The TNA And Sri Lankan Unity
A girl on a bicycle is seen against a backdrop of election posters, in Valvettithurai, July 22, 2011. By Dinidu de Alwis
The Tamil National Alliance is sorta Tamil nationalist, as the name would suggest. Even they, however, seem willing to accept a united Sri Lanka, and to work towards resolution of Tamil issues within a Sri Lankan context. After the election Niran Ankatell said that the TNA campaigned on the war crimes issue, on bringing foreign intervention against the central government. I read the statement Mr. R. Sampanthan made before and heard reports about after, and I don’t think that’s what he said. As far as I can tell, he’s speaking in unifying language like me and, I think, the Sri Lankan mainstream.
(1) Resettlement and Rehabilitation of all displaced Tamil families in the North and East
(2) Actions by the Government, or with Government patronage pertaining to lands for military purposes
(3) A political solution within the framework of united and undivided country that will enable the Tamil people to live in security and dignity, fulfilling their legitimate political, economic, social and cultural aspirations.
I read that July 18th statement and he mentions verdicts about human rights law in passing, in relation to the elections. He’s saying that the election is a verdict on the issue, which I’m totally fine with:
The Government it would appear hopes that it can win these elections by hook or by crook. Such a verdict is required to face up to allegations which are now in the public domain, pertaining to violations of International Human Rights Laws and International Humanitarians Laws. The Government seems to think that irrespective of the means by which the verdict is obtained a somewhat favourable verdict is a compulsive need. The Government is once again making the mistake of imagining that everyone else is deaf and blind and that it can conceal all its misdeeds…
We call upon the Tamil people to remain calm even in the face of the gravest provocation. When you cast your vote you are exercising your Sovereignty. That is the essence of democracy.
If Sampanthan wants to pursue the war crimes issue in Sri Lanka I think that’s totally fine. It’s not coming from a vengeful wing of the diaspora, pushed by dodgy British media and lobbied foreign politicians. Sampanthan’s on the ground, he’s got votes from directly affected people, fine. He’s not talking about sanctions or foreign prosecution or anything, he’s talking about democracy. What I do find striking is that he mentions this issue in passing, and it was not the principal focus of his campaign.
His campaign was run on issues that I or any reasonable Sri Lankan can understand. They’re running in a local election talking about local issues. In the south we have similar issues but not to anything near the same degree. That said, at the core he’s talking about people losing their homes, which everyone from Pamankada to Slave Island understands. Hell, even elephants would understand. Knock yourselves out boys.
Anyways, I got here in a rather roundabout way. I was actually reading a translation of a Sinhala transcription of what Sumanthiran said to diaspora Tamils in the UK (presumably in Tamil), in translation. So, what follows may have played a bit of telephone.
He had been asked by the diaspora, when questioned about creating a separate state. Our report said this meeting had both LTTErs and moderate tamils. Word is that he said, ‘the time has come for the Tamils abroad to change the misconceptions they have of Sri Lanka and her people’. He said the TNA is discussing solutions within the party for the Tamil people. Talks are going well and a trust has been built in that regard. Finding solutions to Tamil issues.
‘While foreign governments are not acting on what the diaspora is asking for, the TNA is also not willing to do what the diaspora is saying they should do. Not going to act the way you say we should act.’
The majority of Sri Lanka is Sinhalese, says that Tamils should join in with a solution that accepts the Sinhalese as a majority. Tamil people should join in with a solution accepted by the majority Sinhalese. (via W3 Lanka, via via)
OK, so let’s check. I haven’t read TamilNet in ages, because they’ve devolved into random nonsense backed by anonymous representatives of large communities.
Voicing on behalf of the present establishment in New Delhi, sections in the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) unnecessarily declaring against independence of Eezham Tamils and discouraging war crimes investigations are worst of the crimes committed not merely against Eezham Tamils but against human civilization, said Tamil national as well as Left political circles in the island and in the diaspora to TamilNet on Monday. The comments have come responding to TNA views expressed after its victory and during its campaign in the civic elections. TNA leader Sampanthan interpreted the victory as Tamil wish for solutions within ‘united Sri Lanka’ (TamilNet direct, or elsewhere)
So, yeah, going purely by that 18th July statement (and a bit of gossip), the TNA ran and won the recent election on a platform I’m cool with – resolving Tamil issues within a united Sri Lanka. Since the UNP is defunct, maybe I should join the TNA.
