Sunday 31 March 2024

ரகு - அண்ணாவுக்கு பிரியாவிடை

 

அன்புள்ள ரகு அண்ணா; 

அண்ணனுக்கு அண்ணனாய், தோழனுக்கு தோழனாய்,  எம்மோடு பயணித்தவா... பிரியாவிடை!

உறவுக்கு ஒரு உயிர் அண்ணனாய் இருந்தவன் நீ!  
நீ அள்ளி தந்த அன்பே தனி! 

மறப்பேனோ உன்னை, 
என் தந்தைக்கு பெறா மகனாய்  நீ  ஆற்றிய பணிவிடை,
இரத்த தானம் கேட்ட போது  நீ கொடுத்த கொடை, 
 “நான், குமாரா, ராஜா, மூவரும் என்றும் பிரியோம்” 
என்று அப்பாவுக்கு நீ கொடுத்த வாக்கு,
............ என, என

பிரியாமல் பயணித்த பயணம் பல, 
பிரிந்தாயோ அண்ணா?

உறவின் அர்த்தம்  புரிந்தவன், வந்த தடைகள் தகர்த்தவன்.

குடும்பச் சுமை  `குழந்தை உழைப்பாளிகளை` கொழும்புக்குத் துரத்திய, 
மலையக சோகத்தின் மற்றொரு சுவடு நீ.

சளைக்கவில்லை நீ சாதித்தாய்!
என்று நீ அயர்ந்தாய்? 

அந்த உலைக்களத்தில் பயின்றாய்,
உன்னத மனிதனாய் உயர்ந்தாய்!

நீதியான சமுதாயத்தை உருவாக்க  நாம் சிறு எறும்புகளாக இணைவோம் என்ற போது நீ தயங்கவில்லை.

அந்நிய ஆக்கிரமிப்பை எதிர்த்த எந்தக் கருத்துக்களும்  வேட்டையாடப்பட்ட அந்நாட்களில், 
துணிந்த  உன் செயல்கள் சிறு  துளிகள் , 
ஆம்
பெரு வெள்ளமான சிறு  துளிகள்!  

வீதியெல்லாம் இராணுவம், விளக்கெரிக்க அஞ்சினோம், 
வீடு தந்த மானுடம் நீ!

விடுதலை விளக்கேற்றும் பிரச்சார இயக்கத்துக்கு 
அடிநாதமாய் இருந்த பிடிவாதம் உனது.

அன்றும், இன்றும் இதை அறிந்தவர் சிலர் ஆயினும் 
இன்று அனைவரும் அறிய உரக்கச் சொல்வோம், 
எம் பாதையில் நீ ஒரு தொடு கல்! எம் பயணத்தில் நீ ஒரு நடுகல்!

அன்புத் தோழனே, இன்று நீ மீளாத்துயிலில் .... நாமோ ஆறாத்துயரில்...

உன் அன்பும், சமூக நேசமும், மக்கள் பாசமும், மனித நேயமும் 
என்றென்றும் எம்மை விட்டு அழியாது, அகலாது.

எப்போதும் உயிர் வாழும்,
எம் உயிரோடு உன் நினைவும் வாழும்.

சென்று வா, 
அன்பு மிகு ரகு அண்ணா சென்று வா!

பிரியாவிடை.

என்றும் உன் அன்பு மறவா சகோதரர்கள், நண்பர்கள், தோழர்கள்.
01-04-2024

Saturday 30 March 2024

UK government lawyers say Israel is breaking international law

UK government lawyers say Israel is breaking international law, claims top Tory in leaked recording
Chair of foreign affairs select committee Alicia Kearns said at a Tory fundraiser that legal advice would mean the UK has to cease all arms sales to Israel without delay.

Sat 30 Mar 2024 19.30 GMT The Guardian/Observer 

The British government has received advice from its own lawyers stating that Israel has breached international humanitarian law in Gaza but has failed to make it public, according to a leaked recording obtained by the Observer.

The comments, made by the Conservative chair of the House of Commons select committee on foreign affairs, Alicia Kearns, at a Tory fundraising event on 13 March are at odds with repeated ministerial denials and evasion on the issue.

On Saturday night, Kearns, a former Foreign Office and Ministry of Defence official, who has repeatedly pressed ministers, including foreign secretary David Cameron, on the legal advice they have received, stood by her comments and called for the government to come clean.

“I remain convinced the government has completed its updated assessment on whether Israel is demonstrating a commitment to international humanitarian law, and that it has concluded that Israel is not demonstrating this commitment, which is the legal determination it has to make,” she said. “Transparency at this point is paramount, not least to uphold the international rules-based order.”

The revelation will place Lord Cameron and prime minister Rishi Sunak under intense pressure because any such legal advice would mean the UK had to cease all arms sales to Israel without delay.

Legal experts said that not to do so would risk putting the UK in breach of international law itself, as it would be seen as aiding and abetting war crimes by a country it was exporting arms to.

Answering questions at an “evening drinks reception” hosted by the West Hampstead and Fortune Green Conservatives in London, Kearns said: “The Foreign Office has received official legal advice that Israel has broken international humanitarian law but the government has not announced it.


Conservative MP Alicia Kearns
made the comments at a Tory
fundraising event earlier this
month.Photograph: NurPhoto
/Getty Images
“They have not said it, they haven’t stopped arms exports. They have done a few very small sanctions on Israeli settlers and everyone internationally is agreed that settlers are illegal, that they shouldn’t be doing what they’re doing, and the ways in which they have continued and the money that’s been put in.”

Kearns told the gathering that both she and Cameron believed strongly in Israel’s right to defend itself. “But the right to self-defence has a limit in law. It is not limitless,” she said, going on to suggest that Israel’s actions put its and the UK’s long-term security at risk.

“Some of the ways in which Israel is prosecuting this is making their long-term security less certain. It is making our long-term security less certain. I’m amazed that our national threat level has not gone up. And it breaks my heart because I know it could be done differently.”

The British barrister and judge Sir Geoffrey Nice, who was the lead prosecutor at former Serbian president Slobodan Milošević’s trial from 2002 to 2006, said he would not be at all surprised if such advice had been given by government lawyers and called for it to be made public.

Nice said: “A warring party becomes unlawful if it cannot show that its actions have been proportionate. It would not be surprising if there had been advice to that effect from the Foreign Office’s lawyers.”

Were that to be the case, he said that “at the very least that would mean the UK would have to look at the whole issue of arms sales to Israel. It takes you into the area of aiding and abetting. It takes you into to very difficult areas.”

He added: “Countries supplying arms to Israel may now be complicit in criminal warfare. The public should be told what the advice says.”

The UK’s arms exports to Israel amounted to £42m in 2022, a figure described by defence secretary Grant Shapps as “relatively small”.

But former lord chancellor Charles Falconer said a legal assessment that Israel had broken international law would also prevent the UK sharing intelligence with Israel.

“Governments who abide by the rule of law cannot ignore mounting evidence of breach which would then put those governments in breach if they continued assisting,” he said.

In a session of the foreign affairs select committee in January, Cameron was asked directly by Kearns whether “you have never had a piece of paper put in front of you by a Foreign Office lawyer that says that Israel is in breach of its international humanitarian commitments under international humanitarian law”.

Cameron stated that “I cannot recall every single bit of paper that has been put in front of me … I don’t want to answer that question.”

He later said that “if you are asking me whether I am worried that Israel has taken action that might be in breach of international law … yes, of course I am worried about that. That is why I consult the Foreign Office lawyers when giving this advice on arms exports.”

Other UK ministers have previously claimed that Israel has abided by international law. In late November, business secretary Kemi Badenoch said on Sky News that “we’ve always said that Israel should abide by international law, and that appears to be what they have done … It looks like they have taken great pains to make sure that they’re staying within the confines of the law. We applaud them for that.”

Labour has repeatedly called for the government to be transparent about the legal advice it has received.

On 22 March, David Lammy MP, the shadow foreign secretary, wrote to Cameron, calling on him to publish the legal advice on Israel’s compliance with international humanitarian law.

