A delegation of United Nation Human Rights Council headed by its chief Navaneetham Pillay will visit Sri Lanka in January next year to assess the action taken on the UN resolution to probe the war crimes committed. Ms Navaneetham Pillay told DMK Treasurer Thalapathi M.K. Stalin and MP DMK Parliamentary Party leader Thiru T.R. Baalu about her visit to Sri Lanka.
They met her in Geneva on Nov.6 to hand over the petition of demands of Kalaignar based on the resolutions adopted at Tamil Eelam Supporter’s Organisation conference (TESO)
In the 35-minute meeting, Thiru Stalin explained the plight of Lankan Tamils to her and handed over a petition signed by party President Kalaignar.
He sought her intervention to withdraw Lankan armed force deployed in the Tamil areas and resettlement of displaced Tamils.
Thiru Stalin accompanied by Thiru T.R. Baalu had submitted the resolutions to United Nations Deputy General Secretary Mr. Jan Eliasson on Nov.1 and interacted with him for about 30 minutes.
The memorandum signed by DMK President and TESO Chairman Kalaignar M.Karunanidhi to the UNHRC stated:
Her Excellency,
On behalf of Dr. Kalaignar M. Karunanidhi, President of the D.M.K., and the “TESO” (Tamil Eelam Supporters’ Organisation), we are meeting you today to submit this Memorandum, concerning the problems of Eelam Tamils.
DMK is a Political Party, recognized by the Election Commission of India. D.M.K. was started in 1949 and as such it is now 63 years old. The party has been working on the principles of Social Justice, Social Reforms, Empowerment of Women, Advancement of Backward, Poor and Down-trodden. DMK was in power in the State of Tamil Nadu for 21 years. Though a regional party, it has been playing a key-role in the Indian national politics for well over a period of 20 years and in fact it has been a partner in the Indian Union Cabinet for nearly 17 years.
Dr. Kalaignar M. Karunanidhi has been the unanimously elected President of D.M.K. for about 43 years. He is one of the Founder-Leaders of the party. He was the Chief Minister of the State of Tamil Nadu for five tenures running to 19 years. He is now the Member of Tamil Nadu State Legislative Assembly for the 12th time. Politics in Tamil Nadu State has been revolving around him for over half-a-century now. He is a multi-dimensional personality. He is a convincing orator and prolific writer. He is a great administrator with a far-reaching vision. He is a Poet, Lyricist and Play-Wright. His entry marked a turning-point in the field of stage-plays. He brought about a revolutionary change in the field of cinema. He has to his credit tens and thousands of short stories, novels, poems, lyrics, articles on political and social themes, plays and cinema-scripts. He is responsible for a number of social-reform measures in the State of Tamil Nadu and his contribution to the economic development of the State is gigantic. He is being looked upon as a tall Leader of the Tamils living across the world.
Dr. Kalaignar M. Karunanidhi, who has been raising his voice consistently for the rightful cause of Eelam Tamils from the year 1956, is also the Chairman of TESO (Tamil Eelam Supporters’ Organisation), started to mobilize national and international support for Eelam Tamils.
I, M.K. Stalin, formerly the Deputy Chief Minister of the State of Tamil Nadu and presently Treasurer of the D.M.K.,
and
I, T.R. Baalu, formerly Indian Union Minister of Forest, Environment and Surface Transport andpresently Leader of the D.M.K. Parliamentary Party,
have come over here from Chennai, India to call on you, seeking your precious time and meaningful attention to the plight and problems of Eelam Tamils.
Yours sincerely,
Sd... Sd...
(M.K. Stalin) (T.R. Baalu)
Geneva,
6.11.2012
Memorandum on Sri Lankan Tamils Issue to the High Commissioner, UNHRC, Geneva.
The brutal civil war in Sri Lanka that resulted in the loss of lives of lakhs of Tamils will forever haunt our minds. The genocide that took place in Sri Lanka will remain as a terrible shame and stain in the history of mankind. It has shaken up the world community which is united and committed to prevent any such massacre in future.
For more than five decades, our political party namely the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) which is now headed by me has been striving for the equality and rights of the Sri Lankan Tamils. Some of the steps taken by DMK party in this regard are detailed below:
Fifty six years ago in 1956, the General Council of the DMK party passed a resolution moved by me demanding equal rights and peaceful living to the Eelam Tamils.
