Little hope of an enduring end to Sinhalese victimisation of Sri Lanka's Tamils
by Howard Debenham
On May day in 1993, Sri Lankan president Ranasinghe Premadasa was in the back streets of Colombo, greeting supporters as they streamed into the capital for the day's festivities, when he was killed by a suicide bomb. Had the conventions of diplomacy permitted it, I would probably have been at his side. He had been insistent that I should join him on this occasion.
In the previous year, Premadasa had allowed me to see some of the handiwork of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. Before the bodies were cleared away, I spoke with some of the shattered survivors of LTTE massacres of simple farming folk in the pitifully poor eastern villages of Palyagodella and Alinchipotana, in one instance crouching with a wild-eyed labourer over the pools of drying blood where his family had had their throats cut. But neither Premadasa nor his successors were as accommodating when it came to investigating the handiwork of government forces, which has so often been of equal savagery.
By the time of his assassination, however, Premadasa was coming around. Among other things, he allowed a limited review by a small group of ambassadors (myself included) of the widespread extrajudicial killings and disappearances of Tamils at the hands of government forces.
It is often overlooked that Tamil militarism was, in the first place, spawned by the deliberate demonisation of Tamils (both Hindu and Muslim) in the early years of Sri Lanka's independence from Britain.
The situation took a significant turn for the worse following the failure of Junius Jayawardene's government to promptly intervene in the deliberate slaughter of thousands of innocent Tamils over just a few days in 1983.
In his retirement, an unrepentant Jayawardene explained to me at his residence in Colombo in 1992 that, following a tit-for-tat killing of policemen by Tamil militants, 1983 had been about giving the Tamils a "bloody nose" to "put them in their place". He scoffed at the notion that the country's Tamils were as Sri Lankan as the Sinhalese. Jayawardene was not alone in this view then, nor is he now. It is therefore hardly surprising that many Tamils feel it is only the spectre of the Tigers and their ability to strike back that prevents further pogroms against their people.
The answer for many Tamils to the Government's failure to broker a peace has been to flee the country to either the refugee camps of southern India or, for the more fortunate, a new start in other countries. This is happening in such numbers that they are referred to as the Tamil diaspora.
For those trapped in the north during the current Government offensive, the risk of accepting a "haven" on the Government side must be weighed against the risk of putting themselves in the hands of Government forces.
The essential interest of Sri Lanka's Sinhalese political parties and personalities is still how to exploit the struggle with the Tigers to maintain power in Colombo. Successive governments have more or less dressed up their intention to negotiate to assuage the feelings of the United Nations and donor countries, including Australia, but not nearly enough to fool any informed observer into believing that the underlying issue of rapprochement between Sinhalese and Tamils is any more on the government's agenda than it was 50 years ago.
There is little hope of an enduring end to Sinhalese victimisation of Sri Lanka's Tamils until Sri Lanka produces the kind of courageous and visionary leadership that can admit the errors of the past and reach out in a sustained way to all Sri Lankans, thus providing a sound basis for drawing all Tamils, including the Tigers, into the political process.
The Sri Lankan government did this with the murderous Communist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) back in the late '80s after its violent uprising had almost brought the country to its knees. But that, it seems, was different: the JVP was Sinhalese. Unhappily, the vision required today, free of the deeply embedded political and financial corruption that has plagued Sri Lanka for so long, is nowhere in sight.
Ordinary Sri Lankans, disempowered and cowed through decades of dominance by the business and political elite and effective exclusion from the rule of law, are still easily duped into believing that they will be better off once the Tamils have been crushed.
It is at least doubtful that the LTTE can be completely wiped out by Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa's salaried soldiers, who are largely in it for the money they cannot earn at home. Government forces should certainly be able to outgun the LTTE in military set pieces, but it is most unlikely that they will ever be able to match them in guerilla warfare.
Having so loudly abandoned the peace process, the Rajapaksa Government is throwing everything into the military fray. Though this approach is being backed with claims of higher body counts and significant incursions into Tiger territory, the consequence of pushing the military arm of the LTTE to the wall could well be a dramatic upsurge in urban terrorism, of which the recent mosque bombing in Akuressa would only be the beginning. It is an option for which, after all the years of its existence, the LTTE is no doubt well prepared.
Should infrastructure, transport and even tourism become systematic targets in such a campaign, Sri Lanka could be brought to its knees. Rajapaksa, or whoever is in power, would then have to think again about a peace process, but this time from a weaker position than the one that applied through much of 2006, when a small group of uniquely qualified Americans and a former Australian high commissioner quietly tried, working with the highest levels of the Sri Lankan Government, to build capacity for statesmanship and progress before peace talks with the LTTE scheduled for Geneva in October of that year. As it turned out, Sri Lanka's leaders only pretended to listen, and so doomed a country and a people once so full of promise to more mindless death and destruction, the worst of which may yet be to come.
Howard Debenham was Australian high commissioner to Sri Lanka from 1992 to 1994.
49 Comments
This Australian, if he really cares about people why he does not talk about Australian Aborjineis who are dieing in jails by hanging they themselves and again they are living in jungles under pathetic conditions and they are treated as human beings. Those people never were terrorists. There it is the Howard's grand parents who terrorized those people.
Some Australians talk about press freedom in Sri Lanka. Did any Australian journalists dare to care about those aborginies and write about the pathetic lives f those people.
First you do your part. then come to talk about others.
