Tuesday, October 05, 2004

Karuna's interview to the TBC Radio in London

‘Prabhakaran has shifted from separate state to pathetic state’

In an interview with the Thamil Broadcasting Corporation (TBC) in London, Col. Karuna blasted LTTE leader Prabhakaran as a ruthless person whose only concern is his own glory. Col. Karuna accuses Prabhakaran as a traitor who is now begging for the Interim Administration from the Sri Lankan government. He said that Prabhakaran’s people are killing not only fighters but also innocent civilians as well in Batticaloa. Karuna said he is committed to the democratic process and re-affirms that he will form the political party soon. He claims that he is still in Sri Lanka and accuses vanni LTTE leadership are the ones who are working with the Sri Lankan army. He pointed out that the newly appointed military leader Banu travels in armed forces helicopters, with the SLA protection. He also discusses the death of his elder brother Reggie. In the TBC broadcast last week, Mr. Ramaraj spoke to Col. Karuna. Text of the interview follows:

Ramaraj: There are reports of several attacks in the eastern province. Last week, we heard that Reggie, your brother and a long time LTTE fighter, had been killed. How true are these reports?

Karuna: That is true. A stooge of Prabhakaran killed my brother. I wouldn't say that is a new thing. Because hundreds of LTTE fighters were killed by Prabhakaran. He will continue these killings of follow fighters. So, I have to feel sorry and sad for all those fighters killed by Prabhakaran, not just for the single person Reggie. But I want to say one thing. Reggie died fighting against the dictatorship of Prabhakaran, against the oppression of Prabhakaran. So, I am in fact proud of my brother. They carried out big propaganda. They spread rumours and misled people to believe that we ran away from our people, we went aboard, and so on. This incident shows that we are with our people. We always will be with our people. So, I don’t want our people to get frustrated or shocked by the killing Reggie or any of our fighters. We were forced to fight against the dictators and fascists of Prabhakaran. So we have to fight with vigor and strength. So I ask our people to come together and fight the evil forces of Prabhakaran. I ask the Tamil youths to join together and put a stop to the murders and heinous crimes committed by Prabhakaran.

I am sure Prabhakaran cannot get anything positive for our people. Because he is only concerned about his legacy. He declared himself as the `EBgreat leader’, the `EBnational leader’ and wants to crown himself as the greatest leader ever. How can a mad person who had killed thousands of his own people be the national leader? How can this person be a great leader? So, now there is a need for the people of north and east to think about this. He had killed several political leaders, intellectuals who were among us. He had killed people like Amirthalingam, several intellectuals, educators, and community leaders. Prabhakaran killed hundreds of such people. How can he be the leader of Tamils? So, I am sure people will be thinking about these, and when they come to realize all this, they will have no other choice but to reject Prabhakaran. His dancing with terrorism will not liberate our people.

When Amirthalingam and other TULF leaders were killed by the LTTE, these leaders were asking for separate state. The LTTE reasoned out that these leaders were going to give-up on Tamil Eelam. What is happening today? Prabhakaran is begging for the interim administration. He is telling `EBGive us the interim administration’. That is the pathetic status of our liberation struggle now. Prabhakaran has become the biggest traitors of all for the Tamils. He said, `ECI will get separate state, I will get Thamil Eelam`EE, and now he gave up all that, and asking for `EBInterim Administration’. It has come to that pathetic state. In this process to hang on to his power, no matter what he gets for the Tamil people, Prabhakaran will continue to kill more people. He is going to kill several others. So, we need to fight with him strongly.

Ramraj: We heard that you are working with the Sri Lankan army, especially in the eastern province. What is your opinion on this?

Karuna: I say that Prabhakaran does this false propaganda. He is the person who can do such a thing (working with the army). He had done that in the past. When the LTTE was fighting the Indian army, Prabhakaran got weapons from the Sri Lankan forces. His people went to Weli-Oya jungles and got arms from the Sri Lankan forces. At that time, I pointed out to him that this sort of thing is not good. We would be looked upon as traitors. But he said that is a strategy, it is diplomacy. He is such a traitor. We donneed to work with the army. There is no need for us to do so. Because our goal is to liberate our people, to give voice to our people. We want to expose the crimes and atrocities committed by Prabhakaran to the public as well as to his own fighters. His actions are still kept in dark. His movements and his life are kept very secretive. I know how he is living a luxury life in the wanni jungles. How can such a person be a leader of the Tamil people? He never comes out in public. He never meets any ordinary people. He is hiding all the time. How can a person who wants to live a secret life, and never meets public, be a leader of the people?

That is why he is a spreading rumours like that about me to the public, accusing us as working with the army. If their rumours were true, then Sri Lankan army personnel would have also died with my brother. He fought against Prabhakaran’s henchmen alone and died. I am proud of my brother, and hundreds other who fought against this fascist Prabhakaran. His propaganda is truly a reflection of his pathetic state. But I think the people are intelligent, and they will realize in time what a phoney he is. Soon there will be an end for all this crimes by Prabhakaran. I am saying this because he is very weak now. His weakness is out now. He will not be able to stand for long. People are realizing his weaknesses. But I also urge people not to fall for the false propaganda of Prabhakaran.

Ramraj: When you withdrew on April 9th, hundreds of fighters were with you, what is their status now? Are there any chances that they be able to join you in the future?

Karuna: I have told this several times. We do not like unnecessary loss of lives. We do not want to see our fighters killed in internal fights and loose their lives without any purpose. I highly value every fighter’s life. That is the very reason I withdrew without putting up a fight, and asked my fighters to go home. But when the time comes, when it becomes necessary, these fighters will be ready to join us. Both my brother, and me have been fighting for the last 20 years for the Thamil people. We are committed to our people. Reggie had been in the north most of the time. He fought in the battlefields in the wanni. He sacrificed his life for the wanni people. He married a woman from the north. Prabhakaran had killed such a person who spent most of his life in the north, and fought for those people. So, Prabhakaran is not concerned about people either in the east or in the north. The last 25 years or so, every decision was made by Prabhakaran alone, and no one dared to question his dictatorship. But his actions are all selfish actions. Only purpose for his decisions and actions are glorifying his name and image. That is why our struggle is paying a heavy price now. If the Tamils believe Prabhakaran, then no Tamil will be left at the end, and the future is going to be really dark. That is how pathetic the situation is now. Lots of Tamils have fled to other countries because of fear from Prabhakaran. All the educated people, intellectuals, talented people, they are all gone abroad. When I look at this situation, I can see Cambodia. The Cambodian rebels did the same thing. They did not leave a single intellectual. They killed them all. That is the situation Prabhakaran is creating here now. So, if Tamil people continue to support Prabhakaran blindly, the same situation is going to come here. So, there is a need, there is a true need for the Tamils to reject Prabhakaran’s leadership. Prabhakaran will face the uprising of the Tamils if he continues his foolish atrocities like this.

Ramraj: Recently, you have lost several important persons. Will this be a setback for you, militarily?

Karuna: I am not worried about the set back for me. But I am deeply disturbed by the actions of Prabhakaran’s henchmen where they go and kill these Tamil youths at their homes. This is inexcusable. Not only the fighters, but also they are killing innocent civilians, accusing them of being our supporters. They had killed several people like this. We know those who support Vanni LTTE, and we can go and kill these people too anytime we like. But we haven’t done it, and are not going to do it. We don’t want to commit those low level acts. I can give you an example. Prabhakaran is torturing and killing the family members of several of our fighters. Recently, when they went looking for a youth at his house, they couldn't find him. So, Prabhakaran’s henchmen killed the mother and the sister. These are elderly women. But Prabhakaran’s own parents are living without any trouble. Those who oppose Prabhakaran are fighting against him and his henchmen. They are not going after his family members. They will not do it, because they can differentiate between right and wrong. They fight for justice. Only an animal like Prabhakaran can do such a cruel thing. Killing that mother was a cruel thing.

