Adele Balasingham - Women Fighters of Liberation Tigers [1993]

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Women Fighters of Liberation Tigers

Introduction:

Over the past eight years Tamil women have made an enormous leap in the mode and depth

of their participation in the nations struggle for self- determination. They have moved from

non-violent politics into armed struggle. The history of Tamil women in the armed struggle

for national liberation waged by the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam constitutes both an

extension of womens participation in the national struggle and a history of its own.

Subsequently the women fighters of the Liberation Tigers have earned an international

reputation as the most fierce, highly disciplined and courageous women combatants the world

has ever produced. Constituted as a fully fledged military force and structured within the

overall organisation of the LTTE, these young women fighters have carried out extra-ordinary

military feats in their struggle for the freedom of their homeland.

Womens entry into the armed struggle is the inevitable extension of their long contribution to

national political campaigns against State oppression. However, their involvement in

Parliamentary politics and non-violent campaigns did not radically change the cultural images

of women. Parliamentary politics and non-violent struggle remain within the acceptable do-

main of womens behaviour. The history of women in combat in the armed struggle is a

chronicle of a fundamentally different order. Women in combat belong to a totally new world,a world outside a normal womans life. And that is what makes these women fighters so


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interesting and admirable. They have taken up a life that bears little resemblance at all to the

ordinary existence of women. Training and carrying weapons, confronting battle conditions,

enduring the constant emotional strain of losing close associates, facing death almost every

day, are situations that most women not only wish to avoid, but feel ill at ease with. But not

the women fighters of the LTTE. They have literally flourished under such conditions and

created for themselves, not only a new womens military structure, but also a legend offighting capability and bravery.

The Womens Military Unit of the Liberation Tigers, as the womens structure is known, is

undoubtedly the outcome of relentless and intensified national oppression. The oppression by

the Sinhala State and its apparatuses of repression over a period of four decades, has severely

affected the nation and womens lives in particular. Constant exposure to oppression has had a

profound effect on the life and thinking of young Tamil women. Since 1984 young women

have come forward to join the armed struggle spear-headed by the LTTE. With the large scale

induction of women into the LTTE the female cadres have overcome inestimable difficulties

and challenges in the process of their metamorphosis from patriotic village girls into

revolutionary guerrilla fighters. In this process the Womens Military Wing has become awell organised, highly disciplined and experienced fighting force.

This work provides a brief historical sketch of the birth, growth and development of the

Womens Military Unit of the LTTE. It documents, m some detail, the engagement of the

women fighters in various armed combats in the liberation war.

The first chapter gives a brief outline of the historical background of the State oppression

perpetrated against the Tami people. It documents the upsurgence of the non-violent political

campaigns, the decline of Parliamentary and constitutional politics and the emergence of the

armed revolutionary struggle of the LTTE.

The second chapter of the book deals with the recruitment and training of women military

cadres for armed combat. The training ground marks the beginning of womens military life.

The rigorous training provided by the LTTE transforms the women cadres into well-

disciplined, efficient armed combatants capable of confronting the most difficult and

dangerous war situations.

The history of the armed struggle of the women fighters of the LTTE, their active

involvement and achievements in the protracted and escalating war constitutes the main body

of the book. Starting with the initial induction in the first battle in Mannar in October 1986

and ending with the major offensive assault on the large military base at Palali in the JaffnaPeninsula on the 23rd November 1992, the women fighters, as we have documented, have

made an enormous contribution to the advancement of the armed resistance campaign.

In recording this six year history of the armed struggle, the work attempts to portray the

systematic growth and development of the womens fighting force and their multiple

experiences from jungle guerrilla warfare to a more advanced and sophisticated form of

mobile warfare. In anyones military catalogue their experience and achievements are

enviable. The women combatants have not only confronted the military power of the Sri

Lankan State but also fought the largest army of the Indian regional superpower.

For nearly two years, in the LTTEs resistance campaign against the Indian occupation army,the women fighters played a significant role in engaging the Indians in urban and jungle


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guerrilla warfare graduating into an effective fighting force poised against a formidable

military machine. Since the outbreak of Eelam War 2 in June 1990, the women cadres have

participated in all types of battles from guerrilla ambushes to semi-conventional

confrontations.

This book is not intended as theoretical document on feminism. It is beyond the scope ofthis text to provide a thorough exposition of the many feminist issues that women in combat

confront. Nevertheless a few feminist problems are briefly touched throughout the text. The

Tamil society is a deeply entrenched patriarchal society and therefore womens involvement

in armed combat did raise many eyebrows from within the society. However the women

cadres have been successful in over-coming some of the problems and projecting a new image

of Tamil women. Nevertheless it would be foolish to suggest that male chauvinism no longer

exists. Nowhere in the world has male chauvinism been eradicated and it certainly has not

disappeared from the Tamil society. However the male cadres show a great deal of respect,

appreciation and pride in the women combatants achievements.

The Sinhalese soldiers too have paid a tribute to the courage and determination of the womenfighters. A Sinhalese columnist wrote in the Island newspaper that,

In the field, Tiger fighters, especially the women cadres, display a fantastic degree of

ferocity and motivation - so much so that they have won the respect of their foes.

This extra-ordinary womens force is loaded with a glorious history of courage, tenacity and

sacrifice, of comradeship, patriotism and devotion to duty and cause. Since 1986, when the

women fighters appeared on the battle scene, till December 30th 1992, three hundred and

eighty one young women have sacrificed their lives in the armed struggle to advance the

liberation of their homeland; to die a heroic death rather than living under the heels of

oppression. This book is their story - the story of the women fighters of Liberation Tigers.

Historical Background:

The objective and subjective conditions that led to the active participation of Tamil women in

the armed resistance movement have been shaped by specific historical processes of State

oppression. This history extends to a period of four decades during which time the Tamil

nation has been subjected to a calculated and systematic form of oppression by the

chauvinistic Sinhala State. Ever since the independence of the Island from British colonialism

in 1948, successive Sri Lankan governments adopted racist policies aimed to undermine the

national identity of the Tamils. Repressive legislations were enacted to stifle the educationaland employment opportunities of the younger generation. State sponsored Sinhala

colonisation threatened the geographical unity and integrity of the Tamil homeland. This

multidimensional oppression assumed the character of genocide posing a serious danger to the

national existence of the Tamil people.

Tamils resisted the State oppression through non-violent political struggle. Adopting the

Gandhian principle of Ahimsa, the Tamil parliamentary political leadership mobilised the

entire Tamil nation and organised mass national protests. In these national campaigns, which

dominated the Tamil political scene in the late fifties and early sixties, women played a

crucial role as active participants. Tamil women participated in demonstrations, picketing and

protests. In the nationwide Civil Disobedience Campaign which began in February 1961 andcontinued over a period of three months, thousands and thousands of women joined in the


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national protest. The satyagrahis effectively crippled the Governments administration in

Tamil areas. The alarmed Sinhala government responded to the non violence of the

satyagrahis with violence. Armed State forces were deployed to crush by force the campaign

of the peaceful protesters. Peaceful women satyagrahis too, were subjected to beatings with

batons and rifle butts by the racist armed forces of the State.

The informed political consciousness of Tamil women on the national conflict which led to

their active participation in non-violent campaigns was crucial during this historical period.

The participation of women in political campaigns at this juncture deepened and enhanced the

national character of the Tamil freedom movement. However, while the national resistance by

non-violent politics contained progressive and democratic aspects in that it mobilised all

sections of the national masses, it was, essentially, a politics chartered with conservative

ideology and leadership.

The political discourse of the old leadership suffered severe limitations in theory and in

practice to deal with the phenomenon of social oppression of women. Major social

contradictions in the Tamil social formation were subsumed under the slogans of nationalemancipation from racist oppression of the State. The conservative Parliamentary leadership

therefore failed to formulate a radical programme articulating solutions to the multi-faceted

social oppression, including the social repression of women. The politics of non-violence,

though it mobilised wider sections of the popular masses - including the women - for national

agitations gradually lost its significance and glamour because of the poverty of a practical

approach to deal with critical national and social issues.

