MEDIA PLAY: (June 8) Tokyo Conference; Colombo

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 06 COLOMBO 000983 SIPDIS Department for D (Gastright),INR/MR, I/RW, I/REC, SA (Camp, Waller),SA/PD (Brennig, Irwin, Scensny) SSA/PAS; SSO (Pass to D); Tokyo (Hara, Bryan) E.O. 12958:N/A TAGS: KPAO OPRC KMDR OIIP CE LTTE SUBJECT: MEDIA PLAY: (June 8) Tokyo Conference; Colombo ¶1. Summary. On the eve of the Tokyo Conference, a frenetic Sri Lankan media was consumed with talk of an interim administration for the north and east and the fate of donor money sans LTTE participation. Tamil newspapers were engrossed with Tokyo-related issues large and small - but especially with donor money. Media sympathetic to the GSL reiterated the Government`s ability to secure and distribute aid money in typically sunny news and editorial coverage. Opposition newspapers led with cohabitation drama and offered predictably dour editorial comment. Independent media coverage of Tokyo was skeptical and prodded the government to "get on with it." One editorial exhorted the Prime Minister to "go the whole hog" in his attempt to "bring the Tigers into the mainstream of the Sri Lankan polity." End summary. -------------- ¶2. LTTE statements and other Tamil reaction. -------------- Tamil media was obsessed with every aspect of the Tokyo Conference - right down to the seven airplane seats reserved for the Tigers should they go to Japan. Two major dailies' headlines were about expected aid money: independent weekly VIRAKESARI wrote, "'As the Tigers are not participating, it is expected that certain conditions would be laid down in granting aid' - political observers," while state-owned weekly THINAKARAN VAARAMANJARI comforted, " 'Aid for development would be spent as stipulated' - Prime Minister assures." Independent Weekly SUNDAY THINAKKURAL's lead story cautioned "Tokyo Conference in the midst of doubts about the future of the peace talks." Major independent Tamil daily VIRAKESARI's front page reported on a variety of other issues: "Norwegian VIPs will not attend the Conference," "President refuses to meet Prime Minister - did not send any greetings for the conference," "'India will not participate' - G. L. Peiris," and finally, "Seven Visas and seats were reserved for Tigers." Pro-LTTE website Tamilnet headlined (6/7),"Talks should be based on concrete proposals - Balasingham." Block quote: Negotiations on an Interim Administration for the Northeast could only begin once the Sri Lankan government had produced a detailed draft of its proposals for such a body, the Liberation Tigers said Friday. Discussions could only proceed usefully on the basis of "specific and concrete" proposals from Colombo, the LTTE's Chief Negotiator and Political Advisor, Mr. Anton Balasingham, told TamilNet when asked about press reports suggesting the government had agreed to the establishment of an Interim Administration. End block quote. Although Tamil editorialists did not write about Tokyo today, extensive editorial comment is expected on Tuesday and Wednesday. Under the headline, "Interim administrative mechanism for NE imperative," independent, but pro-UNP English weekly SUNDAY LEADER ran an interview on its opinion page with Senior Vice President, Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF) and Batticaloa District Member of Parliament, Joseph Pararajasingham. Block quotes: .Pararajasingham says the government's position, that an interim administration should be established within the parameters of the constitution cannot be justified when the ceasefire agreement itself was framed outside the constitution. He said if the ceasefire agreement that was drafted outside the constitution has paved the way for solid peace in the country, he cannot see any reason why the government cannot do the same thing to set up the interim administration and give the LTTE a legal body through which it could have a politico- administrative and decision making body to play a dominant role in the administration. "If there is a will there is a way. I also think the problem faced by the government from the executive is also preventing them from fulfilling the demands of the LTTE," he told The Sunday Leader in an interview. Q: Do you see any justification in the LTTE's continuous refusal to accept proposals put forward by Premier Wickremesinghe in regard to the interim administration? A: There is sufficient reason for the LTTE to refuse what was offered by the Prime Minister, taking into consideration the past experience and the history of this country in regard to the ethnic issue. You see, the LTTE, which was fighting for a separate state and was in a formidable position in terms of war, unilaterally declared a ceasefire and also signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the government because they felt the sufferings of the Tamil people had to be alleviated. They are now firmly committed to a negotiated settlement. They have taken part in six rounds of talks. What was promised during the talks has not been