9 October, 2024

Blog

US In And Out Of Asia, Emergency Returns, Reactions To Auckland Attack 

By Rajan Philips

Rajan Philips

On September 1, the people of Afghanistan woke up for the first time in 44 years without a foreign power on their soil. Two days earlier the people of Sri Lanka found themselves under a “surreptitiously declared” (as it has been aptly called) Emergency Rule – yet again in more than 70 years after independence. And two days later (Friday, September 3) a Sri Lankan migrant in New Zealand carried out a knife attack in a supermarket in Auckland. The attacker has now been identified by NZ authorities as 32-year-old Ahamed Aathil Mohamed Samsudeen, who arrived in New Zealand in October 2011 and was granted refugee status two years later. Local authorities in Sri Lanka have identified the assailant as a former resident of Kaththankudy in Batticaloa. Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan government stuck to its now routine Friday announcement of Covid-19 lockdown – which is now extended to September 13.

Ahamed Aathil Mohamed Samsudeen pictured taking aim with a firearm in a photo from one of his social media accounts which was later deleted.

The imposition of emergency rule on August 30 under the pretext of dealing with the emerging food scarcity situation, is once again a reminder that governments and rulers have no qualms about restricting or putting on hold civil liberties in their countries for their own authoritarian reasons. They do not necessarily require a foreign military or agency for it. I am not sure if one should be surprised or not by the government’s decision to impose emergency rule now after steadfastly rejecting calls for emergency measures last year during the first wave of Covid-19.

Emergency Rule

As many have pointed out, the imposition of emergency rule as a food emergency measure is quite unnecessary and an obvious overreach. In addition, the government has committed another characteristic blunder and done itself a huge disservice just weeks before its biannual pilgrimage to Geneva. Professor GL Peiris (or PGLP, as he has been delightfully abbreviated) will have his work cut out in arguing his government’s case before UNHRC while the country has been placed under emergency rule by the selfsame government.

When President Jayewardene imposed Emergency Rule exclusively on the Jaffna Peninsula in 1979, the Movement for Inter-Racial Justice & Equality (MIRJE) placed it in the context of Sri Lanka’s historical experience of emergency rule – imposed either to quell working class agitations or political protests. Before and after their 1977 landslide win, JRJ and his UNP severely criticized the prolonged emergency rule of the previous (United Front) government and vowed not to impose emergency rule again. The promise was broken first in Jaffna – ostensibly to “eliminate the menace of terrorism in all its forms,” and over time more inclusively in every part of the country.

At the time the Public Security Ordinance No. 25 was enacted in 1947, fundamentally in response to the General Strike of that year, neither Sri Lanka’s first parliament nor anyone else would have foreseen the law becoming, 30 years later, a powerful weapon in the hands of a single individual, namely, an elected president. Even under the presidential system, parliament retained the power to periodically review and endorse the continuation of emergency rule. It makes no difference, however, when the President enjoys a rubber-stamp majority in the legislature. 

In any event, the second Rajapaksa regime (2010-2014) managed to find ways to finesse around this requirement. One of the achievements of the one-term Sirisena-Wickremesinghe government was its success in avoiding the imposition of emergency rule. As well, the same government put an end to arbitrary arrests and detentions, and to kidnappings and disappearances outside the law’s radar. Emergency rule is back now, surreptitiously or not, and we know not how far its tentacles will be set to stretch during the remainder of this regime’s tenure. What we know is that emergency rule is not going to be of any help in either controlling Covid-19 or helping people survive their current ordeals.

America and Asia

There is a critical lesson for Sri Lanka from the experience of Afghanistan over the last 20 years. That experience is also the world’s most spectacular failure of a massive development initiative backed by an equally massive military deployment. Put another way, blind investments in infrastructure development do not automatically produce economic growth and social benefits. When misapplied, they can in fact turn out to be counterproductive. Equally, the efficiency and security benefits often predicated on military deployment are ultimately unsustainable. Either they disappear as soon as the military is withdrawn, or they will degenerate if the military overstays its initial purpose. These failures have not been quite identified as inherent to the whole American project in Afghanistan. Rather, they have been noted mostly for their symptoms.

On Tuesday, August 31, as the Taliban celebrated the American military’s final flight out of Kabul, President Biden addressed the media and the country from his White House pulpit in Washington. While defiantly defending his pullout decision, the President also stressed that the “era of major military operations to remake other countries” has ended. Some have noted that no previous president has ever said such words before. But the statement in itself is not indicative of any significant change in direction. It is not only the Taliban that has to live up to its word, but also the US government that has to demonstrate that after Afghanistan there could be a different America.   

There was in fact a different diplomatic demonstration in Southeast Asia even as  the US was airlifting itself out of Afghanistan. In late August, Vice President Kamala Harris visited Singapore and Vietnam capping off a flurry of visits by senior Biden Administration officials to ASEAN countries in recent months. Defense, digital trade and Covid-19, and not Afghanistan, figured prominently in the bilateral discussions in the two countries. In Vietnam, President Nguyen Xuan Phuc was effusive about the growing US-Vietnamese co-operation, which he said was “in line with the wishes of the peoples of the two countries, and the wish the late President Hồ Chí Minh had conveyed in his letter to US President Harry Truman 75 years ago.” Truman of course ignored the now famous letter and its plea for American support to end French colonial rule in Vietnam. America is now fully courting Vietnam while the EU and France are reconsidering total reliance on the US for their security.

In Sri Lanka, the TNA is calling on the government “to present a solution” to the problems faced by the Tamil people in the North and East, and wants America to be “the mediator that studies and approves these solutions.” That is a tall ask by any measure and it has come in the wake of dinner diplomacy by the outgoing US Ambassador Alaina B. Teplitz, that included, as guests, TNA MP M.A. Sumanthiran and the new Foreign Minister GL Peiris. PGLP was apparently directed to attend by his SLPP boss, Finance Minister and dual citizen, Basil Rajapaksa. The TNA has been asking for an appointment with President Gotabaya Rajapaksa “to discuss their proposals with him prior to the UNHRC session.” Now the TNA has been put on the spot to talk about the government’s decision to declare Emergency Rule. In addition, the Auckland knife attack would seem to be reinvigorating Sri Lanka’s usual political twists and quirks.   

Auckland Attack and Reactions

In New Zealand, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, as has been widely reported, said that the attack was carried out ‘by an individual, not a faith, not a culture, not an ethnicity, but an individual person gripped by an ideology that is not supported in New Zealand by anyone.’ The New Zealand High Commission in Colombo reiterated their Prime Minister that “the perpetrator alone bears responsibility for these acts. The attack was carried out by an individual, not a faith, ethnicity or culture.” The High Commission went on to say that “New Zealand’s Sri Lankan community is, and will always be, an integral and treasured part of Kiwi society.”

Once again, this island country of five million people (72% European and changing; and 48% having ‘no religion’) and its Prime Minister are being exemplary to other political societies, big and small, powerful and powerless, about the way governments should conduct themselves when facing public crises. They have been showing it in their response to Covid-19 and in their response to terrorist attacks. For nearly a day after the attack, information about the assailant was withheld because under New Zealand law the attacker’s name could not be revealed as his refugee status was before the courts. The ban had to be lifted by a High Court judge for officials to release information.    

According to New Zealand Herald, Samsudeen would appear to have claimed refugee status as “a Tamil” on the grounds that “he and his father were attacked, kidnapped and tortured because of their political background.” His claim “was supported by scars on his body,” and a psychologist’s report that presented Samsudeen as “suffering from post-traumatic stress disorder and depression.” He would also seem to have been without close family or friends in New Zealand, and the Herald noted that he was “a perfect candidate to be radicalised in his living room,” by social media.   

Samsudeen first came to police attention in March 2016 after Facebook postings in support of ISIS and has reportedly told “a fellow worshipper at a mosque that he planned to join Isis in Syria, and that if he were stopped from leaving, he would commit a random “lone wolf” style knife attack in New Zealand.”  In May 2017, he was stopped from leaving New Zealand on a one-way flight to Singapore and was arrested. He has been in and out of court and in and out of jail, and is known to have been combative and anti-western in his outbursts with police and in court proceedings.

