Tiger official, in high profile trip to the

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 COLOMBO 001358

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR SA, SA/INS, S/CT, INR/NESA
NSC FOR E. MILLARD

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08-04-13
TAGS: PGOV PTER PINR CE NO LTTE
SUBJECT: Tiger official, in high profile trip to the
east, sticks to hard-line stance regarding base

Refs: Colombo 1344, and previous

(U) Classified by James F. Entwistle, Charge' d'Affaires.
Reasons 1.5 (b, d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: S.P. Thamilchelvam, political chief of
the Tamil Tigers, has reiterated that the group has no
plans to vacate an unauthorized base it has set up in
Trincomalee and, indeed, there has been no change in the
situation on the ground. Thamilchelvam, who wrapped up
a long visit to the east on August 4, appears to have
used the trip to rally support from the important
eastern Tiger faction on peace process matters. His
trip, which is virtually unprecedented for a high-level
Tiger official, highlights his increasingly prominent
role in the organization. END SUMMARY.


2. (C) TIGERS STICK TO HARD-LINE: S.P. Thamilchelvam,
political chief of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
(LTTE) organization and a close associate of LTTE leader

V. Prabhakaran, has reiterated that the group has no
plans to vacate an unauthorized base it has set up in
Trincomalee District. In comments posted on the pro-
LTTE website "TamilNet" on August 1 and reported in the
Sri Lankan press, Thamilchelvam was quoted as stating
that the base was located well within a long-standing
LTTE area of influence. He added that, in any case, the
base had been there for many years and was not worth
bothering about. These assertions contradict the
findings of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission, "SLMM,"
which has ruled that the base encroaches on government-
controlled territory and was established only within the
past year, thus violating the February 2002 ceasefire
accord (See Reftels). Poloff contacted the SLMM's
Trincomalee office, which confirmed that as of early
August 4 LTTE forces still occupied the site.


3. (C) Norwegian Ambassador Hans Brattskar on August 4
confirmed to Charge' and SFRC staffer Jonah Blank the
lack of progress on the base. He said the next step is
a SLMM ultimatum to the LTTE. If the LTTE does not
respond to that ultimatum, the issue would pass into
Brattskar's "facilitator" channel. Brattskar noted that
his only "weapon" in that event would be tough talk in
Kilinochchi.


4. (C) VISIT TO THE EAST: Thamilchelvam made the
comments regarding the base in the midst of a week-long
visit to eastern Sri Lanka (he returned to the Wanni on
August 4). Observers have commented that the trip is
virtually unprecedented for a high-level Tiger official
representing LTTE leader Prabhakaran and the Tigers'
headquarters in the Wanni region in north-central Sri
Lanka. Jehan Perera, the head of the National Peace
Council, a local think-tank, told us that to his
knowledge there has never been such a public trip by a
high-level Tiger official to the east, though there were
almost certainly numerous clandestine visits during the
war years. Perera commented that based on what he had
had heard and read on TamilNet it seemed that
Thamilchelvam was using the trip to brief the important
eastern faction of the LTTE on the status of the peace
process. (Note: The LTTE is believed to have two major
factions: the most important one hails from Jaffna and
includes much of the senior leadership, including
Prabhakaran and Thamilchelvam; the other is from the
east and supplies many recruits for the LTTE's military
forces.) Perera went on to remark that the briefings
probably focused on the LTTE's next steps in regard to
the government's recent proposal outlining possible
modalities for forming an interim administration in the
north/east (see Reftels).


5. (C) With respect to the specifics of his visit to
the east, Thamilchelvam held a slew of rallies, in
addition to holding meetings with top LTTE officials in
the region. According to press reporting, a sampling of
Thamilchelvam's activities included:

-- On July 27, shortly after arriving in the region,
Thamilchelvam spoke to a rally attended by thousands of
LTTE supporters at Meenaham, a LTTE military base
located approximately 40 kilometers northwest of
Batticaloa town. (Note: Meenaham is believed to be one
of the Tigers' major bases in the jungle areas of
Batticaloa.)

-- On July 27-28, Thamilchelvam held meetings with the
LTTE's eastern commander "Karuna" and other local LTTE
commanders. (Note: There are no reports indicating
that Thamilchelvam met with "Karikalan," who used to be
considered a senior LTTE official in Batticaloa, but
seems to have been sidelined by the LTTE leadership in
recent months.)
-- On July 29, Thamilchelvam and Karuna held a joint
meeting with local NGO's working in the Batticaloa area.

-- On August 1, Thamilchelvam traveled to Trincomalee
District where he met with LTTE district commander
"Colonel Pathuman" and district political chief
"Thilak." The meeting took place in Sampur, a LTTE-
controlled coastal area located northeast of Mutur town
and southeast of Trincomalee city.
(Note: Norwegian Ambassador Brattskar confirmed that
Thamilchelvam apparently did not visit the controversial
military base set up near Trincomalee city mentioned
above.)

-- On August 2, Thamilchelvam participated in the
ceremonial opening of a computer training center
established by the Tamil Rehabilitation Organization
(TRO),a LTTE-controlled NGO, in the Mutur area. Later
that day, Thamilchelvam addressed a large gathering of
Trincomalee government officials.

-- On August 4 (or thereabouts),Thamilchelvam was
slated to return via helicopter to LTTE headquarters in
the Wanni region.

(Note: In his comings and goings in the east,
Thamilchelvam has been taken around by a GSL helicopter.
This has proven controversial, with some strongly anti-
LTTE elements in the south complaining that the Tigers
do not warrant such treatment.)


6. (C) COMMENT: Thamilchelvam's remarks on the base in
Trincomalee indicate that there has been no change in
the group's hard-line stance so far, despite some hopes
that the LTTE might be reconsidering its position.
After being very public in its complaints about the LTTE
over the issue for a couple of weeks, the SLMM has been
more low-key of late, perhaps hoping that quiet
diplomacy might lead to a breakthrough.


7. (C) COMMENT (Continued): Thamilchelvam's trip
highlights his increasingly prominent role in the LTTE
organization. In fact, on political issues,
Thamilchelvam seems almost as important within LTTE
leadership ranks at this time as the seriously ill Anton
Balasingham, the group's longtime spokesman and chief
negotiator. END COMMENT.


8. (U) Minimize considered.

ENTWISTLE