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Author
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Topic: Jaffna residents denounce LTTE’s announcement of re-payments as Joke.
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jughead
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posted September 08, 2004 03:28 PM
 
K. S. Rajkumar reporting from Jaffna. , Sep 7. The recent announcement of the LTTE that they will “pay back” money extorted during the past has become a cause for amusement amongst people in Jaffna in recent days. While imposing heavy taxes on everything, from baby milk to motorcycles, LTTE is making life harder for Tamils in the northern Jaffna district. All items that are sold in Jaffna that have to be transported through the LTTE are levied a tax which is conveniently passed on to the consumers. On top of the taxes, the businessmen are required to pay additional protection money to the LTTE, which in turn are also passed on to the consumer. Above all this, everyone making a living in Jaffna, including farmers, barbers, and auto-rickshaw operators are all required to pay money to the Tigers. The latest ‘tax’ imposed by the LTTE is the ‘milk-tax’.
The farmers who sell milk to the cooperative farm in Thinnavely are required to pay the LTTE two rupees per liter of milk supplied. The ‘taxes’ imposed by the LTTE are putting heavy burden on the poor people such as farmers, fishermen and laborers who work hard to meet their ends. While the Tigers made a big announcement that they are re-paying the money they collected in the past, they continue to extort money even from the working class of the population. A school principal in Jaffna dismissed LTTE’s announcement of re-payment as ‘a big joke, and everyone around here knows it!’ Meanwhile, Jaffna residents are alarmed by the continuing mysterious murders of mostly young males who are suspected to be involved in ‘anti-LTTE’ activities. The residents blame the LTTE’s intelligence unit for these murders.
Youths are abducted from their homes or on their way to work by the LTTE cadres. Some are released after ‘interrogations’ while others are killed. Often times the victims are hacked to death. Navaratnaraja Premkumar, a 35 year old father of an infant child, is the latest victim whose body was discovered on Tuesday. Last week, an LTTE team headed by Seelan kidnapped Premkumar from his work. Earlier, Premkumar was detained by LTTE in Kilinochchi for more then two weeks and released.
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lingappan
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posted September 09, 2004 03:20 AM
Have you thought about child labour in Sri Lanka?
Have you thought about family breakups, attempted suicides due to poverty and Mothers leaving home to work abroad and are abused and in some cases murdered, husbands who are left behind are disfranchised and no work, so readily he agrees for children to work as bonded labour. what sort of life is that for Sri Lankan families and children who are traped in this cycle sufferings.
Sri Lankan President Promised in the menifesto to create 50,000 jobs in last general election, knowingly she could not create jobs in the country. To keep the menifesto promise, she has signed up (in her last visit), with Malaysian government to export 50,000 graduates and profesionals from Sri Lanka, no doubt they will be utilised in hospitality industries but not in the vocation they are qualified. What's your thought on that? Do you think the country can survive with this sort of policy? Ideas are the great moving forces of history.
I don't think any particular group should get independence on any grounds. Why? because it will fragment the country into tiny bits, its already a small Island. In my view some sort of federal state might be a good idea. It works very well in Canada with Quebec. I have read some where, that majority of Tamils would prefer this concept. I would have thought, with your intelect you would be advocating somthing like this to promote unity. We shouldn't be in a position, were we go through a forest and see no firewood.
IS THIS GOING TO BE POINT OF NO RETURN
Yamuna Jeevanthi is a 12-year-old girl living in a low-income suburb outside the Sri Lankan capital. Like thousands of other Sri Lankan women, her mother works as a housemaid in the Middle-East. After Yamuna's mother went abroad, her father grew increasingly depressed and once, in a drunken rage, tried to cut off her younger brother's hands. The incident pushed Yamuna, deaf-mute from birth, further into her shell. Her parents are now divorced and she and her brother are now being brought up by their grandmother.