The Birth of Tamil Tigers:

Mounting institutionalised state oppression and violence heralded the decline of the relevance

and usefulness of constitutional and Parliamentary politics for the Tamil people. There was a

transitional period of politics from non-violence to armed struggle, from Parliamentary

politics to guerrilla warfare, from demands for Federalism to demands for secession and a

separate Tamil State. Tamil women followed the unfolding political scenario and responded

to the demands of the situation. New responses and new solutions were demanded,

particularly from the Tamil youth, who bore the brunt of State oppression. Ultimately armed

resistance to confront genocidal violence of the State became the legitimate and logical mode

of struggle. Secession from the Sinhala State and the creation of an independent State in the

traditional Tamil homeland became the popular political objective in the face of intolerable

national oppression. Committed to these objectives a guerrilla organisation - the Liberation

Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) - was formed in 1972 to spearhead the armed freedom struggleof the Tamil people.

From the outset of the formation of the Liberation Tigers women have contributed to the

armed struggle. Although, in the early days, their contribution was confined essentially to

socially defined womens work, the value of such work cannot be underestimated. For

example, the guerrillas enjoyed widespread moral support from Tamil women. But there was

also work undertaken by women which involved considerable personal risk and danger.

Women provided information on the movements of the armed forces and provided shelter and

safe houses to underground guerrillas. By such actions women played a crucial support role in

securing the safety and survival of the cadres. Women too, cared for sick and injured cadres.

This work carried with it the risk of exposure and subsequently detention, torture and possiblydeath. Indeed, women were taken into custody on suspicion, subjected to rigorous and lengthy


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interrogations and faced torture. Women have been deprived of sleep during interrogation,

sexually harassed and subjected to death threats by having pistols placed against their fore-

heads.

Women Join the Armed Struggle:

When we study the early history of womens participation in the national struggle we can see

a constantly emerging militant tendency in women committed to a cause, determined and not

afraid to face dangers. Constraining the full realisation of the tremendous resource of

womens militant potential were powerful ideological conceptions about womens role in

society. This reactionary ideological system based on patriarchal domination reduces women

to second class citizens prescribing a role confined to housekeeping, reproduction and slavish

submission to men.

The concrete conditions which forced a tremendous rupture, projecting women into a new

depth of participation for national freedom were the State organised anti-Tamil riots of July

1983. This horrific outburst of racial violence in which thousands of innocent Tamil civilianswere murdered, which left a trail of rape, arson and looting proved to be the ultimate

revelation of the depths of Sinhala chauvinism and racism. As a consequence the armed

resistance of the Liberation Tigers gained further legitimacy as a mode of political struggle.

The stage was now set for armed struggle for national Liberation.

Young women too experienced the horror of the racial riots. They themselves were victims of

the riots. The forces of social constraint which had obstructed their deeper participation

earlier, had left them exposed and defenceless in the face of violent racist hatred and State

terror. Deepening genocidal oppression now propelled them out of their established social life

into a new revolutionary world. Young women broke the shackles of social constraints, they

ripped open the straight jacket of conservative images of women. The militant patriotism of

Tamil women finally blossomed as they entered into a new life of revolutionary armed

struggle.

The emergent aspirations of Tamil women to join the armed struggle brought increasing

pressure on the LTTE leadership to step up its policy of inducting women into the armed

struggle. Young women demanded their right to self-defence and their right to exercise their

patriotic sentiments. The LTTE leadership, committed to the emancipation and equality of

women, welcomed such demands and expanded its military programme for training women.

Military Training Of Women Cadres

The credit for providing and creating the facilities and opportunities for women to complete a

comprehensive military training programme has to be given to the leader of the Liberation

Tigers Mr. Velupillai Pirabaharan. He was confident that women had the potential for military

training and combat. Unlike many of his fellow cadres caught up in male chauvinist

conceptions of women and their place in society, Mr.Pirabaharan was determined that women

should have equal opportunity for participation in all aspects of the armed struggle. Even he

admits, however, that women have exceeded his expectations of them. To quote him:

Today young women have taken up arms to liberate our land. They have made supreme

sacrifices to this cause to the amazement of the world. I am proud to say that the birth, growth


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and expansion of the womens military wing is a remarkable achievement of our liberation

movement, an achievement which marked a historical turning point in our struggle.

With the support and encouragement of the leadership the military training programme for

women began on a regular basis. In 1984 the potential women fighters were assembled in

Tamil Nadu, India and on the 18-8-1985 in the newly established military camp set up in thejungles the young women of Tamil Eelam created history. Never before in the history of the

Tamil nation have women become active military participants. Early Tamil literature is full of

episodes which glorify the selfless, sacrificing mothers and wives encouraging bravery and

heroism in their sons and husbands. But there is a studied silence on women in combat. The

Womens Military Unit of Liberation Tigers has changed all that; they have altered the

trajectory of Tamil history and introduced a radical new dimension into the history of Tamil

women.

Rupture with the Past:

The emergence of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam on the Tamil national political scenehas provided Tamil women with opportunities and horizons that would never have entered the

minds of Tamil women a decade ago. The very decision by young women to join the armed

struggle - in most cases without the consent of parents -represents a vast departure of

behaviour for Tamil women. Normally young women remain under the control of the father

and brother. Male control follows them throughout their lives. The decision to break-out of

this cycle of suffocating control is a refreshing expression and articulation of their new

aspirations and independence.

It could perhaps be one of the biggest decisions of their lives. Such a decision makes a social

statement about the characters of the young women. It tells society that they are not satisfied

with the social status quo; it means they are young women capable of defying authority; it

means they are women with independent thoughts; young women prepared to lift up their

heads such young women fly in the face of tradition, but they are the women who are the

catalysts for social change. Entering into the military training programme represents an

extension of the social challenge that young women have made by making a decision to join

the national struggle. By embarking on the military training programme designed and based

on the physical stature of men of a particular age, Tamil women have ruptured one of the

most entrenched and glaring aspects of Tamil society - the sexual division of labour. Firstly,

they have stormed into a previously all male activity and secondly the training programme by

women has challenged the entire edifice of beliefs about women's strength, endurance,

potential, determination, courage and talents. It sets the same goals and expectations forwomen as it does for men.

It can be argued that men's potential and goals have become the yardstick of measurement of

achievement for young women. To a large extent that is so. However, in the contemporary

situation proving that women contain all the potential and are just as capable as men is a great

success and leap forward in the ideological debate for Tamil women struggling to find a new

identity in a society heavily influenced and manipulated by reactionary conceptions of

women. Tamil women have proven that not only they, but by inference all women, have

equally as much potential as men, perhaps more.

Self-reliant Structure:


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The women in the fighting unit live and function as a separate force of the military structure

of the LTTE. It has its progressive aspects and is a positive development for the women of

Tamil Eelam. As has been previously mentioned Tamil women's lives are predicated on men.

Dependency on men is viewed as the norm for women. The evolution of the women fighters

into a self-reliant structure breaks with the traditional female dependency and has given the

young women tremendous opportunities. Through their own structure the female cadres learnadministration, decision making and leadership. All activities are undertaken by the women

themselves. No obstacle is seen to be too difficult. consequently, the young cadres have

developed tremendous self-confidence.

The military training programme is multi-faceted in purpose. To begin with, the training

programme aims to build on the radical, fresh characters of these exceptional young women

and to release unknown and unrealised potential. Secondly, the programme aims to produce a

powerful fighting force. Therefore, military training aims at the maximum physical and

mental fitness of skilled combatants. And thirdly, training is aimed at creating highly

politicised, determined cadres prepared for supreme sacrifice to achieve their political

objective - a liberated homeland.

Rigorous and Wide-Ranging:

The military training programme for women is continuous though interrupted. Combat

experience is also viewed in the wider context of training. As such, the training programme

begins with a basic three months course followed by an additional advance training period of

three months. Progressively the breadth and depth of the cadres' knowledge, training and

experience is increased.

The basic three months training course is rigorous, wide-ranging and a testing ground for the

cadres. It is a new experience and makes great demands on their energies and endurance. The

day begins at 4-30 a.m. and continues till late evening. The training programme consists of

rigorous physical exercises - long distance running, crawling under barbed wires, rope

climbing, military parade etc. - along with theoretical and practical exercises on weapons. At

the same time, sentry positions in the camps have to be staffed day and night, the cleanliness

of the camp maintained etc. Political studies are also included in the training programme.

The three months training programme is the initiation period into the rigours of military life.