NZ police kept him under constant surveillance and Immigration was taking steps to revoke his refugee status. But he could not be detained for longer terms because of a court ruling that “preparing a terrorist attack was not in itself an offence under the legislation.” Justice Matthew Downs of the NZ High Court acknowledged that this lacuna was an “Achilles’ heel”, but told Crown prosecutors that “it was for Parliament, not the courts, to create an offence of planning an attack.” Changes to the law were already in the works and Prime Minister Ardern has said that they are now being expedited.

As for Sri Lankan reactions, there is no comparison between the police and courts in New Zealand and the conduct of Sri Lankan police and prosecutors before and after 2019 Easter bombings. More importantly, New Zealand has no tradition or culture for collusions between political personas, police personnel and criminal agents. New Zealand police acted responsibly within the law but vigilantly kept their target ‘lone wolf’ under constant surveillance and pounced on him immediately and minimized the disaster. Sri Lankan police, on the other hand, and especially in the 21st century, have become accustomed to breaking the law to harass law abiding citizens, including legitimate protesters, and leaving the law to be broken by all types of criminals with political connections.

At the sociopolitical level, Sri Lanka has miles to go before it can demonstrate the cultured balance and the political courage that New Zealand’s Prime Minister, its government and opposition leaders, and its High Commission in Colombo have shown in the aftermath of a terrorist attack. May be, Sri Lankans need not be too hard on themselves because there are bigger countries known for worse reactions. There is also the larger question that is posed by the attack in Auckland coinciding with the changes in Afghanistan. Islamic fundamentalism is vigorously back on the geopolitical radar, but with a new twist – pitting the old Taliban against its new ISIS avatars. Sri Lanka can learn from New Zealand to respond to these challenges with transparent care, caution and intelligence, without political calculation and ethnic emotions.    

Latest comments

  • 9
    18

    This is total bullshit. Just nip the bud. Sri Lanka paid a heavy price for not doing that.

    • 8
      5

      Ahamed Adil Mohamed Samsudeen was an old boy of Hindu College, Colombo.

      • 0
        0

        New Zealand Prime Minister’s statement about Samsudeen same as how our Ex-President J.R. Jayawardana said after giving the best guard of honor to the Ex-Indian Prime Minister by Sri Lankan sailor. J.R. Jayawardana said the sailor had the sun’s stroke

  • 11
    15

    Another terrorist has killed innocent civilians in the most brutal manner!
    Once again, it has been proved that Kaththankudi is a breeding ground for terrorists.
    The writer applauds that the Muslim terrorist, who killed 9 innocent civillians by stabbing, being called a “lone wolf,” not a terrorist.
    Well, I wish to remind Sri Lanka Police that there is “a pack of 6,000 wolves” in Sri Lanka armed with “6,000 imported swords” waiting to pounce on innocent civilians. Despite a court order and even after two years, Sri Lanka Police has failed to find the swords which were imported days prior to Easter Sunday Attack. If one lone wolf, aka an ISIS terrorist, can kill 9 civilians with one knife, a pack of 6,000 wolves could have killed 54,000 or more innocent civilians, had there been a riot in the aftermath of the Easter Sunday Attack.
    Needless to say, we are not safe from terrorists who have direct contacts with the ruling Rajapaksas. What is more dangerous is he Rajapaksas’ high-speed acknowledgment of Taliban rule in Afghanistan.
    So far, the pandemic has acted as a shield for Sri Lanka. Once the pandemic is over, and unless a miracle happens, we have to again deal with terrorists, bomb attacks, riots & sacrileges.

    • 4
      14

      True. Unless the island is split equitably into 3 mono ethnic nations and relocate people there will be violence again.

      Sri Lanka as it has no future.

      SL terrorists made attempts to kill foreigners since 1978 bombing of AirCeylon plane, 1986 bombing of an Air Lanka plane, 1987-90 killing of Indian army, 1991 Rajiv Gandhi, 2023-19 killing of Syrian Shias by 40 locals who went there, 2019 killing of 70 foreigners in Easter Sunday attack and now in NZ.

      Terrorism in Sri Lanka is an international concern.

      • 4
        1

        GATAM, You are a prophet speaking division of island into 3 mono ethnic nations. When the last bowl judgment against sin and idolatry (of 21 end time judgments) is poured out, Rev. 16,19 there is a great earthquake that divides the great city into 3 parts and the island fled away and the mountains were not found. Wrath of God does it and not terror violence.

      • 3
        14

        GATAM,
        Separatism was defeated in 2009 and no more talk about separate States, Federal solutions, Self-Rule, 13A, power sharing, devolution of power. Sinhale/Sri Lanka will remain as a Unitary State. Talking about separatism is treason and violation of the Constitution. Those who are not comfortable with living in a Unitary State should pack their bags and leave so that others can live peacefully in a Unitary State.
        —-
        “Unless the island is split equitably into 3 mono ethnic nations and relocate people there will be violence again.”

        • 5
          1

          EE,

          You people and some others are too greedy. Greedy people want the entire island. That is the root cause of the problem. They are the problem.

          What is Sinhale? I can’t find that on a map? Is it on earth or in hell?

          If you can think, do think. Do you really want to share the same nation with people who want you dead, your history erased, your community ridiculed, your community branded war criminals, your faith associated with barbarity, etc.? Do you?

          Isn’t it much better for you to have your own Sinhala Only nation in part of the island than lose it all?

      • 26
        6

        Sri lankan muslims in sri lanka adamantly deny they are tamil and claim to be arabs.
        But when they go abroad to seek asylum then all of a sudden they are tamil again!
        There is a particular term we use to describe this behaviour.
        It relates to ‘flipping a hat’ in the tamil language.

        • 7
          12

          H
          “Sri lankan muslims in sri lanka adamantly deny they are tamil and claim to be arabs.”
          That is untrue.
          A good many in fact claim Arab roots. But the reality is that they have in the course of history evolved a separate identity and assert themselves as a distinct ethnic group. That has nothing to do with Arabs.
          Similar things have happened to Muslim Serbs and Muslim Hans who are recognized by governments as distinct nationalities.
          There are three distinct Punjabi speaking nationalities.
          *
          The more a caste-ridden Tamil nationalist seek to impose Tamil ethnic identity on Muslims the more it will be resented.
          The Muslims now contribute much to quality writing in Tamil in this country.
          It is not rejection of a language but rejection of a label.

          • 10
            6

            Rubbish. Here comes the self hating Tamil and the constant apologist for Sinhalese racists and Islamic extremists. First, “Good many claim Arab roots” but in reality only a few have a very distant male Arab ancestor and were able to prove this and even amongst them, the rest of their ancestors were all Dravidian Tamils. These so called partial Arab with a predominant Tamil Dravidian ancestry, will not even amount to 50000, amongst a population of 2 million Sri Lankan Muslims. We all can claim all sorts of origin and ancestry, thinking this will make us more important but the reality is, most of these claims are fake. DNA analysis of the Sri Lankan Moors , has also proven that there is very little Arab in them and basically they are of South Indian Dravidian origin, similer to the island’s Sinhalese and Tamils. When did they evolve a separate culture from the rest of the Tamils ? Stop posting rubbish. Their culture until the late 1980s was the Tamil Islamic culture that they brought from their South Indian homeland, until they decided to become some sort of pathethic clones of the Gulf Arabs to deliberately distinguish themselves from the Tamils. Their parent population in Tamil Nadu still proudly call themselves Tamil Muslims, even the ones with little bit of Arab or Iranian

            • 9
              5

              We all have a little bit of something in us. No one is racially pure. A little bit of Arab amongst a small minority amongst them does not make them Arab or anything else. They are still Tamil by ethnicity, whether they like it or not. Cannot state I am a Tamil when it is advantageous to them and deny this and be an anti Tamil at all other times, in the name of Islam or a little bit of Arab.
              Creating a separate identity for the island’s Muslims from the Tamils was first deliberately done by the British and later after independence, earnestly by the Sinhalese ruling elite and government, aided and abetted by power hungry Muslim elite and politicians. To be fair to the British, they never took this Arab origin and separte identity of the Muslims, seriously and other than giving them separate political representation, lumped them with the Tamils for everything else. Muslim Slavs in the former Yugoslavia, still identify themselves correctly as Slavs, not call themselves Arabs or Turks, although many of them may have Turkish blood in them. Muslim Han Chinese are called Hui, to distinguish them from the Turkic Uighur Muslims. Again these people correctly acknowledge their Han Chinese origin. There are three major religious groups amongst the Punjabi .

