`COL KARUNA` SAYS LTTE WILL NOT MAKE COMEBACK

By P. Vijian

COLOMBO, June 1 (Bernama) -- The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE)
will not make a comeback, says Vinayagamoorthy Muralitharan, more famously known
as 'Colonel Karuna' who had served as bodyguard to LTTE supremo Veluppillai
Prabhakaran.

The Tigers chief was killed by Sri Lankan troops on May 18.

"They (Tiger guerilla fighters) only depended on Prabhakaran. It was a
one-man show. He never believed in any other guy. Ground realities are different
now, they can't rebuild," said Karuna, who is now a minister in the Sri Lankan
Government, in an exclusive interview with Bernama.

From being bodyguard, Karuna later rose to the rank of LTTE eastern
commander, strategising major attacks against government troops during the
separatist war.

He was once a feared military strategist -- even dreaded by the Sri Lankan
army.

But in 2004, Karuna abandoned the LTTE, following a dispute with his boss
and quit the group with 6,000 hardcore fighters.

His departure caused a dent in the LTTE and eventually led to the group's
downfall. Now, he is currently Minister of Integration and Reconciliation in
Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapakse's government.

"Now, Prabhakaran is dead but KP (K. Pathmanadan, ex-LTTE arms negotiator)
is working underground. My request to the (Tamil) diaspora is, don't believe
anybody. Last time, they donated lots of money without any reason. Now, they can
donate for development, to help the IDPs (internally displaced persons) in the
camps," he said in his closely-guarded office.

There are nearly 260,000 IDPs sheltering in camps in the island's north.

Pressed on why he showed no emotion when the Sri Lankan army took him to
identify Prabhakaran's body -- although he was once his boss and friend who
fought together for almost 20 years -- Karuna glared at this reporter.

And in a change of tone, he said: "I didn't feel sorry for him because
several times, I tried to correct him but he did not change. I thought of one
thing at that time -- lot of people and properties were lost because of one man.
Thousands of people were killed, including LTTE cadres."

Karuna claimed that Prabhakaran did not change or build any leadership
characteristics in the LTTE.

"You see Nelson Mandela (former South African freedom fighter turned
president) was involved in armed struggle but later, he was flexible and solved
the problem. He was a very good leader. Prabhakaran had lot of chances for
political solutions, but did not use them. He just wanted to fight the war but
did not achieve anything."

Questioned about the hype in having a separate 'eelam' or homeland for
marginalised Tamils and whether he really believed that the 'eelam' dream
would
materialise one day, Karuna replied that it was definitely an unattainable goal.

"Many of us knew it. It is not possible to have another state within Sri
Lanka. They (Singhalese) would not allow it. But Prabhakaran did not understand
about globalisation and the changing ground realities. He had a totalitarian
policy and behaved like a duke. He never listened to anyone."

But when asked why he joined the LTTE if he did not believe in the separate
homeland dream, he revealed how he got involved with the LTTE network.

"I completed my 'A levels' in bioscience. I was a very good student, we
enjoyed life playing football and cricket, and we never cared about politicians
or war (he chuckled). Suddenly, one day, many Tamil refugees entered our
village. We arranged accommodation and gave them food.


"They said they lost their homes and many babies were killed in Colombo.
This was the 1983 July riots when Tamils were chased out of Colombo. LTTE made
this a good propaganda issue, they said we needed a separate country or all the
Tamils will be killed. Only then, we joined LTTE."

Asked about the bitterness among the Singhalese and Tamils as a result of
the long-drawn civil war and how he expected them to co-exist peacefully from
now on, he recalled that when 13 government soldiers were killed in the north,
2,500 Tamils were subsequently killed (known as the 1983 massacre).

"After that, lot of Singhalese people were killed by LTTE but the Singhalese
people did not kill Tamils. The Singhalese did not blame the Tamils, they knew
it was the act of the terrorist group and that the Tamils are innocent people
and they must be given their rights. They realised this and this is a major
change in Sri Lanka now."

Karuna said people in Sri Lanka these days did not talk along racial lines
anymore.

"I am confident we can live together again. People are fed up of the
31-year-old war, they want peace, development and entertainment -- these are the
basic needs for them."

Asked what was the LTTE's biggest mistake, Karuna said: "Killing Indian
prime minister Rajiv Gandhi was Prabhakaran's biggest mistake."

Gandhi was killed by a young female suicide bomber on May 21, 1991 in
Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu. India then declared LTTE a terrorist group and
later, 26 other countries did the same.

"But he (Prabhakaran) never changed, he continued killing more people, not
only Singhalese but also Tamils. He killed many Tamil intellectuals, anyone
against Prabhakaran would be eliminated."

-- BERNAMA