Going hammer and tongs at inimical individuals’ motivated campaign against TESO, Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi President and TESO member Thol. Thirumavalavan said that while we should not bother about their criticisms and carry ahead with our fight for Eelam Tamils, exposing impostors was also our duty.
In his speech at a seminar in Periyar Thidal in Chennai, Thirumavalavan said:
In the present situation in Tamil Nadu in which there was an interwoven struggle for right to claim on Eelam Tamils issue between genuine and fakes, the sham had to be exposed. The imposture of those who were opposed to and continuing to be opposed to and still working against them, pretending now to be concerned about Eelam Tamils, was preponderating. The most shameful was these impostors being trusted by world Tamils now. In these circumstances, there was urgent need to bring this to light.
We welcome, congratulate and greet students who had now taken to streets on the issue. But at the same time, those who were sundries, believing themselves to be intellectuals, that too those who sit within four walls and write as if they were the sole fighters for the cause of Eelam Tamils were doing the mischief of creating an illusion that only because of the students stir others (implying TESO) had understood the issue. But what was truth?
The TESO had been conducting successive agitations and movements for over three months. Black dress stir, gherao of the office of Deputy Consul of Sri Lanka in Chennai, Demonstrations in Nagapattinam and Rameswaram for protecting Tamil fishermen, seminar in New Delhi with leaders of all parties, meetings with envoys of all countries in New Delhi to urge their nations to support the cause of Eelam Tamils etc were conducted.
Those who had remained wrapped up in some corner during all those times, now suddenly after the release of the photograph of Balachandran, son of Prabhakaran had created an image as if the uprising among students and people was because of that and were trying to cover up and divert the benefit of it not to accrue to TESO, particularly to the DMK which was guiding it and DK and VCK which were part of it. they interpreted the students stir in a different angle and still doing it. Immediately the ADMK regime closed colleges and hostels and evacuated students from hostels
Now this situation had to be compared with the past. When a youth Muthukumar died out of self-immolation, the then DMK government declared holidays for colleges. Then immediately these champions of Tamils howled on the streets ‘Karunanidhi is a traitor, he suppresses students stir by declaring holidays for colleges, DMK government is betraying’, they gave interviews severely criticising.
Now the ADMK regime had resorted to the same action. On seeing the photographs of Balachandran, students plunged into struggle on the streets. Immediately the ADMK government closed the colleges and hostels and overnight drove away students of even engineering colleges. But none of these self-proclaimed champions even issued statements condemning the action. “why nobody said Jayalalitha betrayed, where had all these champions gone?” Thol Thirumavalavan asked.
But although the ADMK government closed colleges and hostels, they did not suppress the stir of students, and we could understand later that they were rather encouraging them in many ways without resorting to arrests and police actions. Why? It was not because of Jayalalitha’s concern for Eelam Tamils. We could realise that this government believed that the students agitation helped it to divert the attention of people from the burning issues of the state like unprecedented power cut, deterioration of law and order and political animosity. Next, the Jayalalitha regime wanted that none should say that this uprising happened because of the struggles of TESO and it should be recorded that only because of students stir it happened.
So, both of them- the ADMK regime and these self-appointed champions of Tamils’ cause- had the same aim that the credit for the biggest impact among all sections of people of TN should not go to TESO and its sustained struggles and it should not get recorded in history that way.
It was because of this that we had to point out all these, Thirumavalavan said adding that ‘we are not getting into competition for staking our right and we know that it is a silly act. It is not our aim or desire. Our wish is that all should join together and speak in one voice, argue and raise war cry on Eelam Tamils issue. That is why after the resolution was passed in the Assembly by the ADMK government, the DMK, DK and VCK heartily welcomed it. Why? Our aim is not to differentiate between rules. Whichever be the ruling party, when they raise voice for Eelam Tamils (whatever may be their purpose) it is our duty to welcome it. We approach issues with that outlook”, he said.
