19 March, 2024

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In Remembrance Of Lakshman Kadirgamar

By Tissa Jayatilaka –

Tissa Jayatilaka

Given the shrillness  of the nature of  public debate in recent times, especially postwar, most Sri Lankans I know have avoided getting involved in them.  The latter   have resorted to ‘quiet discussion’ with fellow citizens who are not uncomfortable with points of view that are not in harmony with their own and who indeed are looking for  such carefully articulated alternatives. The late Lakshman Kadirgamar was one such Sri Lankan with whom I could trade ideas and opinions with utmost ease even when they did not necessarily mesh with his own. He had the emotional  intelligence and the humility of the truly educated human being to be open to such give and take at all times.  In an exchange similar to the ones I used to have with the late foreign minister that I now have with a few very close friends, we happened to discuss, among other issues, what Lakshman Kadirgamar would have done to extricate Sri Lankafrom the unfortunate predicament it is in had he yet been with us today.  I thought it might be useful to reflect and expand on this particular theme as a tribute to the man whose seventh death anniversary falls on Friday the 12th of August.

The greatest asset that Lakshman Kadirgamar possessed was his freedom from narrow nationalism. He was thereby  free of  ethnic and religious bias. He was a Sri Lankan and a citizen of this world. He did not carry to an extreme the labels Tamil and Christian  he was given at his birth over which he, like all of us over our own labels, had no control . He was a good and responsible Christian( I recall here in particular his Revd. Celestine Fernando Memorial Lecture of the early 1990s on the general theme of the  Social Relevance of the Bible) and also a firm follower of all that is good and meaningful  in other religious philosophies. It is this largeness of heart and generosity of spirit which enabled Lakshman Kadirgamar to be the most effective diplomat Sri Lanka has had from 1994 until his cruel assassination in 2005. Apart from Mrs. Sirimavo Bandaranaike( prior to the Republican Constitutions of 1972 and 1978, the prime minister of our country was also the minister of defence and external affairs), no other foreign minister of Sri Lanka has rendered such invaluable service to our country. His formidable intelligence, sincerity, grace, charm and superb sense of humour, that the visiting British minister Liam Fox also recently extolled while delivering the 2011 Lakshman Kadirgamar Memorial Lecture, enabled him to establish a rapport with his counterparts both in our part of the world and in the west. He was never out of his depth nor ever ineffectual as nearly all of his successors have been and are in either part of the world. Nobody doubted his credibility or his ability. He was bold, candid and assertively forthright without ever seeking to score cheap debating points or end up looking pathetically melodramatic as his less experienced   fellow- Sri Lankans have in recent years. Even when he was in strong  disagreement  with his interlocutors he never lost his composure or his wits, and both of  these attributes were on splendid display during his BBC Hardtalk interview  of 16 March, 2005. His interviewer  observed  that the government of Sri Lankahas been criticized by Chandru Pararjasingham of the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization on the score of ‘not helping  us (the Tamils of Sri Lanka) enough’  and posed the question ‘does that sound like propaganda to you?’ Kadirgamar’s response was that it absolutely was propaganda. The interviewer then, in a bid seemingly to reinforce the point she was seeking to make, tried to quote what she thought was an authoritative source and indicated to the minister that no less a person than Joel Charny of  Refugee International who had been monitoring developments in Sri Lanka since the tsunami of December 2004 hit Sri Lanka also says the same thing.  The response from Kadirgamar was both swift and pointed. Having first noted that he does not know who the gentleman is and on being told that he is a westerner, the minister shot back: ‘I am sorry, the fact that he is Western doesn’t impress me the slightest’. There were no histrionics, no melodrama and the response was in the dignified and famous ‘mellow tones’ of Lakshman Kadirgamar. That is the sophistication and effectiveness we glaringly lack today in dealing with criticism from whichever quarter they emanate. Today’s spokesmen seek to play to the domestic gallery and shoot the messengers without   taking on board their messages and   forensically dismissing them where such dismissal is justifiably called for.

Lakshman Kadirgamar

An area where there is a great deal of ignorance about Lakshman Kadirgamar pertains to his response to the Sinhala- Tamil conflict or the ‘national conflict’ as some refer to it. His enlightened and principled opposition to the Tamil Tigers was frequently misunderstood both by his Sinhala admirers and his Tamil detractors. Unintelligent and ethnically prejudiced Tamils saw him as a traitor and unsophisticated Sinhalese   as a supporter of Sinhala ‘majoritarianism.  Both were and are dead wrong.  Throughout his bold campaign for peace in our time in Sri Lanka, he was convinced that human freedoms need not be repressed in the peacemaking process. Whilst he was relentless in his criticism of the terror tactics of the Tamil Tigers, Kadirgamar worked resolutely and tirelessly towards a political solution to our long drawn out ethnic imbroglio which would enable the Tamil citizens of Sri Lankato live in dignity within a united Sri Lanka.  As  Mangala Samaraweera has correctly noted,  Kadirgamar’s  oft-stated belief was that the battle for peace must be fought and won in and through the hearts and minds of the people of Sri Lanka; the Tamils of Sri Lanka in particular. Towards this end, Kadirgamar took a keen and personal interest in projects that were close to the heart of the more sensitive Sri Lankans. An example of such a project that he involved himself in was the restoration of the Jaffna Public Library. He actively campaigned for donations of books and other materials for the Library during his days as our foreign minister.

