http://www.defence.lk/new.asp?fname=Right_of_Reply_The_truth_about_the_People_of_Keppapilavu_in_Mullaitivu_20130110_03
Right of Reply: The truth about the People of Keppapilavu in Mullaitivu
(By: Shenali Waduge)
This response is to counter the article titled "In search of
justice: The story of the people of Kepapilavu" written under a pseudonym
"Elijah" to the Sunday Times (6 Jan 2013) having visited Mullaitivu as well as
spoken to the people of Kepapilavu last month (Dec 2012).
Can someone please say how worse can life be for people who were
living for 30 years in cadjan huts under LTTE rule engulf in immeasurable number
of fears , now given 40 perches of land for each family, 6 months of dry
rations, 12 roofing sheets per family, 8 cement bags, non-food relief items that
include mosquito nets, plastic mats, kitchen sets....even coconut scrappers and
a total shelter grant of Rs25,000 and eventually a brick house that is 550sq.ft
with 2 bedrooms/a living room/bathroom and kitchen?
Can Elijah no one demanded LTTE to leave the Tamil civilians
alone? Did Elijah and others demand that the LTTE should not demand Tamils to
sacrifice a child each to the LTTE to turn into LTTE killers? Can Elijah explain
what kind of democracy prevailed in 30 years of LTTE rule? In comparison what
does Elijah and the likes find so grotesque in the freedom experienced by the
people in the North now as compared to how the people lived under LTTE rule? Is
Elijah implying that Tamil people lived wonderfully under the LTTE far better
than now?
However, last month when I visited these areas there were
certainly no scream of anguish except children gleefully cycling on the 100
bikes gifted to them and mothers happily taking home utensils gifted to them -
the scenario was nothing that Elijah's article attempts to convey and a group of
25 visitors from overseas donating goodies to these people would vouch for this
as well.
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| Children free to ride |
It is just as well that this writer mentions "ethnic conflict"
because - the close to 300,000 odd people that the Sri Lankan military helped
rescue were all crying out for food and medical assistance back in May 2009. Now
if their "savior" the LTTE had been looking after "their people" from the
USD300m annual profits can "Elijah" please explain why these people were living
in cadjan huts for 30 years - why not a single road was made, not a single
school was built except LTTE training camps disguised as "orphanages" in the
middle of the Mullaitivu jungles and a swimming pool that was 86ft long, 36ft
wide and 22ft deep, floodlit, with 6 changing rooms and that too in the thick
jungles - if Elijah has not seen this here's a picture!
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This
was Prabakaran's swimming pool deep in the jungles of Mullaitivu where he
personally watched sea tigers train
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Mullaitivu is a district with an area of 2,516.9 sq.km - its
strategic interest to a sovereign nation is nothing any Government should need
to afford excuses for or explain why it would place military installations to
secure that security interest.
The 165 families newly housed in the Kepapilavu model village
remains in the corner of Kepapilavu bordering Seeniyamottai. There is nothing
that hampers any of their daily requirement in terms of school, health
facilities or livelihood - everything is within range. So what is this fuss
except to use that as an excuse to create an issue, internationalize it and to
demand the security forces to move out of this strategic location! We now know
the drill.
The current wave of negative media coverage portraying the
"woes" of civilians echoes the same strategy used in attempting to remove the
Mullikulam naval camp with an all out international cry led by TNA over the
plight of 81 non-Hindu families. The gameplan was clear - use media to create
pressures to remove Sri Lanka's security bases from coastal areas and for whose
advantage would this be? Your guess is as good as mine!
Having spoken to numerous people who were conversant in Sinhala,
there was nothing to remotely convey the feeling of displeasure with the
military when the question was directly posed as to how satisfied the people are
with the military. In my presence a request for a sewing machine was immediately
attended to and that does not show signs of a military "intimidating" civilian
life - it showed a new bond and how people were not afraid to make a request!
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This
sewing machine was just one of the items that were found after the fall of the
LTTE in 2009/Pudukurippu
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Utensils of Tamil cilians who were forced from their
homes to join LTTE to be used as human shields or hostages in 2009.
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Far more than the bonding between the older generation was the
manner in which the children were moving with the armed forces. The
communication factor has helped to a great extent and with a growing number of
military personnel conversing in Tamil it is ideal for the children too to learn
Sinhala. This is in deed good news for the future especially when attempts are
afoot to draw youth back into an armed struggle by the very forces that created
Sri Lanka's terror helped by their local stooge the TNA. Thankfully the people
of Kepapilavu have realized the lies of the political party and TNA has failed
to make inroads into the area or amongst the people of this model village.
Yet, with these calls to remove Sri Lanka's military from
coastal belts it is time Sri Lankan authorities realize who their enemies are.
If its denial of rights that Elijah is referring to he or she
may like to explain what rights the Tamil people had under LTTE rule - abducting
children as young as 10years, denying children their fundamental rights to
education, encouraging religious conversions, subjecting Tamil people to passes
issued by LTTE's Transport Monitoring Division (TMD), restricting movement of
Tamil people, forceful payments to LTTE checkpoints, unpaid labor, using Tamils
as human shields, confiscating Tamil assets, assassinating over 250 Tamil
learned men - Can Elijah please explain what "dignity" the LTTE gave the Tamil
people to promote the idea that life of these Tamils were far better under LTTE
rule!
Keeping to the theme of rights the writer quotes the
Constitution of Sri Lanka "Any citizen of Sri Lanka has the inalienable right to
acquire land in any part of the country, in accordance with its laws and
regulations, and reside in any area of his/her choice without any restrictions
or limitations imposed in any manner whatsoever" - with Sinhalese the 3rd place
in terms of population in Colombo it shows how well Tamils and Muslims have used
this "inalienable" right and prompts Sinhalese to use these same rights to
purchase property and land in the north and east of Sri Lanka to work and live
there. It's the perfect way to move forward with reconciliation.
As for threats - What threats do Tamils face in the present that
are exclusive to them? They are all traveling throughout the country without
fear, they visit their relatives without having to pay LTTE at checkpoints or
handover their jewelery, they purchase property and land without fear and the
only issue that has resurfaced which the LTTE kept in check was the Tamil caste
issue. With the caste factor resurfacing we again see a host of conflicts all
associated with the caste factor and it is nothing that the Sinhalese, the
military or the Government can be blamed for. It is something the Tamil people
need to sort out amongst themselves.
The Government's manner of resettling and developing the North
and the East is nothing that deserves humiliation and fabrications. Visiting
these areas once the haunts of the LTTE it is not hard to feel angered with the
LTTE for letting their own people down for 30 odd years on the pretext of being
their savior. People need to visit these areas to see for themselves how LTTE
had fooled the Tamil people and the lies that the LTTE supporters contributed
towards as well.
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