implemented. So the LTTE has real suspicion about the present proposal. They feel it is difficult to overcome red tape and bureaucracy through the setting up of the apex body. So they think any tangible implementation on the ground has to be through a structure, which will give the LTTE a politico- administrative and decision making body where they would be allowed to play a dominant role. Therefore the proposals submitted by the Prime Minister do not in any way answer the demands of the LTTE. That falls very short of their thinking. Q: Many experts, including foreign diplomats say that peace cannot be achieved if the Tigers are so rigid. How do you view their statements? A: It is wrong to say that the Tigers are rigid in their demands. As I explained earlier, first of all the sufferings of the Tamil people have to be removed. That can only be achieved by restructuring and relocating the displaced people and rehabilitating them. It also includes rehabilitating the war torn north east. In this respect they need a very formidable and a very strong set up to administer the region. Their demand which is to alleviate the suffering of the people, cannot be considered as something that is rigid. Q: Why do you think the government is reluctant to give what the LTTE wants? A: Well I think it is because of the non-cooperation of the executive that the government is unable to fulfill the demands of the LTTE. The government feels that any interim administrative structure should be within the parameters of the constitution. But what I would like to remind the government is this. When the ceasefire agreement was signed between the government and the LTTE there was no basis for it within the laws of Sri Lanka. It was an extra constitutional instrument on which the country's peace has withstood for more than 15 months and it has laid a solid foundation for peace. Why can't the government apply the same process in formulating an interim administrative structure outside the constitution like the ceasefire agreement? My personal opinion is that the Tamils are fully justified in asking for an extra constitutional interim mechanism to rebuild and rehabilitate the north east because they never accepted the constitution the Britishers left behind in 1948, the 1972 constitution and the 1978 constitution which concentrated the legislative, financial and judicial affairs of the island in the hands of the majority of the country. Therefore I think the LTTE's demand in asking for a interim administrative structure is reasonable and justifiable, where they could play a dominant role politically, administratively and financially. Q: The general perception is that the LTTE would participate at tomorrow's donor conference. How do you see it? Do you think failure to participate would be disadvantageous to the LTTE? A: The LTTE's leadership in the latest reply to Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe has clearly stated that if an assurance is given that a draft framework for an interim administrative structure along the lines proposed by the LTTE leadership is given by the Prime Minister they would resume negotiations. So the ball is now in the government's court. Until today the Prime Minister has not responded to the request made by the LTTE leadership. Therefore one can be convinced that their participation in the Tokyo conference is not possible. To answer the other question, this donor conference is not only for the rebuilding of the war torn north east region. This conference is also a part of the annual aid consortium for the government. If the donor countries are really interested in rebuilding, rehabilitating and restructuring the war ravaged north eastern region I don't think there is any reason for them to not dole out funds for this humanitarian aspect whether the LTTE participates or not. Participation of the LTTE should not be taken as a primary concern for the donors not to dole out money for the humanitarian projects facing the war torn areas in the north east. End block quotes. -------------- ¶3. GSL statements and pro-government reaction. -------------- Media sympathetic to the GSL offered predictably sunny Tokyo coverage. Newspaper and television lead stories reiterated the government `s ability to secure and distribute aid money and noted the Prime Minister's plans for an interim administration. Independent and state-owned television stations reported Chief Negotiator for the Peace Process and Cabinet Spokesman G.L. Peiris' comments that there will be no change in the level of aid pledged to Sri Lanka, despite the Tigers' absence in Tokyo. State-owned ITN television elucidated that aid levels will stay the same because the trust that international community has placed in the Government of Sri Lanka remains unchanged. Newspapers also focused on the money. Independent English weekly SUNDAY TIMES headlined, "`We-can-spend' theme at Tokyo." State-owned English weekly SUNDAY OBSERVER observed, "Aid pledges on track," while sister Sinhala weekly SILUMINA noted, "Comprehensive