Lakshman Kadirgamar: Beyond Labels of Race and Religion
By D.B.S. Jeyaraj
Former Indian Prime Minister Indira Gandhi while addressing the UN in 1980 quoted a line from
a Tamil poet of the "Sangham" classical era .Kaniyan Poonkundranaar.had sung "Yaathum
Oore Yaavarum Kelir" (All the world is my world, All men are my kinsmen) more than two
thousand years ago. That an Asian poet could articulate such a noble concept "universal
fraternity"at a time when the literatures of most Western living languages had not even
developed amazed many of the listeners. Tamils worldwide were elated at this although the
poet was described as Indian and not Tamil by Mrs. Gandhi.
Despite the acrimony and conflict caused by narrow definitions of race, religion, caste, creed
and even Country there are a vast number of people in this world who lead lives transcending
those definitions. Unfortunately the stories of these ordinary, unknown people are not known to
the World. What gains publicity are the negative acts based on man made divisions. Politicians
are a breed that thrives on exploiting these divisions. Most people holding political office are
unable to transcend these labels of race and religion. The few who do so or even try to do so
are seldom appreciated. They are misunderstood and maligned.
Lakshman Kadirgamar was one such person striving to transcend labels of ethnicity. Whether
he was able to do so fully is debatable. But Kadirgamar embodied the ideals of
Kaniyanpoonkundranaar more than most vocal warriors of the LTTE domiciled in the west. He
was misunderstood to a great extent in life which ultimately led to his death. Now even after
death it appears that persons on both sides of the divide are yet to understand him. On one
side we see the majority of the majority community labelling him stridently as Sri Lankan.
Unfortunately the term Sri Lankan denotes "Sinhala" to many of this ilk. Though "born as a
Tamil he was truly Sri Lankan" is their refrain.
On the other side we read and hear the cacophony generated by the vociferous minority within
the Tamil community that has (mis) appropriated the megaphone. Even after assassinating him
these voices are not silent. Kadirgamar is reviled and ridiculed for many things. He is called a
Tamil who was not really Tamil because he was a) not fluent in Tamil, b) was born and bred
outside the traditional Tamil homelands, c) lived and worked outside the North - East and
d)married twice outside his community. After denying him his "Tamilness" on these counts the
same detractors also call him a traitor to his race because he served in a "Sinhala"
Government ,challenged the sole representative status of the LTTE, criticised tiger human
rights violations and depicted it as a terrorist organization overseas.
He was born to Tamil, protestant Christian parents of Jaffna Vellala origin. But in later life he
refused to conform according to that label. He never denied that he was Tamil but did not claim
representative status on that count. At a time when the tigers and their acolytes were trying to
equate being Tamil with being pro - tiger he stood out "far from the madding crowd". For that
he was ridiculed as a "token" Tamil and dubbed a traitor.
When the BBC "Hard Talk" interviewed him recently he was asked about being called "traitor"
Kadirgamar responded to it magnificently. He said that all of us are given labels at the time of
birth and that he too was given one. If being Tamil meant supporting the LTTE in acts like child
conscription, killing opponents, denying democracy and pluralism etc he was not prepared to
do so. If that resulted in him being called traitor then he "would be absolutely delighted in being
called one" Kadirgamar said.
Clergy from the Buddhist, Christian, Hindu and Islamic faiths were represented at his funeral.
This was very much in keeping with his wordview. Many years ago on October 9th 1992 he
delivered the Rev. Celestine Fernando Memorial Address. The theme of that address was "The
Social Relevance of the Bible for our times in a Non - Christian society. He observed then
"Different creeds are the historical formulations of the formless truth. While the treasure is one
and inviolable, the earthen vessel that contains it takes the shape and colour of its time and
environment".
The state funeral also had a Buddhist "Pansakula" ceremony. The cremation too was not done
in the usual Hindu manner though Kadirgamar was a Christian. This fact too has been focused
on by his detractors. The "Tamilnet" heading said "Kadirgamar cremated according to Buddhist
rites" as if it was a great sacrilege or another indicator of his treachery though the man was
dead.
His wife Suganthi is I believe a practising Buddhist. It is very probable that the Pansakula was
held according to her wishes. I see nothing wrong in that. When "taraki" Sivaram a "hindu" was
killed a few months ago his wife being a christian had a separate Christian service in addition to
the Hindu rituals. Later a memorial service too was held at St. Andrews. Nobody found fault with
that and there is nothing to fault in that. Likewise there is nothing to mock even if Kadirgamar
was cremated according to Buddhist rites.
The Celestine Fernando lecture caused some controversy in Christian circles because of the
glowing references to Lord Buddha. He observed then " Among the inspiring treasures of the
human spirit is the memory of Gautama, the Buddha. His hold over the imagination of millions of
our fellow beings is immense; his inspiration to braver and nobler living for centuries is
incalculable; his contribution to the refining of the spirit of man and the humanizing of human
relations is immeasurable. And yet, attempts were made by men fighting under other flags,
earnest lovers of their kind no doubt, to destroy the memory of that great soul, to terminate his
influence. We can only attribute those efforts to prejudice, to ignorance".
