BALASINGHAM AND MAHATTAYA OPPOSED RAJIV KILLING WHILE PRABHAKARAN & POTTUAMMAN PLANNED IT SAYS KARUNA-MAN
By Walter Jayawardhana reporting from Los Angeles
July 02, 01.10 PM:The spokesperson for Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (Karuna Group), Maran in an interview with a London broadcasting station confirmed that LTTE Supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran and his Spy Chief Pottu Amman conspired and planned to kill former Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and revealed for the first time that it was done over the protests of the then Deputy leader of the LTTE Mahendraraja Mahattaya and the current advisor of the group, Anton Balasingham.
He said later Mahattaya , was brutally killed by Prabhakaran after being accused of being a spy for India’s Research and Analysis Wing , the state intelligence agency.
The interview conducted in Tamil language by the London based broadcasting station , Thamil Broadcasting Corporation, was later unofficially translated to English and published in the Asian Tribune Website based in Bangkok. Maran was interviewed by the broadcasting journalist V. Ramraj.
Maran flatly denied that the Karuna group was protected and supported by the Sri Lanka Army and said they had 5000 troops who were disbanded and they were fighting back for their own safety from Prabhakaran forces when threatened. To save their lives. He said : “. It is wrong on the part of Prabah Group to allege the Sri Lanka Army for any hostile activities in the East.. Because earlier we had about 5,000 of our cadres in the East and we have now disbanded them and send them back to their houses. Majority of them still remain in the East. At times clashes occurs between them and the Prabah Group. These clashes are frequently occurring even without our knowledge. Because they are compelled to clash with the Prabah group for their personal safety. Furthermore, Prabah group had blindly made a serious allegations and charges against us. They had alleged that we jointly operate with Sri Lanka Army and because of this, Peace talks would be affected.
They had alleged that we jointly operate with Sri Lanka Army and because of this, Peace talks would be affected.
But in the earlier stages, when Norway as well as the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission took up our issue with Prabah Group, they told them that it was their (Prabah Group's) internal matter and they announced that they will bring this issue to an end. Now by making and giving importance to our Commander and Leader Colonel Karuna Amman and to our Group’s activities, it clearly proves of their desperate position and of their questionable political future. Furthermore, it has now become a difficult proposition for them to negotiate with the Government of Sri Lanka and arrive at a solution. Now they are intentionally putting forward these allegations with the view to wage a war with the Government of Sri Lanka. Prabah Group had already planned and now they are kidnapping children and youths and sending them to Vanni for a crash military training. They intend to put the blame on us and launch a war soon. People and the international community should clearly understand the heinous plans of the Prabah group.”
Touching further on the assassination of Rajiv Gandhi Maran said , “When we had problem and it was India that came forward to help us. During those days, 5 crore (Fifty million) closely linked people in the Tamil Nadu considered us as one amongst them. This relationship continued until such time the Prabah Group undertook the killing of Rajiv Gandhi. The twosome - Prabakaran and Pottuamman were responsible for the killing of Rajiv Gandhi.The then Deputy Leader Mahataya opposed this killing. Not only him, even Anton Balasingham, present political advisor to Prabah’s Group opposed the move to kill Rajiv Gandhi. He insisted not to undertake the ‘Mission Killing’. Unfortunately Prabakaran and Pottu Amman refused to listen to his advice. This mad decision to kill was responsible for the climb-down of our present struggle and for India to ban the organization. This is an undeniable fact of life. “We condemn Prabakaran and his Group for the killing of Rajiv Gandhi. Law should be allowed to take its course in this killing and we will definitely help in this issue. The political organization which we intend to organize would function as a political entity that would oppose Prabakaran tooth and nail and would support India whole-heartedly, as it is undoubtedly a regional leader. We need - i.e Tamils in particular and the country in general needs India’s help and support. The people in the North and East still continue to seek India’s help and support. Meantime the political approach of the Prabah Group is opposed to the aspirations of the people in the North and east. But we wish to declare that our political organization would support and seek the good neighborly relationship of India and contribute to further the relationship with India. We cannot ignore India. They helped us a great deal in our struggle and we recollect it with gratitude. There are more than 100,000 Sri Lankan Tamil refugees in the camps as well as in the urban centers in Tamil Nadu. We have to thank India for protecting our people.”
He was asked whether the people in the East ever supported or opposed the Rajiv Gandhi assassination . The following is that part of the interview:
Ramaraj : Maran …earlier you as well as Karuna Amman - both of you were in the Tiger Group led by Prabakaran. During that time, did you all not oppose the murder of Rajiv Gandhi? What was your position during that time?
