Letter to the Editor - Sudar Oli - 6 June 2008

SCOPP/SG/1. 5th June 2008

The Editor

Sudar Oli

85, Jayantha Mallimarachchi Mawatha

COLOMBO 14.

Dear Sir,

I write with reference to your editorial of June 3rd, in which you have misrepresented the views expressed by our ambassador in Geneva, Dr Dayan Jayatilleka. I am particularly worried because such distortion will not help the peace process, in which I am sure you will agree that it is the needs of our Tamil citizens that must be addressed, not those of the LTTE, unless they coincide.

Though your attempts to assert the rights of Tamils is admirable, it would be useful if you worked together with all those concerned with these, rather than assuming that the words Tamil and Tigers are the same. In your criticism of what Dr Jayatilleke said, you have made this assumption. It is of course conceivable that you believe that weakening the LTTE amounts to weakening the Tamils, but this is not self-evident, and you should therefore make this point separately and justify it.

As you must be aware, Dr Jayatilleka fought for the rights of Tamils when it was not fashionable to do so, and when the artificially extended government of the eighties, with the full support of the so-called international community of the time, provided full support to the perpetrators of the atrocities of 1981 and 1983. When the Tigers turned against India, which had tried to amend the situation first peaceably and then through force, they may have asserted their unique nature, but to subscribe to their practices without question is unworthy of a paper such as yours. As such, your confusion of Dr Jayatilleka's comments about the LTTE with the assertion that he thought Tamils should be weakened is reprehensible, and should be withdrawn.

I hope that, as the LTTE shows itself opposed not only to all those brave Tamils who have expressed different ideas, whether of TULF or TELO or EPDP or EPRLF or PLOTE or TMVP, but also to members of the LTTE who express different perspectives, you will realize that the cause of Tamils can be best served by subscribing to pluralistic democratic politics rather than fanatical totalitarianism. Please therefore publish this letter in full, so that Tamil readers can work out how they might best ensure that their democratic rights are obtained - I suspect you will find that more subscribe to Dr Jayatilleka's perspective than the limited one your editorial enunciates.

Yours sincerely,

Prof. Rajiva Wijesinha

Secretary General.