LTTE affiliates up to same old tricks in Geneva - Prof. Dr. Rohan
Gunaratna
All three LTTE dissident factions have started to lobby the next
UNHRC session to be held in Geneva in March 2013. They are Tamil Eelam
Peoples Assembly led by Perinpanayagam Sivaparan alias Nediyawan in
Norway, the Global Tamil Forum led by Father S.J. Emmanuel in London and
the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam led by V. Rudrakumaran in
New York, said International Terrorism Expert Prof. Rohan Gunaratna
during an exclusive interview with the Daily News.
Prof. Gunaratna said that using funds and votes, the LTTE is lobbying
through front, cover and sympathetic groups that take the face of
community, social, cultural, political, human rights, humanitarian and
educational organizations. These LTTE affiliates from “Tamils for
Clinton” and now “Tamils for Obama” to “Tamil Centre for Human Rights”
have had an impact in creating an incorrect impression of Sri Lanka.
Excerpts of the interview:
Nadira Gunatilleke
Prof. Dr. Rohan Gunaratne
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Q: The next UNHRC sessions are to be held in Geneva in March.
What will the LTTE lobbyists stage this time and what will be the impact
on Sri Lanka?
A: Three LTTE dissident factions have started to lobby the
next UNHRC session to be held in Geneva in March 2013. They are Tamil
Eelam Peoples Assembly led by Perinpanayagam Sivaparan alias Nediyawan
in Norway, the Global Tamil Forum led by Father S.J. Emmanuel in London
and the Transnational Government of Tamil Eelam led by V. Rudrakumaran
in New York. Although they participated, supported and advocated killing
of civilians, overnight the LTTE leaders have emerge as the champions of
human rights. For example, a trained LTTE cadre Nediyawan, who succeeded
Prabhakaran, is leading the charge.
Operating through the Tamil Coordinating Committee Switzerland (STCC),
Nediywan has instructed his supporters to gather before the United
Nations Office at Geneva between 2 pm and 5.30 p.m. on March 4, 2013.
Because the Swiss do not regard the LTTE as a terrorist group but a
criminal group, he has instructed them to fly the LTTE flag. Some of the
LTTE cadres, ideologues and propagandists like Fr. Emmanuel are likely
to visit primarily to thank the NGOs, especially the human rights NGOs
either LTTE fronts or funded by the LTTE for their participation and
hard work!
Using funds and votes, the LTTE is lobbying through front, cover and
sympathetic groups that take the face of community, social, cultural,
political, human rights, humanitarian and educational organizations.
These LTTE affiliates from “Tamils for Clinton” and now “Tamils for
Obama” to “Tamil Centre for Human Rights” have had an impact in creating
an incorrect impression of Sri Lanka. The LTTE is able to reach out to a
handful of Congressmen and Senators in the US and Parliamentarians,
officials and NGOs in Canada and the UK because of a few reasons. First,
they give donations, secondly, they are able to exercise constituency or
electoral pressure, thirdly, they employ lobbying firms and fourthly,
the Sri Lankan diplomats are not trained to counter-lobby and promote
Sri Lanka’s achievements. Almost all NGOs voicing human rights concerns
in Geneva about the government have been funded or linked to the LTTE
directly or through its affiliates indirectly. For example, the Canadian
Tamil Congress (CTC) that donated funds to Amnesty International is
planning to come to Geneva. CTC Communications Director Sahil Sabaratnam
is serving a 25 year sentence in a US prison for procuring weapons for
the LTTE.
Before giving them access to UNHRC Geneva, the UN should thoroughly
investigate NGOS for individual and organizational links to terrorist
organizations and its affiliates. Otherwise, government will not take
the proceedings of UNHRC seriously.
Q: Who are the front line pro LTTE supporter/sympathizers and
what will be their future plans for Sri Lanka?
A: Sri Lanka has returned to peace and prosperity. The country
has not suffered a single terrorist attack since the LTTE was militarily
defeated in May 2009. However, the LTTE international network that
funded the LTTE is still intact. The LTTE fund collectors who now live
in luxury are no longer threatening, intimidating and extorting innocent
Tamils doing two to three jobs to fund the massacres, bombings and
suicide attacks. Although the power of the LTTE over the Tamil diaspora
has diminished after May 2009, the LTTE has created new ways of
generating funds through businesses, human smuggling,credit card, bank
and cheque fraud and applying for local government grants and donations.
For example, LTTE fronts in Malaysia have raised funds for humanitarian
activities in Sri Lanka, but the money disappeared.