Maran : During that period we were based in the East. There was a Central Committee functioning in Vanni. Karuna Amman was also a member of that Central Committee. As he was based in the East, they never sought our views on all those matters. We were kept in the dark
Furthermore Prabakaran never expected anyone to oppose his diktat. If anybody opposed any autocratic decision taken by Prabakaran, that person would be mercilessly killed. An example was Mahataya. He thought that we should enhance the position of India for the security reason of our organization, but he was alleged as a RAW (Research and Intelligence Wing) agent and killed.
Ramaraj In case a war is being waged against you all now…?
Maran : In case we are dragged to counter a war waged by Prabah Group, we are ready with our strategic moves. However we are making our political move so diplomatically to ensure that we would not be dragged into a fratricidal war.
Ramaraj : Is there any problem for your group to function as a political formation?
Maran: No .. We do not encounter any problem. We have already turned to the democratic way of life. Our Leadership had already taken a decision to form a political party. This is with the view to enter into the political main stream. This is our earnest desire. We are making the necessary preparations toward this end.
Because the aspiration of our Leadership is to take forward a political agenda without war and without spilling blood. People in the East have come forward to give overwhelming support for this noble aspiration of our Leadership. We are contacting the intelligentsias in the country for views and their feedbacks for the same. Very soon we would turn out to be a political force to reckon with in this country. Then we also intend to file several court actions against the Prabah Group, because they had committed numerous ceasefire violations and recently they have killed numerous cadres belonging to our Group.
They declared that they would capture the East without spilling "One Drop of Blood," but what happened? They killed mercilessly nearly 60 women cadres and buried them without the knowledge of those brutally killed women cadres’ parents in the Vaharai area. When we return to the democratic way of lif,e we would expose the Prabah Group by filing legal actions against them and challenge them by confronting with hard evidences which are in our possession.
To file cases against Prabah Group we have already initiated consultations with the lawyers. If by any chance we failed to bring them to justice in Sri Lanka, then we would file cases adopting the necessary legal mechanism in the International Criminal Court and see that Prabakaran and his accomplishes is hunted down by the United Nations for his atrocious inhumane criminal activities.
We also know how to produce those persons physically about whom we will actions in the court of law. We will handle that part of it.
Prabakaran had ordered for the kidnapping of numerous cadres of ours and jailed them in Vanni, under severe inhuman conditions. International Red Cross should come forward to inspect the inhumane treatment meted out to our cadres, who are kept as prisoners in Prabakaran’s Prison Hell-hole. We appeal to the ICRC take immediate action.
Our sole intention is to expose Prabakaran and his atrocious activities to the international community. We will definitely prevail.
Ramaraj: As the claim of the sole representatives of the Tamils in the country turned out to be a questionable issue and you claim that you are representing the Trincomalee – Batticaloa and Amparai Districts in the East, therefore in the future what will be your position when Peace talks commence with the Government of Sri Lanka?
Maran : Definitely … We are equal partners in the peace process. We must be treated as equals, similar to the position given to Prabah’s Group. Like in the North, same number of people is also in the East. They have rallied behind us. Therefore when the question of Peace Talks arises in the future, the Government must provide equal opportunity for us in the talks
It is a misconception to claim Prabah’s Group as the sole representatives of the Tamils of Sri Lanka. Our contention is that we should include all those Tamil militant groups which in the beginning struggled for the liberation of the Tamils and the Tamil –speaking people in the country and all the political parties representing them.
Also in the East - representatives of the Muslim ethnic group, should also be included in the peace negotiation
Ramaraj: In case there will be a war between the Prabah Group and the Government of Sri Lanka, what would be the position of the Tamil National Alliance, the proxy party of the Prabah Group?
Maran : Now they are cornered in a difficult situation. Prabakaran expect them to function according to his diktat. I know personally they are not willingly going along with Prabakaran.
If they can tear away from the clutches of Prabakaran and come forward to function independently, a bright future is awaiting for them. A great change would emerge in the North. But they have been threatened.
Unfortunately when you analyze their present position and in case there would be a war, then their position would be very precarious. In case of war they (TNA) have to take asylum in the Vanni hideouts of Prabakaran. They will not be tolerated in the East as well as in Colombo.
The TNA Members of Parliament had long ago forgotten ‘the thing’ of rendering service to the people. The recent Parliamentary general elections were an apt example. There were numerous elections related charges of corruption, fraud, impersonations and malpractices. Their elections are now being challenged in the court of law.
Ramraj:In conclusion, do you intend to say anything?
Maran:What we wish to announce to the Tamils and Tamil speaking people living in the North and east is that the aspiration and aim of our Leadership is to attain a peaceful solution without war and without spilling blood.
We appeal to our people to support our earnest and noble aspiration. In case if there is going to be a war this time, then we may have to sacrifice hundreds of our Tamil militant cadres and in the end we would be left with our soil minus our beloved people. Long live humanism.
>
