The issue of discrimination against Tamils in Sri Lanka has
recently led to strong protests against Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa as
well as some pilgrims from the island nation.
India and Sri Lanka will be able to tide over the current
wave of protests and manage to maintain their friendly ties, believes Colonel R
Hariharan.
He is a former Military Intelligence officer and an
expert on Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Bangladesh. Colonel Hariharan has also been
awarded the Visish Sewa Medal for his stint as the head of the intelligence
unit of the Indian Peace Keeping Force in Sri Lanka between 1987 and 1990.
In an interview with rediff.com's Vicky Nanjappa, Colonel Hariharan talks about how
Jayalalithaa is using anti-Lanka protests for political mileage and why the
Rajapaksa government should immediately address the grievances of the nation's
Tamil population
What are your thoughts on the resurfacing of the Sri Lankan Tamil
issue, which led to the recent protests against President Mahinda
Rajapaksa during his visit to India?
The resurfacing of the Tamil issue is due to the Eelam War
which eliminated the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam and its leader
Prabhakaran. In Tamil Nadu, small pro-LTTE political groups that had thrived on
the Eelam cause were outraged as India failed to intervene and bail out
Prabhakaran, as it had done on two earlier occasions. They believe the Dravida
Munnettra Kazhagam state government connived in this process with the Centre.
During the 2009 parliamentary poll, All India Anna Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam
supremo Jayalalithaa found this feeling of betrayal a useful issue in her
election campaign.
In a volte-face, she started supporting Tamil Eelam and
called for Indian intervention. When the war ended, the plight of Tamils in
war-torn areas and alleged Sri Lanka atrocities against Tamils created a wave
of sympathy in Tamil Nadu. Jayalalithaa used this sympathy effectively in her
campaigns for the assembly election. Since the DMK was routed, she has been
using the issue to needle DMK and the United Progressive Alliance coalition at
the Centre. She probably feels the call for ban on trade with Lanka can
pressurise the Rajapaksa government while strengthening her visibility in
national politics.
Will the Sri Lanka issue continue to be a political game-changer
in Tamil Nadu? How long do you think this issue will survive?
The issue is not a political game-changer in Tamil Nadu. It
was dormant after LTTE cadres assassinated Rajiv Gandhi in 1991. It was
resurrected in the circumstances I explained earlier. It will persist in Tamil
Nadu till it loses its relevance to Sri Lankan Tamils.
Traumatised by the war,
Lankan Tamils are now struggling to get back to normal life and the government's
actions have not exactly enhanced their confidence and trust. Though the
infrastructure is being restored at a rapid pace, peoples' livelihood and
political reconciliation of Tamils remain major issues; both India and the
United States have repeatedly drawn Colombo's attention to this, with little
effect.
What will India, and Tamil Nadu, lose if there is a ban on trade
with Sri Lanka?
Demand for a ban on trade with Sri Lanka is part of
Jayalalithaa's political rhetoric. Even as we discuss the issue, a 45-member
trade delegation of the Tamil Nadu Chamber of Commerce and Industry from
Madurai is in Colombo looking for business opportunities. Tamil Nadu is the
biggest beneficiary of Indo-Sri Lanka trade. This is the ground reality.
International trade is a central subject. As India has a Free Trade Agreement
with Sri Lanka, it would not be easy to ban the trade.
India will lose nearly $4 billion in trading opportunities,
of which ten percent will be borne by Tamil Nadu. The Lankan backlash would affect
Indian entrepreneurs who had invested over $400 million last year in Sri Lanka.
The Indian trading space will be occupied by China in due course and in the
meantime, Indian trade will be re-routed to Colombo through Singapore and
Dubai, with middlemen garnering the profit.
If Sri Lankans feel unsafe to trade with India, is there a chance
of other countries stepping in to take advantage of the situation?
Tamil Nadu is not unsafe for Lankan traders, despite some
recent incidents. Even if the situation worsens, trade will not stop. As safety
of traders is not an issue in other states, Lankans will shift their business
to Kerala, Karnataka, and probably Maharashtra. But Jayalalithaa is a shrewd
lady; she will ensure protests do not get out of hand.
By driving out Lankan football teams and pilgrims, do we stand to
gain anything or are we creating one more enemy country?
India does not consider any of its neighbours -- not even
Pakistan and China -- as an enemy country. So Sri Lanka, a friendly country
with special relations with India, will not become 'one more' country.
