The issue of merging the Northern and Eastern provinces into one
larger Tamil dominant unit is continuing to create tension between the
Muslim and Tamil communities at a time when constitutional reforms are
under consideration. From the majority Sinhalese point of view such a
merger is feared as a stepping stone for the ultimate division of the
country. There are historical antecedents to support this fear and
tension respectively.
While a combination of factors such as the confused double talk
between Federalism and Tamil Arasu or Rule by Tamil leaders in the past,
the bitterness caused by a senseless civil war, and above all the
proximity of Tamil Nadu to the north of the island are contributing to
an embedded fear of Tamils in Sinhalese psych, an equally historical and
mutual suspicion between the Tamils and Muslims especially in political
matters is continuing to thwart a rational discussion of issues
involved in the proposed merger.
As far as the Muslim community is concerned and viewed objectively
the issue of North East merger is a problem for Muslims of the North and
the East only and not for the entire Muslim community. This may be
disconcerting to the current Muslim political leadership. However, it is
a fact that in terms of economic and linguistic interests the Muslims
of these two provinces are different from their counterparts in the
other seven. In fact in terms of economic interest only one can divide
the Muslim community into three groups: those of the east and north
whose economic interests are wedded primarily to the land; those of the
Western, Southern, North-Eastern, South-Western and Sabragamuwa
provinces whose primary interests are mostly in commerce; and those of
the Central and Uva provinces whose interests are mostly in petty
business and market gardening.
The present Muslim leadership without an understanding of these
sectional differences is making a cardinal error in conflating all
Muslim issues into a mega one. Similarly, in the matter of
constitutional reforms Muslim leaders must take a visionary approach and
propose measures that will ultimately strengthen the unity of the
nation while making its Muslim constituents a dynamic element.
In the Eastern Province and particularly in the Batticaloa district
the Muslims form roughly thirty per cent of the population; but they
have only three per cent of the land. Under various government schemes
in the past some of the Muslim paddy lands were acquired and not all of
that was given back to the owners once the schemes failed. Various
colonization schemes in the East have disturbed the communal population
balance in that area and that was one of the issues that prompted the
Tamil youth to take up arms. The most crucial question the Muslims face
in the East therefore is which one of the options – a merged province or
a demerged entity – provides better prospect for not only protecting
the existing holdings but also to expand them. The Tamil leadership must
understand this issue and initiate an honest dialogue with the Muslims.
It is time the Tamil leaders climb down from their hegemonic pedestal
and treat the Muslims as equal partners in a joint struggle for
minority rights. Those rights should be won within a democratic and
unitary state. Any dialogue with Muslims that jeopardise this objective
will certainly fail. It is immaterial whether the chief minister of a
merged entity be a Muslim or Tamil. What matters is the material
benefits that would be proportionally distributed to the constituent
communities within an enlarged political entity.
Land is the issue for Tamils and it is the issue for Muslims also.
What solution do Tamil leaders propose to this fundamental problem in a
merged province? (Colombo Telegraph)
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