Gajalakshmi Paramasivam – 17 January 2015

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What Is the Tamil Problem?

The question was placed before a general forum – where Tamils as is the case at National level in Sri Lanka were in the minority. The question by a Sinhalese was:

[ONCE AGAIN.. I REPEAT...WHAT IS THE PROBLEM..

WHAT IS IT THAT TAMILS DONT HAVE THAT ONLY SINHALESE HAVE BEEN GIVEN??

WITHOUT MUMBO JUMBO... CAN SOMEONE PLEASE SPELL OUT WHAT IS THE PROBLEM.... SERIOUSLY WE SINHALESE WOULD LIKE TO KNOW WHAT IS IT THAT THE TAMILS DONT HAVE THAT ONLY WE ENJOY]

I – responded as a natural  member of  Tamil minority :

[As a Tamil – the problem is the same as I experienced in Australia as a migrant from Asian country. When government fails to rise to Administration after elections  but continues to play politics – majority have greater power than minority to produce the outcomes they desire. Sinhala only is an extreme example. Diversity is needed by minorities to match this and keep the balance going.  Otherwise to the extent minority groups have their own physical strengths they would continue to form rebel groups/separatists – so THEY could rule. This is what LTTE did as did JVP on  your side. If you become JVP in your mind you will appreciate this. I learnt this about LTTE in 2003 when I lived with them while working on a UNDP project.

The way to become independent of these forces on both sides is for us to not interfere with them.  The area where we live here in North – is a high risk area. You hear emotional outbursts practically every day in this area. But when we are around – they do not evolve into big fights.  The other day after the kids and their parents completed their fighting over one child hitting another – I asked the one who was involved what had happened and then she said that she had hit one of the boys with the bat. I said to her to come to me when she has problems. She did and I went over and recognized the boy who was giving problem as a problem child from our classes. The parents do not look after him.  I said to the boys to include him. They said he was disruptive. I said they still needed to include him if they were to use our equipment and premises. They included. Haven’t had a problem since then.  But if I had interfered when they were fighting – I would have become part of them and could not have resolved the conflict. They are highly emotional. Tamils who are emotional need to be left to resolve their problems and encouraged to seek higher Administrative involvement through someone they trust .  They do not understand the deeper common laws. They are driven by effects they can ‘see’.  Language and Religion need to be not interfered with by those of other languages and religions because they are highly subjective. To the extent Sinhalese forming government are driven by votes – they would tend to feed their parallels of the above group and surface majority power to their advantage. THAT INTERFERENCE  is the Tamil Problem.  To the extent Tamils lost faith in Central Government due to the exercise of subjective powers – they are entitled to their own government in their areas. This must be recognized by the Administrative Structures formed by the new government.]

The discussion started with the statements by Mr. Wigneswaran forwarded by a Sinhalese member of the Diaspora who quoted from the report by The Hindu on 09 Jan 2015:

[Statement of the Hon. Chief Minister of the Northern Province on the results of the Presidential

My beloved Tamil Speaking brothers and sisters have made the appropriate decision at the Presidential Elections. Today we have voted decisively and elected a new President.  Hon. Maithripala Sirisena has been selected by the majority and minority communities jointly as the leader of this country. I have complete confidence that democracy will be established under him. Moreover, I believe that the foundation for a just solution to the problems of the Tamil Speaking Peoples, which have remained unresolved for more than sixty years, will be laid under his regime. I wish to state that we remain committed to providing him with our co-operation and assistance in this regard.]

I saw many holes in the above. First of all Mr. Wigneswaran was speaking first as a Sri Lankan and next as a Tamil. This is ok if he did not have his portfolio as Chief Minister for Northern Province. As Elected member Mr. Wigneswaran has the responsibility at all times to represent the people who elected him first. The rest is policy contribution and should not be based on personal faith in an individual.

As a governing member of the Sri Lankan Judiciary, Mr. Wigneswaran needs to appreciate the importance of Doctrine of Separation of Powers between Politics and Administration. Therein lies the validity to our claim for devolution of powers.

A Tamil member of the Diaspora wrote in response to the question - Where are the mature Tamils? by another member (‘Ranil Wickremesinghe was very lucky this time with CBK (Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga)  on his side, unexpectedly and strangely. Even Mahinda Rajapakse  is stunned and the world at large. Even now Tamil politicos have taken a back seat while the Muslims have cashed in smartly.’)

The response by the Tamil member was:

[I too was very worried when I heard that TNA (Tamil National Alliance) was not going to accept any position in the cabinet. I was also of the opinion that they should be proactive in cabinet and play a constructive role! Hence, I spoke to few on my contacts in Colombo and through them was able to talk to one of the leading forefront TNA politicians in Colombo.

