Uthayan raising 13 A bogey to confuse Tamil people

Anushika Ranadewa and Rakshana Sriyantha

The Uthayan newspaper has published another article intended to rouse communal hatred by referring to the proposed amendments to the 13th A as an attempt to grab the democratic rights of the people.

It has also described the move as an attempt to take away the rights of a community which was guaranteed by the 13 A and to prevent the merger of two provincial councils.

The paper also called it a deliberate act by the government to impose its will on the Provincial Council.

Sri Lanka Freedom Party chief organizer for Jaffna A. Ramanathan said the government has taken measures to ensure that the views and opinions of all ethnic groups in the country will be considered in a wide discussion of the amendment and this will ensure democracy.

"This procedure is termed by the Uthayan newspaper as undemocratic. How fair is this allegation?" Ramanathan questioned.

The second allegation is that the government has launched a process to stop two provincial councils from being merged. Ramanathan replying to this said: "For example, if the North and East merger took place, it is of no consequences since the Sri Lanka Freedom Party holds the majority in the Eastern Provincial Council. If the merge took place, the Muslim representation in the Eastern PC will be diluted drastically. Is such a merger viable ?" he asked.

"Uthayan is trying to destroy the peace and harmony in the country by creating unwanted issues," said Ramanathan.

He added that it also made a false allegation that the government is trying to meddle with land and Police powers with a hidden agenda. Nonetheless, this is an important issue affecting the nation and the government has taken necessary steps to allow for a wider discussion to accommodate the views of different parties to arrive at the best outcome."

"Uthayan newspaper looks at these vital discussions with irritation, such as looking for crocodiles in a wash basin," said Ramanathan.

"Consequently, Uthayan is trying to confuse the Tamil people with false allegations and the Tamil people who are eagerly seeking a permanent remedy to this issue should not be misled by this kind of news," Ramanathan said.