World Tamil Movement

[JoS]

Story.

So here is the run-down. The World Tamil Movement is an organization that collects money for the LTTE (Tamil Tigers) and sends the money to them overseas to buy weapons and conduct civil war, but also acts of terrorism such as suicide bombings on buses and the like. Canada, and specifically Toronto has one of the largest Tamil populations outside of Sri Lanka, so its only natural for them to raise funds here. The LTTE is listed as a terrorist organization, the WTM was not. The WTM has been accused of using mafia style tactics to extort Tamils for money for the "war effort".

Up until today the WTM was a non-profit organization , but today the Tory government decided to add them to the list of terrorist organization under the Criminal Code of Canada, ordering banks to freeze all assets. Also now, any Canadian citizen who participates in the group, at home or abroad, or anyone in Canada who handles their assets or provides them support (financial or otherwise) is guilty of a crime.

So do you think this is a positive step, or a slippery slope by outlawing a non-profit organization? This is the first time a non-profit organization has been listed in Canada. Personally I think its about time it was banned.

[reviewer-general]

Certainly makes sense to me.

Just because they are a non-profit business does not exclude them from being held responsible for what they do.

;

[aninjaman]

Any smart country would outlaw a non-profit that commited civil war and terriost acts. Im preety sure that everyone that sees this will agree unless they are a Tamil Tiger themselves.

[JoS]

At 6/19/08 02:00 PM, aninjaman wrote: Any smart country would outlaw a non-profit that commited civil war and terriost acts.

Technically the WTM hasn't committed any acts, they just fund raise on behalf of the Tamil Tigers.

[aninjaman]

At 6/19/08 02:31 PM, JoS wrote:

At 6/19/08 02:00 PM, aninjaman wrote: Any smart country would outlaw a non-profit that commited civil war and terriost acts.

Technically the WTM hasn't committed any acts, they just fund raise on behalf of the Tamil Tigers.

Fundraising on behalf of the Tamil Tigers still is bad. They are giving terrioists money and thats illegal and since what there doing is illegal they should not be allowed to operate.

[Lindione]

If they were to stop giving funds to the terrorist organization, they should be allowed their status back, but for now their decision seems logical.

[hongkongexpress]

I don't understand. Why are some "Terrorist" organizations more acceptable than others. In Canada, Sun Yat Sen, similarly fund raised for this Revolution through the Zhonghua minzu (Overseas Chinese community), to also finance and organize the Chinese Revolutionary Alliance.

The goals are similar to The Tamils: Armed revolution, bomb making, government subversion, drug financing (dope). Yet when Tamils, FARC, and ELN, and Basque, and Taliban, do these things then it's not ok. When The Chinese do these things engage in criminal activity to support revolution then it's ok.

Because the Tongmenhui are "democratic" revolutionaries....

For the record I'm actually glad for the Chinese "Terrorists" (The Koumintang), but as a searcher of fact. I have to call a spade a spade and not white wash (academisize facts). Sun Yat Sen was no Christian. (He was a warrior, opposite of the teachings of Christ, "blessed are the peace makers")

Sun Yat Sen was a terrorist. He inspired armed revolution, criminal activity (which some Chinese gangs stem from, these secret societies).

But I prefer Sun's thugs to Mao's thugs any day. But the Tongmenhui, was and is a criminal terrorist group, just like FARC, Shining path, AUC (right wing paramilitaries), and the Taliban).

[FUNKbrs]

I've always been somewhat a supporter of terrorism in general. I supported the Iraq war (not the occupation. that's retarded) for the fact that the world needed to fear the US more.

Now, I'm in no way in favor of illegal fundraising tactics, so maybe the decision was a good idea, but we REALLLY need to watch out for a new McCarthyism era where the question "Are you now, or have you ever been a member of a terrorist organization?" could be a carreer killer regardless of it's veracity or lack thereof.

I don't want an old defunct charity like the Gideons or NPR on someone's automatic contribution list to turn "terrorist" in the eyes of the government and land a thousand people in jail for doing nothing worse than dropping a five spot in a box.

I mean, National Public Radio COULD one day be considered "pro-terror propaganda" (btw, I LOVE propaganda. Big fan. Very important for making people happy with their lives in our overpopulated world). Then what happens to all the old ladies who donated? JAIL?! That's fucked up. You can donate to a charity and not be responsible for what unscrupulous people did with your money. If I give cash to the Red Cross, and they use it to pay Halliburton to defend their aid convoys, and Halliburton murders a group of Iraqis, is that my fault? Should I be charged with a crime for that? I don't think so.

I mean, if you give a guy twenty bucks, and he goes and kills his wife, it doesn't mean you paid him to kill his wife. It means he was a bastard murderer who took your money, the two events being totally unrelated.

I mean, c'mon, do you think the Tamil Tigers REALLY present themselves as terrorists? Shit no. They tell the people they raise funds from some cock-and-bull story just like every other fund raiser does. Are we going to start shutting down churches and throwing THEIR members in jail if a single member of the church bombs an abortion clinic in a totally unrelated incident?

if this is the case, we're going to end up with a LOT of sweet old ladies in jail on spurious charges.

