Thoughts from London

Democracy comes to the Wanni
How brave of the European Union. There it was, a three-member delegation from the EU in the heart of Tiger country. Not just a simple delegation, mind you. It was the EU Troika, so the EU press release states, as though the shadow of comrade President Brezhnev was still hovering over Western Europe.

It seems that EU languages such as English, French and German, are not expressive enough. No, three or trois or drei is not sexy enough for the three wise persons that ventured to Kilinochchi last week for a powwow with the head of the LTTE's political wing and incidentally share some tasty vadais.

Mr Thamilselvan's right hand must surely be sore by now after months of shaking hands with all those foreign officials and Colombo-based diplomats who make their regular pilgrimage to the Wanni, not to mention his cheek muscles from perpetually wearing that winsome smile that could eat a banana sideways.

Did the delegation go bearing gifts to the Wanni nayakars, as lowly rulers did in ancient times when they carried tribute to potentates? Perhaps a few litres of duty free whiskey or some chocolates for the kids - you know those child soldiers that the Tigers continue to recruit that the EU refers to.

The statement is silent on that score. But it does says that the Three Wise Persons gave Mr Thamilselvan some lessons in good governance, human rights, pluralism and democracy.

Now that is a lot of lessons for one day, for the delegation does not appear to have stayed overnight, probably because Mr T could not provide air-conditioned comfort.

In fact, the EU Troika had impressed on Mr T that human rights, democracy etc, etc are the "cornerstones of a settlement for an everlasting peace in Sri Lanka."

No doubt there would be many in the South to applaud the EU for bearding the Tiger in its den, as it were, though some self-acclaimed Third World intellectuals and sundry commentators castigated last November EU Commissioner Chris Patten even before he could say then what this delegation has said now.

How very comforting to note that in the delegation was UK High Commissioner Stephen Evans. Only the other day Mr Evans was in Trincomalee officially participating in the opening of the office of the Tamil Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO) that had been under investigation by the UK Charity Commissioner for laundering funds to the LTTE. That is not all. Diplomats have told me that Stephen Evans, when he was head of the South Asia Desk at the Foreign Office in London, was one of those who were against the banning of the LTTE as a terrorist organisation, which the Home Office here wanted to do under the UK Terrorism Act 2000.

Another who opposed the ban was his predecessor in Colombo, Linda Duffield. So if High Commissioner Evans has now joined his EU colleagues in giving elementary lessons in good governance and reading the riot act to the LTTE he appears to have transmogrified into the Terror of Terrorists.

The EU statement, of course, gives us only one side of the story. It does not say what Mr T had to say to all these homilies on democracy, human rights and pluralism.

Let's leave good governance out of this for the moment since the LTTE claims it has no de jure polity. But then it seems blatantly clear what would happen if it did. EU and Commonwealth election observers have already spoken strongly about LTTE intimidation and denial of political choice at the April general election.

One cannot quite understand why these Europeans had to venture into the Wanni to give the LTTE lessons in democracy and the like when such edification appears to be in the safe and sure hands of some of those foreign-funded NGOs that have emerged as a third force in the country.

After my recent comments on some Sri Lankan-based NGOs that are apparently making a killing (no pun intended) out of trying to resolve our conflict and to prevent others, I received a number of messages from persons in and outside Sri Lanka for what one of them called "hitting the nail on the head."

Among the correspondence received was an article from the Daily Mirror headlined "The lesser seen political side of the LTTE" written by somebody called Jehan Perera and published on June 29, two months after the LTTE intimidation stymied political dissent at the election.

Whoever it is the author of the article should have hosannas sung in praise of his efforts to educate the LTTE cadres in the Wanni about the glorious traditions of democracy, freedom of speech and academic freedom. If this is Jehan Perera of the so-called National Peace Council it is best to let him speak for himself.

"A significant number of LTTE members have been sent on high profile study tours of the leading western democracies. They are also provided with opportunities within the Wanni that subscribe to the basic norms of academic freedom without censorship."

So if Prabhakaran junior goes abroad it is not because he is a failed suicide bomber or a child who could not be forcibly recruited to serve the cause of Eelam, but because he wished to savour the fruits of democracy and freedom.

On his return he could preach political pluralism and freedom of speech and association and say in the words of Mao Zedong, "let a hundred flowers bloom and a hundred schools of thought contend." or some such words.

Perhaps Jehan Perera should delve into Chinese history and find out what happened to those who took Mao at his word. Let the Oracle speak further: "The voice of democracy and peaceful co-existence can be expected to be heard within the upper echelons of the LTTE….."

Fair enough, if the upper echelons can hear. The problem is that they seem to be hard of hearing. Those Tamils who espouse a different political worldview from Perera's glorified LTTE are not hard of hearing like the Tiger leadership. They cannot hear at all because they are dead, killed by those who are said to be eager students of democracy, human rights and pluralism.

President Kumaratunga should honour Jehan Perera for his efforts to foster democracy and academic freedom. After all, if there could some day be president's counsel who have still not hatched their legal eggs, why not a few extra deshabandus or deshamanis.

If she does not move fast enough to honour this dedication to democracy, the LTTE could. Why, the South might wake up one morning to find that Jehan Perera has been honoured by the Wanni leadership as the Pericles of Pungadativu, the Jefferson of Jaffna or the Voltaire of Valachenai.

After the National Peace Council completes the education of Velu, a huge banner should be hoisted across the A9 with the words Long Live Democracy.

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