OFFICIAL INFORMAL NUMBER 87 (06-09-03)

C O N F I D E N T I A L COLOMBO 000992

SIPDIS


OFFICIAL INFORMAL


DEPARTMENT FOR SA/INS

E.O. 12958: DECL: 06-09-13
TAGS: CE MV AGMT LTTE
SUBJECT: OFFICIAL INFORMAL NUMBER 87 (06-09-03)

Classified by CDA Lewis Amselem, Reasons 1.5 (b,d)

CONTENTS: LATEST RE TOKYO

LATEST RE TOKYO
--------------
(C) Sri Lanka is relatively quiet today (June 9),with
precious little reaction just yet to the goings on at the
Tokyo donors conference. We expect that reaction will
begin to flow in soon, as the speeches given and pledges
made at Tokyo net wider press play here. (Note: Re local
press reaction to events thus far, please see our media
reaction cables.) In the meantime, we just wanted to flag
the following peace process-related issues:

-- Chief Tiger Negotiator Anton Balasingham was quoted on
the pro-LTTE website "TamilNet" on June 6 as saying that
discussions re an interim structure in the north/east
could only proceed on the basis of "specific and
concrete" proposals from the GSL because "mere intent"
was not enough. Balasingham's comments were clearly
foreshadowing Prime Minister Wickremesinghe's June 9
remarks at Tokyo in which he promised to discuss forming
an interim structure with "significant" Tiger control.
(Note: FYI. The Ops Center called about all the wire
service stories highlighting the PM's June 9 comments re
an interim structure as some sort of dramatic development
that would change the situation here ipso facto. We
provided the Ops Center the context, stressing that the PM
was indeed reaching out to the Tigers. We noted, however,
that the key point was how the Tigers reacted to the offer
from this point forward and that based on Balasingham's
June 6 comments it was not clear whether a positive
response from the group was in the offing soon. Our
comments to the Ops Center were cc'ed to SA/INS.)

-- According to press reports, a Buddhist religious
ceremony held in Tokyo June 8 in honor of the PM's visit
was marred by three young Sri Lankans creating a
commotion. (Note: It was not precisely clear whether the
PM was in attendance when this incident occurred.) The
three suspects, described as "staying illegally" in
Japan, had alleged links to the radical Janantha Vimukthi
Peramuna (JVP). The youths reportedly criticized the
peace process loudly and accused the temple leader of
taking one million rupees (approximately USD 10,000) from
the GSL. The three men then reportedly tried to assault
some monks present at the ceremony. The three are
reported to be currently enjoying the hospitality of a
Japanese jail, which probably does not involve a lot of
sushi and sake.

-- Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe is reportedly to
receive TIME Magazine's "Asian Hero" award on June 11 at
a ceremony in Japan. In a press statement, TIME said the
PM was selected for "standing up to his President" in
regard to the peace process with the Tamil Tigers. TIME
went on to state that its "Asian Heroes" exemplified
"extraordinary courage, charisma and genius" that
enabled winners to make a "big difference" in their
societies or fields. (Note: By the way, in addition to
Wickremesinghe, we understand that over 10 other well-
known Asians are receiving a similar award from TIME this
year.)

-- And, in the back-at-home department, two people were
killed over the weekend in the eastern part of the
country. In the first incident, which took place in
Batticaloa on June 6, a former member of the anti-LTTE
EPDP party and his 15-month old daughter were killed when
a grenade exploded. In a second incident, unidentified
gunmen shot and killed an EPDP member on June 7 in
Trincomalee. As with many such killings in past weeks
(see Colombo 735, for example),the Tigers seem to be the
culprits, though no one was caught and the group has not
taken credit. (POL)


AMSELEM