I would be surprised if Sumanthiran actually said the things that he is purported to have said to representatives of the Tamil diaspora, because to me he has always come across as a hardliner. Through his interviews to various newspapers, I don’t think he comes across as someone who holds moderate views or is looking to solve problems through consensus with non-Tamils. That being said, if he did actually say what he is supposed to have said then that is hugely impressive, given how beholden to the Tamil disapora and the LTTE the political representatives of the Tamils have been over the years.
I think it is completely fair that a lot of people hold suspicions about the TNA after its complete submission to the LTTE. It is up to the TNA here to prove those suspicions wrong to the greater Sri Lankan population since it is the party that went along and bedded down with the LTTE. If the TNA shows some steps in the right direction it would be incumbent upon the government to seize the opportunity.
I know Sumanthiran personally and I find it hard to believe him a hardliner.
Indi reading Sinhala? I sometimes notice that the same news item is carried differently in Sinhala and English, sometimes in publications of the same newspaper group. But if the transcript was accurate, this is good news indeed.
Government hitting back, or fair assessment?
http://print.dailymirror.lk/news/front-page-news/51507-four-mp-slots-reduced-from-jaffna.html
Cutting down the number of seats has been on the agenda for some time.
http://transcurrents.com/tc/2010/03/tamil_representation_in_the_no.html
Interesting. Personally I think it makes sense – reducing the number of seats in proportion to the population I mean. But it looks like the TNA is all up in arms about it.
The problem is that people are still moving back to Jaffna (although I guess some might be moving out). Whatever the case the numbers are in flux and therefore it is premature to make any decisions on the right number of MPs to represent Jaffna. I have to say this announcement coming so close on the heels of the LG elections smacks of the Govt. being its usual petty minded self and trying to punish for northern electorate.
Agree. The timing is rotten.
It makes abstract sense, but it’s a bit bullshit that the central government would fight an active war in the north, causing people to leave, and then be like, oh, there’s less people here. I think you should give it a year or two to see where the population stabilizes.
The government should at least be sensitive to timing. It’s a bit like someone dying at dinner and being like, ‘so, nobody’s eating that?’
I too was heartened by the position articulated by Sampanthan as the TNA platform for the LG elections However, there is some inconsistency here because Sampanthan’s statement does not reflect what Suresh Premachandran said after the election (Premachandran talks about a mandate for self-rule within a merged N-E, demand for international investigation, etc. – see http://groundviews.org/2011/07/25/tna-mp-suresh-premachandran-on-the-result-of-the-local-government-elections/). This type of double talk doesn’t instill confidence that the TNA are playing with straight bat.
Btw, I think you meant to refer to Sampanthan (and not Sumanthiran) just after the second quotation. Also, Sumanthiran is a national list MP and therefore hasn’t really got any votes from the people.
shit, yeah. Fixed that
Ah, you went overboard now .. the 3rd quote (the one that is a translation from Sinhala) is actually from Sumanthiran (he was recently in the UK for some meeting of world parliamentarians).
fucking A, I just did a find and replace. Fixed again. Do you want a login?
One Sebastian Rasalingam has an interesting piece on the TNA:
“The Tamil National Alliance (TNA), the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF), and the UPFA (The united People’s Freedom Alliance), as well as fringe parties like the United National party (UNP), the Jingoist Vimukthi Pakshaya (JVP), and the Moslem’s Party have contested the local elections of the north. It is with utter shame that I note that the “Tamil” parties have failed to shed their communal names, and continue with the old racist labels, even in the 21st century.”
http://www.srilankaguardian.org/2011/07/local-elections-in-north-futile.html
The Nation on the TNA:
“The TNA appears to be gradually softening its hawkish political attitude judging by a statement reportedly made by party MP M.A.Sumanthiran during his recent visit to London to attend the 57th sessions of the Association of the Commonwealth of Nations. Sumanthiran who was a member of the Sri Lankan Parliamentary delegation to the sessions had attended a meeting organised by the Tamil Diaspora in London. He had reportedly told this meeting that time has come for Tamils now living outside Sri Lanka to look on their country with a new outlook.
