By Hilmy Ahamed –
Hilmy Ahamed
The Sirisena-Wickremesinghe nexus Government that the Muslims voted overwhelming (believed to be over 95%) to cause the astonishing regime change from the decade long rule of Mahinda Rajapaksa has totally betrayed the Muslim community by ignoring the plight of the Northern Muslims. These unfortunate Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) were forcibly evicted from their homes in 1990 by the fascist Liberation Tigers of Thamil Eelam (LTTE) with 48 hours notice and in the case of the Jaffna Muslims, it was just a mere two hours notice.
As we remember yet another anniversary this October of the brutal eviction and displacement of the entire population of the Northern Muslims once more, there seems to be no redress to the plight of this unfortunate patriotic citizens who refused to betray the Sri Lankan nation by siding with the LTTE’s Eelam quest. It is 25 years since this tragedy dawned on the unsuspecting Northern Muslims. Why is it that no government in power since 1990 has offered a reasonable solution to the Muslim IDPs, while all other war affected are being adequately addressed. The Tamil population with the support of the Government, the Tamil National Alliance, the International Community and the United Nations Mechanisms seems be heading in the right direction towards their full resettlement. 1055 acres of land that was under armed forces control has been returned to them in Sampur in the Trincomalee district. The Geneva process and the Sirisena-Wickramasinghe administration’s resolve to address the war affected through an internal mechanism does not seem to extend to the Northern Muslims. While addressing the suffering of the Tamil population needs to be appreciated as they suffered for over 30 years under the LTTE brutality and the domination of the Sri Lankan armed forces, it is regrettably that the Northern Muslims who sacrificed their lives by being patriotic Sri Lankans, are not offered any reasonable consideration by the Sri Lankan state or the international community. It is unfortunate that even the Muslim political leadership has been divided over this issue due to their political rivalry. In the absence of state or the international community’s support for their resettlement, even Muslim initiatives to seek financially support from Muslim nations for their resettlement has been challenged by some extremist Buddhists. The Sri Lankan civil society, who would have screamed at the drop of a hat if this had happened to another community, is silent on the Muslim resettlement to say the least. Is this due to Islamaphobia, or is it due to the politics of the land.
Deed of Muslim ownership of land adjoining the Uppu Aru issued under the seal of king Edward the Seventh
President Sirisena, whose dream of high office would never have been a reality if not for the Muslim vote, too accused the Muslim IDPs of Musali south of encroaching in to the Wilpatu and Kalaru reserves and clearing forestland. This is a totally misconceived perception and is a fabrication caused by some extremist Buddhists and misguided environmentalists. The Musali IDP’s are going back to their own lands that they were forced to abandoned by the LTTE’s ethnic cleansing in 1990. During a recent visit to the area, I personally witnessed the ridges of paddy fields that the Muslims abandoned and other signs of farming in areas that the forest department has now demarcated as forest reserves. It is ironic that all the circulars and amendments to the Forest, National environment, Antiquities Ordinance, Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance that deprive Muslim resettlement had been brought in only after the Muslims were evicted from their lands in 1990. Is this a deliberate attempt by the Government to permanently ethnically cleanse the Muslims from the North? While the Muslims are denied their resettlement, it is alleged that the Rajapaksa administration with the assistance of the armed forces settled over 3500 alien Sinhala families from Hambantota and Suriyawewa clearing thousands of acres of forestland in the Northern province. The Armed forces too occupy large extents of civilian land in the Musali area where military camps were established during the war.
The following are some of the legislation that has been used to deprive the Muslims of their lands:
National Environmental Act
Act No. 47 of 1980 (Section 23)
Act No. 56 of 1988 (Section 23Y, 23Z, 23AA)
Gazette No. 772/22 (1993.06.18 – Order under Section 23Y)
Amendment No.53/2000 (Section 23A)
Circular 05/2001
Antiquités Ordinance
Act no. 12 of 2005
Gazette Notification No.1152/14–2000
Amendment No. 24 of 1998 (Section 40B, 43A(1)
Antiquities Ordinance –(no. 7, 8 and 20)
Fauna and Flora Protection Ordinance
As amended by Acts Nos. 44 of 1964, 1 of 1970 and 49 of 1993
Section 2(1), 2(4), 3(1), 3(3), 6, 67(f), 71(4)
Gazette Notification No. 1779/15 of 2012
Amendment Act No. 22 of 2009
Forests Act
Chapter 283 of the Forests Ordinance (Section 3 and 4(2)
Circular No. 5 of 2001
Gazette Notification (1779/15 of 2012
The former administration of Mahinda Rajapaksa is also accused of amending the Forest Ordinance and declaring large extents of lands as forest reserves through Global Positioning System (GPS) Mapping undertaken from Colombo prior to the Provincial Council elections of 2012 even without consulting the divisional secretaries of the area. This is believed to be a deliberate attempt to deprive the Northern Provincial Council (which the Mahinda Rajapaksa government knew would lose to the TNA) the extensive land powers that are vested in the Provincial Councils. The Muslims who were not allowed to return to their lands were not identified in this mapping due to their displacement in various camps across the country.
Map showing the recent settlements that are 1.25 KM away from the Wilpattu border
It is an obvious reality that there would be natural forest growth in the 25 years of abandonment, yet the forest growth in their lands is not ancient and is a mere 25 years. The LTTE and the Sri Lankan armed forces prevented the Muslims from returning to their lands during the period of their eviction.
The returning Muslim IDPs have in their possession title deeds to their lands in Musali south that have been issued under the seal of King Edward the seventh of England in 1906. One of these deeds is for a land that is adjoining the Uppu Aru that is only a few meters away from the boarder of the Wilpattu National Wildlife Reserve. Yet, the current resettlement of the Musali Muslims that was approved by the former governments’ powerful Presidential Task Force (PTF) that was headed by President Mahinda Rajapaksa’s sibling Basil Rajapaksa is 1.25 Kilometers away from the Wilpattu National Reserve. The PTF constituted of government institutions that included the representatives from the Forest and Environment departments, the divisional secretaries, representatives of armed forces and all other institutions involved in the resettlement of the war affected.
The “Right of Return” is a principle, which is drawn from the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. That right should not be deprived to the Northern Muslims to go back and cultivate their lands due to a continued racist agenda of a few. Let us resolve as a nation to address all the issues of the war affected through the proposed local mechanisms without any racial discrimination.