[aninjaman]

At 6/20/08 12:55 PM, FUNKbrs wrote: I mean, c'mon, do you think the Tamil Tigers REALLY present themselves as terrorists? Shit no. They tell the people they raise funds from some cock-and-bull story just like every other fund raiser does. Are we going to start shutting down churches and throwing THEIR members in jail if a single member of the church bombs an abortion clinic in a totally unrelated incident?

if this is the case, we're going to end up with a LOT of sweet old ladies in jail on spurious charges.

They are not arresting the people who donate they are shutting down the organization all together so people wont donate money to it.

[morefngdbs]

At 6/19/08 02:31 PM, JoS wrote:

At 6/19/08 02:00 PM, aninjaman wrote: Any smart country would outlaw a non-profit that commited civil war and terriost acts.

Technically the WTM hasn't committed any acts, they just fund raise on behalf of the Tamil Tigers.

;
Has that been proven Jos ?
I just wonder if it's possible, they raise money for the Tamil people, let's not forget people, that there are a group of people who define themselves as Tamilians.
Let us also not forget before a slew of Western Nations stuck their busybody noses & ideals into these people's business there were two distinct nations there on that Island.
The Tamil Kingdom in the North & the Sinhala Kingdom in the South . It was the British (surprise,surprise) who combined the two for "ease" of administration !

When the British left in 1948 they handed over power to the Sinhalese. WhoThen immediately began to attack everything that defined Tamil as a Nation, including the adoption of Sinhala as the only language, instead of English...Tamils had to learn Sinhala or they could not be employed, they are restricted from higher education, recruitment into the military is almost exclusively Sinhalese & they did & continue to this day to carry out human rights abuses against the Tamil people's .

This is not the easy , good guy's against the terrorists.
It's actually another chapter of shame that has come out of the break up of Victorian British Colonialism.

So Jos, if they have not been proven to be actually suppling weapons to the Tamil Tiger's, & are sending money to help the average underprivilaged people in Sri Lanka , It's just another case of Canadian Politicians dropping the ball .

[Britkid]

So, basically they're fundraising for terrorists? The same terrorists that bombed a police station the other week?

Ban it, of course. People would be outraged if this was fundraising for Al-Qaeda.

[morefngdbs]

At 6/21/08 06:24 AM, Britkid wrote: So, basically they're fundraising for terrorists? The same terrorists that bombed a police station the other week?

;;
Would you still say that if those police had recently driven you & your family off their land?
Had raped your sister ?
Beatten & imprisoned you for protesting your inability to join the security forces because you were a Tamil & not Sinhalese?

Ban it, of course. People would be outraged if this was fundraising for Al-Qaeda.

Your comparing apples to coconuts & don't even seem to realise there is a difference !

[JoS]

At 6/21/08 06:21 AM, morefngdbs wrote:

At 6/19/08 02:31 PM, JoS wrote:

At 6/19/08 02:00 PM, aninjaman wrote: Any smart country would outlaw a non-profit that commited civil war and terriost acts.

Technically the WTM hasn't committed any acts, they just fund raise on behalf of the Tamil Tigers.

;
Has that been proven Jos ?

They have found letters on LTTE letterhead from Sri Lanka thanking the WTM for their fund raising efforts, but they need to step it up so the LTTE can build up a navy. Their HQs were raided a few months ago and they found LTTE flags. They have also traced money transfers from the WTM to the LTTE.

This is not the easy , good guy's against the terrorists.
It's actually another chapter of shame that has come out of the break up of Victorian British Colonialism.

Still does not excuse bombing buses and other civilian targets.

So Jos, if they have not been proven to be actually suppling weapons to the Tamil Tiger's, & are sending money to help the average underprivilaged people in Sri Lanka , It's just another case of Canadian Politicians dropping the ball .

That list is not easy to get on. Its not just something that is willy nilly. Parliament has to vote on it and it has to be recommended by CSIS (our domestic intelligence agency) and the RCMP (our FBI). The group that committed the Air India bombing, worst act of terrorism in Canada, and worst attack on aircraft until 9/11, was not added until like 2003, almost 20 years after Air India. We only have 41 groups (and their subsidiaries).

Interestingly enough when I wrote a paper on Canada's counter-terrorism policies several months ago (first draft in February, final paper in April) I cirtized the government for not having the WTM on the list. Not saying there is a connection here or anything, but you have to admit it is spooky.

[morefngdbs]

At 6/21/08 07:27 AM, JoS wrote:

At 6/21/08 06:21 AM, morefngdbs wrote: This is not the easy , good guy's against the terrorists.
It's actually another chapter of shame that has come out of the break up of Victorian British Colonialism.

Still does not excuse bombing buses and other civilian targets.

;
I didn't know about the recent civilian attacks.... & I agree with you on it not only being wrong, it's definately a step in the wrong direction for them, if they truely are seeking independence . Attacking civilians ,in my opinion, puts anyone even if they are Canadian Military in the relm of a terrorist .

I have heard of this conflict before & I read up on this on a couple of web pages today & this conflict between the Tamils & the Sinhalese has been going on for longer than I have been alive....and it doesn't look like it can get better, they both seem to totally disrespect each other, and both are responsible for a seemingly total disreguard for one another!

[arxarts]

it is, of course, completely dubious....

[morefngdbs]

At 6/21/08 09:48 AM, arxarts wrote: it is, of course, completely dubious....

;
Huh?
What is completely dubious ?