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President Rajapaksa meets KP
September 15, 2013President Mahinda Rajapaksa met formerLTTE chief arms procurer KumaranPathmanathan (KP) in Kilinochchi, thePresidents media unit said today.The President had met the former rebel whenhe visited the Sencholai childrens homelocated in the former rebel town.
According to the Presidents media unit, thePresident had made inquiries into the educational facilities at the childrens home whichoperates under KP.KP was arrested in a foreign country following the end of the war and brought to SriLanka and questioned on the many ships which transported weapons to the LTTE duringthe war.He also still has an INTERPOL warrant against him over the murder of former IndianPrime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.KP was eventually allowed to open the childrens home under the name Sencholai,which was also the name of a school for orphaned children when the LTTE was in
control of Kilinochchi.The LTTE had in 2006 claimed that the school was attacked by the security forces killingsome 50 children, a claim the government denied at the time. (Colombo Gazette)
KP- he knows secrets that have never
been told
Another major achievement for Rajapaksa government in efforts to eradicate Tiger
International Conflicting reports on where and how he was arrested, but KL hotel appears to be
point zero
By Iqbal Athas
The first announcement, as most Sri Lankans prepared to retire to their beds on Thursday night,came just before a special Sri Lankan Airlines non stop flight touched down at the Bandaranaike
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International Airport. It had taken off from the Kuala Lumpur.
State-run TV networks interrupted regular programmes at 9.35 p.m. to give the breaking news. Itwas that a Tiger guerrilla leader responsible for many assassinations and attacks was arrestedtogether with another. It was almost an hour later when the details emerged.
It was none other than the most wanted Kumaran Pathmanathan. Twoweeks earlier, he had been declared successor to the late VelupillaiPrabhakaran as leader of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). Theman with many names, different faces at different times held severalpassports. Law enforcement agencies of a number of countries hunted forhim but he eluded them.
For years, he headed the LTTE's weapons procurement operations, namedafter his initials as KP wing.
Pathmanathan, one source said, looked altogether different from the imagesprojected in recent photographs. He was bald and wore a flowing thick,
grey beard. Though in the media limelight, he had chosen to move around incognito. Thoughanother person was reported arrested, it was only this man, who resembled a trader of sorts wasescorted under heavy security from the airport to a secret location. An acute diabetic,Pathmanathan appeared worn out when he arrived. He was hand cuffed the source said.
Thursday night's news came as a surprise not only to those in the upper echelons of theGovernment but also to most in the security establishment. Those who telephoned each otherwere to come up with a stock answer - I just heard about it but do not know any details. President
Mahinda Rajapaksa telephoned Foreign Minister Rohita Bogollagama, who was celebrating his55th birthday that night to give him the news. Intelligence sleuths from one arm denied anyknowledge to those in a partner organization. It fueled suspicions that each other was aware butwere not willing to talk.
As news of the arrest spread worldwide, it was to cause ripples. A news agency report quoted theMilitary Spokesman as saying Pathmanathan was arrested in Thailand's capital of Bangkok. ThaiPrime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva, reacted promptly by denying the claim. His spokesman and theCabinet's Deputy Secretary General, Panitan Wattanayagorn told The Sunday Times the PrimeMinister had checked with the state agencies concerned. "He was informed by them that KP wasnot arrested anywhere in Thailand. The Prime Minister has directed that these agencies forward
him more reports with details of developments," he said speaking on the telephone fromBangkok.
He said the Thai Government had followed the news conference in Colombo held by DefenceSpokesman Keheliya Rambukwella on Friday afternoon. The latter refused to identify the countrywhere the arrest was made but the successful operation showed "we had friends," he declared.Officials in the Sri Lanka Embassy in Bangkok were also taken by surprise and were checking
Bearded Pathmanathan in sun glasses.
He looks different now
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with Thai authorities and the media there. Later, they also denied the claim.
