December 15, 1996 The Producer National Geographical Explorer Program 1145 17th Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20036-4688. Dear Sir/Madam: "Trial by Fire" -----------------
I returned from a spell of work abroad and, as usual, tried to catch up with my National Geographical magazines and films - Watching "Trial by Fire", I was very disappointed to note that the producers had sacrificed the usual objectivity of presentation in favor of an over-dramatized story which sought to present a religious festival in terms of a combat between good (innocent Tamils) and evil (a Sinhala government) in Sri Lanka. This would have only created confusion in the minds of your viewers who have little knowledge of Sri Lanka.
Let me just briefly point out some misrepresentations in this film. (1) There is no "enemy territory" for the Tamils. Fully 40% of the Tamil population live in the so-called Sinhala areas. They are represented in the highest ministerial positions in the government and in public service office- There is no Sinhala government. (2) The LTTE terrorists are the most ruthless and dangerous of all current terror movements and does not represent all Tamils. Their terror bombings have no parallel in the rest of the world. Some of their worst atrocities are against fellow Tamils that refuse to follow them. (3) The LTTE by holding the Tamils to ransom have used thousands of women and children for suicide attacks (including the killing of Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi). Female battalions are used as suicide squads to lead attacks on the army and the police. (4) The present government is committed to human rights, despite the difficulty of maintaining it in a ruthless war where terrorists will infiltrate and kill civilians at random (remember Vietnam), (5) The Hindu ceremonies shown are not a revival of past primitivism, as you chose to call these. They have always been practiced in Hindu kovils in Sri Lanka and South India and are still practiced by Hindus in predominantly Sinhala regions. The self-inflicted tortures you show are visible in Hindu temple processions in the city of Colombo!
Can you possibly be fair by Tamils and others in Sri Lanka by showing a more informative film on the trials of that country?
(Kenneth Abeywickrama)
Friends of Sri Lanka in the U.S. (FOSUS) P.O. Box 2545 Kensington MD 20891-2545 https://members.tripod.com/~FOSUS