Howard Debenham, thanks for your note and it is very informative. So called educated Snihalese should perhaps read this article and think why most of the foreign diplomats are coming out with consistent messages about Sinhalese victimisation of tamils and where their leaders have taken them and what the feature is going to be.
"Should infrastructure, transport and even tourism become systematic targets in such a campaign, Sri Lanka could be brought to its knees. Rajapaksa, or whoever is in power, would then have to think again about a peace process"
from Mavil-Aaru to mulativu so many experts and analysts were proven wrong. they cannot swallow the positive results which are taking place in this anti terrorist campaign. The day is not far away when all communities will be united as sri lankans after this savage ltte babarians are anihilated.
Another gentleman who lives in a dreamland. Who considers all the errors are with Sinhalese and Tamils are faultless.
Who is very liberal in description of the shortcomings of the government.
Mr Debenham should look for a utopia .
the title should be "Little hope of an enduring end to Whitemans victimisation of coloured aborigins"
this is hypocracy at it's highest.
god bless you sir
Mr. Howard Debenham, you wait and see how this govertment would devolve power and make it united once the tigers are gone. east is the biggest example. people like you made a big fuss about the IDP's in vakarai at that time. they were systematically resettled and democracy is brought back.
onece ruthless tiger commander "karuna amman" is a minister in this regime. how come it happend if the sinhalese are trying to victimize tamils?. tamils are our brothers and sisters. people like you with the help of terrorist properganda try to make a meal out of it. to see the real victimisation by the whites to the aborigins please watch the aussie movie "rabbit proof fences". also you have mentioned what J R jayawadene had told you on the aftermath of july 83 riots. he's dead and gone and you are trying to bluff people saying he told you such things.
you can contribute in a meaningfull way by trying to assist the beleagued tamils taken mass hostage by the ruthless tiger terrorist.
Meaningful analysis by a independent observer,Lankan government needs to pay attention to such a deep.analysis..
Sri Lanka does not have the resources to deal with prolonged urban guerilla warfare. Israel failed in Gaza, and most recently, Obama set a firm timeable for US withdrawal from the brutal streets of Baghdad, now an essential Jihadi training ground. These two nations, Israel and the USA, have invested far more money, manpower, and other resources in their efforts to combat guerilla warfare, than a third-world nation like Sri Lanka can ever hope to even remotely approach.
The latest approach by GOSL, to lock away the Tamil civilians in detention camps, in a desperate bid to single out the LTTE, is also laughable. The extensive jungle terrain provides a perfect cover for the LTTE. As the author pointed out, a few systematic, timely attacks will be enough to cause mass panic. Recruitment of a few hundred cadres to the LTTE, per year, should yield sufficient manpower to carry out such attacks. As the author pointed out, the Sri Lankan State will continue to be a dictatorship, in the face of such attacks. The cost that the average Sinhalese will pay is of an island unable to move forward; the burden of maintaining the police state will require a massive, uneven allocation of resources towards security concerns. Therefore, in the final analysis, it is best for the island to be divided. Else, the burden of maintaining the Gestapo-like theocratic State results in the downfall of the island.
Please Please My loving sinhala friends, wake up. You are not going to agree with what australian said, reality is true. Australia does not treat aborigines like your govt and soldiers doing in tamil homeland. Read all independent papers, do not follow your sinhala media. They make you more modayas in your society.
Thank you, Sir. A lot of former High Commissioners should write what they saw on the ground on a day-to-day basis. Then only this extremely vicious conflict can be resolved.
When Debenham has granted 50% seats in the Australian parliament to the Adivasis (Aboriginals), he would have the right to advice the Sri Lankans. The Tamils aren't even the adivasis in Sri Lanka.
Dear Sir,
This is one extreme in the realm of possibilities. But you should also acknowledge that 30 year of brutal war has given the Sinhalese a bloody nose. The LTTE in its brutal manifestations brought the whole country to its knees and gave all of us a very bloody nose. But I believe the Sinhala will now embrace this window to peace sans the brutal LTTE boogey man. After 30 years, if we have leaned the lesson, then hopefully we will be up to the challenge to be more humble and less chauvinistic. Likewise, this might show the Tamils that the modus operandi of the LTTE is not the way forward.
If this rosy but credible scenarios does emerge, then the guerilla or urban warfare phase of the LTTE will gradually wither as Tamil youth find their place in society. Of course the remaining LTTE elements will try their best to retain and enhance the alienation by antagonizing the government through suicide infiltrations etc, but if the government is strategic this too could be neutralized.
Mr howard should write first about his forefathers who robbed the land of native australins.They sold poision mixed flour to native australians to eliminate them.Sinhalese wont do such things ,the government hosts large number of tamil civilians who escaped from terrorists.tamils of jaffna,batticclo,colombo lives under the government controlled areas and lead normal life.if the tamils in sri lanka are allowed come to government controlled ares all will come happily.Ironically,thse diaspora tamils who complained about the harrssmant buy property in colombo in large scale.
Even though australians talk about high standards they dontfollow such standards.I attened an interview in australian embassy in colombo last year presided by an australian.When i leave the room after the written test one lady of the embassy staff asked from another another who was also in the interview panel that why we were paying them for sitting refering the interview panel.she replied that don,t shout he would hear .
To apply for the ausaid scholarships one has to spend more than sri lankan ruppees 30000 which is equal to one &half of month of sri lankan government staff officer.This is the situation in the place once mr howard worked.They do all the wrong things and write articles fingerpointing others.sri lankan government doing actually good job
in helping tamil civilians. mr howard is out of touch in sri lankan issues and shows his poor knowledge on sri lankan issues,his arrogance in writing a subject which he does not know.