development plan for tomorrow's Tokyo confab - Funds to be disbursed for immediate projects." Independent, but pro-UNP English weekly SUNDAY LEADER exclaimed, "PM to announce interim set up." Under the headline,"Hope," Government-owned English weekly SUNDAY OBSERVER's editors commented that despite the problems with the peace process, "the Tokyo donor parley signals progress." Block quotes: Most important is the fact that while the negotiating process is in suspense right now, the overall peace effort remains on track. Both parties have clearly and substantively demonstrated their complete lack of desire to resort to military action again to achieve their political goals. If the LTTE has been careful to make this clear to the whole world, the Government's own, positive, non- belligerent posture on the current impasse has demonstrated its own commitment to peace. That is why the Tokyo donor parley signals progress despite the current problem. Now, all efforts must be made towards fulfilling the requisites for overcoming the impasse. If the critical problem being raised by the LTTE leadership is their exclusion from certain aspects and activities of the peace process, then every step must be taken to ensure that such exclusion does not occur in the future. The setting up of an institutional mechanism that will structurally involve the LTTE in the post-war recovery process in the North-East will go far not only to ensure that organisation's continued participation in the negotiations but also to guarantee the re-integration of whole areas of the country that have been pushed outside the national mainstream by the war. End block quotes -------------- ¶4. Opposition statements and pro-opposition reaction. -------------- Opposition newspapers led with cohabitation drama and Tokyo money headlines. Editorial comment was typically dour and concentrated on the untrustworthiness of the LTTE. Independent, but nationalist-leaning English weekly ISLAND SUNDAY cried, "CBK snubs Japan: refuses statement backing confab," but softened the blow and placed "Mood in Tokyo optimistic: GL" alongside it. Sister paper Sinhala DIVAINA headlined, "Confab promising 10,000 Kouti [100 lakhs] per annum is tomorrow." State-owned ITN television reported on a meeting between USAID Deputy Administrator Fred Schieck and opposition leader Mahinda Rajapakse, in which both men noted that Tokyo Conference aid could be used for development activities in the south as well as the north and east. --- Under the headline, "The doubt that will not down," the nationalist-leaning English weekly ISLAND SUNDAY's editors asked whether the LTTE "will use some of that money to further militarize for the ultimate putsch." Block quotes: If the LTTE calculated that their brinkmanship will result in the Tokyo meeting being postponed till such time as they were willing to talk turkey, they made a grievous error. As we have reported on our front page today, the mood in the Japanese capital was optimistic yesterday and there was reason to expect that they will not come down on any pledges they planned to make merely because Prabhakaran and Balasingham have played hard to get. Nevertheless, it must be freely conceded that there is no doubt that the LTTE's presence would have made a tangible difference certainly to the level of global confidence that the peace process is not just on track but heading in the right direction. The absence of one party must necessarily create doubts and that is the hard reality that we must swallow. It is to be hoped that Sri Lanka's foreign friends don't merely proffer carrots but also use some stick in Tokyo. The US has certainly been helpful up to now with Ambassador Ashley Wills being outspoken in much of what he has said in Colombo about Tiger behaviour. It's a pity that he is ending his assignment here shortly. Hopefully his successor will understand the situation as well as he has. Finally it must be said that if the kind of money that is being spoken about is obtained from the donor community, we have to get our act together in efficiently utilizing such resources. The LTTE certainly has a point that government's delivery of whatever has been on offer to the war devastated areas has been pathetically poor. We certainly have no doubt that given their summary methods ("shoot the rogues"),the Tigers will do a better job of getting the reconstruction and rehabilitation work done much more efficiently than the government. But the doubt that will not down is whether they will use some of that money to further militarize for the ultimate putsch. End block quotes. --- Sister paper DIVAINA's editorial headline, "Interim admin bait," asserts that the Tigers do not want funds "for the development of the north and east. it is for the benefit of a handful [of Tiger leaders]." Excerpts: "It is surprising that everybody is making such a tremendous effort to get the participation of a world's most brutal terrorist organization at the aid conference... How can they be treated on equal terms with a democratic