On 26 March in the House of Commons, Lammy asked the minister for development and Africa, Andrew Mitchell MP, if the foreign secretary had received legal advice saying there was a clear risk that items licensed by the UK might be used to commit or facilitate a serious violation of international humanitarian law. Mitchell said “no government do[es] that”, adding later that “we do not disclose our internal legal advice”.

Last week, the international court of justice ordered Israel to allow unimpeded access of food aid into Gaza, where huge numbers of people are facing imminent starvation. Cameron has repeatedly voiced his frustration at Israel’s action in blocking aid from crossing the border into Gaza.

The war began on 7 October after Hamas launched an attack inside Israel that killed more than 1,100 Israelis, mostly civilians, and took about 250 people hostage.

Israeli military attacks on Gaza have resulted in the death of more than 32,000 people, the majority women and children, according to local health authorities.

A Foreign Office spokesperson said: “We keep advice on Israel’s adherence to international humanitarian law under review and ministers act in accordance with that advice, for example, when considering export licences. The content of the government’s advice is confidential.” ⍐

A.K. Dissanayake in the Lead for President-IHP

 


The Institute for Health Policy’s (IHP) Sri Lanka Opinion Tracker Survey (SLOTS) MRP provisional estimates of presidential election voting intent in February 2024 show no real changes compared to January. NPP/JVP leader A.K. Dissanayake continues to lead with the support of 53% of all adults followed by SJB leader Sajith Premadasa on 34%, President Ranil Wickremesinghe at 6% (-2) and a generic SLPP candidate at 7% (-1).

These estimates are based on the January 2024 revision of the IHP SLOTS Multilevel Regression and Poststratification (MRP) model. The update is for all adults and uses data from 16,248 interviews conducted from October 2021 to 24 March 2024 including 575 interviews during February 2024. Margins of error are assessed as 1-3% for February.

IHP’s SLOTS MRP methodology first estimates the relationship between a wide variety of characteristics about respondents and their opinions, in this case, “If there was a Presidential Election today, who would you vote for?” in a multilevel statistical model. It then uses a large data file that is calibrated to the national population to predict voting intent in each month since October 2021 according to what the multilevel model says about their probability of voting for various parties (‘post-stratification’) at each point in time.

SLOTS combines interviews from a national sample of adults (ages 18 and over) reached by random digit dialling of mobile numbers, and others coming from a national panel of respondents who were previously recruited through random selection. IHP estimates voting intent using an adaptation of Multilevel Regression and Post-Stratification (MRP), with multiple imputation to account for uncertainties in its modelling, exploiting data from all SLOTS interviews to estimate voting in a particular month.

The February 2024 MRP estimates are based on 16,248 interviews conducted from 1 October 2021-24 March 2024 including 575 interviews conducted in February 2024. All estimates are adjusted to ensure the sample matches the national population with respect to age, sex, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, education, geographical location and voting in the 2019 presidential and 2020 general elections.⍐

Friday 29 March 2024

India, Ukraine discuss achieving ‘peaceful settlement’

India, Ukraine discuss achieving ‘peaceful settlement’ to Moscow-Kyiv conflict during FM Kuleba’s India visit: MEA


New Delhi [India], March 29 (ANI): India and Ukraine discussed regional and global matters including the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict and efforts to achieve a ‘peaceful settlement’, during the visit of Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro to New Delhi, the Ministry of External Affairs said in a statement.

FM Kuleba was on an official visit to India on March 28-29. During his visit, FM Kuleba met External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar, and Deputy National Security Adviser, Vikram Misri.

The meeting between Jaishankar and Kuleba held on Friday focused on fostering constructive dialogue and strengthening bilateral relations between India and Ukraine, including in areas such as trade and investment, science and technology, defence, agriculture, health, culture, and education, the statement read.

Both ministers also held a separate discussion on matters related to the India-Ukraine Inter-Governmental Commission on trade, economic, scientific, technical, industrial and cultural cooperation and its working groups.

New Delhi and Kyiv agreed to work towards holding the seventh Inter-Governmental Commission meeting later this year.

“The exchange of views on regional and global matters involved a comprehensive discussion on the ongoing conflict and efforts to achieve a peaceful settlement,” the statement added.

The two sides also acknowledged that regular interactions at various levels and meetings of bilateral mechanisms have contributed to the strong and multifaceted partnership that exists between India and Ukraine.

Earlier in the day, Ukrainian FM Kuleba said on social media platform X that he held “comprehensive talks” with EAM Jaishankar on bilateral ties and global security. The two leaders paid special attention to the Peace Formula and the next steps to be adopted for its implementation.

He added that the two sides agreed to restore the level of cooperation between our countries that existed before the conflict between Russia and Ukraine started in 2022.

EAM Jaishankar stated on X that the two sides had wide-ranging conversation focussing on the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict and its wider ramifications. They also reiterated their commitment to strengthen the overall relationship, including bilateral cooperation.

At the meeting, Jaishankar said that he looks forward to the visit, adding that India looks forward to hearing the Ukrainian perspective on their regional situation.

“We have been looking forward to this visit…In recent months, we have had interactions at various levels, I am glad to see some of our bilateral mechanisms have also met and this has created certain momentum in our bilateral relationship. Today, after this discussion, we look forward also to the meeting of the intergovernmental commission,” Jaishankar said.

“Your visit gives us an opportunity to understand the situation in your own region and I look forward to hearing your perspective on that. Our teams have prepared a very substantial agenda for discussions,” he added.

While, the Ukrainian FM stated that Kyiv will be looking forward to discussing new areas of cooperation with New Delhi.

“We will be looking forward to restoring what had existed before the large-scale invasion of Russia in Ukraine began, existed between us. We will be looking forward to discussing new areas and projects of our cooperation because I do believe that this relationship has a strategic perspective,” he said.

In 2022, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy first presented Ukraine’s 10-point peace formula to world leaders at the G20 Summit in Indonesia’s Bali. The 10-point peace formula includes a path to nuclear safety and food security, a special tribunal for alleged Russian war crimes and a final peace treaty with Moscow.

Ukrainian FM Kuleba arrived in India at the invitation of EAM Jaishankar on Thursday and said he will look to boost bilateral ties between the two countries and build on the dialogue between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.

He also paid respects to Mahatma Gandhi at the Rajghat in New Delhi.

Meanwhile, this visit came days after a telephonic conversation between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on March 20, in which the two leaders discussed ways to further strengthen the India-Ukraine partnership in various spheres.

While discussing the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict, PM Modi reiterated India’s people-centric approach and called for dialogue and diplomacy as the way forward. He highlighted that India supports all efforts for an early and peaceful resolution of all issues between the parties.

He added that India would continue to do everything within its means to support a peaceful solution. Ukrainian resident Zelenskyy appreciated India’s continued humanitarian assistance for the people of Ukraine. (ANI)⍐

Thursday 28 March 2024

Xi meets Sri Lankan PM


This handout photograph released by Sri Lanka Prime Minister’s Office on March 27, 2024 shows Sri Lanka’s Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena (left) shaking hands with China’s President Xi Jinping before a meeting in Beijing. | Photo Credit: AFP

GT  Mar 27, 2024 
    
Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Sri Lankan Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena in Beijing on Wednesday.

Noting that the friendship between China and Sri Lanka enjoys a long history and the two peoples share a natural affinity, Xi said consolidating and promoting China-Sri Lanka relations serves the fundamental interests and reflects the common expectations of the two peoples.

China is willing to work with Sri Lanka to carry forward the spirit of the Rubber-Rice Pact, which is characterized by "independence, self-reliance, unity and mutual support," to consolidate political mutual trust, enhance exchanges of experience in governance, expand practical cooperation, and advance the high quality Belt and Road cooperation, Xi said.

He noted that China and Sri Lanka should join hands to advance their strategic cooperative partnership featuring sincere mutual assistance and ever-lasting friendship.

