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Govt-LTTE talks between Sept 12-17

by Ranga Jayasuriya

The Government and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) will hold formal talks in Thailand between September 12 and 17, the Norwegian Foreign Ministry announced last night.

The Norwegian government will announce the exact date on which the talks will begin.

The decision on the dates was taken at yesterday's two-hour discussion between Economic Reforms Minister Milinda Moragoda and LTTE Chief Negotiator Anton Balasingham in Oslo. They bestowed the Norwegians with authority to fix a date between September 12 and 17.

The talks were described as "cordial and constructive" by the Norwegian facilitators.

The implementation of the Ceasefire Agreement including the situation in the High Security Zones, the resettlement of Internally Displaced Persons and the release of detainees also figured in the meeting, the Norwegian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.

Minister Moragoda was accompanied by Director General of the Peace Secretariat Ambassador Bernard Gunatilake, while Balasingham was flanked by his wife Adele.

Norwegian Deputy Foreign Minister Vidar Helgesen, Special advisor to the Norwegian Foreign Ministry Erik Solheim, Norwegian Ambassador to Sri Lanka Jon Westborg and advisor Lisa Golden were also present in the meeting.

Sri Lanka Monitoring Mission Chief Gen (Rtd) Trond Furuhovde took part in the talks when the Ceasefire Agreement was discussed.

The LTTE agreed to investigate issues relating to the recruitment of child cadres and alleged abductions and take necessary remedial measures. Both parties welcomed the upcoming visit of Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, Olara Otunnu, to the North-East.

Yesterday's meeting was the second such meeting within a fortnight between Balasingham and Moragoda. They met on July 27 at the Norwegian Ambassador's residence in London.

Following the talks, both parties met Norwegian Foreign Minister Jan Petersen who commended the Lankan government and the LTTE for their agreement on starting talks in Thailand.

He has said that the agreement on the dates demonstrates that they are "working together in a highly constructive spirit to resolve issues and take the peace process forward".

Meanwhile, Britain welcomed Wednesday a Norwegian-brokered agreement between Sri Lanka and the LTTE to start formal peace talks next month.

"Direct talks between the two parties is a significant step forward and has our full backing," Foreign Office Minister Peter Hain said in a statement.

"I applaud the considerable progress made towards a peaceful settlement of the conflict in Sri Lanka, and urge both sides to continue their efforts to ensure that talks start in September."

"I pay tribute to both sides for the hard work they have undertaken to bring this about, and to the Norwegians for the important role they have played in facilitating these talks," he said.

"We continue to encourage both sides to work towards a negotiated settlement that meets the aspirations of all communities."

The two sides signed a breakthrough ceasefire agreement on February 22. Norway has been acting as facilitator in the peace process for the past three years. 

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