Fully implement the 13th amendment forthwith – Toronto based Tamils

The Canadian Tamils for Peace and Democracy has  insisted  Sri Lanka’s   President Mahinda Rajapaksa to implement the 13^th amendment in full and find an amicable solution to the minority issues within the framework of a  united Sri Lanka.

  In a statement by the Toronto based Canadian Society for Peace and Democracy said, “Sri Lanka President has previously told on numerous occasions, that once the war on terrorism was over and the LTTE was defeated,  a political solution would be announced soon.”

 However,  Tamils in Canada expressed their disappointment over the recent statement by the Sri Lankan President,  who  said that he received  a mandate in the last presidential election  only to defeat terrorism and  needs a fresh mandate for a political solution. This statement was seen as a change in the stand of the President and by the Government of Sri Lanka.

 Canadian Tamils For Peace and Democracy in its statement said, “It was a very shocking turn of events to the Tamil diaspora, a section of which stood by the government in the war on terrorism, opposing the majority of its own Tamil community. We stood by our principal stand to eradicate terrorism from the Sri Lankan soil and hoped for a negotiated settlement to the ethnic issue.

 The statement went on to caution, “When the LTTE controlled Tamil diaspora is getting ready for a fresh political offensive against the Government of Sri Lanka and has created a Provisional Transnational Government, it is far more necessary to announce a political package and implement the 13^th amendment of the constitution in full, before the Tamil diaspora and the Tamils in Sri Lanka in particular are once again carried away by  extremist policies of separatist agenda and militancy.

 “The extremist in the North and in the South were always trying to capitalize the situation, but it’s the moral duty of the President and his Government to take a clear stand on this issue before things goes out of control as it has happened in the times of previous Governments.

 The Canadian organization of the Tamils pointed out that as a matter of principle, none of the political parties in the South has any moral right to oppose the 13^th amendment of the Sri Lankan constitution, as they have contested on the same 13^th amendment that created the Provincial Councils in the South and are enjoying all the benefits accrued by that very constitutional amendment.

 “Therefore, we the Canadian Tamils for Peace and Democracy call on  President Mahinda Rajapakse, to implement the 13^th Amendment in full without delay and carry out your constitutional duties to look after the grievances of all communities in Sri Lanka and particularly the Tamil community, which is very badly affected by the denial of its constitutional rights.