transcurrents

Sea Tiger Chief Soosai “Surfaces” After Accident at Sea

September 29th, 2007

by D.B.S. Jeyaraj

The significance of the date September 26th has become another example of differences in perception illustrating the ethnic divide in Sri Lanka. To most members of the Sinhala community it is the day on which Solomon West Ridgeway Dias Bandaranaike died in 1959 after being shot in Colombo the previous day by a Buddhist monk. To many members of the Tamil community it is the day on which Rasiah Parthiban alias Thileepan died in 1987 at Nallur after a 12 day fast unto death campaign protesting actions of the Indian and Sri Lankan Governments.

The Sri Lanka Freedom Party has been for many decades observing Sep 26th as a day honouring the memory of its founder SWRD Bandaranaike.The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) organization has also been commemorating the day and even the fortnight preceding it in honour of Thileepan.

[Col Soosai addressing the gathering at Puthukkudityiruppu]

In recent times two other incidents have added to the date’s significance in LTTE annals. It was on September 26th in 1990 that Bhanu the LTTE Jaffna commander of the time hoisted the tiger flag atop the ramparts of the Jaffna Fort after the armed forces abandoned it. Incidently the Present Defence Secretary Gotabhaya Rajapakse and current army commander Sarath Fonseka were involved in this evacuation then.

The other incident was in 2001 when senior LTTE leader Vaithilingam Sornalingam alias “Col” Shankar was killed in a claymore mine explosion on Sep 26th while he was motoring along the Oddusuddan – Puthukudiyiruppu road in the Mullaitheevu district. Shankar was the man who pioneered the LTTE’s airwing and a close associate of tiger supremo Velupillai Prabakharan. The Army’s Long Range Reconnaissance Patrol (LRRP) or deep penetration squad was allegedly responsible for the assassination.Nowadays the tigers honour Shankar also on the 26th.

Re-appearance

Among ceremonies held this year to observe Thileepan day was the release on Sep 26th of an audio CD titled “Siragu Viritha Puligal” (tigers unfurl wings)consisting of songs about the LTTE’s air wing.This particular event was held at the “Maaveerar Mandapam” (great heroes hall) in Puthukudiyiruppu.While the widows of Lt. Col Chutta and Lt. Col Kunjan lit the special lamps it was the lot of “Col” Shankar’s widow Kuha to do the honours by receiving the first disc of the newly released CD. What was more important as well as interesting was the identity of the person who released the CD officially and handed it over ceremonially to Kuha.

[The wife of late Col. Shankar, Ms Kuga, receiving the first copy of the music CD titled "Airborne Tigers"]

This was none other than Thillaiambalam Sivanesan alias Soosai the “Sirappu Thalapathy” or special commander of the LTTE’s sea tiger division known as “Kadal Puligal”. Soosai whose wireless code sign is Sera Oscar had “surfaced” after going off the public radar for more than two months. The reason for this “absence” was attributed to an accident at sea. But the LTTE’s deafening “official” silence about the incident had led to much speculation and controversy. Soosai’s dramatic appearance on Sep 26th will at least help disprove some of the rumours surrounding his accident.

Accident

Soosai in his speech referred briefly to his accident. He pointed out that a motor vehicle attempting to turn suddenly without changing gear at a speed of more than 100 km per hour would overturn .Likewise a speedboat too would at sea. This is what had happened Soosai said and observed that he had lost his son and a bodyguard. Three other cadre and he had been injured. Soosai praised the LTTE’s medical unit and thanked it for his recovery.

Soosai also charged that certain state sponsored elements had exploited the incident and engaged in false propaganda against the LTTE .Though people in the homeland were not taken in the Tamil Diaspora had been confused and upset. Reiterating the LTTE’s commitment to its ideals Soosai also stated that people were worried about advances made on ground by Sri Lankan armed forces. The sea tiger chief sang paeans of praise for his leader Prabakharan and asserted that under his able leadership the LTTE will achieve great military successes leading to a realisation of tiger objectives. Soosai emphasised that no Sinhala government would ever grant Tamil rights willingly and that only an armed struggle would succeed.

False Propaganda

LTTE media organs abroad have gone to town with news about Soosai surfacing again. Pictures of the ceremony as well as reports of his speech are being widely circulated in the print, audio, visual and electronic media. The emergence of Soosai and his praise of Prabakharan are being cited as another example of the state’s false propaganda going awry. From the LTTE point of view the re- appearance of Soosai is depicted as a propaganda victory.What is glossed over is the reason for all these tiger media going “silent” on the issue all these weeks. If the Soosai incident was only an accident being exploited by the anti – tiger elements why was it not effectively countered all these days?

