TYOREACH Official Newsletter of

TYO - Canada

Dear Treasured youth,

It has come to the beginning of yet another year. It is time to step into the New Year with new ambitions,

new thoughts and new actions. To move another step closer to gaining our goal and better the lives of

the Tamil population in our homeland. To promoting awareness and creating an avenue for the interna-

tional community to better understand the humanitarian plight of the Tamil people.

It’s time to take pledge and commit our selves for the betterment of our community. We would like

to thank those of you who have been continuously reading our newsletter and writing back to us. Your

feedback is very important and greatly appreciated.

To ensure you receive all emails from REACH, please add reach@canadatyo.org to your address book

or list of safe senders.

TYO-Canada wishes you a safe and prosperous New Year ahead!

What if (a host of) hostile rats roar like the sea? They will perish at the mere breath of the cobra

- Thirukkural (Verse 763)

TYO - CanadaMessage from

In solidarity,

TYO – Canada

To work towards the enhancement of the Tamil Nation and to provide an avenue for the betterment of the Tamil youth in Canada

2009WELCOME

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In Memory of

TSUNAMI VICTIMS

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I have just returned from my stay in tsunami affected Northeast Sri Lanka, having been there from the day the tsu-nami hit.

The images of the people and their suffering are still clear in my mind. Their cries for help, their wails, their mourn-ing still ring loudly in my ear. Words cannot describe the extent of the damage the people I have seen have experienced. I have lost count of the number of orphans I have come across, the number of moth-ers who have watched as their infants were snatched from their fingers by the waters, and the number of husbands ‘the bread winners’ with no family to feed.

Yet, amongst all this atrocity, I am amazed at the unity that I see in these people. On one occasion, my friend had accidentally distributed an extra mat to a classroom filled with refugees. Each room housed about 14 families, and only one mat was rationed per room. Yet, even amongst all the discomfort, the families in that particular classroom were selfless enough to return the extra mat, saying, “Brother, we’ve already re-ceived our share”.

Everywhere I go, I continue to see the tremendous work done by TRO (Tamil Rehabilitation Organisation). I am amazed at their efficiency, and their ability to handle such a large scale cri-sis. Every refugee I have spoken to only has praise for the work done by them. Running on a few hours sleep each day, I see them manage family after family, as they arrive by the bus load to the refu-gee camps.

The LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil

Eelam) too amaze me with their dedica-tion to the Tamil people. Although many of them have sustained losses of their own family members, they have had the courage and determination to put their feelings aside in order to serve ‘their

people’. Three days after the tsunami, gloves were scarce. Yet there was still a need for the removal of the hundreds of bod-ies being found amongst the wreckage. The LTTE’s commitment to the peo-ple, the land, and the cause was confirmed, in my eyes, when I witnessed them re-

moving decayed bodies with their bare hands. It would be an understatement to say they were selfless.

Yet, amongst all this, I continue to see discrimination from the Sri Lankan government. Media is still discouraged from entering the Northeast, and hence the international community is yet not informed enough of the extent of the situation there. Day by day, barriers are put up, hindering aid from reaching Tamil areas. Anti-Tamil acts have been preva-lent since Sri Lanka received indepen-dence in 1948, yet, the most brutal of all forms of discrimination would have to be the ones imposed on the innocent Tamils affected by the tsunami.

The latest of these was the detain-ment of a shipment of medical supplies bound for Northeast Sri Lanka. While in Sri Lanka, I was informed of the Sri Lankan Army terrorising Tamil refugee camps, ordering for all food and medical supplies to be handed over. I am yet un-sure of how much foreign aid is actually reaching the Northeast province. How-ever, the most disturbing of all, would have had to be the raping of orphaned displaced girls by members of the Sri

Lankan Army.It is ironic, that considered ‘terror-

ists’ by many nations, the LTTE, are the ones serving the people, and the Sri Lankan Army are the ones terrorising its citizens.

If Kofi Annan, a man who represents neutrality and basic human rights, is himself not allowed to visit the victims of the tsunami, solely because they are Tamil and inhabit the Northeast prov-ince, one needs to reassess the reasons why the LTTE were forced to pick up arms for independence.

For years, the Sri Lankan govern-ment has victimised Tamils. They have been discriminated against in educational and employment, they have been targets of government backed up racial violence, such as the 1983 riots which killed thou-sands of Tamils, and they are now being deprived of humanitarian relief.

The Sri Lankan government’s re-sponse to the Tamil victims is a per-fect example of why the Tamil people need their own country. Their welfare is clearly not of any concern to the Sri Lankan government, and even in such a state of absolute loss, the Sri Lankan government is merciless enough to dis-criminate against one, simply because he or she is Tamil.

I write this from experience. I was there amidst the atrocity. I saw the dis-crimination. I witnessed the injustice.

A 13 year old boy, who had lost ev-ery member of his family, put the situ-ation in Northeast Sri Lanka, in a nut shell: “If, even at such a time of massive human loss, the Sri Lankan government can discriminate against Tamils, then, we Tamils are justified in fighting for a sepa-rate land”.

Tsunami Disaster & Tamil Eelam

“I write this from experience. I was there amidst the atrocity. I saw the discrimination. I witnessed the injus-tice.”

The writer was a Student Volunteer from Sydney, who originally went to Sri Lanka to help at the hospitals

Sampavi Parimalanathan30th January 2005

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CPA passes emergency resolution on Tamil IDP crisis

Tamil Youth Organization (TYO), and Cana-dian Humanitarian Appeal for the Relief of Tamils (CanadianHART) along with many active delegates and observers from mem-ber organizations around Canada attended a convention titled “Canada’s new militarism: Building resistance at home and abroad”. Which was held by The Canadian Peace Alliance (CPA). The CPA was founded in 1985 and is Canada’s largest umbrella peace organization. The CPA consists of approxi-mately 160 member groups which together act as a broad network, in order to pro-vide a strong, coordinated voice for peace issues at the national level. The powerful convention took place from Dec 5th – 7th at Ryerson University in Toronto, where member organizations came together to put forth an action plan, and work in solidarity for peaceful solutions to their struggles. The convention agenda was dynamic and provid-ed an avenue for participants to collectively join rallies around the downtown core, discuss pertinent matters in caucus groups, and elect their new steering committees. Key highlights over the weekend included a

“Fighting for Civil Liberty” discussion group where delegates and observers discussed the urgent need to fight for, and demand that the Canadian Charter of Rights be upheld for all community groups, including ethnic minorities. The discussion shed light and awareness on the day to day discrimina-tion, racial profiling and obstacles minority group face in Canada.

Many were outraged and shocked at the ob-stacles and restrictions the Tamil Diaspora faced when mobilizing their community to respond to the ongoing crisis in Sri Lanka. Another key highlight was the standing ovation received by CanadianHART for the powerful and emotional testimony delivered during the convention to urge the organi-zations to come forward and support the Tamil community at this crucial time. The resolution to end the humanitarian crisis faced by the Internally Displaced Tamils in Sri Lanka was passed unanimously with strong support by all member organizations present at the convention.

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“A solution is a uniform mixture of two or more sub-stances.”

“A solution is a uniform mixture of two or more sub-stances.”

“A heterogeneous mixture is …” I look down at my paper where I wrote down most of

my definitions and terminology. Any minute now we would be starting The Test. The Test that was worth 20% of my grade. My final chance at making up for not doing as well as I expected to on my lab reports.

“You ready for this?”I turn around to see Tommy looking across at

me from his side of the table. I smile at him. “Oh, I don’t know. I mean, I didn’t get as much

studying done as I expected.” This is of course

a lie. I couldn’t possibly tell my academic rival that I had spent a whole week studying for this test, including trying to memorize everything from the Science Power 7 textbook and taking diligent notes which I would pore over as soon as I got home everyday. I had read somewhere that you tend to remember more of what you learned if you look at it again within six or so hours. Something about the loss of energy and such.

“I can see that,” Tommy replies pointing his chin at the direction of my notes. Tommy has that weird effect on me these days, ever since my so-called friend, Mariam, went around telling practically everyone that I have a crush on him. She would never admit that in reality it is her who really likes him. As far as I’m concerned his only function in my life is to keep me on my toes so that I never slack off. This is very useful in getting me to school every day, no matter

how sick I am. He might learn something that I know nothing about. The other kids I was not so worried about.

“How about you?” I question him hoping that my voice sounded neutral.