But what was the outlook of others? Those who proclaim that they speak for Tamils, race and particularly for Eelam were more concentrating in criticising the DMK and parties standing with it and evince more interest in creating hatred for the DMK and its allies among world Tamils, than in opposing Rajapaksa and the racist regime in Sri Lanka. “If we compare developments in the last three years, this could be seen”.
“They say if only Kalaignar had wanted he could have stopped the war in Lanka. Can there be any other joke than this. War in a country is an international issue. Those who have an understanding of history and international outlook can understand. What is the power with a state government and what could be done by a chief minister of a state in India? When did that war start? Who were all assisting that war? How many countries helped by giving arms and ammunitions? What are all the contributions of the USA, Pakistan and China? In spite of knowing well and understanding why all nations including Communist countries of China, Russia and Cuba were opposed to the LTTE and not looking at it as an international issue, they were vainly talking in air and debating in vacuum that if only the DMK government and Kalaignar had wanted, the war could have been stopped”, he said.
“Even if Vaiko or Nedumaran were chief ministers, they could not have stopped the war in Lanka because this is not a diplomatic crisis between a state government and another country and it could not be solved like that. But in spite of knowing all these intricacies if they go on speaking like this, their motive is nothing but to oppose and criticise the DMK and parties standing with it. Even Rajapaksa is not their first enemy but the DMK and its allies. What else can we do without exposing such people to the people?”, he asked.
“They say aligning with the Congress party was wrong. We accept that. And regret it, we are even prepared to seek apology from word Tamils. But, alternative to Congress, with which party in India could we have alliance? Which other party is in support of independence of Eelam? Which leader of party promises to struggle for Eelam liberation? Is there any historical evidence of any government in India coming forward to commit for Eelam liberation? There are only two main parties leading the ruling and opposition alliance alternatively- the Congress and BJP. What is the stand of these two parties on Eelam Tamils issue? In what manner the BJP is different with Congress? Did not the BJP rule this country? What was their stand, approach, foreign policy, relations with Sri Lankan government in respect of Eelam Tamils issue when they ruled? Have they ever supported LTTE or Eelam?
“When Hindu temples were demolished there, did they condemn it? why they did not do? There the war was between Buddhists and Tamils following Hindu culture, all the affected Tamils were only Hindus, none of them is Buddhist; some of them are Christians and Muslims but by and large they are Hindus. Did the Hindutva forces here ever raised their voice against Hindus affected in Lanka? Has Advani spoken, Vajpayee regretted, has Sushma Swaraj ever worried about it; the stand of Congress is the stand of BJP, the stand of BJP is the stand of Rajapaksa. What is the difference between them?”
To those who highly appreciate and hail the resolution adopted in the Assembly by the ADMK regime, he asked “How many agitations did the ADMK conduct for Eelam Tamils after the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi in1991? Can they show any evidence for the ADMK led by Jayalalitha conducting rallies, conferences, demonstrations and courting arrests and series of agitations for Eelam Tamils?”
ADMK was the only political party in Tamil Nadu which did not conduct any agitation for Eelam Tamils so far since 1991. It was only because people like Vaiko and Nedumaran instigated her to adopt a resolution which would help her for her politics against Kalaignar and demolish the DMK, that Jayalalitha passed the resolution in the Assembly. Has she even heartily supported the cause of Eelam? If there is one leader who still maintains that LTTE is the enemy, it is Jayalalitha,” asserted Thirumavalavan.
When she was questioned in the Disproportionate Assets case in Bangalore special court as to why she required Z Plus security, she maintained that her life was in danger from LTTE and hence required protection. Even after the LTTE was declared destroyed after Mullivaaikkaal genocide, she maintains that her life was in danger from LTTE. How many times she had proudly exclaimed that it was she who got the LTTE proscribed in India? What was her design in it, we must think over.
This same Chief Minister who had now adopted this resolution, without any reason got agitated in the Assembly when I was in the House in 2001, when LTTE chief Prabhakaran met with media persons from all over the world and unnecessarily passed a resolution seeking the arrest of Prabhakaran and brought him to trial in Indian court in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. “How can this lady be supported in Eelam Tamils issue”, he wondered.
