Sri Lanka - Articles

What is the common denominator of the following militant/terrorist/insurgent groups?

All Tripura Tiger Force (Tripura);

Tripura Tiger Commando Force (Tripura);

Bodo Liberation Tiger Force (Assam);

Bengali Tiger Force (Assam);

Gorkha Tiger Force (Assam);

Muslim United Liberation Tigers of Assam (Assam);

Muslim Tiger Force (Assam);

Manipur Liberation Tiger Army (Manipur);

Eastern India Liberation Tigers Front (Arunachal Pradesh);

Bhindrawala Tigers Force of Khalistan (Punjab);

Allah Tigers (Kashmir);

Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (Sri Lanka);

Tigers of the Gulf (Saudi Arabia).

Nothing, except the word 'Tiger(s)' figuring in their names.

Why is 'Tiger' a popular nomenclature or symbol among the insurgent groups? The answer lies in exploring the characteristics of tigers. Generally speaking, tigers (Panthera tigris) are universally respected for their fiery passion, fearless actions and daring sudden attacks. They display an unpredictable personality with contradictions in their behaviour " from being fiery and fearless to calm and emotional " in a relatively short duration. They have little regard for rules and regulations that would hinder their free-spirit. They do not like restrictions and prefer giving orders rather than taking them. They are solitary and love to be independent. They control a territory in the wild and zealously guard it. The tigers' mode of attack "wait patiently, watch carefully and finally, strike by surprise " is what the insurgents adopt in their 'guerilla tactics' to take on superior state forces. These attributes cause the wild cats to terrorize the jungle and the people living around it. In China, tigers are the guardians of hunting and agriculture. In India, they are emblems of royalty and the Kshatriyas (a warrior caste). The tiger is the symbol of war in Japan (though no tigers are found in the country), where they are believed to enjoy a 1000 year life span. Mythological heroes, gods, and other immortals rode on their backs or wore their skins. The phrase to 'ride a tiger' is used to describe a heroic tangle with perilous and even demonic forces.

Not surprisingly these characteristics of tigers, sighted frequently and feared the most in the region, have impressed the militant groups of northeast India. It is for this reason perhaps that of the 13 militant/terrorist groups with 'tiger' in their name, eight belong to the northeast. Another important fact to note is that all militant groups with 'tiger' in their names are in Asia, perhaps because "tigers are strictly Asian cats"; no other continent has them except in zoos. The success of militant/terrorist groups with 'tiger' in their name may have led other groups to use it in their titles. For instance, successful military campaigns of the LTTE have enormous influence on the Indian insurgent groups.

The LTTE has adopted the 'aggressive jumping tiger' as its emblem to symbolize various facets of its militancy. The Tamil rebels were fascinated by the Chola Empire, which overran Southeast Asia and Sri Lanka under the tiger flag in the 10th and 11th centuries. It was felt appropriate to adopt the Chola emblem to "emphasize national resurgence among the Tamils of Sri Lanka." The root of the term 'eelam', in fact, can be traced from this period when Sri Lanka was ruled as the ninth province of the Chola Empire in the name of 'Eela Mandalam'. The LTTE wants a repeat of history. 'Tiger', moreover, was considered 'a perfect match' to the 'lion' of the Sinhalese, which has its own mythological significance. The LTTE chief wished to develop a fighting force of "incredible bravery, fearless heroism, ambition of freedom" and also to be 'agile and aggressive' , the qualities of a tiger. This prompted him to include 'Tigers' in the name of the organisation as well.

But do insurgent groups know that tigers are an endangered species and that captive tigers live longer than those in the wild?