According to someone present at that lecture Kadirgamar's main thesis was that Christianity
shared many common values and teachings with Buddhism and that Jesus had been influenced
by the teachings of the Buddha. These views correspond to the thesis in the famous book by
the German theologian Holger Kersten titled "Jesus lived in India - his unknown life before and
after the crucifixion."
So it is very possible that Kadirgamar was increasingly attracted to the teachings of Buddha.
But this seems more a milepost on an intellectual journey. He was very much a private person
in his religious faith. On the day that Lakshman was sworn in as Minister in 1994 in the early
hours of the morning a man was seen praying alone in the Buller's Road, Anglican Cathedral.
The then Bishop Kenneth Fernando was walking in when he noticed this . That man was
Lakshman Kadirgamar. While his fundamental Christian faith remained he had evolved into one
accepting the universality of religion though Christian dogmatists would dispute this.
Kadirgamar was a Theosophist - less of the Annie Besant and more of the Henry Steele Olcott
variety.
In later life as a foreign minister during a time of virtual Civil war Kadirgamar like many Tamils
struggling to reconcile ethnicity and nationality was trapped in an unenviable position. The
arrogant and intolerant majoritarianism of Sinhala - Buddhist champions and the shameless
manner in which the greater part of the Sinhala people subscribed to that process placed
Tamils at a great disadvantage. To their credit the Tamil people did not take this atempt to
make them subservient lightly. They resisted first through non violence and then fought back
with violence.
This struggle however placed many Tamils in a situation where their options was reduced to a
choice between Country (Sri Lanka) or nation (Tamil). As time progressed Tamils were
confronted with a further limitation. They had to accept the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam as
their masters or be dubbed as traitors to their race and be dealt with violence if necessary.
Dissent and pluralism within the community was ruthlessly suppressed. The Majoritarian
mindset on the other hand continues to treat Tamils critical of Sinhala racism as tigers or their
supporters.A loyal Sri Lankan has to accept Sinhala hegemony in practice is one credo. A
loyal Tamil has to accept tiger dominance is another credo.
Independent Tamils who will neither accept Sinhala hegemony nor tiger domination are the
worst hit. They are caught between two worlds. Theirs is a lonely and dangerous path to follow.
They are criticised by both sides demanding absolute subservience. They have only the
courage of their convictions in treading this dangerous path. Kadirgamar did not fall under this
catgory as he became coopted into a Sinhala dominated government. Moreover he refrained
from speaking out on many issues affecting Tamils. He was critical of LTTE "Terrorism" and
pursued a campaign against them with missionary zeal. This "patriotism" endeared him to the
Sinhala people particularly those hardliners. On the other hand many Tamils were unhappy
with those of the tiger ilk being infuriated at this "treachery".
There are Tamils who condone Kadirgamars assassination as being just retribution for his
treachery. Why did he not speak out for the Tamils or identify with the Tamils they ask. When
Kadirgamar became a cabinet minister he had visions of a just peace with honour for the
Tamils. Like many of us he too shared the hope that the war was reaching an end and a
negotiated settlement with the LTTE was in sight. One of his early speeches where he praised
Pirapakaran for having "fought a good fight" was a classic and an index of his prevailing frame
of mind at that time.
But when the LTTE broke faith and war resumed in 1995 Kadirgamar too like many of us was
disappointed. Once it became clear that the war had to be prosecuted to its fullest he acted in
typical "team member" style and lawyer - like fashion. He felt he was part of the government
team and play according to rules. He was also like a Barrister arguing his brief. He made a case
out for the Government in international forum and decimated the case for the other side. He
presented his case brilliantly. In a sense he had an easy case to argue as damning the LTTE
of old was a cakewalk.
Kadirgamar perceived himself as a Sri Lankan and not Tamil in this situation and acted
accordingly. This no doubt was anathema to the tigers and their fellow travellers. But it cannot
be denied that a large segment of the moderate , silent majority among Tamils too was troubled
by his attitude and approach. They sensed and felt a pronounced lack of empathy in him for
their predicament as Tamils. He failed to show any concern or sympathy publicly. It is possible
that he may have done so privately but his public persona did not exude any empathy for the
ordinary Tamils as opposed to the tigers.
Disclaiming ethnicity and advocating a "citizen of the world" exterior or patriotic Sri Lankan
approach was not applicable in this context for one reason. Kadirgamar was included in the
Kumaratunga cabinet originally as a "token" Tamil minister. There was no elected Tamil MP in
her party and like Chelliah Kumarasuriar of old in the United Front Government of 1970
Kadirgamar too was thrust into office. Both were unelected. Unlike Kumarasuriar who later
cultivated the Vaddukkoddai and Kilinochchi electorates Kadirgamar remained a national list
MP to the core. Since he depended on national list nominations on four occasions he never
had the necessity like Kumarasuriar and other pro - government Tamil politicians to woo
Tamils. Though claiming to be truly national the practical reality was that Kadirgamar need
depend only on the president and party leadership for Parliamentary and ministerial posts.
