How many of Sri Lanka’s IDPs had land deeds to demand return of ‘their lands’?
Posted on May 9th, 2016
Shenali D Waduge
In Sri Lanka, land is either owned by private individuals, the state or land is given on lease to investors by either private land owners or the state. The state has records of lands owned by the state while in the case of private individuals they have land deeds that showcase their entitlement to a plot of land with surveyed demarcations. The question is simple – Everyday reports emerge of rising numbers of IDPs claiming return of ‘their lands’ supported by foreign parties. Most of these lands that are demanded are either adjacent to high security zone areas or even inside the high security zone areas. However, to demand return of ‘their lands’ have they produced land deeds to prove their right to ownership? Should this have not been investigated first?
We are well aware that the LTTE mastered in mass movement of Tamils to create global sensationalism that became an excellent means to exert pressure on the Sri Lankan Army to withdraw or withhold attack against it. Use of civilians, rounding them up, using civilians to travel alongside them to relocate to new destinations provided an excellent cover to the LTTE. Thamilini the head of the female wing of the LTTE in her life story too highlights how LTTE moved civilians for their advantage. This was proven by the manner LTTE hid their arms, ammunition and artillery inside the no fire zone created by the army for the civilians.
These Tamil civilians were not from high caste or high class backgrounds but were poor, desolate people from whom LTTE plucked their children to turn into child soldiers or cadres. You will hardly find any high caste Tamil fighters in the LTTE so much for Prabakaran starting out his armed struggle against the caste system. He ended up manipulating the caste system to his advantage. Prabakaran himself was a low caste but later believed to have changed faith to Christianity thus the LTTE-Church links and the fact that all NGOs, missionaries and evangelicals supported and continue to support the eelam agenda in Sri Lanka and from India and other parts of the world. Enough of articles have been written drawing these links with examples.
That close to 300,000 Tamils were saved by the Sri Lankan Army together with 12,000 LTTE cadres who surrendered is also noteworthy. What we do not know and what UN or others questioning the Sri Lankan Government & Army only does not question is,
· How any of these 300,000 Tamils were really civilians?
· How many were voluntary combatants?
· How many were involuntary combatants?
· How many had been trained at one time or the other in armed combat
· How many belonged to the Tamil Civilian Army which LTTE created.
· How many of these close to 300,000 Tamils were child soldiers, LTTE cadres in civilian clothing? (please note all of the 12,000 LTTE cadres who surrendered before the conclusion of the conflict were in civilian attire and not in LTTE uniforms)
· How many of these Tamils were families of LTTE cadres who had been enjoying a life better than ordinary Tamils?
Therefore in not knowing answers to any of the above it is rather ludicrous to agree to giving wholesale distribution of not only lands in high security zone areas but title deeds to them as well. Why has the GOSL or its advisors not thought of the need to establish
· That the IDPs were authentic IDPs
· That IDPs were Sri Lankan Tamils – this is crucial because LTTE is on record for stating that 33% of its cadres were from Tamil Nadu, if so this means foreigners were fighting on behalf of the LTTE. Their families may have been living in North Sri Lanka or even East Sri Lanka as Sri Lankan Tamils and they have no right to claim land or be given title deeds. In fact they should be asked to return to Tamil Nadu. We do not know how many of the rising numbers of Tamils suddenly returning to Sri Lanka are actually Sri Lankan Tamils or Indian Tamils pretending to be Sri Lankan Tamils. If this is allowed to continue we will see dangerous demographic change and countless other problems arising.
· Did the IDPs have title deeds or were they living in makeshift homes throughout LTTE rule. We also need to note when areas of the North were liberated in May 2009 the world was witness to startling reality that there were hardly any homes that so many NGOs are said to have built, the dollars and pounds that kind hearted people had donated over the years to LTTE charities operating overseas had not been spent to build any roads, any homes, any parks, any schools but there were orphanages and these were no ordinary orphanages but places in the thick jungles where child soldiers were trained in armed combat. You will not find any NGO admitting this because their lies would get exposed.
