27.11.2007
|
The
LTTE leader V. Prabakaran called on the global Tamil
community to support the Tamil Eelam freedom struggle.
"I wish to express my love and gratitude to
you for your past participation in the building
of our nation, bringing together your abundant intellectual,
material, monetary and many other resources in the
service of our nation and ask that you stand with
us in the coming years of our freedom struggle,"
he said. |
Tamil Eelam National leader in his annual Heroes' Day
statement on 27 November 2007
The leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE),
V Pirapaharan, in his annual Heroes' Day statement put
a heavy responsibility on the shoulders of the international
community for the breakdown of the peace process. He said
that the involvement of the international community to
resolve the Tamil national question has been unhelpful
and added that their failure to condemn unambiguously
the military path of the current regime has created the
present situation in the island. He asserted that the
propping up of the genocidal Sinhala State by the international
community through economic aid, military aid and subtle
diplomatic efforts will be counterproductive.
About
the long and bitter history of deception by the Sinhala
State he further said, "None of the Southern parties
are ready to accept the core principles for a lasting
peace: the Tamil homeland, the Tamil nation and the Tamil
Right to self determination. The ruling party is adamant
on unitary rule; the red and yellow parties are calling
for no solution at all; and the main opposition party,
somersaulting from its earlier position, is, on the one
hand, saying nothing concrete and using evasive language
to support the military actions of the government and,
on the other hand, saying it supports peace efforts. All
this clearly clarifies our point and proves beyond doubt
that all the Sinhala political parties are essentially
chauvinistic and anti-Tamil. To expect a political solution
from any of these Southern parties is political naivety."
Drawing the attention of the international community to
this long history of deception by the chauvinistic Sinhala
State, the Tamil national leader said that the confidence
of the Tamil people on the international community has
been eroded by their one-sided approach. He pointed out
that nations like East Timor and Montenegro broke free
of their subjugation and gained their freedom with the
help and support of the international community. He added
that the actions of the international community with respect
to the Tamil national question are unjust and said that
Tamil people hoped that the international community would
change their biased approach and recognize the sovereignty
of the Tamil nation.
The
LTTE leader called on the global Tamil community to support
the Tamil Eelam freedom struggle. "I wish to express
my love and gratitude to you for your past participation
in the building of our nation, bringing together your
abundant intellectual, material, monetary and many other
resources in the service of our nation and ask that you
stand with us in the coming years of our freedom struggle,"
he said.
The
full text of the official translation of his speech follows:
The
21st century began as the 'Asian century' and the world
is looking towards Asia. Many countries in our region
have grown in leaps and bounds in social, economical and
scientific fields. They are researching space, moon and
atom. The whole human race is taking up new challenges
and has embarked on a united path, seeking answers to
many of nature's mysteries and looking for remedies to
incurable diseases. It is seeking to protect the entire
globe and its plant and animal lives. Sadly, the Sinhala
nation is moving in exactly the opposite direction, on
a path of destruction. It is trying to destroy the Tamil
nation and, in the process, it is destroying itself. This
beautiful island continues to soak in blood.
Buddhism
is a profound spiritual duty. Its philosophy emphasizes
a life without desires, a life of love and justice. The
Sinhala nation, claiming that it has followed this path
for more than two thousand years, has in fact remained
immersed in the poison of racism. It is unleashing unthinkable
violence against another people. During the long history
of the Tamil struggle, first through non-violence and
later through armed struggle, the Sinhala mindset has
remained unchanged. The Sinhala nation did not change
even after so much destruction and lost lives. It continues
on the path of violence. It only desires to find a solution
to the Tamil question through military might and oppression.
It cunningly evaded efforts to seek peace and is boldly
taking forward its military plan. The international community's
economic and military aid, its moral and political support,
its diplomatic efforts, and its one-sided involvement
directly aided this turn of events.
We
know very well that the military, economic and geo-political
interests of the world's powers are embedded in our region.
We understand their concern to take forward their interests.
