SRILANKA: A BIRD IN THORNS
BY: Prem Raj
"No! You must not look for the weapons for your defence, from
any other country except India", thus dictated the Government of
Manmohan Singh. But under what international treaty Srilanka is obliged
to buy weapons only from India is a big question mark which leaps in
to the eye of India to remove its myopia clouding its cornea.
This harsh dictatorial statement by the Government of India is undiplomatic
and untenable while attacking the sovereign, independent volition of
the people. This does reflect the whimsical and lunacy of India, intoxicated
in the syndrome of superpower of Asia but who to let her know that borrowed
crutches can slip under its feet like the Indo - China war. This statement
has not only hurt the feelings of Srilankans' but also the other countries
are caught in surprise as the same has been released while accomplishing
the US - Indian deal primarily meant a "Military Co-operation Agreement".
It got access to not only to current US military technology but to
the next generation of weapons with full transfer of technology. And
USA has also accepted the Nuclear Programme of India and Bush administration
has waged a great struggle to convince his in house members of Congress
to export nuclear materials and technologies to India, so inflated by
this agreement that India has started staring at other nations and this
way USA has tried to upset the peace in Asia by imbalancing the equilibrium.
China has viewed this arsenal dumping by United States in India, would
be a great threat to its country thus has pressed hard its long outstanding
claim, when in last November, just before President Hu Jinto's visit
to India, the Chinese ambassador stated to the Indian Govt. with full
confidence that "the entire state of Arunachal Pardesh is a part
of China". This took India by surprise but in the garb of USA for
how long she can dance and silence the voice of other nations.
The recent successful LTTE air raid conducted on an air base near the
Srilankan capital is a matter of shame for India whose air defence and
air detection system was installed by Srilanka. The system failed to
track and pick up the LTTE flight which travelled almost 600 km from
Wanni to Colombo, dropped the bombs and went undetected.
Then on what account India could lay an embargo on Srilanka to purchase
weapons when people of this country have least confidence in her weaponry.
After this air raid, thus in Australia, the USA and Canada, Tamil fund
- raisers are now questioningLTTE's motives more than even before, particularly
when the organization is recruiting the small children to combat in
the world and make them a cannon fodder.
It is interesting that Srilankan media reports have continuously blamed
Indian - installed first generation radars for failing to detect LTTE
aircraft, is an allegation which is true in its form and has become
a black scar on India's policy of ousting the rebellious groups in Srilanka.
As per TOL report of 11th April, India has offered LTTE to meet its
every demand from soap to clothing, to lathe machine, and land mines
and from armoured vehicles to aeronautical accessories, and on the other
hand tying down Srilanka to purchase its weapons only from India is
an equivocal policy of double standard which will isolate India from
its neighbours in particular and from rest of the world also, having
boisterous claims of sweeping the terrorists.
But India must understand by knitting thorns around Srilanka means
reaping hawthorns from its own land.
Email: premlaliguras@hotmail.com
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