Martyrs and traitors: ‘History will judge’
Chairman’s Introductory Address,
by Mr. P. Rajanayagam, ‘Remembering Kethesh’ 31 March 2007
I warmly welcome all of you who have come to attend this meeting. This is no ordinary meeting. We have come together today to remember and celebrate the life and work of a rare human being who was born in our midst, but whose life was so cruelly and brutally ended so abruptly.
We also meet at a time when Sri Lanka is caught up in an undeclared war which has resulted in a humanitarian and human rights crisis of gigantic proportions.
As many as 3,500 to 4,000 lives have been lost in the latest phase of this violent conflict that escalated since the declaration by the LTTE leader in his Heroes Day speech in November 2005, following the election of Mahinda Rajapakse as President, that the LTTE would intensify its struggle for political independence and national liberation to establish self-government in the Tamil homeland. The continuing violence and fighting claims many lives each passing day.
Even as the war is being prosecuted by both sides undeterred by and unconcerned about the suffering of the people, a grave humanitarian crisis has unfolded. With each passing day, more and more people have been displaced. Authoritative reports testify that as many as 200,000 civilians have been displaced and this figure is growing by the day.
On the human rights front, we have witnessed a sharp downward spiral. The situation is replete with targeted killings, abductions, disappearances and the deployment of the provisions of the Prevention of Terrorism Act and draconian Emergency Regulations for the arrest and detention of persons. Forced conscription of children and enforced induction of adults into the ranks of the fighting forces continue on an intensified scale.
The sheer cynicism and the gross lack of concern for the plight of the ordinary people particularly in the Northeast on the part of the Government and the LTTE is breathtaking in that, even after inflicting so much of suffering upon the people, both parties claim that they are wedded to the Ceasefire Agreement.
This is the context in which we have gathered here to celebrate the life and work of Kethesh who dedicated his entire life for a noble cause.
We have produced a memorial volume as a mark of honouring and celebrating the remarkable life and work of this rare human being. A section of this memorial volume contains the writings of Kethesh that set out the positions he held on contemporary issues.
Kethesh has been described as one of the sharpest analytical intellects, and one of the finest Sri Lankan minds of his day. Kethesh fell victim to an assassin’s bullet on 12 August 2006. He joined the unending roll-call of Tamil political leaders, intellectuals, academics, human rights and political activists who have become victims to the gun and bomb culture that has characterised Tamil politics for the last two decades.
Among the many other courageous and outspoken Tamil leaders and intellectuals whose lives have been snuffed out, Kethesh stands out as one whose life spanned a varied and rich political trajectory.
A former militant, then academic, journalist, and tireless advocate of human rights and a return to democratic values in Tamil politics, Kethesh was one of the leading activists of the dissenting Tamil community who genuinely strived for a negotiated democratic political solution based on the principles of pluralism and human rights. At seminars and conferences, Kethesh passionately promoted and advocated a federal solution to the ethnic conflict by which regional autonomy, equal rights and the unity of the country could be secured to the satisfaction of all the communities.
Kethesh championed the cause of the Tamil people while battling hard to free Tamil society from the forces of militarism and nihilism that had gained a suffocating grip. He gave voice to those who wanted to speak out, but were deterred by an all consuming culture of fear.
Kethesh believed that “the liberation of a people could not be founded on fear, the celebration of death, the negation or even suspension of basic democratic values. This made him a stringent and fearless critic of the LTTE for their insistence on being the sole representatives of the Tamil people and for their reliance on terror, repression and violence.”
Kethesh believed that for any peace process to succeed, it should be underpinned by a commitment to human rights. According to Jehan Perera of the National Peace Council of SL, “When the LTTE first began its campaign of assassinations, less than a year after they signed the Ceasefire Agreement, Kethesh insisted that civil society organizations should take up the matter. He warned that the neglect of human rights, and the failure to uphold the right of people to live without fear of being gunned down by assassins, was fundamental to the peace process. Like a prophet in the ancient tradition, he spoke truth in the face of power, and it is a tragedy that his prophecy has come true.”
It was his unswerving commitment to the cause of the Tamil people winning their legitimate rights within the framework of democratic pluralism that made him to remain in Sri Lanka. At a time when many Tamils chose to leave the island seeking greener pastures abroad, Kethesh’s decision to continue to remain at home, in spite of the security threat he faced, demonstrated his sense of dedication and sacrifice which had been the hallmark of his entire life.
Above all, Kethesh stood for “Truth” in its true meaning. At the same time, he was brave and courageous and refused to be silenced by the fear of being killed.
When he commenced his regular weekly column in the Daily Mirror, he declared,
“What this columnist will attempt in his columns is to articulate the apprehensions and aspirations of Tamils who value democracy in their homeland and cherish the idea of peaceful coexistence with their Sinhalese and Muslim brethren all over the country. In this Sathya, as the name indicates, will strive to abide by Sathyam or Truth.
Truth of course is a relative term, although it has its innate universal elements. Sathya will speak and write the “Truth” till such time as he is convinced that what he has been uttering and writing is wrong. At which point he will truthfully admit his mistakes and rectify. Till then he will voice and write the Truth as it appears to him. Of course, Sathya is fully aware that there are other means by which dissent can be and is “silenced”. Till such time, Sathya has no intentions of turning over and playing dead!”
We salute Kethesh for his exceptional courage and dedication in championing and upholding the cherished values of democracy, human rights, pluralism and peace with justice for all.
We like many others are grief-stricken by the enforced, untimely and tragic demise of Kethesh. But there is one person to whom the loss is incalculable and everlasting. And that person is none other than Bhawani, Kethesh’s wife and life-long companion.
May I conclude my remarks by reading out a message Mrs Bhawani Loganathan has sent to us to mark this occasion:
“I cannot find words to express my sorrow and trauma. On the 12th of August 2006, at 9.05 pm, within seconds Kethesh was gone and my life turned upside down. Even though I keep telling myself that ‘his time had come’, I can never, ever pardon those who committed it. As for Kethesh, my consolation is that I gave him the ‘space’ to do what he believed in. I share my grief with comrades who trusted Kethesh, and with thousands of women who have lost their spouses and family members in a prolonged civil war. I cannot say anything beyond this. As mentioned earlier, my grief is beyond mere words.”
The internalised violence that has characterised the Tamil liberation struggle has devoured many of its own sons and daughters. It has produced thousands of so-called martyrs and traitors. History will one day give its judgement as to who the martyrs and traitors are, who brought untold destruction to the people and who sought to bring redemption to a long suffering people. It will certainly be a harsh and critical judgement. [SLDF]