I don’t think people will accept these serial murders for a long time. They will rise against these atrocities. Sometimes back, there was an incident in Colombo, you all might know of. Some of the youths were sent to Colombo by me for safety reasons. They were waiting to find some alternatives to get on with their normal lives. Some of them were looking to go abroad. They were given sleeping pills by a cowardly traitor, and were shot to death in their sleep. Prabhakaran who claims that he is fighting courageously does this type of cowardly acts. Killing people in their sleep. This is his courage! He is such a coward. This incident showed how low he stoops. A real, courageous man would not do such a thing. Soon, there will be an end for all this. Because Prabhakaran cannot go on like this, and stand for a long time. He will get more and more enemies. He is getting weaker and weaker. By his actions, he is really giving strength to us, and to his enemies.

Ramraj: Recently the LTTE leadership announced several changes in the military leadership in the eastern province. Banu had replaced special commander Ramesh. What do you think the reason for all this?

Karuna: This is not a secret. It is an open issue. This is the reason I disagreed with Prabhakaran in the first place. He is a person who discriminate people. You can’t say he favours Jaffna people. He considers only people from Velvettithurai are trustworthy. He always promotes people from this area. So, a person who discriminate people from other regions, how can be a leader of all? He has declared himself as the national leader. When the problem of this discrimination emerged, several of those with me did not understand it. This person, Ramesh was next to me in Batticaloa. When the problem first started, we explained it to him in detail. We told him that Prabhakaran discriminates our fighters and our people, and he treats us very low. We told Ramesh that there are other people in the Wanni leadership whom we can expect any reasonable justice. But Ramesh and some others did not listen to us. They might have thought that, after Karuna we could get the posts and come to leadership positions in the east. These thoughts made them to be traitors. But probably now, Ramesh can realize what he has done. The people of Batticaloa, Amparai know what kind of person Prabhakaran is. Prabhakaran has nominated a person of his own qualities, - a murderer, and a terrorist to the leadership of Batticaloa. This is the same Banu who came to Kathiraveli and killed hundreds of our fighters. He is the one who killed even those who surrendered. He is the one who sexually assaulted and humiliated our female fighters. He is from Ariyalai and doesn’t know anything about Batticaloa or its people. Prabhakaran is not concerned about the welfare, or liberation of the Batticaloa people. His only aim is to see how can he bring the Batticaloa people under his control, and how can he get this people to accept him as the leader again. I can give you an example. Take the journalist Sivaram. Sivaram is the one who spread regional passions in Batticaloa in the east. He campaigned against the Jaffna people in Batticaloa. He was against accepting any staff member from Jaffna working at the Batticaloa University. Now, Sivaram is bought by Prabhakaran, and now he had turned himself into one of the biggest supporter of Prabhakaran justifying all his crimes. Sivaram was in another liberation movement, and left that movement because of his differences of opinion with the leadership of that organization. Now, we are in the same situation like him. But Sivaram, being a traitor, is not speaking against Prabhakaran. Why couldn't Prabhakaran find someone from Batticaloa or the east to the leadership positions? Isn’t there any capable person from the east? Or, all these years why couldn't Prabhakaran train such a person from the east for leadership? He will never do it, because he does not want to. This Banu dropped out of school with grade eight, and is as ruthless as Prabhakaran himself. By this appointment, I hope that the people in the east will realize how Prabhakaran wants to treat the Tamil people in the east.

Ramraj: There are propaganda reports claiming that you are not in Sri Lanka and had sought refuge in a foreign country. What do you like to say about that?

Karuna: They were telling the same thing about me and my brother Reggie. I am aware of such propaganda by Prabhakaran. I think he is afraid of us, and since we are with the people, that he feels threatened. I am in the motherland. I am a freedom fighter and when the time comes I will inform my people about my whereabouts. For about 20 years, I fought for my people. I lived with my people. But now, the direction of our struggle took a slight turn. Because we came to realize that we cannot get freedom with someone who only consider his glory, a selfish dictator. So, now we really see a future. The Tamil people will have a future. Since coming out the movement, and after discussing with various leaders and intellectuals, I came realize how we were all brainwashed to believe Prabhakaran, that he is a great leader. Now only I realize that stupid mistake, the mistake of believing Prabhakaran’s greatness. Today, we need to fight to put a stop for this killing spree by Prabhakaran’s henchmen. We can’t tolerate this any more. We need to get liberated from this slavery to Prabhakaran. So, we call upon the people to realize this. We will explain out programs and projects in due course. But we do not want people to join us now. We are aware of that Prabhakaran is killing innocent people whom he says are supporting us. Prabhakaran killed people who had given us food. So we don’t want to be the cause for any unnecessary loss of lives at this point. So we want the public to wait for our announcements that we will make when the time comes.

Ramraj: When we last spoke, you mentioned that you would establish a political party. What is the status of that now?

Karuna: Yes, we sure are making progress there to form a democratic political party. This will be the voice of our people. We are committed to that process. We will soon register this party. We are also exploring to establish functional branches abroad as well. I want to re-affirm our commitments to this process. I thank you for the opportunity given to speak to our people.

(http://www.island.lk/2004/10/06/features10.html)

Tigers rout Sri Lankan advance [TamilNet, October 06, 1997 23:59 GMT]

Heavy fighting between troops of the Liberation Tigers and the Sri Lankan army which erupted southwest of Mullaithivu at Manavaalan Patta Murippu yesterday (Sunday Oct.5) continues. Although the intensity of the fighting has come down today, the army is expecting a major counter attack by the Liberation Tigers on its hastily organized defenses at Manvaalan Patta Murippu on the Mankulam - Ottisuddan road.

A major offensive was launched by the 53 division of the Sri Lankan army to outflank the defences of the Liberation Tigers at Puliyankulam on Sunday. Troops of the 53 division tried to take control of the eastern approach road to Mankulam which runs west from Ottisuddan in the Mullaithivu district.

The aim of Div.53 was to take control of the old Tamil hamlet of Manavaalan Patta Murippu on the Ottisuddan road.

Military analysts said that the control of the hamlet would give the army easy access to the strategic town of Mankulam. The government's strategy is to deny the Liberation Tigers this vital approach to the Olukkulam-Ottisuddan access road to Mullaithivu which branches off from the Vavuniya-Jaffna Main Supply Route.

The other two access roads to Mullaithivu begin from Paranthan to the north of Mankulam and Puliyankulam to its south.

The Sri Lankan army's current strategy in the Vanni is the direct result of a meeting that 'General' Anuruddha Ratwatte, deputy minister for defense had with its top brass on September 15. The 'General' had demanded that the commanders in the northern theatre of operations should soon show tangible results on Operation 'Jeya Sikurui' which had got bogged down near Puliyankulam.

As the Sri Lankan troops moved to the southern side of the approach road to Mankulam from the direction of Naiynamadu, a fierce attack was launched by the Liberation Tigers on the middle columns of the advancing Sri Lankan formations. The offensive was in utter disarray for a few hours as a result of the attack.

Two helicopters were damaged. A pilot in one was killed and another was wounded when the second helicopter was hit. One Sri Lankan military truck was completely destroyed and another was captured by the Liberation Tigers along with an unspecified quantity of weapons.

More than 180 Sri Lankan troops have been wounded. Although the Sri Lankan Ministry of Defence said only 34 Sinhala soldiers were killed, 8 missing and 76 wounded, initial reports from Vavuniya indicate that the death toll among them and those missing in action might be as high as 60.

Sources in Vavuniya say that the casualties on the Sri Lankan side appear to be mounting, judging from the number of Sri Lankan air force flights to and from the battle zone, ferrying out the seriously wounded to Anuradhapura and Colombo. Military ambulances continued to scream down the main highway in Sri Lanka's capital city.

Tigers probe Nagar Kovil FDLs [TamilNet, October 06, 2000 18:49 GMT]

The Liberation Tigers on Thursday launched an attack on the forward defence lines (FDLs) of the Sri Lanka Army (SLA) camp at Nagar Kovil, the Voice of Tigers radio said Friday. Army sources in Colombo said 8 soldiers, including an officer were killed and 32 were wounded in the attack.