              • 9
                6

                Hindu. Sikh and Muslim However all three correctly identify themselves as Punjabi and not anything else.
                Sri Lankan Muslims if they want have a right to identify themselves separately from the rest of the Hindu/Christian Tamils on the basis of their religion However this identity should be correct not based on myths and lies. They should be correctly identified as Tamil Muslims or Muslim Tamils or if they do not want Tamil, Dravidian Muslims, just like the Muslim Serbs of Bosnia who became Bosnian or Slavic Muslims. A little bit of Arab amongst a few hundred families, who will amount around 50000-60000 the most out of a population of around 2 million Sri Lankan Muslims or Moors, as they love to call themselves, cannot be used to claim an Arab or Moorish origin for the entire community and call themselves Moors a name, that was deliberately given by the Portuguese to all South Asian Muslims as a form of insult and derogation. This name was quickly discarded by all other South Asian Muslim people, other than the Sri Lankan Tamil Muslims, who pathetically kept this to claim and justify an Arab origin and heritage, for political and economic advantage, especially after independence.

                • 6
                  5

                  If go the Indian state of Kerala. Which is 50% Hindu 20% Christian and 30% Muslim , the origin and culture of these three religious groups are different as per their religion. Yet they all share an ancient Chera Tamil Dravidian now Malayali origin/cultural root and all of them identify and call themselves Malayalis. The Hindu upper castes are heavily mixed with the Aryan North Indian Namboothris, this is the reason many Nairs have a very light skin. The Syrian Christians, as their name suggests, have intermarried into the ancient Syrian Christians who fled Islamic conversion and and tool refuge in ancient Tamil Chera Nadu and intermarried into the local St. Thomas Tamil Christian converts. They also have some Jewish and Portuguese heritage as many Jews living in Kerala converted to Christianity. The Mappila Muslims of northern and north central Kerala, have Arab in them. These Malayali Mappilas have the most of amount of Arab amongst all Indian Muslim ethnicities and even amongst them the Arab is around 15% . However despite all this due to their common language and origin all of them prouldly indentify themselves as Malayalis , despite caste, religion, or the slight admixture of various immigrants and invaders amongst them. The Tamils are as much casteist as the rest of the South Asians including the Sinhalese . Even Islamic Pakistan and Bangladesh practice caste.

                  • 6
                    6

                    If not caste the rest of the world practice caste or tribalism, that can be equally brutal and also has a pecking order like the caste. Even the Tamil Christian culture is different from the Tamil Hindu culture, yet they do not go around claiming a different identity on the basis of their religion. Religion and ethnicity are two different things.
                    The Tamils are as much casteist as the rest of the South Asians including the Sinhalese . Even Islamic Pakistan and Bangladesh practice caste. If not caste the rest of the world practice caste or tribalism, that can be equally brutal and also has a pecking order like the caste. Even the Tamil Christian culture is different from the Tamil Hindu culture, yet they do not go around claiming a different identity on the basis of their religion. Religion and ethnicity are two different things.

                    • 3
                      3

                      What a pathetic defence of a sick social system!

                    • 0
                      0

                      However, if we practice the caste the way it is, we will loose populations over the time.

                      Although I abhor discriminating by caste, if Tamils already have home in the Island, time will be on our side, we can leave it to changing social attitude by time, economics and social / political / economical reforms etc.

                      However, we now need numbers and young blood.

                      In addition, we now have people like Prof. R. Hoole, who for their own agenda, want to bring back caste like it was 500 years before.

                      The fear is that it will catch on and take its own bestial form in the face of no political or social impediments or strictures against it.

                      The LTTE and armed struggle had actually brought the Tamils’ historical experience and evolution of identity transcending castes. Now, all being gradually eroded.

                      It is natural people will slowly drift towards to where they are more accommodated than where they are more ostracised or impeded (by caste) in every sphere of life.

                • 3
                  4

                  “Hindu. Sikh and Muslim However all three correctly identify themselves as Punjabi and not anything else.”
                  Don’t make me laugh.
                  They accept a racial identity, but they refuse to be lumped together with others socially and politically.
                  The Tamils lost the West Coast Catholics owing to arrogant stupidity not different from what we see now.
                  *
                  The way things are being conducted, even Batticaloa Tamils will run away from the caste-ridden Tamil nationalism.

                  • 2
                    0

                    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punjabis

                    Hope you are happy and stop scrreching

                    • 0
                      0

                      I think that I had fully dealt with it once earlier.

                  • 2
                    0

                    Please read on how the west coast Thamish Catholic fishermen were forcibly Chingkalized by the Sri Lanka state, after independence and the Southern Chingkalla Catholic church in this , The NE Thamizh had nothing to do with this. Constantly coming here and running Thamizh down and misinforming , twisting the truth and blaming the victims( The Thamizh )for their misfortune.

                  • 3
                    2

                    Stop blaming the Tamils for everything jut because you have a pathological hatred for your own people.The reason for the Sri Lankan Muslims denying their actual Tamil origin and ethnicity, other than in circumstances when it is advantageous to them, lies with them and not with the Tamils. They are failry recent immigrants from South India and had decided that is politically and economically advantageous to them to downplay their Tamil ethnicity and make their religion their main identity and higlight the little bit of Arab heritage amonst a few families amongst them, to justify this separate identity. Most of them live amongst the Sinhalese and this was done to escape persecution, if they were perceived to be Tamil. To justify and confirm this separatedness and to prove that they are indeed not Tamils but Tamil speaking Arabs, they joined with the Sinhalese as their co partners to commit war crimes and discrimination on the island’s Tamils. It was the same with the Catholic Tamil fishermen living along the western coast. When they were forced to assimilate as Sinhalese by the Sri Lankan state, the southern Sinhalese Catholic church advised them that is will be in their advantage to become Sinhalese. Again nothing to do with the Tamils.

                    • 2
                      2

                      The Tamils are not in powere and the Jaffna and Batticaloa Tamils hardly had any connection with these people. Both these people decided to do this own their own.
                      Whenever the Muslims were in trouble it was the Tamils who saved them. They first came and settled along the then Tamil north west coast, when they lefe South India, later it was the eastern Tamils , as fellow Tamils gave them refuge in their lands, when the fled Portuguese persecution along the western coast and the Sinhalese did not want them. Tamils are as casteist as the Sinhalese and other South Asians , nothing more or less, Just trying to highlight this to justify their discriminaton by people like you is pathetic. If caste was the factor in denying their Tamil ethicity, why are the estate Tamils and the low caste Tamils in the north east still remaining staunchly Tamil? What about the Batticaloa Tamils ? Please stop making stupid comments. There is low and high caste amongst them just like the Jaffna Tamils or Indian origin Tamils. You are out to create mischief, for reasons known only to you .

            • 4
              3

              A Tamil racist will not understand why the Muslims do not want to be identified as Tamils?
              Such anti-Muslim venom will further isolate and weaken the Tamils.

              • 1
                3

                This comment was removed by a moderator because it didn’t abide by our Comment policy.

                For more detail see our Comment policy https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/comments-policy-2

              • 3
                2

                Yes only a self hating Thamizh similar to them in nature and behaviour will undsertand them.

        • 1
          3

          Tamils get asylum.

      • 10
        7

        Three mono ethnic! The Thullukan from Kattankudi has stated the truth in New Zealand that the so called Sri Lankan Muslims or Moors are ethnic Thamizh Muslims. This is what many Thullukans state when they travel to the west and want asylum. State we are ethnic Thamizh Muslims. They deny this truth in the island. as they think it disadvantages them but admit it overseas, especially in the west, thinking this will advantage them. Yet you talk about three mono ethnic, when the island has only two ethnic groups and homelands from ancient times. There was no Islamic ethnicity, kingdom or homeland in the island and will not be, just because, coverted South Indian origin,Dravidian Thamizh Thullkans, with itzy bitzy Arab , say so and state their religion, which is followed by various races and ethnicities throuougt the world, has strangely become an ethnicioty only in the island not anywhere else.

    • 9
      1

      Rajan,
      “On September 1, the people of Afghanistan woke up for the first time in 44 years without a foreign power on their soil.”
      Not really. Between the Soviet departure in 1988 and 2001 there weren’t foreign forces.

      • 13
        3

        old codger

        ” Between the Soviet departure in 1988 and 2001 there weren’t foreign forces.”

        I beg to differ, there were foreign Jihadi fighters and some Pakistani troops in the guise of Taliban. I may be wrong.

