An Independent and Interactive Tamil Community Web Site

22-03-2006

LTTE hijacks asylum protest

by Dushy Ranetunge

The Action Group of Tamil Asylum Seekers (AGTAS) in the U.K, an LTTE front organisation that operates out of a P O Box in Southall, a google e-mail account and a mobile phone number, organised a demonstration at Trafalgar Square on Sunday, 19 March from 12.00 pm till about 2.00pm. 500-700 protestors attended the demonstration.

The LTTE support network and several LTTE front organisations worked overtime to ensure the turnout, to impress the British authorities. Simon Hughes MP, of the Liberal Democratic Party addressed the gathering. Simon Hughes is lobbied for the LTTE by Eliza Mann and Deidre McConnel-Kirubakaran of the husband and wife LTTE human rights front, known as the TCHR. Mr Kirubakaran was at the event and so was AC Shanthan a prominent LTTE leader in London.

They were protesting about British deportations of Tamils back to Sri Lanka. Several thousand failed asylum seekers are to be deported from Britain in the coming months.

All the placards held by the Tamils were against the Sri Lankan government. The Island did not spot a single anti-LTTE placard. This is extraordinary considering that during the ceasefire period, the European monitors and western human rights organisations claim that for every single truce violation committed by the Sri Lankan government, the LTTE committed 14 violations.

According to the organisers, at present about 50 Tamils per week are being detained by the British authorities on immigration violations.

A pro-forma protest letter is available on the LTTE front organisations web site to be downloaded by the faithful, to be signed and posted to their local British MP.

This letter sets out the reasons why Tamils should not be deported from Britain. They are;

(1) The Amnesty International stated in January 2006 that over a hundred people were killed in a month of bloodshed.

(2) Tension in the north has escalated since early December 2005 with numerous killings, arrests, claymore and landmine explosions.

(3) Emergency regulations currently in force allow for detention in police custody for up to 90 days. Hundreds of people were arrested in Colombo under these provisions during cordon and search operations conducted by the security forces at the end of December 2005.

(4) The UN Human Rights Committee stated they were concerned about persistent reports of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment of detainees by law enforcement officials and members of the armed forces ....... Obviously antennae have to go up when we hear of a state of emergency in the case of Sri Lanka’ [Sir Nigel Rodley, one of the members of the 18-strong committee].

(5) Prof. Philip Alston, UN Special Rapporteur on Extrajudicial, Summary or Arbitrary Executions, following a visit to Sri Lanka, stated: ‘the upsurge in judicial killings had been accompanied by a vacuum of investigative responsibility’ and were ‘violating the right to life of a large number of Sri Lankans from all ethnic groups, and by undermining the peace process, putting at risk the lives of many more.’

(6) Just watch the news to see just how dangerous Sri Lanka is at the moment. It is devastated by conflict and Tsunami.

There are no references to LTTE human rights violations. It is indeed amusing that the LTTE in Sri Lanka throws grenades and explodes claymore mines against the security forces and blames it on the Tamil civilians, while the LTTE in London gets one of its front organisations to protest for asylum seekers quoting the same claymore mines as a reason for not deporting Tamils and blames the Sri Lankan state.

The LTTE in London is run by AC Shanthan and Anton Balasingham assisted by Suda Nadarajah (editor Tamil Guardian). All three of them were in Geneva and formed a part of the LTTE negotiating delegation in February 2006.

Source-Island