This is a very sorry state of affairs that no one can express his own opinion. Actually this indicates the depths to which Sri Lankan society has sunk. If these people cannot listen to the opinion of a former High Commisioner who had a insight into the workings of the Premadasa and Jayawardene Regimes it just shows how much they would tolerate the minorities in this country. Even sinhalese with moderate views are targetted.
White mans money is OK but he shouldnt point to our mistakes and shortcomings? Soon Sri Lanka will become the Myanmar or Zimbabwe of South Asia. Aid donors should take serious note of this type of attitude and act accordingly. Beggars cant be choosers.
Very good articule, truth is comming out. People who can't argue with this trying to attack the writer with question about australian issues. That is the nature of sihalese racist mentality. Only a seperation is the solution, nothing else will work as long the large majority of people have this attitude.
Thats why agian and again govenments with war agend win ellection.
TC is doing an yeoman service to educate the Sinhala fundamentalists/sinhala Talibans. The silence of educated, civilised and caring sinhalese is what hurts the Tamils who wants to live in peace with equal rights. I was born in the South
and had to endure the fear of 1958 & 1977 riots. I was fortunate to have escaped the 1983 riots which was sponsored by the GoSL. My property was burnt down. One could only talk about United country only when the rights of minority race are guaranteed not only in paper but by action. Monks,Marxists and Sinhala Nationalists will never want to treat Tamils as equals. We need to make Sri Lanka a secular country with all three languages made as official languages.
Muslims should be wary in supporting Sinhalese as I am sure they will be the next target of Sinhala fundamentalists who are using uncivilised tactics to kill, maim and suppress the Tamils. It is sad to see the South indian Tamil Chief Minister supporting the Indian central government which is aiding and abetting the GoSL activities.
Quote : Successive governments have more or less dressed up their intention to negotiate to assuage the feelings of the United Nations and donor countries, including Australia, but not nearly enough to fool any informed observer into believing that the underlying issue of rapprochement between Sinhalese and Tamils is any more on the government's agenda than it was 50 years ago.
Response : There is one little problem, that is those Donor countries who were aiding and abetting are the one who are FUNDING THIS WAR and making rich people out of no where.
USA, EU ( mainly UK), India and Australia are on one hand Aiding the war and on the other hand talking Human rights.
They are infact breaching the Article 73e of the UN charter of rights.
All the development money they have send are either blown into pieces with TNT inside the Artilary with Human flesh and blood or pocketed by some newly found 'PATRIOTICS' who ran away and came to make money when the wind was blowing on the right direction for them.
It was the Tax payers money from those Countries which is killing thousands of people in vanni.
Another white man whose ancestors have robbed & killed the rightful owners of his land is now preaching us statesmanship. Some of our own people in this forum lording him for his "intelligent observations", probably due to their inherent slavery mindset.
Crimes committed by extremist elements of both comuunities must be condemned. These extremists irrespective of their ethnicity must be wiped out for the betterment of our own people.
Acording to the Howard, there are no ethnic back lashes in south after 1983 because of the fear of LTTE. Not becuase of the maturity of the ordinary people who have understood the fact that its worthless to punish innocent tamils for the crimes committed by LTTE. As per Howard Sinhalese civilians are blood thristy hounds that could only be controlled by the gun of LTTE. Only time will prove the invalidity of this observation in a post LTTE scenario.
Then Howard also point out that Sri Lankans are a bunch of people that can be bought for money and they dont have any patriotism in them. He highlights this by saying that our Army is a group of mercenaries that works only for money. How illogical is these assertions in the modern world where youth have so many oppertunities other than joining army. Then if I may ask why there's a sudden surge in recruitement to army? when war has reached a brutal final phase. Make no mistake Mr.Howard we as a nation had fought valiantly with white man for centuries with limited military power without any salary, and we will continue to do so for our country.
Finally his article echoes the repeated sentiments of tamil daispora these days. That is we may loose the war but we will continue to fight. When we start the war the same gentlemen claimed that we will never reach LTTE heartland due to the conventional military might of LTTE. We have proved them wrong. When are forces inching forward they expected a massive counter attack from LTTE which never came. Now they expect a suicide blood bath and now they have the consolation of Akurrasa bomb. Well if you compare the suicide missions carried out in the past in terms of numbers, casualties and effectiveness they were much superior to what we witness now. These types of attacks will last for some time and will die down when political & economic freedom is given to those suffering masses in north & east. So Mr.Howard we are well preapred for it and we will prove you wrong again.
Hi,
Its incredible how the Tamils and the Sinhalese respond to this article. The Sinhalese response is what about the aboriginies?
Whenever one points to inherent weaknesses in Sri Lanka, Sinhalese point to some cesspit and says, what about that one? Perhaps it indicates Sinhalese preferences.
I am a Sinhalese and I enjoyed the article and I must say that I agree with it whole heartedly.
Sinhalese in the streets say that they are only having one meal now and that soon the war will be over and that health, wealth and prosperity will return that they will soon have all three meals.
The Italians hung and spat at Benito Mussolini the great conquerer.
I wonder what will happen in Sri Lanka.
Anyone can see the separation and gap of Srilankan openions and Tamil opinions.This is because Tamils have no Srilankan opinion.Srilanka's opinion always a Sinhala opinion.
