Excerpts from President Chandrika Kumaratunga’s speech to the UN General Assembly

Peace and resolution of conflict through dialogue takes centre stage in our lives and hence need to be accorded the highest priority on the UN agenda. All of us here are only too aware that peace is not the simple absence of war, it entails an active engagement to make every effort to understand the root-causes that endanger peace and generate conflict.

I also require resolute action for consensus building in order to arrive at a sustainable solution that guarantees a lasting Peace.

In Sri Lanka, my government has implemented serious programmes to engage the armed group - the LTTE - in comprehensive peace negotiation for 10 long years. This process has seen successes and setbacks. Armed hostilities have been halted for the past 2 1/2 years under a Ceasefire Agreement. A comprehensive development strategy has been launched in the North and East of the country, affected by the conflict. The Government of Norway is playing the role of facilitator for the negotiation process for nearly six years. We have taken the process forward with the active participation of Norway, even though at present the LTTE is refusing to return to the negotiating table from which it withdrew nearly eighteen months ago.

We deeply appreciate the strong support we have received and continue to receive from the international community. While Norway is playing an extremely essential role in facilitating talks between the government and the armed group, others such as India, Japan, the USA and the EU together with UN Agencies and some international non governmental organizations are deeply involved with the development and rehabilitation process of the war-affected areas as well as in the poverty alleviation programmes in the rest of the country. My government has obtained a clear mandate at numerous elections to end the war and to bring a negotiated settlement to the country. We are committed to reach a negotiated settlement with the LTTE, a settlement that would satisfy all the peoples of Sri Lanka founded on democracy, the respect for human rights, a pluralist polity and society and good governance.

We are fully aware that peace is not achieved easily that peace is a constant struggle for mutual understanding, reconciliation, and to establish the rule of law, justice and equality.

The Buddha, popularly known as the Prince of Peace has preached at length about peace and all that is required to achieve it, peace within nations and within each individual. I quote from the Dhammapada:

"Victory breeds hatred. The defeated live in pain. Happily the peaceful live, giving up victory and defeat."

Mr. President,
Global developments that provide the context of this session, present a mixed picture. While economic and human development efforts in some countries have made progress, political processes undertaken to bring peaceful resolution to conflicts have been plagued by continuing violence, in others.

We are deeply saddened, at the violence, instability, loss of life and human suffering in Iraq. We in Sri Lanka know, and have experienced, first hand, the impact of violence on society and the difficulty in finding solutions to problems of governance that satisfy all parties. Security measures alone, as pointed out recently by the Secretary-General’s special representative to Iraq, will not suffice to end violence and create stability and peace. Political consensus building, reconciliation, rehabilitation and the promotion of the rule of law are essential for democracy to take root. Equally important, in today’s interdependent, increasingly globalized world is the commitment of the international community to remain engaged and ensure that Iraq does not become further plagued by violence and fragment on ethnic or religious lines.

All of us as leaders, and above all as mothers and fathers can never forget the sheer brutality of the terrorist attack earlier this month on a school in the Russian Federation which led to the loss of so many lives of children and adults. Terrorism in all its manifestation must be condemned and fought relentlessly and globally. While no cause justifies terror unleashed upon the innocent such outrages must make us redouble our efforts to address their root causes and seek political and socio-economic explanations and solutions to them. We are currently engaged in this task in Sri Lanka.

Meanwhile, Sri Lanka is firmly committed to the global endeavour to fight terrorism. We have signed and ratified the UN Conventions aimed at combating this menace. We continue to contribute to the process by chairing the Ad Hoc Committee on Measures to Eliminate international Terrorism. We hope that at this session of the General Assembly, progress could be made on the draft Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism and on the draft Convention on Nuclear Terrorism.

Sri Lanka believes in the UN and its potential to be the principal forum where the voice of the poor, defenceless and the weak is also heard as much as the voice of the rich and powerful. We look to the United Nations - its Specialized Agencies and programmes - together with international civil society as the institutions that are capable of empowering people and promoting their rights and liberties, advancing free and fair trade, and forging a new level of international cooperation, with a shared responsibility for global governance and collective action for peace and security.

We recognize, therefore, the need for reform to render the United Nations more responsive to the needs and aspirations of all of its member States. We look forward to the recommendations to be presented to this session of the General Assembly by the ‘High Level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change’, appointed by the Secretary-General.

There is general agreement that the Security Council, as it is presently constituted, does not reflect the current geopolitical realities. Reform has to be comprehensive and should not be confined to the question of enlargement of the Security Council alone. However, we share the concern over the lack of progress on the question of equitable regional representation and the increase in the membership of the Security Council, both permanent and non-permanent categories. For many years, most of the member States, particularly the developing countries have consistently urged that the composition of the Security Council be broadened to accommodate the basic principles of democratic representation. This includes adequate representation of developing countries. In this context, we observe that Asia, the most populous continent that is home to expanding economic power houses in the world, is grossly under-represented in the present Council.

We take note of the fact that four countries - Brazil, Germany, India and Japan - will announce their participation in a compact, in terms of which they will collectively support their respective candidatures for permanent status in an expanded Security Council. Sri Lanka supports their candidatures, as each of them complies with one or more of the objective criteria applicable to the expansion of the permanent membership of the Security Council and hopes that the Open Ended Working Group would continue to exert efforts to resolve all outstanding issues expeditiously. Sri Lanka would also wish to see a consensus emerging on the permanent representation of Africa in the Security Council. Africa must be included when a final determination is reached on the future composition of the Security Council.

We also believe that the General Assembly which is representative of all member States of the UN should have a larger and more active role to play as a deliberative and decision-making body.

Children in some of our countries suffer from the ignominious practice of being used as child soldiers. We are addressing this problem by seeking to engage the LTTE in the process of negotiation and by supporting the activities spearheaded by UNICEF and civil society organizations working on this issue.

The Millennium Declaration Goals have given to the United Nations and member States a massive and challenging task. While the United Nations has been criticized by some, many have praised the organisation. All agree that the United Nations remains an indispensable instrument for preserving international peace and security and promoting socio-economic development, social justice and human rights. In a rapidly changing world economy and strategic environment, the UN however must meet the emerging challenges. It has a pivotal contribution to make in providing the political, legal and moral force underpinning the collective efforts of the member States towards creating a world where human rights freedom and equitable development are promoted and protected. It is perhaps in such an environment that those who suffer from deprivation and marginalisation will reject the advocacy of violence offered by extremists and terrorist groups as the only instrument of change. To this end, the UN can make a collective contribution. We expect the UN to epitomize the force of law not the rule of force.

However, we cannot expect the UN to deliver what the member States fail to support. The UN can do what its member States want it to do; no more, no less.

We witness with concern the emergence of a contrived association of certain religious beliefs with some groups of fanatics. Extremism, violence and terrorism are the complete antithsis of the ethical and spiritual foundation of all religious philosophies and practices. We should work resolutely to prevent these aberrations from becoming trends.

On the other hand, we are disturbed to witness religious symbols being defamed or abused for commercial purposes. Whether the symbols belong to Christian, Buddhist, Hindu, Islamic, Jewish or any other faith, such abuse should be condemned and desisted from. The recent phenomenon of using Buddhist symbols for promotional work in the entertainment industry, thus causing concern and pain of mind among the Buddhists all over the world is a case in point. Fortunately, most of these organizations have agreed to refrain from such abuse in the future. Sri Lanka together with other like-minded States has brought this situation to the attention of UNESCO and other relevant inter-governmental bodies. We propose that the United Nations should call upon those responsible to pay due respect to religious symbols and practices. This would be a fitting contribution by the UN to its own initiative on a ‘dialogue among civilizations.’

