How meaningful are Jayalalitha’s love letters to Narendra Modi?
Shenali D Waduge
31 July 2014
Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned they say and that aptly puts to context the feelings of Jayalalitha towards Sri Lanka.
But, the BJP high powered delegation led by Dr. Subramaniam Swamy who arrived in Sri Lanka at the invitation of the Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies recently made explicitly clear that Tamil Nadu would not come between Indo-Lanka relations and also thanked the Sri Lankan President for arresting but releasing the Indian fishermen while confiscating the boats.
It was the boat owners that forced the Indian fishermen to poach into Sri Lankan waters because the Indian side had no fish.
These are some realities that the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu cannot ignore and her tantrums are dampening the otherwise positive outlook of the Modi-led BJP Government.
She should be advised to stop her tantrums and start looking at how the Indian fishermen can be absorbed into a new avenue of livelihood if there are no fish to fish in Indian waters.
The International Maritime Border Line drawn up in 1974 and 1976 is a bilateral agreement between India and Sri Lanka and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister can cry and hoot but she cannot change the legality of this agreement honored by the 2 sovereign nations.
Katchchetivu came under the jurisdiction of Sri Lanka following the IMBL and Sri Lanka’s claim to Katchchaitivu was made in 1924 while as far back as 1876 the island was referred to as belonging to Sri Lanka even the colonial invaders regarded the island as belonging to Sri Lanka.
Thus, with a bilateral agreement in place it is Tamil Nadu fishermen who are violating the IMBL and the arrest of fishermen poaching into Sri Lankan waters cannot be faulted on Sri Lanka.
We realize that the issue at hand is as a result of the Indian side of the marine bed affected as a result of internationally banned bottom trawling.
It is because commercial fishing has ignored to look after the source from which it makes money that there are no fish on Indian waters along the Tamil Nadu coast.
Sri Lanka is not to be blamed because there are no fish in the Indian waters.
The Tamil Nadu Government must take blame for allowing internationally banned bottom trawlers to operate.
We are well aware that India had been making millions from poaching into Sri Lankan waters using bottom trawlers and stealing the shrimps, prawns and fish that ideally belong to the fishermen of Sri Lanka.
These poached fish calculated into years would account for theft and loss of millions of revenue to Sri Lanka.
This cannot go on not just because it is a violation of territorial rights, theft of fish that do not belong to India but more importantly the manner of fishing will end up totally ruining the marine environment and destroying marine life and eventually lead to no fish on Sri Lankan waters as well.
The environmental impact and future of marine life is what should take prominence in any diplomatic discussions.
The Tamil Nadu Government and its Chief Minister should accept fault on several angles.
- Tamil Nadu fishermen violating internationally recognized IMBL and bilateral agreement between India and Sri Lanka
- Tamil Nadu fishermen using bottom trawlers that are internationally banned
- Tamil Nadu coast marine bed destroyed because of bottom trawling and so no fish for the Indian fishermen to fish
If the Indian coast had no fish as a result of the Indian fishermen destroying the marine life, should the Tamil Nadu authorities have taken measures to look into how the Indian fishermen and their families would survive?
The solution is not to poach on waters that belong to other nations. It is not a long time solution or a viable solution.
It is as a result of Tamil Nadu authorities not taking to account these realities that their fishermen are facing a predicament of no livelihood and Sri Lanka cannot be blamed for this.
Would Indian fishermen be allowed to poach in territorial waters that belong to other nations just because the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister comes out with a list of reasons giving them right to?
The BJP Government is commended for taking a stand and appreciated for approving the measures taken by Sri Lanka in arresting and releasing the Indian fishermen but confiscating the boats.
Tamil Nadu seem to have forgotten that it is the Sri Lankan Tamil fishermen whose livelihood was affected as a result of Tamil Nadu fishermen poaching on Sri Lankan waters.
