Toronto Tamils Turning Tiger?

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 TORONTO 000052 SIPDIS SENSITIVE DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/CAN, SCA/INS, S/CT HOMELAND SECURITY CENTER WASHDC DHS PASS TO CBP E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PTER PHUM CE CA SUBJECT: Toronto Tamils Turning Tiger? REF: 08 Toronto 169 Sensitive But Unclassified -- protect accordingly. ¶1. (U) Summary: Canada is home to the largest Tamil population outside Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka's domestic issues recently have been taking a more public stage in Canada, particularly in Toronto. Post has seen four large pro-Tamil demonstrations in downtown Toronto and in front of the Sri Lankan and U.S. Consulates in the past two months, and another major one is expected on Monday, March 16. While concerns about Canadian Tamil community support of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) existed well before the GoC's banning of the group in 2006, recent events indicate an emboldening of LTTE supporters. The Toronto protests, while peaceful, have a clear pro-Tamil agenda and pro-LTTE flavor. End Summary. ¶2. (U) Canada is home to the largest Tamil population outside Sri Lanka, and in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA),Sri Lankan Tamils have been among the fastest growing minority groups over the past 25 years. As a result of clashes in Sri Lanka in 1983 a large number of Tamils immigrated to Canada, and from 1991-2001 Sri Lanka was the fifth largest source country of Canada's immigrants. As many as 45,000 Tamils arrived in Canada just between 1991 and 1996. According to the Canadian Tamils' Chamber of Commerce (CTCC),which has created its own Tamil community database based on Canadian census information, more than 250,000 Tamils currently reside in Canada, with some 200,000 living in the GTA. They have established a growing presence in business and academia, as well as in the political and social arenas. The Tamil business community also has grown - with more than 2,000 Tamil-owned businesses in the GTA. ¶3. (U) Conversely, Sinhalese Sri Lankans have immigrated to Canada in much smaller numbers, with only about 30,000 Sinhalese living in Canada. There have been some efforts by community organizations to bring the two groups together. In 2008, for example, the Sinhalese and Tamil communities celebrated the Sri Lankan New Year together in an event organized by the Canadian Democratic Tamil Cultural Association. The organization's mandate is to promote understanding between the Tamil community in Ontario, other Sri Lankan communities, and the Canadian mainstream. -------------- FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR THE TIGERS -------------- ¶4. (U) In June 2008, Canada added the now defunct World Tamil Movement (WTM) - previously headquartered in Toronto - to its list of terrorist groups. Canada had designated the LTTE as a terrorist group in 2006, and GoC investigations of the WTM beginning in 2003 found that the WTM was the leading LTTE front organization. Investigations showed that the organization transferred millions of dollars to bank accounts abroad for LTTE operations. The WTM used intimidation and threats to collect these funds from the Canadian Tamil community. The Canadian government's listing of the group as a terrorist organization made it illegal to knowingly participate in, contribute to, or facilitate the activities of the WTM. For its part, the WTM claimed that it only engaged in community service programs for the Tamil community in Canada and has denied its support for the LTTE. Immediately after its offices in Toronto and Montreal were shut down in response to their designation, the WTM and its lawyers said they would fight the government's designation. In March, federal prosecutors in Montreal and Toronto filed requests at the federal level to confiscate the group's property. This marks the first time the government has used the forfeiture provision of the Anti-Terrorism Act, which allows the Attorney General to seize "property owned or controlled by or on behalf of a terrorist group." Only the Montreal branch of the WTM has publicly responded to the government's latest actions, stating that they deny any affiliation with terrorism and that they intend to challenge the government's case. -------------- PRO-TIGER PROTESTS -------------- ¶5. (U) Tamil community leaders regularly call on the Canadian and U.S. governments to intervene in the "genocide" in Sri Lanka. A series of demonstrations have been held throughout Toronto, beginning