In 1958 the DMK conducted a grand procession in chennai protesting against the atrocities inflicted on Eelam Tamils by the Sinhalese.
As early as 1961, the DMK General Council meeting held in Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu and passed a resolution requesting the Government of India to take up the issue of Eelam Tamils to the United Nations.
In 1981, condemning the killing of the innocent Tamils in Sri Lanka the DMK organized an agitation all over Tamil Nadu in which myself and several leaders of our party were arrested. Eight members of the DMK party committed self-immolation and sacrificed their valuable lives for the cause of the Eelam Tamils.
On 25th July 1983 when the Sinhala extremists barged into the Velikadai prison in Sri Lanka and butchered as many as 35 Tamils including Tamil front line leaders like Thangadurai, Kuttimani and Jegan. On hearing this, within a matter of hours, DMK mobilized as many as 800,000 people and organized a massive protest march in Chennai which drew international attention to this burning issue in Sri Lanka.
On 10th August 1983, in order to create an effective impact and awareness amongst the entire nation, I resigned my membership of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly along with Prof. K. Anbazhagan, the General Secretary of our DMK party. Since there was no appreciable improvement in the pathetic conditions of Eelam Tamils, DMK decided to intensify and take up the issue from the regional level to the national level. Hence, DMK along with likeminded political parties started a new movement called the Tamil Eelam Supporters Organization (TESO) in 1985 to vociferously and unanimously express its anguish over the sufferings of Eelam Tamils and draw the immediate attention of the world community towards our demands.
Subsequently the TESO held mammoth processions, protest marches and public meetings in several parts of Tamil Nadu. My party successfully launched a massive campaign of collecting over 10 million signatures from the Indian Tamils and submitted the same to the United Nations pleading immediate intervention to restore normalcy in Sri Lanka and to protect the Eelam Tamils from the tyranny and atrocities of the oppressive Sinhalese Government.
The TESO organized the first national conference of TESO in 1986 at Madurai, which was attended by national leaders including the former Prime Minister of India A.B.Vajpayee, the former Chief Ministers Rama Rao, and H.N.Bahuguna, the former Union Ministers Murasoli Maran, Jaswant Singh, Dinesh Goswami and K.P.Unnikrishnan, along with Tamil Leaders Veeramani, P.Nedumaran, Sri Lankan Tamil leaders like A.Amirthalingam, Chandrahasan and leaders of liberation groups. This conference passed a resolution demanding protection of Eelam Tamils in their traditional homeland; and to ensure and extend justice, self respect and peaceful living to them.
Further the resolutions passed in the TESO conference called upon the Government of India to raise the issue of the Eelam Tamils with vigour in all international fora such as UN, NAM, CHOGM to find solution to the problems of the Eelam Tamils.
When I was the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, I along with Murasoli Maran M.P met the then Prime-Ministers of India, Rajiv Gandhi and Chandra Shekar and apprised them of the sad plight of Eelam Tamils and urged the Government of India to hold negotiations quickly with Sri Lankan Government and alleviate the sufferings of Eelam Tamils.
Deeply moved by the loss of innocent lives in the unending civil war in Sri Lanka, DMK passed a resolution on 5th October 2008, in support of Eelam Tamils and forwarded it to the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and the Congress President Tmt. Sonia Gandhi.
On 24th October 2008, we conducted the longest human chain extending across all districts in Tamil Nadu and subsequently, a statewide general strike was also observed by the DMK.
On 12th November 2008 as Chief Minister I moved a resolution on the sufferings of of Eelam Tamils in the Legislative Assembly of Tamil Nadu. On 4th December 2008, an all-party delegation led by me went to Delhi and met the Prime Minister and impressed upon him to take necessary and immediate steps to stop the genocide in Sri Lanka.
Above all, the DMK Government headed by me in Tamil Nadu has been dissolved twice by the Union Government of India in 1976 and 1991 for their continuing support to Eelam Tamils. On several occasions during the course of agitations I have been arrested along with thousands of DMK cadres.
After the end of the genocidal war in May 2009, I urged the Government of India to send a high-level parliamentary delegation to Sri Lanka and conduct an on-the-spot study to gain first-hand knowledge about the rehabilitation and resettlement process promised by the Sri Lankan Government to the Government of India; and also to assess the implementation of assistance given by the Government of India, to the war affected Tamils in Sri Lanka.
