Muhamalai defeat - afterthoughts

Rajapakse regime faced its worst military blow in the post-2005 Rajapakse-Prabha war at Muhamali last week. Enemy caught the forces unawares and launched a massive attack that caused serious damages, to both in terms of casualties and morale.

Rajapakse government also took a pitiable attempt to conceal the damage. What they did not realize was the difficulty in concealing facts in this Internet age. The true figures are out now. Casualties from the Rajapakse side estimated to be in the range of 200.

The morale of security forces are all time low now. Just few months ago they were told it is only a matter of days they would capture Prabhakaran. They were given inaccurate information about the size and strength of the enemy. Now badly hit, they might be feeling cheated – by the very regime they fight selflessly to protect.
Political masters of Rajapakse regime should take the full responsibility of this downfall. It is more than pathetic that so many brave soldiers had to give their lives in an unsuccessful attempt in providing ‘political saline’ much required survival of already dying patient – the present government.

One can feel only sympathy for the government. Looks like its bad times (APALA KAALAYA) has just begun. Just look at some of the events in the last one month. Nothing seems to work for Rajapakse government.

Thanks to Jayasundera and Cabraal duo the economy is in shambles. Inflation is at all time high of 28%. If that is no enough, government has no plans of bringing that down. They are just clueless.

The Jeyaraj, one of the most powerful figures of the government becomes a victim of the war he himself was responsible for promoting. This brought government I par with tigers. Whatever little political advantage gained by killing Thamilselvan was set off by the loss of Jeyaraj.

As that was not enough, then we hear the JVP split. For Rajapakse government it is one of the worst things ever happened because now they completely lost the support of red brothers who brought them to power in the first place. They know they can never think of a national level election victory without the backing of JVP.

Then comes the rice crisis and the government acts in the most stupid manner of imposing price controls. Even JVP, a political party hardly known for its economic sense criticises the use of price control mechanisms. It is not fair to blame the Rajapakse regime fully for the rice crisis but no denial that how they reacted made the matters worse. We are gradually back to 70-77 days of ‘halpolu’ and ‘mirispolu’.

On top of all these Rajapakse regime strongly wants at least a temporary victory in North.

What is gets in reality?

A pitiable defeat at Muhamalai. It will long for Rajapakse regime to overcome such a blow - if they ever do.

No, I am not critising the security forces here. They can do nothing. They were forced to fight an unwinnable war. They were forced to fight for the survival of a failing government in its last days. This kind of political wars does not bring anything to the country.

With the sure win for UNP in the Eastern provincial council elections, we hope Rajapakse regime will get the message. But that does not mean that the dame will be over. That reminds me a Sinhalese saying:

“YANA YAKA KORAHATH BINGADENA YANAVALU”

True figures: Sri Lanka lost 185 soldiers in Jaffna battle - AFP quotes military sources

COLOMBO (AFP) — At least 165 government soldiers were killed and 20 more went missing in a major battle against Tamil rebels this week, military sources told AFP on Friday.

The figures were far higher than official defence ministry casualties which gave 43 soldiers dead and 33 missing from Wednesday’s fighting in the north.

“Some of the senior officers have been told that the army lost 185, including 20 who are still listed as missing,” said a military source who declined to be named. “We are trying to establish the fate of the missing.”

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) on Thursday returned the bodies of 28 soldiers they had captured.

The government also reported killing more than 100 rebels in the pre-dawn offensive along the Muhamalai front lines on the northern Jaffna peninsula.

However, the separatists, who have been fighting for a Tamil homeland since 1972, said they lost only 25 combatants.

Official defence ministry casualty tolls and LTTE figures can seldom be verified because the government prevents journalists from visiting war zones and territory held by the rebels.

Wednesday’s confrontation was the bloodiest in recent years and the biggest battle since the military withdrew from a Norwegian-arranged truce in January this year.

(AFP)