One of the key areas in which the late Lakshman Kadirgmar excelled was  ‘quiet diplomacy’, an attribute that is, to use an apt cliche`, conspicuous today by its absence. I make bold to say that had he yet been with   us, we would not have had to contend with the indignities that have been heaped on us by the UN Secretary General’s Panel of Experts Report or the exceedingly damaging Channel Four Videos.   Flawed though they may be in certain respects, the fact remains that such reports and videos are now in the public domain and they contain some truths than cannot be cavalierly dismissed as pure fabrication. As Lakshman Kadirgamar  did when he successfully campaigned for the listing in the west of the Tamil Tigers as a terrorist outfit, he would have so handled the foreign policy dimension of these grave accusations as to save Sri Lanka from the moral opprobrium it has now been subjected to.    Effective, timely and sensible diplomacy would certainly have   made it possible for Sri Lanka to avert   such disastrous negative publicity. Lakshman Kadirgamar and the senior professional diplomats in the ministry he led with such aplomb and grace would certainly have provided us with the expertise, maturity  and competence called for to deal with this dreadful damage to our country.  First and foremost, Kadirgamar would have seen to it that amateur place seekers would have had no role to play in the business of inter-state relations unlike is the case today.  Every   other person in government or political appointees outside of   it  appear to be directing or dabbling in the conduct of our foreign policy at present.  My sympathies are with the foreign ministry and its professional diplomats as they have been sidelined by   these opportunists who are singing, and singing   grossly out of tune at that, for their supper!

Lakshman Kadirgamar would also have read the tea leaves more accurately than his successors appear to have done. The world is a far more complex place today than it appears to be.  Today’s friends can easily become tomorrow’s enemies or neutral observers of the passing scene. Political deals are possible at any time between seeming antagonists as we have witnessed to be the case in recent months. We know only too well that the practice of international relations is no morality play. Self-interests govern inter-state relations,   not perceived friendships or enmities. Inter-state relations are amoral at best and at worst mostly immoral. Double if not treble standards apply in this domain as many a contributor to our national newspapers   has alleged.  There is a noticeable one standard for the economically powerful and militarily strong and another for the weak and less influential economically, militarily and politically. The Sunday Times editorialist and diplomatic editor in their respective most perceptive contributions of the 7th of August, 2011 correctly point out what could likely happen in the months ahead. As things stand, the impression one gets when studying present national strategy (to the extent that one is discernible) is for Sri Lanka to look to fall back on China and Russia to bail us out should concerted international action put Sri Lanka in the dock. The Sunday Timesasks a most vital question:  what guarantees are there that Sri Lanka will be the beneficiary of  such  assistance  given the fact that countries far more useful to China and Russia as Sudan, Iran and Libya have not been recipients of  similar anticipated succour? It might be unwise to put all our  hopes in that one basket if the experience of other countries who did so before us is a criterion to go by.  To urge Sri Lanka to punch in its own weight class is not to recommend national subservience to unscrupulous outside forces. Rather it is to forewarn Sri Lanka to be cautious, prudent and pragmatic in its international relations. It is such pragmatism based on our enlightened pursuit of non-alignment in international   affairs which stood us in such excellent stead in the recent past.  A serious  consideration  of a return to that  past might be in our national interest. There is a pithy Sinhala saying which reminds us that when  giant  thoras and moras  fight, small fish tend to get in harm’s way.  Isn’t there a moral in this that we can draw?

I am of the opinion that Lakshman Kadirgamar would have helped us to navigate these tricky,  shark  infested and polluted waters had he yet been  the undisputed helmsman of  our international relations as he was in his day. He would have forestalled post-war external interventions and ledSri Lankato an acceptable domestic resolution of our crisis by working with our moderate middle. He would undoubtedly have   finessed  at one and the same time the dangerous external challenge arising  from the extreme diasporic Tamils and that  emerging from the ultra-nationalist Sri Lankans at home. Lakshman Kadirgamar would have realized that the best and the morally correct way of neutralizing external threats to our country is by doing  ourselves what needs to be done to build a reconciled and united  Sri Lanka  from the ashes of a horrifying internecine war that is now mercifully behind us.

*This is a tribute that Tissa Jayatilaka wrote in remembrance of the late Foreign Minister in August 2011. We re-publish this today as we approach what would have been Kadirgamar’s 81st birthday on 12 April, 2013.

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Latest comments

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    One thing I completely agree with you is , if Kadirgamar was alive , he would have done much better to cover up the regime in the issues like channel 4 videos and UN panel report.Your statement clearly answers the following
    1) Who you are?
    2) Who Kadirgamar was?
    3) Why he was killed?

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      Newton

      Your response reveals how furious you are with Kadirgamar for placing the blood thirsty LTTE firmly in the “Dustbin of History”.

      Hope you will overcome your despair one sunny day.

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        Ben

        I personally witnessed the Navaly church bombing where hundreds of innocent people were killed by SL airstrike and Nagar kovil school air strike where around 40 primary school children were killed in school uniform. I also saw how this educated,matured,competent gentleman(?) denied the things with a smile on his face.

