‘The demon is not as terrifying as we may imagine’

Wasantha Priya Ramanayake Translated into English by A A M Nizam

“It was the foreign policy of India since the late 1990s to accept that the Tiger outfit as a terrorist organization and that the Sri Lankan government cannot avoid waging a war with that organization. They also held the view that moral support should be provided to Sri Lanka to find a political solution to provide powers to the Tamil people.

“At the same time the Indian government explained that they proscribed the Tiger outfit and decided to oppose that organization not merely because they assassinated their Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi but because it was a terrorist organization. The Indian government believed that as long as the ethnic problem prevailed in Sri Lanka it would revive separatist sentiments in Tamil Nadu State.”

Tiger terrorism

The Indian daily Hindu thus clearly stated the Indian stance on Sri Lanka in a special article published on October 26, 2008. The article says, “The Tamil Nadu politicians display different attitudes about India and Sri Lanka. They think, rather than saving Sri Lanka from Tiger terrorism, it is important to save India from the Islamic militants of Kashmir. They do not see the destruction suffered by Sri Lanka for over 20 years under Tiger terrorism. It was the Tiger outfit that spread terrorism in South Asia.”

Similarly, this is how The Hindufigured out the strategies of the Tiger outfit then. “What the Tiger outfit and its supporters attempt are to inflame a massive wave of chauvinism among the Tamils and to instigate the Indian government against the Sri Lankan government. Therefore, the pronouncements being made by the Tamil Nadu politicians about Sri Lanka are very attractive but highly deceptive.”

The Hindu at that time (Oct 26, 2008) also gave a fine description of how India changed its foreign policy after a period of one decade in accordance with the traditional politics of the Tamil Nadu.

Corruption and malpractices issues

This Indian policy is valid even today. It is same with Tamil Nadu as well. In order to attain power, it was not the first time that the party of Jayalalitha, the A.I.D.M.K, utilized the Northern and Eastern Province problem of Sri Lanka. But this time she gained power not based purely on the Sri Lankan issue, but on the corruption and malpractices issues raised against the Karunanidhi’s state government. As it was proudly claimed by the NDTV television channel, politics in Tamil Nadu are like a ‘See-saw’. It goes up and down. If Karunanidhi gets a turn the next is for Jayalalitha’s. Although the Sri Lankan issue did not make much impact in the recent election, it could have been one of the factors. It may be the reason Chief Minister Jayalalitha made reference to Sri Lanka in her maiden speech.

However, a country deals with another country not in accordance with the policies of state governments. They deal with each other based on the policies of central governments. Merely because of this it cannot be underestimated that the voice being raised by Jayalalitha as the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu is not that important. There is no dispute that the support received from India also helped in Sri Lanka’s victory in the war. During that period it was because India was backing Sri Lanka that our country was able to avoid interference by the Western countries, especially by America.

The cordial relations the Mahinda Rajapaksa government had with India also helped in this regard. When the Wadamarachchi operation was being carried forward then, what Rajiv Gandhi told President J R Jayewardene was “your military option will not work”. The packets of dhal were dropped subsequently, the following day. This time Prime Minister Manmohan Singh did not say such a thing to President Mahinda Rajapaksa. But we do not know what he said through the Narayanans and Menons. The Sri Lankan forces victoriously moved forward against the LTTE. It is here we find the difference. It was because of the friendship that existed between the Mahinda Rajapaksa government and the Indian government.

Political solution

In the meantime, India cannot escape from the act of pressuring Sri Lanka towards a political solution. Especially it has become so because of the Tamil Nadu situation. At the same time President Mahinda Rajapaksa also accepted the necessity of a political solution. He held this view even at the time of fighting the war.

President Mahinda Rajapaksa while fighting the LTTE at that time was even prepared to hold talks with the LTTE. The ‘Walk the Talk’ discussion programme he held with the NDTV was a fine example of this. Excerpts of this discussion are given below:

President Mahinda Rajapaksa:

“I told them let us discuss without any conditions. Let them fight but I am prepared to hold discussions with them”.

NDTV - Shekar Gupta:

“Let me get it clarified. What you say is that you can hold talks even without a ceasefire?”

President Mahinda Rajapaksa:

“I am doing so because the country needs peace.”

President Mahinda Rajapaksa who held such a stance then, could not have any reason to delay a political solution that could bring long-term peace for the country.

“My government is ready for a political solution. It should be based on devolution of power, ensuring democracy and politics and all rights of our Tamil brethren, including language, within an undivided Sri Lanka” - President Mahinda Rajapaksa (The Hindu 02.11.2008)

“What I expect is to reach the final result and then provide a name for it. My final result will be maximum power devolution within a unitary Sri Lanka” (Extract from the speech made at 2006 Asian Association).

Accordingly, the stand of the President and the government is very clear. But it needs time. It cannot be done to please someone’s urgency. It is now only two years after ending the 30-year conflict over the ethnic problem that existed for over 50 years. An experienced leader will never attempt to burn his fingers by providing solutions in a hurry.

The Lessons Learnt and Reconciliation Commission is to get guidelines about this. Even before the report of this Commission is released President Mahinda Rajapaksa has commenced talks with the Tamil National Alliance. “According to the statements made by the President locally and internationally, he is ready for devolution of power”. (- M A Sumanthiran - TNA MP).

None of these things can be done in a hurry. An agreement can be reached by discussions with the Tamil National Alliance, and other Tamil and Sinhala political parties. Some believe the new solution could be something beyond the 13th Amendment, rectifying the lapses in this Amendment. “A step ahead of the 13th Amendment” is a topic now being discussed in the political arena. The 13th Amendment is a provision that already exists in the constitution. The President is legally obliged to follow it. Similarly he is strongly determined not to fulfil the demands of the Tigers.

Likewise, we find that the Indian central government and Tamil Nadu politicians want to expedite the political solution. All their statements seem to be to pressurize over this. Even the Darusman Report seems to be something to expedite this matter. Human rights violations do occur in all wars. It is a common factor. Even Tamil Nadu is aware of it.

In the meantime, we cannot expect that India would attempt to get a form of power devolution exceeding the Indian system or a form that would fulfil Tigers’ aspirations. It is because a system that segments Sri Lanka will not be acceptable to India. The reason is that the separatist movements in India would take advantage of it. India would also be conscious of new political developments in Tamil Nadu. India cannot forget Sri Lanka by creating serious problems within Tamil Nadu. There cannot be an understanding by Sri Lanka about these problems. Sri Lanka too will need some time for a successful political solution. It is India’s responsibility to manage the ‘Tamil Nadu Amma’ in a way that would not harm the existing cordial relations between the two countries. The reason for this is that Sri Lanka is an independent country. India also knows the importance of Sri Lanka on the global level. Therefore, demon is not as terrifying as we may imagine. The Amma is also now mature in politics. It is not necessary to teach her about ‘regional politics’ and ‘national politics’. Whatever said and done, while in the opposition to get power, will not work when ruling a state government. Therefore, she knows that practical performance is not as easy as some pronouncements.

This article was first published in a Sinhala daily