    • 8
      4

      Chimpi, the twat you don’t have to go all the way to Kathankudi to see terrorists, just visit the parliament and you will see a bus load of terrorists in white wrap around lungis with a red sash from the SLPP, these are the real terrorists. By the way the boss of these terrorists wears western clothes. Also idiot where did you read that the NZ attack, innocent civilians have died? They were stabbed by a terrorist, which is a fact, but who told you that civilians have died? Is this another figment of your buddhist imaginations?

    • 1
      0

      What an idiotic comment? The problem with racists like you is that you don’t speak with accurate stats. The knife attack didn’t kill any people and the person who got involved had mental health issues.

      The racists like you are small minded and cannot comprehend or read between the lines.

      You hear shootings incidents in America about 10000 people or more die in shooting incidents and every time a white perpetrator is caught is always arrested without being killed.
      By contrast you have a nut case who comes out with a knife and the police force always seem to shoot him dead and they have no time to contain him.

      Whilst a shooter who committed a massacre will have a proper judicial hearing but not a guy with knife is always shot dead. Pronouncements are made and they make their own conclusions about the dead.

      What I am implying is that there is an agenda that some countries stick to for them to justify international involvements hence keep drum beating about terrorism and strengthening their national interests all for capitalistic motives.

      And here you come out like an idiot without understanding what’s happening to the country and straight out scapegoating Muslims. Meanwhile the Chinese have their deeds on Lankans lands you idiots have no balls to protest against that but hating on Muslims.

  • 6
    16

    Quoting news reports, writer Rajan Philips has highlighted the following facts in support of the terrorist, which I find amusing.
    1) The writer appreciates NZ PM Jacinda Ardern for stating that the attack was carried out ‘by an individual, not a faith, not a culture, not an ethnicity, but an individual person gripped by an ideology.”
    2) Then he says, “Samsudeen first came to police attention in March 2016 after Facebook postings in support of ISIS and has reportedly told a fellow worshipper at a mosque that he planned to join Isis in Syria, and that if he were stopped from leaving, he would commit a random lone wolf style knife attack in NZ.”
    3) Then he says, “NZ police kept him (Samsudeen) under constant surveillance and Immigration was taking steps to revoke his refugee status.”
    Well, 2) & 3) above are proof that the NZ PM and the Police are not on the same page.
    4) Then the writer uses the following to rundown Sri Lanka Police:-
    “More importantly, NZ has no tradition or culture for collusions between political personas, police personnel and criminal agents.
    “New Zealand police acted responsibly within the law.”
    Excuse me sir, NZ Police killed the terrorist on the spot leaving no prisoners. I understand why NZ has no PTA. The EU should take note.

    • 7
      2

      “Local authorities in Sri Lanka have identified the assailant as a former resident of Kaththankudy in Batticaloa.”- Rajan Philipps.

      “Once again, it has been proved that Kaththankudi is a breeding ground for terrorists.”- Champa

      “There was allegation that Saharan was in the payslip of Rajapaksa regime”.

      Are these allegations true about Kathathankudi? What is the special of Kaththankudi?

    • 3
      7

      Champa,

      If you want one country in the island that means you want to live with those elements. Good luck. Pick your choices wisely Champ! You can’t eat the cake and have the cake too which is the strategic mistake made by Sinhala extremists who want the entire island.

    • 16
      3

      Champa,
      “writer Rajan Philips has highlighted the following facts in support of the terrorist, which I find amusing…….Then the writer uses the following to rundown Sri Lanka Police:-“
      Do you find it also amusing that people in SL police custody often die of gunshot injuries while “trying to escape”? I find it hilarious that people like you condemn Sharia law but say nothing about summary police executions in SL

    • 1
      9

      All NGO-fed kallathonis here want to depict all brutal terrorists as innocent civilians ( most of them now live in western capitals as good citizens!). If there is no PTA in Lanka, they will turn Lanka into another Afghanistan.

      • 2
        0

        Average Joe,
        Afghanistan wasn’t turned into Afghanistan by Afghans. Go read something. It will make you better than average.

  • 14
    4

    Didn’t know Sri Lankan Muslims identify themselves as Tamil (and not Arab)…or perhaps it is alright to declare themselves as such in order to claim political asylum.

    • 8
      4

      Like typical hat flippers. They will admit and claim their actual Tamil origin when it is advantageous to them, especially if this gives them residency and citizenship in a western country. Otherwise will deny this and claim to be Arab or whatever takes their fancy. It is not only them but the recently Tamil now Sinhalese, from the north west coast Catholic belt. Most of the recent boat arrivals to countries like Australia are from this area. Tamil when it suits them, otherwise Sinhalese . The Colombo Chetties and Bharathas are another lot. The former,medieval Tamil Chetty immigrants from Tamil Nadu and the later recent immigrants from Thootukudi and other parts of Southern Tamil Nadu. Personally know of many Colombo Chetties who are very pro Sinhalaese and very anti Jaffna or Sri Lankan Tamil, who have claimed and received asylum in many western countries as ethnic Sri Lankan Tamils fleeing Sinhalese persecution. However, as SSS has stated once they obtain their residency and citizenship in these lands, start indulging in anti Tamil activities and deny that they are Tamils.

      • 9
        3

        These western nations should be aware and careful of these people or communities , who may have a South Indian Tamil heritage but have not only denied this but had joined and participated with the Sinhalese on marginalizing committing war crimes and structural genocide on the island’s indegenous Tamils from the NE, then running opportunistically to various western nations and claiming asylum as Sri Lankan Tamils. The very same people they had helpedthe Sinhalese tp persecute, despite their so called Tamil heritage that they always deny. This is an insult to the actual Sri Lankan Tamils, many of whom were actual refugees fleeing persecution but denied asylum due to the actions of these people.

    • 3
      4

      nk

      “Didn’t know Sri Lankan Muslims identify themselves as Tamil.”

      But you know to distort one man’s one man’s claim as that of Sri Lakan’s Muslim. Are you a Tamil from Yaalpaanam?

      • 3
        3

        Muhandiram the Islamic bigot, very soon for crime detection purposes, everyone will be mandated to have their DNA done and recorded in their identity cards. After that no one can make false claims about their ancestry. Recent genetic study done by Sri Lankan scholars showed that core genetic material of Sri Lankan moors is south Indian and that west Asian input is less than 10%. Arabs never brought their wives with them.So with the first generation itself the Arab contribution is 50%, which got diluted over the years. Only few of Sri Lanka moors who kept within their clan may have fair percentage of Arab genes. Sinhalese people say that the women who co-habited with Arabs were low caste and low class. This is why not a single Muslim is able to trace their ancestry to upper class Sinhalese. It is the converted Muslim men who came from Tamil Nadu who co-habited with Sinhala women introduced Tamil language among Muslims in Sri Lanka. Any one can claim any identity, but they cannot deny the truth about their ancestry.

        • 2
          2

          Some may have married Chingkalla women, but they were the exception. The vast majority of the Thamizh converted Muslim men who arrived from South India, either brought their families with them or went back and married one of their relatives and returned. If they did marry amongst the locals, they married low caste /low class Thamizh women. They came and settled along the north west coast,which at that time was part of the Thamizh Jaffna kingdom and Thamizh inhabited. Now most of these Thamizh living along the north west coast have converted to a Chingkalla identity. As for the Arabs they did not come here in their thousands but only a few hundred over a span of a few centuries. Like you stated, they never brought their wives or their legitimate children, who were left behind and only a few amongst this few hundred, would have taken some low caste or low class local Thamizh women as their comfort women, whom they would have had at every trading post. Only a few of these original half Arab half Thamizh families who kept on intermarrying within themselves , will now havea fairly high percentage of Arab genes or DNA. Even amongst them it will be now around 20-30%. The rest (70-80%) will be Thamizh Dravidian.

