Evidence of meeting #11 for Foreign Affairs and International Development in the 40th Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was lanka.
A recording is available from Parliament.
4:35 p.m.
Harini Sivalingam Policy Director, Canadian Tamil Congress
Good afternoon.
My name is Harini Sivalingam and I'm with the Canadian Tamil Congress. I'm going to be doing the presentation. With me are David Poopalapillai and Sharmila Rajasingam, who will help me in answering questions today.
4:35 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Kevin Sorenson
Thank you.
Please continue. I think we can get Jonathan's name.
4:35 p.m.
Policy Director, Canadian Tamil Congress
Good afternoon, Chairperson and honourable members of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development. My name is Harini Sivalingam, and I'm a lawyer by profession and policy director with the Canadian Tamil Congress, a registered non-profit organization that has advocated for the interests of the Tamil Canadian community since 2000. As I mentioned, along with me is David Poopalapillai, the national spokesperson for CTC, and Ms. Sharmila Rajasingam, a CTC member from Montreal.
CTC is a national organization that has regional chapters in Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Vancouver, Edmonton, and Winnipeg, and represents Tamil Canadians across the nation. First we would like to thank you for giving us this opportunity to appear before this committee on a topic that has grave importance to the 300,000 Tamil Canadians across this nation. We appear before you not only as members of the Tamil community who are deeply concerned about the plight of Tamils in the northeast of Sri Lanka but, more importantly, as Canadians who share in promoting our national values of peace and justice around the world.
For over 60 years Tamils in the island of Sri Lanka have faced oppression, discrimination, and violence unleashed upon them by successive Sri Lankan governments. Today, the 25-year armed conflict has reached a crossroad. Due to intense fighting that resumed after the Government of Sri Lanka unilaterally broke a six-year ceasefire brokered by the Norwegian government in January 2008, over one-quarter of a million Tamils are entrapped within a small sliver of land in the midst of the conflict zone between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.
Thousands have been killed due to arbitrary shelling by the government into so-called safe zones, in direct violation of the Geneva Convention. Hundreds of thousands of internally displaced people, mostly women and children, are on the brink of starvation. Hospitals have been deliberately attacked by shelling, and convoys transporting the sick and the wounded have been targeted. These actions have been widely criticized as war crimes by international actors. Human rights defenders, aid workers, and, as we heard earlier, journalists are at risk for speaking out against human rights abuses perpetuated by the government. Despite calls for an immediate ceasefire by the highest officials of the United Nations, such as the Secretary General and the High Commissioner for Human Rights, by international NGOs, and by foreign governments such as Canada, the Government of Sri Lanka has refused to consider a ceasefire and is vigorously pursuing an aggressive military campaign against the Tamil population in an effort to “wipe out the Tamil Tigers”. In effect, they are wiping out the remaining Tamil population in the northeast of Sri Lanka. Not only has the Government of Sri Lanka rejected the international calls for a ceasefire, but the government is also blocking international humanitarian aid from reaching civilians trapped in the conflict area, in direct violation of international humanitarian laws.
In September 2008, in preparation for its military onslaught on Tamil areas, the Government of Sri Lanka ordered all international aid workers to leave the Tamil areas, with only the International Committee of the Red Cross and the World Food Programme remaining today. I believe you heard on Monday from a representative from the Canadian Red Cross, who outlined the situation there. With the escalation of violence, the ICRC has stated that they are prevented from effectively operating in the area. The Government of Sri Lanka is also accusing international aid groups operating in Sri Lanka, such as CARE International, of supporting terrorism and perpetuating the armed conflict, as reported yesterday on the Sri Lankan ministry of defence website.
Meanwhile, the humanitarian catastrophe in Sri Lanka is deteriorating each day, leading to gross and systemic human rights violations. The ICRC has stated in its latest operational update, dated March 17, 2009:
Tens of thousands of people confined to a rapidly-shrinking area have headed for the coast to escape the fighting, in search of safety, food and medical care. But numbers in the coastal belt held by the LTTE have increased drastically over recent weeks, and clean water is scarce. The area is affected by shelling every day, and the cramped conditions and the lack of water and proper sanitation are putting people at risk of epidemics.