Other agency reports quoted Thai police as sayingKP was arrested in Singapore and was only in transitthrough Bangkok early Friday en route to Colombo.However, Singapore's Ministry of Home Affairs
denied its involvement in the arrest. "There is nobasis to the claim in media reports that the LTTEleader Selvarasa Pathmanathan has been captured inSingapore," a ministry official said.
I spoke on the telephone with a senior Thai securityofficial. "I can tell you categorically that he was notarrested anywhere in Thailand," he said speaking on grounds of anonymity since he is notauthorised to talk to the media. He said no aircraft with Pathmanathan touched down or took offfrom Bangkok. "We have heard he was picked up in Kuala Lumpur but that is a matter for you to
verify," he said. He declined to elaborate.
A website widely accessed by Australia's Tamil diaspora,(http:www.tamilsydney.com) quoted anews website (in Tamil) saying Pathmanathan was arrested in Kuala Lumpur. This is what thereport said;
"Head of Department of International Relations, LTTE , Kumaran Pathmanathan alias KP hasbeen arrested in Malaysia and transported to Sri Lanka, said a Tamil news website. Mr.Pathmanathan was strongly advocating politico-democratic path to achieve Sri Lankan Tamil'spolitical aspirations.
"The Tamil website says he had been abducted when he went to "Tune Hotel' in a place called'Majid India' in Kuala Lumpur on Wednesday afternoon. He had gone there to meet the brotherand son of B. Nadesan, the Political Head of LTTE.
"When he was with them in their room in the hotel, Mr. Pathmanathan has received a call to hismobile phone around 2 pm. He had excused himself and had gone out to attend the call in private.
"People close to Pathmanathan realised his abduction only when they came to know that he hasnot returned to the hotel room after attending the phone call.
"According to information available he had been abducted by Sri Lanka Intelligence Unit withthe support of either Malaysian Military or Intelligence Unit. At the same time, Tamil circles feelthe blessings and support of another important country's intelligence unit in Mr. Pathmanathan'sabduction.
"Yesterday Sri Lankan Military informed that Mr. Pathmanathan was arrested in Thailand. Tamilcircles feel that this was to divert the involvement of Malaysians and another country in theabduction."
The two spokespersons - Brigadier Udaya Nanayakkara (military) andMinister Keheliya Rambukwella (Defence) at Thursday's news conference.
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The website posted a picture of a bearded Pathmanathan in sun glasses. However, his appearancewas in marked contrast to the description available after his arrest. According to Governmentsources, only less than a handful were aware how the arrest was made but declined to discuss anydetails. However, these sources insisted that local intelligence units were not involved in anyabduction attempts on Pathmanathan. They said such a course of action would have violated thelaws of the country where he was arrested.
The Tune Hotel is a five-storey complex with 222 rooms. It is located at Jalan Klia in KualaLumpur, some 15 minutes drive from the international airport. The brother of late P. Nadesan, aone time "guerrilla police chief" and later head of the political wing, has been identified only byhis nom de guerre, Lucas. He was reportedly at the hotel with his son. He is said to be living inBritain and arrived in Kuala Lumpur. Even in the Malaysian capital, where the arrest wasreportedly made, a fact not confirmed by the Sri Lankan Government, there was confusion.Newspapers there reported Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak had no knowledge. "Icannot confirm this. I don't have the facts with me. I will find out about the matter first," he toldreporters after launching the Majlis Jalinan Rakyat at the people's housing project at Batu Muda,
Jalan Ipoh in Kuala Lumpur on Friday. Malaysian national police chief Tan Sri Musa Hassan saidhe knew nothing about an arrest and declined to comment further. However, unlike in the case ofThailand and Singapore, there were no official statements from Malaysia.
Earlier on Thursday, reports circulated in some diplomatic circles said that Pathmanathan had notbeen heard for nearly one and half days. This was after regular telephone callers to him from theUnited States and Canada found he could not be reached since Wednesday. They were reportedlymaking frantic efforts to speak with him when news broke that he has been arrested and flown toColombo.
