Shenali D Waduge

 It is getting tedious to be countering lies that are being publicized globally by well-funded campaigns generated from criminal syndicates that continue to function and were part of the LTTE international criminal network. Whatever attempts being made to downplay the victory achieved in May 2009, that accomplishment cannot be allowed to be subtly removed from our memories by those who were either promoters of the ‘unwinnable war’ theory or those too cowardly to call LTTE as terrorists. These attempts to curb the war victory is only leading people to forget a 30 year terrible past but are also causing people to forget individuals, parties, organizations and even countries that created, supported and promoted LTTE terror so much so that there is a strong likelihood of a revival of LTTE taking place under the same patronage of people. Therefore, it is an opportune time to set up a museum that would display all of the crimes committed by the LTTE over 3 decades and should be under the stewardship of only patriots with no one remotely connected to LTTE involved in its administration or design. People who were promoters of LTTE are today shamelessly holding symposiums about crimes against Tamils when LTTE has killed more Tamils than any other non-Tamil community.

Every country celebrates War Victories. These are gallant events marked to showcase a period of the past that people must remember and take lessons from. Countries continue to celebrate World War victories since 1945. Germany & Japan never oppose these ceremonies putting across atrocities and war crimes committed by the Allies against their people. These war crimes by Allies run into millions of post-war deaths by starvation as a policy.

Vietnam’s museum is a good example for Sri Lanka to use to come out with our own memories of a cruel and frightening past. People are already forgetting the years of fear, sorrow, tears and misery we went through.

It is not just the LTTE that terrorised us. We have undergone over 400 years of colonial crimes (ideally we need to have a separate museum for colonial crimes committed by Portuguese, the Dutch and the British), we had 2 insurrections by the JVP that killed a lot of innocent people. We had 30 years of LTTE terror. It was not just a group of people being armed and trained by India, the nation and its military had to deal with scores of other inter-connected challenges. We had foreign nations molly-coddling the LTTE, we had missionaries and faith-based organizations that posed as charities entering as relief and humanitarian aid providers but with a bigger intention of enlarging their flocks (the rise in conversions in the North including those within the LTTE is a good example of their success story), we had very powerful nations adopting the LTTE and using it to fast forward their own agendas for the region and continent, we had the UN using Sri Lanka as a guinea pig for its diabolical new world order programs testing various ideas that would enable nation-states to be dissolved and all law & order brought under the auspices of the UN. The minority-rights placard used by both UN and powerful western nations has nothing to do with concern for minorities but are meant to only test out their plans and ploys to make more profit and vest power of nations in the hands of a handful.

These challenges were no small challenges and no leader was able to take the bulls by their horns. One leader did and today he is the target of attack for doing what others were told not to do. Leaving aside his own mistakes, follies and mismanagement after steering the forces to a magnificent and memorable victory, his place in history cannot be diminished or removed because of other faults. We need to give credit where credit is due. He and the defense secretary need to be protected by the State forever. No nation should remove their security and make them cannon fodder for killers.

What is clear is that we have elements that were part of the LTTE network today roaming freely still because foreign nations did not take action when in 2014 the GOSL used the UNSC Resolution 1373 to declare 16 organizations as LTTE fronts and declared over 400 individuals as having direct links to LTTE terror. Some of these entities by their sheer influence have got themselves deproscribed without anyone even making a whimper of objection.

Had the foreign nations where these individuals are living taken action by at least investigating them we would not have to be facing a virtual resurgence of LTTE and its separatism? Anyone studying LTTE and all those connected with the LTTE since inception would realize that there is a history to separatism. On the premise that countries cannot be separated on bogus lies and mythical stories it should have warranted a connection in parties and individuals that were trying to separate Sri Lanka (pulling out every name and terminology in the dictionary to hide their ultimate goal) to the LTTE that hijacked the idea for its own sustenance and as a placard to use to entice combatants.

If we are to draw any lessons we need to have these crimes very clearly displayed for all to see. Therefore from the manner LTTE was created, who helped fund, train, arm and supported the LTTE, to the individuals, organizations and even countries that had been linked to the LTTE needs to be very clearly established in this museum.

Ideally like the Vietnam Museum the State should patronize it but the board tasked to design and administer it should be patriots with no links to LTTE or separatist elements.

An entrance fee will help maintain and upgrade the museum and visitors arriving will be able to see for themselves the truth against the lies that are being promoted globally on the strength of the LTTE kitty and the ability to buy over people including foreign MPs and influential officials.

Vietnam War Remnants Museum or The human rights violations and war crimes atrocities American and French forces committed in Vietnam

This museum is meant to save the heroic remnants of the Vietnamese people’s struggle against invading forces. In 1975 it was called The Gallery of American Crime, then the American Crime Gallery, in 1990 it was renamed War Crimes of Aggression Gallery and in 1995 it was called the War Remnants Museum.

The museum is under the Department of Culture, Sports & Tourism.

The museum contains display of material, photographs, artefacts on evidence of the crimes committed. These are meant to educate the public especially the younger generation of the struggle that went to gain independence and freedom, it also hopes to create the desire to protect peace and solidarity, friendship between peoples of the world.

The museum has over 20,000 documents, exhibits, films along 8 themes. It has drawn over 15million visitors from Vietnam and Abroad. An estimated 500,000 visitors arrive annually. The museum is one of the key cultural sites in Vietnam that no one misses to visit when they arrive in Vietnam. The museum has received many global medals/awards.
War Remnants Museum was awarded the title of one of five typical museum, 8/2012

http://warremnantsmuseum.com/posts/introduction-general

http://www.downtheroad.org/Asia/Photo/3Vietnam_Pictures/3War_Remnants_Museum.htm (please view this to see the extent of crimes committed by human rights crusader America!)

During Vietnam War, U.S. military sprayed approximately 20 million gallons of herbicides (AGENT ORANGE) across 5.5 million acres of Vietnamese jungle and countryside. Over 50 years after the War people are still suffering as you can see from the photos. The Vietnam Red Cross estimates Agent Orange affected as many as 3 million Vietnamese. Children in areas where Agent Orange was used have been affected with hydrocephalus (brain swelling), cleft palates, mental disabilities, hernias, extra fingers and toes, spina bifida, and various genetic diseases 

Sri Lanka has 30 years of terror to showcase. LTTE crimes against Tamils, LTTE crimes against villages/villagers, LTTE ethnic cleansing of Sinhalese & Muslims from North Sri Lanka, LTTE assassinations of politicians, public officials, clergy, unarmed military, unarmed soldiers who were sick, foreigners including a former Indian Prime Minister, LTTE denying freedoms and fundamental rights to their own people, LTTE creation of child soldiers and suicide missions, LTTE killing of its own cadres are just some of the crimes that need to be displayed for all to see. People were either victims of LTTE terror and there were people who benefitted by LTTE terror. The museum has to be for all the victims of LTTE terror. 

It is only in remembering our past we can shape our future. It is only in learning lessons from the past that we resolve not to repeat them.

Shenali D Waduge