More of the beast within the LTTE
The LTTE's brutal sadism and its
unsettling and enormous capacity for child abuse have been revealed
through its seizure of some 24 schoolchildren along with their teachers
in the outskirts of Batticaloa town.
What makes the situation of the children more heart-rending is the
fact that they were engaged in revising their lessons for the G.C.E.
Ordinary Level examination the next day, when they were pounced upon by
the demented Tigers. Brutality and inhumanity of these proportions, the
world would never have known.
Here is concluding evidence that the LTTE just could not care less
for the wellbeing of the young of the North-East.
The students were forcibly taken directly to LTTE training camps for
the purpose of being schooled in the skills of killing and unleashing
cruelty. So much for the Tigers' care and concern for young Tamils.
Apparently, such brutality is the norm and rule among the Tigers. As
our lead story yesterday indicates, not very far from the scene of the
abduction drama, a second tutory, this time in the village of
Kalawanchikudi, was broken into and another group of G.C.E. Ordinary
Level students seized.
Their orders were that they should turn up for 'military training' as
soon as they completed their examination.
There is food for thought here for the international community. Thus
far, the Tigers have been at pains to point out to the world that child
abuse and child soldiers are not in their line. The Batticaloa tragedy
should open the eyes of the world fully to the LTTE-instigated child
abuse horrors.
The Tigers have been taking the international community - including
the relevant UN agencies - for a ride on this issue and it is high time
it alerted itself into taking the necessary corrective action to weed
out this evil of Tiger making.
Time is of the essence. The more dilly-dallying engaged in by the
world community, the greater would be the excesses committed by the LTTE.
The big stick should now be wielded on the Tigers and these brutes of
the wild brought quickly to heel.
It is plain to see that the Tigers are sparing no one in their
efforts to advance their savage separatist war against the Lankan State.
Certainly, nothing is pristinely pure in the eyes of the LTTE - not even
childhood.
We hope these Tiger excesses and grave abuses would be driven home to
the relevant quarters at the international level by those who have been
entrusted these tasks by the Lankan State. No time could be lost.
The relevant Web sites, for instance, should be full of this gruesome
news. Our missions abroad should be working at break-neck speed,
alerting the world to the LTTE's monstrous behaviour which words cannot
easily describe.
There are lessons here for also the Lankan State. It is known for a
fact that the Government is deeply concerned about the Tamil citizenry.
Ship loads of essential goods, for example, are being sent to the North
by the State for the purpose of meeting the everyday needs of the Tamil
people.
Perhaps now, special attention may need to be paid to the young of
the North-East. What special steps could be taken to care for the young
of the North-East ? This question needs to be answered.
The Tamil people, on their part, should alert themselves even further
to the brutality and savagery the Tigers are capable of. It would be in
their interests to oppose the Tigers tooth and nail, and to alienate
themselves fully from the LTTE. |
Fiji, paradise at crossroads?
THIS appreciation of his people by Ratu Ganilavu,
a paramount chief of the Fiji Islands of more recent times, was
obviously made in an effort to highlight their cultural differences
with the Indians, the "other" people now calling his beloved
ancestral land home. The average Fijian as ordained by his
Melanesian bloodline is big, strong and athletic. His traditional
bond with tribe and land has given him a sense of gravity and
loyalty.
Full Story
Global Scrutiny:
Spectre of civil war haunts Palestinian areas
A call for fresh elections in the Palestinian
Authority areas by Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has triggered
fierce and prolonged armed clashes between the Fatah and Hamas
groups and raised the spectre of civil war in the region.
Full Story
Goshaka:
PTA and Northern and Southern terrorists
If there was one piece of legislation which was
maligned by the entire opposition including the SLFP and TULF, it
was none other than the Prevention of Terrorism Act. J. R.
Jayewardene said it was not a permanent piece of legislation that
should be in the Statute Book and he called it The Prevention of
Terrorism Act.
Full Story
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