Rising of the Cheetah

by Sajitha Prematunge and Anushka Nanayakkara
 

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Almost the same Khaki uniform, didn't seem much different from a uniform of any other force in Sri Lanka, for me at that early age. Except I loved the big trailer bikes, which gave the STF (Special Task Force) their warrior like image.

The first initiative taken to establish the STF runs back to 1978, when Tamil separatist groups murdered a police investigator, Bastian Pille and other police officers. The head quarters of the Special Tracking Fore was established in Anuradhapura.

The duties of the first group consisting of 60 officers, trained by Sri Lanka Army, were working against terrorism, planing of operations, reconnaissance missions, protecting police stations from terrorist attacks and supporting the police in areas affected by terrorism. Many other units saw the light of day, with the hard core training provided by the Army. One such unit is the combat Group. This particular group consisting of 120 individuals, received their training in Ampara and was stationed in the North.

But the real STF was formed in 1983, when 60 volunteering police officers were to receive a special Army training at the Katukurunda Police Training Centre. The training, under the authority of Major Ananda Weerasekera and Lieutenant Manawadu of Army, was done with the minimum of resources and only few infrastructure facilities.

The first automatic weapon of the police S.L.R. was provided by the then Superintendent of the police, Lionel Karunasena and with the khaki uniform the STF started having a more military outlook.

Small Groups can do more damage when attacking terrorist camps, because of the special training they receive, on following reconnaissance and reaching the right target. Combat between the tigers and the forces, most of the time, takes the form of a Guerrilla war, where the terrorists live among the civilians and in forests. In which case the selection of the right target is of utmost importance.

Recently during the passing out of Small Group - Cheetah, consisting 94 officers, Commodore STF, DIG, Nimal Luke said that for STF officers the close study of terrorist infiltration, their safe-houses, their transportation and logistics and all other factors of import in ascertaining the nature of their operations, is a must.

All the individuals of this particular group, Cheetah, has more than five years experience in the battle field. They can spend more than 14 days in the jungle. This type of gruelling training has instilled in these officers a strong sense of endurance.

Unity, dedication, right senses to analyze the target are not only the few colossal factors for STF achievements, but also the vitality to carry arms and proper leadership at the right time has always been the secret behind their success of all the missions.

One example of their unity is that if one soldier in their team steps out of the camp the rest of the team would wait until he arrives even to have meals. One should not be surprised by hearing such incidents as they have been trained in such a manner from the start.