Cablegate: Toronto Tamils Turning Tiger?

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PP RUEHGA RUEHHA RUEHMT RUEHQU RUEHVC
DE RUEHON #0052/01 0721917
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 131917Z MAR 09
FM AMCONSUL TORONTO
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 2760
INFO RUCNCAN/ALL CANADIAN POSTS COLLECTIVE
RUEHLM/AMEMBASSY COLOMBO 0015
RUEHNY/AMEMBASSY OSLO 0024
RUCNFB/FBI WASHINGTON DC

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 TORONTO 000052

SIPDIS

SENSITIVE

DEPARTMENT FOR WHA/CAN, SCA/INS, S/CT
HOMELAND SECURITY CENTER WASHDC
DHS PASS TO CBP

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: PGOV PTER PHUM CE CA
SUBJECT: Toronto Tamils Turning Tiger?

REF: 08 Toronto 169

Sensitive But Unclassified -- protect accordingly.

1. (U) Summary: Canada is home to the largest Tamil population
outside Sri Lanka. Sri Lanka's domestic issues recently have been
taking a more public stage in Canada, particularly in Toronto. Post
has seen four large pro-Tamil demonstrations in downtown Toronto and
in front of the Sri Lankan and U.S. Consulates in the past two
months, and another major one is expected on Monday, March 16.
While concerns about Canadian Tamil community support of the
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) existed well before the
GoC's banning of the group in 2006, recent events indicate an
emboldening of LTTE supporters. The Toronto protests, while
peaceful, have a clear pro-Tamil agenda and pro-LTTE flavor. End
Summary.

2. (U) Canada is home to the largest Tamil population outside Sri
Lanka, and in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), Sri Lankan Tamils have
been among the fastest growing minority groups over the past 25
years. As a result of clashes in Sri Lanka in 1983 a large number
of Tamils immigrated to Canada, and from 1991-2001 Sri Lanka was the
fifth largest source country of Canada's immigrants. As many as
45,000 Tamils arrived in Canada just between 1991 and 1996.
According to the Canadian Tamils' Chamber of Commerce (CTCC), which
has created its own Tamil community database based on Canadian
census information, more than 250,000 Tamils currently reside in
Canada, with some 200,000 living in the GTA. They have established
a growing presence in business and academia, as well as in the
political and social arenas. The Tamil business community also has
grown - with more than 2,000 Tamil-owned businesses in the GTA.

3. (U) Conversely, Sinhalese Sri Lankans have immigrated to Canada
in much smaller numbers, with only about 30,000 Sinhalese living in
Canada. There have been some efforts by community organizations to
bring the two groups together. In 2008, for example, the Sinhalese
and Tamil communities celebrated the Sri Lankan New Year together in
an event organized by the Canadian Democratic Tamil Cultural
Association. The organization's mandate is to promote understanding
between the Tamil community in Ontario, other Sri Lankan
communities, and the Canadian mainstream.

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FINANCIAL SUPPORT FOR THE TIGERS
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4. (U) In June 2008, Canada added the now defunct World Tamil
Movement (WTM) - previously headquartered in Toronto - to its list
of terrorist groups. Canada had designated the LTTE as a terrorist
group in 2006, and GoC investigations of the WTM beginning in 2003
found that the WTM was the leading LTTE front organization.
Investigations showed that the organization transferred millions of
dollars to bank accounts abroad for LTTE operations. The WTM used
intimidation and threats to collect these funds from the Canadian
Tamil community. The Canadian government's listing of the group as
a terrorist organization made it illegal to knowingly participate
in, contribute to, or facilitate the activities of the WTM. For its
part, the WTM claimed that it only engaged in community service
programs for the Tamil community in Canada and has denied its
support for the LTTE. Immediately after its offices in Toronto and
Montreal were shut down in response to their designation, the WTM
and its lawyers said they would fight the government's designation.
In March, federal prosecutors in Montreal and Toronto filed requests
at the federal level to confiscate the group's property. This marks
the first time the government has used the forfeiture provision of
the Anti-Terrorism Act, which allows the Attorney General to seize
"property owned or controlled by or on behalf of a terrorist group."
Only the Montreal branch of the WTM has publicly responded to the
government's latest actions, stating that they deny any affiliation
with terrorism and that they intend to challenge the government's
case.

