Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

29 May  2020

Historic folly of Tamil nationalism 

and Not Sinhala Nationalism?
 

At the primary level, we tend to use ‘likes’ and ‘dislikes’ as our measures of judgment. At secondary level, we use rights and wrongs as per common intellectual measures. At tertiary levels we identify with and are empowered by the truth WE discovered.

I wonder which measure Dr Dayan Jayatilleka used when stating ‘The problem the Tamils face today goes beyond the historic folly of Tamil nationalism not settling for a stalemate with structural reform as in Northern Ireland, instead of supporting to the bitter end a war for a separate state which was utterly lost. The problem they face is similar to that which the Palestinians do, in that there is an ultra-hawkish administration which has decidedly turned its back on the earlier consensus on the nature of the problem and the contours of a solution, and is moving swiftly and unilaterally to shape a final geopolitical outcome of a zero-sum character.] Financial Times article ‘Is it the end of Tamil political history?

There are some aspects in the above message that are ‘demoted’ by me as being for personal glory. The real value to Sri Lanka is taken as per my belief.

I feel that the best way to discover  the core of the message is through ‘Thinking and being’ speech by  Dayan Jayatilleka at TEDxColombo, on 08 October 2013.

The message I received through that speech is that Dr Jayatilleka was analysing through – the Buddha, Jesus Christ and Che Guevara – the discovery of the soul value of each form. Dr Jayatilleka claimed to structure the topic through the coordinates of Success, Endurance and Discovery. To work out how Dr Jayatilleka passed a verdict on Tamil Nationalism let us use the three values as stated.

In 1976, Tamil politicians declared successful identification of virtual Tamil State  through Vaddukoddai Resolution. Tamil Politicians endured the punishment and harassment by the Sri Lankan Government and the Sinhalese with weak cultural  order. Tamil militants also were by this time infected by JVP ideology which like   Che Guevara followed Marxism. The natural infection between the two rebels groups is indicated as follows by Wikipedia account about JVP leader:

[The young Rohana Wijeweera was emotionally affected. When Rohana Wijewera’s further education was in jeopardy as a result of his father being incapacitated, the CPSL arranged a scholarship for him to study medicine at the Patrice Lumumba Friendship University in Moscow. There, he read the works of Karl Marx, Friedrich Engels and Lenin, and became a committed Marxist.

By this time, the Communist Party of Sri Lanka was divided into two factions: the Chinese faction and the Soviet faction. Wijeweera broke away from the CPSL which was aligned with the USSR and joined the Ceylon Communist Party (CCP) led by N. Shanmugathasan.]

About Mr Shanmugathasan’s contribution to China’s Communism, Wikipedia presents the following picture:

[Nagalingam Shanmugathasan was a trade unionist and Maoist revolutionary leader in Sri Lanka. He was the founding General Secretary of the Ceylon Communist Party (Peking Wing)…… After graduating from the university in 1943, Shanmugathasan joined the trade union movement, and became a full-time activist of the Ceylon Communist Party. He became the head of the Ceylon Trade Union Federation and led several strikes, including the general strike of 1947, the Hartal (general strike) of 1953, and a transport strike in 1955………

After the formation of the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist), which conducted armed struggle, Shanmugathasan played the role of liaison between China and CPI(ML).

In 1971 Shanmugathasan was imprisoned for one year during a crackdown on revolutionaries following the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (People's Liberation Front) rebellion. Shanmugathasan was targeted by the government for his espousal of armed revolution for political change and for being identified as one of the political mentors of  Rohana Wijeweera, the founding leader of the JVP. While detained in prison Shanmugathasan authored a book, A Marxist Looks at the History of Ceylon.]

These values would have naturally been inherited by Tamil rebels as well as JVP which is in Parliament. Ironically, it is the current government that is demonstrating that it has also inherited those  pro-Communist China genes. This happens in a free environment when one fails to stay within the borders of her/his stated belief. We the People discovered that the very government that punished Marxist rebels was itself infected by Marxism. Dr Jayatilleka himself shifted and is now a Diplomat under the SLFP ideology.

The Marxist in Dr Jayatilleka presents as follows about Tamil Marxists:

[The problem they face is similar to that which the Palestinians do, in that there is an ultra-hawkish administration which has decidedly turned its back on the earlier consensus on the nature of the problem and the contours of a solution, and is moving swiftly and unilaterally to shape a final geopolitical outcome of a zero-sum character.]

In contrast Prime Minister  Mahinda Rajapaksa presents his strategy as follows – which has buried Tamil Marxism and dismisses Tamil Politics and goes direct to the Tamils as if they are political orphans:

[Before I go into this answer, it is important to note that the issues the Tamil people have in Sri Lanka are very different to the issues that the Tamil politicians have. It has been my joy to serve the people and avail them of opportunities and luxuries denied to them previously with projects and development to help with the reconciliation process.

