DVDs on the Tamil Situation
by Brian Sevewiratne, Brisbane, Australia, March 23, 2007
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What is stressed in all of them is that the war that is being waged is not just against the Tamil Tigers, but against the Tamil people. The former is to crush all resistance to Sinhala chauvinism, and the latter to force the Tamil people to accept multiethnic, multilingual, multireligious, multicultural Sri Lanka, as a Sinhala-Buddhist nation. It is an attempt to settle a political problem with military might.
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The Tamil people are facing the worst crisis in their recorded history, at the hands of the most murderous regime ever to run Sri Lanka. The only ‘force’ that can stop the murderous attempt by the Rajapakse regime to decimate the Tamil people in the North and East of Sri Lanka, is international public opinion.
The International Community (IC) has to be targetted urgently. For this to be done, ordinary people across the world will have to be apprised of the critical situation facing the Tamil people. What the Tamils need is not an Air Force or bigger and better military hardware (neither of which are even remotely possible), but the force of international condemnation, especially the violation of human rights and the injustices done to the Tamils by a succession of Sinhala-dominated Governments.
What is urgently needed is an ‘information campaign’ to counter the ‘disinformation campaign’ launched by the Government. To achieve this, I have put together three DVDs of varying length (30, 45 and 120 minutes), which deal with the problems facing the Tamil people.
What is stressed in all of them is that the war that is being waged is not just against the Tamil Tigers, but against the Tamil people. The former is to crush all resistance to Sinhala chauvinism, and the latter to force the Tamil people to accept multiethnic, multilingual, multireligious, multicultural Sri Lanka, as a Sinhala-Buddhist nation. It is an attempt to settle a political problem with military might. This must be spelt out to the IC with documented facts which will refute the Government canard that Tamil civilians are not being targetted.
The three DVDs are
- Sri Lanka. The human cost of a military solution. 30 minutes
- Sri Lanka. Humanitarian Concerns. 45 minutes
- Sri Lanka. The Ethnic Problem. What the world must know. 120 minutes
What should be done?
I suggest that the 30 minute and 45 minute DVDs be duplicated and distributed to non-Sri Lankans, with a request that they pressure their politicians to act. What they have to do has been set out in all the DVDs.
I have neither the funds nor the facilities to do this. All I can do is to send the DVDs to those who feel they can help in their distribution. Permission to duplicate them is not necessary since these have been recorded by me.
A printed version
The contents of the DVDs (including the pictures) are being printed. Printing colour photographs is quite expensive and I have put this ‘on hold’ until I can get some idea of how many will be needed. It will help if you could let me know how many of which one you will be interested in.
Availability
I am hoping to have these DVDs available in California, New York, Toronto, London, and Paris. They will, of course, be available from me (in Brisbane), and perhaps in Sydney and Melbourne. For the moment, the best I can suggest is that you contact me (briansen@bigpond.net.au), call me +61 419335335 or mail me, 292 Pine Mt Rd, Mt Gravatt, Australia 4122, and I will post the DVDs or tell you where you can get them.
Payment
Frankly I have not thought about payment and I suggest we forget about it for the moment. What is important is to get the message across and do it urgently. When I send the DVD, I will let you know the cost (with the postage) and how it could be paid. I doubt if it will be much since I have only to recover the cost of copying the DVD, printing the cover and label, and the postage.
I am not sure what the printed version will cost, but I can get an estimate depending on the demand.
The major cost has been the production which fortunately has been met by a few friends of mine in the US, UK, Auckland, Brisbane and, (from someone I have never met!), in Darwin. These funds have not been enough to make these DVDs professionally, but the ones I have been able to put together do get the message across, which is what is needed in this critical time when the very survival of the Tamil civilians is being threatened.
I urge you to act now. Tomorrow may be too late for the Tamils in the North and East, at the hands of a brutal, irresponsible and barbaric regime, that has not set a limit to the suffering of the Tamil people, and has the temerity to call itself their ‘Government’.
The contents of the DVDs
Sri Lanka. The human cost of a military solution 30 minutes
Introduction
The Background
Ethno-religious mix in Sri Lanka
Sinhala-Buddhist Ethno-religious chauvinism
Anti-Tamil discrimination
Tamil protests and Government response
The Tamil armed struggle
The Government response
Buddhist monks
A war against the Tamil people
The spectrum of civilian structural damage
Cost
Ceasefire - February 2002
A new President
The weapons being used on the Tamil people
The Sri Lanka Armed Forces
Post-Rajapakse violence
Sri Lankan Monitoring mission data
Sencholai orphanage bombing
Slaughter in Tamil North
Sadism
Allaipiddy massacre
Rape |
Landmine victims
Schools, hospitals Kovils, churches, homes ,businesses
Fishing banned
Blocking the A9 highway
High-security zones. Blocking agriculture.
