You can help combat  Sri Lanka Government Terrorism
Here is How...

Tamil Information, 15 January 1985

You can help combat  Sri Lanka Government Terrorism - Here is How... By understanding the exact nature of the perennial violence going on in Sri Lanka. "Ethnic violence" is a phrase loosely used in the world media to describe happenings in that country. That is not a correct description.

The issue in Sri Lanka is one between the Sri Lanka Government that acts and speaks on behalf of the Sinhala people only, and the Tamils who are waging a relentless struggle to live free from fear, harassment, torture, loss of property and arbitrary killings; which, now they know, can be attained only by achieving nationhood in their own exclusive traditional Tamil areas in the north and east of the island.

In other words, it is a "war" between two nations within an island, where two peoples, each with its own distinctive religion (Buddhism and Hinduism), Language (Sinhala and Tamil), Culture, and separate traditional homelands, each qualifying to be a nation, but thrown together- by accidents of geography, history and centuries of western colonialism - who no longer find it possible to co-exist as equals or with mutual trust or respect, under the same polity.

In this "war", there , are two contestants: —

1. A "lawfully constituted government" but continuing in power by dodging the normal democratic process and enjoying the tacit support of a few other governments of the world, and using the entire might of its Army, Navy, Air Force and Police and specially trained Police Commandos to crush the resistance of the Tamil people through repressive measures, acts of terrorism against unarmed civilians and indiscriminate killings under cover of "fighting Terrorism". Acts of State terrorism include State-inspired mob attacks in areas where Tamils live as minorities and killings, torture, rape and robbery by armed forces in areas where Tamils are in a majority, under cover of specially passed laws, censorship, 42 hour and 61-hour curfews, blocking of communication with the outside world and maliciously false propaganda through a State-controlled media and government diplomatic missions abroad.

2. The other contestant in this "war" is a collective body of over 3 million Tamil people who are unarmed, who live beseiged by the armed forces, whose freedom of movement both within and outside the country are severely restricted and fraught with risks of danger to life and limb, and who have no governments to back them, and whose fight for survival is spearheaded by a few groups of Tamil militant youths badly outnumbered by the armed forces both in numerical strength and weaponry, but yet have proved more than a match through sheer dedication, heroism, valour, ingenuity, sense of sacrifice, supreme confidence and a determination to win.

Who do you think are the "TERRORISTS" ? Those who oppress or those who fight oppression ? Who are the "criminals"? Those who kill to keep themselves in power, or those who kill in self-defence ?

If killing ARMED TRAINED soldiers is known as "Terrorism", what would you call the killings of UNARMED Tamil citizens, men, women and children, in their homes and on the roads ? The Sri Lanka government calls it "fighting terrorism". As a thinking fellow-citizen, what would you call it?