In turn the LTTE is funding several Tamil Nadu politicians who are
now lobbying the Central government in New Delhi. For example, Tamil
Nadu politicians and film stars from Karunanidhi to Neduman and Vaiko
and Seeman are continuing to support the LTTE either for electoral or
for financial gain. They do not speak about 30 years of killings of
Tamils by the LTTE from Duraiappa, the Mayor of Jaffna to Amirthalingam,
the TULF leader or the Rajiv Gandhi assassination, but exaggerate the
Tamil civilian deaths in the final phase and weep over Prabhakaran’s
loss.
In Tamil Nadu itself, a few hundred LTTE leaders, members and
supporters live and several front groups, such as, Tamil Eelam
Supporters Organization (originally created on May 13, 1985) have
emerged or re-emerged. To build strategic support for its designs, LTTE
dissident groups seek to politicize, radicalize and mobilize the Tamil
communities in India and Malaysia. These are unhealthy developments for
the security and stability of India, Malaysia and Sri Lanka.
Q: Another anti Sri Lankan resolution is coming round the
corner. There may be more in future. Please comment.
A: The Universal Periodic Review (UPR), reviews the human
rights records of all UN Member States. This State-driven process led by
the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) is commendable provided
it reviews the human rights records of all 193 UN Member States where
every country is treated equally. One cannot have a different set of
standards for different countries whether they are big or small,
friendly or unfriendly, or superpowers and regional powers have
interests in their continuity.
The UPR was created through the UN General Assembly on March 15, 2006
by resolution 60/251, which established the Human Rights Council because
the Human Rights Committee that existed previously was manipulated by
some countries. Unfortunately, the credibility of the UNHRC Geneva too
has suffered. Geneva has now become an exercise in superpower and
regional politics not human rights. One cannot use different standards
to treat different countries. But this is evident in the way, Israel,
Libya, Morocco, Bahrain, China, India, Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan and
Sri Lanka has been examined. The responsibility to fully respect and
implement all human rights and fundamental freedoms is paramount for all
nations.
Considering these developments, I would recommend that Sri Lanka not
be represented by its External Affairs Minister G L Peiris or
President’s Special Human Rights Envoy, Minister Mahinda Samarasinghe
but by its Permanent Representative to the UN in Geneva Ambassador
Ravinatha Aryasinghe, a highly competent diplomat. Rather than wasting
money or time sending a large and high level delegation to Geneva, the
government should invest this money to build an International Peace
University in Jaffna to promote moderation, toleration and co-existence
among diverse ethnic and religious communities. In comparison with other
countries recovering from conflict, Sri Lankan government has done more
to restore normalcy in the North and the East but it can do more to
build the Sri Lankan spirit and identity.
Q: What is behind the current anti Sri Lankan behaviour of
Canada and certain other countries in connection with Sri Lanka?
A: Those countries applying pressure on Sri Lanka are driven
by geo-strategic and domestic politics. They are primarily the US,
Canada, UK and India. With Sri Lanka moving close to China economically,
the US and India are concerned of a political and a military alliance.
It is not. Sri Lanka’s ties are economic, driven by the desire to
rebuild its nation after a three decade conflict, and it should not be
misunderstood. In addition to geo-strategic and geopolitical
considerations, India is also driven by domestic politics where the
state government in Tamil Nadu is putting pressure on the central
government coalition in New Delhi. Similarly, some parliamentarians,
including ministers in Canada and UK are lobbied by LTTE votes and
funds.
By examining their own human rights record and endorsement of human
rights violations by their allies, none of these countries are driven by
genuine human rights considerations. They see Sri Lanka as a soft
target. The progress Sri Lanka has made in the human rights realm within
the last three and a half years is amazing. No country in the world has
resettled 283,000 displaced civilians and rehabilitated 11,500 of 12,000
terrorists and successfully reintegrated them back into society. Any
other country would have prosecuted the LTTE leaders, members and
helpers for the terrorist crimes they have committed, supported or
advocated. Furthermore, the economic development, especially
infrastructure in the North and East is unprecedented. It is necessary
to investigate the links between the Canadian and British politicians
and the LTTE. After Ragavan Paranchothy won the federal Conservative
nomination in Scarborough Southwest, he changed his name to Gavan
Paranchothy. He worked for Canadian Multicultural Radio (CMR) and Tamil
Vision International (TVI), that promoted LTTE propaganda. Although
Canada proscribed the LTTE as a terrorist group, TVI telecast referred
to LTTE as “freedom fighters” and promoted support and recruitment for
the LTTE. LTTE activists in the UK and Canada continue to lobby
parliamentarians who in turn put pressure on their officials to issue
statements to please their electoral supporters and financiers.
