the country attained independence.

Those political leaders from the majority ethnicity – the power hungry ones – from D.S.Senanayake to J.R.Jayawardne and from S.W.R. D Bandaranaike to Srimavo Bandaranaike adopted policies to discriminate against the Tamils believing it as a shortcut to power and position.

Where are these so called leaders today?

All those progenitors of ethnic cleansing are dead and gone, but the country and the countrymen remain to reap the sickening legacies of the ethnic cleansing, mad policies orchestrated by those deceased leaders.

Even in the midst of the Tamils, G.G.Ponnampalam and S.J.V. Chelvanayagam are no more and we have now Prabaharan, a commoner who believed in the barrel of the gun and assured the Tamils that he will win for them the traditional Homeland – Tamil Eelam.

Since 1975 to date, 30 long torturous years have passed and nearly 70,000 innocent people are killed, but Tamils are being tramples under the jackboots of Prabaharan and his men, and are today under the dual control and unfortunately nothing has happened to the Tamils, except they are more slaves under the autocratic authoritarianism than they were yesterday.

Only thing that happened was, they completely lost their basic freedoms, freedom of expression, writing and also their right to life under the Tamil militant organizations. When someone points out lapses, hardships Tamils’ experience today, they are being hounded to serve the maximum penalty, once and for all.

After 1948, Country is celebrating the Independence Day for the 57th time today and so far we have failed to realize, enjoy and cherish the true deliverance from the colonial yoke as a section of the people are still under a system, where majority could crush the minority.

Whilst the minority communities, Tamils and the Muslims are at the mercy of the Sinhalese, Tamils are continuously remote controlled by threat and intimidation by the Tamil militant organization.

In the official website of the LTTE one more statement appeared with a headline “Feb 4th Black Day for Tamils till right to self -determination is recognised”

It went on to say, “Successive governments, having marginalized the Tamil people from the body politic of this island and continuing to deny their basic right to self-determination, commemorating ‘independence day’ on 4th February is a mockery and hence 4th February would remain a Black Day for the Tamil people until such time lasting arrangements are provided for in the constitution, accommodating the Tamil aspirations.”

It was a statement, calling upon the Tamil people to observe 4th February as a Black Day, reiterating that the collective conscience of the Tamil people dictates it to be so and it cannot be otherwise.

The call to hoist black flags and to adopt today as a Black Day or dark day or whatever day you wanted to call, was first introduced by S.J.V.Chelvanayagam and he is no more today, but the Tamils continuously mark the independence day as the Black day, but it is a mockery to mark a country’s independence day, a day that delivered all of us from the colonial yoke as a black day.

Country's freedom from the last colonial masters has nothing to do with the country’s present disastrous plight. It is the making of the people of this country– the Sinhalese, Tamils and the Muslims and they are responsible for this critical situation.

The people failed to treat their fellow men as human beings; instead they looked at as Sinhalese Tamils and Muslims. This was the very reason for the country’s pitiable position.

When are they going to think of them as human beings and forget giving prominence to ethnicity? That will be the real day, the day the independence will be born in Sri Lanka.

This is the 57th time the people have come forward to celebrate the independence and it is high time that they resolve to rescind ethnic importance and come forward to proclaim themselves the oneness, the citizen of this country - Sri Lanka or Ilankai in whatever way they all call the Eelam –beloved motherland.

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An appeal for unity on the National day.

We refused to learn through several decades of Independence,” Chandrika Kumaratunga underlined in her message and acquiesced; “The mighty forces of nature taught us a lesson,” she went on add, “A nation that was home to various communities of peoples, divided itself along ethnic, linguistic and religious lines. [more]

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LTTE rampage Tsunamis relief

The LTTE are believed to be frustrated by the distribution of relief assistance by the EPDP to the Tsunamis affected people of Vadamarachchi and Vdamarachchi East and are now taking alternative measures as they did not succeed in blocking the assistance in numerous ways. Tsunamis victims now approach the EPDP office and have been gladly receiving their relief goods for the last few days.
People of Sakkottai welfare camp also go to EPDP office for assistance. People went to the EPDP office even yesterday. The LTTE cadres, Dayalan and Gangai Amaran had used abusive language at the people who received relief goods from the EPDP and had warned them that the same shooting similar to the Aathikoviladi incident would happen to them if they continue to receive assistance from the EPDP.
This clearly brings to the limelight that the LTTE were the party who were involved in the shooting incident at Adikoviladi, Valvettithurai.
When Dayalan and Gangai Amaran came towards Manthihai they had seen people go with relief goods received from EPDP, became jealous and furious and grabbed the goods from an elderly person and burnt them all. This incident had made the people very angry.
This incident also made the people to understand the manner in which the LTTE operates towards the ill-fated people. Does it matter at this time as to who gives it to them as long as the affected people get the help they need!!