This is the period when elbow skin turns to calluses; when barbed wire treats the soles of the

feet as a pin cushion; when ropes burn off the palm of the hands. It is the time when, cadres

bathe in their sweat; when dust replaces talcum powder; where clothes become rags. This isthe time when your rifle becomes your friend; when alertness becomes a life saver; the moon

and stars your light; grass and twigs your informants.

Following the completion of the three months training programme and a evaluation .of

progress the trainees move onto the advanced training programme for a further period of three

months. During this programme the cadres study a wider range of heavy weapons more

deeply and are given training in how to handle them. Simulated combat situations with live

ammunition are repeatedly undertaken not only to teach cadres various fighting tactics but to

familiarise them with the sounds and impact of live ammunition. Familiarity with a wide

range of combat situations and fire-power creates confidence and skill in the cadres.


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Crucial to the successful outcome of the training programme and the functioning of the LTTE

is the maintenance of discipline in the cadres. From the outset of the basic training

programme classes are given setting out clearly the codes of conduct of the LTTE and the

nature of punishment. This discipline is vigorously maintained by all those in charge of the

LTTE cadres.

Special Training Courses:

The training period provides an insight into the particular characters and talents of the young

women. They too, evolve ideas about their particular interests. Through mutual consultation

and discussion between trainees and instructors the young women cadres branch off into areas

of their particular interest or talent. Here again the women break new ground by moving into

fields of work not normally undertaken by women in Tamil society. For example, women

learn to use and maintain communication equipment, they learn how to handle explosives,

they learn about mining, weapon technology, electronics etc. Other cadres may specialise in

the use of heavy weapons. Some of them study field medicine, others branch off into political

work, intelligence work etc. In the meantime, should the need arise, the trained cadres aredeployed into battle situations. Women cadres who demonstrate a particular aptitude for

combat situations are selected for further military training. These female combatants undergo

Special Commando training and with more sophisticated and rigorous training become part of

an elite fighting force. Periodically all the women fighters return to the training camps for

refresher courses.

Women in Combat: October 1986 - October 1987:

When young Tamil women join the LTTE they are trained for combat. There is no doubt that

the women cadres will be deployed in battle. This awareness follows them everyday of their

life. It is perhaps for that reason the women cadres have demonstrated a remarkable ability to

change and engage in various war situations from one day to another. Furthermore, Tamil

women guerrillas articulate a tremendous determination to fight the Sri Lankan army whom

they firmly feel, has no place in their homeland. This is an unshakable belief and one that will

sustain this struggle for however long it may take to liberate their homeland. It is the strength

of this conviction that allows these young women to fight and rejoice in the success of their

military operations; it is the conviction that sustains them emotionally when their colleagues

die in battle; it is the conviction that prepares them to make supreme sacrifices.

Since their deployment in combat situations the women fighters of the LTTE have acquired

an enviable record of military experience that set them apart from other military women in theworld. The scope of their experience expands in breadth from rural guerrilla warfare to urban

guerrilla warfare, from semi-conventional warfare to conventional warfare, from commando

raids to major assaults on military camps. The senior cadres in particular, have gained

tremendous experience in all combat situations; they have learned a great deal about their own

potential and the potential of others in combat; they know what is fear, what is courage; they

know what is sacrifice, what is comradeship.

The emergence of a women's military structure has evolved over the from what were

originally guerrilla units. Structural and functional changes have taken place corresponding to

(1) the increase in numbers of women in the LTTE(2) the demands of the military situation


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(3)the growth of self-confidence in women cadres.

First Battle in Mannar:

Initially, in 1986, the women cadres were organised into female guerrilla units operating sideby side with men. They came under a male command. Mr.Pirabakaran, who was determined

that the social and military revolution caused by deploying women into combat should

succeed, chose one of his most experienced regional commanders to induct women into war.

He chose his highly respected area regional commander of Mannar Lt.Col. Victor.

Lt.Col.Victor, a man known to be a strong supporter of inducting women into the struggle,

taught the women cadres all aspects of guerrilla warfare, encouraged them to learn as many

skills as possible, and, most importantly, instilled in them tremendous confidence. It was

under his command that the women fighters fought their first battle.

When, on the 12th October 1986 in the early morning, the Sri Lankan army moved from the

Thallady army camp and surrounded the Adampan area of Mannar on a search and destroyoperation, the newly trained women cadres were prepared to face the impending military

confrontation. Highly motivated women cadres had returned fron India after finishing their

training and were anxious for the experience of confronting the army. Anoja, a unit leader of

the first women trainees comments on the situation:

"We arrived from India two months earlier and hadn't seen the army. We were trained for

combat and anxious to fight the army in our homeland. Our main thoughts were to fight back

the army. When they moved into Adampan we were pleased that at last we could resist, face

to face, the occupying army."

When the news that the army had moved into Adampan reached Lt. Col.Victor he

immediately mobilised his cadres to resist the Sri Lankan forces. Women fighters were also

mustered for action in this sudden battle. The LTTE cadres took up positions in the Adampan

town and engaged the advancing Sri Lankan troops. Shanthy, a senior woman fighter who

participated in this historical battle for women comments:

"Hundreds of Sri Lankan soldiers moved into Adampan. We were about to have our morning

tea when Victor Anna (elder brother Victor) ordered us to move out for battle. We had been

trained for this situation and Victor Anna had given us a lot of encouragement. When the

army came suddenly there was no time to think of anything else... When the fight starts you

don't worry about anything but concentrate on the battle..."

The women fighters fought fiercely during this battle and inflicted substantial casualties on

the Sri Lankan troops. The women cadres retrieved fourteen bodies of Sri Lankan soldiers,

caught two alive and captured several weapons. One woman fighter was injured. After several

hours of fierce face to face combat the Sri Lankan troops withdrew. However, the sweetness

of their success was soured by a great loss to the LTTE. Ironically, the battle that inducted the

women cadres into military experience proved to be the last battle for Commander

Lt.Col.Victor. A sniper bullet pierced his chest and he succumbed to the injury. Again, Anoja,

who was with Lt.Col. Victor at the moment of his death comments:

"Lt.Col.Victor fell wounded. The girls lifted him and carried him to a safe place. He wasbleeding heavily from a bullet wound in the chest. As we were carrying him the army started


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firing at us from all directions. Another bullet hit Lt.Col. Victor in the leg and side.

Amazingly none of us were injured. We put him down and his head was on my lap. We tried

to stop the bleeding. Lt.Col.Victor tried to talk. Suddenly, he grabbed my wrist firmly and

quietly fell back. He was dead."

Engagements in the Jaffna Peninsula:

The induction of women into combat came at an appropriate time. The end of 1986 saw an

intensification of military operations in preparation for major offensive on the Peninsula by

the

Sri Lankan forces. The Sri Lankan troops, on several occasions, attempted to move

northwards towards Jaffna from Mannar and Kilinochchi. The women fighters deployed in

Kilinochchi engaged in face to face combat when the army attempted to advance from their

camps.

In the beginning of 1987 the Sri Lankan Government launched a major offensive operation inthe North with a strategy of taking control of the LTTE occupied areas. Several thousands of

troops with heavy armoury were deployed to capture major towns and highways in the

Northern Province. As the armoured columns advanced from Vavuniya, Mullaitivu and

Mannar towards Jaffna, fierce combats broke out at several points between the LTTE

guerrillas and the Government troops. The main strategic objective of the Sri Lankan armed

forces was to occupy Jaffna Peninsula and destroy LTTE positions. Additional troops were

shipped to Palali army camp in preparation for a major thrust into Jaffna. The LTTE too, was

geared up to face the military confrontation. LTTE guerrilla formations, including the women

combat units, were moved to Jaffna Peninsula in preparation for crucial battles.

The women cadres were withdrawn from Mannar and Kilinochchi and deployed in the Jaffna

Peninsula. The mode of armed struggle changed from the rural setting to the urban.

Furthermore, the pressure of the impending military offensive forced the women to assume

more responsibilities and to function independently. They took up key positions at sentry

points around the Jaffna Fort, Navatkuli and Point Pedro army camps. The responsibility for

preventing Sri Lankan troops from moving out on search and destroy operations was assigned

to them.