On my demand, the Government of India deputed a delegation of Parliamentarians under the leadership of Mr. T.R. Baalu, MP Leader of the DMK Parliamentary Party. Accordingly, the delegation which included my daughter Tmt. Kanimozhi M.P., Thiru. T.K.S. Ilangovan, M.P., Thiru. A.K.S. Vijayan, M.P., Tmt. Helen Davidson, M.P., Thiru. Thol. Thirumavalavan, M.P., Thiru. N.S.V. Chithan, M.P., Thiru. J.M. Haroon, M.P., Thiru. Sudarsana Nachiappan, M.P., and Thiru. K.S. Alagiri, M.P., visited IDP Camps in Sri Lanka, where they found IDPs crowded in inadequate tents, enclosed by barbed wire, and kept like cattles in deplorable conditions under the sun and rain with neither adequate roofing nor hygienic surroundings, thereby causing outbreak of epidemics. Tamils in those camps suffer even without basic medical facilities. The Sri Lankan Government had also failed to adhere to the internationally accepted standards for treatment of internally displaced persons.
Upon receiving a report of the pathetic situation prevailing in the IDP Camps from Mr. T.R. Baalu, MP and the Parliamentary Delegation, I, once again, took up this matter with the Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, on the basis of which the Government of India extended various benefits to the Tamils in Sri Lanka.
After having understood the pathetic scenario about IDPs, I made an earnest appeal to the people of Tamil Nadu, NGO’s, especially to my party men, who generously donated clothes, medicines, money, utensils, etc, which were sent by ship through the International Committee of Red Cross to Sri Lanka on 13.11.2008, 22.04.2009 and 09.05.2009. Even those relief materials despatched by the DMK were not distributed to the suffering Eelam Tamils. So, once again I represented to the Government of India to provide financial aid and play an effective role in the rehabilitation of IDPs. But, to my shock, I came to understand that the assistance provided by the Government of India did not reach the intended beneficiaries but they were cornered by the Sinhalese.
The Sri Lankan President Rajapaksa had gone on record promising to the Parliamentary delegation that he will rehabilitate the 300,000 inmates of IDP camps by December 2009. But so far he has not fulfilled his promises. Therefore the DMK Party has been consistently raising its voice in Parliament to the Government of India to monitor the assistance provided and facilitate the quick rehabilitation of Sri Lankan Tamils.
The continued post war sufferings of Tamils in Sri Lanka compelled us to revive TESO and organize “Eelam Tamils Rights Protection Conference” on 12th August 2012 at Chennai. This International Conference was attended by the political party leaders and human rights activists from Sri Lanka, United States of America, United Kingdom, Sweden, Norway, Morocco, Nigeria, Turkey, Malaysia and Singapore as well as from India.
In this conference, fourteen resolutions were adopted and passed on various issues pertaining to Sri Lankan Tamils questions. Specifically, the fourth resolution of the conference urges the Government of India to bring forth a UN resolution to bestow full rights to Tamils in Sri Lanka to decide for themselves their future political order.
After 2009, in the Northern and Eastern provinces of Sri Lanka the Eelam Tamil population has faced serious large-scale human rights abuseswhich continued
unchecked. Under these circumstances we prefer this memorandum for your esteemed consideration and appropriate action in this regard.
We would like to place the following human rights issues faced by the Eelam Tamils in Sri Lanka for your consideration:
State-sponsored demographic change
The houses, agricultural lands, industries and other properties of thousands of Tamils were forcibly taken from them and distributed to Sinhalese soldiers. Sinhala families are being settled there in large numbers.
Militarization of traditional
Tamil areas:
The Sinhalese army is being permanently stationed in Tamil areas, in the ratio of one soldier for every five Tamil civilians. There is a military camp in every village. There are many guard posts at every intersection. Retired army officers are Governors of both Northern and Eastern Provinces. No public or social functions are allowed without military permission. Military controls most of the economic activities. It is engaged predominantly in the use of development aid, construction, hotels, eateries, petty trade and vegetable cultivation in the traditional lands of Tamils. Military over-rules the police in most cases, even though the police regularly report to the Ministry of Defence.
Land Grabbing
Lands owned by the Eelam Tamils were forcibly grabbed during the long war period. Government and its military are in total control of land dispute resolution and ordering disputed land titles to Sinhalese. The news that the Sri Lankan Government and its military are promoting illegal emigration of Tamils through human trafficking and usurping their land titles are found to be true.
