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LTTE
verdict on dissent The cold-blooded murder now seems to have a twist to the tale, and it would seem clear that in-fighting among the rebel group's hierarchy was - unless all this is a carefully choreographed red herring - at the bottom of it. Reports indicate that the murder triggered the split that was to follow, but the dissension was brewing for some time. The final blow-up was when the US slammed the LTTE for the Batticaloa murder erasing the carefully crafted international image the LTTE was building since President Chandrika Kumaratunga somewhat jeopardised the Ceasefire Agreement with the developments of Nov. 4 and Feb. 7. No doubt, the premature call for a General Election was not in the scheme of things. Other than for the JVP and the hardliners of the SLFP, it was not in the scheme of things for anyone else. The path towards a negotiated settlement, with all its flaws, got dislocated, and the LTTE has seemingly gone back to the way they know best to electioneer. Firstly, they took a leaf from President J.R. Jayewardene and got all the candidates from the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) to resign even before they were elected. President Jayewardene was a little more democratic. He got them to sign their resignation letters only after they were elected. This was followed by a ban on Tamils contesting from any party outside the TNA.. That's democracy for a minority crying out about oppression by the majority. To an extent, one could understand, the LTTE launching a boycott campaign of Parliament at the Centre. Had they taken up the position that they were genuine about a negotiated settlement, but they find there is no 'southern' consensus - and even though with a packet of salt - one could take this argument. Not so what they are doing now. They are trying to have the cake and eat it. They want their 'puppets' and none else elected to Parliament at the Centre, and at the same time ensure that there is no dissent whatever to their rule in the North and East. Unfortunately from what we hear this week, the dissent has come from within. And that is one lesson learnt from history. Pressure-tight organisations, implode. The emerging split within the LTTE is not necessarily a good thing. Contemperory history shows that when terrorist groups like the IRA and Al Fatah commence peace talks, break a way groups (Real IRA/Hamas etc., ) emerge. President Kumaratunga will now be called upon to take sides, and early indications are that she will not back the renegade eastern commander of the LTTE, which tacitly is strengthening the group's now disputed leader. In a sense, this split is a spin-off from the Ceasefire Agreement and two years of No-War situation. The issue now is that just as much as the LTTE split would weaken the group, it does not splinter into uncontrollable proportions. The LTTE leader will use his ruthlessness to handle a revolt in his ranks, as he did before with the likes of 'Mahattaya' his one-time Jaffna commander. The two Governments in Colombo, however, would have to tread gingerly, if not astutely, on this veritable political land-mine in the Tiger den. |
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