Tough and difficult but not impossible

Dec.27, 2007

Tough and difficult but not impossible

THE CONFLICT between the majority Sinhalese and minority Tamils in Sri Lanka is turning out be one of the most difficult crises. Repeated efforts to end the conflict have ended up nowhere, with both the government in Colombo and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) group now appear determined to gain the upper hand before anything else.
The government of President Mahinda Rajapakse has vowed to defeat the rebels militarily before any new peace talks while the rebel group has pledged not to allow the Sri Lankan military to make any advances. However, the military has indeed made gains in the ongoing confrontation and the government is moving ahead with a resolve to eliminate the rebel group's fighting ability.
Both sides have stepped up rhetoric and it is difficult to find any room for renewed dialogue to end the decades-old conflict that owes its origins to the days when the British colonial power moved Indian Tamil labourers to work on the island. The main grievance of today's Sri Lankan Tamil generation is that they are subjected to state discrimination and are denied what they consider as their legitimate rights. The government denies the charge and says it is open for peace talks with the LTTE but is also detemined to destroy the Tamil dissident group militarily. It has pulled all plugs and is pressing ahead with full-fledged war against the group.
The latest fighting came on Wednesday when Sri Lanka's navy clashed with LTTE vessels off the island's northern coast of Jaffna, and the defence ministry said 11 rebel boats were destroyed, leaving at least 40 guerrillas dead.
One of Rajapakse's ministers have declared that any attempt at having a dialogue with the LTTE's shadowy leader, Velupillai Prabhakaran, is futile and there would be no peace in Sri Lanka unless Prabhakaran is killed.
Social Services and Welfare Minister Douglas Devananda, a Tamil vehemently opposed to the Tigers, does have a reason to say so. He has survived numerous assassination attempts, the latest on Nov.28, when a female bomber officials say was sent by Prabhakaran made her way into his ministry in central Colombo and blew herself up, killing one of his aides.
The failed assassination attempt bore all the trademarks of Prabhakaran, who is known for his use of suicide attackers as part of his campaign to create a separate state for Tamils in Sri Lanka's north and east.
It is clear that the two sides have no trust in each other's words and actions and hence the deadlock in efforts to restart the stalled peace process. It is indeed a tough task to bring the two sides back to the negotiating table.
But the international community could not sit back saying let the two sides fight it out until one of them is defeated or they come to their senses and will be ready accept solutions that does not compromise the country's sovereignty and territorial integrity.
The least the world could do is to immediately ensure that weapons do not flow to Sri Lanka to feed the conflict and serve an ultimatum on both sides to halt attacks on each other and come to internationally mediated talks.
Would the UN have that kind of courage? Yes, it would, but it depends on the determination of the world at large to put an end once and for all to a self-destructing crisis where innocent civilians are paying the highest price.