From: Tamil Elders <info@thetamilelders.org>
Date: Tue, Aug 23, 2016 at 10:36 AM
Subject: Importance of a durable and just political solution to the Tamils in the North and East.
To: stephane.dion@international.gc.ca
Cc: Shelley.Whiting@international.gc.ca, Mark.Holland@parl.gc.ca, Anita.Vandenbeld@parl.gc.ca, GENEVGR@internatioal.gc.ca, "CanadaGVA Perm.MissionCanadaGVA" <genev@international.gc.ca>, itjpsl@gmail.com
August 23, 2016
Minister of Foreign Affairs
The Honourable Mark. Holland, MP, Ajax
The Hon. Anita Vandenbeld, MP Ottawa
Her Excellency Rosemary McCarney - Ambassador, Permanent Representative, United Nations
Dear Sir.
Re: War wins and Political victories don't accomplish Peace and Reconciliation.
The situation in the North appears to be more repressive than the rest of the country, particularly through heavy military presence, surveillance by intelligence agencies and reports of continuing abductions, disappearances and arrests under the PTA
It is not possible for peace in Sri Lanka until the culture of impunity is replaced with a culture of responsibility, accountability and fulfillment of full rights of the Tamil community and all other minorities in the country.
We, Tamil Canadian Elders for Human Rights Org. submit below a brief account of history that led to the armed conflict when the non-violent peaceful democratic agitation by the Tamils was brutally crushed by the Army in 1961 http://tamilnation.co/ nadesan/610502emergency.htm
Also kindly take few minutes to read the views of Human rights Org and Human Rights Activists point of view on current situation.
It is very important to note that Sri Lanka is one Island with two Nations;
Sinhalese Nation [Sri Lanka] Tamil Nation - N E of Sri Lanka [Tamil Eelam]
Language - Sinhala Language - Tamil
Religion: Buddhism/Islam/Christianity Religion Hinduism/Christianity/Islam
It is confirmed from the information provided below that the hidden agenda of the majority is the elimination of Tamils through Sinhala/Buddhist policies and their planned anti –Tamil pogroms in 1956, 1958, 1971, 1977, 1983 and brutal genocidal war from 2006 – 2009.
Sri Lanka's constitution, which assures Buddhism's "foremost place" and also says it's the state's "duty to protect and foster" Buddhism. Tamils and minorities such as Muslims and Christians continue to face the brunt of this particularly toxic expression of Sinhala Buddhist chauvinism and hegemony.
Thank you
With Best Wishes and Kind Regards
Yours Respectfully.
Kumarathasan Rasingam
President, Tamil Canadian Elders for Human Rights Org.
4 Glennie Drive,
Ajax, Ontario
L1T 4P7, Canada
Sri Lanka One Island Two Nations:
First democratic leader of Justice the Godfather of the Sri Lankan Tamil Struggle:
Honourable Samuel James Veluppillai Chelvanayakam
| Political Resolution unanimously adopted at the First National Convention of the Tamil United Liberation Front held at Pannakam (Vaddukoddai Constituency) on 14 May 1976 presided over by Mr. S.J.V. Chelvanayakam, Q.C, M.P. Whereas throughout the centuries from the dawn of history the Sinhalese and Tamil nations have divided between them the possession of Ceylon, the Sinhalese inhabiting the interior of the country in its Southern and Western parts from the river Walawe to that of Chilaw and the Tamils possessing the Northern and Eastern districts; And whereas the Tamil Kingdom was overthrown in war and conquered by the Portugese in 1619 and from them by the Dutch and the British in turn independent of the Sinhalese Kingdoms; And whereas the British Colonists who ruled the territories of the Sinhalese and Tamil Kingdoms separately joined under compulsion the territories of the Sinhalese Kingdoms for purposes of administrative convenience on the recommendation of the Colebrooke Commission in 1833; –Northern Provincial Council Resolution on Sri Lanka's Genocide Against Tamils, February 10, 2015 "Although the OISL investigation is a time-bound effort focused on February 2002 – November 2011, Sri Lanka's genocide against Tamils began with the island's independence. Since then, Tamils across Sri Lanka, particularly in the historical Tamil homeland of the North East, have been subject to gross and systematic human rights violations, culminating in the mass atrocities committed in 2009. Sri Lanka's historic violations include over 60 years of state-sponsored anti-Tamil pogroms, massacres, sexual violence, and acts of cultural and linguistic destruction perpetrated by the state. These atrocities have been perpetrated with the intent to destroy the Tamil people, and therefore constitute genocide." A 2011 United Nations (UN) panel, reported: "The Government shelled on a large scale in three consecutive No Fire Zones, where it had encouraged the civilian population to concentrate, even after indicating that it would cease the use of heavy weapons. It shelled the UN hub, food distribution lines and near the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) ships that were coming to pick up the wounded and their relatives from the beaches. . . . Most civilian casualties in the final phases of the war were caused by Government shelling Tens of thousands lost their lives from January to May 2009, many of whom died anonymously in the carnage of the final few days." 2012 report of the UN Internal Review Panel documented other sources referring to credible information that indicates more than 70,000 people is unaccounted for.
