"Double 00" Hit on Well-Known Tamil Politician

C O N F I D E N T I A L COLOMBO 000966

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR SA, SA/INS AND CA/VO FROM THE AMBASSADOR

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06-10-14
TAGS: CVIS PREL PINR PTER CE LTTE
SUBJECT: "Double 00" Hit on Well-Known Tamil Politician


(U) Classified by Ambassador Jeffrey J. Lunstead.
Reasons 1.5 (b,d).


1. (C) By Septel, our consular chief is submitting a
Visas Donkey cable regarding the June 9 visa application
of Rajavarothiam Sampanthan, a veteran Tamil politician
and respected member of Parliament representing the
Tamil National Alliance (TNA). Mr. Sampanthan applied
for a visa to attend the annual convention of a Tamil
cultural and charity organization and visit family
members in the United States and is planning to visit
Canada on the same trip. Mr. Sampanthan has been issued
several previous U.S. visas over the years. To our
surprise, Mr. Sampanthan has come up as a "Double 00"
hit and, in response to a telephone query to VO by our
consular chief, we have received an e-mail advising that
he is also on a "watchlist."


2. (C) This is news to us. Sampanthan is a long-
standing Embassy contact and a regular fixture on the
schedules of high-level USG visitors. For example, he
met with SA A/S Rocca during her visit to Sri Lanka last
month, along with several of his TNA colleagues. The
May 2004 meeting was Sampanthan's second with the
Assistant Secretary; they had previously met during A/S
Rocca's May 2003 visit. Sampanthan was also one of the
key interlocutors during a January 2004 visit by
Congressional staffers on the House International
Relations Committee. He has met with Ambassador
Lunstead on several occasions, continuing a relationship
he had with previous U.S. ambassadors.


3. (C) It is important to note that while the TNA
shares some of the political objectives of the terrorist
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) which is on the
USG Foreign Terrorist Organizations (FTO) list, the TNA
is a respected political party and is not a terrorist
organization. TNA members should not be on any sort of
"watchlist" solely due to TNA affiliation. The TNA does
have a close political relationship with the LTTE. As
U.S. officials are prohibited from meeting with the
LTTE, our association with the TNA, and Sampanthan in
particular as a senior member, provides a crucial avenue
for gaining insight into the LTTE's stance on issues,
especially the peace process with the GSL. In return,
our dialogue with the TNA enables us to be explicit
about the reasons the LTTE is listed as a U.S. FTO and
to reinforce what the U.S. is seeking from the LTTE to
be able to remove them from the list.


4. (C) Given Sampanthan's political prominence and his
long association with the Embassy, I ask that this
matter be expedited so that we can facilitate his
travel. If anyone in "the community" has information
which would justify not issuing a visa to Mr. Sampanthan
or his presence on a watchlist, please share it with us
immediately (as it should have been before being entered
into any sort of database).

LUNSTEAD