Soosai himself explained this by saying at the Puthukudiyiruppu meeting that the LTTE could not be bothered responding to each and every statement of the Government. This is certainly true but does not mean that the LTTE should remain silent on every single matter. Certain issues deserve effective rejoinders promptly. The Soosai issue was such an issue in view of its impact in general and the Tamil people in particular.

Anti – tiger propaganda about a major split in the LTTE and a conspiracy surrounding Soosai’s accident may have been proved wrong by Soosai surfacing publicly on a tiger platform and pledging loyalty to Prabakharan. But there is no denying that the incident was not a mere splash. It caused waves and not ripples. One reason for this was of course the sustained propaganda by anti – tiger websites operating from abroad. The major contributory factor was however the manner in which the LTTE handled the incident and the fickleness of many tiger activists abroad.

The Accident

It was on July 18th that the purported accident occurred. The sea tigers had received four new boats. They were being tried and tested off the Wattawagal coast. Soosai himself was aboard one of the new boats with his youngest child . The five year old son Shankar was named after his maternal uncle Sathiyanathan alias Shankar of Kambarmalai. Shankar was the first LTTE cadre to die due to combat. He passed away on Nov 27th 1982 and the LTTE observes the date as great heroes day annually.Soosai married his sister in an inter – caste union.

Soosai is a person extremely fond of his children. Nelliaddy residents recall the first birthday of his eldest son Kadalarasan (sea king). The Sivanesans had ordered a massive cake in the shape of “Kadalpura” (sea dove) the first maritime vessel owned by the LTTE. The cake baked at Nelliaddy’s Subash bakery was so large in length, breadth and height that it had to be placed in a pick – up van and take to the birthday party.

Soosai was greatly attached to his youngest son Shankar and was in the habit of taking him along wherever he went. From NGO officials to media personnel many had got used to the sight of “Soosai and his little kid” being seen everywhere. Shankar was seated on the new boat with his father when the accident happened on that fateful day. Apparently one speedboat overturned and collided with another. There was also an explosion.

Shankar was killed. So too was a bodyguard. Three other cadres were seriously injured. Others got minor injuries. Soosai himself sustained major injuries mainly on his back, neck and back of the head. He was reportedly in a coma. Soosai was taken to the Ponnambalam nursing home in Puthukudiyiruppu. Thereafter he was whisked away to an undisclosed location to be treated by the LTTE’s medical unit.

Pandemonium

The incident caused pandemonium in LTTE ranks. Many cadres threw caution to the winds and jabbered excitedly on their communication equipment without using appropriate codes. These were intercepted easily by Sri Lankan security forces. The media centre for national security and defence ministry websites came out with the story. Then the mainstream media picked it up.Since first publicity about the episode came from Government circles it was widely believed then that an explosive had been triggered by the newly formed penetration squad of the navy.

The LTTE could and should have come up with an announcement then to set the record straight. But the secretive culture of the LTTE shows little appreciation for “glasnost”. Above all the tigers are hopelessly inadequate in discerning between matters deserving exposure and matters not requiring publicity. So the tigers clammed up. None of the mainstream Tamil newspapers in Sri Lanka reported on it. When friendly media personnel asked LTTE spokesperson Ilanthiraiyan he admitted off the record that there had been an incident but declined to elaborate further.

The tigers enveloped what seemed a bona fide accident with an unnecessary veil of secrecy . This news blackout had a predictable reaction. The anti – tiger websites operating abroad had a field day. All sorts of conspiracy theories were circulated.There were two main aspects to these. One was that there was really no incident and it was all a false tale concocted by tiger intelligence chief Pottu Amman to remove Soosai. The other was that the explosion was due to a bomb planted by Pottu and that Soosai was “removed ” from the scene.

Other developments added fuel to the rumour fire. Soosai’s sons funeral was held on July 21st. Soosai was conspicuously absent. It was said that Soosai was in a coma still. But this led to a wave of fresh rumours that Soosai was executed or imprisoned.

There was also a report that a Tamil sugeon from a Western country had tried to go to the Wanni and attend to Soosai but was refused permission. The story gaining ground was that the explosion was caused by Pottu Amman’s boys and that Soosai had been taken away from the Ponnambalam’s nursing home by intelligence cadres and detained.