What he mentioned was that, if they accept any position then they will be accused of seeking power, then there are many coalition members who are jostling to get a cabinet position and finally until the constitution reform etc. are carried out main Tamil issue will not be taken up! But other administrative issues such as appointing new governor, withdrawing the army from N & E, resettlement of displaced Tamils to be settled back in their lands etc. will be considered. This politician mentioned that he has started work on the reform committee and are in regular consultation with MS  on various issues. Few of what he mentioned are being carried out as we read in the recent past news.

I believe that only after the parliamentary elections this will firm up with cabinet positions and function properly. Now it seems to be solving so many of the administrative issues which you would have picked up from various news items. Even CW (C. Wigneswaran) is in regular touch with MS (President Maithreepala Sirisena) and getting the Northern Council issues sorted out.

I responded on that basis to the above message:

[Whether it is Wigneswaran or Rajapaksa – the common Tamil is capable of deciding whether or not her/his investment in government is being recognized. Tamils did demonstrate this capability during these elections also – to maintain their true place as Equal Opposition to majority race. That is the value of marginal power. To become Equal as an apparent minority community – we have had to sacrifice earned benefits. Every individual who did this, strengthened the force of the invisible powers that influenced the above outcome. These outcomes are in essence the same as the 1977 election outcomes for Tamils.  In some ways Rajapaksa family replaced Bandaranaike family.

By not taking up ministerial position, TNA confirms the Diversity of Tamils in Politics. When I wrote to another forum member that there was no Muslim Portfolio that member responded that Muslims  had Ministerial positions.  I pointed out that  those positions do not confirm diversity. TNA would have diluted the election outcomes if it had accepted ministerial positions.]

Mr. Wigneswaran is speaking  as if he is part of the new Regime. If this represents the feelings of majority in Northern Province who voted for Mr. Sirisena – then we do not need devolution but only Reconciliation of differences towards Lessons Learnt which would then form the basis of  more inclusive Administrative Policies . If that is the ultimate goal, then the issues relating to Northern Council must take second place as processes towards this ultimate goal.

The Tamil Problem is with Sinhalese is the use of subjective power where Administrative power through use of common principles and laws needs to be applied.   This would be better understood by those of  us who have a class system that is dysfunctional for example the  use of subjective power by higher castes to reduce the status of lower castes – so they could be ‘told’ – as some members in the Tamil Community do. In democracy one needs to distance oneself so the two are equal at all times. The greater the differences the greater the distance needs to be. Hence devolution. Until higher caste Tamils distance themselves from lower castes to prevent abuse of powers from an obsolete structure – we have not earned devolution to distance ourselves from other communities. 

Thai Pongal (Farmers' Festival)atSangarathai - ThunaiviVaddukoddai-Sri Lanka

Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

Gajalakshmi Paramasivam - Jaffna

Sri Lankan Democracy

My most recent experience in relation to Democracy in Politics  has been through the Sri Lankan 2015 Presidential Elections and its driving forces.

I believe that Sri Lanka confirmed its  transition from autocracy to democracy through the 2015 Presidential elections. Most of us do not personally know either candidate  - Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa or Mr. Maithripala Sirisena. We hear about them through their speeches and other reports. The level at which we connect to them confirms the value of our own vote – physical and / or mental. A group in which the identification with the leader, by majority members, is through our own independent thoughts, as per our own experiences, is a democratic group. A group where a leader is chosen more by the leader’s own presentation and the presentation of those close to the leader, is better suited for autocracy – which Sri Lankan Politics  has been during my life time. Some groups would never need to move towards democracy. Until now, Sri Lankans of most ethnicities, seemed comfortable with autocracy. To my mind,  under autocracy the leader works the followers and under democracy the common members of the group work the leader as a facility through whom they govern themselves.  The responsibility is now greater for the Sri Lankan voter to work her/his leader towards the voter living  as / becoming  a self-governing person at her/his level where s/he is the leader – even if it were of her/himself only.

Based on principles, I myself was thinking more in favour of Mr. Rajapaksa as opposed to the winning candidate, Mr. Sirisena who was Mr. Rajapaksa’s junior in the government structure until the announcement of the elections.  Mr. Sirisena became President by crossing over to the opposition to form a collective force.  In some ways it is multicultural democracy due to the minds connecting beyond internal political subjectivity.

My main thrust during the time leading to the elections was that Tamils needed to vote and not abstain. There is good reason for this. During the 2005 Presidential elections – Mr. Rajapaksa became President for the first time due to Tamils abstaining from voting not voluntarily but due to threats by the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) who claimed they were fighting for a separate country for Tamils. According to statistics, if not for the suppression of Tamils’ right to vote,  Mr. Ranil Wickremasinghe would have been the President in 2005. The LTTE move was damaging to the investment made by Tamils in the system of Democracy. The LTTE through use of arms, were taking over power from Sinhalese leaders. They were not promoters of Democracy.

