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by Rue Avis

Much is being said about the SAARC conference to be held in Colombo next week.

On the one hand government politicians are of the opinion that it would boost the image of our country and it is worth the money spent. Sri Lanka and its President would become the regional head of a very large population in this part of the world. They say, we should take pride in this and all who oppose it are not patriots, and are connected to the Tigers.

On the other hand, some feel it is a tremendous loss of money at a time when the cost of food, travelling etc., is unbearable to the majority of our citizens. Salary increases are not possible due to the high cost. The Treasury has said that it does not have the money to grant the salary increases requested by the workers.

It is said that the conference is simply a political exercise to boost the ego of the ruling politicians and their leader. Hundreds of thousands of our citizens who work hard for a living are being inconvenienced and will be inconvenienced further during the conference, while the politicians and their catchers run around in luxury.

Whatever be the repercussions, the conference will be held, the politicians and their leader have decided! They have been given a mandate to govern as they deem fit, they claim, and who cares if the citizens suffer?

We cannot change the situation, but we can question it. As simple citizens we ask simple questions. What was discussed during the past conferences and the conferences before that?

Other than holding useless meetings and the heads of states and government officials attending these meetings and functions spending the ratepayers’ money what has been achieved for the common citizens? Have the many ‘impressive’ speeches and promises made by the leaders including our own at SAARC summits resulted in improving the lives of our citizens?

Will somebody please tell us. Give us some examples. Maybe, we simple citizens could tolerate the waste of funds and bear the intolerable inconvenience during the SAARC conference, if we receive a reasonable explanation.

A Letter to the editor, published in the sunday leader.lk

The closure in August 2006 of the A9 highway-the vital transport route linking the Jaffna peninsula to the rest of the country-meant limited amounts of goods could only be transported by ship and airfreight, hampering aid deliveries and markets.

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These days, amidst severe food supply shortages, even rice given out for distribution for relief purposes has crept into private businesses, reports premier Tamil Daily Virakesari on its website today. It adds disciplinary action was taken against a few cooperative society officials recently.

The rice that was distributed by Jaffna Secretariat to cooperative societies for sale at Rs. 70 per kilo is being sold from Rs. 100 to 140 at private boutiques.

[file pic: Brennon Jones/IRIN - A shop owner at Jaffna town market]

Meanwhile, before SAARC is all over in Colombo, food prices in Jaffna are feared they will skyrocket beyond control. Price of a kilogram garlic has risen to Rs. 400 from Rs. 100, Virakesari reports.

Unloading of food items from privately commissioned ships at the Kankesanthurai port has begun; however government warehouses are completely running out of stock. Without the arrival of the next ship bringing food items to the government warehouses, the shortages are anticipated to deepen, according to Virakesari.

Virakesari also says unloading from ships may get delayed due prevailing condition of rough seas.

People in many parts of the Jaffna peninsula continue to suffer from lack of food grains. About 165,000 people in Jaffna are highly reliant on food assistance, including internally displaced people (IDPs) and other vulnerable groups, UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs reported in July last year.

Recent Nutrition surveys by international agencies show continuing rise in levels of acute malnutrition in the northern Jaffna district.

Speaking to the media today after completing a visit, the European Union (EU) delegation was of the view that All Party Representative Committee (APRC) was incomplete without the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), Tamil daily Virakesari reported on its website.

The TNA is not participating in the APRC process pointing out its view that it is “no more than a mere pretence”. TNA leader R. Sampanthan, speaking at the Sri Lanka parliament on Feb 6th, 2008 said, “The basic features of the proposals outlined by the Sri Lanka Freedom Party before the APRC was indeed a far cry from what the President stated in his inaugural address to the APRC”.

Virakesari reports, Robert Evans, leader of the EU delegation expressed disappointment at the media briefing held at the Colombo Hilton that their visit to Trincomalee could not be carried out as planned, which was the main purpose of its tour to Sri Lanka, on the grounds of last minute security concerns.

The delegation noted that in several meetings with the media, journalists spoke of continued harassment and the fear of being critical of the Authorities. The delegates heard of many cases of media workers being arrested, and learnt that 12 have be killed hi recent months. Robert Evans said the tough conditions being faced by the media personnel in Sri Lanka is going to be brought to the attention of the EU parliament.

The delegation also said both Sri Lanka government and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have engaged in vast human rights violations during the 25 years of war.

An official at the District Secretariat, Kilinochchi, Santhalingam Vimalakumar, was killed by a claymore attack of the Deep Penetration Unit of the Sri Lanka military today, July 25 in Kilavankulam, Mankulam, Tamil Daily Virakesari reported on its website, quoting sources in Vanni.

[Santhalingam Vimalakumar]

Vimalakumar (33), Development Assistant of Planning Unit, was engaged in assisting the internally displaced families moving into the Oddisuddan area over the past few days, according to Virakesari.

News reports say all officials at district and divisional levels are engaged in serving the IDPs arriving on a large scale exodus from Sri Lanka Army occupied areas of Mannaar, Kilinochchi and Mullaiththivu districts.

Last month, Nagalingam Nanthakumar, Divsional Secretary of Thunukkaay division of Mullaiththivu district was killed in a similar attack while traveling to his office.