Declining Political Representation.
Tamil political representation has been declining since independence due to gerrymandering, state-sponsored demographic change and disenfranchisement of voters.
Displacement
Officially, 125,000 Tamils fled from their homeland during the final phase of the war in 2009.4 One third of Tamils had already fled the island due to genocidal oppression. Almost one million Tamils remain overseas, of which 200,000 are in India, mostly in the refugee5 camps.
Disappearances/extrajudicial executions
Thousands of Tamils have disappeared in the Eastern area since it was taken over by the Sinhalese Government in 2007.6 The International Committee of Red Cross reports that 15,780 persons are missing in the Northern Province. Disappearances and extrajudicial executions continue in the North and in Colombo with total impunity, mostly directed towards Tamils.
Indefinite detention without trial
Thousands of Tamils are being held for many years without trial either under Prevention of Terrorism Act or without any legal sanction.
Exploitation of Religious freedom
Buddhism has been declared as a state religion and large scale destruction of Hindu temples, Christian churches and Islamic mosques continue to be encour¬aged. For example, 1500 Hindu temples were converted as Buddhist vihars while the churches and mosques are occupied by the Sinhala army men.
Pathetic Condition of Tamil Women
Vulnerable population are the Tamil women. The condition of Tamil women in Sri Lanka is very pathetic. The oppressive military campaign that ended in May 2009 left an estimated 90,000 Tamil war widows. Tamil women are particularly targeted and exploited by the Sinhalese army men. Violent and forced sexual abuses by the Sinhalese military men make women’s security a major issue.
Restrictions on trade and commerce
The Sinhalese Government is following a discriminatory trade policy favouring Sinhalese traders only. The Tamil merchants are neglected and penalised. The Sinhalese army is entrenched in all areas of civilian life and has taken over the economy. Even saloons are captured and run by the army men. Hence, there is no space for economic revival of Tamils. For instance, the highway from Jaffna to Colombo, A-9, previously used by the Tamil merchants, is at present totally controlled by the Sinhalese ex-servicemen. Even sign boards along the A-9 which were used to be bilingual are now only in Sinhala language.
Restrictions on NGO access
Overt and covert restrictions by the Sinhalese Government prevent NGO access to Tamils of the island nation. The International Committee of Red Cross was asked to close its offices in the Northern Province in 2010.
Sufferings of the Tamil Children
Tamil children continue to struggle from the effects of years of discrimination and an oppressive war thrust upon them. Tamil areas have twice the rate of infant mortality as that of the rest of the island7, 40% of children under 5 years of age are malnourished and are under¬weight compared to 20% in the rest of the island8, and maternal mortality is four times that of elsewhere9.
Social discrimination
No social functions and religious ceremonies can be organized without the prior approval of the army which are usually denied. Tamils cannot even host anyone in their house without the army’s consent.
Tamil Language, Education and Culture
The identity of culture and pride of language and Tamil education, are ridiculed by Sinhala fanatics who are trying to eradicate the cultural and linguistic identity of Tamils. The Tamil language is not given due importance on par with Sinhala language. The past administrations have failed to consider Tamil as an official language.
The above mentioned acts of genocide and heinous war crimes unleashed against unarmed innocent Tamil civilians bear shameful testimony to the widespread human rights violations in Sri Lanka.
Now, how will the civilized world help to heal the wounds of extended civil war and put an end to the decades-old sufferings of Tamils in Sri Lanka?
Is it not the duty of every right thinking individual, international humanitarian organization and elected Government to answer the cries of Tamil brothers and sisters in Sri Lanka?
I am deputing Mr. M.K. Stalin, M.L.A., Former the Deputy Chief Minister of the State of Tamil Nadu and Mr.T.R.Baalu, M.P., Leader of the D.M.K. Parliamentary party in Indian Parliament with extraordinary hope from the homeland of Gautama Buddha, MK Gandhi and Thiruvalluvar who are universal icons for brotherhood, peace and justice, to submit this memorandum to UNHRC – a forum which takes great pride in upholding international humanitarian laws.
In the light of the above mentioned facts, we request Your Excellency to initiate immediate and appropriate action on the following:
1. Immediate withdrawal of security forces and restoration of habitations to Tamils.
2. Rehabilitation and resettlement of displaced Tamils.
3. Conduct an impartial inquiry by an international agency on the human rights violations and war crimes committed against the Eelam Tamils.