Where the stronger force (combination of individual and collective) within the Tamil community rejected the LTTE rule and its negation of Tamil investment in democracy, that force naturally added itself to defeating the LTTE through Mr. Rajapakse’s  cleverness, drive and position. I believe that this happens through God’s system where the  feeling force is stronger than the expressing force. By suppressing Tamils from exercising their franchise – the very basis of self-governance through  democracy, the LTTE attacked the very system of Democracy while claiming to fight for self-governance in a world driven more by Democracy than by Autocracy.

The autonomy of minorities is the key to liberation from majority rule. A group that suppressed this turned the force against itself.  To the extent Mr. Rajapaksa became the medium through which this returning force worked to redeem Tamil investment in Democracy – we Tamils owed Mr. Rajapaksa. I believe that those of us Tamils who in our minds were with Mr. Rajapaksa during the 2015 elections – despite popular support for the Opposition candidate – were repaying that debt – to redeem our right to democratic self-governance. Owings need to be settled for us to progress towards ownership.

At the voting  level – Tamils by voting overwhelmingly for the Opposition candidate ( who was strongly in partnership with Mr. Ranil Wickremesinghe) paid their overdue debt to Democratic self-governance. This was the reason why I was urging Tamils to exercise their vote. We ultimately get the governance we have earned. This may not be the one we voted for. Each genuine voter – physical as well as mental – would identify their real returns if they read outcomes through their own Truth and not through hearsay. Such identification would help them work the system in its current form – with the energies of the investment in the losing side being carried forward as Administrative power. If Tamils had not exercised their right  to vote – they would have confirmed rejection of democracy or indifference to self-governance.

As per the published election outcomes majority Sinhalese did vote for Mr. Rajapakse. The Tamil had  marginal power. The majority by which Mr. Sirisena won was 449,072.  The majority in largely Tamil areas of Jaffna, Batticaloa and Vanni totalled 453,951.    If Tamils had abstained as they were forced to by LTTE in 2005 – Mr. Rajapaksa  would have returned to power. Tamils continue to be the natural opposition of Sinhalese in Parliament driven by subjective power. Sinhalese have demonstrated that they are Equally empowered to form democratic opposition. 

Gajalakshmi Paramasivam

Tamil Conscience Vote

An Australian Academic forwarded to me the article ‘Bad News for the UPFA’ by Professor Hoole, in which he states:

‘The TNA has decided to support the Common Candidate, Mr. Maithripala Sirisena . It is good news indeed for all of us who are excited about a common opposition to the Rajapkse family regime that is built on a return to democracy, good governance, an independent judiciary, etc.’

Excitement and Disappointment are twins separated by time. They are like Mr. Sirisena and Mr. Rajapaksa for the Political voter. They are not for the Common Tamil voter in these elections.

The Tamil vote has become a significant point of discussion in relation to the upcoming elections.  It is significant not because we can change the form of government but because we can work the Natural Powers more than custodians of human powers who have failed to deliver as per our investment in democracy.  At political level the only party that visibly includes Tamils in this Presidential elections - is the UPFA – United People’s Freedom Alliance – not only through former leader of Eastern branch of LTTE but also through EPDP – headed by Mr. Douglas Devananda. To the extent Tamils gained through Eastern Tamils’ participation in the armed struggle – Tamils as a community owe Karuna who is now part of – SLFP  which is the main Party making up UPFA. In terms of individuals therefore – Tamils in North and East are not likely to identify with the Common Opposition Candidate in these Presidential elections.  If indeed Mr. Sirisena were to win and majority Tamil votes go to Mr. Sirisena we are accepting Sinhala Only leadership at National level.  At the political level the person we vote for is taken to be ‘right’.  Hence where we do not identify personally with the individual  it is important to identify with what we are voting for. In terms of majority Tamil voters  this is difficult to know through discriminative thought process of rights and wrongs.  Such Tamils need to vote through  their conscience.  If they are genuine, they will influence the mind of the President through his conscience rather than his intellectual thinking.

Conscience, I believe is driven by our own Truth. There has been much condemnation of the Rajapaksa regime to justify promotion of votes for the Common Opposition Candidate.  To the person driven by her/his conscience – all those arguments apply equally to the LTTE. If this is true, as per the conscience of majority Tamils – then majority Tamils are disowning the LTTE.

The Vote of a citizen is cast :

1.      Through identity with the Individual – direct political path.

2.      Through identity with ‘rights’ of the side measured through common law that covers the whole area covered by the Position.

3.      Through our conscience – voting for ourselves  as per our own genuine investment in common with either side.

Not many Tamils identify with either side leading individual in the Presidential elections. That is the area covered largely by Sinhalese.

