The moment of truth for India on LTTE

LTTE’s hubris and being caught in a cleft stick gives India the opening for it
Subramanian Swamy Delhi
                       
India’s policy towards the internationally proclaimed terrorist organisation, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) now requires to be sharply defined before it is too late. Now is the moment of truth for clarity and transparency. Otherwise one more neighbour will float into the US sphere of influence.

At present there is confusion in India’s approach to Sri Lanka because of a hidden compulsion of the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) government. Notice that May 21, the unfortunate anniversary of Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination, passed by last week without a single Congress leader demanding the avenging of his death or the extradition of the prime culprit—LTTE supremo V Prabhakaran. Even the four LTTE-DK activists sentenced to death on May 12, 1999 by the Supreme Court have yet to be hanged for involvement in the dastardly act because of an inexplicable letter from Sonia Gandhi to the President of India pleading clemency for the four.
The confusion is manifested in the following contradiction:  On the one hand, the Indian government has banned the LTTE ( by Narasimha Rao) as a terrorist organisation because of its murderous activities, including the killing of Rajiv Gandhi,  yet on the other hand, despite the continuing assassinations by the LTTE of pro-Indian Sri Lankan politicians and its open interference within India by financing pro-LTTE politicians and training terrorist organisations, the Indian government supports  the “peace process” of the Sri Lanka government with the LTTE, i.e., talks that could end up legitimising the same terrorist outfit and making the ban meaningless.  

            Although the LTTE has officially denied any involvement in the assassinations, such a denial cannot be taken seriously because the LTTE has always denied its involvement in any terrorist activity, including murder, arson, extortion and drug trafficking. The LTTE for example denied any part in Rajiv Gandhi’s assassination. However, the Supreme Court of India in its 400-page judgment delivered on May 12, 1999 and re-affirmed on review on October 5, 1999 has laid bare what a huge blatant lie that is.

However India cannot formulate a policy on LTTE with the Sri Lanka government as an active partner. If India is presently confused due to some mysterious compulsion, the Sri Lanka government suffers from delusion. For example, despite the murder of their Foreign Minister Kadirgamar and the attempted murder of their then President Chandrika by the LTTE, the Sri Lankan authorities are suffering from the “Stockholm Syndrome” of capitulating to their tormentors by agreeing to talk with them at a moment’s notice, and are thus unable to deal with the murderous LTTE. The Sri Lanka President’s first reaction after the murder of Foreign Minister Kadirgamar (a Tamil) was that the island government would not suspend the so-called peace talks with the killers, a further indication of the same tragic syndrome that seems to petrify them.

Sri Lanka thus seems a crumbling failed state that has lost its collective nerve to combat and confront terror of the LTTE.

If the Sinhala majority really wanted to rid the island of the LTTE, then they should force their government to unilaterally announce the adoption of a quasi-federal Constitution, much like India’s, to replace the present unitary one. Then India can without reservation help the Sri Lankans to combat the LTTE. But India cannot wait around for the Sinhalese to make up their minds.