Susantha Ratnayake / October 25, 2015
Here goes the Muslim crusader again. He talks only about the Muslims. How about everyone else who have been displaced including the Sinhalese from Jaffna and the migratroy fishermen from Negambo who are not allowed to fish in Tricomalee anymore? Yahapalanaya should address these too
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Don Stanley / October 25, 2015
Yahapalanaya is a joke!
Lankan civil society needs to go on the offensive against Ranil Wickramasinghe who is promoting corruption and hate speech of Wimal Weerawansa and providing immunity and impunity for corrupt politicians.
Civil society groups must file a case against PM Ranil Wickramasinghe for corruption and aid and abetting corrupt politicians like Wimal Weerawansa to avoid the law. Ranil has also humiliated CID and airport security officials who rightly arrested Weerawansa and is promoting a CULTURE OF IMPUNITY AND IMMUNITY for corrupt politicians. Ranil Wickramsinghe’s intervention to facilitate Wimal Weerawansaas’ travel is a grave injustice against the people of Sri Lanka who voted for good governance. Wimal Weerawansa and his wife have 2 passports each. There is one law for ordinary people who have only one passport and another for corrupt politicians. Weerawansa is corrupt and gave houses to his relatives but is scott free. So too is Ranil Wickramasinghe who has systematically encouraged a CULTURE OF CORRUPTION AND IMPUNITY in Sri Lankan POLITICAL CULTURE. The politicians of all partieis think they are above the law because both Ranil and Mahind Jarapassa are alike – literally, morally and ethically CORRUPT.
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Dinuk / October 26, 2015
Ranil now has the GOD complex that Mahinda Jarapassa used to have. He thinks that is KING OF LANKA and can twist the law and legal process to bail out corrupt clowns like WImal Weerawansa and Arjuna Mahendran the corrupt insider trader at the Central Bank who does not have the qualifications for the job of CB chief in any case.
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Native Vedda / October 25, 2015
Susantha Ratnayake
“How about everyone else who have been displaced including the Sinhalese from Jaffna”
How many Sinhalese were there in Jaffna when they were displaced? Do you know how many Sinhalese are there now, about 100,000.
Do you know how many Tamils were ethnically cleansed under Sri Mao/Sashthri pact, over 250,000 stateless people were sent to Tamil Nadu.
” the migratroy fishermen from Negambo who are not allowed to fish in Tricomalee anymore?”
Are you sure?
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John Nathan / October 26, 2015
There are over 200,000 Sinhalese settlers planted and another 100,000 Soldiers sucking the blood of the Tamils in Jaffna. What do you mean by Sinhala resettlement. This is pure colonsation of Tamil land
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Ben Hurling / October 26, 2015
Dear Johnnie,
What is that you want?
1. De-militarization?
2. De-Signalization?
3. De-Islamization?
How about all 3? Will those steps, even then, satisfy your forever “grieving” ethnic Tamil only mindset?
Let the country know your burning heartache about following pressing matters too:
1. What shall we do about the “colonization” of Colombo by Tamils? Including those who are migrating back from economic refuge in the West. They buy more than a few condos in Colombo & elsewhere.
2. How about the “colonization” of Sri Lanka’s central hill country, or Sinhalese heartland by Indian estate Tamils? Shall we revoke their Sri Lankan citizenship? Shall we re-ignite the Sirima-Shastri pact to pack them off to Tamil Nadu again?
3. If there is Tamil only land in Sri Lanka, are there special zones for Islamic, Burgher, Malay, Colombo Chetty, Bora & indigenous people as well?
4. Do we need to seek permit from Chief Minister to migrate between each other’s lands with in Sri Lanka?
Cheers!
PS: When will Tamils end the colonization of Toronto, Canada? A whopping 250 000 of them. Please vacate the area. Leave Canada for native, North American Indian tribes only.
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soma / October 26, 2015
Well said BH well said. This is precisely what I mean when I repeatedly say:
“IN VIEW OF THE PRESENT DEMOGRAPHIC DISTRIBUTION PATTERN OF TAMIL SPEAKING PEOPLE (IRRESPECTIVE OF THEIR RELIGION OR THE DATE OF ARRIVAL) IN THE ISLAND THERE IS NO CONCEIVABLE DEVOLUTION MODEL TO SATISFY POLITICAL ASPIRATIONS OF AT LEAST 90% OF THEM.”
Please join me to drive this message into the heads of scheming Tamil racists (little now and more later), cunning Muslim fundamentalists (lie low now and multiply) and dumb Sinhala modayas(sleep comfortably today)
Soma
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John Nathan / October 27, 2015
Soma, racist like you are the ones who made the brutal Sri Lankan army kill 120,000 innocent Tamils. Do not believe that we are fished. We will come back and that time is not too far
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soma / October 28, 2015
JN, of course I know you are lying in wait to pounce back. That is why why I am cautioning the Sinhalese.
Soma
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Native Vedda / October 28, 2015
somass
“That is why why I am cautioning the Sinhalese.”
You are not cautioning the Sinhalese on the contrary you are infecting them with delirium.
Delirium caused by:
. infection
• the drugs given to patients to help them get better
• kidney failure
• lung failure
• heart failure
Definition
Delirium is a medical condition characterized by a vascillating general disorientation, which is accompanied by cognitive impairment, mood shift, self-awareness, and inability to attend (the inability to focus and maintain attention). The change occurs over a short period of time— hours to days— and the disturbance in consciousness fluctuates throughout the day.
minddisorders.com
“JN, of course I know you are lying in wait to pounce back.”
Good reason to double defense spending, recruit more men to the armed forces, …………… allow defense suppliers to increase their total wealth.
You too can be a member of merchants of death circle.
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John Nathan / October 27, 2015
Ben, we are talking about our homeland and not canada or any other planet. F,,,k yourself out of our homeland and we will take care of ourselves. We would never have left the country if not for the brutal massacre of Tamils from 1956 onwards.
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Dr. Gnana Sankaralingam / October 28, 2015
Dear Ben Hurling,
Please state the truth and be fair in your comments.
