Hon. Sivasakthy Ananthan

¶ 01 At the time when paddy is harvested, governments in this country are importing rice. As a result, the paddy and rice produced here lose quality and fair price, and farmers are harmed.

¶ 02 You know that monsoon seasons arrive at different times in different regions: one period for the North and East, another for the South. During January–February, when harvesting takes place in the North and East, rice is imported. When that happens, the rice mafia comes to the North and East and buys paddy at low prices.

¶ 03 In major paddy-producing districts in the North and East—Batticaloa, Kilinochchi, Mannar, Ampara, Trincomalee, Mullaitivu, Vavuniya—and in some parts of Jaffna, there are inadequate facilities for proper storage. This leads to food insecurity and major deficiencies in food distribution. Food security and storage facilities are critically important, and we must recognize this.

¶ 04 The greatest strength of a country is its cooperative movement. Around the world, we see Co-op City outlets—particularly in Switzerland, Canada, and the USA—operating at scale, competing with the private sector to supply domestically produced goods at lower prices. In Sri Lanka, however, cooperatives have been politicized and kept behind political parties. Even in granting licenses for cooperative fuel stations, successive governments have failed to follow proper procedures and have not granted approvals. Many cooperatives have applied for fuel stations; both this government and previous ones have failed to grant licenses, causing major setbacks to cooperatives’ ability to generate income through their services.

¶ 05 During the period when the major war was unleashed on the Tamil people, severe economic embargoes were imposed—even eggs were banned by the then government. Under President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga, there were severe restrictions on taking essential items to the North and East, especially Vanni, Vakarai, and Batticaloa. Eggs themselves fell under embargo. Amidst these obstacles, cooperatives bought goods from the South and distributed essential food in those areas. They were respected then. Today, however, the government has failed to provide cooperatives in Tamil areas with the capacity and financial support to grow and compete with private entities.

¶ 06 In my district, Kilinochchi, there are about six consumers’ cooperatives. In Karachchi East Multi-purpose Cooperative Society—located in my area—they applied for a fuel station seven years ago. Even after seven years, no approval has been granted. Karachchi East, Karachchi North, Karachchi South, Poonakary, and Akkarayan multi-purpose cooperative societies are all struggling to equip themselves properly. Similarly, in Jaffna District, more than 39 multi-purpose cooperatives cannot adequately serve the public. During paddy harvest time, these societies have the capacity to buy paddy and mill it into rice, but the government does not provide the required financing, preventing these societies from properly developing themselves.

¶ 07 As I said at the outset, cooperatives are a powerful national asset, and the government has failed to harness them properly. During 2015–2019, when Hon. Mangala Samaraweera was Finance Minister, there was some consideration for cooperatives in the East and a special plan for the North. But it was shelved. A “Palmyrah Fund” was discussed; it was not created, and no new frameworks for cooperatives were implemented.

¶ 08 The upliftment of communities depends on livelihoods and on meeting basic needs—food, shelter, and access to resources. Food security and the means to secure it are essential.

¶ 09 I also wish to speak, with your permission, about the reports now widely discussed regarding the Pattalanthe torture camp. In 1988–1989, JVP cadres were arrested, tortured, and murdered there. After long neglect, a report has now come out following an Al Jazeera interview with former President Ranil Wickremesinghe. I note that former President Mahinda Rajapaksa once submitted a report to the UN on killings in 1988–1989. Although revelations were made, no solutions were reached. Later, when the JVP joined President Chandrika Kumaratunga’s government, they did not pursue these killings—no demands, no noise. I do not know why. Now that efforts are being made, they are justified. When youth—both young men and women—were murdered, there must be inquiries and justice.

¶ 10 We have repeatedly called for justice for victims such as Kathirgamaththu Alagi Manamperi, stripped and murdered by army personnel—one of the most shameful entries in world history. Similarly, Tamil women like Isaipriya and Krishanthi were raped and murdered by the Sri Lankan Army. We demand justice through inquiries. The Tamil people suffered attempts at genocide over the past 80 years: notably in 1956–58, the pogroms of the 1970s, Black July in 1983, the massacres in Vakarai in 2006, and the final massacres in Mullivaikkal in 2009. There have been no investigations.

¶ 11 We are a people who have suffered and been decimated. As I have stated, Tamils were killed even by being denied food. During the final war, more than 420,000 people were in Mullivaikkal and Mullaitivu areas. Yet the then Defence Secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa and President Mahinda Rajapaksa claimed only 70,000 were there and sent supplies for 70,000. When 420,000 were present but food was sent for 70,000, how many died of starvation? This is seen globally as genocide against the Tamil nation. Canada has recognized these concerns; leaders of two Canadian parties have acknowledged that what occurred was genocide. International human rights mechanisms continue to discuss Sri Lanka. Yet here, you argue it was not genocide. Today you prepare to talk about the Pattalanthe torture-camp killings; we do not oppose that—we demand those investigations too. Whoever committed crimes, whoever was unjustly killed or tortured, must receive justice. As Tamils who have suffered torture and pain, we insist on this. At the same time, why can’t the government make a proper decision regarding the genocidal killings against the Tamil nation?