The young women fighters on the sentry points had to play a self-reliant role. They were

totally responsible for the maintenance of their bunkers and the military situation. When the

bombers and mortar fire blasted and damaged their bunkers they had to dig the earth, fill thesacks and rebuild their defence structure. Helicopter strafing and sniper fire constantly

harassed and endangered the young women cadres. When the army attempted to move out

from their camps the women engaged the troops until reinforcements arrived. Furthermore,

the women cadres on sentry points have been placed in do or die situations. On one occasion

the Sri Lankan army penetrated between two sentry points, surrounded the women on sentry

duty and cut them off. The women cadres, totally surrounded by the Sri Lankan troops, fought

for their lives. Faced with this life threatening situation the young women, driven by pride and

courage, determined to kill as many soldiers as possible before they were killed. They fought

fiercely. Ultimately reinforcements came to the assistance of the women and they fought their

way out of the situation forcing the army to return to' barracks. Amongst the young women

cadres caught up in this deadly battle was Sothia, who later became the first woman leader ofthe women's military structure.


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In the meantime, the LTTE continued its strategy of harassing and striking at the enemy

forces. In the armed resistance campaign of the LTTE all army camps and police stations in

Tamil areas were considered as legitimate military targets. Women cadres also stepped up

their participation and were included in many attacks on army positions throughout the

Peninsula. At Mayiliyathanai women fighters were also engaged in the attack on the mini-

army camp on 2-4-1987.

A Commando Raid:

On 3-6-1987 women fighters also played a crucial role in the attack on the army camp housed

in the telecommunication buildings a short distance from the main army camp at the Jaffna

Fort. At least 200 army men were housed in the building. An attack on this fixed position

required a particular mode of military operation. A commando style raid was planned. 'An

LTTE commando unit was chosen for the operation. Women too, were included in the choice

of LTTE combatants to execute the operation.

The execution of the operation involved driving a lorry load of explosive into the building.The explosion caused maximum damage to the building, inflicting heavy casualties and

caused utter chaos to the troops inside. The commando raiders then entered the building and

inflicted further casualties, captured arms and ammunition and took three prisoners of war.

For the women in combat this was to be another mode of military experience. Within the short

span of six months, since the first military battle in Mannar, the women fighters had been

exposed to rural and urban guerrilla warfare, face to face battles, and now they were involved

in daring and dangerous commando raid in the Jaffna city. Some of the women fighters who

participated in the raid on the telecommunication camp had been involved in all the previous

combats. Anoja, a senior women fighter captured a frightened soldier cringing in the corner of

the room. Sothia also participated in this raid. Darani, who became an experienced women

commander before she was killed at Palali in 1991, also took part in this commando So too,

was Malathy the first young women fighter to die later in battle the Indian army. In this

commando raid operation twenty two soldiers were killed and more than fifty seriously

injured.

In Vadamarachi there were two main military camps, one at Valvettiturai the other at Point

Pedro. Sri Lankan police personnel were also stationed at various police stations throughout

Vadamarachi. Both the military police had a notorious record of inhuman atrocities against

the civilian population. The special commando unit based at Valvettiturai terrorised the

civilians by rape, arson, looting and murder. To arrest the rising tide of criminal and terroristactivities of the Sri Lankan security forces, women fighters were deployed at various sentry

points around the army camps and police stations.

'Operation Liberation':

With the dispersal and diversification of the ME cadres in military positions and operations in

the Jaffna Peninsula both female and male cadres were successful in containing the mobility

of the Sri Lankan troops. Only by using the Air Force the Sri Lankan government could claim

military control over the Jaffna Peninsula. The constraints imposed by the LTTE over the

mobility of the Sri Lankan forces dealt a heavy blow to the morale of the troops and the ego

of the racist army. The consolidation of the LTTE in the Peninsula also was a politicalembarrassment and challenge to the authority of the Sri Lankan Government. Therefore, the


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Government planned to reverse the politico - military situation by attempting to wrest control

of the Peninsula from the LTTE. The nature of troop movements and heavy troop

concentrations indicated that the Sri Lankan army was planning a major military assault on

the Jaffna Peninsula. Only the date and place remained uncertain.

The Sri Lankan army launched its military offensive in Vadamarachi in the early hours of26th May 1987 under the pretentious code name of 'Operation Liberation'. They deployed

several infantry battalions consisting of several thousand troops to take control of the area

which was regarded as the bastion of the LTTE. Helicopter gunships, fighter bombers

provided aerial cover while naval gunships pounded the coastal area.

Undeniably the LTTE was outnumbered and overpowered by Sri Lankan manpower and

firepower. After putting up limited resistance the LTTE cadres opted for a tactical withdrawal

to wait an opportune time - a time when the initiative and conditions were favourable to them.

The time soon came. Slowly and systematically soon after the offensive by the Sri Lankan

army, highly motivated LTTE cadres penetrated back into Vadamarachi to adopt an

underground guerrilla warfare. They were like fish in an ocean. They enjoyed the support ofthe entire population. The army had no way of identifying who was who. Women cadres too

were prepared to strike back and inflict heavy casualties on the aggressive army of

occupation.

First Black Tiger Operation:

The army was not given too much time to bask in their smug confidence after forcefully

occupying Vadamarachi. Every army position was a tempting target for attack by the furious

LTTE cadres. Targets for counteroffensive operations were studied. The objective was to

inflict massive casualties on the occupying army in retaliation for the death of hundreds of

civilians and massive destruction of property during "Operation Liberation".

The Nelliady Central College was transformed into a massive army camp by the Sri Lankan

military. The structure and grounds were sufficient to accommodate hundreds of Sri Lankan

troops. It was located in a residential area near Nelliady town in the heart of Vadamarachi.

The LATE military high-command planned a suicide operation calculated to be the best tactic

to inflict heavy casualties on the enemy.

Captain Miller, a volunteer cadre from the LTTE suicide squad of Black Tigers was chosen to

execute, the main part of the operation. On the 5th July 1987 the operation was carried out

successfully. Captain Miller drove a lorry loaded with explosives through the main gates ofthe camp to a distance of 50 yards which brought the lethal cargo in close proximity to the

main structure of the building. Captain Miller then detonated the explosive. All hell was let

loose. Like the eruption of a volcano, the massive blast shattered the buildings to pieces. The

entire town shook by its terrible impact. One hundred and twenty soldiers died instantly.

Many were blown to pieces and scores of them were buried under the debris. Over one

hundred army men were seriously injured.

Role of Women fighters:

Women cadres took part in this historical operation providing crucial rational and tactical

support. Sugi, a senior women commander who d the first rocket propelled grenade signallingthe commencement of the ration, comments on the meticulous execution of the operation.


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"Orders were issued to us to join up with LTTE cadres in Nelliady. I didn't know why we

were asked to move but I guessed a military operation must have been planned in which we

were to participate.

We made our way quietly at night crossing through farm lands and rendezvousing at the point

conveyed to us. Actually our meeting point was at the sight of the military operation. Wewere on one side of the college wall and the army on the other side. Everything was carried

out in utmost quietness and secretiveness. Only at the sight of the operation was the plan

unravelled to us and what part we were expected to play. I was given the task of knocking out

a key sentry point on the top floor of the building. (Sugi was renowned for her

marksmanship). I was determined that I should aim and hit the target directly. I aimed very

carefully and with my first grenade I hit the target, wiped out the sentry point and then the

fighting started.

The army was taken by surprise and chaos broke out. Army men ran from every direction and

took up positions near the front of the college. The other women fighters, along with the male

cadres in different positions, engaged the troops for 5-10 minutes. We then withdrew somedistance from the camp. The firing subsided and Miller drove the vehicle loaded with

explosives down the road and through the college gates for about fifty yards. The army was

firing at the vehicle without any success. We were lying flat on the ground waiting for the

explosion. Suddenly there was a massive blast. The impact was enormous. Even though we

were lying face down on the ground the impact lifted us up and dropped us down again. After

the explosion, we all ran into the college to see, if by any chance, Captain Miller had jumped

clear. However, all that remained was a huge crater where the lorry had been. The building

had collapsed completely. There was debris and dust everywhere. The ground was strewn

with dead and injured army men. The army men were shouting and crying. Survivors and

some of injured fled to the back of the building. We pursued them taking up positions and

firing. They took cover in the back section of the school. A mortar shell from the uninjured

troops exploded near us. A helicopter came and started firing. We collected as many weapons

and as much ammunition as possible and withdrew. We went back to our camp and celebrated

our victory."

