| Political Column | ||||||
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| Joint
mechanism further delayed
Three months, or a quarter of a year, has elapsed since the Boxing Day tsunami. If the human suffering that the catastrophe let loose was unprecedented, the human emotions continue unabated. Residents who lived along a coastline of over 700 kilometres from the north, east to the south are still homeless. The exceptions are only a handful. The tents and temporary shelters they live in now, it is feared, may not withstand the ravages of impending monsoons. After decades of peaceful co-existence, hopes of celebrating a happy National New Year in the coming weeks are dim. Their expectations have been shattered not only by the contradictory statements of political leaders. Adding to it were the sleazy Non-Governmental Organisations, some of which, like vultures, were feeding on the human misfortunes and misery. Colombo's jewellers are full of stories of NGO memsahibs buying rubies, sapphires and what-not in the last three months. Business has never been so good. Who cares if the tourists are not here - these are the ones with the dough. Government politicians in the meantime claimed that "not five cents" had been received by the Government despite the pledges made by foreign donors. The country could have done without that 'two cents'. Such statements were only to be contradicted by the Central Bank. NGOs distributed cat and dog food to starving victims. Not one Government agency, or for that matter, the Police have thought it fit to bring to book those responsible. There have not even been a murmur from those Government politicians falling over one another to face the cameras doing relief work. It is in this backdrop that three months have ticked away from a deadly calamity. That is bad enough. But for those affected, fears rose again last week. In the south, there were Poojas held in many a vihara. This was to prevent a fearful sea level rise after a warning from the Meteorological Department. Though not of tsunami proportions, there were fears that water would gush into where temporary shelters were located inland. That is beyond the disputed 100-metre buffer zone. In the south, many took a step away from the sea. In marked contrast, more than 5000 men, women and children waded knee deep into the sea at Trincomalee's South Bay last Friday. A historic "water cutting" ceremony of the Badrakali Amman Temple coincided with fears of a sea level rise. They performed Hindu religious rites and appealed to Gods for safety. On the same day, the Government Agent for Mullaitivu, Imelda Sukumar, made a somewhat disheartening revelation. She declared that the tsunami disaster in the Mullativu coastal area had left at least 800 women as widows. That was during a few hours on one single day. The near two decades of separatist war had taken more than 3,300. It was reportedly to ameliorate the conditions of those suffering in the north and the east that the Norwegian peace facilitators moved in. They suspended, at least temporarily, their role to get the Government and the Tiger guerrillas to return to the negotiating table. Instead, they were engaged in shuttle diplomacy to get the two sides to agree on a Joint Mechanism to share aid for tsunami recovery -- a move over which the Janatha Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) threatened to quit the Government. The Norwegians felt that the ISGA proposals of the LTTE -- an authority for self-rule -- was sticking in the throat of the UPFA Administration what with the JVP crying blue murder if it was granted. An interim mechanism as they called it, for tsunami relief they realised might now be worth exploring because it had the world's sympathy attached to it because of the tsunami tragedy. The Norwegians realised that this interim mechanism would be more sellable even to the JVP, on the basis that it was, vis-à-vis, the LTTE, a "transitional period from conflict to democracy". In the past fortnight or so, the JVP has taken a step backwards. The JVP leader, Somawansa Amarasinghe, once declared that the JVP would not only leave the UPFA Government if they yielded to a joint mechanism with the LTTE, but they would also take note of Government officials who would engage themselves in channelling aid to the guerrillas. They would be punished, he warned. But this week, the same Somawansa Amerasinghe was in a different mood. He said the JVP would not leave the Government and allow the UNP to come back to power. His silence on the joint mechanism issue was deafening. Old school Marxist-Leninists were nostalgic of the path to socialism taught by those Russian revolutionaries with their 'one step back, two steps forward' theories on the endless Road to Socialism. What followed, however, may be good news to the JVP. Last Tuesday, not known to most Sri Lankans, the Norwegian peace