Miraculous escape from Tigers

The Sri Lankans may be jubilant in their victory over the LTTE.

However, some of them do not have any emotions despite having had encounters with the LTTE. For instance, the memories of being a hostage of the LTTE still haunts Simon Souza, a boat operator from Njarakkal in the Vypeen island who escaped from the clutches of the Tigers. Souza was in the custody of the LTTE for around three months after the boat which he was operating was abducted by the tigers in March 2007.

"I don't like to remember those terrible days. I never expected that I would come back and live with my family.

I returned only by God's grace," said Souza, who is now working as an engine mechanic at Munambam.

He became emotional and shed tears when he described the days he spent as a hostage. "I took solace in prayer and rosary", he said.

Souza and eleven others had set out to the sea on the boat `Sree Krishna' from the Sakthikulangara fishing harbour on March 7, 2007. On March 11 a boat approached Souza's boat to inspect it. Souza was bundled into one LTTE boat and his colleagues were led to another boat. "They might have understood that I was operating the boat.

Besides, they wanted a boat driver," said Souza. However, the news about Souza being in the custody of the LTTE came out when his colleagues were released near Rameswaram later. Though Souza was made to steer the LTTE boat he does not remember the exact dates or location. Souza got the opportunity to escape when the LTTE boat was challenged by a Maldivian Coast Guard ship.

The four LTTE men in the boat doused the boat with diesel and swallowed cyanide. Meantime, Souza jumped off the boat and he was rescued by the Maldivian vessel. Initially, Souza's rescuers thought that he was an LTTE man. However, he could prove his innocence before the Maldivian authorities.

Souza said that he felt nothing special when he came to know about the victory of the Lankan Army over the LTTE. "They faced the outcome of what they did" said Souza calmly. However, Souza has not gone to the sea after the terrific incident. Express News