SRI LANKA LOOKS FOR HELP FROM INDONESIA ON TAMIL

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 COLOMBO 001925

SIPDIS

SIPDIS

DEPARTMENT FOR SCA/INS, PM AND ISN

E.O. 12958: DECL: 11/13/2016
TAGS: PREL PTER PHUM PREF MOPS CE
SUBJECT: SRI LANKA LOOKS FOR HELP FROM INDONESIA ON TAMIL
TIGER ARMS SHIPMENTS

REF: JAKARTA 12832

Classified By: DCM James R. Moore for reasons 1.4(b, d).


1. (C) SUMMARY: The Sri Lankan MFA Director General for
Southeast Asia, who accompanied the Prime Minister on his
visit to Indonesia, gave us a readout of their meeting with
the Indonesian President on Tamil Tiger activities in the
region. Indonesia has become a major transshipment and
logistics point for illegal Tiger shipments to northeastern
Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankans hope to build a cooperative
relationship in the Indonesian government to counter this
arms trafficking in the he future. End summary.


2. (C) Sri Lankan MFA Director General Ranjith Gunaratna
briefed DCM and Pol Chief on November 13 regarding Sri Lankan
Prime Minister Ratnasiri Wickremenayake's October 26 meeting
in Jakarta with Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
(SBY). The Sri Lankans turned over a secret report
(excerpted below) that the Defense Ministry had prepared on
Tamil Tiger (LTTE) activities in Indonesia. The Sri Lankans
made the case, Gunaratna reported, that Indonesia had become
a major logistical point for the LTTE, especially for illegal
arms shipments destined for the tigers' insurgency in
northeastern Sri Lanka. According to Gunaratna, SBY listened
carefully and then asked his ministers and senior staff to
cooperate fully with the Sri Lankan government.


3. (C) The Sri Lankan brief states that Indonesia has become
a primary transshipment and logistics point for Tamil Tiger
arms procurements. Gunaratne told us that Sri Lanka
envisions signing a defense MoU with Indonesia focused on
cooperation against Tamil Tiger activities in Indonesia and
the region. He noted that Sri Lanka has existing
arrangements of this type with Thailand and Cambodia. Other
than Indonesia, Thailand, Burma, and Malaysia are the main
countries of concern for arms trafficking to the LTTE, he
said, with most of the bank accounts apparently located in
Malaysia.


4. (C) Gunaratne said there were possible connections to
other networks in Indonesia, including the Free Aceh Movement
and Jemaah Islamiyah. However, it was likely this simply
reflected commercial realities in the international market
for clandestine weapons - that some of the same middlemen
were servicing various terrorist organizations. Gunaratna
pointed out that in any case, there was little if any
ideological consistency between Islamic radical groups and
the Tamil Tigers.

EXCERPTS FROM DEFENSE MINISTRY REPORT TO INDONESIA
-------------- --------------


5. (S) "The LTTE has approximately 15 ) 20 ships/trawlers
and uses these for transporting fuel and warlike items from
overseas to Sri Lanka and also engages in human and drug
smuggling operations. Most of these ships are operating in
the harbors of South East Asian countries, particularly in
Indonesia, in the guise of merchant ships. Most of the crew
in these ships including captains are LTTE cadres holding
forged passports, passing off as nationals of India and
Bangladesh...


6. (S) "(The) LTTE uses Indonesia as one of its main
coordinating centers for arms smuggling and its shipping
network. Arms dealers obtain arms/warlike items through the
suppliers using forged end user certificates and inform the
LTTE coordinators in Indonesia regarding plans for collection
and the point of collection. The LTTE particularly makes use
of harbors in Jakarta as transit points to facilitate its

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smuggling operations from the West to East and vice-versa."


7. (S) "The cooperation of the Indonesian authorities in the
following areas is solicited:
- Sharing of intelligence
- Prevention of LTTE activities in Indonesian waters
- Preventing the LTTE from using Indonesia as an external
support base for its direct/transit illegal and terrorist
activities
- The arrest of the main LTTE figures involved in terrorist
activities..."


8. (C) COMMENT: Law enforcement officers and military
analysts here believe the Tamil Tigers have been shifting
their arms trafficking operations to Southeast Asia for some
time -- mainly because they are no longer welcome in the
Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is encouraging that Sri Lanka
is reaching out to its neighbors to try to stem the flow of
arms to the LTTE insurgents. However, as Gunaratne pointed
out, Sri Lanka is just at the beginning of this process: "We
should have done this years ago." The GSL has made contact
with the Indonesian government at the highest level, but all
of the hard work remains of investigating and shutting down
the Tiger networks in Indonesia, not to mention the other
countries in the region. Certainly corruption is an
important enabling factor. The LTTE seems to be hedging its
bets in Southeast Asia and would likely find other havens if
Indonesia became too difficult to do business in.
BLAKE