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| Tuesday, 30 December 2003 |
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It is ironic that the only Tamils who do not want the North and the East de-merged are the Tamils who do not live there and who will never settle down there. Has anybody thought about that? They are the expatriate Tamils and Tamils living among the Sinhalese but all the Tamils living in the North and East (except the LTTE), all the Muslims and all the Sinhalese except a few who want to sell the country want the two provinces de-merged. Even the previous American Ambassador Ashley Wills made it clear publicly that merging or not, was not the issue meaning that the United States had no objections if the two provinces are de-merged. I do not remember the exact wording but I do remember the words "whether merged or not". Today the United States is the only country that has publicly stated that the LTTE should give up violence and the idea of a separate state and hence spoken on our behalf. What the UNF Government is attempting to do is to lay the foundation for separation under the guise of various coined up terms. Also the deliberate importation of radio station and other high tech equipment for the LTTE and turning a blind eye to the importation of twelve shiploads of arms could mean an alternative to parliamentary procedure if the UNF plans fail. Now that the LTTE has officially stated their demands, it is now clear that the time that was spent in having talks with the LTTE without touching on the key issues was a deliberate attempt to strengthen the LTTE militarily? This is now the golden opportunity for the president to de-merge the two provinces, win the confidence of the majority and take back power with a greatly increased majority. L. JAYASOORIYA Reconciliation and reconstruction President Kumaratunga's appeal to the Prime Minister to consider to join hands with her to have a Government of reconciliation and re-construction is commendable. This is a chance offered by destiny to shed petty political differences and unite to usher in peace and prosperity in the country and to solve the ethnic problem. The president could not have uttered anything more truthful at the Jaya Sri Maha Bodhiya in Anuradhapura at the opening ceremony of gilded gates. Although she has taken over three ministries within the power vested in her under the Constitution in Article 44 of the constitution in terms of sub section (3) of that article. She has now realized the gravity of the present situation regarding the settlement of the present crisis after taking over the defence ministry. Prime Minister should take a positive action than going for a general election at this juncture spending great amount of money about 600-800 million rupees which would definitely aggravate the economic difficulties in the country in addition to election violence and terror. The great expectation of the majority of the people is that the President and Prime Minister representing the two major parties would unite at least for one year and settle the ethnic problem for the welfare of the country. People are fed up with power politics and not worried who steers the country. All want peace and not pieces of the country. Both parties should be able to give and take for the sake of the country. President Chandrika Bandaranaike and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe must compromise between the two overcome the political gridlock. Dr. D. N. NILLEGODA, Kadugannawa Ever since gaining independence, some politicians have the habit of blaming the colonial rulers for all the ills of this country, whether calamities, ethnic/religious problems or political rivalry. The wrong-doings are never theirs but it is always due to the Portuguese, Dutch or the English - who left our shores more than 50 years ago! A certain minority group familiar with violence and intimidation, is trying to gain political mileage and is in the fore-front of recent unruly events. They have tried to whip up religious unrest between Buddhists and Christians, regarding conversions. They have even shed "crocodile tears" for the cause of a certain ethnic group against another, and a cartoon in a recent newspaper aptly exposed their "puerile" politics, which amused everyone. To further their cause, the latest is a rumour spread, blaming the Christians for the death of the late Buddhist prelate, who, according to news reports, had met his demise due to a heart condition, in a Communist country. Since a group named 'Jehovahs Witnesses' was mentioned in a news item, I would wish to clarify that this group is an Anti-Christian Movement and has no affiliation with any Christian Churches in Sri Lanka. Let's wait and see what the next ruse of this minority political group will be to start another conflict, since there are some who are 'hare-brained' and gullible in this country. D.C., Piliyandala As we approach the end of another year let us commend the efforts made by all concerned with the peace process. In this context let us reflect on the words of one of India's great sons, Sri Jawaharlal Nehru ... "There is only one India of which all of us, you and I, are inheritors. It belongs to us ... and all India's history from thousands and thousands of years till today, is one common heritage. All the culture of India, whether it comes from the North or the South or anywhere else, is our common heritage, and what is more, the great future that spreads out before us is going to be our common heritage ...." (From Jawaharlal Nehru's speech December 26, 1955). ARTHUR JAYASEKARA, Colombo 6 |
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