We also recognize the concerns of the international community
to bring about stability and good governance to this island
for these reasons. At the same time the chauvinistic Sinhala
State is attempting to exploit this interest in our region
of the international powers. It is trapping the international
community in its chauvinistic project and turning the
international community against the Tamil freedom struggle.
Our people are dismayed and disappointed that these countries,
trapped in the deceptive net of the Sinhala State, are
being unhelpful in their involvement to resolve our problem.
These
one-sided involvements of foreign powers are not new in
our prolonged struggle. India intervened in our national
question then as part of its regional expansion. India
signed an accord with the Sinhala State without the consent
of the Tamils. The Indo-Lanka Accord was not signed to
meet the aspirations of the people of Tamil Eelam. In
fact, India then attempted to force an ineffectual solution
on our people - a solution which did not even devolve
powers to the extent of the Banda-Chelva pact signed in
the 1950's. India tried to enforce that accord with the
strength of more than 100,000 Indian forces, with the
power of the agreement between two countries and with
the assistance of treacherous Tamil paramilitary groups.
However, even this ill-considered solution, which did
not even address the basic national aspirations of the
Tamils, was blocked by the chauvinistic Sinhala State.
We
are intimately familiar with the Sinhala State and its
deceptive politics. Our people have a long history of
bitter experiences. That is why we explained to India
on many occasions, at many locations and at many levels
about the implacability of Sinhala chauvinism. We explained
to India then that the aim of the Sinhala State was not
to find a solution to the Tamil question and bring peace;
but to occupy the Tamil homeland, destroy its resources,
and enslave the Tamil nation. India refused to accept
this reality. As a result our land witnessed great sorrow
and destruction.
Today,
the international community is making the same mistake
that India made many years ago. Even the countries that
are the guardians of the peace efforts succumbed to the
deception of the Sinhala State and listed our freedom
movement as a terrorist organization. What we find most
incomprehensible is the fact that these same nations,
which labeled us terrorists, not so long ago fought in
defence of their own freedom.
The
Sinhala nation is unable to stomach the support of our
Diaspora for the Tamil freedom struggle; it is unable
to accept the humanitarian help and the political lobbying
by the Diaspora to end the misery heaped on our people.
That is why the Sinhala nation is trying hard to shatter
the bond between our people in our homeland and our Diaspora.
Some countries are also assisting this amoral effort of
Sinhala chauvinism. These countries are denouncing, as
illegal activities, the humanitarian actions and political
protests of our people abroad – actions that are
carried out according to the laws of those countries.
These countries have imprisoned and humiliated Tamil campaigners
and representatives. These countries have ridiculed their
protests and their efforts to seek justice.
This
partisan and unjust conduct of the international community
has severely undermined the confidence our people had
in them. And it has paved the way for the breakdown of
the ceasefire and the peace efforts. Furthermore, the
generous military and economic aid they have given to
the Sinhala State and their diplomatic efforts to prop
up the chauvinistic Sinhala State has encouraged the Sinhala
nation further and further along its militaristic path.
This is the background to the confidence of the Rajapake
regime in continuing with its unjust, inhuman war of occupation
of our land.
Overconfident
of its military victory over the Tamil freedom movement,
the Rajapakse regime has shut fast the door for peace.
The desire to oppress the Tamils has intensified as never
before. With the entire world giving support, the Sinhala
State, using the ceasefire as cover, and exploiting the
peace environment, prepared its war of occupation.
The
SLMM that was monitoring the peace covered its eyes, tied
its hands behind back, and went to sleep in Colombo. The
exhausted Norwegian facilitators remained silent. The
countries that preached peace to us also went silent and
refused to speak out. The Sinhala State started its war
and justified it with slogans like 'War for Peace', 'War
against terrorism' and 'War for the liberation of the
Tamils'.
The
Rajapakse regime assembled its military might and let
loose a massive war on the eastern region of our homeland.
This part of our homeland became a wasteland after incessant
bombing and shelling. Trincomalee, the famous Tamil capital,
was destroyed. Batticaloa, an ancient cultural city of
the Tamils, became a land of refugees. Jaffna, the cultural
centre of the Tamils, was cut off from the rest of the
world and turned into an open prison.
