The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)
chief
Velupillai
Prabhakaran
has
asked
India
to
lift
the
ban
on
his
outfit
in
order
to
“fulfil
the
aspirations
of
Tamil
people”,
reports
Reddiff.com. “We expect that it (India) would lift the ban on our organisation
and
support
us
to
fulfil
the
long
awaited
aspirations
of
the
Tamil
people,”
he
said
in
an
e-mail
interview
to
Chennai-based
Tamil
magazine
Nakkeeran.
Conceding that the Sri Lanka security forces have closed in
on
the
LTTE
strongholds
and
have
even
entered
key
areas,
Velupillai
Prabhakaran,
however,
said
capturing
the
outfit’s
administrative
capital
Kilinochchi
was
still
a
distant
dream
for
them.
“The
Sri
Lankan
forces
have
entered
parts
of
our
homeland
and
are
stationed
in
close
proximity
to
Kilinochchi
town.
But,
capturing
Kilinochchi
is
just
a
day
dream
of
(Sri
Lankan
President
Mahinda)
Rajapakse,”
he
said.
While
accusing
Sri
Lankan
Army
of
“carrying
out
genocidal
attacks
on
Tamils”,
Prabhakaran
also
claimed
that
the
military
was
facing
“severe
losses”
due
to
the
attacks
launched
in
Northern Sri Lanka.
On Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse’s observation that he (Prabhakaran) could be handed
over
to
India, if he surrenders or is captured,
the
LTTE
supreme
said,
“This
is
one
of
the
many
dreams
of
Rajapakse.”
Asserting
that
he
was
not
living
in
bunkers,
Prabhakaran
said,
“We
are
living
among
the
people,
fighting
for
them
and
carrying
out
our
freedom
struggle.
It
is
a
common
phrase
used
by
the
military
during
the
last
30
years.”
On
whether
he
still
persisted
with
the
demand
for
a
separate
nation
for
Sri
Lankan
Tamils,
Prabhakaran
said,
“The
Tamil
people
have
at
every
election
since
1977,
indicated
what
their
political
aspirations
are.
That
would
be
the
permanent
solution
for
the
ethnic
crisis.”
On whether he expected a change in the current
environment
and
any
prospects
for
holding
talks,
Prabhakaran
said,
“We
can
only
expect
such
a
situation
depending
on
the
politics
within
the
government
and
its
military
stance.
We
do
not
carry
out
attacks
on
innocent
Sinhalese
civilians.
Ours
is
a
liberation
organisation
fighting
for
the
liberation
of
the
Tamil
people…,''
he
said.
Meanwhile, denying that the Indian Government
was
extending
any
military
help
to
Sri Lanka, Union Finance Minister P. Chidambaram
said
that
the
Centre
only
wanted
Tamils
in
Sri Lanka to get equal opportunities, The Hindu reports. "Only Pakistan and China are extending military help to
the
Island," he said. |
