From the heights of heroism to depths of villainy

Every one of us has a role in the history books and our names are etched in those in proportion to the contributions we make to national and human progress. Even though our existence in this world is limited to some years every person in his/her inner self yearns for eternity and wishes to be remembered for ever. That is why we have children and often take better care of them than we do of ourselves.

The year 2009 has certainly earned its place in the history books in this country. Because that is the year in which the nation was able to physically eliminate the forces of terror that plagued this country for 34 long years.

A criminal called Prabhakaran was able to hold this country to ransom for that long, challenging the writ of the democratically elected Government. Artifice and sheer brutality were the means he employed and 'grievances' was his cover. That war cost the country 100, 000 lives and billions worth of collateral and the losses in terms of 'lost opportunities due to lack of peace' could be far too great for human estimation.

Tamil community

His lust for power knew no bounds and he claimed to fight for the Tamil community that was the most privileged, educated and cultured, representing 12 percent of the country's population in the seventies. Alas after 34 years of this liberation struggle the Tamils were reduced to a war ravaged and displaced community estimated to represent only around 7 percent of the country's population today.

The damage Prabhakaran invited on the country and particularly on the Tamil community will eventually make him earn his place in the history. He certainly was a villain and we needed a hero to get rid of him.

However the question is, how did it become possible for a school drop out, who ran errands for the smugglers in his backyard of Velvetiturai, to reign a hero for 34 years?

When other criminals in this country get condemned to the gallows for killing in retail how did this wholesale killer killed so many taking the law un to his hands with a semblance of heroism? Simply because, Prabhakaran's crimes were laundered by, the powerful anti national forces within the country and the imperialist abroad, who wished to destabilize this country.

In order to hide their true intentions these elements disguised themselves in sheep's clothing acting as arbiters of 'democracy', 'freedom of expression' and 'champions of human rights'. They provided 'causes', 'grievances 'and all that nemesis the LTTE required, to become the most 'brutal and successful' terror organization in the world.

The anti national vested interest wanted to preserve the colonial status quo in this country, while the imperialist forces wanted to make us continue as their international lackeys, dependent on them.

Political wilderness

Now we see that the problem has not been in defeating Prabhakaran but in neutralizing the insidious forces that gave succor to Prabhakaran. These forces, after having been driven to political wilderness by the people for supporting Prabhakaran, are now staging a comeback by choosing another 'proxy' who earned his popularity for defeating the man they supported. What they want is POWER to destabilize and fragment this country and it matters little whether they achieve it by a crook or by a hook. Having realized that they now need a war hero to boost up their sagging morale they have picked on Gen. Sarath Fonseka to become their latest 'Political expendable'.

Ironically Gen. Fonseka too by his own choice now finds himself in the company of people; who sullied and vilified him; who tried to hurl him before the International Tribunal for war crimes. Mano Ganeshan who said that the Sri Lanka Army is the 'worst disciplined force' is now supporting him and Sambanthan, the proxy of the LTTE will soon join him.

The separatist lobby that met in Zurich recently too will support him. He will receive the NGO money and soon even the Tamil Diaspora that financed Prabhakaran will be interested in supporting Gen. Fonseka. To cap it all if Prabhakaran was alive today he too would be manoeuvring his proxies to support Gen. Fonseka and hence he must be now regretting that he had anything to do with his demise. Politics certainly make strange bedfellows!

It is a fact that Gen Fonseka was about to retire when the incumbent President assumed office in 2005.

It is President Rajapaksa who granted him his extension and made him the Army Commander. Yet the most the President could grant him was to make him the highest ranking officer in the sphere that he excelled.

But lust for power is a strong allurement and it could be infatuating.

Hence he has now switched sides with the belief that he could become the President with the support of those who themselves have shunned contesting due to fear of humiliation. POLITICAL POWER certainly is a blind alley and it can metamorphose heroes in to villains in a matter of weeks!

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