Colonel Karuna alias V.Muralitharan, Leader of the Tamil Makkal Viduthalai Pulikal (TMVP) blamed Velupillai Prabakaran and his outfit LTTE for firing mortar shells at the Western diplomats. He said
'This attack was a deliberate move to send a message to the Western diplomats that they cannot come to the east without their permission.' He dismissed the story of the Tigers that they did not know who was arriving in helicopters as 'utter rubbish' because it was common knowledge in the east that the diplomats were arriving to attend a meeting organized by the Government Agent Batticoloa to discuss resettlement programs. He added that the Tamil Tigers monitor all movements in the east and they are well informed through their networks.
'This pre-arranged meeting,' he said, 'was more or a less a public event and it could not have been kept a state secret with so many civil society and government officials participating in it.. I knew this and my cadres knew it. If the Tigers did not know this important event then they deserve to be court martialed and punished severely.'
'I hope that the Western diplomats will not fall for the excuses put out by their propaganda machine. Their attempt to blame the Sri Lankan government is ridiculous. This is typical of the Tigers. They always hope to reap the benefits from their ruthless violence by passing the buck to others.' |