The following is an extract from the Hansard, House of Representatives, Canberra, Australia - 22 May 2006
Monday, 22 May 2006 HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 43
Sri Lanka: Tamil Tigers
Mr RANDALL (Canning) (4.29 pm)—Today I wish to raise the issue of the group that is often known as the Tamil Tigers or the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, LTTE. I am confirming my support for Australia listing this organisation as a terrorist organisation, as many other countries have done. I will come to that shortly.
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The LTTE is one of the most voracious, brutal and militant groups in existence. The vast majority of Tamil people are good law-abiding citizens who prefer to distance themselves from the LTTE and its actions. Having travelled to Sri Lanka several years ago, I can confirm that the majority of Tamils, who are the minority ethnic group in the nation of Sri Lanka, reside outside the known LTTE zones, largely in the south, living in harmony with the majority ethnic group, the Sinhalese.
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One of the alarming things about the LTTE, as with any other terrorist group, is that their fingers creep throughout the world. As I said, we know that here in Australia the majority of Tamils are marvellous peaceloving people who love their country of Sri Lanka. However, there are also infiltrators. They are here. I am informed that in certain parts of Australia they are vigorously collecting money and funds on behalf of the LTTE. This money is going back to fund terrorist activities in various parts of Sri Lanka.
Many members are aware of LTTE members who might be in their electorates. I make particular mention of the member for Lowe, who last rose in the House to speak on this subject prior to the Australian general elections in 2004. The member for Lowe acknowledged that a large number of Tamils reside in his electorate. By suggesting that his constituents were concerned about the Tamils’ right to vote, he exposed his own position, which was the endorsement of the Tamils who accuse the Sri Lankan government of not allowing them to vote.
What happened was that the member for Lowe accused the national government of Sri Lanka of stopping the Tamils from voting in the north and east. Actually, it was the Tamil Tigers who were not only stopping them from voting but killing any candidates who were opponents of their party. Anyone who was put up as a candidate was duly either dealt with or shot. No wonder people did not want to turn out at the polls to vote: they knew that would be their end. The member for Lowe was quite wrong in what he said, and I have advised him that it is very dangerous to make these allegations against the Sri Lankan government and to directly align himself with such a proscribed terrorist organisation.
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The member states that Sri Lanka does not regard the Tamil people as part of its population, when in fact 85 per cent of the Tamil community still live in the south in cohabitation with the Sinhalese and Muslim communities. The Sri Lankan government has never targeted civilians in its fight against terrorism, whereas the LTTE has used civilians as human shields—and, in fact, young children as soldiers—bringing criticism from the international community. The LTTE recruit children, as I said, which is a deplorable violation of children’s rights and a major concern of the Sri Lankan government.