Tamils from north migrated to the south only after British rule, where the economy and development was centered around plantation. Their economy was in shambles and they had no other way to survive. My grand parents came to Colombo for job, and I was a resident of Colombo for 44 years since birth till I migrated abroad. Tamils are in Colombo as economic migrants while Sinhala settlers in North and east are political migrants under the guise of economic migration. Tamils never changed Sinhala place names to Tamil, put up hindu statues in junctions, erected state buildings in Tamil architecture, killed Sinhalese, burnt their properties and committed ethnic cleansing and claiming parts of the province as theirs. tamils are living in the south under Sinhala rule, while Sinhalese are not living in north or east under Tamil rule. This is the difference between Tamils in the South and Sinhalese in North and east.
Tamils from South India were brought down only because Sinhalese refused to work in the plantation in appaling condition for a paltry salary and with poor health and educational facilities. They also worked in building roads and railway, during which a fair amount of them died. Despite they shedding their sweat and tears to develop the country, Sinhalese without any sense of gratitude deported one million of them, making the worst case of ethnic cleansing in the world after end of second world war. Yes you can deport them, but kindly request all foreign countries to deport all their sinhalese citizens back to Srilanka.
Tamils have a right to claim parts of Srilanka as areas where they had lived for more than 2000 years. Last month while digging in a temple in Batticaloa, they had discovered a well with Tamil brahmi inscription which archeologists say is over 2000 years old. Similar objects of antiquity have been discoverd in other parts of batticaloa as well as in Vanni, Puttalam and Poonagari proving that Tamils lived there. Also the five Shiva temples go to prove that Saivaism existed in Srilanka before Buddhism. Though there was no established Tamil kingdoms before the advent of Jaffna kingdom, there were areas under Tamil chieftains. While Tamils ruled entire Srilanka for 50 years and Jaffna Kingdom for 200 years before Portuguese conquest, Muslims, Malays, Borahs or Colombo Chettys never had soverignty over any part of Srilanka.
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sach / October 26, 2015
There is no tamil land in SL
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John Nathan / October 27, 2015
The Tamil lands existed from the time of Ellala
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Siva Sankaran Sarma / October 28, 2015
And they still exist as they always have – in We Thamizh Nadu :D
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Sylvia Haik / October 26, 2015
John Nathan, there’s no such thing as Tamil Land, or Muslim Land or indeed Sinhalese Land in Sri Lanka. Just because there’s a concentration of any particular race in an area does not make it their exclusive. Irrespective of race or religion, any Sri Lankan should be able to reside wherever he or she likes and in fact such diversity should be positively encouraged.
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John Nathan / October 27, 2015
Until the Sinhalese claim that the South is there’s. We will claim the north east as our. They Muslims can go to hell or saudi arabia if they want
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John Nathan / October 26, 2015
There are over 200,000 Sinhalese settlers planted and another 100,000 Soldiers sucking the blood of the Tamils in Jaffna. What do you mean by Sinhala resettlement. This is pure colonization of Tamil land
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soma / October 26, 2015
“Do you know how many Tamils were ethnically cleansed under Sri Mao/Sashthri pact, over 250,000 stateless people were sent to Tamil Nadu.”
What stateless?
They are Tamil Nadu citizens. You are talking as if they came from other side of the world and were being packed off to Tamil Nadu.
Colonisation was over and arrangements were made to come out of their menial, slavish, miserable life(which they continue to live to this day) and live among their countrymen as equals sharing their own language, culture and religion.
Population density of Sri Lanka is even higher than that of India.
You people did not want to accept them into Jafna (they say It was Ponnambalam in DS government who was most insistent in sending them home!) nor to be citizens of a zooming superpower. You guys seem to derive a sadistic satisfaction in that most pathetic life they continue to live among the uncaring, discriminatory, genocidal Sinhala Buddhists.
Their children and their children are likely to end up as domestics.
India must offer them dual citizenship. Let them come out of this misery.
TNA must make a concerted effort to settle them in Jafna.
Soma
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Tariq Rasheed / October 25, 2015
Susantha, racist like you cannot believe that people like Ahmed can defend their the Muslim ummah single handedly. Ahamed had continued to present the issues of northern displacement because none of the Muslim politicians have done their duty. I wish Ahamed will enter politics and represent the Muslims in parliment.
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Jim softy / October 25, 2015
He can talk only muslims, only about Quran , only about Allah, only about killing infidels.
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Fazeel / October 26, 2015
I hope he starts by killing infidels like you, jimmy sofie with an iron heart
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Samuel / October 26, 2015
Why you guys have no patience at all. Not even a year passed since it started. How can you draw conclusions about the yahapalanaya. Besides, how can you expect 1000% good governance in a country almost half or more of vote eligible people behaves as if they dont care but say yes to crime friendly leaders. All in all – not only politicians, but the folks let it go not taking the responsiblity of their side. And also prfossionals of the day dont do that much in terms of people awareness programs. Informaton should go to every corner that crime friendly people should be brought before investigations. Latter should be clear to anyone of the nation. Just because ones speak or drop down statements containing so called nationalistic contents – meaning know that the folks should follow them. They shoudl raise the question who are we – response is we are all srilankens that need to be shared with the same spoon. None of the srilankens shouls be disregarded. That is the nation of any country with good governance systems.
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Samuel / October 26, 2015
typo – that is the nature of any country with good governance systems
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Samuel / October 26, 2015
As one who travels a lot across the globe, more in Europe, I will add you – no any airport immigration officers would allow the like to board if the canddiates have no valid passports. So drama queen or the penis of MR could add anything about the incident, but this will remain a fact.
But we the folks that thought law and order would be the top of agenda in the newly elected govt, are bit disppointed looking at the manner, PM not taking strict actions against the candiate. This man is a criminal by all means. That mayoral canddiate of the areas -Buddhadsa revealed a lot about the man- and not anyone with sane mind would ever agree with Buruwanse even if 0.3 millions of mentally retarded vulnerable folks voted for him. 0.3/15 mio of the vote eligible are born fools.
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frank / October 29, 2015
Susantha Ratnayaka does not like three quarters. He likes aanamaalu from the rear.
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Paul / October 25, 2015
Why unlike all other previous governments since independence they do not pander to Muslims backstabbing the island’s Tamils to gain undue concessions and privileges for them and stealing their land?
First of all Muslims should return all the lands they illegally stole from the Tamils in the east, when they ethnically cleansed them, largely from the Amparai and Trincomallee districts. What is good for the goose is also good for the gander.