Chinese President Xi Jinping meets with Sri Lankan Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena,
who is on an official visit to China, at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China,
March 27, 2024. Photo: Xinhua

Sri Lankan PM Dinesh Gunawardena meets Chinese President Xi Jinping

Chinese President Xi Jinping assures continuous support to Sri Lanka for political and socio-economic progress, emphasising mutual respect and cooperation

The Hindu March 28, 2024 03:17 pm | Updated 03:42 pm IST - Colombo

Chinese President Xi Jinping has assured continuous support to Prime Minister Dinesh Gunawardena for Sri Lanka’s efforts for “political and socio-economic progress” and also said Beijing will stand for safeguarding the island nation’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.

China and Sri Lanka agreed to continue to act under the friendship, peace, mutual respect and fivefold principle in international affairs that do not interfere in the internal affairs of a country during a meeting between Mr. Xi and Mr. Gunawardena on March 27 at Great Hall in Beijing, the Prime Minister’s office said in a statement in Colombo on March 28.

“Chinese President assured continuous support of China to Sri Lanka’s efforts for political and socioeconomic progress. The Chinese President said that China will always stand for safeguarding independence, territorial integrity and sovereignty of Sri Lanka,” the statement said.

 Bankrupt Sri Lanka gets China’s tentative agreement on debt restructure

“It was emphasised that bilateral relations should be based on mutual respect and mutual productivity between the countries, and acting according to that policy would set a good example for both countries,” it added.

President Xi assured that China will support the schemes necessary for the development of Sri Lanka as soon as they are presented.

China is willing to work with Sri Lanka to carry forward the spirit of the Rubber-Rice Pact, which is characterised by “independence, self-reliance, unity and mutual support,” to consolidate political mutual trust, enhance exchanges of experience in governance, expand practical cooperation, and advance the high-quality Belt and Road cooperation, Mr. Xi was quoted as saying in an official press release in Beijing.

Earlier on March 26, China and Sri Lanka signed nine new agreements as Prime Minister Mr. Gunawardena met his counterpart Chinese Premier Li Qing amid Colombo’s efforts to restructure its bankrupt economy but no details about the agreement were made available.


China is Sri Lanka’s largest bilateral lender owning 52% of the $40 billion external debt when Sri Lanka announced its sovereign default in 2022.

The Chinese assurance comes days after the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which concluded its second review of the $2.9 billion bailout with Sri Lanka, said reaching an agreement with the country’s commercial creditors, the international bondholders and China Development Bank was the key to achieving debt sustainability.

During the high-level bilateral talks, the Chinese Premier praised Sri Lanka’s economic progress after a period of economic downside and said his country would also extend assistance to develop Katunayake International Airport, Hambantota Port and Colombo Port City, news portal NewsFirst.lk said.⍐

Wednesday 27 March 2024

Why are foreign envoys making a beeline to the JVP?

 The JVP misread the invite as the Indians had acknowledged that the party would be the next government in waiting and Anura Kumara, the prospective president.

These days, the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP)/National People’s Power (NPP) Leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake and top-level party stalwarts are busy receiving a beeline of foreign diplomats, who seem eager to know what is going through those elusive minds.

That is an achievement for the party that languished on the sideline. Their luck has changed since the Indians showed a sudden interest and invited the JVP leadership to New Delhi, where they met, among others, Indian Foreign Minister S. Jaishankar and National Security Advisor Ajit Doval, and travelled to Modi’s home turf, Gujarat to learn the Gujarati model of development.

The JVP misread the invite as the Indians had acknowledged that the party would be the next government in waiting and Anura Kumara, the prospective president. Quite a hubris for a party that had not managed to poll over five per cent of the popular vote in the last decade. The JVP’s best performance was when it ran on the back of Chandrika Kumaratunge’s People’s Alliance after she staged a constitutional coup in 2003. 

Junior partner 

The JVP ran as a junior partner in CBK’s alliance and won 39 seats, effectively eating into the preferential votes of the PA candidates. Probably, the JVPers themselves felt that the outcome was too good that they later conceded a few seats to the PA to stall a brewing storm in the tea cup in the PA. The JVP’s best performance, contesting as a single party was in 2001 when it polled 9% of popular votes and won 16 parliamentary seats. That was a quarter century ago.

Therefore, the party is right to relish every bit of good news, though it might also have to eschew itself from self-delusion.

The Indian invites appeared to be two-fold; in the first place, it was quite natural for New Delhi to build bridges with the political actors across the board in its southern neighbour. 

First policy has been well-oiled under Modi with substantial investment in soft and hard power projection, which made it possible for New Delhi to throw a $4 billion aid line for Sri Lanka during the economic crisis.

Secondly, as leading Indian conglomerates, many including Adani’s who enjoy a backdoor channel to Modi and the BJP, undertake large investments in Sri Lanka, New Delhi might have expected to tame one of the major disruptors of the Indian economic interests in Sri Lanka.

The JVP’s opposition to Indian projects has been somewhat muted since the visit.

Why is the sudden Western interest in the JVP? 

American Asia Pacific strategy is undertaken in association with its regional partners. A similar regional strategy of the EU is a subtext of the wider US initiative. In South Asia, India takes precedence over the rest. India, which considers South Asia as its sphere of influence, an inheritance of the grand strategy of the British Raj, would not give in to any external power, friendly or otherwise, which significantly negates its influence in its immediate neighbourhood. Not to mention, in the context of China’s rise, foreign policy interests in India and its Western partners are increasingly convergent. Also, other than the US, the majority of the West lacks substantial relative power vis a vis China and, therefore, power projection capacity in Asia.

Since India threw an invite to Dissanayake, the Canadian High Commissioner has met the JVP and the Japanese ambassador is expected to meet.  The IMF local mission chief met with an NPP delegation, though Dissanayake abstained.

Diplomatic overtures 

Similar diplomatic overtures are neither unique nor new. Western envoys regularly met the leadership of minority political parties.   At the height of the peace  process, many paid homage to the LTTE chief Velupillai Prabhakaran and his political chief Thamil Chelvam, though none of them could change his behaviour.

Probably their  overture to the  JVP leadership is a step to the right direction, from a flawed approach in the past, which viewed real and imaginary minority grievances as the source of all evil in Sri Lanka.

However, this sudden interest might well be inspired by concocted data. A think tank, the Institute of Health Policy is publishing an opinion poll that some time ago put the JVP leadership enjoying over 50 per cent of approval while the rest languishes in obscurity. 

A recently revised model places  the JVP at 40% followed by SJB at 30%.   The survey methodology which is under scrutiny, thought the IHP claimed they were based on 15,590 interviews conducted with adults across Sri Lanka since October 2021, with 506 interviews carried out in January 2024. However, an experienced Sri Lankan watcher would find these projections too good to be true.  Samples seem to have been picked from the JVP picket lines and trade union demonstrations!

Sri Lankans have seen similar enterprising efforts when a group of SLFP affiliated dons of Kelaniya University produced regular opinion polls ahead of General and Presidential Elections in the past.

But, this permeates well within an eco chamber of ideas and stakeholders that many foreign embassies in the country have confined themselves. 

What do foreign envoys gain from meeting with the NPP camaraderie? Obviously, it is an insight into their mind, their policies and how they affect the country at large, including their interests in Sri Lanka.

Whether the JVP could provide insight into these matters is an open question though. For a party that exploited public anger and despair without offering solutions, giving  an even remotely workable solution to Sri Lanka’s intricate economic problems is a tall order.  Foreign envoys that meet the JVPers should be able to notice this dichotomy.

These interactions are indeed helpful to the JVP at a different level. They could widen the JVP’s  worldview. These meetings should not only help  the foreign envoys get an insight in to the elusive JVP policies, if something tangible to that effect exits at all but they should also help the JVP to have a glimpse into the rest of the world.  But, that is only possible to the extent that the JVP is willing to unlearn its economic dogmatism.    dailymirror.lk/ 27 March 2024⍐ 

Monday 25 March 2024

Full text: UN Security Council Resolution 2728

Full text: UN Security Council Resolution 2728

The Hamas ceasefire resolution was adopted on March 25, 2024, following the abstention of the United States.


