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29 December 2022 01:19 am - 12 - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}
President Ranil Wickremesinghe has called all parties to get together and solve what he calls the ‘ethnic-problem’ that has remained ‘unresolved’ for decades. Meanwhile, parties that claim to represent ‘Tamil interests’ have put forward a set of demands: a) stop ‘land grabs in the Northern and Eastern Provinces by armed forces the state institutions while releasing all lands so acquired earlier by them in those two provinces, b) hold provincial council elections forthwith after implementing all provisions in the Constitutions and other laws in respect of power devolution, and c) implement power devolution under a federal framework through a new Constitution are the three demands.
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| The ‘Tamil Question’ then — simply a misnomer. So when Wickremesinghe wants all parties to come together to resolve the ethnic conflict, he should first get them to agree on the truth about this ‘ethnic conflict,’ which includes a notion that has been the political foundation of certain Tamil politicians and parties for decades |
Any private lands acquired by the state for military purposes should be returned to original owners provided that doing so does not compromise strategic interests. It is hard to imagine that there are ‘strategic interests’ that are vital that such an exercise should be ruled out. Using state lands for state purposes is of course another matter.
State operations may one day be carried out entirely in virtual space. Maybe state institutions would one day be moved to floating facilities in the sea or in the sky. Until then, they need land and there’s no logic in demanding that they should be located in or out of a particular province. Calling it ‘land grab’ is downright silly. The use of the term ‘land grab’ is interesting. A Freudian slip, in fact, considering the entire discourse of Tamil nationalism, sorry, chauvinism.
Holding provincial council elections, on the face of it, is a legitimate demand. However, it is strange that these very parties have been conspicuously silent about elections not being held for years! It’s almost as if they’ve never been serious about the devolution of power. More importantly, is the fact that provincial councils were set up illegally via a constitutional amendment forced on Sri Lanka by India in a do-it-or-else manner following the infamous dhal-drop by that country’s Air Force.
The third demand is fine: power devolution under a federal framework through a new constitution. Anyone (including Tamil chauvinists who were vociferous approvers of terrorism and terrorists) has the right to demand anything. Whether such demands can be met is another matter. They can and should be considered. That’s what one expects from a functioning democracy. There should be mechanisms for this and if such doesn’t exist then they need to be put in place.
There’s a problem though. Why federalism? Why devolution? On what basis? Grievances, did someone say? What grievances? And, if such do exist, what logic dictates ‘devolution’ as the only way of resolving them? Well, Tamil chauvinists are pretty thin on all this. History is not on their side. Archaeology is not on their side. Demography is not on their side. Geography is not on their side. And even economics is not on their side.
There are serious problems with Tamil nationalism and nationalists. Substantiation is not their thing. Ask them to do so and they twiddle their thumbs. Talk history and they dodge. Talk about demography and they pretend people and land don’t go together. Talk solutions and they start shifting goalposts. Talk economics and the logic or otherwise of devolution (the Western Province has close to 75% of the country’s GDP and if we played devolution-logic to the letter we would see the continued relative impoverishment of certain districts and provinces) and they will talk about human rights violations. Talk about human rights violations and they act as though it all happened in 2009 and that the LTTE was a band of angels.
Thus, when they demand devolution under a federal framework they are talking absolute rubbish. Not too long ago, i.e. in November 2019, the people of this country voted in a presidential election. The winner and the candidate who came second together polled 94% of the vote. Both pledged to uphold the unitary character of the state. The Tamil National Alliance supported one of these candidates, Sajith Premadasa. So what talk of federalism? If they were so principled, shouldn’t those in the TNA and other ‘Tamil’ parties have disassociated themselves from any individual or party that did not espouse their cause or at least claim that they will consider a ‘federal’ constitution?
The Tamil National Question. That’s what they like to call it. Question. That’s the keyword here. Tamil chauvinists do have a problem, a question. They really don’t care about ground realities. They don’t care about history. They don’t care about demography. Yes, we need to say these things again and again, simply because the biggest question about Tamil Nationalism is this: ‘why is the word ‘substantiation’ not in their vocabulary?’ Why cannot they come out with the true dimensions of grievances and explain how ‘devolution’ and/or ‘federalism’ resolve these? Why do they talk of ‘unity’ when that word is not ‘constitutionable’ and why do they fail to acknowledge that close to 100% of the voting population was not interested in federalism? All these are questions. All questions that Tamil nationalists must answer but will respond with the kind of navel-gazing that they’ve indulged in for decades which of course did nothing in improving the well being of anyone, including Tamil people in this country.
That’s the ‘Tamil Question’ then — simply a misnomer. So when Wickremesinghe wants all parties to come together to resolve the ethnic conflict, he should first get them to agree on the truth about this ‘ethnic conflict,’ which includes a notion that has been the political foundation of certain Tamil politicians and parties for decades. As for the demands of ‘Tamil’ parties, the time has come to politely tell them, ‘how about an audit of history or histories claimed, how about talking demography and geography, how about discussing voter behaviour and how about dumping the 13th Amendment because it was forced on Sri Lanka by the neighbour?
Yes, more than one question. Easily answered. All of them. And, in answering, something could happen to the so-called Tamil Question — a problem of nationalist Tamils which can be easily resolved. Shouldn’t have taken decades. Need not take the five weeks left until the 75th Independence Day celebrations. Five seconds should do.
