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Sri Lanka appears to be closer to peace than ever before after Britain included the LTTE in the proscribed list under the new anti-terrorism act to halt fund raising and propaganda activities in the UK. The Sri Lankan Government was firm in its stance urging Britain to ban the LTTE, since the main fundraising nerve-centre of the LTTE was based in London. The new anti-terrorism law gives British police more powers to arrest those plotting or supporting terrorist activities abroad and to seize money destined for any of the 21 banned organizations. According to diplomats, this would restrict the LTTE's "international secretariat" in London, from openly organising campaigns and raising money for terrorism in Sri Lanka. The Sri Lankan government believes that the proscription would weaken the LTTE and force them towards a negotiated settlement. The organizations to be proscribed were listed in a Draft Order and laid before parliament yesterday by British Home Secretary Jack Straw. The Draft Order will be debated and approved by both Houses of Parliament. The Home Secretary in a written statement to Parliament said that he was entirely satisfied that the organizations named were involved in terrorism. "The Terrorism Act is an important legislation which brings our provisions in line with the European Convention on Human Rights and ensure that we are better able to deal with the serious threats which terrorism poses," he told Parliament. The LTTE has already been banned in the USA, India and Sri Lanka. The Act was enacted last week, replacing legislation aimed primarily at containing the 30-year conflict in Northern Ireland. Meanwhile, the British High Commission in Colombo issuing a statement last night said that this decision reflects the British Government's firm stance against international terrorism. The nature and scale of an organization's activities, the specific threat that it poses to the UK, the specific threat that it poses to British nationals overseas, the extent of the organization's presence in the UK and the need to support other members of the international community in the global fight against terrorism are the factors taken into account by the Home Secretary in making this decision.
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