They say MGR supported LTTE. Did MGR alone supported LTTE? Indira Gandhi herself supported them, that is history. Who trained in arms the LTTE and Eelam militants? Who sponsored them? Who gave arms and send them from here to Lanka? Who encouraged them? The Government of India had a difficulty in international politics them and they needed them (militants), and hence for their purpose they utilised Eelam militants, trained then and provided arms. MGR supported because Government of India itself supported.
“If that was the way to look at it, than us, I can say that than the DMK. DK and the VCK (and all these self-proclaimed champions), those who supported the LTTE more and helped them in all ways is the Indian National Congress Party and Indira Gandhi. Hence, only because Indira Gandhi herself and Government of India itself supported, MGR supported it”, he said.
They (the ‘champions’) require ADMK which did not throw even a tiny stone for Eelam Tamils or the LTTE from1991 and say it is a safe and supportive movement for them.
“But, if people like Tirumavalavan get over the dais and speak on Eelam Tamils, can anybody deny the fact that it was because of the successive and sustained struggles conducted by the DK and DMK? Can anybody deny that it was because of race consciousness they nurtured and the campaign they conducted and views they spread?” he asked.
In Tamil Nadu Congress and ADMK were against independent Eelam. Now and only now the ADMK is adopting resolution for referendum in support of Eelam. Because, they are adopting this resolution thinking that all such things will not happen hereafter; this will not come as an international issue in a big way and nations of the world will not be agreeable to this.
Why should those who were mere spectators bring a resolution now? What is the motive behind this? What is the background? We have to study all these questions.
“In spite of knowing that so many problems are there, they are speaking fielding mean politics that the reason for all this is the DMK, DK, VCK and Dravidar Iyakka Tamilar Peravai. For this to become an international issue, 10 lakh people had to immigrate and suffer in other countries. If we could take this issue to the notice of the nations of the world only after so many big changes, why should not we sustain for another 25 years, struggle for 25 more years? Our principle should be that we must fight till the last, till the last of our life. We should not bother about criticisms. Illiterates carry ahead with their campaign against TESO. Exposing impostors is our duty”, he said.
In his speech at a seminar in Periyar Thidal in Chennai, Thirumavalavan said:
In the present situation in Tamil Nadu in which there was an interwoven struggle for right to claim on Eelam Tamils issue between genuine and fakes, the sham had to be exposed. The imposture of those who were opposed to and continuing to be opposed to and still working against them, pretending now to be concerned about Eelam Tamils, was preponderating. The most shameful was these impostors being trusted by world Tamils now. In these circumstances, there was urgent need to bring this to light.
We welcome, congratulate and greet students who had now taken to streets on the issue. But at the same time, those who were sundries, believing themselves to be intellectuals, that too those who sit within four walls and write as if they were the sole fighters for the cause of Eelam Tamils were doing the mischief of creating an illusion that only because of the students stir others (implying TESO) had understood the issue. But what was truth?
The TESO had been conducting successive agitations and movements for over three months. Black dress stir, gherao of the office of Deputy Consul of Sri Lanka in Chennai, Demonstrations in Nagapattinam and Rameswaram for protecting Tamil fishermen, seminar in New Delhi with leaders of all parties, meetings with envoys of all countries in New Delhi to urge their nations to support the cause of Eelam Tamils etc were conducted.
Those who had remained wrapped up in some corner during all those times, now suddenly after the release of the photograph of Balachandran, son of Prabhakaran had created an image as if the uprising among students and people was because of that and were trying to cover up and divert the benefit of it not to accrue to TESO, particularly to the DMK which was guiding it and DK and VCK which were part of it. they interpreted the students stir in a different angle and still doing it. Immediately the ADMK regime closed colleges and hostels and evacuated students from hostels
Now this situation had to be compared with the past. When a youth Muthukumar died out of self-immolation, the then DMK government declared holidays for colleges. Then immediately these champions of Tamils howled on the streets ‘Karunanidhi is a traitor, he suppresses students stir by declaring holidays for colleges, DMK government is betraying’, they gave interviews severely criticising.