Raj prakash Thursday, 29 December 2022 10:38 AM
Mr Seneviratne :wondering if you were/ are part of Hela Oorumiya group? You might even add Tamil were imported in the 19th century By the colonial powers too. Absolutely rubbish your argument is : get well soon
Prageeth Wijesinghe Thursday, 29 December 2022 12:43 PM
Mr senavirathna, Well done for writing the truth about the bogus ethnic problem in Sri Lanka. Majority of Tamils live with dignity and peace in the south. Only the separatist politicians want lot of things except people. From north to south people have been taken for a ride by the politicians. The above comment definitely by a LTTE operative still dreaming about an utopia
Sokrates Thursday, 29 December 2022 12:49 PM
Sinhala chauvinists still claim they have the demographic right to Sri Lanka, which is utterly absurd. The first Sinhalese, who came around 500 B.C. to Sri Lanka from North India were only men. On the way to Sri Lanka they passed through southern India and from there took women (Dravidian Tamils) with them. This means that the second generation of settlers had 50% Tamil blood. In this respect there are since those times no purebred Sinhalese in Sri Lanka. Approx. 200 years BC. then settlers came with their wives from southern India to the north of Sri Lanka, which means that the proportion of Tamil blood in the population continued to increase. The then so-called Sinhalese later mixed with Arabs, Malays and Europeans. From the former North Indian Sinhalese, a mixed race has emerged that has almost nothing to do with Sinhalese, however, while much of the Tamil population are pure-blood. That being said, the only people who have historical rights to Sri Lanka are the Veddas.
W. Malaviarachchi Thursday, 29 December 2022 01:34 PM
Northern Tamil politicians who live a luxurious life in the South need the Tamil question highlighted to get their votes in the North. The best solution is to gettogether with the Southern politicians and develop not only their North but the entire country for the benefit of the Nation.
Rohan Friday, 30 December 2022 06:20 AM
DNA has proven the present-day Sinhalese are largely descended not from North Indian immigrants but from the Tamils. The Sinhalese are immigrants from India and mainly from Tamil South India. Around 30-50% of the present-day Sinhalese are descended from Tamil immigrants who were imported into the island during the Portuguese and Dutch era and settled along the western and southern littorals. Please read the origins of the Sinhalese Karawa, Salagama. Durawa, Berewa. Even many of the so-called present day Sinhalese aristocratic and upper caste families have a recent South Indian origin. After the Veddah, Dravidian semi-Tamil-speaking Naga and Yakka tribes migrated from the Indian mainland and the Sri Lankan Tamils are primarily descended from these Naga tribes, who started to adopt proper Tamil as their mother tongue around 3000 years ago. Please research and read.
Ganesh Manickam Friday, 30 December 2022 10:58 AM
My favorite paper DM, please publish my comment .
Common sense Friday, 30 December 2022 04:04 PM
MS is trying to change the history of SL by dubious means. 1) SL had a Tamil speaking state in the North and East and rest by Sinhalese. Britain conquered SL.The Tamil king CHANGILIAN died in the battle. The Sinhala king RAJASINGHAM captured taken to South India and kept in Vellore prison. Britain amalgamated both states and called it CEYLON. 2) Britain brought in South Indian labourers who happens to speak Tamil to the central province to work in the estates. Similarly Britain brought in the West Indies to work in the London transport who happens to speak English. 3) Britain gave independence without giving back the status quo to the Tamils their original North East and Sinhalese the rest of the island. 4) Living for hundreds of years, the Tamil speaking estate workers were downright illegally de franchised. 5) The Sinhalese government failed to develop N and E. Thus Tamil speaking people had to move out seeking jobs in rest of SL.
Common sense Friday, 30 December 2022 04:16 PM
6) The chauvinistic SWRD ruined the peace in SL and made Sinhala the official language and Buddhism the state religion. Didn’t care about the Tamil speaking people. 7) 1958 riots SWRD was playing pools in a club.He got his rewards from Somarama thero. 8) What did the government do for 1977,1983, 2009. 9) why have 150,000 army in addition to navy,airforce in N and East. Why not equally distribute the 330,000 armed forces to the 9 provinces. Recruit Tamils into the forces.Follow UK standards of recruiting from all four UK states. 10) Why not develop Palaly airport to the same standard to that of BIA. Similarly KKS harbour to Colombo harbour. 10) Why hardly any Tamil appointed to the civil service. 11) Sri Lanka will have to have two states in one country for LASTING PEACE
Ganesh Manickam Friday, 30 December 2022 06:54 PM
Mr S, have you ever been in a refugee camp because of ethnic riots, have you or your family suffered from riots in 1956,1956,1966,1091,1977,1981,1983,1988, have your land been taken away where your ancestors lived for hundred years, have you village renamed in Tamil because of colonization? Have your temple taken over by Hindu or other priest with the aid of police or Army? Answer is NO So educated people will like u will never understand this subject.
Punchi Saturday, 31 December 2022 09:08 AM
In the 1970s as a small lad in Hatton a neighbor elderly Jaffna Tamil lady told me that her son went for a job interview in kurunegala and was told that he was suitably qualified for the job but he cannot be employed because he was a Tamil. An Indian Tamil told me that when their family confronted Shingalese stealing from their pepper plants, they were asked did you bring it in the boat when you came across. Also the author seems to 1956, 1958 killings of Tamils to give vent to our primitive blood lust took place long before the advent of the Tamil armed conflict
Raja Saturday, 31 December 2022 07:33 PM
Sene, do you think this ethnic problem started after LTTE era? No it started from the indipendence. Good, you somehow finished an article with bogus facts in the shake of your sinhala racist mongs. How can a racist like you tell what is in the minds of tamils and their sufferings? . I think we don't need to waste our time to explain the real facts to a racist like you again again. But this is the karmaya of you all to bring the country to this level. This will be continued until you all Chang your mentality. That's all
Anura Monday, 02 January 2023 10:46 PM
A great article to articulate the Sinhala chauvinistic mindset. They will deny that minority groups do have some genuine grievances for another 75 years.
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