Those who have benefited from the Administration of either side – through their respective portfolios would vote for the side  that has been more right for them than the other. It must be very confusing for the intellectual Sinhalese voter as to which side Mr. Sirisena belongs in this instance – the UNP or the SLFP? – the two leading parties in National Politics. All their votes would go to Mr. Rajapaksa under whose umbrella Mr Sirisena worked. If therefore Mr. Rajapaksa wins – one could conclude that Sinhalese are consistent in their application of common measures – especially in terms of  intellectual pursuits and discoveries.

The most reliable vote of all for the self is the Conscience Vote which may or may not identify with either of the above. It is not likely to identify with either of the above for majority Tamils. But this vote is the one that would bring us deepest Peace of Mind. Minorities who have been distant from both side individuals need to ask through their own experiences – as to which side leadership’s  period has been more ‘free’ for them to operate within their earned rights in their own areas. The alternative to Mr. Rajapaksa is former President Mrs. Chandika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga with whose backing Mr. Sirisena is contesting as the Common Opposition Candidate.

The election  outcomes would also be identified with by all of us through the above three pathways. To the extent we are independent and genuine – we would ultimately integrate with each other. To the extent we ‘interfere’ to influence voters to deliver as per our desires and/or express judgments to show off our knowledge rather than share our wisdom – we would continue to stagnate close to the preliminary levels in democracy and promote various forms of dictatorships – including by foreigners.

The Conscience voter needs to stay away from suggestions as to whom to vote for – especially during the period immediately preceding elections. It is not about how accurately we predicted the outcome to impress those around us but more about how we used this period of heightened consciousness to share with each other to vote for ourselves through one path or the other. That is how we elect the government we deserve. When we are genuine and the political system is reliable – we would win government if the person we voted for wins.  If the person we voted for loses – we become the opposition and invest more in Administration to earn our Equal position. If the political system is not reliable but we are genuine – our vote will merge with Administrative voters and/or conscience voters through the system of Natural Justice – the system that never fails any investor.

Gajalakshmi Paramasivam – 06 January 2015

Nallur Murugan & Karthigai Flower with 

Six petals depicting Multiculturalism

Gajalakshmi Paramasivam 

Multicultural Tamil Community

The feedback from the Tamil Diaspora confirms overwhelming support for Tamils to participate in the Presidential Elections. Most Diaspora leaders have expressed in favor  of Tamil participation in the Presidential Elections. Those of us who are seeking a Political solution need to participate more actively than others.  Every member of the Tamil Community who identifies with the US led resolution at UN level – has the duty to actively promote Tamil voters to vote in the Presidential elections. That is when we invest in the political process of identifying  a leader to represent us. When we invest of our own free will, to be recognized at home-level Politics – we earn the opportunity to be recognized at community level and when we invest  at community level we earn the opportunity to be recognized as wide as our feelings of  ownership spread. The Presidential Elections are a National level opportunity to invest in a Political solution. Those who recommend abstinence are effectively promoting dictatorship structure that we claim to be fighting against.

As per news received today,  Mr. Wigneswaran, the Chief Minister of Northern Province, has stated in relation to this:

‘At the outset I must say that the TNA as a coalition party has made a decision to support the common candidate Maithripala Sirisena. It is not important whether their decision is right or wrong.’

This clearly confirms to a person who can read Mr. Wigneswaran’s mind that he does not interpret the decision made by TNA to be in support of Mr. Sirisena the individual – but our participation in a democratic process. The stronger our feelings of ownership the more forceful our influence on voters through Natural systems.  When responding to a young Australian of Lankan origin on the basis of my article ‘Tamils Need to Respect Democracy’ http://austms.blogspot.com.au/ , I highlighted that in place of Common – one could use the Multicultural  path and combine the outcomes:

1. [If I may make a humble comment, perhaps we need to change the “us and them” mentality when it comes to Tamil and Sinhala. ]

Response : As you know – there are limits to our commitment to ‘united social order’. We need to recognize that there are strong degrees of separation within the two communities. When it comes to politics – this surfaces more strongly than at any other time.   I believe that it is better for us to identify that we have irreconcilable differences beyond a certain point. Every group would be productive to our society as a whole, when it shares its True discoveries instead of the ideal which is not likely to be reality during our times.  As per my assessment of  my generation – majority Tamils as well as majority Sinhalese do have the ‘us and them’ mentality.  Only a small section are Sri Lankans.  I realize also that both – Tamil groups and Sinhalese groups – are accepting of such Sri Lankans. That Truth motivates me to continue to engage with both sides separately – than to think of Reconciliation.