For example, a leaked WikiLeaks document in May 2009 from the US
embassy in London stated that former British Foreign Minister David
Miliband spent 60 percent of his time on Sri Lanka because UK elections
were on the horizon and many Tamils were living in Labour constituencies
with slim majorities. In addition to Global Tamil Forum employing Labour
Party MP for Enfield North Joan Ryan immediately after she lost her seat
at the 2010 General Election, GTF in February 2010 invited David
Miliband to address a gathering convened by LTTE activists to generate
support for the LTTE.
The LTTE penetration of the UK and Canadian political establishments
was of concern to their own law enforcement, security and intelligence
services.
Q: Do you think that Sri Lanka needs to relax
rules/regulations/monitoring mechanism on terrorism/LTTE at this
juncture?
A: The bulk of the diaspora that supported the LTTE during the
era of Prabhakaran have abandoned their struggle. Nonetheless, a few
dozen LTTE activists overseas remain committed. After the defeat of the
LTTE, most LTTE activists living overseas are disillusioned. However,
LTTE dissident leaders have managed to reorganize the LTTE. Today,
Nediyawan, widely considered as the successor to Prabhakaran, operates
out of Oslo, Norway, the new LTTE HQ.
In addition to managing the LTTE branches in a dozen countries, he
works closely with the Global Tamil Forum, influencing the staff in a
dozen LTTE front, cover and sympathetic groups mostly in Europe and
Canada. It is ironic that the item on top of LTTE’s agenda is to
pressurize the NGOs, International governments and Western governments
to investigate Sri Lanka’s human rights record in the final phase of the
campaign against the LTTE.
The second item on top of LTTE’s agenda is to support the Tamil
National Alliance (TNA) to advance the LTTE designs of separatism.
These TNA MPs and officials who radicalize the youth to hate other
communities should come under intelligence and law enforcement scrutiny.
Furthermore, Segarampillai Vinayagamoorthy alias Vinayagam, the LTTE
Intelligence leader who conducted several bombings in Colombo, including
the attack in the airport has now relocated to France and his network in
Tamil Nadu is planning to conduct attacks in Sri Lanka.
The Sri Lankan government should work closely with the French and
Indian governments to disrupt his network and bring him to book.
Sri Lanka and Sri Lankans should discourage ethnic and religious
based party politics. If Sri Lanka is to remain united, Sri Lankans
should support national political parties where all communities are
represented. Sri Lanka should phase out the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress,
the Jathika Hela Urumaya and Tamil National Alliance.
Such parties disrupt the Sri Lankan spirit and divide Sri Lanka by
region and Sri Lankans by community. Sri Lanka should enact a Sedition
Act to prevent racial and religious incitement and a Harmony Act to
actively promote friendship between communities. The greatest tribute
Sri Lankans can pay to the fallen Sri Lankans is to live harmoniously
and to prevent politicians from dividing us by ethnicity or religion.
Since LTTE recommenced the fight in Mavil Aru in August 2006 and
until May 2009, 6,261 Security Forces personnel were killed and 29,551
wounded. Furthermore, Tamils, Sinhalese and Muslim civilians died in Sri
Lanka to live as equal citizens and we must never allow communal
extremism and its vicious by product violence to return ever and destroy
another generation of Sri Lanka’s children.
Q: What more does Sri Lanka needs to do in order to protect
hard earned permanent peace?
A: The Sri Lankan government’s strategy should be for the
Ministry of External Affairs to create a public diplomacy capability
with three divisions headed by an Additional Secretary. First, Diaspora
Engagement Division, second, NGO Engagement Division, and third,
Strategic Communications Division.
The Diaspora Engagement Division should reach out to misguided Sri
Lankan expatriates who still lead and support communal and extremist
activity. Even Rudrakumaran, Emmanuel and Nediyawan should be invited
and given a role to look after those who suffered in the conflict,
especially those disabled on condition that they reject violence and
embrace peace. For example, KP is dong a remarkable job caring for the
orphans. Rather than spend their lives indoctrinating a new generation
and instigating hatred and violence, they must be given an opportunity
to invest the remaining years of their lives rebuilding the lives of a
community that suffered from communalism.
The NGO Engagement Division should work with NGOs to support the
socio-economic development especially of the North and the East, a
region that still needs much support. As NGOs have been used in the past
to disrupt peace and stability in Sri Lanka, the NGOs invited must be
carefully screened for terrorist links and also closely monitored.
The NGO Engagement Division should work closely with Human Rights
Watch, Amnesty International and International Crisis Group. These three
influential NGOs have been neglected by the government and they have at
times published reports that are inaccurate and misleading.
Furthermore, at least one of these NGOs accepted money from a LTTE
front. NGOs are becoming increasingly important worldwide.
