Confusing war time and peace time

Wasantha Priya Ramanayake Translated by A. A. M. Nizam

War is very complicated. On the contrary, peace is very tranquil. War is like stirred water. Peace is just like a motionless bluish water of a swimming pool. When the water is stagnant the bottom of the pool can be seen. Even the fine points of the pool can be seen. The situation in a country where peace prevails is also similar to this. The country becomes sensitive to even the tenuous issues.

When an internal war is taking place the situation is not like this. It is like stirred water. Therefore, it is normal that some people come forward to fish in the stirred water. It is a habitual characteristic of a human being. During wartime and during the times of the previous governments certain people came forward to fish in the stirred water. Although they were perfect, since they attempted to protect certain individuals and due to various other reasons the governments which got subjected to such actions petered out.

Civil laws

During the recent past the main topic of the agenda of this country was rescuing the country from LTTE terrorism. Those who waged war with this objective became heroes in this country. Even today there is a value for this hero worship. There is no fault in it. At the same time in such a war environment the civil laws of the country get negated to some extent.

Democracy becoming ineffective and human rights becoming faded, in such a situation cannot be avoided. The reason for this is terrorist prevention laws and emergency laws supercede civil laws. When you attempt to fell a huge tree, the shrubs and the branches of other trees around it get affected. But minimizing such damage is prudent.

It was in such a situation that veteran journalist Lasantha Wickrematunge died and assaults of Rivira Editor Upali Tennekoon and the News Editor of the Nation Keith Noyahr took place. Those who were involved in these incidents may be moving about freely even today.

But the people and the government were in a different plain at that time. With a different objective. They were in the mindset that the country should be rescued from the terrorism. In this environment those who were fishing in the stirred water became effective. It was when the Rivira Editor Upali Tennekoon was assaulted that President Mahinda Rajapaksa told the relevant authorities that “if things are happening in this manner, there is no point in my sitting in this seat” and ordered them to immediately make investigations. But they have not found the reasons yet. This is a fine example that when the civil laws become weak in a country even a powerful Executive President becomes unable to control the situation.

High Security Zones

The difference lies here. There was no war in this country when the Jaffna library was torched and when the District Development Council election was messed up and the ballot boxes were taken to the kachcheri. It seems there was a jungle law at that time. There were only some smoulders of terrorism.

Those who went to extinguish them did not do anything other than making them burn more vigorously. This resulted in the eruption of Black July 1983. During those few days the President of the country was self-confined to his abode as there was no President in the country. Therefore, India did not allow President J. R. Jayewardene to end the civil war that erupted after that. Instead they pressurized him.

India indirectly said that “You should solve not by war but peacefully the things that have taken place because of your mistakes”. But India did not say such things to President Mahinda Rajapaksa.

The impeachment against President Premadasa did not emerge due to natural causes. He asked it. Even during President Chandrika’s time certain things happened due to creating the background for such things to happen. When the incident of shooting at the protest march organized by the United National Party was done, we do not know whether it was done with her knowledge or not. Two UNPers died in this incident. But the Inspector General of Police did not resign at that time over this incident. During that era the High Security Zones suddenly got expanded. It was the media personnel who unnecessarily got assaulted and got their cameras smashed due to these things.

Emergency regulations

Accordingly political problems against the Executive Presidents of this country did not emerge naturally. They were invented by the past Executive Presidents themselves. Along with that Terrorism Prevention Laws and the emergency regulations provided some sort of a cover under the guise of intermittent wars that took place. But there was no continuous war in the country under an effective operational plan at that time.

The present condition is totally different to this. The country is peaceful. The war is over. At the same time the credit of successfully ending the war and bringing a honourable peace to the country should go to President Mahinda Rajapaksa as the Head of state of this country. It seems that the international forces are attempting to bet with the President about the solutions that will be given to the North and East after peace is established. This is not something confined to one or two months or especially for certain months. But this President has the expertise of managing such things.

Also, he is well aware about the nuances of the mistakes perpetrated by the previous Presidents. It is during the current period that the government’s sincere intention of providing a solution to the North and East problem is being analyzed.

We do not know whether what the international forces want to do is to push the President to the wall with that objective.

India and international forces look to President Mahinda Rajapaksa as the best leader who could provide a solution to the ethnic problem at a future date. There is a reason for this. The country has got a leader acceptable to the South as well as to the majority of the population after a long interval. Therefore bringing a political solution through him is easy. This is the best opportunity obtained by the Tamil National Alliance and India. Therefore, international pressure targeting President Mahinda Rajapaksa has increased. It seems that India and the international forces are attempting to get appropriate advantage from this situation.

There is no dispute that it is India that stands for our strength and security. Also it is our protector. President Mahinda does not need anyone’s advice whether the protector should continuously be kept as the protector or get it antagonized. India deals with President Mahinda Rajapaksa through discussions and in amicable manner. This friendliness is valuable for the tomorrow, as it was valuable during wartime. Therefore, rather than the past friends this recent friend is very much valuable to us.

Nulagam project

Similar to India’s friendliness, it is very important for us to have the friendliness of the Tamil population.

The Darusman Report and the Channel 4 video have created a division mentally among the Tamils and the Sinhalese to some extent.

Also it seems that due to certain things happening in the country, the friendliness existing between both communities is being gradually shattered.

As the whole country is now peaceful even a minor incident becomes very sensitive. It is the responsibility of the Sinhalese population to leave no room for the Tamil people to embrace the idea that either they were defeated or they are second-class citizens. It is the responsibility of the government as well. There exists an ‘e-Library Project’ in Jaffna through which rare records, books and records are gathered. This was carried out under the sponsorship of the ‘Nulagam Project’ of Jaffna.

Contributions from the people in Jaffna and surrounding area are being provided for this project. The patron of this project is the well-known Electronic Engineer, Professor S. Ratnajeevan Hoole. This professor is one of the three persons who have been nominated for the Vice Chancellor post of the Jaffna University.

He is an intellectual who is admired not only by the Jaffna University circles but by the middle class society as well. He has issued a media release with much grief since a recent meeting held in Jaffna by the Nulagam project was mistakenly treated by the authorities as an LTTE sympathetic commemoration event. It says that even after clarifications were given it was not given due consideration. “...unfortunately, this is the general condition existing in Jaffna. We, Tamils in Jaffna, are being treated with suspicion. It has to be mentioned with emphasis that attempts to label as LTTE exists here.” Such phrases are included in the media release. This is being stated not by an ordinary Tamil person.

Actually some may think that these types of incident are minor incidents not worthy of reporting to Colombo. It need not be stated that this type of incidents are a hindrance to national unity. These incidents happening, from whoever it is, they do not come for elections. It is those who represent the government who are obliged to answer these matters.

The President is fortunate since the people of this country are yet capable of sifting and understanding such things.

However, if there is no mechanism to analytically inquire into certain things, the people will have no option but to point the finger at a common accused. It is a crime.