¶ 12 In September 2015, then Foreign Minister Mangala Samaraweera told the Human Rights Council that Sri Lanka would cooperate with its decisions, allow international mechanisms, receive advice from international jurists and take technical support, and use a hybrid mechanism to find justice for Tamil genocide. One government accepted this; the next rejected it. Gotabaya Rajapaksa rejected it upon taking office; this government also opposed and rejected it.

¶ 13 We wish to live together in this land, as we have stated many times. We want to live together, with our distinct identities recognized, not denied. That requires a political solution based on federal principles. Within a unitary structure, you cannot prevent one nation from subjugating another. A federal solution allows one country to embrace its multi-national peoples.

¶ 14 The Pattalanthe revelations have chilled everyone. If crimes were committed there, they must be proved, arrests made, and punishments imposed—we agree. But why do you hesitate to investigate other massacres, such as the bombing of St. Peter’s Church in Navaly, which killed over 150 civilians? Why the hesitation regarding Nagerkovil school massacres? What justice for those killed on the Kumudini ferry? What justice for those massacred in Gurunagar, in Mandaitivu, in the seas, in Kokkadichcholai, in Vakarai, in Trincomalee, in Nedunkerny–Olu Madhu, and elsewhere in Ampara? Tamils have lost their lands through these massacres. Many places still cannot be resettled; seized lands are not returned—this too is a form of ethnic cleansing. In Valikamam North, 3,000 acres across 13 Grama Niladhari divisions remain out of bounds to the 1990 displaced, preventing them from returning to their own lands—this is a structured ethnic cleansing that continues. Meanwhile, new Buddhist viharas are erected and surrounding lands are claimed for them, dispossessing locals. Where is justice?

¶ 15 Recently, human skeletal remains were recovered at the Chemmani cemetery in Jaffna—still no justice. Likewise, within the last two years, while widening a road in Mullaitivu’s Kumuzhamunai area, human remains were found—likely those arrested during the 2009 final war and buried alive. Forensic experts say remains of female cadres—with uniforms, undergarments, and number tags—were recovered from mass graves; mouths were found open, indicating victims were buried alive after severe torture. Such horrors freeze the blood.

¶ 16 Pattalanthe was not the only torture camp. In many places in the North and East, when you dig, you find bones—Kumuzhamunai and elsewhere. In Tamil areas, wherever you dig, you find Tamil bones. We are victims; we are a national people who were decimated. We seek justice—genuine, compliant with international law, subject to international investigation, humane, and respectful of human rights.

¶ 17 Understand this: one of the gravest crimes is killing people by blocking food. Using cluster munitions, phosphorous, and other prohibited weapons are heinous crimes against humanity. All these occurred on a massive scale in Vakarai and Mullivaikkal in 2009. Many survivors still bear scars and damaged limbs.

¶ 18 Many who surrendered alive to the army remain missing—no justice. As I noted, when 420,000 were present but food was sent for 70,000, and even that intermittently, how many thousands of children starved to death? In Mullivaikkal, small children queued with bowls for porridge from the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization and were killed by cluster munitions. I witnessed this directly. Therefore, please bring credible investigations—ones people can trust and that give confidence. That would be the message of a truly democratic, just country.

¶ 19 Investigating only what happened to your cadres in Pattalanthe would be one-sided. We respected your youths in 1971 and 1988–89 as fighters, even if called insurgents or terrorists. When JVP youths’ bodies floated in the Kelani River with slit throats, Tamils were among the most concerned and vocal. We demand investigations into injustices against your innocent youths too. But do not use Pattalanthe inquiries to minimize what was done to our people, as if only “small camps” and “limited killings” happened to Tamils. Pattalanthe was a torture camp where your own Sinhala youth were killed; whereas for 80 years our people were systematically targeted with ethnic cleansing and genocide, our lands seized, our culture attacked.

¶ 20 In a country with two national peoples, the massacres against the Tamil nation must be taken seriously, with justice and investigations. Do not use “Pattalanthe” to hide the genocide against Tamils. This is an international subject; the Human Rights Council and many countries consider it. During the final war, many countries used satellites to record the massacres. Beyond those records and documents, our Tamil people are living witnesses. We demand proper justice and investigation into the massacres against the Tamil nation.

¶ 21 We respect the Sinhala people’s culture, traditions, and national identity and are ready to live together. Likewise, please recognize the Tamils’ distinct national identity, land, language, culture, and traditions. A national people has been destroyed; there must be justice. Do not hide this behind Pattalanthe inquiries; prepare for justice for Tamils. The mothers and fathers of the forcibly disappeared have protested on the streets for over 3,000 days. Consider all this, open the doors to justice, bring out the truth, and I conclude.