SRI LANKA: ISOLATED VIOLENT INCIDENTS IN NORTH AND

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 COLOMBO 001184 SIPDIS SIPDIS SENSITIVE E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PTER CE SUBJECT: SRI LANKA: ISOLATED VIOLENT INCIDENTS IN NORTH AND EAST CONTINUE ¶1. (SBU) Summary: A July 12 gun battle between the Sri Lankan Army (SLA) and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) in the eastern region of Batticaloa left 12 SLA troops and reportedly 4 LTTE cadres dead and marked the beginning of several small violent incidents in Sri Lanka's north and east, including 2 claymore mine attacks that killed a total of 5 civilians. Against this backdrop, the Government of Sri Lanka (GSL) recently made a generous gesture of good faith by permitting LTTE spokesman Daya Master to come to Colombo for medical treatment. The LTTE did not reciprocate with any such confidence-building measure. Persistent low-level violence is now the norm, with violations of the Cease-Fire Agreement on either side but no return to full-scale hostilities. End summary. -------------- ISOLATED INCIDENTS OF VIOLENCE CONTINUE; DEATH TOLL AT 75 SINCE JULY 1 -------------- ¶2. (U) According to press reports, a July 12 gun battle in Welikanda, in the eastern region of Batticaloa, between the Sri Lankan Army (SLA) and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE),left 12 SLA troops and possibly 4 LTTE cadres dead. Several SLA soldiers were reported missing after the battle. On July 17, the LTTE said it had detained one soldier and gave the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) permission to visit the detainee. ¶3. (SBU) Although the first week of July was relatively peaceful, a total of 75 people have died in violent incidents since July 1, including 29 Sri Lankan security forces, 4 paramilitary troops, 12 LTTE cadres, and 30 civilians-- 25 Tamils, 4 Muslims, and 1 Sinhalese. Low-level violence continued after the July 12 skirmish. The morning of July 16, the LTTE launched an attack against the Selvanagar Army Camp in Trincomalee District. One soldier was killed and one civilian was injured. The Sri Lankan Army's website reported that Sri Lankan troops returned fire on the Tigers, but the number of LTTE casualties was unknown. ¶4. (U) The press also reported that on July 16 in Jaffna, two Tamil civilians were shot and killed by unidentified assailants alleged to be LTTE cadres. That same day in Batticaloa, 4 Tamil civilians were abducted, one of whom was later found shot dead. An Eelam People's Democratic Party (EPDP) press release ;accused the LTTE of the abductions. The Media Center for National Security also blamed the LTTE, positing that the deceased victim was a former LTTE cadre and citing villagers saying the 3 surviving abductees left the area to join the LTTE. ¶5. (U) A remotely detonated claymore mine, presumably placed by the LTTE, killed one Sri Lankan Army (SLA) soldier, wounded 2, and injured 4 civilians near the Sivam Kovil (a Hindu temple) in the Jaffna Area on July 17. Later that same day, another claymore mine injured an SLA soldier on foot patrol near Mannar on the west coast. ¶6. (U) In Ampara July 17, Special Task Force (STF) personnel arrested an armed LTTE suspect at a roadblock. Just after midnight that night, LTTE cadres fired on a police patrol in Ampara, injuring a constable. Another claymore mine blast in Jaffna July 18 killed one and injured 6 civilians and 4 soldiers. The same day, a claymore mine was discovered and defused near a dormitory at Batticaloa's Eastern University. On July 19, a claymore mine in Jaffna killed 1 SLA officer and 1 civilian and injured 10 COLOMBO 00001184 002 OF 003 others. ¶7. (SBU) In a July 19 phone conversation with poloff, a spokesman for the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) said he was "90 percent sure" the LTTE was behind "most" of the claymore attacks. The spokesman noted that the current situation is so fragile that any small act of violence leads to escalation, although he was not sure the responses on either side were pre-meditated. -------------- "HUMANITARIAN GESTURE" -------------- ¶8. (U) On July 13, the GSL permitted LTTE spokesman Daya Master to come to Colombo for medical treatment. In press reports, GSL Defense Spokesman Keheliya Rambukwella called the action a "humanitarian gesture that might resuscitate the peace process." The Buddhist monk-based Jathika Hela Urumaya (JHU) registered vociferous objections. A JHU-affiliated group called the National Movement Against Terror (NMAT) staged a protest outside Master's hospital, demanding that he be arrested. Master reportedly underwent an angiogram and was then released and returned to LTTE headquarters in Kilinochchi. ¶9. (U) July 16, papers prominently featured an appeal from the mother of a Sri Lankan police officer being held by the LTTE. The officer was taken into custody 10 months ago when he pursued a suspected foreign pedophile into LTTE-controlled territory. A newspaper quoted the policeman's mother asking for her son's release as an equivalent "humanitarian gesture" to match the GSL's assistance to Daya Master. July 18 press reports said the LTTE is willing to negotiate the policeman's release only if 5 LTTE cadres held by the GSL are released. ¶10. (SBU) In a July 19 phone conversation, a pro-LTTE Tamil National Alliance (TNA) parliamentarian told emboff "A humanitarian gesture is expected to come naturally. It cannot be used as a bargaining point." Jayadeva Uyangoda, a Colombo University professor, echoed those sentiments in another July 19 phone conversation with poloff. The professor said the government media exacerbated the situation by trying to portray the action as both humanitarian and as a quid pro quo negotiation effort. ¶11. (SBU) Uyangoda noted that the last week has seen a drop-off in the number of civilians targeted, perhaps due to international pressure. He said that the current violence is qualitatively different from the 1995-2000 era, when large-scale military engagement was the norm. He assessed that low to mid-level violence would continue in a "managed war," with both sides denying responsibility. -------------- COMMENT -------------- ¶12. (SBU) Comment: The steady drumbeat of low-level violence over the past few weeks is now sadly routine. The GSL's decision to permit Daya Master access to medical care in Colombo surprised many and alienated Sinhalese hard-liners. With the LTTE's intransigence about releasing the GSL policeman, the government also faces criticism for not having gained anything in return for the humanitarian gesture to the LTTE. In addition, the attempt to portray the action as both humanitarian and self-interested seems to have back-fired. End comment. 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