· The other excuse for people not having land deeds would be that these were destroyed but with names and details of their land the authorities can verify this easily to see if claims match with the records. However, even this option was never sought.
It is interesting that all the demands for lands by ‘IDPs’ revolved around high security zone areas and was complimented by the global chorus for dismantling of high security zone areas, closure of military bases, reduction of military and even the removal of the Sri Lankan Army from the North altogether. From UN, UNHRC, their officials, the foreign-government funded NGOs, the foreign-government funded faith-based organizations were all singing the same song. The mischief was obvious to those able to read between the lines but for the government flooded by accusations, well-funded reports and a global campaign of condemnation it was all too much to weather. Advisors too failed to furnish the necessary ammunition to counter these claims and Sri Lanka ended up giving in to unfair and unreasonable pressures. For foolishly giving away state lands in hsz areas the GOSL has got a congratulatory pat on the back by people who are sure to be laughing at the GOSL for being so damn stupid and falling for the bait!
The question is – Should people who had no land deeds be given prime land and new deeds when they were never entitled to them? Are the people who have been given new title deeds really Sri Lankan, are they really IDPs, are the names issued on these title deeds of people with foreign passports living overseas? Who has compiled the names and details of the people who were given title deeds and were these names whetted, verified and investigated before giving these deeds? Some of the areas that people have been given deeds are prime state lands. If people didn’t have proof and if they also didn’t have deeds and they could not verify they even owned lands can them make a fuss over where the GOSL decides to relocate them especially if they cannot prove they were living in the areas they claim to have owned land?
Seven years after a well concluded conflict, we still are grappling to find answers because of the confusion involved in the conflict. As we can now see the conflict was not simply a LTTE-GOSL/Army conflict it was more complicated and involved multiple players who continue to see the ‘Tamil grievance’ card for their own agenda. Its time people wake up to these realities. Who will benefit by lands in the hands of people who didnt own lands when these people are being ‘handled’ by parties that dragged the conflict for 3 decades?
Shenali D Waduge
May 9th, 2016 at 3:36 am
As we can now see the conflict was not simply a LTTE-GOSL/Army conflict- at last No wonder We call you are NOT modayas !!!
May 9th, 2016 at 12:26 pm
Our thanks to Shenali for highlighting the LAND issue in the North & East.
——–
Once the Land is claimed by Non-Lankans and Non-Owners, that Land is gone.
Sri Lanka is a small island, 25,000 sq miles in all. The sub state Tamil Nadu is double this size (over 50,000 sq. miles).
The present Yahap govt. is so keen to please the ultra critical UN, India and other foreign agents, that they may be allowing false claims to be made re Land ownership in the North & East. As far as we know, NO questions are asked to prove land ownership. Parliament must insist on proof of ownership of Land before Land is handed over.
What about the Land owned by the many thousands of Sinhala & Muslim people from the N&E, who were chased away by the LTTE ?
None of the foreign agencies ask why it is that Tamils flee their own Homeland of Tamil Nadu !!
May 9th, 2016 at 4:20 pm
Perhaps an EVEN LARGER problem are the 1.5 million illegal Indian Tamils imported into Sri Lanka during the 30-years of the Tamil separatist struggle when the GOSL had NO CONTROL over it Northern and Eastern coastline.
The EVIDENCE for the presence of these 1.5 million Kallathonis in SL is in the latest CENSUS which shows an INCREASE in the Tamil population compared the last ISLAND WIDE CENSUS despite the emigration of over 1.5million Tamils as fake refugees to Western countries.
Those 1.5 million fake refugees are now either citizens of the foreign countries they settled in or are permanent residents awaiting citizenship. In either case, they were not counted in the most recent census. The natural increase in Tamil population due to the larger rate of births over deaths CANNOT account for the fact that the TAMIL POPULATION DOES NOT SHOW A 1.5 MILLION DECREASE due to emigration over the last 30 years!
So, you may ask WHERE DID THESE 1.5 MILLION EXTRA TAMILS COME FROM.
That leads you to the OBVIOUS answer: From TAMIL NADU, illegally imported into Sri Lanka by the LTTE even as they were EXPORTING Sri Lankan Tamils as wailing fake refugees into gullible foreign countries!