The following is the full text of U.N. Security Council Resolution 2728, adopted on March 25, 2024, following the abstention of the United States:

Resolution 2728 (2024)

Adopted by the Security Council at its 9,586th meeting, on 25 March 2024
 
The Security Council,

Guided by the purposes and principles of the Charter of the United Nations,

Recalling all of its relevant resolutions on the situation in the Middle East, including the Palestinian question,

Reiterating its demand that all parties comply with their obligations under international law, including international humanitarian law and international human rights law, and in this regard deploring all attacks against civilians and civilian objects, as well as all violence and hostilities against civilians, and all acts of terrorism, and recalling that the taking of hostages is prohibited under international law,

Expressing deep concern about the catastrophic humanitarian situation in the Gaza Strip, 

Acknowledging the ongoing diplomatic efforts by Egypt, Qatar and the United States, aimed at reaching a cessation of hostilities, releasing the hostages and increasing the provision and distribution of humanitarian aid,

1. Demands an immediate ceasefire for the month of Ramadan respected by all parties leading to a lasting sustainable ceasefire, and also demands the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, as well as ensuring humanitarian access to address their medical and other humanitarian needs, and further demands that the parties comply with their obligations under international law in relation to all persons they detain; 

2. Emphasizes the urgent need to expand the flow of humanitarian assistance to and reinforce the protection of civilians in the entire Gaza Strip and reiterates its demand for the lifting of all barriers to the provision of humanitarian assistance at scale, in line with international humanitarian law as well as resolutions 2712 (2023) and 2720 (2023);

3. Decides to remain actively seized of the matter.

Gaza: Security Council passes resolution demanding ‘an immediate ceasefire’ during Ramadan

 

Linda Thomas-Greenfield, United States Ambassador and Representative to the United Nations, votes to abstain as
the United Nations Security Council passed a ceasefire resolution in Gaza during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan,
its first demand to halt fighting at UN headquarters, Monday, March 25, 2024. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)

The UN Security Council on Monday passed a resolution demanding an immediate ceasefire for the month of Ramadan, the immediate and unconditional release of hostages and "the urgent need to expand the flow" of aid into Gaza. There were 14 votes in favour with the United States abstaining.

HIGHLIGHTS

  • The UN Security Council adopts a resolution tabled by its 10 non-permanent members (E-10) demanding a ceasefire in Gaza during Ramadan, by a vote of 14 in favour to none against, with one abstention (United States)
  • Resolution 2728 also calls for the immediate release of hostages and for ensuring humanitarian access to Gaza
  • The Council rejected a Russia-proposed amendment that would have called for a permanent ceasefire
  • The US ambassador said her delegation “fully supports” the critical objectives of the draft
  • Algeria’s ambassador says the ceasefire will end “the bloodbath”
  • “This must be a turning point,” says the ambassador for the observer State of Palestine
  • The draft’s lack of condemnation of Hamas is “a disgrace”, says Israel’s ambassador

Three main demands: Ceasefire, return hostages, let aid into Gaza

The resolution is a bare-bones call for a ceasefire during the month of Ramadan, which began on 11 March. It also demands the return of about 130 hostages seized in Israel and still held in Gaza and emphasizes the urgent need to allow ample lifesaving aid to reach a starving population in the besieged enclave.

The demand to end hostilities has so far eluded the Council following the Israeli forces’ invasion of Gaza in October after Hamas attacks left almost 1,200 dead and 240 taken hostage.

Since then, Israel’s daily bombardment alongside its near total blockade of water, electricity and lifesaving aid has killed more than 32,000 Palestinians in Gaza,  according to the health ministry there, where a recent UN-backed report showed an imminent famine unfolding.

Growing calls to end the war

Missile attacks on Gaza are continuing.
© UNICEF/Eyad El Baba
 
Missile attacks on Gaza are continuing.

While a week-long ceasefire in November saw an exchange of hostages held in Gaza for Palestinians detained in Israel, fighting resumed and has only escalated, as the death toll and malnutrition in Gaza continues to soar along with ever louder calls to end the war and rapidly address the stark humanitarian suffering.

Previous rejected drafts contained basically the same provisions as this new one, as did resolutions 2712 and 2720 that were adopted in late 2023, but points of contention persist among the membership while calls continue to demand that the 15-member Council take a stronger stand to end the conflict.

What’s the new draft resolution calling for?

  • The Council would demand “an immediate ceasefire for the month of Ramadan respected by all parties leading to a lasting sustainable ceasefire
  • It would also demand “the immediate and unconditional release of all hostages, as well as ensuring humanitarian access to address their medical and other humanitarian needs” and “that the parties comply with their obligations under international law in relation to all persons they detain”
  • Other provisions would have the Council emphasize “the urgent need to expand the flow of humanitarian assistance to and reinforce the protection of civilians in the entire Gaza Strip.
  • In this regard, the draft would have the Council reiterate its demand for the lifting of all barriers to the provision of humanitarian assistance at scale, in line with international humanitarian law as well as resolutions 2712 (2023) and 2720 (2023).

Here are HIGHLIGHTS from the Council’s meeting on Friday:

  • A US-proposed draft to end the war in Gaza was vetoed by permanent Council members China and Russia, in a vote of 11 favour to three against (Algeria, China, Russia) and one abstention (Guyana)
  • Several ambassadors voiced their support for a new draft proposed by the “E-10” group of non-permanent Council members, which calls for an immediate ceasefire
  • The vetoed draft would have made imperative an immediate and sustained ceasefire in Gaza, with an “urgent need to expand the flow of humanitarian assistance” to all civilians and lifting “all barriers” to delivering aid
  • Council members disagreed over elements of the draft, and some highlighted glaring exclusions despite having raised multiple concerns with the US during negotiations
  • Ambassadors largely supported swift action to bring food and lifesaving aid at scale into Gaza, where concerns of famine grew as Israel continues to block and slow walk shipments into the besieged enclave
  • Some Council members called for pursuing the two-State solution to the ongoing conflict
  • Israel’s ambassador was invited to speak, calling the draft’s failure to pass and condemn Hamas “a stain that will never be forgotten”⍐
Source:UN

Tuesday 12 March 2024

இலங்கைத் தமிழரும் இந்தியக் குடியுரிமையும்.


இலங்கைத் தமிழரும் இந்தியக் குடியுரிமையும்! 

பேரா.எஸ்.இசட்.ஜெய்சிங் ஜனவரி 2, 2020 தீக்கதிர்

1955ஆம் ஆண்டு கொண்டு வரப்பட்ட குடியுரிமைச் சட்டத்தின் தொடர்ச்சியாக பல்வேறு ஆண்டுகளில் திருத்தங்கள் செய்யப்பட்டுள்ள நிலையில் கடைசியாக 2019 ஆம் ஆண்டு குறுகிய கண்ணோட்டத்தில் பாகிஸ்தான், வங்கதேசம், ஆப்கானிஸ்தான் நாடுகளிலிருந்து  மத துன்புறுத்தலுக்கு உள்ளாகி இந்தியாவிற்குள் குடிவந்த இந்துக்கள், சீக்கியர்கள், பார்சியினர், கிறிஸ்தவர்கள், பௌத்தர்கள், சமணர்கள் ஆகிய ஆறு மதத்தினருக்கு அவர்கள் வந்து ஐந்து வருடமேயானாலும் அவர்களுக்கு குடியுரிமை வழங்கும் திருத்த சட்டத்தை பாஜக அரசு நிறைவேற்றியுள்ளது. அதே நேரம் சட்ட விரோதமாக இந்தியாவிற்குள் வந்துள்ள இஸ்லாமியர்களுக்கு இது பொருந்தாது எனவும் கூறப்படுகிறது. சாதி, சமய, பாலின வேறுபாடுகள் இன்றி அனைவரும் சமமாக நடத்தப்பட வேண்டும் எனக் கூறும் அரசியல் அமைப்புச் சட்டம் 14 க்கு, மாறாக அதனை மீறும் வகையில் இத்திருத்தம் உள்ளது.

