Tigers’ Eelam: Nothing ‘Hindu’ or ‘Tamil’ about it – III

B R Haran

Sri Lanka vs. Western Nations
The Times’ report, which came after the official visit of UN Secretary General Ban Ki Moon to Sri Lanka, quoted two UN officials saying that Ban was aware of the death of 20,000 Tamil civilians. This report, along with a video clipping, raised a furore in the international arena, particularly among western nations which demanded a probe on the ‘war crimes’ of Sri Lanka.

The UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) demand was rejected by the Sri Lankan government. When UNHRC convened a special session in Geneva, where Sri Lanka and the European nations led by Germany put out competing resolutions, the Sri Lankan resolution justifying its military action against the world’s biggest terrorist organization sailed through, defeating the European resolution for a thorough probe into the ‘war crimes’ of the Sri Lankan military. India supported Sri Lanka along with China, Russia and Pakistan.


While slowly focusing on the rehabilitation of internally displaced Tamils, the Sri Lankan government is taking necessary action to thwart any attempts by the Tigers to regroup and restart terror activities. Colombo is determined to demolish the international network of arms and drug mafia with which the LTTE is widely connected. The government is aware of shady organizations having a foothold in countries like US, UK, Canada, France, Germany and other European capitals, indulging in fund-raising to revive the LTTE. As the Sri Lankan government requested help from the US and European countries to apprehend the concerned pro-LTTE persons and organizations, an LTTE operator Karunakaran Kandasamy and three others were arrested by US authorities.


But Colombo is unhappy with the non-cooperation of Canada and European countries like UK, France, Germany and others. These countries covertly encourage the Diaspora and other LTTE front organizations to protest against the Sri Lankan government and try to implicate Sri Lanka in ‘war crimes.’ The Sri Lankan government charged that demonstrations by diaspora in European countries were funded by the LTTE and aided and abetted by the host governments. Though US helped in taking legal action against pro-LTTE elements, it also joined European nations in their ‘measures’ against the Sri Lankan government.


Even during the most recent operations, the Sri Lankan military is believed to have uncovered evidence of the connivance of NGOs and Human Rights Organisations (many owing allegiance to the UN) with Tigers in vehicle supply and material support. Very recently, the Army apprehended two UN staffers who were reported missing earlier. Reliable sources report that some Christian organizations have allegedly bribed individual military officials and managed to allow LTTE’s intelligence officers to escape from refugee camps and flee the country. In connection with this and other reports of clandestinely assisting the LTTE, seven army personnel have been detained by the Sri Lankan Military Intelligence Unit
(http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=29613).


Meanwhile, Selvarasan Pathmanathan, alias KP, set up a committee comprising mostly Christians to formulate the constitution of a ‘Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam’ (TGTE), with a view to fight for the self-determination of Sri Lankan Tamils and safeguard the interests of the Sri Lankan Tamil Diaspora. As he has been a proclaimed criminal and fugitive in Sri Lanka and is also wanted by Interpol, this initiative is intended to gain some kind of credibility in the international arena and to make the million strong diaspora fall in line behind him. He has been successful in roping in experts from various fields, who have been active in US, Canada, UK, Sweden, Australia, Malaysia and Netherlands giving ‘voice’ to the LTTE, as members of the committee. Prof. Francis Boyle, who was in Chennai in association with the International Tamil Centre, is a member of this committee. The Sri Lankan government has rejected this attempt of KP, terming it a ‘hallucination.’


Considering the fact that western nations and the diaspora are trying to revive the call for separate Eelam by supporting the LTTE, despite its defeat and the elimination of Prabhakaran and the top leadership, Sri Lanka refused permission to the Tiger-sponsored relief carrying vessel MV Captain Ali after it entered Sri Lankan waters illegally. Though the ship was chartered in the name of “Mercy Mission to Vanni,” it was sponsored by an organization called “Act Now,” a pro-LTTE Christian organization. Ultimately due to the influence of the Indian government, Colombo agreed to accept the consignments through the Red Cross.