Several SLA's defence positions at Nagar Kovil were destroyed in the attack that was launched around 1 p.m. Thursday, the radio said.

Sri Lanka Air Force helicopters and bombers were called in to support the ground troops the Army sources said.

Sources in Jaffna said heavy fighting went on till late on Thursday evening. The SLA and Tigers continue to exchange mortar and artillery fire in the area, the sources said.

'Will defeat Colombo's international safety net'- LTTE [TamilNet, October 05, 2004 18:03 GMT]

''The Sinhala state is trying to weave an international safety net against Tamils. Our political action committe is explaining the legitimacy of our struggle to the international community to defeat such machinations of the Sinhala state. We will never allow Sinhala nationalists or thier allies to defeat our struggle. The Sri Lankan President is not sincere about the peace process'', said Mr. C. Ilamparithy, head of LTTE's political division for Jaffna Tuesday evening.

Mr. Ilamparuthy was speaking at a function in Theeruvil, Valvettithurai to mark the 17th year of 17 LTTE commanders and fighters who commited suicide in the custody of the Sri Lanka army.

''Sinhala leadership conspired to betray Kumarappa, Pulendran and the other martyrs and caused their death. No Sinhala conspiracy can defeat us today.

National Advisory Committe on Peace and Reconcilitatin is a canard by the Sri Lankan President to delay peace talks and prepare for war'', Mr. Ilamparithy said.

Norway frowns on LTTE killings

Norway broke its long drawn silence over the LTTE's post CFA killing spree yesterday.

The Royal Norwegian Embassy in Colombo said Norwegian Deputy Foreign Minister, Vidar Helgessen had conveyed his country’s growing concern over the LTTE’s unceasing breach of the ceasefire agreement and had made it clear that Norway condemned the political killings carried out by the Tigers, to the LTTE’s political wing head Thamilselvan when they met in Geneva on Monday.

The Embassy said: "Deputy Minister Helgessen communicated to the LTTE delegation Norway’s growing concern regarding continuing breaches of the ceasefire agreement. Helgessen emphasised the negative implications of ceasefire violations for the peace process as a whole and underlined that such violations also make the work of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission difficult."

"Helgessen stated that Norway condemned the political killings taking place in Sri Lanka and appealed to the delegation that the LTTE does everything possible to stop such killings," said the embassy.

Norway is coming under increasing pressure from the victims of LTTE violence to prevent the Tigers from unleashing terror by taking the advantage over the the Norwegian-brokered CFA, which the outfit has violated on over 2,000 occasions since February, 2002.


Stop the killings, Oslo tells LTTE

Norway's Deputy Foreign Minister Vidar Helgesen at a meeting with an LTTE delegation in Geneva has condemned the political killings taking place in Sri Lanka.

He also asked the LTTE delegation headed by political wing leader S. P. Thamilselvan to do everything possible to stop such killings, the Norwegian Embassy in Colombo said yesterday.

Mr. Helgesen told the LTTE delegation that Oslo was concerned over the continuing breaches of the ceasefire agreement. Mr. Helgesen emphasized the negative implications of the ceasefire violations for the peace process as a whole and underlined that such violations also make the work of the SLMM difficult, the embassy said.

Homeguards’ case: SLMM appeals to LTTE

The Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission yesterday urged the LTTE to re-examine its position on the release of the two homeguards and asked the political forces in Trincomalee to desist from hampering monitoring activities.

After a meeting with Defence Secretary Cyril Herath, SLMM Chief Trond Furuhovde said acts of detaining persons to put pressure for the release of others were not acceptable.

He said the SLMM saw no logic in linking the release of the two homeguards with the release of ten LTTE cadres who had been arrested by the police a year ago.

"The LTTE cadres were duly processed through the judicial system in accordance with national law," the SLMM said.

Mr. Furuhovde said evidence indicated that the two homeguards were apprehended while they were carrying fire arms in an LTTE-controlled area. Yet the SLMM had taken up the matter with LTTE political wing leader S. P. Thamilselvan and also held a series of negotiations with local LTTE leaders in Trincomalee to obtain the release of the homeguards.

Mr. Furuhovde said an organization in Trincomalee in a bid to increase its public profile was taking ownership of this issue while trying to discredit the SLMM.

He said such activities had hampered SLMM's ceasefire monitoring work in Trincomalee district.

Meanwhile, Public Security Ministry Secretary Tilak Ranaviraja told the Daily Mirror last night a meeting presided by President Chandrika Kumaratunga was held to discuss the homeguards matter.

He said the government was hopeful of a positive response from the LTTE from the SLMM's request.

About the demand for an ISGA - "Abomination"

Today we commence serialisation of excerpts of lawyer S. L. Gunasekera’s book "Abomination" - a critique of the proposals of the Interim Self-government Authority presented by the LTTE

DEDICATION

I respectfully dedicate this book to the memory of the late "PLOTE MOHAN" and other Tamil Martyrs to the cause of humanity like he, who, knowing the martyrdom that awaited them if the Tamil Nazi thugs of Prabhakaran a.k.a Pirapaharan got at them, knowingly put their lives and those of their wives, their children, their parents and their siblings in jeopardy and sacrificed their lives to save the Sinhalese, the Tamils, the Moors and members of all other ethnic groups who inhabit our Motherland from the jackboot of Tamil Nazism and serfdom to the thug Prabhakaran a.k.a Pirapaharan.

They are truly National Heroes who

"gave their lives that the Nation might live "

S.L.Gunasekara

INTRODUCTION

We live under the rule of a horrible Government. It is horrible for the Sinhalese: it is horrible for the Tamils: it is horrible for the Moors: it is horrible for all others without distinction in equal measure. We were also ruled by a horrible Government until the present Government took office in April this year. Which of these lamentably horrible Governments is more horrible than the other I cannot say - because as the late Dr. Colvin R De Silva once said in Parliament in 1962 in a similar context with regard to the relative demerits of the United National Party [UNP] and the Sri Lanka Freedom Party [SLFP]:

"I am no expert in the gradations of dirt".

Yet, with all the faults of these Governments, all citizens of all races living in those parts of the Country as are ruled by the Government enjoy and have enjoyed under them, a measure of freedom and a quality of life which those of all races who are condemned to live under the jackboot of Tamil Nazism in those areas illegally ‘ruled’ by the LTTE do not and can never dream of enjoying under their ‘rule’. Thus, by and large, we can criticize the Government as much and as strongly as we like, and even change the Government in power peacefully through the ballot: political opponents of the Government are not abducted or murdered by the Government: we can support any political party or politician of our choice without running the risk of being murdered or abducted by the Government: our little children are not kidnapped by the Government for slave labour in our Armed Forces or to be used as ‘cannon fodder’: there is no conscription of even adults into the Armed Forces: we can complain to the judiciary about the wrongs committed by the Government or any person however powerful he may be and obtain redress: we can move about freely throughout the length and breadth of all parts of the Country ruled by the Government and even leave the Country and return to it as and when we wish: and in short, our lives are ours to live as we please within the constraints of our means and within the confines of the law which is essentially just and published for all to know.

The LTTE has now put forward a demand [in the form of a draft Agreement to be executed between the Government and the LTTE]2 for the creation of a de facto separate state [which it describes as an Interim Self Governing Authority - ISGA] in the entirety of the eight Districts which comprise the Northern and Eastern Provinces. Needless to say, an essential feature of that demand is that that ISGA is to be dominated by the LTTE. If implemented, this demand would, subject not only the Tamils [whose ‘sole representative’ the LTTE claims to be] but also the Sinhalese, the Moors and members of all other communities [whose ‘sole representative’ the LTTE does not claim to be] to the dictatorial rule of the LTTE. Of course the LTTE expressly promises equal rights and equality of treatment for members of all communities the preservation of human rights; an independent judiciary and a separation of powers; an efficient administration free of corruption; free and fair elections under the ISGA after five years, and all those features of good governance which would, if taken seriously, make the mouth of any citizen water uncontrollably.

