By Visuvanathan Rudrakumaran –

PM - TGTE - Visuvanathan Rudrakumaran

The Sinhala regime that had been targeting Tamils for many decades has now turned its acts of annihilation against the Muslims.

The Sinhala chauvinist regime, while occupying the traditional Tamil homeland in the island of Sri Lanka, is working to suppress the Tamil Peoples’ campaign for the realization of their right to self-determination making use of their racist military forces.

Now, as a continuation of this ever-growing trend of aggressive intolerance, the Sinhala regime has turned its dirty acts of oppression and ethnic cleansing against the Muslim community, targeting the community’s cultural activities including their freedom of worship.

Sri Lankan Constitution 

Changes to the constitution over the years since independence, enacted without the consent of the Tamil people, has made Buddhism the State Religion in an island of many faiths and races, denying equal treatment to other faiths. 

The racist Sri Lankan state machinery, working in concert with Buddhist chauvinist forces that had deprived and denied Tamils the realization of their inherent right of self-determination for many decades, is now expanding its plan to destroy the very existence of the Muslim people.

Buddhism, a noble religion with 600 million followers all over the world, has now unfortunately  been hijacked on the island by racist and chauvinist Sinhalese forces.  These racist forces claim that many of the Tamil-Buddhist archaeological sites are actually places of Sinhala origin, and are actually evidence of Sinhala-Buddhist existence in traditionally Tamil areas in the past.

Settlement of Sinhalese in Tamil areas, changing the demography of the war-affected regions, is justified with this assertion. Tamils, who respect Buddhism as a religion of values and meaning, perceive the settlement of Sinhalese in their areas as a concerted effort on the part of the Sinhala regime to disintegrate the Tamil homeland, dividing the contiguity of our traditional areas of habitation on the island.

Muslims Targeted 

The racist Sinhala regime that had been targeting the Tamil people for many decades has now turned its acts of annihilation against the Muslims.  Initially the food and dress habits of the Muslims were targeted, and then places worship, attacking mosques and destroying some of them, and denying Muslims’ freedom of worship. In this undemocratic and unacceptable behaviour, the Sinhala rulers are making use of all means, both “legal” and “illegal,” available to them. 

It is in this background of naked racism and persecution that one should analyze the violence unleashed by the army that occurred recently in the village of Weliweriya, situated not very far away from the Sri Lankan capital, Colombo, targeting the Sinhala Catholic people.

Sinhala chauvinism has risen to such heights, and is so narrow minded that it is ready to target anyone on its way — even Sinhalese if they practice Christianity. This demonstrated the manifestation of Sinhala extremism that is not willing and ready to accommodate any other cultures, faiths or groups to live peacefully, co-existing side by side, with a sense of accommodation and tolerance, granting every distinct group its cultural, religious or national rights.

Freedom Charter 

The Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam (TGTE) would like to once again reiterate a key aspect from its Freedom Charter:

“Tamil Eelam shall be a secular state. The right to worship and to follow religious practices of every citizen in Tamil Eelam shall be ensured and protected without any hindrances what so ever.”

The independent Tamil Eelam that will emerge in the traditional homeland of Tamils in the island of Sri Lanka shall grant equal rights and respect to all faiths and religious practices. It will never undertake measures aimed at ethnic cleansing as is being done by the Sinhala Buddhist racist regime.

Tamil Eelam and its rulers shall always uphold the ancient lofty ideals of “All the world is ours; all are our kinsmen”. In adhering to this dictum, the land of Tamil Eelam and the democratic rule of Tamil Eelam shall welcome all religions to our country with open arms to help them live happily and in prosperity.

We, the Tamil people spread all over the world, living in deep-rooted hope to see the birth of Tamil Eelam, hereby extend our wholehearted support to the Muslim people who are faced with severe oppression at the hands of the Sinhala Buddhist chauvinist forces.

While extending our fullest support to the Muslim people, we also extend our solidarity to the Muslim community, as a community whose mother tongue is also Tamil, asking them to join the Tamils in their struggle to build a secure future for all in the Tamil state.