4. Restore dignified life to Tamils living in Sri Lanka.
Sd..
(Dr. M. Karunanidhi)
President, DMK party and TESO
Chennai
27.10.2012
They met her in Geneva on Nov.6 to hand over the petition of demands of Kalaignar based on the resolutions adopted at Tamil Eelam Supporter’s Organisation conference (TESO)
In the 35-minute meeting, Thiru Stalin explained the plight of Lankan Tamils to her and handed over a petition signed by party President Kalaignar.
He sought her intervention to withdraw Lankan armed force deployed in the Tamil areas and resettlement of displaced Tamils.
Thiru Stalin accompanied by Thiru T.R. Baalu had submitted the resolutions to United Nations Deputy General Secretary Mr. Jan Eliasson on Nov.1 and interacted with him for about 30 minutes.
The memorandum signed by DMK President and TESO Chairman Kalaignar M.Karunanidhi to the UNHRC stated:
Her Excellency,
On behalf of Dr. Kalaignar M. Karunanidhi, President of the D.M.K., and the “TESO” (Tamil Eelam Supporters’ Organisation), we are meeting you today to submit this Memorandum, concerning the problems of Eelam Tamils.
DMK is a Political Party, recognized by the Election Commission of India. D.M.K. was started in 1949 and as such it is now 63 years old. The party has been working on the principles of Social Justice, Social Reforms, Empowerment of Women, Advancement of Backward, Poor and Down-trodden. DMK was in power in the State of Tamil Nadu for 21 years. Though a regional party, it has been playing a key-role in the Indian national politics for well over a period of 20 years and in fact it has been a partner in the Indian Union Cabinet for nearly 17 years.
Dr. Kalaignar M. Karunanidhi has been the unanimously elected President of D.M.K. for about 43 years. He is one of the Founder-Leaders of the party. He was the Chief Minister of the State of Tamil Nadu for five tenures running to 19 years. He is now the Member of Tamil Nadu State Legislative Assembly for the 12th time. Politics in Tamil Nadu State has been revolving around him for over half-a-century now. He is a multi-dimensional personality. He is a convincing orator and prolific writer. He is a great administrator with a far-reaching vision. He is a Poet, Lyricist and Play-Wright. His entry marked a turning-point in the field of stage-plays. He brought about a revolutionary change in the field of cinema. He has to his credit tens and thousands of short stories, novels, poems, lyrics, articles on political and social themes, plays and cinema-scripts. He is responsible for a number of social-reform measures in the State of Tamil Nadu and his contribution to the economic development of the State is gigantic. He is being looked upon as a tall Leader of the Tamils living across the world.
Dr. Kalaignar M. Karunanidhi, who has been raising his voice consistently for the rightful cause of Eelam Tamils from the year 1956, is also the Chairman of TESO (Tamil Eelam Supporters’ Organisation), started to mobilize national and international support for Eelam Tamils.
I, M.K. Stalin, formerly the Deputy Chief Minister of the State of Tamil Nadu and presently Treasurer of the D.M.K.,
and
I, T.R. Baalu, formerly Indian Union Minister of Forest, Environment and Surface Transport andpresently Leader of the D.M.K. Parliamentary Party,
have come over here from Chennai, India to call on you, seeking your precious time and meaningful attention to the plight and problems of Eelam Tamils.
Yours sincerely,
Sd... Sd...
(M.K. Stalin) (T.R. Baalu)
Geneva,
6.11.2012
Memorandum on Sri Lankan Tamils Issue to the High Commissioner, UNHRC, Geneva.
The brutal civil war in Sri Lanka that resulted in the loss of lives of lakhs of Tamils will forever haunt our minds. The genocide that took place in Sri Lanka will remain as a terrible shame and stain in the history of mankind. It has shaken up the world community which is united and committed to prevent any such massacre in future.
For more than five decades, our political party namely the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) which is now headed by me has been striving for the equality and rights of the Sri Lankan Tamils. Some of the steps taken by DMK party in this regard are detailed below:
Fifty six years ago in 1956, the General Council of the DMK party passed a resolution moved by me demanding equal rights and peaceful living to the Eelam Tamils.
In 1958 the DMK conducted a grand procession in chennai protesting against the atrocities inflicted on Eelam Tamils by the Sinhalese.
As early as 1961, the DMK General Council meeting held in Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu and passed a resolution requesting the Government of India to take up the issue of Eelam Tamils to the United Nations.