Characteristically, however, the LTTE, while making these promises of creating a "Dharma Rajya "3 continues to provide more and more evidence of their devotion to the cause of virtue and righteousness by continuing to kidnap little Tamil children for slave labour in their terrorist cadres: abduct opponents: murder opponents while awake and asleep: murder intelligence operatives of the Government: abduct extort money from the helpless Tamils, Moors and Sinhalese of the North and East etc. etc. !!! Such conduct of the LTTE, at the very lowest, does tend to dissuade even their most ardent admirers including the paid lackeys of foreign funded ‘NGOs’ from believing these saccharine sweet promises of the objects of their admiration.

Of course the principal purpose of making the demand for an ISGA according to the LTTE is to serve the needs and secure the rights of the Tamils who, they claim, have been oppressed, victimized, brutalized and discriminated against by all Governments of Sri Lanka [termed "Sinhala Governments" by them] and continue to be so oppressed, victimized, brutalized and discriminated against by the present Government too.

With the creation of the State of Israel [and even before], Jews who were resident in Countries where they were undoubtedly oppressed, victimized, brutalized and discriminated against, migrated to that infant State at the risk of their lives despite the manifold dangers and hardships they would have to undergo by so doing, because of the oppression they underwent in the countries of their birth, and the faith they reposed in David Ben Gurion and his lieutenants. If what the LTTE says about the treatment meted out to Tamils by successive Governments of Sri Lanka is true, or if any Tamils living in the seven Provinces outside the Northern and Eastern Provinces believe the promises of the LTTE about the creation of a veritable Utopia in the Northern and Eastern Provinces which will be free of the myriad ills that afflict our Government, they must necessarily be ready, eager, willing and indeed impatient to leave the veritable hell-hole in the seven Provinces outside the Northern and Eastern Provinces in which they now live and ‘ascend’ to the territory of the ISGA to breathe the invigorating air of freedom, justice, purity and efficiency under the ‘benign’ rule of Velupillai Prabhakaran a.k.a Pirapaharan ! ! !

Yet, how many of those Tamils would make a public commitment to packing bag and baggage and settling down in the Utopia promised by Prabhakaran a.k.a Pirapaharan ?? The answer is ‘probably none’: for despite the rhetoric of the LTTE and their hangers on, the Tamils living in the seven Provinces outside the Northern and Eastern Provinces know full well that with all the manifold faults of our Government, they can never enjoy the freedom and the quality of life they enjoy under the rule of the Government in any part of the country that is condemned to be ruled by the LTTE. It is time for anyone who believes the honeyed words of the LTTE to stand up and be counted - for if even Tamils whom the LTTE claims to represent exclusively will not make a commitment to ‘migrate’ to the LTTE’s "promised land" if the ISGA that is demanded is established, can our Government, apart from anything else, even consider granting or discuss that demand ???

As will be proved beyond doubt in this book, the demand for an ISGA is nothing less than a demand for a separate state in the entirety of Northern and Eastern Provinces, and the ominous fact of the LTTE stating that it will engage in talks on the "core issues" after the ISGA is "institutionalized", a precursor of a demand for far more than a separate state.

The Ceasefire Agreement between the then Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and Prabhakaran a.k.a Pirapaharan was entered into for the purpose of creating conditions that were mutually acceptable to the Government and the LTTE for commencing and continuing a series of ‘talks’ between them with a view to arriving at a "final solution" to the terrorist problem that has afflicted our Country, which Wickremesinghe and Prabhakaran a.k.a Pirapaharan falsely call the "ethnic conflict". The unspoken premise on which the Ceasefire Agreement was based is that so long as each party complies with its terms, the talks would continue until that "final solution" is reached.

It is beyond dispute that the LTTE has acted in flagrant violation of the Ceasefire Agreement from the time it was signed and continues to do so, while our Governments, both the last and the present, have not only condoned or turned a ‘Nelsonian eye’ to those violations and complied with the Ceasefire Agreement to the letter, but even gone to the extreme extent of going beyond its obligations under the Ceasefire Agreement to appease and curry favour with the LTTE. Thus, the last Government suspended the proscription of the LTTE as a terrorist organization, and allowed them to smuggle arms and ammunition into the Country, occupy and fortify Manirasakulam and smuggle broadcasting equipment into the Country with the connivance of our alleged "friends" of the Government of Norway. Not to be outdone, the present Government allowed hordes of armed terrorists of the LTTE to make a sea borne landing at Vakarai and murder the opponents of Prabhakaran a.k.a Pirapaharan who were loyal to the renegade terrorist Karuna, and permitted the LTTE to import vehicles "duty free". Similarly, both Governments have consistently humiliated and debased commissioned officers of the Sri Lanka Air Force by compelling them to act as ‘glorified chauffeurs’ for terrorists of the LTTE by transporting them from place to place in military helicopters at the tax payers’ expense.

It was doubtless this manifest pusillanimity and overwhelming anxiety of the former Government to curry favour with the LTTE that led those terrorists to make their outrageous demand for an ISGA as a condition precedent to the resumption of the so called "peace talks" which they had unilaterally brought to a halt. It is equally doubtless that it was the like characteristics of the present Government that led the LTTE to continue with and maintain that demand.

I have referred to the demand for an ISGA as "outrageous" not only because of its inherent characteristics which are dealt with in the subsequent pages of this book, but also because it is indisputably contrary to the express provisions of the Ceasefire Agreement with which the LTTE sanctimoniously and equally mendaciously claims to comply.

The Ceasefire Agreement states expressly that the LTTE will continue to administer those parts of the Northern and Eastern Provinces that were under their control at the date of the execution of that agreement, and likewise that the Government will continue to administer those parts of those Provinces that were under its control as at that date. Hence, the Government and the LTTE had agreed that for the duration of the Ceasefire Agreement, and hence the talks, the status quo that existed in respect of the control and administration of the Northern and Eastern Provinces at the date of the execution of the Ceasefire Agreement will continue. It is implicit in the Ceasefire Agreement, therefore, that the Government and the LTTE respectively, had agreed not to lay claim to a right or seek to control, administer or rule any part of the territory of the Northern and Eastern Provinces that was under the control of the other party as at the date of the signing of the Ceasefire Agreement for the duration of that Agreement. The demand for an ISGA is undeniably a demand by the LTTE to have and exercise absolute powers of governance over the entirety of the Northern and Eastern Provinces including all those areas of those Provinces which they failed to subdue by force of arms and remain under the control of the Government, to the total exclusion of the Government, and hence a demand that constitutes a patent violation of the Ceasefire Agreement.

While the fact of this demand being a patent violation of the Ceasefire Agreement is as plainly visible as the nose on one’s face, neither the present Government nor the last, nor the so called "International Community", [which in the present context means the affluent countries of the West and Japan] has made any mention of this fact. On the contrary, that so called "International Community", while purporting to stress the need to comply with the Ceasefire Agreement, continues to push impoverished Sri Lanka into granting the demand for an ISGA by dangling the carrot of a US $ 4.5 Billion Aid Package [in actual fact a ‘Loan Package’ repayable with interest] before the last and the present Government. Obviously, that so called "International Community" is more than well aware of what the species is that that can be manipulated by dangling carrots before it. Yet, neither the last Government nor the present has seen fit to apprise that so called "International Community" of the fact that it is a contradiction in terms to talk of complying with the Ceasefire Agreement and granting the demand for an ISGA.

