LTTE detainees will be treated differently - Govt.

Government of Sri Lanka says that suspected Tamil Tiger detainees cannot be treated under the same law as everyone else.

 

The Deputy Minister of Economic Development, Lakshman Yapa Abeywardhana told the BBC, that any country in the world would agree that they could not be treated like ordinary criminals.

 

Earlier in the week, The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) stated Sri Lanka has failed to adhere to international law in detaining suspected Tamil Tigers.

 

Largest mass detention in the world

 

The watchdog says the detention of nearly 8,000 rebel suspects for months without a trial is perhaps “the largest mass detention in the world”.

 

It urges Sri Lanka’s donors and the UN to urge Colombo to improve its human rights situation.

 

Defending the position taken by Sri Lanka, Minister Yapa says that it is “difficult to gather evidence” against the suspected Tamil Tigers from the Northern and Eastern areas.

 

independent Nation

 

“The detainees are providing us with information about others who are still at large. The authorities need to keep them for longer to extract more information about the rebel activities and people involved” the minister said.

 

“We are an independent Nation. We are not going to bow down to foreign powers in order to get aid” the minister told the BBC Sinhala Service.

 

The main opposition agrees with the position taken by the government.
In an interview with the BBC, former minister of Rajapaksa government and the deputy leader of the United National party (UNP), Karu Jayasuriya says that international organisations should not try imopse conditions on a soveriegn nation.

 

Opposition agrees

 

“Now is not the time to put conditions on the country”. Say the deputy leader of the UNP.

 

“We can’t agree with the government about their treatment of former Tamil Tigers.” Say the deputy leader of the UNP,” While they treat former rebel leaders KP, Karuna and Pillayan in a different manner, the government is keeping the rest in detention. We have to treat everyone in an equal manner.” BBC reports.