The Forum for Welfare and Rights of Lankan Tamils is a new initiative taken up by the ruling DMK government in Tamil Nadu to ensure an honourable settlement of Tamil question in Sri Lanka.
The Forum for Welfare and Rights of Lankan Tamils comprises several parties, including the ruling DMK's main ally the Congress. This forum’s aim is to pressurize the Union government to internationalize the sufferings of the Tamils in Sri Lanka and rope in the international community to hammer out a negotiated settlement of the Tamil problem.
However, the moot question is; will the Indian government take up the case of Sri Lankan Tamils to the international forum, if it does so at the behest of its trusted ally the DMK, then what will be its stand on the issue of internationalizing the Kashmir issue.
Since last sixty years India is skirting the Kashmir case, using its diplomatic prowess to avoid any international arbitrator, even though its lap dog Pakistan has been barking at it on its face, the mother of terrorism in South Asia.
The other question is, will the DMK would continue its honeymoon with the UPA still holding on to its constituency that’s seething with anger over the Tamil question. The state has reported a few suicides and several protests have been reported from different place of Tamil Nadu over this issue. The situation is so grave the state government has order closure of colleges anticipating more protests and issue warning if needed protestors could be arrested under the National Security Act.
With the announcement of the general elections in April, all these developments do not auger well for the ruling DMK government and so it has decided to float the Forum for Welfare and Rights of Lankan Tamils to tell it cares for the Tamil cause. However the question remains how effective this mechanism would be to serve its purpose. Skeptics feel that it’s an evasive tactics meant to distract the surging emotions seething in the state and the DMK has to make a choice soon.
In the meantime a sub-committee has been formed to assist the Forum for Welfare and Rights of Lankan Tamils with state PWD Minister Durai Murugan its organizer. Union Minister for Communications A. Raja, Rajya Sabha MP Kanimozhi and Dravidar Kazhagam president K.Veeramani are secretaries. Other members include former judges; S. Mohan, P.R. Gokulakrishnan, A.K. Rajan, and Samidurai.
The sub-committee so far had held two meetings and chalked out a plan of action for ensuring the safety of Sri Lankan Tamils. It adopted a resolution calling upon the Centre to take speedy steps to implement the proposal made by Indian President Pratibha Patil calling for a negotiated political settlement to the Sri Lankan ethnic crisis.
The sub-committee also urged the Centre to move the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council to ensure immediate ceasefire in Sri Lanka, restore peace and stop the “genocide” of the Tamils.
The committee members have decided to meet the President, UPA Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and External Affairs Minister Pranab Mukherjee to explain the need to approach the United Nations under 11 (2) of the Charter of UN in this matter.
The committee has also prepared a memorandum asking India to appeal for deploying International Peace Keeping Forces under article 24 (1) to maintain peace and security and secure civil and political rights for the Tamils under article 41 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.
Besides, it wants the Central government to appeal to the SAARC nations to call upon the Sri Lankan government to give equal rights to the Tamils.
The committee is pondering whether to take up the issue legally and a drafting committee is formed to prepare the memorandum to be submitted to the international bodies.
The committee has decided to meet Ambassadors and High Commissioners of various countries either in New Delhi and Chennai and submit them a memorandum detailing “sufferings” of the Tamils.
Given the complexity of the Sri Lankan Tamil issue, one wonders internationalizing would serve India’s purpose or will it weaken its Kashmir case. In order to placate its electoral partner that too with just month to go for general election, India would like to eat the cake and have it too.
While the union government having a Hobson’s choice over this issue, the DMK has little to choose. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi has already expressed his unhappiness about the central government's actions in this matter. He says: "While the DMK is far from satisfied at the centre's approach, in my opinion (External Affairs Minister) Pranab Mukherjee is not happy at the turn of events. India should back a UN sponsored ceasefire in Sri Lanka," he said
The DMK president has also expressed his irritation at repeated criticism of the different political parties against the state government on this issue. "The continued politicization of the Sri Lankan Tamils' suffering through violence is an obvious sign of a conspiracy to dislodge the DMK government. Our forum will hold public meetings throughout the state to educate the masses in the matter and press for meaningful devolution of power and the honourable existence of Tamils in Sri Lanka," Karunanidhi said.
In the given crunch situation, it would not be a happy sailing for the DMK in the coming Lok Sabha polls. It can’t sail in the UPA boat if it wants to keep its constituency intact.
There are already many political parties crowding the political space in Tamil Nadu, and one wrong move would trip the DMK patriarch from its tight rope walk. This is an interesting situation in the Indian political circus. It needs to be watched how this story would play itself out.
