Retired Indian general in Sri Lanka to discuss

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 COLOMBO 000764

SIPDIS

ISLAMABAD FOR SA A/S ROCCA

DEPARTMENT FOR SA, SA/INS, S/CT; NSC FOR

E. MILLARD

LONDON FOR POL/RIEDEL

E.O. 12958: DECL: 05-07-13
TAGS: PGOV PTER PINS MOPS CE IN LTTE
SUBJECT: Retired Indian general in Sri Lanka to discuss
controversial Jaffna security zones issue

Refs: (A) FBIS Reston Va DTG 030259z May 03
- (B) Colombo 730, and previous (Notal)

(U) Classified by Lewis Amselem, Deputy Chief of
Mission. Reasons 1.5 (b,d)


1. (C) SUMMARY: A retired Indian general has arrived
in Sri Lanka to discuss his report on ways to resolve
the controversial Jaffna security zones issue. Even as
he stepped off the plane, there has been another dustup
over the matter, with the Tigers criticizing a
government plan to relocate military forces in Jaffna
town. While there is some hope that the report can
bridge differences, there is also a feeling that the
Tigers do not want this issue to go away soon. END
SUMMARY


2. (C) RETIRED INDIAN GENERAL ARRIVES: Retired Indian
General Satish Nambiar arrived in Sri Lanka on May 6 to
officially present his report on the controversial
military "high security zones" located in Jaffna
District. (Note: The security zones in Jaffna cover
roughly 18 percent of the land area. The Tamil Tigers
have argued that the zones should be sharply reduced in
size and cited the matter as one of the major reasons
behind their recent decision to pull out from the peace
talks. End Note.) During his latest visit, Nambiar is
scheduled to brief GSL officials on his report. A copy
of the report is also slated to be passed to the
Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) for comment.
Joseph Pararajahsingham, a pro-LTTE MP for the Tamil
National Alliance, told us that he did not believe that
Nambiar would actually meet with the LTTE during this
visit. He said he thought the Norwegian government
facilitators would provide the document to the Tigers.


3. (C) (((Note: Per Ref B, Mission received an advance
copy of the report from GSL Minister Milinda Moragoda in
early April. The text of the report was passed to
SA/INS via class e-mail on 04-08-03. The complex report
advocates that the GSL and the LTTE agree to mutual
drawdowns of their military positions. In doing this,
both sides would engage in confidence-building measures
facilitated by increased monitoring.)))


4. (U) (((Note: In addition to Nambiar, retired Indian
Vice Admiral P.J. Jacob is also now in Sri Lanka. The
objective of Jacob's visit is to advise the GSL
regarding ways to monitor LTTE sea movements in order to
avoid armed confrontations.)))


5. (C) ARGUMENT OVER JAFFNA TOWN PROPOSAL: Even as
Nambiar stepped off the plane, there has been another
dustup over the security zones issue. The latest fracas
between the government and the LTTE involved a report
prepared by the Defense Ministry which provided that a
large chunk of Sri Lanka Army (SLA) troops based in
Jaffna town would relocate to a nearby fort. The idea
behind the shift would be to free up space in Jaffna
town for civilian use (including in hotels where troops
have been bivouacked) while lessening the footprint of
the SLA in the area. (Note: Jaffna fort, where the
troops would move per the GSL proposal, is located just
to the west of the town in a less populated area.)


6. (C) Although the GSL seemed to be trying to go some
way toward meeting their demands, the Tigers sharply
criticized the government's proposal shortly after
receiving it from the Norwegian facilitators last week.
In a statement posted on May 1 by the pro-LTTE website
"TamilNet," LTTE political chief S.P. Thamilchelvam
rejected the proposed move, asserting that it was
woefully inadequate and counter to the February 2002
ceasefire accord's aim of restoring "normalcy" for
Jaffna civilians. Explaining his point, Thamilchelvam
argued that moving the troops to Jaffna fort was not
enough. Rather, all the troops should be withdrawn from
Jaffna town and other urban areas as soon as possible.
Thamilchelvam demanded that the GSL revisit the issue
and come back to the LTTE with another proposal.


7. (C) COMMENT: There is some hope that Nambiar's
report can help bridge differences, perhaps allowing the
Tigers a public way to back down and return to the
negotiating table. That said, there is also a feeling
that the Tigers do not want this issue to go away soon
because they see it as a useful tool to deploy in
hitting out at the government. Thamilchelvam's
seemingly hasty and unreasonable rejection of the GSL's
proposal re the Jaffna town troop relocations appears to
back up this point. Via his sharp critique,
Thamilchelvam also embarrassed the GSL, which had
absorbed sharp criticism from peace process skeptics in
the south in making the proposal to begin with. END
COMMENT.


8. (U) Minimize considered.

WILLS