By Raj Sivanathan –

From the debates of the early 1980s to the NPP Government of today, Sri Lanka must ask whether political power has really changed the JVP’s approach to the Tamil national question

Lionel Bopage’s recent media statement in Sri Lanka concerning the Tamil national question deserves more than passing attention. Its significance lies not only in what he has said today, but in the remarkable consistency of the position he has maintained for several decades. Bopage is not an outsider unfamiliar with the history or ideology of the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna. As a former General Secretary of the JVP, he was at the centre of the movement during a crucial period of its political development.

During the late 1970s and early 1980s, questions surrounding Tamil political rights, national oppression, self-determination and the appropriate political response to the growing ethnic conflict became matters of serious debate within the JVP.

Bopage was prepared to recognise that the Tamil question could not simply be dismissed as another socioeconomic issue affecting all Sri Lankans equally. Tamil grievances had their own historical and political dimensions and required a political response.

Historical accounts of the JVP’s activities among Tamil communities during the period from 1977 to 1982 also show that Tamil activists associated with the movement in areas including Kilinochchi and Visvamadu were demanding that the party specifically address the political rights and grievances of Tamil people.

These debates eventually contributed to profound differences within the movement. Whatever one’s opinion of Bopage’s political philosophy, his consistency on this issue deserves acknowledgement. Taking such positions within the JVP at that time was politically difficult, and those differences came at considerable personal and political cost.

More than four decades later, Bopage is no longer a member of the JVP. Yet he continues to raise many of the same fundamental concerns. That raises a much larger question.

The JVP Is Now the Government

The circumstances today are entirely different from those of the early 1980s. The JVP is no longer merely a revolutionary movement or an opposition party criticising governments from outside. Through the National People’s Power, it now occupies the centre of governmental authority.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and the NPP therefore have an opportunity that earlier generations of JVP leaders never possessed: the ability to turn political principles into government policy.

This is why Bopage’s recent intervention is particularly relevant. For decades, the JVP could argue about what previous governments should have done concerning ethnic reconciliation, devolution, democratic rights and regional development.

Today, the question is much simpler: What will the JVP-led Government itself do?

The 3 August Meeting – Where Is the Roadmap?

The meeting on 3 August between President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and representatives of Tamil and Muslim political parties provided another opportunity for the Government to demonstrate clear political direction.

The representatives raised several longstanding issues, including constitutional reform, Provincial Council elections, land-related concerns and other unresolved problems affecting people in the North, East and elsewhere. Yet the outcome did not provide the degree of certainty that many Tamil representatives and members of the public had hoped to see.

The issue of Provincial Council elections is particularly important. Provincial Councils are not a new proposal requiring years of theoretical debate. They already form part of Sri Lanka’s constitutional and institutional structure. Yet Provincial Council elections have remained suspended for years.

The Government therefore needs to provide something very straightforward: a clear political commitment, the remaining legislative steps and a credible timetable for elections.

Repeated references to committees, electoral reform, delimitation or further consultations cannot become an indefinite substitute for restoring elected provincial representation. If technical or legislative amendments are required, Parliament should address them. A Government with a strong parliamentary mandate should be capable of presenting the necessary legislation and explaining transparently when elections will be held.

Has the JVP’s Fundamental Thinking Changed?

This brings us back to the historical significance of Lionel Bopage. More than forty years ago, there were serious debates inside the JVP over recognising the distinct political dimensions of the Tamil national question.

Today the language may have changed. The personalities have certainly changed. The JVP itself has undergone enormous political transformation. But the important test is not terminology. The test is policy.

Is the present leadership prepared to accept meaningful devolution within a united Sri Lanka? Is it prepared to allow Provincial Councils to function through democratic elections? Is it prepared to address legitimate land concerns? Is it prepared to recognise that reconciliation requires more than declaring that every citizen is equal? And is it prepared to acknowledge that the North and East require both political confidence and substantial economic development after decades of conflict and lost opportunities?

These questions require practical answers.

Political Rights and Economic Development Must Go Together

Another major concern is economic development. There continue to be questions about the scale and pace of major investment reaching the Northern and Eastern Provinces. The Government should dispel these concerns through action.

The North and East possess enormous economic potential: agriculture, fisheries, renewable energy, tourism, information technology, ports, logistics, manufacturing and links with India and the wider region.

Major infrastructure and private investment could create thousands of jobs and provide young people with reasons to build their futures in their own communities rather than leaving for Colombo or migrating overseas.

But economic development cannot replace political rights. Building roads, ports, airports, factories or hotels will not by itself resolve the national question. Likewise, political discussions without economic opportunity will not stop continuing migration and demographic decline. Sri Lanka needs both.

Another Historic Opportunity Must Not Be Lost

Sri Lanka has already paid an extraordinary price for its inability to resolve political disagreements through dialogue and compromise. Decades of mistrust eventually contributed to armed conflict, destruction, displacement, economic losses and enormous suffering among all communities. The country should never travel that road again.

That is why the present moment matters. The NPP Government came to power promising a break from traditional political culture. If it genuinely represents a new political era, then the Tamil national question provides one of the most important opportunities to demonstrate that difference.

Holding Provincial Council elections would be a beginning. Developing a transparent policy on devolution would be another. Resolving legitimate land issues, strengthening language equality and democratic institutions, encouraging substantial investment in the North and East and establishing sustained political dialogue would further demonstrate that change is substantive rather than rhetorical.

None of these measures requires the division of Sri Lanka. On the contrary, genuine power-sharing, equality and regional economic prosperity could strengthen the country by giving every community a meaningful stake in its future.

Lionel Bopage’s Message Should Be Heard

Lionel Bopage’s recent statement therefore carries an unusual historical significance. He raised difficult questions about the Tamil national question when he was part of the JVP leadership more than four decades ago. Today, from outside the party, he continues to raise concerns about Tamil political rights and the need for a just political settlement.

The irony should not be overlooked. The political movement within which these questions were debated in the early 1980s now governs Sri Lanka. It finally possesses the power to help answer them.

President Anura Kumara Dissanayake and the present JVP/NPP leadership should therefore listen carefully – not merely to Lionel Bopage, but to the historical lesson behind his message.

Sri Lanka does not need another generation of unresolved discussions. It needs political courage, a timetable for democratic action, meaningful regional development and a willingness to reach a durable political settlement acceptable to all communities.

More than forty years have passed since these arguments were taking place within the JVP. The question now is no longer what Lionel Bopage said then or what he says today.

The real question is whether the JVP, now that it finally holds governmental power, is prepared to act.

“Political dignity without economic opportunity is incomplete. Economic development without political confidence and democratic representation is equally incomplete.”