In 1981, condemning the killing of the innocent Tamils in Sri Lanka the DMK organized an agitation all over Tamil Nadu in which myself and several leaders of our party were arrested. Eight members of the DMK party committed self-immolation and sacrificed their valuable lives for the cause of the Eelam Tamils.
On 25th July 1983 when the Sinhala extremists barged into the Velikadai prison in Sri Lanka and butchered as many as 35 Tamils including Tamil front line leaders like Thangadurai, Kuttimani and Jegan. On hearing this, within a matter of hours, DMK mobilized as many as 800,000 people and organized a massive protest march in Chennai which drew international attention to this burning issue in Sri Lanka.
On 10th August 1983, in order to create an effective impact and awareness amongst the entire nation, I resigned my membership of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly along with Prof. K. Anbazhagan, the General Secretary of our DMK party. Since there was no appreciable improvement in the pathetic conditions of Eelam Tamils, DMK decided to intensify and take up the issue from the regional level to the national level. Hence, DMK along with likeminded political parties started a new movement called the Tamil Eelam Supporters Organization (TESO) in 1985 to vociferously and unanimously express its anguish over the sufferings of Eelam Tamils and draw the immediate attention of the world community towards our demands.
Subsequently the TESO held mammoth processions, protest marches and public meetings in several parts of Tamil Nadu. My party successfully launched a massive campaign of collecting over 10 million signatures from the Indian Tamils and submitted the same to the United Nations pleading immediate intervention to restore normalcy in Sri Lanka and to protect the Eelam Tamils from the tyranny and atrocities of the oppressive Sinhalese Government.
The TESO organized the first national conference of TESO in 1986 at Madurai, which was attended by national leaders including the former Prime Minister of India A.B.Vajpayee, the former Chief Ministers Rama Rao, and H.N.Bahuguna, the former Union Ministers Murasoli Maran, Jaswant Singh, Dinesh Goswami and K.P.Unnikrishnan, along with Tamil Leaders Veeramani, P.Nedumaran, Sri Lankan Tamil leaders like A.Amirthalingam, Chandrahasan and leaders of liberation groups. This conference passed a resolution demanding protection of Eelam Tamils in their traditional homeland; and to ensure and extend justice, self respect and peaceful living to them.
Further the resolutions passed in the TESO conference called upon the Government of India to raise the issue of the Eelam Tamils with vigour in all international fora such as UN, NAM, CHOGM to find solution to the problems of the Eelam Tamils.
When I was the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, I along with Murasoli Maran M.P met the then Prime-Ministers of India, Rajiv Gandhi and Chandra Shekar and apprised them of the sad plight of Eelam Tamils and urged the Government of India to hold negotiations quickly with Sri Lankan Government and alleviate the sufferings of Eelam Tamils.
Deeply moved by the loss of innocent lives in the unending civil war in Sri Lanka, DMK passed a resolution on 5th October 2008, in support of Eelam Tamils and forwarded it to the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and the Congress President Tmt. Sonia Gandhi.
On 24th October 2008, we conducted the longest human chain extending across all districts in Tamil Nadu and subsequently, a statewide general strike was also observed by the DMK.
On 12th November 2008 as Chief Minister I moved a resolution on the sufferings of of Eelam Tamils in the Legislative Assembly of Tamil Nadu. On 4th December 2008, an all-party delegation led by me went to Delhi and met the Prime Minister and impressed upon him to take necessary and immediate steps to stop the genocide in Sri Lanka.
Above all, the DMK Government headed by me in Tamil Nadu has been dissolved twice by the Union Government of India in 1976 and 1991 for their continuing support to Eelam Tamils. On several occasions during the course of agitations I have been arrested along with thousands of DMK cadres.
After the end of the genocidal war in May 2009, I urged the Government of India to send a high-level parliamentary delegation to Sri Lanka and conduct an on-the-spot study to gain first-hand knowledge about the rehabilitation and resettlement process promised by the Sri Lankan Government to the Government of India; and also to assess the implementation of assistance given by the Government of India, to the war affected Tamils in Sri Lanka.
