John Stuart Mill

John Stuart Mill (1806-1873), is is one of the few indisputably classic authors in the history of political thought.

On Liberty, first published in 1859, has become celebrated as the most powerful defence of the freedom of the individual, and is now widely regarded as the most important theoretical foundation for Liberalism as a political creed. Representative Government, was published in 1961 Many of his writings are very relevant to the events in Sri Lanka. Here are a few.

Behavior of the Oppressed and the Oppressor
Many Tamil politicians and businessmen since the nineteen forties to the present, thought that it to is to their own advantage to favour the government policies against the rest of the Tamils. But many resisted, the policies that denied the rights of the Tamils, peacefully. Others took up to arms to defend their rights. Mill said,

"The strength of none is sufficient to resist alone, and each may reasonably think that it consults its own advantage most by bidding for the favour of the government against the rest..."

Army of Occupation
A Buddhist priest, about 300 BC, asked by the Ruhuna Chieftain Dutugamani about the "sin" involved in the killing of Tamils, advised,

"You have not sinned at all. The Tamils are only
half human. Killing them is not a sin!"

Mill, on the attitudes of armies, said,

"Above all, the grand and only reliable security in the last resort against despotism of the government is in that case wanting - the sympathy of the army with the people. The military are the part of every community in whom, from the nature of the case, the distinction between their fellow-countrymen and foreigners is the deepest and strongest. To the rest of the people foreigners are merely strangers; to the soldier, they are men against whom he may be called, at a week's notice, to fight for life or death. The difference to is that between friends and enemies - we may almost say between fellow-men and another kind of animals; for , as respects the enemy, the only law is that of force, and the only mitigation the same as in the case of other animals - that of simple humanity. Soldiers to whose feelings half or three fourths of the subjects of the same government are foreigners, will have no more scruple in mowing them down, and no more desire to ask the reason why, then they would in doing the same thing against declared enemies."

Sri Lanka's armed forces throughout the island, and especially in the northeast continue to violate the human rights of the Tamils as if they are sub-human or animals. Tamils are raped, maimed and killed. Since the beginning of this year, more than 700 young persons are missing and many more are in detention camps. Many Tamil civilians are denied the freedom of movement to travel to the South. About 12,000 Tamils, including children, pregnant mothers, etc., are in detention camps in Vavuniya.

Sinhala soldiers who commit these atrocities probably take solace from the Buddhist priest's contention that Tamils are only "half human."