http://www.defence.lk/new.asp?fname=20110421_05

Tamil migrant accused shooting of detained soldiers at the end of battle

The Immigration and Refugee Board in Canada is probing whether a Tamil migrant who arrived in Canada last summer on the MV Sun Sea may have had a role in the shooting of dozens of detained Sri Lankan army soldiers at the end of a battle.
The Vancouver Sun reported that the migrant testified that he had not taken part in the shooting; a key question arose about whether he may have directed subordinates to do so.
The migrant's lawyer has admitted that he was a member of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam, a group that was engaged in a lengthy civil war with Sri Lanka until 2009. The group is considered a terrorist organization and banned in Canada.
According to a report in the Globe & Mail, the man has told the IRB through a translator that the LTTE called for any Tigers carrying weapons to come forward when they brought the soldiers but he ignored the call and walked away because he feared the soldiers were about to be killed.
But Kevin Hatch, CBSA's hearing representative, has questioned his version of events and pointed out that in an interview the man had with Canadian officials he has said that he told people behind him "to go," suggesting he ordered others to heed the call, the report said.
During questioning by his lawyer, the migrant has denied that he ordered anyone to shoot the soldiers.
The man is one of two Sun Sea migrants who have been accused of engaging in war crimes and who face possible deportation if the allegations are found to be true.
Board adjudicator Geoff Rempel described the war crimes allegation as "one of the most serious."
The hearing is to be resumed on Thursday Morning.