The government agent for the Mullaithivu district in the northeast stated in a letter dated March 5, 2009, requesting much-needed food rations:
...every day the IDPs come to us and are pressurizing us for food, but we are not in a position to give them a correct answer. These innocent people, including children and women, are in a pathetic condition, and very soon they will die due to starvation. The regional director of health services in Mullaithivu has informed us that 13 people have already died due to starvation.
Our fear here in the diaspora is that many more will suffer the same fate in the days and weeks to come.
The breakdown of the rule of law in Sri Lanka is also very apparent. According to the United Nations Working Group on Enforced Disappearances, Sri Lanka has the highest number of disappearances in the world next to Iraq. This is an old figure, so I'm assuming, with the current situation in Iraq and the current deteriorating situation in Sri Lanka, that Sri Lanka probably ranks as the highest.
The former minister of foreign affairs in Sri Lanka, Mr. Mangala Samaraweera, was quoted in the Sunday Leader as admitting that a person is abducted every five hours in Sri Lanka. He went on to state that “Kidnappings, abductions and killings have become common incidents.” This is a former minister of the government stating this.
Sri Lanka is also ranked the most dangerous place in the world for journalists and media workers, as we have heard in this afternoon's testimony. Amnesty International reports that 15 journalists have been killed in Sri Lanka since 2006. The most recent attack on the media occurred last month, with the so-called arrest of Mr. N. Vithyatharan, the editor of the only functioning Tamil daily in northern Sri Lanka, who continues to be detained to this day. Mr. Vithyatharan has a brother living in Canada and was recently in Canada, last fall, speaking about the deteriorating situation in Sri Lanka.
This is the bleak reality that faces Tamils in Sri Lanka. Each passing day, as we hear the news of more death and destruction on the island, Tamil Canadians are at a loss as to what to do. Debate about the Sri Lankan-Tamil conflict is not simply an academic or political debate in our community. These are not just statistics or numbers for our community. Rather, these are our loved ones, our families, our friends, who are suffering immense hardship day in and day out.
Over the past several months, Tamil Canadians from all walks of life, from infants to senior citizens, from Vancouver to Halifax, have taken part in demonstrations, rallies, human chains, and vigils to bring awareness of the plight of Tamils in Sri Lanka and to call for an immediate ceasefire to allow for humanitarian aid to reach those trapped in the conflict zone.
During the committee proceedings on Monday, several members referred to the role of the Tamil diaspora in this conflict. The role of the Tamil diaspora, in particular of Tamil Canadians, is vital. However, there's a deep sense of frustration among Tamil Canadians. We were the ones who were able to leave the brutality and the persecution that we faced back home to seek refuge and safe haven in the welcoming arms of countries such as Canada. Those we have left behind are silent and voiceless. We are here today to carry their voice in the hope that the international community, starting with Canada, will take decisive actions.
Our voices have not gone unheard. The Canadian public is well aware of the humanitarian crisis in Sri Lanka, thanks in part to local media coverage. Canadian parliamentarians are also listening. During the emergency debate held in Parliament on February 4 of this year, honourable members from all political parties denounced the violence that's being perpetuated in the conflict. I know that several of you participated in those debates, and we thank you for that. Today in this committee room you are hearing our pleas. I know that some committee members here have extensive knowledge of the Sri Lankan conflict and are doing as much as they can in a personal and professional capacity to bring awareness of the conflict to the general public.
We are here today to plead for greater Canadian involvement in order to prevent an already catastrophic humanitarian situation from escalating further. Canadian influence in international forums such as the United Nations and the Commonwealth of Nations is necessary to pressure the Sri Lankan government to conform to international humanitarian and human rights law.
Why Canada? Well, Canada is a leader in promoting international human rights and peace building. Canadian doctrines such as human security and responsibility to protect—R2P—are the driving forces of international human rights discourse. Renowned Canadians such as Louise Arbour, Stephen Toope, Allan Rock, and Stephen Lewis are at the forefront of the international human rights movement. If there is any one nation that can make a significant difference in bringing about a solution to the Sri Lankan conflict, surely it is Canada.
The Government of Sri Lanka lacks the political will to initiate a negotiated solution on its own accord. History shows this is the case. There has been rejection of repeated attempts to politically negotiate settlements to the conflict, from the Bandaranaike-Chelvanayakam Pact to the India-Lanka accord--the only international peace agreement signed by the Sri Lankan government--to the Interim Self Governing Authority, to the Post-Tsunami Operational Management Structure or P-TOMS. All were abrogated or flat out rejected by various Sri Lankan governments. However, with increased international pressure, including economic isolation like trade sanctions, Sri Lanka can be compelled to find an alternative to the war against Tamils.