          • 2
            2

            These people will not amount to even 100000 out of a population of 2 million Sri Lankan Moors. All the others are more or less descended purely from converted Dravdian Thamizh immigrants from South India. Some may have Chingkalla or Eezham Thamizh genes on their maternal line, especially the Eastern Thamizh Muslims, as most of them were single men, who fled there as refugees and were given local Thamizh Mukkuva women as brides and some land, by the Thamizh Vannimail chieftains to start a family and earn a living. They were settled away from the indigenous Eezham Thamizh Hindu villages. This is the reason in eastern Sri Lanka you find Thamizh Hindu villages are separate and away from Muslim villages. Unlike in India or in the Chingkalla south.Especially the Eastern Thamizh Muslims, as most of them were single men, who fled there as refugees and were given local Thamizh Mukkuva women as brides and some land, by the Thamizh Vannimail chieftains to start a family and earn a living. They were settled away from the indigenous Eezham Thamizh Hindu villages. This is the reason in eastern Sri Lanka you find Thamizh Hindu villages are separate and away from Muslim villages. Unlike in India or in the Chingkalla south.

        • 3
          0

          Hello Dr. Gnana

          So, you are also throwing your lot with the Anti-Muslim xenophobic Tamils in the CT? I am truly surprised. It is the last thing I expected from a Qualified man, a Doctor at that.

          Do you know the definition of ‘ethnicity’? Here it is, according to Dictionary.com

          “an ethnic group; a social group that shares a common and distinctive culture, religion, language, or the like”

          So, language is just one of the factors that determine ‘ethnicity’. Religion is another factor. We Muslims, have chosen Religion to determine our ethnicity.

          The Sri Lankan Tamils are supposed to be more literate than others in Sri Lanka. But, they are so ethnocentric that they continue to display their Ignorance of the meaning of ethnicity.

  • 5
    3

    Rajan,
    From what I understand, ‘planning an attack’ is an offence in the UK, Australia and the US.
    Wonder if the Canadian’s legal system has provided for such an ‘offence’.
    New Zealand readily accepts refugees, which is likely to change.
    Apparently, a refugee is classified as ‘a protected person’ and ‘deportation orders’ are not easily sustained.
    New Zealand parliament will enact new laws to make it legal to keep those ‘planning an attack’ under police custody.
    Not very pleasant to hear the description ‘Sri Lankan terrorist’ in international media.

    • 11
      5

      SA and others before
      Have we already forgotten the mass murder of Muslims by a Christian fanatic in mosques in Christ Church, New Zealand on 15 March 2019?
      The government dealt with it properly then as it has now.

      • 3
        3

        SJ,
        The government certainly dealt with both instances of terrorism properly.
        NZ has been behind the other so-called ‘five eyes’ countries (US, UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand) in enacting laws to counter terrorist activities.
        New Zealand paid a price for being too complacent.
        This would not have happened in the US simply because this person would have been hunted down years ago – with the kind of information intelligence agencies had.

        • 3
          0

          Sunil,
          “This would not have happened in the US simply because this person would have been hunted down”
          But it did. Many times over. As they say, a terrorist has to be lucky only once.

          • 2
            2

            OC,
            True, there have been many terrorist attacks in the US where intelligence agencies did not have the information.
            With the case in New Zealand, all parties including the Prime Minister was aware of this person.
            In the US, UK or Australia, such information would have led to his arrest (I don’t know about Canada, which is as gullible as New Zealand is). So, what I have said is valid.
            I agree, a terrorist has to be lucky only once.

        • 3
          3

          SA
          Thanks.
          But Five Eyes has a different agenda than to counter ‘terrorist activities’. NZ is the most junior partner, but a partner nevertheless. It got involved at a time when NZ had strongly right wing governments.
          *
          The US also would hunt down many an innocent person, as it has since its notorious McCarthy years.
          Has Britain succeeded in shutting out individual terrorists?
          Remember how Australia hunted down a SL ‘Muslim terrorist’ only a few years ago. How long and how much effort did it take to clear his name?

          • 1
            1

            SJ
            True.
            US can be ruthless, and so can be Australia. There is anecdotal evidence to support it.
            NZ does not always fall in line with the Five Eyes – remember the requirement that all vessels (mostly US warships) had to declare their nuclear status. With that requirement, the ANZAC alliance has become less effective.
            Britain has not succeeded in shutting out individual terrorists but if British intelligence services had the kind of information that New Zealand intelligence services had, this unfortunate incident would not have taken place in the UK.

  • 11
    3

    “Preparing a terrorist attack was not in itself an offence under the legislation.”
    How tolerant the New Zealand law is!
    In this country, during the 30-year war with the LTTE, just having the place of birth marked as a City or Town or Village in the Northern or Eastern Province was enough to get a Tamil youth who happened to be visiting the Western Province arrested and locked up. After being released following an inquiry, he would be arrested again on another day at a different checkpoint and put in a cell again! There was a chap who was taken on suspicion multiple times just because his place of birth was given as Kilinochchi or something on his NIC. All these things are documented.

    The Constitution says no person may be discriminated against on the basis of his place of birth.

  • 4
    2

    Dear Rajan Philips,
    .
    Many thanks for surveying three areas in your objective summary.
    .
    I’ve been monitoring all three developments in my own amateurish way. There now are five comments, all of them focussing on the Auckland stabbings. They all contrast with the almost too good response of the New Zealand Prime Minister. They certainly will have to make compromises to their high ethical standards, which don’t seem to be even understood by us. She had said even before this that she doesn’t want to give publicity to the name of the white supremacist killer in Christchurch.
    .
    I’ve submitted some rather naive and romantic comments on Afghanistan below Prof. David’s article. Let me here post two links to world reactions to reports of our food shortages.
    .
    Al Jazeera discussion: A.N. Cabral, Harsha de Silva, and Nishan de Mel
    .
    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=57xPUP9HVuY
    .
    And here is how some Americans see us:
    .
    https://thediplomat.com/2021/09/sri-lanka-where-generals-fight-the-coronavirus-food-and-fuel-shortages/
    .
    I’m trying only look at ourselves with all our blemishes. In any case, others see them!
    .
    Panini Edirisinhe (NIC 483111444V)

    • 6
      0

      Dear Sinhala_Man:

      Appreciated the links you posted here. Nivard Cabraal paints quite a rosy picture in-spite of his government invoking emergency rule for dealing with the food scarcity. Going after the hoarders of food stocks must be unlawful under the regular laws, and preposterous to think that is going to resolve our food shortage issues which is bound to be exacerbated with shortfalls in future harvests given the pesticide and fertilizer ban.

      As for the upcoming UNHRC, I think we can expect Professor GL Peiris to be equally ineffective in arguing his government’s case simply because nothing genuine, well thought out, and hence effective action in resolving the HR issues has been put forth.

      All in all, Gotabaya has surrounded himself with a bunch of hoodwinkers and pathological liars who can keep a straight face.

  • 9
    1

    governments and rulers have no qualms about restricting or putting on hold civil liberties in their countries for their own authoritarian reasons
    ————
    Yeah that seems to be the issue with many of these writers.
    They want dictatorship based on a fake pandemic.
    But if nandasena enforces authoritarian rule for other reasons then ‘its a problem’

  • 20
    6

    Lots of these Sri Lankan Muslims came to western countries and claimed asylum, falesely stating that they were ethnic Tamils who were facing Sinhalese persecution, when in reality they were co partners with the Sinhalese in the Eelam Tamil genocide and war crimes that they were committed on them. They are ethnically Tamil but have denied this truth for political and economic beneftis and in the name of Islam and a fake Arab origin, that only a few of them partially have had activiley participated with the Sinhalese in the marginalisation of the island’s Tamils. Vey opportunistic. Tamil when it suits them but all other times not only deny their actual Tamil origin and heritage but participate in anti Tamil activities in the name of their religion and an imagined Arab originThis is not only the Sri Lankan Muslims but many so called Sinhalese from the Negombo/Chilaw/Puttalam areas. As many of them are also still fluent in the Tamil language, as a generation or two ago, their ancestors were Tamils. Further thousands of Sinhalese had arrived in the west and obtained asylum falesely claiming that they were persecuted, as they were of partial Tamil heritage or they were persecuted for coming to the aid of their Tamil relatives of friends or some other gullible bullshit stories, that the western authorities them believed.

    • 19
      6

      Once they obtain refugee status, residency and citizenship these so called fake Tamils, show their true anti Tamil colours and indulge in many anti Tamil activities and propaganda. This is a fact. This man from Kattankudi is one of the many thousands, who has used the tragedy of the Eelam Tamils and their marginalisation and structural genocide, for his own personal benefit.
      Previously when I stated this fact, I was ridiculed told was a liar but I myself have interviewed many of these so called Sri Lankan or Eelam Tamil refugees and immediately known, their true origin and that they were not what they were claiming to be. Most westerners would not have known how to distinguish or the real history, however now they are gradually realising this and are now using sophisticated language techniques. However unl;ike the southern Muslims, the Muslim from the north or east of the island speaks the same Northern Jaffna or Eastern Batticaloa Tamil dialect like the Tamils from these regions but these westerners should know that unile in Tamil Nadu, these Sri Lankan Muslims, deny and do not acknowledge their Tamil ethnicity and claim a separate identity , unless it is beneficial for them.