அண்டை நாடுகள் என்ற வகையில் பூடான், மியான்மர், இலங்கை நாடுகளையும் அங்கு பல்வேறு கொடுமைகளுக்கு உள்ளானவர்களையும் கவனத்தில் கொண்டிருக்க வேண்டும். ஆனால் அப்படி செய்யவில்லை. சிலருக்கு மட்டுமே சலுகை அளிக்கும் இச்சட்டத் திருத்தம் மிகவும் பாரபட்சமானதும் மதச்சார்பற்ற நாடு என்ற அரசியல் அமைப்பின் உள்ளடக்கத்திற்கே முரணானதும் களங்கம் ஏற்படுத்துவதுமாக காணப்படுகிறது. மதம் உட்பட பல்வேறு துன்புறுத்தலுக்கு உள்ளாகி அடைக்கலம் தேடி இந்தியாவிற்குள் வந்துள்ள பூட்டானிய கிறிஸ்தவர்கள்; மியான்மரின் ரோகிங்கியாக்கள்; இலங்கையின் தமிழர் என மற்ற எவரையும் இவ்வரம்புக்குள் கொண்டுவர இவ்வரசு விரும்பவில்லை. முழுமையாக மதத்தை மட்டுமே அளவுகோலாக கொண்டு பாரபட்சமாக குடியுரிமை பிரச்சனையை தீர்க்க முயல்வதென்பது முன்யோசனையற்ற ஆபத்தான வழி முறையாகும்.1955 ஆம் ஆண்டு நாடாளுமன்றத்தில் நிறைவேற்றப்பட்ட குடியுரிமைச் சட்டத்தில் குடியுரிமைக்கு மதம் தேவைப்படும் அம்சமாக குறிப்பிடப்படவில்லை. ஆனால் பாஜகவினர் எல்லாவற்றிற்கும் மதத்தை முன் நிறுத்துவது, மத ரீதியாக மக்களைப் பிளவுபடுத்தி ஒட்டுமொத்த நாட்டின் வளர்ச்சியையும் பாதிப்படையச் செய்வதாகும். இந்திய தேசத்தை இந்து ராஷ்டிரமாக்குவதற்கான முதல் முயற்சி இது எனக் கருதலாம்.

இலங்கைத் தமிழ் அகதிகள்

2019 ஆம் ஆண்டு நிறைவேற்றப்பட்ட குடியுரிமை திருத்தத் சட்டத்தில் இந்தியாவில் வாழும் இலங்கைத்தமிழ் அகதிகளுக்கு இடமளிக்கப்படாதது கடுமையான கண்டனத்துக்குரியது. 1983 முதல் 36 வருடங்களாக அகதி முகாம்களிலும் வெளியிலும் எந்தவித அடிப்படை உரிமைகளும் இல்லாமல் அவர்கள் வாழ்ந்து வருகிறார்கள். இலங்கை சிங்கள பௌத்த பேரினவாத ஆளும் வர்க்கம் உள்ள நாடாகும். அதன் 1978 ஆம் ஆண்டு அரசியல் அமைப்பின் படி பௌத்தம் மட்டுமே முதன்மை மதம் என குறிப்பிடப்படுகிறது. எனவே 1983 முதல் 2010 வரை தமிழர் மீதான இன தாக்குதல் என்பது பெரும்பான்மை பௌத்தர்களால் கட்டவிழ்த்து விடப்பட்டதாகும். எல்லா சந்தர்ப்பங்களிலும் பெரிய பாதிப்புக்கு உள்ளானவர்கள் இந்துக்களாவர். இதில் மிகப்பெரிய தாக்குதல் என்பது 1983 இல்  நடத்தப்பட்டதாகும். அக்கலவரத்தில் 3000 பேருக்கு மேல் கொல்லப்பட்டதுடன் 25000 மேற்பட்டவர்கள் காய முற்றனர். வீடுகள், வணிக நிறுவனங்கள் தீக்கிரையாக்கப் பட்டு பல நூறு கோடி ரூபாய் சொத்துக்களும் அழிவுக்கு உள்ளாயின. எனவே இவ்வாறான கலவரங்களும் உள்நாட்டு யுத்தங்களும் ஏற்படுத்திய கொடிய பாதிப்புகளில் இருந்து தங்கள் உயிரை காப்பாற்றிக்கொள்ள கட்டிய துணியோடு குழந்தை குட்டிகளுடன் உயிரைப் பணயம் வைத்து படகுகளில் இந்திய அரசை நம்பி தமிழக கரைகளை அடைந்தவர்களில் மிகப் பெரும்பான்மையினர் இந்துக்களா வர். இன்றும் அவர்கள் அகதிகளாகவே வாழ்கின்றனர்.

இவ்வாறு இந்தியாவை நோக்கி வந்தவர்களை இந்திய தேசம், தமிழக அரசு வரவேற்று அகதி என்ற ‘அந்தஸ்துடன்’ தமிழகம், கேரளா, ஒடிசா என பல்வேறு மாநில முகாம்களில் குடியமர்த்தியது. இன்றைய நிலவரப்படி தமிழ் நாட்டில் இலங்கைத் தமிழ் அகதிகள் 106 முகாம்களில் தங்க வைக்கப்பட்டுள்ளனர். இவர்களில் பூர்வீக இலங்கை தமிழர்கள், இந்திய வம்சாவளி தமிழர்கள் என சுமார் 105043 பேர் அகதிகளாக உள்ளனர். இவர்களில் முகாம்களில் 73241 பேரும் வெளி பதிவில் 31802 பேரும் உள்ளனர். 1983 தொடங்கி 36 வருடங்களாக எந்த வித அடிப்படை உரிமைகளும் இல்லாமல், கடுமை யான சட்டதிட்டங்களுக்கும் கட்டுப்பாடுகளுக்கும் உட்படுத்தி மிகக் குறைந்த வசதிகளை மட்டுமே வழங்கி அவர்களை முகாம்களில் இந்த அரசுகள் வைத்திருக்கின்றன. இந்தியா சுதந்திரமடைந்து 72 ஆண்டுகளான நிலையில் இவர்கள் 36 வருடங்கள் சுதந்திரமற்று திறந்த வெளிச் சிறையில் அடைபட்டுக் கிடக்கின்றனர்.

இரண்டாம் தலைமுறையினராக இன்னும் அகதி முகாம்களில் அடைபட்டுக் கிடக்கும் இவர்கள் தங்களையும் குடியுரிமைக்கு தகுதி உள்ளவர்களாக சேர்த்துக் கொள்ள வேண்டும் என பல வருடங்களாக கோரிக்கை விடுத்து வந்த போதும் இந்திய ஆட்சியாளர்கள் அதற்கு செவிமடுக்க வில்லை.  இந்தியாவெங்கும் இடதுசாரிக் கட்சிகள் உட்பட பல்வேறு அமைப்புகள் அம்மக்களின் குடியுரிமைக்கான ஆதரவை தெரிவித்து வருகின்றன. முகாமில் உள்ளவர்கள் பொது வெளியில் வந்து போராட முடியாத நிலையில் திருச்சி கொட்டபட்டு அகதி முகாமைச்சேர்ந்த 64 இந்திய வம்சாவளி அகதிகள் சென்னை உயர் நீதிமன்ற மதுரைக்கிளையில் 17.06.19 இல் குடியுரிமை கேட்டு விண்ணப்பித்ததை அரசு கவனத்தில் கொள்ளவில்லை. பாஜக தலைவர்கள் அமைச்சர்கள் இலங்கை தமிழ் அகதி களின் வருகையை வரலாற்றை சரிவர புரிந்து கொள்ளா மல் பேசி வருகின்றனர்.