He also had said that the TNA is already engaged in negotiations with a view to finding solutions to the main problems that the Tamil community is facing today. “There is a rapport with the government in the making as a result. The Tamil Diaspora, due to their conduct, has now gone down in the esteem of foreign diplomats now. We are also not prepared to dance to the tune set by the Tamil Diaspora either.”
Sumanthiran had also reportedly said:” Sinhalese account for the majority in Sri Lanka. The Tamil community has to subscribe to a solution acceptable to the Sinhala majority.”
However, the comments reportedly made by Sumanthiran have drawn flak from a section of the TNA. Meanwhile, TNA MP P.Ariyanetran had told media that the comments alleged to have been made by Sumanthiran reflect his personal opinion and not the official stand of the party.”
–
Interesting, Sumanthiran emerging as a moderate (if the reports are true)
http://www.nation.lk/2011/07/31/politics.htm
Indi,
I agree with you on the fact that war crimes was not the sole issue on which TNA campaigned, but having closely followed their campaign from first hand accounts I can say that it was certainly one of the main issues. Certainly among the top three.
I also agree with you that the motive behind the dominant section in the diaspora pursuing war crimes is revenge and has less to do with helping tamils who were affected to work through the trauma that they suffered.
But my exception to your comments on this are
- given the enormity of the crimes unless you are able to deal with it honestly the ‘sri lanka’ project will go nowhere. Finding common grounds is well and good – denying a core grievance is not and that is the clear message that the electorate has given. This is the case even if the sinhalese and the elephants think otherwise. If you want tamils to be a constituent element in ‘Sri Lanka’ you cannot pick and choose only things that sinhalese and elephants are comfortable with. Even if you are not making common cause with them, the country should have rules and institutions and safeguard mechanisms that give confidence to the tamils that they could pursue it safely. Given the state of our safeguard mechanisms – Judiciary, Police and Army etc – let alone the elephants, do you think tamils in Sri Lanka, on this issue or any other core issue for that matter, feel confident in this regard?
- in the absence of any room whatsoever within the country for tamils to raise a legitimate issue like the war crimes issue what is wrong in pursuing it through international forums to which Sri Lanka has signed up as a member? Do you think it is un-Sri Lankan?
- do you agree that forums like UN Human Rights Council etc have a legitimate role in the world – riddled in reality with power politics and all that? And do you think crimes that are defined as ‘war crimes’ ‘crimes against humanity’ etc are legitimate issues to be discussed in these forums and countries held to account?
Thank you for the comment Veedhur. I didn’t follow the election closely, so appreciate that.
1. I just don’t think the war crimes issue leads anywhere positive right now.
2. There is legitimate room to raise the issue within the country, the TNA did in the last elections. There will be more room under another administration.
3. Yes I do think those orgs have a legitimate place in the world. Within the UN at least, I think there are checks on their power that preclude an outside investigation and prosecution of the GOSL
indi
If the international war crime bogeyman was taken away for awhile then the Rajapakses cannot act the heroes. A year or two of the corruption and nepotism, Merv buys another Jag, Champika fails at providing electricty for the people and the government may well fall (the mob is fickle) and there may under a new administration be some room for actual reconciliation than the window dressing that is going on now. I can’t see the future but this is a strong possibility.
Beating Sri Lanka over the head with war crimes and investigations especially coming from those who funded the LTTE so are actually responsible for the CFA failing is not going to achieve anything constructive.
Indi,
1. But ‘positive’ is relative. Unless there is a reasonable expectation that one of the defining issues is going to be honestly considered, it is going to be difficult to aspire to be Sri Lankan. Giving this up to forge a collective identity is at this point in time a non-starter. But if you are saying that it is a key issue and give a credible guarantee that accountability would be dealt with at some point in time (mostly to get a closure and come to terms with and work through trauma) may be we could talk. From where I am standing the road to reconciliation and forging a collective sri lankan identity cannot by pass accountability.
