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Two more Tamil charities under scrutiny in Britain
From Neville de Silva in London
Two more Tamil organisations registered as charities in Britain are under scrutiny by the UK Charity Commissioner. The investigation comes hard on the heels of the de-listing of the Tamil Rehabilitation Organisation (TRO) by the Charity Commissioner in August last year following a formal inquiry into allegations that funds raised by TRO UK were being used in Sri Lanka by the LTTE,banned here for nearly five years as a foreign terrorist organisation.
The two organisations currently under examination are “The White Pigeon” and the “Sivayogam Trust.”

It is understood that following complaints against the two organisations the Charity Commissioner has referred the matter to a Case Officer for examination and for collation of evidence. The White Pigeon, which has been in existence for the last few years, was not a registered charity until it sought and was granted registration in early January 2005.

Yet immediately after the tsunami of December 26, 2004, the White Pigeon launched a fund-raising campaign with handbills and pamphlets distributed to many Tamil-owned businesses.

Only registered charities are allowed to solicit public donations, sources said.
The White Pigeon was quoted in The Guardian newspaper of January 1, 2005 as saying that it had raised £500,000 from the Tamil community in Britain.
One of the questions being looked at is whether the White Pigeon had the legal authority to appeal for and collect donations from the public and how the funds were utilised and by whom.

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