The Hindu : International : Not under pressure: LTTE

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Aug 18, 2004

International

International

Not under pressure: LTTE

By V.S. Sambandan

COLOMBO, AUG. 17. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) has said that it was not under pressure by the international community and blamed Sri Lanka's ``political contradictions'' and ``power struggles'' for having resulted in ``the Tamil people losing faith in the peace process.''

Addressing journalists on Monday after a meeting with the European Union's Sri Lanka troika, during which the EU raised issues relating to killings, child recruitment and abductions, the LTTE's political wing leader, S.P. Tamilchelvan, said the group ``is not pressurised in any way by the visits by international delegations.''

According to a report in the TamilNet website, Mr. Tamilchelvan ``explained to the EU envoys the LTTE leadership's stand that we are ready to restart negotiation with the Sri Lankan Government on the basis of the Interim Self Government Authority (ISGA) proposal, which was endorsed by the Tamil people at the general election.''

Mr. Tamilchelvan also told the team, which had conveyed its concern over the deteriorating situation on the human rights front, that ``it is the moral responsibility of everybody, including the LTTE, that the Tamil people's wish expressed as an overwhelming electoral mandate should be respected and talks should recommence without any further delay.''

The LTTE's political wing leader also ``explained the situation in the east, where paramilitary forces are being nurtured and promoted by Colombo,'' and that the Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) and the accomplices of the LTTE's former military commander, V. Muralitharan, ``are engaged in activities aimed at disrupting the peace process,'' the report said. Just hours before the EU delegation met the LTTE in rebel-held Kilinochchi on Monday, the EPDP's propaganda secretary, Balanadarajah Iyer (EROS Bala) was shot dead in Colombo.

Trawler spotted

Meanwhile, the Sri Lankan Defence Ministry today said the Navy had ``spotted a trawler moving under suspicious circumstances,'' off Chalai close to the eastern Mullaittivu coast in the early hours of Monday.

``The Navy craft, which detected this trawler, mounted surveillance on the suspected trawler'' and ``several boxes suspected to be containing military hardware'' were seen ``being unloaded'' from the trawler to a fibreglass dinghy, the Defence Ministry said.

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