        Being anti LTTE and being anti Tamil are two separate things ,but chauvinists like you never understand the difference.

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          Newton

          I salute your unwavering stand for the helpless, silent victims during a horrible war, if that is indeed the case.

          Problem is a lot of bogus LTTE sympathizers have now turned eager HR activists. Out of convinience.

          I am not sure why you call me a “chauvinist”. I do love Sri Lanka. And all of her people.

          Faced with despeicable LTTE, I believe military option was the only one available to Sri Lankans. After 30 years of terror. If that qualifies me as a “chauvinist” in your world, so be it.

          I agree a lot of terrible things happened during this war. A lot of innocent Tamil ciizens and children paid an incredible price. So did a lot of Sinhalese, Muslims and others.

          However, I can’t believe you hold Kadirgamar responsible for reality of war. Kadirgamar never used a gun against anyone. He used his words against the LTTE. He was Sri Lanka’s FM. Not LTTE’s.

          Are you upset he did not become just another brick in the LTTE’s massive global propaganda network? To praise VP’s Ealam pipe dream. No matter the inhumane cost of war. Specially on Sri Lanka’s Tamil citizens.

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            Ben
            Even Nazi Goebbels was not using a gun during the second world war,Not using a gun does not necessarily qualify one to be excluded from the war crimes committed.

            You are a chauvinist because you are trying to brand me as a LTTE sympathizer for pointing out Kadirgamar’s self-wish politics.
            (I do not have a problem of that other than life threatening even though I do have some basic ideological differences with the LTTE stand point)

            You are a chauvinist because you are trying to justify the crimes and atrocities of a democratically elected government and its forces against a particular ethnic group by comparing it with that of an armed group who believed in violent means to achieve their political aspirations.

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              Ha..ha!

              Comparing Nazi Goebbels with Kadirgamar. This matter is now closed.

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            Ben Hurling:
            What a bunch of piffle!
            You acknowledge Newton’s statements about children being targeted and then go on to attribute that to the exigencies of war and exonerate one of the primary strategists of the policy that resulted in those cold-blooded murders!
            Newton is right, people like you CHOOSE not to differentiate between Tigers and Tamils when it suits the purpose of your proposition.
            Why don’t you just cease the pretense of objectivity and admit to that of being a simple apologist for what happened and continues to happen in this Pearl of the Orient?

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              War against the LTTE was a Just War.

              If excesses took place, those responsible should be brought to jusitce.

              Racist LTTE criminals and their financial, PR backers in the diaspora are responsible for inflicting this war on all of us in Sri Lanka. Should be taken to The Hague. Period.

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        Not furious but sad because he was killed by his own masters because somebody uttered the word “PM”. Poor chap just wasted his life

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      Excellent question, Newton. Did Kadirmgamar stand for the people or the government? Who can deny the possibility that he would not have become another sell-out like one of his predecessors, the much enlightened G.L? The Rajapakses know how to use and exploit people to the maximum.

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    This article should be compulsory reading for all Sri Lankans.

    If we are to navigate wisely as a nation, the shark infested international waters, we currently find ourselves in.

    “The greatest asset that Lakshman Kadirgamar possessed was his freedom from narrow nationalism”.

    May Sri Lanka be blessed with leaders of Kadirgamar’s calibre as we struggle to reconcile and unify our country in the years to come.

    • 0
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      He may have had “freedom from narrow nationalism”
      But that is what led to to him being denied the PM post !!!

  • 0
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    1.When one is well-off enough not to be affected by discriminatory governments, we cannot say if that person is really nationalistic or not. What about the poor among the discriminated?

    2.Gosh, nothing about the rulers and the voters who determine the hell the ‘other’ are forced to live in.

    If the Rajapakses know the virtues of good governance, no UN reports/resolutions, no Channel4 videos, no Diaspora, ……

    By the way, is Kadirgamar’s case over? where is the report?

    LTTE were given arms to fight the IPKF
    LTTE were given money to stop Tamils voting in 2004 Presidential Elections.
    LTTE were given money to kill Kadirgamar.

    3.Dear Mr Jayatilaka, pl get the reports released:
    http://www.scribd.com/doc/85007346/A-List-of-Commissions-of-Inquiry-and-Committees-Appointed-by-the-Government-of-Sri-Lanka-2006-%E2%80%93-2012

    These will churn the society and help us move forward.

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      Eureka

      The fate of Presidential Commission Reports in our country is comical.

      Amazing we accept this state of affairs.

      From the murder of Vijaya Kumaratunga to Lakshman Kadirgamar it is the same story.

      GOSL consider the citizens of Sri Lanka to by total idiots. And we love it. And keep electing same clowns again and again.

      Let us not hold Mr Jayatilaka responsible for that.

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      According to the commissions report a humanitarian operation was done on LK that is all.

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        Lanka Liar

        I don’t know what kind of operation was done on LK.

        However, an operation code named “humanitarian” was mounted on VP and his gang of despicable killers.

        LTTE was eliminated from Sri Lankan soil. 300 000 captive Tamils citizens of Sri Lanka released.

