‘Govt for equality of opportunity and democratic rights’
Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa defeated the Liberation Tigers
of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), ending the 30-year-old ethnic war. But a
political settlement eludes the country. In this interview with R.
Bhagwan Singh at his Temple Tree residence in Colombo, the President
spoke about relations with India and China, and the difficulties in
relation to the Tamil question.
Q: The Western countries are demanding a probe into 'war
crimes' in Sri Lanka. How are you going to deal with this issue?
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President
Mahinda Rajapaksa |
A: The LTTE remnants in these Western countries are bringing
pressure on political leaders there to raise baseless issues against Sri
Lanka. Western countries talk about Kashmir and Sri Lanka in their
Parliaments, but keep mum about what they did in Afghanistan, Pakistan,
Iraq and so on.
After the 1880 uprising in Ceylon's Uva (in the South), the British
rulers killed every male aged above 14, and destroyed all water
reservoirs to force the people into starvation. They took away land.
They did that in India, too. And they talk of human rights now. The West
wants me to be their lackey and I refuse to be that.
Q: There is a feeling in India that you are leaning towards
China, and that could hurt India's geo-political position in this part
of the Indian Ocean.
A: For me, India is first, and others come only after India.
As soon as I came to power, I went to India and got their support; after
that, I did not have to bother about the UN, UK, US, and so on. In fact,
we got help from the US by way of vital information about LTTE ships
which made it possible to destroy them at sea.
As for China coming here with major infrastructure projects, I must
tell you that every project that we gave the Chinese we first offered to
India, including the big port project in Hambantota, but there was no
response. Even the Colombo port expansion was advertised but only the
Chinese came.
Q: The war ended more than two and a half years ago. The LTTE
has been eliminated but the Tamils’ demand for autonomy still seems
strong as the victory of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) in the last
parliamentary election shows. How do you intend addressing Tamil
concerns? The Jaffna Chamber of Commerce (JCC) has said that the Tamil
diaspora will not invest in the country until there is a political
settlement.
A: These elections were held under the proportional
representation system. There was also a substantial number that voted
against the TNA. You must note that 54 percent of Tamils live outside
the North and the East. The JCC is free to have its opinion, but there
are Sri Lankan Tamils abroad who have shown interest in investing in the
North. We are keen on a sustainable political settlement. But it must
have wide acceptance, especially in the context of the post-conflict
situation.
Regional autonomy was a slogan used by the terrorists and their
apologists. The need is for strong unity in diversity, for which
regional autonomy is not the only way. A better approach would be
equality of opportunity, and the spread of democratic freedom and
rights, together with speedy economic development of the North, in
tandem with other regions of the country.
Q: How do you propose to address the question of devolution?
A: As for devolution, we have already elected provincial
councils in all provinces other than the North. It will be established
there, too. There must be discussions on how the provincial
administrations could be strengthened and improved, with greater
economic and development activity devolved. This is a process of
democratic expansion in which all communities and political groups, as
well as the key economic players, should participate.
Q: Many say that the Parliamentary Select Committee (PSC) you
have proposed will not be useful because there have been many such
committees before, but the political problem has remained the same.
A: The PSC is a good approach to what has been a vexed problem
because in a democracy it is Parliament that will ultimately have to
agree to any solution. Unfortunately, the TNA has not named its
representatives to the PSC. They (TNA) have the same attitude as the
LTTE.
They demand impossible things - merger of the North and the East,
land policy and police. See what happened in your country when Rahul
Gandhi was travelling in Uttar Pradesh. Chief minister Mayawati tried to
get him arrested. Do you think I want to get arrested by these people
(by giving the Tamils a police force)?
The TNA seems to be driven by the Tamil diaspora, which does not want
peace and political settlement, as they fear that their host countries
might then send them back home. The TNA cannot represent the same
separatist agenda of the LTTE, which will not find acceptance with the
majority population. I want to work towards a solution but the TNA is
not cooperating.
Q: The local body and Parliament elections have been held in
the North even during the conflict. So why does the government not hold
Provincial Council election there now?
A: Elections will certainly be held in the near future. But
one must realise the importance of the elections to a provincial
council, which gives genuine opportunity to the people to participate.
It is no secret that in the parliamentary elections that were held
during the conflict, the people of the North were not allowed to
exercise their franchise.
The LTTE acted against such democratic expression. Another fact is
that the voting was on an old and outdated register, which makes the
TNA's success not as big as it seems. The LTTE prevented the conduct of
a census in the north. Once proper electoral registers are prepared, we
can hold election to the Northern provincial council.
Q: The Tamils are complaining that the North remains highly
militarised even now. There are over 100,000 troops policing about
300,000 people. It is said that the Army's permission is required even
to hold a library association meeting or a school function. When do you
propose to bring down Army's involvement in the civil administration
there?
A: There are more than 300,000 Tamils in the North. The
military presence is not worked out in proportion to the population but
the security needs of the region. The presence of the military in an
area that has seen brutal armed conflict for nearly three decades does
not amount to militarisation.
The military is playing a significant role in building infrastructure
as the locals lack skills. Also, large sections of the north are yet to
be de-mined. It is not true that school functions or library meetings
and such activities require the permission of the military. But there
could be cautious surveillance, knowing the nature of the defeated
enemy. We are still getting hidden arms caches of the LTTE. The presence
of the military will be phased out in keeping with security needs.
Q: The Tamils suspect that their lands are being taken over to
set up new Army camps or to be given to Sinhalese businessmen.
A: It is the LTTE rump which spreads these canards. The Armed
Forces and their camps are present throughout our country. This is
necessary to ensure Sri Lanka's territorial integrity and to protect its
sovereignty. In Jaffna, there were many Muslims and Sinhalese before the
LTTE chased them away, committing the first ethnic cleansing. Whether it
is the Sinhalese, Tamils or Muslims, anyone who has been chased out of
their traditional homes must be given their lands back. The majority
status enjoyed by the Tamils in the Northern province will not be
changed by any actions of the government.
- Deccan Chronicle
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