So inherently abominable is the demand for an ISGA, that at the time the detailed demand for an ISGA was announced on the 1st November 2003, even the pusillanimous former Government, said, through its new found ‘Oracle’ Professor G. L. Peiris [who was, in his previous ‘political incarnation’, the ‘Oracle’ of the SLFP] that some aspects of the proposed ISGA were not acceptable. Though no less than 9 months have elapsed since the LTTE announced the details of that demand, neither the UNP/UNF nor that ‘Oracle’ has yet disclosed to the allegedly ‘sovereign’ People what parts of the LTTE’s demand [presented as a draft Agreement] for an ISGA are ‘acceptable’ to it and which are not.

The SLFP is no better. While in opposition it did the correct thing for the wrong reason, namely to gain a political advantage over the then Government, by castigating the demand for an ISGA and stating expressly that it laid the foundation for a separate state. Thereafter the SLFP entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna [JVP] in January 2004 wherein they stated that:

"The LTTEs demand for an Interim Self Governing Authority go far beyond the resolution of the problems of the Tamil people and other minority communities and create the basis for a separate state"4

Despite these strident criticisms of the proposed ISGA while in the Opposition, now that it is in Government, the SLFP sings a different tune. All criticism by it of the ISGA has ceased: some of its stalwarts openly support the grant of the ISGA: and it would appear from the statements made by some members of the Government including the President that it is now willing to enter into talks with the LTTE about its demand for an ISGA.

As for the SLFP’s major partner in Government, the JVP, while in the Opposition it rightly organized a giant demonstration and rally against the demand for an ISGA through the organization known as the National Patriotic Front. After coming into power however, its opposition to an ISGA has been largely muted, and was virtually non-existent until the conclusion of the Provincial Council elections after which it put up some posters against the ISGA and made some sporadic statements in a similar vein.

While the UNP on the one hand and the SLFP on the other are ever ready, able, willing and eager to castigate each other for ‘good reason’, ‘bad reason’ or ‘no reason’, they now seem to be positively ‘shy’ to say anything bad about the LTTE, or to explain to the People and the so called "International Community", the undeniable fact that the grant of the demand for an ISGA will be nothing short of destroying forever hereafter, our Motherland, and installing of consent, in the Northern and Eastern Provinces for a start, a separate state under a ‘Tamil Nazi’ regime led by a fascist dictator called Prabhakaran a.k.a Pirapaharan with all the horrors that it would entail.

Since neither the Government nor the ‘would be’ Government is prepared to perform its duty by the supposedly ‘sovereign’ people by explaining the nature and content of the demand for an ISGA and the irreversible horrors the grant of that demand will bring in its wake, a proven political misfit who is, and will continue to be, a ‘voice in the wilderness’ must perform that duty: hence this book.

S. L. Gunasekara,

31.8.2004


1 President Abraham Lincoln at ‘Gettysburg’

2 The text of this Demand/Draft Agreement is set out in full in the Appendix.

A "Virtuous State"

4 Sunday Observer - 25.1.2004

I have referred to the demand for an ISGA as "outrageous" not only because of its inherent characteristics which are dealt with in the subsequent pages of this book, but also because it is indisputably contrary to the express provisions of the Ceasefire Agreement with which the LTTE sanctimoniously and equally mendaciously claims to comply.

The Ceasefire Agreement states expressly that the LTTE will continue to administer those parts of the Northern and Eastern Provinces that were under their control at the date of the execution of that agreement, and likewise that the Government will continue to administer those parts of those Provinces that were under its control as at that date. Hence, the Government and the LTTE had agreed that for the duration of the Ceasefire Agreement, and hence the talks, the status quo that existed in respect of the control and administration of the Northern and Eastern Provinces at the date of the execution of the Ceasefire Agreement will continue. It is implicit in the Ceasefire Agreement, therefore, that the Government and the LTTE respectively, had agreed not to lay claim to a right or seek to control, administer or rule any part of the territory of the Northern and Eastern Provinces that was under the control of the other party as at the date of the signing of the Ceasefire Agreement for the duration of that Agreement. The demand for an ISGA is undeniably a demand by the LTTE to have and exercise absolute powers of governance over the entirety of the Northern and Eastern Provinces including all those areas of those Provinces which they failed to subdue by force of arms and remain under the control of the Government, to the total exclusion of the Government, and hence a demand that constitutes a patent violation of the Ceasefire Agreement.

While the fact of this demand being a patent violation of the Ceasefire Agreement is as plainly visible as the nose on one’s face, neither the present Government nor the last, nor the so called "International Community", [which in the present context means the affluent countries of the West and Japan] has made any mention of this fact. On the contrary, that so called "International Community", while purporting to stress the need to comply with the Ceasefire Agreement, continues to push impoverished Sri Lanka into granting the demand for an ISGA by dangling the carrot of a US $ 4.5 Billion Aid Package [in actual fact a ‘Loan Package’ repayable with interest] before the last and the present Government. Obviously, that so called "International Community" is more than well aware of what the species is that that can be manipulated by dangling carrots before it. Yet, neither the last Government nor the present has seen fit to apprise that so called "International Community" of the fact that it is a contradiction in terms to talk of complying with the Ceasefire Agreement and granting the demand for an ISGA.

So inherently abominable is the demand for an ISGA, that at the time the detailed demand for an ISGA was announced on the 1st November 2003, even the pusillanimous former Government, said, through its new found ‘Oracle’ Professor G. L. Peiris [who was, in his previous ‘political incarnation’, the ‘Oracle’ of the SLFP] that some aspects of the proposed ISGA were not acceptable. Though no less than 9 months have elapsed since the LTTE announced the details of that demand, neither the UNP/UNF nor that ‘Oracle’ has yet disclosed to the allegedly ‘sovereign’ People what parts of the LTTE’s demand [presented as a draft Agreement] for an ISGA are ‘acceptable’ to it and which are not.

The SLFP is no better. While in opposition it did the correct thing for the wrong reason, namely to gain a political advantage over the then Government, by castigating the demand for an ISGA and stating expressly that it laid the foundation for a separate state. Thereafter the SLFP entered into a Memorandum of Understanding with the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna [JVP] in January 2004 wherein they stated that:

"The LTTEs demand for an Interim Self Governing Authority go far beyond the resolution of the problems of the Tamil people and other minority communities and create the basis for a separate state"4

Despite these strident criticisms of the proposed ISGA while in the Opposition, now that it is in Government, the SLFP sings a different tune. All criticism by it of the ISGA has ceased: some of its stalwarts openly support the grant of the ISGA: and it would appear from the statements made by some members of the Government including the President that it is now willing to enter into talks with the LTTE about its demand for an ISGA.

As for the SLFP’s major partner in Government, the JVP, while in the Opposition it rightly organized a giant demonstration and rally against the demand for an ISGA through the organization known as the National Patriotic Front. After coming into power however, its opposition to an ISGA has been largely muted, and was virtually non-existent until the conclusion of the Provincial Council elections after which it put up some posters against the ISGA and made some sporadic statements in a similar vein.

While the UNP on the one hand and the SLFP on the other are ever ready, able, willing and eager to castigate each other for ‘good reason’, ‘bad reason’ or ‘no reason’, they now seem to be positively ‘shy’ to say anything bad about the LTTE, or to explain to the People and the so called "International Community", the undeniable fact that the grant of the demand for an ISGA will be nothing short of destroying forever hereafter, our Motherland, and installing of consent, in the Northern and Eastern Provinces for a start, a separate state under a ‘Tamil Nazi’ regime led by a fascist dictator called Prabhakaran a.k.a Pirapaharan with all the horrors that it would entail.

Since neither the Government nor the ‘would be’ Government is prepared to perform its duty by the supposedly ‘sovereign’ people by explaining the nature and content of the demand for an ISGA and the irreversible horrors the grant of that demand will bring in its wake, a proven political misfit who is, and will continue to be, a ‘voice in the wilderness’ must perform that duty: hence this book.

S. L. Gunasekara,

CHAPTER ONE

COMPOSITION OF THE ISGA

The composition of the proposed ISGA according to Clauses 2.2 to 2.4 of the LTTE’s demand will be:

"2.2(a) Members appointed by the LTTE,

2.2(b) Members appointed by the GOSL5, and,

2.2(c) Members appointed by the Muslim community of the North-East (sic)

2.3 The number of members will be determined to ensure:

2.3(a) An absolute majority of the LTTE appointees in the ISGA.