in January. Thousands of Tamil demonstrators gathered to condemn Sri Lankan government actions, with groups of roughly 1,000 gathered at each protest. The most recent protest in front of the U.S. Consulate on March 3, saw more than 1,000 protestors, some waving the red Tamil Eelam flag, also often associated with the TORONTO 00000052 002 OF 002 LTTE. The white LTTE flag was not flown at the rally, most likely to reduce the level of scrutiny from local authorities. All these protests included a large proportion of school-aged children (and younger) and were peaceful. On March 13, a small demonstration held in northern Toronto saw a few protestors arrested for climbing on vehicles, however, no acts of violence were reported. Post has now learned of another large protest planned for March 16, and we anticipate more in coming weeks. ¶6. (U) The U.S. and Canadian Tamil communities also coordinated a pro-Tamil protest in front of the White House on February 20. Canadian Tamil Congress (CTC) President Dr. Sri Ranjan told PolOff that the CTC had been contacted by Tamil organizers in the United States to inform them of the event and to encourage Canadian Tamil participation. Post understands that nearly 3,500 people rode chartered buses from Canada, mostly from the GTA, to attend the demonstration in front of the White House. The National Park Service reports that 2,000 to 3,000 protestors attended the peaceful demonstrations in front of the White House. (Note: The Toronto press has reported that the Tamil travelers say they faced no significant delays at the U.S. border, but complained that they faced up to seven hour delays in being admitted back into Canada when they returned.) ¶7. (U) On March 2, a group calling themselves the Canadian Tamil Society (CTS) organized a memorial ceremony in honor of two Tamil Tiger suicide bombers who died in an attack in the Sri Lankan capital on February 20. A local banquet hall was used for the "martyrs' prayer event." Attendees, who wore Tamil Tigers insignia and raised LTTE flags, laid wreaths at make-shift shrines for the terrorists. Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Toronto police did not stop the event but recorded the gathering. -------------- SOME OFFER MORE THAN MORAL SUPPORT -------------- ¶8. (SBU) Cross border Tamil cooperation clearly also takes a more sinister tack in some cases. On January 26, Canadian citizen Sathajhan Sarachandran pled guilty in New York to charges that he attempted to purchase surface to air missiles and hundreds of military assault rifles for the LTTE. Sarachandran's case was the product of a cross-border investigation conducted by the FBI joint terrorism Task Force and the RCMP's Integrated National Security Enforcement Team in Ontario. Three other men connected to the case have been arrested in Ontario and are fighting extradition to the U.S. ¶9. (U) Some newspapers reported that Sarachandran was a member of the CTC. CTC president Ranjan told PolOff that Sarachandran belonged to the CTC years ago, but said that he has not been a member since. Ranjan argued that his organization could not be held accountable for the actions of its individual members, but that according to the CTC's charter a member can be asked to leave the organization if found to be participating in unlawful activities. Ranjan said, however, that since Sarachandran is not a current member, there was no need to ask him to leave. He added that the CTC does not participate in criminal activities and fully supports the laws of Canada. ¶10. (U) Comment: Pro-Tamil demonstrations in Toronto have been generally peaceful, with partial exceptions being the arrests today, March 13, and the rushing of the Sri Lankan Consulate by 20 protesters in January. Consulate officials called local authorities to remove the protestors and no one was hurt. Support for the Tamil Tigers within the Canadian Tamil community had existed mostly underground previously, and public support of the LTTE had been muted. Pro-Tiger sentiment seems to be increasingly open and bold, however, using the claim that Canadian Tamils are simply concerned for Tamils in their original homeland. Members of Toronto's larger community also are beginning to take notice. Recently, a local newspaper piece about the demonstrations included a picture of pro-Tamil protestors waving Tamil Tiger flags. The caption explained that sympathetic Canadians who had joined the demonstrations to denounce human rights abuses in Sri Lanka felt confused and conflicted when they found themselves surrounded by flags supporting a terrorist organization. NAY