Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

25 June 2017                                          

You are not my Elder!

[Ahilan Kadirgamar and Mahendran Thiruvarangan are researchers from Jaffna and members of the Collective for Economic Democratisation in Sri Lanka.] - ‘Beyond accountability: the struggle for co-existence in Sri Lanka’ published by Open Democracy – free thinking for the world

[Ahilan Kadirgamar is a political economist based in Jaffna] – ‘Limits of exclusivism’ Published by the Hindu.

Which description of Mr. Kadirgamar is the true one? Likewise which description of Northern Province is true? – Mr. Wigneswaran’s or Mr. Sampanthan’s or Neither?

My spiritual guru says as per my recollection  - that there are three ‘I’s. The ‘Gaja’ that others say I am; the ‘Gaja’ that I think  I am,  and the Gaja being I am. The last one is Truth / Soul – the ultimate goal of seekers of Sovereignty.

On that basis – Jaffna to me is the Jaffna I can work naturally. Towards this I have to, from time to time come down to the start to take my the place as who others say I am. That gives me zero advantage or disadvantage relative to others in the environment – known through majority expressions. For example, I – a Chartered Accountant in Sri Lankan environment – became a bookkeeper in Sydney – after I failed to win jobs at the higher level of the Accounting profession. – That was stage (1)

Then I regulated myself as per the needs of my supervisors and became supervisor in those units / institutions – ensuring that I acted within the law at all times. That was stage (2)

When those above me failed to uphold my earned position – and I left that institution I relied on who I thought I was in Australian workplace – as per Australian rules, when I applied for new jobs. But once I won those jobs and completed my responsibilities as per the stated selection criteria – my mind became still and I started showing who I really was. This declaration happened at shorter and shorter intervals when the new institution was more disorderly than the ones I had worked previously. The University of NSW topped the list and hence  the manifestation when the new Vice Chancellor came from America. The American return Vice Chancellor did not study the local structure to negate his American advantage and hence his misfit was worse than that of the previous Vice Chancellor – who like Mr. Trump was Australian trained expecting to go global as is. I was arrested by the American return and when I invoked the true Energies of the University I was able to reverse the punishment on him.  This is why Peaceful Assembly / Sathya Graham should not only be made unlawful nor be disrespected.

In the recent Northern Provincial Council issue in Sri Lanka, Mr. Wigneswaran is the parallel of American return Vice Chancellor and Mr. Sampanthan the parallel of the old Vice Chancellor who sought to remain status quo. Since Mr. Wigneswaran was new to Politics – he used his natural Administration pathway when in Judiciary. Hence one could state that the conflict was similar to the one between former Chief Justice Dr. Shirani Bandaranayake and then President Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa.

In his Hindu article – Limits of Exclusivism, Mr. Kadirgamar states in this regard:

[The controversy was essentially a manifestation of a simmering political conflict within the Tamil polity. Tension had been brewing within the NPC since the regime change in January 2015. The Tamil nationalists’ preferred discourse of victimhood and the need for international intervention during the authoritarian Rajapaksa regime suddenly confronted the geopolitical agenda of the West and India, which moved close to the new government in Colombo. The TNA leadership in Parliament shifted its approach towards engaging Colombo. However, Mr. Wigneswaran, along with politicians within and outside the NPC, firmly held his exclusivist, if not separatist, line.]

I do identify with this picture. It was interesting to note that the Tamil Diaspora’s Energy moved close to Mr. Wigneswaran who represents the more Educated Tamil within the Sri Lankan community in addition to officially representing the Nationalist agenda of Activists. As I say these days within local circles – let’s identify with the Energy that each participant activates.

There is Matter at the lowest end and there is Energy at the highest end. To my mind the two combined become the Force that manifests as outcome at that time, at that place. Matter, Force and Energy are my parallels of Body, Mind and Soul. Once our contribution reaches Energy state – it operates on its own and one who stays within her/his Truth will identify with the outcome manifested by her/his contribution. This is the power of One that Gandhi had and it was this Energy that brought out the 2015 election outcome to make Tamils the leading opposition in National Parliament despite being minority in terms of numbers. To my mind, that is our parallel of Mr. Obama becoming the American President. Each outcome would confirm the Energies that manifested that outcome at that place, at that time. One who seeks the Truth through her/his Truth and without ‘judging’ on the way – will identify with the Truth.

