Sri Lankan police have arrested a 43-year-old British citizen for allegedly raising funds for the LTTE, despite having been in the United Kingdom since the organisation was militarily defeated.
Authorities allege the British Tamil man, who fled the island in the wake of the Mullivaikkal genocide in 2009 which saw tens of thousands of Tamils slaughtered by the Sri Lankan state, had been collecting money for the organisation whilst abroad.
The LTTE was militarily defeated with senior leaders either killed, executed or forcibly disappeared in 2009. It has been defunct since.
The individual, originally from Kilinochchi and now a British citizen, was arrested upon arriving at Bandaranaike International Airport on November 30. He was detained by the Immigration Department based on a travel ban issued by the Colombo Magistrate's Court at the request of the Colombo North Crime Division in 2009.
The individual was handed over to the Airport Police, who formally placed him under arrest. Investigations are being carried out jointly by the Airport Police and the Colombo North Crime Division.
The arrest comes amidst continued concerns about the Sri Lankan government's use of anti-terrorism laws to target Tamils with little transparency. Fifteen years after the end of the armed conflict, Sri Lankan authorities continue to arrest and detain individuals on allegations of links to terrorism, raising questions about the use of such measures to suppress dissent and intimidate the Tamil people.
