It was on July 5, 1987, that "Captain Miller," the first suicide cadre, drove an explosive laden truck and exploded it at Nelliady Central College where troops were billeted. The incident left 19 soldiers dead and 22 wounded.

Troops there were part of a group engaged in a consolidation process after the Vadamaratchchi sector of the Jaffna peninsula was captured during "Operation Liberation," launched on May 26, 1987. The first phase concluded on June 1, 1987. This operation was a precursor to the infamous Indian food drop.

On Friday, Mr. Prabhakaran took part in ceremonies in the Mullaitivu area where he garlanded the portraits of leading suicide cadres or Black Tigers - cadres tasked to carry out special missions of attacks or assassinations. Parents and next of kin of those killed took part in the ceremonies. Until December, last year, when guns fell silent in the battle areas of the North and East, 239 suicide cadres have been killed - 175 males and 104 females. This is from a total of 17,763 Tiger guerrillas killed in the 19 year long separatist war.

Black Tiger commemoration ceremonies were held in Jaffna, in the Wanni and in the East. Besides religious ceremonies, the LTTE had made elaborate plans to screen video films about Tiger attacks on military installations - a move to seize the opportunity to recruit more cadres. Reports from the North and East spoke about large turnouts to view the video films.

In marked contrast to the month of July in the previous years, dubbed "Black July," LTTE ceremonies to pay tribute to their Black Tiger cadres this year has been under peaceful circumstances due to the ongoing Ceasefire Agreement. Otherwise, it is a month in which the defence establishment in Colombo places security installations countrywide on full alert. In the City in particular, security is stepped up to prevent suicide attacks on VIPs or important installations. VVIPS and VIPS themselves have cancelled many an official engagement during this month due to intelligence warnings of attacks.
Since the inception of the LTTE, the month of July has been significant. Several important attacks have been carried out in this month. Among them: July 27, 1975: Murder of Jaffna Mayor Alfred Duraiappah. July 13, 1983: LTTE's first landmine attack killing 13 soldiers - the incident that triggered off ethnic violence. July 13, 1989: The murder of TULF leader Appapillai Amirthalingam. July 16, 1989: PLOTE leader Uma Maheswaran was murdered. July 25, 1993: Janakapura Army detachment was attacked. July 30, 1995: Landmine explosion that killed Brigadier Nalin Angammana and three other Army men at Mukkural, Batticaloa. July 4, 1996: Brigadier Ananda Hamangoda and SSP Carlyle Dias were killed in a suicide bomb attack in the Jaffna town. July 14, 1996: Sea Tiger attack on Navy's command ship "Edithara." July 18, 1996: LTTE attack on Mullaitivu military base. July 19, 1996: Attack on Navy gunboat "Ranaviru." July 24 1996: Bomb explosion on Colombo-Alutgama train at Dehiwala killing 60 civilians. July 25, 1999: Suicide bomber attacked MV Newco Endurance. July 29, 1999: Suicide bomber murders Dr. Neelan Tiruchelvam, MP.
Following the cessation of hostilities in December last year and the signing of the Ceasefire Agreement on February 22, this year, "Black July" has been calm and tension free. Despite that, one of the Government's intelligence arms, the Special Branch of the Police Department warned of Tiger guerrilla preparations to seize the East, particularly Batticaloa, after December this year. This is what the warning said:
"LTTE held a passing out parade of trained radio operators and 35 of them have been given special training in High-Com equipments. They have been deployed in uncleared and cleared areas. It is also learnt that a passing out parade for 250 cadres was held on 10 June 2002 in Kokkadicholai area.
"All LTTE leaders were present on this occasion and Karuna had ordered these cadres to be posted to Kanchikudichchiaru area. Terrorist transmissions revealed that there had been a sea movement between Mullaitivu and Kadiraweli on 07 June 2002 carrying heavy weapons and 110 shells for these weapons. It is learnt that a ceremony was held on 14 June 2002 to commemorate the first death anniversary of Lieutenant Colonel Nizam, the LTTE bomb specialist in the East. Intelligence reveal that according to the activities of the LTTE during the ceasefire period they are preparing to launch a major attack between December 2002 and during the first few months of 2003 to take complete control of Batticaloa area."

Most of the facts contained in the Special Branch report of June 5, 2002, are correct. The passing out parade was video filmed and released to both local and foreign television networks. They received wide play. The first anniversary of the death of "Colonel Nizam" is in fact further confirmation of what went on at the Army's Safe House at Athurugiriya. It was one of the Long Range Reconnaisance Patrols (LRRPs) operated by the Army's Directorate of Military Intelligence (DMI) that penetrated deep into guerrilla held territory in the East to assassinate "Colonel Nizam." Now the LTTE was commemorating his first death anniversary whilst in the South canards were propagated that DMI's deep penetration activities were non-existent.