Every little place has its own stories about families of women who, haunted by poverty, went abroad to work about children who dropped out of school, of husbands who married again, of a father who sexually abused the children left behind in his care and in extreme cases, of suicide. After nearly 20 years of a government policy encouraging Sri Lanka's female workforce to seek employment abroad, sociologists and welfare organisations are increasingly concerned that the prolonged separation from awife or mother away working in another country may be the reason behind many instances of broken or dysfunctional families in Sri Lanka.
``It has already had a major impact on the institutions of marriage and family but it is in the long run that the actual implications will become clear,'' said S.T. Hettige, head of Colombo University's sociology department.
The government too has suddenly woken up to the social implications of its policy. Women's Affairs minister Hema Ratnayake recently appealed to women not to ``desert'' their children for jobs abroad.
``The money earned by mothers working in foreign countries will in no way compensate for the calamities that follow due to their long term separation from their homes,'' she was reported as saying at a gathering of women in central Sri Lanka last month.
Reflecting the concern, the Sri Lanka Bureau of Foreign Employment (SLBFE) recently started offering incentives to job agents who find employment abroad for men rather than women. But as long as thedemand for unskilled female domestic labour is high, and that for male labour from Sri Lanka is low, nothing can be done. At last count, nearly 6 lakh Sri Lankan women were employed abroad, mostly as housemaids in the Middle-East. From the point of view of the government, this female army is among the top three foreign exchange earners for the country, and keeps unemployment figures at home under control.
Driven by poverty, these gutsy women leave to cook and clean for absolute strangers thousands of miles away from home. It's a long way to go for 6,000 to 7,000 Sri Lankan rupees a month, but it is still six times the wage paid here for the same work. Now, many are asking if this money is worth the social costs.
``A woman goes abroad so that her children can get a decent education, to be able to build a house for her family. But in many cases, by the time she comes back, there is no family,'' said Anthony Manchanayake, president of the Solidarity of Foreign Employees.
According to Manchanayake, thewoman is the ``first member of the family''. ``When she goes away, even for a short while, it has a great effect on the family. These women are going away for two, five or even eiht years,'' he said. SOFE aims to discourage women from taking jobs abroad, but realising that such a strategy could prove counter-productive in the absence of employment opportunities at home, has instead started counselling services for ``dependent'' families and vocational training for the children.
As an organisation backed by the Roman Catholic church, SOFE is particularly concerned about broken families, and in order to widen its appeal, has roped in Buddhist clergy and other community leaders in its work.
Women's organisations too are concerned about the social impact of women working away from home, but are against any move that will prevent them from seeking greener pastures abroad.
``As long as our society refuses to accept that fathers too have a criticial role in looking after and nurturing families, there will ofcourse be a vacuum when the mother goes away. If even 20 years after sending women abroad to work, there has been nothing from the government or society to encourage this, then we must reap the consequences,'' said Sepali Kottegoda of Women in Media Collective.
According to her, the tendency is to pin the blame for dysfunctional families on the women, ``as if they have gone away to enjoy life''. ``It seems to be a case of women must slave and bring in the foreign exchange, and look after their husbands and children as well. We are refusing to accept it is impossible,'' she said.
Kottegoda estimated that 98-per cent of women who go abroad to work do so after consulting their families. ``If the decision to take a job abroad is made jointly, then the responsibility of looking after home and children also rests jointly,'' she said. However, going by the experience of SOFE workers, it's hard work getting men to attend any sort of village-level discussion groups that deal with these issues. Officials at theSLBFE pointed out that the government could not engineer such a fundamental social change in men's attitudes all by itself. The bureau has taken some steps like scholarship schemes for the children of women workers employed abroad and financial assistance to their families. ``But what we need is a change in attitudes, and that has to come from within society itself,'' said Kanthi Yapa, a senior official at the SLBFE.
While Sri Lanka waits for that change, and is in the meantime unable to offer its women no better alternatives for bettering their lives here, a social time-bomb is ticking away that may become apparent only in the generations to come.
Something for you to masticate- sincerely hope you will come up with something substantial with vigour. An invasion of armies can be resisted, but not an idea, whose time has come.
