Cautious steps

Popular South Indian magazine ‘Kumudam’ in its editorial urged the Central government in India to act cautiously in decisions relating to Sri Lanka and not to unwittingly assist the enemy.

The planned attendance of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh at the SAARC summit and the deployment of Indian military personnel for his security has become a controversial issue.

The agreement of Sri Lankan government to the presence of 3000 Indian soldiers in Colombo has further raised suspicions.

We have forgotten neither the attack on late premier Rajeev Gandhi by a Sri Lankan soldier nor the atrocities committed due to the counter productive decision to send Indian Peace Keeping Forces to Sri Lanka.

Therefore we cannot be complacent in matters of security for Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.

However, there has been no response from the government to questions posed by the opposition as to whether the Indian troopers sent to provide security to the premier will stay back to support the racist Sri Lankan state.

At a time when the Sri Lanka’s war against Tamils escalates, who will benefit from the Indian weapons? Who will bear the brunt of these weapons?

As Sri Lanka turns to other countries including China and Pakistan for assistance, any decision taken by India will have international significance.

The painful lessons India learnt in the past by intervening in the Sri Lankan conflict should not be forgotten.

At this crucial point in time, India should act carefully to ensure no harm befalls the Tamils in Sri Lanka whilst protecting her sovereignty.

Our assistance should not result in strengthening the enemy.

(Translated)