Anti – tiger websites

The anti tiger websites had a fresh spurt of activity in mid August. There had been a sea confrontation between the navy and sea tigers off Pulmoddai on August 13th. Among the sea tigers killed were Santhirasegerampillai Thakkuveran alias Lt. Col Thiyagan and Kanniyathamby Sothilingam alias Lt. Col Nishanthan. They were reportedly no 3 and no 4 in the sea tiger hierarchy after Soosai and Cheliyan.. A funeral ceremony was held for them at Puthukudiyiruppu on Aug 16th.

Soosai was once again absent. Among participants lighting lamps, garlanding the bodies and delivering eulogies were deputy special commander Cheliyan and other sea tiger commanders like Kalaarthan, Sreeram, Kaanaroopan and Naren. All of them were referred to in news reports as “kadalpuli thalapathigal’ (sea tiger commanders). An intriguing feature at the funeral was the attendance of Intelligence chief Pottu Amman who garlanded the bodies and also delivered an eulogy.There was no reference to Soosai or his absence.

The anti – tiger websites went to work . They cited the news report as proof that Soosai was had been removed and possibly executed. Displaying complete ignorance – intentionally or unintentionally – about the difference between special commander and commander these websites began stating that fresh replacements had been appointed in place of Soosai. Some sections of the mainstream media also followed suit.

There was a story that the reported incident off Pulmoddai was itself false and that the reality was that internecine clashes between Soosai loyalists and Pottu loyalists were taking place. It soon became apparent that some websites were very much in the dark about actualities and were only hitting out “pottai ” shots about Pottu in the dark.

The funeral however added further grist to the rumour mills..Soosai’s conspicuous absence and Pottu’s ominous presence re-invigorated the “buzz” about the Pottu – Soosai divide. It appeared that Pottu had struck against Soosai and scored. “What happened to Soosai”? became the question on many a lip in Sri Lanka and abroad. There were many who confidently asserted that Soosai would not be heard of again.

Chandrika Kumaratunga

There was a time when few would have believed a story of a split in LTTE ranks or about intra – tiger feuds between senior LTTE leaders. But after the Mahathaya incident and the Karuna breakaway people are ready to believe any story of a split. Also Pottu Amman has acquired such a terrible reputation that any tale about his ruthless dirty tricks are readily accepted. Besides there had been stories earlier about Soosai having differences with the tiger leadership.

The first person to spread such stories on a global scale was former President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga. This happened in the aftermath of Soosai going to Singapore for medical treatment for complications arising out of a previous injury.

During the war against the Indian army, Soosai and some other tigers were injured at a clash in Nithigaikulam where the A – 4 base was located then. Among those injured then were the present LTTE police chief Nadesan and Revenue chief Thamilendhi.

Soosai was taken clandestinely to Tamil Nadu for treatment despite the fact that the tigers were fighting the Indian army. Soosai recovered but a piece of shrapnel remained embedded within his chest. That was now causing complications and so Soosai needed advanced medical treatment in Singapore.

Singapore

It was in October 2004 that Soosai arrived in Katunayake on an air force helicopter. Soosai carrying a passport (N 13565685) issued in the name of Thillaiambalam Sivanesan flew aboard an Airbus 330 on the Sri Lankan airlines flight UL 316 to Singapore. He was accompanied by a doctor from the Wanni , Gnanasekaram Camillus Dharmendra and two bodyguards Quintus Sahayarathnarajah and Gopalapillai Sathyamuhundan.He returned to Kilinochchi after five days in Singapore.

Soosai was placed under close surveillance by Singapore security intelligence , uncomfortable at a “terrorist” in their midst. He was confined mainly to his hotel and visited hospitals. He was not allowed to meet anyone other than medical personnel. Soosai however spoke for long hours on the telephone to many people abroad including Anton Balasingham and KP.

It was against this backdrop that Chandrika Kumaratunga created a stir by saying Soosai had not received any treatment in Singapore. He had quarrelled with Prabakharan said Kumaratunga in media interviews.LTTE activists had met Soosai in Singapore and persuaded him to return. Kumaratunga opined that the LTTE supremo who lost his army chief Karuna was now losing his navy chief.

Kumaratunga’s views apparently relied on Sri Lankan intelligence reports. Karuna’s erstwhile eastern deputy Ramesh had married Soosai’s cousin sister. Soosai had opposed Pottu Amman’s attempts to penalise Ramesh after the Karuna revolt it was alleged. This led to bad blood between the two. Soosai’s Singapore trip was a consequence of these differences it was alleged.But Singapore intelligence refuted these charges in confidential reports sent to Colombo and stated unambiguously that Soosai had not met any outsiders in Singapore and that he had received medical attention only.

