War in Sri Lanka - Round 2

BN Youth together with Youth NGOs have gathered peacefully at the Sri Lankan Embassy this afternoon to hand over a Memorandum of Protest to His Excellency the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka, Kuala Lumpur.

This is the second time we are gathered here to present the memorandum. We were here with a smaller crowd on the 5th of November, 2008 but the Sri Lankan Embassy only permitted representatives from MIC to present the Memorandum. NGO representatives were not allowed. We found the condition unacceptable and vowed to return with a bigger crowd. This is what we have done today.

Although MIC has taken the lead, our friends from UMNO, MCA, Gerakan, PPP, IPF and NGOs are here in full support of this cause. There are even members from the opposition parties here. It goes to show that this issue transcends race, religion or politics. It is an issue that binds us all together. It is a humanitarian issue.

The memorandum was presented to register our protest against the Sri Lankan Government’s continued air and ground attacks in recent weeks that has resulted in civilians being killed and maimed; hundreds of thousands of Tamils have been displaced, literally refugees in their own country!

Without taking sides as to who is fighting the ‘right war’, Malaysian Youths are deeply concerned with the alarmingly high rate of civilian casualties in the on going war.

On humanitarian grounds, we Malaysians cannot stand-by as mere spectators, as innocent civilians especially children, suffer the atrocities of war. Malaysians regardless of race or religion are deeply disturbed by the daily reports and graphic pictures of civilian casualties of the war. Malaysians, like our fellow citizens of this world do not wish to see more lives being sacrificed in the name of war.

It was due to this reason that MIC Youth had taken the initiative to present a Memorandum of Protest to the Sri Lankan Government through its embassy here. We have been joined in this cause by our fellow brothers from Barisan Nasional Youths and NGOs.

The purpose of delivering this Memorandum is to call upon the Sri Lankan Government, in the name of humanity, to:

stop forthwith the current military attack and take immediate steps to provide necessary aid to suffering civilians;allow international aid organizations back into the affected areas so as to enable humanitarian aid to reach those in need;respect the wishes of the International Community to stop fighting and resume negotiation with all the parties concerned with a view of finding lasting peace between the Brothers of Sri Lanka.

In addition to the presentation of this Memorandum, MIC Youth, in close co-operation with NGOs, will also pursue the following actions:

Forward a similar Memorandum to our Foreign Affairs Ministry and the Prime Minister in order for our government to express, on a government to government basis, the wishes of the Malaysian people for Peace in Sri Lanka.

To work closely with the local media to raise fund, food and medical supplies in order for the same to be delivered to the suffering people of Sri Lanka.

A detailed list of the toll the war had taken on civilians is set out in the Memorandum of Protest presented to His Excellency the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka and attached together with this Press Statement.

We would like to register our sincere thanks to the media, NGOs, BN Youth and all present here for this worthy cause.


Thank you.

Murugesan Sinnandavar
Organising Chairman
Youths for Peace in Sri Lanka

Raja Petra Released

It is good that the High Court in Shah Alam allowed Raja Petra's Habeas Corpus application and ruled that his detention under ISA unlawful. It gives us all a glimmer of hope that the courts will interpret the law in favour of a detainee where there is doubt.

Very often I have read with distress judgments where judges rule in favour of the government or prosecution where there is ambiguity. I am a firm believer that where there is grey area in law, judges should interpret the law in such a way that it advances freedom and protection of human rights.

Judges in India are famed for such inclinations and that is one of the reasons why India is able to maintain a robust democracy despite having a very corrupt political and civil service system. Good for RPK. He is a free man once more, free to speak his mind. Good for our democracy too.

Touching on the subject of ISA, MIC Youth met with Indian based NGOs again yesterday ( 7th November, 2008) to discuss what could we as a group do in order to secure the release of the Hindraf 5. The first meeting was held just before Hari Raya.

After much discussion, it was decided that demonstration will be counter-productive in this instance. It was agreed that MIC Youth together with NGOs will meet with either the Prime Minister or the Home Affairs Minister to make further representations as to why we think the Hindraf 5 are not a security threat and why their continued detention untenable.

For the nay-sayers, I have stated earlier and reiterate it here again, that we are doing this with full knowledge that we will still be criticized for taking this effort; but we are doing this on human rights ground and with the realization that it is the only right thing to do. Nothing less, nothing more.

For those that genuinely feel that the Hindraf 5 should be released, this is all I ask of you, let us do our job and you do yours. We can fight and find faults on other issues. Enough finger pointing has been going on whilst the 5 have been detained without trial and their families suffer. Lets move on.

