Sunday, January 1, 2012

LTTE Human Rights Violations and War Crimes against North East Muslims

(By: M.I.M. Mohideen)


Courtesy: The Island

Before the Ceasefire Agreement of 22nd February 2002
With the increased activities of the Tamil militants in the early part of 1985, the animosity and resentment of the Tamils towards the North East Muslims took a more acrimonious turn. Consequent to it, numerous incidents of extortions of money, robbing jewellry and other valuables at gun point, and threat to co-operate with the separatist movement took place.
The breaking point came when the Tamil terrorists tried, in the course of robbing a rich Muslim trader, to take his daughter as hostage in Akkaraipattu, a predominant Muslim Town, in the Ampara District. Angered by this, the Muslims registered their protest by a- peaceful hartal from 08th to 12th April 1985 and hoisted Sri Lanka National Flag in the bazaar, declaring solidarity of the Muslims with the government and their rejection of the division of the Country.
With this incident, the Tamil, Muslim ethnic violence swiftly spread to Kalmunai, Kattankudi, Eravur, Ottamawadi, Valaichenai, Muthur and Kinniya. Hundreds of Muslims were killed by the armed Tamil separatists and many billions of Rupees worth of properties belonging to both the Tamil and Muslims were burnt and destroyed. It is during the April 1985 riots, that the Tamil and Muslims fought each other as separate communities for the first time in the East.
About 26 Muslims were killed and another 200 were injured when the IPKF shelled Ottamawadi, a predominant Muslim Village in the Batticaloa District on 02nd December 1987. A Number of houses and shops belonging to Muslims were burned and destroyed. Some Muslims women were also reported to have been raped by the IPKF. About 14,000 Muslims became refugees and fled to the North - Central Province, Polonnaruwa.
Kattankudi, the home of nearly 60,000 Muslims, situated 4 miles down South of Batticaloa, was attacked by the armed Tamil separatists on 30th of December 1987. In this fierce attack, nearly 60 Muslims were killed and more than 200 were injured. Properties worth 200 Millions belonging to the Muslims were burned and destroyed by armed Tamil militants. All these happened in the presence of the Indian Peace Keeping Forces - IPKF. Although the attack lasted for two days, Kattankudi was under siege until the 8th of January 1988. During this period, all movements, in and out of the area were blocked by the armed Tamil militants while the IPKF was supposed to be in control of the area.
Ethnic Cleansing of Muslims by the LTTE
The Muslims from the Northern Province were forced to leave their homes in the third week of October 1990. The ultimatum in many places was that they should leave the region within 48 hours. Most Muslims refugees continue to live in abject conditions outside the North. Contrary to many other situations of displacement in the country, the majority of the displaced Muslims as a result of the ethnic cleansing by LTTE have not been able to go back to their places of birth in the North. At present, there are about 65,000 Muslim refugees living in the North-Western coastal region in the Puttalam district. The value of assets robbed by the LTTE during 1990 ethnic cleansing is more than Rs. 10,256 Million or US$ 110 Million. Houses damaged 11,110 Million. The lands forcibly occupied 30,400 Acres.
Nearly 63,000 acres of paddy lands belonging to Muslims of the Eastern province were forcibly taken over by the LTTE and agricultural produce confiscated. The lands that belonged to the displaced Muslims from the Northern Province continues to remain under the control of the LTTE. Besides, agricultural implements, motor vehicles and cattle were taken away by force by the LTTE. Under the law of property in force in the country, a land owner loses his or her right to possession if their property is occupied by usurpers for 10 years. It is now more than 21 years since Muslims in the North East have been forcefully displaced from their properties by the LTTE.
Economic Destabilization of Muslims in the North - East
A politico-military strategy of the LTTE has been to weaken the economic strength of the Muslim community. In order to realize this objective, the LTTE, as was the case with other Tamil militants, have targeted economic ventures and business places of the Muslims. Robbing of business goods and abduction of businessmen for ransom remain the common spectre in the North-East.
Denial of Fishing Rights
With the eviction of the Muslim community from the North East, a considerable section of the Muslim fisher-folk have been rendered unemployed. In areas such as Valaichenai, Ottamavadi, Eravur and other coastal areas in the East, boats and fishing gears were routinely robed by the LTTE. Many Muslim fishermen have also been killed while at sea by the sea tigers.
Non-respect for Religion and Culture
