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Two massive protest demonstrations organized by the political wing of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) to demand the government to withdraw a verdict given by the Colombo High Court sentencing the Tiger leader Velupillai Prabhakaran to 200 years of rigorous imprisonment were held in the Northern towns of Jaffna and Vavuniya, eye witness reports said. Critics pointed out the LTTE’s front organizations forced school children and others to take part in the demonstrations. Reports reaching from the two towns said the daily activities of the areas were disrupted by these LTTE organized demonstrations demanding the verdict against their leader be withdrawn. Earlier the Chief negotiator of the LTTE, Anton Balasingham officially conveyed the terrorist group’s protest to the representatives of the Ranil Wickremesinghe administration meeting the rebel group during a direct meeting in Bangkok, last week. In a press statement Balasingham said the High Court Judge’s sentence on Velupillai Prabhakaran was both “absurd” and “ridiculous”. But delivering the verdict of the High Court of Colombo, Judge Sarath Ambepitiya said the criminal charges against LTTE leader Velupillai Prabhakaran had been proved beyond any reasonable doubt. During the course of the proceedings it was revealed suicide bombers sent to Colombo to operate the Central Bank bombing in 1996, which caused the deaths of nearly 100 people and caused damages of more than 550 million Rupees to Colombo Fort buildings was masterminded by Velupillai Prabhakaran. In collaborative evidence Prabhakaran’s fingerprints were found on a commemorative plaque presented to the suicide bombers by the LTTE leader as was customarily done at a farewell dinner before the suicide bombers were dispatched to Colombo, the Judge said. Supporting the verdict of Judge Ambepitiya, the former Foreign Minister of Sri Lanka Lakshman Kadirgamar said for the first time it was proved beyond any reasonable doubt that Prabhakaran was personally directing terrorist activities. The LTTE, anyway was not denying that their leader was not involved in terrorist activities. What they were indirectly demanding was that he be considered above the law of Sri Lanka. A well-known LTTE sympathizer, Salaman Cyril submitted memorandums to the additional district Secretary of Jaffna, T.Vythilingam on behalf of the demonstrators to be sent to Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, Defense Minister Tilak Marapone and Justice Minister W.J.M. Lokubandara demanding the verdict be withdrawn. Sources in the opposition said that the LTTE would demand a Presidential pardon for Prabhakaran as a condition to support Ranil Wickremesinghe as the next Presidential candidate. A Presidential pardon was the only way possible to get rid of the Prabhakaran conviction , critics have pointed out. (EOM) (09/11/02 go2lanka.com) |