Very quiet about what the Muslims did to the Tamils down south and in the east, but jump up and down about what happened to the Northern Muslims. No one is stopping them from returning, However we do not want thousands of out of area Muslims settled under the pretext of settling the northern Muslims, to deliberately create Muslims majority enclaves in the north that were never there. Like what a nasty Muslim politician from Mannar was doing with the help of the Rajapakse government. The Muslims were then very quiet about this, as this suited their agenda. We also want all those illegal Muslim settlements that were recently created by that nasty Muslim politician from Mannar to be dismantled as these Muslims are not from the north but from the south.
Lastly to aid true reconciliation in the island. Muslims should stop conniving with racist Sinhalese government to deliberately backstab the island’s Tamil population in order to deny their just rights to their ancient history lands and rights in the island. Remember it was because of the generosity of the Tamils their kings/chiefs and the Tamil Nayakar kings of Kandy that the Muslims, fleeing from Sinhalese and European colonial persecution, were allowed to settle in the east and north a few centuries ago. They have only repaid this by backstabbing us and conniving with the Sinhalese to deliberately steal our lands. Especially in the east.
Please also acknowledge that 99% of the Muslims in the island are descended from largely immigrant converted Dravidian Tamils from India. A little bit of Arab in a few hundred Muslim families does not make them or the entire island’s population Arab. We all have a little bit of something in all if us, however we do not claim that little bit as our ancestry and completely ignore and deride that very large large bit, that makes up who we are.
The Sri Lankan Muslims are Tamil by ethnicity and Muslim by religion. The Portuguese when they described the island’s Muslims as Moors, were only referring to their religion and not to their race or ethnicity. As they only Muslims they encountered prior to their voyages, were the Moors who ruled the Iberian peninsular. The Portuguese since then have used the term Moor, to describe any Muslim they encountered in the continent of Africa or Asia. The Sri Lankan Muslim’s have jumped on to this incorrect reference by the Portuguese to falsely claim an Arab/Moorish heritage.
The Portuguese first incorrectly referred to the Sinhalese as Siamese.as they were Buddhists and the island’s Tamils as Malabar, as they first encountered the Malabar from Kerala and the Tamils spoke a very similar language and looked like them. So do the Island’s Sinhalese or Tamils now claim a Siamese or Malabar origin respectively as the Portuguese described them as such?
Islam is a religion that people from many races language groups and ethnicity follow and it is not an ethnicity. Even the worship and forms of Islam very from country to country. Only in Sri Lanka has it become an ethnicity, this was easy as 99% of the island’s Muslims did belong to one ethnic group. Dravidian Tamils who spoke Tamil and all belonged to the ancient almost 1000 year old Tamil form of Sufi Islam from India. This was done deliberately by the British and later by all ruling Sinhalese government, with the connivance of the selfish southern Muslim elite, to deliberately divide and weaken the Tamils. Please acknowledge all these truths and then there can be reconciliation
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Shantha Bandara / October 25, 2015
Mr Paul, you and your racist politicians have sucked up to Norway and the west and forced the spineless Ranil Wickramasinghe to give you a free hand to demand anything and everything from the Sri Lankan government which has been granted on a platter. Remember, if this stupid lot concedes anything more, the people will rally round the leader who saved the nation, Mahinda Rajapaksa and eliminate the racist agenda as he did to your beloved Praba, the beast
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Native Vedda / October 25, 2015
Shantha Bandara
“Mr Paul, you and your racist politicians have sucked up to Norway and the west and forced the spineless Ranil Wickramasinghe to give you a free hand to demand anything and everything from the Sri Lankan government which has been granted on a platter. “
Here we go again.
Norway was brought in by Hindia and USA to break LTTE’s backbone.
The strategy is called Sun Tzu’s “Keep your friends close and your enemy closer”. Michael Corleone also used it as his father Vito Corleone advised him.
One needs to be bit sophisticated to understand these advanced strtegies.
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Rartiyminds / October 26, 2015
pLEASE check your self that anatomical changes are seen in you – there should be tail similar that of a monkey – else, you would not have thought this way. Please check it yourself, so that we can make our minds. How can anyone be supportive to Rajapakshes anymoe. If he saved the nation ? my foot, he saved his pocket allowing all criminals to get bred easily. Alone for that, leaving war crimes aside, man should be executed. Basta.
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John Nathan / October 27, 2015
Until the Sinhalese claim that the South is there’s. We will claim the north east as our. They Muslims can go to hell or saudi arabia if they want
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Native Vedda / October 28, 2015
John Nathan
“Until the Sinhalese claim that the South is there’s. We will claim the north east as our. “
And we will claim the entire island is ours.
“They Muslims can go to hell or saudi arabia if they want”
If that is a serious enough point, then the Tamils and their brethren should be sent back to their ancestral land, Tamilnadu.
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Ahmed Reza / October 25, 2015
Hilmy Ahamed
Stop wasting time writing sob stories trying to elicit sympathy and gratitude from the Government. The Government is there to grab what belongs to Muslims and hand over to the Sinhalese. Remember why the CWE, the State Trading Corp, Gem Corporation etc were started? To stop the commerce where Muslims thrived, take over for the Government, and install Sinhala Buddhists in employment.
Start a compaign to find financing for the Muslim population to engage in Industry, Real Estate, Tourism, Building Construction, and Import Export Trade. There is plenty of talent available in the Muslim Community to achieve a high class result. Among the overseas-resident Sri Lankan Muslim Community there is plenty of specialized expertise in all of these fields. Once the opportunities are cultivated the expats will definitely rush back.
No need to beg. No need to be parasites on others. No need for politics. No need for conflict. Convince the world-wide Muslim Ummah of 1 billion people. Sri Lanka Muslim community has the potential to prosper and shine. We will be able to buy all the land our Community needs; in due course the Sinhala politicians too, with money earned. Start canvassing for Capital now. Stop wasting time.
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taraki / October 25, 2015
The idea that Sri Lankan Muslims are descended from Arab traders is absurd. They do not speak Arabic (apart from what they learn by heart for the Koran). They do not dress like Arabs, the hijab etc are recent innovations. There are no Arabic influences in their food, music, lierature etc. They are Muslims from South India, that is why they all speak Tamil.
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frank / October 25, 2015
Have you inspected any Muslim penis? Experience one for fun’s sake; from rear is best.