Execution of Aid workers
Mass displacement of Tamils and Muslims from the East
Refugees on the move
Plight of the elderly
Tent dwellers
Genocide
Tamil children killed (data)
Ways to achieve genocide
Mentality of suicide bombers
Child soldiers
What keeps the conflict going?
Act we must. Act how?
The most urgent action need
Closing remarks. |
Sri Lanka Humanitarian concerns 45 minutes
Introduction
Ethno-religious mix in Sri Lanka
Sinhala-Buddhist Ethno- religious chauvinism
Anti-Tamil discrimination
Tamil protests – Sinhala politician’s answer
The Tamil armed struggle
The Government’s response to the armed struggle
A war against the Tamil people
The weapons being used
The Sri Lanka Armed Forces
The spectrum of civilian structural damage
Navaly Church bombing
Ceasefire February 2002
Election of new President
Post-Rajapakse slaughter
Politically active Buddhist monks
Nordic Monitoring Mission data of killings
Massacres of Tamil civilians
Pesalai Massacre
Killed and hanged – sadism
Allaipiddy massacre
Kill and hang
Rape
Sencholai orphanage bombing
Slaughter in Tamil North
Landmine victims
Blocking the A9 highway
Fishing and Agriculture blocked |
High-security zones
Execution of Aid workers
Refugees on the move
Plight of the elderly
Tent dwellers
Genocide
Tamil children killed (data)
Ways to achieve genocide
Different types of genocide
Rights of the child and child soldiers
Mentality of suicide bombers
Tamil Tiger atrocities
bus bombing
Colombo Central Bank
State and non-State atrocities
My position
What keeps the conflict going?
Possible solutions
UN Referendum
Sri Lanka too small to be divided?
The cost
International concerns and fall-out
Act we must
Act how
The most urgent action need
Becoming part of the problem
Closing remarks. |
Sri Lanka. The Ethnic Conflict. What the world needs to know 120 minutes
Introduction
The world does not know
A crisis in governance and democracy
Bribery for Government political survival
Where is Sri Lanka?
The Geography of the country
The peopling of Sri Lanka
The Mahavamsa legend
The 3 Kingdoms
The Westerners arrive
The administrative changes by the British
The result of the British colonial construct
The Plantation Tamils
Ethno-religious mix in Sri Lanka
The British leave
Disenfranchisement of Plantation Tamils
Sinhala-Buddhist Ethno-religious chauvinism
The Sri Lankan Ethnic problem
Post-Independence Sinhala chauvinist demands
Political opportunism
Anti-Tamil discrimination
Tamil protests
Sri Lankan Government response to Tamil protests
Tamil requests
The Tamil armed struggle
Liberation vs Terrorism
The Government’s response to the armed struggle
Politically active Buddhist monks
The cost
International concerns and fall-out
Weapons suppliers
A war against the Tamil people
The weapons being used
The Sri Lanka Armed Forces
Sencholai orphanage bombing
Allaipiddy massacre
Kill and hang
Rape
Massacres of Tamil civilians
Landmine victims
The spectrum of civilian structural damage
High-security zones
Jaffna library destruction
Blocking the A9 highway
Mass evacuation of the Tamil and Muslim East |
Refugees on the move
Plight of the elderly
Tent dwellers
Execution of Aid workers
Nordic Monitoring Mission
Genocide
Tamil children killed (data)
Ways to achieve genocide
Different types of genocide
Post-Rajapakse slaughter
Suicide bombers
Tamil Tiger atrocities
bus bombing
Colombo bombing
Colombo Central Bank
My position
Child soldiers
Mass killings of Tamil civilians since 1956
The 1983 pogrom
Tamil killings since 1983
Killing Tamil media people
Killing Tamil Parliamentarians
Colombo today
Jaffna today
Main Street Colombo
Main Street Jaffna
High-life in Colombo
Low-life in Jaffna
What keeps the conflict going?
Trincomalee
Diego Garcia
Indian possessions in Trincomalee
Solutions
The basic requirements
The options
UN Referendum
Sri Lanka too small to be divided?
Trincomalee- the reason
Problems in the South
Act we must
The most urgent action needed
Becoming part of the problem
Closing remarks. |
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