Oslo acts to defuse tension

Peace facilitators, SLMM hold crisis talks

Norwegian peace facilitators and their Scandinavian truce monitors were engaged in desperate efforts yesterday to defuse the tension between the Government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam amidst fears that hostilities may resume.

Special Envoy Erik Solheim cut short a holiday in Switzerland and flew to London for a meeting with LTTE chief peace negotiator Anton Balasingham yesterday. He was to be joined there by Hans Brattskar, Norway's Ambassador to Sri Lanka who was on holiday in Oslo.

The main thrust of the Norwegian peace facilitators is to appeal again to the LTTE to agree to talks with the Government to explore ways and means of defusing tension and halting the rise in violence, particularly in the East. They are also to urge the LTTE to refrain from making statements that are provocative and would escalate the prevailing tense situation.

Last Wednesday LTTE Political Wing leader, S.P. Thamilselvan turned down an offer for such face-to-face talks with the Government either in Kilinochchi or in a Government held area like Omanthai, with the specific purpose of cooling off the prevailing tense situation. Mr. Thamilselvan has rejected the plea and insisted that the Government should first show goodwill by disarming paramilitary groups in keeping with clause 1.8 of the Ceasefire Agreement and honour the ceasefire.

Diplomatic sources in Colombo said the Norwegian facilitators would urge Mr. Balasingham during talks in London to persuade the Kilinochchi leadership to agree to the face-to-face meeting. They are also to convey fresh assurances made on behalf of the Government by Peace Secretariat Chief Jayantha Dhanapala to address LTTE concerns and ensure there is normality.

In Colombo, Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission Chief Hagrup Haukland was formulating fresh proposals to break the impasse over Tiger guerrilla cadres passing through Government-controlled areas when transiting from North to East and vice versa.

On Friday, Mr. Haukland held talks with Defence Secretary Asoka Jayawardena and Commanders of the armed forces. "We have been able to narrow down the gap between the previous LTTE demand and the Government response which was not accepted, Mr. Haukland told The Sunday Times. He said SLMM proposals discussed with the LTTE earlier this week were taken up with government security chiefs and Peace Secretariat deputy John Gunaratne.
Mr. Haukland said the government was ready to provide security, but declined to say whether security forces would travel in LTTE vehicles.

He said the SLMM had sought another meeting with the defence secretary and service commanders tomorrow, and was awaiting confirmation. He said the latest SLMM proposals were reasonable and he believed they could be implemented if government approval was given.

Meanwhile a Tamil National Alliance delegation is to meet British High Commission officials tomorrow as part of the campaign to brief the international community on the danger facing the ceasefire agreement and the peace process.

TNA delegations earlier briefed diplomats from Japan, Switzerland and Germany in a series of meetings arranged after discussions between the TNA MPs and LTTE leadership in Kilinochchi last Sunday.

LTTE political wing leader S. P. Thamilselvan reportedly told the TNA delegation to tell the international community to put pressure on the government for the full implementation of the ceasefire agreement and the P-TOMS deal.

(http://www.sundaytimes.lk/050724/news/1.html)

Fishermen released after protests

Three Point Pedro fishermen who were arrested by the Navy last Friday for venturing into LTTE-controlled Vadamaradchchi east division were released after fellow fishermen protested to the Point Pedro Police, TamilNet reported.

Fellow fishermen in their protest to the police said that the three persons went for fishing but later their boat drifted towards the sea area controlled by the LTTE along Vadamaradchchi east. Navy personal arrested them when they were returning to government-controlled seashore.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/26/news/brief.asp)

Police under pressure to go soft on Mervyn’s son by Kurulu Kariyakarawana

Police Narcotics Bureau officers who were involved in a dispute with Deputy Minister Mervyn Silva’s son at a five star hotel yesterday expressed shock over a statement made by Police Chief Chandra Fernando.

At a news conference yesterday the Inspector General of Police in response to a question saidf there was no evidence that Malaka Silva and the others had attacked PNB officers who were on duty but Mr. Silva and others had interfered with the officers who were returning after finishing their duty.

A PNB officer condemning the IGPs statement said the narcotics team had been on a mission and on duty when the incident occurred.

He said the narcotics officials had gone to the hotel with a search warrant and they were distressed that no proper action was taken against Malaka Silva and two others who were released on police bail without even being produced in court. It is reported that the team which conducted the raid and the Fort police who were conducting inquires on the PNB complaint came under pressure from superior officers to act soft on the case.

Responding to this When Colombo Division DIG Pujith Jayasundera said on the basis of the statements made he believed there was insufficient evidence to produce the suspects in courts and therefore they were released on police bail in consultation with the IGP .

However the IGP said the investigations were proceeding and action would be taken if necessary. Yesterday’s developments came a day after Deputy Minister Mervyn Silva hammered out at journalists, accusing various media groups of telling lies and warning he knew what to do about them.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/27/front/1.asp)

Vajira in command of Colombo

Major General Vajira Wijegunawardane has been appointed as the head of the Overall Command of Colombo Security (OCCS) with immediate effect. Current OCCS Brigadier P.Chandrawansha has been transferred as the Commandant of the Staff College.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/27/front/6.asp)

EU, US, Norway and Japan: Co-chairs of what?

The European Union, the United States, Norway and Japan were declared as the Co-chairs of the Tokyo Donor Conference in the run-up to the donor parley held on 9-10 June, 2003 in Tokyo.

Even a year or so into the conference they were still continued to be referred to as the co-chairs of the Tokyo Conference by the government, the LTTE and the civil society, and the co-chairs themselves.

Later, the Tokyo part was dropped.

From the latter part of last year and till last month, they were called the co-chairs of the Sri Lanka donor group.

The last time they were referred to as ‘Co-chairs of the Donor Group’ by themselves was on June 13, in a communique from Washington.

The statement is still there, pasted on the Peace Secretariat website.

Last week “the co-Chairs” issued a strongly-worded statement urging both the government and the LTTE to demonstrate the seriousness of their commitment to the truce.

And the ‘co-chairs’ kicked off the statement by referring to themselves as “The Co-Chairs of Sri Lanka’s Peace process…”.

Lets us get our facts correct.

