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National Anthem of Sri Lanka

Once apon a time

Our Nation Our history goes as far back as 5,000 years when, according to folkore, the four Helas - the Yakshas, Rakshas, Nagas and the Devas, lived in this land. It was called the Island of the Four Helas or Siv Heladeepa. It was also known as Sinhale, Serendib, Ceilan, and Ceylon to different nationalities. The arrival of Vijaya with six hundred Bengali settlers from the North India about 2,500 years ago, and emissaries Arahat Mahinda and Theri Sangamitta of Emperor Ashoka of India at a later date, converted the Sinhalese to Buddhism and consolidated the language and culture of the Sinhalese.

The subsequent influx of Tamils, Malayalis, Telegus, and Karnatakas from south India, the Sindhis, Gujarathis and Maratis from central India - all of Hindu faith, the Moors and Malays of Muslim faith, the Portuguese, Dutch and the British of Christian faith, were accommodated by the Sinhalese. They integrated with the Sinhalese to form the present nation, now called Sri Lanka, in which a population of 18 million occupies a land area of about 25,000 square miles.

The Sinhalese have fought invaders from the Indian subcontinent, and later the colonial invaders from Europe, to preserve their independence. The British occupied the country and entered into the Kandyan Convention in 1815 by which they entered into aggreement to protect the Buddha Sasana and preserve the customs and places of worship of the Sinhalese. When they betrayed the aggreement soon after signing it, the Sinhalese revolted in 1818 , 1834 and 1845. In all these battles they were brutally suppressed, villages were burnt down, and thousands were massacred. The British brought hundreds of thousands of Tamil speaking Indian workers into the country and settled them in the plantations as indentured labour.

The Tamils of the North who were converted to the Christian faith were favoured for positions in the colonial administration and governmental services. Towards the turn of the 19th century, Anagarika Dharmapala, a great patriot of vision and understanding, advocated a path of modernisation and national liberation through the Mahabodhi Society and the Buddhist Theosophical Society. He also advocated use of the English medium in the higher education of the Buddhist children and led the struggle for the liberation of the country.

The Tamils, a meagre 12% of the population, emboldened by the wealth and position they enjoyed during British colonial rule, as early as 1921 demanded a 50-50 share of the representation in the legislature for the minorities in the event independence is granted. They kept out of the State Council in 1931.

Then came the Westminster form of paliamentary government in 1948 in which D.S. Senanakaya, an experienced politician, was elected the first Prime Minister of independent Sri Lanka. He died soon after in 1952 leavng a power vacuum in the newly independent country. This period was followed by four decades of rule by leaders thrown up by two major political parties. They were more concerned with power than the interest of the nation. They appeased the Tamil minority clamouring to preserve their priviledges, and raised the emotions of the Sinhalese to win elections. Thus, the country entered into a new phase of ethnic violence and terrorism.

In the meantime, over a dozen Tamil communal parties have entered the political scene under various names ITAK, CTC, TULF, EPLRF, PLOTE, EPDP, ENDP, EROS ENDP, TELO, and LTTE, competing against each other in their common demand for an independent state of Eelam to be carved out of Sri Lanka. The LTTE, a fascist Tamil group with links to smugglers, narcotic dealers, and international narco arms traffickers, set up a world wide propaganda network to misinform the world about alleged discrimination and to win sympathy and financial support particulary from northern European nations, the World Council of Churches and other NGOs.

In stages they have systematically eliminated the Tamil Hindu leadership from the North and East and killed many national leaders who were not amenable to complying with their demands. They have launched armed attacks against Sinhala and Muslim civilians in the North and East, engaged in ethnic cleansing of those areas, terrorised and coerced the Tamil civilians by kangaroo courts and lamp post hangings, cowed down the local government officials, and butchered the defense and police forces of the government.

They have destroyed Buddhist viharas, dagobas and priceless historical ruins through countless acts of mindless terrorism. Their victims from their own Tamil community included the SLFP Jaffna mayor Alfred Durayappa, TULF leader A. Amirthalingam, PLOTE leader Uma Maheswaran, ministers of parliament Thiyagaraja, Yogeswaran, Thangathurai, Maharoof, and many other Tamil and Muslim leaders in the north and east. In addition to eliminating all opposition within their own Tamil community, the LTTE also assasinated President Ranasinghe Premadasa, Ministers Ranjan Wijeratne, Gamini Dissanayaka, Lalith Athulathmudali, Mallikarachchi, General Densil Kobbekaduwa, Commodore Clancy Fernando, General Wijaya Wimalaratne, Thanthirimale High Priest, Dimbulagala High Priest, etc.......running to hundreds of respected political, leaders, defense forces commanders, Hindu, Muslim and Buddhist religious leaders.

Successive governments, under pressure of the Tamil parliamentary lobby and colonial interests appeased the LTTE terrorists. This was of no avail. The activities of the LTTE have spread far and wide, and today are a threat to the safety, security and economic health of countries that misguidedly gave them safe havens. The United States government has recently declared the LTTE a terrorist organisation that poses a threat to US interests both at home and abroad. Political Blunders Lack of foresight, lack of experience and lack of wisdom of leaders, as admitted by a veteran politician in 1983, has led to opportunist policies, encouraged terrorism and ethnic violence on a massive scale. Now over 130,000 people, Sinhalese, Muslims and Tamils, have been displaced, tortured or killed.

This page was last modified on 01/08/99 07:57:14 PM
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