People's Democracy

THE issue of the Sri Lankan Tamils has come to the fore once again. The two sides – that is, the Sri Lankan government and LTTE – have agreed to start the long-awaited peace talks at Bangkok. Talks between the two sides have been held on three previous occasions: in 1983 in Thimpu, in 1989-90, and in 1994-95 after Chandrika Kumaratunga became the president of Sri Lanka. This time, the peace process was begun with the government of Norway as intermediary. There is great hope among the people of the island that these talks will succeed, and both Tamils and Sinhalas equally hope for an early solution to the vexed issue of ethnic strife. This strife has, as is well known, been the source of conflict between the Sri Lankan Tamils and the government for more than five decades.

Armed conflict has taken an immense toll of life and property, and has ruined the economy of the island. The war between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan government has triggered an exodus of hundreds of thousands of Tamil refugees from Sri Lanka to India, especially to the state of Tamil Nadu. It is no wonder that the people of Sri Lanka look forward to an amicable settlement of the issue and that they welcome the proposed peace talks wholeheartedly.

Over the years, the unresolved issue of the Sri Lankan Tamils has had a major impact on the politics in Tamil Nadu. Some regional parties here have used this issue to whip up Tamil chauvinism.

The long-standing position of the CPI(M) is clear: a solution must be found, but that solution must be within the framework of Sri Lanka’s unity.

After both parties to the dispute agreed to hold peace talks, the question arose of a venue for talks. The LTTE communicated two requests to the government of India through the Norwegian representative. The first was that the chief LTTE negotiator, Anton Balasingam, be allowed to stay in any city in South India in order that he be able to undergo specialised medical treatment. The second was that the government of India should host the peace talks in Chennai, Bangalore or Thiruvananthapuram. The government of India rightly rejected the proposal of hosting the peace talks in India as it would once again give an opportunity to the LTTE , a terrorist organisation, to make use of Indian soil for its terrorist activities. It is worth noting here that the LTTE is banned in India and not allowed to use Indian soil for any purpose whatsoever.

Inevitably, all political parties in the state have reacted to the recent developments in Sri Lanka and, inevitably again, opinion differs from party to party. The ruling AIADMK has already expressed strong views on the issue a few days back. On April 16, chief minister Jayalalitha moved a 17-paragraph resolution in the Tamil Nadu assembly. The resolution proposed, among other things, that the government of India make legal and diplomatic efforts to get Prabhakaran extradited, the prime accused in the Rajiv Gandhi murder case. The resolution proposed that if the Sri Lankan government be unable to hand Prabhakaran over to the Indian authorities, the Indian army should be sent (with the consent of the Sri Lankan government) to assist the Sri Lankan authorities to capture Prabhakaran.

As expected, the Tamil Manila Congress and Congress(I) members of the assembly supported the resolution. Two MLAs belonging to the party led by P Chidambaram followed suit. The DMK chose to remain neutral, while the PMK raised slogans in favour of peace talks and walked out.

The CPI(M) took a principled position. Leader of the CPI(M) group in the assembly, J Hemachandran, explained the party’s position on this issue and all six CPI(M) MLAs abstained from voting on the resolution. The MLAs belonging to the CPI and Forward Bloc also abstained from voting, on the same grounds as the CPI(M).

J Hemachandran made the following points.

1) The issue of the Sri Lankan Tamils has been a prolonged tragedy, one that has continued without a solution for more than five decades. The unsolved problems of Sri Lankan Tamils have caused anguish among the entire people of the island and the armed conflict in Sri Lanka has been the cause of immense suffering. The CPI(M) believes that a lasting and peaceful solution should be found as early as possible to put an end to the armed conflict and tension.

2) The CPI(M) has stated time and again that greater autonomy should be provided to the Sri Lankan Tamils within a united Sri Lanka, and that any solution must protect the language, nationality and cultural aspirations of the Sri Lankan Tamils.

3) The Tamil Nadu legislative assembly should not pass any resolution that could sabotage long-awaited and much desired peace talks between the Sri Lankan government and the LTTE.

4) The CPI(M) again stressed that all legal steps be taken to secure Prabhakaran, who is a proclaimed offender in the Rajiv Gandhi murder case. The ban on LTTE in India should continue.

5) The government of India should not agree to host the proposed peace talks in India, and no one from the LTTE should be allowed to use our soil for their activities.

6) The CPI(M) strongly opposed the proposal to send the Indian army to Sri Lanka to arrest Prabhakaran. Any such measure will infringe upon the sovereignty of that country.

Despite the abstentions by the CPI(M), CPI, PMK and Forward Bloc, the shortsighted resolution was passed with the support of the TMC and the Congress(I).

The CPI(M) has appealed to all peace-loving people in the state to support its demand for peace with dignity for the Tamil people of Sri Lanka, within the framework of a united Sri Lanka.