End of War and the Dawn of a New Era in Sri Lanka: A Time for Reconciliation

The Sri Lankan military and the government are reporting the end of war with the LTTE after the latter’s crushing defeat at the hand of a superior force. They are also reporting the demise of LTTE chief Prabhakaran and other senior leaders of the organization such as Soosai, and Pottu Amman.

After decades of fear, death and destruction that engulfed the country, especially the northern and eastern provinces, the ending of war is welcome news -not only to the Sinhalese but also to others such as the Muslims and a majority of Tamil population who desire peace.

While the casualty figures on both sides may be not known for a while yet, the celebratory atmosphere in Colombo and provinces highlight a truly historic juncture in the battle against LTTE – which endeavored to create a separate Tamil State called Eelam in the northern and eastern provinces of Sri Lanka.

Ultimately, no one came to their rescue from the international context -except the hundreds and thousands of Sri Lankan Tamils in the global diaspora -a creation of the decades old war itself. Even the last minute Pleas by LTTE top brass for humanitarian intervention went unheeded by the world powers.

It looked almost like a silent consent by the world powers to see the end of a proscribed terrorist organization such as the LTTE -except some rumblings by countries such as the UK, USA, and France in regard to their concerns on the need to prevent civilian casualties in the last phase of this bitter war. Any remaining supporters of the LTTE have to have a hard look at why this silence from the international community -rather than blaming everybody except themselves.

Lessons learned from this devastating experience of war and its ugly side should be enough for them to reflect deeply about the false foundations upon which their military campaign was built and expanded. They should now realize that a separate country cannot be established in another country purely by the support from the diasporas. They need to win friends within. For this they need to develop a political agenda and a platform where peace loving, democratically oriented people from all ethnic communities can come on board. The failure of LTTE agenda was its heavy reliance on military might -instead of developing an all-embracing ideology of inclusion. It opted for an exclusivist ‘Tamil Only’ ideology thereby alienating any sympathy from others who are not Tamil (Among Tamils we should remember that there are many who did not support LTTE agenda).

Thus ends a tragic episode in the history of modern Sri Lanka. Thousands of Tamil youths were sacrificed for an ideology and a project that any thinking individual could decipher as leading to a devastating dead end like the one we just witnessed. Thousands of young Sinhala soldiers, and political leaders as well as civilians vanished as a result of not only the war but also suicide bombings in buses, villages, towns and elsewhere. Many thousands on both sides were injured and some live without arms and legs. The country has sacrificed so many other things by way of supporting the war and meeting its expenses. Tamil families in the north have lost their sons who were forcefully recruited to the LTTE organization and died in battle. There will be heroic and tragic stories on both sides when the dust settles. However the trauma of war will linger on for a while to come as both sides have suffered immensely from this decades old conflict.

Until about a month or so ago, I never thought that I will be able to see an end to this conflict in my lifetime. In fact, I told this with a close friend of mine. I had resigned to the fact that the war with the LTTE is a fact of life for all Sri Lankans -within and outside. When the news started coming in about the encirclement of the LTTE fighting formations along with its leadership to an insignificant stretch of coastal land in recent weeks, I couldn’t believe my ears. The end seemed so far but still so close for a couple of weeks. It is only today that the confirmation came about the demise of LTTE leader Prabhakaran. The anti climax of the war reached Australia like a blowing wind. This was the main news in the regular TV and radio broadcasts all day. An incident that happened in Sydney between Sinhala and Tamil youths added to the story.

Tuesday Sri Lanka time will be a brand new day for all Sri Lankans. It will be a dreamtime comes true for many. Those affected adversely by the war will have lingering doubts, concerns, and anxieties. Those who are displaced will look for signs of re-settlement and dignity in life free from security wires around them. Those who supported LTTE and surrendered to the army will look for kindness from their captors. Most Sri Lankans will attempt to visualise a normal life free from suicide bombs, and sudden attacks in civilian aeas. Irrespective of the ethnicity one belongs, and political ideologies one embraced, what all Sri Lankans want is an environment where they can live without harassment, send children to schools, go about their work and enjoy life. If the end of war also signifies a return to normalcy in the country, and removal of emergency regulations, re-instatement of lost rights such as the freedom of expression, association, then the population in the country will cherish the victory wholeheartedly that the military achieved against the LTTE. Space for democratic politics is the need of the hour. Coming months will show how the government is planning to create an atmosphere for such space.

I have a special plea for the Tamil youths -many of who may be anguished at this juncture as a result of the demise of LTTE leadership and its military capability. Think hard and fast about the ideology of Eelam on which the LTTE campaign was built. It is a defeated ideology now. Think critically about the reasons for this defeat. Find another way to seek justice for your grievances. Find ways to build bridges rather than break them -especially within Sri Lanka. Try developing inclusivist ideas and platforms for justice in the world. Do not try to fight your struggle only with one hand. Among the Sinhalese people there are those who admire democracy, fair play and decency. Not all are racists. The reason for their hardened attitudes over the decades did not emerge out of nowhere. The demand for a separate country within tiny Sri Lanka contributed immensely for hardened attitudes among the peace loving Sinhala people. Understand this truth. If you try to continue in the same destructive path such as the demand for Eelam that the LTTE masters advocated and promised – you will create more and more destruction to yourself and all others who live in that island of Sri Lanka. Instead, contribute to the building of a better country -even though you may disagree with the particular political philosophies and practices prevailing at a given period.

No country has established a perfect government. Even governments in so-called developed world, change during war times. There may be weaknesses in the system of government prevailing in Sri Lanka during and after the LTTE campaign. However, taking up arms against the state did not prove to be the sustainable solution to circumvent these. It is here that you and everyone else concerning the welfare of Sri Lanka have to think creatively and come up with solutions for co-existence. This whole experience has shown that Sri Lankans have to come up with solutions to their own problems rather than seeking outside intervention. If this lesson is not learned, we all will be condemned by future generations for not learning the lesson of history -yet another time.

Dr. Siri Gamage, Australia
– Asian Tribune –