    • 4
      15

      Siva Sankaran Sharma
      “…falesely stating that they were ethnic Tamils…”

      Who is a ‘real ethnic Tamil’?
      Before 1911, there was no ethnic group called ‘Tamils’ in Sinhale. There were Dravidians. Native Sinhalayo called them ‘Demala’ and colonial rulers called them ‘Malabars’.

      • 11
        5

        Stop posting rubbish. Entered Australia and got residency, thanks to your Tamil wife and her relatives. Now like I stated above, once residency and citizenship was obtained, start to indulge in anti Tamil activities and propaganda and lies. Your are typical proof of what I stated above. Made use of the Eelam Tamils and their tragedy and marginalization to creep in , thanks to your wife and then start on your anti Tamil activities. There is no such thing called a native Sinhala or Sinhale. As already explained to you by me and others here, the word Sinhala is a corruption of the ancient Tamil workd for the island Chingkallam meaning the red or copper colooured land. The Tamil word has a meaning, what does Sinhalee mean ? The reply is jibberish hence the lion origin myth was invented to justify this name. Most of the Sinhalese are not native or indegnous but descended from Indian immigrants again largely from Tamil Nadu and from Kerala, when Kerala was also part of the Tamil country called Cheralam or Chera Nadu. The Sinhalese language and identity may have evolved in the southern parts of the island but it evolved, largely from native Dravidian Tamil tribes and other Indian immigrants, again largely Tamil.

      • 13
        1

        Eagle,
        “Before 1911, there was no ethnic group called ‘Tamils’ in Sinhale. “
        In 1911, there were no Sinhalese in Sinhale either, because there was no such place.

        • 8
          4

          This is a fairy tale that was later made up by a blind Eagle and other Chingkalla Buddhist Fascists, aided and abetted by the Sri Lankan state and establishment, to justify their claim to the entire island. Especially after a family of immigrant Malaccan Catholics now masquerading as Chingkalla Buddhists, came into power.

  • 6
    5

    Really, “Vice President Kamala Harris visited Singapore and Vietnam” to find partners against its newly perceived threat. Sadly both countries were unwilling.
    *
    “UK defence secretary suggests US is no longer a superpower”
    Guardian news story 2nd September.
    *
    The world seems to know it but US imperialism has still to know.
    *
    BTW is it right to say “That experience is also the world’s most spectacular failure of a massive development initiative backed by an equally massive military deployment.”
    Compare:
    DoD war budget 933 bn, Interest (est) on war borrowing 530 bn, additions to DoD budget 443 bn, veterans medical & disability care 296 bn, State Department war budget 59 bn. (total 2261 bn excluding lifetime care for veterans and future interest payments) with the number below:
    “Since 2001, the US has appropriated more than $144bn to Afghan reconstruction.”
    (Wonder how much of it went into development, how much returned to the US and how much into the pockets of US lackeys?)
    *
    The US will do all it can to unsettle Afghanistan.
    It will not stop its meddling in Asia.

    • 6
      2

      SJ,
      I agree with you.
      ‘The US will do all it can to unsettle Afghanistan’.
      Yes, The US will be on the lookout for another sucker to sell arms to – who would be willing to unsettle Afghanistan. Long term object is to put a spanner in the works (Afghanistan) for China and Russia.
      The US Military Industrial Complex (manufacturers of complex weapons and their delivery systems) needs wars for their existence.
      The US will always find reasons to start wars – Iran is a likely target now.
      Big bonus would be the arms sales to Saudi Arabia before starting a limited war against Iran. Arms sales have been happening for some time – capitalise on the Shia-Sunnis conflict. (Selling arms to the GCC countries).
      The massive expenditure on the Afghanistan war was recycled back to the US while the Europeans were the suckers who spent big without a similar scale of weaponry sales to the Arabs.

  • 4
    4

    China is the only super power?

    • 0
      3

      As you like it.

  • 8
    6

    The latest of the TNA’s politics is, in the letter that is about to go to UNHRC, Sampanthan Aiyya wanted to quote a sentence that the UNSG has said in 2006, that LTTE and the Government has committed crime in the war, leaving an opinion of that the Tamils are equally genocide criminal in the 72 years of independent Lankawe history. Earlier Sumanthiran PC has been saying that the IC was demanding that 1995 Jaffna Muslims evacuation must be settled if any war crime investigation can be started. As per Sumanthiran’s another statement, TNA just dumped an amendment request TELO, rep Suren had sent because Selvam the leader has not signed. They refused even to read and if Suren had any better idea than the so-called owners of TNA. Sampanthan for long has been complaining that Sangare has hijacked TULF. Now he has presented TNA as the dowry to Sumanthiran to rule it over. Sumanthiran refused to treat Mavai, the Federal Party leader, like even his house pet the dog. Then why did he bring the issue of Selvam that he didn’t sign the amendment request? What would have happened if Selvam had signed it? Sampanthan Aiyya yet to order an internal Investigation on the accusation that Sumanthiran defrauded the victory of the only woman candidate, who won the election on the TNA ticket.

  • 7
    4

    Sampanthan Aiyya is still only listening to Sumanthiran and being biased to all other MPs who genuinely won the election and brought dignity to TNA. This is Ridiculous, Moronic, traitorous, beyond and all above treacherous,!
    We asked Sampanthan Aiyya to come out on zoom or something like that, so we can ask some questions from him on the matters that his spokesperson recently has been propagating on behalf of the government. He is not willing. Now can Tamils ask him if he is still willing to be the representative of Tamils? Sampanthan Aiyya can represent Tamils; or he can represent the entire global society from whom Tamils’ demand justice; also, in his private opinion, or as an honest lawyer, he can defend the government for money or not TNA received. He must take his decision and let Tamils know right now. Because, at this time, Tamil is at the edge of the cliff and if justice is not coming from the world community, the next calamity in Lankawe will wipe them out of the earth. Unless they find immediately an honest leadership, who can take their grievances to the world community and convince the world of their past mistakes, in-action, naïve move which all very cleverly used by Appe Aanduwa for 72 years to genocide Tamils, even God cannot save the Tamils.

  • 6
    4

    We don’t know if everything happened in Mullaitivu. Sumanthiran tried to point his finger at LTTE as genocidaires. Government is claiming that it was a humanitarian rescue mission operation, with zero casualty. That is why it is a subject for honest international investigation. At the time of the war, Government had bought International Media like BBC to report for Aanduwa only. Government bought the UN Chief officer Vije Nambiar to carry out a war without witness and blame everything wholly on Tamils for what happened after the war. Government used Vije Nambiar to force the UN to withdraw all its officials without any questions, from the war zone. One person who was actually in the war zone as a UN official, Gordon Wise directly blamed the UN that had forcefully withdrawn them from Lankawe. Earlier to that, the government had used its influence to make US State Sec. Condoleezza Rice to pressure the EU and have the SLMM withdrawn. UNSG did not visit Lankawe during the high rage of war. Still after that preparation, UNSG who travelled by his heli, expressed an opinion that he never had seen a destruction like what he saw in Mullaitivu. This statement he only after government used bulldozers to clean the war area.

  • 7
    3

    This was the result of Government’s chemical bombing, cluster bombing, Thermobaric bombing and day and night shelling of people residences, and attack launched by the Lankawe Rapist Army on retrieving LTTE and the civilians in their controlled area. There were talks that the people from the war area tried to leave, but LTTE had denied the permission. Remember, the evacuation from the war zone was not organized by UN or any INGO. The same story goes with white flag murders too, where even many countries and ICRC was trying to evacuate, but government did not allow singe person to walk out of that area alive. Everybody carried white flag was massacred by government soldiers point blanketly, but it had nothing to do with LTTE. Many people, who still managed to go out of LTTE area, has gone as missing persons. On his visit to Lankawe, UNSG announced that he was going to Lankawe only because Lankan government had invited him, not to investigate the crimes took place during the war. He met government officials. He did not meet any Tamil representatives, including our comedy lowyer Sumanthiran or Sampanthan Aiyya. Now, with what mind Sampanthan Aiyya is quoting from a statement of that biased works?

