INGO-LTTE unholy axis?

The response of several international Non Governmental Organizations (INGOs) to the request made by the government of Sri Lanka to cease all operations and remove all personnel from the LTTE controlled part of the Vanni has raised several questions. While some of the NGOs and INGOs followed suit after the decision made by the United Nations agencies to withdraw from Vanni, some INGOs, reportedly making very suspicious excuses regarding their resources.

These INGOs and NGOs say that the LTTE has ordered them to leave all their belongings when they depart from the area. In other words, the LTTE wants to use all the vehicles, transmission equipment and other properties of the INGOs for the battle against the advancing Sri Lankan forces.

This raises the 64 million dollar question whether there is a secret deal between these INGOs and the LTTE? There were many instances of INGO employees supplying various banned items to LTTE in the past. This has lead the Government to order all the INGOs to provide a list of vehicles and equipment in their officer in LTTE controlled areas to ensure that some items will not be handed over to the LTTE terrorists.

There are very strong allegations that most of the INGOs inside Tiger territory have given vehicles and various equipments to the LTTE. Now the question arises if those INGOs have already supplied some items to the LTTE and in order to cover up these nefarious activities, now they might inform the government that LTTE had ordered them to leave all their belongings behind? Last week the first time United Nations has appealed to the LTTE to allow civilians to move out of the conflict zone and move into relief camps in government-controlled areas and allow free movement of the people wherever they wish to go. This is a clear endorsement of the UN that the ordinary Tamils are much safer and freer under the Government controlled areas than under LTTE.

"Any displaced person is entitled to freedom of movement according to international principles; they can move where and when they want, in search of safety and assistance" Neil Buhne, the UN Resident representative said in a public statement.

Despite UN's appeal LTTE is stopping the innocent Tamil civilians trapped in Killinochchi from free movement with the sole intention to use them as cannon fodder when it comes to the final assault.

The terrorists also want to save the lives of the top LTTE hierarchy and they would like to keep the civilians with them until the last moment so that they could flee with the civilian exodus. Terrorists also would like to get a few civilians killed by the army in the cross fire so that they can trumpet to the still gullible countries of international community, INGO's and local NGO's that Sri Lankan Government forces are killing innocent Tamil civilians and make a last desperate attempt to enforce a ceasefire.

Several INGOs and NGOs have very close links with the LTTE activists and they always come to their defence.

The moment some Tamil civilians die, the AI, HRW, INGO's and NGO's would shout from tree tops that innocent civilians are being killed. In any battle against terrorists, innocents too suffer and the international community is well aware of this. In Afghanistan on 22 August 2008 when the allied western forces bombed a village where Taliban forces were hiding, 78 innocent Afghanistan villagers were killed.

The INGOs and NGOs are yet to issue statements of condemnation of the latest killings of innocent civilians in hundreds in Afghanistan. But the moment a Tamil civilian is killed, they are sure to issue press releases and protest statements.

As Minister of Media and Mass Communication Anura Priyadharshana Yapa said on Thursday, the Government has treated its people, many who are forcibly kept in LTTE controlled areas, as citizens and it provided them with normal government services.

He also assured that their safety is the responsibility of the government. This is the time the INGOs and NGOs should assist the government to look after the people in Vanni instead of assisting the LTTE by leaving their belongings for the terrorists to use against the military which is trying to rescue the civilians from the grip of the LTTE.

Courtesy: Asian Tribune