(http://www.island.lk/2004/09/23/news4.html)

We are not scared of LTTE terror – EPDP

EPDP leader Douglas Devananda has written to Norwegian Ambassador Hans Brattskar calling upon the Norwegian Government to adopt effective measures to control the LTTE which does not care for international opinion but kills, abducts and attacks civilians with the aim of becoming the ‘Sole Representative of the Tamil People’ by the process of elimination of political opponents.

The full text of the letter:

"You are fully aware that ever since the Ceasefire Agreement between the Government of Sri Lanka and the LTTE was signed in February 2002, the LTTE had been engaged in attacks, abductions and killing of civilians including political opponents.

" In recent times the LTTE has intensified its killings of members of the Eelam People’s Democratic Party (EPDP), the only Tamil political party in the Sri Lankan Parliament that refuses to fall in line with the fascist goals of the LTTE.

" You are also fully aware of the numerous attack on and killing of key members of the EPDP by the LTTE during the months of July and August 2004.

" We believe that following these incidents, the Royal Norwegian Government and other members of the international community would have sent appropriate messages to the LTTE, demanding that the LTTE puts an end to its murderous activities. However, it is now very clear that the LTTE has become emboldened to intensify its killing of key EPDP members. This only proves that the LTTE does not care for international opinion. These killings are done with impunity.

" On 11th September 2004, in Kayts, Jaffna the LTTE shot and killed Mayavan Chandramohan alias Aruldas, just outside his home. Mayavan Chandramohan was a former Chairman of the Point Pedro Pradeshiya Sabha in the Jaffna District.

" A week later on 18th September 2004, the LTTE shot and killed Thambithurai Sivakumaran alias Bavan in Puttalam. He was on his way home from the EPDP office on a bicycle with his 4 year old daughter. Thambithurai Sivakumaran was the EPDP joint organizer for the Jaffna District. He had the responsibility to take care of families that had been displaced from the Jaffna peninsula several years ago as a result of the LTTE’s terror.

" Thambithurai Sivakumaran also was a candidate of the EPDP at the last Parliamentary Election for the Jaffna District and at previous elections at which the Illankai Thamil Arasu Katchi had won utilizing the terrorist machinery of the LTTE, he filed a Fundamental Rights Application in the Supreme Court of Sri Lanka challenging the victory of the Illankai Thamil Arasu Katchi.

" As we have stated before, the LTTE is concentrating on killing the top and second rung leaders of the EPDP. The LTTE is hoping to attain the status of ‘Sole Representative of the Tamils’ by this process of elimination.

" We call upon the Royal Norwegian Government to adopt more effective measures to control the LTTE. Appeasement of the LTTE will not help to preserve democracy, human rights and political pluralism among the Tamils of Sri Lanka."

(http://www.island.lk/2004/09/22/news31.html)

The Eelam Wars and the Futurology of Disaster by R. Chandrasoma

Planning for contingent happenings that bode ill for peoples and nations is now a well-practised art. Those living in earthquake-prone zones anticipate disaster and take practical steps to make buildings safe from the shakes and tumult that afflict the earth’s crust from time to time. We in Sri Lanka are fortunate in that we live in a region of tectonic stability and are spared the worst of those cyclonic storms that ravage other parts of the world. While enjoying this bounty that nature has so kindly condescended to give us, let us not forget the man-made disasters that assail us on all sides and more than match those of Nature’s doing in the magnitude of the depredations that ensue.

The disasters we have in mind are, of course, authored by a single villainous individual - the redoubtable Vellupillai Prabhakaran (or Pirapaharan). He has killed and destroyed on a scale that bears comparison with carnage unleashed by the conquistadores of the Iberian Peninsula some five centuries ago. While the latter is shameful history, Prabhakaran’s bloody mischief is ongoing and its eventual denouement is unknown. This much can be said safely the better part of the violence he is destined to unleash on the ill-fated population of Sri Lanka is yet to come. While hollering for peace is understandable, the possibility of war calls urgently for contingent planning. This view is in contrast to the rosy humoured panegyrics of the peace-gobbledegooks who write (and speak) as if the Tiger is now a tamed beast that demands no more than its fair share of sustenance. It is their fond belief that the beast has irrevocably pushed into its past the age of roistering when the use of the beloved bomb was an essential part of its way of life.

If the Peace Wallahs alone held these naive views, the danger to the country would not have attained the daunting magnitude it currently has. Most unfortunately for our fair land, the ruling elite is as jelly-bellied as the Peace Wallahs and its entire strategy (if it does, indeed, have a strategy) is based on the assumption that the Tiger’s killing days are over.

There is nothing to substantiate this unbridled optimism- it is obvious to all except the wilfully purblind that the Tiger continues his war preparations on the entirely logical supposition that there is the odd chance of failure and a recourse to the use of his well-honed killing machine is not merely a viable option but the trump-card in the power-game he is so skilled at.. Indeed he has - in recent weeks and months - given a fair indication of the reach of his weaponry and his disposition to use it if provoked.

In reaction to this truculence of a formidable enemy, is it only prayer and peace that we can offer? Knowing the mind-set of Prabhakaran, can we rule out the possibility of a pre-emptive strike on a scale that may well exceed that seen in the infamous attack on our Air Base in Katunayaka? The latter event was a defining moment in the history of the Prabhakaran-Sri Lanka conflict. Simply put, we capitulated and the Claim to Eelam moved from the realm of wishy-washy idealism to something eminently attainable through the use of force. We live under the shadow of this calamity.

We can have a ‘Second Katunayaka’ that will destroy forever the State of Sri Lanka as we know and love it. We spoke earlier of ‘Disaster management’ as part of the prescience of the prudent and well-managed state. What are the strategic hammer-blows that the wily Prabhkaran can inflict on a state in pathetic disarray as well as in the throes of a political melt-down for which there is no remedy in sight? Here are some possibilities -

1. A sudden move to overwhelm the military establishment in Jaffna using the people of the region as a human shield under the protection of which the massed cadres of the Tigers can regain control of this Tamil heartland.

2. The strangling of Trincomalee by bolstering the military power of the bases and encampments that already form a noose around the great harbour. This stronghold in the East will become another Jaffna with the expulsion of its Sinhala population.

3. A Tet-type offensive in Colombo. Except for crass simpletons and ostriches of the political kind, all know that Colombo is a haven for the covert operatives of Eelamism. That weapons and explosives are stashed away in safe-houses is beyond question - the police will be the first to acknowledge this with the caveat that they can do nothing about it. Can we rule out the possibility that a simultaneous attack on select targets in the metropolis will cause such havoc that the leaders will run away and the white flag of surrender will flutter from all public buildings?

4. The assassination of key figures in the political establishment of this country. This is a tried and tested method of getting ‘paradigm-shifts’ in political perspectives when the going is not to Prabhakaran’s liking. Currently, things are decidedly awry and he must be mulling over the use of this favourite weapon.

5. The opening of a ‘second front’ in the Hatton, Nuwara-Eliya area using the disaffected Tamils in the central hills will be a major achievement for Prabhakaran and will give a whole new dimension to the conflict. Already the region swarms with political lackeys of the Northern tyrant and the eventuality we speak of ranks very high in the list of dangers confronting the Sri Lankan State.