International Crisis Group "With the massive number of troops in the north have come various forms of Sinhalization. The almost entirely Tamil-speaking north is now dotted with Sinhala sign-boards, streets newly renamed in Sinhala, monuments to Sinhala war heroes, and even a war museum and battlefields that are open only to Sinhalese. Sinhala fishermen and businessmen are regularly given advantages not accorded to Tamils. The slow but steady movement of Sinhala settlers along the southern edges of the province, often with military and central government support and sometimes onto land previously farmed or occupied by Tamils, is particularly worrying. These developments are consistent with a strategy—known to be supported by important officials and advisers to the president—to change "the facts on the ground," as has already happened in the east, and make it impossible to claim the north as a Tamil-majority area deserving of self-governance." – – M.A. Sumanthiran, human rights lawyer and member of Parliament "We do need an enemy change even if there is no regime change. Political solution requires that future is secure before we look to the past. We need a clear power sharing arrangement, a social contract which fundamentally recognizes Sri Lanka as a pluralistic state. Attitudinal changes are necessary on both sides. Justice yes, but revenge no." – Rajan Hoole, University Teachers for Human Rights The new government has made promises. However, the strategy to maintain peace and prevent future uprisings appears to still be based on the old mindset. "No Change in Security Status or Removal of Camps"141 is the déja vu position of Sirisena's government, despite speaking of reconciliation. In his first formal visit to the North and East in February 2015, Minister of Defense Ruwan Wijewardene confirmed the status quo to the tri-service troops of the Security Force Headquarters in Jaffna: "National Security will remain the priority of our government and there is no change in that policy under any circumstances. I say this with responsibility. Members of the Armed Forces should not believe in unfounded rumours and various fabricated stories in relation to security concerns. I assure you that the government would not remove any Army Formations in the peninsula, nor does the government plan to scale down security arrangements. All members of the Security Forces will continue to receive welfare facilities as it is and the dignity your profession deserves. . . . ". . . about 300 families of prisoners [were taken] from Anuradhapura prison. . . . The Kent and Dollar Farms settlement was opened on 6th October 1984. The prisoners were used as labour for constructing roads and clearing jungle with a view to opening up the region, and making it attractive for further settlement. This differed from old colonisation schemes, which could be defended as fulfilling an economic purpose. The new one […] had a clear political and military purpose and was very dubious for economic and social upliftment. It also radically altered the dynamics of the conflict as regards the civilian population by fulfilling the worst nightmares of making the Tamils 'insecure in their own home'. The prisoners were set up to harass the Tamils in the area." In the 1970s, the Mahaweli River Scheme—which was the largest irrigation project in the country and upheld as a development scheme—created new Sinhalese settlements at the border of the Eastern and Northern provinces. This decisively separated the North from the East, destroying the concept of Tamil homeland. Under the project, the Mathuru Oya settlement scheme brought 30,000 Sinhala men in buses from to the South in 1983. At the second settlement, in the Weliknde area on the border of Batticaloa and Polonaruwa districts, more than 3,000 Sinhala families were settled and provided irrigation. The International Crisis Group reports: Land Grabs Via Buddhist Temples, Statues, and Designation as Archaeological Sites In a meeting with the Oakland Institute, Mr. Thantayuthapai, http://www.oaklandinstitute. org/sites/oaklandinstitute. org/files/OI_The_Long_Shadow_ of_War_0.pdf Opposition leader in the Eastern Provincial