Friday, October 01, 2004

Danish MPs seek denial of European visa for LTTE by Meenakshi Iyer

New Delhi, September 28: Members of Parliament from Denmark have asked their government to restrain from issuing European visas to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) activists. This was told by Peter Ellehoj, Counsellor at the Royal Danish Embassy in New Delhi.

A report on the Asian Tribune website, dated September 23, had said that four political parties of Denmark had sought a ban on the LTTE, because ‘a top leader of the outfit, V. Balakumar,’ had justified the use of suicide bombers.

On being asked to comment on the report Peter Ellehoj told HindustanTimes.com: "I cannot confirm whether Balakumar had actually said that the LTTE suicide cadres are ready to activate suicide bombs. It was a reiteration of the LTTE’s view on the plight of the Tamils and the LTTE’s position on negotiations."

"According to my information, Balakumar visited Switzerland and Norway while he was in Europe. He was issued a visa by the Norwegian embassy. The issue is whether the LTTE should be banned from entering Europe. That is the query made by Danish parliamentarians," Ellehoj said dismissing reports by Asian Tribune.

Despite the demand for a ban, the LTTE political chief, SP Thamilselvan, will be leading a 14-member team to Geneva, Switzerland, where it will hold talks with legal experts about how to take forward the stalled peace process and talks with the government.

The Tamil team will also travel to Ireland, Denmark, and Austria to meet UN representatives and human rights groups. (Hindustan Times)