facilitators put together a draft document. This was after a series of consultations they had with the Government and the LTTE guerrillas, who are having a time of their lives, touring the European capitals and being entertained in the corridors of powers. This seemed a final document on which the two sides (the Government of Sri Lank and and the LTTE), were to place their respective signature. In a diplomatic move, the document was handed over on the same day to both the Government and the LTTE. After all, as far as the Norwegians go, the Government of Sri Lanka and the LTTE are 'equal-partners'. In Colombo, it was taken charge by former diplomat and head of the Strategic Studies Centre John Gunaratne, the Deputy Secretary General of the Peace Secretariat. Secretary General Jayantha Dhanapala, who had done most of the negotiations from the Government side to formulate this joint mechanism with the LTTE, was away in Geneva. He returned to Colombo on Thursday night. In Switzerland, the Norwegian Embassy there handed over to LTTE Political Wing leader, S.P. Thamilselvan, a copy of the same document. Thamilselvan went into discussion with other members of the LTTE delegation touring Europe. They included S. Prabagaran (Pulithevan), head of the LTTE Peace Secretariat, and K. Nadesan, "Police Chief" of the LTTE. According to LTTE sources, the delegation was unhappy. They held the view that some of the provisions in the final draft, which they had agreed to, had been subsequently changed. They felt it was at the behest of the Sri Lanka Government. Hence, there was displeasure all round. But the delegation decided it was not opportune to reject it whilst they continued their European tour. They made clear an official response would follow no sooner they return to their 'homeland' in the Wanni and talk to leader Velupillai Prabhakaran. But in the interim, they found it embarrassing to keep quiet. There were fears that the Government may leak the document to the State media that the LTTE had agreed to the final draft and boast that no major concessions had been granted to the LTTE. Therefore, unofficially the Tamil media in Colombo and Jaffna were told that the LTTE delegation was displeased with the final draft of the Norwegian. And that is now the position. Whether Norwegian facilitators will be able to overcome the issues raised before the New Year holiday season is not clear. However, it is certain the two sides will not be able to reach accord this week or next week, contrary to earlier expectations. And now, Foreign Minister Lakshman Kadirgamar has thrown new light on the joint mechanism issue by making clear it would not confer any legitimate status on the LTTE. In other words, the document binding the setting up of a joint mechanism would have to be so cautiously drafted as to avoid any controversy on issues that may be construed as granting LTTE recognition. It is known that the joint mechanism is three tiered -- a national body managed by a high level committee, a regional committee encompassing the North-East and district level committees to cover the tsunami affected districts of the two provinces. This imbroglio for the Government now comes at a time when it is preoccupied with a more important issue -- the political future of President Chandrika Kumaratunga. There still remains an unresolved issue as to when her second term of office constitutionally ends. There is compelling argument to say that it in fact ends this year (2005). She will not hear of it. Though she remains silent on the issue, in her own mind she probably believes her term ends in 2006. Any moves to extend her term to 2006 means she could run the risk of being accused of being any old tin-pot dictator, which goes against all what she learned in the Latin quarter of Paris when she was a student, aligning herself then in the left-wing politics of the famous sixties against dictatorial rule in France and elsewhere in the world. Her mother's 1970-77 term was tagged "legal but illegitimate" with telling effect when, together her leftist allies she, elected in 1970 for a five-year term, extended her term by two years by bringing in a new constitution in 1972 running for another five years from that date, stealing two extra years in the process. When the 1977 elections did come, Ms. Bandaranaike's Freedom Party (SLFP) was reduced to less than double-figures, and the leftists all together totalled a grand zero seats. President Kumaratunga's legal and constitutional advisers are not living in the past. Active consideration is now being given on the conduct of a non-binding referendum, possibly by June this year. Such a referendum is to seek public's view on three main issues -- the abolition of the executive presidency, the establishment of a federal structure of administration, and effecting electoral reforms. |
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