However, the Directorate of Internal Intelligence (DII), the nation's premier intelligence arm, as well as other State agencies have refuted the Special Branch forecast of a major attack to "take complete control" of Batticaloa area after December, this year. Whilst recruitment and training is going on in the East, they insist there are no such plans at present.

If "Black July," this year was tension free, there certainly was concern in the security establishment over another significant matter - that is the huge concession the LTTE had won through the Ceasefire Agreement in getting the security forces to withdraw from some important positions in the North and East. These were positions where troop deployments were made solely on the basis of threat perceptions during Eelam War Three.

As at present, troops have been shifted to the closest camp that is not moved or shut down. This is until arrangements are made to establish either permanent or temporary camps. In other words, a greater vacuum has been created in several areas though a real threat factor does not exist since provisions of the Ceasefire Agreement are continuing to remain in force.

In the Jaffna district, the Army is occupying two schools -Sitty Vinayagar Primary School, Palaly and a single building in Hartley College, Point Pedro, said to adjoin the chalet of a senior Army officer. The Army has vacated 48 schools in the district and moved troops to camps closest to them. Re-location will only take place after construction material to put up new structures arrive by sea in Jaffna.

In the Vavuniya district, troops continue to occupy two schools whilst seven have been vacated. In Mannar, however, the Holy Family Convent is still under occupation.

In the Trincomalee district, troops continue to occupy two schools whilst three have been vacated. In the Batticaloa district three schools have been vacated. A fourth school - Komathurai Vinayagar Vidyalaya - has been vacated after the perimeter area of the camp has been adjusted to exclude the school.

In this regard, August 9 this year, marks a significant date in the peace calendar. The time frames set out in the February 22 Ceasefire Agreement for the execution of various activities end on this date.

The very last time frame - August 9 - is the deadline by which the security forces are required to vacate all school buildings they occupy. In accordance with the Agreement, troops have already withdrawn from the majority of the places of worship from March 24.

With the completion of all deadlines listed in the Ceasefire Agreement on August 9, both the Government and the Tiger guerrillas will make their own assessments of how all provisions have been enforced. That is not all. Residual issues raised by the LTTE, like passage in the north eastern seas, carrying weapons, would have to be resolved before the scheduled talks in Thailand. Whether that could happen in August still remains speculative.

Veteran transport pilot is new Air Force Chief
Air Vice Marshal Gabadaratchchige Donald Perera will assume office as the 11th Commander of the Sri Lanka Air Force on July 15. He succeeds Air Marshal Jayalath Weerakkody who sent in his papers for retirement prematurely last Friday. The move followed events arising out of a pre-dawn June 15 incident.

Air Vice Marshal Donald Perera

Air Marshal Jayalath Weerakkody

His official car collided with a lorry at Horton Place-Castle Street junction seriously injuring the lorry assistant. He died on Friday morning. A lady Air Force officer, who was found in the company of Air Marshal Weerakkody at the time of the incident, was also slightly injured. An Air Force driver turned up at the Borella Police station to own up that he was the driver but Air Marshal Weerakkody was to later assert he had no knowledge of how that happened. He said he was the driver.

After calls on President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunga and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe, Air Marshal Weerakkody handed in his retirement papers to Defence Secretary Austin Fernando, on Friday evening. He has sought to retire from the post of Air Force Commander after a week'stime. This is to enable Air Marshal Weerakkody to pay farewell calls to main SLAF installations countrywide.

Air Vice Marshal Donald Perera, who is to be promoted to the rank of Air Marshal next week, is a veteran transport pilot who has flown fixed wing aircraft. He has qualified to fly almost all aircraft in the SLAF inventory including Avro, Convair, Y-8, Y 12 and Beechking aircraft.

In 1984, when he was flying a Cessna 337 aircraft, it developed technical problems. Described as a methodical man, he carefully went through procedure after procedure to make a perfect belly landing that caused little damage to the aircraft.

Unlike senior officers who would use other ranks to "water shine" their boots, Air Vice Marshal Perera, is known to do it himself. His neighbours speak of his simplicity and how he polished his own boots, bare-bodied and wearing only a pair of shorts.

Last December, some leading businessmen telephoned him for appointments to meet him at his residence. They were to bring him the customary New Year hamper. "Your wishing me on the telephone is good enough. You don't have to come here. Thank you very much", he told one of them.

A product of India's National Defence College, AVM Perera also attended a staff course in the United States. He has served in several key positions including that of Director, Operations and Base Commander at the SLAF bases in Katunayake and China Bay. He belongs to the same batch as Air Marshal Weerakkody, joining the SLAF in 1971 and being commissioned as an officer in 1972. His is the son of a pilot cum engineer in the one time national carrier Air Ceylon.

His wife Wing Commander Ranjini Piyasena is attached to the Dental Wing of the SLAF. She is currently assigned to the Kotelawala Defence Academy.

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