This is the LARGEST MOST SUCCESSFUL SHE’LL GAME SCAM perpetrated in human history. Now you see the Tamils, now you don’t, and VOILA! here they are again claiming citizenship!
Can you PROVE they are not citizens? Very hard. .. the records were destroyed in the war you see …. but we have neighbors who will vouch for them …. but the fly in the ointment is that these neighbors vouching for them …. are also KALLATHONIS …. vouching for each other.
This is also why the TNA is struggling hard to get the ARMY and the Central Govt Out of the Not and East … they don’t want anyone nosing around to discover the truth and INITIATE A MASS DEPORTATION OF these KALLATHONIS!
Now you know why 300,000 Tamils stayed with PRABHAKARAN to the very end; they were imported into SL by the Sun God and they are fearful of being deported back to their homeland of TAMIL NADU!
Now India and Tamil Nadu are trying their best to keep these ILLEGAL SETTLERS in Sri Lanka ….. that us their ROUTE TO ANNEXATION of our Motherland!
I WEEP for my Motherland as these SCAMMED run rings around us as we demonization and DESTROY our own patriotic defenders!
May 9th, 2016 at 5:48 pm
While giving away LAND in the North, likely to mostly illegal migrants from Tamil Nadu, I hear that Yahap proposes to bring in changes to EPF, pension laws, and reforms to Labor Laws, around June this year. Is this for the better or worse for the workers of Sri Lanka who are true born Sri Lankans ?
Also, is this yet another distraction by Yahap, whilst other deeds are done in the North ?
It would be good if someone lets us know more about the proposed changes.
May 9th, 2016 at 6:18 pm
Fran Diaz,
Thank you! A systematic investigation should be launched and all patriots should write and agitate to get that done!
Can Shenali do the research and write an article about this, and publish it in Sri Lanka newspapers! .
May 9th, 2016 at 7:53 pm
A rather easy approach using existing data could be done comparing 1981 and 2012 censuses, personal registration and land registry. This throws out those who made to Sri Lanka when its navy and army lost control parts of territory and thereafter. Despite proposing this to the government in 2012, they didn’t take any action claiming such a move would harm reconciliation. Ministry of defence was overlooking both personal registration and land registry automation.
The land law was changed provisionally in 2012 to allow Tamils to claim land for which they had no legal title as per the recommendations of the LLRC Report. Such absurdities only happen in Sri Lanka.
Land and police powers are officially allowed to the province according to 13A.
Here are the relevant extracts from the 13A all political parties including the Joint Opposition and all presidents since 1987 uphold.
NINTH SCHEDULE
LIST I
(Provincial Council List)
1. Police and Public Order – Public order and exercise of police powers, to the extent set out in Appendix I, within the province, but not including National defense, National Security and the use of any armed forces or any other forces under the control of the Government of Sri Lanka in aid of civil power, and not including the city of Colombo, Sri Jayewardenepura Kotte, and their environs the limits of which shall be specified by the President by Order published in the Gazette.
18. Land – Land, that is to say, rights in or over land, land tenure, transfer and alienation of land, land use, land settlement and land improvement, to the extent set out in appendix II.
The Northern Provincial Council has been exercising both these since 2013. Otherwise they will be filing case after case in the Supreme Court for their due rights as per the Constitution! Please note that it is the NPC’s constitutional right as per 13A to “alienation of land, land use and land settlement” that we see happening.
However, to keep Sinhala people happy, they are not “granted’ by the government whatever that may mean. In reality only the provinces in the north and east have land powers and even police powers. The ability to displace the army, ethnic Sinhalese and Muslims from the north, getting UDA to carpet roads selectively to make life difficult for Sinhalese, Muslims and low caste Tamils in the north (east of A9) and parts of the east, having Tamil-only magistrates in the entire north since 2010 and having virtually Tamil only policemen in the north have achieved this objective quietly. By allowing this, Sri Lankan politicians have kept their promise to implement 13A as per the Joint Statement of May 2009 with the UN and obligations to the UNHRC to which Sri Lanka agreed.
