”The methods of our war has been changed; not our destiny” – New LTTE Chief

The new LTTE Chief in an exclusive interview with THE WEEK, asserts the Tamil’s struggle is on. “Until the rights of Tamils in Sri Lanka are restored their quest (for Eelam) does not change. It is true that the LTTE has met with a military setback… But the Tamil struggle has not ended,” he said. 

Excerpts from the interview:

Sri Lanka says Prabhakaran died a coward.

Prabhakaran is our national leader, who lived for the cause he believed. He had uncompromising faith in liberating the land of the Tamils through an armed struggle, and he never flinched from his objective. He met every challenge of the Sri Lankan military machine and it was only with international help that Lanka could break the LTTE’s military capability. He led the Tamils through the most tumultuous period.
 
Prabhakaran conducted his war from his homeland, and it was a defensive war. He did not take the war outside to harm innocent civilians. He was a man of principles and he had the welfare of the Tamils in mind till his last breath. Despite the war and international pressure, he built an effective military, an administrative structure and established a Tamil state. How can he be a coward?

Does Prabhakaran’s death mean an end to the Eelam dream?

Until the rights of Tamils in Sri Lanka are restored their quest [for Eelam] does not change. It is true that the LTTE has met with a military setback and that over 10,000 Tigers are held by the Sri Lankan authorities flouting all international conventions. But the Tamil struggle has not ended. 

What course of action would the LTTE adopt in future?  

 We will change our methods of struggle and pursue a non-violent path. Our future struggles will be through political means and will be a more inclusive one. The LTTE, which started as a national movement in Sri Lanka, has a following throughout the world wherever Tamil people live. We will transform into an international force and become an international movement to secure the right to self-determination for the Tamils of Sri Lanka.

Do you think this is a defeat? Should the LTTE stop being a conventional military force?

As I said, we certainly faced a military setback. We have now opted for a political option that is acceptable to all Tamils and the international community.

What should the international community do at this juncture? 

The international community should realise that the reasons for which an armed struggle began three decades ago have not been addressed even now. The Tamils in Sri Lanka still live as second-class citizens devoid of all rights and parity of status. It was quite apparent in the past few months that the international community was adamant on eradicating the LTTE.  But it failed to address the fundamental and rightful needs of the Tamil people. It failed to save the lives of over 30,000 Tamils.

Today over three lakh people languish in internment camps of the Sri Lankan forces.  The international community has lost its ability to exert any influence on the Lankan government to save these people. This is an urgent need that should be acted on decisively and expeditiously.

There are people who claim Prabhakaran is still alive and that you have been issuing statements on his death under duress.

I have already said in uncertain terms that our leader fought to his last upholding his beliefs. There is no duress for me to state this openly. I need to give the appropriate respects to my leader who moulded our freedom struggle. If I do not acknowledge the ultimate sacrifice he made for the principles he lived by, it would be a grave disservice to my leader and dear friend.

As the leader of the LTTE, what would be your strategy? Do you think it would be possible to lead another struggle?

We are now transforming into a potent and inclusive political structure. In the near future we will be releasing our political strategy on how we engage the Tamil diaspora and embrace the political structures that exist in our homeland. This will be released soon.

What form will the struggle take now?

The freedom struggle of our people has not changed. As our leader has always said, “We will change the methods of our struggle but not our goal.”  I wish to reiterate that our struggle is not over.  We have only changed our methods to achieve those goals.