In many instances, in the North East, the cultural and religious symbols of the Muslim community have come under attack from the LTTE and other Tamil militant groups. The grenade attack on a mosque in Akkraipattu and massacre of Muslims at congregational prayer in Kattankudy and Eravur, as well as the cold-blooded murder of Hajj pilgrims returning in 1990 in Kaluwanchikudi, demonstrate the extent of intolerance shown by the LTTE and Tamil militants towards the religion and culture of the Muslims.
Summary of identified Muslim Civilians Killed by LTTE-Tamil Militants.
* 26 Muslims at Ottamawadi in December 1987
* 41 Muslims at Karaitheevu in November 1987
* 35 Muslims at Kinniya in April 1987
* 52 Muslims at Mutur in October 1987
* 21 Muslims at Sammanthurai Mosque in April 1989
* 67 Muslims at Valaichchenai from April 1985 to July 2002
* 67 Muslims at Kattankudy in December 1987
* 168 Muslims at Kattankudy in July 1990
* 147 Muslims at Kattankudy Mosque in August 1990
* 58 Muslims at Akkaraipattu in July 1990
* 14 Muslims at Kattankudy Mosque in July 1990
* 13 Muslims in November 1989
* 19 Muslims at Alimnagar in August 1990
* 126 Muslims at Eravur in August 1990
* 53 Muslims at Ambalanthurai in August 1990
* 23 Muslims at Sainthamaruthu in September 1992
* 15 Muslims at Addalachchena in May 1990
* 37 Muslims at Pallitthidal, Akbarpuram in October 1992
* 200 Muslims at Kalmuna, Akkaraipattu and Pottuvil in June 1990
* 33 Muslim farmers at Ampara in August 1990
* 186 Muslims in June 1990
* 147 Muslims at Alingippottanai in April 1992
* 30 Muslims at Pottuvil in June 1991
After the Ceasefire Agreement of 22nd February 2002
On Friday the 28th June, 2002; Valaichena Pradeshiya Sabha Office was set on fire and destroyed. In the grenade attack on Muslims returning from Friday "Jummah" prayers, 7 were injured - 2 critically. Additional troops and Special Task Forces were airlifted. The Batticaloa and Ampara Districts were placed under curfew.
On Sunday the 30th June 2002, two bodies were found by the police in Kalmadu Village in Valichena. They were the two Muslim cooks who went to the house of a Tamil in Valichchnai, on Wednesday the 26th June, to prepare the wedding meals. The LTTE cadres have abducted the two Muslims killed and threw them in a paddy field. The father and few members of their family went to identify the bodies. After the post-mortem, the police loaded the dead in a tractor trailer to be taken for the burial according to Muslim rites. But the LTTE cadres with arms objected to the removal of the bodies and insisted the burning of them at the site. The Army Major Hettiarachi contacted the Head Quarters and he was given the orders from Colombo to leave the bodies and avoid any confrontation with the LTTE. Then the LTTE cadres put the bodies on a heap of tyres and burned them in front of the Army and Police and. destroyed all evidence of the horrendous human rights violation of the LTTE during cease fire.
Soon after the ceasefire agreement, the Muslims went back and started paddy cultivation in their fields in Kurangupanchan, Kinniya. They renovated the Mosque as decided at a meeting held on 11.06.2003. LTTE chased the Muslims families resettled here and put up their military camp in the Mosque building.
LTTE War Crimes against the Muslims
When the LTTE closed the Mavillaru anicut the government and the Army never understood their true intention in order to capture Muthur. They strengthened the safety of the Mavillaru area neglecting the security of Muthur. The government removed around 400 security personnel who were deployed in Muthur and posted them in the Mavilaru area and this had made Muthur more vulnerable to LTTE attacks.
The LTTE carefully observed the situation and entered Muthur on 02nd of August 2006 without any resistance from the security forces. They disconnected the electricity. The Muslims without any protection were caught unaware. They vacated their homes and went into the mosques and Arabic College hoping that they will not be attacked in those places. However what happened was something else. The LTTE used the Muslims as human shields when the army attacked them. The Muslims got caught in the crossfire.
Since Muthur was totally surrounded by LTTE, the town could not function normally. Business came to a stop. People did not have means to acquire their daily food, children suffered without milk, patience both from the hospital and the casualties suffered without treatment. The Muslims had to struggle for their mere survival.
The Muslims while running for their lives with white flags were attacked by the LTTE on the way. The women and elderly were tortured and the youngsters were separated and murdered. LTTE has been trying various methods, first it was the Interim Administration in the North East, then the Sub-committee on De-escalation and Normalization (SDN) and later the Sub-committee on Important Humanitarian and Rehabilitation Needs (SIHRN). The primary object of all these arrangements was to transfer the powers vested with the Centre to North East or rather to LTTE with international recognition. By this Process the LTTE was trying to get legitimacy and international support for its role as the sole representative of the North-East - the area of historical habitation of the Tamil speaking peoples - Tamils and Muslims.