2.3(b) Subject to (a) above, the Muslim and Sinhalese communities in the North-east (sic) shall have representation in the ISGA.

2.4 The Chairperson shall be elected by a majority vote of the ISGA and shall serve as the Chief

Executive of the ISGA." [emphasis added]

These provisions make evident the facts that the ISGA is not intended to be a democratic body which is elected by and responsible to the people who elected them; but a fascist dictatorship [the absolute majority of the members of which will be appointed at the sole discretion of the thug Prabhakaran a.k.a Pirapaharan] to rule not only the helpless Tamils living in areas presently under the illegal control of the LTTE and hence subjected to despotic rule of the LTTE, but also to rule all Sinhalese, Moors and Tamils who live in those parts of the Northern and Eastern Province as are under the lawful rule of the Government and are hence being ruled by a democratic regime.

The entrenched absolute majority in the ISGA assured to the LTTE together with the not unimportant facts that the LTTE will be the only armed organization in the Northern and Eastern Provinces and that the LTTE has, throughout its existence, displayed an incurable addiction to summarily murdering any and everybody who expresses a view that is different to theirs, will indisputably render such Sinhalese and Moor ‘Quislings6’ as are so base as to accept appointment to the ISGA mere ‘chattels’ or ‘ornaments’ who are tolerated within the ISGA solely for ‘cosmetic’ purposes to ‘deceive’ the so-called ‘International Community’ [which is only too willing to be ‘deceived’ by the LTTE] into the belief that the ISGA is not a mono-ethnic chauvinistic body but a multi-ethnic body steeped in the dictates of ‘tolerance’, ‘amicable co-existence’ and ‘liberalism’!!! There is nothing in the world that is easier to achieve than the deception of those who want to be deceived.

Thus, in the ultimate analysis, the proposed ISGA will be nothing more than the LTTE under a different name, and the implementation of the demand for an ISGA, nothing less than the total subjection through negotiation of all those parts of our Northern and Eastern Provinces which the LTTE failed to ‘conquer’ through the force of arms, as well as of all our citizens of all races living within those areas, to the despotic rule of the LTTE. It will be in fact, an expansion of the illegal fascist ‘regime’ of the LTTE that now exists in those parts of our Northern and Eastern Provinces as are under LTTE control to the other parts of those two Provinces that successfully withstood the onslaughts of the LTTE at great sacrifice of life, limb and property - in short, it will be a surrender most foul.

Change of heart required before holding Conferences

President Chandrika Kumaratunga’s search for a solution to the north-east problem through the National Advisory Council on Peace and Reconciliation (NCPR) could at best be described as another political farce of our times.

Of course, any move for peace draws instantaneous hosannas from the expected quarters and so is this latest move. But clearly any such council without the party that polls the largest amount of votes by itself in any given election, the UNP and the TNA which is the mouth piece of the problem itself —-he LTTE—- will be a classic instance of staging Hamlet without the Prince of Denmark.

President Kumaratunga in addressing the inaugural meeting of the NCPR posed off as a great Messiah of Peace and attempted to make the UNP leader Mr. Ranil Wickremasinghe look a petty political manipulator attempting to gain political advantage and sabotaging her peace effort by keeping out of the NCPR. But she is to a great extent responsible for the UNP and TNA keeping out.

President Kumaratunga does not seem to realise-or does not want to accept—- that in seeking national political consensus, she as the president of the country should refrain from vituperative politics. But such politics seems to be her forte. In order to forge a national consensus, whoever is head of state, has to shelve petty political differences at least temporarily and work in the interests of the nation. With her on the offensive most of the time and Mr Wickremasinghe responding to her attacks, confrontational politics has occupied the centre stage since she became president in 1994.

When Mr. Wickremasinghe became Prime Minister and with her as President an ideal opportunity was presented for consensus politics. On the contrary vituperation increased.

Undoubtedly, Mr. Wickremasinghe too has to be blamed for bypassing her and signing the Cease-fire Agreement with Prabakaran. Since that time the president was firing on all four cylinders against Mr. Wickremasinghe and the UNP. The president took the opportunity of raising hue and cry against the UNP leader’s policy of accommodating the terroist demands. Peace was not on her mind as she went on the rampage attacking the UNP leader of jeopardising national security and finally using her constitutional powers seized three key ministries-Defence, Internal Security and the Media. She severely attacked the UNF policy towards the LTTE and struck a very belligerent pose when she went before the voters. On this belligerent note she won the election. But since taking over the three key ministries last November and on forming her own government in April- six months to date—- she has not lifted a finger against the LTTE.

In these circumstances, one can only expect a Bodhisattava to co-operate and fall in line with the Kumaratunga peace brigade.

Her extremely belligerent attitude towards the LTTE when the UNP was negotiating peace would have resulted in their hostile attitude towards her. Of course earlier, they even missed assassinating her.

If this national advisory council on peace is to make any contribution, a change of heart of all political parties must take place. Mere smiling poses for media cameramen at the inaugural sessions alone won’t do. Even those that assembled on Monday despite the camaraderie were at daggers drawn.

Attempts at national reconciliation between political parties are nothing new. It was in President Jayewardene’s time that the first all party conference took place. President Premadasa too held an all-party conference. Both conferences were failures. In July 2002 President Kumaratunga herself summoned an all-party conference which was boycotted by the UNP. This new conference envisages participation of ‘ civil society’ as well. It would mean those foreign funded NGOs suspected of treasonable activities will be in full cry.It will be fruitier and nuttier.

Reaching a national consensus, particularly a southern consensus, is vital for any solution to be worked out. But for this vituperative politics must cease. Staging conferences without a change of heart is like putting the cart before the horse.

Increasing US influence over Sri Lanka worries LTTE by PK Balachanddran

The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), fighting for a separate "Tamil Eelam" in North East Sri Lanka, are "concerned" about the growing political, financial and military influence of the United States in Sri Lanka, according to a knowledgeable Tamil source close to the LTTE.

Though the LTTE itself has kept a discrete silence about the worry, it has been conveying it to the Tamils and the rest of the world, through the writings of its large, but unofficial army of Tamil and English language journalists and sections of the intelligentsia friendly to it.

In Sri Lanka, not a week passes without a Tamil newspaper lambasting the US for supporting the Sri Lankan government’s (or as they like to put it, the ‘Sinhala hegemonists’) case at the expense of the minority Tamils.

Tamil journalists, whether writing in English or Tamil, routinely note with alarm the way the US flexes its muscles though well-publicised visits of its military officials to the island.

The press also carries long articles on the way the US has used internal conflicts to gain a foothold in various countries of the Third World. The Tamils are asked to be wary about the impact of an increasing US presence in Sri Lanka on their liberation struggle.

In an article reproduced by the pro-LTTE website www.tamilcanadian.com on October 2, an LTTE acolyte, Vasantha Rajah, says: "In the late 1960s, Indonesia witnessed a ruthless murder campaign culminating in the emergence of the Suharto dictatorship. Nearly one million civilians were killed in the bloodbath, mainly members of Indonesia’s communist party. The US played an odious role during this barbaric episode, which reportedly involved discrete US funding of the death squads that were responsible for the killings."

Vasantha Rajah went to say: "Such characteristics of US politics help shed important light on the US role in Sri Lanka, in particular help explain Washington’s apparently contradictory policy of militarily backing the Sri Lanka government’s war effort against the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), while calling for peace and shedding tears over the sufferings of the people."

According to the writer, the Bush Administration is creating a "climate of terror" throughout the world in order to generate conflicts everywhere, sell arms and extend US hegemony.

The Tamil intellectual view goes so far as believing that the threat from Al-Qaeda is being used by the US to extend its tentacles to every corner of the globe.

