Is Velupillai Prabhakaran, the Tamil Tigers leader, likely to back down at this stage?
I don’t think he will back down, if his personality is any guide. He will keep fighting, even if it is just a strip of land he has with him. He will not like to compromise, he will not like to show the white flag. That will go against all he has done for the past 26 years. Remember, he has made people fight on. People have fought for the cause and they have died. There is no way now he can back off. But will the Tamil people have any leverage once they are defeated? The Tamil people are in a far worse position than they were in 1983 when it all began. They are a very proud community and they have lived a very dignified life even if they have had many problems with the government. Once this military activity is over will there be enough support in the Tamil community or among those LTTE fighters who managed to escape to continue their struggle? If you are referring to a military struggle, I think that there will not be many takers any more. I think ordinary people are just fed up, absol