23 comments:

Pol Sambol said...

"LTTE plans second armed struggle

Military intelligence uncovers details


Intelligence authorities have uncovered a plan to resurrect the LTTE through an attempt to register an organisation for displaced in Vanni targeting another armed conflict, highly placed intelligence sources revealed.
They said the plan behind the move was to recruit rehabilitated LTTE cadres who were in LTTE’s military units back to the now defunct LTTE terror group. They have also reached former LTTE military members who left the organisation earlier to the defeat of the LTTE. The planned organisation had designed itself to operate under three arms of the LTTE overseas based - Nediwayan, Rudrakumaran and Emmanuel Groups.

These three LTTE ‘foreign-based arms’ were operating from the USA, Norway and Europe, sources revealed. The Defence Ministry has taken measures to educate the youth in the once war-torn areas on the impending dangers of the hidden plan mooted by LTTE sympathisers here and abroad.
National Intelligence Chief of Military Major General Kapila Hendawitharana has alerted state officials in those areas of this hidden plan by pro-LTTE gangs. Meanwhile, intelligence sources have found evidence that overseas based LTTE groups continued to have contacts with pro-LTTE gangs operating as organisations for the displaced persons.

The government has spent million of rupees to rehabilitate former LTTE combatants and educated them in different vocational fields paving the way to re-integrate them into the society.
"

http://www.nation.lk/edition/index.php/latest-top-stories/item/803-ltte-plans-second-armed-struggle



This is why the West so desperately made noise about IDPs and these barbaric criminals in custody, then demanded their release. They were desperate to have them free and about because they wanted badly their "new generation of Tigers" (Jeremy Page -Times of London) and war to continue in Sri Lanka.

Absolutely pointless “rehabilitating them” and all this crap. They are an ungrateful and VIOLENT people.

Sam Perera said...

Unfortunately, the one of the top scum of Sri Lanka, Rauf Hakeem, signed a pact with the devil Prabakaran and never raised a word about Muslims afterwards.

Moshe Dyan said...

a quoted article.

obviously "the North-East - the area of historical habitation of the Tamil speaking peoples - Tamils and Muslims." is bullshitt.

Moshe Dyan said...

following the mossad training in 1984, muslim civilians were seperated from the grip of tamil terrorists.

in 1985 riots broke out between the two groups when tamil terrorists NEEDLESSLY attacked muslim villages.

these old newspaper clips are very interesting. although they contain the tamil elamist point of view, they shed some light on what our enemies were thinking.

http://tamilarangam.net/document/tamilinfomation/tamilinfomation_05_85.pdf

Moshe Dyan said...

tamil militancy started in 1961.



"Some of 20 men associated with the Federal Party thought Gandhism had no place in sucha scenario. They decided after the prolonged deliberations to form an underground group to fight for a separate state. Most of them were civil servants and had been influenced by Leon Uris Exodus. At a meeting in Colombo , they
cheristened their group Pulip Padai ( Army of Tigers).
On August 12, 1961, the Pulip Padai members converged at the historic Koneswaran Temple in the eastern port town of Trincomalee and, standing in its holy precincts facing the sea took a solemn oath to fight for a
Tamil homeland."

read more.

beginning of tamil terrorism.

Moshe Dyan said...

In January 1975, a group of Sri Lankan Tamils residing in London formed the Eelam Revolutionary Organisers, which took the acronym EROS. Although it failed to take roots in Sri Lankan Tamil areas for a long time, it played a key role in shaping the growth of militancy.