Murugesan Sinnandavar

War in Sri Lanka - Press Report

Source http://pemudamic.org

Greetings to all, updates from the Sri Lankan Embassy Demonstration earlier today.

Photos at :- http://pemudamic.org/index.php?ind=gallery&op=section_view&idev=15

More than 200 people from MIC Youth and several non-governmental organizations staged a peaceful demonstration in front of the Sri Lankan High Commission here yesterday.
They were protesting against the Sri Lankan government's continued air and ground attacks against Sri Lankan Tamils resulting in innocent men, women and children being killed and maimed.

The demonstration which was led by MIC Youth deputy coordinator S. Murugesan and MIC Youth advisory council chairman S. Ramis. MIC Youth coordinator T. Mohan and S. Vell Paari were present to give their moral support.

All the members wore black armbands while some carried placards depicting the pictures of the affected women, children and damaged houses.

However they decided not to submit a memorandum of protest to the High Commission after their officials insisted on only allowing MIC Youth officials to present it.

Murugesan said that it was unacceptable as MIC Youth had already informed the High Commission that they were coming together to hand over the memorandum.

"It seems that the High Commission wants to divide the MIC Youth and the ngos. Their condition is unacceptable," he told reporters later.

Earlier a High Commission official only wanted to allow two people to go into their premises to submit their memorandum but later relented to allow five of them.

The official requested for the identification cards of the five representatives including three ngo representatives which he took into the premises but later came back and said that only the MIC Youth representatives would be allowed in.

Murugesan said that they would initiate a campaign to urge Malaysians to boycott Sri Lanka products as well as the Sri Lanka airlines.

"We would be having another demonstration with a much bigger crowd in the near future. We will show our strength," he said.

War in Sri Lanka - Press Statement

PRESS STATEMENT

5th November, 2008

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

MIC Youth together with Youth NGOs have gathered peacefully at the Sri Lankan Embassy this morning to hand over a Memorandum of Protest to His Excellency the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka, Kuala Lumpur.

The memorandum was presented to register our protest against the Sri Lankan Government’s continued air and ground attacks in recent weeks that has resulted in civilians being killed and maimed; hundreds of thousands of Tamils have been displaced, literally refugees in their own country!

Without taking sides as to who is fighting the ‘right war’, Malaysian Youths are deeply concerned with the alarmingly high rate of civilian casualties in the on going war.

On humanitarian grounds, we Malaysians cannot stand-by as mere spectators, as innocent civilians especially children, suffer the atrocities of war. Malaysians and in particular, Tamil speaking Malaysians, are deeply disturbed by the daily reports and graphic pictures of civilian casualties of the war. Malaysians, like our fellow citizens of this world do not wish to see more lives being sacrificed in the name of war.

It was due to this reason that MIC Youth had taken the initiative to present a Memorandum of Protest to the Sri Lankan Government through its embassy here. We have been joined in this cause by our fellow brothers from NGOs.

The purpose of delivering this Memorandum is three-fold:
1. To call upon the Sri Lankan Government to stop forthwith the current military attack on civilian areas and to take immediate steps to provide necessary assistance to suffering civilians.
2. To call upon the all parties in the armed conflict to respect the call of the International Community to stop fighting and resume negotiation with a view to finding lasting peace between the brothers of Sri Lanka.
3. To bring awareness to all Malaysians on the atrocities of war in Sri Lanka and do our part in giving a helping hand to our fellow brothers who are suffering from the ravages of war.

In In addition to the presentation of this Memorandum, MIC Youth, in close co-operation with NGOs, will also pursue the following actions:
a. Forward a similar Memorandum to our Foreign Affairs Ministry and the Prime Minister in order for our government to express, on a government to government basis, the wishes of the Malaysian people for Peace in Sri Lanka.
b. To work closely with the local media to raise fund, food and medical supplies in order for the same to be delivered to the suffering people of Sri Lanka.

A detailed list of the toll the war had taken on civilians is set out in the Memorandum of Protest presented to His Excellency the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka and attached together with this Press Statement.

Thank you.

Murugesan Sinnandavar
Organising Chairman
Youths for Peace in Sri Lanka

P/S The Memorandum was not delivered to the High Commissioner because of the conditions set by the Embassy. Follow up story on the Press Release by MIC Youth in the next post

War in Sri Lanka - Memorandum of Protest

Memorandum of Protest

5^th November 2008

His Excellency the High Commissioner,
The High Commission of Sri Lanka,
Kuala Lumpur.

