Tamil leaders unhappy about President AKD’s inaugural address to parliament
North- and east-based people’s representatives have expressed concerns about the new Sri Lankan government’s policy statement for not referring to a political solution for the prolonged issues affecting the Tamil people.
They allege that during President Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s inaugural address to the newly-elected Parliament on 21 November, in which the new government’s inaugural policy statement was also presented, no solutions to the national question were put forward.
Addressing the Parliament, the President said that a solid opportunity has emerged to establish national harmony, which he described as a long-standing wish of the people.
However, Ilankai Tamil Arasu Kachchi’s (ITAK) Batticaloa district Member of the Parliament (MP) Shanakiyan Rasamanickam, who was returned to Parliament with 65,458 votes, had told the media that the President did not make any direct statement about the solutions the new government is planning to present in order to address the issues faced by the Tamil people.
“He did not make any direct statements about the political solution sought by the Tamil people, their ethnic issue, devolution of power, accountability, or penalizing criminals. Even though former Presidents have made statements regarding these matters, none of them materialized.”
Meanwhile, speaking to journalists, MP Thurairasa Raviharan had stated that he is planning to meet with President Dissanayake and Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya soon to discuss the issues faced by the Tamil people. Raviharan, a former provincial councilor who contested the General Election as an ITAK candidate from the Vanni district, garnered 11,215 votes, and became an MP for the first time.
“Nothing much was discussed about the Tamil homeland in the north and east. However, as ITAK MPs, we are planning to schedule a meeting with the President and the Prime Minister. We will discuss our issues at this meeting.”
Expressing his willingness to fully support the President, Democratic Tamil National Alliance’s (DTNA) Vanni district MP and Tamil Eelam Liberation Organization (TELO) Leader Selvam Adaikalanathan had told the media that he was concerned about the fact that the President did not speak about the national question. Adaikalanathan received 5,695 votes in the General Election and became an MP.
“The new President’s speech deserves to be welcomed. He has paid more attention to the agriculture and fisheries sectors. However, there are concerns about the fact that he did not speak about the national question. Apart from that, his address was about this country’s future. We are ready to extend our full support.”
Presenting the new government’s policy statement to the Parliament, President Dissanayake vowed not to tolerate racist politics in the country, and promised to investigate emblematic cases of past crimes and serve justice for the victims.
Pointing out that a new opportunity has arisen to establish national harmony long sought by the public, the President emphasized that he will not allow racist politics or any form of religious extremism in the country again.
“We may have countless slogans in our political activities. Regardless, we assure you that we will not allow any party to resort to racist or religious slogans to gain power.”
Noting that the public’s lost trust in the country’s law must be restored, President Dissanayake added that while there is no need for revenge or a witch-hunt targeting anyone, everyone’s right to freely engage in politics will be ensured.
During his speech, the President further pointed out a large number of crimes that have caused controversy in the country. In order to restore public trust in the law, he added, these crimes should be re-investigated to serve justice for the victims and to penalize the perpetrators.
Moreover, the President assured that the perpetrators of these crimes will be revealed and that justice will be served for the victims by bringing the perpetrators to book. He added: “This public mandate includes statements about deceased relatives and the lamentations of the friends of the murdered. If not us, then, who will serve justice for them and to whom should it be entrusted? If we do not do this, this country’s aspirations for justice and fairness will die. Therefore, justice and fairness must be restored in the country.”
Moreover, the President stated that the law should be enforced against both crimes and corruption, thereby establishing the rule of law and restoring the public’s trust in it.
