Cautious Tamils in London keep indoors

CHENNAI: Tamilians in London confined themselves to their houses to escape the riots for the past three days, though “the intention of the rioters was not to hurt human beings, but loot shops, as all of them were looting and torching only shops so far,” they said.Croydon, Clapham and Norbury that have a significant presence of Tamils were among the places that witnessed violence. Tamils living in and around these areas where riots were severe did not go to work, while those in other areas managed to go to work, but with extreme caution. “Though some went to office, they called their family members often on phone to confirm that they were safe,” said Harish, a software engineer living in East Ham. He is a native of Koradacheri, Thiruvarur.“My office is at Victoria Station. After work, I have to travel 50 minutes to reach East Ham. Along the way, I saw lots of police, ambulances and patrol vehicles. In my locality, the riots were not that severe. But, my friends living in Croydon have been calling their family members telling them to stay indoors,” said Harish.The main targets of the rioters were shops in the high streets of London.