The five dangers listed are not mere forebodings of a prophet of evil - they are real dangers in the same broad category as earthquakes and storms. We prepare for the latter, even if the danger is not imminent. Why is the discussion of these scenarios (hypothetical as they are) shunned by those who, in a proper scheme of things, should be the first to warm us of such outcomes? A partial answer is given by the observation that our leaders have only one foot in their native country. The other is poised over a promising and bountiful terrain in a distant land, ready to receive the entire body weight if the first feels the heat of the local habitation. They can run away leaving the poor natives to sort out the mess.

Fisheries Co-op defies army

The Fisheries co-operative society of Kerudavil, in Vadamaradchchi (north), has commenced deepening the fisheries jetty despite the army’s opposition, pro-LTTE TamilNet quoted the fisheries society sources as saying.

The Jetty had been abandoned due to the conflict for about eight years.

Talks held between the Kerudavil fisheries society and the SLA failed due to difference of opinion between the parties concerned.

In the meantime, the Asian Development Bank (ADB) funded North East Community Restoration Development project allocated funds through the Error! Bookmark not defined. district secretariat to deepen the fisheries jetty.

The army on Monday made an abortive attempt to prevent the fisheries society commencing the work claiming that it had not obtained prior permission from Jaffna Security Forces Headquarters.

(http://www.island.lk/2004/09/23/news14.html)

Talking to others no use — SLA Batti Tiger chief dodges pow-wow by Shamindra Ferdinando

The top Tiger commander, in charge of the Ampara-Batticaloa region, avoided yesterday’s meeting with the army to discuss ways and means of curbing the ongoing wave of violence involving the warring LTTE factions.

Thambirajah Ramesh’s successor Bhanu and Ramanan of the group’s military wing skipped yesterday’s meeting chaired by Maj.Gen.(Retd) Trond Furuhovde, head of the Norwegian-led Scandinavian truce monitoring mission’s chief.

The security forces delegation had emphasized that there was no point in having meetings with the political wing. "We don’t mind meeting them but the military wing leaders must come. Otherwise there is no point in meeting their political wing leader Kousalyan."

Maj.Gen. Furuhovde has assured that he would take up this with the LTTE leadership in Kilinochchi.

The meeting is the first since the LTTE suspended regular security talks with the army (in Batticaloa) over what the group said was a clandestine effort to weaken the group in the Ampara-Batticaloa region by taking advantage of the unprecedented crisis triggered by Karuna’s revolt.

During yesterday’s meeting, the army challenged the LTTE to justify its claims that the troops were secretly assisting the dissidents.

E. Kousalyan, head of the Tigers’ political division for Batticaloa-Ampara led the LTTE delegation. The security forces delegation was led by Brig. Vajira Wijegunawardena, General Officer Commanding (GOC), army’s 23 Division, with its headquarter at Welikanda.

The meeting took place at the Vavunathivu Divisional Secretary’s office, about 5 kilometres southwest of Error! Bookmark not defined. town, in the no man’s land between areas controlled by the LTTE and the forces.

S Marshall, head of the LTTE headquarters branch for Batticaloa-Ampara, Kuyilinpan, head of LTTE political division for Amparai and Dayamohan, head of LTTE’s administrative service in Batticaloa Ampara accompanied Kousalyan, the sources said.

Commander of 23-3 Brigade in Batticaloa town, Col. Laksiri Amaratunga and Special Task Force commander for Batticaloa-Ampara SSP Vasantha Ratnayaka also participated.

LTTE had no say in Jaffna postal complex

The Ministry of Posts yesterday scotched speculation that the newly built postal complex in Jaffna was opened on a directive given by the LTTE. A senior spokesperson said, "We requested the Jaffna Government Agent to commence operations at the new building. This was done purely on the instructions of the ministry and not on a directive given by the LTTE," he said. The new building has cost the tax payer Rs.60 million.

(http://www.island.lk/2004/09/23/news16.html)

Over home guards in LTTE captivity Hartal, death fast paralyse - Trincomalee by Norman Palihawadane

A hartal and a fast unto death brought life to a standstill in Trincomalee yesterday.

The protest was mounted to demand the release of two home guards, abducted and kept by the LTTE’s Wanni faction..

Shops were closed and vehicular transport was halted. The city was deserted except for the 25 participants in the fast. They sat opposite the clock tower in the centre of the city with their supporters.

Another group of 200 persons mounted a separate satyagraha at the Fourth Mile post on the Trinco-Kantale road.

The sit in fast, staged by the relatives of home guards a week ago, developed into a fast unto death yesterday over the LTTE’s delay in releasing them.

Additional police security was provided to the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission in Trincomalee.

The protest was supported by the North East Sinhala Organisation.

Two home guards, D. Sarath Bandara and Chandana Piyasiri were abducted by the LTTE on August 10 at Konabendiwea, Gomarankadawala. The LTTE later demanded the government to release ten of their cadres for the release of the two home guards.

However, the Defence Secretary Cyril Herath on Monday turned down LTTE’s demand for a prisoner swap saying that he had not received such a request from the LTTE, sources said.

Spokesman for the North East Sinhala Organisation, Sunil Aluthgamage said that they would mobilise more civilians to get the two home guards released from the ‘tiger claws’.

DIG Eastern Range, Neville Wijesinghe said that additional policemen had been deployed in the city in view of any emergency and to provide security to public property.

SSP Upali Hewage said that police has received information that large number of people were on the walk from Gamrankadawala and Bakmeewewa areas to join the fast unto death campaign in the center of the city

EPDP apprises France of LTTE atrocities

The Eelam Peoples Democratic Party (EPDP) representatives at their meeting with the French Ambassador to Sri Lanka Jean Bernade de Vaivre complained about the problems faced by the civilians in the North and East due to the LTTE’s atrocities.

The EPDP delegation, headed by its leader Hindu Affairs Minister Douglas Devananda had told the French envoy that civilians were facing severe hardships due protection money extracted by the LTTE, EPDP spokesman Nelson Edirisinghe said.

They had complained that people in these areas were very poor and therefore found it impossible to comply with the LTTE order to pay ‘taxes’. Those who fail to pay the money, they had pointed out, had to undergo punishment following kangaroo trials by the LTTE.

The LTTE continued to recruit children as combatants but no one seem to be able to do anything about it. For no one dared stand up to the LTTE for fear of death, the EPDP members had told the Ambassador calling upon France and other powerful members of the international community to intervene to save the hapless civilians ‘trapped in the areas controlled by the LTTE in the North and the East.’

The EPDP is expected to have a series of other foreign diplomats to apprise them of the LTTE violence against civilians.

(http://www.island.lk/2004/09/24/news5.html)

Karuna's brother killed in major LTTE offensive By Sunil Jayasiri

LTTE's elusive renegade eastern commander Karuna suffered a devastating blow when Wanni forces killed his elder brother and deputy in a pitched battle in the uncleared Annadmali in Batticaloa early yesterday.

The attack and heavy fighting came amidst reports that the LTTE's Wanni leadership had sent reinforcements to the east for the past few days and weeks and finalised plans for a major attack on the Karuna faction after loyalists of the renegade leader had launched a series of attacks on LTTE cadres.

