Sinhalese occupy Tamil-owned Amparai property
Tamils living in Amparai are defending their rights to cultivatable farmland that has been used by Sinhalese residents for the last 35 years. The land in dispute is Thotasurungiveddai, 174 acres of farmland that is located in the Amparai-Batticaloa boundary.
Fifty-four Tamil farmers who are from Malwata, Veeramunai, Samanthurai, Karaithivu, Kalmunai and Pandiruppu are the rightful owners of Thotasurungiveddai. In the 1950s Tamil farmers established this land by de-forestation and began cultivating. In 1964, the Government of Sri Lanka issued Land Development Ordinance (LDO) permits to the Tamil farmers. Six years later, Tamils escaped from this region due to violence that originated from the conflict between the Government of Sri Lanka and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). As they fled, Sinhalese residents from Puthangala village took over the land and began cultivating. A Buddhist monk allowed Sinhalese residents to seize the land, therefore government officials did not intervene. As the ethnic crisis continued, the Tamil landowners did not return to their land in fear of being injured or killed. After the 35 years of the abovementioned events, Sinhalese residents are now demanding LDO permits for Thotasurungiveddai and have sent complaints to the Amparai District Human Rights Commission regarding this issue. The district office of the Human Rights Commission will hold a meeting in Samanthurai on November 3, 2005 to discuss the land issue. The Commission has invited Tamils and Sinhalese to attend the meeting.
26 October 2005
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Europe which has a total population of 800 million is made up of 45 language based nation states. South Asia which has a total population of one billion, (1000 million) is comprised of four states. Who is preventing and therefore benefiting by limiting new nation-states in South Asia?
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