Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka revealed yesterday that the Rajapaksa family had negotiated with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) and Amnesty International on May 17, 2009, to allow LTTE leaders, including Velupillai Prabhakaran, to surrender, even though the army intended to eliminate them. He claimed that if the surrender had taken place, Prabhakaran could have become the Chief Minister of the Northern Province.
Fonseka held a news conference while releasing a video of a telephone conversation between the then Defence Secretary and Shavendra Silva on the evening of May 17, 2009, which he said pertained to the potential surrender of LTTE leaders.
He explained that the Rajapaksas—Mahinda, Gotabaya, and Basil—had discussed with the ICRC and Amnesty International the possibility of LTTE leaders surrendering. However, the LTTE reportedly refused to surrender directly to the army and preferred a third party. Fonseka said the Rajapaksas had insisted on surrender to the army, but the plan failed as the LTTE declined.
Fonseka stated that he was in China at the time and had not been informed about the negotiations, emphasizing that the army’s plan was to eliminate the LTTE, not save them. He said that on May 17, LTTE leaders were confined to a small 400-meter area and knew they faced imminent death.
He added that the army succeeded in wiping out the LTTE on May 19, 2009, after the group refused to surrender to the army as proposed by the Rajapaksas. Fonseka also noted that the journalist who recorded the telephone conversation had fled the country fearing for their life, and he obtained the video only recently through a third party.