இந்தியாவிற்குள் வந்துள்ள இலங்கை தமிழ் அகதிகளை இரு பிரிவினராக   அடையாளப்படுத்தலாம். இலங்கையின் பூர்வீக குடிகளான வடக்கு மற்றும் கிழக்குப் பகுதியைச் சேர்ந்தவர்கள்; இன்னொரு பிரிவினர், ஆங்கிலேய ஆட்சியில் 1815 அளவில் தமிழ்நாட்டிலிருந்து இலங்கையின் பெருந்தோட்ட வேலைகளுக்காக கொண்டு செல்லப்பட்டவர்களின் வாரிசுகள் ஆவர். இவர்கள் இந்திய வம்சாவளி தமிழ் அகதிகளாவர். 1977 இலங்கை கலவரத்தின் போது மலையக இந்திய வம்சாவழியினர் வவுனியா, கிளிநொச்சி, முல்லைத்தீவு, மன்னார், கொழும்பு என பல பகுதிகளுக்கு உயிர் வாழ்வதற்காக இடம்பெயர்ந்து  வாழ்க்கையைத் தொடங்கினர். தொடர்ந்து  வாழ வழியற்ற நிலையில் 1983 இல் நடந்த பெரும் கலவரம் காரணமாக தமிழகத்தில் தஞ்சமடைந்தனர். இலங்கையின் பொருளாதார மேம்பாட்டிற்கு உழைத்த இந்திய வம்சாவளி மலையகத் தமிழர்களின் கடந்தகால வரலாறு என்பது சோகமானதாகவே இருந்துள்ளது. 

இலங்கை 1948 இல் சுதந்திரமடைந்த உடனேயே 10 லட்சம் இந்திய வம்சாவளி தோட்டத் தொழிலாளர்களின் இலங்கை குடியுரிமையும் வாக்குரிமையும் ஒரே நாளில் பறிக்கப்பட்டு நாடற்றவர்களாக்கப்பட்டனர். இந்நிலையில் இந்திய- இலங்கை அரசுகள் 1964 இல் சிறிமா -சாஸ்திரி உடன்படிக்கையையும் 1974 இல் சிறிமா - இந்திராகாந்தி உடன்படிக்கையையும் மக்கள் உணர்வுக்கு மாறாக செய்து கொண்டன. இதன்படி, இந்தியா 6 இலட்சம் பேரை ஏற்றுக் கொள்வதெனவும் இலங்கை 3,75,000 பேரை ஏற்றுக்கொள்வதெனவும் முடிவு செய்யப்பட்டது. உடன்படிக்கை அமலாக்கத்தின் முடிவில் இந்திய வம்சாவளி மக்களில் 5,25,000 பேர் மட்டுமே அங்கேயே இந்திய குடியுரிமை பெற்று இங்கு வந்தனர் என்பதனால், நாம் இன்னும் 75000 பேருக்கு குடியுரிமை வழங்கலாம் என்பதனையும் இன்றைய குடியுரிமை பிரச்சனையின்போது கவனத்தில் கொள்ள வேண்டும். மேலும் பல்வேறு இன, மதக் கலவரங்களின் தொடர்ச்சியாக 1983 ஜூலையில் நடந்த கொடூர கலவரத்தால் உயிருக்குப் பயந்து இந்தியாவிற்கு தஞ்சமென உடைமைகளையெல்லாம் இழந்து வந்த இலங்கைத் தமிழர்களில் சுமார் மூன்றில் ஒரு பங்கினர், இந்தியாவில் இருந்து இலங்கை சென்று அங்கு குடியுரிமை இழந்த தொழிலாளர்களின் வாரிசுகள் என்பதையும் கவனத்தில் கொள்ள வேண்டும். 

எனவே இங்குள்ள அகதிகள் முகாம்களிலும் வெளியிலும் வாழும் அகதிகளில் சுமார் 30000 பேர் இந்திய வம்சாவளியினர் என்பதை நாம் புரிந்து கொள்ள வேண்டும். அதாவது தங்களின் தாயகத்திலேயே இந்தியர் என்ற அடையாளத்துடன் 36 வருடமாக அகதிகளாக இருக்கி றார்கள் என்பது கொடுமையான நிகழ்வாகும். உண்மை யான தொப்புள்கொடி உறவுகளை திறந்தவெளி சிறைச் சாலையில் அடைத்து துன்புறுத்திக் கொண்டிருக்கிறோம். ஐந்து வருடம் என்ற குறைந்த தகுதியை கொண்டவர்களுக்கு குடியுரிமை அளித்து, 36 வருடங்களை கொண்டவர்களை மறுக்கும் இச்சட்டத் திருத்தம் மிகவும் பாரபட்சமானதாகும்.  இந்திய வம்சாவளி மலையக மக்கள் எந்தக் காலத்திலும் ‘தமிழ் ஈழத்திற்காக’ அரசை எதிர்த்துப் போராடவில்லை. தமது இருப்பை உறுதிப்படுத்துவதற்காகவே போராடி வந்துள்ளனர். எனவே அகதி முகாம் தமிழர்களின் குடியுரிமைக்கான கோரிக்கைகளை பல்வேறு தளங்களில் இருந்து பரிசீலிக்க வேண்டும்.

இந்திய குடியுரிமைச் சட்டங்கள்

1955 ஆம் ஆண்டு குடியுரிமைச் சட்டத்தில் இந்திய குடியுரிமை பெற ஐந்து பிரதான வழிமுறைகள் கூறப்பட்டுள்ளன. அதன்படி இந்தியாவில் பிறந்தவர்கள், பெற்றோர் இந்தியர்களாக இருந்தால் குடியுரிமை பெறலாம் என கூறப்பட்டுள்ளது. இதனை மட்டும் மேற்கோள் காட்டி இலங்கை அகதிகள் குடியுரிமைக்கு விண்ணப்பிக்கலாம் என தமிழக பாஜக தலைவர்களும் அமைச்சர்களும் சில வலதுசாரிகளும் பொது வெளியில் கூறி வருகின்றனர்.

1986 இல் இச்சட்டம் திருத்தப்பட்டு 1987 க்கு முன் இந்திய மண்ணில் பிறந்தவர்களுக்கு மட்டுமே குடியுரிமை எனக் கூறுகிறது. எனவே இலங்கை அகதிகள் அதன் படி பெற முடியாது. அவ்வாறு பெற 1987 க்குப் பின் பிறந்தவரது பெற்றோரில் ஒருவராவது இந்தியராயிருந்தால் மட்டுமே அவர் குடியுரிமைக்கு தகுதியானவராவார். மேலும் இச்சட்டம், 2003 இல் திருத்தப்பட்டபோது குடியுரிமை கிடைக்க பெற்றோரில் ஒருவர் மட்டும் இந்தியராக இருக்கும் பட்சத்தில் இன்னொருவர் சட்ட விரோதமாக இந்தி யாவில் குடியேறியவராக இருக்கக் கூடாது என்கிறது. எனவே இந்த அனைத்து திருத்த சட்டங்களும் இலங்கை தமிழ் அகதிகளுக்கு எதிராக இருக்கின்றன. இலங்கை அகதிகளை சட்ட விரோத குடிகள் என அரசு குறிப்பிடுவதால் இந்திய குடி மகனை திருமணம் செய்து பிறக்கும் குழந்தைக்கும் குடியுரிமை இல்லை என்றாகி விடுகிறது. எனவே கடந்தகால குடியுரிமைச் சட்டங்கள் அவர்களுக்கு பாதகமாக இருப்பதால் 2019 இல் கொண்டுவரப்பட்ட குடி யுரிமைச் சட்டத்தில் மற்ற மூன்று நாடுகளுடன் இலங்கையையும் இணைத்து தமிழ் அகதிகளுக்கு குடியுரிமை வழங்க முன்வர வேண்டும்.