By reacting like ,"You correct your self then advise us" ,These people always admit that SriLanka is in wrong pathway, and they have nothing to defend against the allegations,so they try to attack the messenger.This is the way SriLanka react to everything.(Now Navaneethampillai help ltte)
Other countries also have problems, but no country in the world celebrate in every school "the victory" against their "own" people.There was no celebration over the victory of JVP rising.
All the features in SriLanka show Srilanka have reached a never return stage in the ethnic crisis.
Another day dreamer .
1.Muslim "tamils"
2."Salarised" soldires
3."Dramatic upsurge" in urben warfare by LTTE
4."murderous" Communist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) but "peaceloving" LTTE
Meanwhile in the reality world Australian Aboriginies are left to die in the streets .Their Babies" Adopted" in to concentration camps and "civilised". Entire generation of original australian inhabitants pushed to alchoholism .
Laws and temporary "camps" for immigrants.
God bless the queen -says australia...still
Well done Howard. Thanks for your article. Do you think that Singala government will understand this? If you read the comments above?
Howard Debenham is right and he is one of the few who sees the truth about history and what's going on now. I'm not against Sinhalese or anything, but I do believe that they are too brainwashed by the government and their propaganda about "terrorism" to face the facts and see the truth. They don't agree with anything, even if there is proof...kinda sad to see.
Ps. I didn't mean all Sinhalese, there are some who do see the truth and I'm glad they exist or existed, like Lasantha.
Another Clueless Foreigner trying to CHIME IN on an issue he is so out of touch with. He speaks of Cause and effect but fails to account for attempts to rectify and reconcile peace.
I never expected a developed nation’s diplomat would have such a deep understanding of ethnic divide in Sri Lanka. More so would come out openly. Thank you for your words and understanding. As the author has correctly put it, Sri Lanka's leaders only pretended to listen about reconciliation among communities, and doomed Sri Lanka and its people with full of promise to more mindless death and destruction. All party committees, conferences, special commissions, president’s commissions, etc. etc. that were setup in the past, (even present) and may be in the future are all for the same drama of pretending to listen and fooling the donors and others. Dear Hon Howard Debenham, thank you and salute you for expressing your true view of the Sri Lankan past, present and possibly future leaders.
"The essential interest of Sri Lanka's Sinhalese political parties and personalities is still how to exploit the struggle with the Tigers to maintain power in Colombo. Successive governments have more or less dressed up their intention to negotiate to assuage the feelings of the United Nations and donor countries, including Australia, but not nearly enough to fool any informed observer into believing that the underlying issue of rapprochement between Sinhalese and Tamils is any more on the government's agenda than it was 50 years ago."
As a supporter of LSSP from school days till 1972, I like this para for its truth. This what not whitemen but moderates like Dr.Imtiyaz,DBS, Rajan Phillips,Kusal Perera and the likes have been advocating. But majority of the educated Sinhalese particularly from the dispora resort to ridiculing them.
It is sad the majority of the Sinhalese South still does not want learn from their governing mistakes since 1948 or pretends or think like Sarath Fonseka and Gothapaya that the country belongs to them and the issue is milataey versus terrorism. But what the issue needs irrevocable political solution and not state terrorism through majoritarian power.
Mahinda regime is failing to realise that they can not hide behind the " war against terrorism ". This was evident from Gothabaya's outburst on Amos Roberts programme as he keeps on shouting the standard slogans like Minister Samarsinghe uttered in th BBC Hardtalk programme hosted by Stephen Sackur.
The distinguished ex-HC has thought it fit to enter the debate on the Lankan minefield. To me it is a balanced, well-researched piece of a man and country
that always remain Sri Lanka's true friends. But, Sir, watch out for the Sinhala
extremist fringe - that has now contaminated what used to be a decent and neutral English media. They will pour scorn on you from now on. You will also be called a White Tiger under the pay of the LTTE and so on - which is the usual fare for anyone speaking the truth or faithfully quoting history. But if anyone or the Govt for that matter is truly interested in a solution your essay has some answers - only if they are seen in perspective and immediately acted upon.
"The SL Govt did this with the murderous communist JVP back in the 80s after the violent uprising had almost brought the country to its knees. But, that, it would seem was different - the JVP was SINHALESE (emphasis mine)" Both CBK and Mahinda R had no compunction to go to bed with the JVP for electoral considerations. I have argued for rehabilitation and consideration for the Tamil militant youth in the same degree of accomodation that came the way of the Sinhala JVP youth. This would have brought the Tamils back to the family fold. But that was not to be - because the other side was TAMIL youth.
Millions of well-meaning Sinhalese, academics have been and are worried about the continuing saga of blood, deaths and destruction. They do not cherish Tamil deaths or covet Tamil businesses or assets - like many others do. They look for a way out so that all can live peacefully once again. You have not idled while you were here. You have done your home-work well. You have found the answer to our endless predicament "The underlying issue of rapproachment between Sinhalese and Tamils is no more on the Govt's Agenda than it was 50 years ago"
Sir, let's not, therefore, blame the LTTE. The Sinhalese then as now never had the intention of coming to a settlement with the Tamils. As to now - why should they? Imagine if there was an acceptable peace formulae today. What will happen to the new giants in the Sinhala political landscape Wimal Weerawansa, Champika R, Dinesh G, those Buddhist priests in Parliament - breaking every key preaching of the Buddha. And the
Sinhala supremacist wing that now includes the 200,000 man Army as well.
