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Sri Lanka:British celebrities, MPs endorse Mercy Mission to Vanni

by Tamiya | April 2, 2009 at 03:27 am

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United Kingdom is providing a leadership to respond to the humanitarian crisis in North & East regions of Sri Lanka. Norway, who was the main peace mediator between the previous Sri Lankan Government and LTTE since 2002 - 2006, also have talked to LTTE regarding the current dire situations Wanni Civilians face.

Britain bears the crucial duty to ensure that Tamils can live freely in their own independent state in Sri Lanka. After all, a British administrative decision has removed the Tamils independent State in Sri Lanka in 1833.

During the British colonial power in Sri Lanka (then known as Ceylon), which came to Sri Lanka in 1796, British found Sri Lanka with two independent states: (1) one Sinhalese independent State in the South, and a (2) one Tamil independent State consisting North and East. British combined these two states into one state for administrative convenience in 1833. This combined Sri Lanka made 72% Sinhalese and 18% Tamils. Consequently the Tamils are made into minority second class citizens in Sri Lanka.

Due to high aspiration to education, Tamils held many high posts during the British colonial system; however which always had been seen with jealously from the Sinhalese majority. Hence when the British left Sri Lanka in 1948, the Sinhalese majority immediately started exercising oppression towards the Tamils ‘minority’, which is a word that should have never been in Tamils history if it were not for the British. Thus Britain bears the primary responsibility to restore justice and independent state for Tamils in Sri Lanka.

Portuguese held the Sri Lankan Island since 1505 to 1658. Dutch held the Sri Lankan Island since 1658 to 1796. However Portuguese and Dutch ruled the Tamil and Sinhalese kingdoms separately.

British celebrities, MPs endorse Mercy Mission to Vanni [TamilNet, Thursday, 02 April 2009, 05:34 GMT]
A global appeal event for the "Mercy Mission," a ship carrying relief and medical supplies to Vanni, was held Tuesday at the Royal Horseguards, UK, attended by several British Members of Parliament, celebrities to raise awareness of the humanitarian situation in Sri Lanka to the public, organizers of the event said. The event was sponsored by "Act Now" and several Tamil charities. A petition addressed to the President of Sri Lanka was signed by the attending MPs and other celebrities, and the organizers said that the petition will be circulated to political leaders and other celebrities in US, Europe, Canada and Australia before the petition is sent to Colombo.

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Hiranya Malwatta

at 03:39 on April 2nd, 2009

Nice story.

Hiranya Malwatta

at 03:40 on April 2nd, 2009

I mean the bit about the history.

Tamiya

at 03:49 on April 2nd, 2009

Can you dispute any of the fact?!

Tiana

at 04:02 on April 2nd, 2009

Even the mercy mission comes under scrutiny from the Sri lankan government, accused of being a cover for weapons for LTTE.... Unbelievable!

Source for below is http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2009/apr/01/sri-lanka-tamil-aid-shipment

The government, however, says it has "serious concerns" about the ship's cargo, claiming that the Tigers have used previous aid shipments to smuggle in arms.

"We are aware of the ship and we have taken this up with the UK authorities," a spokesman for the Sri Lanka High Commission told the Guardian. "We are concerned and we have serious questions about the ship. We know what has happened in the past."

The spokesman denied reports in the Tamil media that the Sri Lankan navy would open fire on the Vananga Man as soon as the ship entered its territorial waters. He added that the government might "consider the case" of whether to allow the aid in if it received an assurance from the UK government that the ship had been checked and found to contain humanitarian supplies.

Graham Williamson, one of the directors of Act Now, rejected the accusations.

He said all the containers on the Vananga Man were being x-rayed by British authorities so its cargo could be verified. "If that third party check isn't good enough for them, what is?" he said. "I think the government is being facetious and deliberately provocative and is trying to find an excuse for not allowing the aid to land."

Tiana

at 04:02 on April 2nd, 2009

Thanks for the article Tamiya

Tiana

at 04:12 on April 2nd, 2009

I'd also like to add another comment from the article on the guardian website, 'The doctor in charge of the makeshift hospitals in the no fire zone told the Guardian last week that civilians were being "repeatedly shelled for no reason" and that his staff had only 10% of the supplies they needed.'

Umm if this is not genocide, what is???