CLASSIFIED | POLITICS | TERRORISM | OPINION | VIEWS

TAMIL DIASPORA! YOUR MONEY IS IN VAIN IN SUPPORTING LTTE

Dr. Raju Selva

I make this humble appeal to the Tamil Diaspora to stop financing, promoting, lobbying propagating LTTE thro their fronts spread right around the world. I made the same mistake almost two decades ago by supporting financially and promoting LTTE without seeing the real face of LTTE. In that respect I feel that I was a real pariah (bastard) having received free education until I passed out as a doctor and supporting separatism and LTTE’s Eelam. I believe those doctors like Dr.Sathia Moorthy (London),Dr. Victor Rajakulendran, Dr.Raga Ragavan (Australia) would have had their free education like me in Sri Lanka but continue to support LTTE’s Eelam. They are therefore still pariahs who continue propagating LTTE. Fortunately I have gained wisdom and unfortunately they have lost their wisdom.

According to the most recent Janes Intelligence Report (JIR), the LTTE fronts through out the world collects between USD 200 million to $300 million a year. Quote The August issue of the Jane’s Intelligence Report said the annual income of the banned terrorist group Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam(LTTE) is between US $ 200-300 million making it the rebel group generating the second biggest income both by legal and illegal business.

The report said the huge income is generated perhaps from shipping to drugs and extortion by a network of professional managers –both Tamils and others- across a string of countries and as a guerilla group its income is second only to the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Columbia whose income comes from its vast Cocaine sales unquote. Fairly big size of this income generates from fund raising is on the pretext of rehabilitation Tamils in the North and east affected by the ongoing war between LTTE and the successive governments of Sri Lanka. As far as the fund raising goes, Tamil Diaspora in Canada, UK, USA, some EU countries and Australia lead as major contributors. When considering JIR data, the total amount that would have collected over the last twenty five years at $200 million a year (lowest figure quoted by Janes Report), would be USD dollars five billion (200mx25yrs) and in SL rupee terms it would be around $500 billions. This amount could not have been collected if not for the unstinted support by the Tamil Diaspora on LTTE ‘s illegal operations.

If the money collected from the Tamil Diaspora by the LTTE affiliated organizations like TRO, World Tamil Federation, Tamil Coordinating Committee, White Pigeon and hundreds of many other fronts spread in these 28 countries have been genuinely used for the upliftment of the Tamil people in the North and East, there cannot be a single Tamil living in poverty in the North and East. But we observed the Tamils in the East under LTTE controlled areas, how poor they were and now we are noticing the poverty of the people fleeing from LTTE controlled areas in the North to government controlled territory. They were as poor as they were and no improvement in their lives over last 25 years under the jack boots of Prabhakaran albeit USD5 billions have been collected for the upliftment of the Tamils in the North and East. The propaganda carried out by TROs and other front organizations to the effect that funds are collected for humanitarian assistance is an absolute fraud to hoodwink the gullible international community and some NGO’s like Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch. Incidentally Government has been looking after the Tamils in the North and East including the terrorists as any other citizens in the South without any discrimination. Unfortunately, food, clothing and other basic needs meant for the people very often were robbed by LTTE for their use. A recently surrendered LTTE woman cadre confessed that while she was fighting for LTTE, she was drawing government salary as a government English teacher.

The recent revelations exposed by the Government while capturing the uncleared areas illegally controlled by LTTE shows that nothing had been spent on the people or to improve their living conditions as LTTE and its affiliates like TRO claims to be.

Quote An interview with The Sunday Island, the Defence Secretary said the army hadn’t come across even a minor scale development program undertaken by INGOs and NGOs in the liberated area west of the A9 road.

"There is absolutely nothing," he said, adding that except for a relatively a small area west of the Kilinochchi-Elephant Pass section of road, the army had regained the area. There couldn’t be any significant development in the area yet to be liberated, he said.

As far as construction was concerned, the army had only seen the ditch cum earth bunds built by the LTTE to protect its major bases in the Vanni, underground bunkers and two runways, the outspoken official said.”Unquote

So then, what happened to millions and millions of dollars willingly and unwillingly given by the Tamil Diaspora thro various LTTE fronts like TRO, WTF, White Pigeon, AFT, Tamil Coordinating Committee etc? The Tamil Diaspora should question them? This colossal amount of dollars collected by the LTTE fronts if not used to rehabilitate Tamils in the North and East as meant to be, they would have either gone to the LTTE war chests or to their individual pockets. The people who fleeing from LTTE controlled areas say that there was no development in their areas except building of bunkers and earth bunds to protect the LTTE.

It is high time that the Tamil Diaspora tapped their conscience and ask these questions. Are we going to continue support LTTE financially and logistically? Why LTTE is using innocent Tamil civilians as cannon fodder without allowing them to decide whether to stay in the LTTE controlled area or to escape to Government controlled areas? Should Tamil Diaspora allow and promote LTTE to conscript children as soldiers whilst their children are enjoying thoroughbred education in the affluent countries? LTTE is currently conscripting girls as young as 14 years old to man their fronts? Now that LTTE is militarily getting weakened and the days of the fall of Prabha’s empire is numbered, isn’t it time that Tamil Diaspora opened their eyes to see the reality? Your money is in vain in supporting LTTE.

If not for the Tamil Diaspora, LTTE wouldn’t have been such a powerful terrorist outfit which is only second to Columbian mafia. I am a humiliated Tamil due to LTTE terrorist outfit but who yearns for peace in Sri Lanka, I make this humble appeal to the Tamil Diaspora and specially to the leaders who are running front organizations for LTTE spread in about 28 countries to wake up to reason out reality and stop funding, stop lobbying and stop propagating “Eelam” .Let us go back to pre 1977 era, pray for a peaceful Sri Lanka where we can live with our brethren Sinhalese, Muslims burghers, Malays in harmony as they live in the south.

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