Exposed: The Southern cells of the LTTE terror network
BLASTS: The entire country was puzzled when five bombs exploded
almost simultaneously in Kiribathgoda, Wattala, Rajagiriya, Nugegoda and
Dehiwala on January 24, 2006. No one was injured in the relatively minor
blasts which took place at night.
The explosions that rocked the suburbs that day remained a mystery as
Police could not make any breakthrough in their probe.
However, they came to the conclusion that a single organisation was
behind all five explosions.
As time passed those low-scale explosions turned into a trivial
matter not only for the people but also for the Security Forces and the
Police as suicide bombs dominated the entire scene overshadowing all the
other incidents in Colombo.
But there was a worrying factor for the Security Forces and the
Police.
The second batch of the Revolutionary Liberation Organisation
comprising, 1. Dinesh Buddhika Kalapalage alias Jagath,
Talapalakanda, Deniyaya. 2. Gunaratna Adhikari Mudiyanselage
Priyantha Goonaratna alias Parakrama, Udagammana, Divulapitiya. 3.
Weerakoon Mudiyanselage Suranji Pradeep, Meetotamulla,
Wellampitiya. 4. Mannadhi Pathirannehelage Sarath Janaka
Manamendra, Divulapitiya. 5. Jayaratna Mudiyanselage Udaya Shamal
Costa, Pahalabiyanwila, Kadawata. 6. Mohammed Lalith Seneviratna,
Hokandara, during their visit to Elephant Pass.
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The recovery of claymore mines one after the other in Colombo and
suburban areas put them in an uneasy situation.
Those claymore mines posed a major threat to civilian life given the
situation that arose after the Kebithigollewa bus bombing. But the
people were fortunate enough as none of these claymore mines could do
any harm.
The Security Forces connected the LTTE to all these incidents since
it was the only organisation which promotes violence to achieve their
so-called objectives.
Therefore, the Security Forces and the Police doubled their alertness
towards disruptive elements in the country consequent to the two bus
explosions in Nittambuwa and Hikkaduwa which killed several innocent
civilians and injured many more.
They detected more claymore mines, weaponry and ammunition and
patiently monitored the situation.
At last the Security Forces made a breakthrough that solved all those
puzzles.
Acting on a tip-off received by the 112 Brigade and after a months
long investigation and exercise of patience, the Army arrested Mohammed
Lalith Seneviratna alias Mola Seneviratna, a former JVP activist who
unsuccessfully contested the 1994 General election along with Ajith
Kumara for the Gampaha district under JVP banner.
Along with Mola Seneviratna two more suspects Sudu Hewage Nihal
Serasinghe alias Ragala Nihal, a resident of Rajagiriya who was married
to a Tamil woman from Ragala and Mayadunne Arachchige Sisira Priyankara,
a resident of Panadura and the treasurer of the leftist Trade Union of
the Railway Department were also arrested.
The arrest of Seneviratna and Sisira Priyankara triggered controversy
in trade union and media circles in Colombo due to their media and
journalistic backgrounds. Many media organisations and trade unions
jumped to the conclusion that an innocent journalist and a trade union
activist have been arrested or rather abducted by unidentified men.
However, Seneviratna and Priyankara proved their guilt in their
confessions to the Army, completely silencing the people and the
organisations that hastened to blame the Government and the Security
Forces without examining the background of these people.
Seneviratna revealed how he formed the Revolutionary Liberation
Organisation when he lost faith in the path adopted by the JVP after
entering Parliamentary democratic politics.
The prime aim of their organisation, in their words, was to “prevent
the country from falling into the hands of imperialists” and they firmly
believed in an armed struggle to protect the country.
Though some years passed after the formation of the organisation they
failed to form a constitution. However, the organisation had several
co-secretaries for administrative, political, military and intelligence.
It increased membership through their family links, trade union links
and media links. According to latest revelations they have used street
dramas and drama training centres to recruit new members.
The most shocking part of his revelation was the path they selected
to approach their goal. Mola Seneviratne explained how he developed
contacts with the LTTE through a person called Ravi and how they
received training in weapons and use of explosives from LTTE
Intelligence Wing deputy leader Kapila Amman.
They revealed how three batches of their organisation comprising 12
people underwent training in weapons and use of explosives with the LTTE
in Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu.
The photographs show the second batch of the Revolutionary Liberation
Organisation undergo weapons training in Kilinochchi and Mullaitivu with
LTTE members.
This threesome admitted that their organisation was responsible for
the following crimes:
*Placing of claymore mine near STF camp, Ganemulla
*Placing of claymore mine at 9th Mile Post, Mahara
*Placing a claymore mine and a time bomb aiming an Army vehicle in
Koggala
*Exploding time bombs at Kiribathgoda, Wattala, near Castle hospital,
Nugegoda and Dehiwala
*Placing of time bomb at Radawana
*Exploding a time bomb at the IOC Filling station at Piliyandala
*Throwing a hand grenade at IOC filling station at Mount Lavinia
*Throwing a hand grenade at IOC filling station at Kadawatha
In addition Seneviratna has also admitted that he worked as a
freelance journalist for Minister Mangala Samaraweera from 1996 to 1998.
They have received claymore mines, weapons and explosives from Tiger
cadres and have distributed those weapons, claymore mines and ammunition
among their members.
They fell into the hands of the LTTE and became a cat’s paw of the
LTTE in the South. They helped the LTTE to accomplish what they could
not otherwise have achieved in the South.
The most alarming factor is that the LTTE had used this organisation
to collect intelligence on vital economic and military centres in the
South.