I have not written this to offend or upset you in any way. I hope you will take it in the spirit its written.
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Negombo
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posted September 09, 2004 10:07 AM
Not only Sri Lanka but other countries in this region like, Philipines, Indonesia, Banggladesh, India, Thailand have this same social problems due to overseas labour force.So what's your point ? |
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jughead
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posted September 09, 2004 10:22 AM
>So what's your point ? Good question! The point is, he want to redirect the facts against the LTTE to another direction
or another topic. A red herring discussion in other terms, The LTTE fans are stucked in failing to give good justification for the LTTE's destruction after the IND-LANKA accords,
thus contributing for lots of rapes and killings of Thamils. Lets hope the canadian thamils will understand the reality and force the LTTE to give up violance for the sake of the thamil
nation in shri lanka/ceylon/
jug
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ayubowan
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posted September 09, 2004 12:37 PM
If you will think about what you ought to do for other people, your character will take care of itself. Character is a by-product, and any man who devotes himself to its cultivation in his own case will become a selfish prig. You are clearly promoting your own agenda here. My point is if you are a do gooder then take whole of Sri Lankans' plight as one. Most people have problems of some sort, they all need peace and piece of mind eg:
1. Child Battered by adults, task masters etc need comfort and PIECE.
these children are no different to the ones kidnaped and battered by LTTE.get it bro 2. Mothers battered, abused and raped need comfort and PEACE and piece of mind. get it bro
3. When peoples Covils, churchs and Mosques are burnt to cinders, they need comfort and PEACE. Many, many need same attention as you are giving to LTTE Victims. They have every right to be heard in this forum or any other forum- get it Bro You keep harping about diverting attention from LTTE, personally I don't give a toss about LTTE, I am a tamil but I am not from that foresaken region, nor do I have any of my families living there, for LTTE to intimidate and harm them, if you don't have facts at hand then shut your gob-get it bro.
What motive do I have to create red herrings. If I think I need to voice my thoughts in this forum then I shall do so, weather you aprove of it or not. get it bro. Peace is can be found and installed in all circustances, not just your LTTE trash you keep puting it out. Keeping PEACE in mind do have intelect to discuss any other topic? LTTE is your main topic of subject, LTTE sods don't need to advertise for their course, while they have the likes of you beating the drums for them. I sometimes wonder if you belong to LTTE, you are just using reverse psychology to promote their course. If you are, then I congratulate you for your innovation, you will get Kinghted some day perhaps. Something else- you keep harping and insulting those guys and their breedings in Canada and you have been calling me names and others too. This is what you call promoting PEACE. Belittling others are by little poeple with little mind. Discussing about LTTE only is your idea of PEACE. The above article you have written- is that about peace? I think not-you are actively promoting LTTE's course. You sound like their press officer, I hope they are paying well after, all they must have planty of money by the sound of things, robing poor people. At least two thirds of our miseries spring from human stupidity, human malice and those great motivators and justifiers of malice and stupidity, idealism, dogmatism and proselytizing zeal on behalf of religious or political idols. You quite nicely fit into this two third catagory. |
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jughead
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posted September 09, 2004 01:17 PM
Um.. calm down pal before you hurt your self,
Say, I saw lot of *peace* in your writing, isnt it ?The fact is, whats the point in discussing
about child labour in the peace discussion ? I agree those children are no different than the victims of the LTTE (I am happy that i
heard this confess from you ), but it does not relate to the forum - topic which is about peace in Sri lanka. Well, If you read what most canada guys write , you would find the point in me being harsh to them, got it ? Anyway, my above article here on thamils in
canada was not harsh at all unlike some of my other writings. >your character will take care of itself. >Character is a by-product Your nickname tells about your character, you can not even use a thamil word for your nickname but still you are standing here for the "Thamil Cause" , eh ? |
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jughead
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posted September 09, 2004 01:18 PM
>not just your LTTE trash you keep puting it >outSomebody got hurt while reading the critisim for LTTE, eh ? Bad acting when you said that you dont care a "toss" about the LTTE, anyway, good going/ |
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jughead
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posted September 09, 2004 01:21 PM
I think you must be blind, just see what
sort of language these canada thamils are using in this forum, if you can, please show me such language in my post so far in this forum.Lets see what these Canadian idiots had been saying so far and below here the writings from some Canadians : - ----------------------------------------- KISS MY NOTHERN ARSE!! DO YOU WANT EASTERN TAMIL EELAM? OVER MY DEAD BODY YOU BROKEN TAMIL SPEAKING LOOSERS!! EASTERN(BATICALOA) TAMILS WERE SUCK, ARE SUCK AND WILL ALWAYS SUCK. I DO NOT NEED TO APOLOGIZE TO THESE KARUNA'S BATTICALOA BUGGERS.