“Wouldn’t you like to know?” Damn! He can be so frustrating. Sometimes I get this overwhelming urge to just lean across the desk and strangle him whenever he gets into his I’m-all-that mode. There is no way I can like someone as over-confident as that. Though, unlike me, he is actually well liked by my stupid classmates.

“Okay class. Time to put away your notes.” I give a quick glance at my notes and shove them into my desk. I feel as if my heart is about to jump out of my throat. Shakily, I print my first and last name in the space pro-vided. I say a quick prayer that I should get a perfect mark on this test. Either that or beat Tommy. Both would work just fine with me.

A solute is...This test is actually going pretty well. I

think that I may just get a perfect mark after all. Thirty minutes later, it was going just as well. Then came the last question. Perhaps the gods were punishing me for my over-con-fidence at the beginning or something, but I just cannot seem to get the correct terminol-ogy for it. I know that I learned this. I know this answer. It starts with an s-. Almost there.

This cannot be happening now with only five more minutes left. My heart is beginning to pick up speed and I can feel the moisture in my palms. I look around the class. People are leaning forward and I could see their pencils scratching away at their paper. I look in front of me and see Tommy writing intently,with a serious expression. I don’t need this right now. I remember the notes that I stashed into my desk. Perhaps if I discreetly brush the notes towards me, I would be able to have a quick glance at the word. This should only take about four seconds. Just four whole seconds. I lean closer to my desk, stick my hand into the space, and slowly brush the paper towards me. Then I lean back trying to look casual and glance at the note. I speedily scan the paper and find it. Su-persaturated solution. That’s it! When the maximum amount of solute is dissolved and no more can be further dissolved, the solution is supersaturated. I shove the paper further into

A Super-Saturated

Solution

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my desk drawer space. I am done. I turn over the paper after double-checking my answers. This is never happening again. This is going to be the first and last time that I do this, I tell myself silently.. I wait for the teacher to come around and collect the papers.

“How was it?” I was startled to find my so-called friend Mariam ask me this question. I call her my so-called friend because we were not really buddies. We both know of our dislike for each other, but nevertheless it is important to put on the facade of civility. This was because Mariam needs me so that she can copy my work and in return I am allowed to be in her group during gym class. It was either that or being partners with the new girl, Mina, who no one really liked because she could not speak English. Then again, no one really liked me either.

Feeling suspicious, I smile and reply “Oh, it was okay.” Her little clique of girls were with her.

“Of course it was for you. I mean, knowing how much you study and all.” Her friend, Suzy burst out laughing. Now, I was officially on guard. I could feel that something was different, but wasn’t quite sure what it was. I knew that I would find out eventually.

At the end of science class, I could see Mariam talking to Ms. Mohammed. That’s different. She never talks to the teacher. Something was definitely up. I pack my books slowly. I hear the teacher call my name. Shit! Now I am sure I know what this is about. I walk to the teacher’s desk feeling cau-tious. I don’t look at Mariam.

Ms. Mohammed speaks up. “Is it true that you cheated?” My face turns red. I cannot lie now. It would be too obvious anyway.

“Yes.”I can see the surprised expression on the teacher’s face.

She doesn’t look too happy. Feeling ashamed of myself, I tried to look for some sort of redemption. Just to have something to say.

“It was only for one question.” Suddenly, I realize that this was not helping me at all. It doesn’t mean anything. I stare at the floor, while Ms. Mohammed tells me that she will talk to me tomorrow at lunch. I reply in the affirmative and rush out of the room.

On my way to math class, I wonder just how many peo-ple know abut what happened. I know that Mariam would tell the whole world using her stupid over-sized mouth. Would Tommy know? What will he think? I don’t want to go the math class now. Shame makes you want to hide, I realize. What does Mariam get out of this, I wonder. I mean, I know that our dislike for each other is no secret. She knows that there is no way in hell that I would let her copy my home-work ever again. No, this may have something to do with Tommy. Holy cow! She cannot honestly think that Tommy likes me. It’s confusing how everything always seems to go

back to him. I quickly slip into

my desk in math class. I don’t feel like talking to anyone, but I know that I will have to explain the teacher’s instructions to Mina in Tamil. If I didn’t do it, no one else would bother trying to help her.

