'Tamils disappointed by lack of normalcy' - ACTC leader

[TamilNet, Monday, 29 September 2003, 01:02 GMT]
”The people of Jaffna are a disappointed lot today even after the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding by the United National Front Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)," said the Jaffna district parliamentarian and President of the All Ceylon Tamil Congress (ACTC), Mr.A.Vinayagamoorthy, at a seminar held in Trincomalee Sunday evening on the current political situation in the Northeast.

Thousands of internally displaced families are now languishing in refugee camps and welfare centers as the security forces refuse to allow them to resettle in their own lands and homes, said Mr. Vinayagamoorthy.

He said that Fishermen of the Jaffna district are still undergoing untold hardships in doing their profession without fear or favor as the government forces continue to impose restriction on their movement in sea, and in beaching their crafts.

"Normalcy has not returned to the lives of several thousands of Tamils in the Northeast after the ceasefire agreement came into force. However normalcy has returned to the lives of the Sinhalese and they are now seen everywhere in the Northeast province without fear," said Mr. Vinayagamoorthy.



ACTC leader and parliamentarian Mr.A.Vinayagamoorthy speaking at the Trincomalee seminar on current political situation. Seated(l-r ) are Branch president Mr.Satha Shanmuganathan and secretary Mr.S.Thirugnanasampanthan.


The ACTC is one of the constituent Tamil parties in the Tamil National Alliance (TNA), sources said.

The seminar was held at the Trincomalee New Silver Star Hotel under the auspices of the ACTC’s Trincomalee district branch. Branch President Mr.Satha.Shanmuganathan presided over the seminar.

”Chauvinist elements in the south are now trying their maximum to derail the peace process using Muslims. Muslims and Tamils live in harmony in the eastern province," said Mr. Vinayagamoorthy, adding that the problem is within the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress and not between Tamils and Muslims in the East.

The TNA won the general election held in 2001 December on the stand that it would accept the LTTE as the sole representative of Tamils in the country and Mr.Pirapaharan as the Tamil national leader, reminded the ACTC President.

The Jaffna parliamentarian said that now some of the leaders in the Tamil United Liberation Front, which is the main constituent of the TNA, have started criticizing the LTTE leadership. “I condemn these leaders for making such statements at a time when not only Tamils but also the international community has accepted that the LTTE is the sole representative of Sri Lankan Tamils,” he said, adding that, however, he was not attacking the TULF on the whole. “All constituent parties should work for the survival of the TNA," he said.

Mr.Vinayagamoorthy said that the TNA would not allow the UNF government to fall as long as the MoU signed by the GOSL and the LTTE was in force, and it would not allow any other forces to defeat the UNF government.