On my demand, the Government of India deputed a delegation of Parliamentarians under the leadership of Mr. T.R. Baalu, MP Leader of the DMK Parliamentary Party. Accordingly, the delegation which included my daughter Tmt. Kanimozhi M.P., Thiru. T.K.S. Ilangovan, M.P., Thiru. A.K.S. Vijayan, M.P., Tmt. Helen Davidson, M.P., Thiru. Thol. Thirumavalavan, M.P., Thiru. N.S.V. Chithan, M.P., Thiru. J.M. Haroon, M.P., Thiru. Sudarsana Nachiappan, M.P., and Thiru. K.S. Alagiri, M.P., visited IDP Camps in Sri Lanka, where they found IDPs crowded in inadequate tents, enclosed by barbed wire, and kept like cattles in deplorable conditions under the sun and rain with neither adequate roofing nor hygienic surroundings, thereby causing outbreak of epidemics. Tamils in those camps suffer even without basic medical facilities. The Sri Lankan Government had also failed to adhere to the internationally accepted standards for treatment of internally displaced persons.
Upon receiving a report of the pathetic situation prevailing in the IDP Camps from Mr. T.R. Baalu, MP and the Parliamentary Delegation, I, once again, took up this matter with the Indian Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, on the basis of which the Government of India extended various benefits to the Tamils in Sri Lanka.
After having understood the pathetic scenario about IDPs, I made an earnest appeal to the people of Tamil Nadu, NGO’s, especially to my party men, who generously donated clothes, medicines, money, utensils, etc, which were sent by ship through the International Committee of Red Cross to Sri Lanka on 13.11.2008, 22.04.2009 and 09.05.2009. Even those relief materials despatched by the DMK were not distributed to the suffering Eelam Tamils. So, once again I represented to the Government of India to provide financial aid and play an effective role in the rehabilitation of IDPs. But, to my shock, I came to understand that the assistance provided by the Government of India did not reach the intended beneficiaries but they were cornered by the Sinhalese.
The Sri Lankan President Rajapaksa had gone on record promising to the Parliamentary delegation that he will rehabilitate the 300,000 inmates of IDP camps by December 2009. But so far he has not fulfilled his promises. Therefore the DMK Party has been consistently raising its voice in Parliament to the Government of India to monitor the assistance provided and facilitate the quick rehabilitation of Sri Lankan Tamils.
The continued post war sufferings of Tamils in Sri Lanka compelled us to revive TESO and organize “Eelam Tamils Rights Protection Conference” on 12th August 2012 at Chennai. This International Conference was attended by the political party leaders and human rights activists from Sri Lanka, United States of America, United Kingdom, Sweden, Norway, Morocco, Nigeria, Turkey, Malaysia and Singapore as well as from India.
In this conference, fourteen resolutions were adopted and passed on various issues pertaining to Sri Lankan Tamils questions. Specifically, the fourth resolution of the conference urges the Government of India to bring forth a UN resolution to bestow full rights to Tamils in Sri Lanka to decide for themselves their future political order.
After 2009, in the Northern and Eastern provinces of Sri Lanka the Eelam Tamil population has faced serious large-scale human rights abuseswhich continued
unchecked. Under these circumstances we prefer this memorandum for your esteemed consideration and appropriate action in this regard.
We would like to place the following human rights issues faced by the Eelam Tamils in Sri Lanka for your consideration:
State-sponsored demographic change
The houses, agricultural lands, industries and other properties of thousands of Tamils were forcibly taken from them and distributed to Sinhalese soldiers. Sinhala families are being settled there in large numbers.
Militarization of traditional
Tamil areas:
The Sinhalese army is being permanently stationed in Tamil areas, in the ratio of one soldier for every five Tamil civilians. There is a military camp in every village. There are many guard posts at every intersection. Retired army officers are Governors of both Northern and Eastern Provinces. No public or social functions are allowed without military permission. Military controls most of the economic activities. It is engaged predominantly in the use of development aid, construction, hotels, eateries, petty trade and vegetable cultivation in the traditional lands of Tamils. Military over-rules the police in most cases, even though the police regularly report to the Ministry of Defence.
Land Grabbing
Lands owned by the Eelam Tamils were forcibly grabbed during the long war period. Government and its military are in total control of land dispute resolution and ordering disputed land titles to Sinhalese. The news that the Sri Lankan Government and its military are promoting illegal emigration of Tamils through human trafficking and usurping their land titles are found to be true.
Declining Political Representation.
Tamil political representation has been declining since independence due to gerrymandering, state-sponsored demographic change and disenfranchisement of voters.