I heard what hap-pened, Mina tells me. I stare at the textbook in front of me. I tell her qui-etly that I don’t want to

talk about it and that she should just be doing her work. She replies okay, and starts her work. Usually I love being in this class. I was good at mental math and solving a problem brings me such satisfaction. It was as if I was putting everything in its right place. I had great hopes of receiving the mathemat-ics award for this year. Today though, even math class seemed like a drag and I hated this just like I hated this school, the people, and pretty much everything. Perhaps, high school will be different.

Mina speaks to me again. She tells me that she had done badly on her last math test, and that she doesn’t know how she’s going to face her mom. I reply that she doesn’t have to tell her mother about it. It’s not as if we need to get it signed.

“But I tell my mother everything.”“Oh.”I took this conversation as an opportunity to ask her if

she would like to accompany me when I give my speech to Ms. Nelson’s sixth grade class. I wanted to boost my marks in English class, so the teacher had asked if anyone was interest-ed in volunteering to speak to the sixth graders about how it is like being in grade seven and about making the transition to middle school. I volunteered after realizing that I would be receiving extra credit for this. Mina agreed to come with me

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for support.By home time I am ready to collapse on my bed from ex-

haustion. This is not possible because I would have to go that stupid dance class. I eat a light snack and put on my dance clothes. I could hear my mom tapping away on her keyboard in the other room. She would be out soon to give me a ride.

On the way to dance class, we pick up my cousin, Sushika. She runs out of her house and into the car. She greets my mother and says hello to me as well. Although, I sit in the front seat with my mother, we rarely talk to each other. Dur-ing the rides to dance class, it will be my mother and Sushika conversing. They will talk about dance, Hinduism, school, and such. Of course, Sushika would always mention all the side projects that she is doing. I’m writing a novel, volunteering at the hospital, and blah blah blah. However, when we reach dance class, she would go hang out with her friends and ignore me.

After two hours of Bharatanatyam dancing, the teacher wanted us to lie on our bellies on the hard floor and raise our legs behind us and touch the back of our heads with the soles of our feet. Oh, and if we wanted to be even more ambitious we could raise our arms. This will help with our flexibility. I tried it and gave up after two seconds. There is a limit, even for me.

At home, I quickly make my dinner and get started on rehearsing my speech. I consult my How to Make an Effective Speech book. Apparently, I was supposed to: look at each in-dividual, ask thought-provoking questions, pace myself, make a joke, close on a high note and most important of all practice, practice, and practice. I decide that it might be a good idea to use cue cards and record myself just to see how I sound.

Finally, I lay on my bed feeling slightly satisfied with how I had done. Now with real time on my hands, I can finally think about today. How was I going to face everyone at school tomorrow? I had a certain reputation of being this good girl who always worked hard. If someone like Weston had done that it would not be a big deal. Everyone expects him or his friends to do something like that. At that moment, it felt more like I was watching someone else do it. Sure, it had been me that had done the cheating, but it wasn’t me me. When Ms. Mohammed had asked me if what Mariam had said was true, I could only reply in the affirmative because it was my actions. Physically, yes. With this in mind, I drift off to sleep.

The next day, I went to the elementary school. I greet Ms. Nelson. I used to be in her class. I would sometimes stay in during recess and help her mark or staple booklets together. I guess it made sense that everyone thought I was a teacher’s pet then. Then, anything seemed better than just standing around with a group of people in the cold. They wouldn’t even play a game-only stand around doing nothing. I remem-ber that last year Ms. Nelson told me not to be so sad. This surprised me. I didn’t think that I was being unhappy. This was how I always was. Today, she smiles at me and tells me that the class is ready for me. Mina is with me.

Ms. Nelson has one of those classrooms that have stu-dents’ drawings and paintings all over in the colored bulletin boards. She is one of those teachers that will occasionally give out treats for completing homework and have a class party every two months. She probably still does that.

I see Milo, the lizard that is kept in a terrarium by her desk. Last year, my class had gone to the pet store to pur-chase Milo, but before that we read many books and watched films about geckos. Ms. Nelson herself owns three dogs, two cats, a hamster, a gerbil, a bunny, and many kinds of fish. I wonder if she has more in her collection. I will ask her about that later.