        Get over your disappointment.

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          So was LK. Was he not eliminated. What crime he committed a faithful servant to his pay master still they performed the same humanitarian operation that was done on the LTTE. So you mean to say LTTE and LK are same?
          LK was eliminated from Sri Lankan soil and no captives were released, but more innocent civilians were captured for future humanitarian operations.

  • 0
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    Correction:

    “GOSL consider the citizens of Sri Lanka to be total idiots”.

  • 1
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    Many Academics who have been eulogizing LK, ad nauseam after his demise have been found to be the very ones who have been heavily involved in promoting MR then, some of whom have fallen out of favour of MR now, are the fiercest critics of MR now and the LTTE. If only they understand the intrigue of the murder of LK and the absolute disregard of catching the LTTE suspect/s, leads to the obvious conclusion whether it was the work of the LTTE to begin with. The basic rudiments of introducing a body by those responsible for the murder, of an LTTE hit man with his identity card like in Ragunathan’s in the murder of Lalith Athulathmudali, would have given some credence to the LTTE story, but it is too late now as it is very obvious the murder was committed not by the LTTE, but by a Forces sniper whom they did not want caught. It is easy to add LK’s assassination to the LTTE, but the lapses point the finger in a different direction. We have witnessed many such high profile murders in the past of leading figures, as they have been credited to either the JVP or the LTTE, whereas the culprits are some others who are the beneficiaries in the end. In this instance also in LK’s murder, when there was rumour that CBK was trying to appoint LK as the PM with the backing of the JVP, and now that the whole world is aware of the enmity that had existed between CBK and MR, one need not be an Agatha Christie to understand who is really behind LK’s murder. Is this not the same man who went to the UN in 88/89 to canvass the cause of the disappeared, when his own brother in the Army has been responsible for hundreds of such disappearances at Matale that have surfaced now, which obviously will be hushed up and today this individual has made a 180 degree turn from a Human Rights Protector to a Ruthless Killer of a Dictator.

    Had Maithripala Sirisena succumbed to the LTTE suicide bomber that day if he did not change his vehicle, today there would not have been an issue for MR to appoint the National Organizer of the SLFP to replace the incumbent PM who is just a figure head. The systematic elimination of the strong willed characters from the political scene like Sripathi Suriyaarachchi, Jeyaraj Fernandopillai, Mahinda Wijesekara have been timely for the smooth sailing of the Family Mafia. When will our masses ever learn? especially the so called intellectuals?

    • 1
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      Gsmini,the facts point to an LTTE type hit but whether it was ordered by madman VP or if he was pid by ‘someone’ else to do it is the question.

      also the hitman LTTE or otherwise has had inside help to escape which cannot happen unless there was Armed Forces support

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        LK was shot dead at 9.30 pm.It took two hours for a cordon to established in all exit roads from the ‘hit site’.
        LK had a contingent of 30 elite armymen at his residece but it took half an hour for his body to be transported to hospital.
        Police and Army overlooked vantage points for a sniper around the house especially the Thalayasingam residence which had an upper storey overlooking the LK residence.
        The Thalayasingam family living downstairs only – very strange – were “unaware” of the presence of a two team hitmen living upstairs for several days!
        The shooters escaped with the sniper rifle through many army & polce chaeckpoints easily!
        Similar escape was effected by a vehicle full of persons who shot Ketheish Loganathan at dehiwela,on his door step at 9pm – this too was blamed on the LTTE.

  • 0
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    Rarely can it be said of any one individual what he touches he leaves his mark of excellence to the admiration of the world – Cricket, Athletics, Studies, the Law, social interaction. And then, the great institution of higher education – Oxford University that honoured him with a Memorial in its history of nearly a millenium. To sum up – a brilliant tenure as Foreign Minister where he matched the best in the world in oratory, knowledge of world affairs and State Craft. They considered it a privilege to know him and “do business with him” (Thatcher)

    But even the finest of men have some drawbacks too. In LK’s case just a few. I knew him casually, met many a times and am aware of his splendid social etiquette. It was I, along with the late Samuel Gnanam of St. Anthony’s Industries, who passed on the news of the Central Bank bombing while we were in Yangon, Burma. I heard this over the BBC early morning. He said he was pleased to see me and happy that we were on the same mission.

    “I make bold to say that had he yet been with us, we would not have had to contend with the indignities that have been heaped on us by the UN…” says Mr Jayatilake. I could not agree with the writer more. But then LK was a different cup of tea to the present variety, if you like.

    “Sri Lanka to look to fall back on China and Russia to bail us out should concerted international action put Sri Lanka in the dock. The Sunday Times asks a most vital question: what guarantees are there that Sri Lanka will be the beneficiary of such assistance given the fact that countries far more useful to China and Russia as Sudan, Iran and Libya have not been recipients of similar anticipated succour? It might be unwise to put all our hopes in that one basket…” says
    Mr Jayatilake. In many of my comments here I have pointed out that China being our eventual or sole Insurance against our miscalculations in the region can be counter-productive. Kadirgamar would have prevailed on the Rajapakses and convinced them of the short-sightedness of their move – only if internal political inter-play spared his life.

