Archive for May, 2009

A few words to the self-loathing Sri Lankans

Of late people who made a living out of Sri Lanka-bashing have been changing their tune a bit, but obviously it’s not easy for them to get off their habitual groove. Let me illustrate by taking the case of Jehan Perera, whose career, like those of his ilk, I have been following with increasing disgust. Perera is the head honcho of the highly lucrative National Peace Council. From giving a subtle nod to “its [US] proposal, which could include safe passage abroad for the LTTE leadership …” and his glowing tributes to the LTTE after he visited Prabhakaran’s now lost kingdom some years ago [at the Tiger’s invitation], Perera is now compelled to grant, crestfallen, that it is the citizens of Sri Lanka who have the final say in matters that affect us and that would impact on unborn generations. See for example, his interview with Groundviews in which he admits the ineffectiveness of NGOs in peace building, while taking…

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Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan on whether the LTTE is really finished and the war over in Sri Lanka

Vikalpa Video asked Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan, Minister of National Integration, for his opinion on whether the LTTE was really finished and the war over in Sri Lanka. After fighting for the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam for over 20 years,  Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan rose to prominence as the leader of the Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal (TMVP), a breakaway faction of the LTTE. His opinion in English: His opinion in Tamil: View other videos in this series below or click here.

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Is this the end of the Tamil struggle?

For reasons I shall explain later I don’t think what we see at present marks the end of the Tamil struggle for independence. The popular perception may well end up in a mirage.  Clearly, a new chapter of the Tamil campaign is in the making, and the signs are that the next episode is going to be even more formidable than the Tamil Tigers’ mini-state project.  With South India’s full backing – also, with the international community’s blessings – the Tamils are going to press for just two options: either a confederation or total separation. Ironically, Sri Lanka’s ruthless war aimed at crushing Tamil separatism seems to have triggered a phenomenon that has strengthened the Tamils’ resolve for independence as never before. In other words, if the Sinhala leaders’ target was to save the country from splitting into two, the war has set a process in motion that may bring about exactly the opposite result. Quite apart from adding one…

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Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) on whether the LTTE is really finished and the war over in Sri Lanka

Vikalpa Video asked the spokesperson of the Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) Nishantha Warnasinghe for his opinion on whether the LTTE was really finished and the war over in Sri Lanka. This video was viewed over 4,000 times in less than 24 hours after it was uploaded to Vikalpa’s YouTube Channel. Nishantha’s opinion in Sinhala: Transcript in English: Right now we are seeing the end of the humanitarian operations initiated by the Sri Lankan Army. After Puthumathalan is completely freed, I believe they intend to finish off the LTTE leaders. After that, I believe that in the near future, we can create the conditions for Tamil civilians to live freely in these areas. One must recognise that this final leg of the humanitarian operations needs to be carefully managed on account of the hostages that need to be freed. Our forces are doing this with great discipline and responsibility. I believe that in the days ahead, the few remaining terrorist leaders…

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  • 6 May, 2009
  • 2 Comments
  • Colombo,
    Media and Communications,
    Peace and Conflict

Dr. Wickramabahu Karunaratna on whether the LTTE is really finished and the war over in Sri Lanka

Vikalpa Video asked Dr. Wickramabahu Karunaratna, Leader of the National Left Front (NLF), for his opinion on whether the LTTE was really finished and the war over in Sri Lanka. His opinion in English: His opinion in Sinhala: View other videos in this series below or click here.

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Amal Jayasinghe on whether the LTTE is really finished and the war over in Sri Lanka

Vikalpa Video asked Amal Jayasinghe, Head of AFP Sri Lanka, for his opinion on whether the LTTE was really finished and the war over in Sri Lanka. His opinion in English: His opinion in Sinhala: View other videos in this series below or click here.

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Prof. Rohan Samarajiva on whether the LTTE is really finished and the war over in Sri Lanka

Vikalpa Video asked Prof. Rohan Samarajiva, Chair and CEO of Lirneasia, for his opinion on whether the LTTE was really finished and the war over in Sri Lanka. His opinion in English: His opinion in Sinhala: View other videos in this series below or click here.

