Australian man missing in Sri Lanka was kidnapped by secret police-wife

| by Malin Abeyatunge

Letter to Editor

( April 12, 2012, Sydney, Sri Lanka Guardian) The Australian Herald Sun (9 April 2012) and the rest of the print and electronic media reported that an Australian citizen by the name of Premakumar Gunaratnam has gone missing in Sri Lanka and his wife feared that he would have been abducted by the Government Secret Police. Now, this a completely misleading story and the editor would have given a second thought to verify of the veracity of the statement made by his wife (She has not seen him since 2006). Without going into further investigation a DEFAT spokeswoman jumped the gun and alleged to have said "We are seeking urgent clarification on the situation from the Sri Lankan authorities," Instead asking for clarification, the DFAT spokeswoman should find out why this so called Australian citizen alleged to have involved in hostile politics in Sri Lanka. He is supposed to have had three aliases according to our External Ministry and find out how he got a Australian Passport in the name of Noel Mudalige where his actual name is Premkumar Gunaratnam.. It appears that Australia is a haven for fake passports. Now the missing man has suddenly reappeared in a Sri Lankan Police Station, what has DFAT got to say now?

He is alleged to have been involved in the official launch of the Frontline Socialist Party, a political group formed by dissidents from the opposition People's Liberation Front (JVP) who are used to use terrorism to achieve their goal.

The JVP led two failed bids to violently overthrow governments in 1971 and 1987 in campaigns that left up to 100,000 people dead.

Here is an Australian citizen, gone to Sri Lanka with a fake passport to launch a new political party.

Let me bring to the notice of the relevant Australian authorities and the media of an Act passed by The Australian Government as far back as 1978 titled “CRIMES (FOREIGN INCURSION AND RECRUITMENT) ACT 1978. According to the Section 6 and 7 of this act, that it is an offence for an Australian citizen whether within or outside Australia” with intent to engage in hostile activity in that foreign state.

So why this Australian citizen appear in three aliases get involved in hostile political activities in Sri Lanka? The relevant Australian authorities should answer how a same person alleged to have got a Australian Passport with three aliases according to the reports coming from Sri Lanka external Ministry.

What the DFAT or the Government should do now is to bring this mysterious Australian who had been doing hostile politics with a rebel group -breakaway group from JVP) with some LTTE diehards ( those who had been released to the main stream –a mistake made by the Sri Lankan Government to please International western block) in Sri Lanka and charge him under this act in which the punishment if proved is 14 years in jail. He has already left Sri Lanka to Australia escorted to the plane by Australian Embassy officials. MISSING MAN ACCORDING TO AUSTRALIAN MEDIA SUDDENLY REAPPEARING? Those authorities and Media who do not know the above mentioned act, please go through the Act and take appropriate action against this Australian citizen without blaming the Sri Lankan Government.

The Sri Lankan Community is aware that so many Australian citizens of Tamil origin who traveled down to Sri Lanka during the conflict and worked hand in glove with LTTE terrorists including training as combatants but Australian Authorities have failed to bring them into books according to this act.