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Susantha Ratnayake / October 26, 2015
Frank, it seems you have experienced and enjoyed it from the rear. I prefer a full banana than 3/4’s of it
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frank / October 29, 2015
Glad to hear. In that case I will be pleased to oblige you with my 9 inch aanamaalu.
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Native Vedda / October 25, 2015
taraki
“The idea that Sri Lankan Muslims are descended from Arab traders is absurd.”
If that is absurd how would you describe the claim that both Tamils and Sinhalese are natives of this island? How absurd is it?
Tamils say once upon a time their ancestors originated from Harrapan (Indus Valey) Civilisation. Sinhalese now claimed to have traced their origin to Mohenjo-daro (Indus Valley) Civislisation, (Ranil Wickremesinghe said Mohenjo-Daro civilization dates back up to 2,500 BC compared and belongs to the so-called Bronze Age, compared to the later Iron Age which dates from around 1,000 BC or younger. These people belonged to the Indo-Aryan language group)..
How absurd is this claim?
One thing is abundantly clear, that the stupid Tamils and stupid Singhalese came from North South India on Kallathonies hence they must not make a first claim to this island. Ultimately that is what matters.
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Thassim / October 26, 2015
Sinhalese and Tamils are both Dravidian and aborigine mix. Look at skin color and features. Not Aryan.
Muslim Lankans ARE TAMIL SPEAKERS. THEY ARE DRAVIDIAN.
Having said that remember how Indian Hindus massacred Muslims when Uncle Modi was Chief Minister of Gujarat?
Hindu Muslim rivalry in India is as ancient as the Partition. It was tragic. Hindus raped and killed and burnt Muslims and Muslims did the same to Hindus and Sikhs.
Sri Lanka never had such problems. In 1915 Muslims stoned a Buddhist traditional holy parade and started violence and provoked a brutal crackdown where people were shot dead in cold blood by British Mercenaries that included Malay troops. But that was during British rule. Sri Lanka SHOULD NEVER discriminate against hard working honest Muslims who have always been peaceful in Sri Lanka since independence.
The exception are the racist extremists who engaged in land grabbing and heroin trading in Mannar and Talaimannar. I will like Hilmy to discuss that. Otherwise Hilmy is right on target here talking about Tamil Racists ethnically cleansing peaceful Muslims from Jaffna by expelling 95,000 people in 48 hours. Jehan Pachaya and Paikyasoththi did not cry for them. Paikyasoththi was busy trying to stave off the defeat of Tamil Tigers and screamed about a few Tamils being sent back from Colombo at a a time Suicide Bombers were all across Colombo and were wreaking havoc. I lived in Colombo back then. The infiltrators had bribed and outsmarted SL Sinhala forces or were operating in secret locations. All Gotabaya did was send back a few dozens.
Compare that to ethnic cleansing of Muslims by Racists both Hindu and Christian Tamil Tigers.
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whywhy / October 25, 2015
[Edited out] Please avoid typing all capitalized comments – CT
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Fazeel / October 25, 2015
Paul, are you from planet earth or an alien from mars. You are a bloody racist who is talking nonsense. The Muslims are not allowed to return by racist Buddhists like you and Gnanasara. The Muslims were evicted because they stood by as…holes like you in preventing the separation of our country
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frank / October 25, 2015
Paul is a Tamil racist. But what’s so different from a Buddhist racist. Either will readily drink the other’s blood.
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Native Vedda / October 26, 2015
frank
“Paul is a Tamil racist. But what’s so different from a Buddhist racist. Either will readily drink the other’s blood.”
Are the Tamils and Sinhalese vampires, Dracula, ………. mosquito, bedbug, lamprey ………..? You can only chose one.
And your name suggests you are a secular politically correct European Vegan. I believe you.
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Fathima / October 25, 2015
Paul, ethnicity and identity are separate issues, and speaking of them, we Muslims may have Arab-Tamil or Arab- Sinhala blood in us. We Muslims call ourselves as not Tamil Muslims or Sinhala Muslims, but Sri Lankan Muslims, and we’re capable of deciding our identity as much as other communities can theirs. But in this discussion, Hilmy refers to a group of Sri Lankans who have also been victims of war. As citizens of this country, they too have the right to demand redress as any citizen. We can expect it if Yahapalanaya really exists. Justice should be equal to all Sri Lankans. It wasn’t so during the previous regime, and they got thrown out. This government seems to be turning towards the same path. The people will decide when elections come.
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Fazeel / October 25, 2015
Does it really matter to you whether we are Muslims from Arab ancestry or Indian? The Sri Lankan Muslims are the most trilingual community in the country, and there is no need for them to speak the language of the Arabs. I hope that you are fluent in Sanskrit ,Hindi and bengali , because that is what your lord Buddha and that criminal Vijaya, whose decedent you probably are
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Paul / October 26, 2015
Does it really matter! SO then why claim a fake Arab origin and pathetically try to ape the Arabs in all manner. Names dress and even in the form of worship and discard your 1000 year old Tamil Islamic Sufi Tradition customs, dress and despise your real Dravidian Hindu Tamil origin from India?
Racist which community was the one that connived with the Sinhalese from the time of independence to deny the Tamils their rights and their land. What the LTTE did to the northern Muslims was wrong and every Tamil admitted to this, however this was a reaction to constant Muslim treachery towards their fellow Hindu and Christian Tamils from the time of independence. Has any Muslim every acknowledged the treachery towards their fellow Hindu and Christian Tamils since independence and the Muslim atrocities towards their fellow Tamils in the south and east? The answer is no. They just turn a blind eye to this and jump up and down very selectively only about the Muslims.
The Tamils are not preventing the Northern Muslims from returning nor have they stolen their land. In contrast the Muslims have stolen all ethnically cleansed Tamil lands in the east and are preventing the Tamils from returning. Further instead of settling the displaced northern Muslims, a nasty Muslim politician from Mannar was busy settling thousands of out of area southern Muslims in certain parts of Mannar and the Vanni, to increase his voter base and create Muslim majority enclaves that were never there at all. All this done with funds from the Gulf. To highlight this is racist to you? Racist! The Muslims and the Tamils of Sri Lanka belong to the same race. You can have your religious identity as Muslims and no one is stopping but stop trying to create a false ethnic identity with a fake Arab origin. Even the Arabs do not accept this and have correctly classified the Sri Lankan Muslims as converted South Asians.