Tsunami

While rumours began circulating about a Soosai rebellion the Tsunami struck on December 26th 2004. The sea tigers led by Soosai rendered yeoman service to the affected and afflicted victims. Their performance was highly appreciated by the Western media and NGO personnel. Soosai was in charge of these and subsequent relief efforts. Even if there were any differences within the LTTE the Tsunami seemed to have washed those away.Soosai gained much exposure and prominence after the Tsunami.

[During the visit to tsunami hit areas by Margareta Wahlstrom, UN Secretary General's Special Envoy on Relief Operations in 2005]

Soosai’s recent accident revived speculation again about a split and resultant conspiracies. There were however certain developments on ground before and after the incident that compounded the situation. Friction between Pottu Amman and other senior leaders is a recurring phenomenon in LTTE ranks. This was true in the case of Soosai too. One cause was the difference of opinion about showing leniency to Ramesh after the Karuna split. Soosai won that round and Ramesh was restored to grace.

Another cause of intra – tiger conflict was over Pottu Ammans infiltration of sea tigers for intelligence purposes. Soosai is practically the Pater familias of the sea tigers. The division is closely knit and Soosai enjoys a personal relationship with all senior and intermediate level cadres and their families. Pottu’s intrusion was resented. This led to clashes between sea tigers and intelligence cadres at the “Neidal” tourist resorts set up by the sea tigers in the Vadamaratchy coast during the ceasefire.

Pottu Amman

The recent accident at sea incident and the LTTE’s excessive secrecy about it caused some convulsions within the LTTE. Pottu Amman’s cadres suspecting the security forces of being responsible had converged on the scene immediately after the incident in large numbers. They had taken Soosai to hospital first and later to the tiger hospital. This aroused suspicion. The nature of the LTTE is such that intra – tiger conspiracies are easily believed by cadres ,supporters, opponents and outside observers.. The lack of openness aggravates this paranoid state of affairs..

This was what happened when former Mannar commander Victor was killed in Adampan in 1986 and also when ex – jaffna commander Kittu lost a leg in a bomb attack in 1987. In both cases an inside job was suspected and caused internal convulsions. There are many who persist in their belief even today that both incidents were inside jobs within the LTTE.

Likewise the Soosai incident also had an effect within. The much hated and much dreaded Pottu Amman was strongly suspected.Several Soosai loyalists within the sea tigers revolted.Initially some sea tigers refused to beach their boats fearing further repercussions at the hands of Pottu. Subsequently Chelian persuaded them to return ashore.

Heartburn

There was also much heartburn among sea tiger cadres and supporters. The Coastal community relying on fishing as an occupation was intricately inter – twined with the sea tigers. Soosai himself hailing from the coastal village of Polygandy in Jaffna peninsula shares a common heritage and empathy with these people. He had the common touch and is one of the few tiger leaders who is genuinely liked by the ordinary people. Like former Tamil Nadu chief minister MG Ramachandran the popular Soosai is also called “Makkal Thilagam” (peoples leader)

Naturally there was much suspicion and grumbling about what happened to Soosai.Matters got exacerbated when Pottu Amman’s cadres began investigating the critical sentiments expressed by cadres and supporters over Soosai. Pottu sensed dissension and wanted to nip it in the bud.Some cadres openly rebelled when attempts were made to quiz them. Some cadres shattered by the “mystery” surrounding Soosai’s fate began deserting. This led to Pottu Amman’s operatives visiting their homes and interrogating family members to find out their whereabouts.

In a controversial incident a group of sea tiger deserters escaped by boat to Tamil Nadu on August 22nd. The Indian authorities were tipped off that LTTE men were trying to enter Tamil Nadu for nefarious purposes. A red alert was issued and intensive searches of coastal areas were conducted. It is strongly suspected that the LTTE “misinformed” the Indians about the incident to put the escapees in trouble.

Vicious campaign

While trouble brewed in the Wanni the LTTE conduct abroad was baffling . The LTTE did not refer openly in any of their overseas media organs to Soosai or the accident. But tiger operatives conducted a vicious oral campaign against Soosai in Europe, North America and Australasia. They spread word of mouth tales far worse than those churned out by anti – tiger websites.

Soosai was accused of being in cahoots with the Reseaearch and Analysis Wing (RAW) of India.; he was accused of tying up with Karuna and Sri Lankan intelligence; there was a story that Soosai was trying to escape to India by boat and that Pottu Amman had foiled it by ramming into the vessel . Soosai’s brother Thillaiambalam Sivalingam was accused of hatching a conspiracy with Indian intelligence to help Soosai escape. The irony in all this was that so called tiger supporters and not enemies were blackening Soosai for some inexplicable reason.

