WikiLeaks: Canada Banned LTTE, But Did Not Ban Canadian Tiger Front Orgs - US

April 4, 2014

Canada's Conservative-minority government domestically designated the LTTE / Tamil Tigers under Canada's Criminal Code on April 10, 2006. The GOC did not, however, list the many Canadian front organizations for the Tigers, despite the fact that Canada's anti-terrorism act allows the GOC to designate terrorist groups and their front organizations; in the past, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service has stated that eight front organizations support the Tigers in Canada.

LTTE Leader

"On April 10, the GOC domestically listed as terrorists under the Canadian Criminal Code the LTTE / Tamil Tigers (other listed aliases can be found in the announcement by the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OFSI), www.osfi-bsif. gc.ca.) ​​The Tigers are the 39th terrorist group to be outlawed under Canada's Criminal Code and the first since May 2005. "the US Embassy Ottawa informed Washington.

The  Colombo Telegraph  Cable Found From the related leaked the  WikiLeaks  Database. The cable is classified as "CONFIDENTIAL" written on April 10, 2006 by the US Embassy Ottawa.

The Embassy said; "The LTTE had previously been listed under Canada's less-stringent United Nations Suppression of Terrorism Regulations (UNSTR)."

"Approximately a quarter of the world's Tamil population lives outside of Sri Lanka. Canada is home to the largest Tamil diaspora, estimated at roughly 200,000 (see reftel B), and Tamils ​​are currently Canada's fastest growing ethnic group. The majority of Tamils ​​live in the Toronto area, giving it the largest Tamil urban population of any city in the world including Sri Lanka itself. Experts have estimated that in the 1990s, over 80 percent of the Tamil Tigers' military budget came from overseas sources, and various reports have estimated that the Canadian Tamil diaspora was a source of between $ 1-10 million annually. A recent report from Human Rights Watch (www.hrw.org) highlighted the role of Canadian Tamils ​​in funding "The Final War". In this report, Human Rights Watch focused on signs it had found of extensive extortion by the Tigers within the Canadian Tamil community, listing examples of Tamil Canadians who were threatened both in Canada and on visits to Sri Lanka. "The Embassy further said.

Placing a comment the Embassy said; "The decision to list the Tigers under the Criminal Code comes as no surprise from a Conservative government that has been urging such a move for years. The Conservatives are not beholden to urban ridings with a large Sri Lankan population, which they did not win in any event and probably have no hope of winning in the future: they therefore have greater freedom of action than the Liberals did. The designation of the Tigers clears up a basic incongruity in Canada, where the Tigers were listed under one set of rules but not another, and brings Canada into alignment with its close allies who have listed the Tigers. It is also another indication of the current government's desire to act decisively, both to distinguish itself from the previous government and to show leadership and resolve, with or without international cover. "

Read the cable below for further details;