US to Use Own Yardstick Regarding De-proscribing Tamil Rebels in Sri Lanka

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Monday, January 21, 2002

US to Use Own Yardstick Regarding De-proscribing Tamil Rebels in Sri Lanka

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U.S. Ambassador to Sri Lanka Ashley Wills said on Sunday that the U.S. would use its own yardstick regarding the de-proscription of Sri Lanka's separatist Tamil Tiger rebels as the question had arisen again recently with the revival of the Norwegian-brokered peace process in the country.

In an interview with the state-owned Daily News published on Monday the U.S. ambassador said that the Sri Lankan government wasin a dilemma over the issue because of the possibility of a predetermined time to de-proscribe the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) may have a ripple effect on countries that have taken action to ban them as a foreign terrorist organization.

He said that the government should be concerned over the issue as no sooner than the ban is lifted here as the LTTE rebels will demand the governments that have banned them to follow the exampleset by Sri Lanka itself.

Regarding the U.S. attitude the ambassador said such a decisionby the Sri Lankan government would be an internal matter and would not affect a U.S. decision.

He said that any decision to de-proscribe them would also be taken after a similar assessment. He noted that a terrorist organization can get out of the banned list by a public renunciation of terrorism or a public renunciation of violence altogether.

The LTTE political wing leader Thamilselvan said in Mallavi town in the rebel-held northern wanni region last Wednesday that they wanted the ban on them to be lifted before they enter peace talks with the government as a legitimate partner.

The government has not responded officially to the LTTE request but Enterprise Development Minister G.L. Peiris has said that the government will consider the issue later.

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