A quote comes to mind: “peace is not the absence of war, but the presence of tranquility”. According to this definition of peace, there has been no peace in Sri Lanka for generations. Long before the LTTE even existed, there was political turmoil and oppression of the Tamil minority. Even during the ceasefire period, the threat of the resumption of violence loomed overhead.
What Tamils in Sri Lanka and around the world yearn for is a lasting and just peace that takes into account the legitimate aspirations of Tamils in their homeland to determine their own political destiny. In this regard, the Canadian government can take several measures. I'm going to outline several of these recommendations.
One is to urge the Government of Sir Lanka to immediately suspend military operations directed at civilians, undertake a ceasefire, and return to the negotiating table to mediate a peaceful resolution to the armed conflict in Sri Lanka.
Two is to urge the Government of Sir Lanka to immediately allow the free flow of humanitarian aid to the conflict zone and allow international aid workers unimpeded access to affected areas.
Three is to urge the Government of Sir Lanka to allow journalists into the conflict area to report on the current situation in the north and east and to respect press freedom
Four is to urge fellow Commonwealth member states to consider removing Sri Lanka from participating in and receiving any benefits from being a member of the Commonwealth of Nations while it continues to violate human rights and humanitarian law.
Five is to consider imposing economic and diplomatic sanctions against the Government of Sir Lanka for violating the Geneva Convention and for gross and systemic human rights violations.
An entire generation of Tamil children and youth has grown up knowing nothing but war and violence. Over a million Tamils have been externally displaced around the world, while another million remain internally displaced. This armed conflict has claimed over 80,000 lives, and the vast majority of Tamils were killed by the Sri Lankan government. It is our hope that together we can prevent another generation from being lost in this conflict.
Before I conclude, I would like to invite all of you to attend a powerful exhibit, called “Understanding Sri Lanka's War”, being held here on Parliament Hill on April 1 in the Commonwealth Room, room 238, from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., in order to obtain a more thorough understanding of the Sri Lankan-Tamil conflict. Considering the deteriorating situation in Sri Lanka, this powerful exhibition serves as a much-needed reminder of the tragic circumstances that led over 300,000 Tamil Canadians to uproot their lives from Sri Lanka, leave their friends and family, and embrace Canada as their home.
Thank you.
David, Sharmila, and I will be available for questions.
4:50 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Kevin Sorenson
Thank you very much.
We'll move to comments from Mr. Papoulidis, please.
4:50 p.m.
Jonathan Papoulidis Senior Policy Advisor, Peacebuilding and Humanitarian Affairs, World Vision Canada
Mr. Chair and honourable members, we thank you very much for the opportunity to present on the situation in Sri Lanka today. World Vision has worked in the country for over thirty years, and our presentation is motivated as well as conditioned by our long-standing presence and our humanitarian and development commitments and operations.
Let me say from the outset that our fundamental concern is for the some 150,000 civilians that remain trapped in the conflict zone. Their plight is sure to worsen as the conflict narrows to a smaller stretch of land and as measures of resistance become more desperate. Our deepest concern is for the affected children. Hundreds have already been killed, and thousands more are cornered and confronted with little possibility of escape.
In January the conflict required us to halt our emergency water and food distributions to the affected region of the Wanni. We are acutely aware of the lives that are threatened, of the human dignity that is being undermined, and of the rampant spread of hunger and disease.
In the face of this situation, we recognize calls by the Canadian government for a humanitarian ceasefire to allow populations safe passage out of harm's way. World Vision has joined a statement with the United Nations and other aid agencies calling for efforts to allow for safe passage, and for restraint and respect of international humanitarian law by all parties. We continue to call upon the Canadian government to use all channels--both bilateral and multilateral--to ensure the protection of civilians, and to make special provisions for the protection and care of children.
We also recognize that Canada has been working to address the lack of practical and innovative ways to protect civilians in armed conflict. We are encouraged by recent advances in the international normative framework of protection. This includes the recent broadening of the UN Security Council's aide-mémoire on the protection of civilians to better address the needs of children and women caught up in conflict. Nevertheless, this conflict brings into sharp focus the urgent need for more progress in this area.