In this unprecedented military operation the young women fighters were chosen for their

known courage, marksmanship and fighting ability. Only Sugi survives today. All other

participants in this operation have died in battle.

The success of this operation was celebrated throughout Tamil Eelam. Captain Miller's

supreme sacrifice symbolized the determined resistance the LTTE and Miller became anhonoured hero.

The Black Tiger suicide operation of the LTTE was a serious blow to Sri Lankan army. The

army was taught a bitter lesson in guerrilla war. The forceful occupation of territory is one

matter. However, militarily holding onto the captured area is another. It is a tragedy that the

Sri Lankan army has not learned from this historical experience.

Miller's operation was followed by an attack on a mini-army camp at Kurumbacity on 14-7-

1987 in which women cadres also participated.

All-women Training Camp:


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The first batch of military trained women cadres were actively contributing to the military

situation in Tamil Eelam, particularly in the Jaffna peninsula. They were continually gaining

in experience and had proven it ability. The leadership too of the LTTE had tremendous

confidence in women fighters. At the same time many more young women were wait-to start

a military training programme. In this context Mr.Pirabakaran decided to start a programme

for the military training of women in Tamil

A camp site was set up in the Jaffna Peninsula and on July 1st 1987 next intake of Tamil

women started their military training programme. s programme differed from the first in one

crucial aspect - it was totally organised, maintained and implemented by the women fighters

of the LTTE. as the first all - women training programme. Teepa, one of the girls the first

batch of trainees was in charge of the camp, while Rathi and were instructors in physical and

weaponry training respectively. Included in this second batch of trainees were young women

known as Suthanthira Paravaigal". These young women had, since 1984, involved in political

work amongst the women of Tamil Eelam for the LTTE. In fact, military training programme

was delayed because of their political activity. In 1987 their opportunity came for their full

military training and induction as armed participants in the struggle for Tamil Eelam.

Fighting the Indian Army: October 1987 - March 1990:

The historical circumstances that led to the armed confrontation between the so-called Indian

Peace Keeping Forces and the LTTE are very complex. As a regional super-power India had

specific strategic and geopolitical interests in the region. Prompted by imperial ambition to

contain the smaller nations of South Asia within the sphere of her power, authority and

influence, the Indian Government intervened in Sri Lanka covertly and overtly ever since the

racial holocaust of July 1983.

Sri Lanka under the reign of pro-western J.R.Jayawardene, moved steadily towards the U.S.

imperialist axis of the old world order disregarding the geo-political concerns of India. The

Indian ruling elites viewed this drift with anxiety since they feared such a policy orientation

by Sri Lanka would lead to U.S. penetration and dominance in the Indian ocean. This strategic

concern was an important factor that led to the Indian intervention.LTTE Women Guerrillas

stand victorious in front of an Indian Army tank destroyed by them.

Furthermore, the armed freedom movement of the Tamils, demanding self-determination and

statehood was also causing serious concern to the Indians. The political fall-outs of this

determined struggle on the nationalist upsurgence in the Indian states, particularly in Tamil

Nadu, India feared, would be disastrous for the unity and territorial integrity of the country.Allergic to the very idea of self-determination which was systematically suppressed

internally, the Indian Government was determined to interfere in the Tamil ethnic conflict to

contain the secessionist demand and to resolve the problem within the unitary model of the Sri

Lankan constitution.

With these strategic objectives, which were primarily based on India's internal and external

interests, the Indian Government set out to deal with the Tamil national conflict. At the initial

stages India provided training facilities and armed assistance to Tamil armed movements

under the pretext of protecting the oppressed Tamil nation. But the real motive was to

destabilise the Sri Lankan state by the Tamil resistance campaign and bring J.R.Jayawardene'

s administration around to India's sphere of influence. Finally, the Sri Lankan state was forced


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to sign an Accord on India's terms. The infamous Indo - Sri Lankan Agreement was signed by

J.R.Jayawardene and Rajiv Gandhi on the 29th of July 1987.

The Accord was a conspiratorial act between two heads of Government signed without the

consultation and consensus of the parties in conflict - the Tamils and Sinhalese. The Tamil

people were disillusioned since the political framework envisaged in the Accord had severelimitations and failed to meet their basic demands. The Provincial Council administration

proposed by India lacked substantial political authority to the Tamil region and the Sinhalese

controlled Central Government was invested with authoritarian powers. Furthermore, the

Accord stipulated the total disarmament of the Tamil resistance movement spearheaded by the

LTTE within 72 hours as a necessary condition for the implementation of the Agreement.

Realising that the Accord was a calculated master plan worked out by both India and Sri

Lanka to crush the Tamil struggle for self-determination without offering a fair deal to the

Tamils, the LTTE decided to oppose it.

In the meantime, several tragic events unfolded in Tamil Edam, which led to a bitterestrangement between the Government of India and the LTTE. The martyrdom of Thileepan,

the young LTTE political leader who undertook a fast unto death campaign seeking justice

and fairplay by India; the suicidal deaths of twelve top ranking LTTE men who ended their

lives in the custody of the Indian Peace-Keeping Forces; the murder of 18 LTTE cadres by

Tamil groups trained and armed by the Indian intelligence agency RAW - these events

brought about the inevitable confrontation. The Indian Government declared war on the LTTE

and demanded total surrender. The LTTE was compelled to resist.

The Indo-LTTE war broke out on the 10th October 1987. The Tamil Tigers were forced to

confront one of the most formidable military machines in the world. With greater manpower

and superior firepower the Indian troops undertook a ruthless military campaign, callously

disregarding civilian casualties, with a single-minded objective of destroying the LTTE within

a short span of time. But the Indian military objective was thwarted by the ingenuity and

fierce determination of the LTTE fighters, who adopted sophisticated tactics and strategies of

classical guerrilla warfare suited to indigenous conditions, to confront a modern conventional

army. The Indian army plunged into a protracted, low-intensity war which began to drain its

blood as well as its honour.

First Battle with Indian Troops:

Women's participation in the war with India has two definitive periods. The first period

involved the battle for the Jaffna Peninsula which began with the outbreak of hostilities on the

10-10-1987 when India launched Operation Pawan and draws to a conclusion by the end of

that year with the tactical withdrawal of most of the LTTE cadres to the jungles. This short

period was dominated by both fierce offensive and defensive battles fought on the models of

classical guerrilla warfare. The second phase, lasting till the end of the war in 1990, was

characterised by typical jungle guerrilla warfare. During both periods the women fighters

gained unique experience in the techniques of warfare against an occupation army. They also

learned to cope up with extra-ordinary life situations of danger, anxiety and uncertainty and

acquired tremendous strength of character that is required for an armed militant.


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The Indian troops faced stiff resistance when they launched a multi-pronged thrust to take

control of the Jaffna city. Indian armoured columns supported by heavy artillery, advanced

towards Jaffna from five main routes. On every front they encountered ambushes, open

clashes, landmines, sniper fire and suffered heavy casualties.

On the very first day of the war, the LTTE women guerrilla units confronted the Indian troopsat the strategic junction of Kopay, a village 5 kilometres from the Jaffna city. As a convoy of

Indian troops advanced along the Navatkuli-Kopay Road the LTTE women fighters encamped

at Kopay were prepared to confront a powerful force. The women fighters were near the

Kopay junction in defensive positions when a convoy of Indian troops arrived in the back of

the night. Hundreds of troops jumped out of their vehicles and started to advance towards the

women fighters' positions. Heavy fighting broke out. Our women cadres fought hard, putting

up fierce resistance against a formidable contingent with superior fire-power. In that clash

Lt.Malathy died. Lt. Malathy was the first woman fighter to die in battle. Janani, a veteran of

many battles, takes up the story of Lt.Malathy's death.

"We were in our bunkers firing at the army. Hundreds of Indian troops had jumped out oftheir vehicles and were firing as they moved towards us. Mortar shells were exploding

everywhere. We knew the army was advancing quickly. Malathy was shot in both legs. She

couldn't move and she was bleeding profusely. Realising that she was mortally wounded, she

swallowed cyanide. A decision had been made to withdraw because we were heavily out-

numbered. Myself and another girl Vijee went over to carry Malathy. Malathy refused to

come with us. She begged us to leave her and asked us to withdraw. Nevertheless, we lifted

Malathy and carried her and when we arrived at a safe place she was dead."