2. [We are all people, human beings with the right for equal rights and opportunities. ]

Response : The ‘rights’ come from our investment in the common wealth of  our home group.  Tamils who have invested in Tamil Only structures – do not have ‘rights’  in Sri Lankan structure – except through the law. Likewise Sinhalese. Both have rights within their respective groups of common faith. The rest is as per the law – which is not likely to be realized by the oldies in these groups in their current life time.  Young ones like yourself – could identify with the Truth and then structure your own goals and pathways as per your own environments. If this is One Sri Lanka – that would be great.  Oldies like us would lay the foundation by going through all  side experiences.  At the moment I am interacting more with Sinhala only groups and with General Colombo groups with majority Burghers and Colombo Tamils. I do not mix them but combine the outcomes through myself.  I believe this would prevent my juniors in each group from harming their counterparts in the other. I believe that through genuine interactions I have surfaced to the public level – the inner thinking in all  diverse groups – something a common group would have great difficulty accessing – even in a democratic country like Australia.

On the basis of  the above, one could conclude that TNA was/is  doing likewise – to satisfy all angles of Tamils.  Hence at the Provincial Council level they gave recognition to  LTTE’s contribution. Now at National level – they need to give recognition to assimilating Tamils who are already in Colombo or are likely to go to Colombo seeking national and international opportunities. Both these groups would be in Mr. Wigneswaran.

Mr. Wigneswaran however, needs to also recognize that in Development of Democratic Administration – he is as slow as Mr. Rajapaksa. I conclude that this is why he is not able to identify with Mr. Sirisena as a leader fit to be President of Democratic Sri Lanka. This is purely a Political exercise without strong motivation to Develop Democratic Administrative Structures. If therefore Mr. Sirisena succeeds at National level due to need for change – then TNA’s Common Opposition is likely to succeed in Northern Province at the next elections. This is UPFA-EPDP alliance led by Rajapaksa-Devananda coalition.

If TNA met with the Common Opposition to pick their minds – that is fine. But by recommending that Tamils vote for Mr. Sirisena, TNA leadership is diluting its own investment in true Democracy and in Natural Justice Itself.  In 1976, Tamils made the Political declaration of Independence through Vaddukoddai Resolution and the rest happened as per the true failures of Sinhalese who were weak in Administration.  This time TNA has interfered with that flow of Natural Justice. Mr. Wigneswaran and TNA need to promote the side that would facilitate their sharing of their independent discoveries freely with the younger generation. At the political level – the two ethnicities have high level  of irreconcilable differences. Tamils therefore need to vote with the candidate through whom they could best identify with their own investment in Governance. The Tamil Community itself is multicultural. When we feel common to all sections – we would be common to all societies we are a part of. This is also confirmed by Lord Muruga with six faces

Gajalakshmi Paramasivam 

Tamils Need to Respect Democracy

Last night’s mail brought the message headed ‘Vote to Save Democracy’ from the Jaffna University Science Teachers’ Association which included:

‘Neither of the two major candidates nor their strongest supporters showed any indication that they understood the national question. It is thus clear that they have no answer to this question that has sapped, misdirected and wasted the energies of generations since independence and not just of Tamils. However, it is a great blunder to ask Tamils to boycott the presidential election for this reason. Democracy should first be saved for the Tamils to have a voice to demand and fight for their rights. When a democratic dispensation dawns on the entire country, the Tamils too can enjoy its benefits. We must exercise this opportunity that is our right and duty as citizens to cast our ballot at the forthcoming election to secure broader options for the future.’

I happily identify with the above message.  If we do not exercise our right to vote – we risk takeovers by dictators.  Tamils are voting not for one side or the other to win but for their own entry into the operating system of governance – whatever form it may have.  Some would vote for democracy and others who supported armed rebellion would   vote for Mr. Rajapaksa if they were true to themselves. The Tamil community has the responsibility to give its own form about who we are – based on our own Truth. If according to that discovery we are democratic – then we need to first eliminate undemocratic practices before claiming the benefits of democracy. These Presidential elections are such an opportunity.

As per news reports:

1.      TNA leadership stated :  'YOU KNOW WHAT WE WANT FROM MAITHRI …….. We do not want pacts or agreements but to achieve our objectives'

2.      LTTE member in TNA Ms Ananthi Sasithran :  Recommends boycott – a weak following of LTTE Leadership when it was active and stopped Tamils from exercising their right to vote.

3.Tamil Academics: (i) Recommend voting to confirm Tamil right to democracy.

                                        (ii) Acknowledging the Rajapaksa Regime’s contribution to Jaffna being developed as a knowledge hub. The likes of former Vice Chancellor of the University of Jaffna – Professor Balasundarampillai are in this category. (‘Momentum’ – Jaffna, brings together private and public sector intellectuals ). In addition the achievement of  Jaffna Tamil student Mr. Pakiyarajah Daruksheesan of Hindu College Jaffna who earned  the first place in the Maths Stream in Sri Lankan University Entrance Exam, was recognized with a Presidential Award. 

Each one’s Truth could be connected to through the above statements. The Tamil Diaspora also could be categorized and grouped as above. 

