Shanaka Jayasekera, in Q and A with the Sunday Observer, 29 July 2012, where the title was: “Economic concerns main reason – Counter-terrorism expert”
Apart from crime stories, boat people, who risk their lives on a deadly journey to Australia have ‘decorated’ the front pages of most of the local newspapers as well as Australian newspapers. Australia, with a steady influx of asylum-seekers, has become the most sought after destination among Sri Lankans fleeing the country via Indonesia, which is the transit hub. Sri Lankan men and women, despite surveillances by the Sri Lanka Navy and being frequently arrested, leave the shores in risky boat rides arranged by local human smugglers by paying with their meagre savings.
In an interview with the Sunday Observer , Shanaka Jayasekara, Lecturer, Centre for Policing, Intelligence and Counter Terrorism (PICT), Macquarie University of Australia said in the absence of LTTE terrorists, who restricted the exodus of youth out of the Vanni as they required human resources, now the Vanni people were risking their lives to ‘earn more dollars’.
He said the pro-LTTE lobby groups use the Sri Lankan asylum seeker issue to discredit the Sri Lankan government. ” They see the media value in boatloads of Sri Lankans claiming political asylum overseas as an opportunity to keep international attention on Sri Lanka. As every boatload arrives, you will see Tamil activists defaming and discrediting Sri Lanka in the media”, Jayasekara said. Continue reading →
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Mohamed Ajmal Kasab