Apart from the supply of weapons and ammunition the LTTE has also
sent funds worth Rs.1 million and in turn the organisation invested
money at various business establishments.
One such business establishment was found in Kadawatha area and steps
have already been taken to freeze these assets by obtaining a Court
order.
After these three key suspects were handed over to the Terrorist
Investigation Division, the Criminal Investigations Department made
another eight arrests after February 8. The TID arrested two men from a
hideout in Nivitigala, two from Habaraduwa, two from Kadawatha and one
from Kotadeniyawa.
The TID arrested Priyantha Nugawela, an employee attached to the
Railway Department and his brother-in-law, a conductor who assisted
Priyantha to conceal ammunition buried in their compound.
Sanjaya Sugathchandra of Kuleegedara, Kotadeniyawa a friend of
Suranjith Pradeep of Wellampitiya and Priyantha Gunaratna of
Divulapitiya both of whom have been trained in weapons and use of
explosives were arrested at a hideout in Nivitigala Police area on
February 13.
The TID on February 9 also arrested the Grama Niladari of Balawela,
Badalagama Sarath Janaka Manamendra who had undergone weapons training
under the LTTE in Kilinochchi.
In addition, Hewadadallagodage Keerthi alias Podi Malli of Habaraduwa
was also arrested by the TID on February 12 and based on his
interrogation Ravindra Lasantha Kumara of Habaraduwa too was arrested.
Police recovered one pistol with 13 live bullets.
The TID also recovered weapons cleaning material and a 21-metre long
detonator cord from Sisira Priyankara’s house in Panadura.
Sisira Priyankara who was the President of Left oriented trade union
of the Railway Department has played an active role in the recent
strikes in Railway Department. Police recovered one micro pistol with
six rounds of live ammunition from his locker at the Railway Department
in a search carried out subsequent to his arrest.
A further recovery was made on February 12 from the principal suspect
Lalith Seneviratna which included a USB drive, a computer and a hard
disk.
The USB drive contained the photos of the principal suspect and his
group members taken during LTTE military training and during their visit
to Kilinochchi and Elephant Pass.
The CID and the TID has deployed more teams in search of the members
who had gone missing.
Though initially it was believed that this organisation comprised
only Sinhalese, more roots have been found in the estate sector too with
the involvement of estate Tamils.
The organisation was in the process of increasing its membership in
many parts of the country by training new recruits after deploying those
who had already undergone weapons and explosive training with the LTTE.
Therefore, it is believed that the organisation could have been used
as the cat’s paw of the LTTE to carry on their activities in the South
using trained Sinhalese as their agents, hoodwinking the Security Forces
and the Police.
Further interrogation of these suspects has revealed that they have
been engaged in planning a big calamity in the South in the coming days
specially on the day CFA is due to complete five years (February 22).
But it is not yet confirmed what type of disaster they had planned in
the South.
Therefore, the credit should go to the Security Forces and the Police
for exposing such a terror group even though unfounded and baseless
allegations are levelled against them without a proper knowledge of what
is going on.
Certain foreign INGOs and organisations are in the habit of the
blaming the Security Forces for violating the human rights and making
Security Forces and the Police responsible for so-called abductions.
And even some politicians knowingly or unknowingly, willingly or
unwillingly have become a part of the LTTE stage-managed campaign
against the Security Forces, jumping to the conclusion that the Security
Forces have violated human rights.
Setting aside their slogans at demonstrations and protests, it should
be questioned whether they have made a proper and impartial analysis of
the whole situation.
In the final analysis even the Southern media also have become a part
of the LTTE propaganda machine to discredit the Government, Security
Forces and the Police as the LTTE in a very subtle way has used them to
achieve their aims.
The most prominent feature in this campaign is that these media
organisations too are playing a vital role in promoting the cause of the
LTTE by sympathising with the people who have been “abducted in white
vans” as they say, without making any effort to find out their
background.
The most amusing factor is that all these so-called abductions have
been perpetrated by people arriving in white vans. According to
Government Defence Affairs Spokesman Minister Keheliya Rambukwella, the
idea is to give the impression that Government and the Security Forces
are behind these so-called abductions.
What should be uppermost in the public mind at this moment is to see
whether there was any complaint from a single political party or
organisation to suppress them as had happened during the terror period
in the late 1980’s. So far no political party or organisation had made
any complaint against the Government. The only worrying factor they were
having is the so-called abductions.
When going deeper into these allegations, it is obvious that the LTTE
was indirectly behind these agitations though several organisations are
in the front line.
The prime aim of the LTTE is to prevent the Security Forces and the
Police from arresting suspected LTTE cadres who had arrived in the South
from various parts of the Wanni with ulterior motives.
The LTTE made use of Southern politicians and also the Sinhala
civilian organisations so effectively to cover up their attempt to
launch a surprise attack on the Colombo Port.
These politicians and civil organisations coupled with certain media
organisations are still making an effort to blame the Navy saying they
have fired upon innocent fishermen.
In fact, they are still playing to the tune of the LTTE managed
campaign, to cover up their plan which they launched using the fishermen
to guide the LTTE boats to the Colombo Port.
However, the Navy still stands firm that the arrests made by them
were correct given the number of weapons recoveries they made after the
detection of the boat.
It is high time for the public to think twice before jumping to hasty
conclusions about the steps taken by the Security Forces and the Police
and keep faith in them since they have so far taken the correct measures
to strengthen the security of civilians.
And they should be grateful to the Security Forces and the Police for
taking effective measures for creating a more secure environment for a
peaceful life.
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