இரட்டைக் குடியுரிமை

இலங்கைத் தமிழ் அகதிகளுக்கு இரட்டைக் குடியுரிமை வழங்க வேண்டும் என்ற கோரிக்கை அதிமுகவினராலும் இன்னும் சிலராலும் முன் வைக்கப்பட்டுள்ளது. மேலவையில் இலங்கை அகதிகளுக்கான குடியுரிமையை பெற்றுத்தர முயலாத அதிமுக, தற்போது இரட்டைக் குடியுரிமை பற்றிப் பேசுவது வெறும் அரசியல் நாடகமாகும். ஒரு குடியுரிமை இருந்தால் மட்டுமே மற்றொன்றைப் பெற முடியும் என்ற அடிப்படை விபரம் தெரியாமல் சிலர் பேசுகின்ற னர். இந்தியாவில் இரட்டைக் குடியுரிமை இருப்பதாக தெரிய வில்லை. அத்துடன், அது இலங்கை அரசுடன் தொடர்புடை யதாகும். மேலும் எந்த நாட்டு குடியுரிமையும் இல்லாமல் 30000 இந்திய வம்சாவளி அகதிகள் தமிழகத்தில் இருப்பதை மறந்துவிடக் கூடாது. எனவே சாத்தியமற்றதை விடுத்து நடை முறையில் சாத்தியமானதைச் செய்திட முயல வேண்டும்.

வெளி நாடு வாழ்வோருக்கு இந்தியக் குடியுரிமை 
OCI(overseas citizenship of india)

வெளிநாடு வாழ் இந்தியர்களுக்கான குடியுரிமையை இலங்கை அகதிகளுக்கு கொடுக்க வேண்டுமெனவும் சிலர் கோருகின்றனர். இது இரட்டைக் குடியுரிமை போன்றதல்ல. இதுவும் ஒருநாட்டின் குடியுரிமை உள்ளவர்களுக்கே வழங்க முடியும். இது இந்தியக் குடியுரிமைக்கு சமமானது அல்ல. அதன்படி ஆயுட்காலம்வரை இங்கு இருக்கலாம். ஆனால் வாக்குரிமை, அரசு வேலை,விவசாய நிலம் வாங்கும் உரிமை என்பன கிடையாது; அரசுப் பதவிகள் பெற முடியாது என பல கட்டுப்பாடுகள் உண்டு. நாடற்ற இந்திய வம்சாவளி அகதிகள் இதனையும் பெற முடியாத நிலையில் பூரண குடியுரிமை வழங்குவதே பொருத்தமாக இருக்கும்.

இரண்டு கட்ட குடியுரிமை 

இலங்கைத் தமிழ் அகதிகளை அரசு இரு பிரிவினராக பிரித்து பார்க்க வேண்டும். 

1. இலங்கைத் தமிழர்கள். இவர்கள் இலங்கை குடியுரிமை உள்ளவர்கள்.

2. இந்திய வம்சாவளி மலையகத் தமிழர்கள். 

இவர்கள் இலங்கை குடியுரிமை அற்றவர்கள்.இவர்களில் இந்திய தொப்புள் கொடி தொடர்பான உறவுள்ள இந்திய வம்சாவளி தமிழ் அகதிகளுக்கு இலங்கையில் எந்தவிதமான நில புலன்களும் முகவரியும் இல்லாதிருப்பதால் அவர்களுக்கு முழுமையாக இந்திய குடியுரிமை வழங்க வேண்டும். இலங்கை தமிழர்கள் எனப்படு பவர்களைப் பொறுத்தவரையில் இலங்கை அரசுடன் கலந்து விருப்பத்தின் அடிப்படையில் குடியுரிமை வழங்க வேண்டும். குடியுரிமை மட்டுமே ஒருவரின் அனைத்து உரிமைகளுக்கும் அடித்தளமாக இருக்கும். எனவே இன்றைய குடியுரிமை திருத்தச் சட்டத்தில் இலங்கை சேர்க்கப்படவில்லை என்பதால் இலங்கை அகதிகள் மேற்படி சட்டத்திருத்தத்தின் ஊடாக இந்திய குடியுரிமைக்கு விண்ணப்பிக்க எந்த வகையிலும் வாய்ப்பு இல்லை. ஆனால் இதன் மூலம் தேசமெங்கும் இலங்கைத் தமிழ் அகதிகளுக்கு குடியுரிமை வழங்குவதன் அவசி யம் என்பது பேசு பொருளாகி இருப்பதால் எதிர்காலத்தில் அதனைப் பெறுவதற்கான ஒரு சூழல் உருவாகி இருக்கிறது என்று கூறலாம். எனவே இலங்கை மலையக தமிழ் முற்போக்கு கூட்டணியின் நுவரெலிய மாவட்ட நாடாளுமன்ற உறுப்பினர் மயில்வாகனம் திலகராஜா கூறுவதைப்போன்று இலங்கை தமிழ் அகதிகளுக்கு இந்திய குடியுரிமை பெறு வதற்கு மாநில - மத்திய அரசுகள் தனி மசோதா கொண்டு வருவது பயனுள்ளதாக இருக்கும். 

கட்டுரையாளர் : முன்னாள் உதவி விரிவுரையாளர்,  இலங்கை பேராதனை பல்கலைக்கழகம், கண்டி.

M. A. Sumanthiran represents TNA at IMF proposals review meeting while SJB and NPP choose to boycott discussion

 

Lone MP attends key opposition leaders meeting with President

Tuesday, 12 March 2024 FT

  • M. A. Sumanthiran represents TNA at meeting while SJB and NPP choose to boycott discussion
  • TNA MP raises concerns regarding lack of transparency relating to IMF recommendations 
  • Highlights absence of published technical assistance reports regarding several recommendations of concern
  • In response Govt. promises to release reports for examination of MPs to foster debate and deliberation 
  • President extends fresh invitation to Opposition to attend a meeting with IMF to further discuss its proposals and concerns

By Maneshka Borham 

Tamil National Alliance (TNA) MP M. A. Sumanthiran stood as the only Opposition member in attendance at the International Monetary Fund (IMF) proposals review meeting for opposition party leaders held at the Presidential Secretariat yesterday. 



Despite President Ranil Wickremesinghe extending invitations to the opposition including the main Opposition party, the Samagi Jana Balawegaya (SJB), the majority declined to attend.Speaking to Daily FT after attending the meeting, Sumanthiran said he took the opportunity to address various concerns regarding the IMF proposals at the discussion, notably focusing on the issue of transparency.

Specifically, the TNA MP said he highlighted the absence of published technical assistance reports from the IMF regarding several recommendations of concern. Sumanthiran noted that while the IMF cited the need for Government approval to publicise the reports, the Government, during the meeting, expressed no objections and offered to provide these technical assistance reports to MPs for their examination.

“We cannot determine our support for the program until we have clarity on these issues. Several of the recommendations raise scepticism. For instance, some analyses claim that increasing the withholding tax which would have targeted actual income earners would have generated the same revenue as the 18% VAT increase which targeted everyone. Therefore, without a comprehensive analysis explaining why certain actions were chosen over others, we are unable to provide our assessment. 

We need to thoroughly examine the situation before making any comments,” he said. 

Monday 11 March 2024

Gotabaya Rajapaksa's book “The Conspiracy ”- Excerpts:

 


Former President Gotabaya Rajapaksa this week released his book titled “The Conspiracy: How Internationally Sponsored Regime Change Made a Mockery of Democracy in Sri Lanka”. Excerpts: 

Sunday Times:

On opposition to his election:

–“The only reason I won the 2019 presidential election with over 52% of the vote was because of the Sinhala vote.”

–“From the time I was nominated as a candidate for the presidency, large sections of the Tamil population, the Muslim population, the overseas Tamil groups, the foreign funded NGOs and certain countries with large expatriate Tamil populations were openly hostile to the thought of having me as the President of Sri Lanka. Sections of the Roman Catholic Church joined this group after I became President.”

On the politics of a two-thirds majority

Winning a two-thirds majority in Parliament brought with it “a raft of new problems”. While the government secured 150 seats in Parliament, the constitution limited the number of ministerial portfolios. Their parliamentary group had MPs who had been ministers in several previous governments but they could not all be accommodated in the Cabinet or even as State Ministers.

–“From the time we got that two thirds majority in Parliament, in August 2020, it was a downhill slide, politically speaking.”

On too many Rajapaksas in positions of power

–“I did not want to appoint many members of the Rajapaksa family to various positions.” But when they are voted in at number one position in their districts, voters expect them to get positions so they can do something for the district.

