The arrests that upset terror-supporting media

The 'first' to be fooled

Muththusami Ilankoowan with terror chief Velupillai Prabhakaran

Muththusami Ilankoowan with former LTTE political head Thamilchelvan.

A local TV station in its evening news telecast on Monday (February 25), reported that an unidentified gang that had come in a white van abducted a person named Muththusami Ilankoowan alias Sami at Pettah, Colombo on the same evening. According to this TV station the person who was a holder of a Singaporean passport had been accommodated at a hotel on Kadiresan road before getting "disappeared".

Media personnel of this TV station who seemed to have got the first hand information on this "disappearance", quickly inquired from the police media spokesman who was only able to inform them what he knew at the time.

Later, the police spokesperson informed relevant media station that the person that he was referring to as 'disappeared' was actually a suspect arrested by the police.

However, the media station carried out the same story spinning it as an 'abduction' that was carried out by the government giving less prominence to the police spokesman's clarification.

A senior intelligence official speaking exclusively to defence.lk said that Muththusami Ilankoowan is a number one LTTE terrorist who is suspected to have had a hand in many civilian massacres carried out by LTTE in the South. Muttusami, a Sri Lankan born Tamil, who has strong connection with terror chief V. Prabhakaran, and also with LTTE's international wing leaders, Castro , Kumaran Padmanathan, David and Iyyanna.

The suspect has his own shipping line by which he is said to be promoting cross border terrorists activities of LTTE as well as of other international terrorist organisations that work hand in hand with LTTE, the intelligence official said. As proof for his claim the intelligence official gave defence.lk few pictures of the suspect taken with the kingpins of the terror organisations.

From left: Kalaialagan, the second in command of the LTTE’s coordinating centre for International activities (killed in the SLAF air raid on 18th April 2007), Soosai, the LTTE Sea Tiger leader and Muththusami Ilankoowan.

Muththusami Ilankoowan with the LTTE Sea Tiger leader Soosai.

Muththusami Ilankoowan with Castro, the head of the LTTE’s Coordinating Centre for International Activities.

On his visit to the Wanni. LTTE’s cemetery in the background.

Speaking further the official revealed that the suspect had come to Sri Lanka last year to promote terror activities in the South. He said that the arrest of Muttusami is a great achievement, not only for Sri Lanka but also for other countries that fight against terrorism. Finally he said, that the irresponsible behaviour of this TV station shows none other than its cooperation with the terror outfit that murder its own viewers.

It should be noted that counter terrorist warfare is not the same as conventional warfare and therefore has its own methods of dealing with the enemy. For instance, the arrest of Muttusami though perfectly legal, has been made in a swift manner than a normal arrest in order to prevent accomplices of the suspect getting alarmed. However all such measures taken by the Security Forces are aimed at saving the lives of civilians than anything else. On the other hand, it is natural for the terrorist accomplices to get disturbed on such arrests and to take whatever action to prevent them. Therefore, it is high time for all peace loving Sri Lankans to comprehend reality that what agitates those terror accomplices are actually attempts aimed at saving lives of the innocent.

When the Defence Ministry website - defence.lk inquired from Defence Secretary Rajapaksa on the recent media attacks on him, he expressed his indifference over the issue calling it a trivial matter, as anybody has the right to criticise him. Besides, he said that he does not have to respond to the people who do dirty work like mud slinging and character assassination for a living.

When inquired further on why he is being shown as an enemy of media freedom, he said it is probably his sincere expression of ideas during the last newspaper interview he had, where he gave said that media censorship and laws against malicious libel and defamation are required for countries in situations such as Sri Lanka, today. He added that he too has the right to exercise his freedom of expression and he would continue to stand by his views.

Courtesy: www.defence.lk