The
Sinhala State's war of genocide destroyed the peaceful
life of the Tamils. It turned the Tamils into refugees
in their own homeland, ruined their nation's social and
economical infrastructure and plunged them into unprecedented
hardships. While our motherland, caught within gruesome
Sinhala military rule, is destroyed, Sinhalisation of
our historic territory is going on under the pretexts
of High Security Zones and Free Trade Zones. This naked
Sinhalisation proceeds by the hoisting of Lion flags,
the erection of Sidharthan statues, the renaming of Tamil
streets with Sinhala names, the building of Buddhist temples.
Sinhala settlements are mushrooming in the Tamil homeland.
The
unjust war, the economic blockade, the restrictions on
our people's freedom of movement, the killing of thousands,
the displacement of hundreds of thousands, have all deeply
wounded the Tamil psyche. The Sinhala nation is celebrating
this tragedy as a victory. It is lighting firecrackers
believing it has defeated the Tamils. The Sinhala military
leadership believes that its occupation of the east has
been completed and the barbed wire noose around the neck
of Jaffna has been tightened. The Sinhala nation arrogantly
believes it has manacled the eastern coast from Pothuvil
to Pulmoddai. The Sinhala leadership thus believes it
has won great victories against our struggle.
The
Sinhala nation has always misunderstood our freedom struggle.
It consistently underestimates us. Only after carefully
scrutinising the global situation and external conditions;
only after accurately estimating the strengths and weaknesses
of the adversary; only after gauging the enemy's goals
and strategies; only after ensuring that we remain focused
on our own strategy; only then did we implement our plans
to take our liberation struggle forward. We have strategically
withdrawn from the east while launching defensive attacks.
The Sinhala nation could have learnt the dangers of putting
its feet too wide apart in our land as it did during past
battles. But the Sinhala military has fallen yet again
into the net we spread and it is now forced to commit
large numbers of troops to rule land without people. Caught
in a territorial trap, it will soon be forced to face
the serious consequences of its misguided ambitions.
Operation
'Ellalan', the very first combined Black Tiger and Tamil
Eelam Air Force attack was a massive blow to the Sinhala
military. It has disrupted the daydreams of the Sinhala
nation. The Sinhala nation has not emerged from this massive
shock delivered by our beloved fighters. The immeasurable
dedication and sacrifice of our Heroes is delivering a
message to the Sinhala nation. Those who plan to destroy
the Tamil nation will in the end be forced to face their
own destruction.
The
Rajapakse regime is never going to realize that the Tamil
national question cannot be resolved by military oppression.
The Sinhala leadership is not going to shed its desire
for military supremacy or the Sinhalisation of the Tamil
homeland. The Rajapakse regime is working hard to import
more and more destructive weapons from all over the world
without care for the cost. Therefore, it is not going
to give up its war of genocide.
The
All Party Representative Committee was appointed by the
Rajapakse regime to spread a smokescreen over the misery
that its military adventures are creating in the Tamil
homeland and to deceive other governments to get their
aid and support. We clearly predicted this would happen
one year ago. We have been proved right. After dragging
on without putting forward any solution, the committee
has gone on holiday.
The
past sixty years have proven beyond any doubt that no
political party in the South has the political honesty
or firmness in policy to find a just solution to the Tamil
national question. It has been also proved beyond any
doubt that none of the Southern parties are ready to accept
the core principles for a lasting peace: the Tamil homeland,
the Tamil nation and the Tamil Right to self determination.
The ruling party is adamant on unitary rule; the red and
yellow parties are calling for no solution at all; and
the main opposition party, somersaulting from its earlier
position, is, on the one hand, saying nothing concrete
and using evasive language to support the military actions
of the government and, on the other hand, saying it supports
peace efforts. All this clearly clarifies our point and
proves beyond doubt that all the Sinhala political parties
are essentially chauvinistic and anti-Tamil. To expect
a political solution from any of these southern parties
is political naivety.
The
Sinhala nation showed eagerness in the peace talks only
when we shattered their 'Operation Fireball' military
action and made them realize that the Tigers cannot be
defeated. It was only when we proved our military prowess
and only when we were militarily in a position of strength
that the Sinhala nation signed the ceasefire agreement.
