LTTE CLOSES FIELD OFFICES AMID CEASE FIRE

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 COLOMBO 001224

SIPDIS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/15/2015
TAGS: PGOV PTER CE LTTE
SUBJECT: LTTE CLOSES FIELD OFFICES AMID CEASE FIRE
VIOLATIONS

REF: A. COLOMBO 1217

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SUMMARY
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1. (C) The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) have
ordered all political cadres to close field offices in the
Trincomalee and Batticaloa districts of the Eastern Province
and return to LTTE headquarters in Kilinochi, Northern
Province. The LTTE has also ordered all 22 Tamil National
Alliance (TNA) parliamentarians to Kilinochi for
consultations. Following the July 10 murders of two senior
political cadres, suspected LTTE members have carried out six
grenade attacks against police and the Sri Lankan Army (SLA)
targets of opportunity. Today July 14 the Ambassador hosted
a lunch with the co-chairs of the Sri Lankan peace process.
Information shared included that the Government of Sri Lanka
(GSL) had nominated it's representative to the P-TOMS high
level committee and the LTTE had selected, but not named all
it's members for the high level and regional committees.
Norwegians may host talks on strengthening the cease-fire,
but the LTTE has not yet agreed. It was agreed that P-TOMS
could not be implemented in the current environment of Cease
Fire Agreement (CFA) violations. END SUMMARY.

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CLOSED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE
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2. (C) This is the third closure of LTTE field offices since
the CFA. The LTTE told the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission
(SLMM) that the closure was temporary, but didn't indicate
for how long. It is unclear if this because of the
deteriorating situation on the ground or as a harbinger of a
broader response by the LTTE. A POL FSN contact with access
to the LTTE reported that LTTE Eastern military commander COL
Bhanu intends to continue his strategy of "filtering out",
meaning assassinate, rebels from the Karuna faction and
informants for the intelligence services. This campaign will
also be carried out in the Colombo district.

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HAVE GRENADE, WILL TRAVEL
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3. (C) Since the July 10 murder of the high level LTTE
cadres, there have been ten grenade or shooting attacks on
GSL security forces. The attacks are uncoordinated and have
resulted in no deaths. Contrary to reports in the western
press, there have been NO/NO attacks on tsunami refugee
camps. The attack on a military guard post outside of a
refugee camp on July 13 did result in one civilian being
slightly injured.

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POW WOW OR WAR COUNCIL
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4. (C) The TNA MPs will receive instructions from LTTE
political head S. P. Thamilchelvan on July 17 in Kilinochi.
It is expected to include talking points regarding the GSL
refusal of the LTTE ultimatum to increase security for
unarmed transiting LTTE cadres. Although not expected to
break the CFA, LTTE press officer Dayan Master told the
vernacular press that the LTTE will use the June 30 date of
their ultimatum as their notification date for stepping away
from the CFA. (NOTE: Everyone is expecting a "Big"
announcement. END NOTE) According to the Norwegians, SLMM
head Haukland feels the transportation issue can be solved.

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NORWEGIANS MULLING CEASE FIRE TALKS
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5. (C) Norwegian Charge d' Affaires Oddvar Laegreid told
co-chairs on July 13 they are considering hosting a round of
talks on strengthening the CFA. The GSL has agreed but the
LTTE so far has been negative, citing the CFA violations.
The talks would be held in Sri Lanka in, yet to be
determined, neutral territory. The Ambassador pressed
Laegried for early action if possible, and Laegreid said he
would discuss it in a phone call with Solhiem later that
afternoon. Co-chair representatives agreed there was little
chance of movement on P-TOMS implementation until the cease
fire issue was addressed.

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P-TOMS CLUB
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6. (SBU) The GSL announced Thursday morning the selection of
Constitutional Affairs Minister D.E.W. Gunasekera to be their
representative on the P-TOMS High level committee. The World
Bank is the GSL choice to administer the P-TOMS trust fund.
According to the Norwegians the LTTE have selected all
members for both the High and Regional level committees. All
guests at the Ambassador's lunch agreed that Muslim leaders
are acting out of wounded pride more that a discernible
mandate from the Muslim street. A P-TOMS project office in
the east could assuage Muslim concerns and is permissible
under the P-TOMS. The Sri Lanka Supreme Court is expected to
announce July 15 whether it will grant interim relief to the
plaintiffs in the case challenging the constitutionality of
the P-TOMS agreement. A negative ruling on P-TOMS would be a
severe blow for the President. All parties agreed that
P-TOMS implementation will be impossible under the current
level of CFA violations.

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COMMENT
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7. (SBU) The violence in the Trincomalee area is at a high
level but does not yet, we believe, indicate a wider
breakdown. The Supreme Court decision and expected LTTE
pronouncement will indicate where things may be going. We
believe Norwegian efforts to get the cease fire back on track
are imperative.
LUNSTEAD