Thread by @iThamilachi

Today we gather to mark 33 years since the death of
Lieutenant. Colonel. Thileepan, a political wing leader of the
LTTE who fasted to death on hunger strike, appealing to
the Indian government to honour pledges made to the Tamil
people. #thileepan_33 #Thileepan

Born Rasiah Partheepan, in 1964 as the fourth son of
a school teacher in Urelu, in Urumpirai in the Jaffna
District, he took up the name Thileepan when he joined the
LTTE.
#Thileepan #thileepan_33 #ThileepanMonth

He was renowned for his courage in combat. In 1987 he
became the LTTE's political leader for Jaffna peninsula.
Thileepan began his fast on the 15th of September 1987,
with 100,000 people gathered around the historic Nallur
Kandwaswamy Temple in Jaffna. #Thileepan

As he began his strike he
put forward 5 demands to the Indian government.
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
#Thileepan

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
#Thileepan #thileepan_33 #ThileepanMonth

5. The sri lankan army and police should withdraw from
schools in tamil villages and the weapons given by the sri lankan government to home gaurds should be withdrawn under the supervision of the Indian army
#Thileepan #thileepan_33

The demands were aimed at the Indian rather than the Sri
Lankan government because the LTTE believed that Indians
could force the Sri Lankans to comply. The LTTE gave the
Indians 24 hours to respond but no response, or even an
acknowledgement, was received.
#Thileepan

Determined to make the Indians meet the demands,
Thileepan began his hunger strike on 15 September 1987.
LTTE was classed as terrorist in the eyes of the Indian and
Sri Lankan Governments. Thileepan wanted to prove that
#Thileepan

LTTE can also carry on the quest for freedom of Tamils in a
peaceful protest.
Starvation occurs in three phases. First, the body halts
consumption of glucose, its primary energy source. Then, it
scrapes away at fat deposits.
#Thileepan #thileepan_33

Once those are depleted, it
finally cannibalizes muscle mass to feed the brain. The body
enters a delicate balancing act, substituting glucose for fat
and eventually protein, until organ function is affected and
results in death. #Thileepan #thileepan_33

The ultimate cause of death, in general, is cardiac arrest or the stopping of the heart. At its core,
starvation is a process of desperate sacrifice.There is a long tradition of using starvation as a form of
political resistance. #Thileepan #thileepan_33

most notably attributed to Gandhi’s
hunger strikes in protest of the British occupation of India.
We praise such acts of deprivation for its heroic spirit: the acceptance of voluntary suffering and rejection of violence to plead to the oppressor’s hypothetical conscience.

But Mahathma is known to take sips of water and lemon
juice during his hunger strikes. But our thiyagi thileepan,
didn’t take even a drop of water to his lips from the moment
he started his strike.
As always… our shout for help didn’t reach anybodys ears.
#Thileepan

The Sri Lankan and Indian governments ignored his protest. As the days went by, the Tamil people watched Thileepan grow weaker and weaker. Within days, public concern had turned to alarm... #Thileepan #thileepan_33 #ThileepanMonth

though most Tamils felt that there would
be a last minute gesture from the Indian government. On 22
September 1987 Indian High Commissioner J. N. Dixit
arrived at Palaly Airport and was met by LTTE leader V.
Prabhakaran who wanted Dixit to go and see Thileepan.

Dixit wanted a written guarantee from Prabhakaran that
Thileepan would end his hunger strike if Dixit met with him
but Prabhakaran couldn't give the guarantee. As his
condition deteriorated, Thileepan stopped giving speeches.
#Thileepan

After refusing food or water for 12 days, Thileepan died on
26 September 1987.
His death sparked widespread grief across the Tamil
homeland, with black flags hoisted and thousands of
grieving mourners attending his funeral.
#Thileepan #thileepan_33

As per his last wish, Thileepan's body was donated to the medical faculty of Jaffna University.

#Thileepan #thileepan_33

Thirty three years on, Tamils continue to call for the
demands made by Thileepan. We have to keep the flames
started by thiyagi thileepan alive.. as our leader said our
youngsters are our future. #Thileepan #thileepan_33

Make them understand our
history and make them carry the torch forward.. as per
Thileepan's last words: "Let the Tamil peoples' war erupt".

#Thileepan #thileepan_33

Speech given by me in the TCC event in London to mark 33 years of #Thileepan ‘s sacrifice.