Sri Lanka says no legal action against former top Tamil Tiger rebel
Souce:Xinhua Publish By Thomas Whittle Updated 18/10/2012 12:04 am in World / 3 commentsCOLOMBO, Oct. 17 — Sri Lankan Defence Ministry on Wednesday said that legal action had not been filed against a former top Tamil Tiger rebel under military custody since 2009.
Defence Ministry spokesman Lakshman Hullugalle told reporters at a media briefing that Kumaran Pathmanathan, also known as KP, is not under military custody anymore.
Pathmanathan was known to be the chief arms procurer for the Tamil Tiger rebels during the war against the Sri Lankan military.
He had several large ships registered under his name and the vessels had been used to smuggle weapons into rebel territory in the north before the rebels were defeated in May 2009.
Sri Lankan military intelligence arrested Pathmanathan in Malaysia following an undercover sting operation and brought him to Colombo where he was kept under military custody.
Since then Pathmanathan has openly expressed regret over his actions and expressed support for the government to assist the war affected families in the former war zones.
Hullugalle said that Pathmanathan is now involved in humanitarian work in the north and the government has given the necessary clearance for him to carry out that work.
The Defence Ministry spokesman also said that some hardcore rebels who are in still in prison have criminal charges filed against them.
The government had last year said that a report on the activities of Pathmanathan will be submitted to parliament once investigations are over.
3 Comments
Mr Pathmanathan is with the government like Devananda, Karuna and Pillaiyan and therefore rewarded with freedom from prosecution. There are many junior cadres of LTTE are locked up in custody for they refused to co-operate or connive with the Defense Department.
He is nolonger Tiger rebel, actully now he is a cat rebel. He betyarded about thirty thousans real tiger rebel majors, and more that ten mililions lifes of his own people for just silly own short term benefits.
He is a traitor who amassed lot of money from the diaspora and now helping the goverment to carryout the project of the goverment to settledown sinhalese from south in the lands of tamils.What is the humanitarian work he is doing? As far as tamils are concerned he is bull’S shit. Tamils will never forgive him.