Oct 26 2014 October 26, 2014 July 3, 2023 1 Comment Report Photo Local News

What is Tamil National Alliance main constituent party ITAK trying to hide?

Posted by Editor on October 26, 2014 - 8:51 am

We do not want to hear that ITAK confirms it stands for a federal solution within a united Sri Lanka. We do not want to hear that ITAK only wishes self-rule in a unitary Sri Lanka. We simply want to know from ITAK whether ITAK Constitution of 1949 and the amendment to that Constitution in 2008 is Federal or Confederal and whether ITAKs aims and objectives are Federal or Confederal. Is it not peculiar to find ITAK’s representatives and the TNA going all out to make statements but evading from answering whether their constitution is federal or confederal. In order to expose the true ambitions of ITAK it is essential that ITAK officially commits itself to claiming it is either Federal or Confederal because the jargon they are using is simply to whitewash and keep hidden their capacity to separate. Advocating confederacy becomes a violation of the 6th amendment and makes us wonder whether this is why ITAK is evading answering that simple question! ITAK has been fooling the country since 1949!

In a federal system can ITAK call for a referendum?

Federal provincial states cannot demand referendums.

Confederal states can.

In 2008, Sivajilingam sought a referendum to decide Tamil Eelam when he addressed the Pongku Thamizh event in Sydney, Australia

If ITAK is a party elected in a provincial state, ITAK has no right to call for referendum. In a federal system only the Central Government can call for a referendum and only that islandwide referendum is acceptable. Provincial states in a federal setup cannot hold independent referendums.

Such referendums are possible only in a confederacy (is this why ITAK is calling for a referendum?)

Why is ITAK saying federal solution within a United Sri Lanka?

There is no legal binding for ‘united’ Sri Lanka. States agree to be united based on a ‘gentleman’s agreement. That agreement can be broken at any time. When that agreement is broken and States are not ‘united’ they decide to secede. Is this not the real aim of ITAK which it is trying to fool the nation?

Can ITAK separate in a federal set up

NO.

Remember the Varatharaja Unilateral Declaration of Independence – the merged NE provincial council was annulled and the Central Government dissolved the Province. Is this why ‘Samasthi’ has been replaced with ‘innaipatchchi’?

If ITAK continues to hide its ‘confederation’ objectives in its Constitution and works with foreign parties to push for a Kosovo type set up, there is all possibility for ITAK to use its constitution to separate. This is why it is important for ITAK to be forced to put down officially if it seeks a federal solution or a confederal solution. If it is the latter, the 6^th amendment can be applied to ITAK MPs.

Why is the ITAK pretending to seek Federal option but vying for a Confederacy?

ITAK knows that in a federal system the central government can reach directly to the citizens. In a confederacy the Central Government can only reach upto the Governments of the confederacies. ITAK does not wish to have the Central Government reach the Tamil people of the North which is why they are continuously making reference to ‘Tamil speaking people’ ‘Sinhala provinces’ ‘Tamil Homelands’

Why did ITAK substitute ‘samasthi’ with Innaipatchchi

English version of ITAK constitution is crucial to protect Sri Lanka

Why was ITAK in a hurry to substitute ‘samasthi’ with innaipatchchi in August 2008 when it became aware that LTTE would be finally defeated leaving in limbo their quest for political supremacy over the Tamils a mental state the upper echelons of Tamils continue to suffer still. Phase two of that aspiration was the political path through ITAK’s constitution.

What are the clues to show ITAK is vying for a Confederacy and not a Federal solution

Fundamental rights in a Federal set up is guaranteed by the Central Government and not the Provincial states.

ITAK however speaks about

· Guaranteeing language, religious, cultural rights

· Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim provinces

· Seeking direct foreign aid and direct negotiations with international parties

· Own military (thus TNA’s insistence for land & police powers – this falls into their plot to separate)

These do not exist in a federal set up. In a federal set up the union is held by the Central Government and not the provinces/states.

When ITAK refers to ‘united’ Sri Lanka and ‘collaboration’ and ‘co-existence’ what does it mean?

These words are all synonymous with confederacy

These are all phrases used in confederacy models. Such nomenclatures do not exist in federal models. Federal states must abide by the Central Government constitution whereas confederacies have their own and each state exists only as a result of collaboration and will to co-exist. No sooner the will disappears the confederate state can declare separation.

This tied to a quest for ‘self-determination’ is dangerous for SL

What needs to be understood is that Sri Lanka’s constitution establishes it as a unitary state.

The incursive Indo-Lanka agreement of 1987 however led to the 13th amendment and the establishment of a provincial council system and a federal dimension to governance and political slogans ‘devolution’.

Nevertheless, what needs to be said is that there are Constitutional provisions in place that allows the Central Government to annul and dissolve provincial councils if they get upto mischief. The example of the merged NE provincial council and its Chief Minister Varatharaja Perumal in whose government Dr. Dayan Jayatilleke served as a Minister was dissolved as soon as he declared a unilateral declaration of independence.

The argument against a federal solution is based purely on the fact that such a small country as Sri Lanka does not require federal solutions that big countries like India need to follow for practicalities of governance.

Nevertheless in a unitary state a federal option is clear about who rules the country and it is not the federal states but the central government. Any autonomy that the provincial states enjoy are those that have been given and delegated by the Central Government which can be taken away as well. Powers delegated to the provincials can be broadened or narrowed by the Central Government – in short whatever executive powers the provincials hold are those that the Central Government allocates which can at any time be taken away.

This is why ITAK has been lying low with its Constitution in Tamil and an amendment in 2008 where it is speaking of Sinhala provinces, Tamil provinces and Muslim provinces and guaranteeing rights all of which have nothing related to any federal set up but connects to confederacy. Confederacies operate as independent sovereign states UNITED by a thin line of ‘collaboration’ and ‘coexistence’. The moment that breaks the confederate states can declare separatism – which is what the ITAK wants and which is what vested foreign parties are attempting to offer as a solution.

The nation owes must to Mr. Ravindra Nirosha the civic conscious citizen for coming forward to kickstart this landmark case for not only has it exposed the ITAK but it is likely to enable Sri Lanka to secure its territorial integrity and sovereignty by exposing hidden agendas taking shape.

Tie the ITAK’s confederacy aims and objectives to the foreign vested groups riding on the tigers to establish for themselves another Kosovo set up in Asia closer to its arch enemies than we can say ‘bingo’ the greater plan is exposed. Let us not take lightly that there are referendum experts and experts that have enabled illegalities to take place in the investigation panel as well as those hired by the pro-LTTE diaspora now banned by the GOSL.

The importance of getting ITAK to officially place its aims and objectives is crucial for the safety of Sri Lanka’s landmass which is been targeted to be cut up and this division has nothing to do with any of the reasons being built up as excuse to divide Sri Lanka.

Taking action against ITAK if it is advocating for a confederacy will enable the imposition of the 6th amendment upon ITAK for this key amendment is designed to stop people from separating Sri Lanka.

It is a good time for Tamils also to start wondering if they wish to align with ITAK that is on course to deviously pretend to be part of Sri Lanka but creating the ground scenario to separate.

If this allegation is not true all that ITAK needs to do is to reveal the English version of its Constitution. When it is reluctant to do so and take pains to cover up with statements that do not make sense, we have every right to wonder what mischief ITAK is upto in partnership with forces that wish to divide Sri Lanka so they can get a foothold into a very strategic area of Asia.

– by Shenali D Waduge

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