Remember like the Sinhalese are indigenous to the southern seven provinces and it is accepted that these are their lands. The Tamils of the north and east are the real indigenous population of this region. All the others there are only very recent settlers and this includes the Muslims there. The Sinhalese only came here after independence. Illegally settled on largely ethnically cleansed lands by all Sri Lankan governments after independence. People who were illegally settled on ethnically cleansed lands have no right to clamour to return, as they were there on stolen illegal land in the first place. Irrespective of who settled them. At least thanks to Tamil genericity towards their fellow Tamil Muslims,the Muslims have been there for a few centuries.
No one condones the killing and ethnic cleansing of anyone. However the chasing away of an indigenous population in their hundreds of thousands and stealing their land is a bigger crime and this is what happened to the Tamils in the north and east by the Sri Lankan armed forces the Sinhalese settlers and the Muslims who only came there a few centuries ago as refugees. No one ever chased killed or ethnically cleansed Sinhalese from the south. This is the truth that no one wants to acknowledge but clamours about resettling people who in the first instance should never have been there.
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sach / October 26, 2015
hey you racist scumbug……the only ones who have their rear sides burning for Muslims not calling themselves tamils is tamils. So dont drag sinhalese in your tamil-muslim issues.
And we dont have to pay anything for your allegiance for SL during war. Remember that…either you are with us and be defended by us or else you are against us and killed by us..
You just saved ur selves by choosing the winning side.
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Paul / October 26, 2015
It is you who is the racist scum bag. Don’t involve the Sinhalese! The Sinhalese are the basic cause for all this problem and the Muslims in the island were aiding and abetting you racist for their own selfish ends.
The Muslims in the island are Tamils and that is the truth. It is Sinhalese racists like you and the selfish Muslim elite in the south who have their rear sides burning, as they do not want to acknowledge this obvious truth that the Muslims in the island are Tamils by race/ethnicity and want to stick to this Arab origin fairy tale as one lot wants to divide and rule the island’s Tamil population and the other lot for their own selfish political and economic ends. Short and sweet.
Most probably you do not know the meaning of racist. Stating the obvious truth is not racism Racism is when you advocate hatred harm and insults to another ethnic linguistic or racial group. I have never done this.
The Muslims of Sri Lanka are Tamil by ethnicity so how can I as another Tamil be racist towards them. Please use your brains. Calling me by various names will not stop me from stating the truth.
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sach / October 26, 2015
If the Muslims are tamils and if they dont like to call them tamil deal it with them…We dont care…and LTTE and tamil tribalism is the reason muslims had to flee north..
We have nothing to do.
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Paul / October 27, 2015
We don’t care two hoots if they don’t want to call themselves Tamils but let them not start creating fake Arab origins just like the fake Aryan origin for the Sinhalese and twist and lie about their real origins and history with the help of a racist Sinhalese population and the government.
Like I stated earlier this was deliberately done to deny the ancient history and presence of the Tamils in the island that predates the Sinhalese identity and was also done to weaken the Tamils in the island by dividing and ruling them.
Tamils are not good but their language food culture ( Most of the so called Muslim food like Kottu roti Wattlapam are from south India) and stealing Tamil land is good. They don’t want to be Tamils so why do they want to return to the north or steal large parts of the east from its real owners the Tamils? They can all sit in the south amongst the Sinhalese, after all they always sided with the Sinhalese and back stabbed the Tamils from the work go, but they do not want to. They want their Islamic sanctuaries amongst the Tamils, as they have always felt safer amongst the Tamils, as they know in their hearts that they are Tamils and not fake Arabs. They fled to the east from European and Sinhalese persecution.
It was not Tamil tribalism that stated all this but Sinhalese racism and Muslim cunningness and opportunism. The LTTE is a child of Sinhalese racism. You seem to have forgotten the large scale destruction that was done by the Muslim thugs and hooligans to the Tamils down south during every state sponsored anti Tamil pogrom. The thousands of Tamils who were ethnically cleansed by the Muslim home guards and the Sri Lankan Special Task force in the Trincomallee and Amparai distrcits. These Tamils have never been allowed to return and their land now illegally stolen by the Muslims. Every one is very silent about this. The LTTE chased these Muslims from the north as they were caught spying for the Sinhalese armed forces. They did not want a repeat of what happened in the south and east. Remember it if the Tamils who are the real owners and the indigenous population of the North and East not these immigrant Dravidian converts from Tamil Nadu and then Tamil Kerala nor the Sinhalese convicts who were settled there illegally by the government. Over 300000 Tamils were deliberately killed hundreds of thousands were ethically cleansed from their lands by the Sinhalese racist and these fake Arab low caste immigrant Indian Tamil converts who came to the north and east as refugees. 1.2 million indigenous Tamils had fled the country that is all ignored nor the illegal settlement of thousands of out of area Muslims by the nasty Muslim politician from Mannar but only jump up an down about a few thousand Muslims and Sinhalese. Very selective amnesia. No one ethnically cleansed any Sinhalese from the south, however hundreds of thousands of Tamils were killed and ethnically cleansed from their lands in the north and east and 1.2 million forced to flee, all because of Sinhalese racism Muslim backstabbing and opportunism. That is all fine for you. Create all the damage and then blame the victim. The LTTE is dead and gone more than six years but still blaming the LTTE for current Sinhalese racism. There was not LTTE for the first 30 years of independence, so what was the excuse for the racist Sinhalese genocidal dance and these fake Aran low caste Dravidian converts from South India backstabbing the island’s indigenous Tamils?
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Marrikar Deen / October 25, 2015
I am shocked to see the racist comments of sinhalese and tamils. The Muslims have suffered for more thank 25 years for no fault of their own. Cannot they be resettled when the government of Mahinda Rajapaksa and Maithripala Sirisena is doing everything to the Tamils. The Muslims too are citizens of this country and they are in this situation because they prevented the separation of our motherland
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Native Vedda / October 25, 2015
Marrikar Deen
“I am shocked to see the racist comments of sinhalese and tamils.”
Do you really?
“The Muslims have suffered for more thank 25 years for no fault of their own”
What were the Muslims MPs, Ministers, Business men, bureaucrats, people doing all these years?
“Cannot they be resettled when the government of Mahinda Rajapaksa and Maithripala Sirisena is doing everything to the Tamils.”
I take your advise. So you want the government to stop everything they are doing to the Tamils and start helping just the Muslims? Good idea.
