“SL parliament passes only bills favourable to the Sinhalese” – Ariyanenthiran MP

[TamilNet, Friday, 20 March 2009, 10:52 GMT]
Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Batticaloa district parliamentarian, P. Ariyanenthiran, participating in the debate on the bill to issue pension to Sri Lanka Army (SLA) home guards, said that there are more than 45,000 Tamil War Widows in the North and East whom the government does not help while it gives compensation and pension to the members of the three armed forces which clearly shows that it discriminates the Tamils. The bill was submitted in the House when it met Thursday around 9:30 a.m.

“There is no use in Tamils being members in this parliament as it passes only bills that favour the Sinhalese people,” Ariyanenthiran said.

Minister of Public Administration and Home Affairs, Sarath Amunugama, said that the bill is submitted in the House on the request of Gothabaya Rajapakse, the Defence Secretary and the brother of President Mahinda Rajapakse.

“There is a continuing need for the home guards to serve in the battle fields and therefore the necessity to pass this bill,” the minister said.

The bill which allows pension payment to the home guards assisting the three armed forces in the country was unanimously passed in the House Thursday.

Batticaloa TNA parliamentarian, T. Kanagasabai, speaking on the bill, called upon the parliamentarians to help the spouses and children of those killed in the human rights violations in the North and East who do not get anything in compensation for their losses.