We still naively and foolishly believe Sri Lanka is unitary (whereas in fact it is federal with Chief Ministers and devolution lists only found in federal countries – reserved list, provincial list and concurrent list) and land and police powers are not devolved to provinces (whereas the north and east PCs and TNA get all they want in relation to land and police powers anyway).
May 9th, 2016 at 8:38 pm
“The land law was changed provisionally in 2012 to allow Tamils to claim land for which they had no legal title as per the recommendations of the LLRC Report. Such absurdities only happen in Sri Lanka.” – Dilrook
“LLRC = LTTE” – Lorenzo
Let us blame everything on RW / MS as if nothing happened during MR and bring him back unconditionally because we love him unconditionally and hope for the best.
May 10th, 2016 at 1:21 am
People should force GOSL not to build anymore housing schemes in NE or Malayanadu until the influx of illegals sorted out.
I bet MS/RW will not listen.
May 10th, 2016 at 3:54 am
After the conflict with the LTTE finished in May 2009, the War Crimes charge slapped by the UNHRC on the MR Govt did its worst – that is how the full implementation of the ILLEGAL 13-A for the Northern Prov came about ! Note that the full implementation of the 13-A was not done prior to that.
Some folk are very happy to blame the MR govt for this !
INDIA WANTS TO KEEP THE TAMIL NADU TAMIL DALIT CASTE WAR EXPORTED TO SRI LANKA, AND FORM EELAM UNDER INDIAN PATRONAGE. A number of foreign countries like to do the same – THE OLD BRIT ‘DIVIDE & RULE’ STUFF, YOU KNOW !!
ALL CONCERNED SRI LANKANS MUST INSIST ON THE REMOVAL OF THE 13-A WHICH IS AN ILLEGAL PIECE OF LEGISLATION ! THERE IS NO OTHER WAY.
*. REMOVE THE 13-A. IT IS ILLEGAL – IMPOSED BY INDIA UNDER DURESS ON THE JRJ GOVT IN 1987.
*. THE UNHRC MUST QUESTION WHY TAMIL DALITS FLEE TAMIL NADU, THE HOMELAND OF TAMILS. OTHERWISE, THE UNHRC IS BIASED & UNETHICAL.
May 10th, 2016 at 4:08 am
The greatest tragedy is that after so many lives in Sri Lanka were laid down for the formation of a Fed State >>> Eelam, under Indian rule and culture, the very thing Tamil Dalits ran away from will be imposed on them again by India on any Eelam in Lanka. The CASTE SYSTEM will be brought into Lanka.
Already, some 65% of the Northern Prov is labelled as ‘low caste’ (Izeth Hussein’s recent article in the Island refers).
What a waste of lives and funds in Sri Lanka – fighting a self created and made in India Caste problem. A mix of need for cheap labor for the Plantations industry mainly, and compassion (stemming mostly from Buddhism and encouraged by the churches), have brought in Tamil Dalits from Tamil Nadu in huge numbers illegally to Lanka. Probably about a Million Tamil Dalits have come in illegally during the LTTE rule times, attracted by the Tamil language in place in Lanka, plus all sorts of free items such as free education, health care, jobs, etc.
Sri Lanka does not print Caste lines on the birth certificates issued to anyone here. Tamil Nadu has Caste on the birth certificates.
It is pointless hammering Lanka for what happens in Tamil Nadu. Solve the problem at the source.
It is up to the UNHRC !
May 10th, 2016 at 6:45 am
How many of those Tamils living in Vanni are those migrated during the Tamil eelam time?
Those kallathonis have land deeds too ?
May 10th, 2016 at 10:25 am
SHENALI !! It appears that we at Lanka Web are running the Government theoretically. The Gembas in Diya Wannaa Oya, are hitting each other, and biting each other, which is now EMULATED by a set of PERVERT Hooligans in the Universities, who make innocent girls commit suicide. There was a video with buggers in under pants, armed with poles fighting with each other. It was reported that they were fully drunk. Reprehensible. We are getting a new society, under PAMBAYANGE P PAALANAYA. IT WAS THE SINHALESE BUDDHISTS WHO ASKED FOR THIS. May their children face the music of the Devol Maduwa.
