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By D. B. S. JEYARAJ
Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin has demonstrated that he is a bold and principled
political leader by standing up to pressure exerted by Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
supporters in Canada. Martin concluded his 24 hour Sri Lankan visit last week without
going to tiger controlled areas in the North or meeting with members of the LTTE
hierarchy. This is considered a courageous move within the current political context within
Canada.
The pro - tiger Tamil lobby in Canada had whipped up a widespread campaign that
tsunami aid was not going to Tamil areas. There was also pressure that Martin should
visit "Tamil administered areas" (euphemism for LTTE controlled areas) and meet LTTE
leaders personally. There was also a demand that Canadian aid should go directly to
Tamil organizations and not be channelled through Colombo.
At a meeting held earlier in Canada the Prime Minister assured Tamil representatives
that Canadian officials on ground would ensure that affected Tamil areas will receive
adequate aid. Canadian assistance would be provided to all areas in equitably according
to required needs. This in effect meant that there was no need for Martin to visit the
Wanni. But tigerish Tamil elements would not accept it and continued with an intensive
campaign through mass petitions, letters, e - mails, faxes and telephone calls that the PM
should visit Tamil areas.
When a TV station conducted a telephone poll as to whether Martin should go to LTTE
controlled areas or not the local Tamil lobby became active. The Tamil media asked
people to vote on the telephone in favour of the PM going to the LTTE controlled areas.
The poll soon became a farce thanks to the manipulated voting that inundated the
telephone lines. The result was a foregone conclusion. 93 % Wanted Paul Martin to visit
the Wanni.
The tricky situation that Canada and many other Western nations face is this. All these
countries have a substantial Tamil population due to the ethnic crisis. They are becoming
an integral component of their "new" Countries and cannot be ignored. At the same time
the only organized articulate supposedly representing them are fiercely pro - LTTE. In the
changed world of post - Sep 11th 2001 the LTTE is perceived as terrorist by the West.
Also the Sri Lankan state is ruled by the Sinhala majority. This creates a peculiar problem
where governments have to charter a difficult course amid conflicting necessities such as
an international drive against terrorism, domestic political compulsions and maintenance
of satisfactory inter - state relations. The dilemma is particularly prickly for Canada which
has the largest Sri Lankan diaspora in the world.
Adding to Martins problems were the concern and dissatisfaction evinced in Sri Lankan
circles about Canada being partial towards the LTTE. Though Ottawa has tried to hold
scales evenly and has indicated in many ways its disapproval of LTTE goals and methods
the strident attitude of pro - tiger Tamil elements often conveyed a false impression. Sri
Lankan deputy foreign minister Wiswa Warnapala articulated Government objections to
Tamil areas receiving special favours in a newspaper interview.
A third dimension was the right - wing opposition and media in Canada. These sections
were vehemently opposed to Martin consorting with the LTTE in any way. They were
critical of the TRO being allowed to raise funds openly in Canada and the fact that the
LTTE was not formally banned in Canada under the draconian Anti - Terrorism Act (C -
36). The controversy surrounding Martin for attending a pro - LTTE dinner some years
ago was also another legacy of the past that hung over the Prime Minister.
The most forceful pressure however came from the tiger lobby whose scale according to
Liberal party sources was "incredible and enormous". Complicating matters further was
the fragile nature of Paul Martins minority government. The Canadian Tamil bloc had
solidly voted for the Liberals. Now the tiger supporters were claiming to "control" this vote
and threatening to withdraw support. Given the tricky situation any vote "bloc" was
crucially important and the implied threat of withdrawal was worrying to any politician.
There are 250, 000 plus Canadians of Sri Lankan Tamil origin in Canada. Of these more
than 200, 000 live in the Greater Toronto Area. Tamil - Canadians do not form the
majority in any riding or electorate in the Toronto region. But they form a substantial
minority bloc in about ten ridings. Moreover they are very active in the ruling Liberal party
and play a prominent role in inner - party politics. Tamils are a crucial component in
several party branches or riding associations. At the recent leadership convention that
formally elected Martin as party leader there were 84 Tamils in the 1700 delegates. In a
Scarborough riding association 11 of the 12 delegates were Tamil Canadians.
Given this intra - party strength and the disproportionate influence it wields there was a
strong Tamil lobby exerting pressure within the Liberals on Paul Martin that he should
visit "Tamil administered areas , assess the tsunami damage and meet with Tamil
leaders". Though couched in appropriate euphemism this was simply a demand that
Martin should visit the Wanni. inspect Mullaitheevu and meet LTTE leader Velupillai
Pirapakaran in person.
Strengthening this request/demand was the argument that a large number of Tamils
were living in Canada and therefore the Canadian Prime Minister MUST visit the Wanni.
It was projected that Martin not going to the Wanni will amount to a snubbing of Tamil
sentiment, A parallel was drawn with the Kofi Annan trip where the Colombo government
debarred the UN Secretary - General from going to the Wanni or for that matter any
major Tamil area affected by tsunami. Martin is being asked not to emulate Annan. There
was also a veiled threat that Tamil Canadians would withdraw their support from the
Liberal party in the future. The pro - tiger efforts were spearheaded by Tamil youth and
student organizations and also the Canadian Tamil Congress.
After the LTTE front organization Federation of Associations of Canadian Tamils (FACT)
was clearly identified as a tiger front it was allowed to become virtually defunct.
Corresponding to FACT decline was the birth and growth of the Canadian Tamil
Congress. Though some of its youthful members who bask in the limelight deny any links
with the LTTE there is a general view in the community that it is "guided" by tiger
elements in Canada.