The Kopay and Urumparai areas where the women fighters were stationed in strength, turned

into a hotbed of LTTE resistance. These two places were on the direct route through which

columns of Indian troops and tanks were advancing from Palali towards Jaffna city. The two

places linked up to form an effective resistance belt. The LTTE cadres - including women

fighters - put up extremely strong resistance. The 'mighty' Indian army faced the odds of

urban guerrilla warfare confronting powerful-landmines, booby traps, sniper fire and sudden

ambushes by the LTTE. In these battles, the Indian army suffered heavy, casualties, lost tanks

and armoured vehicles. The ingenious methods of resistance by the LTTE effectively slowed

down the advance of the Indian troops. In the heavy clashes that took place at Kopay and

Urumparai seven women fighters were killed.

While heavy fighting was raging on several fronts between the Tamil Tigers and the

advancing Indian troops the LTTE got wind of an Indian subversive master-plan. Accordingto this plan, a specially selected para commando unit of Sikh soldiers was to make a sudden

helicopter-borne landing at the Jaffna University ground and to launch a lightning attack on

the residence of the LTTE leader. This operation was to take place during late evening on the

11th October 1987. Anticipating this assassination attempt, the LTTE military high-command

organised a counter strategy into which women fighters were also drawn.

In this now well-known abortive military operation twenty-nine Indian troops were slain by a

large contingent of female and male cadres skilfully positioned in buildings surrounding the

landing field at the Medical Faculty of the Jaffna University. At around 7 p.m. in the late

evening a succession of helicopter borne para-troopers landed on the campus grounds. One by

one they were cut down by a barrage of LTTE machine-gun fire. Reinforcements of Indiantroops and tanks despatched to rescue their beleaguered colleagues also ended up in disarray.


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Eighteen troops, who literally lost their way to rescue their colleagues were captured by LTTE

cadres. Prominent among the women fighters in this battle were Captain Asha, Captain Ajitha

and Captain Arunthathi who were later martyred in battles with Sri Lankan army near Palali

in late 1990.

On the western Valigamam flank, a guerrilla unit of women fighters were deployed alongwith male cadres to resist and frustrate the efforts of the Indian troops to advance towards

Jaffna from that sector. This women guerrilla unit engaged the Indians on several fronts and

had displayed extra-ordinary courage in confronting a superior force against all odds.

On the 11th October 1987, those women fighters, having taken positions at Thoddilady

junction, ambushed a convoy of Indian soldiers who attempted to advance from their main

camp based at Periya Vilan. In the fierce fighting that ensued several Indian jawans were

killed. Stunned by the sudden ambush, the Indian troops withdrew. But on the following day,

the Indians moved forward in strength forcing the women cadres to tactically withdraw from

the area.

This same women guerrilla unit engaged the Indian army at Chithankerni, Ponnalai and

Kallundaiveli, causing heavy casualties amongst the Indian troops. In the ambush at

Chithankerni an Indian tank was destroyed by a landmine. -

To cope with the heavy resistance waged by the LTTE guerrillas - both female and male - the

Indian army inducted fresh armoured battalions into the western Valigamam sector. The

LTTE cadres persisted with their resistance campaign until the sheer numbers of Indian troops

and superior firepower forced them to tactically withdraw from that theatre of war.

In the meantime, as the battle for the control of Jaffna intensified women guerrilla units

deployed in Tinneveli, Kokkuvil and Manipay areas continued to engage the Indian troops.

The determined defensive campaign of the LTTE in the battle of Jaffna, the ingenious tactical

methods advanced to frustrate the offensive thrust of the Indian army is now recognised, even

by the Indian military analysts, as a remarkable phenomenon in contemporary guerrilla

warfare. What stunned the Indian army most was the courage, determination and the fighting

skills of the women combatants who fought fearlessly in this campaign. This was the first

time in the Indian military history, the jawans confronted the opposite sex in fierce battles and

suffered badly at the hands of women guerrillas, an unprecedented phenomenon that shocked

the arrogant, male chauvinistic, all powerful Indian army.

New Mode of Warfare:

Most of the women cadres withdrew to the jungles when the Indian army finally took control

of the Jaffna Peninsula after two months of bloody and intense fighting. But their withdrawal

certainly did not mean the end of the war. On the contrary, the withdrawal signified a change

of tactics and strategy and the beginning of a new dimension in the war against the Indian

occupation army. Furthermore, far from being defeated the LTTE prepared for protracted

guerrilla campaigns. Having entrenched themselves in the jungles the Tamil Tigers mobilised

and organised new recruits, expanded their military and political structures and steadily grew

into an effective fighting machine.


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This period of jungle guerrilla warfare is remarkable not only for the participation of women

in the guerrilla campaign but for the extra-ordinary qualities of character women guerrillas

revealed under exceptionally difficult conditions and extreme mental pressure. The women

guerrillas had to think quickly, make decisions and remain calm and collected in acute life

threatening situations. For example, thirteen women cadres separated from the main unit of

guerrillas and persistently hunted by the Indian army, roamed the jungles for five days andnights without food before they were reunited with their unit. The women fighters had only a

compass for directions and two bottles of sweet cordial to sustain them throughout their

ordeal. Their lives often depended on the acuteness of their hearing to detect the movements

of the enemy; their eyes to observe the trails of Indian troops and their voices to remain silent

at critical moments. Hunger pains had to be mastered and thirst quenched by a mouthful of

cordial. Ultimately their endurance and sharp wittedness brought them to safety.

However, not all women guerrillas were able to escape the Indian troops. Some of them were

caught up in massive round-ups that left no avenue at all for escape. This happened to six

women fighters at Mullaitivu. In these circumstances the women fighters were determined to

resist to the very end rather than surrender to the army. Two of the women guerrillas wereshot dead and the remaining four fighters swallowed cyanide rather than allowing the enemy

to take them alive and subject them to torture.

Camp life too in the jungle became another challenge and a different form of struggle for the

women fighters. They worked and struggled to create a habitable environment out of wild

virgin jungle and to transform the hostile wilderness into a enduring ally. In the early days of

the jungle life women guerrillas slept under the open sky nestled amongst the bushes and trees

for cover. When it rained streams of water and mud stuck to their feet and clothes. It was a

monumental task to build up camps deep in the Wanni jungles. Both the male and female

cadres worked day and night digging out trenches, constructing bunkers, putting up huts and

tents and clearing pathways.

Water - that vital resource for human survival - was very scarce in the jungle but it was

available deep underground. Adequate and secure supplies of water could only be acquired by

digging deep wells. The women cadres laboured for days gouging out rock and earth to a

depth of forty feet before the precious fluid oozed up through the rocky filter base in

sufficient quantities for drinking and bathing. Until such time the available water was strictly

rationed.

The food supply was also very limited. There were occasions in which our guerrillas had to

eat only once a day. The quality and quantity of food depended on access and frequency ofsupplies. When army operations intensified or bombardment was excessive, supplies would

be temporarily disrupted. Women cadres had to be satisfied with the available food. Quite

often this meant one cup of rice and dhal cooked without salt, onions or chillies for a midday

meal. The urgency of securing food supplies pushed the women cadres to trek through thick

mine-infested jungles for miles to collect food supplies. Women fighters with 50kg sacks of

rice, dhal, flour and other vital rations weighing on their shoulders, trekking through the

jungle was a common sight.

Defending The Jungle Bases:

After failing to destroy the LTTE during "Operation Pawan" in the Jaffna Peninsula, theIndian army turned its guns towards the LTTE bases in the Wanni jungles transforming the


19/48

entire area into a mammoth theatre of brutal and bloody war. Massive military preparations

were made with the strategic objective of flushing out and destroying LTTE guerrillas and

their leadership. Thousands and thousands of fresh Indian troops were inducted into the war to

carry out these operations. Special commando units with counter-insurgency training were

inducted. Armoured vehicles and helicopter gunships were utilised for concentrated troop

movements and offensive operations. Tens of thousands of Indian troops spanned out andwere stretched over a vast geographical area from as far as Mullativu on the eastern coast to

Ottusuddan in Vavuniya, extending. towards Kilinochchi. Intensive cordon-off and search and

destroy operations took place on a large scale. A large number of civilians were killed in these

operations but the main target - the LTTE - remained protected and active in the deep jungles.