Can “the co-chairs” who were only “the co-chairs of the Sri Lanka Donor Group” as late as June 13, 2005 could self-appoint themselves as “Co-Chairs of Sri Lanka’s Peace Process” barely a month later, by July 19, 2005?

Or is it that they are of kaleidoscopic nature – changing their title according to the context – whenever there is a donor conference round the corner – Tokyo, Washington, Kandy – parade themselves as Co-Chairs of the Donor Group and otherwise, especially when they have to make some critical remarks on the progress of the peace process, call themselves “the Co-chairs of the Sri Lanka Peace Process”?

What makes the matter worse is the statement issued by the President’s office on Monday, July 25, giving details about the discussion President Chandrika Kumaratunga had with the co-chairs.

The title of the statement reads “Tokyo Donor Conference co-chairs call on President”.

Co-chairs are back to base – Tokyo?

Is it a case of the co-chairs wanting to arrogate powers ‘co-chairs of the Peace Process’ while the government has its reservations about offering the title to them?

After all, it was only last week that the co-chairs called themselves ‘co-chairs of the peace process”. And within a week they have been demoted as mere ‘Tokyo Donor Conference co-chairs’.

This indeed is a matter that has to be clarified. The explanation should come from the government since it is the Government of Sri Lanka that is supposed to tell who the co-chairs are in relation to Sri Lanka and not the other way round. It is Sri Lanka which has to decide what she wants the co-chairs to be of the peace process, Sri Lanka donor group or only the co-chairs of the Tokyo Donor Conference.

If the government says that the co-chairs are only the ones of the “Tokyo Donor Conference”, then the co-chairs need to correct their statement issued last week, where they have referred to themselves as “Co-chairs of the Sri Lanka peace process”.Then there is also the question as to why so much of leverage is given to the group in Sri Lanka’s peace process if they were only linked to the Tokyo Donor Conference.

On the other hand, if the government says that the group is the co-chairs of the peace process, then that poses the question as to why they were referred to as mere ‘co-chairs of the Tokyo donor conference’ as late as last Monday by the President’s office min its statement.

The co-chairs of the Tokyo Donor Conference (or of Sri Lanka’s Peace Process) in its communiqué issued last week, urged the Government of Sri Lanka, among others, to “guarantee the security of unarmed LTTE cadres in government-controlled areas”.

It goes without saying that the purpose of the statement was bona-fide – to remind the two parties that the ‘co-chairs’ were closely monitoring the events here and to put pressure on parties to the conflict to do something quickly to defuse the mounting tension.

However perhaps what the co-chairs have failed to realize and also the Government of Sri Lanka has failed to convince the co-chairs, is that providing and guaranteeing security to the ‘unarmed LTTE cadres in Government-controlled areas’ is an extremely difficult task.

And the most difficult part of this responsibility is to identify the so called ‘unarmed LTTE cadres’.

Perhaps the co-chairs (and even some in the government) are not aware of the fact that about 60% of the LTTE cadres does not enter government-controlled areas through the checkpoints manned by the government’s security forces and the police, where they are supposed to register themselves.

The bulk of the Tiger cadres enter the cleared areas through jungle treks, violating the ceasefire.

As per Clause 2.7 of the Truce Agreement, the Government declared 17 checkpoints through which the LTTE cadres are supposed to come into the cleared areas.

Of these, thirteen are in the Batticaloa district -- Mandur, Paddirupur, Kaludaveli Ferry Point, Anbalantivu Ferry Point, Mamunai Ferry Point, Vanvunateevu, Santhiveli Boat Point, Black Bridge, Sitandy Boat Point, Kiran Bridge, Kinniyadi Boat Point, Valaichchenai and Makerni.

There are two entry points in Trinco – Mahindapura and Mutur (later Kattaparichchan) and another two in the Wanni - Uyilankulam and Omanthai.

However, following strong protests by the LTTE a few months into the ceasefire on body checks, unless in a strongly suspicious case, the government forces and the police avoid carrying out checks even at checkpoints now. Only the listing of the cadres is done at the entry points.

The majority of several hundreds of cadres who have been apprehended by the security forces while in possession of arms and explosives in government-controlled areas during the ceasefire are those who have entered the areas through jungle treks, avoiding the checkpoints.

There is also another category.

They are the ones who come into the cleared areas legitimately, through the checkpoints, but on arrival arm themselves either for combat purposes or in self-defence.

Also, there are ones who take the risk of smuggling arms through the barriers as is proven by the number of arrests made at checkpoints for carrying weapons. How many dozens in possession of arms and ammunition must be passing through the check points without being detected, thanks to the fuss created by the LTTE?

So, while the co-chairs urge the government to guarantee the security of the ‘unarmed’ LTTE cadres, the security forces are grappling with the issue of identifying ‘unarmed’ rebels owing to all these reasons.

Two weeks ago, it was announced that Velupillai Prabhakaran had called all his cadres engaged in political work in government-controlled areas to return to their bases. The reason for the call, it was said, was the increased security threats.This means, following the LTTE leader’s decree there should have been a drastic drop in the number of Tiger cadres entering the cleared areas, since it is said that engaging in political activities is the main purpose of the rebels’ visits to cleared areas.

However, government forces maintain that there had absolutely been no drop in the number of cadres entering the government-controlled areas since then.If all political cadres are recalled to the Wanni or their respective bases in uncleared areas, then those who entered the cleared areas following the decree have to be LTTE combatants.

Where these combatants go and what they do once they are in government-controlled areas, is anybody’s guess.

According to the government communique issued on Monday, President Kumaratunga, during her discussion with the co-chairs “reiterated the government’s position, that it is the responsibility of the government to ensure the safety of its citizens”.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/27/opinion/1.asp)

US envoy hopeful ceasefire will hold

“In view of the situation of uncertainty that has developed regarding the Ceasefire Agreement the Sri Lanka Government and the LTTE should find a solution through negotiations,” American ambassador in Sri Lanka Jeffry Lunstead said on Monday (25), at the American Centre in Colombo.

“While the LTTE should stop killings immediately, the Government should provide security to LTTE cadres residing in government controlled areas.”

