An Open Challenge to the JVP

"We have heard enough of JVP slogan of ‘defeat LTTE terrorism before a political resolution’. As a party that is embedded in double standard dealings, it can only survive on deception and cunning agenda of marginalising the minority communities to make them a manageable stock in the country."

by R. Jayadevan

(December, 22, London, Sri Lanka Guardian) It is an opportune moment to offer an open challenge to the extremist Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna’s (JVP) on a matter that underscores its very existence in the Sri Lankan politics. A party that embodies two important words ‘Janatha’ (Peoples) and ‘Vimukthi’ (Liberation) to give the meaning it is a party of the people does everything to bring suffering to the very same people it claims to depend on. Unlike its compatriot Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) which identifies itself a Sinhala race party (Jathika means Race), the JVP takes a much broader name to include people of all walks of lives.

JVP have always proved to be a party that is no different to the JHU, except for it has a much subtle approach to extent its hate agenda against the Tamils in its campaign.

On many occasions the JVP had stated that ‘any political resolution to the Tamil problem must be only after defeating the LTTE terrorism’. A party which is an off spring of the inherent majority racism against the minorities since independence in 1948 does not have a policy or goal except for working to stamp the exclusive majority Sinhala rule in Sri Lanka. It projects itself a Marxist party, but it has not still articulated the Marxist approach to dealing with the decades old Tamil problem.

We have heard enough of JVP slogan of ‘defeat LTTE terrorism before a political resolution’. As a party that is embedded in double standard dealings, it can only survive on deception and cunning agenda of marginalising the minority communities to make them a manageable stock in the country.

For anyone to accept the JVP slogan to resolve the Tamil conflict post defeat of the LTTE, will the JVP without going into nitty-gritty details state at least in minimum few words what it will offer to the Tamil speaking people following the defeat of the LTTE? Does it have the will or courage to say that it will work towards finding a lasting solution under a federal or provincial or district or village levels or even confederal model of devolution?. A simple statement to confirm its position on any of this will permit people to understand its real commitment and modus operandi to find a political solution after defeating the LTTE.

It is time for the people to put pressure on the JVP to reveal its political stand to resolve the conflict. JVP has done many harmful things historically to undermine any peaceful resolution to the conflict. The latest of its effort was when it played the subservient role to the Mahinda Rajapakse government in connivance with the Chief Justice Sarath De Silva to de-merger the North-East established under the Indo-Sri Lankan agreement at the time when the All Party Representative Committee (APRC) was seriously looking into the devolutionary process in Sri Lanka.

Both JVP and the LTTE are two extreme groups established on the foundation of brutal violence. JVP and its likes believe in not giving anything to the Tamils, whilst the LTTE will not compromise anything less than a separate state.

JVP has become schizophrenic and party that can survive on espousing crude racism. I have described the JVP as a Jathika (Race) party as my first hand knowledge of them since the 70’s has progressively strengthened that it is anti-national and anti-social party.

The inherent paranoia of the JVP against minorities is such that anything anyone saying critical of Sri Lanka or commenting on the issues affecting the Tamils is anathema to it, however objective the comments can be. Without analysing them objectively, JVP will be the first enter the fray with its paranoiac and rudimentary vituperations.

Unfortunately, the fate of Sri Lanka is in the hands of extremists like JVP. So long as they can survive in Sri Lanka, its counter product of extremism of the LTTE and the likes will continue.