WHY A TULF MP?
Source: DAILY NEWS 8 July 1997
Why a TULF MP, and one of the best at that and at this time? The answer to this poser will prove to be particularly revealing. It will, for one, shed valuable light on the mindset of the Tigers, for their bloody paws are very visible in the brutal slaying of A. Thangathurai, TULF MP for Trincomalee.
A TULF statement which condemned the killing spelt out the accomplishment of the veteran TULF parliamentarian: besides being the administrative secretary of the TULF, Mr. Thangahurai worked tirelessly for the uplift of his community, their rights and for a just resolution for the national question.
The one but last sentence in the TULF statement, while expressing a crying need, points to the origin of the dastardly killing. " We urge all concerned to express their anguish at themselves fratricidal violence".
Besides the generation gap, vast seas of knowledge and maturity separate the moderate TULF from the brutal LTTE, which has come to sear by the gun only. After the enunciation of the Vaddukkodai Declaration in the mid- Seventies by the TULF, hopes were high among sections of the youthful population of the North-East, that ‘Eelam’ was at hand, at last. These youthful hot-heads expected to see swift, consistent action by the TULF in the direction of a separate Tamil state in North-East Sri Lanka. It is now history, that these elements had sadly misled themselves.
Time has proved that the non-violence TULF was right in saying no to insurrectionist politics and introdding the parliamentary path to a just solution to the ethnic question. The terror campaign launched by LTTE, it is plain to see, has taken it nowhere near its goal. The Tigers’ action have only brought immense pain and sorrow for the Tamil people. Fourteen years after the LTTE launched its brutal war, ‘Eelam’ remains an elusive dream.
The TULF, on the other hand ,has, perhaps, arrived at the most sensible and effective strategy in the history of the conflict. It has decided to work with the government in resolving this problem and has made some progress towards resolving the ethnic conflict by political means.
From the point of view of Tigers , this is treachery. For if a political solution is worked out they would be left out in the jungles. Power is at the heart of this "fratricidal struggle". The Tigers’pet obsession is that all the power and glory should be theirs and theirs only.
In terms of this logic, all moderate Tamil parties which are treading the political path, pose a serious threat to the survival of the LTTE. That is why the TULF should be crippled and deprived of all its talent.