Modi govt must do more for Tamil refugees, include them in the Citizenship Bill: Sri Lankan Tamils

Raising strong objections over the ongoing political situation in Sri Lanka under the Presidency of Maithripala Sirisena, a high-profile Tamil delegation from the island country have called upon the Narendra Modi government to intervene with the leadership of the island country.

“Successive Sri Lankan governments, including the current one, have refused to comply with the Indo-Sri Lanka Peace Accord of 1987, signed between former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and then Sri Lankan President JR Jayawardene,” said S Yogeswaran, the Tamil National Alliance MP from Sri Lanka’s predominantly Tamil Batticaloa district. The TNA MP, along with several other prominent Sri Lankan Tamils, was in New Delhi last week.

A major takeaway for Sri Lanka’s Tamil minority from the agreement was devolution of power from Colombo. While Rajapaksa, during his stint as President in 2012, had reportedly assured then UPA government of following the 13th Amendment (1987 agreement), opposition from the Sinhala-Buddhist establishment to devolve powers has remained a bottleneck.

Yogeswaran further accused the Sri Lankan government of being a party to ongoing “genocide” against Tamils, by means of usurping powers from elected representatives in national politics and perpetuating “politics of fear” in the Sri Lankan Tamil community. According to the 2012 Census, Tamils constituted approximately 11 per cent of the country’s population, where Sinhala-Buddhists are in majority.

Citizenship Bill

MK Sachithananthan, also part of the same delegation, echoed the concerns of the TNA MP as he noted that the younger Tamilians continued to flee Sri Lanka for “greener pastures” for lack of employment and educational opportunities on the island.

“The war officially ended in 2009. But the undeclared war has always been there and still goes on,” said Sachithananthan, a former academic at the Jaffna University and previously an official at the United Nations. Currently, he heads a right-wing group, Shivai Sena, which he says is fighting for the rights of Tamils in the northern and eastern parts of Sri Lanka.

Speaking to National Herald, the Tamil activist further made a strong case for the Sri Lankan Tamil refugees in Tamil Nadu to be included within the ambit of the Citizenship Bill.

“Why have the Sri Lankan Tamil refugees been left out, when Hindus from Bangladesh and Pakistan have been assured of citizenship?” questioned the former academic.

“At least 300-400 Tamils, who have been here for over two decades now, are in need of immediate citizenship,” highlighted Sachithananthan, adding that the overall strength of the Sri Lankan Tamil community stood between three and four lakh persons.

“Even now, approximately 75,000 Sri Lankan Tamils are still living in nearly 112 camps in different parts of Tamil Nadu,” he said.

He notes that these Tamil refugees have been unable to travel or move around freely for lack of proper documents. “They can’t go back to Sri Lanka now because of fear of persecution,” complains Sachithananthan.

“I would like to express my gratitude to the Indian government for allotting houses for Sri Lankan Tamils during Prime Minister’s visit to Jaffna in 2015,” he added.

“However, the Sri Lankan Tamils want an immediate intervention from the Indian government in the face of the deplorable political situation,” said Sachithananthan.