Killing of MP Sivanesan, driver:

Anandasangaree demands LTTE take full responsibility

In a strongly worded statement V.Anandasangaree, demanded the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam led by Velupillai Prabakaran to take complete responsibility for the killing of Kiddinan Sivanesan the Tamil Nation Alliance Member of Parliament of the Jaffna district and his driver Maheswararajah, in Vanni on March 6.

While condemning the killing of Sivanesan and his driver Maheswararajah, Anandasangaree has posed a pertinent question to the LTTE to response regarding these killings.

According to the statement of the TULF President, the said incident had taken place about 2 miles from Mankulam on the A9 road and about 190 miles from Colombo. Of these 190 miles he points out that about 170 miles fall within the Government controlled areas and therefore under the army’s control.

He said that no man with any sense will say that the penetrating unit went into the LTTE held areas to a distance of about 20 miles from the defense line to plant the claymore mine, when they had 170 miles of the highway under their command. Anandasangaree alleged that it was by such type of silly accusations that the LTTE and the TNA Members had lost their credibility.

He adds, “No one believes their stories because their political honesty is questionable.” Anandasangaree furthermore pleaded with the LTTE to stop planting claymore mines any more. He added “ The LTTE Leader’s honoring the dead with titles like “Great-man” or “Mamanithan” will not give satisfaction to the victim’s kith and kin because they know that it is real mockery and will never bring the dead back to life.”

Excerpts of TULF Leader V. Anandasangaree’s press statement “I very strongly condemn the most brutal manner in which K. Sivanesan, Member of Parliament for the Jaffna Electoral District and his Driver Maheswararajah, were killed.

I express my deepest sympathies to the wives and children of these unfortunate victims and to their friends and relations. I am one who always pray that even my worst enemy should not face death in this manner and I had been always condemning death by violence. Neither I condone such killings nor rejoice at it.

This unfortunate incident had taken place on Thursday afternoon and a section of the Tamil Print Media irresponsibly carried this news the following day morning accusing the Government Forces of using their penetrating unit to target the M.P. with a claymore mine. Even the TNA Members of Parliament in their statement had recklessly charged that the Government should take full responsibility for this incident.

I do not hold a brief to anybody. But I do not want the TNA Members of Parliament to fool everybody. They had fooled the Tamil People long enough and they can’t continue to do so. The said Member had attended Parliament on Wednesday the 5th and left for Mallavi in Vanni through Mankulam.

This incident had taken place about 2 miles from Mankulam on the A9 road and about 190 miles from Colombo. Of these 190 miles about 170 miles fall within the Government controlled areas and therefore under the army’s control.

No man with any sense will say that the penetrating unit went into the LTTE held areas to a distance of about 20 miles from the defense line to plant the claymore mine, when they had 170 miles of the highway under their command.

It is by this type of silly accusations that the LTTE and the TNA Members had lost their credibility. No one believes their stories because their political honesty is questionable. I am very deeply concerned about the safety of the innocent civilians in the LTTE held areas.

The entire Kilinochchi Electorate and portions of Mullaitivu Electorate in the Vanni were represented by me in Parliament. The LTTE and the TNA Members are trying to bury a big pumpkin in a plate of rice as a Tamil proverb goes. Obviously the LTTE is trying to make the International Community believe their story and the TNA is supporting it.

The claymore mine at Kanagarayankulam had really been planted by the LTTE cadres itself targeting some of their leaders. For whom it was targeted one will never know but certainly not targeting any Member of Parliament.

If we assume that the penetrating Unit of the Army did it, then no LTTE leader or any Member of Parliament is safe in the Vanni, a strong hold of the LTTE. The whole world is weeping for Mr. Sivanesan and condemning his killing. I too am weeping for Sivanesan and condemning his killing but not shedding crocodile tears like the TNA Members who as claimed by many were never elected at a free and fair election but handpicked by the LTTE and sent to Parliament through a defunct political party, the Federal Party, as their proxies”.