EROS was formed in 1975 by Eliyathamby Ratnasabapathy and Shankar Rajee, both of whom were living in Great Britain at the time. Initially a think-tank concerned with Tamil issues, its leadership established ties with the Palestinian Liberation Organization and formed militant training camps in Sri Lanka. These camps eventually militarized and trained most of the rebels who formed other Tamil movements in the 1980s. Although the most radically nationalist of all the Tamil groups, EROS was the least militarily active of all such groups. However, the group was responsible for a string of bombings in Sri Lanka in the mid-1980s as well as for the kidnapping of British journalist Penelope Willis.


EROS gradually lost its influence as Tamil independence movements emerged as offshoots of EROS. These groups, the largest of which is the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE), took the majority of EROS members with them.

Moshe Dyan said...

history is repeating in the most awkward way!!!

at least now we should learn and pro-actively destroy ANY emerging tamil group.

Konnapu Bandara said...

Happy new year to all patriots!

From the news here its obvious our work of protecting blessed Lanka from these cursed barbarians will continue for a long time.

But lets tell the bastards 'bring it on'!

We have thrashed them soundly thoroughly right throughout our history. Chaps, what's one more time?

Cheers!

Sam Perera said...

KB,

Nipping the bud should be our MO. Good MI and damn good Mahason Brigade are essential in this effort.

Konnapu Bandara said...

Sam, old boy, certainly nip in the bud, then crush the bud and pull the weed out along with the roots. Then for a good measure we must spray some weedkiller too. These bastards are worse than weeds.

Cheers!

Pol Sambol said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Pol Sambol said...

So the surrender monkeys are glorifying their pet Tamils and honouring their memories:

See the Island editorial:

http://www.island.lk/index.php?page_cat=news-section&page=news-section&code_title=55

Anyway to tell Turkey this? Considering France has no problem denying religious freedom or freedom of speech i’m am sure we can get an already riled up Turkey to assist us unintentionally. SL doesn’t have to do anything.

This article that is the main topic of this blog post will also be useful.

Dayan J being our Ambassador to France can always contact his Turkish counterpart –hopefully he will spare the time from spreading his Marxist crap.

Moshe Dyan said...

the island editorial pol mentioned.

"Immortalising dead monsters
January 2, 2012, 7:36 pm

Dejected LTTE activists now have something other than their wounds to lick––a controversial stamp France is reported to have issued with Prabhakaran's picture on it. Since the Tiger sympathisers no longer have Prabhakaran's blood-stained boots to run their servile tongues around, they could disport themselves in licking that stamp. Three more stamps depicting LTTE symbols like its flag, the so-called Eelam map and the 'national' flower of Eelam have reportedly been printed in France.

The ruling party politicians of this country are likely to tuck up their sarongs and hurl abuse at their French counterparts over the stamp controversy. Such reaction is uncalled for, we reckon. Let our heroes be urged to hold their horses. For, we do not know what the French government is really planning to do. Maybe France is working on a series of stamps on dead monsters. Last year Royal Mail (RM) of Britain released several stamps featuring wizards, witches and enchanters. In 2008, RM issued a stamp celebrating the first Dracula film that had been produced decades back. So, the possibility of France planning a monster series cannot be ruled out.

We humbly suggest that the French government consider issuing an extra large stamp featuring 'Emperor' Bokassa (of Central Africa) with his pet crocodiles feasting on poor schoolchildren he got killed for not wearing shoes or with his guests being treated to prisoners' flesh at a banquet. We would also like to see a colourful stamp with a picture of Bokassa in the company of former French President D'Estaing, who received blood diamonds as gifts from that megalomaniac. Now that France has printed in its stamps LTTE symbols, there is no reason why it should leave out those of Ivan the Terrible––dogs' heads and brooms carried by his savage death squads, oprichniki. We hope France's monster stamp series will also feature a grinning Idi Amin retrieving a frozen skull of one of his enemies from a refrigerator or Pol Pot of the Socialist Utopia fame perched on a mountain of corpses. France could also immortalise, in its stamps, Osama bin Laden with the World Trade Center in flames in the background or Hitler against backdrop of the Auschwitz concentration camp and heaps of skulls and bones."

Moshe Dyan said...