The conflict happened due to lack of Consolidating Energy within Tamil Political Leadership – the same way Sinhalese Political Leadership is also suffering. As per the history of Tamil Politics the two leading parties kept dividing and uniting during ‘normal’ times and ‘emergencies’ respectively. During normal times we naturally promote debate and our contribution is stored as Energy at that place. During emergencies – those Energies raise themselves to support us.

Mr. Wigneswaran was Recruited before he was  Elected by the People of Jaffna. The People of Jaffna here is all those to whom Jaffna is ‘home’. Even one person to whom Jaffna is ‘home’ today and wanting to identify with that Energy at the current leadership level, would add to the Recruitment of themselves  in that position. Current bodies in Jaffna when they are open to such influence – would become the media through which this Energy would manifest Itself. Out of all Tamil politicians available at the time of Provincial Council Elections, those like Mr. Sumanthiran who had knowledge of global politics – did not offer to take represent Tamils to the world at Provincial level. They wanted to play the big game at National level and beyond. Given Mr. Wigneswaran’s demonstrated interest in Tamil Politics and his status through the judicial pathway – he seemed to be the best person available for the job as defined by the Tamil Political Leadership. Without Mr. Wigneswaran, the Home Energy of Tamils who invested strongly in Administration despite the discriminatory practices by majority race, would not have been invoked to give shape to Northern Province as a leading Province in Sri Lanka – especially after the Terrorism label pinned through militants.

But having accepted the position, Mr. Wigneswaran was lost between the dynamics of  various groups who had influence over current bodies / matter in Jaffna. They are strongly influenced by ‘pro-boys’ whose pathway they can relate to better than the Colombo pathway. Often I hear in Jaffna that some problem or the other would not have happened if the ‘Boys’ were in control. In my mind, I say ‘the Army also would not have come if not for the Boys’. This I believe, diffuses the Energy of military spreading through such bodies. They are like tyre mechanics placing nails on the road – for business. Given that Jaffna has suffered due to the war – I merely listen to them without expressly administering them. I use administration actively in our Temple activities and through our Training Centre at Vaddukoddai junction. In terms of others, unless I have a medium through whom to communicate my investment in Law and Order of global standards, I mentally vote against their expressions / manifestations to kill the negative Energy that induced that manifestation. Theirs is current political right. Mine is Cumulative Administrative Right. Likewise Mr. Sampanthan and Mr. Wigneswaran respectively.

In terms of hierarchy Mr. Wigneswaran at Provincial level is of lesser status than the Colombo Tamil politicians. When this is expressed laterally – Colombo Tamil leader has majority power over Jaffna Tamil leader. Mr. Sampanthan erred by demonstrating that power to satisfy his voters. The effect is that Tamil politicians USED Mr. Wigneswaran’s status to suit their own purposes and failed to pay him the respects of an Administrative elder within the Tamil Community. That brings to mind the expression of an Aboriginal boy to a White Administrator in a local film. When the White man says that he ought to be respected as an elder – the young indigenous boy states words to the effect ‘you are not MY elder’!.  Jaffna Tamils who have become more and more Indigenous due to emigration especially of the more educated Tamils – would soon not recognize Mr. Wigneswaran as their elder. This was demonstrated by the elected representatives who would not be ‘told’ by Mr. Wigneswaran but would seek the association of ‘foreigner’ to Tamils – Governor, Mr. Reginald Cooray – who was not their elder. That happened in 2005 when LTTE traded money for voting rights of Tamils during Presidential Elections, to prevent Tamils from voting. Their message to Mr. Wigneswaran was that he was not their elder!

But so long as Mr. Wigneswaran continues to contribute to Tamils as a whole, Jaffna Tamils of his class will add their Energy to chase away the forces working against intellectual Administration.  Whether they know it or not – Colombo Politicians need him to stay in Jaffna to confirm our investment in reliable Administration which the armed militants also contributed to when they followed orders of their respective leaders – despite those leaders not carrying status at wider level. They also would say to the politician without Administrative Energy – ‘you are not my elder’.