One tactic employed by the tiger lobby has been its blatant manuevre to get close to the
opposition New Democratic Party. When Liberal MP"s kept away from a pro - tiger rally i
Toronto last year the tiger lobby promptly wooed and got NDP leader Jack Layton on its
platform at the last minute. Layton in his zeal to grab the Tamil vote made a controversial
comparison between Nelson Mandela and Pirapakaran that disgusted its traditional
supporters. Now Layton is part of the MP group accompanying Martin but has insisted
that the Prime Minister should visit "Tamil" areas. He may even undertake a separate visit
to the North - East supported perhaps by the Tiger lobby.
Martin however did not visit LTTE controlled areas during his visit. His only ground trip
was to Kalmunai where the Canadian forces Disaster assistance response team (DART)
was stationed. There he met Tamils and Muslims and emotively empathised. He also met
in Colombo a pro - tiger delegation comprising Tamil National Alliance MP's and Tamil
Rehabilitation Organization director.
The tiger lobby in Canada is unhappy about Martins refusal to go in to tiger controlled
territory and see the Mullaitheevu destruction in person. The lobby has come out openly
with its disapproval . .In typical tiger style a vociferous minority claiming to speak for all
Canadian Tamils has hogged the megaphone while the silent majority remains passive
spectators. According to the tiger lobby the Canadian Tamils are disappointed that their
Prime Minister did not visit affected Tamil areas. The irony in all this is that Martin did visit
the North - Eastern area of Kalmunai home to both Tamils and Tamil speaking Muslims.
Originally the entire North - East was called Tamil Eelam. But to the tiger lobby Eelam has
shrunk to only those areas under LTTE control.
The great thing about Paul Martin's move is that by not bowing down to tiger pressure he
has risked a" minor" political loss. The Tamil vote in Canada is nowhere large as both pro
- tiger and anti - tiger elements think it is. Nevertheless if the tiger lobby succeeds in
weaning the Tamil vote away from the Liberals it may cause a small dent in the party's
electoral fortunes. This "swing" though very small could be crucial in a tight poll. Some
Liberal politicians from Greater Toronto may be very unhappy. Nevertheless Martin has
decided to defy the tiger lobby if necessary in the larger interests of the nation.
Canada does hope to play a role in Sri Lankan affairs and help it achieve if possible a
federal solution. Cosying up to the tigers will not help Ottawa in that. Colombo and the
Sinhala community must not be worried about a pro - LTTE stance by Canada. India with
whom Martin seeks a closer relationship should not be troubled by a seeming tiger tilt too.
Moreover Canada has also demonstrated its concerns about the Muslims in Sri Lanka
and shown through its selection of coastal Amparai for DART operations that the Muslims
would not be left out.
This however does not mean that the Tamils are discarded. Given the Tamil Diaspora in
Canada that is not simply possible. When it comes to aid allocation and project selection
Ottawa will ensure that affected Tamil areas within and outside LTTE controlled spheres
will be catered to on the basis of need. Furthermore it is Canada's contention that the
best interests of the Tamils will be served not by a confrontational approach but by
dialogue and discussion. Ottawa wants the LTTE to get back to the negotiating table and
"stay the course" until a solution is reached. Canada will continue to support the peace
process and not support any attempt by the LTTE or supporters to adopt a divisive
course.
Sources close to Paul Martin are of the view that the Kalmunai field trip has been a
"defining" experience for the Prime Minister. He is emotionally shaken up and firmly
resolved to help Sri Lanka. While helping tsunami victims Martin also feels that the
greater task would be to do away with debilitating war and usher in permanent peace to
Sri Lanka. He will Commit Canada fully to this mission. These sources say that Martin
believes in engaging the LTTE as far as possible in the peace process. The tigers will not
be banned under C - 36 as long as they cooperate in the search for peace. The
possibility of the LTTE being formally banned in Canada is not ruled out if the tigers
resume unilateral war.
According to Liberal insiders the tsunami disaster and its fall - out seems to have revived
a family trait in Martin. It was his father Paul Martin snr who as foreign minister under
Lester Pearson proposed that Canada devote 1% of its GNP to international assistance.
Ottawa only spends one - forth of that amount now. Under Paul Martin Canada may very
well be on its way to achieve that target. Tsunami and Martins Kalmunai experience may
be the catalyst.
These liberal insiders also said that both the tiger lobby as well as opposition circles had
misjudged Martins motives in helping Sri Lanka. Given his worldview the domestic factor
of Tamil votes did not play a big part as projected they say. Martins perspective is much
more broader than that it is pointed out. Unlike his predecessor Jean Chretien who let his
foreign ministers like Lloyd Axworthy, John Manley and Bill Graham take the initiative in
international affairs Martin himself is very much interested in the subject. He has been
frequently travelling while foreign minister Pierre Pettigrew is yet to make a distinctive
mark.
Against this backdrop Martin's Sri Lankan trip was not entirely due to domestic political
compulsions but part of the mans vision and mission for Canada. The pro - tiger lobby
would have gravely miscalculated by assuming that the "tail" was wagging the head. On
the other hand Martin had succeeded in deflating much of tiger propaganda by his Sri
Lankan trip. It is imperative therefore for Canadian Tamils to perceive current
developments positively.
Though tiger elements may try and drive a wedge between Canadian Tamils and their
Prime Minister the bulk of Canada's "silenced" Tamil majority is not likely to be
bamboozled. Right thinking members of the community though outwardly silent will no
doubt appreciate and understand what Martin is trying to do. Whatever the tiger claim
most Tamils in Canada will decide for themselves as to which party they should support.
Given the natural proclivity towards the Liberals amidst new immigrants and visible
minorities the Canadian Tamils too continue to vote liberal notwithstanding efforts by pro
- tiger sections. In that case. [Sunday Leader]