Failing to dislodge the LTTE in these initial waves of attack the Indian military high-

command planned further military operations. from June 1988 the Indian army launched a

series of operations codenamed "Operation Checkmate". In these operation! the Indian army

singled out the LTTE bases in Alampil jungles. Massive aerial and artillery bombardment was

launched. Hundreds of tons of powerful bombs and artillery shells were rained down, day and

night, on LTTE positions. Yet, this massive bombing campaign proved to be a failure. TheLTTE casualty rate was astoundingly minimal. Two women cadres died from shelling during

this period. The LTTE cadres - including women guerrillas - had toiled day and night, digging

out the earth and building up fortress bases with an effective network of bunkers and trenches

that provided adequate protective cover from this rain of explosives.

In the ground battles the special commando units trained in jungle warfare suffered

humiliating defeats at the hands of the LTTE fighters. The LTTE guerrillas - both male and

female - who were familiar with the terrain, employed meticulous tactics and techniques to

confront and destroy the units of Indian commandos who dared to penetrate into the jungles.

In these most daring and dangerous operations, women fighters played a crucial role. They

engaged the Indians, in co-ordination with male cadres, in various ambush operations at

Visuvamadu, Kaivel, Eranaipalai, Thevipuram, Nithikaikulam in the Mullaitivu and Wanni

areas.

It was during the Indo-LTTE war the Sri Lankan Government, with the assistance of the

Sinhalese army, undertook a massive colonisation project at Manal Aru (Weli Oya) driving

the Tamil people out of thier traditional villages. The LTTE, while engaging the Indians in

this region, planned an assault on the Sri Lankan military to disrupt on-going colonisation. On

the 15-4-1989, women guerrilla units along with LTTE male cadres launched a daring

ambush on a patrol of Sinhala troops in this area killing twenty one soldiers on the spot.

During the Indian military occupation women cadres in Batticaloa also participated in the

resistance campaign. However, their mode of operation was different. In Batticaloa the female

cadres left the jungles and moved and worked in the Batticaloa town. They engaged in extra-

ordinary dangerous situations and demonstrated great courage. The young women cadre,

Anita, who died on 28-11-1988 - the first women fighter to die in struggle in Batticaloa - was

one such girl.

When Batticaloa was totally occupied by the Indian army, Anita moved from the jungle to the

town undetected. She carried only cyanide as a weapon of self-defence. Regularly, Anita

passed through Indian army check-points. In this way she carried medicine to cadres,

collected food supplies, transported small arms and collected information about the armymovements. One day, suddenly, as she passed through the check-point collaborators from the


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treacherous EPRLF singled out Anita for questioning. When the Indian army ordered her to

accompany them Anita, who knew the activities and whereabouts of the LTTE cadres,

swallowed a cyanide capsule and died soon after.

The Formation of An Independent Structure:

When the women cadres joined the armed struggle the trajectory of their lives fundamentally

changed. They were exposed to new and extraordinary experiences, which, undoubtedly

influenced the formation of their thinking. By mid 1989 the increasing number of young

women joining the LTTE necessitated reorganisation of the structure and management of the

women cadres. The situation was conducive to call for the realisation and implementation of a

particular view that the women fighters had been toying with for a very long time. The

collective aspiration of the women cadres was the desire for a separate women's military

structure. The creation of an independent structure, the women cadres argued, would free

them from their over-reliance on the male cadres. Having their own administrative structure,

managing their own affairs, making their own decisions based on their knowledge and

experience, the women fighters believed, would promote the development of the womencadres. The articulation of such views was itself a clear indication of how much the women

had grown in self-confidence. Mr.Pirabakaran appreciated their aspirations and unhesitantly

gave his support to the women fighters.

A crucial step towards the realisation of this radical view was the appointment of Sothia as the

leader of the women fighters in June 1989. Sothia herself was a strong advocate of an

independent women's military structure and worked hard to ensure that the idea did not

simply remain within the realm of dreams. Her own personality and history was also a great

impetus to the women fighters. Sothia, over years transformed herself into an independent

thinker, confident and efficient, capable of leading a women's military structure. Furthermore,

she had a wide variety of experience in the LTTE which enabled her to offer advice and

assistance on various matters to the cadres under her command. She was known to be a

courageous, determined fighter; she had worked in the communication section and medical

unit. Most importantly she was popular and respected across the entire spectrum of the LTTE.

The new women's Military Unit of the Liberation Tigers with Sothia as the leader of the Unit

was inaugurated on the 26th September 1989. The selected day was the death anniversary of

the LTTE hero Thileepan who had fasted to death in 1987. The new office and the training

complex was given the name "Vidiyal" which translates into English "dawn" - a new dawn for

the women of Tamil Eelam. The first military training programme of the women's Military

Unit of Liberation Tigers commenced on the 6th October in 1989.

The building up of the new women's structure was enthusiastically and busily underway when

a tragedy struck the women's unit. Sothia, the driving force behind the high morale of the

women, suddenly struck down by an aggressive virulent illness. She was moved from the

jungles for special medical care but she failed to recover and died on 11 January 1990 after

only six months as the Women's Military Unit leader. She was 26 years old.

Despite the unexpected setback caused by the dead of Sothia the women cadres continued

with their programme of developing and expanding their structure and recruiting and training

women fighters. Hundreds of young women passed through the military training programme

in the jungle. When the Indian army had completed its withdrawal from Tamil Eelam on


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March 21st 1990, the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam had a fully fledged Women's Military

Unit.

Eelam War 2 - The First Year: June 1990 - June 1991:

The brilliant diplomatic offensive launched by the LTTE in the initiation of a direct dialoguewith Premadasa's government in April 1989 plunged the Indian policy makers into a deep

dilemma and confusion. When the parties in conflict (the LTTE and Sri Lankan state) entered

into a peaceful negotiating process renouncing armed confrontation, the rationality behind the

Indian intervention and armed occupation of Tamil areas lost its credibility. Both Sri Lanka

and the LTTE wanted the Indian Peace Keeping Force (IPKF) to withdraw. The Indians had

no choice but to plead for a time-frame to withdraw its troops which had been beefed-up to

over one hundred thousand in number. By the end of March 1990 the entire contingents of the

Indian army withdrew from the Tamil homeland.

The talks between Premadasa's regime and the Tamil Tigers - which started with positive

hopes - ran into serious difficulties by the intransigent attitude of the Government. As theGovernment refused to offer any substantial proposals to resolve the basic issues the talks

dragged on without any concrete results. President Premadasa was primarily concerned with

the evacuation of the Indian occupation army. The presence of the Indian army had sparked

off widespread violence in the South instigated and organised by the J.V.P. (Janatha Vimukthi

Peramuna).

During the withdrawal of the IPKF, Premadasa's government ruthlessly suppressed the

Sinhala militant organisation slaughtering thousands of radical Sinhala youth. The successful

extermination of the J.V.P. made the Government and the Sri Lankan military apparatus over-

confident and belligerent. Premadasa deliberately undermined the direct dialogue between the

LTTE and the Government by promoting the so-called "All-Party Conference" with the anti

LTTE Tamil groups and by advocating a "consensus" approach. The Sri Lankan armed forces,

on the other side, adopted a bellicose attitude towards the Tigers, which sparked off several

nasty skirmishes and confrontations between the Sinhala soldiers and the LTTE. The

hostilities finally broke out into a full-fledged war between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan

army on the 10th June 1990.

The Eelam War 2, as the armed conflict is 'characterised by military analysts, has been

extremely ruthless and bloody. Sri Lankan armed forces by now have been structurally

transformed into a powerful military machine. Utilising the period of the Indian military

intervention the Sri Lankan armed forces were modernised. Equipped with modern weaponsystems and provided with sophisticated training in counter-insurgency, warfare, the Sri

Lankan military was geared into an effective war machine with increased man-power of upto

70,000 troops. Having wiped out the JVP insurgency in the South, the army was over-

confident, with exaggerated notions of a "superior force" capable of crushing the Tamil armed

struggle advanced by the LTTE. The Sri Lankan State miscalculated and under-estimated the

military power of the Tamil Tigers, whom, it thought, were severely tamed and marginalised

by the Indian army. On the contrary, the LTTE was strong in man-power and fire-power and

was highly motivated by its successful resistance to one of the most powerful armies in the

world.