Military sources said Wanni cadres reportedly launched the attack on Karuna's cadres led by Karuna’s 40-year-old brother Vinyagomoorthy Sivanesathurai alias Reggie as part of a fresh campaign by the LTTE leadership to knock out the renegade faction.

They said the battle began late at night and after several hours of heavy fighting Karuna's brother and two other frontliners Kuilanan and Eleen were killed on the spot at Annadmali.

Later Wanni cadres had brought the bodies to Illipadichchenai and some reports said Reggie's body was burnt.

Five Wanni cadres including two females were also killed by the Karuna faction which had offered fierce resistance to the attack, the sources said quoting reports from the area.

But Military Spokesman Sumedha Perera said that while information had come to the troops about the confrontation between the two factions and at least three deaths, the casualty figures had not been confirmed.

Reggie had launched several attacks on the Wanni cadres since his brother was virtually forced to leave the east by the Wanni faction after an LTTE crackdown in March this year.

Since then, a large number of Wanni cadres including several senior members were killed in a series of attacks by the Karuna faction.

The latest clash came soon after representatives of the Army and the LTTE met in Batticaloa on Tuesday to discuss the situation in the east including LTTE allegations that sections of the military were backing the Karuna faction.

At this meeting the senior most Army officer strongly denied the LTTE allegation and challenged the Tigers to provide evidence if they had any.

Another EPDP member shot dead

Another senior EPDP member was shot dead at his residence in Wellawatte yesterday afternoon allegedly by LTTE cadres, police said.

They said the 39-year-old victim identified as Somasundaram Warnakulasingham alias Singham died on his way to hospital while his wife also suffered serious gun shot injuries and was hospitalised.

Yesterday's killing came about a week after EPDP member Sivakumar was killed in Puttalam. On Monday, the EPDP brought his body in a coffin to the gates of the Norwegian embassy in Colombo and demanded effective action by the facilitators to stop alleged LTTE killings.

Meanwhile, a former LTTE cadre known to be a close supporter of Karuna was shot dead while he was returning home at Manampitiya in Mananthota on Wednesday night. Polonnaruwa police Inspector L.,H.Piyasena said the 22-year-old victim identified as Rajadurai Sivanathan alias Kutty had deserted the LTTE after serving it for about 7 years.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2004/09/24/front/2.asp)

Sinhala group threatens one week’s fuel, flour blockade

The North-East Sinhala Organization has threatened to block the supply of fuel and flour from Trincomalee to Colombo for one week if the government fails to get the two home guards released from LTTE custody within three days.

The organization's spokesman Sunil Aluthgamage said yesterday they would also stage other forms of civil disobedience in support of the demand.

He accused the government including the JVP and opposition parties of being conveniently silent on this matter.

Meanwhile, a government delegation led by Cabinet Spokesman Mangala Samaraweera last evening met the Organization's officials at Trincomalee and promised to take immediate steps to get the home guards released.

However an official of the organizations said they were not satisfied with promises and would go ahead with the protest.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2004/09/24/front/6.asp)

Ferial pledges aid to war-ravaged east village by Ifham Nizam

Urban Development and Water Supply Minister Dinesh Gunawardena and Housing, Construction and Eastern Province Education Minister Ferial Ashroff during their visit to Palliyagodalle in Medirigiriya last week assured war-ravaged villagers of long term assistance.

People of Palliyagodalle are in dire straits due to loss of life and property on account of a terrorist attack a decade ago, which devastated their entire village. Nearly 428 families, eking out a living in temporary cadjan huts after this attack are worst affected by the prevailing drought.

Addressing villagers, Minister Ferial Ashroff said that as a first step, the Government will provide material assistance to put up 50 houses.

She added: "We expect the village people to actively participate in the construction work."

She said that it’s her intention to encourage Muslim brethren in Colombo and the suburbs to contribute lavishly to develop this village. "I entered politics, though a Muslim woman in order to continue the services rendered to the Sri Lankan Muslims by the late Mr. Ashroff."

Minister Gunawardena said that the tragedy faced by the people of Palliyagodelle cannot be easily forgotten nor endorsed.

The government will help them by building the required tanks and irrigation channels soon.

Business and Professional Women’s Association Chairperson Janaki Gunawardena also spoke.

LTTE claims: Karuna denies - ‘Ambush killed Karuna’s bro’ - by Norman Palihawadane and T.Chandrasekera

One of the close allies of the renegade LTTE military commander Karuna Amman had been ambushed and killed by a group of the Wanni Tigers at Illuppadichenai, on the border of the Batticaloa and Polonnaruwa districts, sources said.

The LTTE claimed the man they killed was Karuna’s brother and his deputy, known as Reggie,

The bloody skirmishes on Tuesday night at Illuppadichenai in Batticaloa between Karuna loyalists and the LTTE’s Wanni cadres lasted for six hours and ended with seven Wanni Tiger cadres and two of Karuna’s men being killed.

Two senior associates of the renegade LTTE commander, Elilan and Sunilan, were also killed in the clashes, sources added.

Three Karuna loyalists were caught in ambush set by the Wanni cadres at Illuppadichenai closer to Karadiya Naru in Maha Oya on Chenkal Adi road around 7.30 p.m. on Tuesday.

The bodies of the Karuna loyalists were found left at Karadiyanaru area yesterday. The face of one had been mutilated and the LTTE’s Wanni cadres claimed the body was Reggie’s.

Karuna’s faction has denied the LTTE claim that its deputy leader Reggie has been gunned down.

TNA defends Tigers, hits out at CBK

The Tamil National Alliance yesterday launched a strong attack on President Chandrika Kumaratunga claiming she had misled the international community during her UN address by painting a distorted version of the current peace process.

In a statement the TNA urged President Kumaratunga to refrain from rhetorical statements and focus on resolute action to start peace talks. The TNA said:

The TNA Parliamentary Group met on September 23, 2004 to consider the statements made by President Kumaratunga relating to peace negotiations in Sri Lanka, during the course of her address to the UN General Assembly.

The President has stated that "the Government of Norway has been playing the role of facilitator for the negotiation process, for nearly six years. We have taken the process forward with the active participation of Norway, even though at present the LTTE is refusing to return to the negotiating table from which it withdrew nearly eighteen months ago".

Most regrettably the above statement does not reflect the true factual position for the following reasons:

(i) After several rounds of peace talks between the LTTE and the then UNF Government, the LTTE in April 2003, for certain stated reasons, without withdrawing from the negotiating process, suspended its participation in peace talks. The LTTE however continued to be in contact with the facilitator, the Government of Norway and through the facilitator with the then UNF Government.

(ii) In consequence thereof, the LTTE put forward proposals in writing for the setting up of an Interim Self Governing Authority (ISGA), on October 31, 2003. Simultaneously the LITE requested that dates be fixed for the commencement of talks on this said proposals.

(iii) On November 4, 2003; within four days of the LTTE's ISGA proposals, the President in the exercise of powers vested in her under the 1978 constitution, took over from the UNF Government, which enjoyed a majority in Parliament, the Ministries of Defense, Interior and Media which were directly linked to the peace process, and assigned the said portfolios either to herself or to nominees from within her party.

(iv) This action of the President resulted in the facilitator, the Norwegian Government, suspending its role in November 2003, in view of the lack of clarity in regard to who was responsible for the peace process.

(v) The ensuing stalemate resulted in the dismissal of the then UNF Government, the dissolution of Parliament and the installation of a new government after the General Elections held in April 2004. President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga heads the new UPFA government which is an alliance between the PA and the JVP.

