Where does ‘South’ end and ‘North’ begin?
Years
ago, just after the 13th Amendment to the Constitution first found
on-the-ground expression in the form of Provincial Councils, the EPRLF-led
North-Eastern Provincial Council called itself ‘The Government of the
North-East of Sri Lanka’. I cannot remember Dayan Jayatilleke, at the
time quite cosy in the lap of Eelamists and Eelamism, objecting to the
nomenclature (then as now). Language, ladies and gentlemen, is not
innocent.
The other day I was reading an interview given to the Ravaya by
Elmore Perera. The title picked up from the interview implied that
somehow the Sinhalese are solely to blame for the so-called ‘ethnic’
conflict; that the onus is on the Sinhalese to reach out and that if
this was not done the island would be divided.
Traditional homelands
Elmore showing a marked ignorance of history reduces source of
conflict to the Sinhala Only Act. He forgets the racism and chauvinism
of Ponnambalam Ramanathan, the separatist intent of Tamil politics
pre-dating 1956, especially those of G G Ponnambalam and S J V
Chelvanayakam and of course the unsubstantiated claims regarding
traditional homelands. All he can point to is perceptions of depravation
and un-belonging, which of course no one can resolve through
legislation.
Ponnambalam Ramanathan |
G G Ponnambalam |
S J V Chelvanayakam |
He had interesting things to say about IDPs. He thinks that IDPs are
used to living with landmines and therefore wants the Government to let
them all return to their original places of residence. Easy for Elmore
to say because (a) Elmore won’t lose (a) leg to an LTTE Jonny-batta, and
(b) Elmore won’t have to take the flak if indeed Sinnatamby or
Krishanthi steps on one. Let’s call it ‘difference of opinion’ and leave
it at this, though. There are more serious things to worry about.
Promote division
Elmore, interestingly, even as he advocates all kinds of things in
the purported interest of keeping the nation undivided, deliberately
feeds separatism by championing divisive and separatist language. There
was a time when people called those areas that were under attack from
the LTTE or where the battle raged ‘border areas/villages’. That was a
near Eelamist slip-in. It gave implicit legitimacy to the Eelamist lie
regarding exclusive traditional homelands.
This gave way to ‘threatened areas/villages’ as people cottoned on to
what was happening. The other device is the reference to a ‘North’ and a
‘South’. This is old but people like Elmore keep it ‘new’.
The moment you start talking of a ‘North’ and a ‘South’, you not only
assert a division, anticipate and promote a division, you even give the
uninitiated, naive outsider an utterly skewed picture of ethnic
compositions and residencies. It implies that the Tamils live in the
Northern half of the island while the Sinhalese live ‘down under’.
Buddhist heritage
Immediately the geographical, demographical, archaeological and
historical realities get brushed aside. The fact that the North and East
(i.e. the provinces that go by those names) constituted the heartland of
Buddhist heritage gets erased. The fact that 53 percent of Tamils live
outside these areas gets brushed aside. All of a sudden we don’t have
nine provinces. We just have two. Where does the South meet the North,
will Elmore tell us? Or will he say ‘that’s just an expression’? Would
he then say ‘bastard’ is also an ‘expression’ and so too ‘thalaya’?
These terms are the lie-feeders and the users of these terms actively
feel the Eelam-lie. They are not innocent. Elmore knows enough and
therefore can leave out things carefully just as he underlines other
things carefully. He’s no baby in this business. Neither is Dayan
Jayatilleke. When he (Dayan) refers to the Tamils as ‘them’ he
immediately assumes the role of ‘Spokesperson for the Sinhalese’ and
does so in a manner that conflates ‘Sinhala’ with ‘Sri Lankan State’ in
the worst possible ways to boot. He too likes the ‘North’/’South’ break
down because it clearly inflates the Eelam case and produces a
corresponding deflation of demographic realities that clearly undermine
all Eelamist posturing.
I doubt that Elmore will believe he has to do any soul-searching; he
operates as though he knows it all. Well then, counsellor, how about
elaborating on your choice of line with respect to ethno-political
geographies?
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