TNPF writes to Indian PM to ensure federalism in Sri Lanka

A senior Tamil Nationalistic MP has written to the Indian PM Narendra Modi to impress upon the visiting Sri Lankan President to fulfill the aspirations of the Tamils by introducing a federal constitution.

This demand from Jaffna District MP and leader of the Tamil National People’s Front Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam has come at a time when the Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayaka is in New Delhi on his first state visit after taking over as President.

In his letter to the Indian PM, he said “36 years after the introduction of the 13th Amendment, the situation is far worse than at the time it was introduced”.

The ill-fated Indo-Lanka accord signed between the then Indian PM Rajiv Gandhi and former President of Sri Lanka J.R.Jayawardane in 1987, was basically to ensure power sharing between the Tamils in the North and East with the Sinhalese in the South of the country. This agreement led to the 13th Amendment to the Sri Lankan constitution to ensure power devolution.

The accord also led to Indian Military persons dubbed the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) landing in Sri Lanka aimed to maintain peace and ensure the safety and welfare of the Tamils, which was proved wrong and a peacekeeping force became a fighting force, allegedly committing gross violations and earning the displeasure of the Tamils, who they were supposed to protect.

The IPKF operation in Sri Lanka between 1987-89 is dubbed as the biggest Indian foreign policy failure since its independence in 1947. IPKF was sent to Sri Lanka against the wishes of the Tamil people and the LTTE who were forced to sign what the Indian government led by Rajiv Gandhi dubbed as a peace agreement called the Indo-Lanka peace accord.

Anura Kumara Dissanayaka is in Delhi for a three-day state visit starting on the 15th of December.

During his visit apart from a ceremonial meeting with the Indian President Droupadi Murmu, AKD is expected to discuss Indo-Sri Lankan relations with the Indian PM Narendra Modi and his cabinet ministers.
Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam in his letter to the Indian PM posted on social media platform ‘X’ says “The Sri Lankan President’s visit to India is arguably at a time that is most crucial in the country’s history since independence from the British”.

He says Sri Lanka needs to start afresh in its thinking and coexisting with all the ethnicities in the country and the ethnic conflict was due to the majoritarian policies since becoming a free nation.

“The policies of the past 75 years in general, and the unresolved ethnic conflict in particular has led Sri Lanka to where it is today, a country that has been bankrupted not just economically but politically as well”.
In his open letter to the Indian PM, Gajendrakumar has pinpointed the root cause of the ethnic conflict, and without that root cause being addressed and eradicated a political solution would not be possible.

“One of the main causes of the ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka has been the unitary state structure. Ever since the 13th Amendment to the constitution of Sri Lanka was introduced, the Tamils have rejected it on the grounds that for as long as the structure of the State remains unitary, no meaningful autonomy and self-government can be achieved”.

His letter subtly points out India’s failure to ensure power devolution under the 13th Amendment and the Sri Lankan courts’ decision stalling power devolution/

“There are over 30 judicial judgments from the highest courts of the country that have held that for as long as the state structure remains unitary the Government in Colombo will be the sole repository of all powers and have specifically held against devolution.

India has been calling for the full interpretation of the 13th Amendment as the basis for the solution to the Tamil national question. But whenever the highest courts have been approached seeking implementation of the various provisions of the 13th Amendment the decisions of the courts have been as mentioned above.”
Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam's letter to PM Modi explicitly states the 13th Amendment was introduced based on the Indo-Lanka accord has failed to serve its purpose and is being projected by the successive Sri Lankan governments as if power devolution has been fully implemented.

Apprising the Indian PM about the plan of AKD led NPP government’s plan to take forward the ‘unitary state’ concept rather than the ‘federal setup’ the TNPF leader pointed out the apprehensions of the Tamils and the danger they face when a referendum is held to seek approval of the proposed new constitution which AKD has time and again said Sri Lanka will be ‘unitary’ in nature.

“There is an added political danger of the Tamils considering the 13th Amendment as a starting point to negotiations. Effectively it would mean that the Tamils for the first time in our history will be accepting a Unitary constitution. Such a step runs the very real risk of the Sri Lanka state taking up the position that since the Tamils have accepted the Unitary constitution by accepting the 13th Amendment, there no longer remains an ethnic conflict in Sri Lanka”.

He has made it very clear due to these reasons the TNPF refuses to accept the 13th Amendment even as the starting point to negotiations.

“If negotiations are to be serious and honest, then the leaders of the Sinhala nation must tell her people that, a solution can only be achieved by going beyond the Unitary state structure and considering a federal structure and at the same time seeking to constitutionally ensure the unity of the country”.

TNPF leader in his letter to Modi says the 13th Amendment fails to meet the minimum threshold of going beyond the Unitary State structure to be considered by the Tamils, adding the proposals by the past and the present government for the new draft constitution also fall grossly short of the minimum threshold to be considered by the Tamils. His party has also sent their proposals.

“The proposals were a federal structure that recognized the Sinhala nation and the Tamil nation along with each of their distinct sovereignties, within a united Sri Lankan state. The proposals were drafted keeping in mind the substantive provisions of the Indo-Lanka Accord of Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam wants India to support the Tamils in rejecting the Sinhala proposal for a new constitution.

“Our organization fervently urges India to support the Tamil people in their rejection of any proposal within the unitary state structure and instead support a federal constitution for Sri Lanka that will recognize and safeguard the Tamil Nation and will allow the realization of the Tamil peoples' inalienable right to self-determination”.

Writing to Modi, TNPF has reiterated their commitment to what they call India’s legitimate National Security Interest.

A 44-page resolution passed by the Tamil Peoples Forum in 2016 pointed out, the fundamental problem for all the issues in Sri Lanka is it is a Sinhala, Buddhist country.

They also proposed the establishment of a multi-national Sri Lankan state, while emphasizing the unique identity of the Tamils, their right to self-determination, and recognizing the political aspirations of the Muslim and upcountry Tamils.

The NPP government is planning to table a new draft constitution based on the proposals put forward by the Maitiripala Sirisena-Ranil Wickremesinghe government and building upon it retaining the core concept of a Unitary State and priority to Buddhism in the country.