    It is Mr Jayatilake’s comment “great deal of ignorance about Lakshman Kadirgamar pertains to his response to the Sinhala- Tamil conflict or the ‘national conflict’ as some refer to it…” that I wish to deal with. Another man I respected enormously and probably one of the greatest humane and brilliant Lankans of recent times – the late HL de Silva too wryly commented as “tribalism” whenever LK’s link to the Tamil Nation was questioned.

    My first glimpse of LK, long before I met him, was at the Colombo YMCA
    when 3 former President’s of Oxford Union were assembled to talk on the subject (1978/79) “Sri Lanka – 10 years hence” The others were Lalith Athulathmudali and another Muslim (Doctor?) LK had not ventured into politics then. His concluding remarks that evening went something like this “I worry about the territorial integrity of the country in 10 years from now” It can be presumed by these remarks, he was very much in sympathy with the Tamil struggle for their rights. He clearly felt they (Tamils) were very much the hopelessly aggrieved. It can be interpreted he felt, due to the Sinhala-dominated regimes not accommodating the Tamils till then, there was a chance of separation. It has been reported, since then, he tried to revamp his Jaffna roots from which he had voluntarily cut himself off; tried to talk the language that he could not read and write – and take other steps to enter politics with a partial-Tamil identity. He apparently has not succeeded in this. But once he came in – during CBK’s tenure bringing much favourable image to her otherwise lacklustre Cabinet – with several with severe criminal Police records, he served his political bosses admirably. There was valid reason for many Tamils in politics and in civil society to be critical of him for action harmful to the Tamil cause. By this I do not mean his endeavour to contain the LTTE’s activities here and abroad – a function he discharged splendidly as a Cabinet Minister. However, his callously dismissing the Galenbindunuwewa Massacre (Bandarawela Dist) where many dozens of unarmed Tamil youths were slaughtered for hours while the Police were watching and the Sencholai airforce-bombing that killed hundreds of school children – both of which shocked the conscience of the world – deeply troubled the Tamil nation, including those Tamils who admired his many talents. Furthermore, while the Tamil Nation suffered enormously from many angles for several decades, LK did not say much in defence or in sympathy with the Tamils – let alone take action to bring them relief.

    I resent those who criticise him for his second marriage to a Buddhist lawyer. Why shouldn’t he – if that was their choice and within the law?
    I respect his action for nurturing a Bo tree, as the speculation goes, within his home premises that drew criticism from some quarters. I learnt from a senior Christian Priest close to him and my family that he remained a regular worshipper at the Church at Bullers Road – adjacent to the BMICH.

    I believe there is much more than what meets the eye in his barbaric killing and agree with much of regular reader/commentator Gamini mentioned in one of the pages of the CT currently.

    The loss of eminent Counsel Lakshman Kadirgamar is one that this country could not afford. Rarely does any country produce men of such
    multi-faceted brilliance. As one who enjoys good speeches, his impromptu gem to that Cricket gathering – full of facts, humour and lovely language – will remain in my memory for long. By many accounts -this was a good man.

    Senguttuvan

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      Senguttuvan

      It is refreshing to read your balanced and nuanced assessment of Lakshman Kadirgamar, except for one factual error which I’m sure is not anything more than a simple oversight.

      Sencholai attack took place on 14 Aug 2006.
      Kadirgamar died on 12 Aug 2005.

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        As usual you are mumbling.

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          Please remove the above comment. I should not have said that.
          Thanks

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            Too late. It doesn’t matter in Sri Lanka we can say anything even without thinking.

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        Rambler,what senguttuvan was meaning was that he should have condemned it from his afterlife.You can be sure he is out there watching all this and cursing the people whom he lovingly served denying him the PM’s post and ultimately killing him.He could have sent a bolt of lightning or something to strike them when the Sencholai attack took place,but he did not which proves Senguttuvan’s point that he was tamil traitor.

        Since the alleged LTTE operative was never caught in area infested by the forces in broad daylight and the Thalayasinghams never charged and jailed for harbouring terrorists we have to come to the sad conclusion that he was betrayed by the very same sinhalese whom he served so well.

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      Senguttuvan,

      “I resent those who criticise him for his second marriage to a Buddhist lawyer.”

      If you are referring to my posting in the other thread where his daughter pays tribute to her father, as I have now replied there, I brought up that issue not to question the propriety of his second marriage, but to argue that many Sinhalese were happy because he was being ‘Sinhalized,’ and that they ‘loved’ him because they felt a sense of kinship with him.

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    Thank you, Rambler. I was quoting from memory. I am probably confusing it with another air-force bombing – a similar incident. Am checking my records and will effect the necessary corrections. Grateful.

    I also did not want to mention Thavakkal, the Nahil Wijesuriya TV
    licence issue etc which did not do LK much good as a Cabinet Minister.
    Lasantha W’s Sunday Leader went to town on this. Many well-informed in the readership know more of these.

    Gamini’s comments here on the conspiracy behind the killing, other than taking it out of the LTTE area, brings in the dangerous situation where army elements could well be into the assassination business – for cash.

