Financial Times

Lankan business urged to follow South African peace model
By Feizal Samath
A business group provided a corporate jet to carry a vital piece of paper that signalled the start of an agreement that ended apartheid in South Africa and paved theway for a peace process that has amazed the rest of the world. This anecdote was provided as one of the examples of how South Africa's private sector helped charter the peace process during an interactive session in Colombo last week.

During a half-day session bringing together some key players from the South African business community and Sri Lanka's captains of industry, some good lessons on private sector involvement in the peace process were shared and assimilated.

Apart from the euphoria there was also a measure of scepticism in the context of the South African experience and Sri Lanka's case being based on two different issues. In South Africa, it was the majority ranged against white minority rule while in Sri Lanka it was that in reverse. Also South Africans didn't have a deadly guerrilla group to contend with.

Mahendra Amarasuriya, former chairman of J-Biz and chairman of the Commercial Bank, who raised these points, noted that one of the biggest problems to overcome here is that big businesses have their own agendas and funding political parties is a common but unhealthy occurrence.

"While acknowledging the Sri Lanka First initiative in the peace process, I must say that J-Biz tried to bring the two leaders (President Chandrika Kumaratunga and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremasinghe) together in the late 2003-early 2004 period but failed. We got little support from the business community. The three main conglomerates - I don't want to mention the names - did not take any part in this process. The tourism industry stayed away saying they were doing fine," he said adding that though having reservations on the business community's role in the peace process, he hoped for its success.

"I get the feeling that we didn't have this support as the situation here is not as desperate as the situation that existed in South Africa." Ceylon Chamber of Commerce chairman Deva Rodrigo said the issues confronting the nation and the peace process were challenging with deep divisions in the mindset of the south in the peace process and its structures.

There was lack of understanding of the LTTE's Interim Self-Governing Authority (ISGA) by many who have not even studied it, he said, noting that neither the present government nor the former UNP administration has responded to the proposals.

"I regard the ISGA as a clear document that can be used as a basis for future discussions," Rodrigo said in a view shared by Abbas Esufally from the Hemas Group who is also a Sri Lanka First executive committee member. Esufally's contention was that the ISGA was being demonetised without proper study, pointing out that negotiations should start immediately to discuss the ISGA and then alterations - if need - could be suggested at the table.

Andre Fourie, chief Executive of the South African National Business Initiative (NBI), made a salient point saying that in the tourism re-development process, civil society including the private sector ensured that smaller communities and black entrepreneurs should be the main beneficiaries, more than the international hotel chains and that exercise has been successful - a lesson indeed for Sri Lanka.

Tracing the South African crisis, Fourie said that mobilisation against apartheid reached fever pitch; turmoil rose and the problems worsened. The dominant black parties were not for compromise. It was the same with the white rulers who had military backing. One of the questions that repeatedly arose amongst the majority was - how do we give up a freedom struggle when we are close to freedom?

He said there was then an explosion of political movements. In this midst the business community also got involved with courageous businessmen having meetings with leaders of the black community. That led to historic initiatives like meetings between business and church groups.

Fourie said the private sector was one of the many groups that chartered a new South Africa. "We were not the only one responsible for the peace process. There were 1000's of peace initiatives, some succeeded; some failed."

Dr. Bike Minyuku, former chief executive officer of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) and now handling judicial reforms in the government, said some of the positives that emerged from the South Africa peace process was that the TRC was represented by 11 national groups with 11 different languages. "Anyone could come before the commission and speak his or her mind in the language of their choice. There were simultaneous translations in all the languages," he said adding that subsequently the South African parliament then began using 11 languages and simultaneous translations.

He said the majority community didn't hate white people or white children. "It was more about the Apartheid machinery. That was not good for peace." Dr Minyuku said the peace process was based on reconciliation with many of those who were victimised seeking comfort from the fact that the perpetrators of these crimes came and confessed before the TRC.

Some of the killers of that era are now working in communities they victimised helping to rebuild lives, families and the towns. Neela Marrikar, chairperson of Sri Lanka First, the business peace group that organised the South African business peace mission, said one of the important steps forward is to resume the peace process. "That should be a priority."

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