The American ambassador made this statement during the course of a media discussion on the projects to be implemented by the American government, parallel to the programme of rebuilding tsunami devastated areas.

The American ambassador said that American financial assistance will not be made available for P-TOMS, since, the rules and regulations governing American financial assistance does not make it possible for it to be granted to a project in which the LTTE is involved.

“Projects are implemented in all areas in Sri Lanka, devastated by the tsunami and those projects will be supervised directly by the American government”, he said.

Enquired as to whether P-TOMS will not face a setback, if financial assistance is not granted, he said that financial assistance is only one aspect of an agreement and that it would not lead to a breakdown of the agreement.

He added that P-TOMS was signed to fulfill the needs of the Sri Lankan Government and the LTTE and not as a result of pressures from the international community.

In reply to a query regarding a move to go for war again, the American ambassador said that according to his belief both parties have no intention of going for a war.

Inquired as to whether aid will not be granted in case of a breakdown in the peace process, he said that development projects cannot be continued if there is no peace in the country.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/27/news/2.asp)

President, not LTTE favoured Kilinochchi P-TOMS Secretariat:SLMC

The Sri Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) yesterday announced that the LTTE request to base the P-TOMS Regional Secretariat in Trincomalee was turned down by President Chandrika Kumaratunga and that it was the President who insisted that the Secretariat should be based in Kilinochchi.

This information had been provided by the Tamil National Alliance (TNA) to the SLMC.

The SLMC maintains that the Deputy Head of Mission of Norway Oddvir Lagereid had also confirmed this position.

The statement says that the proposal to include a Muslim member in the high level committee came from the LTTE and never by the government.

The government’s initial plan was to have only a Sinhalese and a Tamil on the committee. The SLMC observes that it is shocked by these revelations and that it holds the President and also the Muslim parliamentarians for this betrayal of the Muslim community.

The party also attributes the continuous refusal by the President to show the draft of the P-TOMS to the Muslim parliamentarians because of her plans to discriminate the Muslims.

The Supreme Court in its interim order issued recently recommended that the Secretariat of the Regional Committee of the P-TOMS should be shifted from Kilinochchi to a more central location.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/27/news/6.asp)

Journalists threatening the country’s security: CBK by Sunil Jayasiri

President Chandrika Kumaratunga yesterday accused the private media and particularly defence correspondents of exposing sensitive military information in a manner that harmed national security.Addressing armed services commanders the Police Chief and other senior officers at a conference held at the BMICH last evening to brief them on tsunami reconstruction and the need to implement the P-TOMS agreement, an angry President told the journalists from the private and state media to leave before she briefed the security commanders.

The President said she had asked the journalist to go because they might disclose more military secrets and she charged that 75% of the media were supporting the UNP.

She singled out a senior journalist in her attack.

The President said the country needed peace and as a first step there must ne rebuilding of the tsunami devastated areas. She warned she would take tough action against any extremist elements who were trying to block her peace efforts.

The President said extensive discussions were conducted before signing the P-TOMS agreement with the LTTE and she expected full co-operation from the armed services in implementing the agreement.

Chief of Defence Staff and Navy Commander Daya Sandagiri, Army Commander Shantha Kottegoda, Air Force Commander Donald Perera, IGP Chandra Fernando and other senior security forces personnel were present.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/27/front/2.asp)

Murder of Lt. Col. Muthaliph by SARATH Malalasekera

First suspect aided, abetted to kill Muthaliph: CID

THE Criminal Investigation Department (CID) probing former Chief of Army Intelligence Lt. Col. T.N. Muthaliph's murder told Colombo Additional Magistrate Gihan Pilapitiya yesterday that investigations into the murder had revealed that Indurugolla Vidanaarachchige Sanjeewa, described as a journalist, the first suspect in the killing, had aided and abetted to kill the Army Intelligence chief.

The CID filing a comprehensive report in connection with their investigations said that according to the two suspects arrested by Bandaragama Police earlier, had revealed that Sanjeewa had the knowledge about Muthaliph's killing.

Sanjeewa was produced in court yesterday by Prison authorities under tight security.

The CID said investigations were not completed and moved court to remand the suspects pending the completion of investigations.

The Magistrate remanded the suspects till July 28 and directed Kalutara Prisons authorities to produce the other suspects, now in Kalutara remand prison, before the Colombo Chief Magistrate's Court on the next date. Remanding Sanjeewa till July 28, the Magistrate directed the Prisons authorities to provide maximum security to him while being taken to the remand Prison and Court. Earlier, Bandaragama Police produced six suspects including three women, allegedly involved in the murder before the Horana Magistrate and Additional District Judge B.A.R. Somasinghe and remanded them. The suspects are Armugam Sendil Kumar alias Rajan of Kopay, Rajaratna Seetha Umma of Ratmalana, A.R. Karunaratne alias Anura Desappriya of Ratmalana, Mohamed Anzar alias Mohamed Rizvi of Maligawatte, Fathideva Saroja and Karunaratne Mudiyaselage Shamalee of Welikanda. CID told court they would file plaint against Sendil Kumar alias Rajan, Rajaratnam Saraswathie alias Umma and Athulgeralalage Karunaratne alias Anura. The CID also told court that vital information about the killing had been elicited from the suspects now in remand custody. Lt. Col. Muthaliph was killed on May 31 near the Kirulapone colour lights while he was on his way to attend to an official work. According to the investigations, the suspects in custody are also alleged to have planned to attack the Air Force armoury. The suspects were arrested by Bandaragama Police and handed them over to the CID to conduct further investigations.

(http://www.dailynews.lk/2005/07/15/sec10.htm)

Rise in recruitment in the East by Sumanasiri Liyanage

A Grandmother in Amparai district whose grandson was a returnee in April 2004 after the Karuna-Vanni conflict says:-

This child who was under severe pressure to rejoin the LTTE last year, is under threat again:

“When my grandson came home, we had to keep him in a room as we were so scared that he would be taken back by the LTTE. He was allowed to go out to the wash room only after dark. Our fear increased as some of the returnees were quickly re-recruited forcefully by the LTTE.

“My daughter never left the house in fear that he would be snatched away if she left him even for a moment. As the two factions increased their presence in the lane in which we live, we started moving from house to house every week. For a short time when recruitment reduced, he started going for daily labour with his father.