May 10th, 2016 at 12:33 pm
Ananda, I totally agree with you. India is filthy country which is highly overpopulated. They are going to overtake China as the most populous country very soon. China put a one child per family rule. India has no controls. They grow up in squalor with no education, no health care, caste ridden so that a small minority of the high caste can control them. The caste problem can be overcome easily by eliminating from the birth certificate. But the upper castes who control the Govt in India will not allow it.
Tamil Nadu politicians keep distracting their people from the real problems by redirecting the anger of the people against Sri Lanka. At the slightest chance the Dalits of Tamils Nadu get into Sri Lanka and merge into the hill country with the other Indians. Then they move back to Jaffna or Trinco or go south. Our immensely selfish stupid politicians do not see any of these issues. They only see their vote. My3 and RW depended on the Tamil vote to get into power. Now that they know the Sinhalese will not vote for them. So like the British they want to destroy the Sinhalese by bringing in more and more Tamils from South India as returning refugees. Who knows if they are refugees or South Indian Tamils who have crept into the refugee camps?
Sri Lanka has no controls on the visas of people who have come to Sri Lanka either has tourists or as migrants or as temporary workers. I understand there are at least 60,000 Indian workers in Sri Lanka on top of 1.5 million Kallathonis who came during the time of Prabahakaran. Prabahakaran himself had said that at least 35% of his fighting force was from South India. Even during MR’s time about 50,000 Maldivians had come to Sri Lanka and were attending schools in Sri Lanka at no cost. Does any one know if these Maldivians went back to Maldives?
As I suggested the best thing to do is for all Sinhalese to boycott the Tamil businesses and Institutions. However our well heeled Colombians need servants hand to foot. In addition the private sector businesses want the cheapest labor. So they do not mind bringing the poor Dalits from South India even though in the long run it will result in the division of the country along ethnic lines. They only look at the bottom line profit. For this reason RW’s idea of developing massive export oriented businesses run by foreign corporations is the worst thing for Sri Lanka. We need to have mostly State run Corporations with small and medium size private business. We must strive for self sufficiency in food and as many of our other needs. There should be tough laws about importing foreign labor. The difference between Indian workers and Chinese workers is that the Indian workers do not go back while the Chinese workers do go back.
May 10th, 2016 at 12:58 pm
Cerburus,
Thank you and great suggestions on how to counter the Indian/Tamil invasion.
About three years ago, the GoSL caught and DEPORTED to India 34 recently arrived Indian Ta,mils working in rice fields in the Batticaloa area. That is the ONLY INSTANCE of such action that has been reported.
Today, as you point out, Indian Tamils are illegally entering the country and/or overstaying their Visas and working in Sri Lanka. THis will become a FLOOD when the ETCA is implemented.
The YAMAPALANA govt is DESPERATE to bring in money somehow, and they are SELLING THE NATION to do it, and creating a GREATER PERIL for Sri Lanka’s future survival as a Sinhala Buddhist majority nation. Once they are here and have BURROWED DEEP into the fabric of the nation, it will be IMPOSSIBLE to SEND THEM BACK …. just like the Indian Tamils who were imoprted to work the tea estates during the British Raj.
What do you expect, from a CATHOLIC run government??
The Hatarawaran Deviyo will help us turn back this CASCADE OF DISASTERS, but the BURDEN is on us to do it!
May 10th, 2016 at 4:31 pm
Please watch the movie – Weight of Chains – The story of what happened to former Yugoslavia.
https://youtu.be/xw49iL6zGyQ
This has many parallels to what is currently happening in Sri Lanka. These include the US / Britain involvement; the role of NGOs, INGOs and the Church; Use of local oligarchs and rich; Use of ethnic divisions; etc etc. This drama is awaiting Sri Lanka to repeat in yet another country in the same way it happened in Yugoslavia, Iraq, Libya, Chile, so many Latin American Countries and now in Syria.
As they say a picture is worth a thousand words. We have to show before / after pictures of countries that were devastated by the intervention of the Western Christian forces.