Now the ADMK regime had resorted to the same action. On seeing the photographs of Balachandran, students plunged into struggle on the streets. Immediately the ADMK government closed the colleges and hostels and overnight drove away students of even engineering colleges. But none of these self-proclaimed champions even issued statements condemning the action. “why nobody said Jayalalitha betrayed, where had all these champions gone?” Thol Thirumavalavan asked.
But although the ADMK government closed colleges and hostels, they did not suppress the stir of students, and we could understand later that they were rather encouraging them in many ways without resorting to arrests and police actions. Why? It was not because of Jayalalitha’s concern for Eelam Tamils. We could realise that this government believed that the students agitation helped it to divert the attention of people from the burning issues of the state like unprecedented power cut, deterioration of law and order and political animosity. Next, the Jayalalitha regime wanted that none should say that this uprising happened because of the struggles of TESO and it should be recorded that only because of students stir it happened.
So, both of them- the ADMK regime and these self-appointed champions of Tamils’ cause- had the same aim that the credit for the biggest impact among all sections of people of TN should not go to TESO and its sustained struggles and it should not get recorded in history that way.
It was because of this that we had to point out all these, Thirumavalavan said adding that ‘we are not getting into competition for staking our right and we know that it is a silly act. It is not our aim or desire. Our wish is that all should join together and speak in one voice, argue and raise war cry on Eelam Tamils issue. That is why after the resolution was passed in the Assembly by the ADMK government, the DMK, DK and VCK heartily welcomed it. Why? Our aim is not to differentiate between rules. Whichever be the ruling party, when they raise voice for Eelam Tamils (whatever may be their purpose) it is our duty to welcome it. We approach issues with that outlook”, he said.
But what was the outlook of others? Those who proclaim that they speak for Tamils, race and particularly for Eelam were more concentrating in criticising the DMK and parties standing with it and evince more interest in creating hatred for the DMK and its allies among world Tamils, than in opposing Rajapaksa and the racist regime in Sri Lanka. “If we compare developments in the last three years, this could be seen”.
“They say if only Kalaignar had wanted he could have stopped the war in Lanka. Can there be any other joke than this. War in a country is an international issue. Those who have an understanding of history and international outlook can understand. What is the power with a state government and what could be done by a chief minister of a state in India? When did that war start? Who were all assisting that war? How many countries helped by giving arms and ammunitions? What are all the contributions of the USA, Pakistan and China? In spite of knowing well and understanding why all nations including Communist countries of China, Russia and Cuba were opposed to the LTTE and not looking at it as an international issue, they were vainly talking in air and debating in vacuum that if only the DMK government and Kalaignar had wanted, the war could have been stopped”, he said.
“Even if Vaiko or Nedumaran were chief ministers, they could not have stopped the war in Lanka because this is not a diplomatic crisis between a state government and another country and it could not be solved like that. But in spite of knowing all these intricacies if they go on speaking like this, their motive is nothing but to oppose and criticise the DMK and parties standing with it. Even Rajapaksa is not their first enemy but the DMK and its allies. What else can we do without exposing such people to the people?”, he asked.
“They say aligning with the Congress party was wrong. We accept that. And regret it, we are even prepared to seek apology from word Tamils. But, alternative to Congress, with which party in India could we have alliance? Which other party is in support of independence of Eelam? Which leader of party promises to struggle for Eelam liberation? Is there any historical evidence of any government in India coming forward to commit for Eelam liberation? There are only two main parties leading the ruling and opposition alliance alternatively- the Congress and BJP. What is the stand of these two parties on Eelam Tamils issue? In what manner the BJP is different with Congress? Did not the BJP rule this country? What was their stand, approach, foreign policy, relations with Sri Lankan government in respect of Eelam Tamils issue when they ruled? Have they ever supported LTTE or Eelam?
