Paramilitary threatens Tamil MPs from Batticaloa, Amparai to resign their seats before Monday

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 21 November 2006, 07:35 GMT]
A paramilitary Karuna Group operative, identifying himself as Gunanan, operating from the office of the group located in Sri Lanka Army controlled Batticaloa town, has issued death threats to Tamil parliamentarians from the East, Tamil National Alliance said in a letter to the Speaker of the Sri Lankan Parliament Tuesday. If the 8 parliamentarians from Trincomalee, Batticaloa and Amparai, did not resign their posts before coming Monday, November 27, they would be assassinated, the group has warned. 4 key members of the the TNA, 2 MPs, an ex-MP and a to-be-nominated MP, have been assassinated during the past 2 years.

TNA consists 22 members of Parliament of the 23 Tamil members elected from the NorthEast.

Full text of the letter from Tamil National Alliance parliamentary group follows:

Parliamentary Housing Complex,
Madivela,
Sri Jayawardenapura, Kotte.


21 November 2006

Hon. W.J.M. Lokubandara,
The Speaker,
Parliament,
Sri Jayawardenapura,
Kotte.

Hon. Speaker,

DEATH THREATS TO TAMIL NATIONAL ALLIANCE (ITAK) MEMBERS FROM BATTICALOA AND AMPARAI

On the Sunday the19th of November 2006 between 8.00pm and 8.30pm, we the undersigned Members of Parliament from the Batticaloa and Amparai Districts and the National List of the Tamil National Alliance (ITAK) received death threats over the phone. We were informed specifically that if we did not resign from being Members of Parliament we would be killed.

The person who spoke to each of us introduced himself as Gunanan of the Thamil Eela Makkal Viduthalai Puligal (TMVP) Batticaloa Office. He warned that if the eight MPs belonging to the Tamil National Alliance (ITAK) from the Eastern Province did not resign by the 27th of November 2006, all eight MPs will end up receiving the “Maamanithar” (Great Human Being) award posthumously as all eight MPs would be killed. The caller stated that this was the order of their leader.

Considering the fact that the Tamil National Alliance (ITAK) has already lost several of its members due to assassinations, these latest death threats must be viewed with utmost seriousness. We would like to take this opportunity to point out that MPs Joseph Pararajasingham and Nadarajah Raviraj were also assassinated after receiving similar death threats.

You will appreciate that these threats to our lives greatly affect our ability to duly perform our duties. Therefore in view of the aforementioned we strongly urge you as the custodian of the rights and privileges of the Members of Parliament to take all necessary steps to enable us to safely carry out our duties by the people who voted us to office. Thanking you.

T. KANAGASABAI M.P.
(Batticaloa District)

THANGESWARI KATHIRAMAN M.P
(Batticaloa District)

S. JEYANANDAMOORTHY M.P.
(Batticaloa District)

P. ARIYANETHRAN M.P.
(Batticaloa District)

K. PATHMANATHAN M.P.
(Amparai District)

C. CHANDRANEHRU M.P.
(National List)

Chronology: