Asoka Weerasinghe Kings Grove Crescent . Gloucester . Ontario .ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ CanadaƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ 

12 January 2011

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ The Editor (Letters)
THE OTTAWA CITIZEN

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Sir:

Re: Refugee board notice protested by advocates for the very reason that, “The November ruling found that the human rights situation in Sri Lanka had improved and that the likelihood Tamils would be persecuted if they return to the country has diminished.,” is more a concern about the down-sizing of the million dollar human trafficking and refugee business of Sri Lankan Tamils by these advocates. I can well understand their concerns.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ When over a million Tamils live in the south of the island, and quite happily too without being harassed; the UNHRC announcing that in 2010 the number of Tamil refugees that they assisted to return to Sri Lanka voluntarily stood at 2,054 and are expecting more this year; and the recruitment of Tamil youths to the Sri Lankan military services and police being significantly on the rise, why are these Tamil refugee advocates so concerned unnecessarily?

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ This month a group of 356 Police personnel including 20 women from the Tamil community in the North were among the latest batch of recruits to the Police service. What is significant of this recruitment is that the Tamil youth were shut out from this service for three decades for security reasons, because of the Tamil Tiger terrorists were kidnapping and recruiting Tamil child soldiers and suicide bombers to fight their separatist war.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ These Tamil refugee advocates should now accept the progress that is going on in Sri Lanka in rehabilitation of the former Tamil Tiger soldiers and reconciliation among the communities. The Tamil youth have nothing to worry and the Refugee Board was absolutely correct to say that the persecution of the Tamil youth, if there had been any, has diminished.

ƒÆ’-¡ƒ”š‚ Asoka Weerasinghe