Jayalalithaa has clarified that sending back school football teams and pilgrims
was a symbolic act to register her protest against the nation's insensitive
handling of the Tamil issue. She has stated that Sri Lankan pilgrims and others
can safely visit Tamil Nadu. This is state politics in action, just like our
media's focus is on form rather than content!
Do you think there is a chance of the LTTE re-surfacing?
No, not in the near future. The environment in Sri Lanka and
the region in 1983 that helped the growth of Tamil militancy do not exist
anymore. Strong international protocol to prevent money-laundering and the
transnational spread of terrorism adopted after the 9/11 Al Qaeda strikes in the
US are in force now. These make flow of international support to insurgencies
very difficult and risky. And lastly, a leader with Prabhakaran's charisma and
goal orientation is not in the horizon.
But the Sri Lanka government's indifference to Tamil sensitivities
provides enough opportunities for LTTE remnants abroad to use anti-Sri Lanka
feeling among the Tamil diaspora to revive separatism as the first step. And
this is what is happening.
Tiger Prabhakaran is seen as a hero or champion by many. What
are your views about him?
The answer to this question requires a thesis. Prabhakaran
was a complex personality; he was ruthless, ambitious and autocratic. He was
totally committed to achieving an independent Tamil Eelam by military means. He
had no time for politicians and did not bother about the means to achieve his
end. He would never allow contrarian views.
These were his strengths as well as his weak points. Thus,
he missed opportunities offered by the peace process in 2002 to evolve a
win-win result without bloodshed. Closeted from the world, perhaps he did was
not aware of the security environment in India and the fact that the world had
changed for the worse, for the LTTE to operate with its earlier impunity. He
lost the war because he failed to notice the determination of the Sri Lanka
leadership to eliminate him and the LTTE, using the new global environment.
Do you think the Sri Lankan government is doing enough to
rehabilitate Tamils?
The Sri Lanka government has done well to improve road infrastructure
and is in the process of further improving public services. It has done a
remarkable job in clearing nearly 300,000 mines. Having said this, there are
major deficiencies in the way it does many of these things. The governors of
northern and eastern provinces are retired military officers -- naturally
Sinhalas. The development plans are made centrally so there is lack of
ownership among locals. Permanent army camps are being built for military
families on priority basis while many habitations of the locals are delayed due
to red tape.
Though the army has released over 10,000 former LTTE
combatants after some rehabilitation training, many of them are yet to find
jobs. Largescale presence of the army in the Northern Province acts as a
visible reminder to the population on who calls the shots. Even social
activities require informal clearance by the army authorities. Many properties
occupied by the military are yet to be returned to rightful owners as land
documentation is in a mess.
And though there is talk of provincial council elections in
north, they will take place only next year, indicating that Colombo is not
politically comfortable with a Tamil opposition in power in the provincial
council. Cumulatively, these issues have created a general feeling of despair
and belied expectation among the Tamil population.
Is there a solution in sight to the Tamil problem? What do you
think both countries could do to solve this problem?
Of course, there is a solution if both Tamils and Sinhalas move
from their rigid positions and work together to arrive at a solution. Sri Lanka
has the same South Asian political tendency -- to use every trick to prolong
issues for political advantage rather than resolving them. The political
reconciliation process is going on like a tug of war. Committees galore have sat, discussed and debated without
the government taking action to produce results. I expect it to drag on for
some time -- probably till the next elections. I hope they do it sooner.
When you say both countries, I presume you mean Sri Lanka
and India. India should encourage Sri Lanka's Tamil political parties to talk
with their Lankan counterparts to find a solution. At the same time, it should
lean on the Sri Lanka government to show some action. India's credibility among
Tamils and Sinhalas will go up if Tamil Nadu makes a positive contribution to
improve the living condition of internally displaced people, rather than
raising anti-Lanka rhetoric.
New Delhi should work with Jayalalitha for this. For
instance, Tamil Nadu can encourage investment in enterprises in northern and
eastern provinces so that there are more job opportunities for the youth.
Thousands of seats in colleges in Tamil Nadu remain vacant; they can be
allotted preferentially to Sri Lanka Tamils.
Of course, the Sri Lanka government should show it is
sincere in investigating war crimes, human rights violations and restoring full
freedom. Authoritarian politics of the ruling coalition has affected its
credibility and affected the rule of law. If a more people-sensitive style is
adopted, the government will help improve its functioning.
Do you think New Delhi should take a stronger stance rather than
let states hijack issues which form national policy?