This has now got multiplied many times over by the involvement of Middle East money now increasingly coming into Sri Lanka to buy off land from the Sinhalese. In Colombo alone several acres of land are disappearing into Muslim hands legally.
What will be the fate of the idiotic Sinhala Buddhists? They are no better than lambs to slaughter!
May 14th, 2016 at 10:16 am
The world is being divided to take ‘sides’, like in a football match.
Which ‘side’ is Lanka to take ?
* Pres Sirisena has already signed in a British person as Advisor to the Armed Forces of Lanka.
* Yahap is going to allow an USA Observer in the Lanka Treasury for a period of two years, as well be supervised by the USA in the new programs envisaged. The USA is contributing nearly US$ 40 Million toward the new programs.
In addition, Yahap has a nasty program with INDIA :
– ETCA
– Sea Tunnel to Tamil Nadu
– 5,000 acre lots on 99 yr leases to foreigners
– New Constitution (what might that bring ?)
So, where are we now and on whose ‘side’ ?
May 14th, 2016 at 1:00 pm
The news clip re US-Lanka relations :
* U.S. 2017 budget requests US$ 39.8 million to support Sri Lanka government’s reforms
Thu, May 12, 2016, 07:07 pm SL Time, ColomboPage News Desk, Sri Lanka.
May 12, Washington, DC: The United States Department of State’s FY 2017 budget request of $39.8 million will support Sri Lankan government’s reforms to stimulate trade and investment, improve governance and human rights, and pursue reconciliation and accountability, a top official has said.
Testifying before the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific in Washington, DC on Wednesday, the Assistant Secretary, Bureau of South and Central Asian Affairs Nisha Desai Biswal said the bilateral relationship between the U.S. and Sri Lanka has been transformed over the past year, “thanks to a unity government led by a president and prime minister that are committed to reforms that can benefit all Sri Lankans.”
Reviewing how the policies and programs supported by the $440.7 million FY 2017 budget request will sustain greater stability, security, and prosperity in South Asia and in the U.S. the top official told the Committee the diplomatic relations between the two countries are at an all-time high.
Biswal said Sri Lanka now has the opportunity to assume its rightful place as a leader in the international community, one that contributes to the global economy; promotes human rights, accountability, transitional justice, and democracy; and that helps to uphold international law.
She emphasized that Sri Lanka’s strategic position in the Indian Ocean makes it a key player in regional efforts to ensure maritime security, protect freedom of navigation, and respond to natural disasters while its natural ports, abundant resources, and entrepreneurial people all mean enormous potential for economic growth and connectivity.
“With all of these factors in mind, our FY 2017 budget request of $39.8 million will support the government’s reforms to stimulate trade and investment, improve governance and human rights, and pursue reconciliation and accountability,” Assistant Secretary Biswal said.
Biswal said the U.S. is now working with Sri Lanka to implement the steps agreed to in the resolution jointly sponsored at the UN Human Rights Council last year.
She said the U.S. also support reconciliation through its public diplomacy programs, such as by teaching English, which serves as a linking language between Sri Lankan Sinhalese and Tamil communities.
The U.S. Embassy in Colombo is also working to strengthen Sri Lanka’s media environment through training for journalists on access to information, increasing diversity in types of stories covered, and improving English language skills.
Assistant Secretary Biswal recalled that the two countries in the past month launched the U.S.-Sri Lanka Partnership Dialogue, which “expanded and reinforced our cooperation in development, governance, energy, trade, and security.”
“And our approach to make Sri Lanka’s economy stronger is truly whole-of government,” she added.
The official told the Committee the U.S. Trade Representative (USTR) just hosted the U.S.-Sri Lanka Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) Council Meeting at the end of April.
She further said that through the Department of Commerce, the U.S. will train Sri Lankan business leaders and government officials in best practices for Sri Lanka’s nascent tourism industry, which is on track to have a banner year, according to the official.
In addition, the U.S. Treasury Department will soon embed an advisor in Sri Lanka’s Ministry of Finance, who will assist the ministry with public financial management reforms for the next two years.