TULF leader welcomes TMVP leader’s entry into political mainstream

Chamikara Weerasinghe

TULF leader V. Anandasangaree said yesterday it was a rational move by the Government to bring Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikkal (TMVP) leader Vinayagamoorthi Muralidaran, to the country’s political mainstream and said that LTTE leader Prabhakaran must follow suit.

The TULF leader said “ I am happy to see Karuna’s entry to a life of refinement in the legitimate political world having broken ranks with the terrorist LTTE organisation led by Prabhakaran.”

I endorse Karuna’s entry to the democratic stream, he said. “ Prabhakaran must desist from violence and surrender his arms to the Government so that he may be able to sit down and negotiate with the Government,” he said. The writing is on the wall for Prabhakaran and his men as at present , he said.

Anandasangaree said , the LTTE leader is surviving well within a fortified area where they (the LTTE cadres) have trenched the earth in many places as deep as 10 feet to defend themselves from the advancing troops.

The LTTE has hollowed the area to deter access of advancing vehicles to the area, he added.

Commenting on the situation on how India is looking at Sri Lanka’s humanitarian operations to free the country’s northerly region, Anandasangaree said India had expressed concern about the civilians for they may be affected in the process of clearing.

“There are a few NGOs and political parties in Tamilnadu that support the LTTE”, that has been trying to convince others that Sri Lanka was on a mission against the Tamil people in the North,” he said.

“None of the Indian State authorities appear to have bought this story so far as there is no such situation,” he explained.

“There may have been casualties in isolated cases. And the LTTE is partly responsible for most of these incidents,” he said.