It is time the Sinhalese came to their senses and saw through the woods from the trees. LTTE is only part of the problem and a by-product of Sinhala extremism.
The bigger problem is within you. The Hon'ble Howard Debenham has seen through
it all - as have many other men and women of good intent; well wishers of this
glorious island now caught in the hands of power greedy men. "None is as blind as those who refuse to see." That is the Lankan malady.
ISS
On June 25 1990, ( President Premadasa’s ruling ) I was in a detention camp in Kalmunai, Amparai district. In one night I witnessed more than 100 young people being killed. Some of them are less than 18 years old school children. One Tamil policeman (Sub Inspector) is one of the person been killed.
Thank you for the article. This has been obvious for Tamils lived and living in Srilanka, but it is coming from an outsider worth to mention. Unfortunate truth is that all the foreign diplomates knew this right along but they did not care to tell the world until long after they left SL. It would have saved a lot of life if they had raised the truth while they were in Sri lanka- better late than never. I will appreciate if he can enlighten his colleagues in SL, it will make a lot difference so that they will not make the same tragic mistake. ( a way to repent for the sins)
It is interesting to read comments from sinhalese brothers talking about poor aborigines, I agree with you the injustice done to them. do you know two wrongs make rights. I am glad that you guys are at least agreeing inadvertently, the injustice being inflicted on minorities by sinhala ruling majority.
To all the people who wrote such negative/ignorant/biased comments about this truly just article, this is for you. I saw so many incorrect statements/facts in the comments I had to say something.
Everyone wants to live in peace, no one wants to die. When such a number of people pick up weapons in the name of freedom and not material needs (simple a land to call their own) and so many more support this cause, there is something terribly wrong in that country. Someone, something is doing something deeply wrong to force these people to go to such measures for freedom. And to speak otherwise is true ignorance.
What you need to think about is, what in the world would drive YOU to such measures and then work your thoughts from there to the truth.
Thank You.
With all the blessings on the earth to you for coming out of the closet with truth nothing but the truth.
I have only one question, touch your heart and tell me " DID YOU SUBMIT ANY REPORT OF WHAT WAS GOING ON AND WHAT WAS YOUR ASSESSMENT WHEN YOU WERE IN POWER ( AS A HIGH COMMISIONER) OR THIS IS A BELATED GUILTY ON YOUR SIDE THAT YOU ARE ASKING FORGIVENESS FOR THE SIN OF YOUR MASTER YOU HAVE REPRESENTED for FUNDING the GENOCIDE"
You have just joined the club of JN Dixit, Jeffry Lunstead and so...
9 out of 10 Sri Lankans are very happy with the progress this Govt is making (which includes some Tamils). If you believe in democracy then it is SL'S right to pursue a course of action that the majority want.
Hopefully the remaining 1 in 10 will also realise the futility of pursuing a hopeless dream of a seperate state, when there is peace and prosperity in the country for all.
As for Mr.Debenham. He's just upset that for once SL is not folding under LTTE backed internationl presure. (How dare these darkies not listen to us anymore). Some of our LTTE supporters think he's made an educated statement. What rubbish, describing SL like it was some aparthied state.If SL did not come to it's knee's when the LTTE was at full strength, it certainly won't do so now. The only day dreamers are Mr. Debenham, and Tamil fascist who want 33% of SL Land mass and 66% of the coast for a Tamil only state for less than 10% of the population. How can any right minded person remotely think this is fair.
At last the majority (the sleeping giant) has awoken to put a stop to this nonsense. The momentum will not stop until we have one free SL for all races. There will be some set backs along the road but we will get there, rest assurred my SL brothers and sisters. Ayubowan, Vanekum, Assala malekum.
shrilankan,
you will never realize how ridiculous your post reads. One might as well ask why YOU don't talk about the plight of your own countrymen before you talk about the aborigines. Anyway, aborigines are not the issue being discussed here.
For a tamil, anyone who supports their obnoxious demands is a learned beautiful human being who write well researched articles.
Mr Howards country have a policy of multi-culturalism to avoid race based problems in the future. The country would be in serious jeopardy because of the size and lack of underlying cultural glue. Yet he thinks there is a basis for the establishment of a mono-ethnic state.
Why dont he look at and analyze the tricksters, LTTE and the diaspora too.
Guilty by association, if that is your assumption then in your own words you admit that you are against Tamils. How twisted your minds are. Don't shed crocodile tears for the aboriginals while you have blood stained thoughts.
Howard Debenham, if the Rajapakse soldiers were in it for the money they earn, What were the Australian soldiers doing in Iraq and other places ????
Was'nt it for the mney as well ?????
But... the Rajapakse soldiers are this time around are not only fighting the terrorists tigers in their own den BUT showcasing the world how terrorists culd be fought........
Unlike those Australian soldiers in Iraq, GOD knows what they did, R%ajapakse Soldiers have shown real GRIT in facing terrorism.
Howard Debenham, you and the pro ltte goons who have shown glee at your article are trying to relive the past when the real HEAT is on...
If people like goby say that SL is that bad that it becomes to internal conflict this is a question.
The subversive conflicts in India (Kashmir,Nagaland) do those indicate that India is same as SL.
When tamils in Tamilnadu say that there will be fires in Tamilnadu and a movement towards secession from India over SL war does it mean that India is unliveable for them.