This situation resulted in Kadirgamar becoming a loyal warrior in the service of "Country and
Queen". Had he wanted to remain outside the label of ethnicity and adopt a neutral stance
"away from the ignoble strife" Lakshman Kadirgamar could have resigned from his ministerial
post and quit politics. He did not and that was his personal choice. Once he decided to throw in
his lot with the Government waging war against the LTTE in theory and by extension the Tamil
people in practice his role was determined for him. And with what energy and fervour he
devoted himself to that role. Like Karna of the Mahabharatha and Vibeshana of the Ramayana
he fought on the opposite side and not with his brothers.
This by itself would not have been a major cause of dissatisfaction as there had been other
Tamil ministers too in Sinhala majority cabinets during war. Devanayagam, Rajadurai,
Thondaman, Sellasamy, Rasamanohari Pulendiran, P, Chandiraekheran etc are some. But
none of these ministers participated actively in the war effort and for the most part were kept in
the dark. But this was not so in Kadirgamars case. He played a prominent part and extended
battlelines into the international arena. Both sides of the ethnic divide felt that Colombo was
scoring remarkable victories in the diplomatic arena. The USA and Britain bans on the LTTE for
example were seen as Kadirgamars doing by "Sinhala" friend and "Tamil"foe alike. It is the
considered opinion of this writer that the role of Kadirgamar in these matters has been highly
exaggerated. But popular perceptions differ.
What troubles Tamil moderates and impartial observers of the Sri Lankan scene was
Kadirgamar going beyond the call of duty in some respects. He went out of his way to
whitewash the armed forces in the many war crimes and civilian massacres it was involved in.
Kadirgamar misled the world on the Navaly Church bombing for one. He asked the UN to stick
to Malaria and malathion when it raised its voice over civilian deaths. It is saddening that a man
of great humanist beliefs could remain outwardly silent and even distort the truth in matters like
these. His deafening silence on the Bindunuwewa massacre after waxing eloquent on the child
soldiers issue was truly deplorable.
It was also puzzling as to how a man of his stature could consort with avowed Sinhala racists.
Kadirgamar once told the UN General assembly that the Sinhala people were free of racism
and that his elevation to Foreign Minister office was indicative of this. How utterly wrong he was.
Many years later he saw the naked face of Sinhala Buddhist racism when he was in the running
for the Prime Minister post. Even though the JVP backed him some Sinhala Buddhist
organizations told him clearly that only a "Sinhala Buddhist" could be premier of this Sinhala
Buddhist Country. There is no doubt that further enlightenment would have been on the cards
when the anti - conversion bill materialised. Kadirgamar would have been against this and so
irk the extremists.
One thing however is clear. Though Kadirgamar is talked of as a man loved and trusted by the
Sinhala people there were limits to this relationship. He would have been popular only as long
as he spearheaded the anti - tiger campaign. Had he exceeded those limits and spoken out
publicly on issues affecting Tamils then he would have been unpopular overnight. Had he
expressed regret or concern over the civilian killings he would have been even removed from
the foreign minister post. This may explain his silence on those matters. But then he could at
least have remained silent. Instead he chose to cover up and whitewash many such incidents.
This was totally unnecessary and was more indicative of the deep insecurity felt by him in a
"Sinhala" government notwithstanding boasts to the contrary.
If these were shortcomings or lapses on Kadirgamars part there was much good in what he
was doing too. There is no denying the quiet courage with which he went about pursuing his
campaign against the LTTE with the full knowledge that he was way up on the tiger hit list as a
perceived collaborator. There are few Tamils who dare to stand up to the tigers Kadirgamar
was a rare Tamil in that respect. Defying the tigers is no act of treachery. The pro - tiger
elements no doubt elated with Kadirgamars killing are conducting a campaign in very poor taste
against him.
The LTTE "Voice of Tigers" (Puligalin Vaanoli director Thavapalan fired a broadside titled " oru
thani manithanin maranathil oru iname mahilchi adaigirathu" (An entire nation is rejoicing over
the death of a single individual). This is being relayed all over the world besides being available
on internet. Saying that all Tamils are rejoicing over an assassination is both wrong and
stigmatises an entire people with barbaric attributes. This is akin to the tiger propaganda that
the people of Inuvil butchered King Charlie whereas it was the LTTE that did it.The tiger and
pro - tiger critique of Kadirgamar is situated on different premises to those of moderate Tamils
and have to be dealt with separately.
[To be Continued Next Week - Aug 28, 2005]
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