Tamil National People's Front (TNPF) leader Gajendrakumar Ponnambalam refuted statements made by Tilvin Silva, the General Secretary of the ruling Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP), who claimed that devolution of powers to Tamils in the North-East “is not necessary”, and instead said the government must adhere to Tamil demands.
At a media briefing held in Mullaitivu, along with party secretary Selvarajah Kajendran, Ponnambalam emphasized the need to focus on long-standing Tamil political aspirations.
Ponnambalam reinforced the TNPF's central position that Sri Lanka is composed of two distinct nations: the Sinhalese and the Tamils. While the Sinhalese have long enjoyed recognition and dominance, he argued that the Tamil nation has been systematically marginalized. "Since 1948, the Sinhalese have used their majority to occupy Tamil territories and push forward a policy of Sinhalaization," Ponnambalam said. This process, he claimed, has been a deliberate effort to diminish the Tamil identity and autonomy within their historical homeland in the North and East.
The TNPF leader countered Silva’s remarks, insisting that the Tamil demand for political autonomy remains strong and unresolved. He further highlighted that despite the National People's Power (NPP) promise to address ethnic issues, these commitments have not been fulfilled.
Ponnambalam also questioned NPP leader Anura Kumara Dissanayake’s commitment to addressing corruption in the North and East, despite his efforts to tackle the issue in the South. He raised concerns about whether Dissanayake would secure an absolute majority in the upcoming election and speculated that he would eventually need to negotiate with Tamil parties in the North-East.
Last month, Ponnambalam called on newly elected Sri Lankan president Anura Kumara Dissanayake to embrace devolving power to the Tamil nation and said the TNPF would work with him if he abandons his previous pledges to maintain the unitary state structure and his opposition of devolving power to the North-East.
"Our goal is to secure at least 10 out of the 18 parliamentary seats allocated to Tamil MPs from the North-East," Ponnambalam said. He stressed that this electoral success would be critical to preventing the implementation of a unitary political system that would further undermine Tamil autonomy.