“The Muslims too are citizens of this country and they are in this situation because they prevented the separation of our motherland “
How did they prevent separation while some of the businessmen were supplying prohibited goods to LTTE, of course for a profit?
Why don’t you raise these issues with your own politicians who have been carrying b***s far too long for the ruling clan?
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Marrikar Deen / October 26, 2015
Native, hilmy has stated clearly that the Muslim politicians have failed because they are more interested in their ever growing bank balances than their community. There is a need for a Muslim LTTE to wipe out all the corrupt Muslim politicians as was done by the tigers.
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Ranjith Fernando / October 25, 2015
The Muslim IDP factor should be given priority in the current governments attempts to find a permanent solution to the ethnic crisis. Without providing a solution to the Muslims, their attempt will fail. They can pamper the Tamils to please the west, but the wrath of the Arab nations will bring back the 1 million guest workers that the Muslims employ. Can our economy sustain such a disaster? Further, the concessionary oil deals that we receive from Iran too would evaporate. The stupidity of our politicians should not destroy the future of Sri Lanka. The west will never stand by us. We need to strengthen our ties with China and the Arabs. Gaddafi wrote a cheque for 500 million dollars when we won the war in 2009 and the west were angry that their darling tigers were eliminated. Gadafi’s 500 million saved Sri Lanka. Let us show some gratitude
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Douglas / October 26, 2015
Who brought “Yahapalanay” effective January 8, 2015? All the citizens of the country that include Sinhala, Tamil, Muslim and any others whom you wish to name in that terminology. In my opinion “Yahapalanay” was the wish of all the people of the country irrespective of that “Tribal” identity. So isn’t it time and relevant to what the “Yahapalanaya” must bring to ALL of us. Let us get together and discuss whether that “Yahapalanay” has let “US” down or if so what we must do about it.
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Jim softy / October 26, 2015
Muslims were in both sides of the war.
It is Hakeem like politicians who shook hands with Pabakakran. It is some Muslim drug traffickers who provided funds to LTTE.
Now you come and talk about muslim refugees who a re living for 30 years in Puttalam. YOu say they are refugees.
that is why Rishad Bathiuddain is clearing even the Wild Life Sancturary to establish muslim villages.
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fazeel Hussain / October 26, 2015
Native, many of your Sinhala Buddhist not only was shaking hands, but probably shaking a lot more of Pranba, Thamil Chelvam and Anton Balasingham. They would have loved to squeeze Adele’s too, but that was reserved only for the leader. Hakeem did what was right, because if he didn’t speak to Prabha, the treacherous Sinhalese would have betrayed the Muslims and sacrificed them at Praba’s Altar
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Irfan Mohamed / October 26, 2015
Hilmi, thank you for this wonderful article which highlights the sufferings of the Muslim refugees. They have lost 25 of their valuable years. The young have adopted, but the old continue to mourn their displacement. No Sri Lankan leader and their children would be spared their curse if the problems of the Muslim refugees are not addressed. People like you, who have been the real warriors of the Muslim community would be guaranteed a place in the hereafter. May Allah protect you and your family from the bloody racists. Aameen.
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suzzy keegal / October 26, 2015
All these Muslims keep blaming Mahinda and Ghotabaya for all their woes. Its time for them to start pointing their fingers at Sisrisena who betrayed of the man who saved the nation His Excellency Mahinda Rajapaksa. He will always be my hero and I will do anything for him, if I have that chance
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Yakadaya / October 27, 2015
[Edited out]
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Flo / October 26, 2015
Hilmy Ahmad is knocking on the wrong door.
He should go behind India & the US – they are the real masters of Sri Lanka now thanks to people like him who enabled Yahapalanaya come into power.
As they say – people deserve who they vote for.
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wimal Baluwansa / October 26, 2015
Yes, there were many traitors who voted the yahapalanaya administration and they will pay the price now. I hope that the Muslims will learn their lesson under Sirisena who is becoming a tyrant, just supporting his siblings. His daughter Chaturika has become a demon in Polannaruwa and Daham is a nightmare in the posh nigh clubs
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Nirmala N / October 26, 2015
Muslim always feel they are being betrayed.
The west is betraying them.
Russia and China are betraying them.
Ragoon is betraying them.
Australia is betraying them.
Even Saudi, Iran, Egypt, Syria etc., etc., are betraying them.
In the little Sri Lanka they say they are now being betrayed by Yahapālanaya after having enjoyed the masala dosa of Mahinda Chinthanaya promoting BBS.
The answer is with the Muslims and not anyone else. They are on the spree to Islamise the whole world and they play the minority, victim, persecution etc., cards for this.
American fracking and built up of huge oil reserves is strangling the Islamic crusade as the oil rich countries they cannot dictate terms to the world any more.
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harees Moahamed / October 27, 2015
Yes, Nirmala. the Muslims are betrayed by everyone and you have been spared. I would like to betray you from the back
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Rohan Perera / October 26, 2015
Why is it that our government is treating the Muslims differently from the Tamils? It is a violation of the constitution and more importantly the Muslims sided with the government during the war and that is why they had to pay this price. We must get on to the streets and demonstrate aginst any concessions to the Tamils if the Muslims are not treated equally.
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Afzal / October 26, 2015
Maybe the issue lies not with the government but with our politicians inability to unit as a common force at least in need of their own communities needs. Till MARA was around our prominent guys licked his ass now they have jumped ship. The confidence muslim population had in their politicians is no more.
When we ourselves are not united and not doing our part to find a solution we can’t expect much from the government. However unlike MARA current government will arrive at a solution () in near future.
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moiez / October 26, 2015
Yes whatever said every citizen of this country whether Sinhalese or Tamils or Muslims or Christians have to right to live anywhere and also the government should look not only Muslims but other religions too to settle those who lost their houses in Jaffna Mr.President and Prime Minister look into this matter otherwise in next general election you will not come to power if you do not take proper actions and also how come PM intervene to release nimal weerawansa she he tried to leave the country hwith an expired passport,you do ur work and the CID and immigration officers will handle the case okay.
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Paul / October 26, 2015
Everyone has a right to live anywhere but the government or any organisation does not have to right to ethnically cleanse people, especially the original indigenous population and settle select ethnic religious or linguistic groups to deliberately change the demography. That is illegal and called genocide and is a crime. Is that what you are advocating in the Tamil areas? Why only in the Tamil areas?
