Shenali D Waduge

Sri Lanka cannot continue to endure rantings every time there is an Indian election or allow continuous illegal fishing & raping of Sri Lanka’s marine eco-system. Sri Lanka cannot ignore the livelihoods of Sri Lankan fisher community & allow illegal fishing as humanitarian” & more importantly allow the usage of internationally banned bottom trawlers which is killing & destroying marine life. Diplomatic niceties & political pressures aside, if Sri Lanka’s leaders pre-1978 & astute civil servants could stand up to protect Sri Lanka’s sovereignty & territorial integrity, what is stopping Sri Lanka’s present political leaders & public officials from continuing to do so?

Exactly who wants Katchatheevu & why?

Indian Central Govt?

Tamil Nadu politicians? Or

Tamil Nadu fishermen?

The main reasons include

• Diplomatic topic against Sri Lanka by Indian Central Govt.
• Political slogan by Tamil Nadu politicians building hate campaigns against Sri Lanka with Ravana to add color
• Allow illegal fishing by Indian fishermen using internationally banned bottom trawlers mostly belonging to Tamil Nadu politicians on Sri Lanka’s territorial waters
• Oil exploration to claim all of the waters on Palk Strait

The issue of Katchchitivu is actually a non-issue. It’s only a topic emerging during elections & as a strategy for illegal fishing using internationally banned bottom trawlers & trespassing on the territorial waters of Sri Lanka. Usage of bottom trawlers mostly owned by Tamil Nadu politicians, has severely impacted the marine bed & eco-sustainability.

Instead of rectifying these wrongs, the issue has been turned into a political dispute.

If India had accepted the island is under Sri Lanka’s jurisdiction why is it bullying Sri Lanka for no reason?

Even India’s Foreign Ministry in a reply to a RTI on 5 Jan 2015 confirmed that Katchchativu was on Sri Lanka’s maritime boundary following the delineation Agreement on Boundary in Historica Waters signed on 26 June 1974 in Colombo & on 28 June 1974 in New Delhi. That 1974 agreement only allowed Indian fishermen to dry their nets & Indian Catholic fishermen to attend the annual St. Anthony’s festival.

In fact, after Indian Foreign Ministry officials explainted matters to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Karunanidhi, he agreed to play down the rhetoric.

Let India not forget that when the boundary line dividing the waters of the Palk Strait was drawn in 1974, India got a larger share than what was allocated in 1921.

Refer MOEAF/R/E/24/00328 dated 5 March 2024 includes details of Katchativu & the March 1968 meeting between Kewal Singh & Karunanidhi which was issued by Under Secretary Ajay Jain of CNV&1 Division issued it on 12 March 2024.

https://www.mea.gov.in/Images/CPV/RTI-31-03-2024.pdf

There is little point in presenting colonial evidence or evidence pre-colonial, as there was no nation called India before 1947. Therefore, present Indian govt cannot claim that Katchathivu island belonged to India” because there was no India” before 1947.

The pre-colonial claim is based on Raja of Ramnad & the Zamindari system. However, there is no title ownership to claim Raja of Ramnad’s claim to the island while the Zamindari system only includes grants to 21,057 villages & there is no mention of Katchchativu.

Confounding matters for the Indian claim was a survey party (for Trigonometrical survey station) from India 1874-1876 (exactly 100 years before the signing of the agreement) who had referred to the island belonging to Ceylon. Ceylon had refused such survey stations at that time. If the island belonged to India during this period, there was no reason for Ceylon to refuse! Another example of Sri Lanka exerting its jurisdiction.

While India has no evidence even in the form of maps. Sri Lanka has maps that belonged to the 3 colonial invaders – Portuguese, Dutch & Britain all placing Katchchativu under Sri Lanka. The Portuguese called the island Chagodina.

There is also the 1658 order issued by the then Governor of Ceylon to the Commander of the Jaffnapatnam that Caathchiadive” (Katchchativu) was among the 5 uninhabited islands within its jurisdiction.

Ceylon asserted claim to the island in 1921 when demarcating the fishery line in the Palk Bay & the Indians agreed to determine the land 3 miles West of Katchchativu which automatically placed Katchchativu on the Sri Lankan side.

The most damning rebuttal came when India in June 1924 recommended to the Secretary of State in London that they recognized Katchchative as belonging to Ceylon.

Taking this further, Ceylon enacted legislation in 1944 as a naval bombardment range – the legislation was renewed in 1950-1951 after independence.

Ceylon even challenged India in 1949 when India sought to use the island for naval exercise. In 1955 Ceylon used the island for the Ceylon Air Force.

Ceylon had fine civil service officials pre-1978 for they had even presented time tables to bilaterally resolve the issue. During Mrs. Bandaranaike’s visit to India in January 1974 the officials wanted the matter of Katchchativu resolved on her directive. Had present day officials & leaders existed then, Sri Lanka may have ceded all of its territorial waters to India!

Sri Lankan government & environmentalists together with the legal fraternity need to look at the issue beyond political or diplomatic pressures. Usage of bottom trawlers along India’s coastal belt has destroyed its marine bed. These same trawlers cannot be allowed to do the same to Sri Lanka’s marine bed which is presently happening. The fact that Tamil Nadu politicians are demanding access to Katchchativu is primarily because they own the bottom trawlers that destroyed TN marine bed & they want to generate income from Sri Lanka’s waters while long term destroying Sri Lanka’s marine bed.

If there are no fish in India’s southern coast – it is due to Indian fishermen ruining their sea bed. That same damage cannot be done to Sri Lanka’s marine bed & deprive Sri Lankan fishermen a livelihood. Sri Lanka’s Government need to take the side of Sri Lanka’s fisher community & their livelihoods as a priority.

If India continues to use political pressures unfairly during election times & arouse animosity of Tamil Nadu against Sri Lanka, Sri Lanka must respond by referring the issue to the International Court of Justice for their expert opinion. The use of illegal bottom trawlers by Indian politicians will also be a concern for ICJ fully aware of the environmental damage being intentionally done to the marine bed & marine eco system surrounding Sri Lanka’s territorial waters.

India is not in favor of international arbitration as it would impact its national interest. Therefore, the issue of claiming Katchchativu for political advantage at elections & to facilitate illegal fishing by India must stop. Another untold reason for India’s interest” in Katchchativu is the oil structure which India wanted to acquire under its territory.

If Sri Lanka does pursue third party arbitration there are more interferences by India that should be tabled including the signing of the Indo-Lanka Accord under duress, the violation of Sri Lanka’s aerial sovereignty with the infamous parippu drop, the arming & training of Tamil militants to name a few.

Shenali D Waduge