Rather than shun them, it is paramount for the government to consider
them as partners in development. In parallel to the NGO Engagement
Division of the Ministry of External Affairs, the Ministry of Disaster
Management and Human Rights should engage the human rights NGOs both in
Sri Lanka and overseas, present an accurate picture and address their
genuine concerns.
The Strategic Communications Division should counter the
misinformation and disinformation disseminated by the LTTE and their
affiliates as well as publicize Sri Lanka’s achievements. For example,
the remarkable story of providing humanitarian assistance and
socio-economic development to the Sri Lankan Tamils held by the LTTE as
a human shield has been inadequately publicized in the Tamil language.
As a result the LTTE remnants and their agents were able to convince and
misguide not only a segment of a poorly educated Tamils in the diaspora
but also a tiny segment of the Tamil Nadu Tamils that civilians were
deliberately targeted in the terminal phase of the conflict.
The Sri Lankan government has done a poor job in promoting its
achievements. In parallel to the Strategic Communications Division in
the Ministry of External Affairs, the Mass Media and Information
Minister should build a capability in Tamil language to communicate the
unprecedented developments in the North and the East.
Throughout the conflict, the ability of the LTTE to exercise pressure
over the diaspora was phenomenal. It was largely a result of LTTE’s
ability to control the Vanni, manipulate the Tamil media and to
discipline the expatriate community with threats. The impact of the LTTE
controlled-diaspora organizations to convince the international
community that there were human rights violations in the final phase of
the Sri Lankan conflict was appreciable.
In parallel, the impact of the anti-LTTE Sri Lankan diaspora
organizations to expose LTTE atrocities was minimal. Until the defeat of
the LTTE in May 2009, the Sri Lankan government made no concerted effort
to reach out to the Tamil community overseas to reach out to them. Had
the government developed a strategy to co-opt the diaspora elite,
reached out to the community leaders, and work with the Tamil community,
the impact of LTTE misinformation and disinformation campaign could have
been minimised.
The propaganda that had created the impression that (1) the Sri
Lankan Security Forces deliberately targeted its civilians (2) Sri
Lankan Tamils have not received their rightful place, after all what
they have suffered, and (3) the Sri Lankan government and their partners
were not seriously committed to reconciliation.
In contrast, in a recorded time Sri Lanka resettled some 280,000
displaced and mostly in their own habitat, rehabilitated and
reintegrated 11,500 out of 12,000 terrorists and invested millions of
dollars to develop the North and East. No other country has acted with
such speed, compassion and foresight.
Q: Please explain your involvement in building harmony between
Northern and Southern Sri Lanka.
A: My involvement was modest compared to many who live in Sri
Lanka and work. At the request of Defence and Urban Development
Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapaksa and the then Justice Minister Milinda
Moragoda, I adviced, assisted and evaluated the rehabilitation of 12,000
LTTE cadres.
Rather than prosecute, a key decision was taken to engage them, make
them realize that what they did was wrong, and reunite them with their
loved ones. The approaches used to bring them back to society was
through religion and spirituality, education, vocational training,
recreation, creative arts and social and family rehabilitation. Most of
the beneficiaries who could think repented, expressed remorse, rejected
violence and embraced a harmonious living. They felt that they had
wasted several years of their lives hating a community they had never
met.
Today, they are serving government, private sector and in self
employment. Ironically, those who supported the former LTTE cadres and
their families were neither the LTTE nor its proxy, the TNA. They were
supported by the government, the private sector, the NGOs and the
ordinary people especially of the South. None of the rehabilitated and
reintegrated beneficiaries have returned to terrorist or extremist
activity.
Today, Sri Lanka’s terrorist rehabilitation programme has been rated
as one of the most successful programmes in the world.
The LTTE propaganda politicized, radicalized and mobilized not only
its rank and file but the ordinary population. The greatest heritage
every Sri Lankan inherited was to live with understanding and harmony.
However, the Tamil and Sinhala politicians played the race card to
generate votes thus disrupting the social harmony. As such, a segment of
Sri Lankan population still suffer from suspicion, mistrust and
prejudice. At great cost to the country and to every community peace has
been restored. Nonetheless, the peace restored must never be taken for
granted. Every Sri Lankan must work to reach out to other ethnic and
religious communities and strengthen the Sri Lankan spirit.
The public must be alert and guard against politicians of the
government, the parliamentary opposition and all other political parties
who seek to exploit the ethnic and religious differences in order to
remain in power or come to power. In every city, town and village, Sri
Lanka and Sri Lankans must create harmony centres to revive the
traditional friendships that existed between Tamils, Sinhalese and
Muslims. Today, there is no greater challenge for Sri Lanka than to
invest in reconciliation, to build a harmonious society and development
to revive and sustain economic growth. |