"We can understand how the Sarkozy government feels about Prabhakaran's death. It failed to rescue him and his partners in crime in 2008. French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner came running here with his British counterpart David Miliband on an abortive rescue mission. Having failed to save the top Tigers, France must be feeling guilty and trying to console its Tiger friends by honouring Prabhakaran posthumously. But, we think, the French government should go the whole hog to perpetuate the memory of Prabhakaran and his terrorist outfit. There is a better way of accomplishing that task. The Sarkozy administration should adopt the practice of hoisting the LTTE flag at the same height as the tricolour at State functions!

The message France has sent to people across the globe by printing the Prabhakaran stamp is loud and clear: If you want to have the honour of being featured in French stamps, you must massacre as many innocent people as possible; get involved in extortion, gun running, money laundering and drug trafficking; abduct children and turn them into combatants; produce human bombs or 'children of fire' by brainwashing men, women and children; blast civilian targets such as buses and trains packed with commuters, chop pregnant mothers to death; assassinate political leaders; commit fratricidal violence and plunge your countries into blood baths from time to time in the name of liberation.

As for the Prabhakaran stamp, the French postal authorities must be receiving a surfeit of complaints from the victims of LTTE terrorism that it does not stick. They should not waste their precious time and energy on conducting tests on the quality of the glue on the reverse of it. We are in a position to tell them why it does not stick. People abhorring terror are spitting on the wrong side of that stamp!"

Moshe Dyan said...

this is unnecessary. it was expected anyway.

but what matters to us is highlighted.

Turkey’s spy sat to zoom in on Israeli secrets

"Israel’s politicians and military have a new headache to worry about. High resolution photos of the country’s territory, which are currently unavailable to the public, may soon turn up in the hands of any of its many enemies.
Until now, only the Americans had the technology capable of taking satellite images greater than two meters per pixel resolution, and American law stopped US companies from distributing the pictures. Washington shares Israel’s security concerns and abides by the wishes of its key Middle East ally.

This means even with Google Earth one can zoom into Israel only so far, explains Gerald Steinberg, professor of political science at Bar-Ilan University. “If you try to look at specific parts of Israel, many of them will come out blurrier than any other place in the world that I have checked,” he told RT.

But that is about to change. Turkey is putting the finishing touches to a military satellite it plans to launch within the next two years. The Gokturk satellite will be capable of taking the very pictures Tel Aviv does not want distributed, and there are no American-style legal qualms in Turkey about upsetting its photo-sensitive neighbor.
“Turkey could sell directly or indirectly some of these imageries to enemies of Israel,” explains Mohammed Najib, defense analyst at Jane’s Defense Weekly.
Such a prospect is especially unnerving for Israelis now, because tensions between Tel Aviv and Ankara are at an all-time low. An aid flotilla attempt on Gaza two years ago that left nine Turks dead, and Ankara’s expulsion of the Israeli ambassador, has Tel Aviv nervously weighing its options.
The irony is that not so long ago the Gokturk satellite would have spelt good news for Israel. The two countries co-operated extensively, especially sharing military intelligence. But whereas once turkey was Israel’s closest ally in the Muslim world, today Ankara is increasingly asserting itself as a powerful player in its own right.
“Turkey is trying to say that Israel will not be granted special service or relations that it used to have. They are saying that the eastern Mediterranean is not the playing ground of Israel, there are different countries, everyone should abide by the same laws,” says Dr Nimrod Goren, Middle East politics expert, who focuses on Turkish-Israeli relations.
One satellite is barely enough to put Israel’s picture-shy world in a spin. But this is not a country that wants its neighbors knowing its business, especially with an Arab world in flux, and Israel fast losing former friends."

http://rt.com/news/turkey-satellite-israel-secrets-105/

Moshe Dyan said...

"If you try to look at specific parts of Israel, many of them will come out blurrier than any other place in the world."

very very interesting!!

1. now go to googleearth.
2. go to northern SL
3. go to view > historical images
4. selected a pre may 2009 image
5. you cannot zoom into some areas of vanni!!

they are in dark green.

within this "hidden" area are the following.

chalai
theravilkulam
adampankulam
puthukuduiruppu
oddusudan
nudunkeni
periyamadu


aha!

