A blood-soaked Independence

by Anjali Sharma

(February 11, Chennai, Sri Lanka Guardian) The series of bomb blasts killed 48 people between February 2 and 4 marred the Diamond Jubilee celebrations of the Sri Lanka’s Independence from the British rule... The celebrations, held at Galle Greens in full public view despite repeated threats, were also marred by party politics when opposition parties including UNP, JVP and TNA refused to be a part of the procession.

The attacks opened up the Pandora’s Box when the US condemned the group for targeting civilian population and Rajapaksa ordered his troops to step up its operations three times to wrest the control of Wanni region from the rebels. The call for the “Final Battle” has already been given by the President with government authorities maintaining that the war in the North will be over within three to four months time. LTTE’s calling of the Northern theatre “Highway of Death” appeared to give the organization the false image of a battle-hardened force but in reality, it’s not the case. Though LTTE still has enough number of cadres to fight the government forces out, majority of them are the underage unwilling new recruits who are unaware of the battle hardships. Majority of their ships were drowned by the Sri Lanka Navy and of late, the group has also lost three of its aircrafts.

Though the Sri Lankan government asked India to take immediate action against LTTE taking advantage of the Tamil Nadu fishing fleet to attack its naval forces, it is a known fact that the Indian support to the Tamil rebels has been waning. Three persons were caught smuggling 700 kgs of coins to the LTTE in Sri Lanka by the Indian authorities. In the meanwhile, the Indian TV Network ‘Times Now’ reportedly claimed to have been spotted the LTTE Chief Prabhakaran’s wife Mathivathani in Kerala. If that be the case, there is a growing fear that LTTE might start using the Kerala Coast for its clandestine operations in India and Sri Lanka.