Sri Lanka's leftist party JVP or the People's Liberation Front, on Monday accused President Chandrika Kumaratunga's government of providing VIP security to the Tamil Tiger rebels.

Tilwin Silva, the JVP general secretary, told reporters that the government provides security to the Liberation Tigers of TamilEelam (LTTE) despite the Tiger atrocities which have endangered the ongoing cease-fire.

"The government provides security to the LTTE even though they kill intelligence operatives, security forces personnel and rival political party activists," said Silva.

He was referring to a demand by the LTTE to provide security to their senior members traveling through the government-controlled areas in the troubled Northern and Eastern provinces. The LTTE raised its concerns for safety of their senior members following several incidents in the east where their members had come under attack from the renegade Karuna group.

Silva said that Sunday's attempt to kill a JVP legislator by the LTTE was futile and such action would not deter the party from carrying out its political activities in the Eastern Province. The JVP accused the LTTE of trying to kill its MP Jayantha Wijesekera by carrying out a grenade attack on its party office at the eastern town of Kantalai.

The JVP, a partner in the Kumaratunga government until mid June, is a bitter rival of the Tigers.

They left the government over its disagreement with Kumaratunga's decision to enter a joint deal with the LTTE for tsunami relief co-ordination in the northern and eastern regions.

Source: Xinhua