Desertions hit LTTE in the East

TRINCOMALEE: The LTTE seems to be experiencing severe blows mainly in the Eastern sector as they could not retain newly recruited cadres due to large-scale desertions reported recently due to their eagerness to continue education, military sources said yesterday.

Sixteen LTTE cadres surrendered to the Security Forces yesterday from Selvanagar and Mahindapura areas in Trincomalee close to Trincomalee - Batticaloa border. This is the highest number of cadres to have surrendered in a single day.

Military Spokesman Brigadier Prasad Samarasinghe told the Daily News that nine LTTE cadres surrendered to the Selvanagar Army camp while seven others surrendered to the Mahindapura Army camp yesterday morning. "The sixteen have escaped from the Kathirveli LTTE camp," Brigadier Samarasinghe added.

"Most of them told the Security Forces that they escaped from the LTTE to continue their education as they have been deprived of their education," he added.

On Friday, seven LTTE cadres including three underage cadres, who escaped from the Kathirveli LTTE camp surrendered to the Kallar road block in Serunuwara confessing the agonising experiences they had undergone at LTTE camps.

According to the statements given by them, they had escaped from the LTTE training camps mostly due to their desire to continue their education as they have been forcibly recruited to the LTTE depriving their right for education. Thilakihan, an Advanced Level student forcibly recruited to the LTTE has informed that he had escaped the LTTE as he wanted to continue his studies like other students of his age.

Thilakan, another underage cadre abducted while going to his school, Vivekananda Vidyalaya, Kattaparichchan told the Security Forces that he was chained and tortured by the LTTE after he tried to escape from the training camp.

The LTTE's desperation to keep those young cadres was evident on Sunday as they shot at three cadres escaping from a LTTE camp in Sittandi at Chenkaladi in Batticaloa. "One cadre was killed and another injured in the LTTE firing while other one escaped," the Brigadier added.

The cadres also revealed that LTTE intensified its recruitment drive during the Mavilaru operation as they were running short of man power.

The air strikes and Multi Barrel Rocket Launcher attacks on LTTE camps are another reason for these LTTE cadres to escape from their camps and surrender to the Security Forces. "More than 60 LTTE cadres have do far surrendered to the Security Forces following a Government appeal for them to surrender," the Brigadier added.