However, since mid-May the LTTE has started looking for him once again. Now he is again confined to his room and his mother stays with him all the time. My grandson tells his mother: ‘I will be killed by them soon I know they will not let me live much longer.’”

He is only 16 -years old. These are the kind of stories one hears when travelling from Valachchenai to Pothuvil. Since mid-May recruitment has started in earnest, causing intense fear among the people living in the east, who are already under enormous pressure due to the daily inter-group killings there.

The recruitment of children has increased to alarming numbers despite the repeated promises of the LTTE to stop this practice. This is ongoing in the Eastern province in spite of the increased presence of the international and local civil society organizations and the visits there by foreign dignitaries in the post-Tsunami period.

In the aftermath of the Human Rights Watch Report, there had been increased criticism of the LTTE’s continuous practice of forceful recruitment of children. Subsequently, Olara Otunnu, Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, in his report in February 2005 suggested that the Security Council should take strong action against militant organizations that practice child recruitment.

His list included Sri Lanka. His recommendations include “the imposition of travel restrictions on leaders and their exclusion from any governance structures and amnesty provisions, the imposition of arms embargos, a ban on military assistance, and restriction on the flow of financial resources to the parties concerned” (Executive Summary Draft 5th Report). Some countries have expressed support for such a UN resolution. Possibly as a result of HRW criticism of UNICEF, Sri Lanka’s inaction and setting up of transit centers, UNICEF came up with a strong statement against the LTTE for taking 40 children immediately after the Tsunami.

This international and local pressure had compelled the LTTE to reduce large-scale recruitment; nevertheless the LTTE adopted a transitional strategy of taking one child per village to reduce international attention on them. However, children who had lost their parents and relatives were also snatched. Some of these incidents are:

1. Three girls were taken from Mandana camp in Vinaya Puram in Amparai district on January 7, 2005 on the pretext of educating and providing for them. One of them had lost her parents and two sisters in the tsunami;

2. Subsequently another three girls were taken from the same camp aged 8, 10 and 12 years.

This lull came to an end by mid-May. Recruitment has drastically increased with the LTTE once again holding meetings at its offices demanding one child per family be given and attempting to re-recruit the remaining returnees from April 2004. Some of the incidents are:

1. Forcible recruitment of two children (ages of 15) from Kudinilam in Amparai district. They were taken between June 22- 25 near a Hindu kovil;

2. Recruitment of a 16 year old boy on June 23 from Vinayapuram;

3. 16 -year returnees near Navakadu in Batticaloa district have been demanded by the LTTE.

4. A 17-year-old boy who escaped from the LTTE in the same area is now being hunted down.

Similar incidents are occurring all over the Eastern Province in the LTTE-controlled areas. As a panic response, parents are once again resorting to marrying of their children, sending them out of the area and country incurring enormous debt and financial burdens.

Temple festival time is a time of accelerated recruitment for the LTTE. Every year, the LTTE uses the gathering of large crowds into kovils to subtly carry out its recruitment practices. Last year at the request of local communities UNICEF did monitor the festivals and thus manage to reduce the recruitment of children at festival sites.

However, this year their success rate has been low. For one the enormous crowds have made monitoring extremely difficult. The chaos, noise, numbers present at some of the festivals and the large number of temples in the east make monitoring extremely difficult. Hence we have heard reports of many children being taken at these sites. (see coalition to stop the recruitment of children statement for more information on this).

Furthermore, the fact that Unicef refuses to reach out to the large population to protect them has meant very little protection has been offered to these children and their families. UNICEF at present has offices only in main towns. This has proved extremely ineffective as most recruitment occur in small villages outside its purview. Although the LTTE has renewed its pledge not to continue child recruitment, it continues to break its promises. This poses the question how child recruitment can be stopped. We suggest:

1. The UN security council should impose its suggested restrictions immediately.

2. Countries should refuse visas to the LTTE leaders until they stop this practice.

3. Civil Society Organizations in other parts of the country should play a proactive role against child recruitment by the LTTE, breaking their usual silence.

4. LTTE’s participation in governance structures should be made conditional to stopping child recruitment.

5. UNICEF should take proactive role in opening up offices in villages to monitor the situation.

6. That organizations, especially international ones working in the North and East be constantly vigilant and active regarding this issue.

7. That human rights activists, peace lobbyist in the south actively speak out against this practice, breaking their usual silence regarding these violations

The writer is a Senior Lecturer, Department of Economics, University of Peradeniya

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/15/opinion/1.asp)

P-TOMS funding – another let down by Neville Ladduwahetty

According to a report in The Island (July 8, 2005) the United States “…will not contribute money towards the donor fund for Post-Tsunami Operational Management Structure (P-TOMS) because the LTTE – a banned terrorist organization in the US – will chair the group that administers the funds…”. The report adds that “U.S. funds will not be provided to the Treasury”. Instead, the US intends to fund projects administered by NGOs and INGOs.

However, when the US channels funds direct to non-state entities such as NGOs and INGOs there is in fact no assurance that funds would not reach the LTTE, because these non-state actors are known for their lack of transparency and accountability. NGOs and INGOS have the freedom to disburse funds to suit their agendas in total secrecy. These agencies thus could become handy vehicles for the US to extend its agenda. Under these circumstances, there is every possibility that a portion of the funds channeled by the US would fall into the hands of the LTTE.

According to media reports, the UK is also having second thoughts about channeling

funds to the donor trust fund. If the UK follows the US lead, two of the four donors (the other two being Japan and the EU) would not be contributing to the donor trust fund. Whatever the current attitudes of the US and UK may be, the fact that both these Governments pressured the Government of Sri Lanka (GOSL) to sign the P-TOMS cannot be denied. The reason for that pressure, according to the US Ambassador, was that P-TOMS is an “internal” arrangement for dealing with tsunami aid that should not be missed by the GOSL and the LTTE to work together as it could eventually lead to resuming peace negotiations.