Demoralisation was visible in LTTE ranks at home and abroad. The inherent weakness of the LTTE’s overseas structures became obvious as there was no reference let alone denial of the incident officially. The losses suffered by the sea tigers in many sea skirmishes suggested that the absence of Soosai was being felt. The “bad mouthing “about Soosai by some tiger activists abroad resulted in expatriate Soosai loyalists protesting. The LTTE through mishandling had worsened the situation.

Damage Control

It was at this point that the LTTE attempted some damage control. A few weeks ago the LTTE broke its silence and officially acknowledged that Soosai had met with an accident. The occasion was a release of a video No 11 in the series on sea tigers. A sea tiger commander Vinayagam referred to the accident and said Soosai was recovering fast. Vinayagam said that Soosai had planned the Video release ceremony while being in hospital. He predicted that Soosai will appear publicly very soon. Had the LTTE done this earlier much of the controversy could have been minimised if not avoided.

The re- appearance of Soosai on Sep 26th and the tone and tenor of his speech indicate that he will continue to serve Prabakharan loyally. Soosai’s first task will be to pacify and unify the sea tigers. He will have to reach out to his loyalists and re-integrate them within tiger folds.His larger than life presence will reassure sea tiger cadres and supporters and recent upheavals may be gradually forgotten. This will depend on the visible role to be played by Soosai in the future.Soosai and the sea tigers will be under public scritiny as much as possible.Any ostensible marginalisation will have repercussions.

Rumours

The rumours surrounding his accident will continue to linger. There will always be people saying that a serious rupture had taken place. The role of Pottu Amman like that of Beria during Stalin’s era will always be controversial. There will be a conspiracy theory afloat that Soosai has really been sidelined and that the “reappearance” was stage – managed to alleviate suspicion and rebellion within the tigers and their supporters. Soosai may be kept as a figurehead in future. Whatever the truth about intra – tiger fissures the reality is that Soosai himself has no “future” outside the LTTE.

This writer met Soosai for the first time in 1986 when working as Colombo correspondent of The Hindu and Frontline. There was an on going clash between the army and the tigers in Thondaimanaru in the vicinity of the Sellvasannathi Murugan temple. When I expressed a wish to see the actual fighting the LTTE Jaffna commander Sathasivampillai Krishnakumar alias “Col” Kittu called someone who I think was “Sukhla” and asked him to take me to the scene of fighting.

Kittu changed his mind suddenly and called Soosai. Kittu then introduced Soosai to me and said of Soosai ” He is careful and acts with patience and responsibility. He will take you and bring you back safely”. He then bade us good – bye telling Soosai only one word “Kavanam” (careful). I recall Soosai asking me to remove my cream coloured shirt and then crawling behind him clad in denim trousers to the different tiger positions to witness the combat. As Kittu said Soosai brought me back safely after that experience.

Personified sea – tigers

Soosai born on October 16th 1963 is a first batch tiger recruit who received training in North India. The former Vadamaratchy area chief under Kittu has been in charge of the sea tigers from 1991. In 2001 Soosai lost his deputy Gangai Amaran in a landmine explosion at Akkarayankulam in Kilinochchi. The deep penetration squad was suspected.

[Performance at an Arts Festival held at a Sea Tiger base on Sep 19, 2005]

The sea tigers as Soosai himself is fond of saying is a “child brought up ” (naan valartha pillai) by him.Soosai is an old timer who has proved to be a tower of strength to the LTTE. In recent times he has personified the sea tigers.Alienating Soosai or his support base can only harm the LTTE in the long run.

The LTTE seems to have realised this and adopted some belated damage control. The situation could have been vastly different if the LTTE had exercised openness about the incident from the beginning. Excessive secrecy is unnecessary and often counterproductive.

The Soosai affair was a mere ripple made into a splash by the anti – tiger lobby but the tigers have made it a wave. The LTTE needs to contain the negative fall – out caused by the Soosai incident. There is also a necessity to reduce secrecy and be more open about matters.The coming months will demonstrate whether the tigers have learnt their lesson on this or not.

[A female cadre records the Martyr's day memorial held in Kallapadu, Mullaithivu coast, Nov 2005]

More importantly the return of Soosai is likely to impact on the sea tigers in the future. There will certainly be a revival of morale and spirits. It remains to be seen whether this resurgence will be demonstrated in maritime clashes.

[Photos Courtesy: Aruchuna, LTTEPS, Pathivu, HumanityAshore]

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