Your Excellency,

We, the representatives of members of Malaysian Indian Congress Youth Wing and Malaysian Youth NGOs, hereby submit our memorandum registering our vehement protest against the Sri Lankan Government’s continued air and ground attacks in recent weeks against the Sri Lankan Tamils resulting in innocent men, women and children being killed and maimed; hundreds of thousands of Tamils have been displaced, literally refugees in their own country!

Without taking sides as to who is fighting the ‘right war’, Malaysian Youths are deeply concerned with the alarmingly high rate of civilian casualties in the on going war.

Humanitarian Crisis

Relentless aerial bombardment and artillery shelling by the Sri Lankan Armed Forces have forced more than 310,000 people to become internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the Vanni District, more than 160,000 in Mullaitivu and 150,000 more in and around Kilinochi.

These displacements of civilians have in turn brought hardships such as:

· Malnutrition and it is increasing - 60% of children in the Vanni District are suffering from malnourishment or a lack of proper nutrition.

· Lack of nutritional food or food supplements for pregnant women and lactating mothers.

· Premature births and miscarriages due to the stress of displacement.

· 90% of families have lost their livelihoods and livelihood equipment – which has created high levels of stress and depression in the heads of households as they are unable to provide for their families and have no hope for their future.

· The yearly monsoon rains has led to serious health issues due to the lack of adequate water and sanitation facilities.

· Lack or non-availability of transport facilities have made the displaced persons’ mobility totally hampered.

· Costs of petrol, diesel and kerosene have become beyond the reach of the people.

· Food prices have multiplied a hundred times.

Agricultural Production

The current displacement has produced a disastrous effect on agricultural production. Farmers have been forced to abandon their paddy fields when they are displaced.

24,500 hectares have been abandoned in the following areas:

· 9,500 hectares in Mannar District.

· 4,000 hectares in Mullaitivu District.

· 5,000 hectares in Vavuniya District.

· 6,000 hectares in Kilinochi District.

Medicine and Hospitals

Only very limited supply of medicine is available and even that is becoming difficult to come by.

Lack of fuel supply restricts generation of electricity and the movement of ambulance service.

Shelter

Approximately 15,000 families are currently living under trees, while the remainder of the internally displaced persons are sheltered in public buildings or in makeshift shelters made of tarpaulin sheets.

Water, Sanitation and Health

These important requirements have become the most difficult items to reach the displaced persons.

Education

Displacement has very drastically affected the school going children. 114 schools with 36,272 students have been displaced. Examinations have been suspended.

Primary and pre-school students have stopped attending classes regularly due to shelling and air attacks.

Attack on Civilians

Civilian areas are regularly bombed and shelled by the Armed Forces. This bombing and shelling has the effect terrorising the civilian population. Many of these attacks occur at night and in the early morning and in close proximity to civilian settlements.

Our Request

We believe that the conflict between the Tamil and Sinhalese communities must be resolved peacefully, and therefore:

We, the members of the Malaysian Indian Congress of Malaysia, in the name humanity call upon the Sri Lankan Government to stop forthwith the current military attack on the Tamils and take immediate steps to provide necessary aids to suffering Tamils.

We, also call upon the Sri Lankan Government to respect the wishes of the International Community’s to stop fighting and resume negotiation with all the parties concerned with a view of finding lasting peace between the Brothers of Sri Lanka.

We, most respectfully, request His Excellency the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka in Kuala Lumpur to submit our Memorandum of Protest to the Government of Sri Lanka for its attention and action. We on our part will forward a copy of this Memorandum to our Foreign Affairs Ministry for their action.

We remain,
Yours truly,

Murugesan Sinnandavar
Organising Chairman
Youths for Peace in Sri Lanka

Arrest of Hindraf Group

I received a text messages last night on the arrest of Hindraf supporters and was very disturbed by it. I made a few calls to verify the story. This is not something we need right now.

According to STAR, twelve people, including a six-year-old child, “representing Hindraf” were arrested outside the Prime Minister’s Office at Putrajaya yesterday. One of the three women picked up was K.Shanti, wife of Hindraf chairman P.Wathyamoorthy and the child is believed to be his daughter, Vwaishhnavi.

I am sure the police have the legal justification to make the arrest. However, I can’t comprehend the wisdom or rather the lack thereof, in making the arrest. I doubt if Hindraf supporters posed a security threat to the Prime Minister. We are not sure if the police were ‘provoked’ to make the arrest but in any event a softer approach in dispersing the supporters would have been commendable.

