This post is not going to make me any more popular than I have been before - not that I was very popular earlier...
The Tiger den has fallen. Kilinochchi is in Sri Lankan Army control. Not much more for the LTTE to defend.
Is it the end of the road for the rebels?
I would not hold my breath, hoping for the end of the island conflict. The LTTE has shown quite remarkable powers of recuperation after the worst of blows - so let us hold off on the count, just a bit.
But, on the other hand, the head Tiger,
Velupillai Prabhakaran is not getting any younger. Are the real Tamil people still looking for an 'Eelam'? That is the crucial question.
If truth be told, we must classify the
LTTE with terrorist organisations like LeT or JeI. There are no real soldiers in these organisations. They are just disaffected youth who are lead by aging megalomaniacs who are cunning enough to stay out of line of fire. Look at Osama Bin Laden.
It is my theory that these so called 'independence fighters' are cowards. They hide behind gullible young people, even children, come up with grandiose pronouncements, but keep their precious skins protected. The best (or worst?) examples can be found in the 'warlords' of Africa. They fight for themselves, stash cash away in secure accounts and sacrifice the life and limb of young people foolish enough to follow them. Look at Sierra Leone and Liberia. Zimbabwe is another living example.
The LTTE seems to be the only people who refuse to recognise a simple truth - and of course, the other cats on mainland India who are braver in their speeches than their island-bound brethren. The truth is, just like India in Kashmir, Sri Lanka cannot give up the portion that the 'rebels' call 'Eelam'.
Kashmir cannot be given up - not because of some esoteric idea of 'Undivided India' or because of any other patriotic jingoism - it is simply because of national strategic concerns. We cannot afford to have Pakistan controlled or independent Kashmir up North of our country.
Similarly, Sri Lanka cannot afford to have a piece of an already small territory to be held by a government antipathic to it.
On top of that, LTTE is a pariah in the world, whether we call it a terror organisation or not.
Perhaps, once, it represented the real aspirations of independence and dignity for Tamils that it even now speaks of. But, in the present world, an organisation that sponsors suicide bombings and civilian massacre, along with the use of children in warfare is beyond the pale.
The way forward for our island neighbour is a compromise. What that compromise will be, is for the peoples of the country to work out. As the word implies, a 'compromise' is never completely satisfactory, to either side. But then, that is what democracy is for.
I, for one, do not appreciate the 'concern' of Pakistanis for their so-called brethren in Kashmir. In fact, it is a completely internal matter for India to deal with, whether anyone likes it or not. After all, our
Muslim population is greater than Pakistan's.
Similarly, I would expect Sri Lanka can legitimately expect to solve their own problems, internally, and independently.
I am sure the world does not want the 'nationalists' in air conditioned comfort bleeding over the innocent lives lost in Mullaithivu. Most of these brave fighters we see on the net are from UK, Canada or Australia, who have let their juvenile cousins fight and die for them.
So, hands off - let us see how the Tiger likes a dose of real fighting.