    Senguttuvan

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    a traitor who bartered tamil race and tamil rights in exchange for personal gains will never gain the respect of tamil people. he used his position to portray to the world that tamil people were either terrorists or terrorist supporters. he joined hands with sinhala terrorists in order to curtail and suppress the freedom of tamil people. he crawled to his sinhala terrorist masters in order to fulfill his ambitions. people in this forum are gloating about his oxford education and eloquence. in my opinion oxford educated leaders are responsible for sri lanka’s sorry state of affairs. oxford education only ruined sri lanka. from banda to kathirgamar , the so called oxford education brought only misery and nothing else to sri lanka. in my opinion their qualifications are not worth the paper it’s written on. after oxford now you have a bunch of thugs in power. in order to survive these thugs talk about terrorism day in day out. they know too well it will go down well with illiterate and ignorant masses. these jungle bunnies from down south always pull this so called terrorism card in order to avoid tricky situation. last thing to come out of his mouth is about thatcher. one thing he didn’t realise was that thatcher fought terrorism okay but she wasn’t a terrorist herself.

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      Well said!
      This selfish man had been used well to deny Tamil’s rights and to defend government terrorism in front of international community with a Tamil identity. Who care about education and talents when it not merge with morality and human values. That is why, the community he was serving did not want to give anything more than what he is useful for and hatred by the community who’s rights are being denied.
      He would never be remembered by Tamils except the selfish ones like him, who do anything towards a personal gain!

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      Rama,you quote ” he used his position to portray to the world that tamil people were either terrorists or terrorist supporters.”

      I beg to differ.He was only pointing out to the world that the LTTE was a terrorist organisation and should be proscribed.When you kill innocent people then you automatically get labelled as a terrorist organisation.kadir does not need to do that,it was done by prabhaharan himself with his stupid actions,not taking the advice of educated people like Anton balasingham who knew that the west has changed its policies after the sept 2011 attacks.kadir merely said don’t use double standards when proscribing terrorist organisations and to include the LTTE.He did not do anything against the tamil people.

      Your main grouse is that he being a tamil supported the sinhalese.So are you saying that the sinhalese should call Arjuna ranatunge a pariah because he supported Murali through thick and thin and fought for him tooth and nail to save his career?Regardless of what happens in the country the individual ties between sinhalese and tamils will continue based on friendship and mutual respect.My fathers best friend was a sinhalese and he kept him in his house during the 83 riots though stones were thrown on his roof.My best friend is also a sinhalese.

      Kadir merely did what he felt was right for the country.

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        ARE YOU ANOTHER KATHIKAMAR IN MAKING! TAMILS ALWAYS SUFFER FROM MISPLACED LOYALTIES. YOU SAYS THAT YOUR FATHER WAS PROTECTED BY A SINGALEASE DURING 1983. WHO WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE RIOTS FORM 1956.

        WE ALL DO NOT WANT TO POINT A FINGER AT SINGALESE BUT THEY ALWAYS POINT THE FINGER AT US!

        MISPLACED LOYALTIES AND WORKING FOR SELFISH PERSONAL REASONS HAS MADE TAMIL COMMUNITY THE DIVIDED COMMUNITY. THERE IS ONLY ONE SINGALESE COMMUNITY IN SRILANKA! BUT TAMILS ARE CLASSIFIED AS TAMILS, MUSLIMS AND UPCOUNTRY TAMILS!

        I LIVE IN UK BECAUSE ! I FELT IT IS NOT SAFE TO LIVE IN SRI LANKA BECAUSE OF ABDUCTIONS,ARBITRARY DETENTION, DISAPPEARANCE, ARIAL BOMBING BY AIR FORCE AND SHELLING OF CIVILIANS AREAS BY SRI LANKAN ARMS FORCES PLUS NO FREEDOM OF SPEECH OR EXPRESSION. AS A TAMIL YOU CANNOT EXERCISE YOUR BASIC HUMAN RIGHTS. THE COUNTRY IS INFESTED WITH DISCRIMINATION AND JUNGLE RULE OF LAW!

        I WANT TO GO BACK AND LIVE AND DIE IN MY HOME LAND. EVEN NOW EXCEPT FOR AERIAL BOMBARDMENT AND SHELLING THE REST ARE CONTINUING TO BE EXERCISED NORM AGAINST TAMILS!

        AS A TAMIL WE SHOULD FIGHT AGAINST DISCRIMINATION AND OTHER PACKAGES COMES WITH IT. WE TAMILS HAVE TO JOIN IN THOUGHT, WORD AND DEED AGAINST THE FELLOW TAMILS WHO ARE SUFFERING!

        SHANKAR YOU ENJOY THE FREEDOM WHEN YOUR FELLOW RACE IS SUFFERING UNDER THE OPERATION! IT IS EASY FOR YOU ON AN IDEOLOGICAL SENSE TO SUPPORT YOUR FRIENDLY SINGALESE. BUT YOU SHOULD REMEMBER TAMILS DID NOT VOTE FOR RAJAPACKHA IN 2007 IT WAS THE SINGALEASE WHO BROUGHT THEM INTO POWER ! THEY ARE THE ONE WHO ARE KEEPING HIM IN POWER!

        THE ELECTIONS FOLLOW THAT ELECTIONS WAS NEVER A FAIR ELECTIONS FOR TAMILS WITH GUNS POINTING AT THEM.