When Taliban wants a muslim country based on sharia law and want to wage or influence jihad all over the world after that then it must be that the world is unlivable.
Mr.Debenham, I've been living in Australia since 2006, But I will not stay after my studies are finished. I will go back to Sri Lanka. You talk about how sinhalese treat Tamils! you got nerve mate! The way white Australians treat people from Indian subcontinent must be second only to the aparthaid thay had in South Africa! I've been told-directly to my face, that I can't get a job BECAUSE I'm from Indian Sub continent. That will never happen in SL for a Tamil person if they have the correct qualification-- B
Hi Howard,
I appreciate your article.Well done. Two countries with peace is better than one country with war. Look at Singapore and malaysia, both are developing. But Srilanka?. For last 50 years Srilankan politicians are saying "we finish the Terrorism first then we develop the country" What is happening? Never end. Both sides are loosing their young generation.
Most of us middle age Srilankans saw this drama unfolding in front of our own eyes. Most of our old age Srilanakans saw this drama unfolding in front of our own eyes. At least number of Foreigners witnessed this drama unfolding in front of their own eyes, not fully but partially.
The information we gather is not need to be first hand to come to a reasonable conclusion not only in history but any academic field.
The people who saw 1987-1990 massacre of Sinhalese youth never wanted to see a one during their life time. The killing spree continued for three years on both parts i.e. JVP vs. UNP government. Most of us witnessed it but paralysed by the terror.
The next killing spree of that magnitude has been unleashing since 2006 and much more organised and well planned. At the same time it has got a “Humanitarian" logo. Most of Tamil citizens have been witnessing it in a much more scale than we Sinhalese did and are paralysed by the more ruthless terror.
Both occasions it is against one form of terror (LTTE/JVP) the other (Government).
On both occasions we had reasonable alternatives for the drastic measures unleashed by all parties.
In 1989 they killed Wijeweera and this time they will kill Prabakaran one way or other.
Only difference is in '87-,90 majority disliked the regime from the bottom of their hearts and '06-'09 majority adore the regime from the bottom of their hearts.
That is because the victim is an alien community " PARA DEMELLU".
This is a screen-shot of the opinion by an intellectual who is external to the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka. He probably would have developed this opinion during the tenure of his diplomatic assignment in Colombo and his present exposure with Tamil Diaspora in Australia. It is definitely worth considering his opinion as it contains his personal experience with the Sinhalese leaders and the mindset of the minority Tamil. However, there is another side of the story to what the author has attempted to portray in the above article, partly justifying the LTTE’s terror tactics that gave bloody nose to GOSL & its salaried soldiers and blaming only the insincerity of the Sinhalese politicians but not LTTE.
After the independence from Britain, Sinhalese became increasingly worried about the Tamil domination in the field of higher education, Government administrative services and the proficiency of English language; The majority community started having a fear psychosis that if the trend continued Tamil minority would one day subjugate them with their academic and administrative superiority and it felt miserable by looking at the substandard socio economic conditions of the majority Sinhalese community after the independence. Tamils on the other hand could not accept the deprivation of their places for the higher education, Government jobs and state lands that were allocated based on population basis instead of merits.
Political leaders in both communities in post independent Sri Lanka exploited these conditions to capture power by mobilizing the majority sentiments in the parliamentary democracy and Sinhala & Tamil nationalisms were orchestrated by politicians on both sides. Sinhala nationalism led to unfair oppression of the Tamil minority in higher education, Government jobs and high handedness in the treatment of Tamils by armed forces, allocation of state lands etc., while Tamil nationalism gave rise to militancy, armed struggle and terrorism to protest against the injustice perpetrated on them by the Sinhalese Governments.
India found this segregation of the two communities favourable for manipulating Sinhalese Government and supported the militancy of Tamils by providing military training and finance and it further inflamed the Sinhala nationalistic feelings. Majority of the educated Tamils found it easier to migrate to Western countries for better living conditions by citing the unfair oppression by the successive Sinhalese Government and armed forces. Around one million Sri Lankan Tamils now live in foreign countries, forming a strong Tamil Diaspora that provides the Tamil militant movement with financial and logistical supports. India finally realized its mistake and brokered a peace agreement by proposing provincial council solution for separating the two traditional homelands of the two distinct communities under a unitary nature of the country. Unfortunately, Tamil militancy in the form of LTTE has gone too far into developing a fascist ideology and refused to compromise on any solution that is short of a separate country for the Tamils. Moreover, it has taken a path of unprecedented terrorism to achieve such ambitious goal and managed to acquire large portion of the Tamil traditional homelands under its control and to run a parallel administration for its people.
Whether we like it or not, India is holding the key for the make or break situation in Sri Lanka. India will not allow two state solutions to this ethnic conflict. If leaders of both communities in Sri Lanka, Sinhala Nationalists and LTTE supported by Tamil Diaspora, agree to abide by the full implementation of the Indian constitutional solution then peace may be restored to this beautiful island of Sri Lanka. Or else, the author’s concluding remarks is a recipe that will lead to further bloodshed in this tiny island nation for another 60 years or more.
Nam, Diplomats while in office have to be diplomatic in the country they serve, it doesn’t mean they accept whatever the Government says, they pretend to be receptive in the hope at least somewhat the government will listen to their subtle suggestions. What they say openly is not what they report to their own country that is why they are called Diplomats…but don’t ignore the first three letters DIP and you know what DIP means.
