Ex-LTTEer in Canada urges Tamil youth to shun Tiger ideology

by Manjula FERNANDO

A 31-year-old LTTE arms procurer, a Tamil Canadian who is serving a 25 year old jail term in the US for trying to procure missiles says he repents his days with the LTTE and urges Tamil youth not to fall prey to LTTE brainwashing tactics, to which he himself fell victim.

Sathajhan Sarachandran, a former leader of the Tamil Youth Organisation writing a letter from his prison cell says, the "so called Tamil community leaders misled him, fuelled his anger and hatred, promoted violence and silenced advocates of non-violence," Canada's National Post reported.

The software engineer was arrested in a joint sting operation by Canadian law enforcement authorities and the FBI in 2006.

Along with him, an engineering student who worked for a top international software company, Suresh Sriskandarajah and another was also arrested while trying to negotiate a deal to buy Russian made surface-to-air missiles, missile launchers and AK-47 rifles with an FBI agent posing as a weapons dealer.

"As Tamils we must reject violence and embrace peace. I beg you not to get trapped in the extremist ideologies," he wrote in the letter dated August 9, that was posted last week on the website, Mercy for Tamil Prisoners, hosted by a non-profit founded by families of prisoners detained on charges related to terrorism, the newspaper reported.

Independent observers say except the vociferous few in the west, most Tamils are moving towards reconciliation. Those Tamils active overseas trying to disrupt the peace were the key propagandists and financiers of the LTTE.

Diplomatic sources said, rather than appeasing the vociferous few that tow the LTTE line, the Canadian politicians should assist the reconciliation process in Sri Lanka.

He said Canadian MP Patrick Brown's recent statement demonstrates his lack of understanding of the ground reality and seems to be driven by the LTTE disinformation campaign. "Trying to appease the LTTE will lead to a revival of the LTTE in Canada," he stressed adding that the largest support base of this brutal terrorist group is concentrated in Canada.

The letter by the LTTE prisoner is the first evidence linking the LTTE and the TYO, the most active youth organisation in Europe and North America.

It is said that TYO is one of the key LTTE fronts under which many activities take place in Canada and the UK. It is allegedly headed by the LTTE de facto head Nediyawan who has neither renounced violence nor LTTE terrorist tactics. Based in Norway he is heading the criminal wing of the LTTE international network, commanding credit card scams, human smuggling and money laundering, etc.

The non-profit organization which hosted the letter by Sarachandran told the National Post, it was working with lawyers and officials in Canada, the US and Sri Lanka to exercise any potential treaty transfers" available to prisoners detained over war time conduct.

Sri Lanka has adopted a humane approach to 11,500 ex-LTTE cadres arrested after the conflict ended. Over 10,000 have already been rehabilitated and released as of today.

We carry a section of the letter sent by Sarathchandran