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The Sri Lankan President, Mahinda Rajapaksa, his brothers, the
Defence Secretary
Gothabaya Rajapaksa, and adviser Basil Rajapaksa deserve credit for
a determined
campaign to eliminate the terrorist LTTE.
The top leadership of the LTTE, including Velupillai Prabhakaran,
its supremo, has been
eliminated, but elements of the organisation remain abroad, along
with its supporters in
the diaspora community, especially in the UK and Canada. The
military victory over the
LTTE forces needs to be quickly consolidated by reconciliation and
political initiatives.
President Rajapaksa has wisely reached out to the Tamils in a bid to
heal the wounds of
the 25-year-long conflict and bring about national reconciliation.
The obstacles to national harmony in Sri Lanka are rooted in the
evolution of the various
ethnic groups in that country, and the differences in language,
religion, and cultural
heritage. Attempts by the majority community to foist their unitary
vision of the country
have led to increasing tensions, and ultimately civil war.
This is in sharp contrast to the dynamic federalism in India, which
is able to provide
avenues for its diverse population to express and achieve their
aspirations, while reaching
out to each other.
The 13th amendment (1987) to Sri Lanka’s constitution established
nine provinces with
federal, provincial and concurrent areas of responsibility, similar
to India’s federal
system. At present, there are seven provincial councils headed by
Chief Ministers, while
the Northern and Eastern Provinces have no councils due to the
conflict situation.
Growing divisions
The Tamil community of Sri Lanka, around 18 per cent of the
population, is far from
homogenous. It is mostly Hindus, with some Christians. The Tamils
descended from the
ancient kingdom of Jaffna form the bulk, some 1.8 million, and are
concentrated in the
Northern and Eastern parts of the country.
The Indian Tamils, the other group, some 8,00,000 in number, are
descendants of
indentured plantation workers who came in the 19th and 20th
centuries and live in the
central highlands. Other groups are the Negombo Tamils, who live in
the western part,
and have been assimilated into the Sinhala community; and the
Eastern Tamils, an
agrarian society, with a distinct history going back to the 12th
century.
In addition, there are Sri Lankan Moors, of Arab heritage, who are
mostly Sunni Muslims
but speak Tamil and reside in the Eastern coastal areas.
In contrast, the majority Sinhala community, some 81 per cent of the
population, is much
more homogenous. It is descended from northern Indian people who
came around the 5th
century BC. It adopted Buddhism (Theravada) in the 3rd century BC.
It traces its
historical roots to the powerful ancient kingdoms of Anuradhapura
and Polonnaruwa.
Tamil nationalism has its strongest roots in the Jaffna Tamil
community, which traces its
roots to a proud independent kingdom (from 1215 to 1609) and an
advanced civilisation
in the northern part of the country. Some 1.2 million of these live
abroad, in Canada, the
UK, India, Germany, France, etc. The embers of nationalism were
fanned after
independence in 1948 by ethnic riots and pogroms in 1956, 1958,
1977, 1981 and 1983,
leading to the formation and strengthening of militant groups
advocating independence
for Tamils. Policies such as the Sinhala-only Act of 1956, the ban
of Tamil language
media imports, the university admissions policy of 1971, and burning
of Jaffna library in
1983 further wounded the pride and dignity of the Tamils.
Transparent mechanism
President Rajapaksa’s address to Parliament stressed that he
would ensure equal rights
for all, and would protect the Tamils. He further said that the war
was against the LTTE,
not the Tamils. These words are to be welcomed, and it is hoped that
they will be
translated into deeds. The military victory over the LTTE needs to
be converted into
political reconciliation and consolidation of national unity and
solidarity.
Though Rajapaksa’s United People’s Freedom Alliance holds only 105
seats in the 225-
member parliament, he is likely to go in for premature parliamentary
elections before
April 2010, to take advantage of his popularity and win a decisive
electoral victory.
Rajapaksa could be well set for re-election when his present term
ends in November
2011. Meanwhile, political and economic initiatives are necessary to
heal the wounds of
war. There are consistent demands for an independent inquiry into
allegations of war
crimes and atrocities against civilians in the latest round of
fighting in April-May 2009.
The EU Foreign Ministers have called for this, as well as
international NGOs.
A wise move would be to set up an independent judicial inquiry into
such allegations,
and perhaps combine it with a “truth and reconciliation” mechanism
such as that adopted
in post-apartheid South Africa. The mechanism should be open,
transparent, and
accessible to international observers, to ensure the highest
credibility.
The Provincial Council system provides flexibility and autonomy to
the provinces, and
should be applied to the Northern and Eastern provinces, if
necessary with interim
councils, so that their respective councils can function at the
earliest.
This will demonstrate the sincerity of the government’s intention to
devolve authority in
the conflict-affected areas. Federalism is the best way forward for
all the communities in
Sri Lanka to work together to build a bright future, in the spirit
of equality for all, as
stated recently by President Rajapaksa
Sri Lanka’s economy has been devastated by decades of civil war. Now
there is hope for
long-term economic rebuilding and resurgence. The infrastructure of
the North and East,
including schools, health centres, transport and business support
services, needs
rebuilding and this effort should receive full international
support, as it would greatly
help the rehabilitation of the displaced Tamil population and give
it hope for the future.
Greater role for India
India is Sri Lanka’s largest neighbour and has traditionally been
its strongest partner. It
has had to play a cautious role during the conflict, due to the
feelings of the Tamil
population in Tamil Nadu. This has led to China making some inroads,
by giving the Sri
Lankan government military equipment, and extending political
support at the UN
Security Council and, in return, securing access to Sri Lanka’s
ports.
India is well placed to play a far greater role in Sri Lanka. It
can, and must, take the lead
in Sri Lanka’s rehabilitation and reconciliation effort, as it did
in the aftermath of the
tsunami of 2004, by offering substantial grants for rehabilitation
programmes, with the
participation of the local governments concerned, the Indian
business sector, as well as
the Tamil diaspora.
Given Sri Lanka’s relatively high social indicators, such as
literacy and health, a rapid
revival of the economy is well within reach. The Comprehensive
Economic Partnership
Agreement (CEPA) should be finalised as soon as possible.
With the end of the conflict, the Free Trade Agreement (FTA) and the
attractive location
and availability of good quality labour force would make Sri Lanka
an attractive
investment destination for Indian manufacturing, trading and service
enterprises.
Opportunities for closer economic linkages between the southern
Indian States and Sri
Lanka are bright and should be exploited and encouraged. There is
every reason to move
ahead, and beyond the unhappy period of conflict.
(The author is a former Ambassador to Cuba and Greece.
blfeedback@thehindu.co.in
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