What Sri Lanka needs is a Statesman. Unfortunately, Sri Lanka didn’t or doesn’t have one!
SWRD Banda could have become a statesman, he supported Federalism, unfortunately he became a politician. JR had a chance to become a statesman, he too became a politician In fact he once said Tamils could be a minority community but they are very powerful minority.
Chandrika could have become a statesman, she came out with Union of Sri Lanka concept, but it was made to water down and she too became a politician.
People like Colvin showed statesmanship when he said “two language, one country – one language two countries.” later he too became a victim of politics.
Don’t need to talk about Ranil, he is just cunning.
President Mahinda, well he is a nice and honest man, he had a very good chance to become a statesman, but unfortunately, he became a prisoner of his advisors, and turned into a politician. Most of the things that is happening around him I’m sure he is not aware. May God Bless this beautiful country.
If I criticise this white man, I would be labelled as an extremist. If I agree, I become a moderate.
We still don't seem to have extracted our minds out of the slavery imposed on us by colonialism (Dushy Ranetunga is a clear example).
Sri Lankan's know the extent of the threat they face. With all it's weaknesses, current SL government also has clearly identified it's primary task of extending it's writ to cover whole of Sri Lanka, if it wishes to call itself the legitimate government of Sri Lanka. After a long time a SL government seem to have a clear vision of what needs to be done to have at least a fighting chance to maintain the territorial integrity of the country for all it's citizens.
Being a diplomat, the writer should have known better that no government (with a back bone) can allow another armed group to control parts of it's territory.
No one can blame this government as an extremist government (unless you are blinded with hate). This is one of the most inclusive governments that Sri Lanka ever had. It includes militants both Sinhala and Tamil who once took up arms to solve their problems. It includes representatives from all shades of Sinhala opinion, all shades of Tamil opinion (North, East, plantation, West except separatists) and Muslims. They fight along side each other (against terrorism) to find solutions to their specific issues with in a single country.
They need support of all of us.
Being a former diplomat, hopefully, this white man may realise his folly in attacking a government and a nation struggling in a fight against ferocious terrorism (one of the most ruthless the world has ever known).
Dear Mr. Debenham,
Thank you very much indeed for writing about Sri-Lankan ethnic conflict.
Your writing was much appreciated!
Please don't mind readers blasting the treatment meted out to the Aborigines, it's nothing but sour grapes.
All the best to you and the fellow "Humanitarian" Australians. I'm quite confident that racism towards Aborgines will disappear from "White Australians" in very near future.
Whatever happened to "Aborgine" Aussie fast bowler Jason Gillespie?
Hope, the International Community will wake up soon and propose a constructive proposal for both warring parties to safeguard the civilians and also to solve our ethnic problem once and for all.
Thank you again Mr. Ambassador Debenham
Mr. Howard,
In post independent Sri Lanka we have had Tamils who were heads of the Army, Navy, Police, Civil Service, Treasury... among many other senior government positions. Sri Lankans will take your critisisms seriously when they see non-white or Aboriginal people rise to similar possitions in white Australia. Also, Australia's role in the butchery that was the Vietnam War is not lost on Sri Lankans. We have to fight this war to a conclusion no matter what because unlike in Vietnam for Australia our very survival depends on it. This the only place our culture and people have on earth and the Eelamists want to push us into a scrap of land that will be four times as crowded as theirs. Take away the contingencies of the conflict and Tamils enjoy every privilege enjoyed by the Sinhalese in Sri Lanka. Prior to prabakaran triggering the war in 1983 Tamils were equal in every way and enjoyed some rights that they do not enjoy even in "Multicultural" Australia. For example.. Are Hindu/Tamil festival days national holidays in Australia? Can a parent educate their children in a state run school in the Tamil Language in Australia? Is Hinduism taught as a subject in Austraia? I suspect not.
The conflict between the Sinhalese and the Tamils is mainly because the Sinhalese, being the majority and possesing the truly indegenous language and culture, wishing their Language and Religion adopted as the National Language and Religion. I do not agree with it but I can undertand the concern some Sinhalese feel about the possible extinction of their Language and culture were English to remain unchanged as lingua franca. The Tamils enjoyed every other priviledge the Sinhalese enjoyed but this one, and this is what the war is about.
Thank You.
Anonymous says Tamils enjoyed every previlege before Pirapaharan!! Pirapahan was nowhere in 1956, 1958. He was not in the picture in 1977. All the preplanning for the 1983 pogrom was done by JR and his Ministers, particularly Cyril Mathew ably assisted by Saffron clad people (with voters list, Registration of Tamil business etc.) long before the 13 soldiers were killed in Jaffna. Jaffna public library was burnt wantonly 2 years before that. 4th International Tamil conference in Jaffna was disrupted and 9 innocent spectators were killed by Police with the approval of the government. Standardisation (based on ethnicity)was introduced before Pirapaharan took arms.
Please do not re-write history and pretend that every thing started with Pirapaharan. LTTE is the by product of years of discrimination by the Sinhalese governments.
The war against the Tamils will not only kill the Tamils, but it will bring down the whole of Sri Lanka!! By the time the Sinhalese realise the truth, no body can save the country!!
As for retaining the Sinhalese culture, I am afraid sinhalese are noted for their violence and cruelty towards the Tamils only. As for Budhism every one speaks proudly about being Budhists, but nobody practices!!
