Posts Categorized: History

Kittu: The LTTE legend by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 56 The modern history of Sri Lanka is not complete without a chapter on Satahasivam Krishnakumar, who was popularly called “Kittu”. He is considered a hero and more than a legend by Tamils all over the world. He was a… Read more »

The execution of Mahattya by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 55 Mahendrarajah, alias Mahattaya, joined the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in 1978. He was born in 1956, but unlike most of the LTTE leaders he was not from Valvetiturai, but from Point Pedro East. He was educated at… Read more »

The murder of Athulathmudali by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 54 In the 1989 presidential elections, Lalith Athulathmudali, who was then the Minister for National Security, Prime Minister Ranasinghe Premadasa and the Minister for Mahaveli Development, Gamini Dissanayake, were widely believed to be the contenders for nomination from the ruling… Read more »

More peace talks by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 53 In 1990, President Ranasinghe Premadasa negotiated with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) for a peaceful settlement of the ethnic conflict tearing the island apart, but the Tamil militants reneged during the negotiations and launched the second Eelam war… Read more »

The Kilaly Massacre by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 52 General Denzil Kobbekaduwa and nine other Sri Lankan security service personnel being killed in Araly Point Kayts on August 8, 1992, prematurely halting an impending onslaught on Jaffna peninsula, burst opened the floodgates of violent activities, both by the Government… Read more »

President blamed for assassinations by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 51 From June 11, 1990, when the second Eelam war flared up, Sri Lanka was turned into a killing field. Death and destruction became the order of the day. On the one side, the leader of the Liberation Tigers of… Read more »

Commission fails to contact the LTTE by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 50 The question has been raised as to why the Presidential Commission charged with the inquiry into the assassination of Lieutenant-General Denzil Kobbekaduwa and nine others at Araly, Kayts, on August 8, 1992 failed to contact the Liberation… Read more »

Death of a military hero by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 49 When President Ranatunge Premadasa formed his new government in September 1989, it was expected that either Lalith Athulathmudali or Gamini Dissanayake, one of the two United National Party (UNP) stalwarts, would be made the new Prime Minister. But,… Read more »

No confidence in the president by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 48 The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), though they were isolated and hunted down in India, after the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi, they were the determining force of the political agenda in Sri Lanka. “As a consequence of… Read more »

Gandhi’s murder: Widespread fallout by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 47 The assassination of Rajiv Gandhi reverberated beyond the national borders of India. Brutal deaths in the Nehru family were becoming all too regular. Sanjay Gandhi had died in a plane crash, Rajiv’s mother Indira Gandhi had been gunned down…. Read more »

Questions over Gandhi’s killing by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 46 When Rajiv Gandhi was murdered on May 21, 1991, he was 46 years old. He was born on August 20, l944 and brought up in the Nehru Gandhi family of freedom fighters, great leaders and statesmen. Indira Gandhi, the… Read more »

Slaughter of Tamil Prisoners inside High Security Jail & Genocide of Tamils in July 1983 by Kumarathasan Rasingam – Secretary, Tamil Canadian Elders for Human Rights Org. Post independence Sri Lanka brought in several official dispositions that gave preference to the Sinhalese majority. The Sinhala Only Act introduced by the Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP)… Read more »

Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 45 The political scene in India became murkier as the minority government of Prime Minister S Chandrasekhar developed serious misunderstandings with Rajiv Gandhi, the leader of the opposition, and the latter ultimately forced Chandrasekhar to announce the resignation of his four-month-old… Read more »

War continues with brutality by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 44 On the one hand, an inhumane campaign of collective punishment on the Tamils was unleashed by the Government of President Ranasinghe Premadasa, while on the other hand a brutal and ruthless campaign was let loose by the Liberation Tigers… Read more »

Eelam war – again by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 43 Subjected to continuous outbursts by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), such as, “This is the last chance we give you. If you fail, we are prepared to wage war”, Anton Balasingham warned the Sri Lankan Government of… Read more »

Aftermath of the Indian withdrawal by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 42 Indian interference in Sri Lankan politics came to a final halt when the last of the Indian Peacekeeping Forces (IPKF) left the territorial waters of Sri Lanka on March 24, 1990. Maverick Indian Prime Minister Viswanath Pratab Singh,… Read more »

Unilateral declaration of Eelam by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 41 Viswanath Pratab Singh, the new prime minister of India and leader of the five-party National Front coalition government, announced the withdrawal of the Indian Peace Keeping Forces (IPKF) from Sri Lanka, by March 31, 1990. This was his major… Read more »

Confusion as Indians withdraw by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 40 The basic idea behind raising the Citizen Volunteer Force (CVF) was the provision of an armed force to ensure the safety and security of Sri Lankan Tamils in the absence of any law-enforcing agency in the Jaffna Peninsula. In… Read more »

Rohan Wijeweera’s killing still a mystery by K T Rajasingham, ‘Asian Times,’ Singapore, 2002 Chapter 1 Chapter 39 On July 30, 1983, along with the Nawa Sama Samaja Party and the Communist Party, the Janatha Vimukthi Perumuna (JVP – People’s Liberation Front), led by Rohana Wijeweera, was proscribed by President J R Jayewardene. The JVP… Read more »