[Homage to Santhalingam Vimalakumar, was held on Friday July 25th, at the conference room in Kilinochchi Secretariat-pic:TN]

The fire that was set 25 years ago is still burning within us, says Mano Ganesan

Statement by Mano Ganesan MP, Leader of Western Peoples Front

The fire that was set twenty five years ago which shattered our lives is still burning within us as the conditions prevailed then are yet applicable and not mended. Tamils are prepared to forgive but not prepared to forget the trauma of 1983 as the Sinhala political leadership has failed provide the sense of accommodation even after all these black historical past said WPF Leader Mano Ganesan MP while addressing the workshop organized by National Peace Council in Colombo today. The workshop was chaired by NPC Executive Director Dr. Jehan Perera and attended by Minister of Constitutional Affairs Dew Gunasekara, Secretary General of Secretariat for Coordinating the Peace Process and Secretary of Ministry of Human Rights and Disaster Management Prof. Rajiva Wijesinha and Ven. Buddiyagane Chandraratna, Chief Incumbent Bodhimalu Viharaya, Vanathavilu and President of Puttalam Peace Forum and many others. Ganesan said further in his presentation made in Sinhala.

[Mano Ganesan MP speaks on July 1983 Riots]

[Video Courtesy of vikalpa]

Sinhala film director Yasapalitha Nanayakara deputed by my late father’s friend Vijaya Kumaratunga saved all the members of our family from instant death at Havelock Town in Colombo on the fateful July 23rd in year 1983. I can remember it as I remember yesterday. But from personal experiences we ought to search for the root causes of the issues. Unless and until we address the root cause, basics of the black July are going to remain. What performed then in 1983 against Tamils was initiated by state terrorism and it is what is prevailing against Tamils now in 2008. We cannot also simply by pass the occurrences of 1989. During this period state terrorism ruthlessly performed against Sinhala youths. The Secretary General of the Peace secretariat attempted to condemn then government headed by president J.R. Jayawardena and his minister Cyril Mathew for 1983 July pogroms and stop with that. We cannot do justice to 1983 victims by doing so. Let us together condemn the occurrences of 1983, 1989 and 2008. And not stopping with that we condemn the non state terrorism then and now. That comment is about the terrorism of LTTE and EPRLF, PLOTE, TELO, EROS and then EPDP and the JVP. There are legitimate and illegitimate activities form the side of the state. Similarly there are rational and raw terror activities from the side of the liberation movements. But we cannot selectively condemn according to the present political agenda. The LTTE did not fall from the sky. So are the EPRLF, PLOTE, TELO, EROS, EPDP and JVP. The conditions for the formations of these respective armed violent movements were created by the successive governments in the first twenty five years of the history of Ceylon and then Sri Lanka. This history is being continued. The root cause is that the desire of the Sinhala-Buddhist establishment to own the whole of Sri Lankan island for themselves alone. The adamant refusal to share the sovereignty and political power with the Tamil nationality and Tamil speaking Muslim people is THE root cause. This is the plain truth. Acceptance of this will pave way for mending ways towards a united Sri Lanka. But the root cause is not being addressed today. There is no attempt on that score. Instead there are attempts on certain non-priority issues like teaching Tamil to Sinhala state officials. Yes, the language barrier is an issue. But it is not the number one issue anymore among the Tamils. Those who fought from Anti-War platforms have stepped down. They have given up anti-war slogans. They do not even speak against the human rights violations now. Nobody wanted to antagonize the government. They have taken the language issue now, which is an easier non controversial issue. Most importantly it will not antagonize the government. That is the bottom line. Government too welcomes such issue because through these language programs it has something show up to the international community.

Look at me and my desire. I wanted to live with Sinhalese in a united country. When I went to Western Provincial Council in year 1999, I did not speak Sinhala. I did not speak Sinhala when I first entered Parliament in year 2001. I did not speak Sinhala when I entered Parliament for the second time in year 2004. Believe me, I learned Sinhala after. Now I make speeches in Sinhala in Parliament and in media. Today I am speaking in Sinhala. I am talking of the Tamil aspirations to the Sinhala brothers and sisters in their own language. This is out of my desire. Those Sinhala politicians who come here and make great rhetoric statements regarding Sinhala Tamil communication have never attempted to study Tamil. They may speak some Tamil but I am yet to meet Sinhala politicians who speak Tamil as the way I speak Sinhala.

My message today is very clear. If the refusal to share the sovereignty and political power with the Tamil nationality and Tamil speaking Muslim people continues, I am afraid that I will end up as the last Tamil politician speaking to Sinhalese in Sinhala. That will be end of my desire, the Tamil desire of living together.

The government is not giving the due respect to judiciary and parliament. It is taking measures that are in violation of court orders. People’s freedoms and rights are being snatched away. Recent home demolitions were carried out by government officials despite court order restricting such actions, said Joseph Michael Perera of the United National Party (UNP), and Member of Parliament representing Gampaha district while speaking at the Parliament yesterday.

Joseph Michael Perera, who is also the Chief Opposition Whip in the Sri Lanka Parliament called upon the government to adequately compensate those who are now homeless due to the demolition, according to a news report published in Tamil daily Virakesari.

The newspaper adds that the parliamentarian pointed out to several other international summits was held in Colombo with dignitaries such as Prime Ministers Rajiv Gandhi and P. V. Narasimha Rao attended but public were not expelled from homes.

But the ‘Mahinda Chinthana’ has thrown the people out to the streets from their homes of over sixty years, parliamentarian Joseph Michael Perera said.