On the face of it while the stated intentions seem sound, the bottom line is that the GOSL has been left high and dry because the GOSL in its naivety expected contributions from the four key donors to fill the coffers of the donor trust fund. Now that two of the four key players have backed out, the GOSL has to face the prospect of finding other funds to finance its reconstruction programme. In the meantime, to add salt to the wounds these Governments are arranging to finance aid projects through NGOs and INGOs knowing full well that there is no way to prevent a portion of the funds falling into the hands of the LTTE. The fact that this would contradict their own policies as far as their own constituencies are concerned does not seem to matter. Nor does it seem to matter that this violates provisions of Security Council Resolution 1373; a resolution adopted to contain global terrorism by calling on all member states of the UN to restrict funds reaching terrorist entities. Clearly, if NGO/INGO funds are used to restore the LTTE’s damaged military installations, the donors would be guilty of nurturing and fostering a terrorist entity in complete violation of laws to curb global terrorism. By not funding the P-TOMS and instead funding NGO and INGO administered projects the US is in a position to control funds released to the LTTE; a position that gives the US the leverage to use the LTTE, if it so chooses, in the pursuit of the US agenda while at the same time giving the LTTE opportunities for it to meet its own needs. These possibilities are in step with the latest suggestion by an ex-US Ambassador (the earlier one being a confederal model for Sri Lanka), that the US makes direct contact with the LTTE (The Island, July 11, 2005). This set up is a win-win for the US and the LTTE, but a total let down as far as the GOSL is concerned. Despite all warnings, GOSL negotiators have been too simple minded to see what was coming down the pike, and this has led to Sri Lanka’s sovereignty being compromised.

The strategy of nurturing terrorist outfits by global powers is a well-honed practice despite these very powers ending up as victims with time. India first nurtured the LTTE and has seen its own Prime Minister assassinated by the LTTE. The US nurtured the Mujahideen in Afghanistan and Saddam Hussein in Iraq, and ultimately had to deal with them. Now it appears the International Community, ably helped by Norway, is pushing for arrangements that favour the LTTE. Only time will tell how and when they would be betrayed.

This certainly is not the first time nor would it be the last that members of the International Community have given Governments false hopes only to back out at the opportune time. This game plan has worked best when Governments are weak and vulnerable after decades of war, or worse still when capped by a natural disaster such as a tsunami. It is at such weak moments that Governments are most pliable and when sovereignty can be compromised to advantage. This is the state Sri Lanka is currently in.

Reputed global socioeconomics analyst/author Naomi Klein in an article to The Nation (May 2, 2005) addresses this state of affairs and says that shattered countries are attractive to INGOs such as the World Bank because countries “take orders well” particularly after cataclysmic events. Klein states: “…governments will usually do whatever it takes to get aid dollars – even if it means racking up huge debts and agreeing to sweeping policy reforms”. Continuing she adds “…many war-ravaged countries are in states of ‘limited sovereignty’. They are considered too unstable and unskilled to manage the aid money pouring in, so it is often put in a trust fund managed by the World Bank”.

The justification for the World Bank to be the custodian of P-TOMS was even better packaged in the case of Sri Lanka. A case was built up by first advancing the argument that Sri Lankan Governments are corrupt, although relatively speaking, other countries and agencies such as the UN are worse. This was backed up by the LTTE stating that it would not agree to an arrangement that would require them to recognize institutions of the GOSL, even though they depend on the GOSL Army for their security, and other government departments for supply of food, medicines, etc.. Since the UN is already under a cloud for allegations of corruption in Iraq, the World Bank became the next natural contender to manage the funds.

Whenever the World Bank gets involved in the exercise of doling out money, they extract a price, as has occurred in East Timor, Afghanistan, Haiti and some Latin American countries. According to Klein, the price usually comes in the form of policies that require Governments to privatize state run institutions, as has happened with the healthcare in Afghanistan, and a call for “..an increased role for the private sector in the water system, telecommunications, …and for direct(ing) the government to ‘withdraw’ from the electricity sector and leave it for foreign private investors.” Attempts of WB pressure to privatize these same sectors in Sri Lanka are being reported regularly in the Sri Lankan press.

Klein’s contention is that the West has realized that Disaster Management is lucrative business, and furthermore, that the vulnerability experienced following a Disaster provides opportunity to change “…the very social fabric of the nation”. She adds that the US State Department has set up an Office whose “…mandate is not to rebuild any old states…but to create ‘democratic and market oriented’ ones”. What is taking shape in Sri Lanka is not only restoration of damage in an improved form, but a rebuilding in their own image. The involvement of the donors and INGOs such as the World Bank must be seen in this light.

Despite professed concerns of a humanitarian nature, the sad tendency is to exploit even a tragedy to advantage. What is being done in Sri Lanka is in the same vein. Had the GOSL not been so naïve it would have realized that advantages would be sought at this moment of vulnerability and it would have been prepared. For instance, it could have accepted contributions from concerned citizens throughout the world who genuinely grieved at the loss experienced by their fellow men and women and refused the offers, however generous, from “concerned” Governments. By accepting the offers of these Governments Sri Lanka has compromised its sovereignty because of the commitments being extracted in return. The price of reconstruction is being paid for by the dignity of the nation. This cannot be translated into dollars.

Now that two of the four donors are not contributing to the P-TOMS, Sri Lanka should seize the opportunity to change course. That course should be to rely on its own strengths and resources to rebuild what has been lost, and to do so in the image of itsown determinations. The fact that one of the donors has backed out and another is likely to follow should be sufficient grounds to dispense with P-TOMS, and instead, for the GOSL to set up an inclusive body to apportion funds to the different districts on a reasoned and equitable basis and to use the existing structures at the district level to implement the programmes decided by that body.

If the LTTE refuses to participate it would be by their own seeking, but the fact that the GOSL is ready to address the needs of all the affected communities would be known to the world.

P-TOMS is the fifth of a series of agreements hatched in secrecy and rejected by the people, the first being the B-C Pact, followed by D-C Pact, the Indo-Lanka Accord, and the Cease Fire Agreement. These five efforts demonstrate both the failure of non-transparency in the making of pacts, as well as the disconnect between the people and elected governments.