Now, with abundant monetary and military aid from several
countries, it has rehabilitated its destroyed military
and has prepared itself for war again. It is yet again
walking the military path having abandoned the peace path.
The
Rajapakse regime, after unilaterally abrogating the ceasefire
agreement, is ruthlessly implementing its military plan
to remove the contiguity of the Tamil homeland. It has
killed and disappeared thousands of our people. It reprimands
and controls the Norwegian facilitators. It vehemently
criticizes the SLMM. It even dares to brand senior UN
officials as terrorists in order to hide its own terrorism.
It is obscuring the ground reality in the Tamil homeland
by striking fear among journalists and NGO workers.
The
world's powers, even while taking forward their own geo-political
interests, respect human rights and democratic institutions.
Be it this universe, human affairs or international relationships,
they all revolve on the wheel of justice. That is why
nations like East Timor and Montenegro broke free of their
subjugation and gained their freedom with the help and
support of the international community. Even now, the
international community continues to work for the freedom
of nations like Kosovo.
Yet
the actions of the international community with respect
to our own national question are unjust. The confidence
our people placed in the international community has been
eroded. By only paying lip-service to peace the international
community has contributed to the killing of an extraordinary
son of our nation, Tamilselvan. It has stopped the heartbeat
of a light that walked the path of peace. I will be lighting
the lamp for my dear brother, Tamilselvan, who until last
year was with me every time we, with a burning desire
to reach our goal, lit the lamps for our fallen Heroes.
The international community has made the entire Tamil
world drown in its tears. Had the international community
firmly and unambiguously condemned the anti-peace activities
and the war mongering of the Sinhala regime, Tamilselvan
would be alive today. A huge blow would not have fallen
on peace efforts.
The
Co-chairs, acting as the guardians of the peace process,
have failed in their responsibility. If the Co-chairs
do not have a moral obligation to protect peace efforts,
what exactly is the purpose of their meeting from time
to time in different places? Is it their intent to assist
the Sinhala regime to wipe out the Tamils? Questions like
these have arisen in the minds of our people. Our people
firmly expect that at least from now on the international
community will take a new approach in relation to our
freedom struggle. On this sacred day it is the hope of
our people that the international community will cease
giving military and economic aid to the Sinhala regime
and accept the right to self determination and the sovereignty
of the Tamil nation.
My
beloved people,
We
are an ancient people with special qualities. We have
a unique national identity and national foundation. We
have been struggling non-violently and by armed struggle
for a very long time against national oppression. We are
not terrorists, committing blind acts of violence impelled
by racist or religious fanaticism. Our struggle has a
concrete, legitimate, political objective. We are struggling
only to regain our sovereignty in our own historical land
where we have lived for centuries, the sovereignty which
we lost to colonial occupiers. We are struggling only
to reestablish that sovereignty and rebuild our nation.
The Sinhala nation is continuing to reject our just and
civilized demands for freedom. Instead, it has declared
a genocidal war on our land and our people. Behind the
smokescreen of fighting terrorism, it is creating immense
human misery.
Despite
our people enduring injustice and oppression, facing death,
destruction and massive displacement, no country, no nation,
no international organization has raised its voice on
our behalf. We face this situation alone because, although
80 million Tamils live all around the globe, the Tamils
do not have a country of their own.
On
this day, when we remember our Heroes, I ask the entire
Tamil speaking world to rise up for the liberation of
Tamil Eelam. I wish to express my love and gratitude to
you for your past participation in the building of our
nation, bringing together your abundant intellectual,
material, monetary and many other resources in the service
of our nation and ask that you stand with us in the coming
years of our freedom struggle.
Thousands
of our fighters are standing ready to fight with determination
for our just goal of freedom and we will overcome the
hurdles before us and liberate our motherland. On this
day when we remember our Heroes who sacrificed themselves
for this sacred goal, let each one of us carry their dream
in our hearts and struggle until it is achieved.
Courtesy - Asian
Tribune
