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Dangerous ambivalence

When a comprehensive and objective history of the tsunami terror comes to be written, a special chapter may have to be devoted to the heroism, courage and humanity of the Lankan law enforcement authorities.

We need to place on record that the charitableness and valour of the Lankan Army, Navy and Police, in particularly the North-East, has done the Lankan State proud and proved the impartiality and fair - mindedness of the latter.

Recollections by survivors of how our security forces, for instance, went to the rescue of the civilian population of the North-East, bravely risking their own lives, are already the stuff of legend.

Completely disregarding ethnicity, language and religion, some of our naval and army personnel - according to eye witness accounts - gave up their own lives saving children and other vulnerable groups.

The bodies of some of these personnel have been recovered with the bodies of children in their arms. So, the tsunami opened the floodgates of terror as well as made the land flow with the milk of human kindness. A remarkable moment in the post-independence history of Sri Lanka, indeed.

But where was the LTTE when all this and more was happening? The Tigers have now emerged from their watery dugouts, may be, to cry "foul" at the Lankan State's initiatives aimed at reviving the North-East but were conspicuous by their absence when the people of the North-East were crying out to be assisted and saved. The North-East citizenry has seen this duplicity and is already contrasting the LTTE's negative role with the glowingly positive role played by the Lankan law enforcers.

Having thus lost credibility, the best the LTTE could do now is to join-up with the Government in bringing normalcy to the North-East. However, the LTTE seems to be having other agendas on its mind.

As we commented yesterday the LTTE's sole preoccupation seems to be exercising its suzerainty over the North-East populace. While on this course it wouldn't even have a reconstruction-oriented Government presence in the so-called LTTE - controlled areas of the North-East, regardless of what befalls the people there.

Under the guidance of President Kumaratunga, the Government, on the other hand, is leaving no stone unturned in its efforts to re-build the devastated areas of the North-East. As indicated by us yesterday, even a fleet of vehicles has been sent by the Government to the North to be of assistance in the LTTE's reconstruction effort.

However, the LTTE seems to be jealously guarding what it considers is its territory. Food convoys are being waylaid and State assistance in other forms are returned to sender. Nor is the LTTE ceasing the recruitment of child soldiers. Organisations such as UNICEF and Human Rights Watch have reported a stepped-up child soldier recruitment drive by the LTTE to, perhaps, replenish its combat cadres which were considerably wittled down by the tsunami.

Needless to say, this is no way to make peace with the Lankan State. The LTTE seems to be talking peace but readying for war. It is following a Janus-faced policy while loudly proclaiming a reconciliatory course with the Government. Such dangerous ambivalence wouldn't help the cause of peace. We call on the LTTE to grow-up and be responsible.

Just imagine if the govt agencies, the NGOs, Britain and foreign governments are prevented from entering their territory and tending to the wounded and the starving. They carried out a campaign that the army was dishing out bad quality rice, when in fact the good rice was given to the LTTE cadres and their families who were well fed and looked after. The UNICEF & Asia Watch say an unestimated number of orphaned children have been forcibly taken to be trained as child soldiers.

Many a security force personnel has sacrificed his life to save those Tamils in the North and East who were being washed away by the tidal waves.

Where was the LTTE then? Where was Prabhakaran? Where was Tamil Selvan?

They were all in safe areas away from the angry waters that devoured their kith and kin. And does anyone still believe that they are for the Tamils and with the Tamils?

Meanwhile the TRO the so called refugee relief body of the LTTE has been trying hard to collect money abroad and also trying to dictate to the Government, NGO and foreign governments' that it is only they who should be given the monies, to carry out reconstruction. Money for arms?

We know that thousands of their cadres have lost their lives and the LTTE is more interested in rebuilding its military machinery than in rebuilding the North and East and rescuing their kith and kin from starvation, living sheltered lives come rain or shine.

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