What this nation hopes for is a Government with the courage to fashion an agenda based on self-reliance, calling on the strengths and resources of the entire nation in the rebuilding effort, with fairness to all as was demonstrated by the people in the immediate aftermath of the tsunami.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/15/opinion/2.asp)

Navy men fire back at Tigers

More incidents in the East: tight security to maintain law and order

At least one LTTE cadre was shot dead and another two captured, when Navy personnel retaliated after coming under gunfire from a group of LTTE cadres at Kamburuppidy in Trincomalee last night, police said.

Trincomalee ASP G. Stanislaus said around 7.30 p.m. yesterday the Navy post came under fire from a group of LTTE men and Navy personnel at the post had to retaliate in self-defence. At the time of the incident there were three Navy personnel at the post, he said.

Later the security forces were able to capture two LTTE cadres, one with injuries along with a weapon and a communication set. The injured cadre had been admitted to the Trincomale hospital and the captured cadre handed over to the police.

In another incident around 8.30 p.m. yesterday a group of LTTE cadres attacked the Weeramuna police post at Samanthurai in Ampara with small arms, but no casualties were reported.

At least two civilians were injured when suspected LTTE cadres threw two hand grenades at an Army truck last evening at Anuradhapura junction in Trincomalee.

Eastern DIG Rohan Abeywardane said only one hand grenade exploded.

Military spokesman Brig. Daya Ratnayake said the security forces were under constant threat from the LTTE which wanted to provoke the forces.

Meanwhile, following intelligence reports that the LTTE leadership had instructed LTTE political cadres to withdraw from Trincomalee and Batticaloa districts, security has been tightened in these districts with more troops being deployed.

Since early this week, the LTTE carried out a series of attacks on security forces injuring more than 35 Police and Army personnel.

LTTE’s media spokesman Daya Master told the Daily Mirror the Wanni LTTE leadership had informed its political leaders in the Trincomalee and Batticaloa districts on Wednesday to immediately withdraw from political activities in government-held areas in these districts and return to the Wanni base citing security concerns.

DIG Abeywardane said generally a calm situation prevailed in the Trincomalee district throughout yesterday, but more security forces would be deployed in the district to meet any emergency situation.

“Police and military are on high alert around the clock to maintain law and order in the area”, he said.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/15/front/1.asp)

Is CFA only for the Army, asks JHU by Damitha Hemachandra

The Jatika Hela Urumaya (JHU) yesterday questioned the validly of the ceasefire agreement between the government and the LTTE, which was being abided only by the Sri Lankan military.

While urging the government to allow the military to retaliate against any LTTE attacks without restricting them to the camps, JHU General Secretary Ven. Omalpe Sobhitha Thera said the Army was no longer responsible to the CFA, which the LTTE had already violated nearly 3,000 times.

“The LTTE continues to kill innocent civilians, Army intelligence and political opponents despite the CFA,” he said adding that the LTTE had continued this violent behavior despite being admitted to the Post Tsunami Operational Management Structure (P-TOMS).

He further reminded that the SLMM failed to respond when the LTTE was assassinating pro-Karuna members and that it overlooked the incidents as being internal disputes of the LTTE.

Ven. Sobitha Thera said the Army had no need to provide protection to LTTE caders from the Karuna faction and questioned the present stance of the SLMM and the Norwegian peace facilitators.

The JHU questioned whether the government was to continue with the CFA at the expense of soldiers’ lives as nearly 50 of them were injured by LTTE attacks.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/15/front/5.asp)

Muthaliph killing suspect was only labour supplier: Maliban

Following reports that a prominent biscuit manufacturer was arrested in connection with the murder of Army Intelligence Unit head Major T. Nizam Muthaliph, Maliban Biscuit Manufactories Ltd., in a statement, clarified that the suspect was only a labour supplier whose services had already been terminated, and not in any other way connected to the company.

The statement said that Golden Bake (Private) Ltd. was a privately-owned company that had, since September 2004, manufactured wafer biscuits on contract basis for Maliban Biscuit Manufactories Ltd. and Little Lion Associates. An independent sub-contractor supplying labour to the Golden Bake factory in Ratmalana had been arrested in connection with the recent murder of Maj. Muthaliph. Subsequently, the services of this contractor were terminated by the management of Golden Bake.

The management of Maliban never utilized the services of this sub-contractor in its own factory, it said.

But the company stated that a section of disgruntled employees had instigated labour unrest, and work disruption at its factory, using these news reports to gain their own sinister motives by embarking on a smear campaign based on the false allegation that the CEO and HR Manager of Maliban were responsible for this labour sub-contractor’s illegal activities.

“The management of Maliban has conclusive evidence to prove that this section of employees is attempting to sabotage the growth of the company through this campaign, for their own narrow interests, which is to obtain the maximum benefits from the company without contributing to improving productivity and work practices.

The company has identified the need to improve productivity and reduce overheads as a priority in order to survive the impending competition from local and international biscuit manufacturers.

In this scenario, the management finds it ironic that anti-progressive forces are at work to subvert its forward march through a campaign of false propaganda, as this will be to the eventual detriment of the workforce that it claims to be protecting and thus make the company vulnerable to competition,” the statement further stated.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/15/front/8.asp)

JHU urges Britain to fight LTTE by Damitha Hemachandra

The JHU yesterday urged Britain to take immediate action to eradicate global terrorist groups including the LTTE through political and financial alienation.

The party’s General Secretary Ven. Omalpe Sobitha Thera in a letter to British High Commissioner Stephen Evans said organizations like the LTTE and Al-Qaeda were threatening the democratic principles and human values of a civilized world.

Quoting a report by Rohan Guneratne on the links between the Al’Qaeda terrorist network and the LTTE, the monk said the LTTE was closely linked with international terror organizations and were sharing terror strategies threatening world peace.

Ven. Sobitha Thera alleged the LTTE was assisting the Al’qaeda in transporting weapons and trainees to destinations using state of the art shipping networks.

“According to Rohan Guneratne and other defence analysts, the LTTE has been the authors of the suicide bombing concept and later shared its knowledge with Al’qaeda,” the monk said.

Highlighting former cases of violence and aggression by the LTTE in Britain, Ven. Sobitha Thera asked the High Commissioner not to assist LTTE attempts to collect funds through the P-TOMS.

