PRO-GOSL TAMIL POLITICOS VISITED FORMER MILITANTS IN THE SOUTH !!!

Tamil politicos satisfied with rehabilitation process

Shanika SRIYANANDA

Former Vavuniya district Parliamentarian and People’s Liberation Organisation Tamil Eelam Leader D. Sitharthan along with the General Secretary of the Eelam People’s Revolutionary Liberation Front (NABA) T. Sritharan who visited the rehabilitation centres set up for former LTTE cadres in Ambepussa and Pallekele have expressed satisfaction over the rehabilitation measures carried out in those centres.

Sitharthan and Sritharan visited the Ambepussa and Pallekele rehabilitation centres on Friday accompanied by the Secretary to the Ministry of Justice S. Gamlath.

Sitharthan told the Sunday Observer that T. Sritharan and he were the first Tamil politicians to visit those two rehabilitation centres set up for former LTTE cadres and they were extremely satisfied over the measures adopted at the centres with regard to rehabilitation activities.

“We presented various gifts to the former LTTE child cadres - around one-hundred members - girls and boys who are being rehabilitated at the Ambepussa centre. They have been provided all facilities and vocational training. The youngsters have been trained to handle computers. Those who handled guns are now conversant with the computer,” Sitharthan said.

He added that the LTTE proxies were carrying out adverse publicity on the cadres who had surrendered to the Security Forces.

But, we had seen everything in ‘black and white’, the way the rehabilitation is being carried out. Everything is in order and the former LTTE cadres are treated with extreme care. “In Pallekele there were around 800 former LTTE cadres, including certain senior members of the outfit.

The officials and civilians who are attending to these cadres are acting with great concern and all their essential needs are met,” he said.

Meanwhile, Major-General Jagath Jayasuriya, Wanni Security Forces Commander said that all measures were in place to distinguish the LTTE cadres from the IDPs. We scan all the IDPs at Omanthai and separate the cadres from the lot.

There were 58 underaged cadres and a 14-year-old boy was among them.

We have sent all of them to the Ambepussa centre where the UNICEF and the Ministry of Justice are looking into the rehabilitation process of the former young cadres.

We took some of their parents also to the Ambepussa camp and showed them how the rehabilitation process is being carried out.” Maj. Gen. Jagath Jayasuriya said.
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Sunday, 10 May 2009

Program to rehabilitate LTTE surrendees
P. Krishnaswamy

Deputy Minister of Justice and Law Reform V. Puthirasigamoney told the Sunday Observer that 3,000 Tiger cadres surrendered to the Government forces during the recent gallant operations and thrust into heavily protected LTTE areas in Mullaitivu and his ministry is working on programs to rehabilitate the LTTE cadres.

The Justice Ministry was now under the direct purview of President Mahinda Rajapaksa and he (the President) has given instructions to adopt a humanitarian approach towards the LTTE cadres surrendering to the Government forces and to take all steps necessary to rehabilitate them and bring them back into the society, Puthirasigamoney said. Consequently they were working in coordination with the Presidential Secretariat on formulating programs on rehabilitating the former LTTE cadres and merging them into the society.

SUNDAYOBSERVER.LK