As Canada actively campaigns for a seat on the Security Council, we urge them to take additional measures to help implement the council's expanded aide-mémoire in support of those trapped in the conflict zone, especially amid reports of breaches of the safe zone along the coast and aborted attempts to establish temporary humanitarian corridors.
First, we urge the Canadian government to support worldwide calls for the appointment of a UN special envoy for the crisis and, where necessary, to offer funding for this position. We are aware that other member states have attempted to deploy their own envoys and establish a monitoring presence, but with limited success. We believe that a consolidated international push, led by Canada, for a UN envoy would have the greatest chance of success. The Sri Lankan government has identified the UN as the primary point of contact among international partners for the response. This opens up opportunities for direct advice giving and coordination.
A qualified UN envoy would help provide recommendations and options for the protection of endangered children and communities and could provide high-level support to the Sri Lankan government for the entire response. We urge members of this standing committee to support the calls for a UN special envoy.
Second, we recommend that the government call for and help negotiate the deployment of the UN's protection capacity team, or ProCap, which includes Canadian experts and benefits from Canadian funding. We believe that opportunities to protect always exist along chains of command through judgment calls for restraint and improvisation. This team could support the Sri Lankan government and the United Nations, as well as aid agencies, with international best practices and options for protecting civilians both in the conflict zone and as part of the broader response in support of displaced populations.
Third, World Vision, as a relief, development, and advocacy organization, stands ready to be a collaborator with the government and this standing committee to share our experiences and more closely explore practical means for protection, especially for children. The establishment of an interdepartmental child protection working group across government departments would be an important step. World Vision, as a steering committee member of the international network, of Watchlist on Children in Armed Conflict, and of Peacebuild's children and armed conflict forum, would welcome such a group as a venue to share knowledge and experience during crisis and beyond. We invite Canada to use this crisis for children in Sri Lanka as impetus for the establishment of such a group.
At present World Vision is playing an active role in addressing the immediate needs and well-being of children and communities who are displaced. There are presently over 50,000 internally displaced persons in 16 camps in the Vavuniya area to the north, and thousands more are expected. The situation remains fluid as aid agencies attempt to rapidly assess and address needs. The Sri Lankan government has taken a lead role in establishing and overseeing the camps, as well as in preparing for more to be built.
We are bringing our close relations with communities and our working relationships with the Sri Lankan government to bear on ensuring principled and rapid assistance to IDPs. Those coming into the camps are physically and mentally exhausted, but continue to demonstrate qualities of resilience, fuelled by their hopes of returning home. World Vision plans to fully support IDPs at every turn, including as principal members of UN clusters for food and non-food relief, and child protection. We are particularly pleased to carry out our work with the support of the Canadian government, including through CIDA grants.
In the relief phase, our emergency water distribution has been redirected to the IDP camps where we have access. We are also providing supplemental feedings so that minimum humanitarian sphere standards can be met, and will distribute hygiene and household kits. We are similarly working to provide temporary shelter for those in the camps.
Critically, we are advocating and making plans with partners, including UNICEF, to ensure child-friendly spaces and a full array of vital protection services for traumatized, abused, separated, and unaccompanied children. As World Vision Canada's president, Dave Toycen, said at the start of renewed fighting, “It is heartbreaking to see children caught up at the center of this conflict. They have already suffered so much over the years: through both the tsunami and the armed conflict.”
At the core of our humanitarian relief response is a commitment to help ensure the dignity, rights, and safety of displaced populations and to support them in their desire to return home in the near future. Accordingly, we are preparing for robust return and rehabilitation phases in our response, in support of the relevant ministries for disaster management and resettlement, and through our roles in interagency groups, consortiums, and clusters.
Our response will include start-up projects for livelihoods and economic opportunities; however, we are mindful of the great needs that will be required for recovery and rehabilitation of the affected region. To address these needs, World Vision is planning to develop area and community recovery projects for the next few years that could, over time, be broadened and consolidated into longer-term development programs of a decade or more.
As we engage in planning for recovery and rehabilitation, we cannot overstate the importance of adjusting to new dynamic and complex realities on the ground. That the Sri Lankan government is now in control of more territory than it has been since the early 1980s carries implications, as well as opportunities, that must be properly understood, managed, and supported for peace and peace building. We strongly urge the Canadian government to engage at this critical moment to support the Sri Lankan government in proposing next steps for lasting peace and development.
Canada should support a durable peace process that addresses the root causes of the conflict, that works to empower communities and local governance, and that helps restore basic services and critical infrastructure. We submit that the immediate first step would be for a delegation, made up of parliamentarians from all parties and senior government officials as well as aid agencies and experts, to visit the country, ideally within the next three months. The delegation should take stock of the humanitarian situation and develop recommendations back to the government, including through this committee, on how to target support for peace, recovery, and longer-term development for the affected region.
Canada has had direct relations with the Sri Lankan government and Sri Lanka since at least the 1950s and shares memberships in important institutions like the United Nations and the Commonwealth. Canada also has a legacy of supporting experiments and innovations for peace and good governance in Sri Lanka. We are convinced that this is a moment to offer significant support and to encourage forward thinking. Where Sri Lanka may have moved off Canada's development agenda as a country of concentration, owing to the wind-down of the tsunami response, we submit that current realities merit a review of the situation.
Now is the time to act in the short and longer term for the people of Sri Lanka, and World Vision remains committed to their support, especially for affected children.
Thank you again for this opportunity. I am pleased to take questions.
4:55 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Kevin Sorenson
Thank you.
We're going to move very quickly into the first rounds of questioning.
Before we do that, I want the committee members to know that at 5:30 the bells will start. My intent is to listen to these guests until 5:30 and then to very quickly pass this steering committee report so that our clerk and our researcher can move into the next stages for planning the trip. That's the plan.
Monsieur Patry, vous avez cinq minutes.
4:55 p.m.
Liberal
Bernard Patry Liberal Pierrefonds—Dollard, QC
Thank you very much for appearing here this afternoon.
First of all, we have heard from many witnesses, and I have also the privilege to have a Tamil temple in my riding and I understand the major suffering of your community. It's a very major one for those living in the camps and the ones who are being kept as hostages in the northeast region.
You mentioned, Ms. Sivalingam, that there was a ceasefire under the umbrella of Norway that was successful, but after that there were no more ceasefires. Right now you've asked our government to bring pressure with the United Nations and to keep applying pressure, but it doesn't seem to affect the current Sri Lankan government. They don't care about this, and I think if they cared they would start to do something. The only time they're going to do something will be at the defeat of the LTTE. That's my understanding, and maybe I'm wrong about this.
But which countries are...[Inaudible--Editor]...the Sri Lankan government and the LTTE, in a sense? If the United Nations doesn't work, maybe we can put pressure through the Commonwealth. Maybe this could succeed. We saw it with Zimbabwe and some other countries in a sense. But which country could really help Canada and some other countries to put a lot of pressure on the government?
Is there any chance there will be a ceasefire? I don't know too much about the LTTE. The only thing we hear is from witnesses who come here. It seems they'll be defeated. They're just localized in a very small region in the northeast. I don't say that one day there'll be no more LTTE, but in the meantime, would anyone like to discuss--on both sides--a ceasefire?
5 p.m.
Policy Director, Canadian Tamil Congress
Let me start with the first question. You're definitely correct in the understanding that in the government, as I said, there's no political will at the moment, and I think that's why we need the increased pressure.
David and I were in Geneva a few weeks ago at the Human Rights Council and we did meet with senior UN officials there at the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. They did mention some countries that would be beneficial to lobby, such as Sweden or Australia, which was mentioned in terms of a Commonwealth nation. Mostly Nordic countries, as mentioned, were involved with the brokering of the peace process. I think the EU is a definite avenue that needs to be pressured in terms of adopting sanctions and trying to influence Sri Lanka to conform to human rights standards.
I think the Commonwealth of Nations is also a very important forum, because Canada itself is a member and Sri Lanka is a member, and I think pressure through that forum.... We've seen this historically with apartheid in South Africa, for example, when a lot of pressure within the Commonwealth of Nations, I believe, helped in terms of getting South Africa to fall in line with human rights standards.
In terms of the second question, whether there is any chance of a ceasefire, I believe that with this current government, unless there is significant international pressure.... The government currently has rejected any calls for an immediate ceasefire. The LTTE has accepted and put an invitation out there for a ceasefire, especially to allow humanitarian aid to get through, but the Sri Lankan government has rejected that.
I don't know if David has anything to add to that.
5 p.m.