If TNA did not enter into agreements – then there is no policy commitment. TNA is confirming  common understanding as Common Opposition to Mr. Mahinda Rajapaksa.  In other words – TNA is voting to negate the investment by Tamils in the armed rebellion. Where the investment in Democratic Administration is greater than this write off – Tamils would be better off through such a position.  Where such investment in Democracy is less than the write off – we risk being taken over including by foreigners working through the Diaspora – trading in  Global Politics and takeovers – as often happens under American leadership. We must not forget that colonialism is also in our genes.

In a country where higher education is more for living than for life – we often do not plan and attack. We tend to react or be indifferent. Unless therefore we analyze through the effects we would not identify with the true causes from within.  We would blindly blame the most visible outsider as the cause of problem – in this instance it is Mr. Rajapaksa at the moment and would become Mr. Sirisena or his mentor Mrs. Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga – the daughter of the ‘Sinhala Only’ rule maker, if Mr. Sirisena became the President.  

Whether it be Sinhalese or Tamils – we have formed our own true structures through our independent thinking and conduct.  This confirms a natural opposition that exists between the two communities. The Doctrine of Separation of Powers needs to be strictly adhered to at all times where there is consciousness of this separation. The last time I spoke to Professor Balasundarampillai was in 2014 – at Nallur Murugan Temple – the Governance seat of Jaffna Tamils. Lord Muruga set us the example in relation to Democracy. So long as we follow that example – we would achieve our goal of self-governance.

In the related   legend – Muruga - the younger son who completed the global journey from zero base – promotes himself  to reign from Hill-tops (to have independent aerial view) and therefore ‘see’ the whole picture from above.   Once we become equal level consumers – we lose the power to rise to the higher level and therefore  ‘observe’ the whole. Hence such consumers have to have the demarcation through the middle – to form opposition that is Equal to themselves. Under this system we must not speak for the person we are observing. Hence the Doctrine of Separation of Powers between the Judiciary and the Executive Government. That is the way of democracy. Distance in democracy replaces the height in autocracy – when we are also consumers of the benefits. This is essential for a multicultural society to live in harmony and yet maintain the diversity of all parts of One society.

TNA’s promotion of Mr. Sirisena needs to ensure that his government does not use subjective powers to ‘think’ for Tamils – especially Tamils who have chosen the democratic path. Unless therefore TNA is able to include LTTE supporters and speak as one voice it is better for us to vote for Mr. Rajapaksa’s side  and show his structures as the ‘opposition’ side – to match which we Tamils must produce our own independent outcomes. Tamils as a community are not responsible to repair the damage caused to Sinhalese who have the power to form Government. We Tamils are responsible to ensure that we uphold our Equal status through show of investment in Democracy during this period – when the focus in on Sri Lanka’s Democracy.  Given that we are equal level consumers as the Sinhalese – we do not have the authority to ‘judge’ the other politically as if we hold higher status than they. We have the responsibility  to use our Energies to strengthen our investments in Democracy and develop common systems that would confirm this. Devolution without this higher investment than the average Sinhalese – would lead to lower level standards being visible through the outcomes produced – for example lower level motivation to study professional courses that develop higher common thought order.

Until therefore Tamils as a community invest more in democracy of global standards they would be better off showing as their opposition – a person like Mr. Rajapaksa who would continue to confirm at the Presidential level – as Equal Opposition, our investment in armed action – lest we forget the way of the average Sinhalese resorting to physical action as a priority.

Ultimately – we need to respect Democracy for Democracy to respect us. Hence we need to vote out of respect for Democracy and not be driven by the ghosts of autocracy still haunting Jaffna.

Gajalakshmi Paramasivam 

No Handouts to Tamils Please!

It was with great disappointment that I read the report about the main Tamil Political Party TNA (Tamil National Alliance) making a deal with the Common Opposition Candidate in the upcoming Sri Lankan Presidential Elections (http://austms.blogspot.com.au/2014/12/wikipedia-politics-old-age-diversity.html).  Yesterday’s mail brought further confirmation in this regard.  I felt even more disappointed when I read the report published by TNA at http://tnapolitics.org/?p=2260&lang=en. 

The Press Release by the TNA concludes as follows:

‘The experience of our people has been that the struggle for democracy over dictatorship is inextricably linked to the pursuit of our most cherished values: equality, justice, dignity and freedom. We therefore call on all citizens to turn out in great numbers and defeat the Mahinda Rajapaksa regime by casting their vote in favour of the Common Opposition Candidate Maithripala Sirisena and the Swan symbol.’

