Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

22 December 2018

Tamil Community – Doormat of  Sri Lankan Parliament?

Until we know the Truth about others we tend to see ourselves through them. Ultimately when we live with our truth and the rights and wrongs as per that truth we are self-governing.

The President of Sri Lanka, expressed publicly that he was unhappy about the influence that ‘foreigners’ were exerting in Sri Lanka through Mr Ranil Wickremesinghe as Prime Minister. As per the President’s expressions one could work out that China was not a foreigner but Westerners were. To Mr Sirisena who has not invested independently in Western systems they would be foreigners. I thought more about the dilemma after the Deakin University message came to me.

In 2012, I stood up to Professor Damien Kingsbury , Director, Centre for Citizenship, Development and Human Rights, at Deakin University, over his ‘foreignness in the Sri Lankan issue’. Professor Deakin did not use global standards in delivering ‘judgment’ – as if Sri Lanka was his doormat  I had the courage of my experience with the Academic-Administrators of the University of NSW to mark him wrong. So long as they were ‘Academics only’ – they valued me. The moment they ‘told’ me in Administration – they took me as ‘outcome’ producing machine/process and they saw and ‘took’ as theirs the Budgetary allocations. Until the next time – I was invisible and dispensable – like Tamil National Alliance has become to the UNP now.

But I was myself – providing support services to show  Equal other half . The ‘gap’/’variance’ between what was acceptable to my supervisors at the University of NSW and the actual value of work NEEDED by the University to be democratic in managing resources, became my Ownership Energy. Such Energy gives us courage to take our position in issues that are important to us. Those issues where we have positive  investments are important to us. Where such positive investments are damaged, we feel ownership labour pain.  Then our Truth is born out of that pain.

Through me – Professor Kingbury saw his Academic superiority over migrant worker. Tamil separatists who seemed to not have much education, are part of that reason. Academic status must first be shared with those who have sacrificed  earned benefits and benefits in their custody - towards acquiring that status. They should not be handed over as if such status was ‘substance’. Hence Doctrine of Separation of powers. To subjectively criticise Sri Lankan leadership, one has to be Sri Lankan in mind at that time or it needs to go into the UN pool. If it is academic criticism then such discussions need to be limited to academic circles and only the completed work needs to be produced – showing how the discovery was made.

 In 2017 when Mr Ranil Wickremesinghe accepted the doctorate of law status from the same Deakin University, he confirmed this weakness for Western status. That article ‘came’ to me yesterday, through cyber space because I was feeling hurt that Mr Wicremesinghe was using Tamil militants’ status to score political points. When I shared with the militants, my clean record in law as per my own conscience – someone who was supported by my belief in law has the duty to confirm that support not by ‘giving’ but by demonstrating proper common purpose as per that sharing. That is family, that is community and that is nation. If Tamils as a community did not carry deeper investment in law and order – after absorbing the breaches by militants – TNA would not have been the balancing power in that parliament. But now that we have been used – and forgotten, the selfish are showing credit as if they achieved it.

Mr Wickremesinghe used Tamil Militants as a separate group outside TNA - to elevate himself;

Mr Senaratne for his turn stated “If our government is to be defeated, the President should know that it cannot be done without me. You can’t do it with me on the other side. That is where he went wrong.”

As per Daily News report ‘Finance and Mass Media Minister Mangala Samaraweera said they had no problem in working in co-operation with President Maithripala Sirisena.’ – demonstrating zero concern for the TNA’s loss.

All this – while TNA’s position was effectively handed over to SLFP-SLPP coalition which according to my interpretation of the Constitution and its principles is unlawful.

The Daily Mirror reports as follows:

[Speaker Karu Jayasuriya today announced in Parliament that he had decided to delay his ruling on the post of Opposition Leader because of fresh submissions made by some MPs.

The Speaker was supposed to give a ruling on this matter today.

“I have received written submission from some MPs calling for the appointment of a select committee to determine whether those who joined the Sri Lanka Podujana Peramuna (SLPP) can remain in Parliament as UPFA MPs and on the opposition leader’s post.

I have received a letter from UPFA General Secretary Mahinda Amaraweera on this matter. TNA MP M.A. Sumanthiran also sent me a letter earlier and made a fresh submission and therefore I will have to go through all these documents before making a ruling,” the Speaker said. ]

By going to Courts over the dissolution of  parliament, which effectively is dismissal from their leading positions in government, they had the duty  to acquire some of the ownership energy of the Courts. Such Energy is shared largely through Due Processes. The outcome, when just, would confirm such sharing of ownership between the Judiciary and the participants. When we take that Energy despite losses in court – we become owners and the other side becomes ‘foreigners’. That is how loyalty is developed.

The UNP has demonstrated that it used the Court for political purposes. The higher the level of commonness the stronger the confirmation of Equality within a Sovereign whole.

The Supreme Court suspended the President’s decision to dissolve parliament – until judgment was delivered. Speaker  Karu Jayasuriya failed to demonstrate that order in the case of Mr Mahinda Rajapaksa’s Opposition leadership position. He did in the case of SLFP members who switched to SLPP. But the Leadership position is also about SLFP itself. There was no need to wait so long as Mr Sirisena is known to be part of SLFP and holds the position of President and head of Cabinet. Yet the speaker did not suspend his own order to handover that position to Mr Rajapaksa – thereby removing TNA Leader Mr Sampanthan who already held that position.

One who believes in the knowledge s/he holds – would have had the courage to make the decision as per that knowledge until known otherwise. Hence according to Speaker  Karu Jayasuriya’s decision the Truth is that he did not have the knowledge that Mr Sampanthan had – that the President was SLFP and hence no SLFP member could become Leader of the Opposition. What happened to Parliamentary tradition from 2015?

Shame on all these UNP leaders who lack the depth to Believe in Parliament as the First  institution of Belief of a nation.  As per Hindu philosophy – there are  Thevar (immortals)  and Asuras (mortals) . Most of us pray for outcomes. I do not know of anyone who prays to be Asura. If the outcomes are through Thevar – then we become Thevar. Likewise if the outcomes are through Asuras – and we desire them – we become Asuras. This is what is happening to the UNP. They are confirming that they USED not only the TNA but also the Supreme Court for Asura outcomes. Confirmation of common ownership is through Due Process. Unless they look at themselves and renounce such benefits - the Court will become their administrative assistant.

In terms of Tamils – so long as the militants have been included as part of the law abiding part of Tamil community – that community has the right of its own Truth to be taken as One and not divided and used by political gamblers. TNA represents that common Tamil community in National Parliament. Insulting the LTTE is insulting TNA and therefore insulting the Tamil Community. We have and will continue to find fault with our own and publish the final outcome. If  UNP fails to respect that Sovereignty it must renounce any  support of TNA to uphold the dignity of its own members. In this instance – Mr Wickremesinghe must renounce the TNA votes to know whether he is still Prime Minister. A sovereign person / group would  judge her/him/itself before others do. That is when one is qualified to make laws for the whole.