Mano asks UK backing for upcountry Tamil community to achieve their rightful place here

Tamil Progressive Alliance (TPA) leader Mano Ganesan, MP, has urged Maya Sivagnanam, Deputy Director of the South Asia Region Department of Foreign Commonwealth Development Office (FCDO) and High Commissioner Sarah Hulton to facilitate their full integration into what he called the Sri Lankan national mainstream polity as ‘full citizens’. The former National Integration Minister said that Britain should use its good offices with the government here to help us to achieve this Sri Lankan goal”.

“The element of British responsibility begins from the fact that the British crown government started bringing us into this country from South India 200 years ago. Since then our people had put in unprecedented hard work and developed the most profitable plantation export industry in then Ceylon and now Sri Lanka.”

TPA leader Ganesan told, Maya Sivagnanam, the FCDO’s Deputy Director of the South Asia Region Department and High Commissioner Sarah Hulton when he and Ceylon Workers Congress (CWC) general secretary minister Jeevan Thondaman met British Diplomats at Westminster house, Colombo.

Mano Ganesan also said:

“But in return, our citizenship and franchise rights to vote were taken away in 1948. Our people were forcibly sent to India from 1964 by Sirima- Shasthri Pact.”

“Hence, His Majesty’s government of Britain today has a moral responsibility towards the wellbeing of our community”

“Please don’t leave it to GoSL and Gov of India only. Indians too have their obligation and responsibility towards us. India is using its good offices, alright, but that’s not enough. We suffer being sidelined from the national mainstream. We require British support too. We strive to achieve just sociopolitical lost grounds within an undivided Sri Lanka.”

“Not less than one third of our community lives in the plantations. They are the most under privileged vulnerable segment of Sri Lanka. The surveys done by UN organizations, WB, ICRC and UNHRC special Rapporteur confirm this sad reality. We request the Government of UK to support our vulnerable segment on Affirmative Action principles.”

“All what we want is for you to help us to become more into Sri Lankan national polity. We wanted to become full citizens. Please use your good offices with GoSL on our behalf.”

The former minister said that British policy should recognize the underlying fact that Sri Lanka is Incomplete without our community.