Plans for Pongu Thamil in Vavuniya moving ahead

[TamilNet, Thursday, 11 September 2003, 00:04 GMT]
The organizers of the The Pongu Thamil (Tamil upsurge) event in Vavuniya are moving ahead with plans to hold the event on September 24, and have earned widespread support from the Tamil and Muslim people of the area, including strong support from the merchants in Vavuniya and the Vanni district Tamil National Allaince parliamentarians, sources in Vavuniya said.

The organizers of the event are meeting people in the villages of Vavuniya to explain the nature of the event and creating an awareness of Pongu Thamil, the sources said.

In a statement expressing support for the event, the Secretary of the Vavuniya Chamber of Commerce, Mr. Y.S.Thevarajah, said last week:

“The war of the last 20 years has ended and currently there is an environment of peace. But some elements in southern Sri Lanka, including some politicians, are propagating falsehoods and rumors. The Pongu Thamil event is intended to defeat these elements and create mutual trust among the Sinhalese, Tamil and Muslim people.

“We ask the anti-peace elements that they should desist from creating conditions for a return to war between the Liberation Tigers and the Sri Lankan Armed forces, thus causing hardships to the people again.

“After the loss of more than 60,000 lives of Tamil people, several million rupees worth of assets, more than 18,000 LTTE fighters, many places of religious worship, and countless homes, the Tamil people want to live in their own lands as equal citizens with freedom and dignity. The people have given the responsibility of taking forward the peace process to the LTTE and have chosen them as their sole representatives in peace talks with the Government of Sri Lanka.

“ Pongu Thamil events will express this truth to the Sinhalese people, the Sri Lankan government, politicians and the international community. The

“Here in Vavuniya, Tamil, Muslim and Sinhalese communities are today living without any significant violence. The president of the Chamber of commerce has been a member of the Muslim community, and Tamils have cooperated with the Chamber fully. It is an example of the trust prevailing among the communities.

“It is commendable that the Sri Lankan Armed forces and the government have agreed to co-operate with the event.”

Parliamentarian Mr. Selvam Adaikalanathan said that the TNA parliamentarians have agreed to coordinate activities with the organizing committee, and that a parliamentarian from the Tamil National Alliance will be present every day from September 14 at the Pongu Thamil office to provide full cooperation, Tamil media reports said Wednesday.

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