Canadian News
Several Of Sri Lanka Migrant Ship Have Links To LTTE
11/4/2009 1:18 AM ET
(RTTNews) -
Canadian officials allege that several of a group of 76 Sri Lankan Tamil asylum seekers picked up off the country's coast last month have ties to the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), a Tamil terrorist organization, and could pose a security risk.
The Canadian government officials told an immigration hearing that the "Ocean Lady" freighter used to transport the migrants has been linked to the Tamil Tigers. The vessel had "possibly been used for arms shipments" and the men, detained at the Fraser Correctional Center, should continue to be detained "on national security grounds," they added.
Tests showed two of the men detained had explosive residue on their clothes, the officials said. One of the would-be immigrants was released last week by the Immigration and Refugee Board. Hearings to determine the fate of the others continue.
Meanwhile, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney told reporters Tuesday that authorities would insist that their (migrants) detention continues as long as there is any doubt about people constituting a security threat to Canada.
Noting that the safety of Canadians comes first, he added that the Canada Border Services Agency and the RCMP continue to do diligent work in researching the background of these individuals and how they got to Canada.
by RTT Staff Writer
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