2. This I beg to differ, vehemently. Do you think that I can talk to the families and collect information on the number of people killed, how they were killed and when they were killed in the conflict and prepare a dossier to legitimately raise the issue….and hope to live? I don’t think so. TNA too if it gets into the details – beyond broad policy terms – but begin to engage in activities that will actually move things in the direction of brining issues in the courts, will not be allowed. But I agree that there may be more room under another administration. Which may take at least another 5 years. In the mean time can’t we pursue through international forums? Is it un-Sri Lankan to do it?
3. Yes, there are checks – mostly to do with geo-politics. I am sure you also agree in principle that if Sri Lanka has committed war crimes or crimes against humanity then there is nothing wrong for these bodies to demand an outside investigation and prosecution.
Is the gov changing tactics?
Sri Lanka releases ‘war crime’ rebuttal video
http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Asia/Story/STIStory_697213.html
Over 2,500 listed as missing in Sri Lanka’s conflict
http://www.monstersandcritics.com/news/southasia/news/article_1654273.php/Over-2-500-listed-as-missing-in-Sri-Lanka-s-conflict
Sri Lanka says civilian war deaths unavoidable
http://www.forbes.com/feeds/ap/2011/08/01/general-as-sri-lanka-civil-war_8594356.html
In response to some of the speculation, above, about the TNA’s or its members’ “party line”, I offer you here some verbatim quotes from M.A. Sumanthiran in an interview, in English, with BBC Sinhala done just before the local elections [transcribed from the audio tape]:
“Acceptable solution is a degree of power sharing within a united country. President Rajapaksa himself in his inaugural address to the All-Party Representative Committee … stated maximum possible devolution without compromising the sovereignty of Sri Lanka. We entirely agree with that, it must be maximum possible devolution.”
If this was not secured, the TNA would agitate for “the legitimate rights of our people” but it would not walk out of parliament, he said:
“After 1989 the Tamil parties that contested elections have said very clearly that they are willing to work towards a viable alternative power sharing arrangement in a united country. We have all taken that oath of allegiance to a country where no separatism will be propagated. And so we will continue to work towards that. There is no necessity to walk out of parliament for that.”
Really interesting if this is coming from Sumanthiran. The problem I suppose is that the TNA seems to be composed of people with widely differing attitudes – Suresh Premachandran, for example, would not appear to share what Sumanthiran thinks.
Sorry, Charles Haviland but you are just another Sri Lanka Government mouthpiece. You were quick to say that C4 execution video was “fake”. UN, however, said it otherwise
Dude, he’s from the, BRITISH Broadcasting Corporation. If the Sri Lankan government has ‘mouthpieces’ there, they’re more advanced than I thought. I don’t think he ever said the C4 execution video was fake, no one can really prove that either way.
I don’t think he ever said the C4 execution video was fake, no one can really prove that either way.
The first video was authentic (http://www.channel4.com/news/sri-lanka-execution-video-appears-authentic), which means the n+1 other videos are probably just as authentic. People believe the UN has a hidden agenda against SL, but that if that were the case, (I) SL wouldn’t have voted for Ban’s re-election, (II) there would be sanctions imposed on SL, and (III) the UN wouldn’t have funded the IDP camps.
The CH4 tape is as real as night and day.
I mentioned UN because they’re the ones that verified the authenticity of the first CH4 tape.
Heshan
The C4 execution video of the bounded and naked Tamil prisoners by Sri Lanka Army Soldiers was authenticated by four experts: forensic pathologist Daniel Spitz, forensic video-analyst Jeff Spivack, firearms-evidence expert Peter Diaczuk and forensic-video expert Grant Fredricks.
Rajapaksa Regime argues that the Channel 4 execution footage was debunked by experts; unfortunately the sole expert cited is a Sri Lankan-Australian, Siri Hewavitharana, described in the Sri Lanka Defence Ministry website as ‘one of the world’s leading experts on digital video systems’.
C4 video apparently showing extra-judicial killings by Sri Lankan troops is most probably genuine, a UN envoy has said.
UN special rapporteur Philip Alston said three independent experts had confirmed the video was authentic, renewing calls for a war crime inquiry.