However, with the politicians, the road has been long and hard. Tamil politics in this country has for too long been dominated by the idea of carving out a separate Tamil state in the north and east of Sri Lanka or at the very least obtaining devolution of power to an extent bordering on a separate state. This is not a practical proposition. Most Tamils live outside the North and East. In the East, the Tamils are a minority. The majority of the population of the Colombo city are Tamils and Muslims] 

News 18 report headed ‘Sri Lanka’s Foreign Policy is Non-aligned, Both India and China are Valued Friends: PM Mahinda Rajapaksa’

The basis of the above that has become common knowledge is in the Vaddukoddai Resolution 1976. This happened after the 1972 Constitution which divided Sri Lanka by religious faith through article 6 which attributed foremost place to Buddhism. In democracy the sovereignty of the Country is determined by the Sovereignty of the People. Each voter has the authority of her/his belief which is Universal power. Hence the Sri Lankan constitution is valid representation of the Universal Franchise only on the basis of belief.  A Buddhist leader bound by article 6 of the 1972 Constitution and article 9 of the current Constitution has no authority over non-Buddhist voters. The word ‘foremost’ confirms relativity. A value cannot be relative as well as absolute at the same time. The Constitution to be valid – has to stand on its own sovereign power. The application of any rule has to flow from our belief. Hence if the Constitution is the source of our belief in law – the way Buddhists apply the law would be different to the way non-Buddhists apply the law. The Vaddukoddai Resolution confirms this in terms of Tamils who are non-Buddhists. There are exceptions such as Dr Ragavan – the immediate past governor of Northern Province. Dr Ragavan in Jaffna is the parallel of Hindu in Kandy.

If as revealed by Mr Mahinda Rajapaksa, Tamil Politicians are taken to be asking for Separate State that is attachment to the physical. This applies equally to Sinhala Politicians who confirmed dependence on Buddhist votes to get into parliament. If they believed in Universal Franchise they would have NOT depended. Relativity confirms structured dependence. Article 9 of the Sri Lankan constitution confirms structured dependence through its relative value.

As per my discovery  - when we do the utmost we can and endure the punishments on the way – we own that relationship as a whole. Endurance which Dr Jayatilleka talked about happens when one part of us hurts the other. That is when we become the whole. When we make a profit out of it – it is no longer endurance. Endurance confirms sovereignty.

By interpreting the law without belief,  one may claim custodial rights. But when the believer who has adversely and continuously held a position declares her/his claim to the leading position it is the duty of the non-believer to stand aside – even if the law had already entitled her/him to be the leader. This is because of the Universal Franchise of Belief. This is the basis of Prescription Ordinance of Sri Lanka which we inherited from the British.

During the Constitutional crisis in 2018, the votes of elected politicians  were known to have been in the market. By confirming that he made available ‘luxuries’ to Tamils – Mr Mahinda Rajapaksa confirmed that he is in the habit of ‘buying and selling’ votes and is not about sharing the Universal Franchise of Belief. One who profits, will lose the opportunity to Endure.  Hence at the level of ‘seeing is believing’ – one needs majority to confirm leadership.

A Sinhalese who is attached to physical  custody as main measure of ownership would interpret the Tamil claim as Separate Tamil State. The LTTE also did that. Since Mr Rajapaksa claims that his fight was against the LTTE and not the Tamil community – he has the duty to limit his criticism to LTTE heirs in politics and not to those who followed lawful politics.

The government which is claiming to provide ‘luxuries’ to Tamils confirms primary level interpretation of ownership. It flows from ‘showing victory’ against those who by law are its own citizens. The higher thinking Tamil sought and achieved Spiritual ownership – which to my mind was the transcendental success that Dr Jayatilleka referred to in his speech. Reference to the Buddha and Jesus Christ confirms this. Likewise, Che Guevara at microcosmic level. The Vaddukoddai Resolution is the political parallel of Che Guevara’s parallel.

Land based relativity  confirms separation. Rights based separation confirms Spiritual ownership. It confirms Universal Franchise. When our belief is expressed in common form at group level that is beyond criticism and beyond allocation of rights and wrongs. Those who express belief in different form are entitled to Separation of Powers. Hence the Separation of Powers between elected members with custody over Administrative rights to Execute and the Judiciary. The Judiciary needs to believe in its own elders which includes the British in Sri Lanka. Where this belief is weak – they are strongly influenced by current custodians of power. Then they become dependents of the Executive Government and lose the enjoyment of Sovereignty. Such persons are not entitled to discretionary powers but only direct application of the law as interpreted and presented by the two sides. Only believers of the law are entitled to discretionary powers of the Judiciary. Those who are dependent on the government are extensions of the Executive Administration.  

The 13^th Amendment to the Constitution under India’s influence came about due to the belief of Tamils in our Ancestors.  I feel this was supported by Dr  Jayatilleka also. Like negative Energy, Positive Energy also manifests in different forms. But once it is Energy – current participants have no direct control over it. That Energy leads us for better or for worse. THAT is Natural Justice.

 Dr  Jayatilleka seems to lack the insight to identify with the  self-isolation that Sinhalese have created for themselves through attachment to majority power. They first alienated themselves from the Universal Franchise expressed within Sri Lanka. This has since been extended to isolation at global level – even though Sri Lanka has a rich heritage of European laws which are still practiced in Sri Lanka and which naturally provide Separation from Executive Government.

So long as Tamils of Sri Lanka believe in our Ancestors – there is no end to our political leadership of Sri Lanka – as the Hon Arumugam Thondaman confirmed this week. Our soul lives in the parliament and the judiciary forever through true believers in Sri Lanka. Those who believe only in Buddhism or Hinduism  or Islam or Christianity and not in Common Sri Lanka – need to not come into Sri Lankan politics. If they did – they would be exponentially damaged when they rule over a true Sri Lankan.