( Written by SinhalaPukkai) See how canadian tigers dividing thamil nation ?? Still you never critisize them, WHY ?
--------------------------------------- YOU AND YOUR EPDP GOONS WILL GO TO HELL ASS HOLE. YOU CAN LICK MY NORTH ASS HOLE IF U LIKE. IT TASTE GOOD THAN A FISHY EASTERN 1/2 INCH COCKS.
LTTE WILL FUCK YOUR KARUNA, TOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO BADDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD FOR UUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUU!
IHOPE LTTE WILL PUT A ATMOIC BOMB TO EAST COWARDS.
JAFFNA RULEZ (Written by Eastern Tiger)
This guy is worst from the whole lot, you never critisize him as well, the reason you hate me is that i am extreme harsh on the LTTE and their supporters,
So who is "exposed" ?? WHere are your so called "high moral" values when these guys from Canada insutling thamils in full sway, dont tell me you are blind, maybe you are..
grow up...
jug |
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Negombo
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posted September 10, 2004 02:11 AM
Atleast we should welcome the ayubowan's use of language when this MB is hit by so many abusive postings.You are pointing out some important issues raised during this few decades of violence & war (including 2 JVP insurrection). There are more horror stories, on all sides, probably this board will run out of space if all posted. Some politicians like to make it a 'beggars wound' (beggars renew their wounds without letting them to heal so that they can continue begging). Don't look at the macro picture. Look at overall. Keep the history behind. From the present situation how we can plan a prosperous future, without war and violence? Do we want to keep the beggars wound and inherit the our hell for the next generation? Choice is ours?
(this is not applicable if you donot hold a Sri Lankan passport anymore) |
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ayubowan
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posted September 10, 2004 03:02 AM
Swedish, United Nations, Indians, Americans, Japanese list is endlessThese and other nations have their OAR in Sri Lankan affairs and guess what they don't hold Sri Lankan PASPORT. Think Fairly and clearly, this is the sort of useless junks gets my back up in frustration. Regarding my distaseful remarks, if you and your cronies become more pragmatic, fair and less dogma, I will do likewise. Stop using provocative and one sided
language I will do likewise. In the name of peace, speak for whole of Sri Lanka, I will do likewise. We all know LTTE are behaving like dogs you and your cromies don't have to stoop lower than them it will only confirm to others that you and your cronies are just as BAD, and indeed there are other pressing issues to discuss, broad mindfully like the conduct of inteligent people. |
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jughead
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posted September 11, 2004 10:26 AM
Yep Negambo, You are correct, we should welcome people like Ayhobhawan since he is sticking to a proper language even though i strongly dis-agree with him.I just want to point out his biaseness in pointing out fouls in my post while keeping his eye shut for postings which contains
most abusive language written by many LTTE fans in Canada. Anyway Aryubhwan , I am sorry if i hurt your feelings, but i welcome you to be fair in your critisizm next time. No hard feelings. Thanks Negambo for taking me to right path, I owe you a one for that. THanks bro! Ayubwuwan, I invite you to post more here, good luck! in peace, jug
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