(vi) That the JVP campaigned and continues to campaign countrywide against the peace process is well known. It has in fact threatened to leave the government and bring about the downfall of the government, if the President commences talks on the lSGA proposals.

(vii) However, at the meeting the President had with the parliamentary group of the TNA on June 10, 2004, the President while expressing her reservations in regard to some of the ISGA proposals, unambiguously stated that she was prepared to commence talks on the ISGA proposals, without linking such talks to any other issue. The government has hitherto not taken any action to implement this commitment.

(viii) It must not be forgotten that the initial reaction of the PA to the ISGA proposals was totally negative. The PA thereafter knowing very well the attitude of the JVP entered into an alliance with the JVP, This alliance resulted in the hardening of the position against the lSGA proposals and against the peace process. The President's inability to take the peace process forward is clearly attributable to this situation. The President's alliance partner within the Government, the JVP, has heightened its opposition to the ISGA proposals and the peace process. It is significant that the main opposition party, the UNP has urged the government to commence talks on the ISGA proposals and has publicly stated that it will support any agreement that is arrived at between the government. and the LTTE after such discussions.

(ix) The LTTE has repeatedly stated that it is eagerly awaiting the restart of the talks on the basis of the ISGA proposals and that when the talks begin any proposals that the government may bring to the negotiating table in regard to the ISGA could also be discussed. This consistent position was once again conveyed to the special envoy of the Norwegian government at a recent meeting.

(x) In this background, the statement made by the President in the course of her address to the United Nations that "the LTTE is refusing to return to the negotiating table" is singularly unfortunate, as it does not reflect the true factual position. The lack of clarity, the contradictions within her own Government and her inability apart from making pronouncements to take definite action to start talks are the main stumbling blocks to the starting of the peace process. It is pertinent to point out, that in the context of the LTTE's request for dates to be fixed to begin talks, when it submitted its ISGA proposals on October 31, 2003, the LTTE would have been at the negotiating table in November 2003 itself, but for the actions taken by the President on November 4, 2003.

The TNA also questions the President's statement that "a comprehensive development strategy has been launched in the North and East of the country, which are affected by the conflict".

While the TNA acknowledges that the international community has been providing some measure of humanitarian and development assistance to alleviate the deprivation and suffering of the Tamil civilian population in the Northeast, hundreds of thousands of displaced Tamil people in the Northeast yet continue to languish away from their homes, awaiting the implementation of a comprehensive programme of action that would resettle and rehabilitate them. This task together with the task of reconstructing the devastated Northeast can be accomplished only by a duly constituted Interim Self Governing Authority for the Northeast.

We urge the President to refrain from rhetorical statements and focus on resolute action that would enable the starting of talks and meaningful consensus-building that would ensure the success of the negotiations.

The Tamil people in the Northeast more than anyone else yearn for a peaceful resolution of the conflict. The Tamil people strongly urge the President not to miss the opportunity that presently exists, to take the peace process forward by commencing talks with the LTTE on the ISGA proposals, in accordance with the assurance given to the Parliamentary Group of the TNA on 10 June 2004.

The TNA desires to point out that the President has used the forum of the UN General Assembly, attended by Heads of Government to present a distorted picture of the current peace process. An enunciation of the steps that the President contemplates, to take the peace process forward could have greatly contributed to building confidence. The TNA emphatically states that the present stalemate should not continue.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2004/09/24/front/3.asp)

Regional journos urge peace talks

"The Sri Lankan Government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam should forthwith start peace negotiations on a basis acceptable to both sides since it is the wish of the people in the South, where we live in, as well as those in the North whom we met there," said a group of regional journalists in a press release yesterday.

The journalists from the Kalutara, Galle, Badulla, Matale, Kurunegala, Kandy, Kegalle and Anuradhapura districts have issued the statement after exchanging ideas among themselves and with ordinary citizens and the LTTE leaders in the North during a three-day seminar held recently.

The statement also says, "when reporting the war that had ranged for the last 20 years and the ethnic problems on which it is based, journalists should take steps to establish a better media practice that cover all parties concerned, taking into consideration their social responsibility. It is our intention to see that the mass media become a partner in peace, and not war.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2004/09/24/news/19.asp)

Thamilselvan drops Bati visit By Sunil Jayasiri

LTTE's political head S.P. Thamilselvan, who was scheduled to visit Batticaloa today (24), has cancelled his visit following advise by its intelligence unit to postpone his visit due to the situation in Batticaloa after the killing of Reggie, the brother of renegade LTTE Leader Karuna.

A spokesman for the Peace Secretariat said that the LTTE peace Secretariat had requested the Government Peace Secretariat on Wednesday to provide a helicopter for the passage of Thamilselvan to Batticaloa.

However later yesterday they had informed the government peace secretariat that the visit had been cancelled.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2004/09/24/news/17.asp)

Mahanayaka Thera asked to stay clear of LTTE By Damitha Hemachandra

The Australian based World Alliance for Peace in Sri Lanka (WAPS) and Society for Peace, Unity and Human Rights in Sri Lanka (SPUR) yesterday called upon the Malwatte Mahanayaka Thera to 'resist efforts made to involve him in dialogue with LTTE terrorists' by LTTE sympathisers.

"The most Ven. Tibbatuwawe Sri Siddhartha Sumangala Thera will do well to stay away from this scheming LTTE sympathisers, who keep their eyes shut to the atrocities committed by the LTTE during the ceasefire period," a web based message issued by the organisations said.

Meanwhile the organisations called upon the Mahanayaka Thera to consider visiting number of Buddhist temples in the North and the East, which were allegedly under LTTE threat and lacked basic requirements.

There are more than 200 Buddhist archaeological sites in the North and East and many other temples, which are in the verge of destruction due to lack of support and funds, the message stated.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2004/09/24/news/11.asp)

Canada Pongu Thamil show draws NMAT, JSS ire By Damitha Hemachandra

The National Movement Against Terrorism (NMAT) and the Jathika Sangha Sammelanaya yesterday staged a protest opposite the Canadian High Commission calling for the suspension of the Pongu-Thamil festival to be held in Toronto tomorrow.

Sangha Sammelanaya spokesman the Ven. Galagodatte Gnanasara Thera threatened to hold a fast unto death campaign opposite the Canadian embassy if the Canadian government failed to reconsider the permission granted for the Pongu-Thamil festival in Canada.

NMAT Chairman Senaka De Silva and Jathika Hela Urumaya parliamentarian the Ven. Uduwatte Nanda Thera handed over a letter of protest to Canadian High Commissioner and addressed to Canadian Premier.

They said the LTTE was engaged in ethnic cleansing of Sinhalese and Muslims in the North and East and were violating the ceasefire agreement.

"The LTTE had been avoiding coming for talks during the last 18 months demanding Interim Self governance within a unitary Sri Lanka and preparing themselves for war", the JHU MP said.

NMAT alleged that funds obtained through festivals like Pongu-Thamil was being used to kill Sinhala, Tamil and Muslim people in Sri Lanka and to recruit child soldiers.

It queried as to what the Canadian stand was on the LTTE in particular and terrorism in general and called for the immediate ban of the LTTE in Canada.

NMAT spokesman, Nishantha Warnasinghe said the Canadian government while condemning terrorist attacks in the USA and Russia were giving a free hand to the LTTE to hold fund raising programmes like the Pongu-Tamil within Canada.