When I finish my speech, I look at the faces of the sixth graders. I feel sad because I know that after leaving elemen-tary school, it will never be the same. They will not be as expressive and become much more reserved. Otherwise, it will be hard to survive. I realize how ironic the situation is. Here I am talking to kids about the realities of grade seven and how it is going to be different because they will have their own schedules, lockers, and such, when I really just want to tell them not to forget to be nice.

Aasana Sriranganathan(University of Toronto)

TYO - Canada DECEMBER 2008 Vol - 10

On Wednesday 10 December 2008, 60 years on from the United Nations (UN) Universal Declaration of Human Rights, as the world celebrated Human Rights Day, the Sri Lankan State continued its denial of basic human rights to the Tamils of North-East Sri Lanka.

On the very same day Tamil and non-Tamil Australian youth gathered at Circular Quay, Sydney to paint a co-lossal mural measuring 15 metres long, as part of the ‘Remember; Restore; Respect…Tamil Human Rights’ Campaign organized by Tamil Youth Organization of Australia (TYO-Australia).

“Through the mural we wanted to ask the interna-tional community to remember the Tamils’ suffering, restore the Tamils’ basic human rights and respect the Tamils’ right to self-determination,” said Lakshmi Rajan, a member of TYO-Australia.

The event received media publicity and a large audi-ence of Australian public. “The idea is great,” said Sarah Louis, an onlooker. “Issues like this should get more publicity in the media,” she added.

The colossal mural will be exhibited at future events around Australia and later in Tamil Eelam.

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Australians Portray Sri Lanka’s Denial of Human Rights

Tamil Youth Organisation (TYO-UK) organised a vigil in front of UNICEF House on Monday 22nd Decem-ber 2008, to highlight to UNICEF the current humani-tarian crisis in the north and east of Sri Lanka particu-larly those inflicted upon innocent Tamil children. The ongoing civil war in Sri Lanka has now reached an intolerable state. Over 680,000 Tamils have been displaced during the 30 year civil war of which 240,000 in the previous 2 months, foreign aid work-ers have been expelled and the deadly floods in the region have led the Tamils to strive in poor conditions without appropriate food and shelter. To add to this,

the Sri Lankan government has commenced its use of cluster bombs against the innocent Tamil civilians.The vigil commenced at 12pm and ended at 5pm during which leaflets were handed out to the public. A DVD containing a ten minute documentary depict-ing the plight of Tamil children in Sri Lanka were also handed out to members of the public. At 3pm members of TYO-UK went inside UNICEF House and met up with the Deputy Executive Of-ficer of UNICEF UK. Leaflets, the DVD containing the documentary and a letter of appeal were handed to the officer.

UK youth hold vigil in front of UNICEF

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d Speak OutAs Tamil youth in Canada, we have the ultimate duty of educating others, as well as ourselves of the suffering of the Tamil people. Understanding is crucial. And with understand-ing comes awareness, the most essential step in the path to progress.

Ignorance is not a bliss.

• Stay updated with recent news

• Write to your local politicians

• Attend rallies

• Enlighten non-Tamil peers

• Write a poem, articles, essay

• Research, understand and recite

Join TYOOur doors are always open to new members that are looking to make a difference for Tamils around the world.

As an organization with the interests of Tamil youth at heart, TYO provides opportunities for Cana-dian Tamil youth to network, contribute, and develop their skills in various areas as well.

Interested in getting involved?

Please contact us at contact@canadatyo.orgOr visit us at www.canadatyo.org

“The only thing necessary for the triumph [of evil] is for good men to do nothing.”- Edmund Burke

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Guidelines:o All submissions must be in English

o You may create your own title for your work

o Written work should be within 750 words (or 2 pages letter sized), 12 pt font (Times)

o Can be written in any form (article, research essay, poem, story, etc.)

o Include your name, contact info, and University/ College/ High School (If applicable)

o Submit before January 20th, 2009

o Must be e-mailed to reach@canadatyo.org with the subject ‘Reach-Jan 2009’

o Please attach a word file or copy and paste your work in your e-mail

For our next month’s issue:

Submit your written work based on

‘Something you’ve done during year 2008 that you are proud of’

Please follow the guidelines below.

Don’t forget to add reach@canadatyo.org

to your e-mail safe list.

We appreciate all of your time and effort.

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