Tamils in Jaffna and Mullaitivu marked 38 years since Lt Col Thileepan began his hunger strike at Nallur Kandaswamy temple in protest against the failure of the Indian government to honour the pledges made it to the Tamil people.
Lt Col Thileepan, a political wing leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), began his fast on the 15th September 1987, surrounded by over 100,000 supporters. He died 11 days later on the 26th September 1987 after refusing food and water.
Following the signing of the Indo-Lanka Accord in July 1987, Thileepan put forward five demands to the Indian government:
1) All Tamils detained under the Prevention of Terrorism Act should be released.
2) The colonisation by Sinhalese in Tamil areas under the guise of rehabilitation should be stopped.
3) All such rehabilitation should be stopped until an interim government is formed.
4) The Sri Lankan government should stop opening new police stations and camps in the North-eastern province.
5) The Sri Lankan army and Police should withdraw from schools in Tamil villages and the weapons given by the Sri Lankan government to ‘homeguards’ should be withdrawn under the supervision of the Indian army.
This morning, a flame was lit and flowers were laid at a memorial dedicated to Thileepan in Nallur, Jaffna.
The Velanai Memorial Committee held a commemoration at Vankalavady junction in Velanai, Jaffna.
In Mullaitivu, Tamil MP Thurairasa Ravikaran held a remembrance event at his office in Kallappadu, Mullaitivu today. S Thavarani, the mother of a fallen LTTE cadre lit a flame and flowers were then laid to honour Thileepan.