government? Will the monies be snatched by the Tigers who claim to be representing the marginalized Tamil communities in the north and east? At the end of the day it is those who suffer who will have to pay back these debts... "The LTTE is shredding crocodile tears for the Tamils .but are not prepared to lay down their arms, to renounce terrorism. "Any wise person will realize that the Tigers have vested interests. We know that Anton Balasingham is not working with genuine interest-he wants the money not for the development of the north and east.it is for the benefit of a handful of [Tiger leaders]." -------------- ¶5. Independent media reaction -------------- Independent media coverage of Tokyo was skeptical. A subheadline in independent Sinhala weekly LANKADEEPA's headline asked, "Are tigers getting ready for another fiasco after declaring non participation in the confab?" Editorial commentary exhorted the government to address the LTTE's integration into Sri Lankan politics and corruption. --- Under the editorial headline, "Tell It Like It Is," independent but pro-UNP English weekly SUNDAY LEADER pressed Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe to "go the whole hog" in his attempt to "genuinely to bring the Tigers into the mainstream of the Sri Lankan polity." Block quotes: Clearly, the rose which Wickremesinghe calls an 'apex body' does not smell as sweet to Balasingham as an 'interim administration.' The nuance, though lost on the LTTE's Chief Negotiator, is not irrelevant. "In rejecting Wickremesinghe's elaborately-worded offer of an apex committee to oversee north east development, Balasingham did not mince his words. He pointed to the inefficiency and corruption of the administration in words that must have made the Premier wince. And the tragedy is, every word is true. If Wickremesinghe is serious in his attempt genuinely to bring the Tigers into the mainstream of the Sri Lankan polity, and not just play for time until the rebels are weak enough to demolish militarily (which they might justifiably suspect is his plan),he must match his words with action. The LTTE must be given incentives to join the political mainstream and involving them in an interim administration is the key to this. In its 2001 manifesto, the UNF promised an interim administration for the north and east. Now, Wickremesinghe is edging away from that ideal, talking about some nebulous committee. This will not do. At some point in a nation's history, statesmen, not political fudgers, have to take strong decisions. That's what leadership is about. Polls have shown that the overwhelming majority of Sri Lankans as a whole and the Tamils as a group, are in favour of a negotiated settlement. It showed that over 90 per cent of Tamils were in favour of a federal solution. If that is not the surest message that the demand for a separate state is a thing of the past, what is? Wickremesinghe has committed the nation to peace, the welfare of the Tamil people, a negotiated settlement and the transfer of significant political authority to the LTTE. He must go the whole hog. Ranil Wickremesinghe must take the nation (including the LTTE) into his confidence. There is simply no point in elaborate wordplay and a deft euphemism: that will fool no one. Let's dispense with the committees and red tape and get down to business. Even if he can't do it, surely he can tell it like it is. End block quotes. --- Under the headline, "Get on with it," independent English weekly SUNDAY TIMES calls on the government to address both the LTTE and corruption, "the foreign monies pumped into the system must trickle down to as many ordinary people as possible if all this hullabaloo about the Tokyo 'aid' conference is to be meaningful to the ordinary folks at home." Block quotes: The LTTE has made a spectacle of itself to the international community. It has not been able to resolve the power-struggle between those who want a negotiated settlement, and the military-wing mandarins who see their own spheres of influence waning if there is a transition to peace. While the LTTE sorts itself out, however, the Government must keep an eye on its own defence mechanism. Irrespective of the LTTE's own idiosyncrasies of the moment, the Government must get on with it, and forge a coherent policy that concentrates on the economic development of the entire country. In this backdrop of events, the Government will need to be cautious that reeking corruption in high places and monopolies by a handful of people, who are siphoning their profits to bank accounts overseas, does not boomerang on itself by way of social disorder and revolution. And for now, there must be accelerate job creation through public investment projects; more ordinary people need more money in their hands- and all the foreign monies pumped into the system must trickle down to as many ordinary people as possible if all this hullabaloo about the Tokyo 'aid' conference is to be meaningful to the ordinary folks at home, in the first place. End block quotes. AMSELEM