        WE HAVE FEW SINHALESE VOICES WHO SUPPORT AGAINST TAMIL’S OPERATION THAT IS MINORITY AND THEY CANNOT MAKE ANY DIFFERENCE.

        EVEN ON THE ABOVE DISCUSSION HOW MANY SINGALESE ARE SUPPORTIVE OF TAMIL RIGHTS AND FREEDOM?

        TAMILS HAVE TO JOINED TO GATHER AND GIVE SUPPORT AGAINST OPPRESSION BY SINGALESE MASSES.

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          Manivannan,are you the deputy minister for economic development in the transnational government of tamil eelam?If so that is why all the bullshit propaganda in your comment.Do you think we are idiots who get brainwashed by all that.Don’t judge others by your IQ standards and think they will fall for all your pep talks.Try it with some country bumpkins of which there are many in Srilanka.

          You say that i have the freedom while tamils are suffering.I also lived in colombo for the first 35 years of my life and did not go through all the shit you mention,but of course discrimination was prevalent but generally if you mind your own business and don’t get involved with unnecessary things the sinhalese will live and let live.

          If the tamil leaders had led the tamils wisely then i think much of the suffering could have been avoided.So tell your present crop of aspiring leaders to look at all the mistakes made by the past tamil leaders including the self appoited one with the gun prabha,and learn from those mistakes and lead the tamils wisely in future so that there suffering will cease.Don’t go on fighting and provoking and then complain about suffering because that is the path of self flagellation.If you enjoy that that is your prerogative,but that isn’t my cup of tea because i want to enjoy my short life.

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        tigers were not a terrorist organisation as you suggest. tigers were simply responding to the atrocities committed by sinhala terrorists. sinhala terrorists have been killing tamils soon after the white man left the country. therefore what tigers did was perfect and there is nothing wrong in the methods they adopted to punish the enemy.

        what did fat slob ranatunga do to protect murali. anyway as far as i know fat slob belonged to an extremist anti tamil organisation. when fat slob opened his big mouth and started talking about some 2,500 year history to aussie cricketer. what a fool he was and the aussie said you are still a black.

        are you so stupid to talk about individual cases. when your father was saved by one man , there were thousands on the rampage killing, raping and setting fire to tamil properties. when you have one sinhala friend there thousands of enemies out there.
        so stop talking a load of bollocks.

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    Well said!
    This selfish man had been used well to deny Tamil’s rights and to defend government terrorism in front of international community with a Tamil identity. Who care about education and talents when it not merge with morality and human values. That is why, the community he was serving did not want to give anything more than what he is useful for and hatred by the community who’s rights are being denied.
    He would never be remembered by Tamils except the selfish ones like him, who do anything towards a personal gain!

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    Dear Agnos,

    Please be assured I was not referring to your posting.
    This issue comes up in general conversation and postings in the media and blogs. I, in fact, encourage inter-racial marriages although
    the current times appear to be somewhat non-ideal for such unions as they were some decades ago.

    Senguttuvan

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      Inter Marriage is ‘the solution’ to differences in race and religion, to bring about harmony in society. I am all for it. But not when a seventy year old marrying a forty year old, whether of the same or different community and specially when the second spouse is younger than one’s own daughter.

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        gamini,he should have just kept her as his mistress just as the astute sinhala parliamentarians do.i see so many old fools getting done in by marrying these gold diggers.Don’t they ever use their brain as to why a young woman would want a second father.They always think that though they are old there is something in them that is attracting the young woman.Vanity and ego in old age.

        gamini,i believe you are also 70.This is the time to tread carefully and not become a old fool.

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    EVERY ONE IS BLAMING LTTE! CAN ANY ONE TELL ME HOW MANY SINGALESE CIVILIANS HAS BEEN KILLED BY LTTE ACTION OVER 30 YEARS? AND HOW MANY TAMIL CIVILIANS HAS BEEN KILLED BY SRI LANKAN ARM FORCES ACTIONS?
    THE FIGURES WILL ANSWER WHO IS TERRORIST!

    TAMILS LIKE KATHIKAMAR ARE THE ONE WHO HELPED THE GENOCIDE OF TAMILS BY HIDING THE HORROR FACE OF SUCCESSIVE SRI LANKAN GOVERNMENTS THEY USE HIS POST COLONIAL CONNECTIONS TO BRING CALAMITY TO HIS OWN PEOPLE TO TAMILS!
    HE SHOULD BE REMEMBER WITH THE WITH JUDAS,ETTAPAN,KAKAI VANNIAN.

    HIS LEGACY IS THE ONE MADE POSSIBLE FOR RAJAPACKSHA REGIME TO DO THE GENOCIDE OF TAMIL!

    THE SINGALESE SHOULD BE GLAD THAT HE IS NOT BORN AS A SINHALESE!

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    EVERY ONE IS BLAMING LTTE! CAN ANY ONE TELL ME HOW MANY SINGALESE CIVILIANS HAS BEEN KILLED BY LTTE ACTION OVER 30 YEARS? AND HOW MANY TAMIL CIVILIANS HAS BEEN KILLED BY SRI LANKAN ARM FORCES ACTIONS?
    THE FIGURES WILL ANSWER WHO IS TERRORIST!