Council shared historic evidence pointing to the North and East as the traditional homeland of the Tamils. Since independence, he reports deliberate efforts by the Sri Lankan government to sabotage the demography of the Tamils—one such method being the construction of Buddhist temples and the erection of Buddha statues in places where there are no Buddhists.122 This includes numerous Buddha statues along the A9 route to Jaffna, in places where no Buddhists reside.123 In October 2013, Defence Secretary Rajapaksa and Army Commander Dayaratne inaugurated a new Buddhist pagoda, Mankulam Sri Sugatha Viharaya, in the former rebel stronghold of Kilinochchi in the Vanni region and enshrined the Buddha's sacred relics in its pinnacle. The website of the Sri Lankan Ministry of Defence reported that the Security Force Headquarters–Kilinochchi (SFHQ– KLN) supported the construction of the pagoda, claiming it to be a place of Buddhist worship with a long history.124 Kilinochchi destroyed water tank "Terrorist" bulldozer on display, Elephant Pass War Hero Memorial—Credit Sri Lanka Army www.army.lk Mullaitivu ww w.oaklandinstitute.org 28 SFHQ–KLN troops and Engineer Service Regiment troops reportedly even lent their expertise for the construction.125 Located about 10 km from Trincolmalee, the seven hot springs of Kanniya, the site of an ancient Hindu Shiva temple, are sacred for Hindus. Initially, the wells were placed under the direct control of the Divisional Council of Trincomalee by the government agent. With the temple in ruins, a new Buddha statue, maintained by a Buddhist monk, has been built in its place. The army is deployed for security purposes, with both seeking permanent accommodation at the site. At the same time, renovation of the Hindu temple by the local community has been prohibited, citing Kanniya as an archaeological site. A quarter acre of land in the heart of Trincomalee was also taken over for the purpose of "archaeological research." This land had previously been allocated to a local girls' school for construction of a sports field, which is now no longer possible due to the new designation. In Kaladi, which borders Batticaloa, 78 acres were seized by a Buddhist monk who built a Vihara (Buddhist temple) on the site of a former preschool. There are similar reports of land seizures elsewhere under the Kuchaveli D.S. Division, which have been seized for the purpose of building Buddhist temples: 60 acres, including cultivable land, in Chempimalai; 600 acres of land in Kanniragimalai; 75 acres in Kalikkaddukkulam; and 100 acres in Mankindimalai in Pulmoddai.126 Under the Kuchaveli D.S. Division, 3,070 acres of land in the village of Thiriyai, including paddy fields and irrigating tanks, have reportedly been taken over. There are claims of an ancient Buddhist temple in the area. In the Verugal D.S. Division, Murugun Kovil, a Hindu temple in the Ilankaiththuraimuhaththuvaram was demolished and a Buddhist temple was built on the same spot, taking over 25 acres of land. "There are no Buddhists in the targeted area, thereby these land grabs are not intended for worship. According to locals, these efforts are aimed at denying and changing the historical fact that the North and East of the island nation is the traditional homeland of the Tamils," remarked Mr. Thantayuthapai.127 Such moves have changed the demography of the Trincomalee district. In 1881, the percentage of Sinhalese in the area was 4.2 percent; the population had increased to 27 percent by 2012. At the same time, the percentage of the population that is Tamil decreased from 64.4 percent in 1881 to 30.6 percent in 2012 (the rest of the population is mostly Muslim, a minority primarily present in some coastal towns).
It is true Tamil Eelam is a small nation on the globe. However it is a Nation with great potential. It is a Nation with a characteristic individuality. It has a distinctive language, cultural heritage and history. Sinhala Governments seeks with its military might to destroy all these. It seeks to destroy Tamil sovereignty and replace it with Sinhala sovereignty. |
Posted by: P Kana <kana47@gmail.com>
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