The following five resolutions were proposed by the Council Member M.K. Shivajilingam and adopted by the Northern Provincial Council in Sri Lanka on April 28, 2014;
M.K. Shivajilingam
RESOLUTION – 1
Tamil people seek justice under international norms for the crimes committed against them during the war; we express our gratitude to the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, and all those countries that sponsored the UNHRC Resolution during the March 2014 session calling for international investigation in Sri Lanka:
1. Several tens of thousands of Tamil people were killed by the Sri Lankan forces during the war; several tens of thousands of Tamil people were disabled and injured; many thousands were kidnapped and disappeared, and the fate of those who surrendered to the military are not known as to whether they are dead or alive; this Council thanks the UN Human Rights Council and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Hon. Navanethem Pillay, for coming forward to conduct an independent international investigation into the crimes committed during the war.
2. This Council extends its special gratitude to the United States of America for bringing resolutions at the UNHRC in 2012 and 2013 calling for the investigation of crimes against humanity committed in Sri Lanka.
3. This Council extends its special gratitude to the United States of America, the United Kingdom, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Mauritius, and Montenegro for leading the resolution at the March 2014 session of the UNHRC calling for an international investigation.
RESOLUTION – 2
Thanking the countries that supported the UNHRC Resolution during the March 2014 session calling for international investigation in Sri Lanka:
1. We express our sincere gratitude and heartfelt appreciations to Argentina, Austria, Benin, Botswana, Brazil, Chile, Costa Rica, Côte d’Ivoire, Czech Republic, Estonia, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Mexico, Montenegro, Peru, Republic of Korea, Romania, Sierra Leone, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, the United Kingdom and the United States of America for voting at the UNHRC to support the resolution led by countries including the UK and the USA.
2. We are also indebted to all those countries that voted to defeat the attempts to delay the resolution, and also to those countries that voted down the attempt to remove the section calling for the international investigation from the resolution.
3. Notwithstanding their abstentions during the voting on the main resolution, we thank Japan and the Philippines for voting against the attempt to delay the resolution.
4. We wish to convey our deep disappointment and anguish to those countries that voted in favour to delay the resolution, and also to those countries that voted against the call for an international investigation.
RESOLUTION – 3
A plea to the UNHRC member countries and other countries to support the independent international investigation for the crimes against humanity committed in Sri Lanka:
1. We respectfully request all 47 member countries of the UNHRC and all other countries of the world, to support the independent international investigation, which came about as a result of the UNHRC Resolution regarding the crimes against humanity perpetrated in Sri Lanka.
RESOLUTION – 4
Seeking assistance from the International Community to permanently resolve the Tamil national ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka:
1. We request that arrangements are made to create a new constitution for Sri Lanka with the assistance from the International Community to resolve the Tamil national ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka recognizing self-determination of Tamil people, and offering, at the minimum, a federal setup for a sovereign Tamil nation constituting the merged Northern and Eastern provinces.
2. We wish to inform the International Community that the Tamil people have always been ready to find a political solution ever since the island of Sri Lanka got its independence.
3. This Council is pleased to bring these resolutions to the notice of the International Community.
RESOLUTION – 5
1. Banning of the Tamil Diaspora Organizations and individuals is an anti-democratic action by the Sri Lankan government; calling upon the Sri Lanka government to come forward to find a political solution to the Tamil National question:
2. We strongly condemn the listing of 16 Tamil Diaspora organizations and 424 members of the Tamil Diaspora through the Sri Lankan Gazette notification and its attempt to label them as supporting terrorism; we question the intentions of the Sri Lankan government to portray the organizations and individuals who function democratically in their respective countries.
3. This Council urges the Sri Lankan government to give up such practices, withdraw the listings, and come forward urgently to find a political solution to the Tamil national quest.
Paul / May 3, 2014
RESOLUTION -6
Resolutions 1 to 5, if carried out, will break the country into two, which is our goal.
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R. Varathan / May 3, 2014
As a Tamil I do not find anything seriously objectionable in these resolutions. On the other hand I find some of them necessary and long overdue. At the sametime, I must remind Mr. Shivajalingam the ancient Tamil race and its beneficiaries – the present generation is tempered with many great features of the human quality. The more relevant of which in this context is the old adage “there is a time and place” for everything. In the TNA leadership is found men of great political depth, experience, seniority and judicious excellence. They are as anxious to bring in the necessary changes to their long suffering people as their more restless colleagues Shivajilingam, Ananthi Shasitharan, Suresh Premachandran and others.
There is little doubt the Tamil side has been long wronged and are impatient for early justice. But the sensitivities and the costs to the Sinhala side also need to be carefully weighed here. The present generation of Sinhalese have been fed on a generous diet of anti-Tamil prejudice from the late 1950s. Even their basis early language books in Sinhala describe Tamils as “napuru minissu” (bad people) The “war” has further divided us into the “we” and “they”
Syndrome. Even in the unlikely event of the Rajapakse family finding good senses to accommodate Tamils the more activist Tamils need to consider their (Rajapakses and the Sinhala people) own political survival and sensitivities too. Principles, ethics and morality sadly become secondary here. Here it is more the case of removing the cloth from the barbed wire fence – carefully and with dexterity.