LTTE’s despicable act at Kudathanai

The Tsunami victims at Annai Velankanni Church, Nadu Kudathanai, Vadamarachchi East were distributed with bicycles by the UNHCR recently.
The LTTE, from behind the scene, had tried in many a ways to divert the presentation and hand over the bicycles to the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization but they failed to succeed as the donors continued with their programme.
The refugees request the representatives of volunteer organizations and agencies to provide their assistance directly to them instead of giving it through other movements and this also had brought embarrassment to the LTTE.
The disrespectful act of the LTTE trying to be brokers between the donors and receivers had made the people to understand the actual stand of the LTTE.
People who received the bicycles happily say that they were able to receive them because they were directly gifted to them and they own it now.
The sordid action of the LTTE and their ally TRO to receive the relief from the Government and as well as the other volunteer organizations has being brought to the lime light and the people have completely lost faith in the LTTE.

LTTE block relief goods to the Jaffna Peninsula

Several international and local organizations and well wishers bringing relief goods to help the Tsunamis affected people of the Jaffna Peninsula face hindrances at Omanthai check point manned by the LTTE.
The LTTE cadres at the check point press the organizations and well wishers to hand over their goods to the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization otherwise the goods will be considered as business items and would be taxed.
The donors face a lot of problem in managing to bring the goods to the peninsula.
The well wishers are eager to provide whatever assistance possible for their own people, who lost their homes, belongings, kith and kin by the Tsunamis giant waves but are unable to do so due to the obstacles of the LTTE.
Representatives of the volunteer organizations hesitate to transport relief goods in great quantities to Vadamarachchi and Vadamarachchi East as they face much harassment by the LTTE.

Cunning act of the LTTE imposing orders to fishermen

The LTTE had warned and threatened the fishermen of Gurunagar and Pashaiyiur islands last night that they would face severe punishments if they fish in the seas under the control of the LTTE.
They had also announced that there is good seafood resource in the sea under their control and if the fishermen wish to fish there, the fishermen must shift with their families to the area between Poonagiri and Vidatalthivu, which are west of Vanni.
The LTTE’s intention is to sabotage the fishermen who were engaged in fishing in the west and north for generations by demarcating the sea too, to be under their control and bring the fisher people under their hands and block the children’s education and force them into their military ranks, fishermen said.
The LTTE also plan to impose tax on the catch of fish of the fishermen on their meager income in fishing.

Re-building the country is assured - President on Rupavahini

The intention of the government is to implement the re-building of the areas hit by the Tsunamis and in the meantime, to develop the entire country according to the budget proposal said President, Chandrika Bandaranayake Kumaratunge in an interview given to the Rupavahini last night.
The government was able to bring the Tsunamis disaster under control within three days and thus preventing diseases and epidemics.
Funds will be provided to the people who hade lost their houses to rebuild them but the government will not allow the building of houses within the area of 100 meters from the sea. Building of houses will begin next week. Re-construction works will be implemented in Jaffna too, said the President. She also said that the fishermen will be provided facilities to keep their fishing gear safely and a suitable place will be arranged to secure their fishing boats and other equipments.
The tsunamis had brought hardships to the people from all walks of life irrespective of status, cast, creed or religion. All people must be treated alike and international countries have come forward to help these people.
Foreign countries are satisfied with the relief works conducted by the government and have expressed their desire to send their assistance continuously, the President said.

Nine mothers claim the Tsunami child

A four months old child was fortunate to survive from the Tsunamis disaster and was admitted to the Kalmunai hospital. But many a person was claiming the ownership of the child.
Hence the Kalmunai police produced this case in courts, but only one couple attended the courts to claim the child. The courts ordered the child and the parents be sent to the hospital in Colombo and to carry out a DNA experiment and the court will give its judgment based on the DNA report, said the Magistrate.

Funds collected by the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization spent on warheads

The Tamil Rehabilitation, a pro LTTE movement, is successfully collecting funds from the expatriate Tamils in Canada and spends the monies collected on warheads to be sent to the LTTE. This was disclosed be a Tamil journalist, named Karuppaiyah Somasunderam in Toronto, Canada. The TRO had collected one million US dollars only from America, he said.