9-28-41-26 n
80-32-44-64 e

to

9-26-25-67 n
80-32-44-64 e

to

9-23-45-14 n
80-37-09-78 e

to

9-05-35-83 n
80-35-36-94 e

to

9-02-41-30 n
80-38-08-12 e

look at this box towards the east of the above coordinates.

did the US govt instruct NASA/google NOT to map these HIGHLY important strategic areas under LTTE control to save LTTE MFs and their assets????

but on the other hand, there are MANY such low resolution areas in SL outside LTTE controlled areas. many jungle areas are low resolution due to their less value to customers.

also SOME LTTE runways (that may not have been used) were not hidden.

so we cannot come to a definite conclusion.

i'm inclined to think that there was NO such attempt.

Konnapu Bandara said...

Chaps, looks like this French stamp issue was another dirty trick by LTTE weasels to try get their flaccid dicks up.

Following reports published in different newspapers regarding the issue in France of stamps bearing pictures and symbols of the LTTE, the Embassy of France in Sri Lanka wishes to inform the media and the Sri Lankan public that no such stamp is part of the official philatelist programme of France, neither on sale in the French post offices.

The French Postal services, 'La Poste' offers an online service through which customers can order limited quantities of personalized stamps under their responsibility and under specific conditions. It appears that individuals have used this service to order the above mentioned stamps.

'La Poste' recognized that they failed to detect that the conditions had not been met and that some of these stamps have been printed by mistake.

Having been informed by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs that the LTTE is a movement which has been listed since 2006 as a terrorist organization by the European Union, 'La Poste' assures that no such stamp will be printed further.


Stamps with tiger terrorist markings are not official, says French Embassy

Cheers!

Pol Sambol said...

Well here's a surprise:

From Island:

"Alleged War Crimes: CPA pushes for int’l probe
"


Pets do what their masters demand of them

Sam Perera said...

Very interesting.

http://www.divaina.com/2012/01/05/news10.html

http://www.dinamina.lk/2012/01/05/_art.asp?fn=u1201051

All the donkeys in Maligawaththa shall learn not to mess with our Mahason boys.

Pol Sambol said...

This Ajith Perera made disgusting and despicable comments against the Army. He openly cheered for the LTTE and called for not only war crimes against our soldiers but Western countries to intervene and fight our own Army to help the LTTE.

Only fitting he gets promoted up the UNP ranks.

http://www.adaderana.lk/news.php?nid=16399

Moshe Dyan said...

bloody hell.

that bandaragama monkey (ajith perera monkey) has been appointed the chief opposition whip!

what a shim!!

ranil's revenge!

Sam Perera said...

that bandaragama monkey (ajith perera monkey) has been appointed the chief opposition whip!

That is very good for the president and the government. Perhaps, Basil talked Ranil in to doing this. UNP has become a party of scum of Sri Lanka and maggots of Eelam.

Pol Sambol said...

Norwegian scum duly assisting in the programme of trying to evangelise Sri Lanka and destroy Buddhism under the guise of “human rights”. What a joke. Luckily this was thwarted.

"Protests and boycotts stop ‘religious’ seminar

By Janaka Perera

The two-day (January 4-5) seminar on “Missionary Activities and Human Rights: Recommended Ground-rules for Missionary Activities” which the ‘Oslo Coalition on Freedom of Religion or Belief’ organized in Kandy came a cropper on the second day when Buddhist protestors both monks and lay persons prevented participants from entering the premises of the Sri Lanka International Buddhist Academy at Pallekele, Kundasale, the venue of the event. The SIBA is a branch of the Dalada Maligawa, (Temple of the Sacred Tooth) Kandy.

The protests were in the form of a peaceful Satyagraha although the police were present to prevent any breach of the peace. Among those who had to turn back was the Bishop of Kandy who came in his car to attend the seminar. Altogether 25 scholars and religious leaders from both Buddhist and Christian communities had been invited.

The protestors demanded to know what right had the Norwegians who never condemned the murderous LTTE attack in January 1998 on the Dalada Maligawa - which is of utmost symbolic value to Buddhists and Sri Lanka in general – to sponsor a religion-related seminar at SIBA. The Chandrika Bandaranaike Government invited Norway to be ‘peace facilitator’ in Sri Lanka in 1997 – the year before the attack.
"


See more here:

http://www.asiantribune.com/news/2012/01/05/protests-and-boycotts-stop-%E2%80%98religious%E2%80%99-seminar