The Thera said while the US and Japanese governments had pledged not to direct aid to the regional fund of P-TOMS, there were fresh attempts by the Sri Lankan government and the LTTE to undermine the stance taken by US and Japan. “They are now trying to divert the funds to the National Committee or the so called APEX body of P-TOMS to mislead the international community,” he said.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/15/news/12.asp)

Suspect made visits to LTTE areas: CID

Lieutenant Colonel Nizam Muthalif murder case

The CID yesterday informed Colombo Magistrate that the suspect I.V. Sanjeewa had allegedly conspired in the killing of Army intelligence officer Tuan Nizam Muthalif and had even made visits to LTTE controlled areas during his visits to Jaffna.When the magisterial inquiry resumed before Colombo Additional Magistrate Gihan Pilapitiya yesterday, the suspect Indurugolla Vidanarachchilage Sanjeewa who had allegedly given protection to the killers of Army Intelligent unit, Lieutenant Colonel Nizam Muthalif was produced before court.

Filing a further report on the investigation, the CID said that three others, Athulalallage Karunarante alias Anura of New Airport Road, Ratmalana, Arumugam Sandeerkumara alias Rajan from Kopay and Rajaratnam Saraswathi alias Uma of no. 26, New Airport Road, Kandawalawatta, Ratmalana were arrested in connection with the offence and they were listed as suspects. The suspects had allegedly spied and conspired to commit the murder of the Army officer.

During the CID investigation, Sanjeewa had admitted that the murder was committed by Anura and Rajan. It also had transpired that he had rented a house at Ranpokunagama Housing Scheme, Nittambuwa and Rajan with some others had visited this house regularly. Rajan also had brought weapons to this house. In the first few weeks of April, Rajan with the LTTE cadre Udayan had stayed there.

The CID also stated that there was evidence that Sanjeewa and Anura had gone to Kilinocchi and during their visits had gone to LTTE controlled areas.

The CID had recorded statements from the driver who was hired for these visits.

According to the driver P. Samantha Perera, Sanjeewa and Anura had gone to Jaffna with some chemical equipment and the suspects had met Udayan at A9 restaurant in Kilinochchi.

The driver had stated that in another visit Sanjeewa and Anura had gone to LTTE controlled areas with Udayan escorting them. During this visit the suspects had stayed at Udayan’s house in Kopay.

The Additional Magistrate ordered the three suspects who were earlier produced before Horana Magistrate and detained at Kalutara prison be produced before Colombo Magistrate. Court ordered to remand suspect Sanjeewa till July 28. -SRF

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/15/news/11.asp)

Appeasement begets more violence

Bleeding heart liberals and Tiger supporters will continue to see the LTTE in a sympathetic light despite all the killings they have perpetrated under the cover of the Ceasefire Agreement. But now it has come to a point where the Army Commander has been forced by sheer might of evidence against such violations, to tell that gloves are off and his men will hit back at Tigers if targeted, for in Trincomalee alone there have been a number of attacks on police and military targets within a matter of 24 hours.

It is unfortunate that the Norwegians, who are tasked with being the facilitators of peace, failed from the very start of the CFA to impress upon the LTTE that no targeted assassinations will be tolerated, especially if their designation as a terrorist organization is to remain lifted permanently. But instead the facilitators and everyone else merely turned a blind eye and carried on with the task of engaging the LTTE in civilized ways, hoping the Tigers will eventually stop. Now it has been proved beyond any doubt that we have all been taken for a ride.

The TNA also should stop blindly defending the LTTE. It is time it asked itself what results have been brought by appeasing the LTTE in this manner. Their’s and the Tigers stock excuse for killing more than 400 civilian opponents and over 50 intelligence operatives is that it is the failure of the Sri Lanka police to maintain law and order in government controlled areas. But when a few Tiger operatives are targeted they all come out like crybabes making all types of accusations against the security establishments.

At least now it may not be too late for the Norwegians to stop mollycoddling the LTTE and tell them where to get off. So enough of Norwegians and others playing up the LTTE threat to go back to war if they don’t get something. For we have done quite a bit in lifting its terrorist tag unilaterally, signing the CFA and ignoring its repeated violations and now the granting of the P-TOMS. So it is time that the LTTE showed some of its bona fides, especially by stopping targeted assassinations.

Graduates, ask now what you can do

Sri Lankan Arts graduates generally being unsuitable for employment is no doubt a fault of the system. Yet they must be thankful to the authorities for somehow employing them in the state sector.

Nowhere in the world, except perhaps in the few remaining Communist states, that any one is guaranteed employment? So we would like to ask these graduates whether it is fair for them to make all types of fresh demands from the state. Surely now you are on your own feet, unlike many others who are less fortunate than yourselves, and have got no such job bonanza from any one. On Wednesday, such graduates recruited in 1999, protested in front of the Education Ministry demanding among other things an opportunity to enter the teaching service, a chance to get transferred to other public service sectors, where there are promotions and to add their training period to their service. Surely many of you were employed by the state, in the first place, because no one else wanted to employ you. We feel, like many people in this country, it is time that you improved your knowledge and skills and on your own looked for better jobs instead of waiting for the state to spoon feed you any further.

Sometimes it is true that many of you are not employed in any capacity in the private sector due to pure snobbery by those who are holding reins in that sector. They have such a colonial hang up that they want to be more British than the British, so if someone does not speak good English, that person is needlessly shut out of the system or simply, literally laughed off, even though capability-wise the rejected person might be as good or better than many of their existing employees. So as long as such bigotry remains in this country, we certainly will not keep pace with other countries even in our own region.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/15/edit.asp)

Who’s gunning for the SL forces; besides the Tigers?

The military propaganda of any army maintained by a sovereign State is considered a primary responsibility of the State.

Starting from the United States to India from Russia to Pakistan, keeping the morale of the army, be it in times of war, truce or peace, is considered a high priority.

Just as much as wars are fought in the battlefield, similar wars are waged on the internet with the governments fighting its web battles with rebels in Kashmir, Chechniya, Iraq and groups like Basques, IRA and even Al Qaeda.

This type of counter-propaganda by the governments is considered as an integral part of State military strategy, since powerful propaganda machines of the rebels work round the clock, often presenting a distorted picture of what exactly is going on.