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PRO-TIGER PROTESTS
------------------

5. (U) Tamil community leaders regularly call on the Canadian and
U.S. governments to intervene in the "genocide" in Sri Lanka. A
series of demonstrations have been held throughout Toronto,
beginning in January. Thousands of Tamil demonstrators gathered to
condemn Sri Lankan government actions, with groups of roughly 1,000
gathered at each protest. The most recent protest in front of the
U.S. Consulate on March 3, saw more than 1,000 protestors, some
waving the red Tamil Eelam flag, also often associated with the

TORONTO 00000052 002 OF 002

LTTE. The white LTTE flag was not flown at the rally, most likely
to reduce the level of scrutiny from local authorities. All these
protests included a large proportion of school-aged children (and
younger) and were peaceful. On March 13, a small demonstration held
in northern Toronto saw a few protestors arrested for climbing on
vehicles, however, no acts of violence were reported. Post has now
learned of another large protest planned for March 16, and we
anticipate more in coming weeks.

6. (U) The U.S. and Canadian Tamil communities also coordinated a
pro-Tamil protest in front of the White House on February 20.
Canadian Tamil Congress (CTC) President Dr. Sri Ranjan told PolOff
that the CTC had been contacted by Tamil organizers in the United
States to inform them of the event and to encourage Canadian Tamil
participation. Post understands that nearly 3,500 people rode
chartered buses from Canada, mostly from the GTA, to attend the
demonstration in front of the White House. The National Park
Service reports that 2,000 to 3,000 protestors attended the peaceful
demonstrations in front of the White House. (Note: The Toronto
press has reported that the Tamil travelers say they faced no
significant delays at the U.S. border, but complained that they
faced up to seven hour delays in being admitted back into Canada
when they returned.)

7. (U) On March 2, a group calling themselves the Canadian Tamil
Society (CTS) organized a memorial ceremony in honor of two Tamil
Tiger suicide bombers who died in an attack in the Sri Lankan
capital on February 20. A local banquet hall was used for the
"martyrs' prayer event." Attendees, who wore Tamil Tigers insignia
and raised LTTE flags, laid wreaths at make-shift shrines for the
terrorists. Royal Canadian Mounted Police and Toronto police did
not stop the event but recorded the gathering.

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SOME OFFER MORE THAN MORAL SUPPORT
----------------------------------

8. (SBU) Cross border Tamil cooperation clearly also takes a more
sinister tack in some cases. On January 26, Canadian citizen
Sathajhan Sarachandran pled guilty in New York to charges that he
attempted to purchase surface to air missiles and hundreds of
military assault rifles for the LTTE. Sarachandran's case was the
product of a cross-border investigation conducted by the FBI joint
terrorism Task Force and the RCMP's Integrated National Security
Enforcement Team in Ontario. Three other men connected to the case
have been arrested in Ontario and are fighting extradition to the
U.S.

9. (U) Some newspapers reported that Sarachandran was a member of
the CTC. CTC president Ranjan told PolOff that Sarachandran
belonged to the CTC years ago, but said that he has not been a
member since. Ranjan argued that his organization could not be held
accountable for the actions of its individual members, but that
according to the CTC's charter a member can be asked to leave the
organization if found to be participating in unlawful activities.
Ranjan said, however, that since Sarachandran is not a current
member, there was no need to ask him to leave. He added that the
CTC does not participate in criminal activities and fully supports
the laws of Canada.

10. (U) Comment: Pro-Tamil demonstrations in Toronto have been
generally peaceful, with partial exceptions being the arrests today,
March 13, and the rushing of the Sri Lankan Consulate by 20
protesters in January. Consulate officials called local authorities
to remove the protestors and no one was hurt. Support for the Tamil
Tigers within the Canadian Tamil community had existed mostly
underground previously, and public support of the LTTE had been
muted. Pro-Tiger sentiment seems to be increasingly open and bold,
however, using the claim that Canadian Tamils are simply concerned
for Tamils in their original homeland. Members of Toronto's larger
community also are beginning to take notice. Recently, a local
newspaper piece about the demonstrations included a picture of
pro-Tamil protestors waving Tamil Tiger flags. The caption
explained that sympathetic Canadians who had joined the
demonstrations to denounce human rights abuses in Sri Lanka felt
confused and conflicted when they found themselves surrounded by
flags supporting a terrorist organization.

NAY

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