In a lazy evening the June-July of 1983, I was very much saddened by news reports I read that day. Walking out of the British Council Library at Trivandrum, I could imagine myself being like any of the people who were killed as part of the holocaust happening in our neighbouring country of Sri Lanka. Indeed, I was a sad man.
In our country's neighbourhood, ie. Sri Lanka, a very tragic holocaust was happening. A newly found group of Tamilians claiming to represent Tamilians en masse was fighting the Sinhala dominant Sri Lankan army. Innocent people were being killed like ants ... Hundreds of them.. It was reported in all major dailies and weeklies of the world. I most vividly remember the news as read from The Economist magazine.
The peaceful Tamilian group slowly took to violence 9WHY ??) and in 1987, when Rajiv Gandhi was the PM, my friend Narendranath who was in the Indian Air Force also had the opportunity to fight alongside the Sri Lankan army against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. (LTTE)
Then onwards we looked at the LTTE with suspicion and vice versa...Separatist groups in Tamil Nadu have been raising hue and cry against the Indian government policy of supporting the Sri Lankan army fighting against Tamil insurgents in Sri lanka.
LTTE managed to silence other Tamil groups with violence and murdered other leaders over the years. The cult figure of Velupalli Prabhakaran came to be a symbol of terror and repression. LTTE was branded internationally as a terrorist group which was not interested to bring peace to Sri Lanka, but had vested interest in carving a separate Tamil state out of Sri Lanka. It was breaking ceasefires by the dozen. Suicide bombers were used to carry out guerilla attacks. Rajiv Gandhi fell prey to such an attack.
After many unsuccessful attempts by Presidents and murders and guerilla attacks, finally the present President of Sri Lanka Mahindra Rajapaksa has taken the bold step of taking the LTTE by its horn. As of late morning of 2 Jan 09 it is reported that Sri Lankan army has entered the town of Killinocchi in North East Srilanka which has been under LTTE control for many years. It is just a question of hours or days before LTTE is rubbished in the dustbin of history. Sri Lankan Tamils can get to enjoy freedom from the clutches of the terrorist LTTE.
When India is fighting terrorists in our eastern, northern and north west border, we are aware of the pains of such resistance in Sri Lanka. Our full support is with Pes. Mahindra Rajapakse to relieve Sri Lanka of Tamil terrorists once for all.
Sri Lanka does not need Tamil terrorists, it needs peace loving Tamilian civilians ..
Sri Lanka does not need Tamil terrorists, it needs peace loving Tamilian civilians ..
