Identifier
Created
Classification
Origin
02COLOMBO1736
2002-09-17 11:24:00
CONFIDENTIAL
Embassy Colombo
Cable title:  

Peace process update: Positive response to

Tags:  PGOV PTER PHUM PINS SOCI CE LTTE 
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This record is a partial extract of the original cable. The full text of the original cable is not available.
C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 COLOMBO 001736 

SIPDIS

USUN NEW YORK PLEASE PASS TO SA A/S ROCCA

DEPARTMENT FOR SA, SA/INS

NSC FOR E. MILLARD

LONDON FOR POL/RIEDEL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09-17-12
TAGS: PGOV PTER PHUM PINS SOCI CE LTTE
SUBJECT: Peace process update: Positive response to
talks; President hits out; Possible prisoner exchange

Refs: (A) Colombo 1719; (B) Colombo 1629 (Notal)

(U) Classified by W. Lewis Amselem, Charge d'Affaires.
Reasons 1.5 (b, d).

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 03 COLOMBO 001736

SIPDIS

USUN NEW YORK PLEASE PASS TO SA A/S ROCCA

DEPARTMENT FOR SA, SA/INS

NSC FOR E. MILLARD

LONDON FOR POL/RIEDEL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 09-17-12
TAGS: PGOV PTER PHUM PINS SOCI CE LTTE
SUBJECT: Peace process update: Positive response to
talks; President hits out; Possible prisoner exchange

Refs: (A) Colombo 1719; (B) Colombo 1629 (Notal)

(U) Classified by W. Lewis Amselem, Charge d'Affaires.
Reasons 1.5 (b, d).


1. (C) This update of Sri Lanka's peace process reviews
the following:

-- Kickoff of peace talks in Thailand engenders highly
positive response in Sri Lanka

-- Before start of talks, President Kumaratunga hits out
at GSL

-- Government and Tamil Tigers working closely on
prisoner exchange

-- The flavor of the peace process: Christian pilgrims
visit shrine in LTTE-controlled area en masse

===================================
Sri Lankans respond warmly to talks
===================================


2. (C) The kickoff of peace talks between the
government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam
(LTTE) in Thailand on September 16 was greeted warmly in
Sri Lanka. Observers -- both Sinhalese and Tamil --
told us they thought the opening ceremony set an
excellent tone for the talks. Joseph Parajahsingham, a
pro-LTTE Tamil MP, told us that "it was very encouraging
to see both sides talking about ending the war and
coming to a negotiated settlement." Desmond Fernando, a
well-known Sinhalese lawyer, told us that "the important
thing is that the two sides are meeting after seven
years." (Note: The last time the two sides sat down
for formal face-to-face talks was in early 1995.)


3. (U) Press coverage was also positive. Newspapers,
both vernacular and English language, gave extensive
coverage to the opening ceremony, as did TV and radio.
Probably the most circulated photos and video clips
involved shots of chief GSL negotiator G.L. Peiris
standing side-by-side with chief LTTE negotiator Anton
Balasingham -- with both smiling amicably. Newspapers
also carried long excerpts from the speeches given at
the opening ceremony by Peiris and Balasingham (see

Ref A). Articles took note of the eloquence of Peiris'
speech ("...a sea change is necessary, now that the
tempests have abated...") and Balasingham's
straightforward remarks welcoming the talks.


4. (SBU) (((Note: The coverage of the talks on the
pro-LTTE website "TamilNet" was also generally positive.
TamilNet welcomed the start of the talks and carried
several photos of the opening ceremony. In line with
the often-acerbic public style of the LTTE, however, the
site also took digs at "Sinhalese hard-liners led by
President Kumaratunga." In what is becoming a LTTE
mantra, the site also demanded that the GSL provide more
assistance to the north and east.)))


5. (C) Comment: Despite the positive vibes, Sri
Lankans do not seem worked up or overly enthusiastic
about the talks. Sri Lanka has been through numerous
peace process iterations in the past. Each has failed
and usually been followed by large-scale violence.
Given this sorry record, people seem relatively
realistic and disinclined to set expectations too high.
That said, although there seems a depth of patience,
there is a feeling that this version of the peace
process needs to succeed for the sake of the country's
long-term prosperity. End Comment.

==================
President Hits Out
==================

6. (SBU) Shortly before the government delegation left
Sri Lanka for Thailand, President Kumaratunga took the
opportunity to lash out at the GSL over its handling of
the peace process. In a long letter dated September 12
that was issued to the press, Kumaratunga alleged that
the government was doing little to stop the LTTE from
violating the February ceasefire accord. In a
subsequent speech, Kumaratunga also went on to enunciate
strong support for the peace process, as long as her
letter's concerns were met. Defense Minister Marapana
immediately responded to Kumaratunga's letter, flatly
rejecting the notion that the GSL had "permitted" the
LTTE to engage in serious violations of the ceasefire
accord.


7. (C) Comment: Kumaratunga seems to be on the losing
side of this argument: The Norwegian-run Sri Lanka
Monitoring Mission (SLMM) reported on September 13 that
ceasefire accord violations were drastically down in
recent weeks. The SLMM even stated that "...the
situation on the ground seems to be in such good order
that it will support the parties during their initial
talks in Thailand."


8. (C) Regarding the talks, Kumratunga is also clearly
annoyed over the fact that the GSL has not welcomed a
representative of her party on the government's
negotiating team in Thailand. Her spokesman, Harim
Peiris, told us that she thought this was "quite a
snub." End Comment.

==========================
Possible Prisoner Exchange
==========================


9. (SBU) With Norwegian government facilitation, the
government and the LTTE are heavily engaged in
negotiating the terms of a possible prisoner exchange.
The essential elements of the exchange would have the
LTTE turn over to the GSL the seven Sri Lankan security
force personnel it claims to have in custody.
Meanwhile, the GSL would free 14 LTTE personnel, who are
held in government jails. It is not clear when the
exchange might take place, but Taranjit Sandhu, polchief
of the Indian High Commission, told us that he had heard
that it might occur right after the end of the first
round of peace talks.


10. (SBU) (((Note: The LTTE claims that the seven are
the only prisoners it holds. According to human rights
activists, the government holds about 800 Tamils under
the Prevention of Terrorism Act on grounds that they are
terrorist operatives linked with the LTTE. The
government's recent lifting of the ban on the LTTE as an
organization has had no legal effect on the
circumstances of these prisoners. End Note.)))


11. (C) Comment: The release of prisoners by both
sides would be a solid confidence-building measure. It
is potentially very controversial in the Sinhalese
south, however. Already, the GSL has had to drop the
notion of including several LTTE prisoners in the
exchange who are believed to have been involved in
serious acts of terrorism, such as the December 1999
attempt to assassinate President Kumaratunga. Given the
gathering momentum of the peace process, the possibility
of a prisoner exchange raises the prospect of a general
amnesty at some point. The government has not publicly
discussed this possibility yet, probably because it is
too hot too handle. End Comment.

======================================
LTTE allows visits to important shrine
======================================


12. (SBU) Huge numbers of Roman Catholics and other Sri
Lankans are being allowed to visit a shrine in the town
of Madhu in the LTTE-controlled Wanni region in northern
Sri Lanka. Founded on a site visited by Portuguese
clergy in the 1600s, Our Lady of the Holy Rosary church
is the most important shrine in the country for Sri
Lankan Catholics. The LTTE gradually opened up access
to the area in the past several months as the peace
process gained momentum. With the loosening of travel
restrictions, roads in the Madhu area have become
flooded with pilgrims, with tens of thousands of people
converging on the site in mid-August for a religious
feast, for example.


13. (SBU) Comment: The LTTE's decision to open up
access to the shrine has been greatly appreciated by
Catholics, who represent about seven percent of the
population, and are an influential group within both the
Sinhalese and Tamil communities. It has also been
lucrative: the LTTE are apparently reaping considerable
funds from taxes applied to road use and on the (rustic)
tourist facilities in the Madhu area. End Comment.


14. (U) Minimize considered.

AMSELEM