DMK President Kalaignar M Karunanidhi has urged Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena to honour his poll promise of demilitarisation of Tamil-dominated areas in the north and east of the country and withdraw army from the Northern Province.
In a statement, Kalaignar said that after the end of the final war between the LTTE and army in Sri Lanka, army had been deployed in large numbers in Northern and Eastern provinces inhabited by Tamils and the threat to the day to day means of livelihood of people continued to persist. Tamils and leaders of Tamils’ political parties insisted that the army be withdrawn and they were allowed to breathe the air of freedom.
He pointed out that President Sirisena had won the elections with the support of ethnic Tamils and that “Tamils believed the promises he made before the elections-that army would be withdrawn from Tamils’ areas, lands and houses encroached by the army and Sinhalese could be obtained back, Tamils would not be treated as second class citizens any more, all steps would be taken for them to lead life with self-respect and dignity and that the 13th amendment of the Constitution pending for over 30 years would be implemented honestly.
But Sirisena issued a notification on February 2, 2015 calling on armed forces to help maintain public order in Tamil areas. In his letter to Prime Minister if India on Feb 13, 2015 Kalaignar said this notification against the promise made by Sirisena during the election would only result in negative consequences.
Last week the Chief Minister of the Northern Province Wigneswaran demanded the withdrawal of the military from the north. "Even after seven years of ending the war, the military is remaining here. We want the police to do the job and not the military," Wigneswaran said. Sri Lankan troops will stay in the Tamil-dominated former war zone of North and look after the minority community, a senior army officer has said, virtually rejecting Northern Province Chief Minister CV Wigneswaran’s demand of withdrawal of military.
In the meanwhile, following the major fire break out at the ammunition dump of the Sri Lanka Army Camp at Salawa, there was demand for removal of army camps in the north. Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe has told reporters that the army had incurred loss of Rs 500 crore in Salawa camp fire. After this accident the demand for removal of army and army ammunition dumps in the North inhabited by Tamils. He said a senior Sinhala Buddhist monk told him that army camps must remain in the North in order to preserve national security. The Mahanayake of Asgiriya, Warakagoda Sri Gunnaratana has told Minister Samarasinghe that army camps in the North must not be removed, despite repeated calls for the military to be withdrawn from Tamil areas of the island. Hence the Minister declared that the military camps would not be withdrawn.
The recent announcement by Sri Lankan Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe, on the advice of a senior Sinhala Buddhist monk, that army camps in the north will not be removed, had caused great distress among Tamils.
In order to prove that the Sri Lankan government is not discriminating against ethnic Tamils, the DMK chief said the first step should be to remove the army camps from Tamil areas. The DMK patriarch said before the elections, Sirisena had promised demilitarisation of Tamil-dominated areas and to ensure that seized lands and houses were returned to Tamils.
In a statement, Kalaignar said that after the end of the final war between the LTTE and army in Sri Lanka, army had been deployed in large numbers in Northern and Eastern provinces inhabited by Tamils and the threat to the day to day means of livelihood of people continued to persist. Tamils and leaders of Tamils’ political parties insisted that the army be withdrawn and they were allowed to breathe the air of freedom.
He pointed out that President Sirisena had won the elections with the support of ethnic Tamils and that “Tamils believed the promises he made before the elections-that army would be withdrawn from Tamils’ areas, lands and houses encroached by the army and Sinhalese could be obtained back, Tamils would not be treated as second class citizens any more, all steps would be taken for them to lead life with self-respect and dignity and that the 13th amendment of the Constitution pending for over 30 years would be implemented honestly.
But Sirisena issued a notification on February 2, 2015 calling on armed forces to help maintain public order in Tamil areas. In his letter to Prime Minister if India on Feb 13, 2015 Kalaignar said this notification against the promise made by Sirisena during the election would only result in negative consequences.
Last week the Chief Minister of the Northern Province Wigneswaran demanded the withdrawal of the military from the north. "Even after seven years of ending the war, the military is remaining here. We want the police to do the job and not the military," Wigneswaran said. Sri Lankan troops will stay in the Tamil-dominated former war zone of North and look after the minority community, a senior army officer has said, virtually rejecting Northern Province Chief Minister CV Wigneswaran’s demand of withdrawal of military.
In the meanwhile, following the major fire break out at the ammunition dump of the Sri Lanka Army Camp at Salawa, there was demand for removal of army camps in the north. Sri Lanka’s Foreign Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe has told reporters that the army had incurred loss of Rs 500 crore in Salawa camp fire. After this accident the demand for removal of army and army ammunition dumps in the North inhabited by Tamils. He said a senior Sinhala Buddhist monk told him that army camps must remain in the North in order to preserve national security. The Mahanayake of Asgiriya, Warakagoda Sri Gunnaratana has told Minister Samarasinghe that army camps in the North must not be removed, despite repeated calls for the military to be withdrawn from Tamil areas of the island. Hence the Minister declared that the military camps would not be withdrawn.
The recent announcement by Sri Lankan Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe, on the advice of a senior Sinhala Buddhist monk, that army camps in the north will not be removed, had caused great distress among Tamils.
In order to prove that the Sri Lankan government is not discriminating against ethnic Tamils, the DMK chief said the first step should be to remove the army camps from Tamil areas. The DMK patriarch said before the elections, Sirisena had promised demilitarisation of Tamil-dominated areas and to ensure that seized lands and houses were returned to Tamils.
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