DEPUTY SECRETARY VISITS WAR-RAVAGED JAFFNA

C O N F I D E N T I A L COLOMBO 001563

SIPDIS

FOR DEPUTY SECRETARY ARMITAGE

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/26/2012
TAGS: PREL PGOV PINS PTER CE LTTE
SUBJECT: DEPUTY SECRETARY VISITS WAR-RAVAGED JAFFNA

Classified By: Ambassador E. Ashley Wills. Reasons 1.5 b, d.


AFTER IT IS CLEARED, THIS CABLE WILL BE TRANSMITTED TO THE
SAME ADDRESSEES AS THE OTHER REPORTING MESSAGES RELATED TO
THE DEPSEC'S SRI LANKA VISIT.


1. (C) Summary: The Deputy Secretary and his delegation
visited the Jaffna peninsula for two and a half hours during
his one-day visit to Sri Lanka, August 22. The delegation
visited a U.S. demining site and a front line position where
Sri Lankan army troops and the LTTE face off, and met with
four Tamil civic leaders to get their views on the ceasefire.
End Summary.


2. (C) Immediately after landing at Colombo's international
airport, the Deputy Secretary, his delegation, the Ambassador
and an embassy team immediately flew to Jaffna aboard a Sri
Lankan Air Force AN-32. After landing at Palaly Air Force
Base on Jaffna peninsula, the group transferred to Sri Lankan
Air Force Bell helicopters and flew immediately to
Chavakatcheri. This small city, formerly with a population
of about 10,000, was devastated by artillery and small arms
fire from both the Sri Lankan Army and the LTTE in the year

2000. Virtually the entire population departed and
subsequently became internally displaced persons (there are
800,000 IDPs in Sri Lanka). The Deputy Secretary's group
drove through the devastation enroute to a demining site on
Chavakatcheri's outskirts. State's PM Bureau's quick
reaction demining force, led by Don Smith, escorted the
Deputy Secretary and his delegation around the site and
conducted a demonstration of demining techniques. The QRDF
has cleared almost 700 mine and UXO from this site in the
past three months.


3. (C) The Deputy Secretary and his delegation then flew to
a front-line position on the eastern side of the Jaffna
peninsula at Muhamalai. The group was shown the Sri Lankan
Army's defense perimeter by Commanding Officer General D.
Fonseka. The front-line position is about 400 meters from
the LTTE's forces and also serves as a crossing point for
civilians traveling to and from the Jaffna peninsula.


4. (C) The Deputy Secretary and his delegation flew from
Muhamalai into Jaffna thereafter to meet a small group of
Tamil civic leaders. The meeting occurred at the home of
Jaffna's Catholic Bishop. The Deputy Secretary met with Dr.
Ambalavanar, a surgeon; Professor Sitrampalam; a university
professor; Ms. Sivachandran, a women's activist; and Mr.
Gopalakrishnan, a university student. The Deputy Secretary
expressed to the four Tamils the United States's fervent wish
for peace in Sri Lanka and asked for their assessment of the
situation. He heard from these four activists common themes
about the current situation: that the LTTE is the sole
representative of the Tamil people; that the LTTE was driven
to violence only after more moderate Tamil leaders were
doublecrossed by successive governments in Colombo; that the
Tamils want peace but only if they are assured a very
substantial degree of self rule; and that Tamils want the
U.S. to be even-handed. In the latter regard, Dr.
Ambalavanar asserted that the U.S. should be an impartial
broker between the LTTE and the Sri Lankan Government. The
Deputy Secretary politely rejected the assertion, saying that
the U.S. strongly supported peace but could not broker a deal
because the USG has labeled the LTTE a foreign terrorist
organization. He concluded the short meeting by assuring the
Tamil activists that the United States sincerely wished for
peace, supported the Norwegian efforts at facilitation and
was prepared to offer financial assistance for reconstruction
of Sri Lanka's northeast once the final peace deal is
concluded.


5. (C) At the conclusion of the meeting, the Deputy
Secretary was greeted by a gaggle of reporters outside the

SIPDIS
Bishop's residence. He responded to two questions before he
and the delegation choppered back to Palaly for their onward
flight to Colombo. The remainder of the Deputy Secretary's
program has been reported in septels.
Wills