We were shocked, but not surprised, at the statement made by Mrs Kumaratunga in an interview on South African Television, stating that the Tamil people of Sri Lanka are not the original people of the country. It is disgusting for a head of state to make such a statement, insinuating that the people who have lived in Ceylon for thousands of years, are suddenly declared to be aliens in the land of their birth because they happen to be Tamil.
History will prove that the Tamil people have always occupied the northern and eastern provinces. It must be through pure ignorance, that the Sri Lankan government refuse to acknowledge this. A statement like this could only come from a Racist who is trying to justify the occupation of the Tamils land.
It was the same kind of statements the White Racist government of South Africa made, when they tried to justify Apartheid in the sixties. No matter how the Sri Lankan government tries to camouflage the discrimination against the Tamil people of Ceylon, it is exactly the same as apartheid was in South Africa.
We firmly believe that due to the collaboration between the Apartheid government of South Africa and the Sri Lankan government, the Sri Lankan government have learnt and is using the same tactics used by the White Racist government. The Sri Lankan government cannot deny that they received arms from the Apartheid regime.
When the Apartheid government of South Africa attacked homes in Botswana, Lesotho, Swaziland, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and Zambia, they claimed that they were attacking ANC targets, just as the Sri Lankan government claims when their air force bombs innocent villages in the Tamil Homeland. The White government of South Africa branded everyone who was fighting for freedom, justice and equality as terrorist and even managed to convince some parts of the world to isolate them, just as the Sri Lankan government is attempting to do now.
It was the Reagan Administration in America and the Fletcher government of Britain who were fooled by the White Racist government of South Africa, just as the same two nations are fooled by the Sri Lankan government now. The Racist government of South Africa also claimed that apartheid was an internal problem and would be resolved by the people of South Africa, just as the Sri Lankan government is claiming now.
The Sri Lankan government is attempting to fool the South African government into believing the LTTE have military bases in South Africa and that our organisation is acting as a front for the LTTE. This is totally untrue.
Our organisation has welcomed any investigation into our activities by the South African government. Thus, far, the South African government could not find anything wrong with our organisation. We also have substantial proof that the person who appeared in the photograph, claiming to be the spokesperson of the South African Tamil Tigers, was a spy for the White Apartheid government and has been recruited by the Sri Lankan government to try and destroy our organisation and fool the South African government. All the propaganda and dirty tricks of the Sri Lankan government will not fool our government. We have gone through this before.
Our organisation is a Human Rights Organisation, with members from all the racial groups in South Africa. Many of our members were actively involved in fighting the Apartheid system under the banner of the ANC, and is now actively involved in fighting oppression in Sri Lanka. We are what our name stands for "People Against Sri Lankan Oppression". Just as we did not accept white oppression in South Africa, we will not accept black oppression in South Africa. The same goes for Sri Lanka, if the roles were reversed, we would do the same.
Not all our members are Tamils as is claimed by the Sri Lankan government, we have people from all religions, cultures and background. We all have a common goal, and that, is to stop the oppression in Sri Lanka which is against the Tamil people. Our organisation has branches throughout South Africa and our membership is growing fast. We are Human Rights Activist and not terrorists as the Sri Lankan government claims. If the Sri Lankan government has any proof to substantiate their claims, we welcome them to furnish it to our government for investigation.
In July this year, the Sri Lankan government claimed that we were raising money for the LTTE. We did not deny raising money, but we did acknowledges that we raised the money for the victims of the Sri Lankan governments oppression. The South African government has accepted this after investigations. We will continue to raise money for the victims of the ethnic war taking place in Sri Lanka. If any Sinhalese people feel that they also need our help, and we feel it is justified, we will help them as well.
The Sri Lankan government is the only government in the world who uses food and medicine as weapons of war. The economic blockade of the Tamil Areas, is a crime against humanity.
We have on record a Sri Lankan Member of Parliament, confirming that the Sri Lankan government is trying to wipe out the entire Tamil Nation, that is why they do not allow any food, medicine or other essential items into the Tamil Areas. He also confirmed that there are gross human right violations taking place in Sri Lanka against the Tamil people. He also confirmed that the Sri Lankan government know that there can be no military victory in Sri Lanka, and that the only solution was through peaceful negotiations with the LTTE, but the Sri Lankan government refuse to try the peaceful route and will continue with its military operations to try and wipe out as many Tamils as possible. If this is not Systematic Genocide, then what is?.
We welcomed an investigation onto the activities of our organisation, unlike the Sri Lankan government who denies access to the International Media and the world into the Tamil Areas, and lie to hide the atrocities they have commit. It seems like the Sri Lankan government is so scared that the world will see the atrocities and human right violations that it has committed, that it has to resort to lies and propaganda to hide their wrongs.
We challenge the government of Sri Lanka to allow a fact finding mission that consist of various human rights organisations to visit the Tamil Areas unrestricted, and to draw their own conclusion. If the Sri Lankan government has nothing to hide, they will allow this.
Conclusion:
We earnestly appeal to all governments to support the efforts of the Tamil people of Ceylon, in finding a peaceful negotiated solution to this problem. Only through the intervention of the outside world, will the Sri Lankan government stop the Atrocities and Human Rights Violations in Sri Lanka. We urge all governments not to be fooled by the propaganda and dirty tricks of the Sri Lankan government, and to act soon to avoid the total destruction of the Tamil Nation in Ceylon.
Tommy M. Padotan. (National Co-ordinator), PASLO
P. O. Box 5581,
Benoni South. 1502
Gauteng. Rep of South Africa.
Tel/Fax No: (011) 421-3235