  • 8
    3

    That time there was no source to bring out Tamils’ side stories, international media who were paying and buying news from Rupavahini, only relayed the government’s “Lies Agreed Upon”. Few INGO tried but failed. It is with all these discrepancies, in his final statement in Colombo, UNSG opined that both parties had committed war crimes. It was only his private statement. As far as Tamils are concerned, UN is still backtracking to investigate it. That is the call, the Tamils, other than Sampanthan Aiyya and Sumanthiran. Have on UN & UNHRC. The Tamils’ war time governments in America, UK, Spain, Australia, and France lost by significant defeat, not just for handling Tamils’ issue, but because all their actions on international affairs were of the same caliber. Gordon Wise, left Kilinochchi, and left the UN, then wrote his book called “The Cage”. The book questioned the UN if it had the moral capacity to provide justice equally for all communities. Finally, a committee was appointed to investigate the way the UN handled the Tamils issue. Ashamed by its own biased actions, the UN refused to publish that internal investigation report. Buy secretly gave out copies of it after black outing the important criminals’ names and action.

  • 8
    5

    Now Sampanthan Aiyya writes to the same organization that the Tamils had committed the genocidal crime along with the government. Whatever the excuses, Sampanthan Aiyya may have to insert those unsought pleasing lines, but UN was accused of its biased crime against Tamils, and it was established by its own investigation. It is ridiculous for Sampanthan Aiyya to hold the UN’s statements as Holy Bible.
    So now, without delaying any more Sampanthan Aiyya should come out to explain what miracle change took place within TNA to stand so strongly to sabotage the coming UNHRC sitting against Tamils.
    “Professor GL Peiris (or PGLP, as he has been delightfully abbreviated) will have his work cut out in arguing his government’s case before UNHRC while the country has been placed under emergency rule by the selfsame government. (If the Aanduwa self-help itself then historically history, Tamil clowns has been defeating the Aanduwas. From Suntharalingam, Ponnampalam up to Sam-Sum, that is what they are doing) doing now)

    • 8
      7

      THe LTTE did not commit genocide or war crimes in Mullaitheevu , all this was done by the Sri Lankan state and their armed forces, deliberately targeting Thamizh civilians in the war zone and killing them, with all sorts of weapons, including banned chemical weapons and then committing horrendorous acts on the Thamizh survivors. However the LTTe is guilty of using these Thamizh civilians as human shields by not allowing them to escape and forcibly recruiting , many Thamizh young girls and boys, even when they knew the war was lost. This is a crime but the bigger and larger crime was commited by the Sri Lankan state and the armed forces. Even if the LTTE allowed the Thamizh civilians to flee , the Sri Lankan state and its armed forces would have still killed them and then stated casualties of war. May be the LTTE by not allowing them to flee, may have saved far more than if they had allowed them to flee, at the last moment. In my opinion Sumanthiran, will not do anything to the Eezham Thamizh and will do far more damage to them. The LTTE are no saints and they did commit some atrocities but to equate them to the Sri Lankan statea and its armed forces , that commited large scale killing, rape, ethnic cleansing and war crimes on the island’s Thamizh and are still doing so it rubbish.

      • 5
        4

        Piglet,

        We Tamils are asking for justice from the IC. We supported the armed struggle. But for no reason we can justify anybody’s mistakes or crime. Aanduwa is having counterclaim on LTTE For, with ever the motive (normally these are done for money, position and satisfaction of overruling), Sam-Sum, Thangavel & some others are supporting Aanduwa’s counter claims and trickily loading on those Tamils, that whatever Aanduwa saying of LTTE.

        Under a reasonable inquiry if LTTE or even Tamils are found guilty of any crime, well then we will stand in the front line to accept the responsibility for that. We are not going to say dodging talks like Aanduwa or Sumanthiran or Thangavel, doing for the crime they did. But no trick of Sumanthiran or Thangavel will force us to give up the call for investigation or accept any random accusations on the soldiers who launched the armed struggle. Remember the days Aanduwa sent cinema actresses, Hakeem, Karuna, Deva and GLP to witness in UNHRC that they were in best of their life under Chitanta ruling. We weren’t easily impressed by those, then. Now Thangavel and Sumanthiran are barking at the wrong tree.

        • 6
          2

          Sumanthiran is gradually eroding the ground and base for political justice for Tamils, which you have been vocally criticising.

          Meanwhile, R. Hoole, for the vested interest of his caste status and primarily for the (unfounded and illegitimate that he recently confessed in a different post of https://www.colombotelegraph.com/index.php/nallur-kandasamy-of-the-other-side-nallur-versus-st-james-of-town-side-nellore/ in CT) claim of relatively large piece of land (i.e. Chettiya Thottam, located between Yamuna Veethy) in the neighbourhood in the name of preserving heritage is now destroying societal ground, base and cohesion of Tamil people. R. Hoole may have other motivations for doing so.

          In this, RH seems to have obtained indirect assistance from some (idiotic) people in Jaffna university.

          RH is even ready to deploy lies – especially in terms of history.

          That there was a Portuguese garrison in the North of Chattanaathar Koyil (already asked for evidence and none forthcoming).

          RH also claims that persons of that caste has body features (such as pink skin, grey eyes) as consequence of admixture with Portuguese as a result of Portuguese garrison.

          The character assassination of a particular caste by RH that the people of that caste now use those body features to claim Brahmins caste’s rituals like shorter mourning period.

          • 3
            2

            R. Hoole and the JU clique want to go 500 years back and have the roads by the castes’ name.

            It is one thing to say a particular caste is in such a disposition in the social strata, which is a perspective, controlling narrative etc.

            However, resorting to lies in terms of a well known history and character assassination of a caste will lead to social disharmony and destroy social cohesion among Tamils.

            In the whole attempt, RH (and those Jaffna University idiots) have inadvertently admitted that the caste that they want to be at the top, although forms a slight majority and despite the claim of being rulers etc., do not have any documented history or evidences for their origin.

            This has become a very powerful weapon in the hands of racist Sinhalese historians etc.

            RH has also published a work which seems (I have not read it) to appreciate Navalar’s ‘caste work’.

            All this on the sacrifices of 50, 000 Tamil youth and perhaps 200,000 or more Tamil civilians.

            I now see parallel between how Sumanthiran & RH Co working at the behest of Sinhalese (and Hindia and the West) and Portuguese brought religion to divide Tamils.

            • 2
              0

              KA
              There are many caste names for places in this country, especially N&E, mostly inoffensive.
              People generally do not mind it.
              If there is resentment, people will say so and it can be corrected.
              What are dangerous are caste based attitudes that lie beneath the surface.
              ps.
              I doubt if Hoole has anything to do with the UoJ. (Someone correct me if I am wrong.)

  • 3
    10

    I am amazed at the childish and silly approach of the New Zealand government on this issue. Their laws are so weak that they could not put this man behind bars or deport him. Further they did not know the difference between a Muslim and a Tamil. There is enough evidence about the false allegations against the Sri Lanka’s army by the victims (mostly Tamils) alleged to have been tortured by showing western countries their self inflicted wound scars and the stupid western governments believed in this rubbish and gave them asylum.
    Their courts are just like ours in Sri Lanka taking years to take a decision about the refugee status without deporting this fellow who is a threat to national security

    • 7
      4

      Appa Chami, please explain the difference between a Thamizh and a Muslim. I am eager to know this difference. Thamizh is an ethnicity and being a Muslim is a religious identity . A Thamizh can be a Muslim, Christian, Hindu, Jain, Buddhist , Agnostic, Druid, Tree worshipper or Atheist. However all Muslims cannot be Thamizh. Around 6 million of them are. 4 million in Thamizh Nadu and around 2 million in Sri Lanka. A Muslim can be an Arab, Veddha, African, Chinese, English, Turkish, Eskimo and even you. The so called Sri Lankan Moors or Muslims are ethnic Thamizh Muslims. They are not Arabs , North African Moors or anything else. Some of them may have some Arab, Camel, Afghan, Iranian, North Indian, or even Chingkallam in them but they are a small minority and even these people are of predominant Dravidian Thamizh heritage. Say if I am generous, these part Arab/Camel, Afghan or whatever amongst these Sri Lankan Moors will be around 100000 the most amoingst them The rest around 1.9 million are Dravidian Thamizh who convered to Islam , therfore are Thamizh who follow Islam, as their religion. Hope you undertood this Appu Chami. As for the rest that you posted it is plain rubbish and lies.

