The article refers to two UN officials who remained illegally in the no-fire zone. The article suggests : ‘The first thing that has to be done by the UN, is to charge the two UN officials responsible for putting Tamil civilians in harm’s way by setting up an unauthorized hub between two warring forces and attracting civilians into the no man’s land. On Page 24 of the panel report, it is said that the UN personnel tried to get the army to stop their shelling. Interestingly, they do not say that they even attempted to get the LTTE to stop shelling the army from near the ‘UN hub’.
by Gaja Lakshmi Paramasivam
(April 24, Melbourne, Sri Lanka Guardian) It is Easter and even as I read discussions and opinions about the UN report on human rights violations in the last stages of the ethnic war in Sri Lanka – I keep wondering whether the UN has now been given to hold the Tiger by the Tail !
I mention Easter because to me the way Land influences us, time also does. The same event is experienced differently at different times due to our mental environments which are influenced by place and time. I have been reading reports of Sri Sathya Sai Baba’s physical health, knowing it is important for those physically close to Swami. For myself, Swami came to me when I was in deep need and hence Swami is God. This means I would not be able to work out any deeper reason as to why Swami is in hospital but identify with the experience of others physically close to Swami, through my own experiences when my close family was hospitalized. This has helped me comfort many devotees. Today, when seeking to verify the source of the article ‘Serious flaws in Ban Ki-moon panel report’ published in Sri Lanka Guardian, I came across in the ‘Sunday Island’ a report entitled ‘No sign of change in Sai Baba's condition'. I was not particularly praying for change one way or the other. I have been praying to Swami to help me uphold the values He has helped us see within ourselves. This is especially significant during this Holy period during which Christ Resurrected Himself. My heart goes out to those who have lived physically close to Swami. But for myself, I need to strengthen more than ever before, my identification with the values that Swami has been working tirelessly to share with us – primarily that we are all God. Realizing this Divinity within is the best return I believe I could deliver for what I myself have received from Swami. One form through which this value could be described is Independence.
The UN Report on the Tail end of the Tiger war, is being analyzed and discussed as if the Battle of Vanni was the Battle of Independence itself ! Swami said – ‘you are not the body’. Swami practiced He was not the body. To me, the Battle of Vanni is not even the body of Independence but just the tail end of the body.
But I read some discussions as per the interest I naturally feel. I appreciate that others may be likewise attracted to read other articles as per their angle of interest and previous investment. Mine usually is through Public Administration rather than Politics. To my mind, in Public Administration, we start off with common structure and end up completing the picture by filling the gap with our own personal belief – through our sovereign powers. In politics it is the other way around.
I believe that I was asked by a Yoga Swami devotee to go to Vanni through a UNDP project, to help the Tamil Tiger Administration. I was assigned to Tamil Eelam Health Service in Kilinochchi. I gave my reports to both – UNDP as well as the LTTE Central Administration. Neither responded. But my genuine work is now helping me workout the reality at various levels and clear my own service path to help the needy at various levels – here in Australia and there in Sri Lanka. The UN report as published by various individuals largely confirm my findings about the Tigers in 2003 and about the armed forces in later years. They help me structure my own work to the best advantage of the needy.
The Sunday Island/Sri Lanka Guardian article says ‘Thus the LTTE which was designated in 2008 by the FBI as the world’s deadliest terrorist organization outranking even Al Qaeda, becomes an upholder of the freedom of expression as against a UN member state which is also Asia’s oldest democracy, and has seen ten peaceful changes of government since independence and has enjoyed universal franchise for eighty years!’
To me, any listing by any authority is officially valid only within the boundaries of that authority and no more. FBI has no authority over me and hence to me their listing of LTTE was more a declaration of the challenge they seemed to face rather than LTTE being global Terrorists. I believe I am a global citizen and hence would naturally feel if the Tamil Tigers were to be shunned – lest they infected me with Terrorism. Through my direct interaction with the Tigers, I did not feel any such risk. I expect that to be the case with most Tamil civilians. Likewise, most Sinhalese civilians with the politically driven armed forces of Sri Lanka.
