The Chinese ambassador had recently spoken with great joy about the victory of the JVP in the North. The Chinese ambassador had said that China was preparing to start relief projects for the people of the North but the politicians in the North did not allow it. His reference to the politicians in the North could be the T.N.A. politicians. He indirectly accused that external forces were influencing these politicians in the North and stopping the Chinese projects. The Chinese ambassador‘s reference as external forces could be India. In other words, he meant that the defeat of the Tamil politicians involved in politics in the North on the instructions of India is a victory for China.
China supported the Sri Lankan army during the war. When other countries in the world banned the sale of weapons to the Sri Lankan army for the war due to human rights allegations, China sold weapons. Also, after the war ended when Western countries passed resolutions at the United Nations Human Rights Council against the Sri Lankan government for human rights violations committed during the war, China voted in favour of the Sri Lankan government against those resolutions. This is why the Tamil people and Tamil political parties in the North looked at China undesirably.
After the war ended, the Chinese ambassador met with TNA members for the first time during Mahinda’s government and went to the North to inquire about the projects that could be started in the North. After Gotabaya became President, the Chinese ambassador toured the North wearing the Tamil national costume. He visited the temples in the North and worshipped. After the Chinese ambassador‘s PR campaign, China proposed to start energy projects in the Islands of Jaffna. Gota’s government did not allow Chinese projects in the north after India expressed its displeasure to the Sri Lankan government, claiming that these Chinese projects threatened India’s security.
But China did not abandon the North. The Chinese ambassador started distributing relief to the fishermen and people of the North. China’s strategy must have been to win over the people and pressure the politicians of the North to deal with China. While China was continuing to implement this relief program, in the 2024 general election, the people of the North rejected the political parties of the North and voted for the JVP candidates. Now China thinks that the parties of the North can no longer lead the people of the North, and now China will be able to deal directly with the people of the North and restart Chinese projects.
This is not the first time that Sinhala parties in the South have won their party candidates in the North. The UNP has previously elected MPs from the North. The JVP winning districts in the North like Jaffna is a major victory. The reason for the JVP to achieve such a victory in the North is the divisions in the main political parties in the North.
For example, the JVP got 80,830 votes in the Jaffna district. Other Tamil parties got 1, 27,121 votes in Jaffna contesting separately. This shows that the division in the Tamil parties has benefited the JVP. If the Chinese ambassador thinks that this means the end of the politics of traditional Tamil parties and politicians in the North, he is wrong. If the Chinese ambassador thinks that the defeat of the Tamil parties in the North, which have close ties with India, has made the people of the North oppose India, is also wrong.
