“Tamil Genocide Education Week Act” a controversial private member bill passed at Ontario legislative assembly
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The Influential Ontario Legislative Assembly has resolved that Sri Lanka subjected the Tamil community to genocide during the last stages of armed conflict in May 2009 of 30 years long war between Sri Lankan government and the armed group called Liberation Tamil Tigers for Eelam (LTTE) on May 6th 2021. The Legislative Assembly voted in favour of Bill 104 (aka the Tamil Genocide Education Week Act), moved by Progressive Conservatives party member a Sri Lankan asylum seeker-elected to represent Scarborough-Rouge Park riding Vijay Thanigasalam, at the third reading in the legislature. The first reading took place on April 30th, 2019, and the second on May 16, 2019. Details of his emotional presentation can be found in legislative Hansard pages 13371-78.
On Twitter, Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MP Vijay Thanigasalam declared the passage of Bill 104 ‘a historic event for Tamil people in Ontario and across the world. The Tamil Guardian quoted Thanigasalam as having said: “Ontario is the first government worldwide to pass such a law.”
Thanigasalam, in addition to being Vice-Chair, Standing Committee on the Legislative Assembly is also member, Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs as well as Parliamentary Assistant to the Minister of Transportation.
The Bill 104, the Tamil Genocide Education Week Act, establishes seven days each year, May 11 to 18, during which Ontarians “are encouraged to educate themselves about, and to maintain their awareness of, the Tamil genocide and other genocides that have occurred in world history.” The weeklong event coincides with the conclusion of Sri Lanka’s successful war against the LTTE on the morning of May 19, 2009, on the banks of the Nanthikadal lagoon.
Several Sri Lankan organizations and individuals of Ontario residents strongly opposed the move with some making representations to the Standing Committee on Regulations and Private Bills.
The parliament experts of the view that the Ontario Provincial Legislative Assembly lacked jurisdiction to pass these kinds of bills interfering sovereignty of other countries under any circumstances based on fabricated stories and unfounded facts making reference to a loss of civilian lives 40,000 to 75,000 in May 2009 at the final phase of war between a terrorist organization banned in Canada and 15 other nations including US and UK, and the Sri Lanka Government forces. Some critics responding to the news said while Ford government has failed to respond to save the Ontario lives amides the uncontrolled Covid-19 crisis but now has undertaken the business of UN security council jobs and teaching the United Nations to learn what is the genocide meaning from his novice MPPs.
Canada leading news channels previously reported that Vijay Thanigasalam openly identified himself with the LTTE even after the end of war. On Nov 26, 2011, Vijay Thanigasalam in a Facebook post stated: Happy 57th birthday to our national Leader V. Prabhakaran. However, Vijay Thanigasalam apologized for sharing LTTE material. The politician stated: “In the past I shared material related to the Tamil Tigers. I apologize and I no longer hold those views.”.