The arrest of Pathmanathan, particularly in the wake of the military defeat of Tiger guerrillas, is amajor achievement for President Mahinda Rajapaksa's administration. With the guerrilla militarycapability destroyed, the Government's concern turned to LTTE's international operations. Effortsby Pathmanathan and a group to revive the guerrilla organisation became the cause for greaterworry. This is particularly in the light of his increasing media exposure. In June this yearPathmanathan circulated to the Tamil diaspora overseas, Colombo based diplomatic missions andforeign Governments a voice recording. He spoke about a "Provisional Transitional Government"to represent the "political aspirations" and to be "the voice and conscience of the people of TamilEelam in the international arena." Backing him in this effort was Rudrakumar Viswanathan, aNew York based lawyer who was advisor to the LTTE during Norwegian-backed peace talks anda group of others. A Committee that was formed by the group named Pathmanathan as successorto late Prabhakaran.
Foreign Minister Rohita Bogollagama declared in an aide memoire he personally delivered toseveral Asian nations that the demise of the LTTE in Sri Lanka had not diminished its activities,its front organisations and its overseas groups. "We have received credible reports that some ofthe LTTE groups and LTTE actors overseas remain committed to the extreme ideologies andpositions that have been discarded by the communities living in Sri Lanka. Among the countriesthat received the aide memoire were Malaysia, Vietnam, Bangladesh, Thailand and the
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Philippines.
Here are excerpts from the aide memoire of June 2009:
"A prominent LTTE member who is wanted in Sri Lanka in connection with terrorist attacks,arms smuggling and drug dealing, Mr. Selvarasa Pathmanathan a.k.a. Kumaran Pathmanathan,
a.k.a. "K.P," is still operating overseas on behalf of the LTTE and mobilising LTTE cadres andsupporters abroad. His actions could vitiate and destabilise efforts by the Government to developa peaceful political solution to address the grievances of the Tamil community. An internationalwarrant has also been issued on Pathmanathan by INTERPOL following a warrant issued by theSri Lankan Courts as a person wanted for questioning by the Criminal Investigation Departmentpertaining to his role in connection with the bombing of the Central Bank in 1996 killing 86civilians and injuring 1338.
"Mr. Pathmanathan is wanted for questioning by the Criminal Investigation Department (CID) ofthe Sri Lanka Police for his involvement in: (a) the bombing of the Central Bank in 1996; and (b)
arms procurement overseas for terrorist activities in Sri Lanka. Mr. Pathmanathan is also listed byINTERPOL for alleged involvement in the murder of former Indian Prime Minister Shri RajivGandhi on 21 May 1991 in Tamil Nadu, India.
"In the circumstances, the Government of Sri Lanka urges friendly Governments to takecognisance of this and take urgent action as follows:
"(a) Apprehend Mr. Selvarasa Pathmanathan and deport him to Sri Lanka so that he can be heldaccountable for the crimes he has committed on Sri Lanka soil;
"(b) Initiate efforts to restrain and interdict inimical action by pro-LTTE elements abroad so thatthe ongoing process of consultations in Sri Lanka to achieve a political solution acceptable to allcommunities living in Sri Lanka could proceed unhindered enabling successful conclusionwithout delay.
"A brief note on Mr. Selvarasa Pathmanathan, his activities and implications of his activities isappended below:
Selvarasa Pathmanathan a.k.a. Kumaran Pathmanathan a.k.a. "KP" has functioned as thechief arms procurement operative of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)throughout the LTTE's terrorist campaign.
The LTTE is an internationally proscribed/listed terrorist group including in Canada, India,27 European Union (EU) countries, UK and the USA.
Pathmanathan is known to use several aliases and holds a number of different passportsand identities to facilitate his operations and evade detection.
Pathmanathan is believed to have obtained at least 16 passports from different countries tofacilitate his operations and disguise. These include Sri Lankan, British, Indian passports.Intelligence information suggest the possession of Thai (he is married to a Thai),Indonesian, Malaysian, French and other passports. This is indicative of the clandestine
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international operations of Pathmanathan on behalf of the terrorist group.
