Lankan rebels want EU members out of truce monitoring
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
New Delhi, June 21, IRNA
Sri Lanka-LTTE-Truce Monitors
Sri Lankan rebels on Wednesday told peace broker Norway that they were against European Union (EU) member states monitoring the island's ceasefire following the grouping branding them as terrorists.
The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) oppose monitors from three EU member states -- Sweden, Denmark and Finland, a PTI report said here.
The EU banned the guerrillas as a terrorist organisation last month.
The LTTE's political wing leader S. P. Thamilselvan said in a statement that the EU ban on them was the result of propaganda by the government of Sri Lanka.
Thamilselvan conveyed their opposition to the continued work of the three nations during talks with Norway's ambassador to Sri Lanka Hans Brattskar.
The LTTE move would lead to the automatic ouster of the Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission (SLMM) chief Ulf Henricsson who is Swedish national.
"Thamilselvan also said that he requested the ambassador to explain the LTTE position to the three EU countries in the SLMM and to convey LTTE's gratitude for the services they have given in the SLMM," the LTTE said.
He said the LTTE had warned prior to the EU decision that a ban by EU will disturb the neutrality of the SLMM.
"It is unfortunate that EU has believed the propaganda of the Sri Lanka government."
The EU outlawed the Tigers last month in a move that cut off funding and was apparently aimed in part at forcing the rebels back to the negotiating table they left in April 2003.
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