The Church and other Christian organizations allegedly utilizing the Sinhala-Tamil divide, which is their own creation, have been supporting the LTTE to bring down the majority Buddhist religion and the largest minority Hindu religion. The LTTE is believed to have a large number of Christians highly placed in the hierarchy including the deceased Prabhakaran, Anton Balasingham and others; a considerable portion of supporting Tamils and Diaspora are also Christian. It is no secret that the LTTE has been backed by the Church and is part of a neo-colonial conspiracy; mainstream international media has conveniently forgotten to present LTTE’s Christian leanings. Many members of the Christian clergy have acted as front men for LTTE and Fr. S.J. Emmanuel, former Vicar General of Jaffna, is a prime example; at present he lives in Germany helping LTTE’s Eelam cause.
(http://freetruth.50webs.org/D4g.htm)


A Sri Lankan Tamil Hindu social worker, affiliated to ‘Seva Lanka,’ a national social service institution, who is helping the poor and downtrodden in Vavuniya and Kilinochchi revealed that, “Prabhakaran enforced burials to replace cremations, enforced Dravidian weddings to replace the Hindu marriage ceremony, introduced so called Dravidian names to replace Hindu names, and recommended beef eating.” He added, “He [Prabhakaran] was perhaps never in charge, as someone else shrewder was running the show and that individual or institution disappeared and Prabhakaran alone made mistake after mistake, leading to his eventual death”.


The social worker said the Bishop of Mannar, Rayappu Joseph, the Bishop of Jaffna, Thomas Savundranayagam, and the Bishop of Batticaloa, Kingsley Swampillai, exerted disproportionate influence on the LTTE and recalled that Prabhakaran named his son ‘Charles Anthony’ after his dead comrade, and Tamilchelvam (political commissar of the LTTE - original name Dinesh) named his son ‘Oliventhan,’ meaning prince of light (Jesus?) and his daughter ‘Alai Arasi,’ queen of the waves which is the name for Britannia, all Christian names in the garb of Tamil. The social worker painfully exclaimed, “Ironically most Tamils are Hindus!”


Meanwhile, Prof. P. Pushparatnam, Head of the Department of History, University of Jaffna, has found a 19th century Tamil-Christian epitaph on the tomb of one Ales Francis Cruz, died 1827. Prof. Pushparatnam read the text as “1827 (in Tamil numerals) Thai month 27th date (in Tamil numerals and symbols for month and date) Naakapad’nam Aariyar Ales Piraagnchis Kurus.”


It was a tomb of a Christian, Ales Francis Cruz, from Naakappadinam on the Coromandal coast of Tamil Nadu, who died on the 27th date of the Tamil month Thai (Jan-Feb) of the year 1827. The Professor referred to the 19th century dictionaries for the word “Aariyar” (Arya in Sanskrit) meaning “foreigner” or “a person of a foreign faith” and said, “the epitaph comes out with the title ‘Aariyar’ for the deceased probably to indicate his Christian faith, priesthood or to indicate that he was a Christian of foreign (European) origin even though coming from Naakappaddinam”.
(http://www.tamilnet.com/art.html?catid=13&artid=29624)


This is clear evidence of the Church’s ‘Aryan-Dravidian’ propaganda in Tamil Nadu and also of its larger agenda and long-term plan of forming a “Tamil Christian Nation” comprising Tamil Nadu and the North-East of Sri Lanka. No wonder, this news is given importance and published in pro-LTTE website “Tamilnet”.


Conclusion


A deeper study of Sri Lankan history shows that the Sinhala-Tamil divide was created by the Portuguese after they landed on the shores of Sri Lanka. In due course of time, they captured the island nation and converted a large number of people, more Tamils than Sinhalese, as Tamils were weak and humble, without strong leadership. They demolished hundreds of Hindu Temples and Buddhist Viharas. Sri Lankan historians believe that the Island would have become completely Christian had the Portuguese continued. The Dutch and the British continued the evil legacy of the Portuguese and the same has been followed till date by the Church. The LTTE leadership, the Diaspora leadership, and the so-called ‘Tamil’ organizations are all under the control of Christian organizations backed by the Church.


Those ‘Tamil’ organizations have done nothing for the welfare of either the Sri Lankan Tamils or the Diaspora, but served only as ‘fronts’ for the LTTE, helping it in fund-raising and arms purchasing. Ironically, the majority of Sri Lankan Tamils and Sri Lankan Diaspora is “Hindu.” While Tamil Hindus in Sri Lanka have been released and relieved from the LTTE and the Church, thanks to the determined efforts of the Rajapakse government, the ‘Hindu’ section of the Diaspora is still in the clutches of the LTTE and the Church. As the Church is aware of its limitations within the island nation, it is using its might to the full to revive the LTTE and keep the Eelam cause alive by egging on the Diaspora with the support of governments in various western countries.


Make no mistake; LTTE and Eelam are purely ‘Christian;’ nothing ‘Hindu’ or ‘Tamil’ about them.

(Concluded)

The author is a senior journalist; he lives in Chennai