Amirthalingam and friends were just as for Tamil rights as anybody else. But what did killing the TULF moderates and taking the Tamil people into a disastrous war bring them? Virtually, two generations were thrown into the streets with over a million taking refuge overseas.
Sampanthan. Wigneswaren, Sumanthiran and colleagues are probably the best to negotiate for the present and future of the Lankan Tamil Nation. The environment of the international community bears a great deal of sympathy for the Tamils. Virtually the whole of India will be with us come next June.
I am reminded of what that great actor Sir Alec Guinness, acting as Kind Saud told Lawrence of Arabia in that great movie “It is the young that make wars. It is up us the elders to make the peace” So be it.
And I like to think, seeing many signs in the more radical Sinhala side in recent times – including leading men in the Buddhist clvery, the JVP and who were called Sinhala chauvinists earlier – many of them are changing their views too for accommodative politics with the Tamils if the country is to enter into a welcome journey of unity, reconciliation and future prosperity to all.
R. Varathan
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ela kolla / May 3, 2014
resolution 6 – deport all the tamils to shitnadu then we can live here happily
resolution 7 -deport all the muslims to OTUtan then we can live here happily
resolution 8 – send amASSiri altar boy, moda mike and para vadda to mental hospital
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ravivararo / May 6, 2014
resolution no.9,
go to Orissa and Bengal forest, there you will find your ancestors.
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ela kolla / May 14, 2014
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Dhuryodhanan / May 3, 2014
It is widely claimed Tamilnadu and India helped all Tamils – including Prabakaran and the radicals – right from the start even before Indira Gandhi “was forced to arm a few dozens of Tamil rebels to initially jostle the obstinate GoSL into reason” The rest is now history. Since 1983 India did much to accommodate and help NEP Tamils to the day but have not heard much gratitude in return. No doubt, on and off, there were reasons for complaint by Tamils India was not doing enough, playing parochial politics and serving their own interests only. Even in the UNHRC in recent years – except the last one – India stood by and helped the Tamils.
In Shivajilingam’s Resolution, totally ignoring India, is further proof of the centuries old prejudice of the Northern Tamil to the “vadakkaththan” (derogatorily – the unwelcome Southern Indian people) Even to the day there are many in the Jaffna Peninsula who foolishly consider themselves superior to those in South India, including Brahmins and high castes there, something which a Brahmin academic in Chennai reminded me recently – with some presence of sarcasm. Many Indian Tamils in Sri Lanka and Indians in general – including many Jaffna Tamils – take this strange attitude with a pinch of salt. One recalls many from leading Jaffna Tamil families rushed to India post-1983 tracing their roots in Tamil Nadu. It is good if Tamils in Sri Lanka and the diaspora begin to see matters in perspective and gather the decency to thank India and Indians for staying by them.
Dhuryodhanan
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douglas / May 3, 2014
Is the NPC working within the meaning and the provisions of the 13th Amendment? Or else has it acquired the status of a “Separate State” on its own accord? What happens if all or very many other Provincial Councils functioning in other parts of the country resort to similar type of actions? Or what if other Provincial Councils pass resolutions condemning the NPC and demand Central Government action against it?
How will the Government of Sri Lanka face this situation? The people need answers.
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Justice / May 4, 2014
Let the government allow the NPC and EPC to function like ALL OTHER provincial councils,without obstruction by the military governors.
Then the citizens will feel that they are equal to all others in sri lanka.
The army is causing a lot of anguish and inventing a “resurgence of the LTTE” merely to prolong their stay in the northeast.
The police can maintain law & order and a token force of the army is sufficient.
So far,no word on the fate of the young tamil women enticed by lies and then forcibly recruited by the army – their relatives are in distress.
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Dodos / May 4, 2014
Another move by Tamil extremists to go extinct.
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ravivararo / May 6, 2014
Another move by Tamil extremists to go extinct the invaders from Orissa.
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Paul / May 4, 2014
These are steps to slowly create a de facto Eelam. However much democrats may dislike the Government, it is only the Government that can prevent this calamity. MR will act when the time is right.
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Jayan / May 6, 2014
With regarding to merging of Northern and Eastern Provinces, only the northern Tamils want to merge. Majority of Eastern Tamils do not want to merge with the Northern Province. We are well aware of Eastern Tamils’ plight during Prabhakarn’s time. We have had enough of Northerners adventures and need to live peacefully. Eastern Province will never merge with the north and will be remained as a part of Sri Lanka for ever.
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Dhuryodhanan / May 7, 2014
Re. Jayan’s post, it is only Govt lackeys Karuna, Pillaiyan, Arun Tambimuttu and the like who will subscribe to this theory which is a priority Rajapakse conspiracy to divide the Tamils. We have seen EP Muslims playing an active part here from the beginning. No doubt, there are issues between EP and NP Tamils still to be sorted out – much of which have been taken care of in the past several years. But to ask for a separate entity to the EP is to fall to the trap of the Govt and the divisive part of the EP Muslim community. To attempt this at a time when the TNA is about to be empowered, with the help of the international community, is a calculated attack on the Lankan Tamil-speaking Nation that is about to be rewarded with its long denied and just rights.
Don’t forget senior Tamil leader R. Sampanthan is from the East.
Dhuryodhanan
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