Can South decide how North should vote?

The controversial statement made by the Presidential candidate Anura Kumara Dissanayake (AKD), which has been interpreted as a veiled threat to the voters in the North, at an election rally in Jaffna – the heartland of Sri Lanka’s Tamil community – has sparked a storm of protest and condemnation. Few days ago, the NPP leader addressing the particular public meeting, remarked that the South had taken a decision to vote for a change and the North too should follow suit. He went on to question what the mindset of the South would be if the people in the North go against the wish of the majority of the South.

Last Monday’s Daily FT cartoon by Wasantha Siriwardena perfectly summed up the connotations of the remark, validating the adage a picture is worth a thousand words. Senior Tamil political leaders except Sumanthiran have denounced AKD’s assertion which appeared to have a hidden racist implication. The NPP is a movement which stands for a change but the intimidating speech is symptomatic of the same ploy adopted by extremist Sinhalese politicians throughout history. When the Presidential hopeful’s controversial utterance was translated from Sinhalese to Tamil, its undertone appeared to have frightened the listeners.

What makes anyone think that Tamils in Jaffna need to emulate the voting pattern of Sinhalese? Such views insult the intelligence and self-dignity of Tamils in the peninsula. The Northern Tamils have been renowned for their wisdom, academic excellence, and astuteness from the bygone days. They fully possess the capacity and aptitude to make political decisions on their own without being pressurised and manipulated by opportunistic Sinhalese politicians.

During the last five presidential elections, the voting pattern of the North differed from the South. Disparities in voting preferences in terms of ethnic groups is a natural phenomenon observed across the world. In the American presidential elections, Whites have predominantly preferred the Republican candidate, while African-American voters have overwhelmingly voted for the Democratic candidate. In the UK, minority communities generally gravitate towards the Labour Party. The NPP candidate’s verbal gaffe brings back the memories of the 2019 Presidential election. Gotabaya Rajapaksa, in his speech soon after having been sworn in, expressed his anger towards Tamils and Muslims for voting against him. His supporters too vilified the voters in the North and East via social media for preferring Sajith Premadasa. Even the Catholics and Protestants were not spared in the course of expressing their hostility as the former President could not win the constituency of Negombo. 

Ironically, most of the Sinhalese voters who propelled Gotabaya Rajapaksa to the presidency publicly admitted they made a blunder and were at the forefront of the uprising which led to his resignation during 2022 in the wake of the debilitating economic crisis. Hence, one might argue that the Northerners in terms of political thinking were ahead of their counterparts in the South. 

The JVP – the previous political manifestation of the NPP – had a very limited appeal among the Tamil community in the country. During the leadership of its founder – Rohana Wijeweera – the Marxist political party demonised the Tamils of Indian origin and they were portrayed as part of Indian expansionism. One of the objectives behind the JVP evolving towards the NPP would have been to shed its majoritarian past and become an outfit which is acceptable towards minority communities. However, the divisive rhetoric of its candidate would not have helped to overturn the sceptical view of Tamils towards them.

The time has arrived for national-level political leaders – especially the ones who pledge a systemic changeover – to stop perceiving minorities as second-class citizens. Perhaps, hardworking individuals who live in a barren land and toil to water their soil in the early morning, having experienced adversities of all kinds, might have a realistic and far-sighted political judgement than their compatriots in the South.