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Dharmalingam Siththarthan, the Leader of the Peoples Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE), a former militant who embraced democratic politics consequent to the signing of the Indo-Lanka Accord told the Daily Mirror that the Provincial Council system introduced under the Accord should not be weakened despite it being inadequate in addressing the aspirations of Tamil people. During the war PLOTE was an organisation that was opposed to the LTTE. After the end of the war, the PLOTE, however, teamed up with the Tamil National Alliance (TNA).
MONDAY, 01 JULY 2013
Unfortunately, the government thinks development alone would satisfy people, especially the
Tamil people. We started this struggle for our political rights, not for development rights. On the political front, we are actually going backwards. The only solution presently available in the Constitution was the 13thAmendment. Even that is being diluted gradually. We got the 13th Amendment after a great deal of sacrifices. That is also now being taken away. It is very serious. Now, they are planning to remove the barriers being faced by the Centre in legislating on subjects devolved to the provinces. Also, the 13th Amendment is a result of the agreement between two countries - Sri Lanka and India. Therefore, it can create problems in the international arena as well.
Q:Now, you have joined the Tamil National Alliance (TNA). Can you achieve your target
by joining the TNA? We joined the TNA because a large number of Tamils wanted us to do so. They wanted us to join the TNA and fight for our political rights. They wanted us to remain united. Also, certain actions by the government also drove us in that direction. Land grabbing and the excessive presence of the military in the north and their interference in civilians activities were some of those actions. Even for a school, function military participation is to be sought.
Q:If the present situation remains, would it strengthen the separatist ideology and lead to
the resurgence of Tamil militancy? Definitely, in my opinion, an armed struggle will not take place in the near future. There is no doubt or illusion about it. People have suffered enough at the hands of militancy. They have suffered losses to both lives and property. Against such a backdrop, I do not see preparations for an armed rebellion. If there is a reasonable political solution, they would not be in any struggle. Maybe, there would be struggles against the rising cost of living or electricity tariff hikes. It is happening in the south.
Q:Some political parties in the south believe the Constitution of the Northern Provincial
Council will be used as the basis for secession. How do you respond to that? It is a misconception. When we started our armed struggle for a separate state, we did not have the Provincial Council system in place. Whether there is a Provincial Council or not, it would not change our attitude. Only the attitude of the government and the way they treat us could change this. If they could convince us that we could live together with equal rights and dignity, no Tamil would demand a separate state. Now the political climate for a separate state no longer
exists. There may be some persons raising voices in isolation here and there. Some expatriate Tamils may try to make a political issue out of it. The successive governments are only responsible for the advent of the Tamil militancy. Every peaceful agitation for rights was suppressed by the armed might of successive governments. Innocent young girls and boys were killed and thrown on the street. Then only did they resort to armed struggle as the means to counter oppression by the governments.
Q:The 13th Amendment was a hastily prepared piece of document. Isnt it flawed as a
result? That is true. Not only the 13th Amendment but the Indo-Lanka accord was also like that. Had our leader been alive, he would have stated it. This does not meet the aspirations of the Tamil people. Yet, we accepted it. We thought we could slowly build on it further. We have to alleviate the mistrust and misunderstanding between the Sinhalese and Tamils. Then, the problem can be solved. Ordinary persons in both the communities have better relations. Buddhism and Hinduism have similarities. There were a lot of Tamil Buddhists. Tamils visit Buddhist temples and Sinhalese Hindu temples.
Q:What are the loopholes you have identified in the 13th Amendment?
In a sense, it was introduced under the unitary Constitution. Under the unitary Constitution, they can take away subjects allocated to the Provinces. They have done so. The Divineguma Act is one such example. The Centre interfering with the Provinces is the main problem. Also, the concurrent list should be done away with.
Q:It means you are asking for more powers such as finance and taxation devolved to the
provinces? Without financial devolution, how can a Provincial Council run? Today, the Provincial Councils can do nothing. There should be specific amounts set aside for provincial developments. Financial devolution should be there.
Q:You belonged to a military group that joined the democratic stream after the 1987
Indo-Lanka Accord. What is your personal experience on the introduction of it at that time? We had the North-East Provincial Council in operation only for one year-from 1988 to 1989. Then, we had the Eastern Provincial Councils in operation.
" Without financial devolution, how can a Provincial Council run? Today, the Provincial Councils can do nothing. There should be specific amounts set aside for provincial developments "
Q:In the run-up to the signing of the 1987 Indo-Lanka agreement, what role did you play
as a militant? Well, it was the first time that a militant group like ours was invited for direct talks with the government of Sri Lanka. Before that we had talks with the government during the Thimpu talks. Actually, the government of Sri Lanka held talks with the government of India on the 13th Amendment and the Indo-Lanka Accord. We were invited to show the document they prepared.
Q: You were once with the LTTE. Is it true that you convinced late LTTE ideologue Anton
Balasingham to join the organization? Yes, he was in London at that time. I, along with another, encouraged him to join the organization. After that only, we split from the organization.
Q:What was the reason for your leader Mr. Uma Maheswaran to break ranks with the
LTTE along with you? More than anything else , it was a personality problem. Prabakharan was never ready to listen to anyone. He wanted to be the person with the highest. But, Uma Maheswaran was the chairman of the organization at that time. The personality issue led to a split. I sided with my leader at that time, and Anton Balasingham with Prabhakaran. There were also some other reasons that led to it.
Q:When did your organization PLOTE hand over weapons after joining the democratic
stream? We did it twice- one in Batticaloa after signing the Indo-Lanka Accord. Then, we did it in 2002 after the then government United National Party (UNP) signed a peace deal with the LTTE.
Q:Also, there are talks about infighting in the TNA. How do you see it?
There is a long standing demand for the registration of the TNA as a registered political party. It has not been done until now. Four parties of the TNA were demanding it for a long time. But, nothing is being done . That is the problem between Ilankai Tamil ArachuKachchi (ITAK) and the other parties within the TNA. The ITAK want to be the commanding party of the TNA. That is the case.