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Regardless of warnings of friends and foes alike that the continued task of establishing Tamil Eelam police stations in the Eastern Province would derail the government’s “peace process” ultimately, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam is vigorously engaged in a drive to recruit young Tamil men and women as police constables and sub-inspectors, independent reports say. The Eelam police officers, not versed in Sri Lanka’s criminal law are trained in to implement a penal code peculiar to themselves, called “ Kuttaviyal Nadavadikkai” indicating very much the intentions of the LTTE to run a parallel independent administration among the Tamils, Muslims and the Sinhalese in Northern and Eastern Provinces. Implementing a different “Penal Code” although illegal under Sri Lanka’s law the Police Stations have received no opposition from the Ranil Wickremesinghe administration and the Colombo government’s additional Government Agent, V.Shanmugam in Batticaloa declared open the sign of the first Police station in Eastern Province at Palugamam, November 5. The Sri Lanka government’s coalition partner the Sri Lanka Muslim Congress who once signed a peace agreement with the LTTE supremo Velupillai Prabhakaran has already protested against the establishment of Tamil Eelam Police stations in the Eastern Province. He has called it a violation of the MOU. One third of the population in the Eastern province is Muslims and the other third is Sinhalese making Tamils only a minority in the area. The second Tamil Eelam Police station opened in the Muttur area at Sampur is in the midst of a large Muslim population, where the Muslim community was allegedly at the mercy of the armed cadres of the LTTE during the last LTTE-Muslim ethnic conflict, few months ago. Except the two Tamil Eelam Police stations established in the Eastern Province the following Eelam Police stations are also functioning in the Wanni, according to LTTE sources: Kilinochchi, Mullaitivu, Visvamadu, Pullai, Mankulam, Akkarayan, Tunnukai, Puliyankulam, Mulliyawalai, Vattakachchi, Nachikudah, Mannar, Jeyapuram and Nedunkerni. In their advertisements calling for applications the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam said the Deputy Police inspector candidates should have passed the GCE advanced level examination and the police officer candidates should have passed the GCE olevel examination. The candidates should be 5’- 6” tall and should be in the age range of 18-30. In a recently held press conference the People’s Alliance said, “ Recent actions of the LTTE demonstrate a clear trend towards the consolidation of its authority in the Northern and Eastern Provinces which creates a grave risk of a separate state being established as a reality on the ground. The LTTE has spoken publicly of already having a place a permanent administration , a standing army, a standing Navy , law courts, police stations, banks and other institutions.” Norwegian Ambassador, Jon Westborg , who has been accused of being bias towards the terrorist group, the LTTE at a recent Colombo Club luncheon had to admit that the issue of LTTE police stations in the North and the East were a “considerable danger” to the “peace process”. He was quoted of having said, “It can easily derail the situation.” (EOM) (17/11/02 go2lanka.com) |