The TNA has failed to educate us Tamils on how  according to their experience as insiders in Parliament, the Common Opposition Candidate Mr. Maithripala Sirisena has demonstrated support for the development of the above ‘cherished values’. Given that Mr. Sirisena was part of the ‘Mahinda Rajapaksa regime’ – (a phrase used by TNA to describe the government) – one would expect Mr. Sirisena to be guilty of all the negative qualities that the Rajapaksa Regime is guilty of – as listed by the TNA in their election manifesto. The lesson that TNA has to share with the Tamil Community here is how not to cooperate with Mr. Sirisena who has become traitor in addition to being a ‘member of the Rajapaksa Regime’ held responsible for breaches of law at National level. The Common Candidate is also the Common Subject through whom we learn how governments with disloyalty would dilute their  powers and get scattered.  TNA which is committed to Independent Tamil Community  under the Common Sri Lankan structure – needs to accept responsibility for the confusion in the minds of all investors in Independent Tamil Community. The younger generation all over the world needs it.

Politics is half Administration. If our politics is wrong then we have already failed at the primary  level of Administration in addition to foundation level of Governance. Tamil strength in Sri Lanka where we are in the minority is Administration and not Politics. Victory through Administration is political victory raised to the power of  2.

If, independent of  what happens on the Sinhalese side, Tamils under TNA leadership had developed strong Administrative structures within the structures we already have – TNA  would have been an observer in the internal politics of Sinhalese and used the observations to maintain the issue at the global level. Doing local deals weakens the global value of our structure. The stronger we are in Local Administration, the greater the political influence from those with whom we share in wider world – as if we are family. 

As indicated above – Tamil Politicians with Parliamentary positions ought to have had ‘insider’ intelligence about Mr. Sirisena through the Parliamentary structure.  I had this intelligence about the Australian political leaders through my positions in Australian Public Service. Subjective intelligence is networked naturally and once we become part of the common world we connect to the minds of the leaders of that world.  

Assimilators amongst us become locals if we fail to settle our dues to the Administrative structure that rendered the opportunity to connect to those minds. The vote of assimilators who owe the ‘system’ has lateral value  as opposed to the exponential value of a governor’s vote.  The higher the mind structure the greater the exponential value translated at surface level.

Those who connect to the minds of those subjective/political leaders  and settle their dues to the structures that facilitate that network connection – are integrating governors.  We become regional and global when we settle our dues before expressing our assessment of the local leaders.

  LTTE was local due to not settling its dues to the political government of its times in its local area. TNA likewise has made itself local to Tamil areas through this ‘deal’.

Vaddukoddai Resolution led to winning Equal position  in National Parliament  due to the contribution by Tamils at a higher level than Sinhalese who formed government through majority vote. Back then – Malaysian Pensioners were the parallel of today’s Tamil Diaspora.  Vaddukoddai was their Capital.  The Hon S J V Chelvanayakam  - who dedicated himself to independence of Sri Lankan Tamil Community was also born in Malaysia and his education in Ceylon/Sri Lanka was funded by his father who continued to live in Malaysia. The funding came with the Energy of having followed the laws of Malaysia strongly influenced by British Administration.

 To my mind,  the Vaddukoddai Resolution happened due to the power of such Tamils who invested in Administrative structures above the level practiced in Sri Lanka and therefore accumulated governance power to influence manifestations of political outcomes. Diaspora Tamils who invest in Administrations of global standards above the level of Sinhalese with the majority power to form government – would continue to influence these outcomes in Sri Lanka in various forms at various levels. That is the way Natural Justice balances the losses caused by human systems.

LTTE wins through use of arms and without the cumulative administrative investment in common administration – do not have this higher exponential value. Like local politics they have one to one surface influence at that place at that time. Hence the majority Tamil vote went to General Fonseka in the 2010 Presidential Elections. It would not have if LTTE had been rooted to the Tamil independence heritage which has the power to influence manifestations of traditional values.

TNA is confirming through its political deal - that their political power is another form of LTTE local power which is not sufficient to raise the rights-value of  Tamils to balance against the surface value of  majority vote of Sinhalese at National level.  Those who depend more and more on Tamil Nadu political leaders – would be paving the way for assimilation with whoever is in power at that time. This would continue to cause anxiety to Sinhalese as it renders greater political power to Tamils at regional level. This must not however be confused with governance power. Political powers, like the body,  do not have the force to influence beyond their local place and the local period/time.

The more committed we are to Common Administration – the stronger our contribution to natural governance of the Whole.  Sinhalese to whom (1) the Constitution is largely of Book Value (‘Ehttu Churakai in Tamil’) and to whom (2) Administrative outcomes are at the standards of local political level  using subjective influence at physical majority level – carry lesser governance power than their counterparts of minority communities who invest strongly in Administration.  Doing deals takes us down to ‘business  / project level’ Administration – with a visible start and a visible finish at the physical level. This invariably has the effect of ‘writing off’ investments in programs needed to carry forward old investments as well as investments from faraway places. Often such deals do not facilitate maintenance of high structures that have the capability to preserve cumulative heritage values.

