Sri Lanka: TNA MP claims "It is impossible to crush or destroy the LTTE"

The Sri Lankan Tamil National Alliance (TNA) Member of Parliament (MP) Shivaji Lingam after participating in a demonstration in the Indian capital New Delhi "urging India to stop its military backing to Sri Lanka" had stated: "It is impossible to crush or destroy the LTTE ( Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam ).

He had added that the LTTE campaign for a Tamil Homeland ' has become a people's struggle' and 'Even the ordinary villagers are now armed" and that :" They volunteer for duty round the clock to check the military's deep penetration units in LTTE areas".

MP Shivaji Lingam had also stated that the LTTE is "today more powerful militarily " but has accepted that the "tigers had suffered serious reverses in the country's east where the guerillas have been driven out of their strongholds, and that Colombo was too strong militarily".

The TNA MP had told IANS that: "he could not understand why India was silent ..." and India should get involved ...," and if it cannot do that , it should recognize the Tamil liberation struggle".

MP Shivaji Lingam could not have forgotten that it was India that first listed the LTTE as a terrorist organization after the brutal murder of the former Indian Prime Minister Shri Rajiv Gandhi at Siriperumbudur in the Indian state of Tamil Nadu on 21st May 1991.

Today the US, UK, Malaysia, Canada and the EU countries have also listed the LTTE as a terrorist organization. Many of these countries have taken action to arrest LTTE terrorist suspects involved not only in fund raising for the organization, smuggling arms into Sri Lanka but also in drugs and human trafficking, credit card fraud and other crimes.

Very recently, the controversial Muslim cleric Yusuf -al- Qaradawi was refused an entry visa into Britain by the Home Office. The Home Office stated :" UK will not allow the presence of those who seek to justify acts of terrorist violence ". Al- Qaradawi on an earlier visit had defended suicide attacks on Israeli's stating these were acts of "martyrdom in the name of God " in a BBC interview. Last week the British conservative Party leader David Cameron stated : "Dr. al -Qaradawi was "dangerous and divisive ". The US has also refused a visa to Dr Al- Qaradawi.

Meanwhile, reports from Tamil Nadu indicated that the Chief Minister M.K.Karunanidhi stated that "steps have been taken to curb LTTE activities in his state" and that his Government had curbed extremist activity through sustained action and that evil forces such as the LTTE had been prevented from developing roots in Tamil Nadu". The Chief Minister stated :" So far 84 people attempting to indulge in these acts of terror have been arrested and 13 cases filed against them. Forty suspects including 17 Sri Lankan Tamils have been detained under the National security At. Seven and half tonnes of iron ball bearings , 4 tonnes of aluminium ingots and several vehicles have been seized".

The Indian Defence Minister A.K.Anthony had kept silent when pro - LTTE supports had met to urge India to stop providing arms to Sri Lanka.

Source: The Media Centre for National Security