I do identify with the following part of the above article ‘One of the few Tamil organizations over the years to challenge this culture of fear (They were able to do so because its key members lived in exile outside the north) - the University Teacher’s for Human Rights - Jaffna (UTHR-J) has written of the control the LTTE has always exerted not only over the Tamil people but over government servants in areas under their control in the following terms –
"In Jaffna, it (the LTTE) virtually controls the Sri Lanka police, administrators, local councils and educational officers. It controls schools and through the education department Batticaloa, has distributed portraits of Prabhakaran to be hung in schools in lieu of the head of state." (UTHR-J Information Bulletin No: 30 December 3, 2002)
"Controlling village headmen (Grama Sevakas) is also to control the people. The government’s social welfare measures, ration cards, identity cards, and voters lists are all routed through the headman. From the 1990s the LTTE has used the headmen under its control to police the people, force them to attend demonstrations, perform compulsory military service as auxiliaries, impose punitive cuts of rations, diddle government aid and report on those coming in and going out." (UTHR-J Information Bulletin No: 39 Nov. 1, 2005) ‘
First of all it is interesting that the LTTE chose Batticaloa education department to distribute Prabakaran’s portraits. Jaffna Tamils have invested deeply in Public Administration and Higher Education and hence cannot be persuaded as easily as Batticaloa Tamils to ‘give-in’ to the power of dictators and enforcers – be it Prabakaran or Rajapakse. Our True investments would always protect us even from our own weaknesses.
Through my direct interactions with Public Administrators in that area, I concluded that most Tamil Administrators not only in the LTTE controlled areas but also outside – mentally supported the LTTE which was the only political group that they could identify with. Given that there was very little Administration of standards acceptable in Colombo, management of the public was more through faith rather than commitment to Government structures. I do feel that the Government has reinstated many of these officers who were initially demoted during the Battle of Vanni.
The question is which one came first – the negligence and unjust discrimination by the Sinhalese Government or the enforcement by LTTE? I hold both responsible.
The article refers to two UN officials who remained illegally in the no-fire zone. The article suggests : ‘The first thing that has to be done by the UN, is to charge the two UN officials responsible for putting Tamil civilians in harm’s way by setting up an unauthorized hub between two warring forces and attracting civilians into the no man’s land. On Page 24 of the panel report, it is said that the UN personnel tried to get the army to stop their shelling. Interestingly, they do not say that they even attempted to get the LTTE to stop shelling the army from near the ‘UN hub’.
I agree that the UN is responsible for the consequences of this breach. But the question needs to be asked as to why the Sri Lankan Government did not take action at UN level, against its own officers? Is it a question of them scratching each other’s tails?
The UN, Government of Sri Lanka as well as various parts of the media have failed to follow their own professional codes of conduct. As they say – ‘ all is fair in love and war’. Fair or unfair, Truth will eventually prevail. If we remain within our own true boundaries, no UN Tsunami would damage us but help us take greater care of our environments – especially cultural and administrative environments which have supported Sri Lankan Tamils over centuries – not because they were close to the Government of the day or to the UN – but because they invested in common cultural values, with belief. That belief will resurrect Itself through the most appropriate forms – which is education for North.
I wonder what would have happened if Dr. Jayantha Dhanapala had won the position of UN Secretary General? Would Sri Lanka be rising to UN standards or would UN be relying more and more on ‘sovereignty’ cover?
I also applied for the position of UN Secretary General. Had I won the position, we would all have United Nations within ourselves. Once we realize UN values, the structure itself becomes secondary and would work itself through natural processes. This UN Report is a small part of the scaffolding that would help us in our path to realizing global values. The real substance of the report is already within us – as our true experience of the UN values – some of which could be interpreted through the war. Not most because neither side to this war invested much in UN values. To the extent we focus on this report – at a level higher than our real investment – we are distracting ourselves from realizing Independence. Any other Tamil who felt eligible for the position would have applied through any avenue available to her/him – without fearing defeat. Since no other Tamil did – I conclude that they lacked the confidence to officially do what they are demanding of the UN Secretary General. We are all UN Secretary Generals to the extent of our real belief in the values upheld by that position. That to me is the real value of Easter – as I learned from Swami Sai Baba.
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