TAMILNAADU ASSEMBLY UNANIMOUSLY DEMANDS CEASEFIRE!!!

Tamil Nadu Assembly unanimously demands ceasefire
[TamilNet, Wednesday, 12 November 2008, 16:56 GMT]
Tamil Nadu Assembly unanimously passed a resolution Wednesday a resolution demanding "an immediate halt of military operations and a commencement of political negotiations to find a solution to the Tamil problem." The house of representatives also urged New Delhi to press for talks between the Government of Sri Lanka (GoSL) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). The resolution comes while the Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapaksa was in New Delhi on an official visit.

The resolution, which enjoyed the support of every member of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, was moved by Chief Minister Karunanidhi.

Pointing out that the LTTE had offered to effect a ceasefire, the resolution pressed upon the Indian Government to ask Colombo to agree to an immediate truce in order to alleviate the sufferings of the Eelam Tamils.

It called upon the Indian Government to "undertake efforts to guarantee the right to life, property, livelihood and equality" to the Eelam Tamils on par with the majority Sinhalese. "Over 70 million agitated, angry Tamils in India are united with their Eelam brethren," the statement added.

At the end of the assembly debate over the resolution, Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi urged Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and United Progressive Alliance Chairperson Sonia Gandhi to immediately take steps to 'translate the Tamil quest for a ceasefire into reality'. He also pointed out that the ceasefire was a basic necessity for peaceful existence.

Although, the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister's Relief Fund for Eelam Tamils has collected over 20 crore (200 million) rupees within a very short span of time, the statement of the resolution noted, "sending relief materials to the Eelam Tamils through international organisations alone will not alleviate their suffering travails adequately."

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