Political Column

Political Column

Govt. makes its peace plans clear

By Our Political Editor
Though a generally sluggish week with regard to political developments, this was also the week of the new Alliance government's sudden peace surge.

Some UNFers read the news and felt that they were back in power. But no. The visit of Erik Solheim and Vidar Helgesen, part of the Norwegian peace facilitating team to the Wanni and Anton Balasingham's flight from London to Sri Lanka all had to do with peace moves initiated by the Alliance.

There appeared to be no spanners in the works, at least as of now. Erik Solheim, meeting a delegation of Wanni MPs, made some warning noises about "Norway having to pull out of the facilitation process'' if certain parties continue to criticise Norwegian mediation.

But these certain parties themselves were coming round to the idea that the Norwegians are tolerable. Said Wimal Weerawansa of the JVP that "an animal caught in a trap has to be gently let out without endangering his life.'' If Norway is the trap, his aside has an unkind connotation, but the fact is that the JVP was not being vehement about Norwegian participation in the peace initiative.

Peace talks therefore appeared to become more of a certainty, even though the LTTE was still not making any commitments themselves. The President's office, however, stated that the LTTE had conveyed to the Norwegians that they are willing to start talks "unconditionally' and at a time convenient to the government.

The Sri Lankan government reciprocated by saying that it was willing to resume negotiations unconditionally as well. If there was some spirit of forgive and forget between the President's political forces and the LTTE, maybe it was catching. Wanni MP Sivananthan Kishore for instance said that a lot of problems can be solved by negotiations. This was after he met Prisons Commissioner Gunaratne Kuruppu when Magazine Prison Tamil detainees faxed him a communication saying there were "plans to murder them.'' Kishore says there was a positive response from Kuruppu about transferring the prisoners, indicating that a lot of things can be accomplished ''by talking things over.''

The LTTE was appearing confident - - or at least it was putting up a front that exuded confidence. LTTE political wing leader S.P. Thamilselvan's pitch to the Norwegian facilitators who visited the Wannni was essentially that a mandate had been received by the LTTE at the last election. This assertion may have been blunted a little maybe by those who glanced at the Report of the European Union election monitors who spelled out widespread malpractice at the poll in the North and the East where in some places one person cast 25 ballots (among other misdeeds listed.)

The LTTE never to be bothered by such things projected itself as the peace loving and flexible party. A press conference to be held after Jan Peterson, the Norwegian Foreign Minister arrives, will be the occasion for the LTTE to unveil all their peace plans. Until such time the LTTE will ''absolutely not make any statements to the press'' vowed its Media coordinator Daya Master in the Wanni. His statement indicated the LTTE wants to make its own stand a cohesive one, before making any formal commitments. To this end Prabhakaran, Thamilselvan and Anton Balsingham were holding extensive talks in an undisclosed location in the Wanni after Balasingham's arrival there by Air Force helicopter on Friday morning.

Sources from government indicated that the LTTE's positive stand is not the least surprising because all apprehensions voiced about the LTTE was only because people were ''becoming needlessly speculative.''

At least all that could be said about the new developments was that the Alliance and the LTTE both have reason to play to the international community among other things. The Alliance government, after its misadventures in parliament regarding the election of Speaker etc., needs to establish legitimacy, and what better way to do it than being seen internationally as an ardent pusher of the peace process? Provincial Council elections islandwide are also to be held very soon, and the Alliance does not want to appear as being on the back foot when the results of these elections are released. Of course the weak and broken UNP is helping a great deal in all of this. The UNP could not even organise a decent enough May Day rally - - and at the moment its only consolation is in crowing about the fact that the "government has no alternative but to continue the peace process'' initiated by them.

The President continues to consolidate her position - - or at least she tries. She met a CWC delegation that included leader Arumugam Thondaman, Mutthusivalingam and Faiz Musthapha, all MPs.

The MPs were promised a thorough investigation into the Kandapola incidents -- but in the meantime the President made her expected request for the CWC to join the Alliance government. Mr. Thondaman's expected reply was that the planned constitutional changes were making it difficult for the CWC to contemplate such a move. But, let us say the file is still not closed on this matter, even though Mr. Thondaman still continues to report to Ranil Wickremeisnghe, the UNP leader.

It is the Jathika Hela Urumaya that is in the meanwhile emerging as the lead player in the forces that are against the Norwegian facilitated peace process. Though Foreign Minister Lakshaman Kadirgarmar has said. "The Norwegians will be on a short leash and will be strictly playing a role that's defined,'' the JHU will unleash its attack dogs at the JVP, particularly on the issue of Norway, and the ISGA proposals which are likely to form the cornerstone of talks.

The JHU MPs met last week and elected Ven Athureliye Rathana as their group leader - -a move that was immediately condemned by the two dissident monk MPs of the same party as ''illegal.''

But certainly the forces of the JHU do not seem to be strong enough a foil, at the moment if the government unleashes a peace initiative with the full backing of the international community. President Bush sent his greetings to PM Mahinda Rajapakse last week via the Ambassador here in Colombo, and all of that indicates that the peace game is on.

The JHU alone would not be able to upset this momentum, with the JVP playing along with the peace moves and the UNP as opposition not playing the anti peace role played by the PA when it was in the opposition and the UNP was in government. If all of this is any indication, the polarising of the electorate that was expected before the election has not materialised. The fact is that the President had virtually agreed to discuss the ISGA proposals -- something which she unequivocally conveyed to the Norwegians who met her while she vacationed in Nuwara Eliya. Things have come a full circle it seems, and except the rump groups, the others all round seem quite comfortable with all such developments…..

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