I was relieved to find out later that at least K.Shanti and Vwaishhnavi were subsequently released. Ten others were detained. It was reported that the supporters claimed that they came in their “individual capacity and not under the banner of Hindraf”.

Be that as it may, there are few questions that need to be answered.

In the first place, was there a real and urgent need to arrest the supporters? Wouldn’t a softer approach suffice under the present situation? The arrest would only further fuel the anger of Indian Community towards the government. Secondly, what is the need to arrest the women, even more so, the child Vwaishhnavi?

The government should not be surprised by the unconventional method used by Hindraf supporters. What do you expect from family members and supporters of those that are detained without trial? Had the government not resorted to detention without trial under ISA, those gathered at Putrajaya would not have had the moral platform to ‘appeal’ to the Prime Minister directly.

On the other side of the coin, there are also a few questions that need to be answered by those gathered at Putrajaya.

Why on earth do you need to “deliver their Deepavali wishes” to a man that does not celebrate it? Wasn’t enough damage done to their own cause by delivering “Hari Raya Wishes” at PWTC a few weeks ago? Please, the PM wasn’t even home. He is in China right now.

Why drag a six year old child into all these? Yes, the sight of a six year old will tug everyone’s heart string but hasn’t this sentiment been used once too often? What about the emotional scars that might haunt the girl when she grows up? We do not know for sure whether it will, but shouldn’t the girl be spared the pain when there is doubt?

And whose idea was it to say that they came “in their individual capacity?” The authorities are not THAT stupid! Yeah, now they have arrested everyone to verify if they came under Hindraf or under their individual capacity.

And who gets blamed for all this? MIC of course!

HAPPY DEEPAVALI!

Murugesan Sinnandavar

The Story of a Little Boy

I am aware that it has been quiet a while since I last posted an article here. It was partly due to the unexpected surge of workload at my Firm and also because I wanted to pay a little more attention to other aspects of my life beside politics. I took my children and nephews for a long overdue camping trip. There were a few books that I was reading and wanted to complete...

The other day I came across a very interesting story. It was a story of a little boy. A true story. This little boy picked up an interest in music. For several years, he had been learning to play the cornet. He persisted, putting in hours of practice at home each day, and there came a time, after many painful hours of practice peppered with criticism from his mother, that he was rewarded by being chosen to participate in his school's Armistice Day Ceremony.

Each year on November 11, the entire school went down to the gym for a ceremony honouring the nation's fallen soldiers. In what had become a school tradition, trumpet players stationed at doors on either side of the gym would alternate playing "Taps," one blowing the first dum da dum notes, and the other echoing dum da DUM, and so on.

That year, this boy's cornet skills had advanced enough for him to be given the part of the echo. He woke up the morning of the event, exhilarated at the prospect of performing in front of the entire school. When the big moment came, he was ready.

As the little boy stood in the doorway with his cornet, the first trumpet player sounded, Dum da DUM.

But on the second dum, he hit a wrong note.

"My whole life flashed before my eyes, because I didn't know what to do with the echo. They hadn't prepared me for this. Paralyzed - my big moment" recounted the little boy years later.

Should he copy the other trumpet player's mistake or embarrass him by contradicting what he's played? The little boy was undone. The scene scalded itself permanently into his memory. What he did next he can't remember - had become a blank.

But that little boy learned a valuable lesson that day:

It might seem easier to go through life as the echo - but only until the other guy plays a wrong note.

It is a lesson that will serve all of us well. Often, either by choice, circumstances or sheer force of habit, we end up playing the 'echo'.

That little boy grew up to be the most successful investor of all time and the richest man in the world a few years running. That little boy's name is Warren Buffet.

Deepavali is just a few days away. Lets put away our differences, even if temporarily, during this Festival of Lights, and allow time for healing.

For all readers and commentators, many thanks for your time, concern, criticism and input. For those that I have offended, I offer my unreserved apologies.

Our heartfelt prayers for those that are separated from their loved ones (and their families) during this Festival of Lights.

I would like to conclude with this Shanti Mantra,

Astoma sadgamaya
Tamasoma jyotirgamaya
Mrutyorma amrutamgamaya
Om shantih, shantih, shantihi

Lead me from the unreal to the real
From darkness to light
From mortality to immortality
Om Peace, Peace, Peace

HAVE A RADIANT DEEPAVALI. GOD BLESS.

Murugesan Sinnandavar