Displacement
Officially, 125,000 Tamils fled from their homeland during the final phase of the war in 2009.4 One third of Tamils had already fled the island due to genocidal oppression. Almost one million Tamils remain overseas, of which 200,000 are in India, mostly in the refugee5 camps.
Disappearances/extrajudicial executions
Thousands of Tamils have disappeared in the Eastern area since it was taken over by the Sinhalese Government in 2007.6 The International Committee of Red Cross reports that 15,780 persons are missing in the Northern Province. Disappearances and extrajudicial executions continue in the North and in Colombo with total impunity, mostly directed towards Tamils.
Indefinite detention without trial
Thousands of Tamils are being held for many years without trial either under Prevention of Terrorism Act or without any legal sanction.
Exploitation of Religious freedom
Buddhism has been declared as a state religion and large scale destruction of Hindu temples, Christian churches and Islamic mosques continue to be encour¬aged. For example, 1500 Hindu temples were converted as Buddhist vihars while the churches and mosques are occupied by the Sinhala army men.
Pathetic Condition of Tamil Women
Vulnerable population are the Tamil women. The condition of Tamil women in Sri Lanka is very pathetic. The oppressive military campaign that ended in May 2009 left an estimated 90,000 Tamil war widows. Tamil women are particularly targeted and exploited by the Sinhalese army men. Violent and forced sexual abuses by the Sinhalese military men make women’s security a major issue.
Restrictions on trade and commerce
The Sinhalese Government is following a discriminatory trade policy favouring Sinhalese traders only. The Tamil merchants are neglected and penalised. The Sinhalese army is entrenched in all areas of civilian life and has taken over the economy. Even saloons are captured and run by the army men. Hence, there is no space for economic revival of Tamils. For instance, the highway from Jaffna to Colombo, A-9, previously used by the Tamil merchants, is at present totally controlled by the Sinhalese ex-servicemen. Even sign boards along the A-9 which were used to be bilingual are now only in Sinhala language.
Restrictions on NGO access
Overt and covert restrictions by the Sinhalese Government prevent NGO access to Tamils of the island nation. The International Committee of Red Cross was asked to close its offices in the Northern Province in 2010.
Sufferings of the Tamil Children
Tamil children continue to struggle from the effects of years of discrimination and an oppressive war thrust upon them. Tamil areas have twice the rate of infant mortality as that of the rest of the island7, 40% of children under 5 years of age are malnourished and are under¬weight compared to 20% in the rest of the island8, and maternal mortality is four times that of elsewhere9.
Social discrimination
No social functions and religious ceremonies can be organized without the prior approval of the army which are usually denied. Tamils cannot even host anyone in their house without the army’s consent.
Tamil Language, Education and Culture
The identity of culture and pride of language and Tamil education, are ridiculed by Sinhala fanatics who are trying to eradicate the cultural and linguistic identity of Tamils. The Tamil language is not given due importance on par with Sinhala language. The past administrations have failed to consider Tamil as an official language.
The above mentioned acts of genocide and heinous war crimes unleashed against unarmed innocent Tamil civilians bear shameful testimony to the widespread human rights violations in Sri Lanka.
Now, how will the civilized world help to heal the wounds of extended civil war and put an end to the decades-old sufferings of Tamils in Sri Lanka?
Is it not the duty of every right thinking individual, international humanitarian organization and elected Government to answer the cries of Tamil brothers and sisters in Sri Lanka?
I am deputing Mr. M.K. Stalin, M.L.A., Former the Deputy Chief Minister of the State of Tamil Nadu and Mr.T.R.Baalu, M.P., Leader of the D.M.K. Parliamentary party in Indian Parliament with extraordinary hope from the homeland of Gautama Buddha, MK Gandhi and Thiruvalluvar who are universal icons for brotherhood, peace and justice, to submit this memorandum to UNHRC – a forum which takes great pride in upholding international humanitarian laws.
In the light of the above mentioned facts, we request Your Excellency to initiate immediate and appropriate action on the following:
1. Immediate withdrawal of security forces and restoration of habitations to Tamils.
2. Rehabilitation and resettlement of displaced Tamils.
3. Conduct an impartial inquiry by an international agency on the human rights violations and war crimes committed against the Eelam Tamils.
4. Restore dignified life to Tamils living in Sri Lanka.
Sd..
(Dr. M. Karunanidhi)
President, DMK party and TESO
Chennai
27.10.2012
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