The TNA ever ready to find fault with the Sri Lankan Government has not come to the rescue of its own fishermen or brought up the grievance of the Sri Lankan fishermen denied livelihood and this speaks volumes of the sincerity of the TNA towards its own people too.
With the latest letter of the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister directed at demanding the release of the boats, we can but wonder whether some of these may belong to her or her supporters!
When Tamil Nadu Chief Minister is aware that the Tamil Nadu fishermen are violating internationally demarcated waters and poaching while also using internationally banned bottom trawlers, it is unjustified to ask the Indian Prime Minister to take action against Sri Lanka.
Obviously she is attempting to dent the popularity of the Indian Prime Minister while also disturb the amity that is being built between the two nations.
Her actions are obviously aligned to the undiplomatic and unscrupulous policies followed by the Sonia-led Congress Government where the Central Government of India was virtually kept strangulated and on a noose by successive Tamil Nadu Governments.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister may learn sooner than later that Narendra Modi is not a puppet to dance to her tantrums or threats.
She should not attempt to embarrass Mr. Modi by her unjustified outbursts. It will not look good on the new Indian Prime Minister if he were to demand that Indian fishermen be allowed to cross the IMBL into Sri Lankan waters….is this the mischief that Jayalalitha is upto?
With the Modi mantra directed towards better and practical governance it is best that Tamil Nadu Chief Minister directs her attention at how to meet the livelihood challenges of Indian fishermen who have no fish to fish on Indian waters.
Poaching is not the solution.
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RELATED PLEASE :
BJP in Sri Lanka: India distances itself from Tamil Nadu-NDA-LTTE and Eelam
Shenali Waduge
30 Jul 2014
The seminar, ‘India under Modi: Relevance for the Region and the World,’ organized by the Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies and held at the BMICH, was moderated by former foreign secretary HMGS Palihakkara. The panelists were introduced by Sunimal Fernando, Advisor to the President of Sri Lanka and Chairman/Board of Studies of the
BCIS.
They included Prof Madhav Das Nalapat of Manipal University, Dr. Suresh Prabhu, a former Union Minister under the Vajpayee Government and member of the Shiv Sena, Dr Swapan Dasgupta, a senior journalist and political commentator, Dr Seshadri Chari of the RSS and National Convener of the Foreign Policy cell of the BJP, and
Dr Subramanian Swamy, former Union Minister & Chairman, BJP Committee for Strategic Action, who, as Sunimal Fernando said, would win with a resounding victory if he contested an election in Sri Lanka!
- - - - Tamil Nadu
- Tamil Nadu factor will no longer come between Indo-Lanka relations.
- Tamil Nadu no longer has veto power on Indo-Lanka relations.
- Tamil Nadu factor a creation by political classes funded by LTTE money raised by drug smuggling
- Subramanian Swamy explained to the audience that apart from a fringe group voicing anti-Lanka slogans, the Tamil people were not anti-Sri Lanka and even cited how Tamil cricket fans had travelled to Bangalore to cheer the Sri Lankan team when banned from
playing in Chennai.
- He went on to show how the same anti-Lankan politicians had been defeated repeatedly at elections so Sri Lanka was never an election issue for Tamil Nadu (another example of
Media manipulating news against Sri Lanka)
- Subramanian Swamy even urged Chief Minister Jayalalithaa to visit Sri Lanka and ‘get a reality check’.
Shenali Waduge
30 Jul 2014
The seminar, ‘India under Modi: Relevance for the Region and the World,’ organized by the Bandaranaike Centre for International Studies and held at the BMICH, was moderated by former foreign secretary HMGS Palihakkara. The panelists were introduced by Sunimal Fernando, Advisor to the President of Sri Lanka and Chairman/Board of Studies of the
BCIS.
They included Prof Madhav Das Nalapat of Manipal University, Dr. Suresh Prabhu, a former Union Minister under the Vajpayee Government and member of the Shiv Sena, Dr Swapan Dasgupta, a senior journalist and political commentator, Dr Seshadri Chari of the RSS and National Convener of the Foreign Policy cell of the BJP, and
Dr Subramanian Swamy, former Union Minister & Chairman, BJP Committee for Strategic Action, who, as Sunimal Fernando said, would win with a resounding victory if he contested an election in Sri Lanka!