The scenario was set for a brutal confrontation between two powerful combatants. Unlike theprevious conflict, the Eelam War 2 is fierce and intense assuming different forms at different


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times, from guerrilla ambushes to direct conventional confrontations, from lightning raids to

months of drawn-out battles. The Sri Lankan army utilised its superior fire-power and relied

heavily on combined operations with aerial and naval support. Air strikes, naval

bombardment and artillery shelling were blind and reckless which took a heavy toll of civilian

casualties rather than securing defined strategic objectives. The remarkable military genius of

the LTTE is to radically change its strategy and tactics to suit the developing military situationand to keep the initiative on its side. As the war developed and expanded to the entire theatre

of the Northeast the over-stretched army encountered serious difficulties in holding onto the

occupied positions. The LTTE fighters have overrun isolated camps, destroyed military

convoys, wiped out defence positions in sudden, sweeping offensive raids. The casualties on

the army side began to increase on an unprecedented scale undermining the morale of the

forces and transforming the initial euphoria into despair and gloom.

Successful Raid on Kokkavil Army Camp:

Women combatants have played a crucial role in all the major battles in the Eelam War 2.

They have functioned as an integral part of the UTE' s liberation army and have provedthemselves as an effective fighting force in defence of their homeland.

Initially, when hostilities broke-out women fighters were deployed for both offensive and

defensive operations. At that time strategically located army camps in the Jaffna Peninsula -

Fort, Palali and Elephant Pass - were under partial siege surrounded by LTTE defence

positions. Women fighting units, along with male cadres, were deployed in defence barriers

which encircled these military installations. Some women units were also positioned along the

coastal belt in Vadamarachi to resist any possible sea-landing operations by the Sri Lankan

army.

The first major battle in which our women fighters took an active role was the successful raid

on the Kokkavil army camp, situated in an isolated jungle terrain in the Wanni region. This

battle took place on the 13-7-1990. Women combat units consisting of senior cadres with

extensive experience in jungle guerrilla warfare, participated in the attack along with male

LTTE fighters. Lucia, an experienced woman guerrilla fighter who commanded a unit of the

women cadres, comments on the participation of the women cadres in this attack.

"The women fighters were given a specific area to operate in with specific tasks to be

completed as part of the overall plan of attack. We were all confident that we would over-run

the camp and that the women fighters would successfully carry out what was expected of

them. On the first day we fought from late evening till early morning. We couldn't take thecamp on the first night. Next day, again in the evening we launched a fresh offensive and after

heavy fighting we captured the sentry points. Then in the early morning, we stormed in an

over-ran the army camp."

In this operation, seventy-two army personnel were killed, the rest ran in fear and a large

quantity of arms were captured. Six women fighters died in this battle including Captain

Usha, a senior woman cadre who was trained in the first batch in India.

The Siege of Jaffna Fort:

As the war escalated in the Northern theatre, the Jaffna Fort army camp and the Palali airbase, the two strategically important military centres in the Peninsula, became the hot bed of


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armed conflict between the LTTE and the government's security forces. Gradually and

systematically, the Tamil fighters tightened the siege around the Fort camp and Palali air base

to prevent the mobility of the forces and to curtail supplies. When the LTTE positioned anti-

aircraft guns in the Fort area, the helicopter-borne supplies to the stranded troops became

threatened and the battle for the Fort turned out to be fierce and intense.

The LTTE was firmly determined to capture the Jaffna Fort at any cost since it was situated in

the heart of the city in close proximity to Pannai causeway that linked the Mandaitivu Island.

Occupying a strategically important position, the Fort camp posed a serious threat to the

civilian population of Jaffna as the military personnel in the camp indiscriminately shelled the

heavily populated civilian areas, including the Jaffna Hospital, causing terror and death to the

civilian masses. For the Sri Lankan State it was a vital military installation to exercise, at least

symbolically, its "sovereignty" over the Jaffna population. For the Tamils, the Fort had

become a symbol of colonial domination and alien occupation, a monstrous structure of

repression that had to be destroyed to pave the way for liberation. Therefore, the battle of the

Fort became a battle of wills, a battle between the forces of repression and resistance; a battle

of historical importance in the national conflict.

The battle of the Fort was a living testimony of courage, endurance and determination of the

LTTE cadres - both female and male. The women fighting units along with the male cadres

had been deployed in several positions around the Fort even prior to the outbreak of new

hostilities with the Sri Lankan State. The women cadres took up positions in surrounding

buildings and purposely built sentry points. Their presence in large numbers contributed to the

increasing pressure of the siege on troops in the Fort. As the siege became more acute and the

lives of the troops became endangered the Sri Lankan military made frantic and desperate

efforts to break the siege.

The entire power of the Airforce was mobilised to systematically bomb the LTTE positions.

The Macbeth bombers, civilian aircrafts, helicopter gunships - everything that was available

in the armoury on the Airforce was utilised to pound the areas surrounding the Fort garrison

with a single-minded aim to dislodge the siege. The sky over the Jaffna city buzzed with

aerial activity for twenty-four hours of the day. Thousands of locally manufactured barrel

bombs blasted the metropolis area reducing the buildings and houses to heaps of rubble. From

the land and the sea artillery shells pummelled the area relentlessly. Inspite of this massive

bombing onslaught, the LTTE fighters held their positions deep underground in their solid

bunkers.

Holding the siege tightly amidst the bombing holocaust demanded extra-ordinary grit andfierce determination on the part of both female and male LTTE fighters. It was a new mode of

warfare in which the fighting had to be conducted in the face of extreme difficulties. For three

months the women fighters endured this cataclysmic experience and learned to adopt to this

unique condition of war.

For the women fighters personal needs were secondary to the overall demands of maintaining

a tight siege. The hours of daylight were spent on maintaining sentry points, the upkeep of

bunkers, organising supplies and attending to any sudden unexpected problem and

requirements that might arise. Many normal daily routines could only be carried out at night

in brief intervals between bombardments and sniper fire. Subsequently, the women cadres

struggled in the darkness to carry out such routine practices as hair brushing and plaiting.Rifle cleaning was carried out with the benefit of the light of the early dawn. The rifle was a


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sleeping mate while the holster and uniform were worn like a second skin. Remaining alert

while asleep became a new mode of sleeping behaviour. Bathing turned into a luxury form of

relaxation on odd occasions when time was available free from long sentry watches, bunker

building and trench digging.

Moving from one place to another, became a hazardous obstacle course with women cadresmoving amidst sniper fire and mortar shells unleashed from the Fort and aimed directly at the

mobile women cadres. Rain too, poured down to make the women cadres' lives more difficult.

There were occasions in which the women cadres stood knee-deep in muddy water to

maintain their vigilant watch. While moving from one position to another, they crawled

through the filthy muddy drains surrounding the Fort. Regardless of these trials and

tribulations, the women combatants remained firm in their determination to capture the Fort.

Resistance and Victory:

While tightening the siege amidst relentless bombardment from land, sea and air, the LTTE

fighters launched offensive raids on the Fort garrison in an attempt to overtake it. Womenfighters also participated in these most dangerous and daring operations. One such offensive

attack took place on the 5th August 1990, during which a women guerrilla unit commanded

by Lt.Sangitha made a brave attempt to break-through the entrance of the Fort. This daring

raid was foiled by the heavy resistance of the Sri Lankan troops. Lt.Sangitha and three other

women fighters died in this operation.

As the existence of the besieged soldiers became precarious and the fall of the garrison

became imminent, the Sri Lankan forces launched a massive combined operation to dislodge

the siege. On the 13th September 1990, 4,000 troops with the assistance of the Airforce and

Navy mounted a huge operation from Mandaitivu island to destroy the LTTE's positions. It

was a bloody battle. The LTTE fighters stood firm against th

Adele Balasingham - Women Fighters of Liberation Tigers [1993]

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Transcript of Adele Balasingham - Women Fighters of Liberation Tigers [1993]