Comments on: ‘After all, they are only arresting Tamils’

By: Devinda Fernando

Devinda Fernando — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 16:44:56 +0000

*** Devinda Fdo (4) … How valid will your argument be if the Forces
took into custody half of the population of Tangalla, Beliatta,Mulkirigala,***

Oh Great, I love Hypothetical arguments…(yawn) While MOST Tamils are NOT terrorists, all Terrorists are Tamil. Once again the question is simple. Please provide an effective alternative way to ensure the security and safety of our civilian population without the use of profiling keeping in mind that the enemy we are fighting are all Tamil?

***devinda again again you got real sinhala dodgy brain.
go on you kind o0f people supporting tamil ealam. keep on write your stupid philosaphy. ***

J. muthu,

I can’t even understand what you wrote to me above, please take a few moments to use the Spell Check function of your computer before posting comments. Thank you.

By: j.muthu

j.muthu — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 21:26:27 +0000

devinda again again you got real sinhala dodgy brain.
go on you kind o0f people supporting tamil ealam. keep on write your stupid philosaphy.

By: ilaya seran senguttuvan

ilaya seran senguttuvan — Tue, 25 Mar 2008 12:30:31 +0000

Devinda Fdo (4) … How valid will your argument be if the Forces
took into custody half of the population of Tangalla, Beliatta,Mulkirigala, Tissamaharama and sorrounding areas during
1971 and 1988-89 purely because the bulk of the hardcore JVPers
came from there – on your simplistic argument because all JVPers are Sinhalese from
those parts. Of course, hardly any of them would have paid
any “Santhosam” to the Police for releasing them for lack of
evidence – because these folks are generally dirt poor. Not so
with the Tamils arrested and released in the Cbo Dist. Most of them have the dough to pay and be out of those filthy Police cells. Are you still ears?

By: Devinda Fernando

Devinda Fernando — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 14:11:28 +0000

While they don’t ONLY arrest Tamils, they do Arrest a Majority of Tamils. But rather than splitting hairs and arguing semantics lets not forget that every Single Suicide Bomber has been a Tamil…

Please correct me if I’m wrong.

So that being said, if anyone can propose a way to keep our citizens safe while not upsetting the sentimentality of Ultra Liberals who want to remain politically correct and uphold the Ideals of Equality in the face of adversity during war time ,…then I’m all Ears…

By: Sri

Sri — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 06:25:55 +0000

Kisali I felt very sad when I went through this article because I was holding you as the foremost human right’s champion in Sri Lanka and I was an ardent fan of you after reading your regular columns in the Sunday Times and this article is not up to that expectations!

There is a subtle message from the tone of your article that for Tamils to be free from arbitrary arrests that they must be anti LTTE.

If they are pro LTTE or neutral then those Tamils have no human rights!

I refer to thousands of ordinary Tamils in the Northern and Eastern Provinces living in a violent environment during the past few decades being unemployed and poverty stricken they would have sympathized with one or more of the numerous eelam parties and forced to help the them,volantorily or not!
.
Is it a crime punishable with death?

In that case your neighbor had valid reasons for forming her opinion and being indifferent to the fate of arrested Tamils.

I had formed my opinion after reading your articles that human rights are universal, absolute and fundamental and states have a bounding duty to safeguard those rights.

Ms Kisali, You are referring to Judiciary and to implement the 17th Amendment merely to answer the international critics on human rights violation and escape from strictures and censures but not expect the government to abide by its international obligations in order to safeguard the human rights of the people of this country.

I very much regret that this article does not address the extra judicial arrests, abductions, torture and killings for instance the so called white van abductions which are the real concern of the human rights activists..

By: Gee

Gee — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 06:34:36 +0000

What is remarkable is all the unremarkable happening in Sri-Lanka.
Just keep lowering all the standards .. national and international. It is important to note that if we maintain our national standards them we could be better than those who point the fingers at us….like that Americans …remember “we do not torture..” etc. So what happened to all the good people in Sri-Lanka ?….Simply relegated to journalism , NGOs and activists ? none good enough for policy making and implementations ?. Until good people come forward to take the center stage in politics we will be worse than the worst.

So, Kishali Pinto Jayawardena it is your turn to get into politics and bring others like you ..Kusali , Sonali ..and more.

By: ilaya seran senguttuvan

ilaya seran senguttuvan — Sun, 23 Mar 2008 05:12:54 +0000

This unjust and unfortunate mindset earlier was in the realms of the lower rungs of the majority in society. It has since gained upward mobility to the upper classes and the “educated” As confirmed by many social scientists years ago the emotional polarisation of the 2 major communities is already in place. It is up to the Govt and the Sinhala leadership to change the equation – that they have either deliberately delayed or incapable in taking bold decisions. Much is spoken of the 13th Amendment now and the President takes extra pains in saying “he is for it” If he is, let him lead in giving expression to this piece of legislation that is already in the Statute since 1987 – including the merger. While racism and prejudice have consumed much of Sinhala society there remain decent Sinhalese, as I have argued many a time, like Kishali who refuse to give into injustice and racial bigotry.