Who will fill K.P.’s vacuum?

The Tamil diaspora does not appear to be much perturbed over the arrest of K.P alias Kumar Pathmanathan. There are also no signs of chaos and confusion among them going by the announcements made from time to time. It is indeed  something intriguing and baffling why  the Diaspora which stages demonstrations on even  trifles is keeping silent  on this issue.

When the war in Sri Lanka (SL) was hotting up , K.P. was in Malaysia.. The Tamils in Malaysia teamed up with the Malaysia politicians to engage in massive demonstrations demanding that the war be stopped.. Yet, the Tamils in Malaysia don’t appear to be much vexed or worried following the arrest of K.P.

There are divergent views in this regard. Some claim , after K.P.’s arrest , the Tiger International chain has disintegrated and is defunct.. Some others say , the Tamil diaspora has got frightened  following his arrest , and is therefore remaining silent. Another school of thought is , among the Tamil Diaspora , there is no recognition for K.P.

At the time K.P. was arrested , he was not the leader of the International . chain. He was the unofficial  leader of the Tamil Tigers.  The followers of the unofficial leader therefore remaining silent is something unusual and uncharacteristic.

The question is how many have accepted K.P. as a leader. If they have recognized K.P. as a leader , they would not be silent over K.P.’s arrest  It is deducible from this that the diaspora’s Tiger chain has not accepted K.P. as the leader. In that event whom are they accepting as their leader.?

Even before K.P. announced that he was the leader , he started a website of his own . Through the website K.P. took great pains to highlight that there existed cordial relations between himself and the Tamil Tiger Organization as well as between himself and Prabhakaran. In order to illustrate this  he published photographs of Prabahakaran’s wedding  depicting  his presence at the event. Pictures of himself with Balasingham and Prabhakaran in the jungles were also posted in the website . It is evident from this , K.P. was unknown not only among the Tamil Diaspora chain but also among the Tamil Tiger chain. In other words, he was not a popular figure among them . He was a stranger.It is the view of some that K.P did all this to make himself known among the young men and women who are carrying forward  the Tamil diaspora.

When K.P. became leader , if he has had a remote relationship with the Tamil diaspora , it would have become obviously necessary to investigate  who was behind the diaspora campaign, when the diaspora shook the world with its agitations against the war, during the period the war  was raging. No matter who that person  was , that person should be the Tamil Tiger leader now.

At the final phase of the war when the Tamil diaspora carried on a world wide campaign against it , there is strong evidence as to why K.P. did not participate  in the campaign. It is due to the dispute that arose over the Eelam flag and Prabhakaran’s picture. It is reported that K.P. objected to the use of the Eelam flag , the Tiger emblem and Prabhakaran’s pictures at the protest campaigns , yet K.P.’s objections were disregarded and discarded by the Tamil Diaspora.

The protest demonstrations were staged across the world using the Eelam flag ,Tiger emblem and Prabhakaran’s pictures. The most violent demonstrations of all were staged in London. It is learnt that they were organized by  those antagonistic to K.P.,.Even after K.P. became leader , his inability to stop the campaign against him is clearly borne out by the policy of silence observed by the diaspora over his arrest.

Although the factors leading to K.P. becoming leader is not known , it is evident via the media,  that  he confirmed his leadership. Despite the fact that the Tamil Tiger net and the Tiger media network challenged his enunciations , they did not challenge his leadership. Neither is there any sign that they approved of it. It is at this point , the question arises as to whether K.P. is the actual Tiger  leader.

Though K.P. came forward and addressed the media as  the new Tamil Tiger leader , there was no possibility for a Tamil Tiger leader to come out  because of the dire position the Tigers were driven into by the proscription imposed on them  by the whole world. It is a widespread question as to why K.P. introduced himself as the leader . After K.P. who will be the next leader  is the other  question.

One particular website has jocularly mentioned that  , after K.P. , late Balasingham’s wife Adele Balasingham as suitable to fill the vacancy.. If Italian born Sonia Gandhi can become the unofficial State leader of India , why can’t Australian National Adele be the leader of the Tigers  some have quipped.

 Adele is resident in London and she is still playing an active role within the diaspora . There are reports that she maintains cordial and close relations with the  officials of the United Nations human rights Commission (UNHRC ). Similarly, she is still continuing to have links with the International. political network, which  her husband Balasingham took advantage of when he was living. Politicians, officials and journalists  the world over are in this network. When electing a Tiger leader , her role is pivotal  diaspora reports claim.

Rudrakumaran, a lawyer resident in America is a prominent figure among the diaspora.. He had been liaising and working with K.P. in connection with K.P.’s leadership   appointment as well as to transform the armed Tamil  Tiger Organization to a political Organization. Today it is Rudrakumaran who is voicing protests against K.P.’s arrest.

Rudrakumaran became a close ally of Prabhakaran during the period of cessation of hostilities. Prabhakaran got him associated with the peace process.What K.P. ,Rudrakumaran  and  Adele are now aiming through the Tamil Tiger campaign, is to launch a diplomacy war in line with the requirements of the international community. What the radical youths who are taking forward  the Tamil Tiger diaspora want is to wage war on land. If there is to be a leader among them after K.P., it is inconceivable that such a leader will come to the open like K.P. It is there that potential danger lurks. This is why the Government   is trying to use K.P. to destroy the diaspora Tiger chain , which incidentally is hostile to K.P.