Jayamangala

Gone are the days when the Scotland Yard (Metropolitan Police) held in high esteem as one of the cleverest law enforcement authorities in the world. They were impartial, intelligent, fearless. But certain events in 2009 and two recent events during the last few months ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ in respect of Sri Lanka occurred in London tell a different story. Scotland Yard has become a just gutless set of officers in uniforms with lackadaisical attitude. The strength and intelligence of the British Police- Scotland Yard have been diluted to just an incompetent Police Force.

In 2009, when the Sri Lankan forces were almost at the edge of defeating the most brutal terrorists outfit LTTE militarily, the LTTE terrorist supportive Tamil Diaspora continued violent protest rallies and demonstrations in London for weeks demanding the British Government to stop the war so that Prabahakran could slip away to fight for another day. Even being a proscribed terrorist organization in UK, the Metropolitan Police in London has been complacent with the demonstrators who were displaying Tiger flags of ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ banned LTTE in UK ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ and disrupting the civilian life of the Londoners costing London Taxpayers millions of pounds. Metropolitan Police was there at the rowdy demonstrations but looked the other side ignoring all illegal acts committed by the LTTE rump including displaying Tiger flags, wearing Tiger T-shirts, burning National flag of Sri Lanka etc..

When SL President was to have addressed the Oxford Union at their request, the LTTE rump protested again and the law enforcement authorities got the Oxford Union to cancel his address with a lame excuse so to say that it was decided for security reasons.

Then comes the last event on ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 6 June where President Rajapaksa was invited to make the keynote address to the Commonwealth Business Council (CBC). The banned LTTE rump gathered in thousands opposite the CBC demonstrating to stop the scheduled Keynote address by President Rajapaksa. Instead of containing the LTTE terrorist rabble rousers, the Scotland yard took the easy way of getting the organizers to cancel the meeting ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ for security reasons.

Is the London Metropolitan Police logistically weak who couldnƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t handle a set of rowdy LTTE protesters? The Scotland Yard cannot get way with the fact that they were not aware of this planned protest as this would have been planned months ahead as there were LTTE activists coming from European countries like Norway, Sweden Germany, Switzerland, France to join the protest rally. The so called law enforcement authorities had ample time to plan and prevent the rabble rousers but instead they have conveniently or knowinglyƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  didnƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t take any pro action to stop this. It was the President of ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ one of the oldest democracies in the world who was humiliated due to the inaction of the Scotland Yard. It was indeed a shame that even the Lord Mayor of London Boris Johnson ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ couldnƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢t address this forum in his own home ground due to the inaction of the Scotland Yard. ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The Lord Mayor of London Boris Johnson should appoint a committee to investigate into the inaction of the British Police. Suffice to reiterate the fact that the former Mayor Ken Livingstone who were surviving on Tamil votes always had a soft corner for LTTE rump in London and the London venues were made freely available for the LTTE rump to organize demonstrations, rallies etc. LTTE Money and political survival talk here.

London Metropolitan Police has miserably failed (willingly or unwillingly) to show their prowess against a few hundreds of Tamil Terrorist supporters at theƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Commonwealth Business Council (CBC) Forum ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ venue. When the mass protest by New Yorkers who were protesting opposite the Big Banks in Wall Street for bringing down the economy of USA , the New York Police arrested many protesters even though the protest was rather genuine which is for their bread butter unlike the protest by some Tamil Diaspora was an act of revenge for having defeated the LTTE terrorist outfit by President RajapaksaƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s leadership.. But did the London Police make any arrest among these rowdy demonstrators when they were burning Sri Lankan flags and effigy of President and displaying tiger flags of the banned LTTE terrorist outfit?. However, Scotland Yard could have easily arrested many of the demonstrators for having used a flag of a terrorist group which has been banned in UK and wearing the Tiger T-shirts of LTTE. But as being allegedly discussed in Murdock Newspaper Scandal where British Police alleged to have been paid for hiding information at various stages, cannot ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ there be an iota of suspicion that LTTE funds would haveƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  passed thro hands to some of these Police officers for them to be so inactive and complacent towards the rowdy rabble rousers.

LTTE was a proscribed militant organization in the UK. Under Section 13 of the British Terrorism Act (BTA) of 2000 which declares that it is a violation of the BTA if a person wears an item of clothing or wears, carries or displays an article in such a way or in such circumstances as to arouse reasonable suspicion that he is a member or a supporter of a proscribed outfit. The MetropolitanƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚  Police saw the breach of this act by the LTTE demonstrators who wore tea shirts with the banned LTTE insignia and displaying Tiger flags in thousands but no single arrest has been made. WHY? Had it be a Muslim guy wearing T-shirt with Osama bin LadenƒÆ’‚¢ƒ¢-¡‚¬ƒ¢-¾‚¢s face, he would have been immediately arrested. A big question? Has the Scotland Yard become buddies of the LTTE rump in London for their money?