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Reforming the Constitutional Council

Our Constitutional Council (CC) is the product of an extremely rare moment in our post-independence political history at which legislators of all hues arrived at a consensus. Unfortunately its efficacy has been retarded by undue haste and amateurish handling in creating it, as shown by its shaky existence. While the CC has suffered the lack of labour and concentration of a Cesarean birth, its proposed reform is struggling to be born for a long time in a select committee of Parliament. A CC is basically a French idea. The French Constitutional Council (Conseil Constitutionnel) was established by the Constitution of the Fifth Republic in 1958. The idea of a CC is alien to common law countries headed by the United Kingdom. Our own CC is limited to the narrow task of creating and supervising the Independent Commissions and advising the President on top level appointments. Essentially it is a clearing house. In fact many common law countries entrust such establishment…

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Sundays without English newspapers?

Not too long ago, my Sunday mornings used to be so enriched by the Sunday newspapers. They informed me, intrigued me, tickled me with laughter and occasionally even exasperated me. I spent the better part of my Sundays going through their diverse and stimulating news, features and opinions. How I miss those Sundays – and the Sunday reading that I can no longer find in our Sunday newspapers! For sure, we still have half a dozen Sunday newspapers coming out in English, but much has changed. I can predict the content in most newspapers even before I open them on any given Sunday. So I now buy only two Sunday newspapers (you can soon guess which), and get through them in a couple of hours. The rest of my Sunday is spent watching TV or browsing the web – thank goodness there still are some ways I can spend my leisure time productively. Last Sunday, 3 May 2009, was observed…

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Would killing 50,000 civilians to finish off the LTTE bring peace?

[Editors note, 6 January 2011: This specific post and the debate that ensued is referred to and featured in Fire and Storm: Essays in Sri Lankan Politics by Prof. Michael Roberts. Read more here.] ### “I would accept 50,000 dead to finish the LTTE. That’s what it comes down to. And I would, to end that war.” This is a verbatim excerpt from an email I got today from a prominent blogger in Sri Lanka. Truth be told, we have all heard this argument of late – sometimes in hushed whispers, at other times a loud and bold statement of patriotism. Some see merit in it, suggesting that since the LTTE is inextricably entwined with the civilian population, only a scorched earth policy can guarantee remaining cadres in the Vanni will be eliminated. Others are outraged by the idea, and point to sickening videos of injured and dismembered children, the LTTE’s use of thermobaric weapons, and the Government’s shelling of…

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Rejecting Bildt, one way winds and concerns over conflict regulation

The most recent controversy in Sri Lanka’s foreign relations popped up with news reports on Sri Lanka’s apparent ‘rejection’ of entry clearance to Swedish Foreign Minister the Hon. Carl Bildt. Minister Bildt, a senior Swedish politician and former Prime Minister of Sweden from 1991 to 1994, was supposed to visit Sri Lanka on Wednesday 29 April 2009, accompanied by his French and British counterparts, Bernard Kouchner and David Miliband. Some news agencies, including Xinhua, reported that Minister Kouchner and Foreign Secretary Miliband were supposed to visit Sri Lanka in their capacity as permanent members of the UN Security Council (therefore, the visit is not related to EU-SL relations). In a press release, the government of Sri Lanka states that it envisaged the visits of the French and the British Foreign Ministers purely on a bilateral basis and not in terms of their membership in a regional or United Nations context. According to the Xinhua news report, Karel Schwarzenberg, the Foreign…

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It is a hostage crisis, stupid!

Image courtesy The Telegraph The Sri Lankan military is dealing with probably the largest hostage crisis in world history. Sri Lanka and its present leadership will be forever remembered for how it handles this unprecedented predicament. As a long and protracted battle draws to a miserable end, it is right to be intensely concerned about the civilian population trapped between the advancing Sri Lankan military and the cornered LTTE. It is easy to believe conservative reports that put civilians killed at an average of 35 to 45 a day – more than 4,000 since the beginning of the year – with a great many more severely injured. This is by all accounts an enormous tragedy. Recall that the 9-11 attacks in the US, which has become a focal point of history, killed less than 4,000 people. Sri Lankan lives should not be considered any less important. Understanding the Crisis There have been many divergent arguments made over many months about…

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About Groundviews

Located at the Centre for Policy Alternatives in Colombo, Sri Lanka, Groundviews is a citizen journalism website that uses a range of genres and media to highlight critical perspectives on governance, reconciliation, human rights, the arts and literature, democracy and other issues. The site has won two international awards, including the prestigious Manthan Award South Asia in 2009. The grand jury's evaluation of the site noted, "What no media dares to report, Groundviews publicly exposes. It's a new age media for a new Sri Lanka... Free media at it's very best!"

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