COLOMBO, May 6: Tamil MPs of Sri Lanka’s Tamil National Alliance (TNA) intend to meet Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe this week to advocate the repeal of the prevention of terrorism act, which has been in force for the past two decades.

The MPs are also likely to demand that Tamils kept in custody on suspicion of terrorism, be released.

Ananda Sangari, a TNA member, told Dawn reports that the LTTE was violating the peace process and insinuations that they might revert to their “former activities”’ was not a “strong enough” reason to “cling to the anti-terrorism act”.

Anandasangari chose “not to comment” on the jolt given to the ceasefire on May 1, with the LTTE blowing up an ammunition boat in the face of detection by the Sri Lankan navy.

“We want peace at any cost. There are those who are waiting for the peace process to disrupt”, the TNA member said.

The Sri Lanka Freedom Party, consisting of members of the opposition, the Peoples’ Alliance, on the contrary did not mince words in its press release distributed soon after the May 1 incident, about what the party felt about the manner in which the LTTE was violating the ceasefire.

“We support a ceasefire which is genuine. But we will not continue to support a sham”, the press release said.

This same stand was taken by President Chandrika Bandaranaike Kumaratunge in an emergency meeting with Defence Minister Tilak Marapana where the President expressed displeasure about the manner in which LTTE ceasefire violations are being “swept under the carpet”.

The navy, on the instructions of the president, is at present on 24-hour vigil manning the eastern coast, where the LTTE is believed to be transporting a large quantity of ammunition.