Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

30 July  2020

WE ARE THE DEMOCRATIC OPPOSITION – TNA

Each one of us has apparent structure as well as true structure. Often the two are different. The outer one facilitates others to relate to us. The inner one determines our self-esteem and how we see ourselves in relation to others. Ultimately we exist without relativity.

Likewise a Sovereign group – including family, community or nation. Many nations have written constitutions due to needing relativity. Some do not have due to that inner structure.

Professor Tissa Vitarana is reported to have been critical of the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) as follows:

["They have come out with the same set of demands that were raised by the TNA at the time the 30 year war of separation began. A news report of July 19 labeled it as a "low key event", a clear indication of the lack of enthusiasm among the Tamil people.] Island report ‘TNA has failed to come up with a realistic plan to address problems of the North-East people’

The above confirms to me the lack of appreciation that Tamils have made Separation of Powers our main Political mandate in Sri Lanka.  It is no longer on project basis but is an ongoing program. The reason why Professor Tissa Vitarana is unable to identify with this is in the following presentation by Wikipedia:

[He then went to study in the UK, obtaining a Diploma in Bacteriology from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine in 1968 and a Ph.D. in virology from the University of London in 1971. Specialising in bacteriology and virology, Vitharana joined the Medical Research Institute (MRI) in Colombo in 1972, serving as its director from 1983 to 1994. He was head of the virology department at the MRI from 1972 to 1994. Vitharana was a consultant virologist at the Edinburgh City Hospital's Regional Virus Laboratory in the 1980s.  He was deputy director of the Victoria Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory in Melbourne from 1991 to 1993]

In 2017, the Sri Lankan government awarded the crown status of Vidya Jyothi on Professor Tissa Vitarana. Vidya Jyothi is presented as follows by Wikipedia:

[ Vidya Jyothi is a Sri Lankan national honour awarded "for outstanding scientific and technological achievements". It is the highest national honour for science in Sri Lanka for outstanding contribution to the development of the country through dedicated work in the chosen field. It is conventionally used as a title or prefix to the awardee's name. Vidya Jyothi ranks lower than Veera Chudamani.]

The only published intelligence about Professor Vitarana’s contribution to that came to my knowledge was through Ceylon Today article ‘Face masks can be reused - Prof. Tissa Vitarana’ which opens as follows:

[Professor Tissa Vitarana, who has served on the Advisory Committee on Virus Diseases of the World Health Organization (WHO) for 25 years, said that normal face masks can be used continuously, by cleaning them, and it is tested that no germ enters the body through them.]

Political use is confirmed as follows:

[This incorrect brash statement may be pardonable in a schoolboy, but not in a former PM. It was because all these WHO directives were properly done under the SLFPA Government that Sri Lanka has only about 2,500 cases and a mere 11 deaths.] Ceylon Today report ‘Ranil is worse for SL than COVID-19’ published on 20 July 2020

At that time the infection in Victoria to which state Professor Vitarana is connected as follows:

[He was deputy director of the Victoria Infectious Diseases Reference Laboratory in Melbourne from 1991 to 1993]

During the time of Victoria’s need  - Professor Vitarana is praising the government that seems to be in power. In other words, Australia was used as a doormat towards Political gain in Sri Lanka. In contrast I upheld my Sri Lankan qualifications as the highest – despite being punished for ‘showing’ that belief. Hence I have the insight that Professor Vitarana lacks.

Democracy works well when there is Equal Opposition. Where the pathways of belief are different – there needs to be separation to prevent interference by the  apparently senior over the apparently junior. It is like in sports where the game between equals is more fulfilling than between a strong team and a weak team.  

When UNP was in government – TNA mind-merged intellectually while supporters of the Armed Rebels failed to participate in those issues. Now when the Rajapaksas are in power TNA has shown separation through financial independence which Professor Vitarana acknowledges as follows:

["The TNA manifesto further states that it hopes to formulate a regional economic policy to revive local industries in the war-affected regions through cooperative societies and to seek investments to address unemployment, poverty, and livelihood issues. Considering that the war has been over for more than 11 years, one wonders what the TNA has been doing all this time without even making any plans up to now.]

The above was preceded by the following:

[….."When this is not there, bringing up the same demands that led to mistrust and lack of confidence is only going to make matters worse, not better. To highlight the concept of a ‘Tamil homeland’ formed by the merger of the Northern and Eastern provinces, and to demand demilitarization, would portray the presence of Sri Lankan troops in their military bases as a ‘foreign’ incursion and is bound to lead to resentment, when similar bases exist in the South. No doubt such a statement would not have been made had there been a majority of Tamil military personnel in the military bases. Certainly the Lanka Sama Samaja Party (LSSP) would support such a trend in the future, Prof. Vitarana further noted.]

Mental empowerment between  Tamils has been confirmed to be pretty strong including through the Diaspora. Many of us are already investing at private levels to share our Financial Independence with the folks in Sri Lanka. In Vaddukoddai I have confirmed this through structures developed on Sri Lankan common values raised to global standards. Now other members of the Diaspora – especially from junior castes are following my example. The government supported by Professor Vitarana is strong in military and if Tamil Political leaders accepted military presence North is likely to become Buddhism foremost land. Professor Vitarana himself has been converted to Military leadership which automatically demotes Intellectual leadership. We witnessed this during the pandemic also. This would have been prevented if the Tamil Opposition had been taken on board.

The fundamental value I have learnt through practice of Democracy is that if you are really senior under unitary constitution / structure  - but you accept junior position you become the medium of the Universal  power that works the whole. Since most do not have such forbearance the system of democracy with separation of powers facilitates Opposition on Equal footing. When we Oppose we do no submit. Hence TNA’s manifesto does represent the Belief of Tamils in common.