* Syed Ali Mujtaba is a working journalist based in Chennai. He can be contacted at syedalimujtaba@yahoo.com
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Comments:
shenali
March 8, 2009 at 12:00 AM
Saravan
February 17, 2009 at 12:00 AMThe proposed moves by the Forum for Welfare and Rights of Tamils in Sri Lanka are to be greatly welcomed against the 61 year old history of genocide.By unilaterally abrogating the 2002 Ceasefire Agreement and launching the genocidal war for the twin purpose of climbing into power at the Oct.2005 elections on highly emotive issue of race and religion, a ploy used since 1956 by southern political parties through outbidding of political parties and by promising a return to war the results in human and humanitarian terms have been very catastrophic and dismal. The only option left in teh resulting sanguine scenario is to take it up at the UN Security Council. The dire situation faced by the poor innocent helpless civilian Tamils facing mass murder and serious injuries at the hands of the Sinhala military have become widely known despite a blanket of bans, threats to even personnel of international bodies and murder of Journalists and Reporters by a psychotic dictatorial government.The comparison with Kashmir is not valid because India does not perptrate mass murder, atrocities and genocide of Kashmiris by aerial bombings and shellings of the people using cluster/high incendiary bombs and cluster munitions. The erection of barbed wire concentration camps of civilians who have moved over into so-called safe areas by that government, the reported abduction of young men and girls bodes by the military poses serious danger to their lives and human rights. These are all overt serious war crimes to which India could not lend any support. Rather it ought to press those responsible to be tried for serious war crimes which contravene the Geneva Conventions ratified by Sri Lanka.The proposal put forward by President Pratibha Patil is eminently worthy of support.
Saleem
February 17, 2009 at 12:00 AMFor more than three years Tamil youths have been abducted and disposed of. Tamil women are raped and killed. Journalists, MPs, aid workers and Muslim workers were hacked or shot dead and the killers are given impunity. Not a single case was properly investigated. First there myust be a mechanism to guarantee the safety of Tamil women and children all over Sri Lanka and especially in the detention camps or 'concentration camps' set up for those who escape the bombing from the conflict zone.
Gunasekara
February 17, 2009 at 12:00 AMDMK has completely lost confidence over the Tamil population in Tamil Nadu and in Sl.
He was waiting for the entire period of Genocidal on Tamils by SL Govt. purely in supporting the SL Govt just to grab his positions.EElam Tamils do not wants the 13th amendments like DMK holding and could not do anythings against the Central Govt. of India.
CLips
February 17, 2009 at 12:00 AMThe best possible solution can DMK cud help is to set Tamil Eelam Defacto government with 16 TNA MPs. All succeeding Indian government nor Sri lankan Government had not solved this issue. So to pursue this further with continuety Tamil Nadu state government should atleast declare the recognition of the Eelam Struggle without LTTE
India must remember that Tamil Nadu leaders desire a separate state to call it the homeland of the 80million Tamil people. That homeland cannot be in Sri Lanka's north as barely 400,000 can occupy this territory. India crushed the We Tamil movement of the 1960s & chose to sponsor a covert operation in Sri Lanka by arming Sri Lankan militants to divert the attention of separatist thought from Tamil Nadu to Sri Lanka - by buying time, India was able to score on several fronts & thus we see how India has strategically made in roads to Sri Lanka's economy through trade agreements & even influencing the relations Sri Lanka has with foreign nations.
The Tamil leaders of Tamil Nadu have through the 30 years of terror by LTTE being silently & openly supporting LTTE terror - much of the fuel, arms come from Tamil Nadu & carried even by fishermen who enjoy extra cash ....monetary factor plays an important role in the "friends" & "supporters" LTTE has.....even cinema Tamil Nadu will be a guilty party ...PLEASE RESEARCH to see the reality.
Why were the DMK or Tamil Nadu not interested about the Tamils of Sri Lanka's East when it was liberated? Not a cry came from Tamil Nadu when the army took over the East from LTTE control. Let it also be mentioned that Karunanidhi's name has come up in the Jain report following Rajiv Gandhi's assassination.
Sri Lanka is a sovereign nation....IF INDIA ...TAMIL NADU feel that Sri Lankan Tamils are not being looked after in Sri Lanka...I think the best solution is to offer Sri Lankan Tamils (those who do not wish to live as Sri Lankans in Sri Lanka) to take up permanent residency in India's Tamil Nadu...this would solve all matters. Let the Indian Government offer this & I am sure the Sri Lankan Government should have no objections....Sri Lanka offered the choice to the Indian Tamils in the 1970s...some chose to return to India while others have made Sri Lanka their home.