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soma / October 26, 2015
Paul, we can’ differentiate between caste, religion, denomination,date of ariival within the Tamill spesking people and find political solutions for each sub category. So long as +50% of them prefer to live within the Sinhalese there is no political solutions to talk about.
Soma
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Paul / October 27, 2015
Stop distorting facts and statistics. The vast majority of the Tamils living amongst the Sinhalese are the Indian origin estate Tamils and not the indigenous Sri Lankan Tamils originating from the North and East. Almost 100% of the Indian origin Tamils live down south as this is where they were settled by the British to work in the tea and rubber estates and they still remain there, as they have no other choice. Around 70% of the indigenous Tamils live in the north and east and the rest ( almost 90%) largely in Colombo. Remember that Colombo and most the north western littoral was part of the Tamil homeland and these areas were only Sinhalised very recently. Even the word Colombo like many place names along the western and southern littoral have a Tamil Origin. The medieval small Tamil merchant community the Colombo Chetties are still a living proof of this. Although they are now getting fast Sinhalised. Most Tamils do not prefer to live amongst a racist Sinhalese population( you are good example) to be beaten up raped killed and your homes and businesses burnt and looted by government sposored Sinhalese racist mobs armed forces and police, with a racist Sinhalese public passively supporting this and enjoying this is not any normal persons preference unless they have some kinky sado masochist tendencies. The Tamils have no choice as all successive Sinhalese Sri Lankan government have deliberately not developed the Tamil areas in order to empty them of Tamils and make them dependent on the Sinhalese south for their livelihood. Further the deliberate scorched earth ethnic cleansing policies of the government and Sri Lankan armed forces are forcing Tamils to leave the north and east and come to the south. Both these moves are nasty and very calculated and had been done from the time of independence to deliberately empty the Tamils from the Tamil areas, so that Sinhalese can move in and make them permanently dependant for their livelihood from the Sinhalese. At the time of independence Jaffna was the second largest city in the island and it was thriving now not any more. If any development is done in any Tamil area, the local Tamils are not provided land or employment but out of area Sinhalese are brought in and settled. Sinhalese racists like you are aware of this but deliberately twist the facts
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maalumiris / October 26, 2015
Yahapalanaya has betrayed everyone
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Sapumal / October 26, 2015
Ahmed , You are in a pathetic state of racism. You may know well by now, Gov. has many issues. remember Govt. has already secured their lives and their day day to day life from extremists to do their business of day day life as free citizens with equal rights.What you write here is nonsense. It is common for all citizens. There is no such a citizen group as Muslims. We all are Sri Lankans with different religious beliefs. Shame on you .
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David / October 27, 2015
The Muslims are everywhere on the island. The country has being strategically muslimized at a rapid pace which is extremely dangerous.
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Mohammed / October 28, 2015
Well, the Muslims have been sowing their seeds well, and the fertile sinhala females have enjoyed every bit of it, so why complain. Check with your lot and they will tell you that the Muslim one is far better than what you could ever think of.
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Upul Jayasuriya / October 27, 2015
Why the hell are we going on with these racist comments. The article highlights the pathetic state of the Muslim refugees. We as Sinhala Buddhists should make sure that the Muslims are well resettled because they were expelled due to their stand for a united Sri Lanka. Is it too much they are asking. Why are we using all these negative comments?
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shankar / October 27, 2015
I don’t see sampanthan also doing anything to resettle these muslims.After all since he also was a supporter of theirs doesn’t he think he also has a responsibility to redress the wrongs done by the LTTE.It was nauseating to read DBS Jeyaraj’s article where he states that LTTE women pulled ear rings out of the ears of these poor muslm women,with blood squireting out.
karma is a bitch.The telugu nayakkar sri wickreme rajasinghe got ehellepols’s wife to pound the heads of her children.He ended up in a cage to be gawked at by people like in a zoo.The userper Sangili killed 400 catholics in mannar who refusd to renounce their religion.He ended up being hanged.
prabha and his henchmen ended up in nanthikadal and many of his supporters also ended up like the muslims in barbed wire camps.
If sampanthan does not do somehing karma will not let the tamils in peace.
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Common Sense / October 28, 2015
Yahapalana government has united people of many interests, even conflicting amongst each other, to vote and boot Jarapassa. But it is not in a position to hold on to unite them. Clearly if concerns of Hilmy are to be addressed in settling the IDPP, wouldn’t it earn the wrath of TULF and other parties? Who has the bigger stake in the Northern Province, is the TULF & Co or the IDPP? I am not for a moment for injustice but this is the reality Hilmy has to face. Those who were displaced from the Northern Province to elsewhere, including the next world are many. Don’t forget that Muslims were not the only party subjected to ethnic cleansing in the Northern Province. The great resolutions of Geneva just calls for investigation into attrocities of LTTE as well but giving the pride of place of what happened in the last stages of the war. The untold hardship of this ethnic cleansing can be felt truly by only those who suffered. People like Ranjani Thiranagama is now buried deep in history. Hilmy! Even in a so called International Inquiriy the problem of the Muslim IDPP would only be a passing reference in its report.
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Omar Kamil / October 29, 2015
Common Sense or senseless Citizen.
This is the tragedy of Sri Lankan politics. It doesn’t address reality and truth. The continued discrimination of the Tamil people led to the 30 year armed conflict and brought out hero’s like prabharan amongst the Tamils. When the minority Muslims in the North and East are discriminated both by the Tamils in Sinhalese, Do you expect the Muslims to take up arms and wage another 30 year old war. Do not forget, there are many who would want to destabilize our beautiful nation as they have done to Libya, Iraq, Syria, and soon Iran and Saudi Arabia. So let us not have idiots to follow ISIS or any other groups and allow a foothold for these fanatics to have a sympathizing clientele. Senseless thoughts by people who seem to believe that they have common sense will bring another round of disaster to our motherland
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Upul Jayasuriya / October 29, 2015
Why cannot the government repeal the government circulars and amendments that has been introduced after 1990 and look at the Muslim resettlement as a priority. After all they are pampering to the Tamil demands and conditions using the Geneva mechanism. If they Muslims too use their access to the Arab nations to leverage their demands, Sri Lanka will become another pawn. This happened after the stupid idiot Gnansara set Aluthgama alight and the Secretary General of the organization of Islamic countries threatened to send a fact finding mission that would have led to sanctions
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