When the Sinhala-majoritarian forces in Sri Lanka talk of the importance of maintaining Sri Lanka’s "integrity", they actually mean the continuation of the present "unitary" constitution, Vasantha Rajah says. He charges the US of doing the same.

And since the LTTE will never agree to the continuation of the unitary state, war is inevitable, he predicts. "It is na`D4ve to suppose that the US is ignorant of these realities," he adds.

According to him, the continuation of the conflict and the onset of war will be welcomed by the US because it can sell arms to Sri Lanka.

Writing in a newspaper report on September 29, the well known Tamil journalist, Taraki, argues that it will be wrong to think that the US is not interested in Sri Lanka because the island has no strategic resources like oil.

Taraki quotes an article by Lt Col Roy C Howle in the US War College journal "Parameters" in 2001, to say that the US wants to advantageously position its military power in all strategically important parts of the world so that the balance of power in each region invariably and overwhelmingly will be on its side.

"This would preclude the rise of any global hegemon like the USSR in the future, and help the US ‘over determine’ the course of world affairs by being in a position to effectively project its power in every nook and cranny of this planet. The US government’s strategic interests in Sri Lanka are intertwined with its military objectives in South Asia and Asia," Taraki says.

He quotes a RAND corporation study entitled: "US and Asia: Towards a New Posture" which advocates an "access strategy" to provide increased opportunities for the deployment of US forces.

The study says that the present US base in Diego Garcia in the Indian Ocean, is too far from key South Asian centres like New Delhi and Islamabad, and has advocated the seeking of more bases.

Taraki says that the war in Sri Lanka provides the US good opportunities to get access facilities in the island. The US government has been pressing Colombo to enter into a "cross-servicing agreement" (ACSA) with it, to provide facilities on a supposedly mutual basis. But New Delhi’s opposition has prevented Colombo from falling in line so far.

(Hindustan Times)

P'karan begging for ISGA – Karuna

Renegade LTTE commander ‘Col’. Karuna a.k.a. V. Mualitharan, in an interview with the Thamil Broadcasting Corporation (TBC) in London, blasted LTTE Vanni group leader Vellupillai Prabhakaran as a ruthless person whose only concern was his own glory.

Karuna accused Prabhakaran of being a traitor who was now begging for an Interim Administration from the government. He said that Prabhakaran’s cadres were killing not only fighters but also innocent civilians in Batticaloa. Karuna said he was committed to the democratic process and re-affirmed that he will form a political party soon.

He claimed that he was still in Sri Lanka and accused the Vanni LTTE leadership of working with the Sri Lankan army. He pointed out that the LTTE’s newly appointed military leader Bhanu traveles in armed forces helicopters, with the SLA protection.

He also discussed the death of his elder brother Reggie. In the TBC broadcast last week, Mr. Ramaraj spoke to Col. Karuna.

Armed LTTE men kill breakaway member and civilian

Two civilians who came under attack by LTTE gunmen in the general un-cleared area of Valachchena on Saturday (2) died on the spot, a complaint made to the Police by a civilian stated.

One of the victims, Tambiah Mannavan (32) of Umaliyavadu, Madurankulam, Valachchena was a farmer and talking to a section of LTTE breakaway members in his compound when armed LTTE gunmen of the Wanni faction stormed the place and shot at him indiscriminately, a news release form the Sri Lanka Army said yesterday.

During the shooting, another unknown member of the LTTE breakaway group who was present at that time received gunshots and died on the spot, according to the complainant, Kumara Muttu Gurashi (30) of Umaliyavadu, Madurankulam, Valachcena.

Those armed LTTE assailants afterwards brought a tractor and took away the remains of the victims towards un-cleared areas in Vakarai for reasons obvious only to the LTTE.

The complainant who was an eye-witness to the incident had further alleged that the group of assailants comprising about 100-150 armed LTTE men showed up at the location when the firing took place.

The Valachchena Police were to keep the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission informed of the slayings.

(http://www.island.lk/2004/10/06/news2.html)

Udathalawinna massacre - I had to carry out investigations under SP Udugampola by Priyalal Sirisena

Inspector R. A. P. Dharmaratne of the Kegalle police, a witness in Udathalawinna massacre case on Monday told the court that the whole investigation was under supervision of SP Udugampola and that he had to carry out the investigation under Udugampola’s orders.

The witness was a member of police special investigation unit employed in Udathalawinna incident.

Defence counsel Anil Silva yesterday cross examined the witness on the recording of statements by army officers and on the seizing of weapons.

"According to the police notebook, we arrived at Boyagane Army camp at 8.00 p.m. on December 20, 2001. The whole investigation was under supervision of SP Udugampola. On 20th Udugampola ordered me at Boyagane to meet Colonel Samaratunga. Then I met him. Udugampola was also there at the time.

We informed Samaratunga that we needed to take a statement from him and to collect some weapons needed for the investigation," he said.

Counsel - Did he refuse to give a statement?

Witness - I’m not quite sure. He agreed to give a statement after a while. He ordered one officer Sisira Herath to help the investigation of Udugampola.

Counsel - Do you know that Udugampola stopped taking the statement and left the place?

Witness - I know that he left.

Counsel - Were you there when he returned?

Witness - Yes. But I cannot remember the time.

Counsel - Did you write another statement before Udugampola’s return?

Witness -Yes.

Counsel - Of whom?

Witness - That was of Sisira Herath.

Counsel - You said that you were told only to take over the weapons?

Witness - Yes. But once we arrived at the camp I was told to record a statement of Herath.

Counsel - When Udugampola went to take over the weapons they had been taken over already. Right?

Witness - Yes.

"The weapons were taken to a conference hall which was quite away. They were sealed there. After taking over the weapons, Udugampola told me to seal them.

Counsel - Were you ordered to do anything else?

Witness - I cannot remember.

"I was doing a serious work. I would not do anything without the order of Udugampola. It was after a discussion with Samaratunga that I was ordered to take down a statement of Sisira Herath. I don’t know whether the weapons were shown to Samaratunge" the witness said.

Navy nab 20 Indian fishermen

The Navy on Monday night arrested 20 Indian fisherman poaching in Sri Lankan waters off the Talaimannar coast, security sources said yesterday.

Along with the fishermen, six craft and fishing equipment were, too, taken into custody and were handed over to the police, sources said.

They were be produced before the Talaimannar Magistrate yesterday evening. (NP)

(http://www.island.lk/2004/10/06/news16.html)

Karuna says he's in Sri Lanka

Accuses Wanni LTTE of getting support from the military

The following are excerpts from an interview Karuna Amman gave to the London - based Tamil Broadcasting Corporation:

Q: We heard that you are working with the Sri Lankan army, especially in the eastern province. What is your opinion on this?

A: I say that Prabhakaran does this false propaganda. He is the person who can do such a thing (working with the army). He had done that in the past. When the LTTE was fighting the Indian army, Prabhakaran got weapons from the Sri Lankan forces. His people went to Weli-Oya jungles and got arms from the Sri Lankan forces. At that time, I pointed out to him that this sort of thing is not good. We would be looked upon as traitors. But he said that is a strategy, it is diplomacy. He is such a traitor. We don't need to work with the army. There is no need for us to do so. Because our goal is to liberate our people, to give voice to our people. We want to expose the crimes and atrocities committed by Prabhakaran to the public as well as to his own fighters. His actions are still kept in dark. His movements and his life are kept very secretive. I know how he is living a luxury life in the Wanni jungles. How can such a person be a leader of the Tamil people? He never comes out in public. He never meets any ordinary people. He is hiding all the time. How can a person who wants to live a secret life, and never meets public, be a leader of the people?

