Friday, 31st October 2014
By Ashwin Hemmathagama Our Lobby Correspondent
Minister of External Affairs Prof. G.L. Peiris came out with a different perspective in Parliament yesterday on the proscription lifted by European Union allowing the LTTE to operate within the 28 EU member countries.
Putting the record straight and rejecting charges of failure or negligence by the Government of Sri Lanka which could have aggravated matters and forced the European Court of Justice to lift the ban, Minister Peiris said: “Many hold different but wrong interpretations on the lifting of the proscription. They ask why we could not take part in this proceeding. Well, it is a case brought against the LTTE by 28 EU member countries. We should obtain special permission from that court if our Government is to take part in it.”
Explaining the key reason that prevented the Government of Sri Lanka from playing a key role, the Minister said: “If such a request is made, it is indirect acceptance of EU laws by Sri Lanka. All this time we were holding the sovereignty of the nation and not accepting foreign rulings. Instead of a direct involvement we have been supporting certain nations with necessary information to use in court.”
Outlining a fallback plan where the LTTE could be proscribed for an additional period of time, the Minister said: “Within 24 hours of that judgement, I met the ambassadors of those EU countries in Colombo. We convinced them to appeal and also to amend or enact laws to ban the LTTE. The Government of Sri Lanka will continue to support all these nations in their efforts.”
“When President Rajapaksa was in New York recently, a meeting between him and the LTTE cadres or the members of the diaspora did not take place. I was with him,” he added.
According to Minister Prof. Peiris, the Secretary of the Ministry of External Affairs is innocent and had no involvement in giving the repairs of the Sri Lankan Ambassador’s Official Residence in US to a contractor who is an alleged LTTE supporter.
“Some claim Thurairaja Thangaraja was in the custody and was prosecuted for LTTE activities. But we were unable to find any charges against him or judgments passed punishing him. The Federal Office of Justice in Switzerland holds that Thurairaja Thangaraja has no criminal records. Verification and the validation of such information are now available through a website, which we accessed to check. According to the particular website, it was reconfirmed that the details are correct and Thurairaja Thangaraja had no criminal record till 20 October 2014. This is an attempt made to destroy an officer who has no opportunity to defend herself in this House,” he added.
From : http://www.ft.lk/2014/10/31/gl-explains-lifting-of-eu-ban-on-ltte-in-parliament/