" If the Canadian government has this kind of a policy towards the LTTE we cannot help but consider Canada as anti-Sri Lankan, which is seeking to promote terrorism to separate this country", he said.

Meanwhile the Canadian High Commissioner had guaranteed to take up the matter with the Canadian government regarding the protest by the NMAT and Sangha Sammelanaya.

LTTE man in million-rupee drug business in Negombo prison By Indika Ramanayake and W.Hubert Fernando

An LTTE suspect being detained at the Negombo prison in connection with the 1999 Jaela bomb blast has been detected with 65 packets of heroin in his possession, police and prison officials said.

Negombo's Police Superintendent Venura Gunawardane said the suspect had been carrying on a drug business running into millions inside the prisons for some time. He said the prison officials searched the suspect after a tipoff and found 65 packets, each containing four grams of heroine, in his possession.

The SP said investigations had revealed that relatives who visited the suspect had smuggled in the heroin, concealed in food containers.

A prison official said the suspect was selling a packet of heroin at Rs. 25,000 or 30,000 inside the prison.

The suspect was to be produced before a magistrate yesterday. Investigations are continuing.

Leadership changes show LTTE may get tough (NEWS ANALYSIS):

[India News] New Delhi, Sep 22 : Crucial changes Tamil Tiger guerrillas have made in their ranks in Sri Lanka's east portend trouble ahead despite mounting concern voiced by Western diplomats over escalating tensions in the country.

Guerrillas of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have suddenly become conspicuous by their absence in government-held areas in the eastern district of Batticaloa after a long, long time.

This, Tamil sources say, could only mean that the rebels have been pulled back to LTTE-controlled areas in the east or even in the north, probably for further training or military regrouping.

The absence of LTTE cadres in areas held by Colombo was noticed just before the LTTE appointed 'Colonel' Bhanu, head of its mortar regiment, in place of Ramesh, the Batticaloa-Amparai chief who succeeded Karuna, the former regional commander who revolted in March against Tigers boss Velupillai Prabhakaran.

Karuna made his way to Batticaloa from the LTTE-held north along with Ramesh on the weekend of Sep 11-12 after extensive consultations with Prabhakaran.

The LTTE leadership is clearly unhappy with Ramesh, probably on more than one count.

Ramesh was Karuna's deputy when the latter revolted. Ramesh did not side with Karuna and instead fled to the Prabhakaran-held north. In the first public protest in Batticaloa then, Karuna supporters had burnt Ramesh's effigies and ridiculed him for "running away".

There were reports then that Ramesh had quietly asked Karuna to leave the region for his own good and safety.

The Karuna revolt ended in early April. By May, there was intense speculation that Ramesh would be replaced by Karikalan, a former close associate of Karuna who too had sided with Prabhakaran. That did not happen.

Since then, however, remnants among Karuna's supporters who are said to be regrouping, in all possibility with the tacit backing of Sri Lanka's military intelligence, have carried out some notable attacks on LTTE personnel and the group's high-profile supporters.

According to Tamil sources, the LTTE feels that Ramesh has failed to check the growth of Karuna (whose present whereabouts are a mystery) and the collusion between Karuna's men and the Sri Lankan military intelligence that can prove destabilising in the long run.

In contrast, LTTE hit squads have been much more successful in Colombo, eliminating Karuna's men and other anti-LTTE activists at will.

The appointment of 'Colonel' Bhanu is a firm sign that the LTTE is planning something deadly. Simultaneously, one senior LTTE activist who had become very active in the region is Ramanan who also enjoys same rank as Bhanu's and is a hardcore Prabhakaran loyalist.

"The fact that the LTTE has to appoint a northern man to manage the east also shows the group's desperation," a Colombo-based diplomat told IANS.

Norwegian special envoy Erik Solheim has clearly failed to persuade Colombo and the LTTE to resume peace talks, which have been stalled since April 2003. This is the task he came to achieve when he visited Sri Lanka last week.

The Tamil Tigers, true to their past, have simply brushed aside growing appeals from the West to stop recruiting children into their ranks and to be flexible in their approach to the peace process.

The LTTE insists that future talks can he held only around its demand for a powerful interim administration in Sri Lanka's north and east. Critics say that the proposal is a stepping-stone to an eventual free Tamil Eelam state.

On Monday, Canada's ambassador in Colombo, Valerie Raymond, travelled to Kilinochchi in the island's north where the LTTE has its political headquarters to ask the Tigers to show flexibility.

Her trip followed similar appeals from the US and the European Union.

None of this has had any effect. And those who know Prabhakaran realise that such appeals mean nothing to the LTTE boss who remains obsessed with the idea of seceding Sri Lanka's northeast to form an independent country.

--Indo-Asian News Service

( http://news.newkerala.com/india-news/?action=fullnews&id=32453)

Heavy fight in eastern Sri Lanka on the cards

Eastern Sri Lanka

A new outfit calling itself the 'Thamilar National Brigade' and claiming to be headed by former LTTE renegade leader Karuna has called upon the youths and girls to join its cadres to fight against the Wanni leadership of Velupillai Prabhakaran.

In leaflets distributed in the east, the new brigade has asked the people whether they want to simply be onlookers to the injustices being perpetrated by the Wanni leadership or they sought liberation by joining the brigade. "Our struggle will not cease till the people in our district are liberated. We are confident that the Wanni Tigers could be driven away if you join the brigade," the leaflet said.

Pirbakaran posters defaced.

Special Correspondent, September 22. Posters bearing the LTTE leader Pirabakaran's photos have been spray painted with black paint and defaced at several store-fronts in Toronto overnight.

Reports from Toronto say that Canadian public are also becoming increasingly annoyed by the display of these posters and banners. However, it is not clear who spray painted the posters in several Toronto suburbs. Several store-owners removed the damaged posters in the morning fearing reprisals by the LTTE operatives.

The Tamil radio and TV channels operated by LTTE-fronts in Toronto, are asking all Tamils living in the city to participate in the Pongu Thamil rally on Saturday.

(www.theacademic.org)

Road side explosion in Batticaloa north [TamilNet, September 21, 2004 11:26 GMT]

A claymore mine was triggered by an unidentified person in Panichchankerni, 60 kilometres north of Batticaloa, Tuesday. No one was hurt in the explosion. An LTTE official in Batticaloa alleged that an informant working with the Sri Lanka army had set off the explosion. He said the improvised device may have been aimed at two local LTTE cadres who had passed the Panichchankerni bridge minutes before the explosion.

'Bouncing' mine kill soldier [TamilNet, September 22, 1998 18:52 GMT]

An SLA soldier in foot patrol was killed in Sangaththaanai in Jaffna around 8 a.m. this morning when an anti-personnel mine (APLM) blew up on him. SLA sources said that this APLM is new type that has been rarely used in Jaffna. They said the mine springs out of the ground to burst shrapnel in the direction of the victim. It is hence deadlier than other APLMs they said.

Suicide bomber threat sustains support for war [TamilNet, September 22, 1997 12:00 GMT]

The Colombo public have an abhorrent fear of suicide bomb attacks. The threat seems ever present, even though there have been no suicide attacks in the capital for nearly two years. Surprisingly, the spectre of the suicide bomber is being revived time and again by the Sri Lankan government itself. The fear generated by the official warnings is sustaining public support for the government's war in the Tamil homelands.

