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The international human rights group Amnesty International (AI) has launched a worldwide campaign against the LTTE for its continuing practice of abductions and extortion, while the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission has also added its voice to the condemnation.

An AI communique issued from London said that Amnesty had asked its members and affiliated associations worldwide to send messages of protest to LTTE offices in Europe and North America calling on the LTTE to halt its practice of abductions which, Amnesty said, violated international humanitarian law and the norms of the conduct of war.

The Amnesty campaign has taken up the case of elderly Batticaloa businessman K. V. Sithamparapillai, the most recent victim of LTTE abduction and extortion. According to the AI communique, after abducting him, the Tigers had demanded and received a payment of Rs. 2.2 million from Mr. Sithamparapillai's family. Due to pressure from human rights groups and the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission, they had later released the man.

However, the Monitoring Mission's unit in Batticaloa yesterday issued a statement sharply rebuking the LTTE for continuing to "harass" Mr. Sithamparapillai.

The SLMM is now expected to raise the matter of abductions with the LTTE high command in Vanni.

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