[ad#468×60]
Sri Lankan government has requested European Union to list the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization (TRO) and other LTTE front organizations, which have been clearly identified, including by the US government, as raising funds for the LTTE.
Dr. Palitha Kohona, Foreign Secretary on behalf of GoSL has made this appeal at the Sri Lanka – EU discussion on “The Fight against Terrorism”, in Colombo (11th) following the Sri Lanka – EC Joint Commission meeting.
Dr. Kohona who led the Sri Lankan delegation at the discussion said that Sri Lanka is committed to a negotiated and sustainable settlement to the conflict and gave a comprehensive briefing to the EU delegation on the large scale fund raising by the LTTE and its front organizations abroad, including through intimidation and extortion, which sustains the operational capability of the LTTE to kill innocent civilians and cause extensive economic damage in Sri Lanka.ng. He pointed out that the LTTE maintained a highly sophisticated and elaborate network of fronts globally, often under the innocent guise such as charities, sports, religious and cultural associations, which did not attract much attention of host governments.
Dr. Konona pointed out that credible evidence existed linking the LTTE to trans-national crimes, including money laundering, narcotics trafficking, arms smuggling and the trafficking of persons. He cited the organized racket to smuggle people to Australia and the major credit card scam in the UK. He also mentioned that the LTTE has continued to terrorize people in Sri Lanka, particularly Tamils, as well as the Sri Lankan Tamil diaspora, especially living in North America, Europe and Australia to raise funds.
The Ambassador of France in Sri Lanka, Michel Lummaux, representing the current EU Presidency held by Slovenia, who led the EU delegation categorically, expressed the opposition of the European Union (EU) to a separate state for Tamils in Sri Lanka. He said that EU acknowledged that the LTTE is a terrorist organization which exercises fascist control over two districts in the Northern Province of Sri Lanka and has been responsible for the ethnic cleansing of the entire Muslim population from the North. The French Ambassador assured Sri Lanka of the EU’s total support in its fight against terrorism.
Posted on 13 Jun 2008 by Lanka Truth