Governance power accumulated over long periods and from afar, would translate to produce exponential outcomes at the political level to the extent those manifesting the outcome feel connected to the origin. Some of these sources would not have been born in Sri Lanka but would carry forward values from many previous generations  and/or  are practitioners of Global values.

One who has the experience as if one has caused the outcome her/himself would know and thank her/his own governance power. Towards this one would have needed to have fulfilled her/his  duties as per her/his official position. Had I for example accepted the benefits and opportunities through subjective influence of various  Managers in the Medical Faculty of the University of New South Wales I would have stopped short of my professional position as a Management Accountant -   under One University structure. I accepted the position as part of the Central Administration supporting the whole University. That is also the TNA mandate through which they have been elected to their Parliamentary positions under One Common Structure. No individual who has accepted that position under the promised mandate, has the authority to compromise and come to lower level agreement. They need to resign from the substantive position and take an independent stand under a new structure expressed independently. This was done by many of our seniors – including Mr. Chellappah Suntheralingam.

Lord Muruga is our Spiritual Guru in this philosophy. Declaration of Independence needs to be preceded by Renunciation of benefits in the custody leaders the old system.  

Like many grandparents we may symbolically carry the old positions and remain as governors for those continuing to practice the old system – as we do often in the caste system more for the benefit of those in lower castes who are not exposed to any other mind order.  If on the other hand we seek to be active – as Mr. Sumathiran is in Sri Lankan Parliament and as I continued to be in Central Administration of the University of New South Wales – as an active opposition – we need to position ourselves as per the mandate through which we were elected (in administration - as per the selection criteria through which we were recruited). The Provincial Council is the parallel of new order of governance for Tamils through which project based outcomes need to be shown. Direct deals with a Central Administration using the old structure – is a lower level backward movement.

So, how does the TNA move to promote Mr. Sirisena – the Common Opposition Candidate -  indicate Administrative weakness?

Administration requires Structures with firm Positions. Strong  leaders don’t need high positions to operate that system and produce common outcomes.  Under Administration – if one does something to hurt another – and that damage could be measured through a Common rule/principle/law flowing from  the Constitution and interpreted as per the Administrative structure of the organization / unit – the wrong is taken to have been done to the whole – i.e. to anyone in the system. Not so in politics. In politics it has to be dealt with confidentially and diffused through the balancing forces within – as in family.

By doing deals at the Political level – as TNA as done – we would naturally compromise and accept lower level structures – as would have been the case if I had accepted offers from within the Medical Faculty of the University of New South Wales and thereby lost the opportunity to challenge Central Administrators for their deviations from Common Principles of Global standards required by a renowned University.

The Tamil independence struggle  has now been escalated to global level and local deals would naturally diminish the opportunities available to all global-minded Tamils and other investors in the Tamil independence struggle.

Once we accept benefits through subjective influence of  part of the organization /nation, we naturally forego the opportunities earned by the higher structure of the whole. This happened to Pakistan which continues to lag behind India at the Regional and International levels. Tamils as well as Sinhalese risk such lowering of status through their Tamil Only or Sinhala Only claims.

While the TNA deal may seem to be towards common Sri Lanka – in reality it is towards a scattered faceless Sri Lanka at the global level. It is more generalization than commonness. It is more about physical freedom than about independence of the mind.

Sri Lankan Tamils are now a global force. It is our duty to give that ‘global’ force form at its highest. Wherever Tamils invest in Administration of Global standards - beyond the level of Sri Lankan Government – and continue to feel connected to their roots in Sri Lanka – they influence governance in Sri Lanka – naturally and without having to DO anything active. When Sri Lanka is in political mode – they would influence political manifestations of that governance power. Such is exponential and is greater than the sum of the individuals voting at the physical level. That is also the higher path of minorities seeking Equal rights. Weak Administrations accepting political deals – weaken the real entitlement of minorities to common resources. The benefits received  then become handouts – by majority – as the prize mango would have been if Lord Muruga had accepted half share of the mango awarded to his elder brother Ganesh.

A fellow member of the Diaspora asked me as to who would win in the upcoming elections?  I said without any hesitation -  Mr. Rajapaksa.  Mr. Rajapaksa is already winning the global position as the opposition of  Tamils. A Sinhalese-Sinhalese Government-Opposition structure is not as healthy and tall and true and fair  as  Sinhalese-Tamil structure which naturally integrates with global governance.  That structure is needed if  Diaspora Tamils are to remain active in Sri Lankan governance issues. It is needed by the Sinhalese Diaspora also. My above statement applies to the candidate who would uphold that structure more than the other. All those voting for Mr. Sirisena would compromise and localize the problem which then runs the risk of Tamils becoming welfare recipients – not only in Sri Lanka – but all over the world where they are a minority community investing in Sri Lankan politics.