Last week the Sri Lankan police said they had raided a house near a military airbase close to the capital, Colombo and seized equipment intended for use by suicide bombers. The police claim to have subsequently apprehended 5 bombers but warn that several others are at large.

The police say they have seized jackets used for carrying bombs, rocket launchers and an automatic rifle, and claim that the bombers were planning to hit the Ratmalana air force base.

In January 1996, three men drove a truck packed with explosive into the Central bank building, devastating Colombo's financial district. There have been no suicide bomb attacks since then, though a parcel bomb exploded on a train in July 1996.

However the Sri Lankan government regularly issues warnings of imminent suicide bomb attacks by Tamil 'infiltrators' who are said to be present in the capital.

Arrests are also regularly announced, though in most cases, no charges have been brought against the alleged bombers, and only one man has been tried (allegedly for involvement in a bomb attack in 1995).

The discovery of arms caches within the city are also frequently reported. Roadblocks and check points have long been a regular feature in the city.

The regular police announcements fuel the apprehensions of the city's occupants. This fear has mobilised the Sinhala public's support for the government's costly war in the Tamil homelands, the logic being that if the government destroys the LTTE, the threat of bombs would recede.

The security forces go to considerable lengths to reinforce the climate of fear. Massive search operations are mounted every so often, involving hundreds of policemen for several hours, ostensibly 'looking for suicide bombers'.

Some Sri Lankan military officials are openly contemptuous of such operations. After a six hour search caused massive traffic jams around the President's residence, one official observed that "If indeed there was a suicide bomber, the huge traffic outside the president's house would have been an ideal to set off an explosion and cause maximum destruction"

Tamil residents and neighborhoods are particularly targeted in these operations. Mass arrests of Tamils are routine. Even long-established residents are picked up outside their homes or places of work.

The Sri Lankan police often say they are seeking the public's cooperation for information about 'suspicious' people in their neighborhoods. As a result, the Tamil residents of the city are as a whole viewed with suspicion by the Sinhalese.

When visitors (particularly youths) go to Tamil homes, a police patrol will often arrive shortly afterwards: a watchful neighbor would have alerted them of possible 'bombers'. Arrests at night are common place, as are random searches of vehicles during the day.

The recent discovery of suicide bombers near Colombo comes at a time when the Sri Lankan government needs to mobilise public support for its controversial 'devolution proposals' which it claims will end the war. In this light, a revival of the public's fear of bombings in the capital may not be unhelpful. Some of the Sri Lankan government's announcements

14 June 96 Police claim to have arrested 5 suicide bombers.

28 June 96 Defence sources inform media that 17 suicide bombers are in Colombo.

08 July 96 Government announces immediate training for security forces to face suicide bombers.

16 August 96 Colombo police claim to have arrested 4 female suicide bombers.

27 August 96 Defence sources tell Colombo media that 12 female suicide bombers are in Colombo.

19 September 96 Police claim suicide bombers planning to hit high ranking police officers.

06 October 96 Colombo police chief says 25 female suicide bombers are in Colombo.

08 October 96 After massive search operation, police arrest 30 people alleged to have supported suicide bombers in Colombo .

09 October 96 Police arrest 20 alleged suicide bombers after high profile search.

29 October 96 Defence sources claim to have disrupted plans to send 35 suicide bombers to Colombo.

21 November 96 Defence sources claim to have uncovered a plan to kill Education minister with suicide bombers.

28 November 96 Colombo police claim 4 female suicide bombers are in Colombo to attack politicians.

03 December 96 Police claim to have arrested 17 suicide bombers, including 5 women.

06 December 96 Defence ministry claims 50 suicide bombers are arrested in Vavuniya detention camps, enroute to Colombo.

31 January 97 Police claim 5 suicide bombers arrive in Colombo.

03 February 97 Police claim to have arrested a female suicide bomber.

12 March 97 Police claim to have arrested 5 suicide bombers.

19 March 97 Police claim 4 suicide bombers arrive in Colombo.

30 March 97 Police claim to have arrested a senior suicide bomber.

08 May 97 Police claim suicide bombers are in Colombo disguised as soldiers.

22 May 97 Police chief claims at least 12 suicide bombers arrive in Colombo.

28 May 97 Police warn public to be alert for suicide bombers.

Bhanu vs. Ramesh: Military prowess as against Karuna's regionalism call By Champika Liyanaarachchi

Prabhakaran moves to consolidate East before talks

In the prolonged absence of faith and will, the two vital elements necessary for any paradigm shift in the thinking of the government and the LTTE to break the deadlock, the subject of peace is now been relegated to one used by the protagonists to sling mud at each other.

In place of trust building last week we witnessed how both President Chandrika Kumaratunga and the LTTE stooped down to the lowest levels of political posturing since the ceasefire, taking on each other in a bid to show who made a bigger contribution to peace - the government or the LTTE.

President Kumaratunga accused the LTTE of being ; 'inflexible,' and 'indecisive' and that it used dilatory tactics to delay the resumption of peace talks while the LTTE retaliated by charging that the President has done nothing so far other than 'mouthing her intentions to restart the peace process".
And this at a time when the constituency and the international community were eagerly awaiting confidence building by both parties to break the stalemate and return to the negotiating table.
With this kind of talking to the gallery heightening the degree of acrimony between the two parties, one wonders where the peace process is heading, leave aside the resumption of peace talks.
Amidst these charges and counter charges the LTTE also moved to make a strategic change in the Eastern command- replacing Ramesh who is an Easterner with war veteran Bhanu from the North.
Immediately after Bhanu (a northerner) was appointed a series of rumours came from the East indicating that there was a major revolt by the ordinary Tamils against his appointment as the new Eastern Commander of the LTTE.
While the appointment is very likely to have earned the apprehension of the Tamils in the East and proven the point that Karuna wanted to make, that the Easterners are not getting their due place in the Tigers hierarchy, it was later proven that most of these reports on anti-Bhanu demonstrations were simply speculative.

And that includes the reports on a protest in the LTTE-controlled Kokkadicholai, against the appointment of the new Eastern commander.

However, the absence of strong moves to oppose Bhanu does not at all mean that everything is rosy in the East.

The relative silence is largely attributed to the degree of liberty enjoyed by the civilians in the LTTE-controlled areas.

Since the revolt of Karuna the easterners have witnessed the kind of punishment available for those who side with the former eastern commander, or those who raise their voices against the Tigers. And having witnessed how throes of fellow civilians faced the guillotine at the hands of Tigers for their allegiance to Karuna and his men, the civilians even those in the government-controlled areas do not want to take chances by going against the LTTE decree.

The appointment of Bhanu made despite the disappointment of the civilians, is a well calculated move by the LTTE, and its advantages far outweigh the disadvantages.

Tigers are well aware of the disadvantages of going for talks as long as the issue of regionalism promoted by Karuna is not resolved to their advantage.

It knows for sure that though not immediately, even at a later stage, the division between the northern and eastern Tamils would be used by the government to break the Tiger arguments.

Consolidating its power in the East is the number one item on the Tiger agenda and hence the decision to send a seasoned war veteran, in place of a weak regional leader, to wipe out the rivals and take full control of the East.

This means major onslaughts on anti-Tiger groups in the days to come, after the relative peace in the East in the last few days.

On the other hand, the rumours on Ramesh's loyalty coupled with so many attacks on Tiger cadres during the past few months, may have disturbed the LTTE seniors, prompting his replacement. But, even Bhanu will not be able to provide that blanket security for all the Tiger cadres.

