TNA cannot be boastful of their victory at the North Provincial Council elections. The Tamil people of the North did not trust the TNA due to their close proximity to the terrorists. But they had no alternative being sentimentally attached to a Tamil political party despite it being one time terrorist connected. TNA was definitely not a popular party as it was seen from the results of the PC elections.
Having Wigneswaran as the Chief Ministerial Candidate gave the TNA a certain respectability and the Tamil people may have gained confidence to vote for the candidates from TNA as it was in their eyes now led by a respectable ex-judge from Colombo.
If TNA was a party popular among the Tamil people, it would have been a candidate from TNA who would have got the highest preferential votes. It was again the ex-judge Wigneswaran who got 132 225 votes the highest number showing that the Tamil people definitely wanted him in control of the TNA PC Councillors.
Even the second highest with 87,870 votes was Ananthi Sasitharan. She was elected not because she represented TNA but because she was a woman and the Tamil women would have voted for her for that reason.. The third highest was again Dharmalingam Sidharthan the PLOTE leader.
So TNA cannot be overjoyed that they were a popular Political party among the ordinary Tamil people, and that it was an “ overwhelming electoral mandate ” received by the TNA
After taking Oath CM Wigneswaran spoke like a monarch addressing his people, “ My office is a gift from my people. They have mandated me to perform my duties on a long term as well as a short term perspective. The former behoves us to confirm our individuality. To do so we have to learn lessons from our struggles of the past, our previous political perspectives and our past experiences and then forge ahead. It is the need of the hour that we remove the misunderstandings and doubts that have crept into the minds of various communities.”
Wigneswaran should not forget, and should always be thankful to the thousands of Sinhala Buddhist Soldiers who gave their lives and limbs to rid the North of the ruthless terrorists to make it possible for him to “ receive the gift of his Office” from his people.
The terrorists stole the children of those people, to make Cannon fodder of them and drove them like unwashed cattle for months at end from one place to another keeping them as their human shields. They lived nearly thirty years of untold suffering without any hope of relief or a painless future.
Therefore, when Wigneswaran says, “ …..we have to learn lessons from our struggles of the past, our previous political perspectives and our past experiences and then forge ahead.” What past does he speak of ?
Is it the perilous “past” under terrorism ? In that past Wigneswaran spoke of their was no hope, and their was no comfort and ease, which came to them only after that past, with a tolerant and generous government providing them with modern comforts and a hopeful future.
It would be more just an appropriate that he reminds his people that the hope and peace they have received is not from the past which they would very much like to forget, but from a recent past where a dutiful government desirous of giving those people who suffered most from terrorism a new life of hope and prosperity.
Then he says, “ It is as a part of such an exercise that we decided that I take oaths before the President of this Country. We believe our decision would convey to our brethren our desire to settle our differences within a united Sri Lanka.”
It is normal that Wignaswaran takes his Oath before the President as he is only another Chief Minister, and not the “Crowned King” of the North. He should not think that taking his Oath before the President was a favour he had accorded to the President of Sri Lanka.
President Mahinda Rajapakse needs more respect and the gratitude of the Tamil speaking people including that of Wigneswaran and the offshoot of terrorists the TNA, as it is he who has given the peaceful atmosphere in which they held a PC election in the North, and enabled them to open their mouths without fear ( which was not possible with Prabhakaran) to criticise and make demands as if the Tamils have come down from a special planet.
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| Wigneswaran receiving letter of appointment from the Governor G.A.Chandrasiri |
It would have been still more appropriate for Wigneswaran to have taken his oath before the Governor of the North G.A.Chadrasiri as he represent those who made it possible for a democratic Provincial Council Election in the North after nearly 25 years.
It should be a privilege for the Tamil people of the North to have the former Major General G.A.Chandrasiri as the governor, as he should remind them of “liberation and peace” in contrast to their servile existence of fear and hopelessness under Prabhakaran and terrorism. It should be Wigneswaran’s duty to treat the Governor of the North with all respect due to him, and remind the Tamil people of his heroic role in brining to them peace and hope.
Wigneswaran adds, “ Our action today buttresses our close–up perspectives too, in that we expect to bring immediate relief to our war affected people. I hope the Sinhala people would endeavour to prod on their political representatives in every manner whatsoever to bring sunshine into the lives of our disturbed and affected Tamil speaking people.”
The Sinhala people have not got to “prod on their political representative….to bring sunshine into the lives of the Tamil people of the North ,” as every thing necessary has already been done to give the Tamil people in the North a better living condition and forget that suffering of the past.
Wigneswaran need not bother to bring any “ relief to ….war affected people”, as much has already been done by the government and what is necessary for the Chief Minister and the PC Councillors of the North is to go on from what has been done by the Government to consolidate and improve on them.
Wigneswaran says further, “ I expect my Sinhala brothers and sisters to impress upon their political representatives that internal self determination does not divide the country but facilitate a journey on the path of unity. I sincerely ask the Sinhala people to realize that to the same extent the Sinhala people cherish and respect their language and culture so do the Tamil speaking people cherish and respect their own language and their traditions. There is no place for violence in this realization. None could force such realization. It is such sincere realization that would take us all on the path of peace and brotherhood. Therefore let my simple symbolic act today pave the way for the unity of the people of the two communities in our Island.”
The Tamil people had not been treated differently by the Sinhala people or the successive governments since independence. But the separatist ideology has been brought in by the “inferiority” complex of the Tamils themselves.
In fact if the Tamils were more understanding we would have been a great united people with one language, one National anthem and one un-mutilated flag, as any other Nation of the world. It was made impossible with the racist Tamil elements without strong patriotism, determined to divide the country and separate the communities for a narrow nationalist idea of a separate Eelam.
Sri Lanka is one country with one people and there is no place for self determination.
The self determination is possible where a community of people live in one geographic area, speaking a separate language and with a separate belief system. The North of Sri Lanka does not fall within that category for “self determination” as the Tamil people are not confined to one geographic area, but spread all over Sri Lanka. The Tamil language is not confined to the people of the North as the Muslim Community is also a Tamil speaking Community. The religion of the Tamils and their Kovils are not confined to the North, they are all over the Island.
Wigneswaran should understand this, and inform his TNA racists to keep within their rights, without making excessive demands which will be resisted by the other communities and would be an invitation for violence.
In his speech after taking Oath taking Chief Minister Wigneswaran did not thank the TNA Leadership for having invited him to accept to be their candidate for the Office of CM in the Norther PC.
Now that Wigneswaran is the Chief Minister, he cannot be dictated to by the TNA politicians to do what pleases them. He has his own Minsters with whom he can work together to contribute to the greater welfare of the Tamil people of the North and develop a close working relationship with the South, without letting himself to be dictated to by the TNA Politicians.
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