      • 0
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        Pandi Kutti, Don’t waste your words here. Thamizh/Muslim=Kallathoni

        • 6
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          Below average IQ Joe , then who are the Chingkallams? The answer is Kallathonis too. A by product of bestiality from somewhere in North East India that coupled with naughty Pandian Thamizh women. Later the descendants of invaders and other immigrants from the Thamizh country in South India, most of whom were deported to the island, against their will. No wonder you are such a violent bunch.

          • 0
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            Kutti, For the atrocities that you guys committed in the country and also for playing havoc in western capitals, one day you will be denied visas to even the HELL! Isn’t it time for you to rehabilitate yourself?

        • 3
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          It is NOT Tamils and Sinhalese, who proudly claim that they were inseminated by a lion into and conceived by a human woman.

          Then they landed by boats some where in current Mannar shore, despite the local opposition at that time, even if all this is true.

          See, Kallathoni defines you.

          But then being average, you might find it difficult to grasp.

          However, the intelligent ones among you (like Dr. Janapriya) are cunningly avoiding and hiding this (the Lion and landing by boats) part of your history to and from foreigners, especially US congress.

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      false allegations against the Sri Lanka’s army by the victims (mostly Tamils) alleged to have been tortured by showing western countries their self inflicted wound scars
      ————-
      Yeah like that watareka vijitha thero monk who was beaten up the BBS monks, tied up gagged and thrown on the street. He later told the police that he ‘did it to himself’

  • 7
    3

    don’t these chaps have a conscience.They get refugee status and then attack the same people who gave them refuge.Imagine someone comes running to your house and claims that they are being chased by somebody and going to be killed and you let them in feed and keep them for years and suddenly they attack and kill your family members.I know that unlike dogs we humans treat gratitude as a passing cloud,but at least the majority of us don’t attack the people who helped us in our time of need.The boston marathon race bombings was also carried out by 2 chechen lads whos parents begged the US to give them refuge from the russian military.Are these humans or wild animals?Just ban muslim refugees from entering your country and problem solved.

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      “don’t these chaps have a conscience”
      This was what many Indians had to say after Rajeev G was killed.

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        Your talks are the worst form of generalization and standardization. It was a great sin that your parents sent you to the West, to study science, which’s understanding was the reasons western societies advanced their civilization to the modern form. You lazily sitting and comparing that because America doing war crime in Middle East, rowdy Royal Aanduwa is justified to do genocide of Tamils. Now you are coming out with a new theory, that to capture the entire Muslim world and rule it, New Zealand supplies arms and training to the ISIS in New Zealand. You are such an imbecile that even after reading and trying to comprehend, you didn’t get what PM Jacinda and many other New Zealand officials have said that “this is one man crime, should be compared or contrasted to anything else”.
        When you were dedicated busboy of, Vasanth’s busboy, you selected some writers and commentators as your enemies and wrote to CT to fire them. You claimed that you were on a mission of cleaning CT. CT has gone far away. Writers, readers, and commentators are recognizing CT’s stand on social issues and its achievements. Soon, even commentator Eagle is going to write something as useful as commentator Ashan. But you fell into the cesspit still enjoying it, without thinking to come out of it. It was a great sin your parents sent you to study science.

        • 4
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          Remember the medication.

          • 2
            2

            So this time you sent the customs’ paper? Thanks for Deva, I can clear the marunthu, after all these time, when the origins certification is received.

      • 3
        3

        Yes but now many Indians, even North Indians have realised that, everything is not black and white, as far as Rajiv Ghandhi was concerned, as he was not experienced as his mother and listened to many anti Tamils from Delhi and Colombo and sent largely Sikh regiments to the Tamil North and East, who instead of keeping peace, were more busy raping,looting and killing innocent Tamil civilians. This is why they were called the Indian raping and looting force. Sending these Sikh regiments to Tamil areas was a deliberate and calculated move by the Ragiv Government, as most of the troops and officers who broke the Sikh uprising and stormed the Golden Temple came from various Madras regiments from Tamil Nadu. The Sikhs were itching take revenge on the Tamils and Raviv del;iberately let them loose on the hapless Sri Lankan Tamils, as they did not want anything to happen to the Tamil Nadu Tamils. He also wanted these Sikh regiments, who were alienated, after the Golden Temple incident, to return as heroes back to India, after they had satiated their revenge against a foreign Tamil population. Killing an ex Indian prime minister was a bad move by the LTTE , however they did this as, there was no action taken agains any Indian army officer or soldier for what happened to the Tamil civilian population in NE Sri Lanka.

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          You as usual conveniently forget to mention, that a Sinhalese soldier hit Rajiv to kill and failed but was treated as a hero and even became and Member of Parliament. Other than the Rajiv incident the LTTE only cofined its activities to the island and 95% of this to Tamil North and East. Whereas Islamic terrorism has only one goal to take over the world in the name of Islam. LTTE;s goad was to liberate the island’s Tamils from state sponsored Sinhalese racism. They were not interested in anythjing else, not even the people of Tamil Nadu. You know all these but deliberately twisting the truth as usual to support Islamic extremists and Sinhalese racist.Other than the Rajiv incident the LTTE only cofined its activities to the island and 95% of this to Tamil North and East. Whereas Islamic terrorism has only one goal to take over the world in the name of Islam. LTTE;s goad was to liberate the island’s Tamils from state sponsored Sinhalese racism. They were not interested in anythjing else, not even the people of Tamil Nadu. You know all these but deliberately twisting the truth as usual to support Islamic extremists and Sinhalese racist.

    • 6
      1

      don’t these chaps have a conscience.They get refugee status and then attack the same people who gave them refuge
      ————
      History repeating itself with them.
      Lankan muslims were given refuge by tamils to settle in the east of sri lanka.
      They showed their gratitude later by helping the sinhala state commit genocide on tamils.

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        2

        They also arrived in the east and were given refuge, as they stated they were ethnic Tamils and as fellow Tamils were given refuge and even Hindu Tamil Mukkuva women as wives. Later repaid this kindness by denying they were Tamil and helping the Sinhalese state to ethnically cleanse and commit genocide on the very same people who gave them refuge. All in the name of Islam and a fake Arab origin. When the Portuguese arrived and started to persecute the Muslims along the North West coast. All the so called Arab men fled back to the Arabian Gulf,taking their families with them or leaving them. The ones who were left behind to face the music, were the Tamil Dravidin Muslims and a few half caste Arab Tamils. Now all claiming to be Arab, when most of them including many of the half castes, had fled to the Arabian Gulf, never to return.

  • 3
    0

    Condemning and judging this one youngster who went astray due to negligence and false information and spread of hate speech against rival groups, in this case the Christian west against the Muslims in social media and forums, show what a vicious world we live in, and why youngsters like him get radicalized in the first place. Many of the ISIS recruits have been radicalized through social media and sites like this one. Freedom of speech and media freedom today is interpreted as a free licence to spread hate and engage in hate speech against communities. Just take a look at hate speech in this site alone. Unfounded made up allegations of genocide is presented as if its an actual fact – there are 10 counts of “genocid..” in the 55 comments we see as of 7th September. One can ask the question as to what the difference is between Tamil youth getting radicalized and forming the LTTE and the ISIS?

  • 1
    0

    The Public Security Ordinance, which is written about extensively, is traced to pre-independent originations to deal with, or, in anticipation of a general strike. OMG! When under the authority of the British, mostly the wealthy Sri Lankans said Aye! Aye! to this Ordnance and they jolly well knew what authority would be passed on to the British Governor to “deal with the situation”. Mind you the Police or the Military could shoot someone in the street like a dog and yet there would be no inquiry and the body could be disposed accordingly should the relevant part of the regulations are invoked, and ALL THIS was to deal with a strike? Why? Because the working population was considered as sub-human, not up to the mark and potential traitors. So! If we have it in the statute book, we had it. Even the Sirisena-Wickramasinghe Yahapalana government did not touch it and they DID make use of it briefly to contain the disturbances that took place, to the extent of shutting down all social media platforms and communicating tools such as Skype WhatsApp etc. We talk a lot about severity of the PTA but never about the PSO (Emergency).

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