New LTTE leader arrested

The new leader of the LTTE has been arrested in Malaysia and transferred to Sri Lanka. According to the BBC: “As the new rebel leader, Mr Pathmanathan said the LTTE would try non-violent methods to achieve their goal of a separate state for the Tamil minority.” Questions have been raised as to whether this shift in strategy will now persist given the sharp divisions within the LTTE organisation as recently documented by an independent Tamil journalist. If the Government succeeds in neutralising the reformers within the movement, it will no doubt have secured a short-term boost since the international community will remain opposed to the LTTE. But over the longer term, this strategy – if combined with ongoing abuse of Tamil rights – will carry costs, potentially lethal.