‘Triumphalism’ Vs Celebrations

When Sri Lankan people came to the street to cheer the hard-fought victory achieved by our valiant security forces against megalomaniacal mass murderer terrorist leader Prabhakaran, it was termed as 'triumphalism' by local NGO Peace Muladlali dollar Kakas and LTTE supportive INGOs. But when the flags waving USA citizens who came to the streets shouting their country's name aftermath of Bin laden's killing is simply termed as 'celebrations'. This hypocrisy on the part of ant-Sri Lankan, LTTE supportive hordes is well described by Dr. Dayan Jayatilleka in his article appearing in today's Island (04^th March 2011). I below quote the particular part in his brilliant article. The article titled 'Osama Bin Laden and Sri Lanka's WMD moment' highlights the hypocrisy of the Darusman's report. 

"One joins the USA in its celebratory sentiments and President Obama in his ringing reassertions about Bin Laden, but these are as valid or even more so, with regard to Sri Lanka and the Tigers. How come its 'celebration' in the USA when people spontaneously shout the name of their country and express pride in its armed forces and wave flags outside the White House and 'triumphalism' when it happens in Sri Lanka? It is fine when people gather outside Ground Zero and praise the death of Bin laden as justice served for the victims of the Twin Towers, but it is bad form when Sri Lankans, who have been victims of large scale terror and murders of their leaders, express relief and happiness at the death of the man and the destruction of the militia that plagued a generation? Is it that it is fine when it is the citizens of the North who do it but terrible when it is those of the global, ex-colonial South? Or is it that the sentiments of the people of certain communities can be 'hurt' by expressions of relief, congratulations and triumph, but not those of certain others? Why should Sri Lanka play by these hypocritical hegemonic rules?

To pre-empt any sly assertion that the killing of Osama did not entail civilian casualties, we must recall that it was preceded and is still accompanied by a protracted conventional war in Afghanistan, which spills over into neighbouring Pakistan, and has entailed quite significant civilian casualties -- not even the most surgical tactic, Predator drone strikes, are devoid of them when the terrorist leaders are embedded among their kinfolk and tribes.

Analysts and contemporary historians must not forget that the core of the civilians who were with the Tigers were those who had chosen to leave Jaffna with them in 1996 after it had been liberated by the Sri Lankan armed forces in Operation Riviresa, and most Tamils had stayed behind or moved precisely from Tiger control to army controlled areas."