Marking the fourth day of Lt. Col. Thileepan's hunger strike, residents paid their respects at his memorial in Nallur, Jaffna this morning.
Thileepan fasted unto death in September 1987, in a protest appealing to the Indian government to honour their pledges to the Tamil people.
Days before he began his hunger strike, Thileepan put forward a series of demands and refused food and water until the demands were met.
1) All Tamils detained under the Prevention of Terrorism Act should be released.
2) The colonisation by Sinhalese in Tamil areas under the guise of rehabilitation should be stopped.
3) All such rehabilitation should be stopped until an interim government is formed.
4) The Sri Lankan government should stop opening new police stations and camps in the North-eastern province.
5) The Sri Lankan army and Police should withdraw from schools in Tamil villages and the weapons given by the Sri Lankan government to ‘homeguards’ should be withdrawn under the supervision of the Indian army.
However, these went unanswered and Thileepan passed away on September 26 1987.
Tamils in the North-East and diaspora remember his sacrifice every year.
