On Chelvanayakam
Ruben Nagesparan Chandrakumar, BS
Very few people were more deserving of the Nobel Peace Prize than SJV Chelvanayakam. However, international recognition of his work would have put substantial weight in favor of an independent Eelam. Thus, it makes sense why no other nation recognized the devoutly Christian Tamil who organized and led nonviolent protests for decades among a majority Hindu people, negotiated for peaceful settlements with the Sinhalese-majority Sri Lankan government, and declared independence based on a historical, moral, and legal claim to self-determination.
The Eelam independence struggle started with a completely peaceful, nonviolent, democratic process that lasted over 15 years. The fact that the Founding Father of Eelam, Chelvanayakam, who was a professed Christian, was able to lead a nonviolent movement of Hindus, Buddhists, Christians, and Muslims of multiple ethnic origins is glossed over by Sri Lanka and the world. Chelvanayakam was one of Sri Lanka’s greatest politicians, Eelam’s prized jewel, and arguably one of the greatest political leaders to have ever lived. Sri Lanka will hesitate to claim him as a pride of the country because that gives legitimacy to the independence of Eelam.
What other politician, influenced heavily by Gandhi and Christ, was able to lead a people through years of nonviolent demonstrations while they were constantly disrupted and attacked by mobs and police? What other politician was completely willing to work within the framework of a unitary state and tried, with numerous pacts and numerous politicians across decades, to work out a federalist solution? What other politician, upon realizing that a federalist solution would not be viable, turned to declaring independence by running on a platform of Eelam independence—which won overwhelming votes in the territories of Eelam in the general Sri Lankan election? So, after trying nonviolence and federalist solutions, Chelvanayakam used the very framework of the Sri Lankan state to demonstrate that the people of Eelam wanted independence. Chelvanayakam’s work laid the foundations of an independent Eelam through his decades of dedication to the cause of giving his people freedom, equality, autonomy, and dignity.
After a devastating genocide that was preceded by decades of oppression, the remaining Eelam Tamils find themselves scattered across the world, highly disconnected, and with little political power. This has led to the weakest point yet in the Eelam liberation movement. The unity, the vision, and the faith in one another have been destroyed by the political environment of the murderous, totalitarian-ridden Sri Lanka. The Sinhala ultra-nationalist state, the LTTE, and the United Nations have wreaked havoc on the Eelam nation, arguably leaving it in a worse state than centuries of colonization.
During the Canadian Supreme Court Decision on the Secession of Quebec, the court stated that “the various international documents that support the existence of a people’s right to self-determination also contain parallel statements supportive of the conclusion that the exercise of such a right must be sufficiently limited to prevent threats to an existing state’s territorial integrity or the stability of relations between sovereign states.” Additionally, the court noted that “a state whose government represents the whole of the people or peoples resident within its territory, on a basis of equality and without discrimination, and respects the principles of self-determination in its own internal arrangements, is entitled to the protection under international law of its territorial integrity.” With the myriad ways in which the Government of Sri Lanka did not “represent the whole of the people or peoples resident within its territory, on a basis of equality and without discrimination, [with respect to] the principles of self-determination in its own internal arrangements,” the “[entitlement] to the protection under international law of its territorial integrity” proves questionable, at a minimum.
Despite the international outrage of the Tigers and full-scale warfare used to destroy the LTTE—supported by countries such as the USA, Israel, Pakistan, and others—these countries seemed rather silent on the inhumane, oppressive conditions that led to the formation of a militant movement only after over 20 years of nonviolent, civil resistance. Furthermore, these countries have continued to ignore and cast a blind eye to the genocidal nature of the “counterterrorism” strategy that resulted in the deaths of over 40,000 Tamil civilians in 2009.
Chelvanayakam’s leadership and sacrifices exemplified the peaceful struggle for justice and independence that predated the armed conflict. Despite his heroic behavior, the world and Sri Lanka have either ignored or sought to forget both him and the political movement of satyagraha. It is incumbent on all Tamils to learn about and recognize the work of previous generations, which laid the foundations of the struggle. Although he may not be known globally, Chelvanayakam was a shining light to the nation of Eelam, showcasing the best of what the country had to offer. In the continued struggle for justice, his spirit lives on.