Liberation Tigers of Tamil of Eelam

LIBERATION TIGERS OF TAMIL EELAM: THE UNTOLD STORY

I. INTRODUCTION

Imagine if you will, you were born into misfortunate group of people that have been continuously treated as if you didn't belong. Ethically, you fell into a small percent of a population of 21 million people, in which you were outnumbered by 10-1. The political regime in power only enacted laws to aid the majority of the population because of religious beliefs, and your family just so happen to be in the minority. What if that same government segregated people like you to a certain part of the country and you were told to remain in this controlled area where access to proper health care and schools was poor. Unemployment was high within your community and your parents couldn't find work to sustain the needs of your family. Could you stand by and watch as riots spawned by pure hatred claim the lives of hundreds of your friends, family and others that held the same beliefs and principles as you? What would you do? What would it take for you and others like you to get your fair share of equality? Would all of these acts carried out by the government be considered discrimination?

Discrimination can be defined as: to make a difference in treatment or favor on a basis other than individual merit (Merriam-Webster) 1. Could something as perplexing as discrimination lead to terrorism? Within a democratic society, although discrimination can still occur in the shadows, governments do not openly discriminate as the Sri Lankan did against the Tamil population early in the country's history. So why is it so difficult for us to understand that extreme circumstances of prejudices, could lead to acts of violence, rage, and even terrorism? This story is really not just about discrimination, but how discrimination separated two ethnically different populations and how this separation helped forge one of the most notable and terrorist organizations in the world. The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) are a lethal faction that does not fit into any one model of a "normal" terrorist organization. The LTTE are fighting for an independent state of Tamil because they feel the government of Sri Lanka has persecuted the Tamil people for far too long. This organization has been blamed for several high-level assassinations, to include two world leaders, which no other terrorist organization can make that claim.

The LTTE has waged a war against the Sri Lankan government for at least two decades or more, at the cost of seventy-thousand lives lost on both sides. So, to understand how this group has become such a formidable adversary, we must study how this organization came into existence, from a historical perspective. Next, we'll review a few of the LTTE's top leaders and the structural components in place, which has given the groups a high-level of its potency. Next, will focus on their main objectives and uncover some of the activities of the LTTE and the on-going International efforts in place to destroy the group's abilities to commit terrorist activities. Finally, we'll analyze the LTTE's strengths, tie this into their long range prospective and discover some very interest developments that may or may not lead to accomplishing their overall objective of a free and independent state of Tamil. By the end of this guided examination, you should be able to understand how one man's terrorist can become another man's freedom fighter! So, let's begin with a historical prospective of the Liberations Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

II. HISTORY OF THE LIBERATION TIGERS Of TAMIL EELAM

Section 1: The Birth of a Tiger

The LTTE is Hindu/secular organization, not motivated by Islamic fundamentalism or extremism that is common to, and dominates most terrorist organizations. I should also be noted that their objective is not in response to a foreign invader, religion or a western occupation. This is a conflict where both sides, Sinhalese Buddhists and Tamil Hindus are focused on completely destroy each other.

The Sinhalese and the Tamils have coexisted on the island for centuries, and although this existence has been far from peaceful, this has been about a struggle for impartiality and equality for ethnic Tamil minority against the Sinhalese majority.

Since Sri Lanka's independence from Britain in 1948, the Tamil minority has felt an inevitable division, politically and ethnically. The Sinhalese population, 93% practicing Buddhism, has retained power throughout Sri Lanka's history. Because the Sinhalese led government has dominated the country for so long, the Tamil population has had a very small voice in the island's political climate.

Shortly after Sri Lanka regained its independence from British rule, the government enacted the Sinhala Act of 1956. This act declared Sinhala as the official language of the island thus, limiting university admissions and jobs to only Sinhala speaking population. The state's brutal response to peaceful protests by Tamils, and the outbreak of anti-Tamil violence on the island spurred the escalation of demands and led to Tamil political group's opposition to this declaration.

"Almost the first act (of the newly elected Bandaranaike Government) had been the passing of the 'Sinhala Only' Bill against the unanimous opposition of the entire Tamil people who wanted a place of honor for their own language. Thereby this Government has struck a grievous blow at the unity of this country, which stands divided today (Somasunderam Nadesan Q.C.) 2. The government's lack of concern for the Tamil minority continued to shadow the situation and increase hostilities.

Section 2: The Formation of the TULF

Amid the turmoil and fallout from the Sinhala Act of 1956, Tamil political groups merged on May 4th, 1972, including the All Ceylon Tamil Congress, and formed the Tamil United Front (TUF). The Federal Party joined the TUF in 1976, and the TUF changed its name to the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF). The purpose of the TULF was to facilitate an independent state to be known as the "secular, socialist state of Tamil Eelam". The Parliamentary General Election of 1977 became the first general election contested by the TULF. The TULF won 6.40% of the popular vote and 18 out of 168 seats in the Sri Lankan Parliament. In October of '83, the TULF's legislators, numbering sixteen at the time, forfeited their seats in Parliament for refusing to swear to an oath unconditionally renouncing support for a separate state in accordance