That is why he is a spreading rumors like that about me to the public, accusing us as working with the army. If their rumors were true, then Sri Lankan army personnel would have also died with my brother. He fought against Prabhakaran's henchmen alone and died. I am proud of my brother, and hundreds other who fought against this fascist Prabhakaran. His propaganda is truly a reflection of his pathetic state. But I think the people are intelligent, and they will realize in time what a phoney he is. Soon there will be an end for all this crimes by Prabhakaran. I am saying this because he is very weak now. His weakness is out now. He will not be able to stand for long. People are realizing his weaknesses. But I also urge people not to fall for the false propaganda of Prabhakaran.

Q: When you withdrew on April 9th, hundreds of fighters were with you, what is their status now? Are there any chances that they be able to join you in the future?

A: I have told this several times. We do not like unnecessary loss of lives. We do not want to see our fighters killed in internal fights and lose their lives without any purpose. I highly value every fighters live. That is the very reason I withdrew without putting up a fight, and asked my fighters to go home. But when the time comes, when it becomes necessary, these fighters will be ready to join us. Both my brother, and me have been fighting for the last 20 years for the Tamil people. We are committed to our people. Reggie had been in the north most of the time. He fought in the battlefields in the Wanni. He sacrificed his life for the Wanni people. He married a woman from the north. Prabhakaran had killed such a person who spent most of his life in the north, and fought for those people. So, Prabhakaran is not concerned about people either in the east or in the north. The last 25 years or so, every decision was made by Prabhakaran alone, and no one dared to question his dictatorship. But his actions are all selfish actions. Only purpose for his decisions and actions are glorifying his name and image. That is why our struggle is paying a heavy price now. If the Tamils believe Prabhakaran, then no Tamil will be left at the end, and the future is going to be really dark. That is how pathetic the situation is now. Lots of Tamils have fled to other countries because of fear of Prabhakaran. All the educated people, intellectuals, talented people, they are all gone abroad. When I look at this situation, I can see Cambodia. The Cambodian rebels did the same thing. They did not leave a single intellectual. They killed them all. That is the situation Prabhakaran is creating here now. So, if Tamil people continue to support Prabhakaran blindly, the same situation is going to come here. So, there is a need, there is a true need for the Tamils to reject Prabhakaran's leadership. Prabhakaran will face the uprising of the Tamils if he continues his foolish atrocities like this.

Q: Recently, you have lost several important persons. Will this be a setback for you, militarily?

A: I am not worried about the set back for me. But I am deeply disturbed by the actions of Prabhakaran's henchmen where they go and kill these Tamil youths at their homes. This is inexcusable. Not only the fighters, but also they are killing innocent civilians, accusing them of being our supporters. They had killed several people like this. We know those who support Wanni LTTE, and we can go and kill these people too anytime we like. But we haven't done it, and are not going to do it. We don't want to commit those low level acts. I can give you an example. Prabhakaran is torturing and killing the family members of several of our fighters. Recently, when they went looking for a youth at his house, they couldn't find him. So, Prabhakaran's henchmen killed the mother and the sister. These are elderly women. But Prabhakaran's own parents are living without any trouble. Those who oppose Prabhakaran are fighting against him and his henchmen. They are not going after his family members. They will not do it, because they can differentiate between right and wrong. They fight for justice. Only an animal like Prabhakaran can do such a cruel thing. Killing that mother was a cruel thing.

I don't think people will accept these serial murders for a long time. They will rise against these atrocities. Sometimes back, there was an incident in Colombo, you all might know of. Some of the youths were sent to Colombo by me for safety reasons. They were waiting to find some alternatives to get on with their normal lives. Some of them were looking to go abroad. They were given sleeping pills by a cowardly traitor, and were shot to death in their sleep. Prabhakaran who claims that he is fighting courageously does this type of cowardly acts. Killing people in their sleep. This is his courage! He is such a coward. This incident showed how low he stoops. A real, courageous man would not do such a thing. Soon, there will be an end for all this. Because Prabhakaran cannot go on like this, and stand for a long time. He will get more and more enemies. He is getting weaker and weaker. By his actions, he is really giving strength to us, and to his enemies.

Q: Recently the LTTE leadership announced several changes in the military leaderships in the eastern province. Banu had replaced special commander Ramesh. What do you think the reason for all this?

A: This is not a secret. It is an open issue. This is the reason I disagreed with Prabhakaran in the first place. He is a person who discriminate people. You can't say he favours Jaffna people. He considers only people from Valvettithurai are trustworthy. He always promotes people from this area. So, a person who discriminate people from other regions, how can be a leader of all? He has declared himself as the national leader. When the problem of this discrimination emerged, several of those with me did not understand it. This person, Ramesh was next to me in Batticaloa. When the problem first started, we explained it to him in detail. We told him that Prabhakaran discriminates our fighters and our people, and he treats us very low. We told Ramesh that there are other people in the Wanni leadership whom we can expect any reasonable justice. But Ramesh and some others did not listen to us. They might have thought that, after A we could get the posts and come to leadership positions in the east. These thoughts made them to be traitors. But probably now, Ramesh can realize what he has done. The people of Batticaloa, Amparai know what kind of person Prabhakaran is. Prabhakaran has nominated a person of his own qualities, - a murderer, and a terrorist to the leadership of Batticaloa. This is the same Banu who came to Kathiraveli and killed hundreds of our fighters. He is the one who killed even those who surrendered. He is the one who sexually assaulted and humiliated our female fighters. He is from Ariyalai and doesn't know anything about Batticaloa or its people. Prabhakaran is not concerned about the welfare, or liberation of the Batticaloa people. His only aim is to see how can he bring the Batticaloa people under his control, and how can he get this people to accept him as the leader again. I can give you an example. Take the journalist Sivaram. Sivaram is the one who spread regional passions in Batticaloa in the east. He campaigned against the Jaffna people in Batticaloa. He was against accepting any staff member from Jaffna working at the Batticalo University.

Sivaram was in another liberation movement, and left that movement because of his differences of opinion with the leadership of that organization. Now, we are in the same situation like him. But Sivaram, being a traitor, is not speaking against Prabhakaran. Why couldn't Prabhakaran find someone from Batticaloa or the east to the leadership positions? Isn't there any capable person from the east? Or, all these years why couldn't Prabhakaran train such a person from the east for leadership? He will never do it, because he does not want to. This Banu dropped out of school with grade eight, and is as ruthless as Prabhakaran himself. By this appointment, I hope that the people in the east will realize how Prabhakaran wants to treat the Tamil people in the east.

Q: There are propaganda reports claiming that you are not in Sri Lanka and had sought refuge in a foreign country. What do you like to say about that?

A: They were telling the same thing about me and my brother Reggie. I am aware of such propaganda by Prabhakaran. I think he is afraid of us, and since we are with the people, that he feels threatened. I am in the motherland. I am a freedom fighter and when the time comes I will inform my people about my whereabouts. For about 20 years, I fought for my people. I lived with my people. But now, the direction of our struggle took a slight turn. Because we came to realize that we cannot get freedom with someone who only consider his glory, a selfish dictator. So, now we really see a future. The Tamil people will have a future. Since coming out the movement, and after discussing with various leaders and intellectuals, I came to realize how we were all brainwashed to believe Prabhakaran, that he is a great leader. Now only I realize that stupid mistake, the mistake of believing Prabhakaran's greatness. Today, we need to fight to put a stop for this killing spree by Prabhakaran's henchmen. We can't tolerate this any more. We need to get liberated from this slavery to Prabhakaran. So, we call upon the people to realize this. We will explain out programs and projects in due course. But we do not want people to join us now. We are aware of that Prabhakaran is killing innocent people whom he says are supporting us. Prabhakaran killed people who had given us food. So we don't want to be the cause for any unnecessary loss of lives at this point. So we want the public to wait for our announcements that we will make when the time comes.

Q: When we last spoke, you mentioned that you would establish a political party. What is the status of that now?

A: Yes, we sure are making progress there to form a democratic political party. This will be the voice of our people. We are committed to that process. We will soon register this party. We are also exploring to establish functional branches abroad as well. I want to re-affirm our commitment to this process. I thank you for the opportunity given to me to speak on behalf of our people.