Tamil Common candidate commenced campaign across N&E

 

The Tamil Common Candidate P. Ariyanenthiran at the Pandarawanniyan statue in Mallavi on August 30, 2024, ahead of addressing an election rally. Pix: special arrangement

The Tamil Common candidate P. Ariyanenthiran who was selected as Presidential candidate by Tamil political parties and civil society outfits to contest upcoming Presidential polls commenced his campaign in North and Eastern provinces this week. 

Earlier the election manifesto of the Tamil Presidential candidate was released in Jaffna yesterday(3). During the election rallies and pocket meetings held in Kilinochchi, Jaffna and Mannar, Mr Ariyanenthiran was welcomed by local civil society groups and the common public. He is contesting under conch shell symbol in the upcoming polls.

On July 22, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed after seven political parties and seven civil society outfits came to an understanding to field a Presidential candidate from the Tamil community as the Tamil Question is yet to be resolved even after fifteen years passed since the end of the war in 2009. They also formed a body known as the Tamil Peoples General Council for this purpose.

The MoU was signed by Selvam Adaikalanathan of the Tamil Eelam Liberation Organisation (TELO), C.V. Wigneswaran of the Tamil Makkal Kootani, D. Siddarthan of the People’s Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE), N. Srikantha of the Tamil Nationalist Party, Suresh Premachandran of the Eelam People’s Revolutionary Liberation Front (EPRLF), P. Iyngaranesan of the Tamil Nationalist Pasumai Movement, and S. Venthan of the Democratic Cadres Party.

The manifesto of Tamil Common Candidate underscores the ongoing structural genocide activities that are put in place by the State in North and Eastern provinces after the 2009 Mullivaikaal genocide. 

With war victims in the two provinces who are still waiting for justice and truth about alleged human rights violations committed during the final phases of the war, the manifesto also stressed that the Tamil community is subjected to continuous intimidation by various state agencies such as the Department of Wildlife, Department of Archeology, Police, Ministry of Mahaweli Development schemes, Forest Department in the two provinces since end of war in 2009. 

The manifesto also made it clear that without addressing the root cause of the issues faced by the country-ethnic conflict, the country cannot move forward from bankruptcy or any economic development in the future.

It also indicated that the Tamil Common candidate is contesting the polls, not to win but to send a strong message with a mandate of Tamil aspirations. (Northeastern Monitor/ September 4/2024)