“When Hindu temples were demolished there, did they condemn it? why they did not do? There the war was between Buddhists and Tamils following Hindu culture, all the affected Tamils were only Hindus, none of them is Buddhist; some of them are Christians and Muslims but by and large they are Hindus. Did the Hindutva forces here ever raised their voice against Hindus affected in Lanka? Has Advani spoken, Vajpayee regretted, has Sushma Swaraj ever worried about it; the stand of Congress is the stand of BJP, the stand of BJP is the stand of Rajapaksa. What is the difference between them?”
To those who highly appreciate and hail the resolution adopted in the Assembly by the ADMK regime, he asked “How many agitations did the ADMK conduct for Eelam Tamils after the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi in1991? Can they show any evidence for the ADMK led by Jayalalitha conducting rallies, conferences, demonstrations and courting arrests and series of agitations for Eelam Tamils?”
ADMK was the only political party in Tamil Nadu which did not conduct any agitation for Eelam Tamils so far since 1991. It was only because people like Vaiko and Nedumaran instigated her to adopt a resolution which would help her for her politics against Kalaignar and demolish the DMK, that Jayalalitha passed the resolution in the Assembly. Has she even heartily supported the cause of Eelam? If there is one leader who still maintains that LTTE is the enemy, it is Jayalalitha,” asserted Thirumavalavan.
When she was questioned in the Disproportionate Assets case in Bangalore special court as to why she required Z Plus security, she maintained that her life was in danger from LTTE and hence required protection. Even after the LTTE was declared destroyed after Mullivaaikkaal genocide, she maintains that her life was in danger from LTTE. How many times she had proudly exclaimed that it was she who got the LTTE proscribed in India? What was her design in it, we must think over.
This same Chief Minister who had now adopted this resolution, without any reason got agitated in the Assembly when I was in the House in 2001, when LTTE chief Prabhakaran met with media persons from all over the world and unnecessarily passed a resolution seeking the arrest of Prabhakaran and brought him to trial in Indian court in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case. “How can this lady be supported in Eelam Tamils issue”, he wondered.
They say MGR supported LTTE. Did MGR alone supported LTTE? Indira Gandhi herself supported them, that is history. Who trained in arms the LTTE and Eelam militants? Who sponsored them? Who gave arms and send them from here to Lanka? Who encouraged them? The Government of India had a difficulty in international politics them and they needed them (militants), and hence for their purpose they utilised Eelam militants, trained then and provided arms. MGR supported because Government of India itself supported.
“If that was the way to look at it, than us, I can say that than the DMK. DK and the VCK (and all these self-proclaimed champions), those who supported the LTTE more and helped them in all ways is the Indian National Congress Party and Indira Gandhi. Hence, only because Indira Gandhi herself and Government of India itself supported, MGR supported it”, he said.
They (the ‘champions’) require ADMK which did not throw even a tiny stone for Eelam Tamils or the LTTE from1991 and say it is a safe and supportive movement for them.
“But, if people like Tirumavalavan get over the dais and speak on Eelam Tamils, can anybody deny the fact that it was because of the successive and sustained struggles conducted by the DK and DMK? Can anybody deny that it was because of race consciousness they nurtured and the campaign they conducted and views they spread?” he asked.
In Tamil Nadu Congress and ADMK were against independent Eelam. Now and only now the ADMK is adopting resolution for referendum in support of Eelam. Because, they are adopting this resolution thinking that all such things will not happen hereafter; this will not come as an international issue in a big way and nations of the world will not be agreeable to this.
Why should those who were mere spectators bring a resolution now? What is the motive behind this? What is the background? We have to study all these questions.
“In spite of knowing that so many problems are there, they are speaking fielding mean politics that the reason for all this is the DMK, DK, VCK and Dravidar Iyakka Tamilar Peravai. For this to become an international issue, 10 lakh people had to immigrate and suffer in other countries. If we could take this issue to the notice of the nations of the world only after so many big changes, why should not we sustain for another 25 years, struggle for 25 more years? Our principle should be that we must fight till the last, till the last of our life. We should not bother about criticisms. Illiterates carry ahead with their campaign against TESO. Exposing impostors is our duty”, he said.
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