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Will there be calm in town when hearts are filled with fury

The curfew imposed by the military on Friday in Jaffna peninsula following the killing of a young man by a trigger-happy soldier has further outraged the people.

The rejection of the curfew by the people is an excellent example of what one could expect when the party that is given the responsibility to examine a situation and find the best solution, uses its power and the laws that disrespect human rights to suppress the problems. It is not an exaggeration to say that the people carried on as if there is no curfew.

People have announced by their rejection of the curfew that they are no longer prepared to keep peace by accepting rules and orders that interferes with their normal life. This is unexpected. Tamil people have in the past kept away from hotspots as soon as a curfew was announced. This new development should be examined from many angles.

Tamil people throughout the Tamil homeland have held huge protests in recent times demanding their fundamental rights, demanding the return of their land that is being occupied under the guise of high security zones, and asking the Tamil National Leader to end his patience and re launch the freedom struggle. Those forces that have attempted to paint these people’s protests as those engineered by the LTTE are shocked by the manner in which people rose up against the military following the Inuvil incident.

There is only one reason for the people’s fury and that is that they have reached the limit of tolerance to the military atrocities. Saying this should not be interpreted as justifying the use of violence to meet violence. To keep peace in the face of repeated violence however, is being traitorous to self. Tamil people have just realised this. That is the difference.

The views expressed by the head of the Jaffna political office of the LTTE in the meeting between him and the military to discuss the situation must be seriously examined by the military.

“There is a long history of failure to find a solution to the political rights of the Tamil people. Lately there is the failure to provide relief and rehabilitation to the people affected by the war and then the tsunami. People frustrated by these failures are outraged when lives are lost by military activities”.

“When the military and the police tighten their oppressive approach instead of taking the appropriate actions the situation deteriorates”.

“Military and police are breaking the rule that they should not carry weapons or keep them in a ready position to open fire in places where there large number of people have gathered. It is important to avoid such conduct”.

“Actions like passing the curfew is pushing the people into further difficulties and it makes them even more angry”.

The government and the military must take these valid views into account. If they fail to do so the situation will worsen and they must bear the responsibility for destroying the present peace efforts and the existing peaceful situation.

07 August 2005

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