While the new Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi hosting Rajapaksa to his swearing-in on Monday has enraged Tamils, Pope Francis on the same day has announced to media about his visit to Sri Lanka, the very State of which is accused of genocide, on-going genocide, and has been rejected by Eezham Tamils since 1972. The Papal visit would give recognition to the genocidal State, blunting the calls for genocide investigation, and for that matter any international investigation at all against the State and the Rajapaksa regime, Tamil activists for alternative politics in the island commented.
The Pope’s announcement has been received with delight, reported Asian Catholic News Source, UCA News, with a cliché, “Sri Lanka’s ‘great joy’ at news of papal visit.”
“After many years of fighting and bloodshed, the war in your country has finally ended,” the Pope was cited telling to ‘Sri Lankan’ bishops, adding that what remain are, “to promote reconciliation, to respect the human rights of all the people and to overcome the ethnic tensions.”
The Pope announced his proposed visit to the island next year, while returning to Rome from his Holy Land visit, the news report said.
The Pope has also proposed to couple his visit to the island where the Eezham Tamils face a national question, with a visit to the Philippines where the Muslims face a national question.
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