INDICATING THE WATER WAR IS NOT YET OVER LTTE SAYS IT ATTACKED
SRI LANKA ARMY TROOPS AT MAVIL ARU IRRIGATION CANAL

By Walter Jayawardhana

Indicating that the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) did not intend to end the water war at Mavil Aru the terrorist group’s Trincomalee area leader said they targeted the Sri Lanka Army troops in the Mavil Aru area with artillery and mortar fire.

Sri Lanka government defense spokesman Minister Keheliya Rambukwella said the publicity given in the pro-LTTE media that the embattled canal was opened by the LTTE was a complete canard and it was opened by the Sri Lanka security forces.

"It was with a precise air attack of Sri Lanka Air force that we could open the sluice gate partially around 6.00p.m yesterday (Tuesday the 8th of August) , then only the Pro LTTE media elements went out saying that LTTE had opened the gates”

The Sri Lanka Ministry of Defence also published a photograph of the canal they claimed taken after the sluice gates were open .

Both reports from the Tamil Net and the Ministry of Defense show the battles to completely occupy Mavil Aru have not ceased. Rambukwella said that the government would pay no heed to the ridiculous claims of the LTTE since; its only motive is to secure an uninterrupted water supply to the people. Hence, the operation "Water Shed" will be continued until the sluice gates are completely secured against the terrorists.

The minister’s statement and other evidence show that there was a combative atmosphere at Mavil Aru and no reporters from the Lanka Academic and Associated Press were present there at the time of opening. Both news services reported that the Tamil tigers opened the irrigation canal.
S. Elilan, the Trincomalee area political leader of the terrorist group in a statement published in the LTTE controlled website the Tamil Net claimed the Mavil Aru sluice gates which were opened after 19 days of illegal closure by his terrorist group, is in the territory under their control .

Their claim of owning the territory and artillery fire being targeted at the Sri Lanka Army indicate that the water war is not yet over and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam might once again attempt to close the opened sluice gates depriving water to the 15,000 farming families, the majority of whom are Muslims , the farmers said.

Although the Sri Lanka government said it opened the Mavil Aru sluice gates Elilan counter claimed they were the ones who opened it.

Earlier when the Norwegian envoys met Thamilchelvan in Kilinochchi The Tamil Net published a statement saying that the LTTE would tell the “Mavil Aru Tamils” who closed the sluice gates to open it on the request of Norway’s Minister, Eric Solheim.. He also attached many conditions as the free passage of material like cement and iron which are extensively used for their war effort be allowed to the LTTE controlled areas to return the favor of water . The government then said they were not prepared to open water on their conditions.

On same day the government said they opened water on Mavil Aru irrigation canal the LTTE called few reporters and said that they opened the irrigation canal three hours before. But there is no evidence that the reporters who wrote the news stories actually traveled to the Mavil Aru area to eye witness the real opening.

The reporters of the Lanka Academic, a news website and the Associated Press failed to state any eye witness account of the opening. The LTTE claimed that they called the Norwegian representatives at 5.30 after opening the sluice gates. But last Sunday, when S.Elilan with SLMM head retired Swedish Major General Ulf Henricsson tried to go there without informing the Sri Lanka government, they could not open it under heavy Sri Lankan artillery fire, he and Ulf Henricsson both claimed.

He did not explain the lack of artillery fire on Tuesday, the day of their claimed opening, when Elilan claimed he together with some unnamed civilians opened it. The reporters failed to state whether they were really depending on the terrorist sources alone or they actually witnessed it. The terrorists are notorious of telling untruths to reporters . Not only the reporters did not mention about their actual presence in the area there is no evidence that any reporters visited in the area on the particular day. Still the LTTE is denying the Rajiv Gandhi killing even after its negotiator Anton Balasingham has publicly regretted the killing.

The Sri Lanka government in an earlier statement said : “In relation to the Mavil Aru issue, (the Norwegian Peace Envoy Jon Hansen) .. Bauer informed that the LTTE had expressed its willingness to open the sluice gates. It was pointed out that this offer leaves open the possibility that they could also close the sluice gates at their own discretion.

The Government was of the view that the situation at the sluice gates at Mavil Aru must return to its original status in which the Engineers of the Irrigation Department could have unimpeded access to the sluice gates freely and safely to manage the water distribution. This was clearly stated to the Norwegian delegation. It was not only the Mavil Aru gate that had to be managed but a series of gates and water flow which is a technical matter for irrigation engineers. Accepting the LTTE approach would leave the populations of Seruwila, Muttur and Ichchalampattu, which consists of over 50,000 persons (largely Muslims) and 30,000 acres of paddy land, hostage to the whims of the LTTE. Given the recent attacks on the civilian population of Muttur and the threat to the Muslim inhabitants previously expressed in leaflets the LTTE offer of re-opening the sluice gates at their own discretion only submits the population to further possibilities of victimisation.

“The Government takes the view that the LTTE must not illegally deny water to a civilian population again. The Government hopes that the LTTE will peacefully respond to this reasonable request.

“The Government also brought to the attention of the Norwegian Special Envoy the conduct of Maj. Gen. Ulf Henricsson in travelling to an area in which operational activity was taking place without giving prior notice of his plans. It was only on Saturday, 5 August that Maj. Gen. Henricsson attempted to travel without informing SCOPP to the Southern sector of Muttur when fighting between the security forces and the LTTE was underway. It was the timely action of the security forces and SCOPP officials that prevented the Head of SLMM from driving into a conflict zone.” SCOOP is Sri Lanka government’s Secretariat for the Peace Process.(