There are two kinds of people in
the world, largely – the optimists and the pessimists, the rich and the poor,
the healthy and the weak, the young and the old, et cetera. However, in my home
state of Tamil Nadu in India I have seen three kinds of people as far as the
Tamil issue in Sri Lanka is concerned – the good, the bad and the ugly. The
first are the dangerous and hawkish people who staunchly defend a solution
carved out with guns and bombs and sealed in blood, even if it is that of
innocents. The second are the ones who don’t give a damn about the whole issue,
the more dangerous ones, because going by The Right Honorable Edmund Burke – the only thing
necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. The third is
the category in which, I believe, I fit in. The people who have every feeling
of comradeship with our brethren in Lanka, crying when they cry and withering
in pain as the shells explode and shudder every time the mines go off, deep
within our hearts. We are often dismissed as anti-Tamils, cowards, congress
party agents and backstabbers by the people in the first category and as
people-yet-to-get-a-life by the second category.
One of the justifications the
central government gave the country when the government extended a
quasi-support to the Lankan government on the operation against the Liberation
Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) was to prevent the Chinese or the US getting a
stronghold in India’s backyard by stepping in to fill the void left by India’s
indecisiveness on an issue having a huge bearing on the emotions of countless
Tamils and the security of the country. However, what we have witnessed ever
since the end of the war is a Lankan government that is intoxicated having
bathed and drunk on the successes of the war, an even more displaced Tamil
population and more humiliation for India in the world stage with its weaknesses
exposed as regard its policy towards Lanka with the latter cozying with China,
faster.
It is beyond me why would India,
a nation that can detain Italian marines for killing fishermen, even voice it
out to Sri Lanka over similar incidents. The Chinese cooperation has extended into
infrastructure building and offers of military assistance are also being heard.
And the latest space cooperation, I think, is just an indication of what is yet
to come. India may have pulled off many diplomatic victories but Sri Lanka is
somewhere I think we messed up. Hope the irritant in the relation with Maldives
doesn’t go the Sri Lankan way.
4 comments:
It is an apparent fact that India has a knack for destroying friendships rather than cultivating them.
The Italian Marines'ship was in international waters when the incident occurred and allegedly not with the same boat.
Through sheer deceit the captain was led to enter Kochi and our Marines were arrested for an alleged crime as military on duty for Italy, a sovereign friendly country.
Almost ten months have passed since their arrest.
Almost three months since the SC reserved judgement on jurisdiction.
In India it may be normal to deny justice through delay but the rest of the world thinks otherwise.
The fact that India does not observe international rules will attract reward in kind.
Sadly true. Justice delayed is justice denied. We have a judiciary that is overwhelmed with volume and a section of it patronizing sensationalism, a government defending war in multiple fronts most of it unnecessary, a weary and stamina starved executive and a media/civil society with their own agendas. I sincerely hope justice prevails sooner than later in this case.
People read history in the way it suits them.. In Eezham, people started fighting for their rights in Nethaji's way only after the failure of Gandhiyan way.. We should think of how Thanthai selva fought for tamils' rights.. India keeps changing its goal post when it comes to SL.. So called true Indians not ready to accept the fact and manipulate the facts to suit their belief. We played with the lives of thousands of innocent people because of our cheap vote bank politics and try to project as if tamils in Eezham suffered because of LTTE.. They never lived happily even before prabhakaran's entry. Atleast tamils had a peaceful life for nearly 10 yrs during prabhakaran's time.. We cannot dictate them how to fight for their rights.. We have never taken a stand based on the plight of tamils there and now try to wash our hands as if we have nothing to do with them.. Had India kept quiet, they would have won their battle long back..
True Nadana. However countries and organization (including LTTE) have changed goal posts with evolving geo-political situations.
I am not a supporter of nonviolence but from what I gather, I feel, nonviolence as a strategy was not given a fair time to mature to prick the conscience of the sinhalese.
Your ascertion that the tamils had a peaceful time during LTTE rule is difficult to believe given that history speaks of refugees migrating to various parts of the world for sustenance.
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