Comment on 'A Lapse in Diplomatic Security'

by Victor Rajakulendran

Anthony Dias has taken the Sangam editor for a free ride to post material which is not sufficiently tough on the unscrupulous Sri Lankan government.

This is obvious from the fact that Dias has carefully avoided mentioning any suspicions about a conspiracy by the Sri Lankan government, while all the evidence points in that direction.  Dias brings in the argument that the UN officials who charted the 5-seater aircraft to transport their officials attending the same meeting the diplomats were travelling for, would have known that the airfield is always subject to attack by LTTE.

Dias is also trying to put the blame on Embassy security officers as they have failed to get the intelligence information and properly advise their own Diplomats.

All the people cannot be fooled all the time.  This was made clear when the US Ambassador reiterated again and again that the LTTE did not target the Diplomats.  That is, the Diplomats and their security officers always know the threat to aircraft landing there.  But they also are aware of the procedures in place when Diplomats travel to the conflict areas.  That is, both sides to the conflict are informed so that they act responsibly and have done so in the past.  It has become completely clear now that this accepted procedure was ignored in this incident.

Therefore, the only way this mishap could have happened is only if GoSL conspired to do so.  What happened was that the Diplomats were led to believe that the usual procedures were in place and the Diplomats did not suspect the GoSL, as this is not the first time Diplomats of the US, Italy, Germany and France have visited the conflict zone.  They might not have landed in the same place in the east, but have landed in Palaly and Trincomale. And the LTTE did not fire at any of these missions, although LTTE has fired at these landing sites, targeting the SL security personal, several times before.

I would like to ask Dias why, after the UN-charted aircraft was attacked and after that aircraft took off to a safe place, and after keeping both the helicopters airborne without landing for 20 minutes, the Sri Lankan security officials allowed the helicopters to land in an adjoining field (Webber stadium).  This clearly shows that the whole episode was well planned by the SL security apparatus, mainly at the Secretary of the Defence Ministry level, and obediently carried out down the line to harm the Diplomats with LTTE fire.  The purpose is, obviously to pitch the international community against the LTTE, ridicule the intelligence of the international community and to prove that the interational community is incompetent to show the GoSL a way to solve this conflict. This is why Dias concludes that, instead of doctoring the parties to the conflict especially the GoSL, these Diplomats should doctor themselves.  

Poor Minister Samarasinghe has been used as the sacrificial lamb by the ruthless Rajapaksa brothers, but he has narrowly escaped thanks to the UN officials who conveyed the message to Kilinochchi and made the LTTE realise the situation and stop the attack instantly.

Sangam Editor needs to be vigilant about these self-proclaimed, so-called
"Security Analysts" like the Anthony Dias type.