The way power was transferred and the mysterious exit of Ramesh to Wanni over the weekened after his arrival in the East following the demotion, suggests that all was not well within the LTTE as regard the Eastern command.

And the Tiger hierarchy will make sure that no LTTE strongman from the East would hereafter play regional politics and attempt to carve out a distinct identity for himself as well as the region detached from the North, which is very likely to be exploited by southern leaders.

This is the message conveyed to the Easterners by the appointment of Bhanu, a total northerner born and bred in Jaffna.

Born in Ariyalai in Jaffna, Bhanu who joined the LTTE in 1980 is one of the few remaining LTTE seniors who were trained in India.

He belonged to the third batch of Tiger cadres trained in south India - Indian 3- and had received special training in explosives.

Bhanu's first stint in the East started in 1990 when he got a demotion from Jaffna to Batticaloa after failing to carry out orders from LTTE Jaffna seniors Imran and Pandiyan.

However being a tough fighter, his services were sought after by the northern cadres at various instances, even while he was in the East.

In 1992 Bhanu was promoted as a special operations commander in the East and the following year as a special commander.

However what finally consolidated his position as one of the most reliable military operations commanders was the LTTE attack in Mullaitivu which came on July 16, 1996.

Bhanu was one of the forefront military leaders in the attack during which the Tigers overran the Mullaitivu camp causing a humiliating defeat to the army.
In addition to this he had taken part in many others including the 1994 attack on the Jaffna fort.

By the time he was made the Eastern commander last week, Bhanu was commanding both the mortar regiment as well as LTTE's elite infantry regiment 'Jeyanthan'.

Therefore he is militarily far superior to Ramesh, his predecessor who was appointed immediately after Karuna's defection and who was removed last week over possible issues over loyalty and command.

Born in Kalawanchikudi on September 18, 1964 Ramesh joined the LTTE in 1985, five years after Bhanu's enlistment.

Ramesh belonged to the 3rd batch of Tigers trained under the Batticaloa regiment and was recruited to the Kumarappan group of the 49 base in Karadiyanaru.

He initially came under regiment leaders Aruna and Nizam and was sent to Wanni in 1990 for special training in advanced infantry and was also in sea operations.

Unlike Bhanu who took part in major operations, Ramesh was better known for his ambush attacks.

However both are known for their excesses and atrocities against civilians.

On October 15, 1991 Ramesh led a group of LTTE cadres to a Muslim majority area in Palliyagodella, in the Polonnaruwa - Trincomalee border and killed 142 Muslim civilians after gunning down 12 army personnel manning the village checkpoint.

During his first stint in the Eastern province Bhanu too had engaged in the massacres in the Sinhala villages in Ampara and Polonnaruwa.

Irrespective of the strategic importance of having a leader of the calibre of Bhanu at the helm of affairs in the East, the appointment makes a mockery of the LTTE's popular slogan that land should belong to the sons of the soil in as much as the North and East should belong to the Tamil speaking people.

The disappointment over the appointment of a northerner, is very likely to have far reaching negative consequences despite Bhanu's talents as a seasoned military man.

He may consolidate the LTTE command in the East and to a certain extent prevent Tiger cadres from becoming the targets of other groups. But, in the process renegade Eastern commander Karuna will receive greater credence given his prophetic call for regionalism.

As for the peace process, what the President and the government should understand is that puerile attempts to sell peace through banner headlines in state newspapers will only reduce them to a bunch of clowns unless those slogans are backed by suitable pro-peace moves.

Otherwise they will only further substantiate the Tiger position that the President is only 'mouthing her intentions to restart the peace process'.

On the other hand the Tigers will learn the lesson of their life and the strength of people's power, if they continue to use military power to crush pluralism in Tamil polity and go for talks portraying a distorted version of the reality in the East.

After all, the day that LTTE loses public support, that will also mark the end of its clout in any part of the country - North or East.

Security Report Srilanka - Police Commandos open fire on LTTE boat in Ampara [22 Feb 2001]

Police Special Task Force (STF) personnel lying in ambush, opened fire on a LTTE boat, which later disappeared with their casualties at Kanchikudiaru tank in Ampara district on the afternoon of February 21, the Special Media Information Centre (SMIC) said.

Terrorist radio transmission confirmed that three of their cadres were injured and one was missing. It also revealed the names of those injured as Chulaban, Saththian, Wisuanath and the missing one as Saundaraj. There were no casualties among the STF troops.

LTTE mortar fire was reported from Muhamalai Ponnar and Nagarkovil on February 20 and 21. One soldier was wounded in Ponnar on the same day around 2 pm due to mortar fire of the terrorists. On soldier sustained injuries due to an anti-personnel mine on February 21.

Engineer troops on a clearing operation recovered 34 anti-personnel mines from the Muhamalai area and 38 anti-personnel mines from the Eluthumadduval area on February 20. These anti-personnel mines were defused.

On February 21 engineer troops in Madduvil on a clearing patrol recovered two improvised explosive devices and five anti-personnel mines, which were later destroyed.

Security Forces operating in Kaithady recovered 1139 rounds of T56 ammunition, 660 rounds of machine gun ammunition and one light machine gun drum on February 21.

LTTE 'pistol groups' targeting informants: report By V.S. Sambandan

COLOMBO MARCH 23. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam has reportedly sent two pistol groups here to kill Tamil informants and those in the island's military intelligence who were behind last year's killing of senior rebel leaders, a newspaper report said here today.

The issue of the Tigers' pistol groups, which finds mention at times in sections of the media, has resurfaced with last week's gunning down of a Tamil informant, Ragupathi, on the outskirts of the city — reportedly the fourth "informant'' who was killed by the LTTE's pistol group for his role in the Army's Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol which eliminated some LTTE leaders inside rebel-held territory before last year's ceasefire agreement.

Military analysts see the patrol, which reportedly eliminated some Tiger leaders, as among the factors that pushed the rebels towards cessation of hostilities.

"For more than 15 months now, Tiger cadre had launched a bitter campaign to eliminate the informants and punish civilians in the East who have been helping them'', a report in The Sunday Times said.

All four victims till now reportedly hailed from Batticaloa district, where the Army patrol is said to have been active.

The newspaper gave the name of the first of such victims as V. Vidyarthan, "who was abducted and killed'' last January in Batticaloa.

Last July, Lance-Corporal Savundarajan, ``was abducted and killed'', also in Batticaloa.

In December, another informant, Ganeshamoorthy Tillekerajah, was shot dead. Ragupathi, who was shot dead by "two men on a motorcycle'' on March 11 was the fourth victim, the newspaper said.

The Patrol had run into a controversial fiasco before the ceasefire was signed last February, when police raided one of their safe houses and the operation which was under wraps, came into the public.

A presidential inquiry commission is not probing the fiasco, the newspaper reported.

SLMM head meets LTTE commander


The new head of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission, Trygve Tellefsen, met the LTTE Trincomalee area commander, "Colonel'' Pathuman, and the Trincomalee district political head, Tilak on March 21, the Tamilnet web site reported.

Maj. Gen. Tellefsen, who has taken charge from Trond Furuhovde, discussed issues relating to movement of LTTE cadres in the eastern Trincomalee district, the report said.

The three eastern districts, which together have a near equal mix of the island's three main ethnicities is a volatile flashpoint and is considered by political analysts as the "weakest spot'' in the fragile peace process.


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