- - - - Tamil Nadu
- Tamil Nadu factor will no longer come between Indo-Lanka relations.
- Tamil Nadu no longer has veto power on Indo-Lanka relations.
- Tamil Nadu factor a creation by political classes funded by LTTE money raised by drug smuggling
- Subramanian Swamy explained to the audience that apart from a fringe group voicing anti-Lanka slogans, the Tamil people were not anti-Sri Lanka and even cited how Tamil cricket fans had travelled to Bangalore to cheer the Sri Lankan team when banned from
playing in Chennai.
- He went on to show how the same anti-Lankan politicians had been defeated repeatedly at elections so Sri Lanka was never an election issue for Tamil Nadu (another example of
Media manipulating news against Sri Lanka)
- Subramanian Swamy even urged Chief Minister Jayalalithaa to visit Sri Lanka and ‘get a reality check’.
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A sea of conflict
Meera Srinivasan
December 19, 2013
http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/op-ed/a-sea-of-conflict/article5474831.ece?css=printA sea of conflict
Meera Srinivasan
December 19, 2013
Tamil Nadu fishermen entering Sri Lankan waters interfere with the livelihood of Sri Lankan Tamils struggling to make a living from the sea after a brutal war
Satellite images have, beyond doubt, established that Indian fishermen frequently cross the agreed-upon International Maritime Boundary Line (IMBL) that defines the two nations’ respective fishing zones on either side of it.
However, many including Tamil Nadu politicians, passionately argue in defence of the fishermen, usually on three major grounds: that the fishermen erroneously stray into Sri Lankan waters without intending to; that it would take time to deter fishermen away from a zone where they traditionally held fishing rights; and that it is, at the end of the day, about their livelihood.
The argument that the fishermen naively stray into Sri Lankan territory falls flat, for, virtually all the trawlers found trespassing are equipped with GPS monitors that would clearly indicate where they are headed.
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COMMENT :
Talk of ' manipulating the News '. NEWSX & Headlines Today, in the 1400 hrs News Broadcast, WENT BESERK on the 'J.J. Love Letters', and in the process TWISTED THE NEWS COMPLETELY.
These 'TRP CRAZY IDIOTS' can start a WAR between Friends.
Such is their decadence. It also appears that they are inveterate LIARS.
What a tragedy ?
For the record, I find nothing wrong in the Opinion of Shenali Waduge. She is speaking the TRUTH.
About 4 or 5 years ago, at a seminar in Chennai, the Dy. Director of the Fisheries Dept., Tamil Nadu Govt., clearly and unambiguously stated that owing to 'overfishing' and 'bottom trolling', there IS NO FISH ON THE INDIAN SIDE OF THE IMBL. THEREFORE, THE TAMIL NADU FISHERMAN ARE 'FORCED' TO CROSS OVER TO THE SRI LANKAN SIDE OF THE IMBL TO EARN THEIR LIVELIHOOD.
This 'holier-than-thou' attitude of the Tamil Nadu Govt. is sickening, to say the least.
Geo-politically, when Beijing reaches Jaffna, as is bound to happen - sooner than later - these same Tamil Nadu 'heroes' WILL CRY 'NATIONALSECURITY' !!
Bala
A correction. Katcha Theevu belonged to Ramanathapuram Sethupathi and this was acknowledged by East India Company and later British. The descendants of Sethupathy, recently claimed that they hold the documents, rent collected details for the Theevu, etc. It is the strange action on the part of Indra Gandhi that it was gifted - but not ratified by then Parliament. The Great Karunanidhi also acted dumb and has not protested. Like Nehru for Kashmir problem, Indra for Katcha Theevu problem. A great injustice to Tamil Nadu by Congress.
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