No. We are not talking of the abuses of human rights. We are now talking of their observance.
The following is an extract from the Sunday Observer of 10 December 2006 a newspaper completely subservient to the government:
“President Mahinda Rajapaksa said that as the head of state he is fully committed to protect human rights of people not only in Sri Lanka but also members of the world community.

………He said that a special commission was appointed recently to probe into human rights violations if there were any, and within a year, the aim of this commission will be to punish the culprits and prevent similar incidents in the future...” Sunday Observer of 10 December 2006 (emphasis by the writer)

While these words were being said the Tamil people were being killed by Rajapakse’s army by the dozens in Vaharai in the east of Sri Lanka and others made to flee. We recommend read that you read the above extract of the human rights day message by Rajapakse between the lines. 

Rajapakse says that a special commission was appointed to probe into human rights violations if any. The words “if any” imply that there is hardly any human rights violation. If there any abuses against the Tamil people, then they are not human rights violations.  These are necessary in the use against an old enemy, in maintaining the national integrity of the Sri Lankan state and to keep the morale of the armed forces elevated. All Tamils are terrorists, all Tamil children are child soldiers all Tamil babies and infants are potential terrorists.

Rajapakse, often given to profound thinking as evidenced in his incisive thoughts propounded in the “Mahinda Chintanaya” or “Mahinda’s Thoughts” something similar to Mao’s Thoughts, does balancing act here. He makes pathetic attempt to portray himself as a as a champion of human rights on the occasion of the human rights day while at the same time talking to the chauvinist Sinhala constituency in their own language.

According to Rajapakse, what is taking place against the Tamils now are not human rights violations unless and until they are deemed to be so by the special commission appointed by Rajapakse and the culprits caught.  Who are these culprits?  Wait till they are caught.

Not satisfied he goes further to state that he is “fully committed to protect human rights of people not only in Sri Lanka but also members of the world community”. If he intends spreading to the world community the same kind of protection of human rights that he affords   the Tamil people in Sri Lanka, then God forbid.

Being a good Buddhist, though not always religiously following all the precepts, Rajapakse  is known for his  abounding charity. Not satisfied with his unprecedented work in human rights in Sri Lanka, he gets carried away by his overwhelming enthusiasm to get the rest of humanity to share the experiences of his handiwork at home. The great noble Buddha told his disciples that life was suffering. Perhaps Rajapakse aspires to liberate the rest of humanity from suffering by just putting them out of suffering.  This is by no means is genocide but an ancient form of euthanasia. In contrast, it is interesting to recall the story of Asoka the great Emperor of India (circa 273 -232 BC) who became a convert to Buddhism in repentance and remorse of the hundreds of persons being killed on both sides in a war of his making and responsible for the resurgence of Buddhism in India and the introduction of the faith to Sri Lanka.

Rajapakse further stated that a special commission had been recently appointed to probe into human rights violations and within a year, the aim of this commission will be to punish the culprits and prevent similar incidents in the future. Rajapakse could share the wisdom of this strategy, with other leaders like Blair and Putin, as a formula for masterly inaction. Make sure that nothing comes out of these commissions and inquiries, but keep promising more and more inquiries so that one will eventually lose count of these and finally give up, proved very successful in the Sri Lankan kind of democracy. Other leaders may wish to try it out.

Rajapakse does not practise hypocrisy piecemeal. For him it is a full time occupation. He sincerely believes what he says, a trait of a true hypocrite. Hitler believed his own propaganda.

-Eelam Nation-