Nandasena,
I was only saying that Tamils had complete equality within Sri Lanka. I was not defending the actions of individuals such as Cyril Mathew, Buddhist Monks, JVP or anyone else. What you mention as discrimination are acts by individuals. Not by the State. As you well know, there have been race riots, white supremacist groups (far more sinister than even the JHU/JVP) in so called civilised countries like US, UK and even Australia. Blacks have been lynched. They continue to be beaten and abused by Police. But these again are the actions of individuals and not the State.
Standardisation based on ethnicity lasted only 3 years and ended in 1976. By 1983 it was replaced by the current entry system which in fact favours Tamils from Mannar, Vavuniya, Mullaitivy, Trinco, Batticaloa and Nuwara Eliya while imposing higher entry criteria on Colombo, Jaffna, Kandy, Galle and Matara. It baffles me as to how the Tamils see even this as discrimination.
I am not justifying Sinhala violence but I will tell you that there is much outrage at the fact that Tamils propose to keep 35% of the land for their 12% share of the population and expect the rest to crowd into whats left. That too is discrimination -of a worse kind. And this demand was made prior to even 1977 by the TULF.
You need to realise that conflicts progress by the snowballing effect of provocation and suppression. Suppression creating resistance and resistance creating further suppression. The sinhalese deserve a good share of the blame. But only a share of it. If Tamils were being continuously oppressed why have the Tamil speaking Moslems not joined in the campaign? Instead they find themselves victimised by their Tamil brothers. The Mathsya Nyaya phenomenon! Its the story all over ther world. Hindu/Moslem Hindu/Christian in India and Sunni/Shiite in Pakistan they are all at it.
Thanks ever so much for taking the trouble to contribute to the discourse on Tamil National Question! Your contribution does elevate the quality of the debate.
Despite international community’s severe admonition to the Sri Lankan government the massacres of Tamil civilians in the safe zone continue unabated. Every day on average over 50 civilians, including women and children, are being slaughtered by the marauding Sinhala Army. As I write this comment today, already 131 civilians, including 32 children, have been killed in the safe zone. This is not an untypical scenario in the safe zone these days.
School, hospitals and places of worship too have been bombed and destroyed, in the Vanni. People are dying of starvation. There is no food, water and medicine reaching those hapless people. Sanitation is non-existent. The government is using food and medicine as a weapon of war, against Tamil civilians.
The Sinhala Political Establishment has always had genocidal intent against Tamils at heart. It is not only JR Jayawardene who is guilty of it. The genocide he and his senior colleagues in government unleashed is the culmination of years of genocidal thinking. Ever since 1983 it has been easier for the Sinhala Political Establishment to vent their genocidal urge in a civil war.
The relentless vilification of Tamils by the Sinhala-Buddhist supremacist fraternity has led to the belief even by ordinary Sinhala masses that Tamils do not belong to the island – Tamils belong to Tamil Nadu and not to Sri Lanka is what the Sinhalese are made to believe.
This belief has resulted in steadily intensifying persecution of Tamils, from colonising their homeland with ex-convicts and ex-servicemen to discrimination of education and employment opportunities to Tamil youth, not to mention the devastation wrought by the Sinhala Only Act of 1956, which continued to widen the gulf between Tamils and Sinhalese forever.
It is this belief that Tamils are second class citizens and that they don’t belong this island that led to successive Sinhala governments ordering the Sinhala Army to invade Tamil homelands without any hesitation whatsoever, to prosecute a brutal war.
For over quarter of a century now successive Sri Lankan governments have continued to hoodwink the international community with the promise of rapprochement with the Tamils, when the real intention is to buy time to kill as many Tamils as possible with the funding and military and diplomatic assistance of the international community. The misplaced belief that Sri Lankan sovereignty being threatened by a bunch of Tamil terrorist followed by the West’s war on terror have all connived so far to undermine the Tamil Liberation Struggle for self-determination, for the last quarter of a century.
Prior to that, all peaceful efforts by Tamil politicians have been met with violence on the part of the government. This state of affairs has eventually led to the Vaddukoddai Resolution in 1976 by the Tamil United Liberation Front to escalate the Struggle to demand separate state of Tamil Eelam! It is also then that the leader of TULF declared that no solution to the Tamil issue could be found within the legal and constitutional framework of Sri Lanka. And, thus effectively blessing an armed struggle by Tamil militants against the state of Sri Lanka. The rest, as they say, is history.
It is quite clear that the Sri Lankan state is pouring out every drop of its poisonous genocidal intent against Tamils. Tamils in safe zone are worst affected as they are concentrated in a small area.
Sir, what is urgently required is the end to war and humanitarian assistance to reach those people who are starved, deprived of medicine, sanitation, and to cap it all are massacred in large numbers by relentless bombing and shelling by the fascist Sinhala Army.
What business has the fascist Sinhala Army got in Tamil homeland? When are they going to get out of Tamil homeland?
But, first I urge you kindly to canvass opinion amongst the international community to put an end to this unending war and provide humanitarian assistance to those Tamil people who have been repeatedly displaced and have suffered untold hardships for over the last two decades, as a matter of urgency!
Do keep writing and keep in touch!
P Shantikumar
London
A worthwhile article, which seems to ignore one important point in praising Premadasa's sincerity: it was the Tigers who murdered their erstwhile benefactor, and according to Debenham, Sri Lanka's best chance for peace in the early 1990's. Is it any wonder that sidelining any sympathy for the Tamil cause among Sri Lanka's political class, (along with India's) is a bitter agenda for revenge against the LTTE leadership.