Colombo: Gotabhaya Rajapaksa, the powerful
Defence Secretary of Sri Lanka, on Friday warned that the military
cannot rest on its laurels after the end of a three-decade
separatist campaign by the Tamil Tigers, saying there were
pro-LTTE elements in foreign countries.
Addressing the military at the opening of the security
forces headquarters in the northern town of Kilinochchi, the
younger brother of the president Mahinda Rajapaksa said that
despite eradicating LTTE terrorism within the country the
military still need to be aware of the dangers ahead.
"There are pro-LTTE elements in foreign countries who
want to condemn the hard earned victory against terrorism,"
the Defence Secretary said.
Kilinochchi served as the international capital and its
administrative seat when the LTTE ran its parallel
administration.
The government forces wrested back the control of
Kilinochchi from LTTE in January 2009.
Recalling the government action to rehabilitate the
former members of the LTTE and reintegrate them in society,
the defence ministry secretary said that there may be pro-LTTE
groups who may still want to mislead the rehabilitated youth
once again to take up arms.
"Therefore, the military must remain alert to prevent any
situation like in the 1970s (when LTTE came to be formed),"
Rajapaksa said.
Only a few hundred of LTTEs in rehabilitation remain to
be released out of a total of over 11,000 of them who had
surrendered to the government at the end of the conflict in
May 2009.
PTI
First Published: Friday, October 21, 2011, 22:48