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US support for peace process

US Deputy Secretary of State Richard Armitage's presence in Northern Sri Lanka, provided all the necessary proof that the US is solidly behind the current peace process. Going on record as the highest ranking US official to visit Sri Lanka in twenty years, Armitage clearly outlined the cooperative nature of current US-Lanka ties when he said that US backing for the Lankan peace process was a response to the support this country offered the US in its struggle against terrorism.

The US Deputy Secretary of State lucidly clarified the status of the US in the Lankan peace effort when he said that his country would not be taking the place of a party, whose responsibility it is to negotiate peace - that is the Sinhalese, the Tamils or the Muslims. Accordingly, there is no question of the US involving itself in the peace process, which is the responsibility of the Lankan people. Peace, in other words, is a matter for the Lankan people, but the US would be offering its moral support for the process. This position, which is eminently sensible, is likely to win the acceptance of all local parties to the conflict; unless there are among the local parties, some who are incurably xenophobic.

Besides, Armitage was emphatic that the US would encourage the establishment of peace through a negotiated political settlement. In other words, Lankans would be the makers of their own destiny while the US would be forthcoming with its moral support for the peace process.

Hopefully, the elucidation of the US position in this context wouldn't provide a pretext for any local party to conjure the bogey of "external interference" - a hackneyed slogan which has outlived its usefulness in the current world order which emphasizes interdependence and cooperation. When seen against the backdrop of the US-led struggle against global terror, however, the presence of the top Bush administration official here could be seen as the Western world's strong disapproval of coercive and terror tactics in the resolution of disputes which are essentially political in nature.

With such sound moral support at their disposal it is now left for the local parties to the conflict to forge strongly ahead to a just and durable settlement. We are glad that Government-LTTE contacts are continuing on bringing normalcy to the North-East in the run-up to the talks proper in Thailand. It is important that the economic dimension is kept in focus by the main parties to the conflict and it is encouraging to learn that Peace Secretariat head, Bernard Gunatilleke, would be taking up the question of launching development projects in the North-East with LTTE political wing chief Tamil Chelvam.

These moves need to be, ideally, synchronised with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe's efforts to increase the life chances and prospects of Lanka's youth in collaboration with some South Indian states. In proportion to the stepping up of the peace effort, youths in every part of Sri Lanka need to see their intellectual and employment horizons widen invitingly. It is the perception among the younger generation of Lankans in particular that there are productive and viable alternatives to violence and destructive politics which would help greatly in stabilizing the peace process. In other words, the peace dividend must be very much in evidence.

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