David Poopalapillai Public Relations Director and National Spokesperson, Canadian Tamil Congress
Our experience with the Sri Lankan government for the last 60 years has been betrayal and nothing but betrayal. But when it comes to the ceasefire question, the international community has put enough pressure on the Sri Lankan government. Mere words and statements are not enough. So we expect our government and the international community to come up with some strong measures, such as sanctions, a trade embargo taking in the Commonwealth and the UN, or bringing in a resolution at the UN. That would definitely work.
5 p.m.
Conservative
5 p.m.
Bloc
Johanne Deschamps Bloc Laurentides—Labelle, QC
Thank you.
First of all, I would like to bid you welcome and to thank you for giving us your testimony on a matter that concerns us. In recent days, we have heard from several witnesses who have condemned the present situation in Sri Lanka. Their testimony included an account of the various political levels involved in the humanitarian aspect. The previous witness told us about the situation that media people, journalists, are now experiencing. They are being oppressed or repressed. You are appealing to the government to intervene in various ways, either on a political or a humanitarian basis.
Mr. Papoulidis, you suggested the possibility of a parliamentary delegation travelling there. Elections are soon going to be held in the country. Do you think that it would be helpful for a delegation to travel there to observe the electoral process? At the same time, it would be possible to assess the delegation's impact on the government.
5:05 p.m.
Senior Policy Advisor, Peacebuilding and Humanitarian Affairs, World Vision Canada
Thank you very much.
I think the notion of an observer mission for elections would be a different kind of mission. The one that at least we're discussing or putting on the table would look at how to collaborate on recovery and rehabilitation for the affected region while supporting peace building and supporting the government on that front. The notion of an observer mission for elections is a very standard type of mission that has very clear parameters. I think that would be discussed in a different way.
5:05 p.m.
Policy Director, Canadian Tamil Congress
I would think that election monitors in Sri Lanka during this election period would be very valuable. We've seen in the past a lot of violence directed at individuals trying to exercise the right to vote. There was a lot of violence directed at Tamil parliamentarians who have been elected as MPs. We've seen a number of them being assassinated. There's definitely a threat to democracy, to the right to vote in Sri Lanka, and I think an election monitor would go a long way towards ensuring that democracy and the right to vote are respected, at least during this election period.
5:05 p.m.
Sharmila Rajasingam Member, Canadian Tamil Congress
Allow me to say a few words in reply to your question.
Of course, it would be very helpful if people other than those from Sri Lanka were on the ground. The goal would be to watch how the country's justice is administered. In Sri Lanka, the government does not always hear the voice of the Tamils. In the north of the country, we are not fairly represented in Parliament. Having people from a foreign country who know the present situation in Sri Lanka well would be very meaningful, especially during the coming elections, given that there is definite talk of genocide and a humanitarian crisis. For that reason, the answer to your question is definitely yes. I really think it is an obligation. It is not just a question of being there; it is right to be there, it is something that should be done.
Thank you.
5:05 p.m.
Conservative
Deepak Obhrai Conservative Calgary East, AB
Mr. Chair, I'll ask a short question and then I'll give it over to my colleague Lois.
I just want to tell Jonathan that the Sri Lankan government has accused aid agencies of being partisan. They've accused all aid agencies of being partisan.
I think I will give your association a chance to put on the record whatever you want to say, so it's down, and then I'll give it over to Lois.
5:05 p.m.
Senior Policy Advisor, Peacebuilding and Humanitarian Affairs, World Vision Canada
I can say that World Vision has been working in the country for 30 years. Over the course of the tsunami response, we've built up very good relationships with the community and a very solid working relationship with the government. Our priority right now is to be able to maintain our ability and our capabilities to address displaced populations and the populations in the affected region.
5:05 p.m.
Conservative
Lois Brown Conservative Newmarket—Aurora, ON
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
This is more for clarification for me, if you don't mind. I understand there are four key players in Sri Lanka: the Liberation Tigers, the Government of Sri Lanka, the People's Liberation Front, and the United National Party. You spoke a little bit earlier about some peace initiatives that had been attempted and that had been violated, I understand. Can you talk to us first of all about the initiatives that have been undertaken, what they look like, what compromises were made on both sides, and who has violated those peace initiatives? I think it's important for us to understand that, because we need to know the local peace initiatives that are being undertaken so we can start looking at what our government might think about doing.
5:10 p.m.
