The Ceylon News

As Sri Lanka enters the final and toughest phase in its long, brutal war against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), the word 'endgame' is increasingly being used by analysts. The Sri Lankan armed forces have reduced the northern territory held by the Tigers from an estimated 15,000 sq km to a 250 sq-km pocket. Only a large civilian population now stands between the army and it sweeping through the island's north, say military leaders as their offensive closes in on LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran's once-invincible strongholds.

But what would an 'endgame' mean for the country's Tamil minority, which is roughly 12% of the population? As a people, the Tamils have long and bitter memories of anti-minority riots, discriminatory policies, forgotten promises of equality and trashed agreements. After Sinhala was declared the sole official language in 1972, there was a policy of colonization of Tamil territory by Sinhalese settlers. There were regulations to curb Tamil access to higher education. Even though successive governments tried to address some of these problems, it was not enough.

Ethnic discrimination caused major anti-Tamil riots in 1956, 1977, 1981 and 1983. The last one was the proverbial last straw. These riots, seen as an organized pogrom, led to India's controversial intervention, which saw Tamil militant groups being trained across the waters from Sri Lanka. It led to a disastrous project to send Indian troops to implement an accord that angered the Sinhalese and dissatisfied the Tamils. And it culminated in the tragic assassination of a former Indian prime minister - Rajiv Gandhi - in 1991.

More than half the Tamil population of Sri Lanka lives in the Sinhala-majority south. A few hundred thousand Tamils have left the country, but large numbers are expected to return in a post-conflict situation.

"This is a victory against terrorism and the LTTE and not a victory over Tamils," declared President Mahinda Rajapaksa after the army captured Kilinochchi, the northern town that was the Tigers' political headquarters. But Tamil sentiment, as gleaned from private conversation, shows that the community has mixed feelings. Many are unwilling to be quoted by name and even those ready to go on record express different opinions in private.

"Now that the LTTE has lost control over its territory, it will be tougher for us than in the past," says a Tamil journalist. Adds a Tamil parent, "There is little doubt that the Sinhalese see this as a victory over the Tamils. My children will be teased in school by their Sinhalese classmates as losers."

D Sithadthan, former MP and leader of the People's Liberation Organisation of Tamil Eelam (PLOTE), argues that successive governments and international players had given the LTTE too much importance. "There is a tendency to identify the LTTE with the whole Tamil community. That's why the LTTE's defeat is seen as the Tamils' defeat, even though it is not so," says the former militant, whose group gave up arms after the 1987 accord.

Senior members of the Sri Lankan government are cautious. In a country with a history of violent majoritarianism, there is more awareness than ever before about the dangers of triumphalism. "Due to Prabhakaran's actions over the years, there exists animosity between the Sinhalese and Tamils. It is a major challenge to bring them together again," says cabinet minister and defence spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella. "But I am sure," he adds, "the two communities will get along very well in the post-conflict situation."

Hope or fear, there are many who view the likely end of a protracted and painful war with relief. Two generations have suffered, losing the chance to live normal lives while their country was reduced to ruin. This is why a Colombo-based Tamil businessman says, "We can now hope to rebuild our lives, and some of us can try to get back the property we had abandoned in the north."

Old-timers can hardly believe the war may finally be drawing to a close. Pathamanathan, a septuagenarian, is one of the many who left the northern peninsula to live in Colombo. "Those days were much better. We hardly had any trouble in Jaffna and we hope we will get that life back," he says.

Not everyone is cheering the apparent defeat of the LTTE. Many Tamils fear they will now be at the mercy of the Sinhalese and may be forced to choose between legitimate political aspirations and basic rights such as security and livelihood. "We have lost our bargaining power, and things are not looking very bright for us," says N Vithiatharan, a Tamil newspaper editor.