–“One of the accusations levelled at me was that even though I claimed to be doing things differently, that in reality I consolidated the power of the Rajapaksa family further and that under me there were more members of the family holding ministerial office than there was even under Mahinda Rajapaksa. To be sure, under my Presidency, there were five Rajapaksas in the Cabinet…”

They were himself, Chamal, Mahinda, Basil and Namal. His nephew, Shashindra, was a State Minister and Nipuna Ranawaka was the District Coordinating Committee Chairman for Matara.

On the disadvantage of not being party leader

–“The fact that I was not leading the party meant that I did not have much political power. For example, I was not involved in preparing the SLPP national list or the district nomination lists.”

–“The fact that we had 150 MPs became a disadvantage rather than an advantage. We started off with disgruntled elements in our midst. This is what made it easier for our opponents to destroy us. I can now say through experience that whoever becomes President should be the leader of the political party as well”.

–“Usually people spend years in a political party rising through the ranks as parliamentarians and ministers before becoming President. But when I became President, there were many people in our parliamentary group with whom I had not had much interaction.”

On personal problems

–“Basil was in control of the SLPP. When members of the ruling coalition picked a quarrel with Basil that too had an impact on me as the head of the government. Wimal and Udaya had personal issues with Basil.”

–“Everybody knows that the ban on dual citizens contesting elections was brought in by the 19th amendment…. But when we were trying to repeal the 19th amendment, some of our own people objected to repealing the ban on dual citizens contesting elections. This was entirely due to their opposition to Basil.”

On the breakup of the coalition

–“What contributed to this situation was that I was not an office bearer of the party and that Mahinda Rajapaksa did not get involved in politics as in the past…However, Mahinda Rajapaksa’s silence was one of the main reasons for the breakup of the coalition and the party. Mahinda Rajapaksa had over half a century of political experience and a factor that we could have used to our advantage but failed [sic].”

–“There were also various individuals and groups that believed that their support was crucial in ensuring that I was elected to power and they expected me to do what they wanted. These are the problems that emerge when somebody like me gets elected to power.”

On depoliticisation attempts backfiring

Overall, his “experiment in not appointing party loyalists to key government positions” was unsuccessful.

–“Some of those political appointees for the most part behaved exactly the same way as political appointees—their only aim was to use the position they got, to further a career in politics.”

–“A matter that was under discussion in political circles in the months following my ouster was the manner in which certain so called apolitical appointees who held positions in my government played a major role in funding and organising the aragalaya against my government. Fifth columnists were present not only within the country but within my government as well”.

On the failed organic farming initiative and Chinese fertiliser

–“I have openly admitted that the way the organic farming initiative of my government was implemented was a failure and a mistake.”

–“Though some think that the ban on the import of chemical fertiliser was taken suddenly and without much consultation, the shift to organic farming was a matter that had been under discussion in my government from the earliest days and it was an integral part of my manifesto ‘Vistas of Prosperity’.”

–“But when Sri Lanka tried to import some organic fertiliser, unanticipated problems cropped up which had all the hallmarks of the deliberate sabotage that usually accompanies regime change projects.” (Reference is to the aborted organic fertiliser import from Qingdao Seawin Biotech Group of China).

On the Mirihana protest and attack on private residence

–“SIS Director Suresh Sallay who was also at the wedding reception, arrived at the scene and when he arrived, only around a hundred or so had been at the demonstration. But the police, STF and army personnel deployed in the area had been inactive since no one had given them instructions as to what had to be done. Sallay had taken a video call to Shavendra [Silva] and Kamal [Gunaratne] and shown them the crowd present but instructions still did not come down the hierarchy to disperse the crowd. Ultimately Sallay and some other army officers had taken it upon themselves to disperse the mob as some elements in the crowd had turned violent…”

–“By around 2 am that night, the crowds had been dispersed. Around 10.30 am the following morning, the Army Commander/CDS [Shavendra Silva] and Defence Secretary [Kamal Gunaratne] arrived at my Mirihana residence.”

On the composition of the ‘aragalaya’

–“The minority communities were well represented within the aragalaya because each had a motivating factor to be there.”

–“There were NGO related foreign funded liberal political activists, youtubers [sic], and social media activists, then there were the usual opposition types associated with various political parties, the JVP, FSP (Peratugami Party), SJB and the UNP….Virtually all of those at the Galle Face argalaya site were those who would have opposed me anyway.”

–“From day one, the so called argalaya was an operation inimical to Sinhala and particularly Sinhala-Buddhist interests, and it was well supported by foreign interests that had much the same objectives.”

On destabilisation by Fifth Columnists

–“It would be extremely naïve for anyone to claim that there was no foreign hand in the moves made to oust me from power.”

–“These foreign powers maintain a permanent cadre of activists to promote their agenda in this country and can at short notice deploy dozens of commentators, speakers, writers to create public opinion on

Sri Lanka…. Money is just one way of buying influence. Granting a permanent residence visa, giving a scholarship to the offspring of important persons, ‘research’ grants or even a simple foreign trip will even be enough to induce certain people to act against the national interest of their country.”

–“ Thus we had a toxic mix of foreign money, geopolitical interests and notions of [liberal] ideological superiority all coming together at a strategically appropriate time to achieve the objectives of certain parties in Sri Lanka.”

On the Easter Sunday attacks

By mid-January 2022, the Cardinal started saying it was evident certain leaders used the 2019 Easter Sunday terror attacks to their political advantage.

–“What was now being alleged in so many words was that eight Muslim fanatics had launched a suicide attack in order to make me president”. The souring of relations is rooted in the Cardinal being dissatisfied with the investigation.

– “The Cardinal’s pronouncements are creating more divisions in an already divided country. The icing on the cake will be when the Cardinal’s campaign based on wrong assumptions and conjecture against those not responsible for the Easter Sunday bombings results in yet another government that is totally dependent on the Muslim vote like the government of 2015-2019 and is unwilling to do anything to stop the spread of Islamic extremism in the country.”

On the failure of intelligence

–“If an organised mob can make its way to Colombo completely unopposed and then proceed to take over the President’s House, the Presidential Secretariat, the Prime Minister’s Office and the Prime Minister’s official residence and to burn down the private residence of the incumbent Prime Minister, that can only be described as a law and order debacle.”

–“…though the intelligence service performed well in pandemic related duties, they completely missed the build-up of politically-motivated mobs on the social media.”

–“Where a situation arises, the standard operating procedures are implemented automatically. In the months of May and July 2022 none of this happened the way it was meant to.”

On “structural shortcomings” that led to the debacle

One issue was there wasn’t much of a seniority gap between Defence Secretary Kamal Gunaratne and Army Commander Shavendra Silva. Both were Divisional Commanders during the war and saw themselves more or less as equals.

–“Whether the two got on well was doubtful. The Army Commander and Defence Secretary were working at cross purposes at times with the Army Commander disregarding instructions of the Defence Secretary. Kamal Gunaratne may not have had the same control over the armed services that I had as Defence Secretary because of these reasons.”

–“…strict protocols must be enforced to regulate, monitor and limit the interactions senior officers of the armed services, police and the intelligence services have with the staff of foreign embassies. Visits by foreign Ambassadors to military installations should also be stopped.”

On why he resigned

–“Many people have asked me why I resigned from the Presidency. There was in fact a major foreign power that was insisting that I should not resign and they had demonstrated their willingness to do whatever it takes to keep Sri Lanka supplied with essentials. Yet I resigned from the presidency [sic] to give the people of Sri Lanka some respite.”

அநுரா ஆட்சியில் செல்வினின் பனை அபிவிருத்தி சபைத் தலைவர் பொறுப்பு பறிப்பு!

அநுரா ஆட்சியில் செல்வினின் பனை அபிவிருத்தி சபைத் தலைவர் பொறுப்பு பறிப்பு! பனை அபிவிருத்தி சபைத் தலைவராக இரானியேஸ் செல்வின் அவர்களைப் பொறுப்ப...