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Teo Teck Chee
Integrity Three

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Wednesday, August 5, 2009, 5:11 AM

Teo Teck Chee Integrity 3
Historical Narrative
Race

“First person to get to the water's edge wins!” Raveen shouted in mid-run.
“No fair!” Amaran along with Ananthi Kumar yelled back simultaneously. “Faster!” Raveen coaxed. Arriving at the spot, Amaran put his foot on a dry rock as Raveen soaked his feet in the frolicking water. “What did you want to tell us?” Ananthi asked.
“My mother says I can’t hang out with you two anymore,” Raveen said dejectedly.
The year was 1948 when the British left Sri Lanka, leaving the predominantly Sinhalese government in charge. Sri Lanka is located at the southern tip of India. “Are you going away to the city?” Ananthi enquired unfazed. Amaran spun to face Raveen astonished. Could he just leave after 13 years of weal shared between them? “Are you really going?”
Amaran stood silently, waiting for Raveen to respond. With utmost caution, Raveen said, “My father just got promoted in his work. We’re going to live in the city allowing my father to get to work easily.” With that, Raveen sped away. Amaran together with Ananthi walked back home. They saw their mother crying at the doorstep. Their father, a Tamil Language teacher at a local school, shooed the siblings back into their cramped house. Amaran sneaked back to the front door, he silently eavesdropped on his parents, “This Ceylon Citizenship Act will make us stateless, there’s nothing we can do…”
“The Ceylon Citizenship Act only allows those born in Sri Lanka, plus those people that are third generation Tamils to become citizens of Sri Lanka,” Amaran had heard about this from friends in the neighbourhood, he became tense after hearing that.
Two years later in 1950, the Sri Lankan government passed a law, the Resettlement Policy. Coming home one day Ananthi noticed cardboard boxes piled up at the door. Her mother was packing up their valuables.
“We have to learn Sinhala now. The government has just agreed to the Sinhala Only Policy. All of the Tamil teachers in the school have to learn Sinhala or will be dismissed.” Amaran’s father told his family when he got back from school, before he hurriedly left to attend a peaceful demonstration in the town. The Sinhalese who supported the law clashed with the Tamils assembled there. Even after riot the government was slow in making Tamil the national language.
16 years later in 1972, the government changed the University Admission Criteria, “Our neighbour’s son is eligible to enter the University of Colombo except that a Sinhalese took her place instead in spite of the fact that she got a lower score!” Ananthi exclaimed to an incensed Amaran over dinner.
Tension continued to rise even four years later, causing the formation of the Tamil United Liberation Front to fight for the freedom of Tamils in Sri Lanka. Sensing this was his chance to fight for his race, Amaran joined the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam led by Velupillai Prabhakaran in May 5th 1976.
“Hey big brother, wait!” Ananthi shouted, running over to her brother “I heard from the neighbours that you’ve joined the Liberation.”
Amaran appeared relaxed, “Yes I’ve signed up for the Liberation army.”
“I can’t stop you once you’ve decided. Come back in one piece brother.” Ananthi sighed, going back to the house.
“I will.” Amaran murmured.
After 26 years of fighting on January 8th 2009, the Sri Lankan Army finally pushed the LTTE into the Jaffna Peninsula. The Tigers held on to the jungles of Mullaitivu as their last stand. By May 12th, the LTTE had only 840 acres of land left in the jungles. Prabhakaran was killed on May 18th when a rocket hit the armour-plated van he was riding in. This successfully ended the 26 years of harsh conflict between the Tigers and the Sri Lankan Army. The captured militants would undergo sessions on how to live without fighting. The society would then have to help Integrate the militants into their lives as individuals. Would the people of Sri Lanka be safe from an ex-tiger who has an unaccomplished mission left by the deceased Prabhakaran?

Word Count: 675