How can a precarious coalition in New Delhi control
ambitious regional satraps on whom it depends upon to stay in power? The answer
lies in improving confidence levels in Centre-state relations; this can come
through only if national consensus on key issues is evolved with states' participation
(mere parliamentary vote is not enough). Unfortunately, there is little
consensus within national parties themselves on such issues, let alone with
others. Unless a powerful leader emerges at the Centre, a period of political
drift in national policy-making appears inevitable.
Some think-tanks have suggested the presence of groups such as the
Lashkar-e-Tayiba in Lanka? How serious is this threat?
Sri Lankan Muslims are Sufis who get along with all
communities very well. A majority of them are Tamil-speaking and have close
connections with India. It would be incorrect to brand them as anti-Indian.
Having said that, we have to recognise that Colombo has long been used by the
Inter Services Intelligence for their operations and some Lankan Muslims have been
involved with them.
According to terrorism expert B Raman, the ISI has created
bases in Bangkok, Colombo and Kathmandu, for covert action and intelligence
collection. He says the Colombo base uses Muslims from the eastern province
mainly for collecting sensitive information about nuclear and missile
establishments in Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Colombo is also used as a convenient
point for the ISI to meet its Indian agents without arousing any suspicion.
Pakistan International Airlines links Colombo and Pakistan
and this enables agents to go to Pakistan without the knowledge of Indian
authorities. The posting of Colonel Bashir Walit, former director of
Pakistan's Intelligence Bureau, as Pakistan's high commissioner in Colombo by
the Pervez Musharraf regime showed the importance Pakistan attaches to Colombo.
Saudi money has been flowing into Sri Lanka to propagate
Wahabi fundamentalism. As a corollary, we can expect more radicalisation of
some of the Muslim population. Jihadi terror had followed such moves in other
countries. I am sure the Sri Lankan government, despite its friendly relations
with Pakistan, is aware of the dangers of Sri Lanka becoming a hot bed of
Jihadi terror or Pakistan's intelligence intrigues. We need to be constantly
vigilant on this count.
Courtesy: www.rediff.com September 24, 2012
7 comments:
Do you really know what happend in srilanka before prabhakaran decided to get Tamil Eelam by military ?
There is enough articles in this blog written in the past which contains almost all information before Prabhakaran came into the Eelam struggle. Kindly go through them.
But you have commented that Prabhakaran do not have time for politicians and did not bother about the means to achieve his end.
Before prabhakaran, every body was trying to solve this issue thru politicians. But no one cared about it.
Why do you have to say prabhakaran was not ready for talks ?
When he was ready to talk, is politicians are agreed ?
Politicians came with one singala act and they treated their own people with different levels.
There were so many activity happend against tamil people those days. many lives were in trouble including innocent children.
Please give more comments on your point mentioned in the interview.
Rasu,
While I agree with your point that what had happened to the Tamils’ grievances, before LTTE came into being, we should not forget what kind of a leader Pirabhakaran was.
What Col.Hariharan trying say is that Pirabhakaran was a leader with a military vision, not a pragmatic political thinker. He was an autocrat at the center of an almost religious cult of uncompromising martyrdom who could not function as a man of peace in any democratic dispensation.
Thanks for your reply and i appreciate the effort to make my understand the point.
My comments
1. All the time tamil people were in trouble because of sri lankan politicians and some of their followers.
2. Prabhakar has to take weapon to save the people because Sri Lankan govt does not know the language of "TALKS".
During every protest to save the people they have been attached and many died. So looks like they dont know the language of solving the issue by talks.
After so many incidents, he has decided to talk to them in their language.
3. Why one singala Act ?
4. Why only Buddhist followers can become PM or President.
5. Why the Govt need to treat their own people with different levels ?
6. what is the tamil population during the independance of Sri Lanka and now ?
35 lahks - 1948
30 lahks - 2012 ( where is the people growth in Sri Lanka ? In india, the population 3 times more now compare to 1947.)
http://www.statistics.gov.lk
7. Who is autocrat here ? Prabhakaran or Sri Lankan Govt ?
8. Sri Lankan govt taught prabhakaran how to be autocrat.
9. If Sri Lankan Govt is behaving like dictator, do you expect the people to be like slaves ? Prabhakaran was forced to take weapon against the govt.
Expecting your thoughts.
இனம், மொழி, மதம், சாதி சார்ந்து எந்த அரசும் செயல்பட்டால் அங்கே இப்படி பிரச்சனைகள் வரும்.
Govt should not function based on Race, Language, Religion and caste.
If it does, you can expect these issues.
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