The then PM of Sri Lanka pressurised an inexperienced PM of India (Rajiv Gandhi) into sending IPKF to Sri Lanka on the pretext that otherwise they will seek the assistance of Israel. We have all have seen the consequences of the same.
Pakistan's armed forced are probably the only one in the world who have not won a war so far in its history. Let them get involved in the murky affairs if they want. We need not bother about the same. Nor do we have to send our brave soldiers to die for another country.
The Sri Lankan Tamils are the citizens of that Country and they know what is to be done in their best interest. We (Indians of all denominations - South, North, Hindus, Christians, Muslims, etc) need not fight a war of nerves over the same.
Some persons are under a wrong impression that LTTE is a Hindu organization. It is not true. The Sri Lankan Tamils comprises of about 60% Hindus, 30% Christians and 10% Muslims. Their Chief Prabhakaran is a Christian and his son's name is Charles.
RE:India should not scumb to pressure
by Edwin Navaratnam on Jan 24, 2008 07:34 AM Permalink
You are wrong JGN The native Eelam Tamils are 80% Hindu and 20 % Christian. Pirapakaran and his family are staunch HIndus. From where did you get this information that they are CHristians. HIs son is named Charles after a dad LTTE leader ( who was a Catholic). Tamil Muslims in Sri Lanka do dnot identify themselves as Tamils but as Muslims. Very few native Tamils converted to Islam. Most of these Tamil Muslims migrated from South India when Tippu Sultan fell as the Hindus rose up against them. Even now the SInhlas call the Muslims in Srilanka as Marakalla Minnisu ( which mean people who came on a wooden boat. Marrak kallam in Tamil means wooden vessel.) Only aorund 5% 10% th emost of these Tamil Muslims have some form of Arab or paersian blood in them. However they deny thoer Tamil HIndu heritage and always state that they are of western Asian origin( most probably they do not have mirrors in thoer homes). These Tamil speaking Muslims are very pro Pakistani and have ganged up with the Sinhals especially in the Tamil East.Theri idea is to make the East of Sri Lanka Islamic. Pakistan and Sudi have opened many madrassa style schools here.The Sinhlas want the Easst to be Sinhlas. SO both have them have ganged up aginst teh native almost 100% hindu Tamils of teh East.These Eastern Tamil Muslims only migrated to the east of Sri lanka to escape persecution from the Prtueguese and have become the nemsisif the native eastern Tamils. The native Hindu/Cjristian Tamils in the east
RE:RE:India should not scumb to pressure
by Edwin Navaratnam on Jan 24, 2008 07:38 AM Permalink
genrally do not like thers Muslim Tamils and there is mutual distrust amongst them . The native Tamils HIndus live in sperate vvillages away form these Muslim Tamil migrants. They avoid entering or going in to a Muslim area if they can and generally skirt around these Muslim areas if they can . SO if yo do not know the history of the native Tamisl in Sri Lanka do not give incorrect information . Yo seem to be giving the statistics for Kerala. Unklike India many native Tamil Protestan CHristians belong to powerful upper caste families. Tamil Chritians and Hindus amongst the native Tamils will inermarry along caste lines and most families ahve a HIndu and CHristian branch amongst them.
RE:RE:RE:India should not scumb to pressure
by JGN on Jan 24, 2008 11:09 AM Permalink
Dear Edwin Navaratnam, probably I may be wrong but I have read somewhere that Mr. Prabhakaran had converted to Christianity and the rest of the information is also based on articles I had read earlier, which to me appeared to be unbiased.
Anyway I do not have any grudge against LTTE but I am against the Indian intervention in Sri Lanka for any reason whatsoever. The lives of our Solidiers are not cheap to be sacrificed for the benefit of another country.
I do not know about the Muslims of Sri Lanka, but a good majority of Muslims in TN are not fanatic like their counter-parts in North India. Last month I was in Chennai and travelled to Sriharikota (about 120 kms away) and returned in a car driven by a Muslim driver. He had no apparent signs of a muslim (neither in dress nor in behaviour) and I did not feel that he is in anyway different from me.
RE:India should not scumb to pressure
by Edwin Navaratnam on Jan 25, 2008 05:58 AM Permalink
kewl, The originalMuslims in Sri lanka were the descendants of Arab trade traders who settled down. However these Arab trader never brought thoer womwnfolk and since they traded extensively with the ancient Tamils. They toook Tamilwomen as thoer wives. During this period the entire south India ( Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Southern Karnataka, Andhra was Tamil speaking). In SriLanka too the entire North East and the Coast was Tamil speaking. The Sinhla speaking populatin was confined to the interior. Here and there these Arabs maried Sinhla women but that was rare. The children of these Arab/Tamil connections spoke their mother's Tamil language. The language of trade aroudn this region was also Tamil. They also converted many of thoer Tamil servants to Islam. However around 1700s with large scale migration of SOuth Indian Tamil Muslims form Kerala and Tamil Nadu espacially after the fall of Tippu Sultan.This altered the racial composition of these Tamil speaking Muslims in Sri Lanka. Originally they now they are overwhelmingly (around 90% Dravidian Tamils, with aroudn 10% mostly the rich elite aroud Colombo, Kandy, Galle etc hwo are of part semitic descent.2/3 of these Tamil Msilims live in the south amongst Sinhlas and 1/3 in the the Tamil North East. North mainly around Manar the rest in the East. they only came here as migrants to escape Portuguese Harrassment from recent Tamil Chilaw. Puttalam coast.( just NOrht of Colombo). Thease Tamil Muslims were encouraged to maintain
RE:RE:India should not scumb to pressure
by Edwin Navaratnam on Jan 25, 2008 06:35 AM Permalink
a sperate identity first by the British. These Tamil Muslims are basically quite recent migrants from South India either they came as refugees to escape the HIndu backlash when Tippu fell or to trade. SOme of them had distant Arab ancestors.SO unlike the native Eelam Tamils of the Nort East. They had no basic attchment to the lands or claims and being shrewn businessmen and traders wee only wanting the gain the best and make the best of any situation to theie advatage.They ahave gained the most out of this ethnio conflict. and many times try ot sabotage it stating that they are land rights have also to be granted. When in reality they never owned any land ( other than their hoomes and a few acres souuoundinf it. Only the SInhlas and native Tamils were allowed to own land on a large scale. The British repealed this in the late 19th century. Even unitl very recently these Muslim Tamils in teh east never owned much land and had to lease ot the land from the native Hindu and Christian Tamils, the racist policies of te Srimavo govt and succesive govt saw that these largely Hindu Tamil loose thoer lands to these Muslime which only increased the bitterness and suspicion. The British did not trust the Sinhlas or Tamils so encouraged these Tamil Muslims to form a seperate identity from their HIndu/Christian brothers. The sinhlas contiunued this to divide the Tamisl of relgious and regional basis. The Msilim elite in Colombo encuraged this and brainwashed them to think they are Arabs