That the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam has one of the most effective global media networks is a fact.

It is also true that the pro-Tiger media, more often than not, twist news, cover up LTTE human rights violations and project the Sri Lankan security forces as nothing less than Hitler’s Nazi army.

Still there is very little that has been done by successive governments since the break out of the 1983 war to correct the records and counter LTTE propaganda internationally, especially when it comes to making use of information technology.

While the nationalist parties and groups complement whatever media campaigns by the governments elsewhere, even that had not been done in an effective and organized manner here.

This imbalance in the volume of military propaganda had always been to the disadvantage to the consecutive governments and especially the security forces.

If this has been bad, a worse trend has been set since the truce – that is in the form of depriving the military of their due, accepted share in the government media.

What the country has been witnessing since February 2002 is a dilemma of the State media as to how they should react to LTTE ceasefire violations and other violent activities.

The penchant has been that whenever there are gestures of goodwill by the LTTE the state media would play down Tiger violations and expose those in times of hostile vibes.

Besides, with part of the media parading as independent, the security forces of Sri Lanka, have found that there is only a handful of groups to present their side of the story even to the local audience. In no way a match for the Tiger propaganda.

The rebels on the other hand, true to its style, had been religiously adhering to one single stand in their media campaigns, be it during war or peace – to ruin the reputation of the government forces.

The effectiveness of the LTTE campaigns is such that even the southern media organizations, more often than not, borrow reports from the Tiger media with ‘exclusive’ Tiger versions, in the mad rush to meet deadlines.

The result –a growing disillusionment among the security forces of the manner in which incidents are presented in the media.

Last Saturday, nearly eighty LTTE cadres were escorted from Black Bridge in Batticaloa to Omanthai by the Sri Lanka Army. That was barely 48 hours after the Tigers gunned down three soldiers attached to the intelligence unit of the 223 Brigade Headquarters.

Hours after the grave ceasefire violation, the country witnessed how LTTE Political Wing Chief S.P. Thamilselvan demanded escort for their cadres with a two-week deadline.

His deadline has been given serious thought while the murders of the three soldiers have already gone down history as ‘just another” violation of the ceasefire. This tragedy of the army was overshadowed by political theatrics, including debates on P-TOMS, public rallies and extravagant birthday bashes.

One hardly hears a word these days from government quarters about the broad daylight murder of Major Muthalif in the heart of Colombo in the run up to the P-TOMS.

Just talk to a military personnel – an officer or a soldier - and ask how they feel about the developments. One could gauge the frustrations of our security forces in an honest answer.For them it is not a question about saving their own lives, thanks to the truce – but more about the dignity of the forces and the territorial integrity.

The military top brass and the retired flag-ranking officers attribute the developments to a couple of key factors.

First, the total ignorance of the seniors of the governments as to how they should handle the media in times of a ceasefire.The officers are of the opinion that the leaders of the principal parties should study cases where State or public media was handled during ceasefires in other countries. While there needs to be a change in the tone of reporting, a truce does not at all mean a drastic scale down of military propaganda, they argue, especially when the rival group is as powerful as the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

The second factor is a group of obnoxious anti-SL security forces lobby, mainly comprised of a handful of NGOs and INGOs.

And unlike the JVP which just scratches the surface when it talks of an anti-State NGO infiltration of the government, the military is armed with enough evidence to prove this point.

Especially the Sri Lanka Army is of the opinion that there is a concerted effort by this lobby to weaken the military morale and block any moves by the State to strengthen the military capabilities, and they cite many instances to prove this.

Generally identified as sympathizers of the LTTE, this lobby, the senior officers argue, is almost having coercive powers over several leading figures in the government and the main opposition.

In no other country, many observe, would the State have allowed anti-government forces to infiltrate the State machinery in this manner.

And where this reading of the political and military developments would lead to, is the question.

The third group that contributes to the undermining of the government security forces, they claim, is a section of the media which carries out agendas of political parties which are intrinsically prejudiced against the government forces.

How and why they are doing that, the military points out, is public knowledge.

It is already on record that the government forces are of the opinion that several clauses of the ceasefire agreement compromised their security concerns. And it goes without saying that if the tri-services were properly consulted, the P-TOMS would never have seen the light of day as it is.

The decision to let the LTTE engage in “political work” in government-controlled areas as per Article 1.13 of the Ceasefire Agreement, while barring any movement by the security forces or the Tamil parties other than the LTTE in Tiger territory, had always been seen as a tilt in favour of the LTTE.

Article 1.2 of the Ceasefire Agreement bans “firing of direct and indirect weapons, armed raids, ambushes, assassinations, abductions, destruction of civil or military property, sabotage, suicide missions and activities by deep-penetration units”.

All these banned activities, including suicide attacks, have been carried out by the LTTE so far.

The military is of the opinion that despite the high incidences of violations, the Tigers have managed to get away with minimum publicity for their mischief, and they ascribe this to the success of the anti-SL forces lobby. These, they claim, are in the form of re-wording or sugarcoating of government responses to Tiger truce violations.

As for the P-TOMS, it is viewed as a part of a political agenda to woo the international community rather than one executed with any genuine concern for the tsunami-affected.

They observe that minimum regard had been paid to the security implications in the over-enthusiasm to rope the Tigers into a deal by those who were following an outright political agenda.

Once again the anti-SL security forces lobby is being implicated for working on several high-ranking and secondary level counsellors to make sure that the deal got off the ground despite the grave security implications it poses.

It is true that pursuing an all-out military agenda would make it impossible for any government to make headway towards peace. A healthy equilibrium has to be struck between security and political agendas if one is to make progressive moves towards reaching a negotiated settlement to any conflict.

However, there is growing consensus that what had been done in the name of peace by the principal parties is jeopardizing the most crucial security concerns of the State.

And there is a steady build-up of frustration within the military ranks over this state of affairs.

While the government can dismiss the rhetoric of the nationalist parties as slogan politics, it cannot do the same with the concerns of the military.

Initiating a dialogue with the security forces, at all levels, is a must for the government, before it is too late.

(http://www.dailymirror.lk/2005/07/06/opinion/1.asp)