Policy Director, Canadian Tamil Congress
Attempts to come to a political solution to the crisis in Sri Lanka started way back, right from independence in 1948 when the British left. I don't want to give you too much of a history lesson, because I know most of you are well versed in some aspects of Sri Lankan history. But when the British left, essentially they left the island, and when they left they granted independence. They left the island of Sri Lanka as a unitary state, and that did cause considerable concern even during the debate about independence from various Tamil political parties at the time. So as I mentioned, right from the first instance of a peace negotiation or some kind of a devolution package with the Bandaranaike-Chelvanayagam Pact--and that goes right from the 1950s and 1960s straight to various other attempts during armed conflict--several peace agreements were formed. Most recently the Interim Self-Governing Authority was a proposal brought forward by the LTTE in terms of a political solution.
In most of those, the concessions were that the Tamil community would consider something less than a separate state if they had regional and local political autonomy. Some of the main issues are having control over language and education, so devolution of power from the central government.
I'm going to hand it over to David to speak a bit more on who broke which pacts.
5:10 p.m.
Public Relations Director and National Spokesperson, Canadian Tamil Congress
Harini mentioned this Bandaranaike-Chelvanayagam Pact that was signed between the Sinhalese Prime Minister and the Tamil leader, Mr. Chelvanayagam, in 1957. It was abrogated purely by Sinhalese leaders.
When I was here last Monday, a witness clearly said the Buddhist monks protested the pact, and it was abrogated. History repeated itself. Every time the Tamil parties wanted to have peace, wanted to have some sort of autonomy, much less than the federal set-up in the fifties and sixties and seventies, it was abrogated. Pacts were signed. Unilaterally it was broken by the Sinhalese leadership. Why? Because the opposition party.... You mentioned the two parties, the two key components, the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and the United National Party. If one party comes to an agreement, the other party opposes it.
So that's the history, a bitter history, in Sri Lanka.
Very recently, in 2002, when the LTTE and the Sri Lankan government were brought to a ceasefire by many international players, the LTTE came down with a proposal called ISGA, Interim Self-Governing Authority. The Tamil diaspora largely contributed to designing the package. It was much less than a separate state, but none of the Sinhalese actors, including the government then in power, looked at it. They didn't want to look at it; they didn't want to talk about it.
This is the sad history of Sri Lanka. That's what we are saying. Unless there is a lot of pressure from the outside world, from countries like Canada, America, and other countries with some sort of strong measures such as diplomatic sanctions and a travel embargo or a trade embargo, whatever it is, it will be very hard to find peace in Sri Lanka. This is the sad history of Sri Lanka.
5:10 p.m.
Conservative
5:10 p.m.
NDP
Paul Dewar NDP Ottawa Centre, ON
Thank you, Chair.
Thank you to our guests for presenting today.
We've had other witnesses who have said that it's important for Canada to have a presence on the ground, or diplomatic boots on the ground, if you will. I'm also hearing we should use the Commonwealth, the UN, and the European countries.
I don't think anyone would disagrees that we should send a senior government official to Sri Lanka.
As for an emergency meeting of the Commonwealth, would you see that as plausible? Or has anyone thought about having a contact group of Canada and members of the Commonwealth, particularly given the vital and respected role Norway has played? I guess my question is, has that been explored by anyone and is it a viable option?
I know the window is short here, as I'm hearing that something of this sort needs to happen before the elections and, obviously, to continue as the conflict goes on. But I'm just wondering if this idea has come forward. And do you have any concern about any of the ideas I've put forward?
Harini.
5:15 p.m.
Policy Director, Canadian Tamil Congress
To my knowledge, the idea of getting countries together in a contact group has not been explored yet. I think it would be a useful initiative to get like-minded countries to form a working group and to come forward with an action plan on Sri Lanka. I think that would be very useful.
There's another thing I wanted to mention in terms of having a delegation or a fact-finding mission of senior Canadian officials go to Sri Lanka. One of the important aspects of such a mission, or a trip by a group of parliamentarians, is that it visit not just Colombo but all areas, or at least that it pressure the government to allow it into different areas, such as the north—and Jaffna, for sure. The conflict areas, given the situation right now, would be dangerous or risky to visit; but you should at least speak to and meet with Tamil parliamentarians, and you should have access not just to the Colombo area but also others. I think that's vital for such a group.