2ND LEAD (Adds Ganesan's press release)

TID interrogates Mano Ganesan

[TamilNet, Tuesday, 26 August 2008, 08:02 GMT]
The leader of the Western Province People's Front (WPPF) and a Member of Sri Lankan Parliament Mano Ganesan is being questioned by the Sri Lankan Terrorist Investigation Department (TID) Tuesday morning, informed sources in Colombo told TamilNet.

Mr. Mano Ganesan, as the convener of Civil Monitoring Commission (CMC), has voiced against the level of the culture of impunity prevailing in Sri Lanka.

Full text of the press release issued by Mano Ganesan's office in Colombo following the interrrogation follows:

TID questioned Civil Monitoring Commission Convener and Western Peoples Front Leader Mano Ganesan for six hours from 11am on Tuesday. The questions were based on his peace delegation visits to Killinochchi during the CFA period in 2002 and 2004. The TID sleuths wanted to know if Mano had developed any special relationships with LTTE during the those visits. Mano Ganesan’s office has released following statement in this regard.

WPF Leader Mano Ganesan accepted the written request extended to him by the Director of TID. This is in accordance with our policy of supporting the maintenance of Law and Order and cooperating with the legal system.

Ganesan said he had given a statement to TID’s OIC-CI Prasanna de Alwis and SI Abdeen of TID/Unit II. The statement had following contents. Ganesan said he visited Killinochchi during peace process period. It was legal and accepted during that time. All discussions were based on political solution within a united Sri Lankan state. It was not only him but ministers of the following government Arumugan Thondaman and P. Chandrasekaran visited Kilinochchi. Every time he went to Kilinochchi for discussions, the then prime minister Ranil Wickramasinghe and UNP’s deputy leader Karu Jayasooriya were informed. The last time he went to Kilinochchi in 2005, Karuna Amman had rifted from LTE. Mano Ganesan carried a message to LTTE leader Velupillai Prabakaran from then president Chandrika Bandaranayake Kumaratunga on Karuna Amman in 2005. He had vehemently refused any special relationship with LTTE and any link with any arrested persons in Colombo and south. In view of the question on so called ‘special relationship’, Ganesan said many were under such wrong belief. During the close up to last presidential elections, late minister Jeyaraj Fernandopulle and present presidential advisor Basil Rajapakse MP visited his home with a request for a special link with LTTE. It was to arrange an electoral boycott in the north and eastern province during the presidential elections in November 2005. They came with such wrong impression of him. But Ganesan rejected such request on the grounds that he had no such special relationship with the LTTE to help Jeyaraj and Basil for a election boycott in the north and east. The statement further said that all his comments were typed included in his statement to the TID and he placed his signature on it. Mano Ganesan was accompanied to the TID by parliamentarians Jayalath Jayawardena, Johnston Fernando and his Attorney-at-Law Asthika Devendra.

In the recent past opposition parliamentarians Jayalath Jayawardena, Vijitha Herath and Ramalingam Chandrasekar were subjected to inquiries at TID. Many terrorist linked accusations were made inside and outside parliament against many government politicians including of the last presidential election boycott issue. But no such police investigations were made against any government politicians."

Chronology: