OFFICIAL INFORMAL NUMBER 123 (08/26/03)

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 COLOMBO 001490

SIPDIS

OFFICIAL INFORMAL

DEPARTMENT FOR SA/INS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/26/13
TAGS: AMGT CE MV LTTE
SUBJECT: OFFICIAL INFORMAL NUMBER 123 (08/26/03)

CLASSIFIED BY CHARGE' JAMES F. ENTWISTLE; REASONS 1.5 B,

D.

CONTENTS: PEACE PROCESS UPDATE
- GORM PRESIDENTIAL SELECTION PROCESS
GUANTANAMO MALDIVIAN
TREASURY ADVISOR TOR SIGNED

PEACE PROCESS UPDATE
--------------


1. (C) FYI. Just wanted to flag the following peace
track items:

-- Paris Meeting: Beyond that reviewed in Colombo 1482,
we have no new news to report re the LTTE's Paris
meeting. The Norwegian Embassy here told us that Special
Envoy Erik Solheim was slated to join the LTTE meeting
today or tomorrow, as expected.

-- Latest on LTTE Camp: We checked with the SLMM and
confirmed press reports that the monitors held a meeting
on August 25 with LTTE officials (local Trincomalee
leaders Pathuman and Thilak) re the unauthorized "Wan
Ela" camp in the east. The Tigers seemed a tad more
accommodating on the matter than in the past, indicating
that it was fine with them if the monitors visited the
Wan Ela camp, as well as other LTTE camps in the area.
The Tigers said they would study the SLMM's request to
vacate the site and get back on the issue in a week or
so.

-- Threat by Muslim MPs: We had mentioned in yesterday's
o/i reports that two MPs aligned with Rauf Hakeem's Sri
Lanka Muslim Congress (SLMC) were considering leaving the
party for the Opposition. The two MP's, who are angry
about the recent LTTE-instigated violence in the east,
are still debating their course of action, but have not
taken the plunge and joined the PA yet. We understand
that both men have threatened to defect before, but were
talked out of it by Hakeem (who no doubt provided them
some carrots to stay on -- he does not have many sticks).
As we noted yesterday, if the two cross-over to the PA,
the UNF coalition would technically lose its majority in
Parliament, but, with almost certain support from Tamil
parties, would not fall. There is no crisis atmosphere
over this matter, but it is a headache for the
government. (POL)

-- Situation in East: Based on what we are hearing, the
east appears to be calming down a bit after the
turbulence of the past week or so. There was a LTTE-
instigated work stoppage in Trincomalee on August 25, but
no reports of violence. As flagged in Colombo 1482, two
Muslims, who were presumably grabbed by the LTTE in the
east, remain missing. Four Tamil youths, who were
reportedly nabbed by Muslims, also remain missing.

-- JVP protest march: The radical leftist Janathi
Vimukthi Peramuna (JVP) has been conducting a protest
march from the southern town of Galle to Colombo the last
several days. Onlookers have described the march, which
began on August 25, as "peaceful," with participants
shouting anti-GSL and anti-Norwegian slogans (the Norgies
are fondly called the "white tigers"). The march is
scheduled to wind up in Colombo on August 28. By the
way, the JVP and the SLFP (the main constituent element
of the PA) are scheduled to meet today re their possible
alliance. Per Colombo 1406, there still seem to be
stumbling blocks dividing the two sides, and no one
expects a "joint pact" to be signed and sealed in the
near-term. (POL)


GORM PRESIDENTIAL SELECTION PROCESS
--------------


2. (C) FYI. In a conversation with polchief on August
25, Dr. Ahmed Shaheed, Permanent Secretary in the
Maldivian MFA, confirmed that exact dates had yet to be
set for the presidential selection vote in the Majlis
("parliament"),or the subsequent "yes/no" national
referendum. Shaheed expected that the Majlis vote would
be in mid-to-late September, with the request for
candidates being issued just after September 11. The
national referendum would probably take place in October
and the presidential inauguration in November, he noted.
This timeframe is consistent with our reporting in
Colombo 1384. Gayoom remains hands down favorite to win.
(POL)

GUANTANAMO MALDIVIAN
--------------


3. (C) We'll send in a frontchannel on our very
interesting discussion this morning with the two
Maldivian officials who interviewed their compatriot in
Guantanamo. While the GORM still wants to run down some
angles on the gentleman's case, we will not be surprised
if we are asked in the months ahead to return the fellow
to Male'. (CDA)

TREASURY ADVISOR TOR SIGNED
--------------


4. (SBU) We wanted to let you know that the Terms of
Reference for the second Treasury Advisor on Debt
Management was signed by Ministry of Finance Secretary
Ratwatte and U.S. Treasury's Debra von Koch. Treasury
will be looking for USAID funding to come through, and
for a candidate to fill this position. Please keep us
informed on the NSDD-38 process for the new Treasury
personnel. (ECON)

ENTWISTLE