    TAMILS LIKE KATHIKAMAR ARE THE ONE WHO HELPED THE GENOCIDE OF TAMILS BY HIDING THE HORROR FACE OF SUCCESSIVE SRI LANKAN GOVERNMENTS.
    HE USED HIS POST COLONIAL CONNECTIONS TO BRING CALAMITY TO HIS OWN PEOPLE (TAMILS)!

    HE SHOULD BE REMEMBER WITH THE NAMES IN HISTORY JUDAS,ETTAPAN,KAKAI VANNIAN.

    HIS LEGACY IS THE ONE MADE POSSIBLE FOR RAJAPACKSHA REGIME TO DO THE GENOCIDE OF TAMIL!

    THE SINGALESE SHOULD BE GLAD THAT HE IS NOT BORN AS A SINHALESE!

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    Justice,

    Many believe the Loganathan Ketheeswaran killing was a State-inspired job to discredit the LTTE at that time when some important overseas conferences were due. A learned and peaceful scholar’s life was sacrificed – for trivia.

    Senguttuvan

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    Not only Lakshman Kadirgamar, there are other Tamil intellectuals, but the Tamil leaders won’t allow the smart Tamils to lead or contribute to the Tamil community. The TNA leaders call themselves as the leaders of the Tamils, but the leader of the TGTE calls himself as the Prime Minister for the Tamils. If the Tamils have leaders in Sri Lanka then why they need a Prime Minister in the United States? Before even consider for a self government; the Tamils leaders must educate themselves in international politics, world history, leadership skills, governance, unity and submission. The Tamils don’t deserve a country or self government at this stage. They need smart leaders, they must educate their children and grandchildren in politics and world history, so their future generations won’t take arms against their fellow countrymen to have equal rights. And won’t expect the Indians to fight for their freedom, because the Indians are prepared to turn their fellow Tamils as the most dangerous terrorists in the world for India’s benefits. The Indians don’t care about the Tamils’ freedom other than their national security.
    I never believed in Tamils, Sinhalese or Indians. The Tamils don’t appreciate people like us, they are happy get arms from the Indians to assassinate us or listened to the Westerners and ignore us. The Sinhalese don’t listen to us, if they do the country would have been fighting since the independence. The Indians won’t consider people like us, if they do they would not have joined with the Westerners, and turned their neighbours as the most dangerous terrorists in the world. I went on to do my business degree, and research in international politics and world history which is equal to two PhD’s, because I believed in China. I am a Tamil and I was born in Sri Lanka, but ashamed to call myself a Tamil or as a person from the Indian Subcontinent. The Indian Subcontinent’s population is greater than China, but could not even get a gold medal during the last Olympic Games, this is absolute disgraceful. You enjoy hating each other, and too busy to undermine each other. You don’t have time or money for other activities.

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    GREAT POLITICIANS WE LOST FOR EVER FOR OUR BAD LUCK NOW ONLY UNEDUCATED UNDERWORLD CRIMINAL LUNATIC CROOKS ARE RULING OUR HOPELESS COUNTRY NOW THERE IS NO HOPE AT ALL UNDER THESE CRIMINALS THUGS.

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    Gamini/Shankar,

    Are you sure L:K’s 2nd wife was younger than his daughter?

    Senguttuvan

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    Shankar (Apr 13 – 11.48 pm) Your apparent belief in Life after Death is fascinating. Wish I could learn more from you on this – a feature inculcated in us by generations of religious discourse. But, Sir, I did not and will not call the affable LK a traitor. An opportunist pursuing a personal Agenda for upward mobility – mmm, may be.

    Let’s keep ex-Cricketer Thalayasingham out of this. He was far too busy in his 24×7 interaction with Bacchus. Not merely being oblivious to what is happening upstairs in his bungalow but in his condition, he would have not known what is happening around or who is planning to get rid of whom. All this resulted in that gentle Capt. Charles Gnanakone to lose his health and meet with premature death. Was it Sir Walter Scott who sang “Oh! what tangled webs we weave – when first we practise to deceive”? From the looks of it would appear the practitioners have now turned the business into a fine art.

    Senguttuvan

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    Well well well. All I can say is after the liquidation of the LTTE which they rightly deserved, a lot of people have emerged with their crocodile tears. Although I do not agree with a lot of things the present governments does, it seem to have an unwavering backbone that most past governments seems to not have had. Therefore despite the corruption, despite the lies and despite totalitarian attitude we the sri lankans will have no choice to support them. All of these factions out there promoting separatism be it Indains Tamils, Sri lankan Tamils, Indians, the EU or the US can go to hell. Where were you during the 30 years of civil war in our country? This is our country we will live here and die here.

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    I am not quite sure what all this fuss is about.This is simply a time to remeber the man who is a big name in the Sinhalse House Hold and he has not done anything for the Tamils sand on the contrary he sought to undermined the Tamil interest in every way posssible. One only has to judge him by the inexcusable stament he made during the long march and the Tamils will never forgive him.
    He was trapped in a Tamil body ( with a Tamil D..k ) but his soul was Sinhalese.

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