If the Tigers proscription had been made earlier many sad instances could have been avoid

(January 09, Colombo, Sri Lanka Guardian) Mr. Douglas Devananda, Minister of Social Services and Social Welfare, General Secretary of EPDP and Chairman of Special Task Committee Northern Province, expressing his views concerning the proscription of the Tiger Organization stated that whilst the EPDP appreciated and valued the decision arrived at by the Government of Sri Lanka to ban the Tiger Organization, it was a decision of extreme importance. He added that, had the proscription been made earlier many sad instances could have been prevented. However even of late, it was a timely step.

Mr. Douglas Devananda also said that the lack of response on the part of the Tigers for peace talks and their refusal to join the democratic mainstream had compelled the Government to arrive at this decision. Using more than 2 ½ lakhs of innocent civilians as human shield was a shocking and an unpardonable terrorist activity, the Minister stated and their organization had been proscribed at a time when they were engaged in slaying those with alternate ideas, those who refused to pay extortions and those who did not support them.

The Government was extended with the opportunity of redeeming the Tamil people resorting to humanitarian measures from the grip of Tiger terrorists who had said that they were fighting for the rights of the Tamil people. The Tiger proscription can also be described as an Act of redeeming the Tamil people from the inhuman cruelties inflicted upon them by the Tigers, the Minister said.

Though some say that the Tiger proscription was a tactic adopted by the Government to circumvent discussions with them, the Minister said that he was of a different view. He added that Tigers at any time had never made a genuine attempt to bring an honourable political solution to the problem of the Tamil people. The Tigers had a history of kicking out many opportunities emerged for arriving at a political solution to the problem of Tamils. At every opportunity arose for a political settlement they used such opportunities to build up their authoritative to power. Tigers never worked for the wellbeing of the Tamil people. Therefore, a political solution, to the problem, the Tamil people aspire for could never be obtained from the Tigers, the Minister added.

Proscription of the Tiger organization would help prevent the terrorist activities committed by the Tigers. Though it was necessary to take steps to suppress the activities of the Tiger terrorists, no room should be left to bring harm to innocent Tamil people. It was because of this that the EPDP had been quite for sometime saying that the problems of the Tamil people were different from those of the Tigers. The Minister further stated that the liberation to the Tamil people would only dawn when Tiger terrorism was wiped out and democracy reigned supreme over terrorism. - Sri Lanka Guardian