Pathmanathan's links on behalf of the LTTE with the illicit arms dealers are known to beextensive, spanning across Afghanistan to the former Soviet bloc, former Yugoslavia,Middle-East, Africa, East-Asia including Singapore, Thailand, Malaysia etc.
Pathmanathan, a relative of LTTE leader Prabhakaran is one of the leader's closestassociates and the most trusted senior LTTE leader overseas. Pathmanathan was entirelyresponsible for elaborate arms procurement operations for the terrorist group and theconnected co-ordination of payments of large sums of money for the ordnance. He wasthus an integral part of the elaborate terrorist network of the LTTE overseas.
Pathmanathan's operations include functioning as Head of the "KP" branch which was thededicated arms procurement branch of the LTTE.
Pathmanathan's arms procurement operations are extremely secretive and the individualpossesses a large network of contacts and links to the international illegal arms trade.
Since January 2009, particular attention has been placed by the LTTE to project theprominent role played by Pathmanathan in the terrorist group.
Additionally, following the death of the LTTE leader in Sri Lanka, the subject and thoseclosely associated with him have been attempting to project Pathmanathan as the "leader inexile" of the LTTE - a proscribed terrorist organisation - and has gained accessinternationally to Government officials in countries such as Norway, and seniorinternational civil servants in the UN system.
This is despite Sri Lanka's request to the International Community in early March 2009 torefrain from giving such access.
It is known that Pathmanathan was particularly active in the failed attempts byPrabhakaran and other leaders to escape from the military's advancement in the final daysof the humanitarian operations.
Despite his extremely secretive operations, evidence has emerged of Pathmanathan'sinvolvement in securing for the LTTE, major arms procurement consignments. Forinstance:
MV SWENE carrying 60 tons of C4 explosives consigned to M/S Carlton Trading Co.Ltd., 60/61, Delugh Commercial Area, Dhaka, Bangladesh and a consignment ofdetonators consigned to E G C T International Ltd., Rangoon, Burma had left port ofNikolaev on 19/8/94 and sighted past Istanbul on 25/08/94. There had been no record ofher voyage till she was reported leaving the Port of Lagos for the Port of Banjul in Gambiaand intelligence indicated that in the intervening period of this north bound voyage she hadoff loaded the cargo to LTTE having entered the Indian Ocean.
The explosives had been purchased from Rubezhnoe Chemicals Plant "ZARYA" inLugansk Region, Ukraine using end user certificate No: DP 816955 in the name of H.D.Hashin Noor Rahman. KP transferred US $ 50,000 from City bank account in Singapore inJune 1994 to the Chemical Plant. These are the explosives used by the LTTE to carry outsuicide missions, land mines, massacre of civilians etc. in Sri Lanka.
MV SUNBIRD which was detected in Malaysia with communication equipment,underwater equipment, high speed boats etc in December 90 shed light to the involvementof KP who was Director of Vikram Holding.
Given the linkages the LTTE has sought to establish with other terror organisations (as
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instructed by the LTTE's 2003 Instruction Manual to Overseas Offices), the possibility ofPathmanathan further intensifying interaction with other terrorist groups is plausible.
The remaining LTTE overseas membership led by Pathmanathan has given rise tointensification of activities by the pro-LTTE diaspora.
This serious development is replete with examples of a trend particularly over the lastthree months. The activities of pro-LTTE groups have taken an extremely violent form aswitnessed by the Group's attacks against Sri Lanka Embassies, persons of Sinhalese origin,businesses owned by Sinhalese and holy places of worship such as Buddhist templesoverseas."
Pathmanathan, who is being held in a heavily secured secret location, is now going throughinterrogation by security officials. He holds the key to a number of questions that have baffledsuccessive Governments during the two and half decade long separatist war. That includesanswers to all-important questions like sources of LTTE funding, arms procurement, supportersboth abroad and in Sri Lanka as well as the intricate details of their international operations. Therevelations will no doubt be another chapter in Government's achievements.
The INTERPOL red notice on Pathmanathan
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